Most Unsuitable Wife

by Clemmons, Caroline

  Storm took another step toward the men, shaking his head. "No. A man. I couldn't see his face, but he was there.” He pointed again to the top of the bluff beside the road. "Right where the slide started."

  Drake put a hand to the boy's shoulder. "Okay. We'd better check it out. Let's see what kind of tracks we find."

  Before they left the cabin, both Drake and his cousin had belted on their handguns. Not the kind in Evan's little books about the west. Those showed drawings of gunfighters wearing double holsters all tied down and worn on the thigh. These were in a leather holster, but worn at the belt. Now the men grabbed rifles and each unfastened the flap securing his handgun in place.

  "Lex, will you stay with the women in case someone has a mind to make more mischief?” When his cousin nodded and took a stance beside the damaged wagon, Drake turned to Storm. "Let's go. You stay behind me.”

  The two slid and stumbled up the hillside. At the top, they disappeared from view. Pearl held her breath. It seemed they were gone a long time without a sound to reassure those who waited below. She comforted herself that at least there were no gunshots.

  She shook her head and rummaged through the tools stored in the first wagon. "I can't stand the suspense of not knowing, of just waiting here. I'll get a shovel and dig out the wheel."

  Lex addressed Belle. "You know how to use one of these?” He nodded at the rifle.

  Belle nodded. "Yes. I'm a purty good shot."

  He handed her the firearm. "You watch. I'll dig."

  Evan called from the other wagon. "I'm watching, too.”

  Pearl and Sarah gathered stones and moved them aside while Lex dug. Each cast frequent glances at the ridge, but saw no one. By the time Drake and Storm reappeared atop the bluff, the wheel was almost free. A mess of rubble littered the roadside, but a wagon could pass.

  A grim-faced Drake slid down the last few feet to the roadside. "Storm was right."

  Lex looked astonished. "You don't mean it? Sonofabitch. Uh, beg pardon, ladies.” He glanced at the women before he continued speaking to his cousin, "You saw someone?"

  Drake shook his head. "Whoever did this is long gone. We found where they waited, though. Found the pole they used as a lever to start the slide. Looked like prints of two men."

  Lex shook his head, as if he still couldn't believe what he heard. "Who would want to wreck our wagons? If they wanted to rob us, why not hold us up and take the wagons as well."

  Storm looked grave. "Not rob. Someone wants to hurt Pearl. Maybe Sarah and me, too."

  "You believe this was directed at you and your sisters?” Drake no longer doubted Storm's opinion. The boy was sharp.

  Drake's anger surprised him. Who would have the nerve to attack his horses and people in his care? Damned if he wouldn't like to get his hands on the varmints right now. Storm's voice brought his attention back to the moment.

  "Lots of things happen lately. Started when Pearl's Granny died. Too many things to all be accidents."

  "What kinds of things?"

  Storm looked to Pearl, seeking reassurance. She nodded at him to continue.

  "There was the fire in the barn. Smelled like coal oil. We got it out before the barn burned, but only because it rained hard. Two days later someone killed a chicken and put it in our well to ruin the water. One night someone tried to break in the back door, but I shot at him."

  Belle added, "Those men in town wrecked Pearl's cart, too. Evan put them in jail for three days."

  Drake looked from Pearl to her brother. "You think it was them? The men we saw in Pipers Hollow?"

  Storm shook his head. "No. That fire was while the two brothers were in jail for another thing. So was the chicken.” He looked at Evan and shrugged. "Those three cause trouble and stay in jail a lot, especially the Ainsworths. Mostly for little things, though, like too much liquor or causing a fight."

  Sarah leaned close to her brother's ear. "Tell them about the men who followed Sister."

  Drake heard her. "Men followed Pearl? What men?"

  Pearl stepped between her brother and sister. "I'll tell them.” She patted the shoulder of each, then looked at Drake and Lex. "It was the first of these incidents, I suppose. A couple of days after Granny's funeral, I helped Jenny Sinclair with her baby's birthing. She lives across the valley past Oak Haven and up the mountain, maybe two miles from home, um, our old home. It was late, way after midnight when I returned."

