​Extended Epilogue

It felt as though the entire town of Burkedale had come to see the outcome of the trial for Leroy and Victor Ward.

The crowds had gathered in the local courthouse, which had not been made to hold so many people. Not that it mattered to the locals. People lined the walls, and those who could not get inside simply leaned in from the open windows and the door.

Holt sat next to Aurora, with their families flanking them on either side, trying his best not to squirm from all of the attention they were receiving. For the past two weeks, Holt and Aurora had barely had a single moment to themselves, and they had been unable to speak with one another privately.

The morning of the Wards’ capture, Holt had managed to walk into town. When he’d made it into the sheriff’s station, he staggered towards his mother, Aurora, and Rose Haney, barely able to stand due to his exhaustion. He’d run nearly the entire way into town, unable to think of anything besides Leroy hunting him. He refused to allow Leroy and Victor Ward the satisfaction of killing him.

When he’d finally made it into town, his body collapsed. It took a full day for him to recover, and by the time he woke up, Leroy and Ward were apprehended and taken into custody. Holt was glad for it, but a part of him, a dark part that he kept buried deep inside himself, wished that they had been killed.

“Are you all right?” Aurora asked. She’d shyly been gripping his hand as they waited for the jury to return with the verdict. She must have felt him tense beneath her fingers.

“I’m fine,” he told her. He could not look into her endless brown eyes. If he did, Holt worried that everyone might know his true feelings, and he was not prepared for something like that to happen in such a public venue.

Holt was certain that people suspected something was happening between the heirs of the town’s two successful gambling houses. After all, they’d spent nearly every day together since their return. Let them speculate, Holt thought as he gifted Aurora with a rare, shy smile. What the townsfolk think is of no concern to me.

“What’s taking so long?” Rose Haney asked. Holt contained a chuckle as Aurora shot her mother a look of annoyance. After spending some time with the Haney family, he came to discover that Rose Haney was not just charismatic, but also extremely impatient. Her husband, Glenn, was more stoic. A balm to his wife’s boisterous personality.

“The verdict will be read when it’s read, Mother,” Aurora said. Holt did not need to see her to see that she was rolling her eyes.

Aurora was a perfect mixture of her parents. In captivity, she’d learned to channel her mother’s fearlessness while also keeping her father’s quiet strength. She’d truly become a force to be reckoned with, and Holt could not love her more.

“Looks like they are back,” Holt’s mother said. Holt looked at her, scanning for any outward signs of distress. Upon his return, Holt had been the most shocked to see the toll that his kidnapping had played on his mother.

Celia looked frailer than she should have given the fact that she was still relatively young. She was still recovering from the weeks of Holt’s captivity, and Holt and his father were continuously concerned. They did everything they could to nurse her back to health. Color was just starting to return to her pallid skin, and she was starting to put weight back on her bones. Still, though she’d recovered, Holt could not help but worry that any sort of upset might cause her health to decline.

“Are you sure you are up for this, Mother?” he asked.

Celia turned her head sharply towards her son, a frown marring her features, and her eyes hardened at his words. “Of course,” she said. “And stop treating me as though I were a child,” she ordered. Her tone brooked no argument, and Holt could see a glimpse of the mother who had run her household with an iron fist.

“Members of the jury,” the judge addressed those who stood aside and had deliberated on the matter of the Wards’ guilt or innocence, “have you reached a verdict?”

Their spokesman nodded. “We have.” Holt’s eyes narrowed. He would not admit it to anyone, but he was growing more anxious by the moment. Holt did not understand why the jury even needed to debate the question of guilt or innocence when it came to the Wards. Both Aurora and Holt gave their testimony. Marge even came into town to give hers. There was not a single question regarding if the Wards indeed kidnapped Aurora and Holt, and yet, they still needed to deliberate. When Holt had made mention of this, his father had told him that this was simply how justice worked.

“How do you find the defendants?” the judge asked. Everyone waited with bated breath to hear what the final decision would be. Aurora squeezed Holt’s hands, her only indication that she was in any way nervous.

