by Neil Hunter
And when Bodie was out of the picture Beth would employ Mantee’s skill to complete the plan. She wanted Angela Crown out of the way too. Because Angela stood between Beth and a lot of money. A great deal of money. More than she had ever had the chance of owning in her short but exciting life. With Angela dead, her brother Raymond became the sole owner of the Crown mines, and Raymond wanted to sell the mine to Jonas Randall. Beth wanted him to sell it, because she wanted him to have the money. Then they could leave High Grade. Once they were away from the place Beth would relieve Raymond of the money, which wouldn’t be difficult.
Raymond was a weak fool. He was putty in Beth’s hands, completely infatuated by her. In his own way he was as devoted as Mantee. The only difference was that Raymond could talk and seemed to want to spend most of his time between her legs. Which didn’t worry Beth. She had learned early in life that being a woman meant she had a powerful hold over men. At first she’d been amazed at the lengths men would go to just spend a few hours in her bed. Then her devious mind had worked out that if she played her cards right she could turn that power into profit. Beth had luck on her side. She was young and attractive and she had a beautiful body. At fifteen, when she found herself alone in the world, her parents dead after a tragic fire, the cold reality of life slapped her in the face. But fate, in the shape of a hairy, smelly, middle-aged buffalo hunter turned up. He took Beth away from the burned-out ranch, wrapped her in stinking buffalo robes, and rode off with her across the snow-lashed Texas plain. At first she’d been grateful for being rescued. Two nights later the gaunt hunter had taken her to his blanket, and with a lot of grunting and sweating, despite the bitter cold, he had taken her virginity and her innocence. The first time Beth had been terrified. After that, with each passing night, she found it wasn’t so bad after all, and by the time they reached the first town Beth realized she wasn’t in such a bad way. Each time he’d had his way with her the hunter had placed a ten-dollar gold piece in her hand. On reaching the town Beth had one hundred dollars in her pocket. It was just the beginning. She learned quickly and she had a business-like mind. By the time she was twenty Beth’s bank account ran to thousands. Gone were the days of ten-dollar buffalo hunters. Beth Arling had risen in the world. Now she only chose the wealthy clients. And they were only too eager to spend their money on the blue-eyed, golden-haired beauty who wore fashionable clothes, was always clean and doused in expensive perfume. In Baton Rouge Beth befriended a forty-year-old French whore by paying off a debt the woman owed to a wealthy patron. In return the French woman taught Beth everything she knew, and Beth became aware of techniques she had never dreamed of. In the next few months Beth used her new methods, finding she was able to please and satisfy her customers ever more than before. In New Orleans she met Mantee. With him at her side she moved back out west, where gold and silver strikes were attracting men by the thousand. Barely able to count or read, many of them not even able to speak the language, they were digging their way to vast fortunes. And for many of them it was enough to spend it on drink and gambling and women. So Beth Arling began to follow the strikes. With her sharp mind and her money Beth plied her trade in her own unique way. No grubby back room for her. Nor a flea-ridden blanket in the back of a creaky wagon. When Beth arrived in a new town she would look around for a saloon to buy into. Once established she would run the place with a firm hand. No crooked gambling. No cheap drinks. She offered good value in everything, attracting a lot of custom. The rest was easy. She used the saloon to pick her clients. Any man who wanted a woman didn’t need to look any further than Beth. She charged highly but the client got his money’s worth. And one satisfied client was the best advertisement a girl needed. The men flocked to Beth’s door, offering higher and higher prices. The moment any of the towns showed signs of dying Beth would sell up and move on.
As the years slid by Beth added to her substantial bank balance. She never tired of her work. One reason was that she actually enjoyed sex. She was a woman who needed ample personal satisfaction. But even so, she was wise enough to know that it couldn’t go on forever. One day she would start to get old. And no amount of sexual expertise would make up for sagging breasts and flabby thighs. Beth saw that she was going to have to think about the later years. And the moment that line of thought crossed her mind she decided she didn’t want to wait until she was old before she quit. She made up her mind to get her hands on some really big money. Big enough so she could move out to California. Buy herself a big house and maybe set herself up in some kind of business. She had the sense to realize that to do that she would have to make a really big killing. And it was shortly after that when she arrived in High Grade. She bought a saloon from a bankrupt Irishman and set up her usual operation. She had only been there a month when Raymond Crown walked in one evening. He took one look at her and couldn’t stay away. Within a couple of days Beth knew everything there was to know about him. Plus the most important thing.
Which was his half ownership of one of the richest copper mines in the area. She also found out about the offer Jonas Randall had made for the mine, and the pressure he was putting on Raymond and his sister Angela. Randall had made an offer close on a million and a half dollars for full control of the Crown mines. Raymond wanted to sell. He hated the mining business and he hated High Grade. But his sister didn’t. She refused to even consider selling.
