Chapter 36

36

L orinda stood by the front window and stared at the lane leading to the ranch house. How long had it been since Franklin rode off? It felt like forever. She glanced at the clock. Only an hour.

The heated words they'd flung at each other scorched her soul. Did her words destroy any chance she had for happiness? She had tried to force him to listen, but she hadn't listened to everything he had to say. Had her words run him off for good? Surely not. This was his ranch. He wouldn't just leave her and plan not to come back. Her heart sank at the thought. She wanted him back. This time, they needed to have a calm discussion.

She rubbed her sleeves as a chill ran up her arms, raising goosebumps in its path. The temperature outside had to be sinking, because it was becoming harder to keep the rooms warm. She hoped Franklin wasn't still out in the cold. If so, by now, he could be nearing frostbite. Lord, please protect him and bring him back to me.

When he got here, she'd try to control her emotions and let him finish saying what he meant. Perhaps he hadn't wanted her to leave. He was just giving her the choice. That's what she'd always desired, wasn't it? For the man in her life to let her make her own decisions, instead of controlling her.

"There you are, Lorinda." Mrs. Oleson came into the parlor. "Where's Franklin? He didn't go back out in the cold, did he?"

Lorinda cringed at the thought that their argument had been heard. Maybe their housekeeper hadn't understood the loud discussion.

"He was in here talking to you when I went up to take a nap." The housekeeper sat in a wingback chair and picked up her knitting from the basket beside it.

"Yes, he was. He left." Lorinda didn't want to tell another lie, even to keep their secret. "We had a disagreement. He didn't tell me where he was going."

Mrs. Oleson studied her for a minute. "That's unlike him. I hope he gets home soon, so we won't have to worry."

Lorinda dropped into the chair across from her. "He's been gone an hour. I'm already concerned."

Loud banging sounded on the front door. Lorinda hurried into the hallway. It couldn't be Franklin. He wouldn't knock.

She opened the door, and one of the older boys, who often wandered around Breckenridge trying to find some kind of work to do because their fathers had been lost in a mine mishap, stood there. He shivered in his ragged clothes that couldn't possibly withstand the harsh winter that was already upon them. How did he get all the way out here without freezing?

"Can I help you?" She said through the screen.

"Gotta note fer Miz Vine." His teeth were chattering. "Ain't you her?"

She opened the screen and invited him in. They moved into the parlor. The boy headed toward the fireplace and hovered beside it, still shivering. He dug in the pocket of his ragged trousers and brought out a dirty, wrinkled piece of paper and handed it to Lorinda.

"Would you like a hot cup of coffee, young man?" Mrs. Oleson dropped the knitting back in the basket. "It'll help warm you up."

"Please, ma'am. I'm half froze."

She hurried to the kitchen.

Lorinda read the scratchy writing.

Franklin has been hurt. He's calling for you. Come quickly.

Lorinda turned toward the boy, just as Mrs. Oleson handed him the cup of coffee. "Young man, where did you get this note?"

"A man." He wrapped his fingers around the warm mug and took a gulp of the hot liquid. "Paid me t' bring it t' you."

"Where is my husband? Is he hurt bad?" Lorinda needed to know.

"I dunno. I never seen him. Just the man." Fear shone out of the boy's eyes.

Lorinda handed the message to Mrs. Oleson and began wringing her hands. Had their quarrel sent Franklin into danger? If so, she was responsible for what happened to him. She had to go to him right away.

Mrs. Oleson helped her gather what she might need to help Franklin. Lorinda got blankets, bandages, ointments, and warm clothes. She put on two layers of Franklin's union suits, then his trousers and a flannel shirt. She had to belt the trousers up tight to keep them from falling off, but she needed protection from the extreme cold.

Mrs. Oleson filled a gunny sack with food items and poured coffee in a Mason jar and wrapped in several towels to keep in the heat. "This will help keep you and Franklin warm."

By the time they were back in the parlor, the messenger had finished his coffee.

"How am I supposed to find him?" Lorinda hadn't seen any directions on the note.

"I'll take you." The boy pulled on his ragged gloves that didn't really cover his hands.

Lorinda went to get an extra pair of gloves from a drawer in Franklin's dresser, and she snagged an older coat. She thrust them at the boy. "Put these on over yours. They'll help some."

The boy nodded. "Thank ya kindly."

Lorinda turned toward Mrs. Oleson. "I'll be home as soon as I can."

"Just be careful. It's not really safe to be out there too long." Worry lined her forehead and darkened her eyes.

"I know." Lorinda gave the older woman a hug.

She picked up a lot of the things they had gathered, and the boy grabbed the rest. When they went out the door, she noticed a broken-down horse standing beside the gate. "That yours?"

"Yeah. He was my dad's."

The boy followed her into the barn. She saddled Golden Boy, who had completely recovered his strength. They loaded saddlebags evenly with most of the supplies she was taking, then rolled the blankets and tied them on behind the saddle. While she was doing this, she found an older horse blanket.

She glanced at the boy. "Here. Wrap this around you. It'll help keep you warmer."

His eyes rounded with surprise. "I ain't never had a blanket just for me." A smile broke out on his face. "Thanks, ma'am."

As they left the ranch, Lorinda glanced back at the house with all the windows blazing with light. She hated to leave the babies right now, but her husband needed her...and she needed him.

She followed the boy from the lane onto the road, then off the beaten track toward a tight grove of naked trees. Only a narrow trail made its crooked way between the thick trunks to a small clearing. Lorinda glanced around but didn't see her husband.

"How much farther?"

The boy glanced at her, then away. "Just a little ways." He led her between two trunks on the other side of the stark clearing.

