Authors: Emma Lang
“Josiah has no legal claim to me. The law only recognizes one wife to one husband.” Angeline’s voice grew stronger with each word. “He has no right to hurt me, hit me, or hunt me like an animal. I refuse to give up this chance of happiness because he might not like it.”
Lettie’s eyes widened. “I don’t think I’ve ever heard you talk like that before.”
“Good, because I want to change. I want to be able to make my own choices and live the way I want to live.” Ange-line didn’t even realize she was crying until Lettie handed her a handkerchief.
“You deserve to.” Lettie’s voice was low and thick. “I envy your courage.”
Angeline shook her head. “Don’t envy me. You are stronger than any person I’ve ever known, man or woman. I hope one day to be as strong as you.”
“I can’t believe you think I’m strong,” Lettie scoffed. “I stayed with Josiah for five years.
Five years!
You showed me what it means to be strong.”
The two women stared at each other, humbled by the qualities each saw in the other, knowing no other person would ever understand. Angeline’s throat grew tight as she stared at her friend, her comrade, her confidante. The woman who’d picked her up from the ground and dragged her to her feet, who’d taught her how to survive. Lettie was so much more than she let everyone see. Angeline loved her for that and more.
“No matter what happens, I will always be there for you. You will always have a place in my life.” Angeline was surprised to find herself in Lettie’s embrace, to feel wetness on her cheeks. Lettie was crying.
Lettie pulled back as quickly as she had pulled Angeline into a hug. She wiped her eyes and cleared her throat, seemingly embarrassed by the show of emotion. Lettie had grown such a hard shell around her heart, she rarely let anyone close to her, much less see her vulnerable.
“I don’t agree with what you’re doing, but I do agree it’s your choice. You have the right to do what your heart tells you to.” Lettie hugged herself and stepped back.
“Thank you. Now will you be my maid of honor and stand beside me?” Angeline couldn’t imagine anyone but Let-tie at her side when she made Sam her husband.
“Are you sure? You know I don’t want you to marry him.”
Angeline smiled. “I’m sure. You’re closer to me than anyone else. I’d be honored if you would be my maid of honor.”
Lettie sighed heavily. “I’m going to say yes, but only because I agree with what you said. There isn’t anyone closer to me, and likely never will be.”
Angeline’s heart pinched with the realization that her friend would remain lonely until she allowed herself to be free. She was still trapped in the horror of Josiah’s control, hiding from the woman she could be. There was nothing An-geline could do except continue to be her friend and never lose hope that something or someone could change her mind.
“Thank you. You mean a lot to me. I hope you know that.”
Lettie murmured her thanks and walked back up the steps into the kitchen. Angeline stood outside a few minutes longer until she no longer felt the urge to cry. Her life was about to change drastically and her excitement was mixed with fear.
She was strong and she would be okay. There was nothing she couldn’t do with love in her heart. Sam was her mate; she felt it deep down into her bones. Now she just had to get through the wedding and truly take him as her husband.
Angeline went back into the restaurant and was pulled into the heated discussion of where to hold the wedding. Pieter apparently agreed with Alice, while Karen and Marta thought the lake was the perfect place.
Angeline finally got a word in while they were all sucking in breaths. “Everyone, I appreciate you all being enthusiastic about the wedding. I don’t want anyone’s feelings to be hurt. What if we wait a few days and have the wedding and the party in the restaurant? Alice is right—this is where we met and it’s special to all of us.”
She looked at Sam and he nodded. It honestly didn’t matter to him where they married, just that they did. The lake did hold special meaning for them and that wouldn’t change, but it would make peace among them all if they stayed at the Blue Plate. After all, it’s where her new family was.
“That would be wonderful,” Marta exclaimed. “We will make you a dress and oh, such lovely food for the party.”
With that, the Gundersons and the rest of their group started planning the wedding in earnest. Sam kissed her and led his father out, leaving her to be a part of the madness.
Angeline sat back and listened to them all chatter and exclaim. She felt a wave of sweet love for all of them; even Alice seemed to warm up to the idea of a wedding. She sat down next to Angeline.
“I think it’s right nice.”
“What is?”
Alice looked down at her hands. “The way he looks at you. He loves you for truth and it ain’t the fake kind neither.”
