In His Touch: Blemished Brides Book 2

by Peggy L Henderson

  Cade knelt to the ground. “I’m sleeping in this room from now on. Your mama and I got married yesterday, remember?”

  Jonah nodded.

  “Guess we were a bit tired, so we overslept. How about you go see if the chickens laid any eggs yet, and get them some food. We’ll be along shortly.”

  Apparently satisfied with Cade’s answer, Jonah rushed off down the hall and out of the house.

  “I should have asked Trace or his sister to take Jonah to their place yesterday.” Cade slipped back into bed, and pulled Laura into his arms. “Looks like we’ll have to resume our honeymoon later tonight, Mrs. Cade.”

  Laura wound her arms around his neck when he leaned down to kiss her. It still seemed unreal that he would wake up each day to this woman in his arms.

  “He doesn’t know either of them well enough to have been comfortable staying overnight at their place,” she whispered against his lips.

  “I figure we’ve got just a few more minutes to ourselves,” Cade growled against her neck, delighting in the shivers he elicited in her.

  He made love to Laura like he’d done last night, holding and touching her, letting her know that she was beautiful. The apprehension in her eyes when he’d come to their room last night hadn’t escaped his notice. He’d always figured her scars didn’t stop at her neckline. The extensive damage to her skin along her arms, down her back and chest left him in awe about how she had survived such an ordeal, and his respect and love for her had grown stronger, if that was even possible.

  After reluctantly leaving their bed once Jonah shuffled back into the house, Cade dressed and headed outside to take care of morning chores. It certainly was later than he’d ever started his day, and the horses paced anxiously in their corral to get fed. If he wanted to do what he’d planned for today, he needed to hurry.

  “I’m going to go pay my father a visit at the Diamond K,” he announced over breakfast, bracing himself for Laura’s protest.

  Sure enough, she glared at him from across the table. “Why?” she asked simply.

  Cade reached for her hand, and gave it a squeeze.

  “It’s better if I go to him, rather than wait for him to come to me,” he said matter-of-factly. “If I don’t stand up to him first, he’ll think I’m caving in to him. By now, he will know that we’re married.”

  Laura’s forehead wrinkled. “What will you say to him?”

  Cade leaned forward, gripping his coffee cup in his hand. “I’m going to tell him exactly what I told you – that he can’t touch your property unless you sign it over. Even though you and I are married, this place belongs to you, and if he tries to play dirty, I’ve put too many provisions in place. It’ll be nearly impossible for him to ever get his hands on this farm or that gold claim he’s really after.”

  Laura clung to him when he stood on the porch an hour later, telling her goodbye.

  “I’ll be back by late afternoon,” he promised, pulling her into a fierce embrace.

  She eased her head back, and inspected him with narrowed eyes. “You’ve promised me that before. Twice.”

  Cade kissed her, grinning. “Don’t worry, Mrs. Cade. This time, a herd of wild horses couldn’t keep me away.”

  He drew back reluctantly. He’d much rather spend the day with his wife and son, but he had to get this confrontation over. Hopefully he could gauge his father enough to see what kind of a threat he would pose once he found out what Cade had done to keep this farm out of Jack’s reach.

  “Tomorrow, we’ll go fishing,” he said to Jonah, tousling the boy’s hair. “You take good care of your mama while I’m gone.”

  Jonah nodded. He reached for Laura’s hand, and held it, smiling up at her. Cade’s chest tightened. After all that he’d lost, he was the luckiest man alive for what he’d found. He tipped his hat, and mounted his horse, pointing the gelding north, toward the Diamond K.

  Pushing his horse hard, he reached the vast cattle and horse ranch two hours later. Woody once again greeted him, but this time there was a suspicious stare in the wrangler’s eyes.

  “Is he at the house?” Cade asked, leading his horse to the water trough by one of the corrals.

  “Haven’t seen him come out of there in a couple of days. He’s been gone off and on since then. Some business with those homesteads he’s been buying. He don’t tell us wranglers much.”

  “I’m sure you’re aware that I’m not coming back to work for him.” Might as well get that out in the open.

