Chapter Thirty-Two
It was late. Three days had passed since Rose's life had come crashing down around her. She was sitting on the porch, staring out at the moonlit forest, unable to force herself into the bed she had shared with Marston—she hadn't touched that bed since he'd been taken away. Rose didn't want to face the memories she'd have if she laid down where they'd made love so many times—but she was also worried that if she allowed herself to lay in a bed, she would never find it within herself to get back up.
A horse snorted, signaling someone's approach. Rose took up Marston's revolver and stood slowly. "Whoever is coming better speak now or I'll shoot and leave you laying."
That threat, coming from Rose, would have been an empty one not long ago but it wasn't empty any longer. Marston had taught her that when it came to protecting those you loved, anything went. She had promised the man she would keep their children safe and she intended to keep that promise.
"Woohoo! That'd be the first time I'd been shot to death by a pretty woman," Jeremiah's voice came through the night just as the shadow of him and his horse entered her line of vision. "Do you reckon you would nurse me back to health afterward?"
Duke snorted. "That'd be pretty hard to do if you're dead."
Rose lifted the lantern beside her and both men stopped their horses and dismounted slowly, sharing looks of confusion. "Why exactly are you out here in the middle of the night alone?" Jeremiah asked.
"Where's Marston?" Duke added, recognizing the revolver in Rose's hand.
Rose broke down. The stress of the last few days became too much to bear. She hadn't had a break down since Marston had gone but no one could be strong forever.
Jeremiah and Duke shared a look of horror, neither experienced at handling sobbing women. Duke saw Rose's knees buckling and he leapt forward and caught her against his chest. He took the lantern from her trembling hand as she whimpered, sniffed and hiccupped against his shirt.
"Rose honey?" Duke asked, rubbing her back to comfort her the best he could. "Where's Marston?"
Rose took huge, gulping breaths attempting to calm herself. "They....they took.. him."
"Who took him?" Jeremiah demanded.
Rose pulled away from Duke's chest and swiped at her face. "The law."
Jeremiah's face contorted and he growled with murder in his eyes. Duke, however, seemed to soften at the word law and he put a gentle arm around Rose's shoulders. "Come on, now. Let's get you inside," he ushered gently.
Rose nodded and allowed him to lead her inside. Jeremiah scanned the yard and then followed them inside, closing and locking the door behind him. Duke sat Rose down at the table and took a seat across from her. "What happened, Rose?"
Jeremiah was pacing the floor and his boots woke Kaitlyn. "What's going on?" the girl asked as she sat up on the sofa and stared with fear in her eyes at the two men she had never before met.
Rose stood. "Kaitlyn, you go rest in my room, okay?"
Kaitlyn frowned. "But who are they? Are you they going to..." her face paled. "Are they going to hurt you?"
Rose shook her head and offered the most comforting smile she could muster, though she feared it was more a grimace than a grin. "They aren't going to hurt any of us," she assured the girl. "Jeremiah is Marston's brother and Duke was like a father to Marston." Rose frowned. "Is like a father to Marston," she amended. Marston wasn't dead yet. Her stomach rolled. Saturday was still five days away.
Rose covered her mouth with her hand as she fought the urge to vomit. Duke, knowing that Marston would want his woman taken care of, stood and took her in his arms once more to offer her what support he could. Women often found comfort in simple things such as hugs.... He had no idea why.
Kaitlyn stood up and walked on shaking legs to them. She laid her hand on Rose's back and looked up into Duke's eyes. "Will you take care of her? She tries to be so strong and hide it but she doesn't eat and she hasn't been sleeping and I'm worried about the baby...."
"Baby?!" Duke and Jeremiah gasped in unison.
Rose pulled out of Duke's hold and glared at her. "I'm fine, Kaitlyn. I don't need to be coddled or taken care of and I certainly won't let anything happen to this baby." She laid her hand over her stomach. "Now go to bed."
Kaitlyn's eyes filled with hurt. She turned on her heels and fled to Rose's bedroom, closing the door behind her.
