“Enjoy it,” he said brusquely, then hurried out the door.
As much as he loved Ilsa, wanted her, a man could only endure so much before he tossed caution and propriety to the wind and followed his heart.
Chapter Nineteen
Tony stood in the soft glow of artificial light and watched as Ilsa’s face began to materialize from the negative he’d printed.
He knew the last photo he’d taken of her would be his favorite. How he worked up the courage to tell her to look at him as though he was her lover, he didn’t know. He just wished the sizzling look she’d bestowed on him then was real, that she thought of him as her love.
Wondering who filled her thoughts at that moment, made her gaze at the camera with such an undisguised look of longing, he decided ignorance was perhaps best.
To his knowledge, she didn’t have a steady suitor. He knew she’d accompanied Grant Hill on a few outings, and he heard Mitchell Lawry, a local attorney, escorted her out to dinner one evening, but he hoped it was all in good fun, nothing serious.
Someone, though, was in her heart and her thoughts. Tony could plainly see it as the photo developed.
Ilsa was in love with someone. The evidence of the fact marched boldly across her face.
Tony shoved aside his feelings and looked at the photograph from an artist’s viewpoint. It was probably one of the best he’d taken.
He’d not only captured Ilsa’s emotions, but also that light-filled aura she seemed to possess as it glowed around her in the image.
The lighting, the background, the way she posed was technically perfect. From the smooth silkiness of her hair to the tilt of her chin and the brightness of her smile, the composition was flawless, much like her soft skin.
Memories of how wonderful that skin felt beneath his fingers made him mentally shake himself. By force of will, he focused on his work and not the subject.
It was impossible to remain focused, though, as his thoughts chased back around to who had stolen Ilsa’s heart. Maybe Caterina could shed some light on the matter, should Tony feel inclined to ask her. She’d torment him ruthlessly if she fully realized how much he cared for her best friend’s sister.
The back door banged shut and the clomping sound of boots accompanied by the jingle of spurs across the floor let him know he had company. He walked to the door of his darkroom and waited.
“Tony? You there?” Kade called from the other side of the door. Mistakenly opening the door once and destroying some of Tony’s work, Kade learned, after a thorough tongue-lashing in both English and Italian, not to ever open the door.
“I’m here. What do you need?”
“There’s been a shooting west of town. We think it might be part of the Bowman Gang. Can you be ready to ride with us in an hour? The sheriff asked if you could go along. Garrett’s riding in to join us, too.”
“I’ll be ready. I’m in the middle of printing, but I’ll finish as quickly as I can. Can you saddle Giacomo and have your wife make me a sandwich?” Tony asked, as he began a mental list of what he needed to accomplish in a very short time.
“Sure can. Is your bedroll in your room?” Kade asked.
“It’s under the bed,” Tony called. “Thanks, Kade.”
“Yep.”
Tony heard Kade’s footsteps receding and hurried to finish processing the print of Ilsa. He put away chemicals, washed up, and set the darkroom in order, ready to use when he returned.
Quickly locking his shop, he left a note on the door for anyone with ice emergencies to contact Caterina then ran down the street and through two alleys to his sister’s restaurant.
“Hey, Cat, did you make me a sandwich?” he asked as he slammed the back door.
“I’m getting food ready for you and Kade now. Hurry and get your things. He already took your bedroll.” Caterina looked up from the cookies she placed into paper packets. One of her kitchen staff assembled sandwiches while another put apples into a bag.
Tony took the steps to his apartment two at a time, unbuttoning his shirt as he went. Hastily changing into a thick woolen shirt, he slipped on a vest then removed his boots and pulled on a pair of warm wool socks before shoving his feet back into his boots. He buckled on a gun belt, settling the revolver so it weighed more comfortably against his hip. After he grabbed a box of cartridges, he stuffed them into his saddlebag along with a clean shirt and a few other supplies. He chose a warm coat and made sure he had a pair of gloves then hurried downstairs.