  She crossed her arms and hugged herself against the unpleasant memory. "I thought I heard something behind me and stopped to listen. A man stepped out in front of me and tried to grab me. It sounded as if another one moved up behind me.” Though the sun shone warm on her now, she shivered as if chilled. "I admit it really scared me. Instead of turning away, I pushed hard into the man in front and knocked him over. Then I ran. I know the paths well along there and I can run pretty fast--even carrying my doctorin' bag."

  "So there were at least two men? Did you see their faces?” She shook her head. "It was dark. I only saw the man in front of me. He had a sack over his head with holes cut for his eyes. It--it was frightening. After that, if I was out late, I just stayed all night at the sick folks' house unless one of their menfolk could bring me home."

  Storm nodded. "But that's when Evan insisted she carry our pistol with her. He taught her to use it years ago, but he made her practice again. She carried it so she could protect herself when she was out doctorin' people or delivering her breads and sweets."

  "But why would they attack you?"

  Pearl and her family exchanged sorrowful looks before she shrugged a shoulder. "We don't know."

  Drake took Pearl's elbow and guided her back onto the wagon. "There's nothing to be gained standing here. Let's get underway. The sooner we get to Chattanooga, the better."

  Why would anyone want to harm Pearl? As far as he could see, she had nothing of value. Did she hide some secret? He decided to talk to Evan once more.

  Damn. What had he gotten himself into? All he wanted was a wife. No, all he wanted to be left alone. He needed a wife. Then he picked one who came with a string of family members who included a woman of ill repute labeled as a fake cousin. To make matters worse, someone targeted all or part of this family.

  Evan rode propped up so he faced the wagon in which Pearl, Belle, and Drake rode. He held his rifle across his lap. Drake noticed his cousin also left the flap of his holster unfastened and kept a rifle beside him.

  Drake had thought himself indifferent toward Pearl and her family. That someone would attack them while they were in his care infuriated him. No one threatened him or his and got away with it. Surely they would be safe in the city of Chattannooga.

  Drake hated to think what that slide would have done to his new mares. Well, it wouldn't have done the people any good either, if it had been a more timely hit. Did the criminals miscalculate or only mean to terrorize? With a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach, he admitted his fears. He suspected lethal intent, but the culprits erred in their timing.

  Pearl sat quietly with her hands folded in her lap. She half turned on the seat to meet his gaze. "This makes things very different."

  "It certainly does. We'll have to be even more careful from now on."

  She shook her head. "No. I never would have involved you and Lex if I had known anything like this would happen. I truly thought once we left Pipers Hollow we'd be safe. We never dreamed the trouble would follow us out of the county. This alters our agreement."

  For just a moment, panic gripped his gut. "You gave me your word. You trying to get out of our deal?"

  "I'm giving you a chance to do that. You need a wife, not a passel of trouble. You can leave us in Chattanooga. Mary Alice, that's Evan's daughter, can help you find a suitable wife."

  "No. I don't scare so easily. Besides, if someone hereabouts wants to harm you, the further away your are, the safer you'll be. We'll continue on as we planned."

  He saw her exhale, as if she had held her breath. Her features
relaxed, though she didn't say more. So, she wanted to continue their bargain. Decent of her to give him an out, but Kincaids stuck to their bargains. And they didn't run scared.

  Why would anyone target Pearl or her family? Was there some secret not even Evan knew? After mulling this over for several minutes, Drake turned his attention to Pearl and repeated his question.

  "Any ideas why anyone would attack you or your family?"

  Chapter Six

  Pearl felt a flush spread across her face. She sat straight and tall, hiding the shame she felt. "You know people don't like us because of our being born outside marriage?"

  Drake shrugged. "That's something you had no control over. Why would that make anyone want to hurt you?"

  He had no idea what a gift he gave her.

  Drake's simple dismissal of her illegitimate birth lifted a burden from her heart. Unsure what Evan told him, how much he understood of her life, she hoped he knew very little. If he knew her shame, he might shun her as others did, might refuse to help her family.