“I love him too.” Angeline put her arm around the other woman. “I think there’s someone out there for you too.”
“I haven’t seen hide nor hair of him yet.” Alice snorted. “You know the kind of fella that’s attracted to me.”
Angeline remembered all too well exactly what kind of man liked Alice. She hoped the girl had learned her lesson about how to pick a beau.
“Well, all you have to do is stop picking them and like I told you, he’ll find you.” Angeline smiled and was rewarded with a genuine smile from the petite brunette.
“What’s this? The wedding has made everyone into happy little critters,” Lettie teased.
Alice stuck out her tongue and everyone laughed, including Alice. Pieter kissed Angeline’s forehead.
“You have a good man, little angel.”
Yes, she had found a good man and he had given her the power to heal. It would be a marriage of equals, a partnership born of love and trust.
Sam left Angeline with the ladies at the restaurant and went down to the jail with his father by his side. He had to explain to at least six different people that the paper wouldn’t be published for a while. He had had no idea so many people actually read it.
It just made his father’s confusion worse and Sam’s guilt sharper. If only he could find some way to keep publishing the paper and keep his father safe.
First, though, he had to find out how young Jonathan was and make sure the sheriff took care of the kid. They stepped into the jail and his father peppered him with questions.
“Why are we here? Did you get arrested? What did you do
wrong?” His father looked around, like a young child visiting an intimidating place for the first time.
Sheriff Booth was drinking coffee at his desk. He smiled and rose to his feet.
“Well, good morning, Carvers. I’m glad you came by.”
“Samuel, who is this person?” Sam’s father reared back, obviously frightened by the tall and boisterous lawman.
Booth held up his hands, apparently understanding something was wrong with the elder Mr. Carver. “I’m Sheriff Booth, Henry Booth. It’s good to see you again, Michael.”
His father turned to Sam. “Do I know him?”
“Yes, Pa, he’s your friend,” Sam reassured him. “Now why don’t you look at the wanted posters while I talk to him?”
“Do I know them?”
“Maybe. If you recognize them, it would help the sheriff catch them and put them behind bars where they belong.” Sam felt a bit of hopelessness wash through him seeing his father, once a healthy, strapping man full of life, reduced to a confused old man.
“How long has this been going on?” Sheriff Booth came up beside him and they both watched Sam’s father peer at the wanted posters hung on the wall behind the desk.
“A while. It’s only been bad about three months.” Sam sighed. “I’ve got to find someone to watch him all the time. He’s already wandered off in the middle of the night.”
Henry whistled through his teeth. “Hard to believe. Something hit him in the head maybe?”
“I wish it were that simple. He’s just simply … fading away, Henry.” Sam’s voice started to break so he took a breath and swallowed a few times. “I’ll work it out, but I came down here to check on Jonathan.”
“Ah, the kid. He’s a scrapper, that’s for sure. I had the doc in here earlier. Had a look at the kid and he tried to run out of the jail.” Booth shook his head. “Not sure what to do with
him. I’m afraid he’ll go after you or Miss Angeline and I can’t let that happen.”
Sam was afraid of that. “Can you keep him in custody for a few days? Maybe he’ll calm down and see reason. I don’t want him to hurt Angeline or do anything to jeopardize our wedding.”
“Wedding? You’re getting hitched?” Booth’s blue eyes twinkled as he clapped Sam on the shoulder. “She’s quite a find. Congratulations, Sam.”
Sam’s smile was genuine. “Thanks, Henry. We’re going to work out the details today and hope to get married in a couple of days.”
Henry winked. “I don’t blame you for wanting to get it done quickly. She’s, ah, quite a beauty.”
Sam didn’t bother to tell the sheriff that particular party had already happened three times. Instead, he simply smiled and nodded.
“My father seems fascinated by your wanted posters. Do you mind if he stays awhile? I’ll be back in an hour or so.”
“Don’t worry, Sam. I’ll keep an eye on him.”
Angeline walked to the jail with a determined stride. She needed to speak to Jonathan, to find out what had happened and why. He had seemed to accept her decision when he’d left a week earlier. Now he was back and acting like someone she didn’t even know.
