They dived on the ground, pulled the tarpaulin over them and it was a bit difficult for Susannah to crawl as her long dress kept hampering her movements. Noah put his arm round her waist and his leg under her legs and they shot through at top speed. They came out of the other end and tore across the grass towards a rope ladder up which they had to climb and come down the other side.
“Don’t you dare help me,” Susannah yelled. “And go ahead. You might win if you do.”
“You’re too fast. I can’t keep up with you.”
Which was totally untrue, she knew, but she was going to do her best. They went over the ladder, down the other side and had to sprint a couple of hundred yards to the next hurdle. Susannah lifted her skirts a bit and tore across the space towards some hollow tree trunks through which they had to pull themselves. She got to the other end at the same time as Noah but felt relatively sure he had slowed down.
“Stop being a gentleman.” She yelled as they ran parallel towards the next hurdle over which they had to jump. He grinned and she rather suspected that maybe gentleman was not the word as he swung her over a bench. They raced towards the final tarpaulin and it was not totally flat on the ground but had been raised.
“This is the kissing tarpaulin,” Noah said, turning his face towards Susannah as they crawled forward.
“Who says?”
“I’ve been watching the other couples. We can’t break with tradition.”
“They’re married and we’re not and never will be.”
“You can kiss even if you’re not married.”
“It’s not discreet so don’t you dare!”
She could feel the grin though she couldn’t see it. He was totally obstreperous and why was she getting goose bumps without him even kissing her? He crawled with one hand held up as he put his arm round her waist and that made it even worse. She pushed him, he fell sideways and she shot to the end of the tarpaulin, emerging a few seconds before he did.
Zedekiah called over how long it had taken them and told them that so far they were first where couples going through were concerned. Couples? They definitely were not a couple, Susannah thought, but it had been fun. The children, Zedekiah told them, all went through at the same speed, which she was sure they hadn’t. It meant they all received a prize at the end and she and Noah were given one too.
Noah held a small chocolate and his little plaque while Susannah looked at hers. Beautifully carved and had Michael and Colin done them? Blair walked over to sit beside them.
“I did a few of those,” he said.
“You are so talented,” Susannah replied.
“It’s what I like doing. Colin and Michael did the rest. Colin invited us over there to do them. He also gave me some wood which I started to sculpt. If you both come over this evening with Dan and Becky you can see it. You can even tell me what it is so I’m sure I’ve got it right.”
A crocodile with two little carved out seats on the side of it, they discovered, which Dan and Becky named before anyone else could. It wasn’t finished yet, Blair said, but he would bring it round to Susannah in the morning so the children could sit on it.
“I made it especially for you,” he said, looking at them. “I’ll smooth and polish it so you don’t get any bits of wood poking in you.”
“I like it,” Becky said.
“Me too,” Dan added. “You could put on an extra seat for mama for when she comes.”
“I thought of doing that. I just wanted to see what you think. Did you enjoy today?”
Becky yawned. “I got prizes.”
“You’re both very clever. I’ll take you back home now and I’ll see you tomorrow. I’m not going to Los Angeles until Friday because Jonathon is coming with me. If we both work together we’ll find your mama quicker.”
“Okay.”
The children were very sleepy when they reached the apartment and it wasn’t long before they slept. Blair wouldn’t stay, he told Susannah, because he wanted to finish the crocodile and he wanted to go over what he had received about Mrs. Stanton. As he went to leave Noah appeared from behind the barn.
“Have you got the papers with you?” Susannah asked, suddenly shy to be with Noah alone.
“They’re in the cart.”
“Would you like Noah and me to go over them with you? Three heads are often better than one.”
“Would you?” Blair’s expression was eager.
“Of course we will. Get them and let’s all get fatter with the cake I brought back from the picnic. There was masses over, as you know, and I have far more than we need.”
“I have a cake too,” Noah said.
“And me,” Blair added. “But I can fit in more.”
“That’s settled then. Get the papers and come in, Noah.”
Noah followed her inside while Blair went back to the cart. “It would be good if he finds the lady,” he said.
“It would. The problem is, the children have been promised their mother but what if’s she’s dead? What if Blair can’t find her?”
“We need to pray about it. His chances of finding a woman who might have been abducted are slim so it’s only God Who can give him wisdom as to where to look.”
Susannah looked at him in some surprise. She shouldn’t really be surprised, she knew, because he was a Christian, but she didn’t know much about God and her first thought was not prayer.
“People do die,” she said. “Their father did.”
“Yes, but they said he wasn’t with them until the end. I think we have to regard this as an abduction and work on that basis because I don’t think she would have abandoned them.”
“”I’ve got the papers,” Blair said, walking in. “Now can I have cake?”
Susannah laughed and made her way to the kitchen. “You most certainly can. We have to make up for the fact that you didn’t get a little plaque. But then not everyone can win a race.”
“I probably made the one you have.” Blair walked over to where she had put it on the mantelpiece. “No. Not this one. Colin did it.”
