“But where is he?” Kelly worried.

  Granny hugged her. “I don’t know, but at least they don’t have him.”

  Kelly picked up the quilt. “Do you think this is the ring they want?” She fingered the corner where she had quilted in the ring just this morning.

  Granny shrugged. “Could be. It’s pretty expensive, if they’ll go to all this trouble for it.”

  “It’s getting dark. But I dare not light the lamp. They’ll know for sure where we are,” Kelly worried. “But what about the other boats and ships? I should still warn them about the dangers of the rocks.”

  “The water is still pretty rough. I doubt that many will be out. Stay away from the windows, Kelly.”

  Kelly sank back down on the cot. “What if I put other people’s lives in danger because I don’t light the lamp?”

  “I don’t know, Kelly,” answered Granny. “I really don’t know what the right thing is.”

  “I know,” answered Kelly. “I cannot not light it. It is too dangerous for anyone coming through the pass. With the storm we just had, there will be more, not less, traffic. We’ll just need to trust in Jesus to protect us.”

  “I know you’re right, Kelly-girl,” Granny used Papa’s nickname for Kelly. “We’ll just pray an’ trust. But we won’t be foolish. We need to stay out of the light as much as possible. We don’t want them to know there are only two women up here.”

  Before Kelly lit the lamp, she used Papa’s field glasses to survey the ocean. There were no vessels in sight. She stayed down as far as she could and turned toward Stone Haven. Oh, if only they knew the trouble they were in. Kelly knew there were many that would come to their rescue if they only knew! But everything looked quiet at the little fishing village.

  Carefully, Kelly rose to her feet, staying in the shadows as much as possible. She trained the field glass downward. “Oh, Granny!” whispered Kelly. “They turned the animals loose.”

  “They’ll come back,” Granny tried to assure Kelly.

  “Oh, Granny! One of the men caught Petunia! He’s killing her!” Kelly cried.

  “The pony?” asked Granny.

  “No, one of the hens.” Kelly burst out laughing. “Bandit attacked him, and Petunia got away.”

  “And Bandit would be . . . ”

  “The rooster.” Kelly put down the field glass and sank to the cot. “Bandit got him good. His face was all bloody.”

  “That will only make them even angrier, Kelly.”

  “The other man was laughing his head off, Granny. He sure didn’t look angry.” Kelly carefully lit the lamp. She was tempted to see if she could see what was happening below, but she didn’t dare.

  Staying below the windows as much as possible, they settled down to pass the night, always straining to hear any strange sound. Granny picked up her embroidery.

  Kelly picked up the quilt she had started, and then set it aside. She picked up the baby quilt and fingered it, wondering what mysteries it held. She sat on it before she started piecing her quilt.

  The long night passed slowly. Sometimes Kelly or Granny slept awhile, but they never really relaxed. When dawn finally broke through in beautiful shades of pink and rose, Kelly turned out the lamp. She quickly trained the field glass on to where the sloop had been. It was still there, bobbing in the ocean.

  Kelly searched the ocean. There! Coming from Stone Haven! It was another black sloop, riding low and coming fast!

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  The Blackburn Brothers

  “GRANNY!” CRIED KELLY. “ANOTHER ONE is coming! Another black sloop!”

  Granny hurried to the window, then sank to the floor. “Oh, Lord! Oh, Lord! Save us!” Her face was filled with terror.

  “Granny,” Kelly sank to the floor beside her and put her arms around her. “Granny!” But like yesterday, Granny seemed to be in another time and place. “Granny!” Kelly shook her. “We’re safe!” she said, hoping it was still true. “Listen, Granny! Remember that blockade? They can’t get through. We’re safe.”

  Granny blinked several times. “Oh, Kelly!” Granny quickly rose to her feet. “We need to do something.” She was wringing her hands and pacing in the small space.

  Kelly pulled her to the cot. “We need to think. Do you think they can get through the barricade we made yesterday?”

  Granny thought awhile. “I don’t know. They are very determined and mean. They think yo’ papa and the ring are up here.” She brightened. “Maybe if we gave them the ring, they would leave us alone.”

  Kelly shook her head. “How can we give them the ring without endangering ourselves?”

