The Calling Birds_The Fourth Day
Page 9
CHAPTER 13
Birdie scanned the street as she hurried out of La Maison. She sighed with relief not to see the two miners, but also with disappointment for Jack and Gus’ absence. She hastened forward. She’d promised Jack that she’d come back. Never had she wanted to keep a promise as much as this.
A few minutes ago at his dry goods store, Mr. Fulton had handed over her snowshoes and wished her a good day. So far so good. She’d left Pearl’s dress with a note in their room upstairs, hid her snowshoes in the kitchen downstairs, and now she was free to return to the freight office and Jack.
Her steps quickened. She might be walking alone, but she was headed where her feet wanted to go.
She’d parted ways with Penny outside Mr. Fulton’s store when Mrs. Walters had called to them from across the street. The matchmaker wanted to discuss if they were ready to get married. Birdie had commented under her breath that she wasn’t up for such a conversation.
Penny had whispered back, “Leave it to me.” Then she’d steered the matchmaker away, saying she hadn’t seen her groom Silas more than a couple times since the brides arrived.
Silly man. Didn’t he see he’d been granted a rare prize in Penny?
Penny, Pearl, and the Peregrines. A smile curved her lips. She had a new-found love for the letter P. And a growing longing for friends, family, and a home. Could it all be possible here in Noelle?
She loved Jack’s kindness, his desire to be honest, his strength of body and soul. He knew she might leave him and he’d let her go. She loved him for that as well. Jack Peregrine was a match made in her heart.
Could he love her as well?
She forced her footsteps to slow when she saw the jail. For a small town, this one overflowed with challenges. She hugged the opposite side of the street to avoid walking near Draven’s domain in the full light of day.
Any departure from Noelle would best be done in the dead of night. A lantern would be needed to read her father’s compass. La Maison’s kitchen had them and now her snowshoes too. She could leave money for the lantern and some food and slip out the back door. Once under cover of the trees, the lantern could be lit and a course charted around instead of through the town.
With fortitude and feet that didn’t sink in the snow, she’d reach the trail she and the other brides had journeyed up. She’d go directly down to the nearest train line—and never see Jack Peregrine again.
Her heart clenched tight. She pushed the parts of her plan to the back of her mind, hiding them like unappealing clothing at the bottom of a trunk. She may need to use them later, but she didn’t want to think about them now.
Right now, she was walking toward Jack, not away from him.
She passed the barbershop. Nacho’s Diner came next. Jack had always wanted to take her there. Maybe they could try again this evening. He might hold her hand and—
A yank on her hood jerked her sideways off her feet. She struck the ground hard. Couldn’t breathe. Saw only the sky. Then a row of grubby fingers. They dragged her by her hood across the cold snow. Two rooftops rose on either side of her. Nothing good ever happened in an alleyway.
She rolled fast. Twisted free. And slammed into a wall of wood. She sat up with her back braced against the side of the diner.
The two miners from yesterday loomed over her.
She dared a glance at the street. She couldn’t see the jail. Not counting Nacho’s and the barbershop, it was the closest building. Mordieu! These men were either brazen or stupid to have attacked her so close to Draven’s office.
Stout puffed out his chest. “Tell us where your brothers hid their gold.”
She hunched her shoulders and wrapped her arms around her waist, trying to act like she was terrified and hurting bad. It didn’t take much acting. Under the cover of her arms, she slid her hand inside her coat and found her scissors. “If they had said a word to me about it, I’d have told the first pair of ruffians who dragged me into an alley.”
“You’re lying,” Stout said. “And we ain’t leavin’ this town without gold in our hands or directions in our heads as to where we can find some.”
How long had they been out of work? They’d said they’d been laid off at the mine. If not Noelle’s, then another. Or even a string of them. Without a skill like her sewing or Jack’s carpentry or Gus’ leather tooling, these men were slaves to the lure of a sudden windfall. Not to mention the compulsion to gamble everything to obtain it.
