Magic in Her Eyes

by Donna Dalton

  Zeke snorted. “Too expensive for my wallet. Most I can manage is a bag of pipe tobacco on occasion.”

  “Anyone come by that this might have belonged to?”

  “Nope. No one has called on us since folks moved into the fort for protection. You think it might be tied to the raid?”

  “I don’t know. But I aim to look into it. Let me know if you remember anything that might help. Anything at all.”

  He had a promising lead, but he wasn’t going to get his hopes up. Charging a man with criminal wrong-doing required a thorough investigation, especially with someone as slippery as Samuel Finley. He wanted any charges brought against the man to stick like pine tar on a boot heel.

  ****

  Compared to a few days ago, Fort Dent looked like an empty shell. No long lines choked the community well. No crowds gathered outside the mess hall or swarmed around the officers’ barracks. The only activity came from small pockets of soldiers going about their duties. One stopped his raking and tipped his hat to her and Nel as they walked past. Meredith nodded in response. The soldiers must be relieved to have their garrison back to normal. She was about to do the same with her household. Well not quite normal, more like tolerable. And this was the last stage of her operation.

  Her target sat just ahead…a single-story cottage situated at the end of a row of similar buildings. Fresh whitewashing coated the clapboard planks. Sunlight glistened on spotless window panes. Even the door had been wiped free of grime. Mrs. Allen appeared to work diligently to keep her residence presentable, not an easy undertaking on a garrison where boots and hooves kicked up copious amounts of dust and mud.

  Meredith stepped onto the spotless veranda and rapped on the door. Hopefully Mrs. Allen was home and not out on one of her gossiping sprees. This mission needed to be over and done with as soon as possible.

  The faint thud of footfalls sounded on the other side. The door clicked open, and Lily appeared in the opening. Surprise and then delight swept across the younger girl’s face.

  “Miss Talbot.” She rushed into Meredith’s arms. “It’s so good to see you.”

  Meredith squeezed Lily against her. Tears brimmed in her eyes. She needed this reunion almost as much as Lily did.

  The smell of beeswax polish and lye soap surrounded the girl. Meredith gently pushed Lily away and slid her hands down until they were clasping each other. Lily’s fingers were rough and dry, and grime streaked the apron covering her dress. She looked more like a washer-woman than a young lady.

  “How have you been, Lily? Are the Allens treating you well?”

  Before Lily could answer, a squeal resounded in the hallway and a second later, a brown-headed whirlwind plowed into her. Maddie wrapped Meredith’s legs in a ferocious bear hug. Meredith smiled and cupped the girl’s head. This enthusiastic welcome confirmed what her heart already knew. She was doing the right thing.

  Maddie tilted her head back. Dark circles ringed her eyes. “Did you come for a visit, Miss Talbot? How are the others? Anna? Sally? There’s Nel. It’s so good to see you. I miss everyone so much.”

  “Everyone is fine.” She brushed a hand over soft curls. “And this is not just a visit.”

  Brusque footfalls snapped on the floorboards. “If this is not a visit, then what is it? You are taking the girls from their chores.”

  Harriet Allen’s harsh tone reverberated against the walls. Maddie’s grip tightened. Lily stiffened and sucked in a breath. Clearly the girls were uncomfortable around the gruff woman. Not for long.

  Meredith disentangled herself from Maddie’s embrace and gave the girl a nudge. “Both of you go and pack your things.”

  Maddie’s eyes brightened. “Why? Where are we going?”

  “I’ll explain later. Go get your things.”

  As the girls rushed from the foyer, Meredith squared herself. Harriet Allen could bluster and froth all she wanted. She wouldn’t be intimidated. This was a battle the tyrant would not win.

  “Thank you for taking Lily and Maddie into your home, Mrs. Allen, but your hospitality is no longer required. I have found other accommodations for the children.”

  “What other accommodations?”

  “A place where we can all be together under one roof.”

  Harriet’s gaze narrowed. “And just where is this place you have found?”

  “All you need to know is that the children will be well cared for.”

