The Lumberjack's Bride (16 page)

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“We'll rest here for the night.”

Marcus shoved Julianne into the dark, damp cave. She fell to the ground on her knees. A soft cry escaped her lips.

“How many times do I have to tell you to leave her be?” Edmond yelled as he came into the shelter.

Julianne would have laughed if she didn't hurt all over. Most of her cuts, scrapes, and bruises came from her uncle. How often today had he struck her? More than she cared to remember.

The baby gave a soft whimper.

“Marcus, get a fire going in here.” Edmond rubbed his arms and looked around.

His frown spoke louder than words. Julianne cuddled the baby against her shoulder. The last thing she wanted to do was anger her uncle.

“It's not much to look at is it, Julie girl?” His gaze moved to the squirming baby in her arms.

“No, sir.”

Edmond nodded his head. “Oh, I see you've remembered your manners.”

Marcus dropped a pile of branches on the hard floor. “Good thing I went and got the brat, huh, boss.” He knelt and began piling kindling on the ground.

The older man studied the younger. “I suppose so, but from now on you better do as I say or I won't pay you a cent.”

Julianne wondered how long it would be before the two men turned on each other. From the looks of hate they exchanged it would be sooner rather than later and when that happened maybe she could escape with Jonathan.

The baby's small whimpers gained momentum.

Both men glared at her. Unless they turned their frustrations on her.

She laid him gently on the dirt floor of the cave. Julianne began to remove the blanket that concealed the baby. Several times during the day, she had thought to check on the little one but her uncle and Marcus had pushed her to keep moving.

Now that the blanket was off, Julianne gasped.

“What's wrong?” Edmond moved to her side and looked down at the baby.

It wasn't Jonathan's blue eyes that stared back at her. This baby had brown eyes, coal-black hair and tan skin.

The little fellow kicked his legs and whimpered again.

“What's the matter, girl? The baby looks fine to me.” Edmond searched Julianne's face.

Julianne's heart pounded in her chest. She was amazed that her uncle and Marcus couldn't hear it. “He's hungry and I just realized we don't have any milk to feed him.”

“Is that all? Well, it won't hurt him to go through one night without something to eat.” Edmond straightened to his full height. He rubbed his back and then knelt down beside the fire.

Julianne sighed with relief. She felt sure her uncle would kill the baby if he knew the truth.

Her gaze met Marcus's. The dark eyebrows slanted in a frown. Had he guessed he'd taken the wrong baby? She wondered how he'd known to look for Jonathan in an Indian village. Or had he found them at the cabin? As he stared at her and his eyes hardened, Julianne silently prayed.
Lord, please don't let him figure it out
. She kept her expression under stern restraint.

The baby whimpered again. Why hadn't she noticed he hadn't cried out all day? Jonathan would have been screaming for hours, but this baby hadn't. Why?

She removed the wet animal skin that had been used as a diaper. Julianne wondered if her uncle would notice the skin and realize this was an Indian child. For safe measure, she tucked the soiled skin inside a fold in the blanket.

The baby needed a fresh diaper. Julianne stood and turned her back to the men. She pulled her dress up and tore off her chemise at the bottom, then tied it around the baby to make a diaper.

Julianne picked up the little boy and held him close. “I won't let them harm you,” she whispered to the baby.

She needed to get rid of the dirty diaper. Her gaze moved to her uncle and Marcus. The men sat with their backs to her. Since they blocked the only exit out, she backed further into the darkness of the cave, keeping a watchful eye on the men.

The further she went the darker it became. Julianne continued to ease deeper into the cavern with the baby and its blanket. When she felt the wall at her back, she searched the darkness for a place to hide the soiled skin. A crack in the wall caught her attention. Once more she looked toward her uncle and Marcus.

They still weren't paying attention to her. Julianne pulled the used diaper out of the blanket and shoved it as far into the crack as she could.

“What are you doing?” Edmond barked from the entry.

Julianne came forward, “I was just looking for a place to…” She didn't know what more to say.

