“No, we’re not gonna hike the whole basin. If I were setting up a city in this place”—Cutter jabbed his finger at a bluff a mile or so away—”I’d put it right there.”
It was a likely spot. Had a good overlook to the canyon entrance for defensive purposes. Water flowed near to hand. It was a bluff with steep walls, hard for anyone to launch a sneak attack. Raised land to keep them above a flood. Woodland nearby that would make for good hunting. Yes, a likely place.
“Unless you’ve got more on those maps of yours.” Lurene aimed her gun straight at Shannon’s chest. It always came back to Shannon.
“No, my father’s maps led me to this canyon. That’s where he stopped. This is where he said he’d found his treasure.”
Gabe looked at the bluff with the flat crown. He couldn’t see what lay on top of it. He wondered whether they really were on the verge of discovering an ancient city of gold.
“If we skirt the basin, we can get out of the heat.” Gabe tried to look wobbly. Between that and the brutal power of the afternoon sun, maybe he could lead them into the woods. The woods where his brother even now lay in wait.
Lurene gave a jerk of her head that meant she was hot enough to go along with Gabe’s request. “You first, Miss Dysart.” Lurene had her gun aimed straight at Shannon.
They headed for the woods. Getting that sun off of Gabe’s head really did help. His brain started working as they threaded through the trees. Shannon was in the lead with Lurene. Ginger walked along with Darrel next to her. The two seemed connected, a twosome within the gang. Then Buck followed with Tyra at his side.
Randy was next, then Gabe, with Cutter at his back. Gabe would rather have had anyone else. But if Abe started picking people off from the back of this line, having Cutter go down first would be for the best.
Gabe saw Tyra whisper a few words to Buck, and the sudden tension in Buck’s shoulders told Gabe the citified man now knew rescue was at hand. He clearly was not married to Tyra. They’d never have ridden down here alone together if they weren’t married, but it made sense that the man with Abe was some kin of Tyra’s to make things proper. But why’d they bring a woman along on this trip in the first place? To cook maybe?
The woods were thicker than Gabe had dared to hope. They walked into a grove that lined the basin all the way to the bluff. The very place Gabe had seen Abe. Gabe moved slower and slower, putting space between him and Randy. Cutter didn’t shove at his shoulders, which told Gabe the man was tired and had relaxed his usual razor-sharp vigil. But the shade was helping them all revive.
It must have helped Lurene, because she stopped and grabbed Shannon’s arm, turning her to face everyone. “Get up here. Stay close.” A wide spot in the trail let them all walk to where she waited for them.
With a sinking stomach, Gabe knew his brother couldn’t attack them when they were bunched together. Yes, he and the other prisoners would help, and they had a fair chance of winning this fight, but blood would be shed. Not all of it outlaw blood. And Lurene was strung tight as piano wire, and she had the look of someone who had a hunger to kill. Gabe was sorely afraid Shannon would die first.
As they walked up, Lurene held her ground until they were a tight knot. “We’ve got five guns on four prisoners,” Lurene said. “I want to make dead sure you’re all aware of that. If there’s any trouble, I unload my gun into Miss Dysart here first.”
Lurene seemed to enjoy the snide way she called Shannon Miss Dysart. A reminder, Gabe imagined, that Shannon had originally hired her, and now Lurene was the one in charge.
But if there was no gold on top of that bluff, which Gabe suspected there wasn’t, he wondered if the woman would ever realize that she’d have been a lot better off just doing honest work, taking the pay Shannon had offered her, and then going on to another honest job.
“Darrel, you’re for Bucky here.”
Darrel nodded.
“Call me Buck.”
Gabe mentally rolled his eyes, though he had to admit Buck was a better name.
“I’ll take the girl.” Ginger looked at Tyra with cold eyes.
“I’ll keep my eye on Gabe here,” Cutter offered.
Lurene jerked her chin in cold satisfaction. “Randy, we’ve got a spare. You just keep your eyes open and help whoever might need it.”
“Done.” Randy smirked, clearly knowing he’d been assigned the job of nothing.
Lurene turned to Shannon. “A city of gold, dead ahead, right?”
