Heart of mine, p.27
Heart of Mine, page 27
“Why?” Belle asked. “Why did you write the articles? Are you Mr. Strong as well as Harlow Lennington and Russell McGrath?”
The small man heaved a weighty sigh. “Who knows anymore?”
They all gaped at the admission.
“I guess your hearing this now really doesn’t matter. A little sooner than I’d like, but I already own most of the larger buildings, as well as a good number of the vacant shops in the cobblestone area, and more than a few townsfolk owe me for small loans. No one can stop me now. I’m rather relieved to have everything out in the open.” He sank down into his chair, the object of everyone’s scorn.
“Start from the beginning, McGrath,” Blake said sternly. “What’s your whole story about?”
“And why publish our life stories for anyone to read?” Mavis asked. “We were shocked and dismayed. So much personal information. You hurt us deeply. We know that the information came from our friend Lara Marsh’s diary, but why did you publish it? And how did you get her journal? We’d like to understand.”
“The question is, why not?” McGrath pushed out his chest with pride. “You see, I’ve always loved to write. I’ve dreamed of being a writer all of my life. Instead, my philanthropic uncle, when he was alive, encouraged me toward dental school. I do get pleasure working in people’s mouths, but I always circle back to my poetry and prose. That’s where my heart lies.”
Belle frowned. “Why us?”
“Because that wonderful diary showed up in my office one day. I presume it was forgotten by mistake.”
“And you are responsible for mailing the diary back to Lara’s house in Philadelphia?” Lavinia asked, astounded.
“Who else?” McGrath stated. “Regardless of what all of you think of me, I’m not a monster. The stories made for fantastic reading. I thought again, why not? I took my time penning out several installments, then sent them to the San Francisco Daily Call. I was stunned when the publisher not only bought one, but all three installments. I became fascinated with Eden myself. I began a correspondence with Henry and discovered Eden had begun to grow in leaps and bounds. Delighted, I decided I’d like to live here too.”
“Did you live in Philadelphia?” Katie asked.
He shook his head. “No. Southern California.”
“Then why San Francisco?” Lavinia asked.
“I’d read somewhere they were looking for human-interest stories, so I had a better chance of being published.”
Anger roiled inside Beranger. Back in England, there were plenty of greedy, unscrupulous land-owning aristocrats, dukes, and lords who did just what this little fellow was trying to do. Control others. Be a king among men. Squeeze every last penny they could from law-abiding, hardworking people. Nothing turned his stomach more.
“So you decided to crown yourself king of Eden,” Beranger gritted out, unable to keep silent any longer. “You researched and found which buildings were owned and which were rented. Then you went to work.”
McGrath beamed. “All that exactly, Mr. North. Ever since I’ve arrived, I’ve felt right at home. I couldn’t have planned anything better.”
“You’re sick!” Mavis spat. “What you’re doing to our friends and the town is disgraceful.”
Beranger, acutely aware of Emma watching him on and off through the proceedings, pushed himself from the wall and took several steps closer to the fellow, making McGrath cringe. “Your pride and relief may be short lived, McGrath. Now that Mr. Strong’s identity is known, how much time do you think you have until some bitter shopkeeper who’s spent every ounce of effort and every extra penny to scratch out a living here in Eden gets fed up enough to take action?”
McGrath jerked straight in his chair and looked around in fear.
Beranger smiled. “I’d say not much.”
“Sheriff,” McGrath sputtered. “Tell Mr. North that murder is against the law.”
Beranger leaned down into his face. “Your actions offend the laws of decency.”
“That’s true,” Clint said. Everyone else nodded in agreement. “Up until a few years ago,” Clint went on, “Eden was a mining town, filled with lawlessness and disorder. There’s still plenty of that around, even if the reality looks different. With so many after you, I won’t be able to keep you safe.”
“I-it’s the law. You have to keep me safe.”
Clint shrugged. “I can try, but I can’t promise anything.”
The men in the room exchanged looks.
