Seth (Prairie Grooms, Book Three) (9 page)

A cold knot formed in Seth’s stomach as he continued down the street. Seth Jones didn’t like his trust to be broken.

When Seth returned to the hotel, he was surprised to find Eloise and Constance there. They were having tea in the main dining room with Sally Upton and her sister, Mary Beth. Eloise looked up and smiled at him as he approached, and the sight warmed him.

“
Well, howdy, ladies,” he said. “Fancy meeting you-all here.”

“
We thought you might join us,” Eloise said. “We've been wondering where you ran off to.”

“
Well to be honest, I’ve been out at Ryder’s place looking for clues.”

Const
ant scrunched her face up. “Looking for clues? I already told everyone what happened; what makes you think you’re going to find anything else?”

Seth shrugged.
“Like I said, I just thought I’d have a look around, see for myself if maybe there’s something you all missed.”

“
I'm sorry you made the trip,” said Constance. “It’s a long ride out to our place and back. I’m afraid it was all for nothing.”

“
I wouldn’t say that,” said Seth. “I found quite a few interesting things out there.”

“
What things?” asked Eloise.

“E
nough evidence to tell me that your friend, Cutty, had a lot more to do with this than meets the eye.” He stared at Constance, and watched her slowly put her teacup back on its saucer with a small clink. It was the only sound in the room.

“
What do you mean?” she finally asked.

“Maybe you ought to go talk to your husband,” he said.

Constance looked back and forth between her sister and Seth, and then stood. “Don’t mind if I do.”

Constance
left the dining room and disappeared around a corner, into the lobby. Seth listened to the faint sound of the hotel’s front doors open and close at her departure. Once the dining room was bathed in silence again, he sat.

“What was all that
about?” asked Eloise.

“
Just what it looks like,” he said. “I found evidence that tells me Cutty was the one behind it all.”

“
What?” Eloise said in shock.

“Yep, looks like Ryder’s friend
isn’t what he seems.”

“
I don’t believe it,” said Eloise. “Poor Ryder; to think someone you’ve known and trusted has turned on you, tried to kill you… I can’t imagine what your brother must be feeling right now.”

“
He’s upset, I can tell you that. He got real quiet when I left to come back here. That means he’s mad as a rattler.”

“
Can you blame him? And what about poor Constance? To think that man was in their house with them for days and days…”

“Ryder
doesn’t believe me and thinks Cutty is innocent. In fact, if I know my brother, he’s gonna set out to prove it.”

Eloise gaped at him. “How can he not believe you? You’re brothers. I dare say, when my sisters and I have a disagreement, we still trust each other’s judgment for the most part.”

“Maybe
that’s because you’re womenfolk. Men don’t think that way,” he said as he buttered a biscuit.

“I
say, how can you eat at a time like this?”

“It is time for tea,
isn’t it?” He poured himself a cup and took a sip. “Don’t worry; once Ryder goes out to his place, looks around, and sees that I’m right, he’ll come to his senses.” He looked at her. “In the meantime, we have more important things to think about.”

Eloise could only stare at him. “But Seth, how are you so sure it was Cutty?”

He looked at her, leaned across the table, and took one of her hands in his.
“Because darlin’, my instincts never lie.”

Seven

“
Who’s in charge of the games this year?” Colin asked later that evening at the dinner table.

“
Fanny Fig, Sadie answered.

“Fanny
?” he said. “I hope she does as good a job as Mrs. Mulligan. We’ve been awfully spoiled the last few years.”

“
I’m sure Fanny will do just fine. Don’t worry about it,” said Sadie.

Eloise picked at her food. She’d been thinking about what Seth had told her that afternoon, and it bothered her to no end. Belle noticed the way she poked at her supper and frowned. “What’s the matter, Eloise? Is the chicken not to your liking?”

Eloise look at her across the table
. “Oh, no, the food is fine. I’m just not very hungry.”

“
Did something happen between you and Seth today?” asked Sadie. “I noticed how unhappy you looked when you left the hotel.”

“Seth took a ride out to Ryder’s
place,” explained Eloise. “He said he found clues that make him believe the man, Cutty, was behind everything.”

“What do you
mean,
behind everything
?” asked Harrison.

“He told Ryder that
from the looks of it, his vagabond friend tried to kill Constance, not to mention Ryder himself. But Ryder doesn’t believe him.”

“I daresay,” said
Colin. “He’s going to have to come up with some proof, otherwise what’s the sheriff going to do? So far the only thing Cutty’s guilty of is trying to help Ryder; well, that and smelling bad.”

“Yes,” agreed
Eloise. “But Seth seems to think otherwise.”

“Has anyon
e heard if the sheriff has made it back yet?” asked Belle.

“
No,” said Harrison. “And I, for one, am beginning to worry. They should have returned by now.”

“Stop your worrying, brother,
” said Colin. “They’ve only been gone two days; I’m sure will hear something soon.”

Eloise continued to pick at her food. “I certainly hope so; Constance isn’t speaking to me.”

“
Why not?” Sadie asked.

Eloise sighed
. “Because she believes that Ryder is right, and I believe that Seth is right, so naturally, she isn’t speaking to me.”

Belle and Sadie looked at one another. “That’s no reason not to speak to you,” commented Belle.

Eloise straightened in her
chair. “On the contrary, it most certainly is. After all, they’re married; of course she’s going to side with her husband.”

“
She’s made a good point, you know,” said Harrison.

