It was dark outside when the train stopped again, and when Tom looked up, the conductor was standing in the aisle next to his seat. “This is Cheyenne, young man. Want to get off or keep going?”
Tom smiled and slowly got to his feet. “Off.”
The cold air was brisk, making him pull his hat down, button the top button of his sheepskin lined jacket, and shove his hands in his pants pockets. The train station let off just enough light to see powdery snowflakes fall from the sky, and he had to be careful as he walked down the slippery wooden platform toward the station. He pulled the door open, stepped inside and quickly closed it in an effort not to let the heat of a coal stove escape.
He stomped the snow off his feet, noticed the station manager was not behind the counter, and thought he might be in for a long wait before someone came to take him into town.
It was not until he lifted his head that he saw her. “Madeline?”
She sat on a wooden bench near the stove and it was obvious she was not pleased. “Some Scotsman has been leaving messages for me all over town. He said he was sending a gift…a delicate gift, and I was to meet the train precisely at nine o’clock to pick it up. I thought it might be you, but I never thought of you as delicate.”
“Madeline, I…”
“By delicate, I suppose Mr. Hannish meant I should treat you kindly, but I am not of a mood to be kind just now. It is cold outside and the station manager has gone home to have his dinner. I must wait at least an hour before he can take me to the hotel. Where have you been?”
He took his hat off, laid it on the counter, unbuttoned his jacket and walked to the stove to warm his hands. “In the mountains.”
“In winter? Why did you not freeze to death?”
“I thought I might a time or two.” She said nothing in return and when he looked, she was staring at the floor. “Mr. Swinton is dead.”
“I know, I read it in the paper.”
“I killed him.”
That made her raise her head and look at him. “He deserved killing.”
“Some saw me and the day may come when I am recognized as the one who killed him.”
“Well, if they do, you can always run to the mountains and hide again. You know just how to do that.”
He let the silence between them stand for a few minutes before he said, “Rose wrote a letter…”
“I know; it was in the paper.”
“Do you believe her?”
“Does it matter?”
“It matters very much to me.”
“Why? Why should it matter what I believe? Before you left Marblestone, I was so in love with you, I would have believed anything you said. You have given me months to think, and I see now that I must make my mind rule over my heart instead.”
“I tried that – it does not work, no matter how hard I tried. My heart would not forget you, Madeline.”
“Next you shall say you ran off for my sake.”
“I thought I was doing it for your sake. I still think it. What kind of life can I truly offer you? There will always be reporters wanting another story, people asking probing questions, and staring at you wondering if you married the one member of the Dalton Gang that got away. It will never end, Madeline, no matter how hard I work to protect you.”
“Then why are you here?”
“Because my heart will not let me be at peace. I should have told you all of it in the very beginning, or at least before, I said I loved you. I tried to, but…”
“I would not let you.” She bowed her head and closed her eyes. “I think of that night often.”
Tom sat down on the bench next to her and folded his arms. “I have made a mess of everything.”
“Not everything, I suppose.”
“Most everything then. Mr. Hannish wishes us both to come back, but I dread facing Miss Leesil. I doubt she has forgiven me either.”
“Mrs. Whitfield will be happy for the gossip.”
He smiled. “Mr. Whitfield said he has forbidden her to gossip, but he does not expect it to last much longer.”
Finally, Madeline smiled too. “How boring the town must be now.”
“Unless she has managed to do it without her husband finding out.”
“There is that. I never thought I would say it, but I believe I have missed Mrs. Whitfield.”
“And Marblestone?” he asked.
“I miss Marblestone very much.”
“Miss Leesil is expecting.”
“Is she? I am pleased for her.”
“Will you go back with me?”
She bowed her head again and didn’t answer right away. “Are you asking me to marry you?”
He reached for her hand and was happy when she did not pull it away. “I went away for a while, and it changed nothing. I will always be the Rose of Cimarron’s cousin and the man who shot Slippery Jack Walker. I have no right to ask it of you, but…”
“But what?”
