office. Doc needed to know what was going on. His meeting with Ben had reinforced what Morgan feared: Casey wasn’t safe. Kahlerville had not been a good choice.
Or had it? His mind jumped from one alternative to the other. Ben had a reputation for being a tough lawman. He’d soon put aside any thoughts of Casey’s looks because it would be stupid for her to settle here. Also, Morgan and Casey were keeping company. No one would ever expect him to have connections with her. Or would Ben figure it out? Casey and Ben were clever as foxes, but who’d outsmart the other?
He sent Doc a telegram stating he had their problem under control. Who am I fooling?
Before he realized what he was doing, Morgan had walked to the parsonage. Maybe she’d have time to talk. The reverend sat on the front porch with his Bible and some paper, no doubt working on his next sermon.
“Is Miss Shawne free to speak to me for a few minutes?”
The reverend chuckled. “Did she agree for you to come courtin’?”
“No. I hoped to persuade her a bit.”
“She’s inside, Morgan. Go on in. Last I saw of her, she was working on a peach cobbler.”
He found her in the kitchen. “I smell peaches. Are you baking something for me?”
She startled and smiled. “You might be risking your life.”
“Wouldn’t be the first time.”
She glanced away, then wiped her hands. “How’s Rafael?”
“Doing fine, thanks to you. The doctor patched him up, but he’ll be down for a while.”
“Are you here to see me?”
“I am. Got a matter to discuss with you.” He looked about. “Is it safe to talk?”
“I believe so.” Suddenly she paled. “There’s trouble. I can see it in your face.”
“Maybe. I’ve just come from the sheriff’s office.”
She stiffened. “And what did he say?”
“He’s determined to catch the Jenkins gang.”
“That could be good as long as he doesn’t recognize me. Or has he?”
“Not yet, and I don’t know if he will. He’d never suspect you as long as the town knows we’re friends.”
“That makes sense. I suppose they all know you were after Jenkins.” She sighed. “I think I need to leave town. By the time Sheriff Kahler realized I was gone, I’d be miles away.”
“Still running.”
“Suppose so.”
“Then let me help you clear your name. Forget about me courting. I’d like it, but saving you is more important.”
“I don’t know, Morgan. The more I think on it, the more I wonder if my choices are to either ride out of here or turn myself in.”
He stepped closer and took her hand. “Please stay. We can make things right with the law.”
She sighed and shook her hand free. “It’s not you that’s fixin’ to swing.”
*****
Sarah and the reverend introduced Casey to countless people over the days that followed. Occasionally ladies from the church stopped by to bring gifts of food or flowers and visit with Sarah. Unfamiliar faces soon became friends, and Casey learned to relax and make sure she had something to serve them. Slowly the woman she wanted to become emerged from the shell of doubt and despair. But the lingering shadows of Sheriff Kahler and Jenkins clung to every thought. She desperately wanted to leave Kahlerville, but each time she prayed, God impressed upon her to stay. She didn’t know why. One thing she knew for certain: She must find the strength to tell the reverend and Sarah the truth.
“I see the Subtle Matchmakers Society has arrived,” Reverend Rainer said to her one afternoon when several ladies visited with Sarah.
Casey felt her cheeks grow warm. “They didn’t bring anyone for me to meet today.” She glanced about for fear one of the well-meaning ladies might overhear.
He chuckled, and his gray eyes twinkled. “Now was it two or three young men who escorted them last week? I believe they were out-of-town guests of one of our church members.”
She grinned and stared at the stairway. “Just two, and they were very polite.”
“Ah, one of them looked like he’d been run over by a herd of stampeding buffalo.”
“Reverend!”
John Rainer roared. “Well, he was a bit homely.”
Cautiously, she peered up the stairs to the balcony. “Hush, his aunt will hear.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
They both laughed.
He leaned in closer. “I don’t believe Morgan has a thing to worry about.”
He didn’t. They hadn’t talked since the day he told her about Sheriff Kahler’s ambitions, and that was over two weeks ago. But the thought lingered. Every time she saw him, her heart did a little flip.