Kelly's Search for Family, page 7
Kelly looked into Sheriff Windsor’s gentle, brown eyes and felt reassured. Beginning on the evening two days ago when she had first spotted the black sloop, Kelly began to tell them everything. She told the sheriff how the first two that came had asked for her papa and demanded a ring.
“Do you have any idea what ring they were after?” asked Sheriff Windsor.
Kelly glanced around the room filled with men drinking coffee and listening to the story.
Sheriff Windsor followed her glance and changed his question. “Where were you and Granny when they came? Were you here in the house?”
“I beg your pardon, Sheriff,” interrupted Tom McKinley. “If you don’t need the rest of us, we’ll head on out.”
Kelly realized Tom had caught on that she didn’t want to talk about the ring in front of everyone. She quickly rose to thank the men for coming to their rescue and straightening the house. She noticed someone had securely fastened the door again.
“We’ll take that stranger with us.” Tom motioned to Homer, asleep on the sofa.
Kelly wondered if he was asleep or unconscious. He had taken quite a beating.
“Leave him,” Granny ordered. “I trust Homer completely. And he shouldn’t be moved.”
After the men left, only Sheriff Morley from Stone Haven and Sheriff Windsor and Deputy Wright remained.
Kelly told them about the baby quilt and the ring she found.
“May I see the ring?” asked Deputy Wright.
“You can trust him,” assured Sheriff Windsor. “His pa was a jeweler. He can tell you if the ring is genuine or fake.”
Kelly hurried up to the light. A tiny meowing reminded her of the kittens. “Where is Tulip?” Kelly wondered out loud. “The last I saw her was when I threw her at that awful man. What if he hurt her?” Kelly checked on the light, scooped up the box of kittens and the quilt, and hurried downstairs.
“Where is Tulip?” Kelly tried to keep the panic out of her voice as she rushed into the living room. “Has anyone seen Tulip?”
“Who is Tulip?” asked Sheriff Morley.
“The kittens’ mama,” said Kelly, as she set the box of hungry kittens on the floor.
“Wouldn’t be a big orange and white cat, would it?” asked Deputy Wright, putting his cup of coffee down. “’Cause she wanted to follow me inside in the worst way, and I didn’t let her.” He walked to the door and opened it as he talked.
Tulip bounded inside and rushed over to her mewling kittens. Kelly laughed. She was so relieved Tulip was safe.
“Sorry,” Deputy Wright looked sheepish. “Guess I didn’t realize you had a house cat.”
“She’s not really.” Kelly explained about the storm that brought the cat inside in the first place, then about the kittens, and last of all how she used Tulip as a defense against one of the Blackburn brothers.
Deputy Wright smiled. “So Tulip is a hero cat? And here I didn’t want to let her inside. Shame on me!”
“Two of them had scratches all over their face,” said Sheriff Morley. “What happened to the other one?”
Kelly laughed. “One of those bad men tried to kill Petunia.”
“A cat?” asked Sheriff Windsor. “They wanted to kill a cat?”
“No, a hen. One of our chickens.”
“Ah! He wanted a chicken dinner.” Sheriff Windsor’s brown eyes twinkled. “Then what happened? Did Tulip attack him?”
“No, Bandit the rooster did!”
The men laughed. “You have quite some guard animals around here,” said Deputy Wright. “Guess you don’t need our protection.”
“The animals!” Kelly suddenly remembered them. She rose quickly. “They haven’t been fed since—”
“Since a few minutes ago.” Sheriff Morley finished her sentence. “The men from Stone Haven took care of them.”
“And I took care of the milk an’ eggs,” Granny said.
“About that ring . . .” Sheriff Windsor reminded Kelly.
Kelly snatched up the baby quilt and found the corner the ring was hidden in. “Oh, I left my scissors upstairs.”
“Use this,” Deputy Wright handed her a knife.
Kelly carefully pulled the stitches out and removed the ring. It sparkled in the lamplight. She handed it to the deputy.
