The following year

Lilly walked outside the freshly built cabin carrying a basket, stopping to look out across the beautiful field toward lush green trees. Gorgeous wildflowers blanketed the field and birds sang in the early morning hour like sweet angels. She breathed deeply as the wind carried the scent of beauty and love on the wings of dreams that no poet could ever scribble into words.

It was a beautiful morning. Lilly had decided she was going to gather the eggs and cook her family a delicious breakfast. She was going to do it wearing the pretty new blue dress Trace bought her for her birthday. And she was going to do it with her hair up and looking pretty.

Lilly heard movement behind her. She turned and smiled. “Good morning sleepy head.”

Trace stepped outside buttoning a brown shirt. “Morning,” he yawned. “Henry’s still asleep. I checked. I’ll wake him in a bit. We’re going to do some riding today.”

“Alright.” Lilly looked around some more, appreciating it all. They’d been married for over a year. It was their second spring together, and now they had a baby on the way. Trace had built up the place and they finally had cattle of their own. Sure, he was still the law around there but not much happened anymore. He only rode into town a few times a week. Lilly could feel safe when he left. Henry was older too, and protected her. Though she could also protect herself.

“What are you thinking?” Trace asked as Lilly turned back to gaze at him.

“How happy I am.” Lilly touched her belly. “We have a baby on the way.”

“We sure do.” Trace gently touched Lilly’s belly. “Henry is going to be a big brother.”

“He’s happy about it, too.”

“Yeah. He’s growing stronger and smarter with each passing day.” Trace pulled Lilly close and gently kissed her. “We’re gonna run the cattle today. No sense in going into town. Hank can handle things.”

“I still can’t believe Hank and his wife moved here,” Lilly smiled.

“Yeah, I was surprised, too,” Trace confessed. “But this is a nice valley, and I think Hank has been looking for a place to start over for a while. He never said as much. Never would have, I reckon. But when I decided to settle here, well, I reckon he just figured it was time to move, too.”

“Folks like having you and Hank as the law around here. Madeline told me last week that she feels a lot safer.”

“With the Widow Makers gone, not much happens.” Trace looked around. “I think the Widow Makers were the worst this valley had ever seen or ever will see. I don’t expect trouble will peek its head around this valley again.”

“I pray you’re right.”

“I think I am.” Trace pointed out at the field full of wildflowers. “I know God brought me here, Lilly. I know I was meant to be your husband and you were meant to be my wife. I didn’t know it at first. I was focused on catching the Widow Makers. But when I saw you kill Thatcher, I knew.”

“I didn’t have a choice.”

“You had a choice,” Trace pointed out. He gently took Lilly’s hand. “All of your life you’ve lived scared. You’re not scared no more.”

“And all of your life you’ve run from love. Now you have a wife and a family.” Lilly leaned forward and kissed Trace. “It’s amazing how God works things out. We met so broken, Trace. I know you were a lawman, but you were just as lost as I was. Now look at us.”

“Pa once told me that when God’s Hand is at work you best not interfere.”

“Your pa was a smart man.”

“Well, he might not think too highly about me giving you all that stolen money.”

“Are you having second thoughts that about?” Lilly asked.

Trace smiled. “Nah. Knowing the money went to you and Henry is the perfect ending to the Widow Makers. They destroyed so many lives stealing that money. You used the money to rebuild two broken lives.”

“Three.” Lilly kissed Trace again. “We’re a family, Trace.”

Lilly heard a horse approaching. She turned and spotted Hank riding up. “How does he know when I’m getting ready to cook breakfast?”

“Ask his stomach,” Trace grinned.

Hank rode up looking as fresh as a morning robin and wearing a clean button up shirt and new britches. “My, don’t you look handsome,” Lilly smiled.

“Now don’t start, Lilly,” Hank fussed. “That wife of mine dressed me this morning. She said if I’m gonna run the new general store in town I gotta look smart. Well let me tell you, she’s the one that runs that store. I just sit at the jail shining my badge.”

