A Bride For Clay (The Proxy Brides Book 2) Read online

  After what seemed like an hour, Grace wiped the tears from her cheeks with her hands. The front of her blouse was wet with tears, and many had dropped onto her riding skirt. Admonishing herself for giving in to her emotions, she decided that tears wouldn’t help her escape, but somehow, she felt calmer and more resolved than ever to find a way out and convince her husband she loved him and never left on her own accord.

  Grace stood and opened the shutter on the small window enough to take stock of everything in the shack once more. Somehow, there had to be an answer to her dilemma, and she’d find it. After perusing everything again, she wasn’t sure exactly what she could do, but she closed the shutter against any danger and decided to think of every story she ever read about damsels in distress. Certainly, she’d find an answer. In the morning, she needed to find a way to save herself.

  Chapter Sixteen

  The wagon bounced down the access road as the Hutchison family returned from their trip to town. The bright afternoon sunshine matched Elizabeth’s mood after spending a few hours listening to Grandpa Hutch’s stories of Wade and Clay in their youth and his kindness toward her. His insistence that she purchase a new dress thrilled Elizabeth. New dresses were something she never had while growing up and once leaving the orphanage, she seldom could afford hair ribbons much less fabric for a new dress. She couldn’t wait to share her excitement with Grace.

  Grandpa pulled the wagon behind the house and Clay climbed off his horse to assist in carrying in the multitude of packages Cora had managed to purchase.

  Clay grumbled a bit, and Cora told him if he didn’t eat so much she wouldn’t need to buy as much which made Clay smile and shake his head.

  Elizabeth rushed into the house to share her excitement over her new dress with Grace. A few minutes later, she returned to the kitchen with tears streaming down her face.

  Holding the note she found on Grace’s bed along with her wedding ring in her shaking hand, she handed them to Clay. “Grace is gone.”

  “What?” Clay said as he read the note. “This isn’t possible. The note doesn’t make sense. She didn’t enjoy living in Chicago. She wouldn’t go back. Grace said she loved living here and that she loved me.”

  Clay dropped the note on the table and ran from the house toward the barn. Cora watched him as he walked back from the barn with his head low and shoulders slumped. Clay pulled the back door open and said, “Willow isn’t in the barn. Grace must have taken her. Can you tell if she packed a bag?”

  Elizabeth rushed back to the room she shared with Grace and looked around. She couldn’t tell exactly what Grace took, but most of her things were packed away in her trunks. She turned to leave the room when her eyes were drawn to the floor where Grace’s necklace lay. Elizabeth then looked at the items on the dresser.

  Rushing back to the kitchen holding a bottle of perfume in one hand and Grace’s pearls and the necklace from Clay in the other, she said, “Something’s wrong. Grace left these behind. They weren’t packed in her trunks. The perfume was the last gift she received from her father before he died, and these are her mother’s pearls. She would never leave them behind intentionally . Here’s the necklace you gave her, Clay. It was lying on the floor by her bed. It’s broken.”

  Clay stopped his pacing to listen to Elizabeth and said, “All right, she wrote a note but left behind her most precious items. Either she was forced to leave or was threatened and thought running was the only answer. She’s my wife. She loves me, and I know she wouldn’t leave without talking to me. I have to find her. She couldn’t have gone far.”

  “But what if she didn’t leave on her own,” Elizabeth asked. “If she was forced, where could she be?”

  “I don’t know,” Clay answered and looked to Cora and his grandpa. “Do you have any idea?”

  Grandpa shook his head, and Cora offered, “We need help finding her. You need to get the sheriff.”

  “No,” Grandpa insisted. “Whatever happened is family business and we’ll handle it ourselves. The sheriff won’t have any idea what to do, and I’ll not have this family’s business become fodder for gossip.”

  Clay spun and looked at his grandpa, “What do you mean family business?”

  Grandpa’s head dropped for a moment before he looked back at Clay with tears shimmering in his aging eyes, “This is my fault, Clay. I only wanted you boys to marry and have children. I wanted to see a few more babies in the house before I die. I never changed my will. You and Wade inherit equally married or not.”