  “Could we throw it to them?” asked Granny, hopefully. “That ring is not worth our life.”

  “It’s not,” agreed Kelly, “and I wouldn’t hesitate to give it to them if I thought it would help us. But we don’t know that it will.”

  Kelly crossed back to the window and lifted the field glass. The sloop had just docked. “How many Blackburn brothers are there, Granny?”

  “Four”

  Two came last night and now two more, Kelly thought. She knew they could eventually break the door down and move the crates. “Oh, Sweet Jesus,” she whispered. “Show us what to do. Protect us.”

  “Granny,” Kelly said. “I think I am going down partways to see if I can hear anything.”

  “No, Kelly.” Granny’s dark face was still lined with fear, but not terror. “Those crates and that locked door is our last fortress. We will hear them in plenty of time. Let’s not expose ourselves.”

  Kelly nodded, seeing the wisdom. She struggled to keep her own fear at bay. “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart.” The verses from Proverbs came to her mind. She said them out loud. “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart: and lean not onto thine own understanding; in all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy path.”

  Granny smiled. “Proverbs 3:5-6. And since there is nothin’ we can do at the moment besides trust, I think I shall make some tea.” Granny proceeded to light the two-burner stove.

  “Good idea,” Kelly said and stooped to pick up Tulip, who was curling around her legs. “And how are Mrs. Tulip and the kittens?” Kelly asked the cat. Tulip purred loudly. “Yes, I imagine you are hungry.” Kelly set Tulip down to open the crate with food. She pulled out the tin of biscuits and crumbled one in Tulip’s bowl. She added the rest of the milk.

  Kelly also got the honey and butter. That, together with biscuits and tea, would make a fine breakfast. She started to go to the windows again, and then stopped. But as soon as she had finished her second biscuit, Kelly took up the field glass again.

  She scanned the island. Kelly told Granny what she was seeing. “Two of the men are chasing Buttercup. I didn’t know that cow could run like that,” Kelly laughed.

  “Probably hopin’ to milk her,” put in Granny.

  “Two more are leaning on the fence and laughing,” Kelly continued. “The other one is—”

  “The other one?” Granny cried. “There should be only four of them. Are you sure?”

  “I’m sure,” Kelly whispered. Her hands were trembling so much, she was afraid she’d drop the field glass. “Oh, Granny! There are five of them.”

  “We still need to trust, Kelly.” Granny caught Kelly’s trembling hands and held them tightly. “Say them verses again child.”

  “Trust in the Lord.” Kelly repeated the verses several times, then pulled free. She lifted the field glass, again. “Granny, there were only two men here last night, right?” At Granny’s nod, she continued. “I saw only two men on the sloop. Where did the other one come from?” She scanned the dock. “There are no other boats in sight. There is no other place on the whole island safe to tie up.”

  “Tell me what all the men are doing now,” Granny urged.

  “The one whose face is all scratched up because he wanted Petunia for a chicken dinner is still chasing the cow. I hope she kicks him! The other one that came last night is just watching him. The two that came with the sloop this morning are walking toward the house. I can’t see the other one from here.”

  Kelly began circling the room, keeping the field glass trained to the windows as she walked. She stopped when she was in line with the fishing village. “I wish someone would come to check on us from Stone Haven.”

  “They’d be walking into a trap, Kelly. The men would see them come.”

  Kelly sighed. The situation looked so hopeless. “You’re probably right, Granny. There he is, Granny. There is the other man.”

  “Get down!” Granny shouted.

  Kelly ducked and turned to look at Granny. She was across the room.

  “One of the men had a spy glass or somethin’,” Granny explained, in a whisper. “He had it turned up here. We don’t want them to have any idea who is up here.”

  Kelly nodded. “Granny, that other man. I don’t know. It seemed he was creeping along, as if he was hiding.”

  Granny brightened. “Maybe it’s someone to help us.”

  Kelly shook her head. “What could one man do against four? There was something familiar about him, but I don’t think he was from Stone Haven. Also, he had to come with them. There is no other boat. I want to look again.”

  “Not now, Kelly. It’s too dangerous. Maybe later.”