McGrath’s face blanched. “But it was all a silly game that got out of control. I didn’t mean any harm, Sheriff, Mr. Glass, sisters. I promise you.” His beseeching eyes ended back on Clint. “Please, Sheriff, you have to believe me. Something must be done. I’m too young to die.”
“What do you mean, you didn’t mean any harm?” Henry questioned.
“One of my wealthy friends and I were having supper one night. I was expounding on what a boon my articles had been to Eden. Bragged that I’d contacted an attorney here, who’d said the town was quickly growing. New businesses were sprouting up. Property and land prices were rising. That’s when my friend wondered if I could actually buy the whole town. I’d generated the outside interest in the first place. I said I could, and he doubted my veracity. We made a wager.”
Emma slunk down in her chair and glanced Beranger’s way.
Does she remember telling me the truth about her wager with Belle?
“Please, I’m not a bad man; I just like to have fun. Don’t you see that now?”
“There may be a way for you to fix things, McGrath, if you’re so inclined,” Beranger said. “And then, after time passes, you may even become something of a hero.”
The man looked at him with wide eyes. “Please explain, Mr. North. I’m not interested in being a target.”
“Hire Henry to draw up as many contracts as needed. Offer the buildings you recently purchased to be sold at a reasonable price to the owners of the businesses in those buildings. Their mortgage payment will be that of their pre-McGrath rent. They will go from being tenants to the actual owners over time.”
McGrath’s face turned red. “Sell off my beautiful properties? But why would I do that?”
CHAPTER FORTY-NINE
Emma found taking her eyes off Beranger difficult to do. He was so commanding. Imagining he was descended from nobility was easy. She loved his eyes, as well as his smile and profile. His presence seemed to fill the room. He took everything in stride but seemed to have an answer—the right answer—ready at any moment. How had he become so wise?
Beranger smiled at McGrath. “Why would you want to make things right with the people you meant to gouge?” he asked, rephrasing McGrath’s question. His smile vanished. “Goodwill, perhaps—or to keep your life. You admitted in the council meeting that you inherited a great deal of money. You don’t need those businesses. They’re only sport to you.”
McGrath scrambled in his chair, his face losing all color.
“If you make good and reverse what you’ve done, Mr. McGrath, people might not scorn you as they will when they find out you’re Mr. Strong,” Katie spoke up. “Actually, the exact opposite might happen. Because of your articles in the San Francisco Daily Call, the lumber mill has tripled our monthly gross income. And I don’t see that growth ending anytime soon. I’m not sad to see my business grow.”
Rhett nodded. “And because of your articles, I picked up and moved to Eden, met Lavinia, and am soon to be married.” He lifted Lavinia’s hand and kissed the back. “I’ve started my own construction company too, and Lavinia had to hire another waitress in her café. Lots of businesses, not only ours, have prospered. People will be grateful to you, but only if you stop trying to scalp more earnings for yourself and make this situation right.” He narrowed his gaze. “You don’t have an accomplice by the name of Daniel Yorkton, do you, McGrath? We’ve recently made a deal for my restaurant, Shawn’s Café.”
McGrath shook his head.
Clint rubbed his hands together. “Who knows? If you play your cards right, you might end up a pillar of the community instead of a scorned shyster.”
“I can have the new contracts done by tomorrow,” Henry said. “All I need is the go-ahead from you, McGrath, and I’ll get to work.”
“For a fee?” McGrath asked.
“Of course for a fee. I don’t work for free.”
Blake stood and stretched. “The ranch has never been so productive or sold more beef than over the last few months.”
Belle smiled and nodded.
“I too have to agree,” Mavis said. “According to Maverick, the livery is doing better than ever before. More citizens mean more horses, buggies, and wagons. The work is hard, but we’re grateful for it.”
“Ditto for my attorney work.”
Emma felt mulish. She was the only one who hadn’t spoken up, but she was the one who’d almost had her tooth drilled out. Still, she needed to add her two cents. “I agree too, Dr. McGrath. Your articles brought men, which in turn, brought women looking for husbands. Because of that, I enlarged the Toggery.”
