Free to Forgive

by Susette Williams

  Arguing with him wouldn’t do any good—he was right.

  He pushed the horses, trying to keep pace enough with the sheriff who rode out ahead of them. By the time they stopped outside the train station, Sheriff Daniels cautioned them to stay back for their own safety.

  Aida tried, really she did, but fear propelled her forward and she burst into Franklin’s office right behind the sheriff. “Where is he?”

  Franklin’s eyebrow raised. “Where is who?”

  “Trey,” Aida spat. “I know you took him and so help me if you hurt him, I’ll…” She didn’t know what she’d do, but she’d do something. Her eyes misted. Then she saw the other door. He had a storage room there if she remembered correctly. He could be hiding her husband there. She hurried across the room and opened the door. “Ah, ha.”

  “Ah, ha?” He chuckled and leaned back in his chair. “Did you find something?”

  She looked in the room. Other than a small wooden table, a chair and a hammer and nails, there wasn’t anything, or anyone, in the room. Her heart sank.

  “You never did say, who are you looking for?” Franklin’s smug look didn’t fool her.

  But where was her husband?

  “Trey Lawton.” Sheriff Daniels hands clasped his gun belt. The way he eyed Franklin gave Aida the impression that he didn’t trust Franklin either. But what could they do? The sheriff tipped his hat. “We’ll let you get back to your business.”

  “Thank you,” Franklin said. “You know, he ran out on the little lady once before. Chances are he only used her to get out of jail and ran off again.”

  “Thanks for your time.” The sheriff tipped his hat as he walked out of Franklin’s office.

  Aida wanted to scream, but forced herself to remain calm as she followed the sheriff outside and down to the train platform. As soon as they were out of earshot, she took a stand in front of the sheriff. “Please tell me you’re not giving up.”

  “Don’t worry.” Sheriff Daniels motioned with his head toward a figure, who held a rope dangling from his hands as he emerged from an open freight car. He didn’t have on a hat, but there was no mistaking that strawberry blond hair.

  Gasping, Aida took off running toward him. When she reached him, she flung her arms around his neck.

  Trey clasped her waist and moved her aside. “I need to finish.”

  Aida followed his gaze. “The sheriff’s here. He’ll handle it.”

  Her words fell on deaf ears as Trey marched toward Franklin’s office. Before he got there, the sheriff came out with Franklin in handcuffs. Trey swung his left fist, impacting with Franklin’s jaw. Franklin stumbled backwards.

  As she caught up to them, she heard Trey’s threat, “You ever threaten my wife again and I will kill you.”

  “I’m apt to let him do it.” Sheriff Daniels smiled.

  Turning to her father, Trey clenched his fists. “Whether or not you like it, I’m in love with your daughter. We’re married and there’s nothing you can do about it.”

  “Not even congratulate you both?” Her father smiled. “My little girl loves you and I expect you to do all that you can to keep her happy.”

  Trey looked at Aida and smiled. “I’ll gladly spend the rest of my lifetime trying.”

  Aida’s heart melted. “I love you. I always have.”

  He took Aida in his arms and kissed her. A warm, hungry kiss like the way he used to, only this time, there was the promise of more to come—a lot more!

  “I think it’s time for us to go home, Mrs. Lawton.” Trey wiggled his eyebrows at her.

  Stepping on her tiptoes, Aida gently kissed his cheek near his ear and whispered, “I can’t wait to make this a real marriage.”

  Dear Reader,

  Thank you for reading Trey and Aida’s story. Life isn’t perfect, and sometimes we have a past we need to overcome when we open our hearts to God. Thankfully, God is faithful and forgives all who ask for forgiveness, even when at times it may be hard for us to forgive ourselves…or others. One thing I’ve learned over the years is that forgiveness is also for the one who has been offended, because if you hold onto unforgiveness it will make you bitter. Forgiving others sets you free.

  Leah and I have really enjoyed writing this series about the Freedom Brides program that we created. Thank you for reading our stories.

  As a special bonus, I am including the first novelette in my Mail Order Brides series, Jessie’s Bride. I hope you will enjoy it and continue to read the rest of the series if you haven’t already.

  Until next time,

  Susette

  Connect with Me:

  Website: www.susettewilliams.com

  Facebook: Author Susette Williams

  Twitter: @SusetteWilliams

  Mail Order Brides:

  Jessie’s Bride

  By Susette Williams

  ©2014 Susette Williams

  The characters and situations in this story are fictional and are a work of the author's imagination. This eBook is licensed for your personal enjoyment and may not be re-sold or the download rights transferred to any individual. If you are reading this eBook and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please kindly respect the hard work of the author whom benefits from the actual sales/downloads of this eBook.

  Mail Order Brides series:

  JESSIE’S BRIDE –Book 1

  MONTANA’S BRIDE –Book 2

  CALEB’S BRIDE –Book 3

  MARSHALL’S BRIDE–Book 4

  HUSBAND OF THE BRIDE–Book 5

  Acknowledgement

  Whenever I am busy trying to get ironing done, running errands, or trying to make dinner around everyone’s schedule, I wonder how women used to do it before we had all the newfangled appliances. With hectic schedules, it is harder for us to indulge ourselves by getting buried in a good book. This is why I have decided to write this novelette series, so busy readers have the ability to read a short story while they are waiting to pick a child up, taking kids to the dentist or doctor, or just trying to catch a few moments of peace. The series consists of four novelettes about four brothers, so be sure to read them in order to follow the story from the beginning… until the end.

