Wilderness Trail of Love (American Wilderness Series Romance Book 1) (27 page)

As soon as they had hot coffee made, Stephen warmed the corn cakes that Jane had sent.

William knocked softly and then slowly opened the creaky cabin door. His brother stuck his head in and said, “Miss, the food’s ready if you’re up to eating some. We set up a stool for you by the cook fire if you’d care to join us. I promise you’ll be safe.” He moved off the porch, leaving the door open, and rejoined Stephen at the cook fire.

Slowly, like a wide-eyed scared animal, she peeked around the
door, then gradually emerged, still hugging her blanket tightly around her.

Timidly, she regarded Stephen. “Thank you,” she finally said, barely above a whisper.

He didn’t know if she was thanking him for killing her rapists or thanking him for the food. He studied her eyes and they told him it was the former.

“I’m glad you’re up and about. We were worried about you. You’ll feel even better after you get some food and coffee,” William assured her, using a soothing tone. “Here’s a stool we found on the porch. Hope it will be comfortable enough.” William had covered it with a blanket to soften it.

Stephen had never seen this gentle side of William. Normally his brother was insensitive and boisterous, more interested in making people laugh than attending to their needs. He seemed intent on talking to the young lady to help her mind return from her near paralyzing shock.

“Stephen’s the youngest of my four brothers,” William said. “But he’s probably the smartest. Definitely the most adventurous—that’s why our family is headed to Kentucky. He looks mean, but he’s not actually. He’s got a beautiful wife named Jane and…,” William caught himself before he said four, “…two daughters.”

It was the first time Stephen had heard them called two daughters. He swallowed the aching lump in his throat. When reality finally hits, it often comes, as it did now, with a cold vicious slap. The blow stung. What he wanted to do was take off for the woods and scream, not make polite conversation with this young woman. He decided, however, to try to focus on this young lady’s problems, instead of his own.

She moved slowly toward the stool. She eyeballed both of them, seeming to study them.

“What’s your name?” William asked, breaking the awkward silence.

Doubt filled her face as she decided whether to trust them with even her name. She hesitated, blinking, then stared up at William with violet blue eyes. “Kelly. Kelly McGuffin.”

Kelly had long golden hair, the color of fresh butter that reached an inch or two past her waist. Her big eyes looked like they’d be striking if they weren’t so swollen and red from crying. Stephen thought she’d have a lovely smile too but knew it would be awhile before they would have a chance to see it.

“Miss McGuffin, I’m sure you’d like a bite to eat and a cup of hot coffee. My wife Jane made these corn cakes. They’re tasty. Sit down and we’ll bring you some,” he said, motioning again to the stool.

She sat down and winced, then stared at the ground.

Stephen felt his temper rise in response. He looked over at William, whose lips thinned with his effort to suppress his anger.

“After you’ve had something to eat, we’ll give you some ointment for those wrists and ankles. They must sting,” William said. “In addition to baking, Jane has a way with making healing ointments. She made us carry some along. And you’ll probably need some warm water to wash with. We’ll heat some water on this fire after we’ve eaten.”

With that, her eyes seemed to light up a bit and it warmed his heart. He was pleased with the kindness his brother was showing Kelly.

“Stephen, have you taken a look at that sorrel of Mr. Adams
yet?” William asked.

“Only from here. He sure is a handsome animal. After a while, I’ll go check over all the horses.”

“They told me they’d give me that steed in payment if I let them stay with me awhile. I was afraid to say no. I didn’t know they would…would do that to me,” she whimpered, and began wringing her hands.

Stephen and William exchanged glances, plainly disgusted.

“If they told you that then the animal should be yours. I’m sure Mrs. Adams, the owner, won’t mind since we’ve recovered her other valuables and killed the men that murdered her husband. But if she does, then I’ll buy the horse for you myself, if she’ll sell it,” William offered.

Kelly sniffed, raised her chin, and managed a slight smile. “You would do that for me Mr. Wyllie?”

William nodded and smiled. “Please call me William. Best you eat now.”

Kelly wolfed down the corn cake, staring at her feet as she chewed. “They didn’t let me eat for the last day or so,” she said finally. “They wanted what little food I had for themselves.”

Judging from how thin she was, she hadn’t eaten much before that either, Stephen noted.

“I’m so ashamed of what they did to me.” She lowered her head. Tears slipped down her checks. “I don’t know what I’ll do now. Am I ruined?”

“There’s no reason at all for you to feel shame. Those two skunks are the ones who should bear the shame, but they’re far past that now,” William said.

“The sin was all theirs,” Stephen added.

He could see she wanted to believe him. “Miss, where is your family? Are your folks around here?” he asked.

“My Ma died when I was fourteen. She’s buried over there,” she said, pointing to a nearby gravestone on this side of the adjacent hill. “My Pa is off somewhere selling his pelts. He’s a trapper. Traps in the Hopewell Forest north of here in the mountains. I fend for myself.”

“When do you expect him to return?” Stephen asked.

“Don’t know. Been gone more than two weeks. He always comes back. But I never know how long he’ll be gone—most times it’s several weeks. Sometimes he sells his furs in Harrisburg. At times, I wish he’d just stay away. When he does come back, he stays drunk till his whiskey runs out. He broke this finger last winter.” She held it up for them to view the crooked knuckle. “He didn’t mean to. He was just too drunk to know what he was doing. He wasn’t like that before Ma died. I guess he’s still grieving. It’s been four years though.”

Her father sounded like a real scoundrel. He thought about his own girls and could never imagine treating them so cruelly. He would never harm them. He’d rather die.