“We find the defendants …” Holt waited. His chest felt tight with the need to breathe.

“Guilty.”

Everyone waited a moment. The judge deliberated before issuing his sentencing.

“Leroy and Victor Ward,” the judge said. “Y’all have proven yourselves unable to adhere to the law, so therefore, I’m sentencing you both to twenty years in the state penitentiary.”

Cheers erupted around the room, and Holt felt himself free to breathe again for the first time in weeks. He had not realized what the uncertainty of all of this was doing to him until this very moment.

“Oh God,” Aurora whispered. Amongst the cheers, he barely heard her. And judging from the celebration going on around them, he knew that no one else heard.

The Haney and Ewing families were embracing one another, but Holt and Aurora remained seated. As Leroy and Victor were led out in shackles, they turned to shoot a grim look at the couple.

Holt wanted nothing more than to shun propriety and pull Aurora into his arms. He wanted to shield her from the evil looks the two men shot their way. But before he could even consider doing such a thing, Aurora squared her shoulders and met the Wards’ gazes head on. She did not even flinch when Leroy Ward bared his teeth at the two of them.

“Are y’all okay?” Glenn Haney asked. As everyone around them celebrated, Glenn had realized that Holt and Aurora had remained seated.

“Everything’s fine, Pa,” Aurora said. She flashed her father a brilliant smile. It was the type of smile Holt longed to see her always wear.

Glenn patted Aurora’s head with fatherly affection, and Holt smiled as she smoothed her skewed hair down in embarrassment.

Everyone around them was lining up to congratulate the Ewings and the Haneys. The mass of people made Holt jumpy. He’d always been someone more comfortable alone, but he’d always managed to fake being social. After all, running a gambling house was a social job. Right now though, Holt wanted nothing more than to be left alone, preferably with Aurora, to process and discuss all that had happened.

“Guess we should thank all of these people,” Aurora told him as he helped her to her feet.

“We could leave,” Holt suggested.

Aurora’s brown eyes widened at the suggestion and a beautiful blush began creeping up her cheeks from her bosom. Holt chuckled. Aurora Haney might be a bit more outspoken these days, but she was still someone who adhered to propriety.

“We can’t just leave,” she said. Her voice was low and scandalized.

Holt simply shrugged. He’d have no problem escaping with Aurora to some place more private, but it seemed she felt it more appropriate to stand here and greet their line of well-wishers.

“These people are here to gossip,” he told her.

Aurora gave him a reproachful look. “Be good,” she told him before turning away and plastering a smile on her face.

Holt released a sigh before doing the same. It seemed that today Aurora was calling the shots.

***

Aurora’s face hurt from all of the smiling that she’d been doing today. Sitting in the courthouse, she had been nervous. She knew that there was no chance of the Wards being released but having to relive her captivity caused her pain. Had Holt and her family not been by her side, she wasn’t sure how she would have gotten through the last few weeks.

Holt had been a rock for her since their captivity. They’d spent nearly every day together, usually in the company of their parents, but just his presence made all the difference.

“I can’t believe that you have invited the Ewings over for supper,” she said as she helped her mother take out her wedding China. The blue and white plates had been hand painted and shipped over from New York. They were Rose Haney’s prize possession, and the fact that she was pulling them out for their guests said quite a bit.

“Of course I invited them over,” Rose said as she gestured for Aurora to place the plates on the table. “This has been trying for all of us,” her mother added by way of explanation.

Aurora closed her mouth tightly around the words that wished to escape her. Her mother was right. The last few weeks had been difficult, not just for Aurora and Holt but also for their families.

“I guess I’m just surprised,” Aurora said.

“By what?” Rose asked. Her mother was a glamorous woman, but she also loved to cook. The problem was, so did her father. The two of them fought for dominance of the kitchen, and this time Rose had lost. She’d been relegated to helping to set the table, which was also Aurora’s job.

“I’m surprised that you and the Ewings are still getting along,” she said. Aurora was surprised that the two families had managed to put their differences aside while Aurora and Holt had been taken, and she did not understand how they seemed able to continue doing so even after they returned.

