An Obsessive Bride

by Elliee Atkinson

  Agatha brought the horse to a halt near Gabe and he instinctively reached up to grab the bit and settle the horse. She slid down from it and moved close to give him a hug.

  He reacted with revulsion, stepping away from her, letting go of the horse. “What are you doing?”

  She looked up at him with innocent eyes. “I missed you, Gabe. I thought you would miss me, too. People in town are talking. They’re talking about you.”

  He scowled at her, taking another step back when she tried to come near him. “I know they are. That’s why I’m out here. You’ve been telling people stories about me. You don’t even know the truth.”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about now. I haven’t been saying anything about you.”

  Gabe looked at her in shock. “Wh… what?”

  She raised her eyebrows and gave him her best innocent look. “I don’t know what you’re talking about Gabe. I heard something this morning when I was on my way to church and I just started talking about it like everyone else. I thought you had told everyone so that I wouldn’t be able to hold anything over your head. I didn’t say anything.”

  Gabe felt rage building up inside him. He didn’t believe a word she was saying. She said it with such conviction, he knew she was convinced she was telling the truth. She believed her own lies.

  “You are a witch, Agatha. I don’t want anything to do with you. I don’t care if you missed me and I can tell you for certain I didn’t miss you. You need to get back up on your horse and leave my cousin’s farm before I have to forcibly remove you.”

  Agatha grinned. “You can’t do that. I’ll just tell everyone how I came out here to console you and you attacked me. Just like you attacked that man in Kentucky. They will believe me because you already proved you’re a violent man.”

  Gabe shook his head. “No, you’re wrong. I’m not a violent man. However, if you push me too far, I will have to be. And you can say what you will. Those who know me best will stand with me.”

  With a snort, Agatha pulled the reins of the horse and began walking toward the porch. Gabe moved to stand in her way.

  “Where do you think you’re going? You can’t come inside. You aren’t even welcome on the lawn. You need to turn around and leave.”

  “Not until we have settled things.”

  He held his hands clenched into fists at his sides. He wasn’t going to punch her. At that moment, he knew what kind of rage would make a man punch a woman. However, he wouldn’t make himself into Jack. He couldn’t do it, no matter how insane Agatha had become.

  “Settled things? What is there to settle?”

  Agatha looked up at him with wide eyes. “I know you are just hiding your true feelings for me, Gabe. I can tell. You don’t really want that blond harlot, do you? You’re too smart for that. You’re too good for her.”

  Gabe was having trouble keeping his temper in check. He pictured himself picking Agatha up, throwing her over the back of her horse and making the horse run from the house. He had to hold himself back from doing just that.

  “You really need to leave, Agatha,” he growled. “We have nothing to settle. There is nothing between us. We lived in the same hotel for a very short time. That’s all. You’ve never meant anything to me and you never will.”

  She shook her head. “Oh, Gabe, I don’t believe you. I know you don’t want to admit to the truth.”

  Suddenly, a helpless feeling came over Gabe. No matter what he said or how he said it, the woman was not going to believe him. She was going to persist until he had to take charge. If he took charge, she might get hurt. He didn’t know if he could hold his temper in.

  She took a few steps toward him and he backed up. He held up his hands. “You aren’t coming in here. You aren’t coming in.”

  “I want to talk to you. Inside.”

  He shook his head, spreading his arms wide so she couldn’t pass him. “You aren’t coming in, Agatha. You need to turn around and take your horse back to the hotel. If you’re smart, you’ll pack your bags and get out of town. Do you think the people of Wickenburg are stupid? You told so many fabrications and versions of my story, everyone will know you lied. All they have to do is talk to each other. Do you think those people don’t talk to each other?”

  Agatha stared up at him, standing still. He noticed she had bright color in her cheeks but the rest of her face had gone pale. Her eyes had widened and her jaw was slack. “I… I wasn’t telling stories. I was… I was just going along with what I heard from other people.”