  Clay threw his hands in the air and yelled, “I can’t believe you did this. I don’t mind marrying, and Grace is the perfect wife for me, but Wade believes he lost, and his anger is out of control.”

  The entire room went silent until Clay said, “Wade. He took Grace.”

  Elizabeth slowly lowered onto a chair still holding Grace’s perfume and pearls. “I married a criminal. I knew he was a drinker and a womanizer after what happened with Lucinda, but I thought with time and maybe love, he would change. What have I done?”

  “Absolutely nothing wrong, my dear,” Grandpa Hutchison insisted. “You arrived here with faith in the man who sent for you. No matter what happens, you are family now, and the Hutchison family takes care of their own.”

  Clay spun on his heel and announced, “I’m going to find her” before he stormed out the door.

  A short while later, Wade rode into the yard and saw the partially unloaded wagon sitting near the back door. He didn’t see anyone around and assumed they already knew about Grace’s note and were discussing what, if anything, they should do. He chuckled to himself that his plan was working to perfection and Clay would be angry enough to have his marriage to Grace annulled immediately. He won or would shortly.

  After unsaddling his horse and brushing it down, Wade strolled toward the house doing his best to keep the smirk from his face. He had to feign ignorance when it came to Grace’s disappearance. Shock might be a better emotion, but he wasn’t sure he could do that. Ignorance and surprise would have to do.

  He pulled the back door open, stepped into the kitchen and saw the dour faces of his family. “What’s wrong?” Wade asked hoping he sounded sincere.

  Elizabeth looked up with red, puffy eyes and said, “Grace is gone. Clay went to look for her.”

  “Gone? Gone where?”

  “We don’t know. She left a note, but Clay doesn’t believe she left of her own accord,” Elizabeth explained.

  “That doesn’t make any sense. I doubt she was happy here and left. I hear women do that a lot when they come from the city to a small town,” Wade said doing his best not to smile.

  Grandpa Hutchison pounded his fist on the table and yelled, “Shut up Wade, and sit down now.”

  Wade complied and stared at his grandfather. The old man stared back trying to see if he could tell what was on Wade’s mind. All grandpa could see was a coldness he never noticed before and, in that moment, believed he’d lost his grandson to whatever had changed Wade’s heart.

  “I need to tell you something, Wade,” Grandpa started and explained about the will and the lie he told both of his grandsons.

  Wade just stared slack-jawed listening to his grandfather. “Are you telling me that we never were in a contest to marry first, Clay didn’t need to marry Grace, and I didn’t need to send for a mail-order bride?”

  “That’s what I’m sayin’, but I’m happy you both did. I love Elizabeth and Grace as much as my own blood, and we’re a family now.”

  Wade doubled his fists and bit back the anger he felt. “You have ruined everyone’s lives old man,” Wade shouted. “Forcing us to marry was bad enough, but the stipulation that she be a good, respectable woman made it impossible for me to marry Lucinda.”

  Elizabeth’s audible gasp made Wade angrier. “Shut up, woman. If I wanted to hear you, I’d give you permission to talk.”

  Elizabeth stood and ran from the room. Cora glared at Wade and said before following Elizabeth, “Wade Hutchison, o
ne day you will pay for your cruelty. Mark my words.”

  Wade laughed. He pushed back his chair and reached behind him for the coffee pot and a cup. After pouring the coffee, and taking a sip, he frowned and addressed his grandfather, “This is the last time you’ll cause me problems. I’m going into town to ask the lawyer about annulling my marriage to Elizabeth, and you’re not going to threaten me with changing your will. As a matter of fact, you will sign over the ranch to me, and I will settle here with Lucinda. Don’t try and argue. If Clay ever wants to see his precious wife again, you’ll agree.”

  Wade’s plans had changed in an instant. He wouldn’t force Grace to leave town, he’d keep her in the shack until his grandfather did precisely as he said.

  Grandpa Hutchison’s face paled as he heard Wade’s words. “You know where Grace is?”

