Chapter 9 #3
He understood her distraction. They angled across the street to his office, which was next to one corner of the park. He occasionally sat a spell on the bench closest to his office to watch the activities of the town. From his open window, he could enjoy the scent of the flowers.
He held the door and let her precede him into his domain.
She circled the small room and paused to examine the likenesses on the wanted posters. “I wish I’d seen their faces.”
He knew she meant the men who’d held up the stagecoach.
She continued on to the small cell. “This get used often?”
“Often is a relative term. It would suit me fine if it never got used.”
She looked at the rifles racked on the wall and came full circle to face him.
He leaned on the front of the desk. “What do you want to do for fun?”
The way she blinked, he knew she hadn’t taken the doctor’s orders to heart. A teasing light flashed through her eyes.
“Perhaps I could challenge someone to a horse race.”
He eyed her. “Do you ride?”
She shrugged. “If I don’t, there’s no time like the present to learn.” The teasing ended abruptly. “I hoped he could fix me.” She flung away to press her forehead against the front window.
While she sorted her thoughts, he went through the unopened mail on his desk, looking for anything concerning Emily and Mikey. He found nothing and shoved aside the mail to deal with later.
“Would you like to come with me to find Clarence? I have an errand for him.”
She looked ready to say yes, then shook her head. “Do you mind if I stay here a few minutes? I need to think about what I’m going to do.”
He didn’t like to leave her and certainly didn’t want her wandering about on her own. “On the condition you stay here until I get back.”
For a moment he thought she would argue, then she shrugged. “I’ll wait here for you.”
He trotted down the street, found Clarence helping his father at the feed store, and sent him to look for the culprits.
The three men who had bothered Jesse and Emily yesterday, plus other men—one riding a horse with an oddly shaped horseshoe and one with silver-tipped boots.
They could all be members of the same gang or two different groups of men.
He hoped it was the latter and the three that had confronted him on Sunday had continued riding away from the area.
That task done, he headed back to his office. He took a little longer returning as he considered his options.
Doc had given no timetable for Emily’s recovering her memory. He hadn’t even given assurances that it would return. It was up to Jesse to discover her identity and to guard her until he did, but he couldn’t stay at her side continuously.
He reached his office. Emily sat on the wooden armchair, leaning over her knees. His throat tightened at her despair, and he knelt by her side.
She looked at him.
“Emily, let me take you around town so you know where the different businesses are.”
“I suppose it won’t do me any good to sit here trying to remember who I am.”
“Nope. You need to follow the doctor’s orders.” He pulled her to her feet and led her outside and past the town square. He wanted her to relax and stop worrying, but he also wanted her to feel confident enough to move around freely.
They passed the hotel and Miss Daisy’s Eatery. “Miss Daisy does the cooking, and her sister Dorie does the serving. It’s a friendly place. Don’t hesitate to stop in.”
“I’ll take your word for it.”
He didn’t push her to consider going in. She had much to think about and deal with.
“This is Marshall’s Mercantile.”
“Grandfather Marshall’s other son? I met him and his wife on Sunday, but I have to admit I barely remember them.” She chuckled rather mirthlessly. “Big tall man with fading blond hair. Like all the others.”
He led her into the store. No other customers were present, which would make it easier for Emily to relax. “George has about anything you’ll need, and if he doesn’t, he’ll order it.”
George hurried forward. “Nice to see you again, Miss Emily. Feel free to look around.”
She thanked him and headed for the yard goods to finger several pieces of fabric.
Jesse watched her. Did she wish for more clothes? No, he understood she wished for her own clothes and hoped something in the many bolts of cloth would trigger her memory.
She turned away, disappointment darkening her eyes. “You have a very nice store,” she told George as she headed for the door.
Jesse followed her outside. They continued down the street. “The assay office. Across the street is the barber and then Mr. Eugene’s office. He’s the local lawyer.” He pointed out several more businesses that they could see from the corner. “Behind the assay office is the boardinghouse.”
She studied it, a serious look on her face. “Perhaps I should move in there until—”
“That’s not necessary, and Mikey wouldn’t have the freedom to run about and make as much noise as he’d like.”
