by Natalie Dean
“Good, I am eager to get on with things,” she said. Jake looked down at her and smiled.
The Western World
Barbara wasn’t at all sure what to expect for their ceremony, and she was glad when it was short and down to the point. It felt so strange to be saying her vows to a man she had only just met, especially knowing that her husband had passed just a short time before. She was glad she was able to get through her part without breaking down and crying in front of everyone, as she had no idea how she would explain that to Jake – or the preacher.
She merely repeated what she was told to repeat, then listened as Jake said his part. They were both handed pens and directed to sign the marriage license, and that was the end of things. She was now a married woman once again, and her name was no longer Hill.
When Barbara leaned down to sign the license, she nearly signed her name Hill, it was only at the last second that she remembered to sign Cowell instead, and she was grateful that no one seemed to notice. After Jake signed his name, he paid the preacher for his services, and once again placed his hand on the lower part of Barbara’s back. She felt a shiver run down her spine as she did so, and quickly reminded herself she was going to have to get used to the feeling again.
After they left the little church, they went straight to Jake’s home.
Barbara did her best to think of something to say along the way, but her mind kept going blank. She was relieved when Jake started speaking, though her heart sank when he began asking her questions about Boston.
“What’s one thing that you miss about being back home, or at least, that you think you are going to miss?” He was clearly only making conversation, but Barbara knew she had to be careful. She didn’t want to tell him anything that would indicate her history.
“I would say it would be the theater. I spent so much time at the there when I was in Boston, it’s going to be an adjustment here,” she didn’t want to sound negative, and she was relieved when he didn’t appear to take it that way. At least, he started asking her about the kinds of plays she enjoyed seeing, and what her favorite of all was. Barbara told him everything about the theater. As soon as she started talking about it, it was as though she couldn’t stop, and she was surprised when he suddenly told her that they had arrived at his house.
It was far less fancy than the house she had left behind in Boston, but Barbara couldn’t help but see the charm in it. It was clear that a bachelor had been living there for years, as there was mending to be done, washing to be done, and no decorations to be found. She thought of Jake living alone, seeing that he had a tear in his jacket, and knowing that unless he fixed it himself, it wasn’t going to get fixed.
Of course, back home it would have been rare for her to do any of the mending, either, as she would sometimes leave such things to the maid. However, she did know how to mend, and she had often done it herself if she had the time.
“I don’t know what kind of a life you were coming from, but I hope this is enough to make you happy. There are always things we can do in the future if you would like to put your own mark on things, I’m not at all picky.” He smiled at her as she continued to walk through the house. It was smaller than her house back home – a lot smaller. Part of her wondered where the guest room would be.
“So, is this my room then?” she asked, stopping at what looked to be a bedroom. Back home, it would have been more of a mudroom, but she didn’t want to say so.
“Yes, and my room is down the hall there, you can go look at it if you’d like.” He moved gently past her down the hall and opened the door to a room further down. She was amazed at how small that room was, which once again made her wonder how houses were so small in the West. She complimented it as best as she could, and he was quick to explain.
“This was one of the first houses that was built in town, at least that’s what they told me when I moved in here,” he looked around the room, sensing her criticism though she didn’t intend to be negative.
“Are you from around here?” she asked, suddenly turning to him. He shook his head.
“I came up this way from California. I wanted to see if I could establish a good practice here, and surprisingly, I have. With all the gold that’s in the area, people are bound to get under each other’s skin every now and then, that’s where I come in.” He put his hands on either side of his jacket, clearly proud of his business.
“Have you ever handled a murder case?” she asked suddenly, speaking without thinking.
“Unfortunately, there have been a couple of those. It’s difficult to represent people though because you never do know which ones are truly guilty. Don’t be thinking about such things though, you are much too pretty to concern yourself with things like that!” He winked at her, then pulled out his pocket watch.
“I really should be getting over to the office. It’s not much of a law firm, and it’s right up against the sheriff’s office, but I suppose it’s a good start. You should settle in, don’t worry about cleaning or anything, that stuff will still be there later. Why not take a look around the house, or around town? Get yourself familiar with some of the things in the area.” Jake smiled at her and Barbara nodded.
“I think I might stick to being inside most of today, I have to admit, I am rather tired after the journey. Will you be home in time for supper?” she asked, and Jake nodded his head yes.
“I thought I might surprise you with something from the diner on my way home, so don’t cook anything.” He gave her another wink, and with that, he turned and walked out the door. Barbara hurried over to the window and watched the direction he went, hoping to see where she could go if she suddenly needed to find him.
Part of her felt better being alone, and another part of her wished that he would stay with her until she was comfortable getting around. However, she knew that there was no way for anyone back home to know where she was. As a special precaution, she had even kept the location a secret from Melissa, who asked her more than once where she was headed.