He held it closer to the light, and then let out a low whistle. “I’d say it’s genuine. And what a ring it is! The center stone is amethyst ,and the surrounding stones are diamonds. I’m not entirely sure, but it looks like the real thing. If it is, it’s very valuable. It looks like an heirloom, too.”
“Did your papa ever talk about a ring, Kelly?” asked Sheriff Windsor.
Kelly shook her head. “Not to me. I didn’t even know he wasn’t my birth father until the night before he left. But, Granny, you told me he gave the Blackburns’ sister a ring.”
“Oh, yes,” Granny said. “He were engaged to their sister. When she found out Lester was responsible for a baby, she threw the ring back at him. It was the same day he discovered the hidden factory the Blackburns were running with stolen slaves.”
“Ah, yes,” Sheriff Windsor said. “I remember. He turned them in, but didn’t wait for us. And it’s a good thing, too. If I remember correctly, they emptied the factory of everything except slaves and set it on fire. He rescued a lot of slaves.”
“One of the slaves was me,” said Granny. “It were the second time he saved my life.” Her hands were trembling as she recalled the horrible day.
Kelly hugged her. “I’m so glad, Granny. What would I do without you?”
“The Blackburn brothers were recently released from prison. And their sister Silver, I think is her name. She managed to spend all the money they had, including all her late husband’s money. A lot of people suspect Silver was responsible for her husband’s death. But we can’t prove anything.”
“Anyway,” continued Sheriff Windsor, “they are almost destitute. Although I doubt they got anything honestly. They have become desperate.”
“And they knew about Papa’s ring,” added Kelly.
“’Twas all my fault,” said a voice weakly.
“Oh, Homer,” Granny hurried to his side. “You’re awake.”
Homer held up his hand. “I was eaten with guilt and wanted to make things right as much as I could. I followed Kelly’s papa’s trail to New Freedom and met the Blackburn brothers. I led them right to you. I’m sorry.” He sank back with a groan.
A hammering on the door kept anyone from answering. Sheriff Morley hurried to see who it was. Tom McKinley stumbled inside. His face was bruised and bleeding. He struggled to catch his breath.
Sheriff Morley led him to a chair. “What is it, Tom? What happened?”
“The Blackburn boys,” he panted. “Escaped. Coming . . . this way.” Then Tom passed out.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Betrayed
KELLY RUSHED TO TOM’S SIDE. “Help me get him to Papa’s bed.”
“No! No!” argued Homer. “Put him here on the sofa.” He struggled to his feet.
Sheriff Morley reached out to steady him. “Nonsense! You need the sofa. You can’t even stand. We’ll take Tom to Lester’s bedroom.”
As Sheriff Windsor and Deputy Wright lifted Tom, he came to and shooed them away. “I’m fine,” he said. They helped him to Papa’s rocker instead. He leaned back and closed his eyes.
After pushing Homer back down on the sofa, Sheriff Morley went to inspect the door.
Kelly followed him anxiously. “What are we going to do?” she asked.
“Sit tight and pray, I guess,” answered Sheriff Morley. “I’m glad that whoever fixed this door knew what they were doing. With that piece of steel they used, it’s stronger than ever.”
“There are three of us men trained for situations like this,” Sheriff Windsor tried to reassure them.
“But there are four of them,” Granny reminded them. “Kelly and I aren’t much help.”
“There are five of them,” Tom said.
Sheriff Windsor turned to him. “Tell us everything.”
“One of your deputies was a traitor,” Tom told Sheriff Windsor.
“Deputy Longmont,” murmured Deputy Wright. “I never trusted him.”
Sheriff Windsor turned sharp brown eyes on Wright. “Explain yourself.”
“I can’t,” answered Wright. “That’s why I didn’t mention it. There was just something about him.”
Windsor sighed as he ran his hand through his graying hair. “You should have said something. Your instinct can sometimes save a life. Never ignore your instinct.”
“It might be God telling you something,” added Granny.
“I think the others called him Longmont,” confirmed Tom.
“I’m so sorry,” Wright looked so contrite and worried that Kelly felt sorry for him.
“What happened, Tom?” asked Morley.
