PART 3 — THE LETTER THAT COULD DESTROY A TOWN

Sadie stared at Caleb.

“Who took your child?”

Caleb reached for the box.

But before he could answer, a sharp knock sounded at the cabin door.

Thomas appeared in the hallway, his face drained of color.

“Papa…”

Caleb turned.

“What is it?”

The boy swallowed.

“There’s a man outside.”

Sadie looked toward the window.

A rider stood beneath the pine trees.

His horse was covered in mud.

His face was hidden beneath a wide-brimmed hat.

But when Caleb saw him, he stepped backward as if he’d been struck.

The rider lifted his head.

“Caleb Mercer,” he called.

“I’ve come to collect what your wife promised me.”

Caleb’s hand тιԍнтened around the wooden box.

Sadie looked at him.

“What does he mean?”

Caleb’s voice dropped to a whisper.

“He’s the man who took my baby.”

And then the rider spoke the words that made Sadie realize her own past might be connected to the mountain man’s tragedy.

“Ask your new wife what happened to her husband.”

Sadie froze.

Because the rider knew her name.

And he knew something about the death of her first husband that no one in Oakhaven had ever dared to tell her.

To be continued in Part 3…