Chapter Twenty-Nine: Elizabeth

Someone screamed. Was it me? It might have been. I wasn't prone to screaming, but seeing my soon-to-be husband shot was just cause. Noah, who had been turning towards me, stumbled back a few steps. I pulled out of Earnest Webster's grasp and ran into the street. "Noah!"

He couldn't be hurt. He couldn't!

"Owen Burns, put your hands in the air!" I vaguely recognized the marshal's voice. Finally! What had taken him so long to get here?

Noah's hands were on his chest, patting and searching. The expression on his face was a mixture of confusion and fear. My own fear lessened as I didn't see any blood. Owen Burns hadn't shot him.

"Hands up, Burns!"

I didn't give the showdown between the marshal and Burns any of my attention, though it sounded as though the criminal was not cooperating. "Are you alright?" I asked, stepping in front of Noah. "Are you hurt?"

His eyes focused on me. "Elizabeth, you need to get inside. I don't want you to get hurt," he said, grabbing my arms.

"I'm—" Another gunshot rang out, cutting off my reassurance that I was fine. Noah ducked, pulling me down with him. Somehow, he ended up with his arm around my back, almost as though he wanted to shield me with his own body.

When there were no other gunshots, I twisted to look back. Owen Burns was on the ground and Marshal Westler was standing over him. "On your feet, Burns," the marshal said. "It's not that bad."

Slowly, Noah and I stood up. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see the other townspeople clustering around the door and window of the buildings around us. Now that the danger was over, they wanted to see what was happening.

"What is going on here?" A man I didn't recognize pushed through to be in front of everyone. "What have you done now, Coleman? What is this? You there! Who do you think you are? That's my brother you just shot!"

The last few sentences, thankfully, were not directed at Noah, but at the marshal. So this must be the father of Annie Burns.

Reaching down, Marshal Westler pulled a groaning Owen Burns up. "I'm going to have to ask you to keep your distance, sir," he barked out sharply. "I am a US Marshal, and I am here to take your brother into custody for robbery and murder."

"You're lying!" was the large man's immediate response.

Marshal Westler flipped his jacket aside to reveal the badge that was pinned on his vest. "Sir, I am here to do my job. If you try to interfere, you will be arrested and tried as an accessory to the crimes I have already named."

Did it work that way? I honestly had no idea if that was legal or even possible. But if it would keep the Burns family from causing any more of a scene, I would be thankful for whatever threat the marshal made.

"A marshal?" Burns sputtered. "Am I supposed to just believe that? Anyone could have a badge. For all I know, you could have stolen that from a real marshal."

"If you have a problem, you can take it up in Cheyenne, which is where I will be taking your brother as soon as the stage comes into town," Marshal Westler informed him. "I will defend myself and my prisoner."

He paused and glanced around. "I'm going to need a secure room somewhere. Please tell me there is such a thing in this town."

"We really need a jail and a sheriff," Noah muttered. He cleared his throat and raised his voice. "Mr. Collins has a backroom with a secure lock. I'm sure he will be happy to accomodate you, Marshal."

It took several seconds before a man separated from the crowd. "Of course, of course," he said. "Right this way, Marshal. Uh, I hope I won't have to stand watch? I just run a store."

"Not to worry, Mr. Collins," the marshal responded, his tone dry. "Burns is in my custody. I'm the one who will be responsible for keeping him in custody. I will need some bandages, unless you want him to bleed all over your floor."

"Of course, of course."

The other Mr. Burns spun around. "You!" He raised one hand to point at Noah and strode forward. "This is your doing! Do you think you can get revenge by slandering my brother?"

Noah pushed on my arm as though to get me behind him. "I have nothing to do with it. You heard the marshal. Your brother was seen at a bank robbery in Cheyenne. If he is innocent, a jury will decide on it."

"You brought the marshal here!"

"I didn't!" Noah's voice rose and I could feel his arms tense. "I wrote to Cheyenne to learn if there was anything that could be done about my barn being burned to the ground. I knew nothing about the bank robbery or that your brother was wanted by the law."

Mr. Burns' face was bright red. "The lies just keep coming from you!"

Why was no one else speaking up? How could they just stand and stare? "Noah is not the liar in this town," I said, unable to stop myself. If only I'd had the time to get some information from his daughter! Then I would have been able to say more!

"Who do you think you are?" the man snarled. "This has nothing to do with you, you-you—"

Whatever he was about to say was bound to be an insult, so I had no qualms about interrupting him. "My name is Elizabeth Garrison." Some petty streak in me made me continue with, "I am the daughter of John Garrison of Peru, Indiana. Bank manager and respected member of society. I am also sister to a very prestigious lawyer. Who, sir, are you?"

