“Perhaps if you were to tell her that I need her—do you think that would change her mind?”
“No, I don’t think so,” she answered in a whisper. He had talked about need but hadn’t said anything about love, except when he told her about Morning Song.
Tag dropped her hand and stood up, crossing the room. When he reached the door, he turned back to her. “Think about what I said, Alex.” With those as his parting words, he opened the door and slipped quietly out into the hallway.
Alexandria stared at the closed door for a long moment. Too many thoughts were whirling around in her mind for her to make any sense of their conversation. She knew now why he wanted to marry her…because she had been untouched when she first went to him. He was the kind of man who held honor above all else, and she wasn’t about to take advantage of his kindness.
She got out of bed and walked over to the window. Pushing the curtains aside, she gazed out on the grounds below. She wished there was someone she could turn to for advice, but there wasn’t. She sat down in a chair and leaned her head against the padded back. She reminded herself that she was her mother’s daughter, and that gave her the courage to do what she knew she must. Alexandria knew that before too long she would have to leave. Tonight had been proof that she had taken unfair advantage of Falcon’s generosity.
She moved to the bed and lay down. Yes, her mind was mind up. She would leave tomorrow. When she left it would very difficult, but she must not weaken.
She clasped her hands tightly together, praying for the courage she would need tomorrow.
Chapter Eighteen
Taggart stepped out of the carriage and pulled the collar of his gray coat about his neck to protect himself from the downpouring rain.
“Wait for me, I won’t be long,” he told his coachman as he walked up the steps to the drab gray stone building. He waited for the answer to his knock and looked about the neighborhood with distaste. In spite of the rain, pathetically ragged children were wading in the stream of water that ran down the cobblestone street.
Tag saw a woman peep through the tattered and soiled curtain at the window, and almost immediately the door was thrown open. The woman, who stared at him open-mouthed, wore a soiled and dingy apron. Her brown hair, which had been drawn back into a bun, had slipped from its pins and streamed down her face.
“If you’re selling something, I ain’t buying,” she said, eyeing the fancily dressed gentleman suspiciously.
“To the contrary, madam. I wish to buy something.”
“Huh?” she asked, still suspicious. “What would the likes of me have that a fine gentleman like yourself would want to buy?”
“First, allow me to introduce myself to you. I am Falcon Knight, and I am interested in purchasing a farm in Valley Forge by the name of Meadowlake.”
The woman’s face eased into a grin. “Are you now?” she asked, pushing a wisp of hair back off her forehead. “Well, Meadowlake ain’t mine to sell. It belongs to my sister.”
“Would you mind if I stepped in out of the rain so I could ask you some questions?”
She looked behind him and saw the fine coach and six he had arrived in and nodded. “I reckon as how it’ll be all right,” she said, moving aside so he could enter.
Tag stepped into the dimly lit hallway and ran his hand through his damp hair. “May I ask your name, madam?”
“Name’s Mrs. Annabelle Norris, but you’ll be wanting to talk to my sister, Barbara Bradford. She ain’t here just now. She took her son in to see the doctor.”
Annabelle had never before talked to such a fine gentleman. She and her sister Barbara had been raised in Marysville, on a street very much like this one. While Barbara had been married to Mr. Bradford, she had never introduced him to her poor relations. Barbara had taught herself how to speak properly and knew all the niceties in life, while Annabelle had married a poor seaman and had never tried to better herself.
Tag watched the woman’s face carefully. “I’m sorry to hear that, Mrs. Norris. Is her son ill?”
“He were for a time. Got burnt real bad a while back, but he’s about as fit as rain now.”
“That is fortunate. A burn can be serious if it gets infected. How did he come to be burned?”
The woman’s laughter crackled out. “He had woman trouble. I told my sister she shouldn’t fool around with that fancy piece that was her stepdaughter. The girl had been spoiled all her life by a doting father. My sister tried to be a mother to her, but Alexandria would have none of it. The girl was rebellious and strong-willed. My poor nephew, Rodney, offered to marry her, but that little tart threw a lamp at him, and it nearly caused his death. As it is, much of his body was burned real bad. He has one bad scar on his face, and his hair was all singed off, but it’s very near grown back now.”
