Page 64 of Inventions of the Heart

MICHELLE LEAPT DOWNfrom the back of the wagon, Jilly just a step behind her. They ran up the steps to their home. Mama stood at the door, waving at them. She called over her shoulder, and Laura, Caleb, and Nick came out.

Michelle wanted to weep. She wasn’t a crier in the normal run of things, but it was more than seeing her mother and sister, it was being home. Just as that mountain mansion was home, so this was home. This lovely house on Nob Hill that they’d lived in since shortly after Papa had sent for Mama and the three girls, still very young. He hadn’t lived in a place this nice at first. But his lumber business was booming, and soon they’d moved here. Only when the girls had gottenolder and Papa’s business had expanded to a dynasty had they built the house out in the mountains.

Michelle threw herself into Mama’s arms. Jilly hugged Laura.

Michelle stepped away from Mama to give Jilly a turn at hugging her. Zane shook hands firmly with Caleb, then the men started talking as they moved inside.

When everyone was caught up on the news, Caleb said, “Laura, you haven’t told us yet what Edgar said to scare you half to death.”

Michelle wheeled around to face Laura. “You saw Edgar?”

“Can we have tea, maybe? Mama, can we figure out a meal? I haven’t eaten all day. I’d like us to settle down before I start—”

“No.” Caleb cut her off. “We agreed to get you away from those men. Then we agreed to wait until we got home. Then before we could more than get inside, here came your sisters and Zane’s family. We’ve waited long enough.”

He slid an arm across her back and hugged her. “Please tell us what happened. You were trembling and white as a ghost when we got to you. No matter what threats he made, this isn’t something you can keep to yourself for our safety.”

“Let’s go into the sitting room.” Laura leaned against him. “His main threat was to Mama. Talking about it is terrifying.”

Mama came and caught Laura’s hand. “Edgar is a threat to me, to you girls, to your husbands, no matter what you say or don’t say. Come, let’s sit down, and you’ll tell us. I’m glad we’re together so we can make plans, arrange for guards, whatever we need to do to make you feel safe, Laura. To make us all feel safe.”

ZANE LOOKED AROUND THE ROOM.Except for Nick, this was his whole family. His sisters and brother. Michelle’s family. It was an impressive group for a man who had been living alone for years, with the occasional brief visit from Annie and Beth Ellen and even less occasional drop-ins by Josh.

Nick had tried to leave with Old Tom, but Laura had interrupted his exit with a question, and he’d been drawn into the group with an oddly wary look in his eyes.

Nick handled most things with a steady hand, so what was he worried about? Probably about someone trying to kill Mrs. Stiles and maybe the rest of the family. It was a heavy load that Nick seemed to have willingly taken onto his own shoulders.

“How do you hire a bodyguard in a city this size?” Zane drank deep on his coffee. It was good, but he preferred to drink coffee from a tin cup, boiling hot from the stove. Now he held a porcelain teacup. “How do you know who is trustworthy?”

“We could ask Uncle Newt to recommend someone,” Michelle suggested.

Zane had to stop himself from slapping his face. Uncle Newt. The governor. And the head of the Wells Fargo bank treated them like they were his children. He’d heard how the head of California Ironworks had welcomed Laura, Caleb, and Mrs. Stiles into the board meeting. No, he had no idea just how rich his wife was. But he’d opened a bank account today that made him mighty rich, too. And he probably had snagged a wife who knew just how he should spend his money. Lucky him.

“Why don’t you do that. Talk to Uncle Newt. Maybe talk to Marshal Irving.” Zane went back to his fussy coffee cup.

Caleb took a lemon tart off the tray of pastries included in their afternoon meeting, looking thoughtful. “Marshal Irving struck me as a fine man and a good judge of character.”

“What we need,” Laura said, “is to get Jilly married and do it fast.”

Jilly, sitting in a chair near the unlit fireplace, choked and spit coffee on Laura, and some might’ve hit Michelle, who sat next to Laura on the sofa. Fortunately, the coffeepot and pastries were out of range.

Laura swept her hand across the fine mist of coffee on her dress. Michelle rolled her eyes.

“We own controlling interest in the company.” Jilly dabbed at her lips as if she hadn’t sprayed her sisters. In fact, it was possible to describe her expression as quietly satisfied. “You both seem to have married fine men, and I’m glad of that. But there is no need for me to marry. When and if I do that, it will be a thoughtful decision, not because I’m afraid or feeling coerced.”

Mama Stiles spoke up. “I think that’s wise, Jilly. You girls had to escape from Edgar. There was no other choice. When we decided you needed to marry quickly, I felt as if it were a life-and-death situation. But once you were away and, I had to believe, safe I wished I had only urged you to run. I regretted pressuring you to marry quickly. I am living proof that a poor marriage can be ruinous, dangerous, even deadly. We’re blessed to add Caleb and Zane to our number. But no, Jilly, you will not be expected to marry quickly. You can marry to suit yourself and take all the time about it you wish.”

Jilly eased back in the overstuffed chair. The wingback seemed to cradle her. A smug smile settled on her face.

“Now, we’ve had our reunion, but we’ve got three morestops to make this afternoon,” Mrs. Stiles said. “Beyond that, I’m sure word has spread about Edgar being blocked from Stiles Lumber. Eric Barritt assured me he’d help get the word out.” She rose from her chair.

Afraid she would leave without them, Zane hurried to gulp down the last swallow of his coffee and grabbed a scone. A very determined woman, Margaret Stiles Beaumont.

They were on the street again, and this time they walked down Nob Hill and caught a horse-drawn streetcar for their afternoon of waging war against Edgar.

Margaret said she refused to ride one of the streetcars up any of the steep hills in San Francisco because it was so brutally hard on the horses. A smaller horse-drawn cab with a less unwieldy carriage behind it made the trip up all right, but the heavy streetcars were terrible. There was talk of running a cable of some sort that could draw the streetcars up and down the hills, but so far it was only talk.

Zane couldn’t imagine such a thing working. He wondered if Michelle had a notion to try to invent that.

While they traveled, Zane found himself on edge in the bustling city.

After the way Edgar had snatched Laura almost from under Caleb’s nose, he didn’t put anything past that vermin and his friends.

He didn’t mention it in the group, but tonight he was going to tell Michelle he had to go home, and she was coming with him.

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