A Mysterious Lady for the Resolute Sheriff – Extended Epilogue

“Strawberry lemonade as promised,” Eliza said with a warm smile as she handed a glass to her friend, Hannah, seated on the porch. She set her own glass on the table and sat back in her own chair, picking up her embroidery and settling back in for conversation.

Trent had worked hard to add on to Eliza’s cabin after they were married and moved into the same space. He added on to the back of the house, making the living room much bigger and adding on another bedroom. He added onto the porch that was at the front of the house, wrapping it around the front and to the back. One side of the house didn’t have a porch, but it didn’t need it.

There was plenty of room besides.

Eliza spent much of her time out on the porch watching the children play in the grass. Of course, she had to get her work done before she could do anything like that. But, she had learned to be an efficient wife and mother, and she took great care of the house and her children.

It was a beautiful summer day. The gentle breeze kissed the grass, causing it to wave lightly back and forth across the prairie. But, near the house, the grass was short, lush, and inviting.

Hannah wasn’t always able to come visit. She was caring for her own household and children most of the time. But, she still tried to make time to see her friend often enough. She’d put all her children in the buggy and drive it over herself. Ben would mind the field and the animals, making sure all the chores were done outside in preparation for winter.

Eliza was no longer worried about the winters that swept over the territory. With Trent to rely on and good friends in her life, she knew they would always be okay. But, winter was a long way off, and right now she wanted to enjoy her time with her best friend on the porch.

“I can’t believe your strawberries are doing so well this year. We’ve hardly gotten a thing from our bushes, and we’ve been doing all that we can to get them to grow,” Hannah replied as she admired the berries in the glass.

“It’s just a matter of where you plant them. If you have them in too much sunlight they aren’t going to grow like you want,” Eliza replied. “Keep that in mind next year when you put them in the ground.”

“Lord knows we’re going to have to move some of the plants if we ever hope to have any,” she said with a shake of her head. “And the kids love them, so I’m sure we’re never going to be able to keep up with them anyway.”

“Sarah really seems to like them, but the other two are still too young to really have them yet,” Eliza said. She looked over the grass at the children who were crawling and playing with the wildflowers. She and Trent had now been married three years and had three children – two girls and a boy.

Sarah, the oldest, was three years old and sitting in the grass pulling the petals off the flowers she grasped. The twins, Isaac and Isabelle, were two years old and playing with beads on blanket. Eliza kept a close eye on them. They were still quite young to be playing with beads, but they enjoyed looking at the different colors and feeling the different textures.

She had been keeping beads since she was a child. Now, she had a small pouch full of them, all shapes and sizes. Some were shaped like stars, others were round and fine. She even had one that was shaped like a little black cat. That was Isabelle’s favorite.

Hannah had four children, her oldest being Little Benjamin, a boy named for his father, was only a year older than Sarah, and they were becoming fast friends. Her other four children were scattered about, playing and laughing in the sunshine.

“I’ve tried to get Benjamin to eat them, but he’s too busy mashing them and putting them in his hair to really care to put them in his mouth,” Hannah said with a laugh. “But I guess that’s as good a use as any considering how sad they look.”

“I’m telling you it just has to do with where they are planted. The rest of your garden is doing so well,” Eliza tried to encourage her friend. “A lot better than ours is, that’s for sure.”

“Well I can’t imagine you doing this all on your own with the three children,” Hannah said. “At least I have Ben home to help me. You’ve got to work around Trent being in town and somewhere out on the range.”

“It’s not always easy, that’s for sure, but I can tell you that it’s a lot easier of a life than the one I was living before,” Eliza admitted. “He helps when he gets the chance, and I do what I can when the children are down for their naps. They do sleep quite a bit, considering.”

“I wish mine did,” Hannah said with another laugh. “It seems like one of them is always awake, it doesn’t matter what time of day or night it is.”

The two friends shared a laugh and sipped on their lemonade, talking about how much their lives had changed over the past few years. Things had truly changed for Eliza, but she never could fully forget the kind of life she was living before. Especially when Hannah brought it up.

“Have you heard anything about Jacob lately?” she asked suddenly. Hannah knew Eliza’s brother, Jacob, at one point in her life. But, they were never close, and Hannah was never shy about telling her friend how she felt about the man. Eliza, who had been close to her brother when they were younger, was still loyal to him despite the things he had done to her over the years.

