None whatsoever, Marshal. He’s all yours. They dragged Burnett to his feet and clapped him in irons.
The man who’d terrorized an entire territory for over a decade looked suddenly small and pathetic, his fine clothes soaked with snow, his face twisted with impotent rage. This isn’t over, he spat at Eli. I have connections, friends in high places, you’ll regret.
I regret a lot of things, Eli interrupted quietly, but stopping you isn’t one of them. Dawkins hauled Burnett toward his horse. I’ll need statements from everyone involved.
Official depositions. This is going to be a long process. However long it takes, Clara said stepping up beside Eli.
We’ll be here. Dawkins studied her face for a moment, then nodded with something like respect. Mrs. Whitfield, I’m sorry about your husband.
From what I’ve heard he was a brave man. He was. Clara’s voice didn’t waver.
And he didn’t die for nothing. The crowd parted as Dawkins led Burnett away. The man’s protests faded into the distance, swallowed by the vast silence of the winter morning.
And then it was over. Clara sagged against Eli, her strength finally giving out. He caught her, held her, felt the tremors running through her body as the tension of the past days finally released.
We did it, she whispered. We actually did it. You did it.
Eli pressed his lips to her hair. You and Thomas. I just helped finish what he started.
Don’t. Clara pulled back to look at his face. Don’t diminish what you did.
You could have ridden away, any sane man would have. But you stayed. You fought.
You almost died for us. Almost doesn’t count. It counts to me.
Clara’s hands cupped his face. It counts to Lily and Rosie. It counts to everyone in this town who’s going to wake up tomorrow without Silas Burnett’s boot on their necks.
Eli’s throat tightened. Clara. I love you.
The words stopped his breath. I know it’s too fast. I know we barely know each other.
I know there are a thousand reasons why this is crazy. Clara’s eyes were bright with tears. But I love you, Eli Mercer.
I love the man who walked through fire to save a horse because he couldn’t bear to let us lose one more thing. I love the man who faced down seven killers because two little girls asked him to be their daddy. I love the man who ran toward trouble instead of away from it because he finally found something worth running toward.
Eli couldn’t speak. Three years of grief. Three years of running.
Three years of telling himself he’d never feel anything again. And now this woman was standing in front of him offering him everything he’d lost and everything he’d been afraid to hope for. I don’t deserve this, he managed.
I don’t deserve you or those girls or any of it. Maybe not. Clara smiled through her tears.
But you’ve got us anyway. If you want us. If I want you.
Eli’s voice cracked. Clara, I’ve wanted nothing else since the moment your daughters grabbed my boot and asked me to stay. I just, I was afraid.
Afraid I’d fail you the way I failed Sarah and Hope. Afraid I’d get you killed trying to be something I’m not. You’re not anything you’re not.
You’re exactly what you are. A good man who’s been through hell and came out the other side still fighting. Clara pressed her forehead to his.
That’s all I need. That’s all we need. Mama.
They turned to find Lily and Rosie standing behind them, their small faces uncertain but hopeful. Agnes Miller stood a few feet back, her expression soft with something that might have been satisfaction. Is it over? Lily asked.
Did we win? Clara knelt and opened her arms. We won, baby. We won.
The girls rushed into her embrace and Clara gathered them close, tears streaming down her face. Eli stood apart suddenly, unsure of his place in this moment that belonged to them. Then Rosie looked up.
Her ancient eyes found his, and she reached out one small hand. Come here, she said simply. You’re part of us now.
Eli’s legs nearly gave out. He knelt in the snow and let the girls pull him into their embrace. Lily’s arms wrapped around his neck.
Rosie’s hand found his and squeezed with surprising strength. And Clara. Clara was there too, her arms encircling all of them, her tears wet against his cheek.
Daddy Eli, Lily whispered. I knew you’d stay. I knew it.
The word hit him like a thunderbolt. Daddy. Not Mr. Not Mr. Mercer.
Daddy. I’m staying, he said his voice rough with emotion. I’m not going anywhere.
Ever. Promise. Eli looked at Rosie at those knowing eyes that had seen him coming before he even knew he was lost.
I promise. Rosie smiled. Good.
Because I already drew the picture. She pulled a crumpled piece of paper from her coat pocket and pressed it into his hand. It was a drawing.
Simple childish strokes in faded crayon. A house with smoke rising from the chimney. A fence with an open gate.
Four figures standing together holding hands. A man. A woman.
Two little girls. And written below in careful shaky letters. Our family.
Eli’s vision blurred. When did you draw this? The night before you came. Rosie’s voice was matter of fact.
I saw you in my dream. You were riding through a storm and you were so sad. But then you found us and you weren’t sad anymore.
Rosie. Daddy Thomas told me to draw it. He said you’d need to see it.
He said you’d need to know that everything was going to be okay. Eli looked at Clara. She was crying openly now, her hand pressed to her mouth.
I told you, she whispered. She sees things. Eli pulled the little girl into a fierce embrace.
Thank you, he breathed into her hair. Thank you for believing I would come. I didn’t believe, Rosie corrected gently.
I knew. The crowd around them had begun to disperse. People were heading home.
Their world changed irrevocably. Their future suddenly uncertain, but free. Agnes Miller touched Clara’s shoulder as she passed.
You’re welcome at the store anytime, Clara. Anything you need. Clara caught her hand.
Thank you, Agnes, for everything. Don’t thank me. Thank that stubborn husband of yours who wouldn’t let the truth die with him.
Agnes’s eyes glistened. Thomas was the bravest man this town ever produced, and now everyone knows it. She walked away, and the Whitfield family, because that’s what they were now.
Eli realized a family stood alone in the snow. What do we do now? Lily asked. Eli looked at the town around them…
