On the Trail of a Vicious Killer – Extended Epilogue

June 1900

A little girl with white-blond pipe curls and bright blue eyes sat on the porch swing, looking out to the gate.

“Gina,” a voice called from inside the house. “You should probably put on your sweater. The breeze is getting cool out there.”

Gina got down from the swing to comply with her mother’s wish, but before she could do so, a squawking car horn announced the arrival of a car coming up the drive.

“They’re here!” Gina squealed, then ran off in the direction of the car. “Auntie Verline! Uncle Jacob!”

The car horn squawked one more time, as a laughing Verline came out from behind the wheel and stopped to pick Gina up.

“Give Auntie Verline a big kiss!” she cried. Gina leaned forward with puckered lips, and Verline kissed her.

“Ooh, Auntie, you always smell so good.”

Verline laughed again as Jacob came around from the passenger side and Gina crashed into him, full force, throwing her arms around and hugging his legs.

“Hey, there, Angel,” he said, picking her up and carrying her back toward the house.

“Mmmm, Uncle Jacob, you smell good, too, like… like tobacco and peppermint.”

“Ah, now, don’t go tellin’ on me,” he teased.

By now, Laura was holding the front door open, still with Gina’s cardigan in her hand, and Jack was right behind her.

The adults embraced all around, and Jacob and Verline entered the ranch house.

“Mmmm,” Jacob said. “Something smells good.”

“That would be Laura’s immense pot pie,” Jack said. “I’ve never seen one so huge.”

The men wandered off into another part of the house, with Gina trailing behind. The women went off toward the kitchen.

“Where’s the baby?” Verline wanted to know.

Just then, one of the kitchen girls emerged from the powder room with the three-year-old on her hip.

“I can’t believe you still refer to him as the baby,” Laura said, grinning.

“My god, he’s huge! Come to Auntie Verline,” she coaxed, and he leaned toward her. Verline nearly lost her balance when the girl released him. “How much does this child weigh?”

Laura shrugged. “I have no idea,” she admitted. “Gina was such a tiny thing at this age.”

“Yes, well, she probably takes after you, but this little lunker definitely takes after his father. I remember when Jack was this age, and I would try to tote him around.”

The child began to bounce in Verline’s arms, wanting to be put down.

“Go find your father and Uncle Jacob, Jackie,” Laura instructed as Verline set him on the floor. He ran off like he was on wheels, and he could be heard all the way to the back of the house.

“Still not talking?” Verline wanted to know.

“Oh, he does,” Laura replied, “when he wants to. But you can’t really converse with him yet. It’s almost like he thinks you’re trying to trick him into talking.”

“It’s pretty late, isn’t it?”

“I mentioned it to the doctor at his last visit. The doctor says it’s not terribly unusual, that he will start talking when it’s important to him.”

Verline turned to the counter behind her. “Look at that pie! I’ve never seen such a thick, golden crust. How beautiful. Look at the little cut-outs of fruit and leaves.” She bent and sniffed it. “Smells delectable, too.”

“Hope so,” Laura said. “And frozen custard with chocolate and caramel sauce for dessert.”

Verline squealed. “I miss your cooking so much.” She stopped and looked at Laura for a moment, then hugged her. “I miss you so much.”

Laura smiled, kissing Verline on the cheek, then grasped the pie pan with a tea towel and took it to the table.

The men came into the dining room, and sat down.

“Will ya look at that?” Jacob said, indicating the pie.

Laura brought out a delicate white wine. She showed them the label before she opened it—Wilson Wineries.

One of the girls from the kitchen came and served them each a piece, then left the pie server in the tin. She poured the wine, and then went to Laura.

“Why don’t you let me take them with me?” the girl whispered to Laura. “I have some chicken that I know they’ll love.”

“Do you want to go with Marta to eat in the kitchen?” Laura asked the children. Jackie was already scrambling down from his chair and making his way to Marta, but Gina spoke up.

“I would like to try the pie,” she said, “and I want to stay here with you.”

Laura nodded at Marta, and she retreated to find Jackie.

“That’s fine,” Laura said. “Here, you try a little bit, and if you like it, I’ll get you a plate.”

Jack took his fork and gave her a bite. After a couple of chews, she opened her eyes wide and nodded. “Yes, please!” she said.