Eliza sighed. “I’ve heard a few things about him. I really only hear every now and then. I try to write to him often, but it’s taken him an awful long time to forgive me for all that happened, and I think he’s a little bitter about how it now.”

“Does the prison itself let you know how he’s doing?” Hannah pressed. “I didn’t know if they would do such a thing.”

She took a sip of her lemonade directly after asking the question. She didn’t want to press too hard, but she also knew she wasn’t going to get the answers she was looking for if she didn’t keep asking. It wasn’t information Eliza liked to volunteer, and she certainly didn’t offer any more details than what she had to.

Eliza shook her head. “They might if our relationship was different, but since we are only siblings, they don’t bother to tell me. It’s okay. I understand why he would be angry with me over things. After all, he could have been killed during that entire raid Trent and his men pulled on him that night.”

“It would have been his own fault if he had been. He could have turned himself in long ago. Or, better yet, he could have turned his life around long before it ever came to that. You did, so it isn’t impossible, that’s for sure,” Hannah said with another shake of her head.

She’d long hated how Jacob had treated his sister, and she was glad he was finally caught by the law and locked up in prison. She knew she had to be careful with how harshly she talked about Eliza’s brother, but the two women were also close enough she felt comfortable telling her friend how she felt in no uncertain terms.

“I know he deserved it, but I still wish that things had gone a little better there at the end than they did,” Eliza said.

“He told you that he wanted to kill you!” Hannah replied tartly. “I don’t know what you still see in him. If I were you I would have stopped having any sort of contact with the man a very long time ago. I know I can’t tell you what to do, but I’m going to tell you that it wouldn’t be a bad idea!”

Eliza laughed. “I love how fired up you get about all this. But, he’s my brother, and he was there for me so much when we were kids, I can’t just turn my back on him now, no matter what he’s done.”

“Well, I feel like I have good reason for it!” Hannah huffed. She took a drink of her lemonade to calm down, and Eliza reached over and put her hand on her friend’s knee.

“I appreciate that you are so loyal to me, really I do,” she said.

“Do you know when he’s going to get out?” Hannah asked, changing the subject. There wasn’t any enthusiasm in her tone, and Eliza knew why. Hannah wasn’t looking forward to when it happened. She feared Jacob wasn’t going to change, and as soon as he was out of prison he was going to go back to his old ways.

As a gang leader, Jacob had his run of the country. He was the leader of one of the most notorious gangs in the entire nation, and he knew it. Other gang members as well as many law enforcement officers feared him, and he wasn’t afraid to bully whomever he wanted.

“It’s going to be quite some time still,” Eliza said with a sigh. “He had to go for ten years before they let him go, but I feel like things are going to be  better when he’s out.”

“I hope so,” Hannah said. “I would hate for him to go right back to the way he was.”

“He’s changing,” Eliza assured her.

Hannah cocked her head to the side and gave her friend an inquisitive look. Though the two women were close, they really didn’t talk about Jacob much. Hannah knew that it was something Eliza really wanted to forget at this point. Sure, she might still love her brother and look forward to the day he was let out, but right now, every time the two of them talked about him, things turned back to the past.

“Do tell?” Hannah pressed. She was unable to contain her curiosity. “You know you and Trent are both welcome to come over to our house and stay for a while if you are afraid he might try something.”

Eliza looked at her friend, and Hannah quickly added, “Of course, I know Trent can handle himself and take care of you and the children, but if you really feel like you need to be somewhere he won’t be able to find you right away, you are welcome.”

Eliza laughed. “That is very sweet of you to say, but like I said already, he’s not going to be out for another seven years, and that’s a long time for more to change about him. Though, I think he would be fine if he were to be out even now.”

“Are you sure that’s a good idea, or is that you hoping that your brother is going to change like you have for the past lifetime?” Hannah asked. She saw the look on Eliza’s face, and apologized. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for it to come out that way. I know that you wanted nothing but the best for him, and that’s all I meant.”

“I’ve been there to see him a few times,” Eliza said suddenly. It wasn’t something she had ever told Hannah before, and the look of surprise on her friend’s face told her what Hannah thought. She hadn’t wanted to tell Hannah about it. She knew that Hannah would tell her not to go, or warn her that it might be a bad idea.

Though Eliza herself knew that it was going to be hard, she didn’t want to lose that connection she had with him, and she was willing to travel all the way across the country to New York to make it happen. It was expensive, and the journey was long and slow, so she had only gone three times in the past three years. But, it was enough for her to know how he was doing.