Rose stopped a moment to polish a piece of silver. She held it up until she was certain that it was spotless. Rose might have started to play nice with the Ewings, but she also clearly wanted to show her dominance as a hostess.

“I suppose that when you go through something like we’ve all been through, you realize that old grudges should be put to bed.”

Aurora was shocked at her mother’s words. This was by far the deepest conversation the two of them had ever had.

A short knock on the door interrupted their conversation. Rose dropped a piece of silver and hid her cleaning rag in her armoire. “That’ll be them,” she said, untying the crisp white apron that protected her sapphire colored gown. Aurora did not have it in her heart to tell her mother that she looked slightly silly, matching their plates.

“Be sure to take that apron off,” Rose said as she came towards Aurora and fixed the crystal clip in her hair.

“I know how to dress myself, Mother,” Aurora said, shooing her away.

Rose gave her a small smile. “Let me mother you for a moment,” Rose said. “There aren’t many of these types of moments left.” Her tone was sad, and her eyes heavy with tears. Before Aurora could ask more questions, such as why her mother seemed to think their time together would be limited, her mother gave her a swift kiss on her forehead before heading towards the front door.

Groaning, Aurora took off her apron and walked towards the kitchen and her father.

“Smells good in here, Pa,” she said.

Her father gave her a small smile as Aurora slid up behind him. They hadn’t been able to spend a great deal of time alone since her return, and as her mother’s words played round and round in her head, she worried that she was somehow missing out on time with her pa.

“Glad ya think so,” he told her, stirring something in a large pot. He was making some sort of stew. “Where’s your mother?” he asked.

“She’s letting the Ewings in and making sure they get settled.”

Her father said nothing more, turning back towards his stew. Glenn could be gregarious in certain situations, but at home he was much more subdued.

“What’s on your mind, Pa?” she asked.

He chuckled. “You’ve always been good at telling what I’m thinkin’” he said.

She smiled. Ever since she was a little girl, she’d looked up to her father. She could always tell what type of mood he was in based on his looks, but tonight he seemed more guarded than normal.

“Is it the Ewings?” she asked.

Her father gave a slight shrug of his shoulders. “In a way,” he told her.

Before Aurora could ask more, her mother came in looking slightly frazzled. “Why are y’all both in here?” she asked. “We’ve got guests that need attending.”

Sighing, Aurora threw her apron on the kitchen table, pasted a smile on her face, and went out to greet their guests.

At least Holt will be here with me, Aurora thought. It wasn’t so much that she did not want to dine with the Ewings as it was that she wanted a quiet moment alone with her parents, which was something that they had not had since she had returned. Every evening was another celebration, or supper with a well-meaning neighbor. Aurora had to admit that she was exhausted by the entire thing.

“There ya are,” Holt said as Aurora walked into the dining room from the kitchen. Aurora could not stop herself from blushing. Holt had been quite open about his affections for her, yet he had not declared himself in any way. Aurora was not sure if Holt had real feelings for her, the kind of feelings a man might feel towards a woman he intended to marry, or if the bond they’d formed was just carrying over into their normal lives.

“You look lovely, Aurora,” Celia Ewing said. Aurora blushed even harder. At this point she knew that she must be as red as a tomato.

“Thank you,” she said, smoothing down the silk of her emerald gown. Her mother had the gown made when she returned. It was a beautiful confection of dark silk with white rosettes on the neckline. Her mother swore that the color brought out the auburn streaks in her hair. Aurora thought it made her look like a Christmas tree.

“You do look lovely,” Holt said, taking a sip from his glass. Aurora noted that her mother, ever the hostess, had already provided the Ewings with cocktails and appetizers.

“How are y’all?” Aurora asked, desperate to change the subject.

“Well,” Holt said.

“Better now that those animals are jailed,” Celia Ewing said. Aurora noted how much healthier Celia was looking these days, and it made her heart sing. Celia Ewing had always been someone Aurora admired, and she was happy to see that there were no long terms effects on her health from Leroy Ward’s kidnapping.

