Summer of the Midnight Sun (37 page)

Jayce knew it was his brother’s way of thwarting the law. “I’m going to Nome,” he stated firmly. “If he’s there, I will capture him and take him to the authorities.”

“I’ll send my men with you,” Stanley said. “I have at least two who won’t mind the trip and have no family to hold them back.”

“I’m going too,” Helaina suddenly declared. “It was my job to catch him—I don’t intend to fail at this mission.”

Jayce intervened. “No. You cannot go. Chase is too dangerous. He’d have no regard for the fact that you’re a woman.”

“He’s right,” Stanley added, “this is too dangerous.”

“It wasn’t too dangerous when you sent me out here five months ago,” Helaina remarked.

Though Jayce sensed her anger, he couldn’t let her go along with them—not after realizing the extent of his brother’s ruthlessness. “It wouldn’t be right, Helaina. Chase may already be onto you. If he’s heard about a woman hunting me down, then your cover will be no good. You won’t be safe.”

“Besides, you had your chance at this,” Stanley said firmly. “You figured out that Jayce wasn’t the right man. That doesn’t make you a failure at this mission. You succeeded in saving an innocent person from the gallows.”

“But it’s not enough,” Helaina replied. “I want to see the right man caught. I want to be the one to capture him.”

Jayce shook his head. “It doesn’t matter who catches him. It only matters that he be caught.”

Helaina said nothing, but Jayce knew she was seething. He hoped she might learn to trust him again, as she had before, when she’d needed him to remain her prisoner.

“So we need to book tickets to Nome,” Jacob said, shaking his head. “That won’t be easy. The season is nearly over and most captains are going to be unwilling to risk their ships and the lives of their crew.”

“It’s not impossible, though,” Latimore stated. “I could probably be persuaded to help.”

As Latimore, Jacob, and Stanley circled together to make plans, Jayce felt more confused than ever. He believed he was doing the right thing, but his conviction troubled him more and more. Chase was in Nome. Chase, the murderer—the thief.
But he’s also my brother
. Jayce felt as though his heart were torn in two.

Helaina fumed over being excluded from the upcoming trip. She had worked hard on this job, and now Stanley wanted to keep her from being a part of actually apprehending the right man. It infuriated her.

She sat at the music room window staring out at the pouring rain. There had to be a way to maintain her role in this situation. She knew herself to be a woman of means, not only financially, but mentally. She had often come up with crafty, witty plans for catching criminals. So why couldn’t she take charge now and make it all work to her benefit? Chase Kincaid might have heard of a woman’s involvement, but it was doubtful he’d recognize her. Jayce and her brother were simply being too careful.

“I know you don’t agree with my decision,” Stanley said from the doorway to the music room. “I hope in time, however, that you will see it as sensible.”

Helaina knew in that moment she had to be cautious. If she was to be successful in managing to maintain a role in the capture of Chase Kincaid, she would have to convince Stanley that she had given up her part. “I’m just disappointed,” she finally replied. “I know it’s possible that Chase could know about me, but I doubt that he does. I understand your fears for me, but at the same time I hope you understand how very much I wanted to be a part of the team that caught Chase.”

“I know. I know how disappointing it is because I’d like to be a part of that group myself,” he said, crossing the room to where she sat. “No one wants this man behind bars more than I do.”

She sighed, knowing he had a valid point. He had suffered far more embarrassment and physical pain than she had. “I know, Stanley. He wronged you, and you have a right to see him taken— to take him yourself.”

“I’m sorry that I ever got you tangled up in this. I knew at the time I assigned it to you that it was dangerous. I suppose to my way of thinking, if I couldn’t be there to get Kincaid—you were the next best choice.”

Helaina understood. “So do you intend to leave for Washington right away?”

“Yes. Probably tomorrow or the next day, although it might be nice to see something of Seattle. This is my first time here— probably my only time. Perhaps you could show me something of the town and then we can head back to Washington together.”

Helaina hadn’t counted on that. She forced a smile. “But of course. That would be wonderful. We could spend the travel time catching up on things. Do you already have the tickets?”

“No.”

