Forever and Always (24 page)

“Sibyl is one of several people who've offered to take care of me. I've never found so many wonderful people in one place before.”

“Then they have to know about your money,” Bridgette snapped. “Otherwise why would strangers care about a sick man with distorted features?”

“They care about everyone. A woman I don't even know made beef broth for me. I feel more at home than I ever did in Chicago.”

“This has to be your fever talking,” Bridgette insisted. “Let me give you some of this medicine. It'll make you feel much better.”

“I've already told you I'm not taking any more medicine.”

“You've got to. How do you expect to get well?”

“I don't.”

“This is some new medicine. It will—”

A knock sounded on the door, and Sibyl entered without waiting to be invited. “The doctor said Logan has to rest. You can come back later, but we have to let him get some sleep now.”

“I'll sit with him while he sleeps.”

“I don't think that's a good idea.”

“Well, I happen to think it's the
best
idea.”

A change came over Sibyl. Logan couldn't say exactly what it was, but it was obvious that Sibyl had no intention of giving ground. “I needn't remind you that Logan is very sick and is under a doctor's care. It is the doctor's orders that he rest. Since he's my patient and this is my house, I intend to see that the doctor's orders are followed. If you will not leave voluntarily, I will have you removed.”

Bridgette swung toward Logan. “Are you going to let her talk to me like that?”

Logan suppressed a smile. “It's her house. She can talk any way she wants.”

Bridgette shook with fury. “I'll be back in an hour.”

“It would be better if I send a note to your hotel letting you know when Logan is ready to see visitors.”

Bridgette looked about ready to explode. “I'm his fiancée. I have every right—”

Logan interrupted her. “You are
not
my fiancée. Now go away, and take your medicine with you.”

Bridgette plunked the bottle down on the table next to Logan's bed. “I'll be back. I'm not leaving until I talk some sense into you.” She turned on Sibyl. “You and that
doctor
had better take good care of him. If anything happens to him, I'll see that you pay for it.” With that, she stormed out of the room.

* * *

Sibyl whispered to Logan, “I'll be back,” and followed Bridgette downstairs. Bridgette stopped when she reached the hall and turned to confront Sibyl. “I know what you're trying to do,” she said angrily, “and I won't let you get away with it.”

“I'm trying to see that Logan gets better. That's all I care about.”

“You don't have to pretend with me. I know you're after his money—you and everybody else in this town.”

Sibyl didn't like this woman, but she couldn't repress a shred of sympathy. She couldn't know Bridgette's feelings for Logan, but it had to be difficult to find you were no longer engaged to the man you'd hoped to marry. Even worse, that he might be in love with another woman. “Logan deposited about five hundred dollars in my bank when he came to Cactus Corner. About half of that is gone. There's no money to be after.”

“
Your
bank? A woman can't own a bank.”

“I'm sure it's rare, but I do.”

“What bank?”

“Spencer's Bank. You must have noticed it when you came into town.”

It was clear Bridgette had noticed it, and that she didn't consider it good news. “It can't be a very
big
bank, but I suppose a little place like Cactus Corner is lucky to have even one bank.”

“We have two. My cousins own Community Bank.”

Bridgette suddenly dropped all pretenses of politeness. “Why are you taking care of Elliot? You can't expect me to believe you didn't know he's rich. Did that Pinkerton tell you?”

“I've never seen a Pinkerton. I don't even know what one is, but no one in Cactus Corner thinks Logan is anything other than a very sick man drifting from one place to the next. We've become very fond of him. He's a favorite of the children.”

“Children? Elliot has never been around children in his whole life. He wouldn't know what to say to one.”

Sibyl studied Bridgette a moment before replying. “You don't know Logan very well, do you?”

“Will you stop calling him
Logan
! His name is Elliot. And I've known him all my life. I know everything there is to know about him. And that's more than enough to know he'd never fit in this miserable little town. Elliot is used to going to the theater, to socializing with wealthy and educated men. He's used to beautiful women in elegant gowns and dinner parties with foods you've never heard of.”