“I’m not sure,” Tom said. “When we reached land, we heard a ruckus from the prisoners and the deputies. Then I noticed they were cut loose. I hurried over to help the deputies. But most of the men were ahead of us and had already left for home. The few of us that were left were no match for them. Some of your men were badly hurt before we even got there. I knew I had to come warn you.”
Kelly said, “I’m going to lock the barn doors and the shed.”
“No, you won’t,” said Deputy Wright. “That’s my job.”
“I’ll go with you,” Kelly said. “You don’t know your way around.”
Wright grabbed a lantern, and they hurried out to the barn. Kelly quickly checked to see that all the animals were inside and unhurt.
Wright found some boards, nails, and a hammer and reinforced all the doors. “It won’t be easy to open them again,” he admitted. “But we’ll be safer in the meantime.”
“What if we need to escape?” asked Kelly.
“I hope it won’t come to that.” Wright looked thoughtful. “Do you think I should take the boards down?”
Kelly shook her head. “Hopefully it won’t come to that. I want to check on the light before we go inside.”
“I’ll come, too,” said Wright. “Can you see all over the island from up there?”
“Not quite,” answered Kelly. “There are a few blind spots.”
When they reached the top, Kelly was surprised to see it was snowing. “It looks like a blizzard. I’d better start the fog horn.”
“Do you have to?” asked Wright. “If they are looking for the island, the fog horn will lead them right here.”
“I have to,” Kelly explained. “It would be too dangerous for the other ships. We’ll just need to pray for God to keep us safe.”
Wright nodded. “What can I do to help?”
When they were finished and back in the house, they found Granny had a hot supper waiting for them. “I heard you started the fog horn,” she said.
“Yes, we’re having a blizzard. Are all the windows boarded shut?”
“Some of the fishermen from Stone Haven said a big one was moving in,” Morley said. “And so they boarded all the windows before they left.”
“One problem with that,” said Windsor. “We won’t see trouble until it’s upon us.”
“It would be hard to see through the dark and the storm anyway,” said Morley. “We’ll uncover some in the morning.”
“I’m guessing anyone that didn’t make it to the island before the storm hit won’t make it tonight,” said Tom. “It was pretty rough when I came.”
“Supper’s ready,” said Granny. “Shall we eat?”
At the table the men seemed to make a special effort to keep the conversation cheerful. When there was a lull in the conversation, Kelly asked, “Homer, did you know my father and mama?”
“Sure did.” Homer’s face became thoughtful. “Your mama was the prettiest girl in the world.”
“And I look just like her, don’t I?” Kelly teased.
Homer laughed, and the rest of the men chuckled. “You look a lot like her, but you also look a bit like your father. Your mama had an inner beauty that shone through. She loved the Lord and people.”
“Even slaves,” added Granny, softly.
“Especially slaves,” said Homer. “She had a heart for the less fortunate. In the end, that is what drove us apart. As children, we were the best of friends. As adults, I listened to my pa. He treated slaves like animals. It turned me into a horrible man. A horrible man who did horrible things. I saw some horrible things in the war. But that was no excuse for what I did and for the man I became. I became a murdering drunk.
“After that awful night, Kelly, after I realized what I had done, I was seldom sober. I could not live with myself. I felt I had no right to live. Several years ago, a man found me in the middle of the road. I was so drunk. I was unconscious, badly beaten, and almost to the point of death. That man loaded me in his hand cart and took me home to his little shack in the woods. There, he nursed me back to life.
“That man was a saint. When I cried out for whiskey, he gave me herbs to calm me. When I had temper tantrums, he read the Bible to calm me. He was always there for me. Finally, I told him everything. I told him I had killed an angel and was not worth his time. He read the Bible to show me how I can be forgiven if I repent. He never, ever, gave up.
“He was a colored man, Kelly. A colored man with a heart of pure gold led me back to the Lord. He used to live on your mama’s plantation, he said. As a young man, he was sold away from his wife and family. This was the first time he was back in the area.”
Granny’s face paled. “Did he give you his name?”
