Do Not Forsake Me(145)
Randy nodded. “I’ve seen that Jake.” She turned away and went to sit down on the bed. Dixie stared at the bed, feeling suddenly uncomfortable. So, this was Jake’s bedroom.
“Mrs. Harkner, I have to ask…how did your surgery go?”
Randy wiped at tears. “Good. I’m fine. There was no cancer.”
Dixie breathed a sigh of relief. “Oh, I’m so glad! Jake would be so lost without you. If anything happened to you, I’m not sure he wouldn’t turn one of those guns on himself. It just broke my heart to see how bad he was hurting that night he came to me. Can you beat that? He can face down fifteen men with those guns and it doesn’t scare him a bit…but losing you? That terrifies him. And I gotta say, for a man who grew up unloved, he sure knows how to love back. That little boy I brought here with me, Jake already loves him…treats him like his own kid. I brought him here to tell you about him so’s you’d be prepared. Whether Jake comes back or not, he’d expect you to take and love that boy.”
Randy motioned for her to sit down in a nearby rocker. “Who is he? Why would Jake expect me to take him in?”
Dixie sat down, removing her gloves. “I won’t need to explain once I tell you how he found him.” She looked Randy over. “Are you all right? I mean, am I wearing you out? You can lie down if you want. I don’t mind. Maybe I should leave now.”
“No. Please stay. I’m fine. In two more days I’ll have stitches taken out, and everything is healing well. I just still get tired easily. Tell me about that boy out there.”
“His name is Ben Perry. After Jake left my place and headed for Hell’s Nest, he came upon the kid being…beat…with a belt.”
Randy closed her eyes. “Dear God.”
“Yeah, you can imagine what that must have done to him. Jake dropped him off at my place on his way to Guthrie, and he was in such a hurry he didn’t have time to explain much more than that. But I’ve talked with Ben since then, and the kid told me that Lloyd had a hell of a time stopping Jake from beating the kid’s pa to death with the same belt once he got it away from him. It was pretty bad, I guess, and Jake fell against a shovel and cut that handsome face pretty bad. I saw the cut. I have a feeling that once it’s totally healed, it won’t much mess up his looks, but it looked real bad the day he stopped at my place. Lord knows men don’t come much more handsome than Jake…except maybe that son of yours.”
Randy wiped at her eyes. “It must have been horrible for him…seeing that man beating on the boy.”
“Well, the way little Ben tells it, his pa said for Jake to go ahead and take him…said he didn’t want him. Jake—he knows that feeling of not being wanted, I reckon’. It must have broke his heart, so he took the boy. Apparently he wants to keep him, Mrs. Harkner, raise him as his own and love him like he ought to be loved. The boy was a real mess when Jake dropped him off—terrible welts all over his body. He’s a real good boy, very polite, kind of lost. He’s scared Jake won’t come back. I told him I figured you were kind enough that if you can’t keep him yourself, you’d make sure he was with real good people who would love him.”
Randy pulled a handkerchief from the pocket of her robe and blew her nose, then wiped at her eyes. “Of course I will.” She sighed and stood up, walking to a window. “I’m glad you came, Dixie, so I’d know what to expect. If Jake makes it through this, it’s still going to be hard for him. He’s very good at blaming himself for everything bad that happens to his family.” She turned to meet Dixie’s gaze. “But Evie—she will find a way to help him. No matter what has happened to her, she’ll be concerned about Jake instead of herself. She’ll never let Jake take the blame for any of this.”
Dixie nodded. “I hope she can manage that, and I hope with all my heart he makes it back, Mrs. Harkner, all in one piece, with your daughter and grandson in tow, as well as your son, of course. I saw a lovely redheaded woman headed across the street earlier—came from this house. Might that be Lloyd’s new wife?”
“Yes. Her name is Katie. And she’s a strong, brave young woman. She has already lost one husband and a child. Stephen has taken to her like the mother he needs, and she’s going to be a perfect wife for Lloyd. She even held off some of those outlaws when they raided the town. When one of them came through the bedroom door, she shot him with a rifle. Isn’t that something?”
“It sure is! She’s the kind of wife Lloyd needs, just like you’re the kind of wife Jake needs. He told me once that you shot a couple of men yourself, back when you went with Jake to rescue Lloyd from some gang of outlaws up in outlaw country in Wyoming. I’m surprised he took you with him.”