The Stepmother: An Everland Ever After Tale (11 page)

Meri stood with Zelle on her hip and encouraged the little girl to wave to her father as Jack walked towards town. He stopped once, on a little rise, and looked back. “Say ‘bye-bye Papa’.”

“Bye-bye Papa!”

She had to smile at the little girl’s enthusiasm, and even the heart-broken look on her father’s face as he lifted his hand once before heading out of sight. Because no matter what he told her last night, Jack
was
Zelle’s father. He might’ve only been her father for the last year, but that was enough. Zelle considered him her Papa, and so did Meri.

She kissed the little girl’s sweet head, and shooed her into the house to play with the rag dolls Meri had fashioned for her during the last two months. They left the door open, to let in the fresh spring breeze, and Meri got to work.

Jack’s middle-of-the-night confession hadn’t changed her mind about him, especially not after that kiss they’d shared. She was pleased that she’d gotten up the nerve to confront him, to make him tell her his secrets.
He’d saved Zelle
. How could he think that was anything other than noble? Sure, he’d had to do evil—kill a man—to save her, but it had worked; she wasn’t in the clutches of those bad men any longer, and had a stable, loving father who would move Heaven and Earth to keep her safe. Oh yes, Jack had saved the little girl, and was continuing to save her, by running away.

And Meri was going with them. While the little girl—her soon-to-be-daughter, if she had anything to say about it—played on the rug in front of the cold hearth, Meri bustled around, folding clothing and necessities. She knew that Jack had traveled out here with one of the wagon trains, and guessed that he was planning on going north with even less. But she planned to argue that if they were going into an area of the country with even fewer people than lived around here, they would need to bring all of their own supplies. So she was busy packing cooking utensils and pots, Zelle’s winter wear, and her medical supplies.

It wasn’t until she was carefully packing bandages between glass medicine bottles that she realized the problem with going where there weren’t many other people: fewer patients. And
very
few women and children for her to help. The white linen dangled from her hands while she thought about the ramifications. Was she willing to give up her dream of coming West to help others, if it meant being with Jack? If she stayed here in Everland, she’d have a full list of patients, and more every day, as her reputation grew. But if she stayed, she might never see him again. Might never see Zelle again.

The girl rolled over onto her back, making her dollies fly through the air with cute “wheeee!” noises, and Meri knew. Knew that she could never give up Zelle. Knew that she wasn’t going to give up Jack, either. She was going to fight for him, for them. For their future, together, all three of them.

And if that meant giving up her dream, or finding a new one, so be it. She nodded firmly, and got back to packing.

He’d gotten supplies yesterday, but today he had to arrange to buy a horse. And extra saddle bags. Now that he and Zelle had been settled for a few months, they had so much more
stuff
than they had when they’d come to Everland. In fact, as he mentally cataloged all of the things that he should probably take with them—especially if they were going north into an even greater wilderness—Jack considered just getting a small wagon. It wouldn’t be able to take them as far as a horse, but it’d be able to carry more.

There weren’t any to rent, but he eventually cut a deal with B.G. Foote, who ran what was becoming the local livery, to buy his smaller wagon. And Mr. Miller had told Jack that he could come pick out a horse as payment for safely delivering his latest daughter. Jack would have to take him up on that.

Zelle’s clothes, her winter wear, the new toys that Meri—
no
. He wasn’t going to think about Meri. Jack ran through the list of things in his head. At least one big pot and cooking utensils, no need to bring a pan because his biscuits weren’t nearly as good as M—
no.
A book of recipes, and Gunn’s
Domestic Medicine
, and if he had the space, his spare clothing as well. Now that he knew how to do a little sewing, thanks to Mer—

Meri
. Meri had changed everything. Made his life better. Made
him
better.

Luckily, he was passing the mercantile when his knees gave out, and he sunk to the edge of the porch with a groan, his head in his hands. He couldn’t do it. He
had
to do it. She was a part of his life now, as much as Zelle was, but he
had
to leave her. For her sake. Besides, he’d confessed. He’d told her the awful truth about himself, and she didn’t want anything to do with him now. She didn’t want to get married to him, didn’t want to
fight for him
any longer.