“How do you know?”
“I know my own work and we also etched a tiny C, M and B at the back. There’s a C on this one.”
“He’s a somewhat famous painter. Maybe it will be worth a lot in years to come.”
“You never know. Maybe the ones I did will be also.”
“I’m sure they will. Coffee, tea or hot milk, gentlemen?”
“Coffee,” they chorused.
“Coffee coming up.”
Susannah walked through with a tray, set it on the table and they spent the following hour studying the papers.
Chapter 13
“I could take you home,” Blair said to Noah as they stood next to his cart.
“Do you need help with anything?” Noah asked.
“I could use some help with sanding down the crocodile and polishing it.”
“Crocodile?”
“Yes. I’ve made a crocodile with seats in it for Dan and Becky.”
“I could do that.” Noah looked at Susannah. “Thank you for the cake and the drink.”
“I enjoyed it too. I think Esmé cooked the cake. She brought three but nobody knew who made what and her other two vanished quickly. Linda said there’s always far too much but it’s better than having too little and everyone can then take home something somebody else has brought. It’s a good plan.”
“And it’s nice for us men,” Blair said. “I’ll bring the crocodile round before the children go to school.”
“That will be nice but don’t go to bed too late or you’ll be exhausted.”
“I won’t. The chair shouldn’t take long.”
The two men climbed on the front of the wagon and Susannah stood waving until they got out of sight. Noah looked back after he opened and shut the gates to the property but they were soon out of sight.
She was a beautiful woman, he thought. Did Blair think that? He looked at him briefly and felt a bit guilty. Really he had been res
enting him but that was wrong. He had also thought he was totally stupid adopting two children just to build up his profile. That definitely hadn’t been a good idea but he did what he thought was best and he never wanted to be a detective, anyway.
As for Susannah and any feelings he might have towards her or her towards him, Noah could do nothing about that and he had also been feeling guilty about her.
He wanted to be with her and he would be with her. They would be working together which would involve poring over documents, examining the land where the seminary and university were and deciding what to do. They would be trying to contact the company who had sold the land to the body who now had it.
But he wanted more than that. He wanted to be with her all the time, both when they were working and in their personal lives. He even wanted to marry her, which was something he never thought he would want. Many women had shown an interest in him and he dined with a few of them, but that was where it ended. He had been more a loner and quite content with his own company.
So wanting to marry Susannah was a new experience and he wasn’t going about it very well. He could tell her, of course, but he wasn’t sure about Blair’s intentions and if the mother wasn’t alive she would be the obvious choice to replace her.
But it was more than that and he was feeling guilty about the way he had been with her. He wanted to be near her so badly that he kissed her when she obviously didn’t want him to do so. He felt in New York that she enjoyed his kisses but maybe that was because she hadn’t been kissed before, and kissing at the best of times was nice.
He shouldn’t have put his arm round her under the tarpaulin. He shouldn’t have been so familiar. He shouldn’t keep mentioning that she was beautiful. She said that wasn’t necessary and she was right. She was beautiful but Noah didn’t go round telling other women they were and he shouldn’t Susannah.
He should also give her the courtesy of being treated as the smart, clever, innovative person she was. She was enterprising. She thought quickly. She knew what she was doing and that with very little training though Clark had sent her to a few classes not long after the apprehension of the diamond thieves.
So his relationship with her must be that of a colleague. A friend too, but definitely a colleague. He must not tease her or be too familiar. He must not take the patience she had shown towards him for granted. He must be the perfect gentleman.
“I’m not really detective material,” Blair said, breaking into Noah’s thoughts.
Noah looked at him thoughtfully. “I don’t think you should put yourself in a slot. You don’t want to be a detective, that’s all, but you have good powers of deduction. You’re not going to be looking for this lady because you’re a detective but because she’s Dan and Becky’s mother and they miss her.”
“I was an idiot to adopt them. I never should have.”
“Maybe not, but then maybe you should have if you can find their mother. God could have had a Hand in that.”
“Yes. I’m glad Jonathon is going to help me. I’ve been a careless person really in the past and a bit absorbed in my own affairs without regard to others. Becoming a Christian is making me think more deeply about what I do. Did that happen to you?”
“It did. I was careless too. I’m not always so good now.” His thoughts turned back to Susannah. “But God tells me when I start doing unnecessarily stupid things.”
“How does He tell you?”
“I’m not sure. Thoughts come into my mind and I think that’s when the Holy Spirit convicts me of sin, which Jesus said He would do when He came.”
“When He came?”
“Yes. Have you read about how the Holy Spirit came on the disciples after Jesus died on the cross? He came at Pentecost.”
“What’s Pentecost?”
It was nice being able to explain things and share his knowledge of the Bible, Noah thought while they worked on the crocodile, and Blair kept asking questions and was keen to learn. There had been someone who helped Noah when he first became a Christian and now it was his turn to help Blair. They continued to chat and it took about ninety minutes to complete their task.
