Measure of Grace (35 page)

When Knight Colburn was shaving the next morning, he thought about Diana Morrow coming in on the stage that afternoon at three o’clock. He told himself that Jordan no doubt was home by now.

As he splashed his face with cold water, picked up a towel, and began to dry it off, he said to himself, “Knight, why don’t you ride out to the Bar-S and make sure he’s back?”

Stopping by the newspaper office, Knight told Dan and Erline he was riding out to the Shaw place and would be back in a couple of hours.

William Shaw opened the front door of the big ranch house in response to the knock, and smiled when he saw Jordan’s best friend standing there.

“Well, hello, Knight. Come on in.”

Stepping into the foyer, Knight said, “Is Jordan around? I need to talk to him.”

William looked at the floor, rubbed the back of his neck, and said, “He hasn’t come home yet.”

The news hit Knight hard.
Why isn’t he back?
he asked himself.
Diana is arriving today!

William saw the concern on Knight’s face and said, “Now don’t let it worry you. I had to remind Sylvia last night that over the last six or seven years, Jordan has done this many times: turning one day of hunting into two, three, or four. He’s just repeating it again.”

Knowing he was not at liberty to tell William about Diana’s pending arrival that afternoon, Knight decided he would have to go along with what he had just said. Pressing a grin on his lips, he said, “Oh, sure. I hadn’t taken that into consideration, either. I’m sorry to have bothered you. He’ll probably show up before noon.”

“No bother, Knight,” said William. “You’re welcome here anytime.”

William followed Knight out onto the porch, watched as he mounted, then gave him a smile and a friendly wave as he rode away.

W
HEN
W
ILLIAM
S
HAW TURNED
and entered the house, he found Sylvia standing just inside the door.

“I overheard your conversation with Knight, dear,” she said. “I hope he’s right and Jordan does show up here by noon. But if he doesn’t, don’t you think you ought to send a couple of the ranch hands up to the cabin to check on him?”

“Honey, I remind you again of Jordan’s little adventures, making a three- or four-day hunting trip out of what was supposed to be one day. He’s only been gone a little more than two days. Let’s give him till tomorrow evening. If he isn’t back by then, I’ll take Mark with me and ride up to the cabin on Saturday.”

Worry lined Sylvia’s pale features. “How about if he doesn’t come home by tonight, you and Mark ride up there to the cabin tomorrow?”

“Can’t,” said William. “Have you forgotten there’s a directors’ meeting at the bank tomorrow? As a director, I must be there.”

“Oh. I did forget. What time is the meeting?”

“It starts at ten o’clock, and if it’s typical, it won’t be over till sometime in late afternoon. Honey, Jordan is probably pulling another one of his long stays. Let’s not get too worked up about it.”

Sylvia sighed. “All right, but will you promise me that if our boy isn’t home by tomorrow night, you will take Mark and ride up to the cabin on Saturday?”

Taking her in his arms, William kissed her softly. “Yes, sweetheart. I promise.”

While working on an editorial in his office at the
Elkton Sentinel
as the morning passed, Knight Colburn had a difficult time concentrating. Jordan kept coming to mind. Laying his pen down, he eased back in the chair and said in a low voice, “Jordan, ol’ pal, where are you? You know Diana is arriving here at three o’clock this afternoon. There’s no deer, or elk, or—or big black bear with half a paw shot off that’s worth missing Diana’s arrival at the Fargo station when that stage pulls in.”

It was just past noon when Knight sat at the kitchen table with his mother’s hot beef stew on his plate.

While eating her own lunch, Annie noticed that her son was absently picking at his food. Clearing her throat, she said, “Son, is something wrong with the stew?”

It took a few seconds for his mother’s voice to filter through his thoughts. Raising his head, he blinked. “What did you say, Mom?”

“I asked if there is something wrong with the stew.”

“Oh. No, of course not. It’s as good as always.”

“Well, I’m glad to hear that. Something at the paper bothering you?”

“No. Everything’s fine.”

“Well then, what’s got your attention? Something’s wrong.”

Knight sighed and laid his fork down. “It’s Jordan, Mom.”

“Oh no. What’s he done now?”

“Well, he went into the mountains on Tuesday to go hunting, and was supposed to be back that evening. He didn’t show up. Nor did he show up last night. I rode out to the ranch this morning to see if he was back yet. He isn’t. I’m concerned about him.”

Annie chuckled. “Honey, you know how Jordan is. How many times in recent years has he gone hunting for what was supposed to be a day, and he didn’t come back for several days?”

“That’s the same thing William brought up this morning, Mom. He’s not concerned about Jordan at this point, so I guess I shouldn’t be, either.”
But Diana’s coming to Elkton at three o’clock today!
his inner voice was screaming.

Returning to the
Sentinel
Knight went back to the editorial he was writing, and even though he had intermittent conversations with Dan and Erline, he masked the concern he was carrying about Diana Morrow arriving on the stage with no Jordan there to meet her.

When two-thirty came, and there was no indication from anyone in the Shaw family that Jordan had returned, Knight decided to go to the stage office just before three o’clock and see if Jordan was there. If he wasn’t, Knight knew it would be up to him to meet Diana and tell her Jordan went hunting in the Sawtooth Mountains on Tuesday and hadn’t returned. The only thing he could do was take her to Mattie’s Boardinghouse.

At a quarter to three, Knight stepped out of his office, his hat lopsided on his head, shouldering into his coat. He glanced at Dan, who had the press rolling with his back toward him, then moved up to Erline’s desk and said, “I have an errand to run. I’ll be back shortly.”