Shannon’s lips trembled. “My father was searching for a city of gold, Lurene, but when he talked of what he found, he used the word treasure. You saw those ruins in the cliffs. Father called that a treasure, too, and had it marked on the map. I hope that this second location is the real city of gold. I’ve been hoping that those cliff dwellings were the place the priests first settled with their gold, then they moved on and found a place where they could hide their city better, down here. But we have to prepare ourselves for a different kind of treasure.”
Shannon’s gaze lifted to Gabe’s. He saw in her eyes that she’d finally figured it out. She’d realized that this dream of hers was a tale of heaven. Streets paved with gold. But she hadn’t been able to give up on such a place existing here on earth.
Her jaw firmed as she looked directly into his eyes. “I dragged you, Gabe.” Then her eyes took in the rest, all of them, even the outlaws. “I dragged all of you off the edge of the world, into this beautiful valley, and we’ve found nothing. And I finally understand.”
Gabe would love one minute alone with her. To hold her and tell her he was glad he’d come, all but this last part. “I wasn’t searching for gold, Shannon, but I’m glad I came.” A smile quirked his lips. “All except for the guns of course.”
“Shut up and let’s get moving.” Lurene jabbed her revolver into Shannon’s side.
Flinching from the pain, Shannon said, “Yes, we’ll go, but I just want all of you to know I finally understand. I’ve given up years of my life to find this fabled city, and now that we’re close to the last place it could be, I realize I don’t even want it.”
“Well, I do.” Lurene licked her lips as if she could taste the gold.
“God was wise to promise paradise after death as a blessing for faith during this life. What good will a city of gold do any of us?”
“It will let me live as I choose.”
“What life do you hate so much that you’re driven to kill to escape it?” Shannon asked the woman.
“A life like none you’ve ever known.” Lurene cocked her gun and lifted it to press against Shannon’s temple. “And I am willing to risk death to escape. The only reason you’re still alive, now that we’re here, is because of the chance of ransom.” Then that ugly gun swung from Shannon and stopped, aimed at Tyra, then moved on to Bucky, then on until it was dead centered on Gabe’s heart. “And the only reason they’re still alive is because you’re cooperating. As soon as you try something I don’t like, one of them dies.”
Lurene’s smile made a shiver of fear crawl up Gabe’s back, and he wondered for the first time if Lurene wasn’t completely sane. She was crazy for gold, but could she be just plain crazy? Her smile told him yes.
“I’m going to cooperate,” Shannon said quickly. “But if there’s no gold up there, my friends here will not be harmed. You’ll need me to write notes or something to prove to my mother you’ve kidnapped me. You can’t force me to write a thing, and I won’t if any of them get hurt.”
Lurene’s smile faded. “As for that, we’ll just see, won’t we? If I kill one of them, will you really get stubborn and let them all die? Or will you do anything to save the last two of them?”
“I don’t need money,” Shannon said.
“Lucky you.”
“And I’m not interested in fame like my father was.”
Lurene shrugged.
“My father cared about that, but now that he’s dead, restoring his reputation wouldn’t touch him in any way.”
“My father’s dead, too, and good riddance.”
Gabe heard only pain and hate in Lurene’s voice.
“My mother, well, arrogance and superiority have been bred into her very bones, and that has only been nourished by her overindulged life. She may well give you money to save me, but I can’t do anything to make her care about me.”
“My mother started selling me to men when I was still a child.” Lurene’s cold voice didn’t conceal the pain. “Tell me again how bad your mother is?”
“I turned my back on Bucky, in St. Louis, then Gabe here in Arizona Territory.”
Gabe looked at Bucky and Bucky looked back, his brows arched in surprise.
“And all for gold I neither need nor want.” Shannon’s expression was so serene it lifted Gabe’s heart regardless of their circumstances.
“It’s very possible,” she went on, “I’ll be walking those streets of gold in heaven before I’m done with all of this madness.” Looking squarely at Gabe, she said, “I believe you called this a fool’s errand.” “I did.”