In the kitchen, he set the saddlebags on the counter where Caterina worked. She stuffed the food inside the side of the bag he left empty. Tony snitched a handful of cookies from the jar she kept on the counter, kissed her cheek with a word of thanks, placed his hat on his head, and ran out the door with the saddlebags.
As he jogged toward the sheriff’s office, he saw a group of men mounting their horses.
“Just in the nick of time,” Kade said as Tony tossed the saddlebags over Giacomo and checked to make sure his rifle was in the scabbard attached to the saddle. Swiftly tightening the cinch, he swung onto the horse’s back and smiled at his brother-in-law.
“Your wife told me if I let you come back in any condition other than the same in which you left that the sheriff has permission to lock me up in jail until I rot.”
The men all laughed and Kade thumped Tony on the shoulder. “I guess you better take good care of me, then.”
The group headed west of Pendleton as they rode out of town. When they arrived at the scene of the shooting at an outlying ranch, they found three men shot. One was dead and the doctor was working to remove a bullet from a second man. The third had a bandaged arm, where the bullet grazed him, and shared what he could remember. Two men ambushed them, demanding money and supplies before firing off several rounds.
The sheriff and one of the other deputies stayed to ask questions and process details of the shooting while Kade took Garrett and Tony with him to follow the tracks they picked up heading south.
“Do you think they’re part of a gang, or just a couple of guys down on their luck that made some bad decisions?” Garrett asked as he and Tony rode behind Kade.
“Don’t know. Could go either way, but I think shooting someone in cold blood is more than a bad choice. If they ambushed those men, then I’d say they planned to do what they did. They probably shot the first guy to guarantee the cooperation of the other two.” Kade got off his horse and studied the ground for a moment before mounting and turning his horse at an angle to the direction they’d been riding.
Garrett and Tony had both ridden alongside the deputy enough to know he was an excellent tracker. Unless it started to snow and covered the tracks, odds were high Kade would find the men. Tony never enjoyed these trips to bring in criminals, but Caterina appreciated him watching Kade’s back. Although he wasn’t good at tracking, he did keep a cool head under pressure and could handle a gun with ease.
They rode for a good hour without saying much, heading into the barren hills where nothing but sagebrush and scrubby trees thrived.
Tony cringed as he brushed against a patch of tall thistles. Their prickly heads poked into his leg and he frowned as he bent down to pick them out, wishing he’d remembered to put on his chaps before leaving town. Not only did they block some of the wind, they also kept things like thistles from jabbing into his legs.
As he leaned over the side of the horse, a sound like a pop erupted and something whistled past his shoulder.
“Take cover!” Kade yelled, spurring his horse behind a boulder.
Garrett and Tony both hustled to get behind rocks. After jumping out of their saddles, they worked their way close to Kade. He quickly devised a plan to catch the shooters.
While Garrett and Tony took turns distracting the men, Kade circled around behind them, shooting one in the hand before he could turn the gun on him. He fired again and put a bullet in the second man’s leg, but the criminal held onto his gun, leveling it at Kade.
“I’d dro
p that gun unless you want my next shot to go through your head,” Kade warned as the second shooter appeared to debate pulling the trigger on him. Before he could decide, Tony and Garrett stepped behind him.
“You should listen to the deputy, if you know what’s good for you,” Tony said, pointing the barrel of his gun against the man’s neck.
“We’re done,” the man said, dropping his gun.
The outlaw with the bleeding hand glanced at the lawman before glaring at his friend. “Told you we should’ve kept on ridin’ but you said those cowpokes would be easy pickings. Don’t seem near so easy now.”
“Ah, shut your flap, Dick,” the man said, holding onto his leg.
Garrett and Tony cuffed the talker while Kade tied a bandana around the other man’s leg to help stop the bleeding then bound his hands.
“Where’d you boys leave your horses?” Kade asked. When neither of them seemed inclined to speak, he shrugged his shoulders. “You can walk all the way back to Pendleton if that suits you better.”