  Woody slapped his hat against his knee, and spit tobacco juice on the ground. “You know I ain’t ever been partial to what your old man does to get what he wants. I keep my head down and work with the horses. Pushing people around who Jack don’t like, or wants to do business with, was always your job. Now a man named Boyd’s in charge. Ornery fella.”

  “Yeah, I’ve met him.” Cade turned to head for the house.

  “Heard you got married,” Woody called after him. Cade stopped. “To that woman who won’t sell out to Jack. Heard she done killed her first husband a year ago.”

  Cade’s fists tightened at his sides. He glanced over his shoulder at the wrangler. “You heard wrong,” he said, and headed for the house.

  He knocked several times, but no one answered. Cade walked around the porch and peered through one of the windows. Was Jack even home?

  He knocked again. After another minute, he tested the door. It was unlocked, so he opened it, and walked in.

  “Jack Kincaid?” he called, his voice strong and without emotion.

  He checked the study first. The butt of a cigar still smoldered in the ashtray on the table. Cade held his left hand close to his hip, his fingers grazing his Remington. A loud clanging noise, followed by a cough, alerted him to someone in the kitchen. He pulled his gun from its holster, and headed toward the noise.

  Rounding the corner into the kitchen, he cocked his weapon, and held it in front of him. A man stood over the stove. A thick cloud of steam rose from the pot he was stirring. Cade lowered his gun.

  “Jack,” he called again. The man wheeled around, slightly unsteady on his legs. His eyes appeared watery.

  Cade’s father stared at him as if he didn’t recognize him for a moment. Then he laughed.

  “So, you came back,” he said. His voice was raspy, and he coughed again. “I heard what you had to do to finally get your hands on the Engelman Farm. Good work, son.”

  Cade frowned. He holstered his weapon, and stepped further into the kitchen. After his coughing fit, Jack laughed again.

  “Not sure what’s worse. Being married to that Injun squaw, or a woman you don’t want to look at unless she’s covered up. You won’t have to stay married to her for long. I’ll get rid of her, just like the first one.”

  Cade gritted his teeth. His pulse pounded at his temples. Stepping forward, he grabbed Jack by the shirt, and yanked him up close.

  “I married Laura because I love her, not so you could get her farm. In fact, you’ll never get your hands on it at all. I know why you want that land so badly.”

  Cade clenched his free hand into a fist, his muscles tense and ready to take a swing at his father. He sucked in a deep breath, and backed off. He shoved Jack away from him. Beating the tar out of the man would be less satisfying than letting him know he’d never get his hands on Laura’s land.

  Jack’s face turned dark. He caught his balance, and stumbled toward him. Cade studied his father. His eyes were bloodshot, and his forehead dripped with perspiration.

  “Are you drunk?” he asked, not disguising the disgust in his tone.

  Jack laughed some more, which turned to fits of coughing. “So you figured it out about the land? I knew you would. Always were smart. That’s why you were such an asset to me,” he slurred.

  “I know you’re mining gold in the streams that are on those properties you’ve been buying.”

  “And there’s a lot to be found on the Engelman homestead,” he said. He turned back to the stove, and nearl
y fell over. Cade reached for him, holding him up.

  “Whatever you’re cooking can wait,” he said, frowning. “You’d best just sleep off your hangover first.”

  Jack clutched at his stomach. “Get out of my house,” he droned. He stared up at Cade with hate-filled eyes. “I’ll deal with you later. I told you, no one goes against me.”

  Cade released his father. “I’ll be ready for you this time.” He smirked. “You can do whatever the hell you want, but unless you’re one of Laura’s next of kin, that land won’t ever fall into your hands. You taught me to always close all loopholes, and that’s what I’ve done.” He leaned forward, glaring at the man. “And if you ever come near my family and lay a hand on Laura or my son, I’ll kill you.”

  With those words, he turned and left the house, eager to get back to his wife. He’d thrown down the gauntlet, and he’d have to keep his eyes and ears open to see what Jack’s next move would be. Even drunk, the anger and hatred in his father’s eyes was unnerving. Cade wiped away the moisture on his face from all that steam in the kitchen, and headed for his horse.

