Chapter Four
Poppy’s heart was racing so fast, she almost thought she’d faint right there and then. This couldn’t be happening!
“Wait! Sir! Please, listen to me!” she called after him. Poppy lifted her skirt and tried to run after him, but Sophie was still clinging to her, preventing her from walking.
“Mr. Albright!” she yelled desperately. The man didn’t reply. There was no reaction whatsoever as he walked toward the station house.
Poppy sank to her knees and pulled Sophie into a tight embrace.
She couldn’t hold back the tears that rolled down her cheeks.
Poppy was exhausted and not just from today’s events.
She was completely and utterly worn out from her life in general.
What had she done? She’d left the only home she’d ever known.
Granted, it hadn’t been great, but it had been somewhat safe.
“Oh, there’s no need to cry now, child,” a deep voice appeared from somewhere.
Wiping her face, Poppy looked around and saw a portly man approach her from across the street.
He wasn’t very tall, but his golden blond hair was immaculately groomed, and he was so well dressed in a tailor-made suit and shiny riding boots that he looked like royalty.
The expensive hat he held in his one hand in greeting even had feathers stuck to it.
In his other hand, he held a walking cane. It was almost the exact same one Madam Marveau had used, and just like her, he didn’t use his for support; it was clearly just to carry around. Poppy wondered if that one also had a hidden blade inside of it.
“If I may introduce myself, my lady,” the man said haughtily, pressing his cane underneath his left arm as he walked toward Poppy with an overly friendly smile.
“My name is Baron Finn Vale. Yes, I am an actual baron,” he continued.
Then he paused as he stared at her invitingly, obviously waiting for some kind of reaction from Poppy.
She didn’t give him any because she didn’t care about these things. He could also be lying, after all.
“Well, don’t fret, my child,” he continued. “I’m the largest landowner this side of the Delaware River,” he explained. “I pretty much own all the land you see around here.”
Poppy’s patience was wearing thin. Neil had left a short while ago, and she had no idea what she should do to help her situation. Talking to this pompous man did nothing for her and Sophie’s current dilemma.
“I can help you if you need a place to stay,” Finn offered as he put his hat back on his head. Then his eyes landed on Sophie.
“Oh, what do we have here?” he exclaimed a little too excitedly when he spotted the child in Poppy’s arms. His blue eyes shone as bright as a clear summer sky, and his wide smile revealed a row of perfectly white teeth.
Poppy shielded Sophie’s face from him, like she’d always done when customers in the brothel showed too much interest in the young girl. Something about this man was off, and although she couldn’t exactly say what it was, a tiny voice in the back of her head told her not to trust him.
“Vale!” another voice yelled from the other side, and when Poppy turned to look who it was, she saw Neil walking back toward her. There seemed to be some kind of urgency in his steps.
“Ah, Neil,” Finn exclaimed, but Poppy couldn’t distinguish if he was pleased to see him or if he was annoyed. His smile was still there, although it wasn’t as bright anymore. “I thought you left to buy these precious ladies some tickets?”
Poppy looked back to Neil to see his reaction.
He didn’t look happy. When he reached the spot where Poppy had left their travel bag moments earlier, he picked it up midstride before stopping right in front of her and setting it down at her feet.
She was even more surprised when he stretched out his hand to help her stand up.
“What do you want, Finn?” Neil asked without looking at the other man. Meanwhile, he took Poppy’s hand and gently pulled her up onto her feet. Sophie jumped up by herself, only to hide behind her sister once again. His hands were large and strong.
“From what I’ve heard, you don’t seem to be interested in helping these precious young women,” Finn said, looking at him a little smugly. “You were harsh enough to send them back without even listening to what she had to say, were you not?”
Poppy looked up at Neil, who towered over her with a stony expression, but when his golden-colored eyes met hers, there was warmth in them.
She was struck by how handsome he was up close.
Poppy felt silly when she remembered her worries about the man she thought she would blindly marry.
Neil was well built, his broad shoulders clearly visible in the thick, layered shirts he was wearing.
Apparently, he didn’t mind the cooler temperatures at all, because he had omitted wearing a coat.
His cowboy hat covered soft brown curls, and he kept his full beard short and trim.