Nobody could make the man do the right thing. That decision would have to be his and his alone. As much as McGrath would be hated for being underhanded and shrewd, he hadn’t broken any laws.
His face finally lit up. “Why, thank you, Miss Brinkman. Can I consider we’re still friends, then? All has been forgiven?”
She narrowed her eyes. “Do I really have some decay that needs attention, or did you just want to drill on my tooth?”
His mouth snapped shut. “Come to mention that, er . . . no, Miss Brinkman. I’m sorry, you do not. I promise to mend my ways.” He quickly held up a finger. “I appreciate everything you’ve presented here. A lot to think about. I like living in Eden and don’t wish to leave. Henry, please do as Mr. North suggested and draw up those contracts. If we go back to the old payments, which will apply to principal instead of plain rent, I think a lot of goodwill can be created.”
As Henry contemplated the dentist, a look of wise calculation passed over his face. “I’ll bet that’s the first good and honest idea you’ve ever had, McGrath. You best walk a straight line from here on out. We’ll be watching. Foolhardy bets have a way of going astray, more often than not, and hurt more than they win.”
Feeling foolish, Emma was dimly cognizant of at least two pairs of eyes on her. Unable to stop herself, she raised her gaze to Beranger’s. He was observing her closely. He didn’t smile but he didn’t scowl either. His gaze reached deep into her soul. She didn’t have to look to know the other pair of eyes belonged to her sister Belle.
Mavis shifted in her chair. “There is one bright spot in this whole affair. I’m thankful Mr. Strong didn’t turn out to be Vernon and Velma Crowdaire, resurfacing to interfere in our new lives. That would have been too much to endure.”
The sisters nodded. Hot anger ran through Emma.
“If I never hear their names again, I will consider it a blessing from above,” Lavinia said, smoothing the fabric of her dress in her lap.
Rhett reached over and enveloped her hand in both his own as the rest of the Brinkman sisters chimed in to agree.
CHAPTER FIFTY
The meeting in Henry’s office broke up, and everyone went their separate ways. Emma was frantic to know what Beranger thought after she’d poured out her heart to him in the loft, but he hadn’t said a word. He’d looked at her in disbelief at the time. And then, each time their gazes touched during the meeting, he’d glanced away.
He’s been hurt so many times in his life, I don’t want to give him any more pain.
As she was about to descend the steps, Mavis caught her arm. Beranger and Clint had already disappeared into the sheriff’s office. Belle, Lavinia, and Katie stood by.
“We’d like to speak with you, Emma.”
Everyone looked so serious. She glanced around. Henry had gone into his living quarters. “Here?”
Belle nodded. “Sure. We have chairs, and we’re all alone. Katie, do you have that telegram for Emma?”
Telegram? What is this about?
Katie withdrew a telegram from her pocket and handed the paper over. “This came this morning. From the nuns in Santa Fe. I tried to find you, but now I know you were busy at the dentist’s office.” She scrunched her face. “I do have to give McGrath credit for fixing Jackie’s smile. The false tooth isn’t flawless, but that child is smiling much more readily.”
Emma scanned the short note. “Brenda is doing well,” she said excitedly, thankful the nuns had thought to get in touch with her. “They checked on her progress, and she has adapted nicely. She asked about us, and about me.” Emma raised her face and gave each sister a tender look. How blessed to be a part of this family.
Satisfied, she folded the telegram. Her sisters were still gazing at her. “Was there something else?”
They all nodded at once.
“I told them about our wager, Emma,” Belle said. “I hope you don’t mind, but each one of us, at a different time, voiced concerns about you.”
Humbled, Emma listened.
“Love is a good thing, Emma,” Katie said softly. “Yes, Santiago has broken my heart, but I’m not blaming love. Like Father said in my letter, we have to follow our hearts, do what they tell us to do.” She looked at her sisters. “Just because I’m hurting now, I’d not want you to use that as an excuse to miss your chance with Beranger. He’s a wonderful man. And he has eyes only for you. He’s tried everything to get you to notice him, even making you a little jealous because of me at supper.”
