A Blessed Song for Their Love by Olivia Haywood
Epilogue
The gavel banged loudly as the judge attempted to bring the court back to order. “Order in the court please!” his deep voice boomed over the room as his powdered wig quivered against his sombre black robes “I will have order in my court,” he turned to Sheriff Gideon and nodded. “Bring forth the witness.”
Thomas watched helplessly from the front row of the court. Rosaline was sitting by herself in a box separated from the rest of the court. Her eyes were puffy and drawn from lack of sleep.
It had been a hectic few days since the incident on the train. As the train had puffed into the next station, the Sherrif in that town had taken one look at the carnage onboard and promptly arrested everyone on sight. Thomas had been locked up and charged with the murder of a Federal Marshal until Ezra Gideon had shown up.
Thomas had been so grateful to see his friend alive and well that he almost missed the import of his visit. By the time Ezra had finished explaining that Voss and the Federal Marshal had beaten him and his wife and left them tied up and kidnapped Rosaline, a rider from the Federal Marshal’s office had burst in. It turned out that Voss’ Marshal wasn’t a real Marshal at all, and was wanted for impersonating a Federal officer.
After the fuss died down, and witnesses from the train corroborated Thomas’ statement of self-defence he was released. Diederick, of course, denied all knowledge of the fake Marshal’s impersonation. Still determined to get his way, he continued to insist that Rosaline was a thief and demanded that she be tried in a court of law. Now they were all forced to live through this farce of a trial, and Thomas was forced to watch his wife stand alone while she was falsely accused.
He clenched his fists as Rosaline's breathing increased from anxiety. Everything rested on the testimony of Ian Summers. Thomas wanted nothing more than to walk across the courtroom and take her into his arms, telling her that everything was going to work out, but he had to wait.
He turned his head to the other end of the court when he heard Diederick snigger. Thomas’ blood boiled when he saw Higgs lean towards Diederick and laugh in Thomas’ direction.
His attention was drawn back to the present as Ezrah brought Ian Summers out and led him to the witness stand.
Ian climbed the steps to his seat and looked straight ahead.
''Place your right hand on the Bible offered to you and raise your left,” the judge instructed. “Do you, Ian Summers, swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help you God?”
“I do,” Ian said after placing his hand on the Bible. He took his seat without a glance in the direction of either Higgs or Diederick.
Thomas noticed how their smiles drew into a nasty snarl.
“Before we begin with your testimony Mr. Summers. I would like to go over the charges once more and remind you that you have now sworn an oath in front of God.”
Ian nodded.
“Rosaline Stratton, formerly Berry, stands accused of theft against her former employer Diederick Voss, a charge that Mrs. Stratton vehemently denies. Would you kindly tell us of how you came to know Mrs. Stratton and what your knowledge is of her innocence or guilt?”
“I first met Mrs. Stratton after being hired by the Strattons to work on their ranch.”
“What was your first impression of Mrs. Stratton?”
“I thought she was a lovely lady with a kind heart. She later became a friend.”
“And what do you know of these very serious charges against Mrs. Stratton?”
Ian shifted in his seat as Diedrick cleared his throat in warning. Tiny beads of sweat were breaking out on the cowboy's head.
Give him the courage to do the right thing, Lord, Thomas prayed in his heart.
“I knew Mr. Higgs for many years before coming to the Stratton ranch. I confess that I have not been an honest man. My role as an employee for Higgs was to carry out various criminal activities.”
The judge frowned but nodded at Ian to continue.
“So it was not with honest intentions that I went seeking employment at the Stratton ranch. Mr. Higgs had offered me a considerable amount of money to gain Mrs. Stratton’s trust and place a package in her belongings when instructed to do so.”
Thomas smiled to himself as Higgs squirmed in his seat and Diedrick's face grew red with anger.
“What was in this package that you were given to hide?” the judge inquired.
“I was told not to look or concern myself with the contents, your Honor.”
“And did you obey?”
“No, your Honor. The package contained a pouch filled with small diamonds.”
Thomas smiled in relief. Thank God for human curiosity, he thought to himself.
Ian continued. “After a while, I was instructed by Mr. Higgs to place the package in Mrs. Stratton's belongings before making myself scarce. He said that his partner Diederick Voss would take care of the rest of the plan and that my services would no longer be needed. ”
“Lies!” Diederick jumped to his feet. “This man is lying!”
“Order, Mr. Voss, order! You will have your turn to address the court in due time. Now kindly return to your seat and control yourself.”
Diederick drew his lips into a nasty sneer and returned to his seat.
The judge turned back to Ian. “And what is it that made you change your mind, Mr. Summers?”
Ian let out a ragged breath. “Mr. Stratton tracked me down a few days ago. He showed me the light and made me see that Rosaline's fate rested in my hands. She's a good woman who doesn't deserve to go to prison for something that she did not do.”
The judge looked thoughtful for a moment. “You have confessed yourself, Mr. Summers, that you are not an honest man. Why should we believe you that Mr. Stratton did not approach you with a greater sum of money than that offered to you by your former employer?”
Diederick looked at Thomas and tilted his head back in a challenge that infuriated him.
Ian looked sheepish for a moment. “Forgive me for the crassness of this statement your Honor, but it is common knowledge that Thomas Stratton does not have more than two pennies to rub together owing to his gambling debts. He's poorer than a church mouse.”