“And what did he say?” Hannah asked with the shocked tone still in her voice. “Did it go well?”

“Like I said. It took a long time for him to forgive me for the things that happened. Especially since he knew that I was the one who had pulled it all off. It didn’t matter to him that Trent was the one who finally arrested him. He was only thinking about how I was the one who made it happen,” Eliza admitted.

She looked down at her long, blonde hair, running her hands over her braids as she spoke. It was a habit she had started when she was expecting her first child, and something that never stopped. Trent often told her he thought it was a cute thing she did, so she didn’t bother to try to change it.

After all, her children liked to play with her hair, too, so why shouldn’t she?

Hannah reached over and patted her friend’s hand but said nothing. Eliza smiled and wiped her eyes, sweeping away the few tears that threatened to spill down her cheeks. She cleared her throat and shook her head. “It’s not that it upsets me so much he felt that way, but I still feel bad that I was the one who betrayed him and got him locked up in jail.”

“You did what was right for you in your life. If you didn’t do something, he was going to keep harassing you and making you work for him in the gang,” Hannah said softly.

“Well, things did start to change a while back,” Eliza said with a smile. “The third time I went over to see him, he actually seemed to be rather happy to see me. He was talking to me and telling me that he’s learning a trade he can use when he gets out.”

“Oh? And what is he going to be doing?” Hannah asked in surprise. Her eyes were wide, but she closed them as she took another sip of her lemonade, careful to not swallow any of the strawberries by accident.

“He’s going to be a carpenter,” Eliza said proudly. It was the first time in her life she could be proud of what her brother was doing, and she was eager to share it with someone who would also be happy with the news. She sat tall and proud in her chair, her shoulders back and her eyes bright.

“That’s great! Is he going to come back here?” Hannah asked. She was visibly relaxed now, seeing that her friend was more willing to talk about her brother and what he was doing in his life.

“I don’t know. We didn’t talk about that. In fact, we still don’t talk much. He will write to me sometimes, and I will write to him, but it’s still hard,” Eliza said. “I don’t know even the next time I’ll be able to go see him.”

“I understand that,” Hannah said. She took a sip of her lemonade, then she looked out at the children. “Benjamin! You stop that!”

Benjamin was playing roughly with Sarah, and it was becoming quickly evident Sarah wasn’t happy with how he was treating her. Benjamin, however, had no intention of listening to his mother, and he pushed Sarah down into the dirt. The little girl tried to keep her balance, but she toppled backward onto the ground.

She wasn’t hurt, but she was startled by the push, and she was frustrated her friend had done such a thing.

Immediately, Sarah started crying, and Eliza set her lemonade down to go retrieve her daughter. Sarah also rose from her chair and quickly followed her friend, eager to make sure the little girl wasn’t hurt, and to tell her son to behave.

“There, there, no harm done. You don’t mind being a little bit dirty, do you? I can clean your frock when we go back into the house, and you will be fresh and clean as ever. Don’t cry then,” Eliza said. She’d knelt down next to her daughter and pulled her back to her feet, and she now gently brushed the dirt off the front of her dress.

The dirt stain streaked the skirt of the dress and her white stockings, and Sarah cried more when she saw how dirty she truly was. Eliza gave her a hug, holding her close and soothing her.

“You’re okay. It’s okay to get dirty sometimes, and you just have to get back up again and keep playing. This is going to happen to you sometimes, and you can’t let it get to you,” she told her daughter. “You are okay. You aren’t hurt now, are you? No, there’s my good girl.”

Sarah was finally starting to settle down in her mother’s arms, but she looked at Benjamin with a scowl. She was clearly angry with him, and she wasn’t afraid to let it show. She buried her face in Eliza’s shoulder, and her mother patted her once more before letting her go and sending her to play with the other children once more.

At the same time, Hannah knelt down next to her own son. “Benjamin! That was such a rude thing to do! You know better than to push anybody, especially a little girl! Look how you’ve made her cry, look at that!”

She pointed to Sarah, and Benjamin pouted. Hannah continued. “You best not do that again. You aren’t going to get into mischief like that, you are going to treat her like a good little boy.”

Hannah then turned her attention to Eliza. “Is Sarah okay?”

“Yes, she’s fine. She’s more upset that she got her dress dirty than what happened,” Eliza assured her.