  Kelly tried to picture the man in her mind. There was something unusual about him, and yet, something familiar. Then she realized. “He had only one arm, Granny. That other man, he had only one arm. His empty sleeve was blowing in the wind.”

  “Homer,” breathed Granny. “Homer came to save us.”

  “Homer? Granny! Homer killed my mama and grandma. He admitted it. He didn’t come to save us.”

  “Kelly, Homer changed. He accepted Jesus as his Savior.”

  “How do you know, Granny? How do you know that wasn’t all a trick?”

  Granny sighed. “I knew Homer for years, Kelly. Deep down he was always a good man.”

  “No, Granny. Good men don’t kill mamas and grandmas,” Kelly’s voice trembled, and she could not stop the tears. “He killed my mama, Granny. He killed her before I even had chance to know her.”

  Granny scooted closer to her and put her arms around Kelly. Granny started humming a familiar song. Gradually, the sleepless night and stress caught up with Kelly and she drifted off to sleep.

  When she woke up late that afternoon, she was covered with the baby quilt. She pushed it aside as her memory returned. Kelly grabbed up the field glass and lifted it to the windows. “Granny, they’re putting something . . . straw, I think . . . around the bottom of the light house. Why are they doing that?”

  “What?” Granny joined her at the window. “Oh, Kelly, they are goin’ to burn down the lighthouse!”

  “How do you know, Granny?”

  “Kelly, these are the Blackburn brothers. They are known to start fires to get their way. Oh, Kelly! We are finished. Either we go down to them, or we die in the fire.”

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  More Danger

  “GRANNY,” KELLY STRUGGLED TO KEEP her voice calm. She could see the panic in Granny’s eyes. “They can’t burn down the lighthouse. It’s made of stone.”

  “It’s not entirely stone, Kelly, and it can burn.”

  “It’s beginning to get dark,” pointed out Kelly. “If they start a fire, all of Stone Haven will see it. They will come to rescue us.”

  “They will walk into a trap,” insisted Granny. “It’s better if we give ourselves up while we still can.”

  “No, Granny,” Kelly answered. “We are not just going to go down there like lambs led to slaughter. We will fight first.”

  “An old Granny and a fourteen-year-old girl against four experienced and mean men, Kelly? What could we do?” Granny sank down into the cot. She was visibly trembling.

  “And Homer, Granny. You said Homer is on our side.”

  “Homer. See if you can see where Homer is now.” Granny sat up straighter. “Maybe God sent Homer to help us.”

  “He’s closer to the light, Granny. I know it’s Homer. His curly brown hair is blowing in the wind. I think he’s sneaking up behind one of them. I think he . . . yes! He has a big stick. He hit one of them, Granny. With only one arm and a huge stick, he knocked him down.”

  “He can’t handle all four by himself, Granny. Let’s go down and help him.” Kelly started shoving the few crates aside. She unlocked the door and turned to Granny who was still staring out the window. “I’m going down, Granny.” Kelly pulled the door open and tripped over the cat.

  “Oh, Tulip!” Kelly scooped up the cat and ran down the stairs. As she neared the bottom, she wondered how she was going to move the mountain of crates they had piled between the door and the stairway.

  Kelly started climbing up the stack of crates they had built stair-step. She stopped suddenly when she realized the crates were being shoved aside from where the door was. She watched in horror as the final crate was shoved away from the top, letting the fading sunlight shine in the opening.

  Kelly started backing up. She was too close to the opening. She frantically looked back up the stairs and her place of safety. Granny was standing on the stairway, paralyzed with fear. Kelly glanced back at the opening. A mean-looking face was staring back at her.

  “Ha! Ha!” His laugh was cruel. “I got you now, girly.”

  As a big hairy hand reached out to grab her, Kelly threw Tulip in his face. The cat let out a yowl and began scratching.

  The man disappeared from the opening, screaming.

  They heard another man laughing uproariously. “Afraid of a cat, are you, Timmy? Afraid of a little kitty cat?”

  “Get it off o’ me! Get it off o’ me!”

  “Like ya did the rooster that attacked me? Huh, Timmy? Like that rooster? Ha! Ha!” His laughing was suddenly cut short by a grunt.