  The History of House Springs, Missouri

  While this story is fictional, House Springs is an actual town. In the late 1700s, a man named Adam House settled on property that has a large spring. The area became known as House’s Spring, and eventually became known as House Springs. I can only imagine what the area was like in the 1800s, which is when this story takes place. I remember how I thought it was the ‘boonies’ when I first moved out to the area in 1983. It has grown quite a lot in the last thirty+ years. When I first moved out here, we didn’t have fast food restaurants. There were only small diners. My husband and I opened our own bakery, which we operated for a little over 18 years. I miss the bakery…or the baked goodies…and I also miss hanging out with the locals. It seems life has become more complicated and busier, even though we’ve got all the new fangled inventions to help make our lives easier. I’m not sure it’s working…

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  CHAPTER ONE

  House Springs, Missouri –1843

  Jessie Kincaid stared at the captivating picture of Sarah Engle, his future wife. While the drawing was done with pencil, she’d told him her eyes were blue and her hair was blonde. He envisioned gently tugging on one of the curling tendrils piled up on her head and it bouncing back into place. He smiled, laid her picture aside and began to write.

  My Dearest Sarah,

  Your picture along with your letters, and getting to know you, has only served to capture my heart. I know that we can build a wonderful life together. I
have enclosed a ticket for the stagecoach, along with ten dollars so that you have some money for your journey. I look forward to seeing you soon. I am anxious to start our new life together and cannot wait to finally see you face to face.

  All my love,

  Jessie

  He folded the letter and placed it, along with the stagecoach ticket, inside the envelope.

  Being the youngest of four had its drawbacks, especially since he didn’t have any sisters for his brothers to fuss over. It meant his brothers’ overbearing, protective side was focused on him, whether or not he wanted to deal with their interference in his life.

  Jessie never knew the one sister their parents had the year before he was born. She’d caught pneumonia and died before Ma became with child with him. If she had lived, his brothers would have focused on her and not Jessie. But since they didn’t have a sister, they focused on him, the baby of the family.

  Out west, there were twice as many men folk as women. Perhaps even a few less in their town. Long hours tending cattle didn’t give much chance to cultivate a proper relationship with a woman, much less with competition for the few handsome women there were in town.

  None of his brothers were married, even though his oldest brother was twenty-eight, a mere four years older. How would they handle him getting hitched before they did? Moreover, how would Ma handle it, especially since she hadn’t even met her future daughter-in-law? He would have told them he was writing a mail order bride except he didn’t want to endure the ribbing his brothers would have given him.

  Sarah would be there in a couple of weeks. That didn’t give him long to break the news and let it simmer in before they had a chance to meet her. Hopefully by then, his brothers would be on their best behavior. He could hope.

  Jessie folded the envelope and stuffed it in his pocket before heading to the kitchen for vittles.

  “Smells good, Ma.” He gave her a brief sideways hug and brushed a kiss upon her cheek, then snitched a piece of bacon off the plate.

  “Don’t think I didn’t see that, youngin’.” Ma smiled and brushed a few stray hairs away from her face with the back of her hand. She always wore her hair in a bun, ready for work.

  Jessie winked at Ma and took a bite. “The whole point of cookin’ is to eat it.”

  “Well, let her finish cookin’ so we all can eat.” Marshall sounded gruff, but Jessie knew his brother had a tendency to show his dominance. Which was needed to keep the peace in his job as sheriff. Being the oldest Kincaid boy, keeping his three younger brothers in line, had prepared him for the role.

  Out of all his kin, Jessie feared telling Marshall about his fiancée more than anyone else. Marshall figured most people had an angle, and he’d want to check Sarah out before he’d give his approval.

  Jessie turned twenty-four last month, he wasn’t getting any younger. Pa was only forty-two when he died eleven years ago. If Jessie wanted a family, and wanted to have time to enjoy them, he needed to get started. Maybe it was better to wait and tell his family until Sarah was here, then they couldn’t do anything. Marshall would understand the law, and the legal ramifications of breaking an engagement. Not that Sarah would take him to court for a broken love pledge, but her pa might. Marshall’d have to allow Jessie to go through with the marriage.

  “What are you grinning about?” Caleb asked as he and Montana came in from outside and both took a seat at the table.

  Jessie hadn’t realized he was smiling. If he wasn’t careful, he’d end up giving himself away.

  Marshall got up and grabbed the plate of biscuits and bacon from Ma and set them on the table. “He’s grinning ‘cause he got away with snitching vittles before everyone else.” Marshall playfully slapped the back of Jessie’s head. “Take your hat off and say grace.”

  Jessie obliged, placing his hat on the back post of his chair. He smiled as he said the prayer over their meal, silently adding a special thanks for his bride-to-be.

