Charles was sitting at the table with another cup of coffee in front of him when she returned to the kitchen. “Charles, were they supposed to take this rifle?”
“No.” Charles was troubled when Promise ran out the door after Jake. He’d listened, but all she did was tell him to be careful. Her feelings for Jake concerned him, but he was confident once they returned to Charleston she would forget the tall cowboy.
“You might as well tell me what is going on. I know something is not right.” She could see the stable from where she stood, so she watched, waiting for the men to leave.
“Nothing is going on, I just wanted to spend some time with you.”
“You’ve never been a very good liar, Charles. Why do you need the rifle?”
“I told Colt I would like to do some shooting, and he was kind enough to lend me his rifle.”
“Hmm.” Promise was distracted when she saw the wagon coming from the stable with Jake and some woman sitting beside him on the seat. The woman was wearing a large hat so she couldn’t see if it was Mavis, the good kisser. Why would that woman be at the ranch so early? She didn’t hear anyone riding in this morning and she’d been up before dawn, preparing breakfast. Colt and Luke came out of the stable and rode their horses beside the wagon. There was something about the woman’s hat . . . why, it was just like the one she owned. It was her hat! Had Jake given her hat to another woman? “Charles, who is that woman in the wagon with Jake?”
Charles jumped up and looked out the window. “I have no idea.” Charles was as surprised as Promise to see a woman beside Jake. He didn’t realize a woman was in on the scheme. He wondered if she was the owner of the saloon the men told him about.
Promise could tell Charles was telling the truth. Perhaps they’d all been hiding something else this morning, and it had nothing to do with the killers. She felt like a fool, worrying that Jake was going to do something dangerous, and here he was riding away with some woman wearing her hat.
“Shorty, you make a real pretty woman,” Jake teased.
Snorting, Shorty grumbled, “I don’t know how women wear this gear! I’m all trussed up. That Mrs. Wellington could have made this dang thing a little bigger,” he said, tugging at the bodice of the dress that had been altered to fit him. “And I can’t see nothing wearing this war bonnet! How in blue blazes do women see where they’re going wearing these things on their heads?”
Hearing the exchange from the back of the wagon, Cole said, “What I want to know is where you’re hiding your shotgun.”
“It’s atwixt my legs, and don’t go laughing. I reckon I can get to it fast enough and give them dirty skunks a little lead plum when I need to,” Shorty told him.
“You wearing bloomers too?” Jake asked.
Lifting the flopping brim of the hat, Shorty gave him a frown. “You ain’t that gol-darn funny.”
“Hopefully, they can’t see your big feet.”
Cole and Rodriguez could be heard laughing from the back of the wagon. Even Colt grinned at the banter between them. He understood it was their way of releasing tension before they faced whatever was about to happen.
“Colt, do you think they took the bait L. B. hung out there for them?” Luke asked.
“Yeah, I do. They’ll think it’s the perfect time to bushwhack us.”
“We couldn’t have picked a better place for them than Ambush Pass,” Jake said. “Sounds like it was named for them.”
Promise was washing the dishes when T. J. and Strait walked in the back door.
“What are you two doing here? All the men have left already,” she told them.
“We know,” T. J. said.
“Could we have some coffee?” Strait asked.
“Of course. Did Shorty run out of coffee?” When no one responded, she turned to look at them.
“Ah, no, we just like yours better,” Strait stammered.
Everyone knew the men loved Shorty’s strong coffee. Why was everyone acting so weird today? Maybe she could get some information out of them. “Who was the woman in the wagon with Jake?”
T. J. and Strait exchanged glances.
“I didn’t see a woman with Jake,” T. J. said.
“Me neither,” Strait added. He figured it wasn’t really a lie since Shorty wasn’t a woman.
Promise stared at them, trying to figure out if someone had told them to lie to her. “Well, she was wearing my hat.”
“Your hat?” T. J. repeated, sounding like he had just swallowed a frog.
“Yes, my hat. I thought it looked familiar, so I went upstairs to check, and my hat is missing.”
“Maybe it was Mrs. Wagner,” Strait offered.
Promise had met the woman who helped Victoria sew her reticules, and she couldn’t imagine her taking the hat without permission. “No, it wasn’t Mrs. Wagner.”
T. J. thought it would be wiser to change the subject. “Where’s Charles?”
“He’s in the parlor playing games with the boys.”
Colt had told them to keep the boys inside today, and Charles was trying to keep them occupied.
“Where’s Mrs. Wellington and Bartholomew?” T. J. asked.
Promise gave him a puzzled look. “Upstairs with Victoria.” She looked from T. J. to Strait. “Okay, why don’t you two tell me what is going on?”
Charles picked that moment to walk into the kitchen. He quickly appraised the situation and asked, “Are you two going shooting with me today?”
“Ah . . . yeah,” T. J. answered, silently thanking Charles for his quick thinking.
Promise felt insulted that the three of them thought she was so ignorant she would believe their lies. “Enough of this! If you don’t tell me what’s going on, I’ll go ask Victoria.”