“Don’t suit me at all, Joe,” Dick said, pointing toward a hill behind them. “They’re over that rise, there.”
“I’ll get them.” Tony walked over the crest of a hill and found two horses tied to a scraggly brush. Both animals were jittery and jerked their heads as he approached. Softly talking, he rubbed their necks and calmed them down before leading them back to where Kade and Garrett waited with the outlaws. He and Garrett took everything off the horses but the saddles and inspected those, along with the saddle blankets to make sure there weren’t any hidden weapons.
“I see you’re riding stolen horses on top of everything else,” Kade said, boosting the one called Joe onto his saddle. Using a length of rope to lash the man’s hands to the saddle horn, he gave him a cold glare then tied his feet to the stirrups. “Horse rustling, murder, and robbery could end up with your neck in a noose. Did you know we’ve got authority to enforce the death penalty right here in Umatilla County?”
“Joe?” Dick shot a worried glance at his partner.
Kade mounted his horse, keeping a tight hold on the reins of Joe’s mount. “The sheriff might, and I’m just saying might, be willing to make sure you stay alive if you’d be willing to talk about who you’re riding for.”
“I’ll tell you everything I know,” Dick said, ready to spill his guts, turning to look from Garrett, who led his horse, to Kade.
“Shut it, Dick, or so help me I’ll rip your throat right out!” Joe glowered at his partner in crime.
“That would be kind of messy, don’t you think?” Kade asked, sounding congenial, like he was carrying on a pleasant conversation in someone’s parlor. “Well, you boys just mull it over. There’s plenty of time to make your decision before we get back to town. It won’t take but a minute or two to run a couple of ropes over a tree limb and make a noose.”
“Come to think of it, aren’t the ropes still there from the last bunch of horse rustlers you caught?” Garrett asked, hoping to goad the men into confessing.
Tony listened to Kade and Garrett terrorize the two criminals through their words as he brought up the rear. They had it down to an art. It wasn’t so much the words they said, but the friendly, helpful tone they used and the images they painted that would haunt the outlaws all the way back to Pendleton, and probably for a good long while after that.
In addition, he knew Kade’s towering height, brawny build, and steel-laced confidence intimidated most men.
They weren’t even halfway back to town when the one named Dick started to bawl like a baby. “Stop, please stop. If you promise to keep him away from me, I’ll tell you every last thing I know.”
“That’s right helpful of you, Dick,” Kade said, giving the man a jovial smile that made Tony think of the snake he once watched devour a mouse. The cold gleam in Kade’s eyes was quite similar. “We’ll get you squared away as quick as we’re back in town.”
“I’ll kill you, you coward!” Joe shouted, trying to urge his horse forward so he could grab Dick. With his feet and hands tied to the saddle, he wasn’t going anywhere, although he did grunt in pain.
“If I were you, I’d not twitch around so much.” Kade pointed to the man’s bleeding leg. “If it was me, with a bullet in my thigh, I’d probably try to hold still so I didn’t bleed out before I returned to civilization. Then again, I could let you walk if you’re antsy and can’t sit still.”
Joe scowled at Kade, sitting sullenly in the saddle.
The remainder of the trip to Pendleton was quiet. Tony was glad he took time to change his shirt and socks because the night air was cold. Frost covered the ground and their breath rose in white puffs before they made it back to town.
After locking the two prisoners in separate cells in the jail and sending for the doctor, Kade promised to give the sheriff a full report in the morning then walked Garrett and Tony out the door.
Gratefully shaking their hands, he thanked them both and invited Garrett to stay the night in town if he didn’t want to ride back to the ranch at such a late hour.
“No. Aundy will be anxious for me to get home, and I might be equally anxious to get there.”
Kade gave him a cocky grin. “Well, I won’t keep you from your wife or your warm bed.”
Garrett mounted his horse and nodded to his two friends. “Thanks for the fun.”
