Scattered Petals by Amanda Cabot

Author:Amanda Cabot
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub, pdf
Tags: FIC042030
ISBN: 9781441207395
Publisher: Baker Publishing Group
Published: 2010-02-28T23:00:00+00:00

Priscilla slid down from the horse and tied it to one of the hitching posts. Today, since she intended to buy only a few items, she’d decided to ride rather than bring the wagon into town, and Zach had brought her favorite mare from the Bar C. Though he had warned Priscilla about Charcoal’s aversion to water, Nora appeared to enjoy crossing the river, for she whinnied and tossed her head the instant they started descending to the Medina. Nora might be old, but she had not lost her zest for life.

The same could be said about the woman who greeted Priscilla.

“Good afternoon, my child.” Even if she hadn’t recognized the voice, only one person in Ladreville called Priscilla “child.” She turned and smiled at Granny Menger. As the midwife returned the smile, her eyes moved slowly, appraising Priscilla. “It’s good to see you out and about.”

“It was nothing serious. I just caught cold.”

Granny Menger nodded at the bench the Rousseaus had placed in front of their store. “Let me rest my bones a bit,” she said as she lowered herself onto the seat Isabelle claimed had been designed for husbands whose wives were inside the store. When Priscilla had taken the place next to her, Granny nodded again. “Your ailment may not have been serious, but that husband of yours was mighty worried.”

Though Zach had mentioned that he’d met Granny Menger when he delivered the notes to Isabelle and Yvonne, he had neglected to mention that he’d discussed Priscilla’s illness with the midwife. “I told Zach there was no reason to worry.”

“But he did. God chose a good man for you.”

“I don’t think marriage was part of Zach’s plan.” The instant the words were out of her mouth, Priscilla regretted them. While they were nothing less than the truth, there was no reason for Granny or anyone other than Zach, Sarah, and Clay to know the circumstances of their marriage.

Apparently unfazed, Granny asked simply, “Why not? It seems to me that you and Zach are good for each other. You can heal each other’s wounds.”

Was Granny a mind reader? That was the only reason Priscilla could imagine for her to be speaking of wounds. “What do you know of Zach’s past?”

As two women left the mercantile, they stopped to greet Granny and Priscilla. It was several minutes later that Granny turned back to Priscilla, her eyes serious. “I know no more than anyone else in Ladreville,” she said, dashing Priscilla’s hopes. “Zach is mighty closed-mouthed, and he doesn’t frequent the saloon, so nobody’s heard anything he doesn’t intend them to know.” Granny paused before she added, “He’s a bit like you that way. Still, you only need to look into Zach’s eyes to know he’s suffered and is still suffering.” Granny stared into the distance for a moment. “I reckon if he tells anyone, it’ll be you.”

“Maybe not. There are some things no one wants to talk about.”

“Like what happened to you.” It was a statement, not a question.

Priscilla frowned.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.