Mail Order Cowboy (Love Inspired Historical) by Laurie Kingery

Author:Laurie Kingery [Kingery, Laurie]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Adult, Arranged marriage, California, Contemporary, Custody of children, Fiction, General, Loss, Mayors, Romance, Social workers
ISBN: 9780373828470
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2010-11-09T16:09:02+00:00

Chapter Fifteen

Milly huddled in the dark kitchen, clutching her rifle, staring out through the window at the hulking shape of the barn into which Nick had disappeared, sure he was wrong to have gone alone, sure she should run out to the bunkhouse and wake Bobby and send him to the barn to help Nick—maybe even Josh, too. She was sure that any minute now, she would hear a blood-curdling war whoop, followed by Nick’s cutoff scream. Then the rest of the Comanches would erupt from the trees and attack the house…

Then she saw him walking back to the house, briskly, but his gait did not appear alarmed. She dashed to the door to let him in.

“It wasn’t a Comanche,” he said.

“Then who w—”

“Come, and bring the lantern. I’ll show you.”

Her hands still trembling, she relit the lantern and followed him out into the night once again. The lantern cast wobbling circles of light on the ground as they walked.

Once inside the barn, he took the lantern from her and held it high, illuminating four men huddling in the corner of the rearmost stall. They were of differing ages, but similar in height and build, and alike in the darkness of their skin, the whiteness of their wide eyes and the raggedy condition of their clothes.

“Miss Millicent Matthews, may I present Elijah Brown and his brothers—Isaiah, Caleb and Micah.” He pointed at each of them in turn.

All of the men pulled off their hats, three of which were tattered and floppy-brimmed, while the youngest wore a forage cap, and inclined their heads with a dignity that nevertheless betrayed their apprehension.

“We’re sorry t’ have give you a fright, Miss Matthews, we surely are. We was jes’ lookin’ fer shelter for the night, that’s all, I promise you, ma’am,” the one called Elijah said.

All eyes were on her, including Nick’s. And as she stared back at them, she saw how thin they all were, especially the one in the middle—Caleb, had that been his name? His clothes, or what was left of them, hung from his tall frame as if he had once been almost stocky.

“But…how did you come here?” she asked.

“We been wanderin’ the roads, ma’am, lookin’ for work, but so far we ain’t found none. We saw this barn goin’ up today, and Isaiah wanted us t’ offer to help in exchange fer supper, but I didn’t think that was a good idea, what with all th’ folks that was here. Some folks don’ like havin’ us ’round, y’understand.” The last thing he said with an apologetic but matter-of-fact air.

“Miss Milly, might we give them something to eat?” Nick asked. “Elijah says they haven’t had anything in two days except for some pecans they found.”

There was food left from the party—half a pie, a dozen or so pieces of fried chicken, a basketful of biscuits, a dish of green beans. Sarah had covered them and left them on the cast-iron stove, saying it would be their Sunday dinner, but how could Milly say no? Hope shone from the dark eyes trained on her.

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