“Out of twelve beautiful women, he chose her?!” — people laughed when a wealthy man from the mountains chose a scarred widow whom no one wanted to marry. But when the reason behind his choice and what later happened to that woman were revealed, the entire town fell silent… 😨
That day, men gathered in the large hall looking for wives. Twelve young women in beautiful dresses stood before them. Each one hoped to leave with a wealthy husband and begin a new life.
When Caleb entered the hall, the conversations immediately stopped.
He was thirty-four years old. For almost ten years, he had lived alone high in the mountains, hunting, mining for gold, and rarely coming down to the town. People considered him wild and unsociable.
— They say you can find a wife here, — he said briefly.
The organizer demanded a participation fee. Caleb pulled a large piece of gold from a small leather pouch and placed it on the table.
After that, the girls immediately looked at him differently.
Especially Annabelle — a young beauty who had already rejected three men. She adjusted her dress and smiled at Caleb, certain that he would choose her.
But Caleb walked past her.
Then he walked past the second girl.
The third.
The fourth.
He stopped in front of none of them.
Finally, Caleb reached the far corner of the hall.
There sat Cora — a thirty-year-old widow who had not even been placed alongside the other women. After a fire several years earlier, a large scar had remained on one side of her face. Her husband had died, and she had no relatives left.
Almost no one in town paid attention to Cora.
Caleb stopped in front of her.
— Please stand up.
Cora stood up, confused.
— Why?
Caleb turned toward the organizers and calmly said:
— I choose her.
At first there was silence, and then someone laughed.
— You could have chosen anyone!
— At least look at her face!
Caleb did not answer.
But when he took Cora by the hand, the woman suddenly looked at his wrist and went pale.
An old scar was visible beneath his sleeve.
Cora quickly pulled her hand away.
— Where did you get that scar? — she whispered.
Caleb looked directly into her eyes.
— So you do remember me after all.
Cora froze.
And then the mocking smiles around them began to disappear. Caleb had not chosen Cora by accident. He had come to that hall specifically for her — and the reason was connected to a secret the town had kept hidden for many years… 😨
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Cora stared at the scar on Caleb’s arm and seemed to stop hearing the people around her.
— I remember, — she finally whispered. — But I thought you had died.
The hall fell silent again.
Caleb slowly rolled up his sleeve. The scar stretched from his wrist almost to his elbow.
— I thought I would never find you again either.
Annabelle gave an irritated, mocking smile:
— Can someone explain what is going on?
Caleb turned toward the people gathered there.
— Seven years ago, a house on the outskirts of the town caught fire during the night. Do you all remember that fire?
The people nodded. It was in that very fire that Cora’s husband had died, while she had suffered severe burns.
But Caleb told them something no one knew.
That night, he happened to be passing nearby and saw the flames. When he heard screams, he rushed inside. Cora was lying unconscious in one of the rooms.
Caleb carried her out through the burning corridor, badly burned his arm, and then returned to the house for her husband.
But the roof collapsed.
He could not save the man.
Caleb himself was found the next morning near the river. He was badly injured and remembered almost nothing. The people who found him took him far away into the mountains. When he recovered and returned, he was told that Cora had also died.
— But who could have told you that? — Cora asked.
Caleb looked at the mayor standing by the wall.
— Him.
Every head turned toward Mayor Wilks.
He immediately went pale.
Caleb pulled a folded sheet of paper from his pocket.
A few months earlier, he had found an old worker who had once worked for the mayor. Before his death, the man had told him the truth.
The fire had not been an accident.
Cora’s husband had discovered that Wilks was illegally transferring land belonging to deceased and solitary residents into his own name. He intended to hand the evidence over to the authorities.
That night, someone set their house on fire.
And when Cora survived, the mayor did everything he could to keep her from learning the truth. He told Caleb that Cora had died. Cora was told that the unknown man who had saved her had died from his burns.
— Why? — she asked quietly.
— Because we had both seen too much, — Caleb replied.
The mayor tried to leave the hall, but the sheriff stopped him at the door.
It turned out that Caleb had not come to town only to find a wife. Before entering the hall, he had already handed the documents and the names of the witnesses to the sheriff.
Cora covered her face with her hands.
— So all these years, I thought no one had tried to save us…
— I tried, — Caleb said quietly. — I just couldn’t save him.
Cora looked at him.
— And why did you choose me today? Out of pity?
Caleb shook his head.
— I came here because I found out that you were alive. And when I saw you, I realized that I would not leave alone.
One of the men who had been laughing at him only minutes earlier lowered his eyes.
But Cora did not rush to agree.
— You barely know me.
Caleb smiled for the first time.
— That is exactly why I’m not asking you to become my wife right away. Come with me only if you truly want to. After that, you can decide for yourself.
Those were the very words that convinced her most.
A few months later, the mayor was put on trial. Some of the land he had illegally taken was returned to its owners, and Cora finally learned the whole truth about her husband’s death.
Caleb never pressured her.
They married the following spring.
And when someone later reminded Caleb that on that day he could have chosen any of the twelve young beauties, he calmly replied:
— I chose the one I wanted.
Cora smiled.
The scar on her face never disappeared.
But beside Caleb, she never had to hide it again.
