Keeping Secrets Read Online Free PDF

you’re not. They ain’t no drunk’s kids neither. Listen to ’em. Tell the nice man where you come from, Mary. Marcy. Marcelona.”
    Marcellus looked seriously from Dorothy to Richard Caldwell, then told them the same story as before, with Louis nodding his head beside her.
    “There now,” Dorothy said triumphantly. “These kids has some upbringing. Can’t cha tell?”
    Richard Caldwell was speechless. He opened his mouth, then closed it again.
    “I’m a goin’ to give them a bath, then me and Sadie’s gonna feed ’em. You go find your wife. Tell her to come to the kitchen in two hours. About 10 o’clock. You come with her. You an’ me an’ Sadie an’ her gotta decide what to do about these kids. We ain’t turnin’ ’em out, neither, an’ don’t even think ’bout calling the police. When Jim gets back, tell ’im to git in here!”
    And so Dorothy arranged her soldiers, ready to do battle for her God.

Chapter 3

    D OROTHY BATHED AND SCRUBBED the children. She brushed their hair and dressed them in clean clothes she borrowed from a few of the ranch hands’ kids. She fed them at the kitchen table, heaping their plates with scrambled eggs, toast, bacon, and hotcakes. The children drank thirstily before lifting their forks to eat the food. They had perfect manners, wiping their mouths with the napkins provided.
    She huffed upstairs and back down, her face almost the same color as Barbara’s purple kimono.
    Barbara Caldwell came and watched Dorothy take care of the children. Her heavy, blonde hair was perfectly coiffed, her makeup applied expertly, the luxurious kimono she wore enhancing her elegance. She kept her emotions hidden, but there was no suspicion or judgment in her demeanor. She sat and observed, smiling, glancing at Richard Caldwell, occasionally commenting on the beauty of the children’s hair or eyes.
    Dorothy sent Sadie to clean the bathroom, dispose of the children’s filthy garments, and clean the guest bedroom for them. She sprayed the tub with Tilex, cleaned the heavy mirrors and the ceramic above the sinks, then stopped when she spied an old leather satchel. It was not homemade at all. Rather, there was a tag, also made of leather, with foreign words inscribed on it.
    Sadie knew enough about life to know what was affordable and what was not. This most definitely was not affordable, at least for anyone she knew, and it did not come from any store nearby.
    But, these destitute little ones? Carrying a bag of finest…?
    Glancing over her shoulder, Sadie lifted the flap and peered inside. Another bag. A cloth one. A drawstring. With fumbling fingers, she pulled it open and gasped. Quickly, she tightened the strings, closing the bag.
    It couldn’t be. Children didn’t carry things like this. Who in their right mind would send two little ones, likely no more than five years old, out into the vast world with an expensive satchel containing what appeared to be jewels? Diamonds, maybe?
    Sadie had no experience where jewelry was concerned, but she was pretty sure that when objects glittered and sparkled and were that heavy, they were probably real.
    She considered opening the drawstring bag again, just to make sure she hadn’t imagined what she saw, but decided against it. She shivered and looked at the satchel as if it was coiled and ready to strike.
    Sadie cleaned the tile floor on her hands and knees, wringing the cloth well over a bucket of hot, soapy water. She hurried downstairs to dispose of the soiled water, told Dorothy the bathroom was finished, and asked if she needed anything else done in the kitchen before she tackled the bedroom.
    “Nah, go on yer way. I’ll keep an eye on Louise and Marcelona.”
    “Louis and Marcellus,” Sadie said softly.
    “I know. That’s what I said.”
    Sadie didn’t respond. She had to find Richard Caldwell. Or Barbara. Someone needed to know about that bag of jewels.
    She put the bucket in the closet, then walked resolutely through the dining