Rather than answer her right away, Nick left the bedroom and headed straight toward Sam. Since the boy was watching both of them, Catherine restrained herself from saying what she’d meant to say.
“Where did your father go?” Nick asked as he knelt down to the boy’s level.
“He didn’t tell me.”
“What did he tell you?”
Sam looked up as if the answer he needed was written on the ceiling. “He said he loved me and that I should stay here where I’ll be cared for. He also said I could go to Uncle Ken’s house if you didn’t want me to stay here. I like Uncle Ken I guess, but are you going to take care of me?”
Gently holding onto the boy by both arms, Nick made sure Sam was paying attention before asking, “What else did he say?”
“That he might not be back for a long time and that he loved me very much and was leaving to do something for Ma and Laurie.”
Nick let go of the boy and straightened up again. “Jesus Christ,” he muttered as he ran back into the bedroom. Before Catherine could ask another question, he stormed out of the bedroom, buckling his holster around his waist.
“What are you doing, Nick?” she shouted.
That wasn’t enough to get Nick to stop, so she followed him out the front door.
“Wait! Damn it, Nick just wait a second and tell me what the hell is going on!”
Her tone caught Nick’s attention and caused him to pause while lifting the saddle onto Kazys’s back.
“Do you even know where you’re going?” she asked, placing herself between her husband and his horse.
“I’ve got a hunch.”
“Then why not tell me? First Joseph disappears and now you want to follow. If you’re going to be my husband, then you should act like it, for God’s sake!”
After cinching up the saddle, Nick asked, “Did Joseph go anywhere recently?”
“Yes. He went into town the other night.”
“Why didn’t you tell me that before?” Nick grumbled as he craned his neck to look in every direction leading away from the cabin. “Why’d he go alone in his condition?”
“He’s doing well enough to ride with you to the graveyard,” she replied. “He’s doing well enough to help around here when you’re not around. He’s doing well enough to play with Sam. Since when did I have to tell you every little step he took? Now, will you please explain what you’re doing? Do you know where Joseph went?”
“I just might.”
With that, Nick started to climb into his saddle. Catherine pulled him back down again. When he dropped back to the ground and looked at her, Nick saw a defiant gleam in her eyes that told him she wasn’t about to let him leave things the way they were.
“After all we’ve been through,” Catherine said, “why won’t you trust me?”
“Trust doesn’t have anything to do with it. Time is a factor here. Joseph might have taken off to do something very stupid. Just step back and let me go check on something, Catherine. I swear I’ll be back before too long, whether I find out anything or not.”
Reluctantly, Catherine nodded and stepped back. It took every bit of willpower she had to keep from grabbing hold of Kazys’s bridle or even chasing after the horse once her husband rode away. Instead, she stood there and watched Nick leave. After he rode out of her sight, she turned and went back into the cabin, where Sam was waiting patiently.
The little boy looked at her and asked, “Are the eggs almost ready?”
FIFTEEN
Nick swung down from the saddle and stepped into the sheriff’s office. Stilson’s desk was empty, but the deputy named Miguel sat at one of the smaller ones. Since Miguel had been half-drunk the last time Nick had spoken to him, he doubted the lawman even recalled the instance.
Miguel dropped the book he was reading and covered it with an old newspaper before he even got a look at who was coming in. His round face was flushed and he jumped to his feet while shoving the pile of reading material behind him. “The sheriff’s not here,” he said.
“I just wanted to ask about the prisoner you had in here the other day,” Nick said. “The man that was found at the graveyard.”
Miguel’s eyes narrowed and he studied Nick closely. Cocking his head slightly, he wagged his finger at Nick and said, eyes wide, “I know you. You’re the gravedigger!”
“I am. I just wanted to know—”
“Sheriff Stilson won’t want to talk to you. He…uh…mentioned that before he left.”
“That’s fine. You could probably answer my questions. All I want to know is if anyone else has come in asking about the man who was locked up here.”
“You’re lucky you’re not in that cell,” Miguel said as he stepped around his desk and folded the corner of the newspaper up to check underneath it. “The sheriff thought for sure he’d have you in there right alongside that other one. You should’ve heard the things he said about having to let the both of you go.”
Nick nodded and fought to maintain his temper.
“What’s with the gun?”
When he heard that question, Nick put on a slightly embarrassed expression that had gotten plenty of use over the years. “It’s not much of a gun, really,” he said, opening his coat so the deputy could see.
Miguel looked for a second and shrugged. “It sure isn’t. I heard some things about you. Something about you running with a bad crowd some years ago.”
“Haven’t we all?”
“Hell yes,” Miguel replied, even though he looked like he’d run afoul of more baked goods than anything else. “Mister Van Meter came in here. Hell of a thing that happened to his family.”
“It was. What did he want?”
Settling into his chair, Miguel tossed the newspaper to one side and picked up the bawdy novel he’d been hiding. Now that he knew whom he was dealing with, he didn’t seem to mind flipping through the book. “He was asking about that fella we let go. Not you. The other one.”
“What did you tell him?”
“Why do you want to know?”
“He’s still hurt,” Nick said matter-of-factly. “The doctor’s charged me with looking after him. Since he still hasn’t showed up yet, I need to know where he might have gone.”
“Like I said, he asked about that prisoner we let go.” Gazing over the top of his book, Miguel added, “I don’t know why he wanted the information, but he paid a good amount for it.”
“How much?” Nick asked.
The deputy shrugged and flipped a page of his book. “Ten dollars?”
Digging into his pockets, Nick fished out some money, counted it up and set it on the desk. “How about five?”
“Close enough,” Miguel said as he swiped the money from the desk and pocketed it. “The prisoner was after a horse. He asked where he could find a stable that had some for sale right before he left.”
“Is that it?”
“That’s all I know. He had an outstanding balance with the doctor, but I don’t know if he went there or not.”
“And when did you tell Joseph the man was headed for the stable?” Seeing the puzzled look on the deputy’s face, Nick added, “Joseph Van Meter.”
“Oh, Mister Van Meter left about half an hour ago. Maybe less.”
Calmly tipping his hat, Nick left the office. Once the door was shut and he’d put some distance between himself and the law, he jumped onto Kazys’s back and bolted for the stables. A few minutes later, he was riding down the street again amid a thunderous flurry of hooves.
