Page 129 of The Ranger
Markhel let his arms drop. “You have all the proof you need in town. Aside from your daughter and her husband.”
“What proof?”
Markhel smiled. “Grandma Waller and her friends.”
* * *
Colin rode to town,gathered up Grandma and Doc then ran across the street to speak to Wilfred and Irene. They’d been through something miraculous, and the results were so fantastic, even he had a hard time believing it. But having Muirarans for daughters-in-laws, softened his own small thinking, and he’d accepted the fact that the Wallers, Mulligans, Dunnigans and Van Cleets would outlive him for many years.
The four elderly couples went to England with the MacDonalds to visit Duncan and Cozette a few years ago. Kwaku, known for mixing up herbs that could be turned into healing draughts, let Dallan and Shona give some to Grandma years before to help keep her healthy. Shona offered the four couples the same herbs to keep their energy up during their visit. Irene was so taken with the way the draught made her feel, she wanted more. Problem was, the mixture tasted horrible. Irene fixed that, and in doing so, created a brand-new concoction that unfortunately, depending on how one looked at it, would prolong Duncan’s eight elderly guests’ lives by a couple of hundred years.
Colin still couldn’t believe it at times. But the proof was there. He’d caught Irene picking up an anvil once at the livery stable, and saw Polly Van Cleet scramble up a ladder like a teenager. Paddy Mulligan was strong before, but he was picking up crates and barrels of things that usually took two men to carry. They not only had the strength and energy of youth restored, they were beginning to look younger. Doc told him they would only get stronger, faster, and would eventually have to leave Clear Creek.
It saddened Colin to think about it. And though he and Belle had been offered the same healing draught, they were still undecided as to whether to take some.
Right now, however, he needed the old but spry folks to help him convince his brother and Major not to do anything brash, like shoot Markhel!
“So, you see, I need your help,” he told the four. “If Harrison and Major have their way, this won’t be going any further. They’re having a hard time accepting it.” Colin looked at the four and took off his hat. “They won’t listen to me.”
“Oh, they’re listening,” Grandma said. “They just don’t want to believe it.” She went behind the mercantile counter and grabbed herself a licorice whip. She took a bite, reached into her apron pocket, and put a coin on the counter.
Irene snatched it up. “We’ll do what we can, but what if they run around town telling people?”
“Irene’s right,” Wilfred said. “We want to stay here as long as we can. If word gets out about us, we’ll have no choice but to leave.”
Colin gave them a sage nod. “If Harrison and Major believe what happened to you, then they’ll believe the rest of it. They must see how this will benefit Maida, not harm her.”
“If you ask me,” Grandma said. “They’re doing what all fathers do. But they’re also being selfish. They’re willing to put up a fight anyway, to get what they want.”
“Which is?” Colin prompted, although he already knew.
Grandma waved her licorice whip at him. “They don’t want things to change.”
Wilfred stuck his hand in his pockets. “Like most of us.”
“Yes, it’s human nature,” Doc agreed. “Remember how it felt coming west? At first the thought scared me to death. But it was the best decision we ever made.”
“We should tell the others,” Irene suggested. “Then do something to show them Markhel and his people can be trusted. Who knows how long it will be before Kwaku shows up again?”
“Yeah,” Wilfred said and looked around as if Kwaku might be hiding somewhere. “Where’s he been all this time? I’ve hardly seen him.”
“Don’t know,” Doc said.
“Stop wasting time talking about it,” Irene barked. “Let’s get to the Triple-C and find out if we can help Markhel with Maida.” She narrowed her eyes at Colin. Never a good sign. “Has he told her yet what he is?”
“No, unfortunately. But I do know they had a lovely afternoon at the swimming hole with Vale and Makama.”
Grandma smiled. “That’s good. We can work with that.”
Colin wiped his brow with his sleeve. Just talking about it made him sweat. “Yes, but can we work with Harrison and Major?”
“They’re scared,” Grandma said. “They’re afraid they’ll never see Maida again. Colin, you remember how hard it was for you when you found out Lorelei and Jefferson would no longer be living with Duncan and Cozette?”
He looked at the wood floor and nodded. “It was… hard.” He fiddled with a display of combs and brushes. “What time we get with our sons and their wives are at the whim of a king.”
“No,” Grandma said. “If that were the case, you and Belle would have put up more of a fuss. Besides, you know it’s for their own protection. The fact is, they don’t age like humans anymore.”
“Neither do you, Grandma,” he pointed out.