Page 33 of Borrowed Time

Mrs. Marshall swallowed her tea, expression darkening. “I don’t like to speak ill of anyone, especially when I don’t have the facts in hand, but I know there was some bad blood between him and Mr. Samuel Wilcox. A very different man from his brother Jeremiah, unfortunately. Mr. Jeremiah Wilcox is an upstanding member of the community and a trustee at the school, and although I hate to speak ill of anyone connected to that family, I can’t help but think Mr. Samuel Wilcox had something to do with the way Mr. Rowe vanished into nowhere.”

She was certainly correct on that point, although Seth knew he couldn’t say anything to corroborate her suspicions.

Devynn’s hand went to her mouth, again giving a very good impression of a properly brought up young woman shocked by what their hostess was implying. “That’s terrible! Has the sheriff spoken with him?”

Before replying, Mrs. Marshall set down her teacup so she could reach for one of the sugar cookies she’d set out on a plate for her guests. No elaborate spread, of course, but it had been kind of her to offer any refreshments at all, considering the way they’d appeared on her doorstep out of nowhere.

She set the cookie on her plate, delicately broke it in half, and took a bite. “Not even the sheriff wants to get on the wrong side of the Wilcox family,” she said. “And again, all I have are suspicions and nothing more.”

“Do you think Samuel might also be connected to Eliza’s disappearance?” Seth asked then, and a sorrowful light flickered in the older woman’s dark eyes.

“There’s no real evidence of that,” she replied. “And certainly, while Mr. Samuel Wilcox possesses some less than sterling qualities, I’ve never heard anyone say that he isn’t devoted to his wife and children. I doubt very much anything of that nature was going on. But I suppose if your sister was connected with Mr. Rowe somehow, she might have been frightened by Mr. Samuel Wilcox and fled town. I can’t think of any other explanation.”

Obviously, Seth knew exactly what had happened — thanks to Devynn explaining the situation — but if he’d been lacking that information, he supposed he could see why Mrs. Marshall might have reached the conclusion she had.

“But surely she would have come home to St. Louis if she’d left Flagstaff in such a state of mind,” Devynn said, and Mrs. Marshall only looked more worried than ever.

“One would think so,” she replied. “It is such a long distance to travel, though, and surely not entirely safe for a pretty young woman on her own, even if she made her initial trip here without incident. I fear that whatever answers you’re looking for, you’re not likely to find them in Flagstaff. Have you inquired with the railway company?”

Of course they hadn’t, since “Eliza” had escaped the mountain town using a very different mode of transport than a train.

But Devynn stepped in there, saying, “We’ve asked some questions, but no one seems able to give us any clear answers. That is partly why we came all the way here in person — we thought if we could speak to the people who became acquainted with Eliza while she lived in Flagstaff, we might have a better idea of where she could have possibly gone.”

“I’m sorry you traveled so far for so little,” Mrs. Marshall said, sympathy clear in her expression. “But it’s as much a mystery to the rest of us as it is to you. Believe me, if I had a single shred of information I thought would be helpful, of course I would give it to you.” She stopped there, then asked, “Have you spoken with Mr. Wilcox?”

Seth was fairly sure she wasn’t referring to Samuel.

“We have,” Devynn responded. “But although he was very kind, he didn’t have any real information to give us, either. It truly is beginning to sound as though our sister has disappeared into thin air.”

And she reached for her teacup with a hand that shook faintly — a very nice touch.

Seth was beginning to think Devynn had missed her calling, for she appeared to him to be a very good actress.

However, he knew she hadn’t been acting when she kissed him or when they’d held hands and gazed into each other’s eyes just the day before, neither of them certain what their future might be.

If they had one at all. Not because they didn’t care for one another but because they couldn’t know for sure what the coming days might hold.

“I am so very sorry,” Mrs. Marshall said. “This must be so difficult for your family. Why, if one of my boys were todisappear like that, I’m not sure what I would do! But at the same time, I fear you will not find much to help you here.”

“Oh, everyone has been as helpful as they can,” he assured her. “It’s no one’s fault that the information we’re seeking can’t be found anywhere.”

She made a sorrowful sound before picking up her teacup once again. “The children are worried, too, as you might imagine. It was hard enough waiting for Miss Prewitt to appear at all, but to have her vanish in such a fashion has been difficult for them. While I could tell she wasn’t terribly experienced, she had a good rapport with her students, and they worked hard to please her. And they are not very happy having Mrs. Pierce as her replacement.”

“Mrs. Pierce?” Devynn echoed, and Mrs. Marshall smiled faintly. Seth thought it was good that she’d asked, since Jeremiah had mentioned the woman but hadn’t gone into any details as to how she’d ended up in charge of the school’s lower grades.

“The minister’s wife,” Mrs. Marshall explained. “She was a schoolteacher before she was married, and now that their children are grown, she has the time to help out until we can hire a new teacher. We’ve already put out the call, but I doubt we’ll get someone new until after the first of the year, even though I know Mr. Wilcox is hoping we might find a replacement before then. And while I admire Mrs. Pierce’s experience and her willingness to pitch in, I have to admit that her methods are somewhat…old-fashioned…and the students much preferred having Miss Prewitt as their teacher.”

Understandable. He couldn’t think of many school-age children who wouldn’t prefer having a pretty young teacher over an older one who was probably something of a stick in the mud. Seth knew he might be biased, but he hadn’t met too many preachers’ wives who were exactly the life of the party.

“We’re sorry they’ve had to go through all this,” Devynn said. “And I hope your search for a new teacher won’t take as long as you fear it might.”

Mrs. Marshall sighed. “I’d like to believe that, but since we’ve just started getting applicants and we probably won’t make a decision until at least the beginning of December, I suppose it won’t make much sense to have anyone come all the way out here, only to arrive just as the children will be going on their holiday recess.” She paused there, then shook her head, as if at herself. “And here I am rambling on about these things when you two have plenty of your own worries to attend to.”

“Oh, it’s fine,” Devynn hurried to say. “We completely understand why you would be concerned about the students at the school.”

It seemed to Seth that they’d said about all they needed to say, so he thought he might try to wrap things up and leave their hostess to enjoy the rest of her day off. “Thank you so much for taking the time to talk to us,” he said as he got up from his place on the settee.

To his relief, Devynn took the cue and rose as well, running a hand over her skirts to smooth away any wrinkles the heavy cotton might have acquired during the time she was seated. “Yes, Mrs. Marshall — we certainly appreciate it.”

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