Read Online The Maverick Preacher by Victoria Bylin - Free Book Online Page B

words. Old Man Long’sprayers had been lengthy and harrowing. She’d paid dearly for tonight’s meal and wanted to eat it hot.
    As she handed him the green beans, Caroline indicated the meat platter. “Take plenty, Reverend. You’re still thin from your illness.”
    He blanked his expression, but Adie caught a hint of annoyance. No man liked being called scrawny, and that’s what Caroline had done. He thanked her but still took a reasonable portion.
    Bessie spoke over the plink of serving spoons. “How’s your shoulder, Reverend?”
    “Much better,” he answered.
    “You were in poor shape the last time we all met. Perhaps introductions are in order.”
    He glanced around the table. “I know Miss Clarke, and you’re Miss—”
    “Call me Bessie.”
    “Bessie it is.”
    Caroline said her name and beamed a smile. Mary answered with a scowl but introduced herself. Pearl, staring at her belly, spoke in a hush. They’d each offered their given names, expect for Adie. Reverend Blue turned in her direction. Not wanting to be different from the others, she shrugged. “You know my name. It’s Adie.”
    “Short for Adelaide?”
    “Yes.”
    He hadn’t questioned the others about their names. Why her?
    Caroline handed him the bowl of potatoes. “Where are you from, Reverend?”
    “Boston. And you?”
    “Virginia.”
    He turned back to Adie. “You’re not from either of those places. I’d guess Missouri.”
    She would have lied, but her boarders knew bits of her history. “I was born in Kansas.”
    His interest was piqued. “When did you leave home?”
    “Years ago.”
    He meant Kansas, but Adie thought of “home” as her mother’s farm. Her stomach twisted. If Reverend Blue kept quizzing her, she wouldn’t be able to eat. She sliced a bit of roast and started to chew. With her mouth full, she wouldn’t have to answer his questions.
    He lowered his fork. “This might be a good time to explain why I’m in Colorado. I’m looking for my sister.”
    Adie almost choked.
    “She left home ten months ago.”
    “What’s her name?” Caroline asked.
    “Emily Blue.”
    The name meant nothing to Adie. Her stomach settled until the reverend drilled her with his eyes. “Emily was last seen in Kansas City, but I know she bought a train ticket for somewhere else.”
    Caroline turned to Adie. “Didn’t you come here from Kansas City?”
    Adie wanted to gag her with the napkin. Instead she blanked her face. “That’s only where I got on the train. I was raised on a farm.”
    “But you’ve been there,” Caroline insisted.
    Adie tried to look bored. “It’s a big city, Caroline. Lots of people pass through.”
    Mary gave Adie a sideways glance. Of all her boarders, she had the least in common with the former saloon girl, but that changed in a blink. Mary, too, lived with a secret. She saw the trepidation in Adie’s expression and looked at the reverend.
    “Your sister could be anywhere,” she said. “The railroad goes to San Francisco now, or she could have gone to Chicago.”
    “That’s true,” he answered. “But I can’t give up. I have to know she’s safe, even happy.”
    Adie thought of how he’d considered Stephen’s empty belly before the bleeding hole in his own shoulder. He couldn’t possibly be the cruel man who’d driven Maggie from Boston.
    He looked into her eyes. “It’s worse than I’ve admitted. When Emily left Boston, she was unmarried and with child.”
    He’d said Emily, not Maggie. Except Adie recalled the day she’d met Stephen’s mother. I’m Maggie Butler now. Adie had heard “now” and wondered about her past. Her friend, she realized, had changed her name. Adie risked a glance at Joshua Blue, saw Maggie’s nose and decided fear was making her see things. She had to change the subject. “How’s the roast?”
    “Delicious,” Mary replied.
    Caroline snapped at her. “How can you think about food? I’m worried about Emily Blue.”
    “And the baby,” Pearl