Free Teresa Bodwell by Loving Miranda Page B

come.”
    “It’ll be better if you stay here. Walking around will make your finger hurt more.”
    The boy rubbed his face against her shoulder. Ben watched as she opened the door and walked into a small bedroom. She placed the boy in the center of a huge bed and removed his boots. Good, quality boots that appeared to be new, Ben noted.
    “But, Mama, I’m not tired.”
    She sighed, then knelt and pulled a box out from under the bed.
    “Will you sit here and look at some pictures?”
    Opening the box, she removed a stereoscopic viewer, inserting a picture in it before handing it to Jonathan.
    “Who’s that man?” Jonathan was looking through the door directly at Ben.
    She turned and squinted at Ben as though seeing him for the first time. “That is your Uncle Benjamin—your father’s brother. You will have a chance to know him later.”
    “I didn’t know I had any uncles, except Uncle Wendell.” Jonathan scowled. “And Uncle Will in Kansas; he’s my great-uncle.” He glanced from Ben up to Mercy. “Is Uncle Benjamin a great one, too?”
    “No, sweetheart, he’s just a plain uncle. He came a long way to visit you.”
    A wave of guilt swept over Ben. He had come a long way, but he doubted he’d have made the trip if he hadn’t come looking for his money.
    “Do you want to see my pictures, Uncle Benjamin?”
    Uncle Benjamin. His oldest brother had two children, yet Ben had never been an uncle to them. Nor would he stay in Fort Victory long enough to become an uncle to Jonathan.
    Mercy and Jonathan both focused on Ben, waiting for his response. He nodded and walked over to the bed.
    “You rest here for a while.” She brushed a kiss upon Jonathan’s cheek.
    “Yes, Mama,” Jonathan said in a tone that made it clear he was suffering a great indignity.
    She bent for another kiss and turned to Ben. “I’ll be right back.”
    “We’ll be fine,” Ben said, though he had no idea whether it was true.
    As Mercy walked away, Jonathan’s eyes fixed on her. And Ben saw clearly that Mercy Buchanan was Jonathan’s mother. That was exactly what Ben had hoped for. A good home for his nephew without any effort on his part. Much to his surprise, watching the fondness in the child’s eyes left an empty ache in Ben’s chest.
    Ben pulled a chair next to the bed and sat down. “Let me know if you need help changing the picture.”
    “No,” Jonathan said. “I can do it myself.” He lifted the viewer up to his eyes.
    Ben glanced at the window, but the curtain was drawn and he couldn’t see out. “Do you have enough light to see?”
    The boy shrugged, but didn’t look at Ben. Ben walked to the window and opened the curtain.
    “Can you see my Mama?” Jonathan asked.
    “Yes,” Ben said. “And your Aunt Miranda, too.”
    Jonathan sat on the edge of the bed and Ben placed a hand on his shoulder. “Your mama said for you to stay here.”
    “But—”
    Ben guided the boy back onto the pillow. “I’ll tell you what. If you promise to stay here, I’ll go outside and check on your mother.”
    Jonathan scowled, but he nodded and settled back into the pillow.
     
     
    “Pa?” Thad helped his father-in-law to a sitting position. “How do you feel? Are you hurt?”
    Pa looked at Thad, then at Miranda. Her heart pounded as she watched her father lift a trembling hand to his head. “Nothin’ more than a dizzy spell, I expect. Where’s Jonathan?”
    Miranda knelt beside her father. “Jonathan is with Mercy. He came to tell us you . . . you collapsed.”
    Pa stared at her for so long she wondered whether he recognized her. She took his hand in hers, feeling it icy cold. “You’d best come inside and rest a while, Pa.”
    He nodded. She gripped Pa’s hand as Thad helped him to his feet. “Ain’t had a spell in months,” he mumbled as he shuffled toward the door, leaning on Thad’s arm.
    “You’ve been working too hard, Pa.” Thad pulled the door open for them to exit. “Doc warned us—”
    “Fact is,