Gideon jabbed his fingers at the boys again. “Who are you exactly?”
“Exactly?” asked Rabbit, whipping off his hat to reveal an unruly head of dark blond hair, some of it sticking straight up. “I’m exactly Cabot Theodore Collins, and I go by Rabbit on account of no kid wants to be called Cabot Theodore.” His chest puffed. “And I happen to be about as quick as one.”
“I bet you are,” Gideon said under his breath. His eyes swiveled to Finn. “What about you?”
Finn also removed his hat. “Carpenter Addison Collins and folks know me by Finn. I named myself, and it stuck on account I only answer to Carpenter when it’s my gran who’s saying it.”
Gideon looked at Jane as he pointed to the crate. “Do you know what that is?”
“No.”
He swore under his breath and rubbed his forehead. “Marcie. Avery. Put it in the front room. Dix. Take Max and make him comfortable somewhere. He should probably lie down.” He stepped to block the boys’ view of Max’s bound hands as Dix led him out of the kitchen. “You fellows want to sit down?”
Rabbit and Finn exchanged glances. It was Rabbit who spoke. “That’s real kind of you, sir, and the potatoes sure got my mouth to waterin’, but our pap expects us back before dark, and mostly we do what he says.”
“Even if you leave now, it’s going to be nightfall before you get back.” Gideon nodded toward the window to draw their attention to the lowering sun. “Go on. Sit down.” He did not frame it as a request this time.
The boys sat, Finn taking Max’s chair and Rabbit taking the one opposite his brother. They flanked Jane.
“They should go back to town,” Jane said.
“They will. Maybe with an escort, seein’ that it’ll be dark soon. I reckon you boys came out here with a wagon.”
“Yes, sir,” said Finn. “Our pap’s buckboard.”
“Where is it now?”
“That one fellow with the scar—Marcie, I think you called him—he took it to the barn and said he would look after our mare. He helped us get the crate off first, and we stood by it just in case there were villains around on account of there could be just about anything inside it. We’re speculating that we took shipment of gold bars.”
“Huh. Gold bars. You boys must like adventures.”
“Sure. We had us a few.”
“Well, let’s just say you’re having one now.”
Finn nodded, and Rabbit joined him. Neither of them looked at Jane.
She started to rise.
“Where are you goin’?” asked Gideon.
“The potatoes. They’re done. And I still need eight eggs.”
“I’ll get ’em,” said Rabbit.
Gideon put out a hand. “No. Stay where you are. Marcie will get them.” He hollered for his man, told him what he wanted, and Marcie shuffled out, shoulders hunched to brace for the cold.
At Gideon’s nod, Jane finished straightening and walked over to the stove. She wrapped a towel around her hand and removed the potatoes from the oven. She heard Gideon clear his throat in a warning manner when she picked up a knife. “I need to slice open one end of each potato.” When he did not say anything, she began to make the cuts, acutely aware of how closely he was watching her.
Marcie returned with the eggs. The hens had not pecked his eyes out as Jane had hoped, but she observed that he had fresh scratches on the back of his hands. She resisted the urge to tell him that he should have worn gloves.
While she prepared the Eggs Susette, checking the recipe from time to time, Gideon engaged Finn and Rabbit in conversation. It was truly his only recourse because shutting them up was not so easily accomplished.
Occasionally she caught him looking out the window, judging, she supposed, the onset of nightfall. It was impossible not to think about Morgan’s return. He would see the boys’ horse and buckboard in the barn when he came back. He was familiar with both, and he might be surprised that Finn and Rabbit were still here so late, but he would not be suspicious. He would walk in the door prepared to greet them and come face to face with Gideon Welling.
Jane poached six eggs in a gently rolling boil while she lined the scooped out baked potato shells with a mixture of mashed potatoes, finely chopped ham, dried parsley, the whites of two eggs, butter, and cream. She removed the poached eggs with a slotted spoon and carefully slipped one into each shell. While she was wondering if she could toss the hot water at Gideon without scalding Rabbit, he suddenly appeared at her side and removed the pot. He gave her a crooked, knowing grin as he emptied the water into the sink.
“Thought I could help,” he said.
