Free Where the Wind Blows by Caroline Fyffe Page B

dark, was especially fearful.
    “It’ll be all right, sweetheart,” whispered Jessie. “I’ll stay with you. Mrs. Hobbs—that old meany—will never know.”
    Sarah, who’d buried her head against Jessie’s throat, nodded slightly.
    “That’s my girl.” Jessie knew from her own experiences what it meant to “go to the cellar.” It was dark and cold there, and fullof scary sounds. Whenever Mr. Hobbs was gone, his wife looked for opportunities to put children there. Jessie would take the switch gladly, before leaving Sarah alone.
    As Jessie rocked Sarah, the memory was as vivid as if the incident had occurred yesterday. If it felt that real—that raw—to her, how much more had Sarah suffered being so young? She shuddered at the thought.
    “Shh…baby, it’s all over now. I’m here, and I’ll never let anyone scare you ever again.”
    “Mama, mama,” Sarah sobbed, holding tight to Jessie’s neck.
    Jessie passed the night with Sarah in her arms. She laid a blanket out beside Gabe and stayed there.
    Near dawn, Jessie placed Sarah back in her bed, then stretched out her cramped, cold legs and arms. She quailed at the thought of seeing Chase this morning. He could be waking up any minute, and the thought sent her into a panic. She needed some time to herself to sort out her feelings, but in this little cabin, privacy was impossible.
    Then an idea occurred to her. She would go into town! She needed supplies, and the weather seemed mild enough, with barely a hint of frost on the air. If she left now, she could get everything she needed and be back in time to put on supper.
    She quickly wrote a note explaining where she was and asked Gabe to take care of Sarah and Chase. The sun was just peeking over the mountain as she closed the door. A breeze played about her ankles, making the rain-soaked leaves dance and sway in her path.
    How good it felt to be out of the cabin. With her head up and her shoulders back, she could feel her cares and worries falling away. The morning air was invigorating.Just one day at a time, she thought. That’s how I’ll make it through.
    Inevitably, her thoughts drifted back to…Chase. No, she scolded herself, she wouldn’t think of him this morning! She refused. Tingles, like a bellyful of bees, skittered around inside her.
    Stop it! What about Nathan and all he had done to help her? Shouldn’t she be thinking of him, now gone to his grave? Shouldn’t she be overcome with grief?
    He was my lawfully wedded husband. What is wrong with me? I’m horrible!
    Rounding the bend, Jessie got her first good look at Valley Springs in two long months. It wasn’t much of a town, with its two streets and handful of houses. But it did have a drygoods store, a blacksmith’s shop, and one restaurant, as well as a small building that served as a school, and as a church on Sunday. Of course there was a saloon.
    Jessie hurried, wanting to see Mrs. Hollyhock. It had been two months, and she worried about her friend. Since it was early, the town was quiet, but the ring of metal striking metal told her Mr. Shepard, the blacksmith, was at work in his shop.
    Garth Shepard had been the first person she’d met when Nathan brought her home to Valley Springs. Garth was a tall, strapping young man with arms the size of tree stumps. Fair-haired and brawny, he had sun-browned skin that never lacked the sheen that comes from working in the heat. Mr. Shepard was always locking his sights on her, no matter that she was a married woman.
    Maybe, if she was careful, she could creep past his smithy without being noticed. His smile, disarmingly charming, melted even the coolest female heart, or so it seemed. Young girls—and all too many of the married ladies, too—wereconstantly batting their lashes at him in hopes of drawing his attention.
    Jessie released a sigh of relief. A few more steps, and she’d be past his shop. But at the moment of that happy thought, a large form stepped onto the wooden boardwalk in the