CHAPTER 4
For the next two days, it snowed off and on. With Christmas only two days away, Julia resigned herself to having no decorations in the house. But, at least Lauralee and Jamie could hang their stockings.
But why? Her spirits sank as she folded the diapers she’d scrubbed at the creek, then boiled in a cauldron outside. One of the hands, Elmer, had told her to “Git back inside, Miss Jackson!” Then he’d further declared that being outside in this weather just wasn’t “fittin’” for ladies.
He’d taken over the chore of boiling the diapers clean, then hanging them on a makeshift clothesline in the barn to freeze-dry.
As Julia folded the clean cloths, Lauralee occupied Jamie on the thick rug of the great room in front of the fire.
There would be no treats to fill their stockings with. She had no money to buy gifts—and Tamaha was too far to travel in this weather, even if she’d been able to afford to buy anything.
Maybe Dev had purchased something for Jamie…but then, Lauralee would have nothing. Julia gave a perplexed sigh.
She could bake cookies…there was enough flour and sugar…not much of a Christmas, but it would be something—and the real gift was being together…and safe.
A chill marched up Julia’s spine. Ellis Redmond had been plain in his threats of what “might” happen, should she try to seek part of his father’s estate for his young half-sister. Lauralee could go to the devil, as far as he was concerned—he’d said so, in no uncertain terms!
And Julia knew Ellis would not stop short of murder to get what he wanted—his father’s entire estate. She’d answered Dev’s ad that very day; an ad he’d placed in a Territorial paper that had found its way to Georgia by way of one of Ellis’s business acquaintances, a Mr. Littleton.
As Fate would have it, Mr. Littleton had traveled to Ft. Smith, Arkansas, to visit an ailing relative. He’d brought the paper back to Georgia with him to show Ellis an article about possibly acquiring tracts of land in Indian Territory.
Julia had picked it up to read the article, and then had leafed through the paper, reading it from the first page to the last. That was when she’d seen Dev’s ad:
WANTED: NEEDED IMMEDIATELY
Nursemaid for young boy. Must not be afraid of hard work or of living in Indian Territory. Room, board, small stipend. All travel expenses paid.
Dev’s personal information had followed, and Julia had telegraphed a message immediately, praying the position had not already been filled. She was available and ready to work, she let him know. And she had experience.
Helena had been buried only two days earlier, and Ellis had wasted no time in letting Julia know she’d need to be moving as soon as possible—and taking “the brat” with her.
Mr. Littleton’s newspaper seemed as if Providence had taken a hand and made it possible for her to see a way out of the untenable situation for both herself and for Lauralee.
She’d intercepted the runner from the telegraph office the very next day. He carried an affirmative response, along with confirmation of a bank draft awaiting her.
Hurriedly, she’d taken care of everything, purchasing a ticket, meager supplies, and a new store-bought dress for herself and Lauralee. It wouldn’t do to show up looking like paupers, she justified to herself. And they would not wear black.
It wasn’t proper not to, but her fear of Ellis Redmond overcame her ingrained sense of propriety. He wouldn’t be able to find them as easily, should he ever try, if they dressed normally.
“Aunt Julie, I think Jamie is getting sleepy,” Lauralee reported.
Jamie rubbed at his eyes and yawned.
“I believe you’re right,” Julia agreed. She spread the pallet on the floor by the fire and picked Jamie up. It didn’t take long to rock him to sleep, and Lauralee volunteered to lie down with him.
“That would be such a help,” Julia told her. “Thank you, honey.”
As Julia imagined she would, Lauralee fell asleep almost as soon as she lay down beside Jamie. Julia had just spread a blanket over the children when a knock sounded at the door. Julia’s heart jumped. Don’t wake the children. But she knew it was more than that. Ellis Redmond had put a deep fear in her heart that wouldn’t easily be overcome. She hurried to the door, tamping down her anxiety, and cracked it open.
Then, she opened the door wide as two of the hands, Charlie and Jack, took a step forward, supporting an unconscious man between them.
“Found him in the south pasture,” Charlie muttered.
“Put him here on the settee,” Julia said, hurrying to move the extra cushions so they could lay the young man down. “He’s half frozen!”
Jack shook his head. “More’n half, I’m thinkin’, ma’am. Doc won’t be able to travel out here in this weather. Can you see to him, maybe, as best you can for now?”
“Fence has been cut again,” Charlie said. “We got our hands full, seein’ to them beeves. Dev’ll be here, soon’s he can.”