“
A wife siding with her husband, imagine that?” commented Sadie. She then turned to Eloise. “And you’re siding with Seth?”

“Who else am I going to side with? H
e
is
going to
be
my husband.”

Sadie shook her head and smiled. “It’s not a matter of siding,” she said. “It’s a matter of believing who is right. It could be that they’re both wrong, and something else happened that we don’t’ know about.”

“
Like what, dear wife?” asked Harrison.

“
I don’t know,” said Sadie. “Any number of things, I suppose.”

Eloise shrugged. “At this point, I don’t care what happened. I just hope the sheriff and the posse find the outlaws, lock them up, and dole out the fullest punishment allowed by the law.” She pushed back her chair and stood. “I’m afraid I’m not hungry. If you’ll excuse me, I think I’d like to go sit on the porch for a while.”

Everyone looked at her in understanding. “Go right ahead,” said Belle. “I’ll call if we need you for anything.”

Eloise nodded. “Thank you. I guess I just need a few moments alone. This has been a most confusing day.” Sadie and Belle nodded their agreement as she left the room.

Once outside,
Eloise sat on the porch swing. She stared at the peaceful barnyard, and idly pushed the swing by tapping her foot in a steady rhythm on the porch. She hated feeling confused, and right now, she felt more confused than ever. She also hated the fact that Constance wouldn’t speak to her, and wanted to apologize for siding with Seth. But what good would that do? If she did, it was saying that she didn’t trust him either, and she
did
trust him, didn’t she?

She let out a weary sigh. Who was right and who was wrong? Did it really matter? As long as the outlaws were brought to justice, who cared? But, she supposed if she were Ryder, she certainly
would
care.

Oh, Eloise; when did you become so self-centered?

She stopped the swing
and gazed out over the prairie. How her life had changed since she’d left London. This was wild country she and her sisters were in, and there was nothing any of them could do to tame it. All they were capable of doing was taking care of those around them, and in this case that meant their husbands. Naturally, Constance wanted to take care of Ryder, and that meant supporting what he believed was right. Eloise, in turn, supported her intended by believing in him. Only time would reveal the truth of the matter. Until then, she might as well focus on the happenings of the upcoming week; namely, her wedding.

But thoughts of the
wedding brought thoughts of Seth and Ryder’s disagreement, and that got her to thinking about Constance again, and… Eloise smacked her head with a hand as if to knock the thoughts from it. “No, no, no! I’m not going to think of this anymore tonight!”

“
Think of what?” Jefferson asked as he came up the porch steps.

Eloise looked at the big man. “Oh, don’t mind me. I’m rambling.”

He stepped to the swing and sat next to her. “You look like a woman with a dilemma.”

She scrunched up her face. “It shows that much?”

He nodded. “Uh-huh. Edith looks like that when she can’t find an ingredient for a recipe she’s cookin’ up.”

Eloise laughed. “Well, this hardly constitutes as a recipe problem, but it is a problem all the same.”

“
Yeah, so I heard.”

“You… y
ou did?”

“
I was in the kitchen while you were in the dining room talking about it. Darn shame to be warring with your sister like that over something so silly.”

“I wholeheartedly agree,” s
he said. “But there’s not much to be done about it.”

“
Picnic’s in a few days,” said Jefferson, blissfully changing the subject. “I can’t wait for the tug-of-war this year.” “He looked at her with a big smile. “Be the first year Mr. Berg isn’t here, which means it’ll be an even fight.”

Eloise stared at him. “What are you
talking about? What fight?”

He laughed. “I keep forgettin’; you’ve never been to one of our town picnics.”

“
I dare say, but I’ve not attended any of your town’s annual functions. You will have to excuse my ignorance. We’re still learning, my sisters and I.”

“
Well, then you and your sisters are in for a real treat.”

Eloise smiled. “I do hope so, because lately, everything else seems to have gone sour.”

* * *

The next day, Eloise, Sadie, Belle, Constance, and Penelope, met at the mercantile to finish the wedding dress and make final preparations for the picnic. Eloise, having gone to bed with a headache after her talk with Jefferson the night before, forgot about the last- minute details of her dress. But no matter, they would finish it today and she’d be married on Saturday. Funny, but the thought didn’t make her feel as giddy and excited as she thought it would; probably because Constance hadn’t spoken a word to her all morning. The tension between them was palatable, and filled the mercantile the moment Constance joined them a half hour ago.

Penelope put the final stitch on a sleeve, and glared at them both. “If you two don’t start speaking to each other, I may have to scream.”

Constance fidgeted in her chair.
“I have nothing to say.”

“Neither do I,” s
aid Eloise.

“Well
, I have plenty to say,” announced Penelope. “You two are being ridiculous! I’ve not heard either of you utter one word to each other all morning. This has to stop!”

“
Penelope,” said Sadie. “Let them be; they’ll come around soon enough.”

“They’re
my sisters,” Penelope said. “It’s my job to ensure they get along.”

Belle giggled. “This makes me wish I had sisters. I grew up an only child and had no one to disagree with.”

“
Me, too,” said Sadie. “And even though Belle and I are like sisters, we’ve never had a disagreement that caused us to give each other the silent treatment.”

“
I say,” said Eloise. “You’re making a big fuss over nothing. Constance and I have had a disagreement, that’s all.”

“
Yes,” added Constance. “And we ask that you respect our right to disagree and… Oh, what would an American say?”