Lilly giggled. It was true. Hank’s wife ran the general store in town—and was doing really well. In fact, ever since the Widow Makers met their end new faces were springing up. Not a ton, but enough that the town was starting to grow some. When Hank and his wife offered to buy the general store after the owner decided to leave, well, that turned out to be a good thing. Folks liked them.

Hank’s wife had turned the general store into something nice. The store used to be hard and cold and now there were dresses and ribbons and other things for the women in town. Hank got to sit around the jail passing the time. He complained, but everyone knew he preferred it that way.

“Come for breakfast?” Trace asked Hank.

“Yeah, might as well. But I’m also here ’cause I got a message from Mayor Matt Perchinson in North Woods. Arrived in town yesterday. You best read it.”

Hank fetched the message out of his pocket and hand it to Trace. “What is it?” Lilly asked trying to peek over his shoulder.

“Well, some ranchers up in the Montana territory want to know if they can run cattle through this valley. They’re willing to pay for grazing rights. But why ask me? Joshua Landon is the new mayor in town.”

“Yeah, Josh talked to Mayor Perchinson. He wants to know what you think… law wise,” Hank explained.

“Well Hank, you got a brain. Why didn’t you speak for me. We think the same way.”

Lilly watched Hank roll his eyes. “Now Trace, you know how Josh is. He’s as jittery as a scared grasshopper. Thinks a wild bunch of killers like the Widow Makers may ride into town at any second.”

“Not likely.”

“That’s what I keep telling him,” Hank insisted. He rubbed the back of his neck. “I still get some neck pain from falling out of that blasted tree.”

“You took a hard fall,” Trace told his friend.

“Yeah, well, Lilly and Henry finished off the last two varmints left in the pack. Anyhow, what do you think?”

“I don’t see a problem with cattle being run through the valley just as long as the ranchers pay for grazing rights. As a matter of fact, we got plenty of good grazing land right here. The herds we run aren’t that big.”

“Big enough to keep you out of town for most of the week,” Hank fussed.

“Hank, what goes on in town that needs you and me both there? We shut down the saloon. The only trouble we’ve ever had so far is those two rowdy trappers who rode into town half drunk.”

“Aw, those fellas weren’t so bad. Just got some bad whiskey is all. Had to sleep it off. When they sobered up they turned out to be real nice.”

Lilly looked at Trace. Trace nearly rolled his eyes. She knew that if those two weren’t best friends Trace would go crazy sometimes. “Well, I better get the eggs. Hank, you settle your horse down. It’s a long ride from town.”

“Well, my backside is a bit on the sore side. Maybe some of them delicious biscuits, the kind with the butter I like, might make me feel better.”

“Okay, okay, I’ll make you some biscuits.” Lilly squeezed Hank’s hand. “I’m always happy to see you.”

“I feel the same way,” Hank smiled back. “And the new cabin’s real nice. Just what you and Henry deserved. And this cabin won’t ever burn down.”

“I know.” Lilly smiled and walked away to get the morning eggs from the chicken coop. She surveyed the fields with happy eyes as she walked across the yard toward a newly built barn. Everything was new. The barn. The cabin. She should have been upset that the old barn and cabin was burned down but in some ways she was glad. Her life with Trace was a new beginning. They needed a new home.

And though Lilly had loved Virgil, it was not in the same way she loved Trace. She loved Trace the way a woman should. And the land was theirs. The cabin was their home. It hadn’t ever really felt that way with Virgil.

Lilly collected the morning eggs and went back inside. She found Trace and Hank sitting at the kitchen table having coffee. She put the eggs on the counter and went to check on Henry. “Morning, honey,” she smiled, running her hands through her son’s hair.

“Morning, Ma.” Henry yawned. “Is Trace up?”

“He’s is the kitchen with Hank.”

“Hank’s here?” Henry sat up. He was older now, and a bit taller. Lilly was seeing a lot of different changes in him. Changes a boy made when he was growing into a man.

“He had to bring Trace a message from town.”

“Anything bad?”

“No. Some ranchers from Montana want to run cattle through the valley. Joshua wanted to see what Trace thought about the deal,” Lily explained.

Henry yawned again. “We have our own cattle to tend to. We got a good herd this year.”

