A Heart's Blessing - Linda Ford Page 0,46
we didn’t need to go directly home. We went to the library and giggled together as we looked at the books. We came around a corner and there stood Purley Borden, an older boy who was handsome as everything. His voice cracked when he said hello. I knew Sophie admired Purley. She got all dreamy when she talked about him. And now he’d spoken to her. She asked him if he wanted to walk us home. He said sure. Sophie held my hand as we walked beside him. They said good-bye at the gate, and we rushed in the house, dropped our purchases on the table, and disappeared into her room. We dreamed together. I was thrilled that she included me.”
Ryder’s expression had lost its desperate look. “It sounds a lot like Cody and me. He’s six years younger than I am. I so clearly remember the day he was born. Mama put him in my lap and said he was my little brother and he would always look up to me. I must always take care of him. I never forgot that. Yes, there were times I teased him or neglected him, but in my heart, I knew I would do most anything for him. I always protected him, even when he ran headlong into trouble.” He sighed. “Little did I know what protecting him would involve. I was planning to leave town and the painful memories of losing my wife and child when Cody was falsely accused, and I had to stay and see him tried.”
“You’re referring to him being charged with murder?”
“I am.” His voice cracked.
She longed to ask what happened but felt she had probed at his wounds quite enough already.
“It’s unbelievable how unfair people can be.”
“You’ll not get an argument from me on that.”
He chuckled. “You sure? I kind of expected one.”
“You’re saying I’m argumentative?”
“It’s not the word I’d use. But you are certainly determined and cling to your opinions.”
Their gazes caught and held.
“I’ve learned to be cautious.” She wasn’t sure if she meant it as a warning or as a cry for help.
“It’s not a bad quality.”
She heard the hesitation in his voice. “But?”
“I hope you know you can trust me.”
She considered the idea. “I am always guarded around strangers though, like I said, the man I thought cared about me and who I trusted was no stranger and yet he turned out to be false, so I suppose you can’t blame me for being suspicious of everyone’s motives.”
“Everyone’s?” His whisper was deep. As if hurt by her admission.
Feeling as if she added to his pain of losing his family, suffering through the false accusations against his brother, and now the very real pain of those binding ropes, she swallowed her pride to assure him. “I think I’ve learned I can trust you. You didn’t have to come with me to find the children. And now your life is in danger because of it.” As she said the words, she realized no one had ever before been willing to risk so much to help her. She couldn’t go on.
“Thank you. I appreciate that.” He settled into quiet, and she thought he no longer cared to carry on a conversation. Talking helped her not panic at how helpless she was to defend the children. She was grateful when he continued.
“You know, one of the things that hurt the worst when Cody was accused was how few people chose to believe us. All my life I had worked and lived among those people and always been honest and kind to the best of my ability. So had Cody. Now they didn’t believe what either of us said.”
“How did he get acquitted?” Now that he’d brought up the subject, her curiosity longed to hear all the details.
“The truth came out finally. But what a sordid truth. Cody was courting this gal—Louella Stack. Pretty girl, but not much common sense. Someone shot her father while she was out one evening. Louella said her father was shot trying to defend her from a man’s inappropriate behavior. When Louella didn’t defend Cody, people assumed he was the guilty one. Not that Louella came right out and accused him. But she didn’t defend him either and got into a fit of hysteria if questioned too closely. I knew Cody hadn’t done it. He was with me. But no one believed us.”
“But they finally did.”
“Not because they were seeking the truth. But during the trial a farmer came to town and asked