Read Online The Loyal Heart by Shelley Shepard Gray - Free Book Online Page B

acceptance of Robert’s weaknesses felt like he was being exposed. Opening a wound, leaving himself bare for further viewing. For pain.
    And though one might argue that uncovering such a wound might eventually give a man the hope of healing, Robert wasn’t exactly ready for that. No, it would be far easier to live with the dull ache that filtered through his heart and soul.
    At least he was used to that.
    Obviously seeing that Robert was done sharing his experiences, Kern cleared his throat again. “Well, we are here. How about we take a seat at the end of the dock?”
    The dock looked rickety. “You sure it can hold both our weight?”
    “Only one way to find out, Lieutenant,” Kern called out as he walked to the end of the pier and sat down with little fuss or fanfare.
    Wondering how his errand of posting a letter had come to a sojourn down memory lane with a youngish sheriff with a penchant for good humor, Robert followed the sheriff’s lead and made his way down the pier.
    When he reached the edge, he sat down. The wood felt warm underneath him. And with his legs dangling over the water, he felt both younger than he had in years and curiously ancient. He couldn’t remember the wood ever feeling so unforgiving when he had been younger.
    “What did you want to speak to me about?”
    “Miranda Markham.”
    Robert held his temper with effort. “Don’t tell me that you, too, seek to warn me about her?”
    “Definitely not. On the contrary, I was hoping you could tell me more about your relationship with her.”
    “We have no relationship. I am a guest at her boardinghouse.”
    “Is that right?” Kern’s lips pressed together. “That’s all?”
    “Do you expect more? I only met her yesterday morning.”
    To Robert’s amazement, Kern relaxed. “I see.”
    Again, he was feeling like he’d stepped into the middle of a maze for which there was no way out. Tired of such foolishness, he hardened his voice. “What, precisely, do you see?”
    The muscles in Kern’s throat worked a bit. “Nothing.”
    “Except?”
    “Except that Mrs. Markham attracted my notice from my first day here over two years ago. I suppose I feel a bit protective toward her.”
    “If you do, I would venture that you’d be the only one. The few townspeople I’ve met seem to treat her as a pariah.”
    Kern stiffened. “I know. I don’t understand it myself.”
    “It’s my understanding that many believe her husband is responsible for betraying the Confederacy.”
    “I’ve heard that too. But beg pardon, I don’t know how that rumor started, though it was about a year ago. It coincided with her opening the Iron Rail as a boardinghouse. And furthermore, even if her husband did betray the South while in prison, he was only a lieutenant. And he was only imprisoned at the end of the war. What could he have possibly said that would have made much of a difference?”
    “Any idea who is responsible for the rumors?”
    “I can only surmise that it is the same person who sent her a threatening letter.”
    Everything in Robert froze. “What letter? I haven’t heard anything about that.”
    “Mrs. Markham brought it to me the day she received it, just after she opened the Iron Rail for boarders. It was an ugly piece of work,” he said with a grimace. “The author threatened to reveal missives supposedly in Phillip’s handwriting, ones that supposedly proved he had been a traitor.”
    “That means nothing. Anyone could say the missives were in his hand.”
    “I agree. I told her to ignore it as best she could. There was no way to trace where it came from and therefore it would be better to simply dispose of the letter and forget it ever came.”
    Robert was incredulous. Sheriff Kern seemed to be telling him that Miranda’s concerns meant nothing. “Is that how you handle most problems that come your way? You simply tell the victim to forget about it?”
    “Of course not. However, I didn’t see any other course of action. There