While everyone at the restaurant was busy making plans for her wedding, she left quietly. Jonathan’s behavior made no sense to her. It was as if he’d become a different person.
The morning coolness had given way to a gentle warmth. She breathed in deeply, pulling in courage from the fierceness of the glowing sun. By the time she arrived, she was ready to face him.
At first, when she stepped into the gloomy exterior, she was momentarily blinded by the change from bright to dark.
“I know you. You’re the angel from my house.” Michael Carver’s voice came from her left.
She blinked until she could see him sitting at the desk, a stack of papers in front of him. He smiled at her and she returned the smile.
“Hello, Mr. Carver.”
“I’m looking for crooks, helping my friend Henry.” He went back to the stack of papers, peering at them as if they held great secrets.
She was glad to see him interested in something. He’d seemed so lost before. Perhaps spending time at the jail would be a good thing for the older Mr. Carver.
“Is the sheriff here?”
“Went to use the necessary. But since it’s after coffee, he might be there a while pooping.”
Angeline smiled, despite the fact she shouldn’t find it amusing to talk about the sheriff using the outhouse. Mr. Carver’s illness had made the clock turn back so he sometimes had the brutal honesty of a child.
“Angeline?”
Jonathan’s voice came from the cells. Her smile forgotten, she walked toward him, knowing she should wait for Sheriff Booth, but realizing she didn’t want to.
As she stepped around the corner, the smell hit her first. It was a combination of urine, feces, and blood. When she saw him in the cell, her discomfort at the stench gave way to shock.
Jonathan was a different man, someone she didn’t know at all. His clothes were covered in dirt and dried blood, his face a mask of bruises and cuts. His normally neat brown hair was sticking up every which way. He’d obviously thrown the chamber pot against the wall, judging by the stains currently oozing down to the floor.
It was his eyes, however, that told her the true story. He
looked like a caged animal, with a wild, feral gleam in his gaze.
“Angeline,” he breathed, reaching through the bars toward her. “I knew you’d come for me.”
“I haven’t come for you, Jonathan. I came to speak to you.”
Her hard-won courage didn’t desert her, although it was a near thing. She faced the man who would have been her husband if things hadn’t gone so horribly wrong and Josiah hadn’t turned his leering gaze her way. Jonathan was a good man, she firmly believed that, but he had definitely lost himself.
“What happened to you? Why are you here acting this way?”
His smile faded and turned into a baring of teeth. “You forced me to.”
She shook her head. “I forced you to do nothing. This was all your choice. I asked you to leave, to understand that I could never be your wife or return to Utah.” Her throat grew tight with sadness as she gazed at her childhood friend. She pulled a handkerchief from her pocket and he yanked at it, hauling her within reach.
Angeline dropped the handkerchief, but it was too late. He took hold of her braid and pulled her tight against the bars. She had never been afraid of Jonathan until that very moment. His brown eyes were full of anger and hate.
“Let me go.”
“Not yet, Angel. I want to find out what I’ve been missing.” He reached for her breast and she slapped at his hand.
His eyes widened. “Did you just hit me?”
“Let me go,” she repeated, her voice growing stronger. “You’re hurting me.”
“Hurting you? Hurting you? Now that’s funny. You have completely destroyed me and you complain I’m hurting you.” He tightened his grip on her hair. “I could kill you right now, choke you until you turn blue.”
She stared into his eyes and finally saw the fear and sadness hidden inside the crazed man who held her captive. “Jonathan, please let me go.”
“I saw you with him. Don’t think I don’t know what you’ve been doing with that Indian. Fucking him like a common whore in his bed. You’re a married woman. How dare you throw away the vows of marriage so quickly, and for what? A fucking Indian.” Spittle flew from his mouth, landing on her cheek and lips.
She wanted to wipe it off, but dared not move just yet. Shock kept her immobile—he’d been spying on them? How could he do such a thing?
“I love him, Jonathan. Do you understand that? What you and I had was friendship, nothing more. I could never be with you.”
“And I could make it so you could never be with him.” His hand closed around her throat and too late Angeline realized she should have called for help already.
As he began to squeeze her throat, she knew she had only moments to stop him, to save herself from the madness that seemed to have taken over a normally sane man. Angeline leaned forward as far as she could and kissed him.