The color of the man's face deepened, which seemed very unhealthy. "Nobody asked about your family history," he snapped out.

"As to what this has to do with me, I should think it obvious," I continued as though he hadn't spoken. "I have been corresponding with Noah Coleman for much of this year. We are to be married. When you insult him, you insult me."

There was murmuring in the group behind me. Mr. Burns sputtered. "Girl, you don't know the kind of man—"

"Enlighten me, then."

His jaw dropped. "What?"

"Since I stepped foot in your town, all I have heard is that I do not know the man I have been corresponding with for months," I pointed out. "Well, here I am. What do you think you know about him that I have not been told?"

Now his mouth was working but no sound was coming out. My impatience rose. I had invited him to tell me. Why wasn't he speaking? Wasn't this what he and his friends had wanted?

"Come, sir," I said impatiently. "If you have something to tell me, do so already. I don't have all day for you to think about what story you want to spin. The truth, if you please. I wish to be married as soon as possible."

"Everyone," another voice called out. "This has already been an unusual day, but we must remember that it is Sunday. Why don't we all go to our lunches? We all know we're all not at our best when we're hungry."

Uneasy chuckles followed the reverend's statement. Where had he been? Why hadn't he tried to calm things down? Shouldn't that be something he would do as a man of God?

"Personally, I'd like to get my wedding over with before anything else happens," Noah called out. His hand came around mine. "You might be hungry, but I'm sure a couple minutes of your time won't keep you from your lunch too long."

Why did his words cause such a ripple of shocked gasps to spread through the onlookers? They all knew why I was here, didn't they? It should have been a surprise that we would be getting married as soon as possible.

"Ah. Well, I think that is a conversation we ought to have in private," the reverend replied, his tone uneasy. "We don't want to rush anything. Marriage is a serious commitment."

"Sir, there has been no rushing on either side," I informed him, doing my best to keep my temper in check. "I'm sure you just heard me say we have been corresponding for months. We're both adults who have considered this decision very carefully."

"We'll go to Cheyenne if you won't marry us," Noah said, squeezing my fingers. "Elizabeth and I are eager to start our life together, and I think we've waited enough. We know our own minds."

The suggestion took me by surprise. Neither of us had discussed what we would do if the reverend refused to perform the ceremony. Honestly, I hadn't imagined that the man would do so. Why would he refuse? There was no reason to hesitate...unless he feared what the rest of the town would do.

Would they do something, or try to do something? I couldn't even imagine what it might be. Even if they truly believed that Noah was a cad, they wouldn't actually do anything violent, would they?

How long would it take us to get to Cheyenne? It had only been a few days since I had come into town on the stage, but that wouldn't have given me an accurate idea of the distance. The stage had a team of horses with the goal of getting from one place to the next as quickly as possible. What might take a few hours on the stagecoach could easily take more than half a day for someone in a wagon.

Such a journey would leave Noah's home at risk for more attacks. The marshal would certainly not wait around to keep everything safe. He had his own mission to complete.

While I was touched that he was willing to make that sacrifice to marry me, he should have to. Having my wedding put off, even for another day, was not something I wanted. The Harpers might not have arrived yet, but delay felt like a very bad idea.

Where were the Harpers? It was clear we needed as much help as we could get. It was close to noon, and they had promised to be in town for the wedding then. Had something happened to them?

"What objections could there be, sir?" I asked, staring at the reverend. "I cannot trespass on the kindness of Noah's friends, but where else have I to go but Noah's house? Do you wish to encourage us to live in sin?"

The reverend's face flushed a color that rivaled that of Mr. Burns. "Miss—" he began to say.

"You cannot marry him!" Mr. Burns exclaimed, stomping over. Again, Noah put his arm in front of me as though he would protect me from harm. "Rollins, we've discussed this! The man needs to do the right thing and marry Annie. After everything he has done, it is the least he can do."

"Noah is promised to me!" I snapped. Would the man not give up? He'd lost at whatever game he had tried to play! "I have come across the country to do so."

"He made a promise to my daughter first! She has more right to get him than you do."

Somehow, we had begun arguing over Noah as though he were an object and not a person who could make his own choices. I struggled to think of a way to reason with this unreasonable man.

"No, he didn't."

The tremulous voice was almost impossible to hear. It was one I had only just heard before Owen Burns had tried to kill Noah: Annie Burns.

Sure enough, when I turned, the young man was walking forward with mrs. Royal. The other woman had her arm around Annie's shoulders. "Mr. Coleman didn't make any promises to me, Pa," the girl continued.

For a moment, Mr. Burns stared at his daughter. Then, he found his voice. "Annie! I don't know what this woman has threatened you with, but—"

"She didn't threaten me," Annie interrupted. "We barely had time to say hello before Uncle Port started making trouble."

