Revenge

Carey Adams was not a man to be trifled with. Even before he had left the Pikes’ yard, he was already formulating a plan to seek his vengeance. He galloped off in the direction of the county jail, seeking Sheriff Don Dickerson, intending to let him know that he had walked in on Will Tucker accosting his fiancée. He knew Cordia would deny it, of course, but if he could find a way to have Will arrested for even a few days, perhaps he would find the opportunity to make Cordia pay for rejecting him. Otherwise, he would have to take his vengeance a step further. Will needed to be eliminated, one way or another, and if he needed to call out the militia to do it, so be it.
By the time Cordia and Will left her house, Sheriff Dickerson and his men were already on the way, riding at full speed toward the Pike house, intending to rescue Cordia from her attacker. Upon their arrival, Sheriff Dickerson charged into the home, his gun drawn. After a quick survey of the house, he realized it was empty. “No sign of them,” he explained to Carey who was standing near the doorway.
Carey sighed, a look of despair on his face. “Perhaps, he has carried her off?” he asked, the words catching in his throat as he was overcome with emotion.
Sheriff Dickerson nodded, believing that was the only logical explanation. “We’ll gather up a posse and ride out looking for her. Don’t you worry, now, Lt. Adams. We’ll find her.”
The sheriff and his men did a search of the home, looking for any clues that may let them know what had happened. They saw the knife on the ground and believed that Cordia must have attempted to use it to protect herself. They found no other evidence and were just about to wrap up their investigation when Mr. and Mrs. Pike returned.
From the moment the house was in view, Jane had been extremely agitated, pressing Isaac to drive the horses faster. She was certain something terrible had happened to Cordia. As soon as the horses came to a halt, she clambered down and rushed inside, Isaac right behind her. “What’s going on?” she asked, stepping inside and seeing the look of anguish on Carey’s face.
“Mr. and Mrs. Pike,” Sheriff Dickerson said, approaching them. “I’m afraid we have some difficult news. It seems that your daughter, Cordia, has been abducted.”
“What?” Isaac exclaimed, his wife gasping beside him. “By whom?”
Carey embraced Jane as she began to cry. He had tears in his eyes as well. “It was. . . Will Tucker,” he stammered, pulling Jane in closer.
“Will Tucker?” Isaac repeated. “But, why would he do such a thing? How do you know?”
Sheriff Dickerson relayed the story. Carey had come over to check on Cordia because he understood she was not feeling well. When he arrived, Will was inside the house, a gun pointing at Cordia. Carey had come unarmed so he had no way to defend himself or his fiancée. Will had threatened to shoot him if he didn’t leave immediately. Carey had raced straight to the jail to retrieve the sheriff, but by the time they had arrived, it was too late. He explained that his men were out rounding up anyone who would be willing to ride out and begin searching for Cordia, adding that he had every confidence that they would find their daughter safe and sound.
Isaac shook his head in disbelief. “We have been friends with his aunt and uncle for more years than I can possibly count. How is this possible?”
“I don’t know,” Sheriff Dickerson replied. “But we are wasting valuable time. Now, you all wait here, and we will be back just as soon as we have news. We will head straight for the Adams Farm and see if they have any information. Perhaps we will find Cordia there.”
As the sheriff and his men left the premises, Carey led Jane into the parlor. She was still crying inconsolably, and Carey was doing his best to comfort her. Isaac couldn’t help but search the house himself, though he knew there was no way his daughter was there somewhere and the investigators had missed her. Once he had satisfied himself that she had not been overlooked, he returned to the parlor and joined the vigil. Frieda also arrived home shortly, hearing the devastating news at the quilting bee and rushing to the house to be with Mr. and Mrs. Pike.
It was almost ten o’clock when Arthur Adams heard horses in his front yard and peeked out the window to see several riders approaching. He had heard there were some marauders in the area and he ordered his sons to grab their weapons and brace themselves for a fight.
When Sheriff Dickerson knocked on the door, Arthur had his gun at the ready. “Who’s there?” he yelled before throwing the locks.
“Sheriff Dickerson," the older man replied.
Stunned, but recognizing the voice, Arthur motioned for his sons to stand down, and he unlocked the door. Margaret was also in the room, and she took a few steps toward them, the worst possible scenario entering her head as she imagined they were there to tell her something awful had happened to Will.
Sheriff Dickerson nodded a greeting as Arthur opened the door. Five armed men stood behind him, their guns at rest but an imposing sight nonetheless. “Sorry to disturb you at this time of evening, Arthur,” he began, “but we have it on good authority that your nephew, Will Tucker, has been involved in the kidnapping of Cordia Pike, and we were wondering if you might have any information as to his whereabouts.”
Margaret gasped. “What?” she said, stepping forward. “No, that’s not possible. Will would never do anything like that. If Cordia has disappeared with Will, then she did so by her own choosing.”
Sheriff Dickerson could sympathize with the woman, but he did not believe her story. “Your other nephew, Carey Adams, witnessed Mr. Tucker holding Cordia at gunpoint in her home. Now, they are both gone. We have every reason to believe Lt. Adams. Do you have any idea where Tucker might have taken her?”
Arthur looked at Margaret who was shaking her head in disbelief. She was well aware that Carey was fully capable of treacherous activity. She had not been completely ignorant of his forte for torturing animals as a child, nor had she missed the way he had spoken to Cordia since they were small children. She had been surprised that Cordia had ever consented to marry Carey for just that reason, and now she had much more evidence to support the idea that Carey had fabricated a story than to believe that Will had actually kidnapped Cordia. She shook her head no and said, “I can’t think of any place. You’re welcome to check our home if you think it would relieve your suspicions, but I guarantee you won’t find a trace of either of them. Check our barns, our sheds, whatever you like.”
“What about his parents' home?” Sheriff Dickerson asked. “Didn’t they have a place in Vernon County?”
“They did,” Arthur replied. “But it was burned to the ground by guerrillas years ago. There’s nothing left.” He told the lie with such conviction, Margaret almost believed him herself.
The sheriff shook his head. “There’s no reason to check your home; we believe you,” he said. “However, if you truly don’t mind, I would like to look in your outbuildings, just in case he’s hiding her in one of them, and you are unaware.”
“Certainly,” Arthur replied, nodding in agreement.
“Thank you, kindly,” Sheriff Dickerson replied. “And if you hear anything from Will, you let me know right away,” he ordered.
“We will,” Margaret promised as Arthur closed and relocked the door.
“What in the world?” Arthur asked, crossing over to his wife and taking her in his arms.
“I’m not sure,” Margaret replied, “But I know that Carey is at the center of this, and I pray he comes clean before someone gets hurt.”