England and that she wants to buy aranch. I wired some contacts in
London, but I haven't heard back from them yet."
"And Jessica? " Cooper asked.
"Her mother died about two years ago. Her father deserted the family
when she was a little girl. Jessica came to Rockford Falls from
Chicago to help with the delivery of her aunt's baby. The aunt was her
mother's sister, and she was the only family she had left."
"You're talking as though she's dead. Is she? " Cooper asked.
"Yes, " Daniel answered. "She died a couple of hours after childbirth
from hemorrhage. She and her husband had been married for over fifteen
years when she finally got pregnant. Her husband didn't want the baby,
though. After his wife died, he didn't stay around long enough to name
the baby. He left town the very next day and hasn't been heard of
since."
"What happened to the baby? " Cooper asked.
"Jessica happened, " Daniel answered. "She's very young, but she's
doing a hell of a job raising the boy on her own."
"That's a hard burden for a single woman to take on, ^ Cooper said.
"She's up to the task, " Cole said. "Jessica's strong."
"Sounds like she is, " Cooper agreed. "Her baby would be a good reason
for her to keep silent if she were your witness. She'd probably go to
great lengths to protect him."
"Grace probably had someone she was trying to protect too, " Cole
said.
"She does, " Daniel replied. "Her parents."
"Where did you get all this information? " "Tilly MacGuire, " Daniel
answered. "Like I said before, it hasn't been verified. The woman's a
wealth of information.
She seems to know everything about everyone in this town and all the
folks passing through. She's been very helpful." Cooper stood up and
stretched his arms. "When are you going to leave for Blackwater? " he
asked.
"I can't go until tomorrow. The doctor wants Grace to stay in bed
another day. It's too bad you can't get some sleep before you head
out.
You look like hell."
"You don't look so good yourself, Daniel."
"I'm fine, " he replied.
"Cole, when are you going to take Jessica? " '{Wait a minute, " Cole
said. "I can't take Caleb with us. That's out of the question."
Daniel agreed. "What are we going to do with him?
" Cole had already considered the problem. "I don't want to leave him
here. Every one knows who he belongs to, " he explained. "I want to
hide him, and I think I've thought of the perfect place."
"Are you thinking about Rosehill? " "What's Rosehill? " Cooper
asked.
"My ranch, " Cole answered. "My mother lives there, and my brothers
and my sister come and go. Mama Rose is in Scotland now with my sister
and her husband, and they won't be back for another month."