“I haven’t properly thanked you both for saving me. I am grateful. They were evil vile men. My Ma told me about men like them. I think they had done this before. The one called Grover told his brother to do it like they did the last time.” She hung her head. “That’s when they tied me up. It hurt so much. The first one took me and then told his brother it was his turn. The second one just started when you came in and saved me.”

She kneaded her hands in her lap, as though she were trying to
reassure herself that her hands were still free of the ropes.

He glowered at William, snarled a profanity under his breath, and then threw the rest of his supper and his plate to the ground.

Accustomed to Stephen’s methods of communication, William tried to explain. “My brother’s got a notable temper and what those men did to you made him, makes both of us, angry and sick to our stomachs. When he saw those men attacking you, I think he thought about his own daughters. He wanted to keep you from suffering, just like he would have if you had been his own daughter.”

“They did hurt me. I’m glad they’re dead,” Kelly said, anger in her voice for the first time.

“You have a right to be angry. They deserved to die, for what they did to Mr. Adams, and to you. I’m just sorry you had to witness them getting killed,” William said.

“I’m glad I saw it. I never want to forget it.”

“You need to rest now. Why don’t I get that water warmed up?” William offered.

“It will be dark soon, where will you sleep?” she asked while nibbling nervously on her bottom lip.

“Don’t fret about us. We’re used to sleeping under the stars. We’ll put our bedrolls beside the fire, if that’s all right with you,” William replied.

Kelly’s eyes softened, almost seemed to brighten as she gazed at William.

Then she glanced at Stephen. “Thank you again for saving my life. Your daughters are lucky to have you for a father.”

Those simple words gave him a warm feeling he would remember for a long time.

Outside, William cleaned his weapons beside the small fire. He was religious about it.

Stephen brushed George, paying as much attention to the stallion as William did to weapon cleaning and Sam to knife sharpening. The horse’s black coat reflected the light from the cook fire like a full moon glistening on a lake at midnight. Both men worked in silence, brooding over the day’s sad events.

Finally, William said, “I don’t believe we will ever shoot men who deserve to die more.”

“I just wish we had found them before they found her,” he said, putting the brush down. He poured the last of the coffee. What those men did to Kelly left a bitter taste in his mouth.

“They were scoundrels of the worst kind. They robbed Kelly of her innocence, and nothing I can do or say will bring that back. At least the whoresons won’t hurt anyone else. But it’s too bad they couldn’t have been tried for all their crimes. Given what Kelly overheard, this wasn’t the first time they raped a woman,” William said.

“They got what they deserved.”

“What are we going to do with her?” William asked.

“What do you mean? Do what with her?”

“We can’t just leave her here, waiting for her drunken father to come back. What if that skunk got her with child? Her father might think she asked for it and beat her, or worse, kill her,” William said.

“You don’t know that. I don’t like it either but we have to leave her here just like we found her. We can’t take her from her father.”

“If her mother died when she was fourteen, and she said that
was four years ago, she’s eighteen—old enough to leave if she chooses. I’ll never leave that poor girl alone out here in the wilderness.”

“I know your intentions are honorable, but it wouldn’t be proper for her to come with us.”

“Neither is getting raped.”

He was getting tired of William pushing him. “I’m not her father. I have my own daughters, and damn it, I’m having a hard enough time taking care of them. She has a father. This is her home. She won’t want to leave.”

“You heard what she said. Next time the brut might break more than a finger. He can’t be much of a father if he treats her like that.”

Stephen had to agree with that. He thought about his own daughters and softened a bit. “All right, we’ll talk to her in the morning and see what she says. I’m betting she’ll want to stay with her own kin. But if she wants, we’ll take her to the next town.”

“Sometimes a person must leave to find their own life. Maybe we were sent here to lead her to it.”

CHAPTER 29

W
ith the sunrise, a Spring cold front blew in with bluster and it began to rain steadily. Kelly asked the two to come inside as soon as it started. “The coffee is already made, if you’d like some.”

Stephen marveled at the difference in her appearance. She appeared much brighter and more alert than the day they found her. She wore a fresh, although quite worn, smock and her long hair hung smoothly across her back.

As she reached across the table to pour coffee for William, Stephen noticed the terrible raw rope burns on her wrists, but he also studied her face. Except for Jane, he couldn’t remember ever seeing a lovelier young lady, even though her eyes were still puffy from crying. She wasn’t a classic beauty, but her features had a pleasing charm. She was much too thin, her ragged clothing hanging on her like a grain sack. If she had eaten one meal a day, he’d be surprised. There was little on the shelves in the way of supplies, only a small pile of crudely chopped wood for the fire and no other comforts that he could see. How could her father neglect her like this?

“Kelly, my brother and I were wondering what you would like to do now,” William said.

“What do you mean?” she asked. She blew on her coffee to cool it.

“We won’t leave you in this situation, alone and awaiting the return of your brutish father. Those men we killed are not the only ruffians and ill-bred men out there. I don’t know how your father could leave you out here. It’s indecent and outlandish. Not to mention, there’s always the threat of Indians,” William said.

“My father bribes the Indians with tobacco so they leave us alone. As far as other men, I guess he never thought men would attack a young girl,” she said, looking down at her feet.

Did she still think of herself as a girl? Stephen wondered. “You’re not a girl. You’re a comely young lady and you need protection,” he said adamantly.

“I can’t leave. I have no finances and no place to go. This is my home, even if it’s not much,” Kelly said.

“You have some money now,” Stephen said. He reached into his pocket and laid the sack on her little table. “That was on one of them, and it’s not Mrs. Adams’. She didn’t have any money stolen, so you’re entitled to it as compensation for the harm you’ve suffered. Haven’t counted it yet. Don’t know how much is there, but it feels like a considerable amount.”

Kelly stared at the pouch in astonishment. He realized she had probably never had a coin of her own in her life.