“If he's going to die, as he's convinced he will, then all of that means nothing to him.”

“I want him to go back to Chicago so he
won't
die,” Bridgette insisted. “He needs better medical care than he can get here.”

“Everyone in Cactus Corner has complete faith in Dr. Kessling.”

“
Everyone in Cactus Corner
,” Bridgette repeated derisively. “An insignificant little town in the middle of nowhere. We have more doctors in Chicago than you have people.”

“Since Logan refuses to see any doctor, it wouldn't matter if you had twice that many. Now I have to prepare my daughter's lunch. I'll be sure to notify you when Dr. Kessling says Logan is able to see visitors.”

“I will see him before this day is out with or without your permission,” Bridgette stated. “And if you try to stop me, I'll have the law on you.”

“We don't have any official law, but my cousin's husband is the unofficial sheriff.”

Bridgette's expression hardened. “Is there anything in this town you and your family don't control?”

“Quite a lot, but many of us are from a small village in Kentucky. We're very supportive of each other.”

“Chicagoans are also supportive of each other, which is why Elliot needs to go home.”

“That will have to be his decision. Now, I really must see to my daughter's lunch.”

“Make sure to send me a message as soon as Elliot wakes up.”

Sibyl didn't answer, so Bridgette was forced to take her leave.

“Is she gone?” Logan asked when Sibyl entered his room.

“Yes, but she'd be back in an instant if she knew you weren't asleep.”

“How could I sleep knowing Bridgette was downstairs probably filling your ears with lies. I don't know why I ever agreed to marry her. One of my friends jokingly told me she'd probably poison me after the wedding.”

The words were hardly out of his mouth before Sibyl and Logan locked gazes.

“She wouldn't do that,” Logan said. “I made no will so she'd get nothing. No one on my staff would have a reason to do that. Besides, I never got sick from anything I ate or drank. Only after I'd taken one of those pills.”

“Your doctor certainly wouldn't try to poison you,” Sibyl said. “Why did you start taking the pills in the first place?”

“I had been feeling off for a while, probably the consequences of my father's death. We were never separated, and I really missed him. I was working too much and let myself get run down. I went to the doctor because I didn't have time to be sick. I was better for a while, but then I started to get worse. He kept changing my medicine but nothing helped.” He suddenly remembered that the doctor had said it was a shame he couldn't compare his medical history with family members to look for a similar condition. “Do you know if Colby or Jared have ever been sick?”

“They're two of the healthiest men I know. Colby had an Indian arrow in his back. He pulled it out and acted like it never happened. Jared had some war wounds, but he had no trouble recovering from them. Why do you want to know about them?”

Logan hesitated, then decided it was time to stop keeping secrets. “I believe they're my brothers. Colby looks exactly like I remember my real father. You can't tell it now, but he looks a lot like me.”

Sibyl stared at him in disbelief. “Are you sure?”

“As sure as I can be without incontrovertible proof.”

Excitement was added to the shock in her voice. “Have you told them?”

“No. But I didn't come to Cactus Corner by accident. I saw an article in the paper about a Jared Smith who'd been appointed a marshal in the Arizona Territory. It said he'd been born a Holstock. I knew my brother had been named Jared. Having been told I had just a few months to live, I decided to see if he could be my brother. When I saw Colby, I was certain.”

“Then why didn't you say something?”

“I didn't want to be a burden to them just as I don't want to be a burden to you.”

“You're not a burden to me, and you wouldn't be to Colby and Jared. You should have seen them when they found out they were brothers. It's the only time I've ever seen Colby cry.”

“Look at me! Who wants a brother who looks like this? They'll feel guilty about not being able to make me well. Besides, it would be difficult to find a brother only to lose him almost immediately.”

“I don't believe they'll feel that way. Colby has been tending his parents' graves ever since he found them. Jared was looking for his brothers before he was assigned to Camp Verde. I think you ought to tell them. Especially if you don't have a lot of time left. It would be cruel for them to find out after you were gone.”