  “You could not have located suitable accommodations in just three days. There are only a handful of places in Mineral that could house all of you together. Unless…” Mrs. Allen puffed up like a chicken who’d been bothered by a rooster. “I will not allow you to take those children to a bawdy house.”

  “You have no say in the matter.”

  “It’s my God-given right to ensure those children are not mistreated or led down the path to sin.”

  Wasn’t that the pot calling the kettle black? “You should turn that righteous indignation on yourself. I see what you have done with Lily and Maddie…working their fingers to the bone. They’ve never looked so ragged.”

  “A little hard work never hurt a child.”

  “Lily and Maddie were not placed with you to be slave laborers. Even if I hadn’t found other accommodations, I would remove them from your care.”

  Arms folded across a broad chest. “William will hear about this. Make no mistake.”

  “Do what you must. I’m taking the girls with me.”

  Mrs. Allen eyed her like a she-cat sizing up an opponent. Her breaths were coming in noisy exhales; her upper lip curled back in a snarl. At any moment, claws would unsheathe.

  Lily and Maddie skipped into the foyer, satchels in hand. Perfect timing. Any longer and she might burst into flames from Mrs. Allen’s evil glare.

  “Girls, thank Mrs. Allen for her generosity, and we’ll be on our way.”

  The pair murmured their thanks and rushed through the open doorway. As much as she wanted to bolt with them, Meredith held her ground and mustered as much politeness as she could, which wasn’t much. She was near the bottom of her barrel of civility. “You have a wonderful day, Mrs. Allen.”

  Indignant huffs followed her out the door. Meredith marched off the veranda and into the street. She wouldn’t let Mrs. Allen’s displeasure ruin her joy. She had her children back, and no one was ever going to take them from her again.

  “Where are we going?” Lily asked. “I heard you tell Mrs. Allen you found another place where we can all be together.”

  “She called it a bawdy house,” Maddie added.

  “Mrs. Valder’s is not a bawdy house.” At least not while the children stayed there. Jana had agreed to cease her business until they found another place to live. Meredith sensed Jana was relieved to suspend her trade and decided to help the woman find other means of employment once things settled down. But that was a conversation for a later date.

  She motioned the girls forward. “Come. Mrs. Clement and the others are already there waiting for us.”

  “What about Mr. Hoggard?”

  “There’s not enough room for him at Mrs. Valder’s. He’s going to remain at the feed store for now.” Which was a good thing. She didn’t want to put the retired preacher in an awkward position of living in a house of ill repute. While he wasn’t happy with her decision to move the children into such a place, he agreed it was for the best.

  Lily skipped into step beside her. “Your aura is glowing a soft blue color, Miss Talbot. You’re quite pleased with everything in your life.”

  Most everything. Preston would have to be dealt with, but she would cross that bridge when the waters calmed. “I have all of you back together with me and under one roof. That makes me very happy.”

  “What made you change your mind?”

  “An unexpected turn of events. I’ll tell you about it when we get to Mrs. Valder’s.”

  Maddie tucked in on her other side and snuggled her hand in Meredith’s. “My charm worked then.”

&nbs
p; “Your charm?” Her pulse hopscotched. “Oh, Maddie. Don’t tell me you practiced your talent.”

  “It was just a simple potion. No one saw me. I buried it the other night beneath a big cottonwood tree near the creek outside the fort.”

  Dread coiled in her stomach. She knew that exact spot. It was where a deadly rattlesnake had almost bit her. Where there was one snake, there was most likely more.

  She tightened her grip on Maddie’s hand. “You shouldn’t have done that, Maddie. You could have been hurt or worse.”

  “Lily came with me. We weren’t out for very long. A half hour at most.”

  A half hour too long. “What if someone saw you and informed Mrs. Allen? I can assure you, she hasn’t forgotten about that evening in the mess hall. One whiff of anything abnormal, and she’ll be back on her witch hunt faster than a hound after a rabbit.”

  Maddie squeezed her hand. “We were careful, Miss Talbot. We waited for clouds to cover the moon before going out. The darkness covered us.”

