Free Ransom of Love by Al Lacy

Mulvey likes the money Finn slips him now and then, and so does Sheriff Washburn. Sure, nobody believes such a thing is happening, but you and I know it is.”
    Dan sighed. “Yeah. But we can’t prove it. Still, I think we need to give it a try. At least put some pressure on Mulvey and Washburn. Iknow you’ve got your hands full of business matters today, so I’ll go to Mulvey’s office and tell him I have reason to suspect that Finn beat Nathaniel to death. When Mulvey asks what my reason is, I’ll tell him about George bragging at the Three Lanterns that his father had flogged Nathaniel to death for insubordination. Then I’ll go to Washburn’s office and lay it on him, too. Maybe a little pressure in the right spots will produce something.”
    Zack shrugged. “Well, it sure can’t hurt anything. Go ahead. But I’m sure it’ll turn out that you were wasting your time.”
    “Probably. But I still have to try, Pa. No man should get away with murder.”
    The carriage was moving past the Colvin mansion. Dan eyed the grandiose structure and said, “Pa, they’ve got to be stopped before another slave is beaten to death.”
    “Well, you do what you feel you have to, and from that point, leave it in the Lord’s hands.”
    “All right.”
    “And remember, Dan,” Catherine said, “the Lord’s wheels of justice sometimes turn very slowly. Let Him handle it in His own time.”
    “Yes, ma’am.” Dan squared his shoulders, then added, “Of course, I would like to see justice done before I leave these parts.”
    The subject of Dan’s big dream to go out West and become a cattle rancher was a touchy one in the Johnson household. No one liked the idea of him living more than a thousand miles away.
    “Well, that will be quite a while yet, son,” said Catherine. “This is something you want to move very slowly on.”
    “Sure, Mama, but I’m twenty-one years old. A man can’t put his big dream off too long. I found an article in the
South Carolina Gazette
yesterday about ranching in the West, and it was fascinating. People are going out there by the hundreds to build new lives on the frontier, and new cattle ranches are springing up all over the West. I mean, from Dakota, Nebraska, and Kansas all the way to the Pacific Coast. Cattle ranching is really big business in Texas, according tothe article. The market for beef is growing rapidly in the East and here in the South, and they’re looking to the ranchers in the West to produce it. And, of course, as the population enlarges in the West and towns grow into large cities, the demand for beef will become greater out there.”
    “Son,” Zack said, “I hope one day it will work out for you, if it’s God’s will for your life. But like your mother said, move slowly. Don’t rush into it and make a big mistake. The most miserable Christian is one who gets out of God’s will.”
    “I understand that, Pa. I assure you, I’ll go slow and put a lot of prayer into it.”

I T WAS EARLY AFTERNOON in Charleston when Chief Constable Hugh Mulvey, who was standing behind his desk talking to one of his officers, heard the door open.
    He saw the stalwart form of Dan Johnson silhouetted against the brilliant sun. “Hello, Dan,” he said, an amiable smile forming on his lips.
    Dan nodded as he held the door open. “I need to see you, Chief. Am I here at a bad time?”
    “Not at all. I was just sending Officer Morehead on an assignment.” Then he said to the officer, “Let me know what kind of reception you get.”
    “Will do, Chief,” the deputy said and hurried toward the door. Dan left it open for him, and Morehead closed it behind him as he went out.
    Mulvey sat down behind his desk and gestured toward a chair. “Sit down, Dan. Now, what did you need to see me about?”
    “Sir, did you hear about one of the slaves dying at the Finn Colvin plantation?”
    Mulvey frowned. “No. I have no reason to know when slaves die. Is there some reason I should know about