“Tell us.” Stout’s voice dropped to a growl. “Or we’ll make you.”
Stretch stayed silent except for his labored, rasping breaths.
“I don’t know where their gold is buried. I never did.”
“You lived with your brothers in that mining camp.”
“Until they started stealing, then they disappeared in the hills.”
“Everyone said they still visited you.”
She caught herself before she nodded in agreement. They’d been good brothers, just not good men. They’d offered her part of their loot. When she refused to take it, they came back with food. Too hungry to resist, she’d taken it. Then she’d been sick with guilt wondering if it’d been bought with the gold they’d first offered. Gold stained with the blood of the people they’d hurt or killed to acquire it.
She’d taken up her sewing in earnest. Purchased her own food so she could refuse her brothers’. That didn’t stop them from seeking her out for stolen moments. A deserted road where they’d hug fiercely. A crowded street with a brief clasp of hands.
“You know more than you’re telling us.”
She now knew her brothers’ visits had fed the rumors that she must be part of their gang or at least knew their hideouts or where they might bury things. If she could go back in time, she’d still have clung to them. The memory of their love had gotten her over many a lonely trail.
“We don’t have time for this.” Stretch’s gaze darted to the ends of the alley. “We gotta go.”
“No.” Stout raised his fist. “We just need to loosen her tongue.”
She met his downward swing with an upward arc of her scissors. Bright red blood ripped across his knuckles. If she’d held a knife, he might not have held onto his fingers.
His flinch of surprise then yelp of pain gave her time to escape his kick. She jumped to her feet and kept her bloody scissors between them. If they wouldn’t listen to the truth, it was time to start lying.
“Last night you wondered why I was in Noelle. I couldn’t tell you because we were in the presence of an honest man.” Every good lie began with some truth.
Stout snorted. “The one-legged freight man.”
She fought the urge to cut him again.
“He said you came here to sew. The town says you’re here to marry him.”
“Do I look like the marrying type?”
Stout’s eyes narrowed as he studied her. “You look like a Bellamy. In a high rage. Eyes flashing like blue hellfire.”
“And now a Bellamy, when she isn’t being accosted on the street, sits in a freight office directly across from a mine.”
Stout’s eyes widened eagerly. “You’re spyin’ on them?”
Her heart hurt at how easily he accepted this false and unflattering version of her character, but his reaction told her she was on the right track. She’d finally said something he believed—and liked. She straightened her spine and forced herself to continue. “I’d rather look for stolen gold stashed on the mountain I’m standing on, than on one that’s thousands of miles away.”
“Didn’t know your brothers robbed anything this far south.”
“They didn’t, but we had friends who did. Unfortunately, they died as well.” She fixed her gaze on him and cast her lure. “I’m in need of new partners.”
“The Bellamys always liked to build a gang.” Envy thickened his voice.
“You joined my brothers?”
“They wouldn’t let us.”
That said a lot. These men were untrustworthy even by
thieves’ standards.
“I’d let you. But first I need to maintain my illusion as a bride. My groom expects my prompt return after I run my wifely errands. He’s concerned about me walking the streets alone. Imagine that.”
Stout laughed. “You’re too tiny to do much harm.”
Had he already forgotten about the cut on his hand? She didn’t remind him. Not when escape and a temporary truce was within her grasp.
“Are you offering to carry all that heavy gold for me?”
“Where’s it buried?”
She shrugged. “If I knew, I’d be long gone with the loot. My friends’ directions were cryptic.” She paused as if trying to recall their exact words. She used the time to concoct something believable that wouldn’t endanger Noelle. “Not in town or at the mine, but nearby on the mountain.”
Stout’s gaze finally left her and swung to his tall friend. “Could it be over behind the mountain by the old—?”