“He did that?” A niggle of dread squeezed her heart. In her nitrous oxide–induced hysteria, had she said something to him about love? She wasn’t sure, but she felt she had.
Katie nodded.
Belle took her hand. “Emma, I never wanted to make that silly wager, but you were adamant. I never, in this lifetime or the next, had any intention of seeing it through. I’d never do that. I love you. We all do. The Toggery can’t give you the happiness a husband can. And in particular, if we’re right about the way he looks at you—that Beranger can. You’d be a fool to pass him up.”
Touched deeply by everyone’s concern, her face heated. She was proud of Katie for speaking her mind. She was getting stronger. They all looked beautiful, and she hated that she might be the reason all those smiles would disappear, but she just wasn’t ready yet. As much as she’d loved being in Beranger’s arms, she was wary.
What if one day he just rode out of town?
“Love is worth the risk.”
Why did that saying keep torturing her? From all she knew, love was definitely not.
“I’m very honored that you all love me so much you’d come and speak to me like this. I am. I’m sure, after all the lectures I’ve given of late, you were frightened I’d bite your heads off.” She reached out and hugged each one. “I’m listening with an open heart. I’ll take your words and try to see things your way.”
“And?” Mavis asked.
“I’m just saying that I am listening. I only got this far earlier today.”
“What?” Katie asked. “Why?”
Emma shrugged. “The heart is a mysterious thing. I could never even try to explain. I’m not that smart.”
Lavinia clapped her hands together. “How exciting. Now Rhett and I may not be the only ones with a wedding coming up.”
Startled, Emma put up a hand. “That’s crazy. Don’t move so fast. I count on being courted, if you’re right about the way Beranger feels—and I can’t be sure about that until we talk. So please, give us a little time before you start asking me for all the juicy details. I’m just not yet ready to take the plunge.”
By their expressions, she could tell that wasn’t what they’d hoped to hear.
“I think we have another wedding to plan, though. Isn’t that right, Lavinia? Belle and Blake are home, so there’s nothing to stop us.”
Belle nudged Emma toward the door. “You just leave Lavinia’s wedding to us. Get going on talking with Beranger. If you don’t want to be pestered, we have to see you’re striding toward a good outcome.”
Feeling better than she had in weeks, Emma laughed.
Henry came out of his private rooms and stopped in his tracks. “What on earth are you all cooking up? There are signs of plotting on each and every face.”
They shrugged and looked at each other, innocence all around.
CHAPTER FIFTY-ONE
On a Sunday morning a little over three weeks later, Emma awoke refreshed and excited. Today was Rhett and Lavinia’s wedding day. Throwing off her blanket, she padded to the ranch window and looked out on the sunrise. Beautiful. She’d never tire of the sight. The afternoon weather would be gorgeous. They’d spent days preparing the meadow above town. Rhett and Cash had built a gazebo overlooking Eden, where Reverend Caskill would marry them. Without wagon access, they’d all had to help carry up tables, chairs, a punch bowl, and a few decorations. A dance floor had been constructed, as well as a small bar.
Emma pulled the window up and leaned out, taking in a large gulp of fresh air. She wondered momentarily at the happiness she felt. This was due to more than the long-awaited wedding. This was some mysterious thing residing deep inside.
Beranger.
She breathed his name reverently. She and Beranger had been keeping company. Not in the way her sisters had hoped, but spending time as friends. The best of friends. Since he spent hours at the livery to see Charger, he visited the Toggery every day—sometimes more than once. They talked and laughed and solved the problems of the world. McGrath, true to his word, had done exactly as they had suggested. That problem was cleared up, and Rhett sold his café, but the mine had once again been put on hold in order to plan her sister’s wedding. At first, she’d been concerned, not wanting to lose her best friend if he decided to move on, since work on the project had been postponed for the time being. But he hadn’t. He’d begun working Charger, saddling him, and breaking him to ride.
