Blackwell Bounty

Chapter Three

Edith woke to the sound of the rain pounding against the tin roof above her head. It had been two days since she'd gone to supper with her father and Caroline. Two days since Skinny had been put in jail. Two days since Edith had met Cal. 

And she'd been avoiding him like he had the plague since then. She had barely been out of the house for the past two days.

Edith told herself that she was avoiding Cal because he had basically threatened her. After all, that was the logical route to take. She hadn't been able to forget his words. "It's dangerous out here for a woman alone, Miss Edith. I'd watch my back if I were you." What had he meant exactly? Did Cal intend to make things dangerous for her? Blackwell was about as peaceful as a town could be. The only trouble the town ever seemed to have was with drifters meandering through the place. The citizens were all neighborly. Some, of course, were more trustworthy than others, but that really couldn't be helped. Overall, Blackwell was a good town. It wasn't fancy, but it was peaceful and that's what mattered.

However, another side of Edith - the side she was desperately trying to ignore - told her that she was making it a point to avoid the dark eyed stranger because, despite his threat, she still didn't think he would actually hurt her and that assumption alone scared her. She was more afraid of what she wanted than what he wanted. Edith didn't necessarily think Cal was a bad man. Maybe he'd just gotten caught up in life and made a few wrong choices. Who hadn't done a few things wrong in their life? Who didn't have one particular memory that made them wish they could go back in time and change what they had done?

With a heavy sigh, Edith got up from the warm bed to start the day. She got dressed, but her mind continued to wander. As she brushed out her long dark brown tresses, the young woman went over the past few days in her mind.

Things had been relatively mundane. Most of the day was spent carrying out chores. But Caroline had been so wound up and bothered that even Wyatt himself admitted to noticing a change in her. (Of course this confession was made only to Edith and while Caroline was far on the other end of the house.) She'd taken to doing the house work but with a purpose about her that kept Edith out of the way. If she hadn't been trying to stay away from town, Edith would've left the house just to get out of Caroline's war path. Edith hadn't the faintest idea what had her sister so anxious, but hopefully the storm would pass soon because the blonde wasn't going to leave for at least another week. Edith knew her father had patience, but everyone had their limits...

After pinning her hair up, Edith ventured outside her room to the stairs, hoping that Caroline wasn't awake yet. Needless to say, her hopes were dashed when she heard Caroline calling, "Edith, get down here!"

Edith sighed, cursing the stairs for being so prone to creak when she most needed them to be silent. Taking her time, Edith made her way down to the bottom floor of the house. She found Caroline in the kitchen with her hands on her hips.

"Daddy forgot to take his lunch. I set it out for him on the table and he walked right by it. I swear the poor man is as scatterbrained as can be. I don't know why I bother to cook for him, when he doesn't even remember his lunch," Caroline huffed, swiping a stray strand of blonde hair out of her face.

Quickly, Edith offered, "I'll take it to him." She wasn't eager to suffer another day of Caroline's sour mood even if it meant braving the town where Cal was sure to be. She'd just have to be careful to make sure to stay out of his way if she saw him.

"I suppose you'll have to. Daddy can't very well go hungry, can he?" Caroline hissed. She quickly busied herself with cleaning the table, wiping a damp cloth across the surface of the piece of furniture and glaring at it as if she had a personal vendetta against the poor table top.