Bouquet for Iris (18 page)

“Here it is.” Nathan proudly held a bolt of lavender cotton for her inspection.

“It’s perfect.” Iris didn’t have to feign appreciation. “How thoughtful of you to realize my favorite color and hold it for me.”

“I’d like to do even more for you.” He glanced toward the counter and then back at her.

She looked into earnest blue eyes that had picked up some of the color of the material he held against his chest. Perhaps she could fall in love with Nathan if she tried a little harder. “I think your uncle might have something to say about that. He knows how I feel about Wayha’s rights. And he is bound to be upset about the judge’s verdict.”

He frowned. “Uncle Richard has forgotten all about that, and I hope you will, too. Especially now that Congress has ratified the New Echota Treaty. He says it is only a matter of time until everything works out.”

Iris felt her heart drop to her toes. So the treaty had been ratified. A major step toward removal, it was a blow in the fight for Indian rights. Maybe Adam knew what to do next. But that was silly. Hadn’t she just been thinking about distancing herself from the dangerous Adam Stuart?

She allowed Nathan to lead her back to the counter and waited while he wrapped her material in a piece of heavy paper. His smile made Nathan look even more handsome. Maybe she did feel a flutter. A tiny one, anyway.

She was trying to decide how to answer him when the front door flew open and banged against the wall. She looked up to see the recent subject of her thoughts marching toward her, his limp more pronounced than usual. He was furious. She didn’t think he’d been this angry the day he’d saved her from being trampled by the riot.

“I hope you’re happy now.” He slapped a newspaper on the counter in front of her.

She looked down and read the headline: T
REATY
R
ATIFIED BY
S
INGLE
V
OTE
. “Nathan told me. It’s a shame, but—”

“A shame? I suppose you could call it a shame.” Adam’s voice shook. “And the worst part of it is, I almost fell for your loving God. When the judge ruled with Mr. Spencer, I began to hope He would protect the Cherokee and stop the United States government from stealing Indian land. But I was obviously wrong. What kind of God would allow this to happen?”

A couple of ladies who’d come in to purchase sundries were staring at her and Adam. Iris wanted to sink through the floor. She could not believe Adam had chosen to air his feelings now.

Apparently Nathan agreed with her. He stepped from behind the counter and took Adam by the elbow. “This is neither the time nor the place, sir. You are disturbing my customers, and I would like for you to leave. If you must air your complaints, I will come by your office later this afternoon and we can talk.”

Adam shook off his hand. “I’ve had my say.”

Iris watched as he stalked across the room, looking neither to the right nor the left. The door slammed behind him.

Ignoring Nathan and the other shoppers, Iris perused the article. President Jackson must know the treaty was a sham. John Ross, the elected chief of the Cherokee, had not even been present when it was signed. According to the reporter, Ross had been vocal in his condemnation of the treaty, as well as of the men who had signed the document. Yet Congress had chosen to ignore his protests. “This is so sad.”

“Why do you say that?” Nathan asked. “No one forced the Cherokee to sell their land.”

She folded the paper and laid it back on the counter. “The whole thing is disgraceful. Apparently, a small group of men signed the treaty without the agreement of the Indian leaders. They didn’t even represent a majority of the Cherokee.”

“I heard there’s gold on some of that land.” He shrugged and returned to the far side of the counter to pick up her bolt of material. “The Indians don’t want it for themselves, but they don’t want to let anyone come in and mine it. Why shouldn’t they accept a fair price and move away?”

Iris stared at Nathan. She could feel her blood heating at his cavalier attitude. Had he not thought about the situation? “What if they don’t want to move away? What if they love their land in the same way that Mr. Spencer does? What if they want to pass their heritage down to their children and their grandchildren?”

“I guess they can do that when they relocate.” He continued tying the twine on her package as though the matter under discussion was unimportant. When he finished, he patted her hand kindly. “They’ll be free to follow their own way of life without interference from white men.”

Iris didn’t know if he meant to sound as patronizing as he did. Perhaps he didn’t realize how condescending his smile was. As though she was too simple to understand the issues involved. She wanted to ask if he agreed with his uncle’s trying to take her employer’s home, but she didn’t have the nerve. What if Nathan confirmed her suspicions?

She suddenly felt like she had more in common with Adam than she would ever have with Nathan.

The council meeting was over, and Adam was ready to go home. He wondered why he was still here in Daisy. He ought to be in Washington fighting for the Cherokee with every legal argument he could dream up. Last month’s victory for Wayha Spencer had reawakened his thirst for justice.

He didn’t need to worry about Sylvia Sumner, who had probably married his erstwhile partner by now. He hoped she and Jeremy were happy.

Happier than he was.

Night after night, he relived the last time he’d seen Iris. With Nathan. He supposed Nathan had overcome his reluctance to tell his uncle about his feelings for Iris. Good. Iris deserved someone nice to take care of her. Not a bitter cripple.

Pain in his hands made Adam look downward, surprised to see his fingers gripping the table so hard his knuckles had turned white. With a conscious effort, he relaxed his chest, his shoulders, his arms, and finally his fingers. Then he stood and headed toward the door, horribly aware of his unsteady gait. He passed the bar without waving good-bye. At least he didn’t feel the urge to sit back down and have a drink.

