Stealing Jake (35 page)

Livy? Here? He stumbled to his feet and caught her as she launched herself into his arms. He wrapped his arms around her tight, not sure he’d ever let her go.

“Oh, Jake, I thought I’d lost you for good this time.”

“I guess I’m a lot like that cat of yours. Got nine lives, it seems.”

She grimaced. “You’re fast using them up, Jake Russell.”

He hugged her close, marveling that he had another chance to hold her. Hot tears stung his eyes, and he rested his head on the top of her head. “We lost Sheriff Carter.”

She lifted her head, her eyes shining. “No, he’s alive. They took him to Doc Valentine.”

Jake’s heart swelled with gratitude. God had abundantly blessed all of them.

A cough reminded him they weren’t alone. Reluctantly he loosened his hold on Livy and motioned toward the children huddled behind him.

“I’ve got some friends here I want you to meet.”

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Mrs. Brooks took Luke by the shoulders. “They’ve found the children.”

“Where? Is Mark with them?” Luke’s heart slammed against his rib cage. “Is he alive?”

He needed to go to him. Now. Mark was just a little kid. He’d be scared, and it had been so long since they’d seen each other. They had a home now, a home with Mrs. Brooks and the other children.

He couldn’t wait to tell Mark. His little brother would be so happy.

“In one of the mines. Word just came that they’re out of the mine and headed this way.”

“I’ve got to go to him.” Luke ran to the door but turned back. Hot tears stung his eyes. “If it’s okay with you, that is?”

Mrs. Brooks smiled. “Of course it is. Go to your brother.”

Luke grinned and was out the door like a shot. He ran toward the mines, feeling like he could fly. His steps faltered. What if Mark wasn’t with the other kids?

Please, God. Please let him be all right.

Long before he got to the mines, he saw the lights. It looked like half the town had shown up. Then he saw a group headed toward him, the lights from behind blinding him to their faces. Some of the figures were tall, others small.

And some were being carried by the others.

They neared, and he spotted Mr. Jake and Miss Livy. Mr. Jake carried a child. When he saw Luke, he said something.

The child lifted his head, and Luke saw his brother in the shifting lantern light.

“Luke.” A huge smile split Mark’s face. He scrambled from Mr. Jake’s arms.

Luke ran forward and scooped his brother up. Mark’s thin arms wrapped around his neck.

Luke hugged him tight, blinking back tears.

He’d finally found Mark.

* * *

Livy bustled about the kitchen, giving instructions, keeping everyone busy. The orphanage overflowed with children. She glanced at the girls they’d rescued from the mine, and her heart twisted with compassion. They’d need a lot of tender love and care to get over what they’d been through. But with God’s grace, they’d make it.

She smiled at a girl named Clara. Clara’s eyes were still red-rimmed from crying. Crying for joy because she’d been reunited with her baby sister, Hannah.

“Here.” She handed the girl a bowl. “Peel these potatoes. Georgie, run upstairs and help Mrs. Brooks.”

Mark stuck to Luke like glue. Luke didn’t let on, but Livy had spotted tears shimmering in his eyes when he thought no one was looking. Mark and Clara weren’t the only ones who’d cried buckets of tears the last few days. She’d cried her share.

They weren’t rolling in food, and certainly not money, but the townspeople had pitched in, bringing what they could spare to help out. More than one had apologized for not realizing the need was so great.

Thank You, Jesus, for taking care of these boys and girls, for helping us find them, and for allowing Sheriff Carter to live, and for keeping Jake safe, and . . .

She smiled. Her prayer of thanks was a mile long. She’d been blessed so abundantly this Christmas. More than she’d ever thought possible. God had fulfilled the desires of her heart with a home and a family, and she’d fallen in love with the most wonderful man on earth. She didn’t know what might happen next, but no matter what, God wouldn’t let her down.

The kitchen door opened, letting in a blast of cold air.

“Seth, shut that door. I’m having a hard enough time keeping the house warm as it is.”

“Yes, ma’am.” The door banged shut.

Livy whirled at the sound of Jake’s voice, her face growing warm at the sight of him. “I’m sorry, Jake. I thought you were Seth. The boys have been running in and out of the house all day.”

Jake dodged Seth and Georgie as they raced through the kitchen, three boys from the mine following at a more sedate pace. They smiled shyly when they saw him. Jake glanced back at Livy. “Looks like you and Mrs. Brooks have your hands full.”

