Oliver by Christine Sterling

Author:Christine Sterling [Sterling, Christine]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2020-07-15T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eight

Oliver left early the next morning to ride to Flat River. Marmee’s quilt squares were tied to the back of Whiskey, and he had Owen’s list of supplies to get from the mercantile.

The first stop he made was at the home of Reverend and Mrs. O’Brien. He dropped off the squares and managed to avoid conversation with the Reverend.

Oliver still blamed Reverend O’Brien for Alice’s abduction. A traveling evangelist was visiting the church and filled Alice’s head with tales of missionary trips, saving lives, and adventure. It wasn’t difficult to convince the young woman to run away under the guise of getting married.

Reverend O’Brien had no clue about the true nature of the charlatan, but the damage was still done. That is why Oliver insisted on knowing as much about the people who came into his life as possible.

That would include Willow.

He knew nothing about her, but he was drawn to her in a way he didn’t understand.

He saw the damage and recovery when Alice was rescued. It took months before Alice could even talk about small things. Being alone in the dark was a huge fear for his sister. He wanted to banish away all the hurt and anger he saw in his sister; and he wanted to do the same for Willow.

Alice’s entire personality had changed recently. Where she was once lively and engaging, she now appeared to be constantly looking for an argument.

Something would need to be done soon. Alice couldn’t keep alienating people with her waspish tongue.

He wondered the type of torment Willow endured. It would take quite a bit of coaxing to get her to come out of her shell.

Oliver smiled as he reflected on his pleasure at seeing Willow dressed in the green checkered dress. She was a completely different woman than the wildcat they encountered at the river. He would even say she was downright pretty.

As he cleaned her feet, she didn’t say much. She simply looked at him with those doe eyes, and Oliver found himself sinking further into declaring himself her protector. He had never wanted to protect anyone that wasn’t family before.

He wasn’t a fighter. He never was. He was the peacemaker of the family.

Marshal Orrin Briggs was sitting on a rocker outside the jail and drinking coffee when Oliver rode up.

“Morning,” Orrin said. “Got time for a cup?”

“I’d be much obliged.”

“Have a seat.” Orrin pointed to a bench along the wall. “I’ll be right back.”

Oliver tied off Whiskey. As he stepped onto the porch, he heard yelling from inside the jail. Orrin returned just as Oliver was sitting down.

“Everything alright?” he asked, putting his hat on the bench next to him.

Orrin returned to his rocker. “Just a very unhappy guest.”

“What did he do?”

“Beat his wife while in a drunken rage.” Orrin sipped his coffee. “I’m going to keep him until he is completely sober.”

The thought of Willow being married never entered his mind. What if she had a husband? Or even children? What if it was Willow’s husband in jail?

“How long has he been in there?”

“Brought him in last night.

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.