Mrs. Keagan listened intently to every word she spoke, uttering the odd “Oh” and “Ah” while Madelaine told her the whole story of how she’d ended up at Luke’s ranch—including her ruse with the amnesia, and how they got married in Luke’s living room.
Every now and again, Evelyn added her two cents to the events, particularly the part where Madelaine had been so paranoid that day at the general store, making them leave in a hurry. Today, both women could laugh about it.
When Madelaine got to the part where she’d joined Luke to capture the thieving gang, Mrs. Keagan inhaled sharply, nervously grabbing a cookie. “Oh, my! You are one brave young lady, I must say!” she uttered.
“That’s when I got shot,” Madelaine said, pulling her lips into a thin line.
“But God saved you,” Evelyn said as she took her hand, squeezing it. “Luke rode Chester like the wind and took you back to Timothy’s ranch, which thankfully hadn’t been touched, while Alvarez took Tinsel back. I remember how frantic Luke was before the doctor got there to examine you. He didn’t leave your bedside the entire time you were unconscious. Not once. All he did was pray over you. He didn’t even eat.”
Mrs. Keagan choked a sob. “Oh, how heartbreaking. Poor thing. He must have been so frightened.”
Madelaine fought a grin as she exchanged a knowing glance with Evelyn. She knew all too well how much Mrs. Keagan loved Luke. To her, he was like the son she’d never had.
“We all were,” Evelyn added. “She slept for two whole days.”
Mrs. Keagan gasped.
“Maddie slept a looooong time. Like Cinderella did,” Simon added helpfully.
All the women turned to him with a frown. “Cinderella?” Madelaine asked as Simon looked at all of them, taking a hearty bite out of one of the two cookies he was holding.
“Yup! The one with the red apple. She slept for a long time until the prince woke her up,” Simon explained, grinning proudly from ear to ear. “Don’t you remember, Maddie? Mom told us the story so many times,” he exclaimed.
“You mean Snow White?” Madelaine said, giggling.
“Snow. Yes, there was snow,” he said, then Simon’s eyes went wide, and he dramatically put his hand to his forehead. “Must be myamesia,” he said, shaking his head with a mock serious expression.
Madelaine burst out laughing, and Evelyn almost choked on her tea. Mrs. Keagan laughed a full belly laugh until she had to wipe tears from her eyes.
“What’s so funny?” Caleb asked when he walked onto the porch from the other side of the house. Simon turned and ran to him, faster than lightning, jumping straight into his arms.
“They’re laughing at me because I haveamesia,” Simon declared. Caleb bit his lip, not to grin.
“Oh, that’s very serious,” he agreed, as he put the boy down. “Hello, ladies! Oh, is one of these cookies for me?” he asked. Evelyn handed him one, and he sat on the edge of the porch, letting his feet dangle.
“Madelaine was telling Mrs. Keagan what happened,” Evelyn explained. Caleb nodded.
“A lot has happened,” Caleb confirmed. “We just got word that the last two of the men who escaped have been captured. The entire gang is finally behind bars. We can all breathe a sigh of relief. It’s been a long time coming.”
“I am so glad to hear it,” Madelaine said. “What’s happening with Ezra and Phineas?”
“Phineas and Ezra will both serve a life sentence, because we were able to prove that they were directly involved with the murders. But I’ve got even better news,” he announced as he shoved a whole cookie into his mouth, chewing it with relish before he continued, “These are exceptional, by the way. All the money Ezra claimed he had? He built his little empire on selling stolen horses, but before that, he’d been stealing money and gold, robbing wealthy people over in Missoula and all along the Bitterroot River. Since the western part of Stevensville’s Main Street was almost completely destroyed, the money is being allocated to rebuild all the damaged buildings. Even your ranch, Madelaine. Whatever was destroyed by these men living here for all these months, you can get repaired, and he has to pay for it.”
Madelaine’s lips formed a silent O as she heard the good news. Since she’d come back, she’d definitely noticed a lot of things missing, broken, and worn down. “This is all great news!” she exclaimed.
“And the other thing I was supposed to tell you,” Caleb said, “Luke is at the lawyer’s office right now to set up the papers for your ownership. Ian Sterling is copying the originals because they always have to have one of these documents on file for legal reasons, and in case something happens to them—like what happened to yours. Apparently, he’s been working on it for weeks to get them replaced for you.”
Madelaine released a huge sigh. She thought those documents would have been lost forever, but now she could be sure that the ranch would remain safely in her name.
“What a string of events,” Mrs. Keagan said, as she got up from her chair and began to collect the cups and the now-empty cookie plate. “You should write that down, Maddie. Make it into a story or a book. It could be one of those sensational romance novels. You are so good with words, my dear. It would be a fantastic story with a wonderful, happy ending.”
Madelaine paused for a second. Since she’d lost her mother’s Bible and her journal in that fire, she hadn’t written a single word. Now that Mrs. Keagan mentioned it, she could feel a tingle in her fingertips.
“Time to make dinner,” the cook said as she lifted the tray.
“I’m going to help you,” Evelyn offered and followed Mrs. Keagan inside while Caleb took over the chair his wife had vacated.
“I can see why you fought so hard to save this place,” Caleb said to Madelaine. “It’s a beautiful ranch. Your father really knew what he was doing. I have never before seen such a clever water irrigation system for the horses.”
