Page 57 of A Steadfast Heart
Merritt shook her head. “He checks to see where you are every few minutes. Maybe seconds.”
Kaitlyn’s heart skipped a beat. Could Merritt be right? She snuck a glance back at Drew. Sure enough, he was still looking her direction, and Tillie was nowhere near.
Danna cleared her throat. “That dress Tillie’s wearing is adorable.”
Danna and Merritt had planted themselves next to Kaitlyn and weren’t moving, daring anyone to say an unkind word. “I made over one of Jo’s old dresses. Tillie does love pink.” And even a couple of years ago, Jo probably hadn’t, since the dress showed no wear at all.
“I knew you’d made it,” Danna said. “I know every ready-made item at the general store. I’m hopeless with a needle.”
“But not with a badge.”
Danna shrugged. “We each have our skills. It’s a good thing my husband can cook, or we’d starve.”
Kaitlyn scanned the area near them. No one close enough to hear. She lowered her voice. “Have you heard anything from my brother? Or found out if he contacted any other marshals?”
Danna shook her head. Apprehension churned Kaitlyn’s stomach. If Michael hadn’t contacted anyone else, he probably knew where she was. It had been a week. Had he arrived secretly? Hidden in a nearby town?
Danna laid a hand on Kaitlyn’s shoulder. “Let me worry about him. My job is protecting my town. And my friends.”
Friend.
Danna called herfriend. Kaitlyn’s stomach settled a bit. Danna wouldn’t run from trouble, unlike Kaitlyn’s society friends back in St. Louis.
Merritt looked toward Drew, who was still watching the three of them. Then she looked back at Kaitlyn, her lips quirking. “Yeah, you let Danna handle Michael. You need to focus on teaching my cousin a full smile now that he has the half smile down pat.”
They were right, of course.
Still, Kaitlyn found herself trying to locate each of her charges. David stood out by the wagons with some other boys. Ed had Tillie’s hand.
Jo. Where was Jo?
Kaitlyn scanned the yard a couple of times before she found a cluster of girls near the back of the church. Was Jo there? “Excuse me. I’d better check this out.” She made her way toward the knot of girls. They were surrounding someone. Kaitlyn picked up her pace.
“You stole it. You must have. Your family doesn’t have money to waste trying to make you look pretty.”
Kaitlyn winced. No doubt who that bit of meanness was aimed at. Sure enough, a break in the group revealed Jo standing in the middle, her hand clutched around the end of her braid. “It was my ma’s.”
“Was not. I lost it at school last week. Give it back to me. Ribbons look stupid with pants anyway.” The girl tried to pull Jo’s hand from her braid, but Jo clutched it tight, her other elbow landing squarely in the girl’s midsection.
“Ouch.” The girl stepped back from Jo and rubbed her stomach.
Kaitlyn stopped next to them. “Girls, I’m so glad to see you. I was hoping to invite some of Jo’s friends out to the ranch for a visit. We could play some games.”
The ringleader of the girls sniffed. “My friends live in town, not out in the country.” She spun around and flounced off, the two other girls following in her wake.
Jo stared at her, anger glittering in her eyes. “Why didn’t you tell them the ribbon was my ma’s?”
“Because they already knew it. You didn’t think she really lost a ribbon just the same color, did you?”
Jo shook her head. “If you knew they were lying, why didn’t you say so?”
“In Proverbs, it says, ‘A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.’ I thought it was worth a try.”
“I want to stir up anger with them. They called me a thief!”
“Well, in another verse it says to treat your enemy kindly, and in doing so you’ll heap burning coals on his head.” Kaitlyn paused. “Um, that means make him even madder. It isn’t literal.”
“I wish it was. They’d look good dancing away from coals. Next time, don’t help me.” Jo pulled the precious ribbon off the end of her braid and stuffed it into her pocket, then she stalked off and sat on the church steps. Kaitlyn smothered a sigh. She’d been so happy that Jo had worn the ribbon Kaitlyn had removed from one of Amanda’s skirts. One step forward and two steps back seemed to characterize their relationship. But Jo needed some time to cool off, and finding a place to sit by herself was better than brawling with the other girls.