  “Maybe,” Wade smirked as he slammed his empty coffee cup onto the table. “You’ll never know until you comply with my wishes. It’s getting late, and I have business in town. I’ll even help you by having the lawyer ride out here to write up the papers just as soon as he finishes with my annulment.”

  Grandpa nodded his head. “All right, just don’t hurt Grace.”

  “I won’t and don’t even think about telling the sheriff. Grace would never survive on her own in the backcountry. Just sign the papers and prepare to move out of here as soon as possible,” Wade instructed just before he strode out the back door toward the barn and his horse.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Wade had a lot on his mind as he made his way to town. He’d own the ranch and people would finally see him for the man he was not just one of Hutch’s grandsons. He could annul his marriage to Elizabeth. Not that she wasn’t pretty, she was beautiful if a person liked that type of genteel lady. He didn’t, and he’d soon change it.

  As he rode, he thought more about his life and how it would change for the better. He needed a woman with a bit more zest for life and one that would make him more substantial meals than vegetable soup. Lucinda was more his type, and he could marry her, and she’d live at the ranch with him. That way he wouldn’t have to visit the saloon as often. Lucinda wasn’t really the type of girl a man married. She’d live at the ranch with him just to get out of working at the saloon. That would be best. Living with her day to day might get on his nerves, and if he didn’t marry her, he could send her packing whenever he wanted.

  Wade rode up to the lawyer’s office to find the windows dark and a sign on the door that explained that he’d been called to Cheyenne and would be back in a week or ten days. The sign was dated two days prior. Wade supposed he could wait a week to have the annulment filed and for his grandfather to sign over the ranch to him. Keeping Grace hidden wasn’t a problem. He’d just need to bring her more supplies. Yes, things would work out well.

  Stepping off his horse in front of the saloon, Wade looped the reins over the hitch rail and pushed through the batwing doors. It took a minute for his eyes to adjust to the dimness of the room and he spotted Lucinda sitting at a table with a dirty ranch hand. Walking past her, he simply stated, “We need to talk,” and headed up the stairs to her room. She followed quickly.

  Wade dropped onto a ladder back chair sitting in the corner before Lucinda entered the room. She walked in, closed the door behind her, and sat on the bed. “Is something wrong? You look upset?”

  “Not upset, a bit anxious. Let me tell you what’s going on at the ranch.” Wade spent the next thirty minutes telling Lucinda everything from hiding Grace in the shack to anticipating owning the ranch in a week and Lucinda’s role in his plans. He didn’t mention marriage, and as much as she wanted to ask, Lucinda was grateful he included her at all.

  Lucinda rushed toward Wade and threw herself onto his lap and hugged him. “I can’t wait to move to the ranch with you. It’s been my dream since I met you.”

  “Yeah, I know,” Wade answered and pushed her to her feet. “I need a drink. Let’s go back downstairs.”

  ~ * ~

  Meanwhile back at Hutchison ranch, Clay returned after riding part of the perimeter of the ranch looking for signs of where Grace might be before it was too dark to see properly. There had been too many tracks in the yard to know which trail to follow. Willow’s hoofprints were mixed with his, Wades, the other ranch hands, and any visitors that have stopped by recently.

  Clay said a silent prayer that wherever his wife was that she was safe and asked God to watch over her that night. His prayers were already answered as Grace slept deeply inside the dark shack.

  Clay pushed the kitchen door open and found the kitchen empty. He checked the parlor and found his grandpa sitting in the near dark. “Why are you sitting here in the dark?” Clay asked as he lit a lamp. He could see from his grandpa’s expression that something was wrong.

  “What’s happened now?”

  “Sit down, Clay, we need to talk.”

  Grandpa Hutch waited for Clay to sit on the chair next to the fireplace before he began to speak. “I made a mistake, a huge mistake, and I’m afraid Grace is suffering because of it.”

  “What? I don’t understand,” Clay said leaning forward and placing his forearms on his thighs.

  Grandpa closed his eyes for a moment, and when he looked back at Clay, he said, “Grace didn’t leave on her own. Wade took her.”

  “I knew it,” Clay said exploding from the chair. “I’m going to kill him. Why? Why did he take her?”

