“What was it about?” he demanded, placing his hands on his hips. He took a step toward her.
Lily’s back was against the side of the chapel, and Elijah loomed over her. Lily felt trapped and afraid to answer him incorrectly.
“It, it was about coveting,” she stammered.
“And what else?”
Lily stared at his chest and tried to remember more of his words, but she couldn’t. Elijah was right, she hadn’t been paying attention. Her heart pounded. Suddenly she felt Elijah gripping her arms very tightly. He gave her a rough shake that knocked her head against the wall.
“You need to pay attention. We are supposed to be headed toward marriage. I can’t have a wife who doesn’t listen to her own husband’s sermons,” he said through his teeth.
Lily’s eyes opened wider as his grip on her arms tightened. “You’re hurting me,” she squeaked, alarmed by his sudden fury and strength. She tried to wrench her arms free, but he held fast and squeezed her tighter, then gave her another violent shake.
“What’s going on?” a voice called out suddenly.
Both Elijah and Lily turned to look at where the voice came from. Approaching them was Jesse, looking as tetchy as a teased snake. Lily breathed a sigh of relief even before Elijah’s grip on her softened. He freed her arms and turned to face the saloon owner, and Lily felt her body sag against the wall. She felt exhausted, like she’d just completed a day’s worth of chores.
“I’m having a discussion with my fiancée, that’s what’s going on,” Elijah said.
Lily didn’t correct his use of the word fiancée. Elijah hadn’t proposed to her yet, but he still assumed they would be married. Her parents and everyone else she knew assumed the same.
“From what I saw, it didn’t seem like the kind of discussion that ends well for the lady,” Jesse replied. His eyes flashed with fury, and Lily felt the sudden desire to run into his arms. She knew Jesse cared about her, and she wasn’t sure in that moment whether Elijah did.
Lily rubbed her aching limbs, certain that bruises were forming as the two men spoke. Jesse noticed her rubbing her arms. “Are you hurt?”
“I would never hurt her,” Elijah cut in before she could speak.
Jesse acted like Elijah hadn’t spoken and continued to look at Lily, waiting for an answer from her.
“I’m fine,” she said quietly and looked down.
She wasn’t fine. She felt conflicted about her feelings for Jesse and the desire to be a good person and settle down with the preacher. It was the first time Elijah had scared her, and his actions introduced new confusion into Lily’s mind. He was the preacher, a good man, and she was the one at fault for not listening to him. In the moments before she spoke, she concluded that she deserved his rough treatment of her.
Lily worked up enough energy to straighten and address Elijah. “Forgive me. I don’t feel so good. I think I’ll go home. I’ll see you tomorrow.” She looked at Jesse and said, “Goodbye, Jesse.”
“I hope you feel better, Miss Lily,” Jesse said, his voice gentle.
Elijah gave her a stiff hug and kissed her cheek roughly. “Goodbye, darling. We’ll talk tomorrow.”
Lily nodded and then left the two men to end the conversation alone. She walked home. When she arrived, she headed to her bedroom, removed her dress, and examined her arms in the mirror. Just as she expected, Elijah’s grip left stripes of purple bruises around her upper arms.
She almost doubted what she saw, though it was right in front of her. She never would have imagined that the preacher would one day hurt her in such a way. When he grabbed her, she had felt real fear, and she had felt a huge wave of relief upon seeing Jesse. She knew things were not as they should be, and she felt responsible for that. God must be punishing her for her impure thoughts about the saloon owner. She resolved to never do anything to make Elijah angry again. To her, that was her only choice, the only solution to her problem.
Chapter Four: The Attack
The following day Jesse rose at his usual early time and walked down the steps from his quarters to the ground floor of the saloon. He filled a bucket with soap and water, plunged a mop into it, and cleaned the tiles, starting at the front by the double swinging doors and making his way to the back door near his office.