“When do you expect Mrs. Bradford to return?”
“It ain’t easy to say. But I can tell you this right now—my sister can’t sell you Meadowlake.”
“Why is that?” Tag asked, delighted that he was finding Mrs. Norris to be a wealth of information.
“’Cause it don’t belong to them. It belongs to Alexandria—that stepdaughter of my sister’s. Seems her grandfather left it to her all legal and proper.”
“Then perhaps she is the one I need to talk to. Where can I find her?”
“Well, as to that, I just wouldn’t know. She done went and took off. My sister has the law searching for her, but they ain’t turned nothing up yet. I can tell you this much, though, if they do find her, she won’t be in any condition to sell you nothing. My sister is going to have her committed to an asylum.”
“I see. Perhaps I had better forget about buying Meadowlake, then. I have no intentions of getting myself mixed up in family problems.”
“Yes, it’s just as well, Mr. Knight. My nephew fancies himself a farmer and wouldn’t want to be parting with Meadowlake anyhow.”
“But, according to you, Meadowlake doesn’t belong to him,” Tag reminded her.
The woman’s laughter crackled out. “That don’t make no never mind. When they find that ungrateful Alexandria, they’ll most likely have her committed, and my sister, as her guardian, will have full control of Meadowlake.”
“I see,” Tag said, realizing what Alexandria had run away from. He had gained all the information he needed. Alexandria’s stepbrother hadn’t died, and Tag saw that with very little trouble she could be cleared of any charges they may have brought against her. “I thank you for your time, Mrs. Norris. I find that I’m not interested in buying Meadowlake, after all. You understand?”
“Yes, of course. It was good to talk to a fine gentleman like yourself. We don’t get many like you down here on Front Street.”
“I can assure you the pleasure was all mine, Mrs. Norris. I found you to be very informative,” he said, bowing slightly and taking his leave.
When Tag was outside, he noticed it had stopped raining, and he breathed in a breath of fresh air. His heart felt light, knowing Alexandria’s problems could easily be solved by a good lawyer.
As he started to get into the coach, he noticed a sailor standing across the street. There would have been nothing unusual in this, except that when the man saw Tag watching him, he faded into the shadows. Tag knew that would be the man who had been watching him so closely. He was of half a mind to cross the street and confront the man. He reconsidered when he saw the sailor disappear around the corner. Tag knew it would be futile to try to catch up with him, since the man had such a head start on him.
It was beginning to bother him more than a little that his every move was being watched. The only one he could think of who might be responsible was Claudia. If it was she who had hired the man to follow him, he would have to take care not to do anything that she might find suspicious.
Alexandria found Farley at the kitchen table sampling a hot apple pie Mrs. Green had just taken from the oven. After she wished Farley and Mrs. Green a good morning, she sat down across from the old m
an and watched him bite into a plump slice of the apple pie. Refusing a slice of pie herself, she watched as Mrs. Green left the kitchen to attend to the cleaning of the upstairs bedrooms.
“Where is Falcon this morning, Farley?”
“I don’t rightly know. He ordered the coach brought ’round front bright and early, saying he was going to visit somebody who lives on Front Street.”
Alexandria felt fear encircle her heart, knowing without a doubt that Falcon had gone to see her stepmother, Barbara. Horrible thoughts went through her mind as she felt the heartbreak of being deceived. She had trusted Falcon in telling him about her trouble. How could he go behind her back to talk to Barbara?
“Are you quite sure Falcon said he was going to Front Street, Farley…could there be no mistake?” she asked, knowing the bitter taste of betrayal.
“Yep, leastwise that’s what I was told. Ifen you need to see him, I ’spect he’ll be home afore lunch,” the old man said, watching the color go out of Alex’s face. He was further puzzled when Alexandria got up from the table and ran out of the room.