  “Even so, it was a dangerous thing to do. Promise you won’t do anything like that again.”

  “I promise. No more charms or nightly adventures.” A frown puckered Maddie’s brow. “Although Major Allen could use a charm.”

  “Why do you say that?”

  “He’s been suffering with a sour stomach for days. Lily says she saw his aura turn blackish green when he drank his morning coffee. She says that meant he’d been touched by something evil.”

  “Something evil…like poison?” At Lily’s nod, Meredith picked up her pace. The sooner she got the girls away from the fort and Mrs. Allen, the better.

  As they neared the garrison gate, a pack of soldiers surged past them, rifles at the ready, their expressions grim. The squad surrounded a group of mounted Indians assembled outside the stockade walls. Within seconds, a crowd collected, trapping her and the girls in place.

  One of the soldiers leveled his gun at an Indian wearing a bonnet of eagle feathers. “You shouldn’t be here, Chief Red Wing. Go back to the reservation before you find yourself joining your son in the jailhouse.”

  The Indians gathered around the chieftain stirred, their rumbles rising like the drone of disturbed bees. Meredith stiffened. She had to get the girls to safety before hostility overrode good sense.

  “Let’s go back inside the fort, girls.”

  Lily and Maddie turned with her, but Nel didn’t budge. The girl stood transfixed, her gaze focused skyward, mouth agape.

  “What are you doing, Nel? We need to go.”

  “It’s amazing,” the girl whispered. “Do you see it?”

  All she saw was a throng of dark-skinned men with tense faces and tenser hands gripping their weapons. Even their horses were agitated. Some snorted at the gathering. Others pranced in place. Both riders and mounts were powder kegs waiting to go off.

  “We need to go, Nel. Now.”

  “I’ve never seen such a thing before,” Nel said, her voice dripping with awe. “The Indians have a rippling cloud of white hovering over them…the spirits of their ancestors.”

  Wonderful. Now the spirit world had joined the fray.

  The one called Red Wing held up a hand, and the Indians surrounding him quieted. The chieftain nudged his horse forward. He wore an odd combination of trappings, a blue-and-white striped shirt and animal hide leggings. She prayed the cultivated side would win out over his savagery.

  “We want no trouble,” the chief stated. “Release my son and his warriors, and we will leave.”

  The soldier wagged his head. “I can’t do that, Red Wing. Your warriors are being held for attacking innocent people and setting fire to their homesteads.”

  “These things they did not do.”

  “That is for Major Allen to decide.”

  The chief crossed his arms over his chest, and his face took on a mulish bent. “Then bring this Major Allen here so we may talk.”

  “Major Allen is busy.”

  “We will stay until he is not busy.”

  “I can’t let you do that. Turn around and go back to the reservation, or…” He signaled to his soldiers who took a step forward, closing in on the Indians like a noose. “We will use any means to force you back.”

  Meredith’s veins turned to ice. They were going to get caught in the middle of a gun battle. Stupid, stupid men.

  She snagged Nel’s hand and tugged. “Come. We must go back inside the fort where it’s safe.”

  The girl dug in her heels. “We can’t leave. The Indians need our help.”

  “There’s nothing we can do, Nel.”

  “We can stand with them. Show our support.”

  A man standing nearby gave Nel a piercing look. Meredith’s stomach fell. Moving in with Jana was going to cause enough friction with the townsfolk. Defending the Indians would only add fuel to that fire.

  ****

  Preston leaned forward as his mount topped the low rise. In the shallow valley below sat the mining town of Mineral. The northern end contained the false-fronted business district with the saloons relegated to the outskirts. Boarding houses and residential homes occupied the southern end, built away from the more congested commercial section, mostly due to the dust in the summer and mud in the spring—and because the good ladies refused to live cheek-to-cheek with the prostitutes, gamblers, and drunks.

  The place was growing fast. Talk of a railroad spur coming through had drawn people like ants to a picnic. Since his arrival twelve months ago, they had constructed a theater and a new school for the children. A decent-sized hotel was going up, the spines already reaching skyward. Not that he would be around to see its completion. Once his transfer came through, Mineral would be a page in his memoirs.