“We wouldn’t have it any other way.” She smiled, then sobered. “How’s Sheriff Carter?”

“Chomping at the bit to get back to the jail, but Doc’s keeping him on a tight rein.” He grinned. “And I think he’s enjoying Mrs. Brooks’s visits as well.”

“They’re a matched pair, if I’ve ever seen one. Have you arrested Sharp yet?”

He shook his head. “No. Smitty and I have searched everywhere, and he’s nowhere to be found. We figure he skipped town as soon as he heard we’d found the children and arrested Butch and Grady. We probably won’t have to worry about him anymore.”

“Praise the Lord. We don’t need his kind here in Chestnut, that’s for sure.”

Jake snagged a biscuit from the stove. Livy swatted his hand, and he grabbed for hers, rubbing his thumb along the soft tissue of her palm. Livy shivered at the touch.

“I’m going to see Gus. Want to ride along? I imagine Mrs. Brooks and the girls can handle things for an hour or so.”

“Oh, I couldn’t. There’s so much to do.”

She glanced around the busy kitchen, at the girls pretending to be engrossed in their work. Little sneaks. Not a peep could be heard out of any of them, they were so engrossed in Jake and Livy’s conversation.

“I’ll not take no for an answer. Right, girls?”

“Yes, sir.” Giggles erupted from their audience.

She couldn’t resist the teasing glint in his eyes or the snickers from the girls. She reached for her cloak. “All right. Mary, tell Mrs. Brooks I’ll be back in a little while.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

The sun shone bright and cheerful after so many dreary days of snow-laden clouds. Livy smiled, soaking up the warmth.

Jake helped her into a wagon, climbed up, and headed toward town. He motioned to the wagon bed, where two straight-back chairs lay. “Those are for Gus.”

Livy smiled. “He’ll be so happy.”

Jake reached for a burlap sack at his feet. “And these are for the boys. I didn’t want to take them inside. I was afraid Georgie’s curiosity would get the best of him.”

Livy opened the sack and pulled out a wooden horse, the intricate carving revealing how much time and effort Jake had put into this one piece. “Oh, Jake, it’s perfect.”

“It’s a good thing I made so many pieces to begin with. I finished two more this morning, so I think there’s enough to go around.”

“Thank you. You’ll come over on Christmas Eve, won’t you? I want you there when they open their presents.”

“I wouldn’t miss it.” His eyes twinkled, making Livy wonder what he had in mind.

As they neared the middle of town, a commotion broke out on the other side of the jail, close to the barbershop. Shopkeepers swarmed out of their businesses heading that way. Jake pulled the wagon up short and set the brake.

“Wait here,” he said, jumping down and hurrying toward the crowd.

Livy didn’t hesitate. She hiked her skirts, jumped out of the wagon, and took off after him, pushing her way through the throng. She came to a screeching halt when she saw the source of the noise. Smitty pulled Jimmy Sharp toward the jail, the lawyer cursing a blue streak and fighting against the handcuffs chaffing his wrists.

“Come on, Sharp. You’ve managed to get out of more than one scrape in Chicago, but not here. Gibbons and his boys are singing like canaries in there, so I don’t think you’re going to worm your way out of this one.”

Sharp jerked against the handcuffs. Smitty yanked him back around, and the lawyer came face-to-face with Livy. His sudden stillness caught Smitty’s attention, and the detective stopped. A sardonic grin split Sharp’s face.

“Well, if it isn’t Miss Livy O’Brien.” He cut his gaze back to Smitty. “Hey, Detective, if you want to make the headlines in the
Chicago Tribune
, she’s the one you should arrest.”

Smitty turned Sharp toward the jail. “Aw, shut up, Sharp. I’ve heard about all of your jawing I can stand. I’ll let you and Gibbons cuss at each other for a while.”

“You don’t want to hear about Light-Fingered Livy O’Brien? The best lock picker in Chicago?” Sharp leveled a shrewd gaze in her direction. “I wondered where you’d gotten off to. Haven’t seen you around the last couple of years. I’d think a little hole-in-the-wall like Chestnut would be slim pickings for the likes of you.”

Detective Schmidt squinted at Sharp, then turned to Livy, his gaze assessing her. “Miss O’Brien, is that true? Not that I’d expect you to admit it if you are Light-Fingered Livy.”