Once alone with her thoughts, Barbara turned her attention to the house. She knew that he had told her not to bother with cleaning or anything, but she didn’t like seeing the messy house. Though she didn’t want to dive into the washing or getting through the mending, she did want to see the dishes put in the cupboards and the clothing all gathered in one place.
In addition to cleaning the house, she figured out where many of the items were kept – something she knew was going to save time later when she was trying to get through the rest of the chores. As Barbara continued to straighten up the house and clean, she began humming to herself.
There was something about the house that left her with an uneasy feeling, though she knew she was entirely safe there. She couldn’t get her mind off of the fact that he had told her it was difficult to do murder cases as there was no way to tell for sure who was telling the truth – suppose she was to tell him the suspicion that was surrounding her? What would he say to that?
Would he believe her? Or would he think that she could actually have been guilty of what she was accused? With a sigh, she shook her head and turned her focus back on the dishes.
It was going to be a new way of life, and she was going to have to learn to live with it.
The Surprise
“There’s something I want to show you!” Jake said one morning at breakfast. Barbara looked at him in surprise. They had been married nearly three weeks, and she thought he had shown her all there was to see in the little town.
“What is it?” she asked, raising one of her eyebrows expectantly.
“Well, you’ve told me more than once how much you enjoy the theater, and I’ve discovered something that I think you will enjoy. Down at the end of the street and just around the corner is a small little theater that they have been working on organizing. There’s a small stage, and a cast for a show and everything!” Jake beamed at her, and Barbara felt her heart skip a beat.
If there was one thing she missed about
being back in Boston besides Mark, it was going to the theater. She had mentioned her love for the art to Jake more than once, though she had thought he would think her silly for it, so she never told him to what extent she had enjoyed going.
“I thought that you might want to go to one of their shows, or perhaps you may even wish to get involved. I know they’re looking for both people to be in the plays as well as people who know what they are doing to make the plays that much better.” Jake rattled his newspaper as he continued to speak, and Barbara felt her heart pound.
“I – I would love to go look at it! Do you know when they are going to be performing again?” she asked, excitement shining through her voice. He laughed and shook his head.
“I know they tend to meet around three in the afternoon most days. If you really wanted to go see what it’s all about, you should just go. I know most of the people that are involved, and they are really easy to get along with. They’d love to have you, I’m certain.” He folded the paper and set it neatly on the table, then he pulled out his pocket watch, as he always did right before he left.
Barbara didn’t know if he always managed to pull it out when it was time to go, or if he was leaving anyway and chose to see the time before he did. Either way, he yawned and stretched, then thanked her for making breakfast once again.
“You know how to make it delicious as always, feel free to come see me if you need anything.” He gave her a light kiss on the top of her head as he gathered his hat and his briefcase and headed out the door. Barbara smiled at the gesture. He had taken to kissing her forehead or the top of her head over the past couple of weeks, and though it did make her miss Mark, she did enjoy the affection. She knew that he cared about her – it was clear by the way that he treated her.
She felt a sudden pang of guilt at the thought, realizing that she hadn’t yet told him the truth about her past. Though she desperately wanted to keep it under wraps, she couldn’t shake the feeling that she ought to tell him. She knew she would be terribly upset if she came to find out that he had hidden something of such importance from her, but at the same time, she didn’t know how to tell him.
Barbara hurried through the dishes and gathered her shawl, wrapping it around her shoulders. She wanted to go see this theater that Jake had told her about, and though she knew that there wouldn’t be anyone there at the moment, she wanted to see the stage for herself. It had been so long since she had seen a stage, and she was desperate to see one once more.
There was something about the theater that simply beckoned to her. It was so enchanting that she couldn’t help but feel drawn to it, wondering who was going to put on a show next, wondering what story it was that they wanted to share with the audience.
As she walked up the dusty street, she couldn’t help but smile to herself. It had been so long since she had been walking to a theater, she had forgotten the anticipation of the trip. Though she knew she must keep her expectations low, she was eager to see what the western world had to offer the artistic one.
She walked the length of the main street then rounded the corner where Jake had told her the theater was, and sure enough, there was a small door leading into the side of a building. Barbara tried it and was delighted to find that it wasn’t locked. She knew that this was a quiet town, and it was unlikely anyone would harm the theater if the door were to remain open.
The room was small, much smaller than anything she would think suitable for a theater, but sure enough, there was a stage in the corner of the room, complete with homemade curtains reaching up to the ceiling. She walked into the room, closing her eyes and imagining the theater back home.
“Excuse me, Miss? But I don’t think you are supposed to be in here,” a voice said from the doorway, causing her to turn with a start.
“I apologize, my husband told me that there was a stage here in town, knowing that I absolutely love the theater, and I wanted to see it for myself,” she explained. The gentleman who stood at the doorway looked at her for a moment, then he smiled.
“You must not be from around here?” he asked as he walked into the room, and she shook her head.
“I’m from Boston, actually, just moved out this way a month ago. I’ve missed the theater though,” she turned and looked at the wooden stage, running her hand along the frame.