Everyone laughed at her expression, and Laura got her daughter a small plate and cut her a sliver.

“Thank you,” the girl said, grinning up at her mother.

“You’re about to have a birthday, aren’t you?” Verline asked Gina.

“Yes,” she confirmed. “I’ll be six!”

“Six!” Verline cried. “By the time we get back from our trip, you’ll be accomplished in reading, writing, and arithmetic.”

“I’m already reading,” she pointed out, “and Mama has been teaching me my numbers.”

“My, my, then. Perhaps you’ll be off to college before Uncle Jacob and I get back from our trip,” she said.

Gina gave her mother a surprised look. “How long will you be gone, Auntie?” she wanted to know.

“At least two years, dear,” Verline said.

She looked thoughtful. “Until I’m eight?”

“Probably.”

With that, Gina ate the rest of her dinner in silence and asked to be excused.

“Don’t you want some frozen custard?” Laura asked her.

“Yes, but I’ll have it in the kitchen with Jackie and Marta.”

They waited quietly while she got up from her chair, skipping off to the kitchen.

A few minutes of silence ensued.

“I wouldn’t have thought a child her age would have a sense of how long two years is,” Verline said.

“She’s an extraordinary child, for sure,” Jack replied proudly.

Laura called for coffee from the kitchen, and it was brought and set on the table. “I’ll let you know when we’re ready for dessert,” she said.

“Well, as you know, this last year has been a real struggle,” Verline began. “Miners unionizing, the gold playing out…”

“Well, not really playing out, but getting too expensive to retrieve,” Jacob amended. “We let the Chinese go, but with plenty of gold in their pockets. We thought it would make the rest of the miners happier, but it just made them more restless. Some have left for richer strikes, other to work bigger mines—there’s still a lot of mining going on over at Cripple Creek.

“Even though we did away with the scrip and started paying the miners in cash, they still weren’t happy. If you’ve been checking the numbers, you’ll notice we’ve had quite a bit of profit decline over the last quarter.”

Laura nodded.

“So, we’ve found a buyer who wants to buy the whole thing, if you’re willing.”

“What does he plan to do with it?”

“We’re not completely sure, but I know he wants to bring in a new mining method and his own smelter. I hate to see it, really. He can’t do it unless he cuts up a whole lot of land back there.”

“Do you really think he can make a go of it?” Jack asked.

“I don’t know, but apparently he thinks so.”

Everyone was lost in their own thoughts, and Laura signaled for the girl to bring out the dessert.

Things seemed shift to a lighter mood with the arrival of Laura’s dense custard and the decadent sauces.

“You can’t beat this in a creamery in downtown Boston,” Jacob remarked.

Laura smiled. “So, tell us about your trip.”

“At first, we were going to go west to the Orient and India, but we’ve decided now that we’ll see the U.S. first, then get on a ship for London. From there, we see Spain and Portugal, Morocco and Algeria. We’ll decide then whether we’re going deeper into Africa,” he explained. “I do have a fascination for Egypt and the Savannah, but that remains to be seen. We’re just going to do it all. All the European countries, the antiquities, all of the Occident and the Orient.”

“My, my,” Laura commented.

“Well, if we sell the mine, we’ll be as rich as Croesus, what with all my investments to date plus our half of the mine. What are we going to do with it all? Buy a Greek island?”

Verline tittered.

“Okay,” he said, “that thought may have crossed our minds more than once. But it’s a big, beautiful, fascinating world out there, and we want to see it all. Why not?”

“What plans have you thought about for yourselves, if we sell the mine?” Jacob wanted to know.

Jack shrugged. “I don’t know that we’ve really ever discussed it. The way we horde our money, you would think we’re planning something huge, but we mostly just do the day-to-day working the ranch, caring for the place, and raising Gina and Jackie.”

“We enjoy our peace, here. The tranquility of the place,” Laura said.

“Jack certainly found the right wife for himself,” Verline noted. “He’s always been that way, too. Me, I couldn’t wait to get out of here and go back east.”

“And I’m glad you did,” Jacob said, looking at her adoringly and laying his hand on hers.

That night, after the table was cleared, the dishes done, and everyone had gone to their beds, when Jack lay down beside Laura, he asked her, “How do you feel about selling the mine?”