“Well, that’s not going to change the fact Benjamin needs to apologize. Come here, Benjamin,” Hannah said. She pulled her son by his hand over to Sarah. “You tell Sarah you are sorry. Right now, tell her you are sorry and ask her if she is okay.”

Benjamin stood sullen for a moment, but Hannah refused to give up. “You are going to come sit with me on the porch until you are ready to tell Sarah you are sorry and ask her if she’s okay.”

She started to pull her son toward the house, but Benjamin dug his heels into the grass.

“Sorry!” he shouted before running toward the garden.

“Don’t go far!” Hannah called after him. “You stay where I can see you!”

The two friends exchanged an amused look and shook their heads.

“I can’t believe we’ve gotten to this point in our lives,” Hannah said with a laugh. “To think that you and I are now scolding our children to behave while we are enjoying this beautiful day on your porch.”

“I’m happier than I ever thought I’d be,” Eliza said as she brushed the dust off the front of her dress. The two of them started toward the house together and Eliza laughed.

“What’s so funny?” Hannah asked. She stopped and gave her friend an inquisitive look.

“Just think about it,” Eliza said. “Can you imagine if one day one of your children and one of my children were to fall in love?”

Hannah joined in the laughter. “I’m guessing that it’s not impossible. Then you and I are going to finally be related!”

“Well, you could have married my brother,” Eliza joked, but Hannah wrinkled her nose.

“I am quite happy with Ben, thank you,” she said with a laugh. “Besides, I never got the impression your brother liked me.”

“Or was it you who never liked him?” Eliza teased some more.

“I never did think I wanted to marry an outlaw,” Hannah said as she put her hands on her hips.

“He’s going to be a carpenter, remember?” Eliza giggled.

Hannah shook her head. “You’re impossible. But, I am going to admit that it is quite a miracle.”

“Yes, it truly is,” Eliza agreed. “I never thought the day would come when he would get on the right side of the law and work for himself.”

“It hasn’t happened yet,” Hannah said, and her friend shot her a look.

“Have some faith in him,” she said. “We do.”

Hannah once more didn’t bother to hide how surprised she was. “We?”

“Of course. There are more than just me who are rooting for him,” Eliza said as they both sat down.

Hannah made herself comfortable and picked up her lemonade once more. The children were back to playing quietly on the grass, and the two of them could relax for the moment.

“I’m assuming you’re meaning Trent?” she asked.

Eliza shifted in her seat. “Trent thinks that there is hope for everyone, and that includes my brother.”

“Fair enough,” Hannah said. “So how does he feel about the prospect of your brother getting out one of these days, and the fact you and he are still in touch?”

“Trent isn’t thrilled with the idea, but at the same time, he doesn’t mind it, either. He’s not going to be friends with Jacob, that’s for sure. But again, he gives everyone a chance, and he knows Jacob is my brother and that’s not going to change,” Eliza said.

“He’s a good man,” Hannah said with a smile. “You’re very lucky.”

Eliza beamed. She knew how lucky she was, though it was hard at times. She didn’t realize a clouded expression swept over her face until her friend patted her on the hand once more.

“It’s okay to admit that it’s hard sometimes,” Hannah assured her. “I can’t imagine what it must be like to have your husband out there fighting outlaws and criminals when you are here with the children.”

Eliza nodded and took a drink of her lemonade to keep from having to answer right away. She forced a smile when she turned back to her friend and smoothed her hair back before replying.

“I’m just worried about him, you know? It’s not just that he’s not here all the time, it’s more that something might happen,” Eliza said.

“What’s this talk about something happening to me?” Trent asked, surprising them both. He had gotten home from work and put his horse in the barn before coming through the house to the back porch. “I’m okay out there.”

He bent down and gave Eliza a kiss before greeting Hannah and taking a seat with his own glass of lemonade.

He was sweaty and looked tired, but he always had a bright and cheerful smile for his family, especially for his wife. The moment he walked through the door Eliza’s heart skipped a beat, and she wanted to jump out of her chair and throw herself into his arms.

But, with Hannah sitting on the porch with them, she knew she should behave herself better than that. Best friend or not, Hannah was a guest, so she had to act like the hostess she was. Refined and a lady. Regardless of her past, from now on she would forever act like a lady.

“Of course you are,” Eliza said, but she still looked worried. Trent knew there were many times in his wife’s life she would pretend she wasn’t really as worried as she truly was, and he smiled before taking a long drink of the lemonade.

