Southern Discomfort (12 page)

He stopped at a
watering hole for the horse.

“Maybe, in
time, you could have your own horse. We could still go riding
together once a week. I would like to continue this. Would that be
something that you would like, darling?”

Emily wasn't so
sure. She didn't feel that she was all that good at riding. Nathaniel
had done all of the work. “Do you think I could really learn how?”

“I'll teach
you. You know, I like to teach. I would be next to you the whole
time.”

“Can't we just
ride like we did today?”

“My precious
Emily, brave enough to leave her home, and everything she knows, but
not brave enough to get on a horse.” He smiled at her while she
made worried faces.

Nathaniel
couldn't resist. He grabbed onto her head and pulled her in for a
long kiss.

“This is
clearly better than what we did last Wednesday.” She beamed up at
him.

“I have to
agree with you there. This is a lot more pleasurable.” He kissed
her several more times until he felt that if he didn't stop now that
he would have to have her right here. The risk of someone else coming
by was just too great.

He had to protect
her reputation. She was a fine lady and they were too far from the
house. This evening he would take her up to bed early and slowly make
love to her. He enjoy every second with her.

Victor was
informed the second that the Stuarts arrived. He immediately rode
over to their house and demanded entrance.

Edmund had been
expecting him to call soon, but not within the hour of their arrival.
He told the maid to have him wait for him in his study, knowing that
he had to handle this situation perfectly,or his wife could end up
being a widow. Now that Emily was gone Victoria had no one other than
him.

He collected
himself, gave his wife a reassuring look and went down to his study.

“Mr.
Wellington, Good afternoon. I'm sorry that you had to wait but as you
probably know we only arrived home an hour ago.”

“Good
afternoon, Mr. Stuart. I have come to collect my bride.” His jaw
was clenched as he waited to hear if this tiny man would try to play
games with him.

“Have a seat.
This is a long story.” He motioned with his hand at one of the
chairs opposite his desk, as he walked around and sat down behind it.

Victor looked
torn but then he sat down, deciding that he would listen to this
man's excuses before he threatened with his lawyer, but Emily would
be his. She was the best. And just the very best was good enough for
him. He was already going to punish her because of this delay.

“I asked you,
kindly, to break the marriage contract. You refused. Emily didn't
want to be forced into marrying you. She heard about your reputation
and decided it would be better to leave and choose a husband on her
own.”

“Are you saying
that she isn't here!” He jumped to his feet as he yelled.

“No, she
isn't,” Edmund quietly answered.

“Are you saying
that she is out there somewhere looking for a husband?”

“No, she isn't
looking anymore. She found one.”

“I forbid it.
She was promised to me. I have papers signed by her father. She is
mine. Get her back here as quickly as possible.”

“I'm afraid
that I can't do that. Her husband won't allow it. We are dealing with
a Fait accompli.”

“I don't care.
Get her back here or I will destroy you. First, I will go after your
money, then this house and then your wife and then in that moment
when you have nothing left, first then will I take your life. I will
be back in a week. If she isn't here then I will take action.”

“She won't be
here. You can start whatever you wanted to do now.” Edmund felt so
tired and broken.

“I would
reconsider that if I were you.”

“Trust me, she
is married. Her husband isn't the kind of man you can threaten and
scare. He will keep her.”

“Who dared to
marry her, when I had made it clear that I wanted her?”

“Victor, sit
down. I'll be glad to explain everything.”

Victor sat, but
his face clearly said that he felt that it was a waste of his time.

“Like I said,
you have a reputation. Emily heard about it and refused to marry you.
Apparently she has been answering announcements out of the paper. She
corresponded with a man and they agreed to marry each other.

Our Emily took
off one morning. We followed her but by the time we caught up with
her it was too late. She is married now. There is nothing that anyone
can do about it.”

Victor gave the
older man a cold grin, that made chills go down his back. “There is
always something that can be done. I'll make her a widow and then
marry her as planned.” She would pay for this. This was more than a
little inconvenience. “Where is she?”

“I believe that
marriage is holy, and murder is unforgivable. I won't tell you.”

Victor nodded at
the older man and stood. “You haven't heard the last of this.” He
turned on his heels and swiftly walked out of the room.

Edmund's hand
went to his heart. It was beating like mad. Should he call for a
doctor? He decided against that. He needed to appear strong for his
wife, who was already entering the room. She moved right over to him
and sat on his lap, throwing her arms around his neck.

“Tell me what
happened. I need to know.”

Edmund calmed
himself down. It took a couple if minutes but he managed it. “I
told him that she took off and that she is married now. He told me,
he wants to make her a widow and then marry her. I have to warn
Nathaniel.” He set his wife to the side and went off to the
telegraph office.

He didn't see the
man following him.

“Mr.
Wellington, I have the information that you need right here.”

Victor sat up in
bed as his man walked into his bedroom. He pushed the woman next to
him to the side and got up. He didn't want her to hear anything that
she could sell for a bit of money to his enemies. The covers fell
away from her body as he got up. He didn't care about her, she was
just a whore, only good for one night.

“Mr. Stuart
sent off a telegram. To one, Mr. Nathaniel Tate in Texas. It cost me
a pretty penny, but I got the good man down at the telegraph office
to remember exactly what he sent. It was a warning about you.”

“Good, I'm
leaving tomorrow morning. I wouldn't want to make Mr. Stuart a liar.”

It was once again
Sunday. They were leaving church and heading for their carriage.
Emily had been with the Tates for over a month now. In that time she
had yet to get her monthly flow. Both she and Nathaniel were looking
forward to the baby. He was very respectful of her, treating her like
a raw egg.