  “Sit back down and let me explain,” Grandpa pleaded.

  Clay nodded and dropped back onto the chair as his grandpa retold his conversation with Wade. Clay’s fists tightened more with each word his grandpa spoke until he was ready to burst. Grandpa did his best to convince Clay that he would do whatever Wade wanted and they’d get Grace back.

  A quiet calm spread over Clay like a heavy winter quilt, and he answered, “Wade is going to pay for this one way or the other. If we can’t go to the sheriff before we get Grace back, we certainly will after she returns. Does Wade realize he faces prison for what he did? If Grace is injured, they could hang him.”

  “He’s still your brother,” Grandpa said. “Are you willing to see him hang?”

  Clay dropped his head and rubbed his face before looking back up at his grandpa. “No, I don’t want to see him hang or go to prison, but he broke the law. He stole my wife and heaven only knows where he hid her. Is she still alive or is he lying? I don’t know what to do, Grandpa.”

  “I know, and there is nothing we can do now. It’s dark, but you can search again in the morning. Wade left for town and is most likely with Lucinda. He told us that he’s angry he couldn’t marry her to begin with. Elizabeth is worried sick over Grace, and Wade’s words cut her. She hasn’t been here long enough to fall in love with Wade, I don’t think she has anyway since they barely spend time together, but she was committed to being a good wife. I messed up four lives, Clay, and I’m sorry.” Grandpa grabbed his chest and began coughing again.

  Clay rushed to his side. “You’re going to bed. I know you made up the story about dying, but you still fought pneumonia for weeks. I don’t want you to get sick again.”

  “You don’t hate me?” Grandpa asked as he struggled to his feet.

  “No, I understand why you did what you did. I can’t say I like the way things are going now, but I’m happy Grace is part of my life. Now, we need to get you to bed.”

  Cora, having heard grandpa’s cough from Elizabeth’s room where she stayed with the girl until she fell asleep, hurried into the parlor.

  “You should be in bed,” Cora insisted. “I’m going to make you a cup of tea that the doctor suggested for that cough. You’ll not get sick again if I can help it. Clay, help him to bed, and I’ll be in with the tea shortly.” She spun on her heel and left the room headed for the kitchen.

  Clay took his grandpa’s arm and helped him to his bedroom. Once he was settled in bed and drank the foul-tasting tea Cora forced on him, grandpa drifted off to sleep, and Cora and Clay le
ft the room.

  “He’ll sleep for the night,” Cora said. “Get some rest, Clay. You’ll need it tomorrow to look for Grace.”

  “I will, but I’m going to wait up for Wade.”

  “You’d be better off getting some sleep. He’ll come home drunk and mean. You won’t learn anything from him,” Cora said.

  “Remember when he tied me by the ankles and hung me upside down from that old oak when we were kids and threatened to leave me there all night? I could return the favor and leave him in the barn until he tells me where Grace is,” Clay said while pacing the room.

  “You wouldn’t.”

  Clay blew out a frustrated breath, “No, I wouldn’t, but Wade doesn’t have to know that. I’m bigger and stronger than he is, and he’ll be drunk. Scaring him might be enough.”

  Cora shook her head before leaving the room to head for bed blaming herself for not helping to raise Wade well enough. Where did she go wrong or was Wade just troubled and needed more than she could give him?

  Clay sat back down in the parlor and drifted off to sleep waiting for Wade to arrive home. Wade’s loud stumbling entrance into the kitchen woke Clay a little before three o’clock. Wade shuffled toward the parlor, and as he rounded the corner into the room, his face met with Clay’s fist, and Wade hit the floor.

  Clay grabbed the front of Wade’s shirt and spoke in a quiet, menacing tone. “Where is my wife?”

  Wade didn’t answer. Between the alcohol and punch to the jaw, he was out cold. Clay left him lying on the parlor floor and headed to bed. He needed rest to find his wife in the morning.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Clay woke before the sun ready to continue his search for Grace. He stepped over Wade’s prone body still unmoving on the parlor floor. Loud snoring let Clay know that Wade would be out for a few hours and that would give Clay time to search without his brother’s interference.