She got to her feet. “The trip home will be taxing, so you should rest. I’ll go get tickets; I am quite familiar with the station, as I’ve been there several times.” At least that much was true. Helaina had gone there every day this last week checking on the courier.

“Thank you. That would be great.”

She kissed him on the cheek. “Then I’d best get to work. I’ll see about the tickets, and after I return we can go out into the city. I know several wonderful restaurants. The seafood is incredible here.”

Stanley smiled. “I think I would like that very much.”

Helaina headed to her room to change her clothes. She threw her day dress on the bed and took up a lightweight blouse of white lawn. The simple lines and high neck matched her desire to appear businesslike and less the vulnerable female. She then chose a dark brown wool suit—her plainest and least feminine article of clothing. Though the war crinolines with their full bell skirts and widecollared bodices were more popular, Helaina could not get used to the shorter skirt lengths. Why, some fashions were edging up as much as eight inches from the floor. It seemed rather scandalous—just asking for unwanted attention.

She looked in the mirror, pleased. She had business to tend to. Business at the station where she would buy her brother’s ticket home, and business at the docks where she would hopefully book passage to Nome. Passage she hoped would get her there before the others.

Chapter Thirty-one

L
eah stood beside the fireplace in the front parlor. She wore a beautiful white muslin creation that Jacob had insisted she buy for the occasion. “A woman only marries once,” he told her. “She should have something beautiful to call her own and to always remember the day by.”

I’ll have no trouble remembering this day,
she thought. Her stomach churned as she waited for the minister to finish complimenting Timothy on his house and get to the job at hand.

“I was glad to see that the rain had stopped,” the older man said as he took up his Bible. “It’s always a pity to have rain on a wedding day—not that I believe in the wives’ tales of rain representing the number of tears a bride will cry during her years of marriage.” He laughed as though even suggesting such a thing was completely out of place.

“We were glad to see it stop as well,” Jayce said, coming to stand beside Leah. He winked at her. “You are beautiful. More beautiful than I could have ever imagined.”

Leah felt her cheeks grow hot. “I feel rather silly,” she whispered. “It would have been more appropriate to wear sealskin and mukluks.”

He laughed and took her hand in his. “You’ll be wearing them again soon enough. But it does my heart good to know that you still desire that kind of life after living in the comfort of this lovely home.”

She looked into his eyes. “The only home I desire is the one we share together. I really don’t care where it is—so long as you are there and happy.”

“I feel the same way.”

“Shall we begin?” the pastor asked.

“Posthaste,” Jacob declared, surprising them all. “Let’s not waste any more time.”

“Helaina and Stanley never came back?” Leah asked as her brother and Timothy took their places as witnesses to the wedding. The butler, cook, and housekeeper had also come to join the festivities at Timothy’s request.

“No,” Jayce said. “When I told them the wedding was to be this afternoon, Stanley informed me that he and Helaina had plans. I think they both felt out of place.”

Leah nodded. “Then let’s start.” She turned to the pastor and smiled. “I’ve waited ten years for this.”

Jayce pulled her close against his side. “And I have waited a lifetime.”

The wedding proceeded in the simplicity and joy that Leah had always imagined. She could hardly believe that, after all this time, God had brought about her dreams. So many years had been spent in the bleak hopelessness that the one man she dearly loved would never love her. Now all of that had changed.

“Will you, Leah, have this man, Jayce, to be your lawfully wedded husband?”

The words blurred in her ears.
Of course I will have him
. She trembled as she gazed up to meet Jayce’s face.
I will have him and love him forever and always
.

————

“You know,” Stanley said as they allowed the cab to drive them through Seattle, “I’m sorry I doubted your intuition about Kincaid.”

“It really wasn’t intuition,” Helaina replied. “I can’t say for sure what it was. Jacob Barringer kept talking to me about mercy and compassion. I told him I believed in justice, and he accused me of seeking nothing but revenge.”

“Sometimes I think we do seek revenge. I know I have felt that way about Kincaid. I wanted him to pay for not only what he did to me, but what he did to my fellow agents. I know it’s better to remain at a distance when dealing with these criminals, but I couldn’t help it.”