“Of course,” Julia said. “I’ll take care of him. Any idea what might’ve happened?”
Jack gave a sardonic chuckle. “Lead poisonin’ for one thing.” At her blank look, he went on. “He’s carryin’ a bullet in his shoulder, but looks to me like he took a hard hit on the head. He was out cold when we found him. Guess he’ll tell us what happened—if he comes back around.”
“You need any help, give Elmer a shout. He’s in the barn.” Charlie tipped his hat as he and Jack took their leave.
“Oh…goodness…”
If he didn’t die of the bullet wound or the blow to the head, the young man could quite possibly meet his end from exposure. And what in the world did she know of treating a wound such as his?
The man lay on his unwounded left side, facing the warmth of the fire. The stray particles of snow and ice on his hair and clothing melted, and made small rivers of moisture on him.
Julia moved his hat to the floor at the end of the settee. His face was turned downward, toward the sofa cushions, his long, dark hair falling across his cheek.
Miraculously, both children had slept through the commotion. But Julia couldn’t put off seeing to this man’s wounds. His life depended on—her!
She hurried to the kitchen and built the fire up in the stove, setting a kettle of water on to boil.
When she went back to the Great Room, she hesitated a moment before gently placing her hands on his dark hair at the crown of his head, searching for a lump. It didn’t take long to locate it. He must have been ambushed from behind. If he’d fallen, he most likely wouldn’t have struck his head there.
As she took her hands away, she was glad to see there was no blood on her fingertips.
He groaned and shifted, and as Julia caught sight of his face, she gasped.
This man was a younger image of Devlin Campbell! There was no mistaking the resemblance, and no denying he was a blood relative. A close relative…maybe as close as…a brother. Who was he?
• ♥ •
Dev came through the front door, exhausted. He and his men had spent the better part of the day mending cut fences and rounding up cattle in the freezing wind.
Then, there’d been the news of the discovery of the wounded man in the south pasture—as if Dev didn’t already have enough to worry about! He’d irritably told Charlie to take him to the house when Charlie had ridden over to ask what to do.
The young stranger hadn’t been one of the Flying C men, Charlie had said. Much as Dev had wanted to investigate, he had to help his men get the cattle safe. Besides, the man had been knocked senseless, and there’d be no talking with him for a while, anyhow.
Best to let the drifter thaw out and get some feeling back into his bones again. Dev’s questions could wait. They’d have to.
Now, as he stepped inside and quickly shut the cold out behind him, Lauralee and Jamie looked up at him from where they sat playing on the floor.
The warmth of the room embraced him, along with the aroma of bacon frying in the kitchen.
Home. That’s what it felt like. It had been a long time since that feeling had enveloped him so welcomingly as it did at this moment.
“Your daddy Debbil is home, Jamie,” Lauralee proclaimed.
Dev had to smile.
“Lauralee, not ‘Debbil,’” Julia corrected as she glanced around the corner from the kitchen. “Mr. Campbell.” She hurried forward and took Dev’s coat from him, hanging it on a peg by the front door.
“My goodness—come stand by the fire.” She walked back toward the kitchen. “Dinner’s almost ready. Same as last night, I’m afraid.”
“Don’t apologize,” Dev said, moving toward the fire. “You make a mean breakfast.” He picked up Jamie and pulled Lauralee into a hug as she came to greet him. He walked across the room to stand between the fireplace and the settee, looking down at the wounded stranger.
The young man opened his dark eyes, finally, focusing on Dev.
“Your man…patched me up…” he muttered.
Dev’s eyes narrowed in recognition, and his breath stopped for an instant, in surprise. He noticed the white strip of bandaging showing at the edge of the blanket. Carefully, he put Jamie down on the floor again.
Julia came forward to stand beside Dev. “Elmer came up and took the bullet out. I wasn’t sure what to do.”
A cold silence suddenly fell between the two men. Why in the hell hadn’t Charlie told him it was Alex? Remembering how he’d cut Charlie off in mid-sentence, he realized he hadn’t given him a chance to tell him the most important thing about the wounded man—that it was his brother. And, in all fairness, Charlie hadn’t been here as long as some of the others—it could be he wasn’t even aware of that fact.
“It’s been a long time,” Dev stated flatly. He pushed down the urge to ask every question that bombarded his thoughts. It had been a long time. At least five—six years…but he would recognize Alex anywhere. He always brought trouble with him.
