Chapter Twenty-Four
With Tillie riding alongside, Rachel scrambled from the wagon and reached for Eden. “Come in for a moment, please. At least until I see who this is.”
Of late, she never knew if someone was friend or foe.
With Tillie beside her, Rachel bravely strode toward the nicely dressed visitor, giving him the once over. He wore a dark suit with a gun belt with a pistol on his hip. “Howdy, mister. Can I help you?”
He removed his hat and spoke politely. “Austin Morgan, detective for the North Texas Stage Lines out of Clarendon, ma’am. Are you Miss Rachel Malloy?”
She relaxed and smiled. He’d finally come. “I am and this is my neighbor, Tillie Grant. Please come in.”
Austin Morgan held the door. “After you and Miss Grant.”
They entered the house and Rachel paused. “Have a seat and talk with Tillie for a moment. I need to change my daughter and fix her a bottle. We’ve been gone most of the afternoon.”
“By all means, see to your daughter’s needs.”
As Rachel moved to the bedroom, Tillie asked Morgan about the long trip. After changing Eden and getting her bottle made, she sat down with them while the baby ate.
Tillie and Austin Morgan’s conversation seemed relaxed and easy. He looked awfully young to be a stage lines detective. Couldn’t be more than twenty-five or so.
Morgan turned to Rachel. “I believe you sent a note with the traveling preacher about something you need to return to the office.”
Realizing Tillie knew nothing about her father or the stolen strongbox and Rachel didn’t want to delve into that until they had some privacy, she played it casual. “Yes, it’s something I discovered of my father’s after someone burned this house down. We’ll discuss it in a moment.”
The shadows of the evening had lengthened. It would be dark soon. As though sensing her thoughts, Tillie rose. “I need to be going. It was nice meeting you, Mr. Morgan. I pray you have a safe return to Clarendon.”
“Likewise, Miss Grant.”
“Tillie.”
“Yes, ma’am, Tillie.” His eyes twinkling, he held her hand for what seemed long past the normal length. “I hope we meet again soon.”
Tillie nodded. “Me too. Goodbye, Rachel. I’ll work on what we discussed.”
Once she’d left, Rachel laid sleeping Eden in her crib and made supper. Then over the meal, she and Morgan talked about the stolen loot in the strongbox.
“I knew nothing about my father’s activities while he was alive. You have to believe me. He did leave mysteriously though and would be gone for weeks. I’ll be glad to be rid of that money because strangers have come and I suspect they’re searching for it. I’m in danger.”
Morgan looked at her over his coffee cup. “It’s a considerable sum and that makes men do stupid things.”
“Another friend, Heath Lassiter, has taken it over to his place for safe keeping. We’ll get it tomorrow. He worries for my safety. Will you stay the night in the barn? I’ll make it comfortable.”
“I’ll appreciate the lodging since there’s no town close by. Thank you.”
They talked more about her father and the stages he’d robbed, and guilt washed over her. “I apologize on his behalf. I’m very ashamed of what my father did.”
The next morning dawned bright and cheery. Rachel opened her eyes and smiled. Jax lay at the end of her bed. He opened his eyes and chuffed when she got up then jumped to the floor and stretched as she reached for her clothes.
She started to put on her worn dress and stopped. Heath might come calling today. She wanted to look her best in case he did. So she pulled on the new calico dress she’d made and smoothed the yellow and russet floral design over her hips.
Then she tied back her hair with a strip of the same fabric as her dress instead of wearing it in her usual long braid and picked up Eden.
She felt very pretty. With a light heart, she fed the baby then hummed around in the kitchen preparing breakfast.
The door opened and Austin Morgan came in. “Morning. I slept like a rock on that hay.”
“I’m glad.” She handed him coffee and as they sat down to eat, Heath arrived looking especially handsome in a blue shirt and trousers. She didn’t need a calendar to tell which day of the week it was. He’d once explained to her that he always wore the same color shirt on the same day of the week. A planner he called himself. Rachel introduced the two men and brought Heath some coffee.
Heath met her glance and nodded. “We’re glad you’ve come, Morgan. Rachel and I will be happy to see that gone. The more it sits here, the more men will come looking for it.”
Austin nodded. “Our feelings exactly. We never expected to get it back and were surprised when that preacher brought your note.”
Rachel reached for her cup of hot tea. Coffee was fine for the men but she preferred something milder. “We trusted him.”
Heath sat opposite her, a smile flirting with the corner of his mouth.
“What?” Rachel asked.
“You look very fetching today, Rachel. That’s all. Is that a new dress?”
Heat rose to her face, especially since the exchange drew Austin Morgan’s attention. The young man leaned back in his chair, staring. “Thank you, Heath. I made this from the fabric you bought that day in Estacado.”
“It’s most becoming.” His eyes twinkled like stars as he filled his plate with eggs and buttered a thick slice of bread.
“I have to agree.” Austin rose and looked out the window. “I’m curious about this valley. Besides Miss Grant, who else lives farther down?”
Eden began to fuss and Heath reached for her. Rachel answered the detective. “A woman named Cora Quinlan.”
Austin turned. “Three women alone?”
“That’s right. My father and brothers were the only males until they passed and Tillie’s father took his wife to Arizona territory. Tillie still has a handyman but he’s old. Why?”
“I’m only trying to get a picture of the area. You never know when I’ll need it.” He returned to the table. “I plan to leave as soon as I get the strongbox.”
“I’ll take you to it whenever you’re ready,” Heath said. “It’s a long ways back to Clarendon.”
“Yes, it is, and I’ll move fast. I didn’t bring help to keep from advertising it.”
“I can understand that, but you should know we’re being watched.”
Austin’s head jerked around. “How many?”
“One for sure and three others possible.”
Rachel began clearing the table. “One man came posing as my uncle, but I had to send him on his way a few days ago.”
“Helps to know these things.” Austin pondered that a moment.
“Once my father died of a fever two months ago, men started showing up as well as a multitude of holes where they dug at night. And they burned my house looking for the loot.”
“I’m really sorry, Miss Malloy. Thank goodness, Mr. Lassiter lives close by.”
Rachel brushed Heath’s shoulder reaching for his plate. He glanced up and her knees went weak. “Yes, I’m fortunate.”
Once she cleared the table, Heath rose and handed Eden to her. The detective went out to saddle his horse.
“I’ll be back. Don’t go anywhere.” Heath’s fingers brushed her cheek.
A smile curved her lips. “I’ll be right here.”
When she tilted her head to look up at him, his mouth lowered to hers, their breath mingling like a welcome breeze on a sultry summer’s day.
Rachel’s heart fluttered and her pulse raced. She reached up to touch his face and cup his jaw. The truth struck her like a bolt from the blue. She was falling in love with this man.
If only…
Just then Eden got restless in Rachel’s arms. “You take her and I’ll come out to see you off.”
“I won’t say no.”
As soon as he took the child, Eden grabbed a fistful of his hair and Rachel was hard pressed to tell who was grinning the biggest, Eden or Heath. It was plain to see that the little girl who’d been left in their care worshipped the tall Texan.
That made two of them.