“Maybe you shouldn’t listen to other people’s conversations, Finn,” Neil said, still not looking at the man but holding Poppy’s gaze the entire time, which made her nervous. Then he stepped back, putting a little distance between them.
“I couldn’t help it,” Finn replied with a weird-sounding chuckle. “I can’t control myself, when I see something of such beauty,”—he glanced at Poppy, his eyebrows raised—“I just need to have it!”
Poppy’s nostrils flared. She’d heard phrases like that too many times at the brothel. It was quite disheartening that the men around here seemed to have the same afflictions.
“Either way,” Neil said coolly. “It’s none of your business what she and I talk about. So stay out of it!”
“I’ll pay you what you’ve paid for them,” Finn offered, suddenly staring at Poppy with intense interest. His gaze wandered up and down her body, and she immediately had the feeling that she was back at the brothel.
She was outraged. How dared this man talk about her and her sister as if they were up for sale? Fury boiled inside of her, and it took everything in her not to lose her composure.
“Get lost, Finn!” Neil said casually, but Poppy could hear a threatening undertone in his voice. Finn just laughed. Poppy started to really dislike the man.
“You’re being small-minded, Neil,” Finn said in a dismissive tone. “You always are.” The grin that spread on his face was equal parts condescending and menacing, and Poppy noticed the tension in Neil’s body. His hands were balled into tight fists, and the muscles in his jaw were flexing.
The more she saw, the more Poppy understood what was going on there.
These two men were clearly enemies. But their dispute had nothing to do with her or Sophie, so Poppy grabbed their small travel bag with one hand and her little sister’s hand with the other.
Whatever they were arguing about, she wouldn’t be part of it.
Turning around, Poppy attempted to walk back to the station.
Even though she had no idea where to go from there or what to do.
Then she felt Neil’s hand on her elbow, preventing her from leaving. She glanced over her shoulder at him, but he didn’t even look at her. Instead, his eyes were fixed on the other man.
“Listen,” Finn continued. “Let’s just talk business here, Neil. My ranch is growing so large I can barely keep up with everything. I know you don’t understand what that’s like, but let me assure you, I need a lot of staff to work for me.”
He paused for a response, but Neil just stared at him with a deadpan expression on his face. He seemed utterly unimpressed.
“So let’s be smart here,” Finn kept going.
This time, he used the cane to point at Poppy and Sophie with the brass head.
It looked like a duck—not like Madam Marveau’s lion head.
“Better yet, let me tell you the smart thing to do here since you don’t seem to be smart enough to figure it out yourself. ”
Another short pause. Again, no reaction from Neil. Poppy couldn’t deny it, she was impressed by Neil’s tenacity and patience, although she could see the vein in his neck pumping hard. Was his heart racing?
“I’ll happily take these two girls off your hands, Neil. Even the little one is old enough to do some chores around the house, and the other one already told you that she’s good at cleaning and cooking.”
Finn shot a side glance at Sophie again, then he looked at Poppy with a single raised eyebrow. This man scared her. He wasn’t just talking about cleaning and cooking. Poppy could feel it in her bones.
“I’m more than happy to reimburse you for whatever you had to pay the agency,” Finn kept talking.
“I can’t even believe that you would resort to such a thing!
Not much luck with the ladies around here, huh?
” Finn laughed a loud laugh. “Heck, I’ll even give you some extra money to make it worth your while. What do you think?”
Poppy was terrified. She couldn’t even believe what she was hearing. Finn was a horrible man; that much was obvious. But him threatening to put her six-year-old sister to work in some house made her boil over.
Even before Neil could respond, Poppy pulled her elbow out of his hand and stepped right in front of Finn. Since he was so short, she was almost able to speak to him at eye level. He stared at her, curiously, still pointing that annoying cane at her.
Poppy couldn’t help it. She’d had enough for today. She ripped that cane out of his hand and threw it as far to the side as she was able to. It landed several yards away in a patch of tall grass.
“I have no idea where you get the sick idea from that we can be sold or thrown around like objects!” Poppy said to him through grinding teeth.
“Let me assure you this is still a free country, and I would rather die than work for someone as despicable as you obviously are! I’ll never ever work for you, and neither will Sophie! ”
Grabbing her little sister’s hand, she walked back to get her bag. When she straightened up again, she shot Neil a disappointed look.
Then they started to walk back to the station.