“Mr. Tate, a
telegram came for you yesterday. It's important. I would have rode
out to your ranch but seeing as how I knew that you folks would be in
town today, I decided to wait.” He handed it over to him and turned
away, glad that he wasn't in Mr. Tate's shoes. Such a pretty wife
came with a high price.

Nathaniel thanked
the man. He turned away from his family to read the telegram. He was
surprised to see that it was from Emily's uncle. He quickly read it
and then turned back to his wife and smiled at her. He gave the
telegram to Edward before he very carefully helped Emily into their
carriage. Once she was in her turned back to his brother.

Edward's stern
face was focused on his youngest brother. He was worried. He saw it
as his job to watch over and protect everyone in his growing family.
He wouldn't let anyone hurt his baby brother, or kidnap his
sister-in-law.

Edward handed the
telegram to Charles as Nathaniel help Bessie and Katie into the
carriage. The two women were fussing over Emily, who was sick every
morning. They asked her how she was holding up. They wanted to have a
baby in the house so they could spoil it. Everyone believed that that
was what the family needed.

The three men
traded worried glances. None wanted to tell the women what was going
on. They rode home very watchful of their surroundings.

Victor sat on his
horse and looked over the land. It all looked the same. There were
few points of interests that could help someone know the way. He had
a feeling that he was lost again. He hated Texas and would make Emily
pay for dragging him out here.

Were people lying
to him, or had they really never heard of Nathaniel Tate.

Victor was
pleased when he saw a small dusty town. He rode in to visit the local
whorehouse. There he could get a decent meal and see to his other
needs, while obtaining the information that he needed.

He gave his horse
to a stableboy and headed over to the pretty ladies. He couldn't
believe that Emily was making him do this. He would make her sorry
once they were married.

The women all
turned to look at him. They could easily see that he was a man of
money.

Victor looked
around and picked out the prettiest one. He motioned her to his side
with a wave of his hand. He told another woman to get him a warm
meal.

He sat down on
one of the sofas and let the pretty woman open the buttons on his
shirt and pet his chest a little. He removed his tie and looked
around the room. He was younger and stronger than the men here. None
of them posed a threat to him.

His lawyer had
warned him not to go alone, but Victor didn't want to waste time and
money hiring some unknown men. He didn't need any witnesses when he
made his Emily a widow.

“Do you want to
go upstairs after you eat something to gain strength?”

Victor looked at
her and took in that she wasn't as clean and pretty as the women that
he was used to. “Naturally.” He grinned at her. He would have a
bit of fun with her before he headed out again.

“I'm out here
to visit my family. I don't suppose that you have ever heard of
Nathaniel Tate.”

“Why, sure I
have. He was the youngest brother. There were three of them. The two
older ones took away two of our girls. They married them and took
them out to their ranch.”

“They married
whores?”

She was a little
offended. “You see, there aren't that many women out here. A man
has to take what he can get.”

“A that is why
I will be returning home after my visit. I never settle for what I
can get. I want the best.” A picture of Emily flashed in front of
his eyes. She was the most beautiful of all of the girls at church.
He had even waited for her, like her father had said. She had been
ripe for married at the age of fifteen, when he first noticed her.

He could have had
any woman in Boston but he wanted Emily. He had even bragged about
her to his friends. They had been jealous of him. She would be his.
She had to be his wife. He wouldn't let her make a fool out of him.
Once she was his she would have to learn her place. He would enjoy
teaching her exactly where her place was.

He got everything
that he wanted to out of his visit to the whorehouse, directions, his
bodily needs had been seen to and now he even had information to
blackmail the Tate's with. It was clear that the two older brothers
were passing off their whore wives as respectable women.

Nathaniel rode
proudly next to the carriage on their way to church. He had been
married for two months now. But every time he smiled at his little
bride, she blushed. He was amazed how important she had become to
him.

When they arrived
at church he carefully helped his wife to the ground.

Nathaniel
couldn't be happier. He doubted that Victor Wellington would ever
find is way to this tiny town. It had been a month since he received
the telegram.

This was rough
country and a city man would stick out like a sore thumb hereabouts.
To be on the safe side he would sit his Emily down tonight and warn
her to stay in the house. He would use the baby as an excuse. There
was no need to scare her about something that would probably never
happen. He didn't want her to stop eating again.

He worried about
her. She was doing so well out here, but she still needed someone to
watch over her. And now the baby, too.

They went into
church and sat down. The church was only half full now. Some men
still came to look at the three beautiful Tate women, but it was
clear that all three women were true to their men. None of them even
glanced at the other men.

Still the men in
town like to look at them.

Nathaniel sat
down on the bed and beckoned his wife to his side. “Emily, we need
to talk.”

Emily's forehead
wrinkled up. “Did I do something wrong?”

“No, darling.
You did everything right. You were in danger and came to me so I
could help you. I want you to know that I think that it was a very
brave thing for you to do. Only a very smart woman gets out of
dangers way.

“I need you to
do that do again, especially now.” He laid his hand over her
stomach. “I want you to stay inside the house. You may only go out
when I am with you.”

Emily was
surprised. “But my chores?”

“I was really
clear, Emily. You are to stay inside.”

“I understand,
but I'm worried that the others will become bitter if they have to do
all of the work.”

“Emily, you are
expecting. It is normal that you take things a little slower. No one
wants anything to happen to the baby.”

“Still, my
chores are simple things like collecting eggs and hanging the wash
out.”

Nathaniel was
losing his patience. “Emily, if you say one more word about it, I
will strap your hand.”

Emily hid her
hand behind her back. She had had her hand strapped at school a
couple of times. It hurt like the dickens. If he had wanted to be a
teacher then he would know how to do something like that. She said
nothing.