by Reina Torres
“Was she hurt?” Ellis swallowed hard. “Could you tell?”
“For the most part.” Luke cleared his throat. “She looked tired and angry, but her hands are bound in front of her.”
Ellis’ shoulders tensed, and Luke blew out a breath. “You need to be calm, Ellis. She’s a strong woman. She’s holding it together. You need to, too.”
As they passed between Bender’s Saloon and the Assay office, Ellis slowed his mount and took stock of the number of curious onlookers. He saw a number of familiar faces, but what scared him were the number of faces he didn’t recognize and most of those were armed.
Luke was off in a heartbeat and Ellis got down off his mount with a quick sweep of his leg. He trotted up beside the Marshal. Levi was at the man’s other side.
“Marshal? By now Ransom and Wyeth have Calvin in custody, but he won’t be any help talking Jed out of hiding. Calvin was going to leave him behind, just like they left me to rot years ago.”
Marshal Halston sighed. “Honor among thieves. I’m not sure how this man will take that news.”
“I’ll talk to him, Marshal.” Before either man could argue with him he took a step forward. “I’m the only one he knows in town. I don’t see how anyone else can get through to him.”
Levi leaned closer. “Ellis, are you sure?”
“That I can do this? I hope so,” Ellis swallowed hard, “but it’s Virginia in there, and she’s bound to be scared and fearing for her life.” He looked straight into the Marshal’s eyes. “I can tell you that I’m sure I will do everything to save her including putting myself between her and his gun.”
Levi’s breath caught in his throat. “I hope that won’t be necessary.”
Ellis nodded. “Me too, sir. Me too.”
Virginia looked at the man standing by the door. Jed. He’d said his name was Jed.
And that was before he’d realized that telling her his name wasn’t the smartest thing to do. It had also been the one and only time that he’d raised his hand to her.
And yet, he didn’t strike her. He’d only raised his hand.
“Please, Jed,” she kept her voice soft and hopefully calm, “just let me go and my father will deal with you fairly.”
“He’s a Marshal. I’m not going to jail.”
“I’m sorry, Jed.” She quietly continued to pick at the cloth strip he’d torn from her nightgown hem to bind her wrists, keeping her eyes on his head so he had no choice to see her when he turned her way. “But you’re going to go to jail. You can’t do what you’ve done and expect not to spend some time behind bars.”
“They’re not gonna catch me,” he insisted. “Cal’s coming back and then we’re leaving together. You’re going to tell them to let us go.”
She couldn’t help the weary sigh that fell from her lips. “You don’t understand my father, Jed. He’s a lawman first. The first thing he’s going to do is make sure he has you in custody. Then he’d worry about me.”
The man narrowed his gaze at her. “You’re lyin’ to me.” He advanced on her and she leaned as far back from him as she could go. “Why are you lying to me?”
“I’m not.” She shook her head and hoped he could see the truth in her eyes. “My father is a lawman through and through, Jed. He’s not going to let you go. If you go out there shooting, he’s going to shoot back.”
Jed paced to the window and looked out the faintest crack between the old dingy curtains and the edge of the window pane. “Looks like we’ve got quite the audience outside. There’s a bunch of folks out there.” He swore under his breath. “A whole crowd of men, some of them with rifles and pistols. They’ve come prepared for a party.”
She nodded, even though he couldn’t see her. “The town has a lot of close knit people. Folks here care for each other, defend each other.”
“You’ll tell them,” he demanded striding over to her and grabbing her by the arm. “You’ll tell them to back off.”
Virginia shook her head. “No, sorry. I told you. They’re not going to let you leave either.”
“Jed!”
The voice reached them inside the small room and Virginia felt a shiver of hope race through her body.
“Jed, we need to talk.”
Jed, still holding her arm, dragged her with him to the door. Lifting his face, he called out through the thin glass of the window. “You gotta get me out of here, Ellis. You said you’d help us!”
“You broke the rules, Jed. You took Virginia.”