  She couldn't explain it to him, so she said only, "Not everyone is as logical as you. Or as forgiving.”

  "What's this about people taking Sarah and Storm away from you. Could that have anything to do with the incidents?"

  She shook her head. "I wondered the same thing at first. No, I can't explain why, but there's something else. Something even worse. Merline and Billy Joe Higgins didn't want Sarah and Storm out of any sense of looking out for their welfare. They wanted them living at their place as slave labor."

  "Why them. Why not just hire someone?”

  "Well, I don't think they can afford to hire anyone. Merline Higgins is ailing. I tried doctoring her, but without much luck. Mostly, I think, she's just plumb sick of Billy Joe. Who could blame her?” She paused, unsure of how much to tell.

  With a sigh, she continued. "Billy Joe is a terrible, horrid man. Lazy and a bad provider. Since his wife is ill, I think he wanted Sarah for himself. I mean in--in his bed. The way he looked at Sarah when he thought no one saw him,"--she shuddered--"made me sick.”

  The revulsion she felt for Billy Joe caused her to shudder again and shrug her shoulders. She always felt dirty when he looked at her or Sarah, wanted to rush home and scrub herself.

  "Before you came," she continued, "I decided we would run away with only the clothes on our backs before I'd let the Higgins get hold of Sarah and Storm. We even talked about putting Belle in my cart and taking turns pushing her.” She turned to him and smiled. "Wouldn't we've been a sight to see?"

  He returned her smile. "Might've worked. At least you had a plan. You have a destination in mind?”

  "Yes. We were going to Memphis and wait for my money from the bank. Then we were going to Wyoming territory."

  Incredulous, he stared before he asked, "Wyoming? That's a long way to travel. Why there?"

  "I heard women are treated more as equals in Wyoming. And there's not many women in the state, so they're probably welcomed. Figured to give an eating place serving good meals a try."

  He shook his head and chuckled. She knew he laughed at her, thought both her and her idea crazy. Maybe so. Maybe going to Texas was just as crazy.

  The little line appeared between his brows and the smile disappeared. "What about this Higgins fellow, though?"

  She sat lost in thought again for a few seconds before she shook her head. "Oh, Billy Joe Higgins is too lazy to try anything as complicated as following us and creating a rock slide. It has to be someone else, someone smarter. I just can't imagine who."

  "What about that preacher? He sure seemed full of righteous indignation. So did that shrewish wife of his."

  "That's just about an old slight.” Her face heated. When Drake looked at her with his eyebrows raised in question, she forged on. But she looked straight ahead, avoiding his gaze.

  "He--well, he hates me for having the nerve to turn down his marriage proposal four years ago. Dessie hates me because she knows he asked me before he proposed to her."

  "Then I guess I'm lucky you turned him down."

  She looked at him. "You guess? Hmph. Well, whether you are or not, I wasn't about to marry Fayne Upperly. That pompous, sanctimonious windbag."

  He smiled then. "I take it he didn't court you with flowers and such?"

  "Court me?” She felt like hitting something--or someone--at the memory. "He came to call on Granny regular-like each week. I hardly even spoke to the man, other than to bring him tea and a slice of cake or pie--unless Granny asked him to stay for dinner. Then, out of the clear blue one day, he starts telling me how he's willing to overlook the sin I was born in and raise my station in life by marrying me. Can you believe the nerve of that man?”

  "I can see the fellow has a way with words.” She heard the chuckle he tried to hide.

  She punched Drake's arm. "Oh, laugh if you will. But the man made me mad enough to eat a bug. Before I even had a chance to turn him down he told me that, of course, Sarah and Storm would have to live elsewhere, especially with Storm being what he called a heathen.”

  "Silver-tongued devil. Good thing he's the only preacher in town or he'd be wanting for church members."

  "Well, I fair gave his ears a good blistering. And I never set foot in his church again, 'cept for Granny's funeral. He never forgave me, though, so he's no Christian example, is he? In fact, I heard he preached against those born in sin lots of times. From pure spite, he kept people stirred up against us."