Mrs. Green came back into the kitchen, staring back over her shoulder. “What’s wrong with that young lad? He pushed past me in the hall like the very devil was chasing after him. Has something upset him?”
“I don’t know, ma’am, but I can attest to this being the best apple pie I ever sunk my teeth into.”
Mrs. Green’s face brightened. “I like cooking for them that appreciates it, Mr. Farley.”
Alexandria threw only a few of her meager belongings into the middle of the bed and wrapped them in a bedsheet. Realizing she wouldn’t get very far without money, she slipped out of her bedroom and went to Falcon’s room. She was relieved to find some money lying on the top of his dressing table. Picking up a quill and paper, she scribbled him a quick note, then dashed back to her room to pick up her belongings.
Slipping silently down the stairs, she left through the back door, keeping the hedge between herself and the house, hoping no one would see her leave. Bitter tears of anguish washed down her face as she reached the roadway and headed toward town.
At the moment, Alexandria didn’t know what she would do or where she would go, but she now knew she wasn’t even safe disguised as a boy. After walking for a while, she began to think more clearly. She wanted to believe that Falcon had not betrayed her. If anything, he had probably gone to see Barbara to try and help Xandra. Falcon couldn’t have known the kind of person Barbara was. Alexandria suspected that before the day was out, her stepmother would come to the house to take her away and no one could save her. Alexandria had never known that one could hurt so badly from a broken heart.
When she reached the bottom of the hill, she crossed the road and shifted her heavy bundle to her opposite shoulder. She would never trust a man again as long as she lived, she thought bitterly. Alexandria wiped the tears from her eyes, feeling an overwhelming sense of loss. She loved Falcon so much, and she knew she would miss seeing him every day.
Alexandria wondered where she would go. The future looked dark and bleak to her now. She had no friends and nowhere to turn. She considered, for a moment, returning to Meadowlake, then realized that would be too dangerous. She would have to rely on her own wits to survive, and she was determined to do just that!
When Tag returned home, he ran up the stairs, taking them two at a time, calling Alex’s name. He was anxious to tell her that her stepbrother wasn’t dead at all. He wanted her to know that he would soon engage a lawyer who would help her in her fight against her stepmother and stepbrother.
In his haste to see her, Tag opened Alexandria’s bedroom door without knocking—he found the room empty. Seeing the floor littered with clothes and the bed in disarray, he was puzzled. Alex was usually so neat.
After questioning Mrs. Green about Alex’s whereabouts, he was no closer to finding her. It wasn’t until he talked to Farley that he discovered how strangely Alex had acted after Farley had told her where Tag had gone that morning. A thorough search was made of the grounds but still there was no sign of her.
By midafternoon, Tag went to his room and found the note Alexandria had propped against his pillow. Opening it, he read it quickly:
Dear Falcon,
By the time you read this I will be gone. On learning from Farley that you were visiting my stepmother, I felt I had to get away. I took some money I found lying on your dressing table, but I didn’t steal it. As soon as I am able, I will pay you back in full. So you won’t think me ungrateful, I thank you for taking care of me in the past. I do not thank you for betraying me to Barbara. I hope you will be successful in your endeavor to restore what rightfully belongs to you.
Alex
Tag swore angrily and wadded the paper up, throwing it to the floor. “We’ll just see, Alex!” he said aloud, walking to the door and calling for Farley.
All that day, Tag and Farley searched the places they thought Alexandria might have gone. They even returned to the Fox and Hound Inn and questioned Molly, but she swore she hadn’t set eyes on the boy since they had moved away.
When darkness fell, it began to rain again. Tag was almost frantic in his search. He could imagine all sorts of horrible things happening to Alexandria. It was after midnight when Farley finally convinced him to return home and renew the search in the morning.
Tag sat by his bedroom window, listening to the rain patter against the windowpane. He prayed that Alexandria was somewhere where she would be safe and dry. He cursed himself for not telling her what he had been trying to accomplish by going to see her stepmother.