A man stepped out from behind one of them. At first, Lorinda didn't recognize him, then it hit her. He was the drifter she'd run off her property soon after Mike had left her alone. Before she could do anything, he grabbed Golden Boy's bridle. The horse tried to shy away, but the man held fast.

"I see you brought my horse back to me." He sneered and jerked hard on the bridle to pull them off the path.

"He's not your horse. He's mine." Lorinda had to grab the pommel to stay on the horse.

"Oh, no, little lady. He's mine...again."

Lorinda didn't like the way he looked, the way he smelled, or anything else about him. He had to be Marvin. So that meant he killed Mike and did the other things Miriam told them about.

Without a word, he pulled her from the horse and tied her to a tree.

"What do you want?" Before she could get out any more words, he thrust a dirty bandana into her mouth and tied it tightly behind her head.

Marvin turned toward the boy. He pulled an envelope and a silver dollar from his pocket. "Wait for an hour, then take this note to the same ranch. Remember, I know where you live, and I know about your mother and sister. If you cross me, you'll never see them again."

The boy high-tailed it away as fast as the mangy horse could move...which wasn't very fast.

"Now, Miz Sullivan, oh that's right, you're Miz Vine now. I have you right where I want you. Don't try to get away. I'm going to untie you and put you on the horse. Don't try to fight me. You'll be sorry if you do."

Chills not associated with the weather scampered up and down her spine like a whole nest of spiders. She started to tremble.

Marvin threw her on Golden Boy. He tied her hands again, this time in front, so she could hold on to the pommel. He led her to a horse he'd hidden among the trees, mounted, and led her horse behind him.

They went a short ways to get out of the grove of trees, then he turned off on a trail that led up and over an outcropping of large rocks. She had to hold tight to the pommel to keep from falling from Golden Boy. She glanced down and saw that they weren't leaving hoofprints. How would anyone be able to find them if there was no trail to follow?

The farther up the mountain of rocks they went, the more talkative Marvin became. He poured out venomous words and thoughts about Franklin. Lorinda wished she could refute every word he said. He must not know her husband very well. Then he began to brag about all his horrible misdeeds.

Mike wasn't the only person he'd murdered, but he was particularly angry about her first husband.

"I spent time getting to know Mike, plying him with enough booze to loosen most tongues. He did tell me about the gold and that he was going to take it to Denver to be assayed. But he was a wily one. He told me he was going to take the gold, but he gave me a false date. That's why I killed him when he didn't have the gold or the money when I finally found him. Nobody crosses Marvin Pratt and lives to tell about it."

His last words chilled her even more. All the layers of clothing weren't doing her any good. Lorinda was tired of hearing his whiny voice. She wished he was the one with a dirty bandana stuffed into his mouth. She had never thought about really shooting anyone. She had just used the rifle at the cabin to scare intruders. But if she weren't tied up and had a gun, she wouldn't hesitate to shoot this man. Maybe not a kill shot, but maim him enough that she could get away.

"I'll bet those saddlebags are full of things I can use. Good food and all. Probably didn't bring any booze though, did you?"

How did the man expect her to answer with a gag in her mouth?

After what seemed like an eternity to her, they rode into the mouth of a cavern. She'd never been underground before. The dark dampness felt eerie, but at least they were out of the stinging wind.

Marvin dropped to the ground and picked up a lantern, then led both horses deeper into the cavern until they reached a large chamber. The farther they went, the more the temperature rose. When he stopped in the chamber, it was cool, but a long ways from the biting cold outside. Lorinda welcomed that. Even with her layers, she had almost frozen on the ride up the mountain.

"I'm going to untie you and let you down from the horse, but don't try anything. I'll shoot you dead if you do." His grating tone held a note of promise.

Lorinda believed the man meant every word. She decided to do what he told her to do but also watch for a chance to get away without him killing her. She needed to talk to Franklin again, and the babies needed to be nursed. Because she had been so cold, her milk hadn't come down when it was time to feed them. She wondered what was happening at the house. Had Franklin arrived at home? Was he even now out looking for her? She hoped so. That might be her only chance to get away from this crazy man.

Marvin struck a match and lit the lantern, setting it beside the cavern wall. The only other light came from the tunnel they had followed to get here, and it was very faint.

As she glanced around the large room, in the shadows she made out three other tunnels heading different directions from here. In her mind, she drew a picture of where they were in relation to the outside world. When she tried to get away, she didn't want to choose the wrong tunnel.

After he got her off the horse and untied her, he emptied the saddlebags. "Bandages, medicine, food. You really believed the message, didn't you?" His evil laugh bounced off the rock walls while he untied the extra blankets from the saddle. "And we'll be warm tonight."

He leered at her, sending another flock of chills up her spine. If that man touched her in any way, she knew where to kick him so it would hurt the worst. She'd had to do that one time with her uncle. He never touched her that way again.

Dear Lord, don't let this man touch me where he has no right to. She gritted her teeth to keep the tears from rushing to her eyes. She didn't want him to know how she feared him. It would probably just feed his ego and push him toward following through with his insinuations.

Sweet Jesus, please send someone to find me.

He pawed through the food she'd brought and gave her some to eat. She didn't want anything his hands had touched, but she knew she needed to keep up her strength. Even though every bite almost clogged her throat, she swallowed it down. When they were finished eating, Marvin tied her hands behind her and her feet together, then covered all but her head with a couple of the blankets. With the extra cover, her body felt cozy for the first time since she left the ranch house. But she worried about his motives. Why was he feeding her and keeping her warm? What nefarious plans did he have for her? The thoughts of what they could be chilled her clear to her bones.

He left his horse in the cave and took Golden Boy. She had no idea where he was going. She didn't know if she wanted him to come back or not. She just hoped Franklin or someone else could find her before it was too late.