“I think we all feel better now that we know the Wards are behind bars,” Rose said.

Speaking of the Wards seemed to bring a dark cloud over the evening.

“Where’s Glenn?” Jerry Ewing asked.

“In the kitchen,” Aurora said. She was surprised that Jerry asked about her father. Celia and Rose seemed to be getting on well, but what was even more surprising was how well Jerry and her father seemed to be getting on.

“I’ll go and grab him,” her mother said.

“Allow me,” Holt said. He moved past all of them with a swiftness and authority that Aurora had come to expect from him.

“So, Aurora,” Jerry Ewing asked, “what is new in the life of the young?”

Aurora smiled. It seemed that Holt was content to leave her alone to be grilled by his parents, and she started to think of various ways to repay him when he returned.

“Dinner was fantastic,” Holt said, throwing his napkin back on the table. Aurora had to agree. While Marge had taken good care of them, their meals had been bland in comparison to what they were eating now.

“It was delicious, Pa,” she told her father.

Aurora was shocked at how wonderfully the dinner went. She had to admit to herself that she’d expected things to be tenser than they were. The only tenseness was between her and Holt. Their parents laughed and chatted as though they were the oldest of friends. Old feuds were put to bed and new friendships were formed.

“Why don’t we go to the parlor for a bit of brandy?” her father suggested. He’d become more and more jovial as the night went on. He even discussed business with Jerry Ewing, which nearly gave Aurora palpitations.

“A bit of brandy sounds lovely,” Celia said. She waited for her husband to accompany her just as Aurora’s father accompanied her mother. That left her and Holt.

“Things seem to be going well,” he whispered in her ear. His breath tickled her skin. Holt was extremely close, and though it was proper as he was escorting her into the parlor, something about it felt entirely forbidden.

“I’m surprised,” she told him honestly.

“Me too.” He gave her arm a slight squeeze. The actions felt comforting. As they got closer to the foyer, Aurora sighed. She did not want to spend any more time—who knew how long?—entertaining. Well, that wasn’t entirely true; she wanted to be with Holt.

“Meet me tomorrow in the church gardens,” Holt whispered in her ear.

Before she could react, he released her. They both plastered smiles upon their faces and faced this new reality of theirs.

***

After the service, Holt made an excuse to leave his parents and wait in the garden for Aurora’s arrival. Sitting on one of the church’s wooden benches, he could not help but tap his boot up and down. He was antsy.

For the past two weeks, he’d been trying to get Aurora alone so that he might ask her the question he’d been dying to ask since he hid out in Marge’s cellar. He’d even tried to get her out to Marge’s farmhouse to do it properly, but she’d declined his invitation.

Marge had not been happy to see Holt show up without news and without Aurora. He swore to her that the next time he stopped by the farm to check in, something that was now a weekly occurrence, he’d bring Aurora, and she’d be his fiancée.

He hadn’t realized how difficult it would be to fulfill that promise. He hadn’t courted anyone since he was a young man, a boy really, and he’d not remembered how tedious and difficult it was to steal moments.

Where is she? Holt thought. For a brief moment, he worried that Aurora would not show up. Not accept his invitation.

But just as doubt reared its head, he spotted her. A vision in a pale-yellow dress. Her hair was swept up out of her face, with only small ringlets framing it. She carried a parasol to shield her fair skin from the harsh effects of the noon sun. And as she walked towards him, he felt his breath leave his body.

Holt hoped to gaze upon her for years to come, and he’d take her all dressed up as she was today or covered in dirt as she was the day in the garden when he’d first started to feel something for her.

“You came,” he said as she came closer to him. “And you look lovely today.” Holt was speaking the truth. Aurora truly did look like the morning sky in her pale-yellow dress.

“Thank you,” she said.

“Would you like to walk or sit?” Holt asked. He felt clumsy and unsure of himself. His boot kept kicking up pieces of the earth around his heels. He knew he’d hear about putting a hole in the church’s garden, but he could not seem to stop himself from tapping his feet.

“Let’s walk,” Aurora said. “Feels like I’ve been sitting for hours, and the air is nice.”