Tag placed his hand wearily over his eyes. He hadn’t realized until today how much Alexandria meant to him. If anything should happen to her, he would never forgive himself. He would miss the sound of her laughter as Alex, and he would miss the nights she had come to him as Xandria.
“Damn you, Alex!” he called out. “I would thrash you if I could get my hands on you!”
When the sun came up, Tag and Farley renewed their search, but with the same results as the day before. No one they asked had seen a young boy leaving the house or grounds. It was as if Alexandria had disappeared without a trace!
By now Tag was frantic. He didn’t know where to go to find her. All he could hope for now was that she would come to her senses and return to him on her own.
Blackfoot Territory
A warm breeze stirred the leaves on the tall cottonwood trees that grew beside the Milk River. Windhawk guided his horse through the waters of the river, riding at a fast pace. When he reached his lodge, he dismounted, threw the flap aside and entered. Inside he hung his weapons from the lodgepole. Seeing Joanna sitting on the bearskin rug, he crossed the room to stand over her. His dark eyes settled on her flaming hair, and he was awed by the tenderness that surrounded his heart at the sight of her nursing Tag and Morning Song’s baby. Bending down beside her, he took the baby’s hand in his.
“Morning Song’s daughter seems to thrive on your milk, Joanna. It is a good thing that you have enough milk to feed both her and our daughter.”
Joanna laid her hand on her husband’s hand. “She is so tiny, I just want to hold and protect her from anything that would hurt her. I do not think it would be possible to love her more if she were my own daughter. Look how much the little princess resembles our own daughter. If they were the same size, many could not tell them apart.”
Windhawk’s dark eyes sought Joanna’s, and she saw the troubled expression in their dark depth. “It is not good that you feel too deeply for this child, Joanna. The day will come when your brother will want her to be with him. When that day comes, it will tear at your heart.”
“I know what you say is true, Windhawk, but I will face that when it comes. For now, she needs all the love I can give her.”
Windhawk bent his head and kissed the child on her soft cheek. “It is as you say. I, too, feel as if she is a child of my body. In her, I feel as if I can hold on to a little part of Morning Song.”
The baby cooed contentedly, drawn into the circle of love that encased her small, secure world. The love Windhawk and Joanna had for their own two children was such that it included her.
Later, Joanna walked down by the river and stared toward the horizon. Each day, she watched for her brother’s return. The hardest thing she had to endure was the waiting, the not knowing if Tag was safe. She knew her Uncle Howard could be a very dangerous man, and Tag had no one but Farley to help him. Many times in the past months, Joanna wished that she had gone back to Philadelphia with Tag.
She watched until the sun went down, and then turned her footsteps back to the lodge, knowing that the next day she would again return to the river to watch for Tag.
Chapter Nineteen
Alexandria sat in the outer office of the employment agency, running her hand nervously down the seam of her gray gown. She pushed her hair off her neck, hoping to find some relief from the heat. Since she was alone in the room, she lifted her skirt just enough to show the white ruffles on her petticoat and wrinkled her nose in distaste at the heavy brown shoes on her feet. The cobbler who had sold her the shoes had called them a sensible style, and she could think of no better word to describe them. The long-sleeved gray gown she wore was not what one would call stylish, but then she was applying for a position as a maid and hoped she would look the part. Her one other gown was packed in a scarf and rested on the seat next to her. She was weary of pretending to be someone she wasn’t and had decided to use her own name. She didn’t think it very likely that Barbara would find her if she were employed as a maid. Barbara would have no reason to come to the better side of Philadelphia.
Alexandria still felt pangs of guilt for taking Falcon’s money, but she needed enough to live on until she could find employment and support herself. She vowed to herself that as soon as possible she would pay him back every cent.
At that moment, a stern-faced woman wearing wire-rimmed glasses opened the inner door and motioned for Alexandria to enter the room. Gathering up her belongings and swallowing the lump of fear in her throat, she complied. The woman made what was supposed to be a smile, but to Alexandria it appeared more of a grimace.
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