“All right,” said Erline, smiling. There was a twinkle in her eye. “If President Ulysses S. Grant drops in to see you, I’ll tell him you’ll be back shortly.”

Knight snorted, shook his head, and as he went out the door, he said, “You do that.”

Greeting people along the way on the boardwalk, Knight hurried toward the Wells Fargo office. As he drew near the building, there was no sign of Jordan, nor a Bar-S buggy.

Moving inside, he looked around, hoping somehow Jordan was there in spite of the fact that no Bar-S buggy was parked outside. There were two men at the counter, talking to Fargo agent Vern Morton. By what they were saying, Knight knew they were purchasing tickets on the three-thirty stage to Ketcham.

Vern smiled at Knight and said, “Hello, Mr. Colburn. Are you here to meet someone on the three o’clock stage?”

“Yes. There is someone on the stage that I’m meeting for a friend.”

“Far as I know, it’ll be on time,” said Vern.

“Thanks,” Knight said.

Unable to sit still, Knight paced restlessly around the office,
stopping each time he came to the window to glance out into the street. His mind was racing as he tried to come up with some reasonable answer as to Jordan’s absence at this crucial moment. When he came to the window again, he stopped, looked out at the traffic in the street, and said in a low whisper, “Something has happened to him. The last time I saw him, he was beside himself with excitement, knowing that Diana had consented to come with the prospect of becoming his bride. I know he’d be here if he could. As soon as I get her settled in the boardinghouse, I’m going into the mountains to look for him, myself.

“No one else knows about Diana, so they can easily chalk all of this up to typical Jordan behavior, but I know differently. Wild Indians couldn’t keep him from meeting Diana when she comes in on the st—”

Knight’s words were cut off as the stagecoach rolled into view.

Knight took a deep breath and headed toward the door. “Well, here goes,” he said to himself.

As he stepped outside, Knight saw driver and shotgunner climbing down from the seat. He halted a few steps from the side of the coach and looked inside. The passengers were only silhouettes, but he could make out two men and a woman.

When the driver opened the door, he said to the passengers, “All right, folks. End of the line. Welcome to Elkton.”

One of the male passengers moved out first, then turned and offered his hand to the woman. Knight’s heart sank when he saw that she was silver-haired and estimated that she was in her late sixties. She thanked the man, then turned and said something to the silver-haired man who came out behind her. By her words, Knight knew the man was her husband.

When the three passengers had stepped away from the stage, Knight moved up and looked inside.
What now?
he thought, then went to the driver, who was taking small pieces of luggage out of the boot at the rear.

“Pardon me, sir,” he said. “Wasn’t there supposed to be a Miss Diana Morrow on the stage?”

“There was supposed to be another female passenger and two other male passengers,” replied the driver. “I don’t know the lady’s
name, but she wasn’t at the Ketcham station when it was time to leave and neither were the men, so the agent told us to go on.”

“Oh. I see. Thanks.”

The driver nodded and continued his work.

Knight walked slowly back down the street toward the
Sentinel
, a deep frown of concern creasing his brow. No Jordan and no Diana.

What was going on?

Jordan had definitely told Knight that Diana was coming to Elkton on the three o’clock stage on Thursday. The missing female passenger the driver spoke of had to be Diana.

“Lord,” he said as he drew near the front door of the
Sentinel
, “You know where Jordan is, and You know where Diana is. Please help me to know what to do.”

When Knight stepped into the office, Erline was at the file cabinet near her desk. She turned to see who had come in, and her gaze fastened on her boss’s ashen face. “Knight, what’s wrong?”

Pausing, he said, “What do you mean?”

“You look like you’re worried or upset about something.”

“Somebody,” he said.

Erline frowned. “What somebody?”

“Jordan. He went into the mountains alone on Tuesday morning. Hunting. He was supposed to be back by that evening, but he wasn’t. I rode out to the Bar-S this morning to see if he had come home. He hadn’t. I’m afraid something has happened to him.”

“Maybe he’s home, now. He might not have thought about stopping here in town to let you know.”

Knight couldn’t tell Erline about Diana and the three o’clock stage, but he just had to ride back out to the ranch and talk to the Shaws. “You’re right, Erline. You and Dan close up shop, will you? I’m going out to the Bar-S right now.”

The sun had dropped behind the rugged hills to the west of the Bar-S as Knight knocked on the front door of the big ranch house.

“Knight!” said William, swinging the door wide. “Come in.”

Sylvia was standing a few steps behind her husband as Knight
moved inside. “I can tell by your faces. He hasn’t come home.” Tears filmed Sylvia’s eyes. “No. He hasn’t.”

William explained that he had a directors’ meeting at the bank the next day, but that he had promised Sylvia if Jordan wasn’t home by tomorrow night, he and Mark would ride up to the old cabin on Saturday.

“I have some important business at the land office in Ketcham early on Saturday morning,” William said, “but I’ll be back between ten and eleven o’clock. Mark and I will head out for the mountains at that time.”

“I’d like to ride with you,” said Knight.

“We’d be glad to have you with us,” William said, laying a hand on Knight’s shoulder.

“Thank you, Knight,” said Sylvia. “I appreciate your offering to go along.”

“I wouldn’t have it any other way,” said Knight. “I’ll be here by ten o’clock Saturday morning. Now, if that scalawag comes home before then, you make him ride into town immediately and let me know he’s back. Otherwise, you’ll see me no later then ten.”