“It wasn’t me… not my plan. It was Cal! He’s coming back for me and then we’re going to leave. That’s when you can have your girl back.”
“Son, this is Marshal Halston. I told you that’s not going to happen. Come out, bring the young lady with you and turn yourself in.”
Virginia felt his fingers digging into her arm. “I told you.”
Jed ignored her. “Come on, Ellis. Back off so Cal can come in and get me. When he does we’ll be gone. You’ll never see us ever again!”
There was a sudden silence outside and Virginia saw the uneasy tension in Jed’s shoulders.
The next words they heard probably didn’t have the effect that her father had intended.
“Cal’s in custody. Once my deputies bring him into town he’s going into a jail cell. Where you go next, Jed? That’s your decision. Let Virginia go, and you’ll go into the cell beside him. If you don’t come out, well, I guess we’ll come in.”
Jed spun around fast enough to make her head snap to one side and then the other. “Stop, please.” She was so tired. Jed had kept her awake almost all night with his constant pacing and worrying. It had only gotten worse after Cal left to intercept the Express Rider on the next run. She could see how much his own exhaustion was taking control.
“Please, Jed. Give up.”
“No,” his grip tightened on her arm and she felt her fingers start to go numb, “Cal is coming for me.”
Virginia wasn’t sure she should say anything, Jed was almost shaking with nervous energy.
“Come on out, Jed. Don’t make this any harder.”
“Just let me go, Ellis. Let me out of here and you can have the girl.”
Virginia couldn’t help how scared she was. She was so close to freedom, but Jed was scared and jumpy and that was rubbing off on her, too.
“Bring her out, Jed. Show her father you’re trying to do the right thing.” There was a pause before he started talking again. “You do that, and we’ve got all kinds of witnesses out here that will say the same thing to the judge. How you let her go of your own free will.”
She saw Jed’s hand twitch and she held her breath.
“The way I see it, Ellis. This ain’t a matter of free will. You’ve got me over a barrel. All those men out there with guns? That’s not giving me much choice!”
“Then make the right one, Jed. Come out. Set Virginia free and you’ll get a fair trial.”
Jed opened his mouth to speak and Virginia took a chance.
“It’s better than what Ellis had.”
He swung his head around to look at her. “What do you know about it?”
“You said it yourself last night, while you were pacing around while the other man slept. You said the two of you had let Ellis pay for what you’d done.
“You didn’t think I was listening, or maybe that I was asleep, but I was listening. Jed, you can’t tell me that you don’t feel guilty for what happened to him. For all the time he lost.”
“And I’m going to go to jail.” Jed slumped against the wall, his face looked drawn and lines pinched around his eyes and between his brows. “I’ve never been to jail.”
Virginia didn’t know what to say. Her heart was pounding in her chest and her skin felt cold and clammy. She felt the hand of panic squeeze around her chest. “Please, Jed… listen to them.”
Another commotion outside drew his attention and he straightened up to peek out of the window.
“What is it?” Virginia stood and moved clo
ser. “What’s going on outside?” The scratches on the bottoms of her feet tickled with pain. She tried to get close enough to look out of the window, but Jed shoved her back.
“Don’t,” he growled at her, “you could get hurt.”
She squeezed her eyes shut and took a steadying breath. “Then tell me.”
He looked back out of the window and she saw him shake his head. “Cal’s dead. Two men just walked his horse up onto the grass. Cal… Cal’s body is laid over the saddle. I’m all alone.”
“Jed, I-”
He turned and glared at her. “Don’t! Don’t you say nothing nice to me. You’re wearing me down, aren’t you?” He shook his head. “You’re saying things that you think I want to hear. I don’t want you talking me into this. Cal always talked me into things… and he’s… he’s dead.” Jed turned to the wall and let his forehead touch the rough-hewn wood. “Cal’s dead.”
“Jed?”
He rolled his head back and forth, his breaths short and labored. “He’s dead. What am I going to do?”