Blair stood back to look at his handiwork. By now they were working in an outhouse which was attached to the one he was renting and had a few lamps on in order to have plenty of light. He ran his hands over the crocodile. To check for any splinters, he told Noah, because he didn’t want the children hurting themselves.
“You’ll be paying rent while you’re away,” Noah said. “If you want to give the house up you can share the house I have when you return.”
“I think I’ll keep it,” Blair replied. “If Mrs. Stanton wants to move to Lower Pine she can have it and then I might take you up on your offer. It would be nice if she does come here because the children love school and moving them again would be an upheaval for them. She probably won’t want to stay in Los Angeles if she has been abducted.”
Noah wiped his hands on a towel after washing them. “If you need any help at all send me a telegram,” he said. “I’m good at what I do as a bodyguard and because I’m tall that sometimes frightens people off. Don’t go in where the situation is too difficult because Jonathon has five little children and they need him.”
“Susannah needs you.”
“Susannah is very good at looking after herself and Bruce will be nearby, also other men in the community. Benjamin will keep a good eye on her, I’m sure. Do you promise to call me if you need me?”
“Yes.” Blair stroked the chair. “It’s not bad, is it?”
“It’s really good. You could easily make a living doing that kind of thing.”
“I just may do that.”
“I’ll be going then and I’ll see you tomorrow. I’ve sent a telegram to a man I know in Los Angeles who will also keep an eye out for Mrs. Stanton. I’ll let you know if he finds out anything.”
“Thank you. You’re a good friend.”
A good friend. That was nice, Noah thought as he jogged back to the house which was about two miles distant. Good because friends were good, even ones who might be wanting to pursue the same lady as him.
He looked over to the hospital which he had to pass. It was well lit but the adjoining land was in total darkness, which, of course, it would be at this time of night. He walked round the back of the hospital to have a closer look and frowned at what he saw. A dim outline of a kneeling person which denoted someone was snooping around.
He needed to find out who it was but he would go quietly in order not to disturb him, then he would jump on him. He could say the man was trespassing. He stole round the edge of the property until he got near and assessed when he should jump.
It would be easy to overpower him because he wasn’t very tall. But then most men weren’t that tall though it did appear as if more men were moving in that direction. However, he was six foot four so he had the advantage. He also always carried the smallest gun he had been able to acquire in a pouch attached to his belt.
Fifteen steps? Twenty? Probably twenty and he had the element of surprise. He took a deep breath, raced forward and the person went down on the ground. Before he could do anything else a knee landed hard between his groins and he felt as if he would faint. He rolled off the man, turned in order to grab him again and couldn’t believe what he saw.
“I’m going to pass out,” he said and did.
When he came to his head was on his opponent’s lap and he could feel the stroking of his hair. Gentle, almost caressing, except that it wouldn’t be that, he was sure. He kept his eyes shut for a few minutes, the feeling the stroking elicited more than pleasant though he was still in a bit of pain.
But eventually he knew he would have to open his eyes and the faintness had passed. He did so and looked up into the face of the most important person in the world.
“Why are you here?” he asked.
“Why are you? You don’t go jumping on people before you’ve established that they’re in the opposite camp. Lie still until
the feeling of faintness goes. Does it hurt very much?”
“Enough to cause me to pass out. Men don’t do that to men.”
“Women have to use strategies which make up for them not being as strong as men. Some women do have bulging muscles but I’m not one of them.”
I’m glad to say. The thought shot into Noah’s mind. “Why are you here?” he asked. “And where are the children?”
“I told Hazel I had to visit someone and borrowed her carriage. She’s with the children. I wanted to see if anyone was here and....” She paused, pushed his head gently from her and pointed. “Look. Over there.”
He turned on his stomach and a few hundred yards distant lights were moving across the field. He went to get up but Susannah pulled him back and held his hand as tightly as she could.
“No. Let’s see what they’re doing. If we disturb them they’ll just disappear or else they’ll shoot us.”
She kept her hand where it was while they lay side by side, glad of the dark which hid them but wishing they could see more of what the men were doing. They really needed to get closer and maybe they could.
“Could we slither forward?” she whispered.
“Yes, but not too far.”
They slithered slowly and there were four men who were digging. They lay quietly watching them but it appeared they were not having much success. Eventually one of them threw down his spade.
“It’s not here. Cover the earth and lay the grass back as neatly as you can.”
The men did as they were told, stood and from the direction of the hospital horses’ hooves could be heard. The men dived into a cart which was near them, took off at speed and two men drew in their reins.
“There,” one of them yelled and they advanced towards Noah and Susannah.
Not again! He could bear what Susannah had done but that was enough for one night. “It’s Susannah and me,” he shouted and the men virtually skidded to a halt.
“Somebody rang from the hospital and said they saw lights,” Benjamin said, looking down at them.
“We didn’t have lights,” Noah said.
“The men who rode off did. They were looking for something,” Susannah added. “Can we go and look?”
The Detective Bride Page 15