"You're with child?" Jeremiah demanded, staring hard at Rose's stomach.
Rose nodded but her attention wasn't on Jeremiah. She chewed her lip with guilt as she stared at her closed bedroom door. She shouldn't have lost her temper with Kaitlyn. The girl hadn't meant any harm. Rose had just been holding herself together by threads for too long and now she was coming completely unraveled.
"Come on, Rose," Duke urged gently as he led her back to the table and helped her sit. He filled a glass of water and sat it in front of her before taking a seat himself. Jeremiah sat as well but his legs hopped and bounced with pent up aggression.
"I think you need to fill us in on what's been going on around here," Duke urged. "And who she was," he added, tilting his head toward the bedroom.
Rose sighed and stared down into her water. "Her name is Kaitlyn. Marston found her when he went after Gilliam."
Duke and Jeremiah shared a glance. "Yeah, we heard about Gilliam."
Rose was too distracted to hear their admission or question it. "Marston hadn't been home long, barely more than a week, when the law rode in and took him... he didn't even fight them..." Rose's voice trailed off.
"That doesn't sound like Marston," Jeremiah argued. "He always swore he'd never be taken alive. He dreamed about going down in a blaze of glory like any self-respecting outlaw."
Jeremiah stopped speaking and began to rub at his leg under the table while glaring at Duke and Rose had the impression that perhaps Duke had kicked him. "I'm sure Marston went willingly because he didn't want a gunfight around his woman and kids," Duke stated pointedly.
"That's why he went..." Rose's finger tips clutched desperately at her glass—she had to hold on to something in order to assure herself that this wasn't just a nightmare. "We was trying to protect us..."
Duke laid a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Who came and got him?"
"United States Marshall Hubert Montgomery." Rose shivered. "I'll never forget his name."
"That's Gilliam's damned brother!" Jeremiah exclaimed. "We should have figured he'd show up. Dammit, we should have gotten here sooner!"
Rose let that information digest a moment. She hadn't known that Gilliam had had a brother that was a lawman. It would certainly explain how he'd been able to get by with his lifestyle for as long as he had.
Duke tapped the table. "What did the Marshall say when they took Marston?"
Rose fought back a fresh wave of nausea. "They're hanging him Saturday..."
"Shit..." Jeremiah sniffed and Rose was certain she heard tears in his voice. Wihtout a word the man got to his feet and left the cabin.
Rose frowned. "Duke, why are you here? How did you know about Gilliam?" Duke seemed to be debating whether or not to answer and Rose slammed her hand on the table. "After all the hell I've been through, Duke, I damn sure deserve to hear the truth!"
Duke sighed and pulled a cigar from his pocket. He took his time lighting it before turning his gaze back to her. "Marston was sloppy when he killed Gilliam. He left a witness and that's how they got Marston's name and a good poster with an increased bounty. And that's why we're here.... Vincent Sharp was the survivor. We haven't seen him personally but he's got a real nasty brother and they're talking about revenge."
Rose's eyes widened. She jumped to her feet and went to the window, pulling back the curtains and staring out into the night. "Calm down, Rose," Duke scolded. "Jeremiah won't let anyone sneak in. Did they say where they were taking Marston?"
"Millerton," she replied, letting the curtains fall.
Duke stood up. "I'll be heading that way then."
Rose felt the first spark of hope she'd experienced in days. She wrung her hands. "Can you save him, Duke? Can you get him away from them?"
Duke's gaze dropped to the hand she had laid over her stomach and he let out a sigh. "It's not that easy, Rose. They know who is now and his escape would put you and those children in danger. Marston won't do that. Not to mention, Marshall Montgomery will probably be keeping a pretty close watch on Marston. Marston killed his brother and from what I hear there wasn't anything pretty about it."
"They don't' care about the truth," Rose sniffed, her fists clenching at her sides. "They arrested him for killing Gilliam and for kidnapping Kaitlyn. Kidnapping her!"