  Gabe shook his head. He knew it was pointless to keep trying but he couldn’t help it. Clearly, she had lost her mind. “Agatha. It doesn’t matter what you say to me right now. All of my friends have been discussing what they heard from you. From you, Agatha. And you can’t convince me that you don’t know what I’m talking about because I know you do.”

  Agatha took another step toward him. He sighed and looked up, saying a silent prayer for strength. “I don’t want to hurt you, Agatha. Go. Go now. Before my cousin gets back. I can’t promise he won’t hurt you.”

  “He isn’t going to hurt me.” Agatha’s confidence returned. She released the reins and came toward him at a rapid pace, making contact before he could back away. She wrapped her arms around him and held on tight.

  “Good Lord.” Gabe tried to pry her off of him. He’d had women desperately in love with him before. Nevertheless, he’d never had one that wanted to be attached to him. He tried to pry her off him and was surprised by how strong her grip was. “Agatha. My God, let me go, Agatha. I don’t want to be with you.”

  “Just relax, Gabe. Let your love come to me.”

  “Agatha, get off me.” He continued to pry at her slender arms, peeling her off of him only to have her reattach herself. He stumbled backward and righted them both just in time. He didn’t want to fall. She would be on top of him if he fell.

  He was dismayed when he looked up and saw another cloud of dust coming down the road. He didn’t want them finding him in such a compromising position. He had to think and act quickly.

  He relaxed and let her hug him. “I’m sorry, Agatha,” he said quietly. “I’m sure you are right. I’m sure you only did what you did because you care so much about me.”

  “I do, Gabe. You were keeping this secret in and even Claire didn’t know when I did. And I still cared about you, even knowing what you did. She wouldn’t care about you. I know she wouldn’t.”

  Gabe did everything he could not to protest and argue. He clenched his teeth and said, “I don’t know. But I know how much you care. I can see it in your eyes.”

  As he predicted, she pulled away so she could look up at him. He knew she would want him to look in her eyes right then to see just how much she loved him. As soon as she loosened her grip, he grabbed her arms and spun her around, pulling both hands behind her. She shrieked and struggled for a moment but the pain from the position he was holding her arms in prevented a lot of movement.

  “Why are you doing this to me, Gabe?” she cried out. “I thought you cared about me. I thought you loved me.”

  “That’s the problem, Agatha,” Gabe pulled the rope from his belt and put it around her, lassoing her like he would a horse. “I never said that. I never felt that. You just… you just can’t accept it.” He pulled gently on the rope and took her to the porch, tying the other side of the rope around the hitching post. “Now you stay here and be a good girl while I talk to the sheriff. He might have a few questions for you, too.”

  She shrieked again, pulling against the rope, trying to get her hands up so that she could untie it. He didn’t tell her to go over to the hitching post and untie it from there. He was depending on the fact that she wouldn’t think of it. She didn’t. She continued screaming and pulling against the rope, much to his amusement. Mark and Claire were the first ones to arrive. He looked appreciatively at his cousin when he saw his horse tied to the back of the wagon.

  He was amused when Claire didn’t bother
to wait for Mark to help her down from the wagon. She had seen Agatha and jumped down as soon as the wagon stopped.

  Claire’s eyes were focused directly on Agatha. Mark and Gabe stood motionless as Claire marched over to where Agatha was struggling with the rope. Agatha looked at Claire and screamed in her face.

  Without hesitation, Claire raised her hand and slapped Agatha across the cheek. Agatha was stunned into silence.

  “You be quiet.” Claire said in a smooth, firm voice. “Or that will only be the first of many slaps I will give you. You just be quiet.”

  Agatha opened her mouth. Claire raised her hand. Agatha promptly shut it.

  “You’ll pay for this, harlot,” Agatha hissed.

  Claire looked at the crazed woman with sympathy. She shook her head. “Look at you, Agatha,” she said quietly so the men wouldn’t hear. “You look terrible. Your hair has come out of all the pins and now it looks like you are a wild woman. Your face is drawn, your makeup has smeared. Do you expect anyone to take you seriously now?”