  CHAPTER TWO

  Sarah Engle stirred the soup in the cast iron pot over the fire outside their wood shack. Pa would be back from town shortly with her brothers, Elijah and Zeke. They were picking up supplies. She had wanted to go as well, so she could get the mail before Pa. He read most of her mail if he got to it first. Of all the suitors he’d made her write, she only cared about receiving a letter from one of them—Jessie Kincaid.

  Taggie, their stray black and white bulldog, perked up, his tongue hanging to the side as he began to pant. Sarah looked up and saw dust rising in the distance as a wagon neared their shack. It was Pa and the boys.While it had been dry lately, the dust flying indicated they were in a hurry. That couldn’t be good. Sarah stood and wiped her hands on her apron that covered her faded pink, floral dress. Her heart raced quicker than a stampede of wild horses.

  Pa pulled the wagon to a halt and hopped down, not bothering to wipe the dust from his well-worn trousers. He’d apparently gotten another small tear in them she’d have to mend after supper. Sarah noticed his clenched fist. He had an envelope in one of them that he flung at her. “You wanna tell me the meaning of this?”

  She bent to pick it up, not taking her eyes off of Pa the whole time. He must be fuming ‘cause neither of her brothers dared get down from the wagon. Before she could even pull the paper out of the envelope with trembling fingers, Pa grabbed a handful of her hair in his fist. She winced in pain.

  Taggie hunched down on his front paws and barked at Pa.

  “I told you not to go gettin’ sweet on any of them fellas.” Pa shoved her with the fistful of hair he had.

  Sarah fell to the ground, still clutching the letter.

  “You know I had no intentions of letting you marry that fella, or any fella, unless they had money and could provide for me and your brothers as well.”

  “I’m sorry, Pa.” Her voice quivered.

  “We been on this here property a little over four years now. It’s almost ours.” Pa ran a hand through his hair as he paced back and forth in short strides. “I promised your brothers that we’d stay put unless something better comes along and now, because of you, we may have to leave.”

  “Jessie’s family has a ranch,” Sarah tried to sound hopeful. If Pa would just go and check things out, he’d see that Jessie had potential. She knew he did—he had to.

  “You can forget whatever foolish thoughts you have about that youngin’,” Pa said. “He’s the youngest of four and ain’t likely to inherit much of anything.”

  “You want us to start packing up, Pa?” Zeke glared at Sarah, but didn’t verbally vent his frustration. The look he gave her, along with his clenched fists and stance spoke volumes

  Elijah brushed a stray tear off his cheek with the back of his hand and stood in silence next to his brother. They knew it didn’t do any good to argue with Pa. Once he made his mind up to do something, he did it, no second guessing.

  “Here’s what you do.” Pa stopped pacing, turned and glared at Sarah. “You write that boy back and you tell him your aunt has taken ill and that you had to use the stagecoach ticket to go see her instead. Tell him you are sorry you can’t even think about marriage right now.”

  “But I don’t have an aunt,” Sarah protested.

  “Don’t act like you ain’t lied to fellas before.” Pa spat on the ground. “You weren’t supposed to give this boy your real name, but ya did, and if you don’t make this right, I’m gonna have to go against my promise to yer brothers. Would you rather have them hurt instead?”

  Sarah shook her head. She didn’t want to hurt Zeke or Elijah, nor did she want to hurt Jessie. But would Pa really make her marry someone else just because they would take care of them as well as her? Didn’t it matter how she felt? It mattered to her, and whether or not Pa liked it, she was seventeen and old enough to choose whomever she wanted to marry. She shoved the letter from Jessie into her pocket and extended her other hand toward Pa. “Give me the stagecoach ticket and I’ll exchange it tomorrow when I send the letter back to Jessie.”<
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  She’d write the letter to make Pa happy, but she had no plans on sending it to Jessie. Sarah took a deep breath and slowly exhaled as a plan played out in her head. “I gotta work at the restaurant tomorrow night, so I’m gonna spend the night with Maybel.”

  Pa nodded. He was always agreeable when something meant making money.

  Now at least Sarah would have a reason for taking a change of clothing with her when she left tomorrow, and she’d have a reason for not coming back tomorrow night. By the time Pa figured out what she was doing it would be too late for him to do anything about it.

  CHAPTER THREE

  Jessie rubbed his eyes and blinked a couple times, sure it would clear the image in front of him. It didn’t work. The woman standing outside the general store, shielding her eyes from the early afternoon sun while she looked around was young, beautiful, and had curly blonde hair piled up on her head. He’d been dreaming about those curls for a couple months. But it couldn’t be her. Sarah wasn’t due for another week at least.

  A grin crept up before he even realized he was smiling. If she was here already, that meant she was just as excited as he was to start their new life together. He wanted to shout and yelp with joy. Rather than getting carried away, it seemed prudent to make sure it was Sarah before he made a fool of himself. Jessie took a deep breath and hurried towards her.

  A horse whinnied and snorted, catching Jessie’s attention. The wagon’s driver had pulled back sharply on the reigns. “Watch where yer goin’!”