Free Caught in the Middle by Regina Jennings

knapsack when I travel.”
    The gun hadn’t been in the knapsack on the train, and he’d felt hers beneath her duster when he’d knelt at her side after the accident with the fern. A crafty reply that avoided an outright lie. He’d have to remember that in dealing with her. No, he wasn’t going to deal with her again. As soon as she found Sammy’s father—
    “Where are you lodging, Mrs. Tillerton? Do you have family in town?” asked Mrs. Puckett.
    “No, ma’am. I don’t know where I’m going to put up.” She held a little tin cup for the boy to sip from.
    “I see.”
    It was Nick’s turn to focus all his attention on his plate. Now they understood why he’d brought Anne to them. How would they respond?
    “I hate to think of that little fellow in a boardinghouse,” Mr. Puckett said.
    “And we have an empty room,” Mrs. Puckett added.
    Anne had stopped feeding Sammy, as his grunt reminded them.
    “How long do you plan to stay in town?” Mr. Puckett cleaned his fork and reached for the pumpkin pie on the sideboard behind him.
    “Just until I find his father.” The room went silent. Anne looked up. “This isn’t my baby.” Her lips went firm. “His mother left him with me.”
    Mrs. Puckett exhaled. She turned to her husband and waited for a silent verification to pass between them beforespeaking again. “Perhaps this is where God wants you to stay. You know the Good Book says to entertain strangers. You just might be an angel in disguise. We’d be honored for you to stay with us.”
    “I intend to pay.” Anne set down her spoon. “Once I find Finn, Sammy’s father, I’ll return to Pushmataha and will send you the money. I didn’t bring enough with me. I really thought I’d be headed back by now.”
    The pumpkin pie was passed to Nicholas. He took a thick slice. The most beneficial negotiations occurred when the other party came to your conclusions without any directing.
    “You know,” Mrs. Puckett said, leaning forward, “Joel is being downright stubborn about providing us with grandchildren. I think it’d do me some good to have Sammy to play with during the day. If I took him on my rounds, calling on my friends, why he’d be the life of the party. He’d have more grandmothers than any child—”
    He was just inhaling the warm spiciness of the pie when Anne shot to her feet.
    “I’m going.”
    Anne swooped Sammy up from his chair and plopped him on her hip. Pulling Sammy’s napkin out from his collar, she tossed it on the table.
    “Thank you for the food. It was right nice of you.” And without another word she strode out of the room toward the front door.
    With a groan Nick dropped his forkful of pie on his plate and chased after her, only catching her before she reached the gate.
    “What are you doing?”
    “I’m leaving. I’ll find somewhere else.”
    He stepped in front of her, blocking her way. “No you don’t. You’re staying here.”
    “I can’t. Those people are crazy.”
    “Who’s calling whom crazy?”
    Anne winced as Sammy tugged on a handful of her hair. “They are too eager. The room—it’s not right. Everything seems so nice. So safe. It isn’t real. Why would they let me, a stranger of questionable reputation, stay in their home? Did you hear that talk about angels? And can anyone honestly think that watching an infant all day would be fun?”
    “They are compassionate, God-fearing folk. They know you don’t have any other choice, and they are trying to help you. And many women Mrs. Puckett’s age enjoy young ones—especially since she doesn’t know what a mess he is.”
    “Then let him stay. I’ll come back and get him when I find Finn.”
    “No, ma’am. What’s to keep you from doing the same as his mother and disappearing?”
    Her face grew fierce. “As tempting as that is, I’m made of sterner stuff. But these people . . . they have some other motivation, probably sinister, that I haven’t detected yet.”
    “You think the