Page 42 of Inventions of the Heart

Well, give them time. They’d get there. Someday. Maybe.

She heard the heavy boots thudding along behind them and wondered where Zane expected to sleep tonight.

FATTY’S HAD SURPRISINGLY GOOD FOOD.

After they’d eaten fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, corn on the cob, and custard, Zane walked along to the hotel with Caleb and Nick. The other hands from Zane’s ranch had headed home. Rick didn’t like being gone overnight from his wife. Shad needed to run the place.

Old Tom and Carl reunited with Michelle and Jilly with almost as much affection as they’d shown to Laura and Margaret. They’d gone ahead to eat rather than wait at the lawyer’s office and had rooms in the hotel. They were probably already asleep.

Annie hadn’t wanted to leave Caroline at home overnight without her. She’d headed to the ranch with Beth Ellen and Zane’s cowhands.

“I’m going to quit, Boss.” Nick had his eyes open, looking around, a man on guard.

“Going back to being a lumberjack?”

“Yes. It was a good feeling to stand between Mrs. Stiles and her husband. When I told Old Tom what was going on with Beaumont and Mrs. Stiles, he was furious. I didn’t have to even ask him to help me. He went charging to find men he trusted, and a large group gathered ready to rain terror down on Beaumont’s head. I think a woman gets into a tight spotwith her husband, and a lot of them don’t turn to anyone for help. I’m not sure why she didn’t call in Old Tom right from the start.”

Zane had no answer for that. “She went to great lengths to save her daughters. Why didn’t she do the same for herself right from the minute she realized Beaumont was a bad bargain?”

The women were a few good paces ahead of them, and the men were speaking quietly while the women talked between themselves. But they must’ve heard because Margaret stopped and whirled around to face them. Anger darkened her face, but it slowly faded away to hurt.

“At first, I was so happy with him. The whole time we were in San Francisco, which was just the first few months of our marriage, he treated me decently, though I couldn’t exactly get used to him. It’s hard to explain, but he wasn’t my Liam, and everything about him felt strange. I let him have a husband’s ... prerogatives, but I felt like it betrayed Liam.” A vivid pink blush bloomed on Margaret’s face to speak of such intimacies. “Edgar seemed hurt by how I acted. Though I felt like I treated him decently. He accused me of ... of comparing him to a ghost. Of not giving him a chance because he didn’t measure up. There was truth in that, and I felt guilty. When he treated me coolly or criticized me, I blamed myself. Then we moved to the mountains, and it was much worse.”

She looked at her daughters and frowned. “Th-the first time he shoved me, he apologized and managed to blame me for it at the same time. That was his way. And I felt at least partly that Iwasto blame because by then I knew I didn’t love him. His handling of me was rougher each time.A shove, then a slap, then a fist. I tried each time to be better. It’s not right, but he wore me down, made me feel like if I was justbetterto him, more loving, he wouldn’t be so upset. He wouldn’t hurt me.”

She shook her head. “I knew my marriage was never going to be a happy one, but I saw no choice but to endure. Then I overheard him planning my girls’ weddings. He was discussing it with one of the men he’d brought into the house to act as his own henchmen. I recognized the names of the men he’d chosen for my girls. They were notorious in San Francisco. Wealthy and cruel. Men just barely accepted into the fringes of decent society. That’s when I knew the true caliber of the man I’d married. Even then, I couldn’t think of a way to stop the weddings. A man has a lot of power over his wife and children, even stepchildren. And the way Edgar fired people, as ruthless as a tyrant ordering the guillotine, I was afraid to turn to men I trusted for help because they’d be fired. All I could think of was to find a way for my girls to escape.”

Nick strode the few feet to Margaret and took her into his arms. He held her gently, like a loving son. Margaret’s arms came around him and the two of them stood silently.

When Nick stepped back, he said, “Nothing I said was meant as a criticism of you, Mrs. Stiles. You are the finest woman I’ve known since my own ma. It’s been the greatest honor of my life to protect you.”

“You’re a good man, Nick. I would like very much for you to come back to Stiles Lumber and work with me there.”

“I plan to. Old Tom has talked about taking me on as second-in-command. Training me to be foreman, with your permission, of course. I’m possibly a bit young, but Tom said he’s not ready to quit for a time, and even when thattime comes, he’d stay on and advise me when it’s needed. He thinks of Stiles Lumber and that mountain as his home.”

“I’m glad to hear it.”

“Let’s get on to the hotel. I’m going to sleep on the floor, stretched across your door. No one will harm you while I’m alive.”

Zane looked at Caleb, who shrugged. Then his eyes met Michelle’s. He said, “The hotel is just ahead.”

“Why, it’s brand-new,” Margaret exclaimed. “It’s grand in comparison to most of the town.”

She went to the door and held it open for her daughters until Caleb got there. Then he swept his arm to send her in. She smiled, patted him on the arm, and went in.

Zane had his work cut out for him if he wanted to be the favorite son-in-law.

As he stepped inside, Zane hoped they hadn’t rented out all the rooms to others already. He wanted their group to be able to spread out a little. If he could do it without risking anyone’s safety, he’d sure enough like to get his wife alone.

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