The papers were signed. She was his. But instead of treating her like property, he turned toward town. “We’ll go to the dress shop,” he said.
Inside, the shopkeeper froze at the sight of her ducking under the doorframe. Sterling’s voice was calm. “She needs something dignified. Use the blue wool in storage.”
The shopkeeper paled. “How… how did you know about that? There was another woman once…”
Sterling’s jaw tightened. “Her name was Catherine Rose. She was like Magnolia. And she died because I didn’t protect her.”
He told them the story of Catherine, mocked and hated until her cabin was set ablaze by those who couldn’t accept her. He bought her freedom, but not her safety. Her death haunted him, and his vengeance against her killers had made his name feared.
Before the silence could settle, the door burst open. Henderson, a rancher with cruelty etched into his face, stormed in with his men. “We won’t let another freak take root here,” he snarled.
Magnolia stepped forward, taller than them all. “If you want to burn me,” she said, voice steady, “do it in daylight where the whole town can see.”
The room stilled. Henderson faltered. Then the sheriff arrived with deputies and townsfolk. “We heard enough,” the sheriff said coldly. “Henderson, you’re under arrest. And Catherine Rose’s death is being reopened.”
The mayor stepped forward. “We failed once. We won’t fail again. Stay, Magnolia, and let us prove we’ve changed.”
The shopkeeper lifted the blue wool. “I’ll make the finest dress I’ve ever made. I hope you’ll wear it to the harvest dance.”
For the first time in her life, Magnolia wasn’t being looked at with ridicule. She was being seen as a woman with dignity, someone worth protecting.
“I’ll stay,” she said quietly. “And I’ll wear that dress with pride.”
Sterling Maddox exhaled, the burden of guilt finally lifting from his eyes. “Catherine would have liked that.”
And for the first time, Magnolia Voss stood tall not as a spectacle, but as a woman who had claimed her place in the world.