Two years later

Malcolm paced the length of the living room with his hands clasped behind his back. “I can do this. I’ve handled worse than this.”

Silas snorted from his place on the settee. His baby daughter, Lenora, was sitting on his lap, chewing on his arm. Lenora was only eight months old and stared at the world with wide, curious eyes as if she wanted to take everything in all at once. She had Rosa’s curly hair and Silas’ brown, somber eyes.

Meanwhile, Percy sat on the floor playing with a carved wooden horse. As usual, he seemed oblivious to the tense atmosphere and was neighing as he made his horse run the length of the floor. At three and a half years, he was turning into a stout little boy who knew his own mind.

“This can’t be worse than that time we were pinned in a mine with six men trying to shoot us,” Malcolm told Silas.

“I don’t know about that,” Silas said sardonically. “When Rosa was giving birth, I thought I’d die from nerves.”

“That doesn’t make me feel better,” Malcolm said, glowering at Silas.

“I wasn’t trying to make you feel better,” Silas joked.

Malcolm rolled his eyes and wrung his hands as he paced anxiously. A strangled, pained cry emanated from the bedroom, and he immediately hurried over to the door.

“Don’t!” Prudence warned. “She won’t want to see you right now. Believe me. When I was giving birth, your father rushed to my side, and I threw something at his head. It’s better to stay here.”

“Viola would never throw anything at my head,” Malcolm said, sniffing.

“She might.” Thaddeus chuckled. “She was yelling earlier, and I could have sworn I heard your name.”

Malcolm grimaced as he looked over at the door. He wanted nothing more than to be at his wife’s side, but it was generally accepted that the father would wait outside. He dropped onto the nearest chair and buried his hands in his hair. A few moments later, a little hand patted his knee. He looked up to see Percy smiling sweetly at him.

“Want Harry?” Percy asked, offering the horse to Malcolm. “He makes you feel happy.”

“Thanks, little guy,” Malcolm murmured, taking Harry from Percy. “Do you still like playing with him?”

“Yes.” Percy nodded. He frowned as Viola cried out again and looked over at Harry longingly. “Have back now?”

Malcolm chuckled as he handed the horse back to Percy. “You’re very special, do you know that?” He ruffled Percy’s hair. “Even though you’re getting a new brother or sister, we’re always going to love you very much.”

Percy grinned. “New brother or sister!”

“That’s right. Which one do you want? A brother or a sister?”

Percy frowned as he tapped his chin. “Already have Nor. I want a brother!”

“Hear that, Lenora?” Silas asked, bouncing the baby on his knee. “Little Percy thinks of you as a sister. Isn’t that sweet?”

Lenora burped, and a stream of white liquid flooded from her mouth.

“Oh dear,” Prudence sighed. “Here, let me take the little dear.”

She picked Lenora up, hurried out of the room, and Silas sighed as he leaned back in his seat.

“Perhaps it would help to talk about something else,” Thaddeus suggested helpfully. “When last did you hear from Oz? I know his sentence is about to end.”

Malcolm shifted uncomfortably. Oz had been sentenced to three years in prison after his involvement with Ambrose, and he’d faithfully served out most of his sentence. While Malcolm had initially thought that three years was too short, he’d eventually come to terms with it.

Besides, the investigation had revealed that Oz had merely sabotaged the bridge. Ambrose was the one who’d cut the train’s brakes so that it wouldn’t be able to stop when the bridge collapsed in front of it. He’d wanted to discredit his competition, and he hadn’t thought it would be enough if the bridge merely fell. He wanted to make sure that no one would ever trust the Northern Territories Railway Company again.

Ambrose and Voss had been sentenced to life in prison. After Oz came forward, dozens of other witnesses were also emboldened to confess their own experiences with Ambrose.

“He wrote to Viola a few weeks ago,” Malcolm said. “An old friend offered him a job at a lighthouse in the next county. It takes about two days to get there.”

“Ah, I see,” Thaddeus said slowly. “And will you see him?”

Silas leaned forward as he watched Malcolm intently.

“I don’t know if I’ll see him,” Malcolm admitted. “I don’t know if we can have a relationship yet. However, Viola agreed that he could come by to meet the new baby.”

“How about Rosa? How does she feel about letting him meet Lenora?” Thaddeus asked.

“Rosa’s considering it,” Silas admitted. “I’ll do whatever she decides. This is completely her decision. It won’t be easy for her to see him again, but she’s made a lot of progress. She’s been a lot happier ever since she opened her dress store and Lenora was born. Now that she’s doing what she loves every day … and now that she has a child of her own, I think she’s starting to soften.”

“That’s good to hear,” Thaddeus said. “And what about you two? How’s business going?”

“It’s going well,” Malcolm said sincerely.

About a year after his wedding, Malcolm and Silas had started talking about the good old days as investigators. They both realized that they missed it and decided to open a detective agency together.

Viola was busy running the boarding house for Rosa, and she was very good at her job. She supported Malcolm in pursuing his dreams, and while business had started slowly, they were starting to get more cases. They worked closely with Marcus, and it turned out that there was plenty of work to go around.