“Oh, your lemonade always hits the spot, right where I need it after a long day at work. I know it’s not the most fun thing in the world for you to have to shoulder, but you both know that it’s just my line of work. That’s all. I’m fine when I’m out there, and when I’m not, I’m even better,” he said with a grin.

“Don’t try to act like your work is over now,” Eliza said with a laugh. She put her hand on her husband’s knee and grinned at him. “A sheriff’s work is never done.”

“Well it’s done for today, and now I’m going to sit here with you two lovely ladies and help watch over that extensive brood,” he said as he sipped his drink. He looked out over the yard as he spoke and smiled. Eliza’s heart swelled with pride. She always felt on top of the world when her husband was near, but she was even happier when he saw their children.

To think that the two of them had created such beautiful beings together made her feel like the most important person in the world, and she couldn’t have been happier.

“It looks like the twins are having some fun,” Trent said with a smile. “I can’t believe how big the two of them are getting. Yours too, Hannah.”

“They certainly do grow up too fast,” Eliza said. She spoke wistfully as she looked across the grass at her daughter toddling about. Sarah might only be three years old, but she already seemed to be so big to Eliza. She often thought about the first time she held her first child, and now there Sarah was, walking around and picking the flowers, having fun in her own thoughts and happiness.

But, it wasn’t long before Hannah chimed in with her own opinion.

“Or sometimes not fast enough,” Hannah remarked and they all laughed. “I don’t really know what to say when Ben tells me he wants more. If that man has his way, he’s going to have a clan before too long. I wonder if he’s thought about how he’s going to feed all those mouths.”

She spoke as though she was talking to herself, but both Trent and Eliza laughed with her anyway. Eliza always liked to hear Hannah talk about Ben. Of course, the two were very happily married and best of friends on top of lovers, but the way Hannah talked about her husband sounded as though she was always annoyed.

Ben, too, would join in with the teasing and the banter, and having the two of them over at the house together was a great time. Eliza promised herself she would have her friend and her entire family come over for dinner sometime soon.

“I’m amazed every day at how much they change,” Trent said with a satisfied grin on his face. “Of course, these are just the start of a much larger family.”

“Oh is it?” Eliza asked with a gleam in her eye. There was a hint of a blush on her cheeks, but she was doing her best to hide it with Hannah sitting next to her. She didn’t want her friend to see how embarrassed she was, but it was clear Hannah didn’t miss it. Hannah, however, didn’t want to embarrass her friend further and changed the subject.

“So what are you planning to do with that fine looking calf you have out there in the corral?” she asked as she turned to Trent. “He’s not come right out and said it, but I know Ben’s been keeping his eye on it.”

Trent laughed, but before he was able to answer, another voice filled the air.

“Sheriff! Sheriff! What the heck, Trent? Where are you?” Andy came bursting through the house and onto the porch. He glanced around and nodded to both the women. “Ladies.”

Andy, Trent’s deputy, had grown to become a familiar face around the house, but Trent still treated him as a deputy, even when they weren’t working. Though Eliza wanted to treat him as a guest, Trent always had Andy treat her as though she was a queen. Of course, Andy didn’t mind. He thought the world of Eliza, just like the rest of the town.

“What’s going on, Andy? You should know better than running through my house like a madman. Why don’t you pull up a chair and get yourself a glass of lemonade,” Trent said as he stretched his feet out on the porch in front of him.

Andy shook his head and pointed behind him. “I wish I could, but there’s no time for that, Boss. There’s been another robbery at the bank in town, and they think the men headed East. If you and I ride that way, we might be able to intercept them.”

Trent took a gulp of his lemonade and rose, giving Eliza a look as he headed for the door.

“I love you,” he said.

“I love you, too,” Eliza replied with a smile and a shake of her head.

He winked before darting after Andy into the house, and within minutes they heard the two men riding through the barnyard and heading toward the wide open prairie. Trent didn’t hesitate when he was on his horse, Red. He would press that animal as fast as he could go until he finally brought the men into justice.

Trent had a reputation, he was a legend, and anyone who dared to break the law anywhere near his town was going to face the consequences. No one got away with a crime, and justice was always served. Sheriff Dobson made sure of that.

She knew he not only had to go, but that he wanted to go. He said that it was just his job, but she knew it was a lot more than that. His work was his passion, and though his family was his life, he would take to the prairie after an outlaw every time he could.

After all, she was married to the sheriff of Greystone, and her life was better than she could ever have imagined.

And nothing could touch her in her happiness.

THE END

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