Adam made his way to his office and kicked open the door with his good leg. It was dark and empty, a homecoming he should get used to. Why expect more? Wasn’t life full of harsh realities and broken dreams? His life certainly was. Every time it seemed things might be turning around, something happened. Like the ratification of the New Echota Treaty …

And having to watch the courtship of Nathan Pierce and Iris Landon.

The delicious aromas of roast pork and gravy rose from the table as Anna’s childish voice blessed their luncheon.

After Iris had filled each girl’s plate with food, she concentrated on her own meal. A few small bites and she dropped her fork. It was odd that she had so little appetite these days. She wasn’t sleeping very well either. Ever since the day Adam had confronted her about the treaty ratification. As if it was her fault his world had crashed once again. She knew she wasn’t responsible, so why did she feel guilty? Or was it something else she felt? Something like heartbreak?

“Can we go outside this afternoon?” June asked around a bite of meat.

Iris’s concentration returned to the girls. She owed them her full attention, so she shook her head and dabbed at her lips with a snowy white cloth napkin before speaking. “A lady should not talk with her mouth full.”

June made a show of swallowing her food. “I’m sorry, Miss Iris. May we go outside this afternoon? The sun is shining, and Josephine said there is a nice breeze.”

Iris glanced at one of the windows. “Perhaps we could take a stroll after our meal. I would like to pay a visit to Camie since her parents are staying with them this week, and I know how much you two enjoy playing with her twins.”

Anna whooped her delight but subsided when Iris frowned at her. “As much as we would all enjoy an outing, perhaps we should stay here and practice our deportment instead.”

The two girls concentrated on minding their manners for the rest of the meal, quietly finishing their food.

Iris hid a smile. Her charges could be a handful, but they were fully capable of ladylike behavior for the right incentive, much like she and her siblings had been.

When they had completed their meal, Iris told Josephine their plans and helped the girls with their bonnets. They skipped through the door and onto the porch while Iris followed more sedately. The three of them walked briskly down the lane and reached the main road that led to town, admiring the bright colors of wildflowers dotting the landscape.

“May we pick some flowers?” asked June. “We could take a bouquet to Mrs. Sherer.”

Iris nodded. “I think that’s a wonderful idea.”

June and Anna ran ahead of her and began gathering blossoms. Iris strolled along more circumspectly, enjoying the bright sunshine and the laughter of the girls. She soon had an armful of blossoms. “That’s probably enough for today.”

“Look, I found an iris!” Anna ran up with a purple flower in her hand.

“It’s not an iris.” June’s voice was strident. “Tell her, Miss Iris. Anna thinks she knows everything.”

“I don’t, either.”

June stuck out her tongue at her younger sister.

Iris was about to admonish the pair when she heard a wagon coming down the lane toward them.

Anna held a hand over her eyes. “Who is that?”

“I don’t know.” Iris wasn’t concerned. They weren’t far from the Sherers’ farm. It was probably Lance or Camie. She watched as the wagon trundled around a curve, preceded by a man on horseback. Her heart thumped when she realized they had pulled lengths of cloth over their mouths and noses. They couldn’t be worried about chapped faces at this time of the year.

“Come here, girls.” The flowers were forgotten as she pulled June and Anna onto the side of the road, her arms gathering them close. She began to pray for protection. There was no way to outrun the men, even though every part of her screamed that they should try to reach the distant woods.

The horseman rushed past them on the road, but when Iris began to hope that the men had some distant goal, he pulled up and brought his mount dancing back toward the three of them. The wagon came to a stop directly in front of them.

They were effectively blocked from fleeing. Iris took a step back, drawing the girls with her. Her eyes widened when the driver of the wagon pulled a rifle from under his seat and leveled it at her heart.

Adam encouraged his horse to a canter as he turned down the road toward the Spencer estate. John Ross had sent him a petition and asked him to gather signatures from Cherokee who opposed the New Echota Treaty. Wayha Spencer was a good place to start.

Adam promised himself that he would maintain his distance if he saw a certain curly haired charmer. Iris might stir him in ways no other woman had, but she had made her feelings clear. She was too good for the likes of him.

His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a galloping horse in the lane behind him. Adam twisted in his saddle, a groan escaping him as he recognized the wide shoulders of Nathan Pierce. From the looks of the fine suit he wore, the man was coming to see Iris. A sardonic smile twisted Adam’s mouth. Iris’s God must be intent on torturing him. He nodded to the man.

Nathan pulled up his horse as he reached Adam. “Where are you headed?”

“Same as you, I imagine.”

The other man’s cheeks flushed. “I … thought maybe … I wanted …”

Adam clucked his tongue to get his horse moving again. “You don’t have to tell me what you plan. I can guess your intent.”

Whatever the man would have answered was lost as Wayha Spencer’s carriage rushed around the curve in the lane behind them. At first Adam thought the horses were out of control, but then he realized the driver was whipping the team to increase their speed. Wayha himself was driving them. He rushed past them without a pause, heading for the house at breakneck speed. Some calamity must have occurred.

“Come on!” Adam slapped his horse’s reins and leaned forward, intent on finding out what had happened. His heart was in his throat.

Please let Iris be all right
. The words formed in his mind and became a chant as he rushed to the house.