The doctor opened his medicine bag and pulled out a needle and thread. At Maria’s gasp, he said to her, “I’ve got some ether to help with the pain, darlin’, and I promise I’ll do this as quick as I can.”
Satisfied that his presence was no longer required, Jesse grabbed his Stetson and headed for Lily’s place by foot. He didn’t bother going to the cabin, knowing that Lily would be on the farm somewhere attending to her morning chores. He found her in the barn sitting on a hay bale, staring idly at the stall door in front of her. She wore a faded green dress, and her hair was braided in a single long plait down her back. She looked so wholesome and innocent, and his heart constricted in his chest painfully, thinking about how close she was to marrying a man willing to cut a woman’s face.
He cleared his throat. “Hello, Lily.”
His voice startled her. “Jesse?” She stood and walked to him as he removed his hat. “What are you doing here?” she asked, beaming at him.
Jesse didn’t answer right away. He gazed at her, taking in the sight of her simple, unassuming beauty. Sunlight peered through the rafters, setting her hair aglow. Her cheeks looked rosy, as though she’d recently finished an activity that required exertion. He reached out and removed a piece of straw from her hair. “I’m afraid I have some disturbing news, honey. Let’s sit down.” He led her to the hay bale she’d just been sitting on and sat next to her. He got right to the point. “Lily, your beau Elijah used a prostitute’s services last night.”
Lily frowned at him, looking confused. “That can’t be true.”
“It is, and that’s not the worst part.” Jesse looked down and fiddled with his hat, trying to think of a way to lessen the impact of what he had to say, but he couldn’t come up with any words to soften the blow. “The lady he slept with, apparently she made fun of him, and he responded by cutting her face with a knife. I saw him run out the back of the saloon after the attack.”
Jesse tried to read Lily’s expression, but her face remained devoid of emotion. “But… he’s a preacher,” she said finally, not seeming to understand. “He doesn’t believe in adultery.”
Her words made Jesse feel the same ache in his chest. His voice was gentle when he responded. “Do you remember what I said to you a few days back? Sometimes those you think are good turn out not to be. I think we can safely say that’s the case when it comes to the preacher.”
Lily looked down and tracked circles in the dirt with the tip of her shoe, then looked at him again with a plaintive expression on her face. “I thought being with him was the right thing for me to do.”
Jesse hated himself in that moment. “I know, honey, and I feel responsible for that. I told you to go find yourself a beau you could settle down with, and you listened to me and did just what you thought you were supposed to do.”
Lily reached out and touched his hand. “It’s all right, Jesse. Don’t feel bad. My parents also thought it was good for me to be with Elijah.”
He shook his head and sighed. “It seems the people around you who should be protecting you aren’t doing a very good job of it. But I can promise you this, Lily, I won’t make the same mistake twice. I’m fixin’ to make sure you’re good and safe always. Now, Elijah will probably be arrested and locked up for some time, and then you’ll be properly shed of him. If he seeks you out before that, though, under no circumstance are you to go anywhere alone with him. Do you understand?” His voice became stern as he issued the command, and he watched her body respond by straightening a little.
“Yes, Jesse. I understand.”
“Good girl.” Jesse rewarded her willingness to obey with a smile and stood. “I need to get back to town and let the marshal know what I saw at the saloon, but I’ll come back real soon to discuss something else with you, all right?”
“All right. What do you want to discuss with me?”
He hesitated a moment, but then answered. “My feelings for you.”
She looked surprised. “Good feelings?”
“Yes, honey, very good feelings.”
A smile lit up her face. “All right, Jesse. I look forward to hearing about these good feelings of yours.”