Annabelle Weston (25 page)

As she stood there, weary and ashamed, Ester ran past.

“
Wait, Ester!” Carly reached out and grabbed hold of her but Ester was determined and wrenched free.

“
My doll!” Without looking back, without a pause in her step, Ester rushed impetuously into the building.

“
No,” Carly shouted, reaching out in front of her, grasping at air.

“
Stop!” Jed’s voice sounded behind her.

Carly took off running, the pounding of Jed’s feet close behind her. She had to save Ester. The woman would not be able to find her way in the blaze, let alone her doll.

A loud boom sounded from the roof and she faltered in her steps, stumbling to a stop. She watched helplessly as the building collapsed with Ester inside. Wood splintered and ashes spun past her in a whoosh. Merciless flames spread rapidly and licked at every available ember.

Carly watched in horror. A feral, unearthly sound issued from her mouth—grief and fear mixed to form a tortured scream. All around her hands, arms, tried to comfort her. She heard the whispers of Jed, of the others who’d come to help, to say that there was nothing she could do. It was hopeless. She could hear over and over again Ester’s innocent squeal for her doll and the sound of the Lonesome crashing to the ground.

Her own foolishness has caused this disaster. Ester’s death was her shame.

“
You whore! You could’ve ruined every business in town. You’re a menace.” The taunts came flying from all directions.

Each word bled her like a knife’s wound. She didn’t blame them. She believed them.

“
That’s enough,” Jed shouted to the crowd. “Be on your way unless you’re here to help.”

Carly shoved Jed, Alvin and her dollies away from her and took off for the desert at a run.

* * * * *

Hours later, Jed confronted the man responsible. Baxter sifted through the ashes of the shed, picking up shards of glass and scraps of burned metal. The fire brigade had done a good job of getting the flames out once the building collapsed, and keeping the fire from spreading to the other businesses in town. Unfortunately, the Lonesome was a complete loss.

“
When I said get out of this town or you’d be sorry, why couldn’t you have just listened?” Jed asked, anguish in his voice. “You’re bad news and now two people are dead because of you.”

The doc looked up, his eyes bloodshot, soot smeared across his brow and his hair white with ash.

“
Do you have nothing to say?” Jed asked. Fury whipped through his blood. He wanted to pummel the doc into the ground.

“
I’m sorry.” Baxter wagged his head back and forth. “I don’t know what else to say.”

“
Say you’ll get out of my town and never come back.”

Baxter blinked as if surprised. Instead of an argument, he nodded. “I’ll leave now. You’ll not see me again.”

Jed turned around, glad the man had not argued. He would’ve likely broken Baxter’s neck if he’d put up a challenge.

Two bodies were pulled from the rubble. One of the meanest hombres to ever roam the territory and a sweet lady who never hurt anybody.

“
It’s a crying shame,” Alvin said as he covered the bodies with a blanket.

Jed nodded. No words were adequate. He walked down the street toward the sheriff’s office.

* * * * *

“
Carly?”

With a jolt, Carly glanced up from her campfire at the sound of a painfully familiar voice.

O’Dell.

She stood before her in the flesh, looking just as beautiful as Carly remembered her—if not more so. Her fiery red hair was pulled back in a flattering bun at the nape of her neck and a stylish hat was placed just so on her head. Her skirt was simple, clean and made from a becoming green, her blouse crisp white linen with lace around the collar and cuffs.

O’Dell held out her hands, beckoning Carly forward. Carly’s heart lurched into her throat and she couldn’t speak. She stood on shaky legs, wobbled forward and fell into her old friend’s arms.

She felt broken, beaten down. At the end of her path. But here was a bright light come to save her.

“
Oh Carly, if I’d known how bad things were…” O’Dell started, but she didn’t finish.

“
They weren’t so bad until now,” Carly muttered. She pulled away, wiping the

tears from her eyes and staring at her longtime friend. “What are you doing here?”

