Colorado Dawn by Erica Vetsch

Author:Erica Vetsch [VETSCH, ERICA]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-63058-979-0
Publisher: Barbour Publishing, Inc.
Published: 2012-08-23T04:00:00+00:00

Sam’s shoulders slumped, and he sank into a chair, as battered as if he’d fallen down a mineshaft. Here he’d meant only to encourage her with his good news about Celeste, and she’d detonated like a pint of nitro. The memory of her tears lashed him like a whip.

At least they were real tears, real emotion spawned by real problems. Her choking cries, muffled through the wall behind him, made him close his eyes and fist his hands, leaning his head on the paneling.

Yvette had cried prettily, dabbing at her lashes with a lace handkerchief, darting sidelong looks at him to gauge his reaction and coming out of her sorrow the instant she got what she wanted. Manipulative minx, and he, like a first-class chump, had fallen for it for a time. A scowl twisted his mouth. Why was he thinking of Yvette now?

After a few minutes, the crying sounds ceased, or at least grew so faint he couldn’t make them out. He rose and edged down the narrow passageway to listen at her door. Should he tap? Perhaps she was asleep. The shadows under her eyes this morning made him wonder if she’d slept at all last night, and who could blame her? She’d certainly been under a lot of strain, and the glimpse she had given him into the children’s futures would have kept him awake under the circumstances. He decided not to disturb her, knowing he wouldn’t have any idea what to say to her if she answered the door. He’d best check on the kids.

Tick and Celeste sat at the table, Phin leaned against the wall, and none of them were eating the cookies. Phin’s glare could’ve set Sam’s suit on fire.

“What?” Still tender from the scene with Ellie—Eldora—he was in no mood to deal with anything from Phin.

“We heard you. We all came to get you, because Tick didn’t want to start in on the cookies without you and Eldora.”

Tick’s lower lip jutted. “You made her cry.”

Fear that they might’ve heard the discussion of their futures clawed up his chest. “What else did you hear?”

Celeste had tucked her scarf up again and leveled an unnaturally mature stare at him. Phin shoved away from the wall and flung himself into a chair. “Nothing we didn’t already know, and nothing you shouldn’t have figured out. Why do you think we’re on this train? Because nobody will adopt us in the whole city of St. Louis, and Korbin wanted to get rid of us. He’s making us someone else’s problem.”

Their resigned acceptance of their lot in life tore at Sam. His own childhood, so secure in the love and care of his parents, mocked him. Ellie—Eldora—was right. He knew nothing of the suffering they’d endured, the uncertainty, the lack of affection and security. He had thought getting them to Denver would be enough, that he’d leave them at the orphanage, fulfilling his promise to Aunt Tabitha and doing his good deed. But the notion of leaving them there—especially knowing how precarious their futures would be there—didn’t sit right with him.

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