“Come on, I'll take you.” Her uncle got to his feet. “Well, hurry up. I don't want to spend any more time out there than we need to.” He headed out of the cave.

Fortunately he had misunderstood her stammer to mean she needed to relieve herself. Julianne quickly followed him.

They didn't go very far till Edmond stopped. He pointed at a clump of bushes. “Go behind there and hurry it up.”

Julianne saw this as her moment to escape. It would be dark soon, and they would never find her. She took one step away, and her uncle stopped her by putting a firm hand on her shoulder.

“I'll take the baby, Julie girl.”

She turned to face him. “Oh, I don't mind taking him, Uncle. I'm used to having Jonathan with me.” Julianne offered what she hoped was her most innocent smile.

“That may be true, but the little one stays with me.” He took the baby from her arms. “Now you hurry.”

What could she do?

Frustrated at the loss of a chance at escape, Julianne did as she was told and hurried back.

Edmond handed the child to her, his eyes searching hers. “You know, I didn't think you would leave after I took the money and your ticket. You are resourceful, just like your mother.” His eyes softened for a brief moment. “How did you get the money to come out here?”

For a moment, Julianne thought about her uncle's life. At one time he had been a good man with a good heart. She didn't know what had turned him into the cold, cruel man he had become. What could happen that would cause a man to turn bitter toward God and his own family?

“I came with Asa Mercer.” She looked down at the baby in her arms. The little one sucked noisily on his fist.

Edmond rubbed his arms and gazed up at the stars. “They say a man can get lost in this place.”

Julianne looked up at him. “We don't have to go back, Uncle Edmond. You could stay here and make a new start.”

His laugh was bitter and his eyes were full of sorrow as he answered. “Not me, Julie girl. I have a family to take care of. Responsibilities.” Edmond stared down at her for several long minutes. “I'm sorry, I can't return without you.”

“But why, Uncle? Why must I go back with you? You hated me living in your home. And Kassie is fifteen years old now. She can help Aunt Martha with the chores and the twins.” Personally Julianne thought it might do her spoiled cousin a world of good to get her hands a little dirty with a bit of old-fashioned hard work.

“You don't understand.” There was a cold edge of irony in his voice that was not lost on Julianne. “My daughters were not brought up to do manual labor. I can't afford to hire a housekeeper—that's what we kept you for. Since you ran away, there has been no one to help Martha and the community is getting suspicious about our financial standing. They must never learn that I am broke and my family almost destitute. That would ruin my daughters' chances of making desirable matches.” He expelled a long audible breath. “There are no other options available. You must return with me.”

Momentarily speechless in her surprise, Julianne spoke without thinking.

“Broke? Destitute?” The two words caused her mind to spin with bewilderment. Her uncle owned businesses in six different cities. His name was a household word. “What are you talking about, Uncle Edmond? You're one of the wealthiest men in New York.”

“Not anymore.” For a moment it seemed his eyes glimmered with visions of the past, then he regarded her with curious intensity. “And not without you.” A shiver of dread slithered down her spine. What did he mean?

“Do you remember several years ago when I made that trip to the Nevada territory?”

“Yes. You went on a survey trip to investigate the possibility of building stores in the rapidly growing mining towns.”

“That's right. But while there I learned some disturbing news. I tried to find a way around the law that kept me from funds I should have had access to. But your father had sewn things up tight.”

Julianne felt on the edge of a precipice. She was uncertain she wanted to know what he apparently felt compelled to share. “What news, Uncle Edmond?”

“Never mind that right now, Julianne. You'll know soon enough.” He glared at her for interrupting. “Anyway, while I was there and because I was so upset, I began to play in a gaming house.”

Comprehension dawned and a soft gasp escaped her.

“Oh, Uncle. You gambled?”

He spread his hands regretfully and shrugged.

“Quite often. And, finally, one time too many. I lost it all. The businesses, my horses, my bank account. The only thing I have left is my cattle. I'm fifty years old and starting from scratch again.”