“Yeah…” Alex’s agreement ended on a groan as he shifted, wincing at the pain.
Dev took a step forward , then stopped himself. He forced his hands to his sides, not sure of what he might do if he allowed himself to reach out.
Julia stood nearby, a questioning look on her lovely features.
“Six years, four months, and…ah, hell…who’s counting?” Alex muttered. “Question is…do I have sanctuary here…brother?”
• ♥ •
Julia had suspected as much. She waited anxiously to hear what Dev’s answer would be. And why did his brother frame his question so oddly? Sanctuary. This made the circumstances of his arrival even more questionable.
Certainly, Dev would have to allow his brother to stay, even if…even if he brought an element of danger with him. He was Dev’s family. Yet, Julia understood that family didn’t always look out for and take care of one another.
Jerome hadn’t had a care for her and Helena. He’d gambled away their stability, their future, and eventually, had gotten himself murdered. Any protection from the world Julia and her sister might have had was gone with their brother’s life’s blood, spilled in a dark Atlanta alleyway.
But Helena…Helena had done all she could to provide security for Julia. It was a double-edged sword, family was. And Julia could sense Dev’s reservation when it came to welcoming his brother, though she didn’t understand it yet.
“I need to go see to our supper,” Julia murmured, excusing herself the best way she knew how in the awkward silence.
The house was not prone to privacy, so even though she withdrew to the kitchen, she was able to hear the nearby conversation between the two men. There was nowhere for the children to go, either. They would hear every word. Julia only hoped that the Campbell brothers would manage to retain their civility…
• ♥ •
“I want to know who’s been cutting those fences, Alex. Who’s been poisoning the water. And who took a pot shot at me a couple of weeks back out in the north pasture—” Dev said, wasting no time on pleasantries.
“You—you think it was me?”
Dev was surprised at how sincere his little brother sounded; how hurt…
“Who else?”
“Maybe…the same people who did this to me.”
Dev supposed it was possible. Alex did resemble him. From a distance, he supposed, Alex might have been mistaken for him. He reached over and felt his brother’s scalp, immediately locating the lump at the back of his dark head.
“Ow! Dammit!”
“You didn’t get that from falling. Someone gave it to you up close. Close enough to know you weren’t me. Who was it?”
“I don’t know!” Alex replied indignantly. “I got shot out of the saddle, and before I could get back up on my feet I got…hit. Guy must’ve had a rock, from the feel of it.”
Dev regarded Alex narrowly. “Alex, I don’t have time for trouble—I’ve got my share of it already.”
“Good to see you, too.”
Dev waved a dismissive hand. “We both know you aren’t here on a social call. I want to know why you are here. And I’m asking you to be honest—for once.”
Alex was silent a moment, then he said, “I don’t know. I guess I thought…never mind. I’ll get out of here as soon as I’m able.” He looked up at Dev and met his eyes. “I’m not here to cause any trouble. I just—ah, hell. Never mind.”
Lauralee looked up from where she and Jamie sat a few feet away. “You said a bad word.” She regarded Alex with a droll stare. “A very, very bad word.”
“Well…I—I’m sorry. My apologies, miss,” Alex said, sharing a secret smile with Dev. He became serious again. “My apologies to you, too, Dev. I didn’t aim to come here and get myself shot. It was a shock to me, as much as to everyone else.”
“I believe him, Debbil.”
Lauralee’s tone was so serious that Dev had to fight the grin away from his lips.
“Lauralee—” Julia began from the kitchen doorway, but Dev cut her off.
“Why? Why do you believe him?”
“Because he means it,” Lauralee said, matter-of-factly.
“How do you know?”
Lauralee stood and walked over to Alex, peering deep into his eyes. Nodding in satisfaction, she looked up at Dev. “His eyes are—real.”
Dev was silent a moment, evaluating the situation. Finally, he said, “Okay. I believe him, too.” But the look he bent on his brother let him know he better be telling the truth—or else.
“You can stay, Alex. At least until we get this all sorted out. But I won’t tolerate any—”
Alex raised a weary hand. “Spare me, Dev. I said I wasn’t here to—to cause trouble. I meant it.”
“Dinner’s ready,” Julia announced with false cheer, trying to bring a calm to the room.
With a last warning look at Alex, Dev went to wash up. He’d seen too much from his wild younger brother in the past to believe him. He wasn’t about to let his guard down now.