Tall, Dark, and Determined (44 page)

There was no telling whether Williams had hatched the plan Chase feared, but he'd seen the man studying a train schedule last night outside the bunkhouse. Which made it look like Williams planned to take a page from Twyler's manual and kidnap her while the other men were busy. If Williams timed it right, he could whisk the woman out of her shop, onto the train, and be halfway to Durango before anyone was the wiser. Once the two of them were wed, he'd return to Hope Falls to show off his new trophy.

Not going to happen
. As this was the first day he hadn't been able to keep an eye on Williams while they worked, Chase made it a point to coincide his trips back to Hope Falls with the incoming train schedule. Just as a precaution.

So Chase doubled back to town, four braces of rabbits slung over his shoulder—enough for him to give to Miss Thompson and end the men's grumbling that they wanted fresh meat. Enough, he thought, to earn him a free afternoon.
If I don't find evidence very soon, I'll have to face the so-called Braden Lyman without it. The man might break down when faced with an accusation
.

Chase tucked the rabbits into one of the two smokehouses to bring out later when he returned to town that night. No one needed to know he'd finished his hunt in the morning, and this way he wouldn't get roped into helping with something else.

He checked the kitchen first, seeing most of the women inside.

“I'm becoming accustomed to you checking in on us, Mr. Dunstan.” Miss Higgins slid a plate of cookies toward him. “It makes me glad to know you're diligent in seeing to our safety.”

“So long as there's not trouble, I'm satisfied.” Chase crunched into a crisp oatmeal cookie. “And I enjoy the perks.”

They laughed at his appreciation for their culinary skills.

“Are Miss Lyman and Miss Thompson at the store?” It wasn't uncommon for her to be in the shop. Situated right between the diner and the doctor's house, they seemed to think she'd be safe working there alone so long as she kept the doors wide open. That way they could all see and hear if anything went wrong.

“Oh, Lacey went to visit her brother a good while ago.” Mrs. Nash poured herself a tall glass of milk. “Cora followed after her, but she hasn't been gone very long yet.”

So she's visiting her brother today…. Interesting
. Chase wondered
whether she'd made a practice of dropping by more regularly after their little talk.
Is she going to keep up appearances, or is she conferring with a coconspirator?

He didn't know what to make of the fact the younger Miss Thompson visited the invalid often. In the long month since he'd met these four women, Chase had come to believe they were exactly who they said they were. Why not? Their identities didn't make them innocent. Miss Lyman could have schemed to take over Hope Falls more easily than a stranger, in any case.

But he leaned toward thinking she hadn't meant for her brother to be involved in the mine collapse. It was even possible she'd planned for the mine to be empty, but something went awry.
Despicable, but far more understandable
.

What he didn't understand was how the other women got roped into it. Chase might believe they had no idea the collapse was a crime, not a tragedy, and that they needed to marry to keep the town together. But this wasn't the case with the younger Miss Thompson. As Braden's fiancée, she'd know instantly that the man in Hope Falls was an impostor. The others might be fooled by keeping the invalid in isolation, but Miss Thompson visited him.

Which made her just as involved as Lacey Lyman.

They were both at the doctor's house, visiting the supposed Braden, right now. Chase thanked the ladies and headed toward the general store. If he snuck around it and kept low, he might be able to go undetected until he reached the doctor's house.

But as he edged around the back of the store, he heard voices. Annoyance flooded him as he realized he'd missed the chance to eavesdrop on their visit with the impostor. Chase stood, fighting his frustration, until he heard snatches of the ladies' conversation. They were talking about Braden Lyman.

“All this Braden cares about is himself. As soon as he's able, he'll leave Hope Falls….” Miss Thompson warned.

This
Braden? So he is an impostor!
Pulse pounding, Chase edged around the back of the building. He crept along the side, ducking windows, until he stood as close as possible without alerting them to his presence. Then he waited. And listened.

“You're wrong.” Lacey couldn't temper the vehemence of the denial. “Deep down, he's glad we've done so much to save Hope Falls. Besides, you know Braden would never abandon us.”

“The Braden I
used
to know would never abandon us. But he wouldn't have been so hateful either.” Cora choked back a sob. “When I first saw him, I knew it would take time to adjust, but time won't be enough for either of us. He's too different.”

Lacey fought to restore Cora's hope. “His temper will cool as he heals and accepts his new role in Hope Falls.”

“Even if he accepts his place, I don't know if my place is at his side. He's still ordering us to leave his room!” All the pent-up hurt of the past few months came out. “How can I marry this hate-filled stranger who's taken the place of
my
Braden?”