Holt nodded. He felt like that was the only thing he could do.

Standing, Holt extended his arm for her to take. A part of him knew that he should keep a more respectable distance between them, but he did not want to. There were plenty of people milling around the gardens so that they were not alone. Taking Aurora’s arm while they walked was hardly inappropriate, but Holt knew that the residents of Burkedale would be scandalized to see an Ewing and a Haney strolling together after everything that happened.

“Everyone is talking about us,” Aurora said, looking around at the townspeople.

Holt glanced around. People were indeed talking about them. They were not even trying to hide it. Holt groaned. This was not the way he’d intended his romantic declaration to go.

“Perhaps we should go somewhere else,” he said.

“Where?” Aurora asked, eyebrows raised. “Everyone in town is talking about us. We’re front page. And anywhere else appropriate is going to be overrun by our parents.”

Holt nodded. Aurora was speaking the truth. A part of him could not believe that he longed to be back in Marge Barber’s farmhouse. Despite the danger, things between him and Aurora felt simpler at that time.

“Let’s just walk,” Aurora said. “It’s a beautiful day, and we are free and together. Don’t think too much about the others.”

Laughing at her words, Holt couldn’t help but ask, “When did you get so wise?”

Aurora’s brown eyes sparkled, and as the light caught the strands of her hair, Holt realized that he did not care what anyone else thought. He only wished for Aurora to be happy, and if she was happy here with him strolling through the church gardens, then he’d stroll.

“I don’t think I’ve been able to ask you how you’ve been,” he said.

“We haven’t been able to speak much since our return,” Aurora told him. He noticed that she did not answer the question.

“No, I suppose we haven’t,” he said. They strolled amongst the flowers and bushes. The smell of the roses and gardenias reminded Holt that spring was coming.

“We never got to talk to about what happened during our time at the farmhouse,” she said.

Holt stopped. They’d come to a quiet, mostly secluded spot, underneath a large oak that provided shade to the remainder of the land.

“Is there anything left to talk about?” Holt asked. He’d been dreading the conversation he knew was going to happen between them. When he’d convinced Aurora to leave him behind, he’d done so because he wanted to save her life, but he knew that, despite his best intentions, she was going to make him pay for his actions. He hoped that since everything had worked out in the end, she’d forgive and forget but, given the hard line of her mouth and the deep darkness of her usually light-colored eyes, he knew he was in for a fight.

“There’s plenty,” she said. “Let’s start with how you were willing to let yourself be killed.” Aurora used her parasol as a weapon, pointing the end into Holt’s chest and pressing him backwards. “Then let’s discuss how you allowed me to go off with Victor Ward knowing that he was a scoundrel.” At this accusation Holt opened his mouth to defend himself. After all, he had tried to warn Aurora about Victor.

“Don’t tell me you tried to warn me,” she snarled, pressing her parasol harder into his chest. “I don’t want to hear it. You nearly died, and the thought of you dying for me …” She shivered as if the words were too much for her to bear.

“Aurora.” Holt leaned into the parasol, happy to endure the pain as long as it brought him closer to her. “It was never my plan to die,” he said.

She moved the parasol swiftly, thwacking him in the arm. He jumped, more out of surprise than pain. “Ow!” he exclaimed, rubbing the spot on his jacket where her makeshift weapon had left a mark.

“Don’t ow me,” she said. “Telling me that you had no intention to die is possibly the most ridiculous thing you’ve ever said. Who plans to die?”

Holt smirked.

“And don’t smirk like that!” she told him.

Her words only caused his grin to grow. “I’m glad to know that if I had died you would have missed me,” he said honestly. Before Aurora, Holt hadn’t realized just how much he missed the companionship that came when another person cared for you. Sure, his ma and pa were always there for him, but parental love was something different. Knowing that someone out there chose to love you and honor you, well, it meant a great deal in the grand scheme of things.

Looking at Aurora, he noticed her eyes getting heavy and glassy. Tears filled them up, and the sight of them felt like a kick in Holt’s heart. “Of course I’d miss you, you idiot,” she whispered.