“Well, you were right, and Bucky”—she turned to him—”you used similar words a few times. I just want to tell you that, whether we find it or not, I’m sorry. I’ve finally realized that, but much too late.” She turned to face the butte ahead. “Let’s go see what’s up there.” Her quiet talk, the peace in her voice, had taken the edge off all of them.
With a single tug on Shannon’s arm, Lurene took the lead. Ginger and Darrel walked behind Lurene. The rest of them stretched out. Buck and Tyra walked in single file followed by Randy, Gabe, and Cutter. There wasn’t a real trail here in the forest, but the trees were close together, and though Lurene kept right to Shannon’s side, the rest of them walked one by one. It was easier.
Gabe realized Tyra was lagging, just as he was, stringing out their little parade.
The trail curved ahead, and a clump of heavy underbrush blocked Gabe’s sight of Shannon and Lurene. His nerves itched having her out of view. Then Ginger and Darrel vanished, then Buck rounded the trail, next Tyra, then Randy.
A dull thud from right behind Gabe told him his brother had arrived. He glanced back and smiled.
“You take the one in front of you,” Abe whispered so quietly it was barely more than a soft hiss in the breeze.
Abe and an older man dragged the big man off the trail. Within seconds the older man reappeared wearing Cutter’s shirt and vest. The old man wasn’t as broad as Cutter but the same height, and with his hat pulled low, someone would have to look close to notice the switch. Abe vanished.
The brood of Lasley brothers had grown up making a game out of ghosting around in the woods. Abe was always the best at it. Abe’s friend was real good, too, and of course Cutter wasn’t going to make any noise.
With no one at his back, Gabe could handle Randy, but he had to do it quietly. He hurried to close the distance.
It was time to put an end to this.
Twenty~Three
Pa was here.
Tyra bit back a smile and focused on the couple in front of Buck, leaving Randy to the men. She waited until she heard a dull thud and a groan of pain that was cut off instantly, then glanced back to see Abe falling into line wearing Randy’s Stetson. She looked quickly away before she could smile. Two down, three to go.
Picking up speed, she reached Buck’s side, her eyes sharp on Ginger, Darrel, and Lurene. Lurene was the only one with her gun out. The others had relaxed, leaving Lurene’s threats to hold their prisoners in line.
Swallowing, Tyra brushed her hand against Buck’s. His eyes seemed to burn into Shannon. Which made Tyra a little annoyed. Had seeing his old friend reminded him of why he wanted to marry her? Well, too bad. She was keeping him.
She bumped his hand again and again, but he kept looking straight ahead. So she punched him in the side. That got his attention. He clutched his belly and glared at her. She caught his arm and kept him moving forward. She jerked her head back, and he glanced behind. Tyra looked, too, and saw Abe give him a little salute.
Buck turned forward and, propelled by Tyra, they closed the gap between themselves and the redheaded woman and her boyfriend. The men behind them closed the gap, too.
Something, maybe just the sound of footsteps closer, drew a look from the redhead. Those beady eyes went past Tyra and Buck. She felt more than saw Abe shift a bit, using Tyra’s body to block a clear view of him.
Tyra held her breath, afraid Cinnamon or Ginger or Red Pepper, whoever, would notice they’d changed the makeup of the outlaws, but the woman wasn’t really checking for details. She just bounced a look off the men trailing and went back to eyes forward.
Breathing again, Tyra moved closer, kept a tight grip on Buck—much as she liked him, she really hoped he’d let her pa and Abe handle this—and prayed that a bend in the path they trod would take Lurene out of sight for just a few seconds. Then they’d dispense with Darrel and Nutmeg and turn their attention to Lurene. They’d have to move fast. No one could masquerade as the redhead.
A huge boulder ahead took Lurene off to one side. Tyra held her breath as hands on her shoulders that she was pretty sure were Abe’s guided her to one side. Buck was also eased aside just as Lurene vanished ahead.
The Lasley brothers leaped forward and grappled with the pair. Tyra jumped forward, snatched Ginger’s gun from its holster, and gave her a sound whack on the head with the butt. Her pa silenced the man in the same ruthless fashion. The two were tied up as fast as any new calf at branding time and dragged off the trail in silence. The men all rushed forward as silently as possible but knew they had seconds to finish this—overpower Lurene before she realized all her cohorts had been dispatched.