It was for the best… But his chest still felt like a giant empty hole, and his muscles didn’t seem to want to work. He felt like he was losing part of himself, and the worst part was that he had to be pleased about it. He was getting what he wanted.

She’d be safer here, wouldn’t she?

Oh God, he was going to miss her.

Jack didn’t know how long he’d sat there, working up the guts to finish the arrangements to walk out of her life, when a shadow fell across him. He lifted his head out of his hands, and realized it was four shadows.

Four women, staring down at him. Four strangers; one tall and stately, one short and plump and jolly, one old and withered, and one that looked remarkably like the good-natured Sister Agnes from Mount Saint Vincent who used to feed him when he was a child. And every single one of them was smiling at him expectantly.

He didn’t like the way they loomed, so he forced his legs to cooperate, and pushed himself to his feet. None of the four took a step back, even though they were all uncomfortably close. Now that he stood taller than them, he realized that they weren’t
all
strangers. Although she was wearing a different bonnet, he recognized the oldest one, the one with only a few teeth.

“You’re Miss Gertie, aren’t you?”

Her smile grew. “Got it on the first guess, young man!” She nudged him with her elbow, and Jack almost fell backward, trying to avoid the sharp edge. “I guess doctors have to have good memories for people, eh?” Another attempted nudge, a cackling laugh, and he felt like he was missing the joke.

“Can I help you ladies? With something?” How had four strange ladies shown up in town? Wouldn’t he have heard about them, from Mr. Matthews at least? For that matter, how come none of the few other townspeople hurrying up and down Andersen Avenue seemed to notice the odd group?

“Oh, we’re just waiting, dearie.” This was from the jolly-looking one.

“Waiting for what?” He couldn’t help it if he snapped the question; he was getting irritated with their mysterious smiles.

“For you to quit feeling sorry for yourself, young man,” the sharp tone seemed to match the sharp nose and sour expression of the tallest woman, “and decide to do something practical about your situation.”

Jack narrowed his eyes, and crossed his arms in front of his chest, as if he could protect himself from their weird stares. What did they know about his situation?

“Oh, we know all about it, Jack.” Had he said that last thought out loud, or had the jolly one with the wide smile just guessed? And how did she know his name? “And we think it’s high time you stopped moping, and did something practical.”

“What do you know?” Why did his voice sound like he had something stuck in his throat?

The one who looked like Sister Agnes—sorta dim but good-natured—spoke up. “Well, we know all about Meri and Zelle, and Mr. Witcher who is ever-so-mad at all of you.”

The sound of
his
name made Jack’s heart stop for a moment. How would these four strange women know anything about Witcher, or his past? He felt his hands ball into fists as he slowly straightened, dropping his arms by his side. It was a stance he’d learned in Sing Sing, a way to let his opponent know he was ready to take and give whatever hits were needed. How would they know, unless they knew Witcher? Had the man branched out in his hiring practices in the years since Jack had seen him? Or were they just his agents, sent to report on Jack’s actions? He felt his pulse pounding in his temples as his mind leaped through the possibilities, looking for a way to escape.

“Oh, look what you’ve done, Mildred!” The tallest woman’s scorn barely registered in Jack’s desperate mind. “Calm down, Jack. We’re not here because of Witcher.”

“Well, sort of…” Jack couldn’t tell who said it, and he didn’t care. His wild gaze landed on the sharp-looking woman, willing her to say more in their defense.

She seemed to understand, and lifted her hands in a calming motion. “We’re the ones who set the newspaper advertisement, Jack. We’re the ones who brought Meri here to Everland, to marry you.”

He heard her words, but couldn’t make sense of them. His heart was pounding too loudly in his chest to understand. “The advertisement?”

“In the paper, Jack. We also made sure that Meri saw it, because we knew that you two would be perfect together.”

What
? “You’re…” He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. “You’re
matchmakers
?”

They exchanged amused glances, and the Sister Agnes one shrugged. “You could say that.”

Well, that was one mystery solved. One mystery that had been completely pushed aside by yesterday’s panic. How Meri got here just didn’t matter anymore. “What does this have to do with Witcher?” He wheeled on the youngest one. “You said you know all about Witcher. Where is he? Is he here? How many men did he bring?”