Thomas smiled to himself as a quiet wave of giggles swept through the courtroom. For once his past mistakes seemed to be working in his favor. One of his father's favorite verses came to mind. (Romans 8:28) And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. It was possible that God was using even his past mistakes to work things out.
The judge stifled a smile. “Thank you Mr. Summers.” He nodded towards Diederick. “You may now state your concerns, Mr. Voss.”
Diederick stood and straightened the gold cufflinks at the ends of his sleeves. “Thank you, your Honor. I would like to start by saying that whether or not this man's statement is true or not I cannot say. He does not work for me and any illegal activities performed by himself or Mr. Higgs have nothing to do with me or this case. It is entirely their own affair.”
Higgs paled as Diederick turned on him.
“And yet,” the judge commented, you, along with a man impersonating a Federal Marshal, a Mr. Andrew Perkins, abducted Mrs. Rosaline without a trial on the evidence of these stolen gems. Indeed, you and he first assaulted Sheriff Gideon and his wife before absconding with the accused.
“Well, I…” Voss stuttered. “Of course, I was not aware that he was impersonating a Federal Marshall. I was acting in good faith, and the Sheriff was attempting to stand in the way of justice! He attacked us first.”
Everyone gasped as they looked towards the Sherrif.
“That's not true your Honor!” Rosaline protested for the first time, jumping to her feet. “Gideons were just trying to protect me!”
The judge angrily banged his gavel. “One more outburst from anyone in this courtroom and I'll have everyone thrown in prison for contempt!”
Rosaline sat back down as tears spilled over her cheeks.
“Your Honor, if I may?” Ian spoke up when the courtroom settled back down.
“For heaven's sake you already had your turn Mr. Summers,” the judge said sternly.
“I do beg your pardon your Honor, but what I have to say is relevant to Mr. Voss’ relationship with the Marshall.”
The judge rolled his eyes. “Very well Mr. Summers, please continue.”
“I would have to see a picture of the man to be certain, but I am acquainted with an Andrew Perkins who was formerly employed by Mr. Diederick Voss. I only met the man once a few months ago when Mr. Voss came to call on Mr. Higgs. I spoke to him while the gentlemen were conducting their business. Andrew Perkins was nothing more than a hired criminal who worked for Mr. Voss.”
All of the heads in the courtroom turned to stare at Mr. Voss, who was currently squirming under the pressure. His face was turning a scarlet red.
“What do you have to say about these allegations Mr. Voss?” the judge asked.
“I...it’s...lies! All of it!” he regained his voice. “I am a very wealthy man your Honor! How dare you believe this riff-raff’s word over mine?”
The gavel banged down hard with finality. “I have heard enough.” He turned towards Rosaline. “Given the new evidence presented by Mr. Summers, I find that there are no reasonable grounds to hold you any longer. The court will release you from custody.”
He turned and nodded at the two deputies standing at the back of the courtroom. “Please take Mr. Voss and Mr. Higgs into custody.” When the two men tried to protest he stared them down until they were silent.
“The two of you have clearly been colluding to defraud and assault innocent families for your own gain. You will both be tried for fraud, kidnapping, and assault.”
The two deputies came forward and dragged the angrily protesting men away, but Thomas was too overcome with joy to revel in their fall, longing to leap to his feet and run to Rosaline.
Finally the judge decreed, “court dismissed.” The gavel banged.
Thomas waited patiently as the court emptied.
Ezrah walked over to Rosaline and winked. “Well done lass, I knew God would see us right in the end. You may go and gather the rest of your things in the holding chamber,” he smiled from ear to ear. “Then you may go home to your family.”
Thomas watched as she opened the door behind her and disappeared. Ezrah smiled at him and nodded in the direction of the door.
Thomas stood and walked to the door, he didn’t need a second invitation. He wasn’t going to waste a single moment without telling Rosaline what he needed to say.
He opened the door and walked into the dimly lit room.
Rosaline was standing with her back to him, gathering her belongings, she turned as he entered the room. “Oh, Thomas isn’t it wonderful...”
Her words were cut off as his lips pressed down on hers and he drew her as close to him as he possibly could, kissing her with all the emotions and frustrations that had been pent up in his heart.
Thomas drew back after a few minutes and watched as Rosaline took a moment to open her eyes. Her beautiful lashes were brushing the tops of cheeks that were flushing the deepest shade of pink. His heart twisted as he realized just how beautiful she was. He had always thought her pretty, but now that he saw her through the eyes of love, he knew that she was as breathtakingly beautiful outside as her gentle heart was on the inside.
He took her face between his hands and looked deeply into her eyes. “Rosaline I love you, I have loved you for a while now. You and everything about you, your kind heart that stitched my family back together. Your unwavering faith that helped show me the way. You, Mrs. Rosaline Stratton, are the answer to the prayers I didn’t have the courage to pray,” he gently brushed her lips with his. “Never doubt any of that for a single moment.”
Tears poured down her cheeks.
“Even if you do not love me yet, Rosaline, I will spend the rest of my life trying to win your love.”
She placed her hand over his and shut her eyes. “I love you, Thomas Stratton, I have loved you for far longer than even I realized.”
“Oh, my darling.” He drew her once more into his embrace.
THE END?
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