Ezrah stepped between them. “I will be handling this from here,” he said to the marshal before turning to Thomas. “I’m going to have to take her in.”
Thomas clenched his fists, but Gideon placed his hands on his shoulders and held him still. “I don’t believe for a minute that Rosaline is guilty Thomas, but you are going to have to let me take care of this. I’ll keep her under house arrest with me. Buena will take good care of her. I promise.”
Ezrah Gideon gently took Rosaline by the arm and led her out of the house.
“What’s happened?” Arthur asked hurriedly when he saw the sheriff holding her arm.
“These were found in the woman’s possessions,” the federal marshal said and handed the pouch of diamonds to Diedrick.
Higgs smiled from ear to ear as Diedrick counted the diamonds. “Not such an innocent little girl then, are we?” he said to Rosaline and smirked.
Thomas came out of the house and took his son from his father’s arms.
“Where do you think you are going?” Diedrick snarled as Thomas walked over to Rosaline.
He stood defiantly beside his wife and unwaveringly addressed Diedrick. “You are crazy if you think I will let her go anywhere without her family.”
Arthur came up next to his son and placed a hand on his shoulder. “We will all be going with her.
“They can’t do that!” Diedrick snarled and bared his teeth. “She’s a criminal!”
“Innocent until proven guilty is how we do things around here,” Gideon said.
“You found the diamonds in her valise for pity sake! What more proof do you need?”
Ezrah cocked his head to the side. “Her valise? I don’t recall anyone saying that they were in the young woman’s valise. How would you know that is where they were found when you were all the way out here?”
Diedrick took a step back and stumbled over some rocks. “What other possessions would a lowly wench such as her have?” He regained his composure and straightened his waistcoat. “Any fool on the street could have guessed that.”
“We will just see about that,” Gideon said and nodded towards the carriage. “You better follow us in that with your men. I’ll be escorting the young lady along with her family into town.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
Rosaline paced back and forth in the Gideon’s large sitting room where the floral wallpaper and comfortable furnishings did little to ease her mind.
Thomas and Ezrah had been gone for two hours, and Robbie was napping on Arthur’s lap, blissfully unaware of the situation unfolding around him.
The door opened and Thomas came walking into the room followed by Ezrah.
Rosaline stopped pacing when she saw the look on Thomas’ face. Her heart sank as she thought that Diedrick must have convinced him of her guilt. He sat down in a pink chair without looking at her.
Ezrah spoke first. “As things stand at the moment folks, Mr. Voss is demanding that Rosaline stand trial, and since the diamonds were found in her belongings, I can’t see a way out of that.”
Rosaline clutched her waist and placed her other hand on her neck. Her throat was so dry she thought she was about to choke.
“I think we should sit and talk things through. Any little detail could help us at this point to prove that Diedrick is lying. I’m going to go and tell Buena we will be needing some time.” He attempted a half-hearted smile and left the room.
Rosaline’s heart broke as Thomas stared at his boots, not looking up at her. “Thomas I swear I never...” Her words caught in her throat as the tears spilled over. “I never...”
Thomas stood and drew her into his arms, kissing the top of her head as he gently guided her face into his chest. “I never for one second thought you would have taken those gems, Rosaline. I’m just so scared that Diedrick is going to get away with this.
She felt her body going limp as the relief washed through her. If Thomas hadn’t already been holding her up, she was sure that she would have fainted.Thomas believed her.She told herself over and over again. That was all that mattered, no matter what came next.
“My darling, I would never believe you would be capable of something like that, not in a million years. You are too good.”
Rosaline gently drew away from him and looked up into his eyes. The honesty in his honey brown eyes made her melt inside.
“I don’t know where I would be without you, even if I was a doubting Thomas before you came.” A single tear spilled down his cheek as spoke. “After Mary died I never thought that my heart could be whole again, but then you came.” He wiped the tear away with the back of his hand lifted Robbie from his father’s lap and held him between them.