Tony, who had an excessive amount of time to think during their long ride back, decided to ask Garrett if he knew who stirred Ilsa’s interest.
“Say, Garrett, before you head home, do you know who Ilsa is seeing?”
“Seeing?” Garrett asked, looking from Kade to Tony as he leaned on his saddle horn. “You mean as in courting? You think someone is courting her?”
“Well, yeah,” Tony said, glaring at the two men when they both began to laugh.
Kade slapped him on the back and shook his head. “I thought you Italians were supposed to be experts on love. You’ve certainly got a lot to learn, my friend.”
“What are you talking about?” Tony asked, perturbed at his two friends. The simple question certainly didn’t deserve the amount of humor they seemed to find in it.
“If you want to know who’s tickled her fancy, try looking in the mirror when you shave in the morning.” Garrett clicked his tongue and rode his horse down the street. Turning to look back over his shoulder, he laughed again. “I guess love truly is blind.”
“Don’t forget dumb,” Kade added, slapping Tony on the back again. Together, they walked to the livery, left their horses and paid extra to have them brushed down after the long ride. “If you don’t believe me, Tony, ask your sister. Ilsa has been sweet on you since the day she set foot in town.”
“Then why does she act like I’m just a brother or friend or… nobody special?” If Kade laughed again, Tony couldn’t promise he wouldn’t take a swing at him. His brother-in-law could clean his clock without even blinking, but Tony was too annoyed to care.
“Maybe because you treat her like a sister or a friend instead of the woman you love. Does she know how you feel?”
“I never told her, but I thought my actions would speak for themselves. I help her with the shop, escort her around town, tease her and tell her jokes, tell her she looks nice…” Tony realized as he spoke those were the same things he did with Caterina and even Aundy. No wonder Ilsa had no idea he was wild with love for her.
“Maybe you should think of a way to make it clear that you’re interested in more than just being friends. That’s always a good way to find out if she feels the same.”
“So says the man who pretended for months he wasn’t interested in my sister only to come begging her to take him back.”
“I didn’t beg.” Kade glowered at Tony as they neared Caterina’s restaurant. Welcome light glowed from both upstairs and her kitchen. As they stepped around the corner of the building, the sound of a woman screaming pierced the air. They both dropped their things and took off running.
Chapter Twenty
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br /> “I don’t think you should be running around town without the men here,” Caterina said as Ilsa set her supper dishes in the sink and gave her a hug.
“I’ll be fine. I’m just going over to Mrs. Reed’s house for a little while, then straight home. She wanted me to show her how to do a feather stitch. She said she’s tried and tried to learn and can’t figure it out. I forgot I promised her I’d come this afternoon. When I telephoned to apologize, she said Doc was out on a call and she’d love some company this evening. Nothing is going to happen.” Ilsa needed the reassurance that she would be fine as much if not more than Caterina.
Tony usually escorted her the short distance home in the evening and she never ventured out by herself unless it was broad daylight and she stayed on the boardwalk.
Fighting her fears, she needed to do this for herself.
“You’re a brave girl.” Caterina gave her an encouraging hug.
Ilsa didn’t feel brave as she wrapped a thick shawl around her shoulders, picked up a basket with some embroidery supplies, and walked with Caterina through her busy restaurant to the front door.
“Be careful and don’t stay out late.”
“I won’t.” Ilsa waved and started down the street. Although she wished she could tease Caterina about already becoming a fussy mother hen, the news of the Rawlings family’s upcoming addition was not yet public knowledge.
Ilsa set a fast pace as she hustled from the restaurant. She turned at the next block then crossed the street to stay away from one of the saloons situated on the busy corner. Not that she was supposed to know they even existed, but Ilsa didn’t know why the town needed so many drinking establishments or houses of ill repute.
As she approached the doctor’s house, Mrs. Reed sat in front of the lace-covered window in a rocking chair with stitchery on her lap.
She didn’t have long to wait after knocking for the woman to open the door.
Ilsa (Pendleton Petticoats Book 3) Page 21