“How did Aunt Martha take the news?” Julianne thought about her proud aunt and her heart filled with compassion.

“She doesn't know, and she must never learn of this. That's why you have to go back. If you help with the household so it looks like everything is running as usual, I can earn enough money from the sale of my cattle to keep us going till I get on my feet again. It shouldn't take more than a year. You keep the secret, the baby stays safe, and then you're free to leave again. By that time your older cousins will have made good matches and everything will be back to normal. Your aunt never needs to know how close we came to ruin.”

Julianne blinked in bafflement.

“When we get home, I'll need your signature on some documents.”

Searching for a plausible explanation she asked, “Why would you need
my
signature?”

He stammered as he answered and a wave of apprehension swept through her. Her uncle was an acclaimed public speaker. Why, then, was he stuttering? This could not be good.

“Why, um, oh…just promise that you won't leave until the year is up.” He seemed pleased with his answer but a nagging in the back of her mind refused to be still.

“How could Aunt Martha not know of your financial difficulties?” Julianne's disbelief showed in the tone of her voice. Maybe he could keep the household running as usual, but Aunt Martha loved going to the store her uncle owned in New York. If the store had a new owner, her aunt would know it.

“I told her I sold the business to fund new stores in Nevada territory. That's where she thinks I'm at right now.” He leaned toward her, his voice mocking. “Imagine her surprise when I show up with you.”

“Why didn't you just tell her you made a bad mistake? Aunt Martha loves you. She would have forgiven you and helped you fix this disaster. Surely the family could learn to live on less for a while. Till you recover your fortune.”

His expression changed and became almost somber. He was usually a massive, self-confident presence, but at the moment his shoulders sagged as if they bore the weight of the world. Drops of moisture clung to his forehead and the age lines about his eyes and mouth carved deep into his skin.

“I couldn't bear to see the pain in her eyes that my confession would have caused. I couldn't have her think less of me as a man. First I told one lie, and then I had to lie again to cover that one. Then before I knew it I had created a web of deceit that could not be straightened out without major damage to my family. My girls would have been ashamed of their papa. We could not hold our heads up in town if everyone found out the truth.”

Julianne fought hard against tears and clenched her jaw to kill the sob in her throat. How could she judge her uncle? She was guilty of the same sin. She had lied to Caleb so many times to keep her secrets. Now, she might never get the chance to say she was sorry. How could one little lie cause so much turmoil?

The baby's stomach growled loudly, and he twisted in Julianne's arms. She shifted him, placing his head against her shoulder. She looked up at her uncle, expecting the hardness to have returned to his face, but the dark eyes surveyed her kindly. It was as if confessing his faults had lightened his load. Too bad he had confessed to the wrong person. Julianne could not help him, but she knew someone who could. She opened her mouth to tell her uncle how she had accepted the Lord.

“We will talk no more, Julianne.” He took her by the elbow and propelled her toward the mouth of the cave. Though she tried hard to feel no sympathy, her heart ached for her uncle. He wanted the same thing she did.

Freedom.

Freedom from the lies that had them bound. Did he not understand that accepting the Lord could set a person free? How could he not know this when he had quoted scripture to her all her life? How angry would he become if she shared with him the miracle that had happened to her.

Edmond entered the cavern, pulling Julianne along behind him. Marcus stood in the shadows at the back of the lair. Julianne bent her head to speak to the baby, but something about Marcus's stance caused her head to jerk upward again, icy fear twisting around her heart.

With a flick of his wrist, Marcus's knife flew through the air. It hit Edmond in the chest. The dull thud echoed in the cave.

Julianne screamed as her uncle fell to the ground. She dropped by his side. His hands clutched at the knife buried in his chest.

“Oh Lord, what have you done, Marcus?” She laid the baby on the ground beside her.

Marcus moved from the shadows to stand by her side. “I did what I should have done days ago.” Marcus bent down and jerked the knife from Edmond's heart. He wiped the blood on his pants leg and walked toward the entrance.