“I’m really happy that you opened the detective agency. When I think about how bad things were just a few years ago, I can hardly believe how things turned out sometimes,” Thaddeus admitted. “Before you all came to town, I was on the run. Who knows what might have happened if you hadn’t shown up when you did? I’d probably be dead!”

“You’re smart and resourceful,” Malcolm said, waving his hand dismissively. “You would have found a way to outsmart Ambrose, eventually.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure,” Thaddeus said, raising his eyebrows. “Many people tried and failed. I’m just relieved that he’ll never be able to hurt anyone again. It would have been better if we could have stopped Ambrose before he killed Helen.”

Thaddeus looked down at his hands with a troubled expression.

“We got justice for her, though,” Malcolm reminded him. “And someday, when Percy asks about his parents, we’ll be able to tell him that his mother loved him more than anything in the world.”

“And he’ll be richer than all of us,” Silas said in amusement, ruffling the little boy’s hair.

Percy giggled in delight and clambered onto Silas’ lap. He showed off his horse, and Silas cooed at the toy.

“I’m sure he’ll use his money wisely,” Malcolm said. “He’s a clever little boy. I know he’s only a toddler, but I swear he’s going to be very successful.”

“Well, he’s got a lot of people ready to help him,” Thaddeus pointed out. “He may have Ambrose’s blood coursing through his veins, but we’ll all be right by his side so that he never forgets that he has more of Helen in him than Ambrose.”

The bedroom door opened, and Malcolm jumped to his feet, forgetting about everything else.

Rosa stepped out of the room, wearing a dazed expression.

“Well?” Malcolm asked worriedly. “How is she? Is the baby here?”

Rosa pressed a hand to her mouth and nodded. “He’s here, and he’s beautiful.”

A lump formed in Malcolm’s throat. He ran to the bedroom before anyone could say another word. Bart was busy washing his hands and smiled over his shoulder as Malcolm hurried into the room.

“You ready to meet your son?” Bart asked, his eyes bright with excitement.

Malcolm nodded as he turned to Viola, propped up by all the pillows on their bed. Her hair was plastered to her face, and her skin was slick with sweat. She held a tiny bundle in her hands and looked up at him with wide eyes.

“Can you believe it?” she whispered.

Malcolm’s heart stalled in his chest. He approached her slowly, almost reverently. Malcolm wrapped his arm around her shoulders and gazed down at his little boy. The baby was bright red with a tuft of brown hair rising from his head. His face was puckered and lined like an old man’s, and he was frowning as if he was furious at the world.

“Oh dear,” Malcolm breathed, “why are you so upset, little man?”

“He had a very rude awakening,” Bart chuckled. “Birth isn’t easy for the mother or the child.”

“He’s not angry,” Viola said, shaking her head at him. “He’s just thinking, aren’t you, little one?”

Malcolm laughed as he ran a finger down his son’s cheek. “I know what angry looks like, love, and this one is furious.”

Viola clicked her tongue at him as the door opened and the others came inside. Percy dashed to the bed, and Bart managed to scoop him up before the child bounced on the bed. Bart placed him gently at Viola’s side, and Viola inclined her head at him.

While Viola had never quite managed to be friendly with Bart again, she always treated him with respect.

“Careful,” Bart told Percy.

“Why, he’s so handsome!” Prudence gushed, staring at her grandson in amazement.

“What will you name him?” Rosa asked, holding Lenora in her arms.

“I don’t know,” Malcolm admitted. “We said we’d decide when he arrived. What do you think he looks like, Percy? What should we name your little brother?”

Percy tilted his head slightly as he considered his brother. “Uh … Harry!” He held up his horse with a bright smile.

Malcolm tapped his cheek. “Harry sounds good. What do you think, love?”

Viola shook her head slowly. “I’m sorry, Percy. That sounds lovely, but I don’t think it quite suits this little one. I was actually thinking …” She hesitated as she looked between Malcolm and Prudence.

“What were you thinking?” Prudence asked gently.

“What about Toby?” Viola looked up at Malcolm. “I always liked that name, and I really wish I could have met your brother. I so enjoy hearing stories about him. But do you think it would hurt too much?”

Warmth spread through Malcolm’s chest as he gazed at his wife in amazement. “That’s a beautiful idea … Thank you. He would have been so honored. I can’t imagine a better namesake for our son. What do you think, Ma?”

Prudence placed a hand on her chest as her eyes filled with tears.

“Is it a bad idea?” Malcolm asked in alarm. “We could always choose a different name.”

“Don’t you dare,” Prudence said, wiping her eyes. “Don’t you mind me. I’ll get a hold of myself. I’m just so touched, I can’t put it in words. Oh, thank you, Viola. I’m so grateful you decided to marry my son.”

Viola smiled sweetly and cupped Malcolm’s cheek. “No, I’m the lucky one.”

Malcolm kissed her forehead and held out his finger to baby Toby. The child grabbed hold of Malcolm’s finger, holding on with all his might. He was already so strong. Malcolm swallowed hard as he gazed at his family.

He was so grateful that he’d accepted the assignment that had sent him to Blackwater Crossing all those years ago. It had been the start of something truly special.

THE END