Mr. McIver and the Huff sisters stared at her, their faces cold and unreadable. Reverend Warren looked shocked—and disappointed.

All Livy’s hopes and dreams came crashing down around her. No matter how far she ran, she couldn’t outrun her past. It nipped at her heels, ready to snare her at any moment. She squared her shoulders. She couldn’t lie about her past, not if her Christian faith meant anything at all.

“Yes, sir. It’s true.”

She dropped her head. She couldn’t offer a defense for her past, only that she’d been forgiven by a higher power than the courts of Chicago. Yes, God, in His infinite mercy forgave her, but now she’d have to go back to the city and face her punishment, whatever it might be.

“Well, aren’t you going to arrest her?” Sharp jeered. “Don’t tell me the mighty Detective Nate Schmidt is going soft.”

Livy looked up and could see the indecision on Smitty’s face. He wanted to give her the benefit of the doubt, but the evidence—and her own admission—didn’t give him any choice.

Jake stepped in front of her, pushing her behind him. “Smitty, Miss O’Brien has been an upstanding citizen since she came to Chestnut.”

Tears filled Livy’s eyes, spilling over to plop in the mud at her feet. Jake believed in her. He believed in her goodness. Even if Smitty took her back to Chicago, she’d tuck that belief into her heart.

“If it hadn’t been for her, we wouldn’t have caught Gibbons and Sharp here and those goons of his.” Sam McIver scratched his head. “Isn’t there some way to pardon her since she’s done so much for Chestnut?”

Miss Janie sidled up to Livy and tucked an arm around her waist.

Smitty glanced at Mr. McIver, then at Jake, a calculating look on his face. “I’ll see what I can do. Snagging Sharp and Gibbons is a pretty good trade-off for giving Livy O’Brien her walking papers.” His gaze caught Livy’s, and she thought he winked. “You’re free to go, Miss O’Brien. Just don’t leave town, you hear. It wouldn’t look too good, you know.”

Livy nodded, giddy with relief. “I wouldn’t dream of it, Smitty.”

* * *

Jake tapped on Mr. Stillman’s open door. The banker looked up from the papers strewn over his desk. He stood and reached out a hand. “Jake. Good to see you.”

“Mr. Stillman.”

“How you feeling?”

“Better.” Jake rested a hand against his chest. “As long as I don’t breathe, I make it fine.”

“Glad you’re on the mend. It’s hard to believe Gibbons pulled off such a thing in Chestnut.” Stillman shook his head. “And I was one of the ones who went out of my way to get him to open up a factory here.”

“Don’t blame yourself, Mr. Stillman. You couldn’t have known he planned to use child labor.”

“Maybe not, but I do feel partly responsible for those poor kids. You can rest assured they’ll be taken care of.” He folded his hands on his desk and peered at Jake over his spectacles. “Now, what can I do for you today?”

“I’ve decided to keep my shares in the mine.”

“What about that explosion? It destroyed the entrance.”

“The entrance behind Gus’s cabin is at a lower point. It’ll actually work better than the original entrance. And while I was down there, I realized that most of the mine is still stable.”

Stillman gave him a shrewd look. “Is that the only reason you changed your mind?”

Jake leaned forward. “MacPherson is going to reopen that mine. And until I know what kind of man we’re dealing with, I plan to be right there to make sure it’s the safest mine this side of Chicago.”

Stillman grinned. “Being stuck in that mine again must have addled your brain. You sure you want to go through with this?”

“As sure as I’ve ever been.”

Chapter Twenty-Nine

The orphanage blazed with light on Christmas Eve. The girls were thrilled with their corn-husk dolls, and the boys galloped their wooden horses around the parlor, filling the room with joy and laughter. Livy kept an eye on the children they’d rescued from the mines. They weren’t as rambunctious as Seth and Georgie, but she figured it would only be a matter of time before they whooped and hollered with the rest of the children.

A knock sounded at the door, and she wove through the crowded room to answer it. Who could that be? It seemed the entire town had already been by to offer them Christmas cheer. She shifted a platter of cookies to her left hand and opened the door to find Smitty and Lavinia MacKinnion. The shock of seeing the two of them together almost made her drop the cookies.

Miss MacKinnion smiled. “Good evening, Miss O’Brien. Detective Schmidt graciously offered to escort me over so I could bring the children some sweets for Christmas.” Her smile faltered and uncertainty clouded her eyes. “That is, if you don’t mind.”