Duke shook his head. "Hubert Montgomery is a worse monster than Marston ever thought of being even on his worst day. But since he's wearing a badge, his is forgiven. I gotta get going now.. I feel like I should be there when they...." Duke's voice trailed off.
"I should be there...." Rose whispered, knowing that she couldn't. If she saw the man she loved die before her eyes it would destroy what little fiber of strength she was still holding onto.
"No you shouldn't. Marston wouldn't want you there and it wouldn't be good for the babe." Duke reached out and laid a tender hand on her stomach. "At least we'll always have a little piece of Marston."
Rose couldn't speak. She breathed deep, fighting to stem off the tears that were building. When she felt steady enough to open her mouth without crying out she said, "What am I going to do about Vincent?"
"Jeremiah is going to pack you and kids up in the morning and take you up to the Dakotas. That'll be your new home."
"The Dakotas?" Rose demanded. "What's in the Dakotas?"
"Jeremiah won a homestead in a card game during the time Marston rode with us after he met you. Marston acted like he wanted it but then got mad and said he didn't. We didn't understand his reaction back then but we understand now. Jeremiah was going to give it to Marston as a gift but now.... Now he'll give it to you."
Rose glanced around the tiny cabin that held all of the happy memories she had ever had and all her memories of Marston. "This has been home for so long.." she whispered. But Rose knew it would never be home again.
Duke nodded and stepped toward the door. "You'll have a new home and you'll be safe there. Vincent won't find you. You really are going to be okay, Rose."
Rose shook her head because she wasn't at all sure that she would. Duke kissed her hair in a tender, nearly fatherly way, and patted her arm. "Jeremiah and I will see that you and the youngins are took care of. Now I gotta be going."
Rose watched Duke leave and kept her hands over her stomach. She wanted nothing more in the world than to have her family back together but she knew that Marston wasn't coming home. Her only hope for her children rested in Jeremiah and Duke's ability to keep them safe from Vincent.
Rose closed her eyes and prayed.
***
Langley lay in his bed with his eyes squeezed tight against his tears. He heard Uncle Duke leave and he heard his mama crying softly.
His pa was going to die. Langley had never seen anyone hang but one of his storybooks had pictures of a hanging and Langley couldn't wrap his head around something like that happening to his pa. Marston had seemed so strong and indestructible!
It wasn't fair that they were losing him. His mama needed Marston—Langley needed his pa. Who was going to take him hunting now? Who would help patch up the cabin? What would happen with the gun shop? Who would smoke that pipe Langley had given Marston for Christmas? Who would cook watery eggs, mess up his hair and wink at inside jokes?
Langley's tears broke free and streamed down his cheeks. He didn't know what to do so he did what his mama had taught him to do when everything seemed lost; Langley prayed.
"Dear God, it's me again. I want to pray about a couple of things. First I pray that You'll let my pa figure out some way to live through this and come back to us. We all need him real bad around here. But if You can't do that then please give my mama the strength she'll need to carry on and give Duke and Jeremiah the strength to keep us safe from Vincent—whoever he is."
Langley's voice grew tight but he forced himself to continue as he stared up at the rough planks on the ceiling. "And Lord, I pray that if pa does die, if You decide that now is his time could You please let him into heaven? I know he's done some bad things in his life and some things that are pretty hard to forgive but he always did right by me and mama and Kaitlyn too. Mama needs to be with him again someday and I'd sure like to see him again too and if he dies then that'll have to be in Heaven. I know You can hear me, God, and if You just grant me that one wish, I'll never ask You for anything again. Amen."
Langley curled up beneath his covers and let his pillow dry his tears. He hear Uncle Jeremiah come inside and tell his mama to get some sleep. He heard his mama curl up on the couch and then the door opened and closed again letting him know that Uncle Jeremiah had gone back outside.
Langley fell asleep with prayers for Marston echoing in his mind. Prayers that God would forgive his pa and let him into heaven so that Langley, Kaitlyn and mama could see him again someday.