They rounded the boulder to find Lurene standing with her arm around Shannon’s neck about twenty paces past the big rock. “Stop, all of you, right where you are.” Lurene looked at them, studying Pa and Abe, realizing she was badly outnumbered.
“Give up, Lurene. Your gang’s all been taken care of.”
“No, go get ‘em. Let ‘em loose. Do it now or she dies.”
“They’re dead.” That was pa talking, and Tyra shivered a bit when he said it because it sounded true. Mean and true even though Tyra knew it wasn’t.
“There’s no getting them, Lurene. It’s you out here alone with us.” Gabe stepped forward. “All of us. You can’t kill us all.”
“Yes, I can. I’ve got six bullets, and there are six of you.”
“We’re all armed.” Tyra noticed Gabe had a gun. It was just a little annoying that her pa hadn’t given her one. “We’re not going to stand here while you unload your gun. You’ll die if you start firing. You’ll kill, and then you’ll die. None of that has to happen. Let Shannon go and give up.”
“No!” Lurene’s hand trembled.
Tyra’s breath caught at the thought of that shaky hand on the trigger.
“You’ve got no choice.” Gabe’s voice rang with authority. He took two steps forward.
Lurene took two back. “I won’t go back.” Lurene sounded crazed. Her hand tightened on Shannon’s neck. “And if you killed Cutter and the others, then you’ll kill me.”
Shannon fought against Lurene’s grip. “Please, I can’t—can’t—breathe.”
“Stop fighting me, or I start shooting. I’ll start with your man, too.”
Shannon quit struggling. Tyra saw her fight to take each breath.
“Lurene, what are you going to do if you kill us all?” Gabe asked. “Can you even get out of this canyon by yourself? Can you find the way back to the rim? What good does a city of gold do if you’re trapped down here with it? It’s worthless.”
“I can find my way out.” Lurene’s eyes shifted like those of a cornered rat. “And when I do, that gold will save me.”
Gabe shook his head. “Gold can’t do that.”
Suddenly a look of such rage crossed Lurene’s face that Tyra braced herself for flying lead.
“You have my word we won’t harm you
.” Gabe took another step forward, his hands raised. “We’ll even go on to the city. If there’s gold there, we can… can give you a brick or two of it, as much as you want. We can help you get it out of here. You can live the rest of your life on that gold and never go back to your old life.”
“No one gives gold away, and why settle for a brick of it when I can have a whole city full?” Lurene suddenly released her hold on Shannon’s neck and grabbed her hair. She pulled backward, glancing to see where she was headed, but only for an instant each time, bringing her attention back to the onlookers too quickly to give anyone an opening to stop her.
“Lurene, wait!” Gabe took a step toward her, now past the edge of the boulder that would provide shelter if Lurene opened fire. Tyra wanted to yell at him to come back, but she knew Gabe wouldn’t have listened.
“Stay back or I’ll kill her.” Lurene sounded near panic, crazy enough to kill for sure.
Gabe froze in place. Tyra had heard so much about what a kid Gabe was. The baby of the family. A whiner. She didn’t see a bit of that in him. He’d been in the cavalry and had been promoted to officer over the years. A leader of men. Someone who made hard decisions fast. He took charge here as naturally as if he’d been doing it all his life.
She remembered that she’d intended to marry him and knew he’d be a better choice for her than Buck. No, it was Bucky. What a name. A city man. Not a good match for her at all. What had she been thinking to let herself get so wrapped up in a man who was so wrong for her? It pinched to admit it, but Bucky belonged with Shannon, and neither of them belonged out here.
“Maybe it’d be too long a chance to kill six armed people with six bullets, but I can sure as certain kill one.” Lurene pulled Shannon back slowly, steadily, with an occasional look behind her. A cautious woman, but terrified and sick with gold fever.
Lurene passed a clump of underbrush then rounded a tree. She took two more steps and disappeared from view.
Gabe surged forward, everyone else right behind him running to keep Lurene in sight.
Deep Trouble Page 26