“That’s interesting because I am from Boston as well! I’ve only been out here for about a week, however. Did you hear about that bloke that was murdered during a show?” Her face fell at his question, and he looked at her closely.
“You might say that he and I were rather close, actually,” Barbara admitted at last. The man watched her with keen interest. He leaned back against the stage and crossed his arms.
“Is that so? But you said you were married, didn’t you? I hear that the man’s wife was the prime suspect in the case, and she just up and vanished.”
Barbara could feel the man watching her intently as he spoke, and she continued to feel more and more uncomfortable during the conversation. Fighting for composure, she looked at the man directly in the eyes.
“That is indeed unfortunate. My heart goes out to her. Anyway, I suppose I better get out of here. Sorry to barge in without permission,” she gave the man a cheerful smile and hurried toward the door. He stopped her before she walked through, however, and she turned and looked at him with raised eyebrows.
“You should come to the show tonight – it’s going to be the debut and the more people we can get to come, the better. Bring your husband!” He winked at her, and she smiled.
“I would love to,” she said.
The Attack
“Come along then! We’re going to be late!” Barbara was leaning close to the mirror, adjusting her hair, and fussing over her dress. She had brought with her but one of her nice dresses, and she now looked at herself from all angles, making sure each part of it was perfectly in place. It was one of Mark’s favorites, and she couldn’t help but feel a twinge of guilt as she tightened the last bow.
It wasn’t the dress she was wearing the night he had been killed. She had gotten rid of that dress as soon as she possibly could. This gown was a dark purple with white lace around the throat and cuffs. When she was finally satisfied, she hurried over to the door, waiting for Jake to finish getting ready.
She could hear Jake in the back of the house, gathering his things and making himself look presentable as well. She thought he looked good no matter what he was wearing, and she was used to Mark always being ready to go whenever he was in the mood to go somewhere. It was odd to her that he had to take the time to get ready.
When he finally did appear, she found he took her breath away. Dressed in a dark suit with a tie in a perfect bow at his throat, he looked as dashing to her as any of the businessmen who walked the streets of Boston.
“My, but don’t you look handsome!” she breathed. He smiled and held out his hand to her. Putting her arm in the crook of his elbow, she allowed him to guide her through the door and onto the evening street. The light was pink as the sun was beginning to set, and Barbara was excited to reach the theater. Though it was only a short distance from the house, she felt like it was taking them an eternity to arrive.
Then, there was a line at the door – another thing she wasn’t used to facing. But, she bit her tongue and didn’t say a word as she patiently waited until they were allowed to enter. When at last it came their turn, she gave the ticket man a warm smile as Jake paid for the two of them. Then, she had to once again bite her tongue as they made their way through the sea of people to a set of open seats.
“There aren’t any assigned seats?” she asked as they drew nearer to a pair of vacant chairs.
“No, I don’t think they figure this is a large enough place for something such as that!” He chuckled as he held her chair for her, then slid into the seat beside her. Though there was no balcony to be seated on, Barbara still wished she could get up higher to watch the play. She missed her opera glasses and her gloves, and she miss
ed being away from the stuffiness of the crowds.
But, she knew that she had no choice, and she was going to have to make do with how she was going to attend the theater from now on. After all, it was better than no theater at all.
Once the show began, Barbara had to admit that she was more impressed with the acting than she thought she was going to be. Though she couldn’t spot that strange man she had spoken with that morning, she did see several faces that she recognized from around the small town. The acting certainly wasn’t up to the same standard as she was used to, but she found it entertaining and knew that if this were the only theater she could attend, she would be okay with that.
The curtains closed, and the crowd cheered once more, each person leaning in and speaking to those around them, discussing how the play had gone so far and what they thought was going to happen next. Jake leaned in and instead of whispering to her, he gave her a light kiss on the cheek, causing her to blush.
“Back home, talking was considered quite rude during the show,” she whispered, and he smiled, patting her on the shoulder. The speaker for the show stepped out into the center of the stage and smiled. He then waived his hand in an illustrious manner and took a bow, drawing more cheers from the crowd.
“Ladies and gentlemen, do not be alarmed, but for the drama of this next scene, we are going to shut off all the lights. It will only be for a moment, and you will see why once they are turned back on!” the crowd cheered and he took another bow, then withdrew from the stage.
Barbara could feel her heart start to pound. There was only one play that she was aware of that required the lights to be shut down, and it seemed so out of place for this one. She reached around frantically, grabbing Jake’s hand, and holding it tightly.
“What’s wrong?” he whispered, but she was breathing so hard she couldn’t reply. Part of her feared she was going to faint, another part of her wanted to get up and run out of the theater as fast as she could go. It was pure dark – as dark as it had been when her husband had been murdered. Barbara could feel tears in her eyes, and she was tense. Jake once again asked her what was wrong, when she suddenly felt someone grab her hair.