“But… it is what I selfishly and desperately want.”
She put her head on his shoulder and when he lifted his arm and put it around her, she scooted closer. “Whatever happens, will we see it through together?”
“Whatever happens, I swear it,” he said.
“If I say yes, will it make my heart stop hurting?”
He kissed her forehead, closed his eyes and laid his head against hers. “I know of only one way to find out.”
*
The week before Christmas, Tom and Madeline were married in Marblestone Mansion’s ballroom, after which the notorious non-member of the Dalton Gang took his bride off to honeymoon in Pueblo. No one recognized him.
Nevertheless, their hopes for a peaceful life were dashed a short two weeks later, when several women insistently cornered Madeline in the general store. Therefore, and for the sake of the children they hoped to have someday, they packed up their belongings and boarded a train bound for Oregon.
Just as she promised, Madeline wrote telling of their safe arrival, and then filled all their heads with descriptions of giant trees in vast forests, magnificent, yet dormant volcanoes, and plenty of rain. Keith, Margaret Ann and their son soon decided to follow, and housekeepers Leslie, Ruth and Bessie went with them. What better place to find handsome husbands than among all those stout lumberjacks.
In February, just as they promised, Egan and Malveen came to visit and stayed until she was due to perform at her next New York City concert in March.
Moan and his family, after sending all they owned off to Scotland the week before, began their journey back across the Atlantic Ocean, to become keepers of the MacGreagor Castle. There, they would spend a month or two with Cameron and Cathleen, allowing them to learn about the upkeep and to let baby Anne grow strong enough to travel.
God willing, spring would see the duke and his family safely to Marblestone.
Awaiting the birth of her second child, Leesil enjoyed more peace and quiet in her home than she had in months. She sat in her favorite chair in the upstairs sitting room where it was warmer, closed her eyes and took in the stillness of the day. Occasionally, she could hear a servant cleaning or moving something, but that was music to her ears. Indeed, most of her days were peaceful and quiet – that is, until the telephone rang.
“Leesil, you shall never guess. Mr. Green is building a new barn.”
“How happy for Mr. Green.”
Abigail put her hand over her heart. “Yes, yes, but where did he get the money? And that is not all, he bought a new cow and his wife bought new shoes for all the children. Mrs. Maps says…”
~the end~
Coming Soon: book 7 of the Marblestone Mansion Series - www.martitalbott.com
More Marti Talbott Books
Pick up Marti’s latest book – The Billionaire’s Will – a clean mystery/romance.
Marti Talbott’s Highlander Series, (books 1 – 13) is a continuing saga that spans four MacGreagor generations, and sees them through plagues, wars, kidnappings, poisonings, and the day-to-day
challenges of love and survival.
The first five books contain twenty short stories, while the rest are complete novels. They include: Betrothed, Book 6, The Golden Sword, Book 7, Abducted, Book 8, A Time of Madness, Book 9, Triplets, Book 10, Secrets, Book 11, Choices, Book 12, Ill-Fated Love Book 13, and The Other Side of the River, Book 14.
The Viking was written after the first twenty short stories, yet it is a prequel that explains how the clan came into being.
Marti’s Marblestone Mansion (Scandalous Duchess Series) follows the MacGreagor clan into Colorado’s early 20th century.
Other Marti Talbott Books include: The Promise, (Carson Series, Book 1), Broken Pledge, (Carson Series, Book 2), and Seattle Quake 9.2.
Marti is currently working on The Viking’s Daughter and book 7 in her Marblestone Mansion Series.
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Table of Contents
CHAPTER 1
CHAPTER 2
CHAPTER 3
CHAPTER 4
CHAPTER 5
CHAPTER 6
CHAPTER 7
CHAPTER 8
CHAPTER 9
CHAPTER 10
CHAPTER 11
CHAPTER 12
CHAPTER 13
~the end~
More Marti Talbott Books
Marblestone Mansion, Book 6 Page 19