“Still, the law is the law,” Helaina replied. “I’ve always felt confident that, in serving the purpose of the law, mercy was unimportant. I suppose this case has changed my mind somewhat. But I’m still uncertain as to how the two are reconciled without someone paying a steep price.”

She considered her next question carefully. “Stan, what are your thoughts on God?”

“What in the world causes you to ask something like that?” he replied. “God is God. What else can I say?”

“Do you see a need for Him in your life? Have you ever thought to turn your life over to Him?”

“In what way?”

She shrugged. “I’m not completely certain. Jacob and Leah, and even Kincaid—they are all Christians. But not just the kind of people who go to church on Sunday, making sure they’re seen by all the right people. These people really believe in God—in doing what He wants them to do. They read their Bibles every day, and when people are troubled and hurting, they talk about things from that Bible. They use Scriptures to help each other overcome difficulties.”

“Some people need that kind of crutch,” Stanley answered. “I suppose I see nothing wrong with it, but neither do I feel a need for it.”

“So you’ve never felt the need to turn your life over to God?”

Stanley strained to see something out the window, then eased back against the leather upholstery. He looked at Helaina and shook his head. “No. I believe man has to make his own way in the world. We alone are responsible for our actions. We can’t be blaming things on supernatural beings—be they divine or evil.”

“Then God plays no part in your life?”

“I’ve never really considered it, to tell you the truth. Why would He care about me?”

“Jacob says He cares about all of us. That He showed us mercy even before we existed on this earth and sent His Son to die for us.”

“I’ve heard all of that, but I think it rather pretentious to imagine that God would sacrifice His Son for us lowly sinners. Why would He do that? Why not just make everything right with the snap of His finger?” Stanley smiled. “If God has fingers.”

He shook his head. “No, I’m confident that man controls his own path. He must. He must make choices good or bad. When he makes bad ones, then I get involved.”

Helaina had heard it all before, but in the back of her mind she was confused. She had hoped in hearing it again that her convictions might be reestablished. But instead, Stanley’s words only troubled her more. Because in spite of Stanley’s assurance in his theories and thoughts, Jacob Barringer seemed far more confident of a truth that was not of his own making.

————

“These are the men I promised you,” Stanley said. He turned to introduce the larger of the two first. “This is Big Butch Bradford. He’s been in the service of the Pinkertons for nearly ten years. He’s a good man to have in your corner.”

Leah watched as her brother and Jayce shook hands with Big Butch. The man’s thick barrel chest and broad shoulders reminded her of Adrik Ivankov.

“And this is Sam Wiseford, and the name is quite appropriate. He is very wise—too smart for his own good. He’ll be a good asset to you. He’s only been with the Pinkertons for a year, but he’s already distinguished himself several times.”

Leah thought the man looked too young to even be allowed a job as a Pinkerton. He was athletic in appearance with sandy brown hair that fell in a boyish manner across his face. She smiled when he realized she’d been watching him. He blushed furiously.

“Where’s Helaina? We’ll be late if she isn’t ready,” Stanley said.

Leah looked around the room, realizing for the first time that Helaina hadn’t joined them. “I’m sure she’s just packing lastminute things. Let me go see if I can lend her a hand.”

Leah heard Stanley grunt an approval and continue talking about his men and what their duties were to be. Leah could hardly contain her joy at returning to Alaska. She missed the summer in her village and now longed for her friends and little house. She particularly missed Ayoona and Emma.

“Helaina?” she called from outside the woman’s closed door.

“Helaina, Stanley says you must hurry. Can I help you pack?”

She knocked when there was no reply and found that the door was open. Looking inside, Leah called again. “Helaina, are you here?”

There was no sound. Leah went into the room and looked around—all of Helaina’s things were gone, and there was no sign of the woman anywhere. Leah noticed a folded piece of paper on the nightstand and saw a name on the outside.
Stanley
. The script was flowery and feminine, no doubt from Helaina. Leah got a strange feeling that trouble was on the horizon. She hurried downstairs and held out the note to Stanley.