“Cora, you don't have to marry any man you don't want to. Remember, that was one of the most important things we said when we wrote the ad, and it doesn't change for you.” Lacey's heart sank, but she had to look after Cora. Her friend had gone through so much; it was amazing how long she'd persevered before the pressure and the loss went too deep. “I know you never expected anything like this. When we heard of Braden's death—”

“You decided to cover it up.” Dunstan rounded the building, anger in the line of his jaw and the tone of his voice. “Did your brother mean so little to you, Miss Lyman, that you deemed him replaceable? I doubt he'd agree, 'cause I sure don't.”

Lacey blinked, thrown off by his sudden appearance and senseless accusations. She glanced over, but Cora looked every bit as confused as she felt. “What are you talking about?”
And why are you so angry?
“Braden wasn't—isn't—replaceable at all.”

If he were, we would've done it the same week we arrived, rather than be stuck with a foul-tempered fool who's abused Cora
.

“Don't play the innocent with me, Miss Lyman. I heard everything you two said about your brother. I know what you've done, and now I want you to know you won't get away with it.”

“Get away with what?” Cora couldn't make sense of it either, which relieved Lacey in some small measure.

At least I'm not the only one with no idea what he means
. Why would the man even care that she'd told Cora no one would want her to marry Braden if she couldn't reconcile herself to it? None of them would be forced into marrying the wrong man.

“There you sit, talking about your brother's death in broad daylight,” he thundered, “while the impostor you found is trapped at the doctor's, waiting for the day he can escape. Have you no shame for what you've done? No regret whatsoever?”

“Impostor?” An inkling began to dawn as Lacey realized Dunstan had heard them talking about the “different” Braden. “You've misunderstood, Mr. Dunstan. Braden is much altered after his ordeal in the mines, but that doesn't make him an impostor!” Though the word seemed to sum up how Lacey felt about the angry man who stared at her through her brother's eyes.

He took all three of the stairs leading to the porch in one stride. “The game is up, Miss Lyman. Stop this pretense.”

“This is no game!” Anger began to simmer beneath her confusion as he loomed over them, rebuking her for something she hadn't done. “My brother survived the mine collapse, but even if he hadn't, why on earth would we bother creating a fake Braden?”

“To keep your claim on Hope Falls until the three of you could rustle up husbands to do it for you.” He growled more than spoke. “That's what the ad was all about, wasn't it?”

She gaped at him. “We need husbands to guard our property—particularly because our country doesn't permit unmarried women to own any themselves—but that has little to do with Braden.”

“It has everything to do with your brother. His name is on the deeds, isn't it? So you call him the ‘nominal owner.' “

Lacey felt all the blood leave her face as she realized the full extent of what Chase Dunstan accused. “You believe that because my brother is the only one of us able to legally own or hold property, I covered up his death and am imprisoning an impostor until such a time as our husbands secure the claims?”

“Finally, you admit it.” Grim satisfaction etched deep lines on either side of his mouth. “I didn't want to believe it, but you're so ruthless you believe ‘no cost is too great.' “

“You've got it all wrong.” Cora found her tongue. “How you can believe such terrible things? Why you would even bother to invent such a convoluted plot in your own mind is beyond me.”

Lacey looked at Chase Dunstan, sorrow burrowing into her heart. “You use my words, but everyone understands some things cost too dear.”
Like putting your trust in the wrong man
.

“Yes.” Rage burned in his dark eyes. “Some things do. I'm sure your brother would tell you that if he were still alive.”

“He is still alive!” Exasperation grew to fury.
How dare he think such things about me after the time we've spent together?
“How dare you accuse me of such vile schemes! Cora, my friends, and the doctor himself will all attest to Braden's survival.”

“All with a vested interest in Hope Falls, needing to perpetrate fraud and deception.” He waved away her witnesses. “I don't know whether you've threatened the doctor or paid him off, but it's obvious the man is under your thumb as well.”

“Then you've made horrible, baseless accusations and left no way to prove how wrong you are.” Cora stood beside Lacey. “You've cast aspersions on us all with no cause and no proof.”

“The proof sits in the doctor's house, trapped by his health and your plots.” Dunstan shook his head. “Who do you think acted as your brother's guide through these mountains, Miss Lyman? The Braden Lyman I knew was a good man and deserves to have his memory honored by the women he loved in life.”

“The Braden Lyman you—” Lacey became speechless for a moment as she realized what he meant. “You knew my brother?”

“Oh yes.” He curled his hand beneath her elbow and tugged her toward the stairs. “I knew the real Braden Lyman. Now it's time for you to take me to meet the man you've kept hidden.”

“Oh,” Lacey seethed, jerking her elbow away from him. “We'd be glad to take you to him. This way, Mr. Dunstan.”

    THIRTY-SEVEN    

C
hase stared. Braden Lyman—the real Braden Lyman—stared back.