“Shut up,” Stretch hissed. “She may talk like a Bellamy, but I’ve seen how she holds onto her groom and his granddaddy. Like they’re already”—his rasping voice turned as envious as Stout’s had a moment ago—“family.” He pulled Stout away from her and down the alley, only pausing to glare over his shoulder at her and say, “You’d better find the exact location of your stolen gold by tomorrow. Otherwise we’ll topple your nest and toss you and your Peregrines into the abyss.”
CHAPTER 14
“Yer needed elsewhere.” Gus’ palm slapped the counter. “So why are you still here?”
“I’m not leaving you alone, and Birdie promised she’d come back as soon as she could.” Jack kept staring out the office window, looking for her and hoping that soon would happen any second.
“You shoulda gone with her.”
“Remember the first day she came to see us? She said she’d been on her own since she was sixteen. She doesn’t need us to take care of her.”
“Don’t recall her saying that, but it doesn’t matter. It’s hogwash. Everyone can use a helping hand.”
“Maybe so. But she’s on the verge of running away, and we need her to yearn with all her heart to stay with us. That type of longing doesn’t involve protection.”
“What does it involve?”
“Love and acceptance of every part of who she is.”
Gus huffed. “She’s Birdie Bell ’n Bernadette Bellamy.”
Well, at least Gus remembered a few things.
“It’s confusin’ as all heck,” Gus added.
“Agreed. But Birdie is a puzzle I won’t shy away from solving.” A grim smile twisted his lips. He’d buried himself in work to avoid learning about his first wife. Not this time. “We dig for the truth and use it to keep Birdie safe. When you were gathering gossip in the saloon and from Culver at the smithy, did it sound like the town had made the connection?”
“Can’t remember, but I don’t care if they do. We’re keeping her.”
“Only if she decides to keep us.”
“Listen, you need to take her to yer bed.”
Jack groaned. “Gus, this isn’t the time to—”
Gus thumped the counter again. “You call me Grandpa or nothing at all. And you listen to me, Sunny Boy. You need to show that gal what’s left of yer leg ’n stop waiting ’n worrying if she’ll reject you because of it. You need acceptance too. No more doing things half-measure. Show Birdie yer pain ’n give her the chance to show you she ain’t Lorena.”
The thought of baring himself entirely to Birdie terrified him, but not as much as never seeing her again.
A tiny woman dressed in a long dark coat ran over the bridge and up the rise toward the office. The joy thundering in his heart at the sight of Birdie turned to fear. Something red flashed in her hand.
He yanked open the door.
She sprinted the final strides to reach him.
“What happened?”
Her small palm slammed flat against his chest, struggling to push him back inside. He retreated only to take her in with him. When he closed the door behind them, she braced her back against it. Her palm stayed on his chest. Her other hand hung by her side, clutching her scissors and dripping blood.
“Whose blood is that?” The thought that it might be hers made him light-headed.
Her face went white as the snow outside. “I’m not a killer or a thief.”
“I know.” He cradled her face between his hands. “You have a kind heart. You give dresses away. Tell me if you’re hurt.”
Gus appeared beside them. “I can wrap you in bandages till we get you to Doc Deane.”
Jack gave him a thankful glance. “Yes. Grandpa assisted the surgeons in the war. We can—”
Her scissors hit the floor with a clatter as she dropped them. She surged forward to wrap her arms around his waist and hug him close. “They didn’t hurt me, but I—” She hid her face against his chest. “I cut the stout miner’s hand after he and his tall friend dragged me into an alley. I can’t make them go away. I can’t tell them where my brothers buried their gold. I don’t know.”
“I believe you.”
“But they don’t, and now they’ve threatened to hurt you as well.” Her grip on him tightened. “Take me to Draven. Make him haul me away so no one has a reason to come here and harm you and your grandfather.”
“Running away isn’t the answer.”
“It’s not running. I’m giving myself up to the authorities.”
“Draven isn’t taking you anywhere. I won’t let him.”
