Becoming Mrs. Will Lawson, which she would be in just a few short months. The weather was getting colder, and with his mother’s health, they’d agreed to wait until spring so she could attend the wedding.
“This wasn’t justice,” Will said as he led her away from the scene. “There should have been a trial, and Ben should have been convicted by a jury of his peers.”
As if to confirm Will’s words, an icy wind hurled down the mountains, causing Mary to shiver.
“We should get you home. There’ll be snow by morning.” His gentle smile reminded her of the last snow they’d gotten and how, despite everything, it had brought them closer together.
Daniel and Nugget ran past them, but just as Mary started after them, Will pulled her closer.
“They’ll be fine. Joseph and Annabelle are up ahead, so they won’t let those two get far. Best to let them get all their running out now, before the snow hits.”
Having a man around had helped Mary’s younger brother. Though Daniel was still often far too energetic, Will was giving him a fine example of how a gentleman should act. Joseph, too, now that he and Annabelle were back from their honeymoon.
When Mary had confessed all to Joseph, he’d been angry at first, but mostly hurt that she’d tried to do so much on her own. Even her relationship with Rose was improving, now that all of Mary’s sins were in the open. Despite everything, they were still sisters, and they still needed each other.
Not perfect, of course, Mary thought wryly as she adjusted her cloak against another gust of wind. Rose had been cross with her for leaving her to tend Bess, who was home sick with a cold. But Will had been asked to come to the sheriff’s office today, and he’d wanted Mary to accompany him.
“Are you going to accept the deputy position he offered you?”
Mary looked up at him, and he smiled down at her. “I’d like to, but that’s a decision we need to discuss as a family.”
A family. One that Will had gladly accepted as his own when he’d asked Mary to be his wife. He understood about Mary’s need to help take care of her siblings; but where she’d once thought she’d have to do it all on her own, now she knew what real family meant. No more carrying their own burdens on their own shoulders. Now, sharing and discussing with one another, it seemed almost inconceivable how they’d managed before.
His eyes twinkled, and again, Mary’s heart filled with gratitude that this fine man was going to be her husband.
“I think you’d make a fine deputy.” She gave his arm a squeeze.
The look Will gave her in response made her heart want to burst. How could she have ever believed anything less than this deep love was the real thing?
“I want to be sure it won’t be an imposition on Joseph and Frank.”
“But you already have your first case.”
Will stopped, released her arm and turned to look at her. “What do you know about that?”
“If you and the sheriff didn’t want me to overhear your conversation in his office, you should have closed the door.” She grinned at him and took his arm again.
“Finding Daisy and keeping your promise to Mel is important. She died helping us save my sister. How could we do less for her?”
He shook his head slowly. “We are not going to do anything. Jasper has already left with a party to follow up on the latest lead.”
After a quick glance at his pocket watch, Will turned his attention back to her. “They should be about halfway there.”
Then he gave her the kind of stern look he usually reserved for Daniel. “And no, we are not following them. You can go help Emma Jane work in the women’s home if you need something to do. But you are not putting your safety at risk. Not again.”
The intense expression softened, and he pulled her a little more closely than was proper, especially in public. “You’re too dear to me. I love you, Mary, and I aim to keep you safe for the rest of our days.”
A lump clogged Mary’s throat as she recalled that horrible night. Her worry hadn’t been so much for her own safety as it had been for Will’s. The level of anxiety she’d felt for him was far too much to bear again. No, she wouldn’t have him have to endure that again, either.
“And I love you. Which means I won’t give you cause to worry.” She gave him a reassuring squeeze, then pulled away into a more respectable posture. “I’ll go help Emma Jane so she has someone to keep her company instead of worrying about Jasper.”
“I’d kiss you right about now, but we wouldn’t want to get the town’s gossips wagging.” Will nodded in the direction of a group of women in front of the mercantile.
“I’ll take you up on that later.” Mary winked at him as she gave a small wave to the women.
They waved back and tittered among themselves. She could almost hear their words. “That’s her. She’s the one who burned down that horrible place.”
The citizens of Leadville had agreed that burning The Pink Petticoat down had done the community a great service. Everyone had gotten out safely, and the only harm done was the destruction of the building. While some of the ladies had found work in other houses of ill repute, Frank had opened a women’s home that helped the women find other positions that didn’t involve compromising their morals. In the end, the true story of what happened did come out, and Mary enjoyed a little notoriety of her own.
No one had cared that it was an accident. Nor that the real culprit was a box of explosive powder Ben had been storing in the room. No, all they saw was Mary Stone, the woman who brought down one of the most notorious houses in the West. She’d
