“It won’t be long now,” Fred said, coming alongside Marybeth.
“No, and it will be such a joy to welcome another baby into the world. I do hope you get a daughter.”
“I do too, but you know I’ll take whatever the good Lord gives us and be grateful. The boys are my pride and joy to be sure, and having another son won’t hurt my feelings at all.”
Marybeth glanced up and found Fred watching her intently. She had no idea what all Edward might have told him. It wasn’t appropriate for her to even ask, so she wouldn’t. However, she saw compassion in Fred’s gaze and felt comforted by the knowledge that he understood.
“Don’t give up on him,” he said in a low voice. “Edward is wrestling with God just as sure as Jacob did. He’s spent the last year refusing to deal with the truth of the matter.”
“What truth is that?” Marybeth asked.
“That a loving God can take away the people you love the most and still be loving. Edward never took his broken heart to God for fixin’ after Janey died. He took it to God to leave and never retrieve. He didn’t want to ever feel anything for anyone. Now he does, and he realizes that God is calling him to reconciliation.”
“With me,” she said and sighed.
“No. With God.”
22
Edward took time for a meal around one in the morning. The Star Dance Hall and Saloon was known for having food readily available all night long, and he often stopped there to eat. Fred had introduced him to the place. Three blocks to the west were some of the most dangerous parts of town in the hog ranch area, but here things were a little calmer, and a fella could relax a bit. Just a bit.
He dug into a bowl of chili, savoring the spicy flavors. One of the new things about coming west was the variety of cooking he’d experienced. There were several folks in town who’d come up from Mexico and were now running an eating establishment on Eighteenth. The food was unlike anything he’d experienced with blends of peppery spices and foods that were not at all familiar. Even the chili he was enjoying tonight had been something most unusual the first time Fred introduced him to it.
“Deputy, you want something else? Maybe some more corn bread?” the owner asked.
“No, I have to get back to work. I figure a couple more bites, and I’ll be on my way. What do I owe you?”
“It’s on the house tonight.” The older man gave him asmile. “Consider it an act of good charity. I always wanna be on the right side of the law.”
Edward laughed. “You’re one of only a few in town who feel that way.” He spooned out the last of the meat and finished it off. Edward pushed back from the table and got to his feet. “I’ll be by later to see that things are still quiet. Monday nights aren’t usually too bad.”
“True enough. Although I’m still dealing with the theft of my mule team and findin’ the man responsible. A fella’s got to be pretty desperate to steal mules.”
“You come down to the jail and give us all the information, and we’ll be lookin’ for him too,” Edward said, pulling on his coat.
“No, that’s okay. This is a personal matter. I’ll see it through.”
“Have it your way.” Edward buttoned up his coat and secured his hat before stepping out into the night.
Fred had left him nearly two hours ago to walk patrol in the better part of town and to swing in to check on his wife. He felt certain the baby would be coming before much longer and liked to keep a close eye on her.
“The doctor said April,” Fred had told him, “but I’m bettin’ March.” Since this was the sixteenth of March, Fred was growing more and more anxious.
Heading west, Edward noted people coming and going. Despite most men needing to go to work in the morning, there were plenty of them on the streets and in the various gaming halls and saloons. Edward started his routine walk, checking in with the owners and taking a good glance around for troublemakers.
By the time he reached Lucky Bill’s, Edward was more than a little anxious. Sometimes his senses just seemed to pick up trouble, and tonight felt like one of those nights.
“How’s it going, Bill?”
The man shook his head. “The boys are feelin’ mean tonight, particularly Hank Garlow and his brother. Seems like every few minutes one or the other is hollerin’ about something. Usually that someone is cheating them.”
“They have their guns on?”
“Probably.” Bill shrugged. “Ain’t seen them go more than a few minutes without weapons, even when the chief of police himself disarmed them.”
“We need to enforce the rules around here. Those two are the worst offenders, but if the law doesn’t stand up to them, I’m not sure we’ll ever get this town civilized.”
“Good luck with that. Hank is in the corner playing poker. Emory’s in the back room buckin’ the tiger.”
