Chapter 11 - Warren Marsh Comes to the Mountain
Judge Edwin Harcourt appeared on page forty-three.
Payment: two thousand dollars.
Purpose: HAYES PETITION.
Dela remembered Mrs. Hayes.
The widow whose ranch Warren had stolen.
Hannah did not react dramatically when shown the entry.
That frightened Dela more.
“A bribed judge is difficult,” Hannah said.
Rufus leaned over her desk.
“Then get another.”
“Not simple.”
“He’s compromised.”
“If we accuse him before establishing authenticity of the ledger, Warren will say Dela fabricated everything.”
Dela sat opposite them.
“What can we do?”
“Request recusal.”
“Will he agree?”
Hannah looked at the ledger.
“If he’s arrogant, no.”
“Is he?”
“Yes.”
“Then?”
“We create a record.”
Rufus groaned.
“Lawyers love records.”
“Records are how civilized people win fights.”
“I’ve had success with other methods.”
“I’m sure.”
Dela almost smiled.
Hannah continued.
“We also send a certified copy of the Harcourt entry to the territorial prosecutor.”
“And if Harcourt rules before they investigate?”
“Then we appeal.”
“How long?”
“Months.”
Dela’s hope sank.
Hannah leaned forward.
“This is what men like Warren depend on. They make resistance exhausting.”
Dela knew.
Warren had done the same inside their marriage.
Arguments lasted until she surrendered.
Punishments continued until apologizing became easier than insisting she was right.
Control did not always win through strength.
Often it won through fatigue.
“I’ll continue.”
Hannah nodded.
“Good.”
They returned to the mountain under heavy clouds.
For several days nothing happened.
Dela’s ribs slowly improved.
She could breathe deeply again.
She could lift a kettle without hiding pain.
Rufus continued splitting wood small anyway.
She never asked him to stop.
Winter deepened.
They developed routines that felt dangerously close to happiness.
Dela read aloud at night.
Rufus taught her to identify animal tracks.
She taught him that biscuits were not improved by cooking until they could be used as tools.
Bear chose Dela’s side of the stove almost every evening.
Rufus complained about betrayal.
Then January arrived.
And with it, Warren.
Dela saw the riders first.
Six men.
Black shapes moving through snow.
She stood at the window.
The cup fell from her hand.
Rufus was beside her instantly.
“What?”
She pointed.
His face hardened.
“Bear.”
The dog rose.
Rufus reached for his rifle.
Dela caught his wrist.
“No shooting.”
“Not planning any.”
“You promise?”
He looked at her.
“Unless they force it.”
“That isn’t a promise.”
“It’s the best I’ve got.”
The riders stopped outside.
Warren dismounted.
He had dressed for the mountain this time.
Heavy coat.
Boots.
Gloves.
The wilderness still looked offended by his presence.
Two men wore deputy badges.
Dela’s stomach dropped.
Rufus saw them too.
“Stay inside.”
“No.”
“Dela.”
“No.”
She opened the door.
Rufus cursed quietly and followed.
Warren looked up.
“Delilah.”
“Dela.”
His jaw tightened.
One deputy stepped forward.
“Rufus Conn?”
“Yes.”
“We have an order to search the premises for stolen financial records belonging to Warren Marsh.”
Rufus looked at Dela.
The original ledger was in Hannah’s safe.
The copy hidden elsewhere.
“Search,” Dela said.
Warren stared.
“You heard her,” Rufus said.
The deputies entered.
Warren remained outside.
Dela crossed her arms.
“You came a long way for nothing.”
“I came for my wife.”
“No.”
“You really believe these people care about you?”
“Yes.”
Warren smiled.
“How sweet.”
He looked toward Rufus.
“Has she told you about Clara?”
Rufus’s expression changed.
Dela went cold.
“Don’t.”
Warren continued.
“Did she tell you how unstable she became after our daughter died?”
“Stop.”
“She would wander at night. Cry for hours. Accuse people of things that never happened.”
“That’s a lie.”
“Is it?”
He turned toward Rufus.
“She nearly burned our house once.”
Dela stared.
“No.”
Warren smiled.
“A lamp fell.”
“You threw it.”
“Her memory is unreliable.”
Rufus’s voice became dangerous.
“Enough.”
Warren looked pleased.
“You’re attached to her.”
Rufus stepped down from the porch.
Dela whispered, “Rufus.”
He stopped.
Warren smiled wider.
“You think you’re rescuing her.”
Rufus said, “I’m not rescuing anyone.”
“No?”
“No.”
He glanced toward Dela.
“She rescued herself.”
Warren’s smile vanished.
The deputies emerged.
“Nothing.”
Warren turned sharply.
“You searched the sleeping area?”
“Yes.”
“Floorboards?”
“Mr. Marsh—”
“The ledger is here.”
“No,” Dela said.
He looked at her.
“Where?”
“Safe.”
His eyes changed.
A mistake.
Dela knew immediately she had said too much.
“Whose?”
She smiled.
“Wouldn’t you like to know?”
Warren stepped toward her.
Rufus moved between them.
One deputy raised his hand.
“Everybody calm down.”
Warren stared past Rufus.
“You have no idea what you’ve done.”
“I know exactly.”
“That book contains confidential records.”
“It contains crimes.”
The deputies looked at Warren.
His face reddened.
“Lies.”
“You can explain them in court.”
For a second, all polish disappeared.
“You ungrateful little—”
He stopped.
Too late.
Dela had seen it.
So had everyone else.
Warren inhaled.
Rebuilt himself.
“We’re leaving.”
The deputies looked relieved.
As Warren mounted, he glanced toward Bear.
Then the cabin.
Then Rufus.
Finally Dela.
“Your hearing is in twelve days.”
“I know.”
“When Judge Harcourt sees what you are—”
“What am I?”
Warren smiled.
“My wife.”
He rode away.
Dela watched until the riders vanished.
Rufus exhaled.
“That went better than expected.”
Dela looked at him in disbelief.
“Six men arrived at your house with a search order signed by a bribed judge.”
“Nothing caught fire.”
She almost laughed.
Then Bear barked toward the barn.
Rufus frowned.
The dog ran behind the structure.
A moment later he returned carrying something in his mouth.
A piece of leather.
Rufus took it.
Dela recognized the strap from a kerosene can.
They hurried around the cabin.
Along the back wall, snow had been scraped away.
The logs were wet.
Not with melted snow.
Kerosene.
Someone had poured it against Rufus’s house while everyone stood at the front.
Dela’s blood chilled.
Rufus stared at the tracks leading into the trees.
Warren had not come only to search.
Someone traveling with him had prepared the cabin to burn.
May you like
And twelve days before Dela’s hearing, the warning was unmistakable.
If Warren could not bring his wife home, he was prepared to make certain she never reached court.