The three men looked at each other. They didn’t know how to respond, but Charles knew Promise would do as she threatened.
Thankfully, Mrs. Wellington walked into the room before they could tell another lie. “I heard your conversation, and I didn’t think it was right of Jake to keep this from you.”
Promise did not think she was going to like what Mrs. Wellington had to say. “Keep what from me?”
“Victoria doesn’t know what is going on, and we are going to keep it that way. She doesn’t need to be worrying about her husband.”
“Why would she have to worry about Colt today?” Promise asked, but deep down, she knew the answer.
“They set a trap for those killers,” Mrs. Wellington told her.
Promise sank into a chair. She’d suspected that very thing until she saw the woman sitting beside Jake in the wagon. “But why would they have a woman with them?”
“That was no woman, that was Shorty dressed up as one,” Mrs. Wellington responded. “I made his dress, and I borrowed your hat for him to wear. The large brim was needed so no one could tell he wasn’t a woman.”
Promise could hardly believe what Mrs. Wellington was saying. “That was Shorty? But why would he dress as a woman?”
“So the killers would think it was you.”
Promise dropped her face into her hands. “Oh no. Why would he do that? Why would Jake allow him to do that? Haven’t enough people been killed?”
Mrs. Wellington walked to her and placed her arm around her shoulders. “My dear, you must have more faith in the McBride brothers. I’ve learned much about these men since I’ve been here, and I can assure you they know how to win a battle.”
Charles sat in the chair beside her. “They have a good plan.”
“But what if their plan doesn’t work?” Promise moaned through her tears.
“It will work,” T. J. said emphatically.
Promise looked up at Charles, her eyes so sad it broke his heart. “Oh, Charles, how could you allow this?”
“As Mrs. Wellington said, I think you are underestimating the brothers. It seems to me two former U.S. Marshals should know what they are doing. And I daresay Colt has seen his share of skirmishes. Have you seen him shoot?”
Promise wasn’t
comforted; she wanted details. “Since everyone knows but me, you must tell me everything.”
After they explained the plan to Promise, she had one last question. “If they were so positive the plan would work, why didn’t all of you go with them?”
Chapter Thirty-Three
“Jake, this is where Luke and I take the other trail,” Colt said, coming to a halt. “A couple of days ago I timed both trails to the bend where they’ll most likely be waiting. The higher trail takes longer, and due to the terrain we will have to leave the horses some distance away and walk in. So stay here fifteen minutes before you leave, and then keep a steady pace. It should take about thirty minutes to reach the bend. By the time you get there, we’ll be in position above them.”
Everyone checked their guns as they ran through the plan one more time.
“I expect them to split up and come at us from both sides of the pass; you and Luke take the ones on the west side, and we’ll take the ones on the east ridge with rifles,” Jake said.
Colt looked inside the wagon, and said to Cole and Rodriguez, “You can untie the canvas on the west side and slip out when the firing starts so you can use the wagon for cover.”
“You’re saying that it’ll take twice as many of them to do what you and I can do alone?” Luke joked.
“Hell, Colt’s wearing both guns, so I figure that’ll make it even,” Jake replied.
Colt looked at Jake, and when he spoke, his tone was serious. “Keep the wagon to the west side of the trail. You will be the most vulnerable, so stop this thing in a hurry and haul ass off the right side of the wagon. Have your rifles at the ready in case we haven’t picked them off the ridge.”
Cole shoved two rifles through the opening in the canvas to Jake. “Here you go.”
Jake looked at Shorty. “I know you like that shotgun underneath your skirt, but now might be the right time to get it ready.”
As Colt and Luke rode away they heard Shorty’s response. “I might just let them low-down dirty skunks shoot your sorry keister.”
Colt and Luke rode at a quicker pace and tied their horses off so they could walk the last quarter of a mile. Just as they expected, the killers were at the very place they hoped they would be. The two of them descended slowly, trying to remain out of sight from the men on the opposite ridge. They found an area behind some large boulders that was the perfect position to see everything on both sides of the trail. Colt held up five fingers and pointed to the position of the killers below. Luke nodded, and held up four fingers pointing to the ridge on the other side of the trail. There was a slight breeze, and Colt grabbed a handful of grass and threw it in the air to see how it would affect his shots. Just then, he heard the sound of the wagon coming down the trail.
The killers below Luke and Colt also heard the wagon. They pulled their guns and peeked around the rocks, waiting for the right moment to start shooting. One of the men on the west side signaled the men on the east ridge.
Colt and Luke braced their rifles on the rocks. They watched as the killers braced their arms on the rocks, pistols pointed at the road. Seconds later the horses came around the bend. Colt could only see the far side of the wagon, so he knew Jake was keeping it as close as he could to the west side of the trail. Colt and Luke knew the moment the killers saw Jake and the person they thought was Promise because all hell broke loose. The killers started firing. He hoped Jake and Shorty had jumped out at the right moment, because the horses took off at a full gallop down the trail, the wagon bouncing around behind them.