  "Sounds like spite's the only thing pure about him. What about your father? Is he around?"

  She met his gaze with her chin raised. "And what if he is?" With a shake of her head, she added, "No, it's not him. Again I can't tell you how I know, but I do. I just know.”

  Drake must have heard the finality in her voice, because he didn't press her. She couldn't discuss her father with anyone yet. Maybe she never would be. Some hurts went too deep.

  Pearl sat stunned as the wagon moved forward. The rock slide had caught her completely unaware. All these weeks she thought they would be safe once they escaped Pipers Hollow. Her only fear had been someone would try to take Sarah and Storm before they escaped the county.

  Now trouble followed them. Bad trouble. Although she had no idea who wanted her dead or injured, she felt her fear quieting with the men alerted. Dear Lord, who could be doing this to us? And why?

  * * *

  They camped well off the road, but in an exposed area. No one could approach them without being seen. The bright moon cast a silver glow on their campsite. A small fire lent warmth against the early spring's chill.

  Drake took the first watch. Quiet and uneventful. Just the kind of night he usually liked, except this one gave him plenty of time to think.

  First came shock that anyone deliberately tried to kill Pearl or her family. Fury suffused him, but not just from that revelation. His anger sprang from the threat to what was his, in his care. He also thought about the wrongs suffered by Pearl and her family at other people's hands--and words.

  A pair of violet eyes drifted into his mind's eye. But he knew there was a lot more to Pearl than beautiful eyes, lots more than he suspected when he proposed to her. He admired the way she kept going in spite of whatever came her way.

  It must have been hard for her to provide for a family all these years. Never complained on this trip either. Bossy woman, damn bossy. But she kept working, doing whatever had to be done. Drake had been surprised when he and Storm came down the hill after the rock slide back there and saw Pearl and Sarah helping Lex dig out the wagon wheel. But he was realizing Pearl was not one to stand by and wring her hands when trouble came. Didn't he learn that the first time he saw her?

  He shook his head to clear his traitorous thoughts. He damn well refused to feel anything for a woman he didn't want. If he couldn't have the kind of romance his grandparents shared, he wanted only a token wife. He'd give her his name, but not his heart. Never his heart.

  * * *

  Belle lay in
the wagon unable to sleep while she waited for Pearl and Sarah to turn in on the feather bed with her. So many thoughts jumbled her mind she failed to hear Lex approach. She started when he spoke.

  "Are you comfortable, Miss Renfro?”

  "Why yes, thank you.” Though she couldn't make them out in the dark, she knew his eyes must show the warm concern he had displayed throughout the trip.

  "The road's rough. I know it must be hard to bear, what with you injured and all.”

  She thought he started to say more. When he didn't, she explained, "It's not as bad as I thought it would be. Pearl's feather bed's a nice cushion with pillows all piled behind me.”

  This man with the dark red hair treated her like a princess, bringing her things, talking to her each time they stopped. She knew he pretended not to see the bruises that still mottled her face, yet took such care when he helped her down from the wagon.

  So much had happened recently to change her life. She had thought she would die, felt certain of it, even hoped for it until Roxie found her. Thank God Roxie got her to Pearl, and thank God for Pearl's compassion and knowledge of healing.

  "I don't mean to trouble you, but I thought no one asked and, well, you might know some clue. Do you have any thoughts about who could have been responsible for that rock slide?"

  "Law, wasn't it awful? But no, I can't imagine. You have no idea yet just how good a person Pearl is, or how mean spirited some of the people in Pipers Hollow can be.” Thoughts of her own parents brought tears to her eyes. How mean and stiff-necked to throw away their own daughter over one mistake?

  "What about you, Miss Renfro? What will your family think about you leaving so suddenly?" he asked, concern coloring his tone.

  She panicked. How odd it must seem to him, but she could tell him nothing of the truth. Her own story would repulse him. The soft look in his brown eyes would change from concern to disgust, a disgust she shared. Or would it become the leer so familiar to her from the men at Roxie's Place?

  Please, God, no. Never that from him.