Her countenance brightened, and she laughed. “He can be rather noisy at times.”
Relieved to see her more cheerful, he grinned. “Especially when he’s playing with Muffin.”
A horse and rider thundered down the street toward them. Jesse stepped out to wave him down and warn him to slow down in town. He recognized Ernest Davis, a small-time rancher from east of town. Normally a cautious man. Jesse’s nerves twitched.
Ernest reined up hard. “Sheriff, just the man I want to see.”
“What’s the problem?” He kept his voice calm and his thoughts composed, even though he knew he was about to learn of trouble.
“The supply wagon has been robbed.”
Jesse’s heart sank. “Bo?” Had the driver been killed?
“Shot but still alive.” Ernest gave a snort of amusement. “He’s madder than a cornered badger. Took four of us to get him into a wagon.” He glanced back down the street. “They’ll be going a lot slower than I did, but they should be along shortly.”
“I’ll wait and talk to him before I ride out to the scene.” He thanked the man for all he’d done, then looked at Emily for the first time since he’d intercepted the rider.
Her eyes were dark as a midnight sky, her lips set in a hard line. “It could be the same men.”
“Maybe. Maybe not. I want to hear what Bo has to say. In the meantime, I need to get you home.” Despite his hope that she’d feel free to move about town, he wasn’t prepared to leave her wandering around, especially with robbers in the area, and they made their way back to the house.
He paused with her at the front door. “I wish I didn’t have to rush away.”
Her smile was wide, but her eyes were still dark, indicating troubled thoughts. “Thanks for taking care of me. But you needn’t worry. I’ll get myself sorted out.”
That didn’t sound as much positive as resigned. But he couldn’t stay and help her, even if he’d thought he could be of help. “I’ll be back as soon as possible.” He squeezed her shoulder and hurried away.
Even though Gram was there, he felt as if he’d abandoned her. He stopped at the manse and asked Annie to pay Emily a visit. “She’s rather discouraged after Doc told her he could do nothing.”
“Evan has been asking to play with Mikey, so I don’t mind going to see her.”
With that, he had to be satisfied for now.
A wagon stood in front of Doc’s house, and Jesse hurried in. Before he opened the door, he heard Bo roaring. He went into the examining room where Doc prepared to remove a bullet from Bo’s arm.
“They meant to kill me,” Bo yelled. He saw Jesse. “You go catch them. Bring them to me. I’ll learn ’em not to mess with me.”
Jesse ignored Bo’s anger. “Can you tell me anything about them? How many were there? Did you see their faces?”
“Three men. They kept their faces covered. After they shot me and left me for dead, they rifled through my goods and scattered them all over.” He half sat. “Doc, I gotta get my supplies.”
Doc pushed him back to the table. “Lie down. You’re not going anywhere until I get the bullet out. Hang on now, son. I have to dig a little.”
“I’ll make arrangements for your things,” Jesse said, and he slipped away as Bo roared like an angry bull.
He arranged for a couple of men to ride east and take care of the supply wagon, and then he got his horse.
“Come on, Rocky. We got work to do.” It took twenty minutes to reach the wagon.
He arrived before those coming with another wagon to get Bo’s things.
Jesse shook his head at the senseless way the goods had been scattered about and bags of flour and oats torn open.
He dismounted a few feet away and left Rocky waiting.
Studying the ground for clues, he circled the area.
And what he saw turned his stomach sour. The same misshapen horseshoe. The same trio had robbed the stage and killed the driver and his guard.
Jesse straightened and stared down the road. He needed to ride after the robbers before he lost the trail, but what if they made their way to town? Would they recognize Emily and see her as a threat?
They’d left her for dead. Had no reason to suspect she’d lived. Likely, they hadn’t even looked at her, so they wouldn’t recognize her. He was worrying needlessly.
He returned to Rocky and followed the tracks of the robbers.
But all the while, his gut complained, warning him that Emily could be in danger. After all, how long would a person have to be in town before they heard about the woman who’d been rescued from the stagecoach robbery?