Page 9 of Unforgiven

She was watching him.

“It’s very good. Better than that, actually.”

“Thank you.”

“You’re very welcome.”

She smiled slowly. It was tentative yet genuine.

Seth realized he needed nothing else in the world at that moment. Except, perhaps, to stay another moment longer.

5

Elias Weaver was waiting for him when Seth returned home. His horse and buggy were parked off to the side.

“I was beginning to think you were dodging me,” he called out when Seth was about halfway up his driveway.

“Why’s that?”

“Your truck is sitting here and the engine was cold. I thought you were around but didn’t care to talk.”

The truth was that Seth wasn’t in any great hurry to speak to Elias at the moment. Even though Elias was one of his oldest friends and had even taken the time to write to him a couple of times when he’d been in jail, Seth sometimes found him to be nosy. Elias might say his questions stemmed from interest and concern, but Seth had always gotten the feeling that the man simply enjoyed gleaning information.

Though that could be helpful, it could also come back to bite him. The last thing he wanted was for Elias to get into his business with Tabitha. That was private and no business of anyone else’s.

Besides, Seth needed some more time to replay Tabitha’s words in his head. All the way back home, some of her words and phrases had come back to him, playing over and over like they’d been recorded. During their conversation, he’d been so focused on not spooking her, he hadn’t allowed himself to react to the things she’d said. He was anxious to do that . . . but couldn’t with Elias over.

Of course, that wasn’t fair to his buddy.

Hoping that Elias would sense that he wasn’t in the mood to chat, Seth stopped a few feet from him. “I didn’t need my truck for where I had to go.”

“Which was . . . where, exactly?”

“Why are you here, Elias?”

Elias looked taken aback. And maybe a little bit hurt. “Do I have to have a reason for coming over?”

“No, but you usually do.” He folded his arms across his chest and waited.

Elias hated silence. After a few seconds passed, he sighed. “I came here to ask for a favor.” His eyes kept darting to one side.

Time hadn’t been all that good to Elias. His middle had gotten thick, and more than a couple wrinkles had appeared on his face. He’d also had a number of financial setbacks. Like when he was a child, he was full of impulsiveness—and now regrets. Though he and Seth were almost the same age, Elias carried a smattering of fine lines around his eyes. Seth always thought that was an ironic twist. How could a man look worse than his best friend who’d been in prison?

Regardless of all his flaws, Elias was a proud man. So proud that Seth had always figured he’d rather stride through a raging river than ask for a helping hand to get into a boat. Of course, that was why his friend’s words caught him off guard.

Immediately he ran through scenarios that would necessitate Elias being there. The best—and worst—possibility had to do with Melonie. Seth’s younger sister always had his heart, but she was stuck between a rock and a hard place. She wanted to spend time with Seth but also needed to mind their parents. They’d reluctantly allowed Melonie to see him from time to time but otherwise kept their distance.

“Is everything okay with Melonie?”

And just like that, Elias’s proud countenance slipped into soft sympathy. “Jah.” Squeezing Seth’s shoulder, he added, “Your sister is gut, buddy.”

A couple of years ago, Elias had mentioned to Seth that he’d like to court her one day. Seth had shut that down, saying that he was sure his sister would never think of him as anything but an older brother. Elias had been disappointed but had eventually agreed.

It turned out that he’d done a real fine job of filling that spot for Seth when he’d been in prison. Elias had looked after her, spoke with her after church services, and even stopped by to see Melonie and their parents from time to time. Melonie had often written him about Elias’s visits, easing Seth’s mind. Later, when Seth returned to Crittenden County and realized that his parents weren’t going to welcome him with open arms, Elias had continued to be supportive to both him and his sister.

Seth appreciated everything his buddy did for him and his family. He truly did. But he would be lying if he said that he wasn’t jealous of his longtime friend. In some ways, Elias had taken Seth’s spot in the Zimmerman family. In his weakest moments, Seth tried to imagine what his life would have been like if he’d never stepped in to defend Bethanne.

As much as even thinking about Melonie hurt, Elias’s news eased his insides. “I hope our mother is keeping an eye on her. A train could be coming and half the time I think Melonie would still walk across those tracks.” Of course, from what Seth had gathered, their father was always working and their mother had taken to bed with a constant stream of headaches. Melonie could do all sorts of things without either of them knowing.

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