She pursed her lips in thought. “Ummm… Here, yes, and none.” She smiled brightly.

“
What
?”

The tall one rolled her eyes. “He didn’t bring any men with him, Jack. He’s not the all-powerful crime boss you remember from your childhood. While you were in prison, he lost a lot of his henchmen. He’s here alone.”

Nothing she said sunk in, until that last bit. ”He’s
here
?”

“Didn’t we just say that?” The jolly one leaned towards the tallest one. “Didn’t Mildred tell him that? Do you think he’s daft?”

“Just a poor listener!” The oldest one took a step back from Jack’s frantic attempts to see around them. He barely heard their words, he was so intent on looking for his old boss. The man who’d terrified him as a lad, and who haunted his dreams still.

“
Where
is he?” Didn’t they understand that none of them were safe, as long as Witcher was here in Everland? Even if the man didn’t have any of his goons with him, he was ruthless and cruel, and would kill anyone he thought would cause Jack pain, just to repay him for stealing the money.

Sighing, the fat one stepped forward and grabbed his shoulders. Jack tried to pull free, but for someone so much shorter than he was, she had quite the grip. She shook him slightly. “Calm down, lad! He’s not
here
.”

She had to say it again before the words registered, and Jack let himself suck in a full lungful of air.
He’s not here
. He’s not here. “Where is he, then?” His own voice sounded like it was coming from far away.

“We had to make sure that you understood how important Meri was to your life, dear. We needed to make sure you gave up all of these silly notions of running and hiding without her.”

How did they…? And then his blood began to pound again, and he grabbed the woman’s forearms. What did Meri have to do with any of this? What did they do to her? “
Where is Witcher?”

“We sent him to your cabin, dear. Where your wife and daughter are.”

Oh God
.

He didn’t know who he knocked over to get past them, but was dimly aware of some feminine voices raised in anger as he ran down Andersen Avenue. All he could think of was Witcher at his home. At his home, with the two most precious people in his world.

The usual spring mud sucked at his boots as he hurdled out of town, and he cursed at the weather for slowing him down. What if he was too late? What if, by the time he got there, Witcher already had his princess back in his possession? What if Meri had tried to protect the little girl—because of course she would—and had been hurt? He found an extra burst of energy, and sped up. What if Witcher had already taken Zelle and the money, and hurt Meri?

Hurt her, when he hadn’t even had the chance to tell her how he felt about her?

Skidding to a stop when he reached the little rise on the way to the cabin, Jack groaned. There was a brown mare, still saddled, tied to the bench in front of his home. Witcher was here.

He threw himself at the front door, determined to stand between his old boss—his old demons—and the women he loved. But it wasn’t until he spun in the middle of the room that he realized they weren’t there—no one was there. “Meri? Princess?” God, his voice sounded terrible. Or maybe it was the way the echoes came back to him hauntingly, letting him know that there wasn’t anyone in the house. Witcher’s horse was out front, but no one was here.

Where were they?

He grabbed the long kitchen knife he’d held that night when Meri had first arrived, and threw himself out the back door. He’d find them. He had to.

Meri had been folding the last of Jack’s shirts when she heard the horse whinny outside. She’d looked up, her heart suddenly beating faster, listening for any more sounds to indicate Jack was back with a wagon. Nothing. She’d glanced at Zelle then, whose eyes were round with fear as well, and had known, just
known
, that it wasn’t Jack outside.

And if it wasn’t Jack, then it wasn’t a friend. A friend—or someone looking for medical attention—would’ve hallo’d them, but this person… Taking a deep breath, Meri placed her finger to her lips to warn the little girl to stay silent, and then scooped her up on one hip. As the angry pounding began on the front door, she and Zelle had slipped out the back, praying that the stranger hadn’t set anyone to watch the back door.

There was no one there, and she eased the door closed behind her and began to run for the trees that surrounded the little stream past the half-turned over garden. It had to be Witcher, the man Jack had mentioned last night. The man who was coming for him, coming for Zelle.