Thicker Than Water

Chapter Five

Victoria and Audra, who had been sitting in the living room visiting with Eugene and his wife, Marianne, before the two left Stockton to go home, now sat around the table eating supper and visiting with Jarrod and Nick. The two brothers had arrived home from Modesto just that afternoon. For whatever reason that existed, the two brothers found themselves talking about Heath Thomson and his two young children.

"Folks down there say he lost his wife when the children were around one." Jarrod said as he finished his supper.

Audra, who was remembering how she and Gene had turned to Jarrod after her father had died, along with all the stunts she and her youngest brother had pulled, felt her heart go out to the stranger she'd never met. "He has no family to help him?" She looked at both of her brothers.

"Not from what we've been told." Nick answered as he recalled the few visits they'd had with some of the residents of Modesto. "The Stokes said that there was no way Gideon would've been able to lure him away from Strawberry if his mother was still alive. It seems like she was in love with Strawberry even if it was a dying town. From what Mrs. Stokes said, the man does have an aunt and uncle in Strawberry, though he's not on speaking terms with them."

Because her two oldest sons were caught up in talking about the foreman they'd met, and Audra was just as lost in listening to the story, none of them saw the troubled looked that passed through Victoria's eyes as she listened. The troubled feeling she had only grew when Nick started talking about Heath's daughter.

"She's the cutest little thing you ever saw." The dark haired rancher leaned back in his chair and ran his fingers over the rawhide that was attached to his vest. "Sat on my lap for at least thirty, if not forty-five, minutes just playing with this thing and talking. Should say talking and asking questions, I never met such an inquisitive child."

"I have." Jarrod smiled as his eyes laughed and he winked at Audra, who gave him a playful swat on the arm only to be reprimanded by her mother for doing so at the table.

"What did you say her name was?" Victoria looked at her sons after she'd finished getting after her daughter.

"Leah," Nick answered as he continued recalling the image of the child who had insisted on staying by him until he had no choice but leave, "his daughter's name is Leah and his son's name is Bryon. Like we said, Leah's quite the social butterfly; Bryon, on the other hand, is extremely quiet like his father." He then went back to telling the story.

Victoria stood up and excused herself. As she was through with her supper and had had a long day, her children thought nothing about her early departure. And as much as she enjoyed her children, this was one time Victoria was grateful that Jarrod and Nick were both too caught up in telling the story of their travels to Modesto to notice any troubled look in her eyes. Soon she was standing alone on the verandah with only memories to keep her company as she looked up at the darkened sky with a thousand little lights staring back down at her. Her mind wandered back through time.

"I can't bring them back!" Tom whirled around, tears streamed down his face. "Neither one of us can!" He was standing in the living room with Victoria. Both had been raising their voices at each other and fighting, until Tom realized what the fight was really about…keeping their minds off their lost children, twin boys. "I wish I could," he said as he lowered his voice and turned away from Victoria, "I'm going to check on our mine in Strawberry."

Victoria hugged herself as she remembered how he'd packed up and left within half hour of their emotional discourse. He hadn't returned for a solid four months. When he came back, the two of them had sat down and talked about the loss of the twins and how badly they'd both handled it. Tom had also made a shocking confession.

Tom sat on the living room couch with his head in his hands, tears running down his face. "I...I don't deserve you, Victoria. I love you; you mean the world to me, and I don't deserve you."

"What on earth are you talking about?" Victoria, who sat next to her husband, took a hold of his hands and pulled them downwards. She then insisted he look up her. She was shocked by the look of pure torment that was in his eyes. What on earth had he…she never finished her train of thought as she knew; somehow, she knew what he'd done. Shock rolled over her as she let go of his hands, stood up and walked over to the window.

A part of her was furious at him, another part wondered if the two of them weren't equally as guilty. A part of her didn't want to hear another word, another part insisted on it. "You've been in Strawberry this whole time?"

Tom stood up slowly and made his way to his wife's side. "Yes, but only a small part of it was spent actually in Strawberry. A portion, the larger part, was spent on the outskirts of Strawberry. I was attacked and badly wounded." He wasn't surprised when she gasped, but hurried to continued, "A laundress by the name of Leah found me and helped me. I…" Tom shook his head and sighed, "I never told her I was married, told her I couldn't remember my last name. She gave me the last name of Thomson. I'm sorry, Victoria, really I am. Like I said, I don't deserve you. Only I beg you let me earn your trust back. I love you and the boys. I don't want to lose any of you." His voice cracked and she could hear the sincerity in his voice.

Victoria leaned against the trellis and let the soft breeze blow over her face. She hadn't thought about it at the time, only now she wondered why she and Tom hadn't thought to check to see if a child had been conceived. Then again, maybe she didn't. In order to move on, they'd agreed to never speak of Strawberry and Tom's transgression again. Looking into the possibility of a child would have meant dealing with the issue all over again. However, now she looked up at the stars and whispered, "If his last name and if his daughter's name is just a coincidence so be it. Only Tom," she choked up as she spoke, "If he's yours, bring him and those children home. I promise I won't run him off by saying anything to him. I don't know how I'll bite my tongue; you know how I am. Still, I promise. I won't say a word! Just, please bring him back where he should have been from the beginning, and I'll give him plenty of time to get comfortable with us before I ever even come close to broaching the subject." She said nothing more as she simply enjoyed the breeze blowing across her face.