O’Dell studied her for a moment then picked a spot on the ground near the fire, no care for her pretty skirt. “When you wouldn’t answer my letters, I finally couldn’t take it any longer. Nathan suggested I come pay you a visit. When I got here, the Lonesome was burned to the ground and no one in sight. I was told by Mr. Finney I could find you out here.”

Carly came and sat beside O’Dell, offering her a swig from her canteen.

“
What’s in it?” O’Dell asked suspiciously.

“
Just water. I’m done with the elixir.”

O’Dell smiled wide. “Thank God. That stuff would have been the death of you.”

Carly nodded with a sad grin. “It was the death of another.”

O’Dell swallowed the water then handed it back to Carly. “I heard.” She again pulled Carly into her arms. “But it wasn’t your fault, as much as you want to blame yourself for it.”

“
But it was. If I hadn’t been addicted to Dr. Baxter’s elixir, I wouldn’t have allowed him a place for his still.”

O’Dell frowned. “I don’t know about that. You weren’t the only one addicted and if the man was in need, who’s to say what you would have done?” She picked at a piece of bramble on her skirt. “I should have been there to help you. Done something more for you, but I was too busy with my own life.”

“
No!” Carly grabbed ahold of O’Dell’s shoulders and forced her to meet her gaze. “This was not your fault either. You needed to move on. You tried to get me to come with you. I just wasn’t ready for it. I wasn’t ready for anything except drowning my sorrows.

“
It wasn’t until I met Jed that I wanted to make something of myself. He showed me that I was worth something. That the drink was killing me. And even with my feelings for him, my need to show him I could be all he thought I was, it was damn hard to thrust the elixir aside. And you know what? I pushed him away too. So don’t you ever think this was your fault. Never.” She swallowed hard. “I’m sorry I never wrote you back. I was too ashamed. Too afraid you’d tell me what a horrible person I am.”

O’Dell gasped. “I would never!”

“
I know that now… But I was punishing myself. Punishing myself for not being there for you. For betraying you.”

“
Seems like we both have done some things we feel mighty bad about. How about here and now,” she sniffled, “we forgive each other for everything and pledge to move forward on a positive note.”

Carly nodded emphatically.

The women cried for a time then talked of O’Dell’s ranch and babies, and Carly promised to visit soon. When the sun started to settle on the horizon, O’Dell pulled Carly into a hug.

“
I have to get back to the inn. Nathan is waiting on me there, we’re to head
back to our spread in the morning. Left the babies with a nice woman we hired to help out. She’s like a mother to me. Will you come with me? I know Nathan is eager to see you’re all right.”

Carly shook her head. “As much as I want to, I’m not ready to face the town yet.”

O’Dell nodded. “I understand. You’ll keep in touch with me, won’t you? You’ll write and visit?”

Carly smiled, feeling immeasurably lighter now that she’d gotten a lot of guilt regarding O’Dell off her shoulders. Now if only she could forgive herself for letting down her dollies—for Ester’s death. That was something she didn’t think she’d ever recover from.

* * * * *

Later that night, when Jed realized Carly had not returned from the desert, he went out to find her. He found her at the edge of town, in a makeshift miner’s tent set up between some fence posts. She’d built a fire and was sitting on a wooden log. It was not the domestic scene he’d wanted for her.

She didn’t look up to greet him. He realized how much he wanted to see the glint of mischief in her eyes each time they met, and the curl of sensuous lips as she spoke. His heart ached to see her so alone and dejected.

He dismounted. She most likely didn’t want his company but he needed to say his piece.

He crouched next to the fire and threw a ball of tumbleweed into the flames. The fire crackled and popped.

“
What do you want?” Her voice was low and threatening like storm clouds. “Everyone else has abandoned me, why don’t you just leave me to my fate?”

“
You’re not to blame yourself for what happened,” he said. “And no one has abandoned you.”

“
I made a big mistake.” She sighed deeply. He’d not seen her this way before, so full of despair and guilt she didn’t know which way to turn. “The girls will never forgive me.”

“
We all make mistakes at times and they don’t have to forgive you because they don’t blame you for anything.”