For Beth it was her dream come true. Here was her big killing. The kind of money she had dreamed about. So close she could almost smell it. All that stood in her way was Angela Crown. So she went to work on Raymond. Allowing him every moment he wanted with her. Which was considerable. Beth figured it worth every second. Though weak and given to self-pity, Raymond was an attractive man. At his best he might not have been the most dominant man Beth had taken to bed, but she was experienced enough to make him believe he could master her. She put on some superb performances for his benefit, writhing and moaning beneath his straining body, using every trick she’d been taught all those years ago, and through it all she was adding up the cost, smiling when she realized how little she was having to lay out for such a big reward at the end.
Over the weeks she worked carefully on Raymond’s antagonistic attitude towards his sister. Cleverly she had instilled in his mind the fact that Angela stood between him and the money that would allow him to leave High Grade. She had persuaded him, convinced him that Angela was ruining his life. And that she was stopping him from taking her, Beth, away with him. She had told him that she would never leave him. That she had to be with him. Because she needed him like she had needed no other man.
And one night, late, as they lay in her bed, bodies entwined in the heated throes of desire, Beth had offered the final solution. As she had whispered the words in his ear Raymond had jerked his head round to stare at her, his eyes wide with surprise. He had paused in mid-thrust, his whole body quivering, and a strange expression had flowed into his eyes. Beth had gripped him with her naked thighs, lifting her hips in urgent response. He had given a low, throaty moan, suddenly thrusting into her with desperate agitation. His climax had been so violent that the sheer intensity of it had driven Beth herself to her own release. Raymond had collapsed on top of her, his body shivering, gleaming with sweat, and it had been a long time before he had moved. Eventually raising his head he had stared at her again, still with that odd look in his eyes, and a wild grin had curved his thin lips. In that strange moment Beth had known, without a shadow of a doubt, that she had him. That he would agree to her suggestion to kill his sister.
The only flaw in the plan had been Raymond’s clumsy attempt to forge ahead with the plan without asking her advice. He had learned of Angela’s planned trip to Ridgelow to buy supplies, and had hired the man called Kopek to wait for Angela’s return and kill her out on the trail. Beth had been angry when he had told her, but she concealed her anger, hoping that Kopek managed to carry out the murder as arranged. But as she now knew, the plan had not gone as it should. Kopek had died. Ang
ela had returned to High Grade, along with the man called Bodie, creating a further problem.
Sliding from Raymond’s embrace, Beth eased herself out of bed. She crossed the room and pulled back the curtain. She gazed down on High Grade’s busy street. The sooner she could leave this place the better! High Grade was beginning to bore her. The prospect of a peaceful life somewhere in California held greater appeal with every passing minute.
Beth padded across the room and rapped on the wall with her knuckles. In the next room was Mantee. Her knock brought him to the connecting door. Beth unlocked it and moved to her dressing table. Seating herself on the padded stool she picked up a brush and began to tidy her hair. She heard the door open and sensed Mantee step into the room. She carried on brushing her hair.
“Mantee, there’s something I want you to do for me,” she said. Glancing in the mirror she saw Mantee’s huge head move in a nod. “Come here,” she went on, her tone soft, gentle, as if she were talking to a child.
Mantee came and stood beside her. His great bulk seemed to fill the room. She knew he was staring at her naked body, and the thought excited her. She felt her nipples pucker, start to rise, felt the warm pulse between her thighs.
“There is a man in town, Mantee,” she said. “He is bad for me. He wants to spoil my plans. He must be removed.”
Mantee uttered a hoarse grunt. He held out one of his huge hands, clasping it into a massive fist.
“Yes, Mantee, he must die! You must do it at night, so that no one will know it was you. Do you understand, Mantee? No one must know we are involved.”
Mantee nodded. He watched as Beth stood, turning to face him. She smiled at him, reaching out to stroke his scarred face. He gazed at her in silent admiration. Beth laid her hand over his, lifting it to her breast, pressing it against the soft, warm flesh. Her nipple thrust stiffly against Mantee’s palm. He cupped his huge hand over her breast, cradling it gently, as if afraid of hurting her.
“We will never leave each other, Mantee,” Beth said. She took his hand and slid it down to the inviting softness between her strong thighs. “I will always protect you. And you will do what I ask. Always, Mantee! Always!”
Chapter Nine
“Do you have this effect on everyone you meet?” Angela Crown asked as she carefully sponged the congealed blood away from the gash on Bodie’s cheek.
“No. With some people I bring out their best.” His remark was directed at Angela in such a way that she couldn’t stop herself from blushing.
“Seriously, Bodie,” she went on, “Deeks is a bad man to have as an enemy.”
“So is a little old lady if she’s carrying a sawn-off shotgun. I gave him fair warning. Stay away from me and Crown property. Even a simple-minded son of a bitch like Deeks should be able to understand that.”
“But Deeks takes his orders from Jonas Randall,” Angela persisted.
Bodie sat back as she completed her task. He watched her move across the kitchen, liking the way her body curved beneath the clinging dress. He picked up his cup of coffee and took a swallow. “What were you saying about your brother?”