Virginia held her breath. She didn’t know how he’d react. He sounded wounded. Scared almost.
It was best for her to wait. And watch.
Her father’s voice pierced through the silence. “Come on out, Jed!”
“No!” Jed’s fist hit the wall.
“Let Virginia go, Jed!”
“No, no, no!” He pounded both fists on the wall. “I’m going to make the decisions now!” He turned and looked at Virginia, his eyes red and glaring. “Tell them!”
“Marshal?” Virginia felt the tight strain in her throat, but she forced the words out. “Stop browbeating him. He’s making his decision.”
“I’m here, Virginia!”
She swiped at the tears in her eyes. “I know, Ellis… I know.”
Jed turned his head slowly in her direction. “Don’t it bother you?”
It took her a moment to focus on his words. “Bother me?”
He jerked a thumb at the front wall. “That Ellis was in jail?”
Realization was quick and offered her a moment of understanding into his thoughts. “No.”
“But he was in jail for years. That isn’t a problem?”
“He was released after he served his sentence.”
“You mean my sentence?”
Virginia saw the hard line of his jaw and the frowning disbelief on his forehead.
“You’d still accept him.”
“He’s a good man. People pay for their crimes. They go through their time. They deserve a second chance.”
“I don’t get one,” he shook his head. “I’ve never been to jail and I don’t get a second chance.”
She moved closer to him, inches closer. “Turn yourself in, Jed. Let me go. That’s going to show the Marshal that you don’t want trouble. He’s going to be able to tell the judge that you cooperated. That you helped. Please, Jed. Walk out with me.”
The voices surrounding them were making Ellis nervous. He turned his gaze to Levi. “I don’t like this.”
Marshal Halston nodded in his agreement. “Too many hot heads and too many guns.”
“Marshal?” Ransom McCain stepped up. The last time that Ellis had seen Ransom, he was headed off to the undertaker with Cal’s body. “You want me to circulate and send people off?”
The older man turned to him in relief. “That would be helpful.”
Ransom moved away, working his way through the gathering crowd.
Halston turned back to Ellis. “It’s pretty quiet in there. You have any idea what’s going on in there?”
Ellis looked at the closed door and the slight gap in the curtain behind the window. “Jed was the follower, but he was closer to Cal than I was. I was too naïve to see much more than two friends looking to include me. That’s how I got roped into things.
“Jed’s spent years following Cal around. I’m not sure what he’s thinking now that he has to… that he was to-”
“Be the one making the decisions.”
Ellis nodded. “But he’s not the mean one, Marshal. Cal was the one with the mean streak, Jed just got swept up in things. If he hasn’t done anything to Virginia yet, I doubt he’s planning on it.”
“But if he gets nervous?”
Ellis’ mouth was stretched in a thin line. “He’s already nervous, bet on it.”
A rumble of sound turned both their heads toward the left side of the crowd. Ransom was standing between a man and the miner’s house.
“You’ll have to leave, sir. Or you’ll hand over your weapon.”
Ellis heard the reply and blew out a breath.
“This is my gun. You try to take it, you’ll figure out what it’s for.”
Levi cleared his throat and headed over. “Come now, Pierson. The Marshal has this under control.”
“Control?” Pierson shook his head. “Last I heard the lawman’s daughter was locked away with a man. Thought I’d stick around and help escort the pair to the church if it’s needed.”
“You’ve had enough to drink, Pierson. Let’s get you back to the Stage Depot and you can sleep it off. We don’t need any distractions.”
“Then you better walk away, Hawkins. I’m only here to help keep the peace.”
Beside Ellis, Marshal Halston hissed under his breath. “I’m going to have issues with that man.”
Ellis nodded. “Seems like everyone does.” Turning back to the door, Ellis saw some movement in the window. The curtain pulled back. “Sir?”
Marshal Halston caught the tension in his voice and turned to follow Ellis’ pointed look.
“I think he’s going to open the door.”