She huffed. “You don’t make mistakes.”

He hung his head, the raw pain of how he’d recently failed his deputy still sharp. “I’m responsible for Sam’s death.”

“
You shouldn’t be so hard on yourself. You couldn’t have known the stage would be robbed by such a bloodthirsty gang.”

“
That’s not how I see it. Just as I’m sure that’s not how you see what happened today as your fault.”

She found forgiveness difficult, Jed decided. Before she could understand that the fire was a terrible accident, she needed to forgive herself.

He reached into his vest pocket and pulled out an envelope. “This came for you today. I told Mr. Charles I’d deliver it.”

She didn’t show any interest.

“
Aren’t you the least bit curious what’s inside?”

Carly took a deep breath and spoke to the fire. “I don’t care.”

“
Seems there was a reward for the capture of Crosby and his gang. The Wells Fargo gives you their thanks. A hefty sum of reward money will be coming along in a few weeks.”

She scoffed. “Do you think money makes up for Ester’s death?”

“
Carly, I don’t care to see any more of what I witnessed this day either but we have to go on.”

Carly’s cheeks reddened. “You knew that Dr. Baxter was bad news, and now…”

Her voice cracked.

He furrowed his brows and sat beside her on the log. He longed to pull her into his arms.

“
I don’t want to see you suffer so. I want to see you smiling.”

“
Don’t waste your breath. I’m not the kind of person who should have friends.”

“
How can you say that?”

She poked at the fire with a stick. “Judith and the others came by on their way out of town. They left for Sacramento—want to start a new life. Alvin’s likely to not stick around.”

He pulled off his hat. “You’ve got me.”

“
Don’t you get it? I poison every relationship I’m in. I’m no good, and that’s a fact.”

“
I don’t believe you.”

“
What do you want with a used-up woman anyway?”

“
Don’t be so hard on yourself. We all stumble.”

She laughed but there was no mirth in her. “What happened today was more than a stumble, Jed.”

“
You and I are a team,” he said.

“
Have you been partaking of Dr. Baxter’s brew?”

Jed detected a hint of a smile. “No ma’am.”

Carly gnawed on a rubbery piece of jerky, screwing up her face as she chewed. “There’s something else, something I should’ve told you weeks ago.”

Jed braced himself for more bad news.

“
The two men you arrested for killing Mr. Crowley were in my room. I heard them talking about the murder and I didn’t say anything.” She glanced at him. Her grief was raw. “You’ve got to know they threatened to kill me and the other dollies if I told on them.”

Jed brushed her cheek with his thumb. “I saw you run into that burning building after Ester. You have a protective nature, I reckon, one I can’t fault.”

“
You understand?” She swallowed hard.

“
I had a hunch you knew something about the Crowley murder.”

She shrugged. “How can you want to be with me?”

“
Carly. I…” He paused, looked up at the sky. He was never a man who could talk pretty. He needed soothing words right now.

“
I’ve grown to care for you. More than care, actually.”

“
Why, Jeddah Poole, I do believe that is the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me.”

“
Well, if that’s the case, I need to work on saying a lot more nice things.”

Carly tossed him a saucy look and cocked her shoulder seductively. “I appreciate it.”

He saw the opening he needed. “This ain’t no life for you.”

“
What else can I do?”

“
I’ve got a mean recipe for pie my ma used to make, and I think folks will enjoy it.”

She snorted. “You decided to take up cooking?”

“
Seems to me it’d be a real good business, providing hot meals and a shot of whiskey for the cowpokes and wranglers passing through our town. Could be an honest business the townsfolk could get behind.”

“
You really don’t have to be so agreeable,” she said, a touch of laughter in her eyes.

It did him a world of good to see her respond to him this way. “So how about cooking up my ma’s recipe for apricot pie?”

She shrugged. “I never thought much about cooking for a living.”

“
This money would give you a start.”

“
Damn, but it’s just plain impossible to say no to you.”

“
I’m glad you’ve come to your senses.”