“I think perhaps I’m inclined to agree with their assessment of things. If we have a buyer who is willing to take the whole thing, it might be best to get out while we have the opportunity.”

“And buy us a Greek island?”

They both chuckled.

“I don’t know,” she said. “But that money isn’t going anywhere, so we can talk about it as long as we want, take all the time in the world, and do nothing if we so desire. Maybe we’ll just leave all the money to Gina and Jackie, and let them figure out what to do with it.”

“That’s a lot of money for two siblings to fight over.”

“Fight over? You think they would fight over it?”

“Maybe not, if we did it right. I wasn’t really thrilled when my father gave all the money to Verline and the land to me. It would have been nice to have a split of both.”

“Ah, that’s where this is coming from,” she mused.

“I guess it really doesn’t matter that much now, does it?” he said.

“No. Things probably work out as they’re supposed to.”

“What if…?” Jack started.

“Yes?”

“What if we made another couple of siblings, so they could all squabble over the money?”

“Oh, you,” she cooed. “Hey! I see that wicked gleam in your eye, Jack Wilson.”

“Do you now?” he teased as he rolled over to her and began to untie her chemise.

~~

Verline and Jacob stayed for a week. They went on picnics, fished in a nearby cattle tank, and went down to Fountain Creek and took in the beauty there. They rode horses up into the woods, and raced them across meadows.

They were impressed at how well Gina was riding. Juan and Marta were good teachers of horsemanship, and Gina, like her mother, seemed born to it.

“I don’t want you to be gone so long, Aunt Verline,” she said as Verline and Jacob prepared to leave.

Verline bent down and gave her a big hug. “How about this?” she said. “How about if I send you a postcard from every single city we stop in, and you can make a book of them? Then, when we are here again, you can tell me all what you thought about the pictures, and what you imagined about my trip.”

That idea really brightened the girl. She didn’t want her aunt to leave, but the prospect of the postcard book captivated her.

Jack handed Jackie to her, and she kissed him and danced around with him to shrieks and giggles.

“It’s hard for me to think he’ll be the age Gina is now when I get back.”

Laura nodded, pressing her lips together solemnly.

~~

Jacob and Verline had the real estate papers drawn up to sell the mine. A date was set with their attorney, and they all went into Colorado Springs for the signing.

“Does it make you sad?” Jack asked Laura.

“It would have if I’d have tried to do it after Andrew died, or even when Jacob offered to buy me out. But not now. Despite how it has enriched me, it seems like a thing wholly detached from me.”

Jack just nodded.

“Besides,” she added, smiling, “we can always buy another winery or two, if we want.”

She had been shrewd in investing in the wine industry, Jack acknowledged.

So many changes had come with the turn of the century. Cars were everywhere now, cities were creeping outwards and sucking up land. Jack was forced to fence a good portion of his property.

In the recent past, the only threat to the horses had been wolves, but there was a new breed of horse thieves out there—men down on their luck would rob, cheat, and steal just about anything, including livestock. Jack began to feel crowded, as if the cities were encroaching on his very land. To keep everything secure, he would have to hire more men, but that seemed crazy when there was barely enough for them to do, other than provide security.

Cars went up and down the road in front of the house, and they allowed the children outside to play only in the courtyard.

~~

One day, Gina ran into the house holding an envelope aloft. “They’re back in England, now,” she announced, “but in someplace called the Cost—Cots—wolds. And they want us to come visit them.”

“What?” Laura asked, taking the envelope the child proffered her.

She read the letter over quickly.

“The English cities are abysmal,” Verline wrote, “but the countryside is a wonder. So, so different from where we’ve ever lived. We’re going to take a country house here for the summer, and I wonder whether or not we can persuade you to come and visit.”

“Where’s Papa?” Gina wanted to know. “I want to tell him right now.”

Laura hesitated, but decided it would be all right because Gina wouldn’t have to cross any roads to get there.

“Papa and Juan are out fixing fence in the horse pasture.”

“Can I run and tell him we have a letter from Aunt Verline?”

“You may run and tell him,” Laura answered.

Gina ran, starting out the door, when Laura heard her say in a tentative voice, “Mama?”