  A wide thoroughfare flowed through the center of the town, stretching all the way to the entrance of Fort Dent where—he fisted the reins. Oh, hell no. Soldiers ringed a small band of Indians collected at the gate while a large group of civilians looked on. Even from a distance, tension slugged the air like a boiling thundercloud.

  He prodded his horse into a gallop. He had to hurry before someone did something stupid. If the soldiers opened fire, innocent people, both white and red-skinned could be hurt or killed.

  After skirting the log jam of people, Preston reined up near the stockade wall. Infantrymen of the Sixth had their weapons trained on the Indians. Civilians crowded behind the soldiers—some curious, most wagging fisted hands and shouting angrily. A familiar face caught his eye, and his stomach bucked. Meredith. What was she doing out here? He had to diffuse the situation, fast…before he lost something he’d only just discovered.

  He dismounted and headed for Sergeant Wilson, the ranking soldier of the squad. Thankfully, the Creeks didn’t appear too agitated. The Indians sat their mounts quietly, hands cupping rifles resting on their laps, not aggressively, but at the ready should the need arise. He hoped to hell it didn’t.

  “Stand down, Sergeant.” While not directly under his command, Wilson would still have to respect and obey his rank.

  The soldier turned to face him. “Lieutenant Booth, Chief Red Wing refuses to return to the reservation. He insists we release the incarcerated renegades.”

  “I said stand down, Sergeant. Now.” He spiked his tone with steel. “Before I have you arrested for disobeying orders and tossed in jail with those renegades.”

  Wilson’s frown deepened. After a few seconds of jaw-twitching reflection, he lowered his rifle. “Stand down, men.”

  Weapons slowly sank but were held in readiness. Distrust choked the air, stagnant and potent as a fetid marsh. Preston crossed to the eagle-eyed chief, one he was quite familiar with. Their previous encounter had ended on good terms. Hopefully this one would too.

  “Chief Red Wing, I understand why you have come, but I urge you to go back to the reservation. Your presence will only make things worse.” If the situation couldn’t be contained, a whole lot worse.

  “We will stay until I have spoken to your Major Allen a
bout his jailing of my son and his scouting party.”

  “There’s no need for that. Black Hawk and the others are being treated with great care. I give you my word.”

  Red Wing shook his head. “They should not have been arrested. They did nothing wrong.”

  “They killed innocent people,” someone in the crowd shouted. “I say hang ’em all. Starting with this mangy bunch.”

  Though his eyes narrowed, Red Wing’s bearing remained steady and collected, presumably to avoid inciting the warriors gathered behind him. A sound strategy.

  Preston turned to the crowd, hands raised and expression calm, even though his insides churned like waves in a nor’easter. He focused on the stocky, livid-faced man at the forefront of the group. If he could get the ringleader to stand down, the others would follow.

  “I realize many of you have lost homes, livestock, and loved ones. But now is not the time for vigilante justice.”

  “All we want is for them savages to get what’s comin’ to ’em,” the man said.

  Preston nodded. “We all want justice for the atrocities that were committed. Rest assured, Major Allen will make sure that justice prevails—in a fair and just manner. There’s no need to incite more trouble. I urge you to go back about your business. Let the army deal with the Indians.”

  The ringleader sized him up and then gave a nod. While the crowd around him didn’t disperse, they did grow quiet, the fire in their bellies banked—for now. Preston let his hands relax to his sides. It was a start. Now all he had to do was remove the kindling.

  He turned back to the Indians. “Chief Red Wing, as I said, justice will prevail in an equitable manner. Your son and his warriors will be given a fair trial. If they are found innocent, they will be released.”

  “Why should we trust this?”

  “You, like I, are practiced in measuring a man’s integrity. I know my commander. Major Allen is a rational man. He will listen to all sides before passing judgment. Whatever his decision, it will be obeyed.”

  Black eyes pierced into him, assessing his claim. Preston stood his ground. To show uncertainty would doom their discussion.