  By the time the farm came into view, Cade’s stomach rumbled. He swayed slightly in the saddle. Shaking his head, he tried to clear his fuzzy mind. What the hell was wrong with him?

  A buggy stood parked next to the one he’d borrowed from the Mallorys yesterday. Laura came rushing out the door the minute Cade pulled his horse to a stop in front of the barn. She nearly knocked him over when she fell into his arms.

  “Now that’s the kind of welcome home a man could get used to.” He smiled against her lips.

  “You kept your word this time.” Her face beamed with joy. “Trace and Katie are here, and so are Sally and Ethan. They brought food, and thought to celebrate our wedding, since we didn’t get much of a celebration yesterday.”

  “I think we did quite a nice job of celebrating, just the two of us.”

  Laura’s mention of food made his stomach churn again, and he covered up his feeling of nausea with a grin.

  “Well, right now, I think our guests would like to do a little celebrating with us.” Laura smiled indulgently, then her face turned serious. “How was your visit with your father?”

  Cade laughed. “I told him he wouldn’t get his hands on the place, but I could have saved myself the ride to the Diamond K. He was so drunk out of his mind, I don’t think he understood half of what I told him. I’ll have to deal with him again another day.”

  Cade unsaddled his horse, and followed Laura into the house. He spent the next couple of hours on the porch, listening to Trace and Ethan talk about the horse racing business and about breeding thoroughbreds.

  “Trace has a colt he’s hoping to send to the Kentucky Derby in a couple of years,” Ethan said. “Some nag he boasted about breeding last spring.” He jabbed Trace in the side. “Have you heard about the Derby, Cade?”

  “I think I might have heard of it,” Cade said. He blinked, to focus his vision. Spots appeared before his eyes, and he shifted weight to keep from losing his balance.

  “You got a well-bred stud. I bet if you match him up with some good mares, you could get some winners out of him,” Trace said.

  “Cloud was a gift from Standing Buffalo, my former father-in-law, when he was just a foal.” Cade struggled to concentrate on his words. “He was the offspring of one of the mares he traded from some peddler who brought them up from - I think it was - Kentucky. They were fast mares, and Jack wanted them. I helped Standing Buffalo secure those mares with some members of his tribe, so that Jack couldn’t get his hands on them. I’m glad I was able to give Cloud’s papers to you before I got hauled off to prison.”

  “We can eat, if you men are done talking,” Sally called from inside the house.

  “Can’t wait to see what the ladies have cooked up.” Ethan rubbed at his belly, a wide smile on his face.

  Cade pushed away from the porch post, and followed the men into the house. No sooner had he taken a step, when the world spun and tilted violently. His last conscious memory was of Laura, dropping to her knees and leaning over him with a look of raw fear in her eyes.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  “Cade . . . Cade, please wake up.”

  Tears streamed down Laura’s face. Ethan and Trace had carried him into the bedroom after he collapsed. That had been several minutes ago, and he hadn’t regained consciousness.

  “Did he say anything about feeling sick?” Sally asked, standing next to her. The worried expression on her face wasn’t reassuring.

  Laura shook her head. “No, nothing. He’s been fine.” She stopped to think for a moment. “He may have looked a little pale when he got back from riding to the Diamond K. I really didn’t think much of it, and he didn’t say a word that he was feeling ill.” Her eyes darted frantically from one person to the next.

  Just outside the door, Katie stood, holding Sally’s baby, and keeping Jonah by her side. The boy looked as worried as she felt.

  “If he doesn’t come to in the next few minutes, I’ll ride for the doctor,” Ethan offered.

  “It’s going to be dark soon,” Trace added.

  Just then, Cade stirred. He moaned. Laura leaned in closer, and cupped his head between her hands.

  “Cade?”

  His eyes fluttered open. He stared up at her, a momentary blank look in his eyes. Then his mouth widened in a slow, tired smile.

  “Laura,” he rasped. His hand came up to touch her face. She grabbed for it, kissing his palm.

  Cade moved slowly to his side, and tried to lift his upper body from the bed. He grimaced, and clutched at his stomach.