  Agatha struggled against the ropes some more but didn’t say anything. Claire looked down at the rope.

  “You can’t keep me tied up here like this. I’m not an animal!” Agatha cried out. Claire followed the rope with her eyes to the hitching post, where it was tied with a casual knot. She stared at it for a moment, comprehending the depths of Agatha’s mental problem. She looked back at Gabe, stepping just far enough away from Agatha that the woman couldn’t touch her. He looked back at her and shrugged.

  “It was the only thing I could think of to do.”

  Claire turned away from Agatha and walked back to look up at him. She had her back to Agatha. She leaned close to mumble, “But she can just untie herself from the hitching post. She can raise her arms at the elbows. What’s wrong with her?”

  “I think she has lost her mind.”

  “I think that’s clearly the case. What shall we do?”

  “Is the sheriff on his way?”

  “Yes, he’s right behind us. He’ll be here shortly.”

  Gabe nodded. “We’ll let him take care of her. Anyone can see she’s not in her right mind.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

  CLEAN SLATE

  CLEAN SLATE

  “This is quite a situation we have here,” Mark said, coming up to them, his eyes on Agatha. She had given up screaming and struggling. She dropped to her knees and then sat on the ground. Mark turned his eyes to Gabe. “I see you’ve taken care of it for now. I think the sheriff will be interested in seeing this.”

  “He’s coming right after us, isn’t he?” Claire asked. “I really thought he would have already been here. He was ahead of us.”

  “Gentry and Richie wanted to get their wagons, I think. Or their horses.”

  “Gentry and Richie?” Gabe said. “I don’t recognize those names.”

  Mark shook his head. “You wouldn’t.” He moved through the two of them and gestured for them to follow him. He continued to speak as they walked casually past Agatha, who was sitting on the ground, moaning, her head bobbing back and forth. The three of them walked up onto the porch, where Mark went to an iron chair and sat down. He pulled out a pipe and went about lighting it. “These are two men from town who have small children. They are very protective. They just need to see that you are a good man, that Agatha is a storyteller and that they don’t need to be afraid of you. They don’t want outlaws in Wickenburg.”

  “Who would want them in their town?” Claire asked. She looked up at Gabe. “Once they see her in that state and talk to you, the only concern they will have is what to do with Agatha. She’s never mentioned any relatives to me but I haven’t really talked to her very much. Not in any kind of pleasant way, anyway.”

  Gabe nodded, looked at the woman swaying back and forth on his cousin’s lawn. “I feel sorry for her.”

  Mark chuckled. “I’ll bet you’ve never had a woman that obsessed with you before, have you, Gabe?”

  “No. Never.” He shook his head. “I’ve had a lot of women interested. But none that acted like that. You don’t suppose I’m responsible for driving her insane, do you?”

  Mark raised one eyebrow. “And how would that work?”

  Gabe shrugged. “You know. I’m just too much for her to handle. You know, this.” He flexed his arm muscle. “And this.” He stuck out his chest. “And of course, this,” he swept his hand all around his face indicating he meant the entire thing. By that time, Claire and Mark were laughing, shaking their heads.

  “Oh Gabe!” Claire playfully slapped his arm. “You are such a hoot!”

  “Here they come,” Mark said, pointing with his pipe. “Glad they are almost here. I don’t want to watch Agatha like that anymore. I didn’t know her at all but I’ve seen her in the Horse N Saddle and the woman has always been unstable.”

  “You’re right about that,” Gabe said. He looked down at Claire. “Remember the first day? She fainted and then drank all my whiskey.”

  Claire nodded. “I do remember that. It was a little frightening for me. Then I realized she was struggling with something I couldn’t possibly help her with. And when she became obsessed with you,” she looked up at Gabe affectionately. “I just didn’t know what to do, Gabe.”

  “You don’t have to worry about it now.”

  Claire looked at the wagons as they got closer. “I’m going to go inside and make some tea for everyone if that’s all right with you, Mark. I’m sure I can find what I need.”

  “I’m sure you can. And there’s some in the icebox already if you want to get it out.”