“He did,” answered Homer. “It was a fitting name. John Worthy.”
“My husband,” Granny gasped. “He is alive! After all these years, he is alive!”
Suddenly, there was a loud pounding on the door. “Don’t open it!” said Tom.
“It might be someone in trouble,” said Sheriff Morley.
“It might be Papa!” said Kelly.
The pounding increased. Sheriff Windsor quickly ordered everyone where to stand and what to do if it proved to be trouble. After everyone was in position, Sheriff Windsor pulled the door open.
A snow-covered man tumbled inside. He lifted his hands, shouting, “I’m a friend! I’m a friend!”
“Deputy Longmont!” Windsor and Wright said in unison.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
The Crooked Deputy
“SHERIFF WINDSOR!” EXCLAIMED LONGMONT. “AM I ever glad to see you! Those Blackburn boys—”
“Save it,” interrupted Sheriff Windsor. “And keep your hands up. You’re under arrest.” He kept his gun pointed at Longmont.
“Me? Under arrest?” Longmont pretended to be shocked. “B-but I’m one of your deputies.”
“Were,” corrected Sheriff Windsor. “You were one of my deputies. Right now, you’re under arrest. Tie him up, Deputy Wright.”
Suddenly, Longmont saw Tom sitting in Papa’s rocker. Realizing Tom had beaten him here made Longmont’s face turn white. Deputy Wright tied Longmont securely to a chair.
“Now, what were you saying about the Blackburn boys?” asked Sheriff Windsor.
Longmont’s eyes shifted between Tom’s and Sheriff Windsor’s several times. “I don’t know what that guy told you,” Longmont finally said. “But I’m guessing it was all lies, or I wouldn’t be tied up.”
“Don’t worry about what anyone else said,” said Sheriff Windsor. “I want to know what happened, according to you.”
Longmont blinked rapidly several times, and then began. “When we reached the mainland, I was just securing the boat, when someone hit me over the head from the back. When I finally came to again, my knife and my gun were gone. One of the guys from the village said the Blackburn brothers had escaped. I grabbed the first boat I found, and I came to warn you as quickly as possible. O-oh! My head hurts.”
Sheriff Windsor got up and roughly rubbed his hands over Longmont’s head.
“Hey! Stop!” protested Longmont. “What do you think you’re doing?”
“Checking for bumps and bruises,” answered Windsor. “You don’t have any. There is no way you could have remained unconscious that long. Unlike Tom here; it’s obvious he has taken a beating. And he still managed to beat you here. Plus, I’m sure we have other witnesses like Deputies Jamieson and Kittner. What happened to them? Tom says they took quite a beatin’. I’m warning you, if you come up with another wild tale instead of a full confession, it will not go well for you. What made you decide to cut the Blackburn brothers loose?”
Longmont refused to answer.
After a while, Sheriff Windsor said, “Well, boys, it looks like our prisoner is not going to try to redeem himself, so I suggest we throw him outside in the blizzard. You want to give me a hand, Sheriff Morley?”
“Sure will.” Morley and Windsor both grabbed the chair Longmont was tied to.
“I’ll talk! I’ll talk!” cried Longmont.
“One chance,” growled Windsor, “and if we suspect any falsehoods, out the door you go.”
“Sheriff, you know I don’t make much money as deputy,” began Longmont. At Windsor’s glare, he quickly continued. “I have this girl, you know. And I was gonna buy her a pretty ring, but I don’t have enough money. Anyway, these Blackburn boys were telling me that they’d give me a thousand dollars and an expensive ring if I cut them loose. The one said he had the ring in his back pocket, and he’d show it to me if I cut him loose. He said it was real pretty with purple in the center and diamonds all around it.”
“He said they were being accused of something they never done, and they just wanted a chance to prove themselves. They just came here friendly-like to talk to the lighthouse keeper. The lighthouse keeper stole something from them, you know. And they have a dying mother at home. So what could I do?”
“You cut them loose,” Sheriff Windsor sighed.
“Well, yeah. What else could I do?”
“And did you get your ring and the thousand dollars?” asked Windsor.