“Jack, please listen. I’m not the person you think I am.”
“Then tell me who you are—but later, when we have time. Right now, I need a favor.”
She lifted her head to gaze up at him. Tears glistened in her dark blue eyes but she raised her chin valiantly.
“I need you to stay with Gus while I ask Draven and the mayor to help me find those men again.”
“Non! You could get hurt.”
“With Draven by my side? I don’t think so. I need to find those miners so they’ll never threaten you again.”
“And you and Gus.”
“And everyone else in Noelle. We’re saving it from all threats. This is our home.”
She shook her head. “I won’t be welcome here when the town learns who I truly am. Honest folk can’t afford to have a woman with a history of thievery in their midst.”
“What I can’t afford is to lose you. I don’t believe the town will reject you, but if it does it’s not a place I want to stay in. We’ll leave together.”
“You ain’t leaving without me,” Gus growled. “We’re a family. We stick together.” Gus patted Birdie’s hand reassuringly. “Now don’t worry. Just tell us how you escaped those miners.”
“I told them there was stolen gold stashed outside of town. I didn’t say where, but they said something odd, like they knew where to look and then they left. I couldn’t think of another way to escape them.”
“Cunning as a fox, you are!” Gus declared. “I couldn’t ask for a finer granddaughter.”
“But I lied.”
Gus shook his finger at her. “You did what you must to come back to us.”
“And also made my job easier.” Jack stared deeply into her eyes. “What was the odd part about where they might search?”
Birdie sealed her lips and gave him a mulish look.
“I’m going after them no matter what you say or don’t say. Will you send me out blind?”
She huffed, then shook her head and raised her gaze to the ceiling as if trying to remember precisely. “Over behind the mountain by the old…” She waved her hands in the air. “After that the conversation halted abruptly and they departed.”
“The only thing old on the other side of mountain is the abandoned mine.” He kissed her forehead and hugged her close. “I’ll find them, Birdie. I promise they’ll never bother you again.”
But when her arms looped around him and hugged him back just as fiercely, he couldn’t move. If
he broke their embrace, would he ever get a chance to hold her this close again?
“Don’t dillydally.” Gus nudged his elbow. “Get going. The sooner you catch those men, the sooner you can get back. Then you two can seek out a bed ’n—”
“Get some rest. It’s been a challenging day and it’s not over.” He released Birdie reluctantly and went behind the counter. This time he didn’t hesitate when he reached for the rifles. He pulled them both out. One for Birdie and one for him. “Do you know how to shoot?”
She scanned the firearms curiously, studying them in a way that was uniquely her. “It’s been a while. Those are old weapons. Are they from the war?”
“Yes. This one was my father’s.” He handed the rifle to her. “Now it’s yours. Keep it with you at all times. Will you stay with Gus until I return?”
“I promise on all that I hold holy, but only if you promise to come back as soon as you can.”
“I will, but I could be out late.” And even if I’m not, I don’t want you going back to La Maison. “It’d be best if you stayed the night.”
“Finally,” Gus crowed. “Yer listening to my advice. She can sleep in yer—”
“In my brother’s room.”
Gus scowled at him, then grinned slyly. “She’ll require a nightgown.”
Jack vision filled only with the image Birdie in a thin linen shift. Without the layers of skirts and petticoats, she’d be even tinier. Even with his missing leg, he could easily lift her in his arms and—
“I’m a seamstress. Making the necessary clothing won’t be difficult. But first”—her gaze locked with his—“will you agree to do something else for me?”
“You need only ask.” Ask me to take you to the reverend, to carry you to my bed, to hold you all night long.
“When you’ve completed your search, I want you to tell Draven my real name.”
“There’s no reason to—”
“He can protect you.”
“And you as well.”
“That is up to him. Do we have an agreement?”
“Only if we tell Draven together. I want to go forward with you by my side.” And if Birdie wanted that as well, he’d never leave her.