Free Bride of the Baja by Jane Toombs

foot of the steps in front of the church, where Esteban waited with Jack McKinnon. Margarita took Esteban's arm, and as they climbed the steps to the open door, the murmur of voices from inside the church was suddenly hushed.
    When he reached the top of the steps, Jordan turned and looked behind him. He saw a horseman riding toward the mission from the west. Beyond the road he caught a glimpse of the Kerry Dancer through the morning mist. As he and Jack McKinnon followed Esteban and Margarita into the church, Jordan felt a fleeting pang of sadness, remembering another foggy morning months before when, in the harbor of Valparaiso, a golden-haired girl had waved to him from the deck of the Flying Yankee .
     
     
     
    CHAPTER SIX
     
     
    As Jordan and Margarita knelt at the altar rail while Padre Luis Martinez intoned the words that would make them man and wife, loud voices came from the rear of the church. Frowning, the priest looked up, then went on with the ceremony. Jordan heard approaching footsteps and a swelling murmur of surprise from the wedding guests.
    Padre Luis stopped in mid-sentence. Jordan swung around and saw a tall, mustachioed man dressed in black with silver trim, his hat in his hand and a leather pouch slung across one shoulder, come striding down the aisle. The Californios watched, whispering and shaking their heads. Jordan rose to his feet.
    "What is the meaning of this interruption of a holy sacrament?" Padre Luis demanded.
    The man genuflected before the altar, then stood to face the priest. "A thousand pardons, padre," he said. Beads of sweat covered the man's forehead and his clothes were creased and soiled. "There was no other way. I have ridden all night."
    "Explain yourself."
    "I come from his excellency, Don Pedro Sola, the governor of Alta California, with a message of great importance."
    He opened his pouch and handed the padre a folded paper sealed with red and green wax. Jordan watched Padre Luis tear open the seals and read the letter. The priest's face gave no clue to its contents.
    "His excellency, the governor," the padre said at last, pitching his voice so all could hear, "has ordered that the marriage uniting Margarita Mendoza and Senor Jordan Quinn not take place because Senor Quinn has violated the laws of New Spain."
    Ignoring the babble of questioning voices, the priest turned and looked up at the statue of the Virgin Mary in the niche at the side of the church. "Under the circumstances," he said, "I cannot go on with the ceremony."
    "What right has the governor to interfere?" Jordan demanded. "What law have I broken?"
    "Wait." Esteban was at his side. "Permit me to speak to Padre Luis."
    "Don Esteban," the priest said placatingly, his voice pitched so only the group at the altar could hear. "What can I say? I am as appalled as you must be. I would have done anything to prevent you from suffering this embarrassment in the presence of your family and guests."
    "Does our esteemed governor have the right to order the marriage stopped?"
    "Under the circumstances, yes, he does. Senor Quinn is, after all, a foreigner, and if he has violated the law…”
    "What law has he broken?"
    "The governor states that he is accused of using his ship to smuggle goods to California."
    "Padre Luis, as you are aware, all American sea captains who trade with California must of necessity be smugglers in the strict interpretation of the law. This is no crime. Why, I have even heard that members of the clergy have been known to visit their ships and bargain for goods from the United States."
    The priest shrugged and raised his hands, palms up. "Because a thing is done by the clergy or by yourself or by others does not make it legal."
    "Padre, the happiness of my sister means more to me than anything else in the world. This is the man she has chosen. A foreigner, yes. A criminal? Who are we to say? You and I know there are ways to accomplish what is in the best interests of both of us. We need one another,