  Kelly looked around, then grabbed Papa’s hatchet hanging on the wall. The screaming was also silenced. Quietly and clutching the hatchet tightly, Kelly crept up to the opening. A shadow passed in front of the opening.

  Before Kelly could swing, a voice asked anxiously, “Granny, are you and the girl okay?”

  “Homer!” cried Granny, moving forward.

  Kelly held the hatchet in indecision. Suddenly, Homer slumped forward and slid from view. Almost immediately the opening was filled with a man looking very much like the first one had. This time, Kelly did not hesitate, but swung fast and hard.

  The handle of the hatchet caught him on the side of his face and he, too, disappeared from view.

  Kelly scrambled to the opening. She let out a whimper as she saw a huge crowd of men come running from the shore.

  “Kelly!” cried a familiar voice. “Kelly! Where are you?”

  “Tom!” Kelly could not make her voice louder than a whisper. “Tom McKinley.”

  “In here, Tom.” Granny had no trouble shouting. “Oh, thank you, Lord! Help has arrived.”

  Kelly climbed back to the opening. It was the men from the village. Sheriff Morley was in the lead, carrying a light and a heavy stick.

  Kelly saw a shadow move behind him. “Behind you!” she shouted.

  Sheriff Morley swung his stick as he turned, knocking down the man ready to strike him.

  Tom was on top of him instantly. “How many are there?” he asked.

  “There were four,” answered Kelly. “And Homer, he came to save us. Is he okay?”

  “That soldier?” asked Sheriff Morley. The men had reached the lighthouse. “This looks like him. Looks like he took a beating. I told him to wait on us.”

  “It might have been too late if he had,” said Granny. “I think he saved our life.”

  “Is he okay?” asked Kelly, fearfully.

  Right then, Homer groaned. “I think he’ll be okay,” said Sheriff Morley. “We’ll take him in the house where we can see better.”

  “I think these other three are going to live,” said Tom. “Although one’s pretty scratched up.”

  “Three?” cried Kelly. “There should be four, plus Homer.”

  “Search the island!” cried Sheriff Morley. “There’s still one on the loose.”

  Tom reached through the opening. “Can I help you ladies out?”

  When Kelly was placed on her feet outside, she found she almost couldn’t stand. Tom helped her sit down on the grass. “Just take it easy, little one,” he said, soothingly. “You just went through a lot.”

  As soon as Granny was beside her, Kelly hugged her close. “We’re okay, Granny. We’re okay.”

  A shout close to the docks caught their attention. They heard a scuffle, followed by, “We got him, by George! We got him!”

  “Let’s get you into the house,” said Tom.

  Kelly rose and turned toward the house. The door was broken and hung on one hinge. Inside, the house was a wreck. The men were carrying Homer inside. Kelly hurried to put the cushions back on the sofa, noticing they were slashed and the stuffing falling out.

  Granny brought a wet cloth and covered Homer’s huge bump on the back of his head. Then she went back to the kitchen to start some coffee.

  The living room was quickly filling up with men from the village. Kelly sank down in Papa’s chair. Some of the men were strangers. They were talking to Sheriff Morley. The other men started setting the house to rights. Kelly watched them all numbly.

  Sheriff Morley knelt in front of Kelly. The strangers stood on either side. “Kelly, this is Sheriff Windsor and his Deputy Wright from New Freedom, Pennsylvania. They have been working on the Blackburn case for a long time. Can you tell us everything that happened here?”

  Kelly searched the room again. She clutched the sheriff’s hand. “Sheriff, the Blackburns don’t have Papa, and Papa’s not here! Where is Papa, Sheriff? Where is my papa?”

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  The Blackburn Brothers Escape

  “SHERIFF MORLEY, PAPA’S NOT HERE, and the Blackburn brothers don’t have him!” Kelly’s voice rose as she talked. “Where’s Papa, Sheriff? Where is he?”

  “Take it easy, little lady,” Sheriff Windsor knelt in front of Kelly and took hold of her hand. “We’ll look for him. But first, we’ll need to know everything you can tell us about the Blackburn brothers. We’ll need all the clues you can give us. Finding your papa is our priority.”

 

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