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She checked the coffee. Sounds of conversation and laughter drifted in from the parlor. Most of the women in town and from the surrounding farms had been invited to Colleen's house for tea. Unfortunately, the mother of the boy Gene had hit wasn't among them. Megan had tried to talk to her sister about the incident, but her sister had dismissed it, saying the child obviously deserved slapping.
"Is the coffee done?" Colleen asked.
"Not yet." Megan began slicing the cake she'd brought. What would her self-righteous sister say if she knew Bonnie had helped with it the previous afternoon? Megan decided to wait until Colleen had eaten a slice before telling her.
"I think you're wrong about this," Megan said.
"Fortunately, your opinion doesn't matter to anyone."
Megan gritted her teeth. Getting angry wouldn't accomplish anything. "Justin is being very sweet to that child. When no one else would take her in, he did. He's seeing that she's fed and clothed. Why is that so terrible?"
"He's a bachelor living in a hotel, for heaven's sake. That child is the daughter of a whore, and a bastard to boot. She should be in an orphanage, with others like her. Not prancing around town, or corrupting our God-fearing children with her filthy language."
Megan set down the knife and wiped her hands on a towel. "The only one with a filthy mouth that I know is you,
dear sister. You find pleasure in those words, don't you? Does it make you feel powerful or wicked to say them?"
Colleen drew herself up to her full height. Angry, righteous fire shot from her hazel eyes. "How dare you?"
"You're the one who dares. Bonnie is an innocent in all this. Why can't you see that?"
"I see you're being swayed by that man. I didn't know how far things had gone." Colleen's gaze narrowed. "What sins have you committed, Megan Bartlett?"
"I'm not the point. Bonnie is. You're being unfair."
"I forbid you to see her, or that vile man."
Megan was glad she'd put the knife down. She planted her hands on her hips. "You don't have the right to forbid me to do anything."
"Of course I do. I'm your sister, and married. I'm responsible for your reputation in town, and for what you've been doing. I know that you defended that man to Mrs. Greeley. Heaven only knows what other things you've done."
"Stop talking about me," Megan demanded. "We're discussing the little girl. She has no family, no home. She's only six years old. How can she be responsible for her parents' actions?"
"The sins of the father shall be visited upon the children." Colleen picked up the coffee and poured the steaming liquid into the silver serving pot. "Finish putting that second tray together."
Megan reached for the bottle of milk, then stopped. She stared at her sister. "I don't know you anymore, Colleen. We used to be close, but now you're a stranger to me."
"That's your own doing. I haven't changed at all. You have. You're the one associating with the sheriff and his—"
"Stop it," Megan said firmly. "Stop calling her names and saying those evil things. I won't listen."
Colleen slammed the empty pot onto the table. "Don't you tell me what to do."
"Colleen, don't be like this." Megan stared at her sister, wondering when they'd become enemies. This isn't what she'd wanted. Why wouldn't Colleen listen? Why was the
truth so difficult for her to hear? "When we were younger and our mother left—"
"No. Mama didn't leave. She's dead. I've told you and told you, she's dead." Color flared on Colleen's pale face, staining her cheeks with an unhealthy-looking flush. "Mama died. There was a funeral."
"That's not what happened."
"No! I won't listen to this." Colleen adjusted the silver service on the tray, and picked up the plate of sliced cake. "You make up your lies to torment me. I know you do. You spend your entire life tormenting me. It's bad enough that you run that store. Do you know how that's shamed me? My own sister working like a common laborer? You're a spinster, as well. Sometimes I can barely lift my head for the shame."
Megan was used to this particular lecture. She'd heard it several times before. "Your shame comes and goes with amazing convenience," she snapped. "The matter of the child is still unresolved. I don't understand your reluctance to deal with her. That is, however, your choice. But why do you protest when someone else gets involved? What happened to Christian charity?"