While I had been regretting that I hadn't had time to actually ask her anything, I was glad now. Mrs. Royal had been right there. She could confirm that we hadn't spoken. There was no chance anyone could accuse me of influencing the girl in any way.

Mr. Burns was sputtering. The reverend stepped forward. "Annie," he said, his tone suddenly gentle. "Even if Mr. Coleman didn't actually say he would marry you, if he behaved in a way—"

Noah made a sound of protest, his whole body tensing. And I could well understand his anger. How could the reverend even suggest that Noah had behaved improperly?

"—he has an obligation to make things right," the reverend continued. "Did he kiss you?"

"No," Annie Burns answered immediately. Her gaze darted between her father and the reverend. "Mr. Coleman and I were never alone together. He's never spoken to me, except when I was with Ma or Pa."

She paused, her pale face flushing. "The last time he spoke to me was the day he told Pa that he had no interest in marrying me."

Mr. Burns stared at her, shock clearly written on his face. What must he be thinking?

"Annie Burns!" A woman—she'd been sitting next to the girl during the service, so I guessed she was Mrs. Burns—pushed through the crowd. "This is the Lord's day. I will not have you lying on the Lord's day."

Her daughter flinched, cowering against Mrs. Royal. The reverend held up his hand. "I don't think there are any lies being told, Mrs. Burns."

The woman came to a halt, but her eyes remained narrowed in a fierce glare. She put her hands on her hips. "I will not have my daughter badgered into saying something she doesn't mean."

"No one is badgering anyone." Now the reverend's tone had become firm. "Annie stepped forward on her own."

"Why?" Mr. Burns burst out. "Annie, why did you tell me he had trifled with you? You came to me in the barn and asked how I was supposed to make him marry you for being inappropriate!"

Was it my imagination or were the girl's eyes shining? Tears? Upset because her father was upset or because she had to confess her lie in front of everyone?

"I thought..." Her voice trailed away and she sniffed. "I thought it would make him marry me. You always said he was the most honorable man in the territory and no other man would be worthy of me."

The street had become silent at the confession. Did any of them feel guilty for how they had believed the worst of Noah? Or were they too shocked to think anything?

"Of all the—" Mr. Burns sputtered as though he didn't know what to say. "What would make you do a fool thing like this? I can't believe it! You wanted me to make Mr. Coleman marry you?"

"What else was I supposed to do?" the girl asked, anger creeping into her voice. "I want to be married! Ma says that's all I'm good for! If he said he had no interest and you tell me that no one else is good enough, I had to do something! He is known as always doing the right things, so I thought if everyone thought he'd broken a promise, he would..."

Her voice trailed away before she finished her sentence. "A marriage built on a lie, even one that seems small, is not one that will last," the reverend said seriously. "Why did you not come forward sooner? Surely you must have seen what your lie was doing to an innocent man."

Annie ducked her head and scuffed one foot on the ground. "I thought it would just take some time, and then he would have no choice. I'd be a good wife! I already raised my siblings."

The poor girl! Despite myself, I had to feel some pity for her. I couldn't imagine being so pressured by my parents. True, my mother had taught me to manage a household and, I hoped, the skills I needed to be a good wife. My parents had never pushed me to marry where they wished.

No, my brother and his wife had done that. The pressure from them had been annoying because, ultimately, they had no authority or power over me. How would I have felt if I had felt that from my parents?

Mr. Burns flung his hat on the ground. "For crying out loud, Annie! I never meant he was the only man I'd let you marry, just that he was the best I've ever met. He proved his land, but he's not the only man to do that."

Behind me, Noah shifted. Had he known the burns family were interested in him because of his success?

"But you said—!" Annie protested.

"Enough!" the reverend called out, raising his hands up. "I think we've made enough of a scene. Thank you, Annie, for telling the truth. Let's all go to our homes and put this behind us."

Put it behind us? Just like that? Did he honestly think that was possible, after everything that had been said and done? Noah's hand tensed on mine. Was the reverend really going to avoid marrying us? Even after what he had just heard? There could be no objection!

"Not yet!" Earnest Webster's voice rang out. "I think an apology is in order."

~*~

Dear Edward,

Are you surprised to get a letter from me? I know I haven't written to you as much as I should. How are you getting along in Kokomo? Are you enjoying being a lawyer?

I'm sorry when I last saw you, things were so tense. No doubt John has complained about my pig-headed nature. I promise you I am well here in Wyoming, no matter what our older brother might be saying. It is better than I had imagined, though I can understand there are people who would balk at living here. I don't think you would enjoy being so far from civilization.

My husband-to-be has encountered a difficult situation. I hesitated to ask this of you earlier, given your protests concerning my engagement, but I am hoping you can offer me some legal advice...