Her full bottom lip trembled as she did her best to keep herself together. “Don’t cry, Aurora,” Holt said. He couldn’t stop himself from reaching out to caress her face. At his touch a tear slid gently down the slope of her cheek until it fell, staining the silk of her lovely gown. Holt wanted to remark on it, but he knew Aurora would simply tell him that she didn’t care about this gown.

“Don’t cry,” he said again. His arms ached to hold her, and he clenched his muscles in an attempt to refrain from doing anything that might get the two of them in any sort of trouble.

Hastily, Aurora wiped her tears away. “Promise me that you’ll never do anything like that again,” she ordered. She refused to look at him, but Holt could see the grief in her eyes.

He hadn’t considered what his plan might have done to her. All he could think about was saving her from the Wards. He did not consider any options that might have involved letting Aurora in on his plan.

“I promise,” Holt said, tipping Aurora’s chin back to meet his eyes, “that from now on I’ll always let ya in on any plans.”

Holt waited with bated breath for her response. If she was determined to stay angry at him, then his next plan was never going to work.

“I suppose that sounds all right,” Aurora said. “We could also promise each other not to get kidnapped again.”

Holt laughed. “Think that’s a promise I can make,” he told her.

Aurora wiped the remainder of her tears from her face and gifted Holt with another one of her large, sunny smiles. He constantly marveled at her ability to show forgiveness. In the farmhouse, he’d thought it was naïve or her, but now he realized it was what made her strong.”

“I’ve got something else I’ve gotta share with ya,” he told her.

“Oh?” Aurora’s face scrunched up. Once more Holt found himself longing to smooth down the worried lines that creased between her eyebrows. And once more, he refrained.

“I told ya I wouldn’t go about making any more plans without consulting ya, but I’ve gotta say that I got myself in a right mess with Marge when she agreed to help me.”

The lines between Aurora’s brows deepened. Holt knew Aurora was concerned about Marge’s well-being, which was why he’d originally volunteered to go out and see the older woman. Aurora’s family had barely let her out of their sight since her return, and she claimed she did not want to sic her mother on Marge.

“And what did you promise her?” she asked.

Holt shifted his weight. He was nervous. His next words would define his future and hers.

He took a deep breath before he spoke the next words. “That I’d ask you to marry me.”

Aurora’s mouth dropped open. “What?” Her loud screech caused several people to turn their heads to glance their way, which made Holt even more uncomfortable.

“Marge’s got this crazy idea that we had fallen in love, and she made me promise that if she helped me escape, I wouldn’t wait any longer to ask ya to be my bride. Given that I’m a man of my word, I thought that now, when we are alone and things have settled, seemed like the right time.” Holt wasn’t sure if he was making any sense. His words seemed to spew out of him. He hoped that he was doing this right.

“And w-what did ya think of all her spouting on about us being in love?” she asked.

Holt smiled. The fact that Aurora was not outright saying no meant that she was considering his proposal.

“I happen to agree with her,” he said. Holt bent his knee. He took out the ring that he had asked his father for and presented it up at Aurora who gasped as she took in the scene.

“My folks …”

“I asked your father for your hand when I recovered, and he swore that as long as I treated ya well, he’d bless our marriage. That’s why our folks have been tryin’ to make in-roads with one another. Because, if you say yes, we’ll all be family.”

Holt’s blood pounded in his ears as he waited for Aurora to answer him.

“Well,” she said, “you are a man of your word, and I’d hate to stand in the way of an honest man doing the right thing …” A faint smile flickered over her lips as she held out her hand.

“Is that a yes?” Holt asked.

Aurora nodded.

Slipping the golden ring on Aurora delicate finger, Holt felt his heart sing. It felt as though all the hardships of the past—both distant and more recent—had led to this moment.

Aurora Haney would become Aurora Ewing and their union would bring about peace and prosperity the likes of which Burkedale had never known.

“I love you,” Aurora told him. “And I’ll love you always.”

“I love ya,” Holt said in return. And with those words, Holt and Aurora began a new Chapter in their story.