When the door did swing open less than a minute later, Ellis knew it was too much to hope for that Jed would come out first, his hands empty and in the air.
The first sight did his heart good, though.
Virginia stepped into the open doorway and he watched her eyes squint closed and she raised a hand to block the sunlight from her eyes.
Ellis held his silence until he saw her bare foot peek out from under the hem of her nightgown. He saw the way she held her head up as she stepped down into the grass, her hair pulled slightly from the long braid she’d fashioned in the back.
He wanted to run forward and pull Virginia away from Jed. He wanted to stand between the two of them, but one look at Jed put that idea to an uneasy rest. Jed was exhausted, dark shadows under his eyes, but the gun in his hand shook just enough to make Ellis hold his breath.
Jed stopped at the bottom of the steps and found Marshal Halston with his eyes. “What did you do with Cal?”
Marshal Halston stepped forward. “Cal went to the undertaker. We’ll bury him here in Three Rivers unless you know of family he might have. How about you, Jed-”
“I ain’t gonna die here!”
Ellis held up his hands and stepped forward. “No one said that, Jed. The Marshal was just going to ask if you knew if he had family anywhere. Family we could get word to.”
His bleary eyes turned back to the marshal. “Is that what you were gonna say?”
Nodding, Marshal Halston kept his eyes on Jed. “You need to step on out and hand over your gun, Jed. Once you’ve done that, we can talk about how you cooperated. What that means for your trial.”
“Don’t bother with a trial, Marshal!” People called out from the small crowd of townsfolk and the curious onlookers. “We’ve got trees high enough by the river!”
“You all quiet down!” Marshal Halston’s voice was sharp and sliced through the air. “He’s under my protection. He’s turning himself in and I don’t want to hear about-”
The sound of a rifle shot drove several people to their knees and a few more flat in the grass.
Ellis turned toward the sound and saw Ransom wrench the rifle out of Pierson’s hands.
“Virginia?” The sound tore from Ellis’ throat as he turned to look for her.
Standing much in the same place she’d been a heartbeat earlier,
Virginia stood in the sun, her white nightgown hem waving in the sudden breeze with blood splashed across her arm.
Chapter 16
“Virginia!” Ellis dashed across the open space and framed her face with his hands. “Are you hurt?”
She opened her mouth to speak and no sound came out.
“Virginia?”
Nodding, Virginia’s eyes began to water with tears. “I’m fine… just scared.”
Wrapping his arms around her, Ellis gently held her in his embrace, shaking with relief. He was barely aware of the Marshal marching past them and up to Jed.
“Son?”
A heavy thud turned Ellis’ head and he pulled Virginia into his side as he put himself between her and the other man. Marshal Halston had his arm supporting Jed as he slid down the wall toward the ground.
Unwilling to let go of Virginia, Ellis gently guided her to the side as he looked down at Jed.
The bullet hit true, the center of Jed’s chest, the rattling sounds coming from his lungs made Ellis ache for him. “Jed, I’m sorry.”
Jed took in a gasping breath. “He was… he was… the one.”
“We know,” Ellis sought to reassure him. “Cal told you what to do, Jed. We know.”
Leaning against the wall, Jed’s head moved ever so slightly back and forth. “No… he-”
Ellis watched Jed’s eyes roll ever so slightly, looking off to the side.
Turning, Ellis looked in that direction, there were a bunch of men standing around. As he watched, Ransom turned to look at him and gave him a nod.
Ellis swung back around. “Ransom? He didn’t shoot you.”
Jed’s eyes were bright with pain and his face was covered in sweat and pinpoints of blood splattered along his cheek. “No, not him… it was-”
His eyes glossed over as his head sagged down. Ellis didn’t need the marshal to tell him what he already knew. Jed was gone.
“Ellis?”
He felt Virginia’s hand on his cheek, felt her lay her head on his shoulder.
“He was letting me go, Ellis. He wanted to do the right thing. He wasn’t going to hurt me.”