Molly skirted the edge of town on her way back to the hotel. She was
angry enough to want to scorch the earth. Jonah could have caused her
to lose everything never mind her own life. She hadn¡¯t been alone
in that locked wagon and couldn¡¯t understand why Cheyenne would
trust him again after what had happened.
¡°Molly?¡± She heard her name being
called and turned to see Lily Deveraux standing at the backdoor to
the Saloon. Taking a moment to try and school her features Molly
turned around.
¡°Good morning, Ms. Deveraux,¡± she
greeted.
¡°Lily, please,¡± she responded. ¡°Is
everything alright?¡±
¡°Not at all,¡± Molly muttered. ¡°I¡¯m
very sorry, Ms Dev...Lily but I must be getting back to the hotel.¡±
Lily walked up to her.
¡°I¡¯ll walk with you if you don¡¯t
mind?¡±
¡°I¡¯m afraid I¡¯m not very good
company at the moment,¡± Molly responded.
¡°I¡¯m sorry for what happened to
you. To you and the Native girl, what¡¯s her name again?¡±
¡°Cheyenne. And how could you
possibly¡¡±
¡°Men talk. Drunk men can pass more
gossip than a sewing circle,¡± Lily said. Molly thought back to the
night they¡¯d returned to town, to Vin sitting in the saloon with a
bottle of whiskey in front of him.
¡°And you believe them?¡± Molly
asked.
¡°In vino veritas,¡± Lily responded
with a shrug. ¡°It means¡¡±
¡°In wine there is truth,¡± Molly
finished.
¡°Trust an Irish girl to know Latin,¡±
Lily smiled.
¡°I really do need to be going,¡±
Molly said. ¡°I can offer scones and coffee if you¡¯re interested.¡±
¡°Lead the way,¡± Lily gestured in
front of her. The pair walked to the hotel just as Ian arrived. He
touched the brim of his hat to Lily.
¡°Ms. Deveraux. Kathleen, I need to
talk to you. It¡¯s about Abe.¡±
¡°So he¡¯s decided on a name then,¡±
Molly didn¡¯t try to keep the sarcasm out of her voice. ¡°I don¡¯t
give a fig what that man has to say. Lily, please, have a seat and
I¡¯ll be right there.¡±
¡°Margaret. Now,¡± her given first
name on the lips of her brother who¡¯d never once in their lives
called her by it was enough to stop her.
¡°Perhaps I should come back another
time,¡± Lily said. Molly took a breath and turned to her brother.
¡°You'll have to excuse my brother.
He¡¯s a bit out of sorts this morning.¡±
¡°I am putting you on a stage. There¡¯s
one coming in today. I don¡¯t care where it¡¯s heading so long as
it¡¯s away from here,¡± Ian said.
¡°We¡¯ve already had this
discussion,¡± Molly responded.
¡°Wheeler¡¯s coming. He might already
be here. So you¡¯re going.¡±
¡°It¡¯d be safer if she stayed,¡±
Vin¡¯s voice came from the kitchen door. ¡°We can protect her and
Cheyenne better in town.¡±
¡°Then I¡¯d better be sure there¡¯s
plenty of coffee on,¡± Molly brushed past her brother and Vin and
walked into the kitchen. She walked up to the pantry to locate the
other coffee pot and heard footsteps follow her. She knew they
belonged to Vin before she even turned around. His arms came around
her in a tight embrace as he held her to him.
¡°I won¡¯t let anything happen to
you,¡± Vin¡¯s promise was whispered in her ear. She held him
tighter hoping he¡¯d be able to keep his promise.