“I know we do.” Lilly kissed Henry on his forehead. “How did you sleep?”

“I dreamed of Pa again. He was waving at me from across that river I keep seeing in my dreams. He’s always smiling.” Henry looked toward the bedroom window. “I think Pa is happy that you married Trace.”

“I think so, too.” Lilly patted her belly. “And now we have a baby on the way. You’re going to be a big brother.”

“I know. I can’t wait. But Ma, don’t ask me to change any dirty cloths. Make Trace do it.”

Lilly laughed. “I won’t. I promise.” She stood up. “Breakfast will be ready shortly. Why don’t you get washed up.”

“I might not get anything to eat with Hank here. Last time he nearly ate all the biscuits.”

“He did, didn’t he?” Lilly winced.

“He sure did.”

“Well, I’ll just make extra biscuits this time.” Lilly walked to the bedroom door and then turned and looked at her Henry, safely in his bed. Home. She smiled, knowing that Trace loved him as his own. And she’d heard that the new girl had taken a liking to him.

“Maybe we’ll ride into town and you’ll see Kathy?”

“Ma, that girl drives me crazy. Why did she have to move all the way here from New York of all places?” Henry griped.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if you two end up married someday.”

Henry blushed from head to toe.

Lilly just smiled. “I love you more than anything, Henry. I know I’ve told you this a thousand times, but the worst is behind us. No one can ever try and hurt us again.”

“I know, Ma.” Henry stood up and stretched his arms. “Even if trouble does show up again, we’ll handle it like we did last time. Clay Thatcher is down in the fire where he belongs with the rest of the Widow Makers. We showed him what for.”

“We sure did, honey.”

Lilly smiled wistfully. 

Soon he’ll be a man. But before that happens we have many years together. 

“I better go get breakfast started.”

“Make plenty of biscuits.”

“I will,” Lilly promised. She made her way into the kitchen and put on a lovely brown apron and then opened a large flour jar sitting on the floor. The jar was half full. “Won’t be long until we need more flour. Might as well ride into town today and get some.”

Trace groaned. “I was gonna do some riding with Henry today.”

“The riding can wait,” Lilly smiled. “I think a ride into town would be nice.”

“In other words that wife of yours wants to see them new dresses that wife of mine ordered,” Hank pointed out.

“Well, yes, but it’s more than that.” Lilly walked over to Trace and sat down on his lap. “Virgil never took me into town very much. I like riding into town. And Hank, the general store is very nice now. Also, I like having a bite to eat at the hotel. We never had money to do that before.”

Lilly saw Trace look deeply into her eyes. He smiled. “Okay, we’ll ride into town after breakfast.”

Trace had captured Lilly’s heart. He was tender with her. Never said a bad word and never would. She knew he loved her the way a husband should love his wife—and he needed to be loved as well. They both did. What had started out as a cold nightmare had turned into a sweet dream.

Lilly looked down at the floor where Trace had filled in the root cellar. There was nothing underneath except hard dirt. There were no outlaws in town. The valley was cradled in the arms of peace. And somehow, through it all, the love between a tough lawman and a scared widow came to life, fighting its way through blood and death.

Lilly placed Trace’s hand to her belly. “How do you feel about becoming a Pa?” she asked.

Instead of tensing up or acting tough or giving a gruff answer like he might have done before meeting Lilly, Trace just simply smiled. “Now I know why men fight so hard for justice.”

“There ain’t gonna be no justice unless Lilly makes them biscuits I like,” Hank fussed.

Lilly and Trace both laughed. “Okay, okay, I’ll start on the biscuits.” She started to stand up. Trace took her hand and kissed her right in front of Hank.

Lilly giggled. “I love you, too, honey.”

“Thank you for loving me.”

“Thank you for saving me.”

“We saved each other,” Trace whispered.

Lilly kissed Trace and then tended to breakfast. She opened the kitchen window to let fresh morning air in and then started to hum a hymn as her husband talked to his friend over a cup of coffee and her son washed up.

The Widow Makers had made far too many widows—but now Lilly was whole again.

THE END