Laura looked up to see a man with hate-filled eyes standing on the porch. She hurried to the door with the intent of grabbing Gina back inside, when the man grabbed her instead. He spun her around toward Laura. Gina’s eyes were bulging out of her head.

“You folks sure got a fine spread here, don’t ya? Horses and the like. And look at the size of this house. Why, I’ll bet you got an office with a safe, don’t ya?”

“Jack. Jack!” Laura called. “There’s a man here who…”

“Don’t gimme dat,” he retorted. “Yer husband left with his hand early this morning and they ain’t come back yet. I been watchin’. You an’ the girl are all alone.”

Jack kept a shotgun right beside the door. Laura grabbed it and cocked it, chambering a cartridge. But he was too close. And he was holding Gina.

She was afraid to even point it at him because she was worried it would go off, and Gina might be killed.

“Mama,” Gina cried.

The man grabbed her a little tighter, moving his hand up toward her throat.

Laura’s head began to spin. It wasn’t the man’s face she saw, it was Holt’s. And it wasn’t Gina, it was herself. Suddenly, she knew exactly how Jack had felt on that horrible day.

“Mister, you let my daughter go, and I’ll give you anything in this house that you want.”

“Really? Did you hear that, sweetheart? Your mama will give me anything I want, if’n I let you go.”

The man pushed Gina out of the way, but he stepped forward, attempting to wrench the shotgun from Laura’s hands. “If’n you’re ready to give it up so easily, there must not be much, so maybe I’ll just take you, instead.”

He shoved her backwards, apparently counting on her being too unbalanced to shoot. She began to fall, but caught herself on her knee and heel, brought the shotgun to bear, and fired.

She saw that she had shot him in the groin, and he lunged forward again.

“Jesus fuckin’…” he started, but he never finished. A shot rang out from behind him, pitching him forward. Laura managed to move to the side just as he fell, face down in the hearth.

“Laura! Are you all right?”

Before she could answer, Jack ran to the door. “Juan! Keep Gina with you.”

He turned back to Laura. “Talk to me.”

“Where’s Jackie?” she asked urgently.

“He’s okay. When Marta saw what was happening, she grabbed him and went out the back door to come and get Juan and I, but I saw Gina coming first, and I knew something was wrong.”

“I’m—I’m okay,” she managed, “other than the shock.”

As she said the word shock, cold fear ran through Jack when he recalled her reaction to what had happened with Holt.

She could see it in his face. “Now, I finally understand.”

“Understand what?”

“What you went through that day—that day. He had Gina around the neck. I got him to let her go, but then he came for me.”

Jack looked down at the man. “He’d have bled out soon enough from your shot,” he assured her, “but I’m glad I finished it.”

“Me, too. Now I know what it’s like when something or someone you love very much is threatened.” She paused, closing her eyes. “I’m going to go upstairs and lay down,” she told Jack. “Send Marta up after a while.”

He took her in his arms and held her head against him. She could feel how hard his heart was beating. It almost matched her own.

After a while, Marta came up to bring her some broth. Laura sat up and drank it all.

“Thank you for taking care of Jackie today. For keeping him out of harm’s way.”

Marta smiled and touched her arm.

“Can we come in?” came Jack’s voice from the door.

“Of course,” Laura said.

Gina ran to her, throwing her arms around her mother. “Mama!”

“It’s going to be okay, baby. It’s going to be okay.”

“I know it is,” Gina said. “Papa read Auntie Verline’s letter, and he says we all need a holiday.”

Laura looked up at him, and he nodded.

“I think it’s a really good idea, until we get some things sorted out,” he told her.

“Me, too,” Laura agreed. “A splendid idea.”

That night, they put Jackie and Gina to bed together. Laura read to them, and she and Jack kissed them goodnight.

Then, they crawled into their own bed. “It’s safe to go downstairs,” he told Laura. “Juan and I took the body into Colorado Springs to the coroner, and made a report to the sheriff’s department.”

“Good,” was all Laura said, and soon she was fast asleep, tucked up under Jack’s arm. He lay awake for a while, thinking perhaps it was time to do something very different. He had no idea what that would be, or where in the world could be as tranquil to his soul as his ranch used to be, but he would find it. For Laura’s sake.

THE END

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