“Ray?” Angela shook her head. “I can’t understand what’s come over him. When I came into the house he looked at me as if he hadn’t been expecting me to come home. He really was shocked, Bodie. Then he recovered and started to argue with me. About the same old thing. That we should sell up and get out of High Grade. Take Randall’s money and run.”
“It’d be a way out,” Bodie suggested.
She turned on him, her eyes flashing angrily. “The easy way. Oh, I know all about that, Bodie. I have to live with it every day. Ray never lets up. I’m sure now that he doesn’t care what happens to the mine. But I do, Bodie. I care that my father spent years making it what it is. That there are good, honest, hard-working men keeping that mine productive. Men who stuck by my father through the bad times. They trusted him and he never let them down. I don’t intend to change things now.”
“Randall would keep the mine going wouldn’t he?”
Angela laughed. “Oh, he’d keep it going. But he’d bring in his own people. Cheap labor. Exploited immigrants, hounded by his damn bully boys. Captain Deeks and his crew. It’s the way Randall works.”
“Lady,” Bodie remarked, “you sure do love a fight.”
She came across the kitchen to stand before him. “I just know what I want, Bodie, and I don’t like having to give up.” She studied him quizzically. “That’s my reason, Bodie. What’s yours?”
“My what?”
“You know what I’m talking about. When we left Ridgelow you’d hired on to see me through to High Grade. We hadn’t really talked over what would happen after we arrived. Now, though, I’m beginning to get the feeling you’ve let yourself become involved. I’m glad. But I’d like to know why?”
“Likely to be a few bounties to pick up. You told me so yourself.”
“No, that isn’t the reason. Bodie, I’ve got to know you pretty well, and there’s more to it than all that talk about bounty.”
Bodie helped himself to more coffee. “Go ahead and tell me. I’m listening.”
“Damn right you are,” Angela fumed. “I said once you were enigmatic. I’m still right, but I’ve realized that you are also an extremely exasperating man. Still you don’t fool me, Bodie. You see I know the stories going round about you. How you were a lawman yourself before you took up bounty hunting. From what I can see you’re still a lawman, and the situation here in High Grade, just sticks in your throat. You just don’t like it and you can’t leave it alone.”
Bodie fished a thin cigar out of his shirt pocket and stuck it in his mouth. He picked up a match off the table and lit up. All the time he was doing it, his eyes were fixed coldly on Angela. Even his face had changed, the tanned flesh drawing tight over the strong bones. Angela tried to read what was going on inside his head, but there was no way she could penetrate the rigid mask. After a moment she turned away, then gasped as Bodie’s big hand reached out to grasp her slim wrist. He pulled her onto his lap, arms sliding round her. Then he took the cigar from his lips.
“You know what your trouble is, lady? You just don’t know when to quit talking!”
“I know,” she said. “What are you going to do about it, Bodie?”
“I’ll figure something out,” he growled. Then he changed the subject abruptly. “Where’s this brother of yours now?”
Angela shrugged. “After we’d argued he slammed out of the house, said he’d be back when he showed up.”
“You know where he went?”
“I can hazard a good guess,” Angela said. “He has a woman in town. Beth Arling is her name. She owns a saloon, but that isn’t her true profession. She’s a whore. A pretty one, I’ll give her that. But I wouldn’t trust her as far as I could throw her. Ray is infatuated by her. I’m not supposed to know about it, but women gossip and the story got to me finally.”
Bodie digested the information silently filing it away for future reference. Bit by bit, he was beginning to form a picture illustrating the different sides here in High Grade, and the more he added the less he liked the result. From the way things seemed to be moving, there was a hell of a lot more going on in High Grade than even Angela realized.
“Well, let’s worry about brother Raymond when we see him,” Bodie said. “I think it’s time you showed me this damn mine of yours.”
Angela wriggled on his lap. “And I thought you’d put me on your knee for something else!”
“Yeah? We’ll worry about that later, too!”
They left the house, crossing the yard at the rear to the small stable. Here Bodie saddled a horse for Angela. She had changed into riding breeches, a white blouse and a short jacket. Once they were in the saddle she led the way from the house, cutting off across country. The mine lay about half a mile out of High Grade. The area before the actual mine entrance was fenced off and inside this compound were the living quarters for the miners, stores and supply she
ds, a blacksmith’s forge. As Bodie and Angela rode in through the open gates a couple of loaded ore wagons rumbled slowly by them, thick dust rising from under the huge, heavy wheels.
“Things will be better when the railroad put tracks into High Grade,” Angela said. “Until then the wagons have to haul the ore twenty-five miles to the railhead at Lansing’s Halt.”
They drew rein outside the long, low building that served as cookhouse and mess hall for the miners. As they climbed down out of the saddles a stocky, grey-haired man with a deeply tanned face approached. He wore faded, dusty clothing, heavy boots and carried a thick walking stick.
“I’m glad to see you back safe and well, Miss Angela,” he said. His accent was strange to Bodie at first, the words rolling soft and rich from his tongue. “The lads will eat well tonight, thanks to you.”