Nancy kissed her husband’s bruised and swollen face. “Seth,I’m going home, but I will be back soon. Please rest and get well. I love you so.” She lowered her voice to a whisper. “I need you, and our baby needs you.”
Grace leaned close to Faith. “They gave him something to help him sleep, but the doctor was encouraged by how stable his heart rate and breathing are.”
“That is good news. Are his arms broken?”
“The left is. The right is badly bruised and strained, but no breaks that the doctor could discern.”
Faith thought of all she’d gone through that day. “I need to speak to you and Uncle Alex after Nancy goes to sleep.” She whispered this as Nancy continued fussing over her husband.
Grace gave her a questioning look, but Faith just shook her head. “Later.”
“There’s a rented carriage waiting at the front entrance,” Alex said. “If you want to go ahead, I can make sure Nancy gets there safely.”
Grace looped her arm through Faith’s. “That sounds good. I’m quite tired.”
They left the room and headed toward the exit. Faith knew Grace would expect to hear the details right away.
“I know who beat Seth.”
Grace stopped mid-step. “Then we must speak with the police.”
“No. This man is very rich and probably owns most of the police department. He arranged it with Gerome Berkshire.”
“That terrible man who constantly pesters Nancy?”
“Yes. Samuel Lakewood hired him to beat Seth nearly to death. He is going to kill him and ... others if I don’t help him with his Indian war and. ...” Faith couldn’t bring herself to admit the rest. “He threatened Nancy and the baby as well asmy brother and all of you. If I refuse to do what he expects of me, he will order his men to kill. Apparently, he’s had people watching us for over a year.”
“How terrible. What a horrible man.” Grace shook her head. “You must not help him.”
“I know.” Faith started walking again, and Grace fell into step with her. “I’m only telling you this so that you and Alex can do whatever is necessary to see to Nancy’s safety and that of the boardinghouse ladies. I wouldn’t put it past Lakewood to hurt them as well.”
“We should tell the police and at least try to get help.”
“Like I said, he probably has the police department sewn up in his pocket. I think the army may be a better bet.”
“Is there anything else?”
“He knows I’m Indian,” she said. “He thinks I’m Isaac Browning’s natural daughter and knows that he was a quarter Cherokee. He got me kicked out of college by telling the president that, and now he’s hoping to use that and the threats of harm to my loved ones in order to force my hand. I told him I didn’t care if he exposes my Indian heritage. And I don’t. If he tells the world about Isaac’s ancestry, that will at least save Mother from anyone knowing what happened to her.”
“Your mother can handle whatever comes, but she won’t be very happy if you allow that man to harm you. What does he want you to do, Faith?”
She let out a heavy breath. “He wants me to help him with his Indian war. He said they want to see the reservations dissolved and the Indians killed. I’m not sure yet what he wants me to do to help with this. I told Andrew about it, and he suggested we speak to Major Wells at the fort in Vancouver. I plan to leave with him this evening on theMorning Star. He’s headed to Astoria,and we’ll stop to see Major Wells first. I’ll be gone for a while. I just wanted to make sure that you knew what was going on so you could keep Nancy safe. I didn’t want to burden her with the details when she already has enough to worry about.”
Grace nodded and squeezed Faith’s arm. “Thank you. I’ll explain it all to Alex. We’ll get some people we can trust and have them nearby to protect Nancy if need be. Will Andrew keep you safe?”
“Yes. He and the crew of theMorning Star. I’ll be fine. Try to keep everyone out of sight. I don’t know what Lakewood would do if he knew I was telling you all of this. He feels so confident of having me over a barrel. I just let him think what he would, even though I was vocal about having nothing to do with him. He intends me to give him an answer in a day or so, but I’ll be gone, and that will no doubt infuriate him. We need to make sure Seth and Nancy—and the family—are guarded. We’ll need to get a telegram to my folks.”
“We’ll figure it out, Faith. Don’t worry about us. I’ll get word to your father about the situation and see that your family are safe and that they watch out for Meg as well. I wish now that we’d brought her, but she had to finish school.”
“It’s just as well. I’m sure she’s safer there than here. Lakewood’s initial threats are against Seth and Nancy, so I figure we start there.”
“He’s obviously threatened you too.”
Faith gave a solemn nod. “Yes, but I believe with Andrew’s help I can handle it.”
“Let me get this straight,” Major Wells said, signaling the sergeant to bring the notes he’d been writing as Faith told herstory. “Lakewood gave the order to attack Seth Carpenter, and now Carpenter lies near death.”
“Yes. He was responsive today, which was better than last night, but he’s still gravely ill, and the doctors will probably have to operate again to relieve more pressure on the brain. Frankly, he may never be the same, even if he recovers.”