Logan wasn't sure what to do, and lying here in bed frustrated him. He felt better than he had in a while, but he was still sick. It just didn't seem fair to tell his brothers now. Maybe right before the end would be better. That way they would know but wouldn't have long to deal with his illness.

“I'll think about it. What did you tell Bridgette?”

“I said I'll send her a message when you could see visitors.”

Logan grinned. “I bet she didn't like that.”

“I don't care what she likes. I won't have her badgering you while you're sick. Once you get well, you can have her all to yourself.”

“She just wants me to get well.”

“Then she should be anxious for you to get your rest. I am, too, so I'm going to leave you alone.”

“Not for too long, I hope.”

“If I had my choice, I'd never leave you alone.” She seemed to choke up. When she spoke again, her words were unsteady. “You have to promise you'll do everything you can to get well. I don't know if I can stand to lose you.”

She left the room before Logan could think of anything to say.

* * *

Bridget paced her hotel room like a caged animal. Rage churned through her like steam through a boiler. Nobody was fooling her. Sibyl Spencer was a beautiful woman, exactly the kind of woman a man like Elliot would be attracted to. What man could resist falling in love with his beautiful nurse? Sibyl couldn't fool Bridgette. She didn't know how she'd found out, but that woman knew Elliot was rich. No woman in her right mind, especially not a beautiful one who said she owned a bank, would fall in love with a penniless drifter who looked like Elliot. But how did they find out about the money? Was it from the Pinkerton agent? Had they hired him to investigate
her
?

A momentary panic subsided. She had nothing to hide. James was her doctor and a family friend. It was only natural they would be seen with each other. They had been very careful not to be seen together in public, except at gatherings to which they'd both been invited.

How was she going to make sure Elliot took the medicine? She couldn't force it down his throat. She couldn't put it in his food. She wondered if it might not be better to let him recover. He would surely return to Chicago. This time she wouldn't have to do it gradually. After his prolonged illness, no one would be surprised if he died suddenly.

She flopped down in the chair, then got up immediately. Before she left this hotel, she was going to burn that chair. She walked to the window and looked out. Why would anyone who had lived in Chicago want to come to a place like this? If Sibyl had all the money she pretended to have, she'd have left this miserable town years ago. The streets were nothing but dirt churned up by hooves and wagon wheels. The buildings were pitiful wooden structures that looked like they'd blow over in a strong wind. Children dressed like ragamuffins played in the streets. She doubted the town could boast of anything that could be called a school. Worst of all, there were Indians in the area. Who knew when they might revert to their savage nature and kill everybody in their beds?

She stared at her room in disgust. It wasn't fit for her servants. The uncomfortable bed was covered with a thin quilt that could only be described as rustic by an uncritical person. Bad prints of unrealistic western scenes decorated the plain walls. That ladderback chair and a table with a basin and pitcher were the only other furniture besides a wardrobe that couldn't hold half of the clothes she'd brought with her. Even worse, she'd have to take her meals in what passed for a restaurant. The only good thing about it was that she could recognize the food. That way she could make certain never to put anything like it in her mouth again.

She
had
to convince Elliot to return to Chicago. Then she would be in control rather than Sibyl Spencer.

* * *

Logan was nervous. He'd asked Sibyl to bring Colby and Jared to see him. He had no idea how they would respond to being told he was their brother. He still wasn't sure how he felt about it. In a way, keeping it a secret from them had kept him from fully accepting it. What was he going to do once he'd told them? More importantly, what would they do?

In truth, what was there that could be done other than recognize a relationship that his impending death made virtually meaningless? It was like something that was written down on paper yet would have no effect on their lives. What was he hoping to gain? He was sick and dying, so he couldn't expect to be incorporated into their families. There couldn't be any emotional bonds between men who'd never known each other. They had no shared experiences because their lives had been completely different and lived in different parts of the country.