  She nodded, turning to go inside. As she turned, she caught a glimpse of Agatha. The woman had stopped swaying and was looking at the wagons as they approached. She didn’t look like she had the energy to do anymore screaming. Even if she did, Claire didn’t want to be there to see it.

  She went through the doors, giving Gabe one last look. He was staring out at the approaching wagons. She remembered his profile, picturing it in her head as she went through the house to the kitchen. He was the most handsome man she had ever seen. She was so blessed to have his love.

  She went about the motions of making the tea, trying not to think about what the sheriff and the other men were doing. Would they try to take Gabe away? She nervously poured the tea into glasses, noticing her hands were shaking. She didn’t want to lose Gabe. Not now.

  She silently prayed as she poured the tea, asking God to forgive Gabe and to put forgiveness and understanding in the hearts of the men in charge. Please don’t let them take him from me now, God, she prayed, replacing the tea container in the icebox. Not when I’ve only just found him.

  She turned and picked up the tray, taking it carefully out to the door. She set it on the table by the door so that she had a hand free to open the door. She held it open with her foot and picked up the tray again.

  She passed through the front door, hoping she would see something good.

  It was quiet and peaceful. Mark and Gabe were sitting on the porch with Mr. Gentry and Mr. Richie. The sheriff and Agatha were gone.

  Gabe and Mark stood up when she came out. Gabe reached over and took the tray from her, setting it on the iron table in between the chairs. “Thank you, Claire. Here, please sit down, love. You don’t have to do anything. Sit back and relax. Enjoy some tea.”

  Claire looked at the two men she didn’t know with nervous eyes as she sat down. Mr. Richie smiled at her. “You look very worried, my dear. Don’t be. We have settled our beef with Mr. Stapleton. It was obvious when we saw Agatha… well, the woman is not in her right mind.”

  Mr. Gentry nodded. “We welcome him to our town. I didn’t know him before, but I knew his father when I was a very young man.” He turned his eyes to Gabe. “You have a good family, Gabe. I’m glad to have you here. We’ll clear things up with everyone in town.”

  “I hope there won’t be a need to parade Agatha through the streets,” Gabe said. Claire looked up at him. “That woul
d hardly be fair. You don’t think the sheriff will do that, do you?” He looked at Mark for his answer. His cousin shook his head.

  “No. Sheriff’s not like that. He’s a good man. He’ll be gentle with her. You saw how he treated her when he took her out of here.”

  Gabe nodded. “He was very kind to her.”

  “She’s not the only lunatic we’ve had come through here.”

  “You really have got a lot more going on in this little town than I would have expected,” Gabe said. “If I’d known it was this exciting, I wouldn’t have left.”

  Mark chuckled. “There are a lot of things I’m sure you would be glad you missed.”

  Gabe leaned down and looked into Claire’s eyes. Her heartbeat quickened. She would have sworn the day heated up by ten degrees in an instant.

  “Would you like to go for a walk around the grounds with me, Claire?”

  She nodded. She couldn’t answer. She was breathless. She held up her hand and he took it, helping her stand. She set her tea glass back down on the tray, never taking her eyes from his. The two of them walked away from the men on the porch, who just watched with amused smiles.

  Claire felt warm with him next to her. She’d waited so many years to find a man she could talk to, laugh with, and have fun with. She knew they wouldn’t always get along but she was willing to do whatever it took to keep him happy.

  She looked up at him as they walked. “Are we going back to the cabin?”

  He turned his eyes to her and smiled affectionately. “That’s kind of a long walk. But we can. We’d just have to walk back.”

  “We could stay there.”

  He laughed. “Overnight? We just saved our reputations. Do we want to destroy them immediately afterward?”

  She giggled. “Yes, I suppose it would look terrible, even if we were respectful all night long.”

  “I won’t take advantage of you, Claire. I will respect you until the day we are married.” He let a short pause fill the conversation. When he spoke again, his voice was deep and smooth, making her body light up with chills. “We are getting married, aren’t we?”