  “What is it?” A new wave of dread consumed Laura.

  “Damn,” he grumbled. “I ain’t never felt this sick before, like my gut’s twisting inside.” He blinked. “And I’m seeing dark spots in front of my eyes, and my head’s about to split in half.”

  Laura nudged him onto his back again.

  “What happened at the Diamond K?” Trace asked. “Did you eat something disagreeable?”

  Cade’s forehead glistened with sweat. He shook his head. “No, nothing. I argued with Jack, and left.”

  He turned his gaze on Laura, and smiled. She gripped his hand tighter. Pain and discomfort were clearly written in his eyes. She choked back her tears, and returned his smile for encouragement. Sally handed her a moist rag, which she placed on Cade’s forehead.

  “Maybe some sleep, and tomorrow you’ll be over what ails you.” Her voice didn’t sound convincing in her own ears.

  Cade nodded, and closed his eyes. Ethan and Trace left the room, and Laura followed when her husband looked to be resting more comfortably.

  “Why don’t Trace and I stay here with you tonight, Laura?” Katie offered when they all gathered in the main room. “Sally, you have your baby to tend to. Ethan should take you home.”

  “It is getting late,” Ethan agreed. “We can come back first thing in the morning.”

  Laura nodded, looking from one person to another. “You and Trace can have the spare room,” she offered to Katie. “I can make a pallet on the floor for Jonah.”

  After saying goodbye to Sally and Ethan, Laura collapsed in her rocking chair, staring into the fire. Jonah climbed onto her lap, his head against her shoulder.

  “Is Papa going to be all right?” he asked.

  Laura forced a smile. “Of course he is. He probably just ate something that didn’t agree with him.”

  “Is anyone else feeling sick?” Katie asked. “Sally or Ethan didn’t mention anything, did they? I don’t recall anyone in Elk Lodge yesterday saying there was a sickness going around.”

  “Maybe I oughta ride over to Jack’s place myself tomorrow and see what’s going on there,” Trace offered.

  “What if he slipped something in a drink?” Katie suggested.

  Laura shook her head. “Cade said he didn’t eat or drink anything while he was there.” She paused, and her eyes widened, and looked at Trace. “He did say that J
ack seemed to be drunk.”

  Trace’s forehead wrinkled. “I wonder what’s got him drinking so heavily by himself so early in the day?”

  “Maybe all the gold he’s hoping to mine is making him turn to the bottle,” Laura added with a drip of sarcasm in her voice. “Or maybe all his misdeeds have come back to haunt him,” she added bitterly.

  “How is Jack mining his gold, Trace?” Katie asked quietly. “You said you’ve seen some of his mines.”

  Trace shrugged. “The usual way. He uses sluice boxes in the streams to channel the water.”

  Katie sat up straighter. “While I was at school in New York, we briefly talked about gold mining during the gold rush days in California some years back.” She stopped, and directed her words toward Laura. It was remarkable that this woman was blind. No one would ever guess as much.

  “Animals and people started getting sick who lived along the streams that ran off the mines. Even the miners were getting sick.”

  “I don’t understand what that has to do with Cade getting sick.” Laura shook her head. “He went to see Jack yesterday, not visit the mines.” Even though she didn’t see a connection, she asked, “What was it that caused the sickness?”

  “Mercury is commonly used to separate out gold from sediment,” Trace chimed in. “I’ve heard of miners getting sick from it, especially during the separation process. But, like Laura said, Cade wasn’t near those mines.”

  “How about you get ready for bed, Jonah.” Laura nudged the boy, and he scooted from her lap.

  “Let’s all turn in,” Trace yawned. “Cade can tell us in the morning what exactly happened while he was at the Diamond K.”

  Laura told her guests good night, and entered her bedroom. She undressed, and slipped into bed next to Cade. He stirred, and moaned in his sleep. Laura kissed his cheek, then hugged his arm and squeezed her eyes shut. She couldn’t bear to see Cade sick. Anger such as she’d never known engulfed her.

  You don’t know that Jack had anything to do with this. It could simply be a case of a bad piece of meat he might have eaten.