Once the killers realized they were being shot at from behind, they turned and scattered, trying to find cover. Colt and Luke could hear the rifles firing below, and were stunned to hear pistols returning fire. The killers obviously didn’t plan ahead. They hadn’t thought to take their rifles as they prepared their ambush. In short order, Colt and Luke dispatched the five men, and moved down the ridge to make sure they were no longer a threat. “How many left?” he yelled to his brother.
“Two still firing,” Jake responded. He fired off another round, and yelled, “Make that one.”
Colt grinned as he pulled his rifle to his shoulder and scanned the area to find the one remaining man. Once he spotted him, he took aim and fired one time. The man fell from the rocks to the road.
“Make that zero,” Luke said. “Good shot, big brother. I’m heartened to know you haven’t lost your touch.”
“Everyone all right down there?” Colt asked.
“Not so much as a scratch,” Jake answered. “At least not if you don’t count Shorty getting caught up in his skirt and falling out of the wagon. He probably skinned his fair knees.”
“At least I saved Promise’s hat,” Shorty countered.
“Looks like these varmints can’t shoot worth a damn if someone else is shooting back,” Luke said.
Next came the task of checking every man to see how many were breathing. They found three alive. One gut shot, so he wasn’t going to make it, but the other two would live. Jake recognized Deputy Potter; he would survive his arm injury. “It looks like you’re in luck today,” he said.
“Yeah, I feel real lucky,” Potter whined.
“Well, I can sure put your sorry ass out of your misery,” Shorty offered, poking him with his shotgun.
Potter looked at the little man dressed in women’s clothing. “So this was a setup,” he stated.
“Looks that way, don’t it, stupid,” Shorty said.
Colt was checking the last man and Jake called out, “Is it him?”
“No.”
“Where is he?” Jake asked Potter.
“Who?”
“Hart Newcombe,” Jake ground out.
“He didn’t come with us.”
This came as a surprise to Jake. “Why not?”
“This morning he just told us he’d meet up with us on the way back to Denver,” Potter said.
“Why Denver? Is Schott in on this?”
When Potter didn’t immediately respond, Shorty urged him on by poking his wounded arm with this shotgun.
“No!” Potter shouted. “Schott just wanted those people off the land. He wanted Newcombe to get it done and he didn’t care how.”
“Jake, do you believe this sorry jackass?” Shorty asked.
“I’m not sure.”
“Let me plug him in his other arm and see if his story changes,” Shorty offered.
Jake grinned. “Sounds good to me. I’m tired of his caterwauling.”
Shorty raised his shotgun and Potter shrieked, “I’m telling the truth! We wasn’t gonna stay in Denver ’cause Newcombe has a woman at the border he’s itching to get back to.”
“Why would he want to miss this party, since he’s gone to all this trouble to find us?” Jake asked.
“I don’t know. I know he wanted that gal dead more than anything, even more than the money. He told us if she didn’t have the money with her, just kill her anyway.”
“What’s this woman’s name, and what town at the border?”
“Her name’s Juanita Torres, and she lives down past El Paso.”
Jake figured that was the truth. “How many are left?”
“No one. We had two that said they’d had enough and took off to Mexico a week ago. Did that gal really have a lot of money like Newcombe said?”
Jake glared at him. “It don’t matter none one way or the other, ’cause you’re going to hang and you’ll never know.” Holstering his gun, he walked over to where Colt was standing with Luke and Cole. “I’m going after him.”
“I’m going with you,” Cole said, his tone indicating it wasn’t open for discussion.
“Me too,” Luke added.
Jake looked at Luke. “Luke, I thank you for wanting to help, but I would consider it a favor if you would stay and help Colt. He’s going to have his hands full with all these cattle, and I hate leaving him right now and putting all the work on him again. I’d say he’s done enough over the last ten years.”
C
olt understood Jake’s need to finish this, so he didn’t argue about him tracking Newcombe. He didn’t want either of his brothers to leave, but he knew he would do the same thing. “Don’t worry about me. Let’s get back to the ranch and you and Cole can get your provisions.”
As much as he hated to let Jake go alone, Luke couldn’t argue that Colt would have too much work with winter coming on. “If you two need any help, then wire us and I’ll be on my way,” Luke told them.
As they walked to their horses, Jake said, “Colt, we’re taking Potter’s word that Newcombe was meeting up with them on their way to Denver, so if he’s lying to us, that bushwhacker could be anywhere. If he comes to the ranch, I know you’ll take care of him.”
“We’ll be ready if he shows up there. Since Newcombe is without his gang now, I don’t think even he’s stupid enough to try that,” Colt assured him.
Jake glanced at Luke. “Can you and Rodriguez take these vermin to jail, then wire the U.S. Marshal and tell him where to find them?”
“Sure thing,” Luke said.
“There’s not a sheriff in town, but there’s a deputy. He’s not much in the way of enforcing the law, but I guess he can keep them in jail until the marshal gets here,” Colt told them.
It didn’t ease Promise’s mind to hear about the plans already in motion, and her nerves were at a breaking point. Fortunately, they were able to keep the secret from Victoria and the boys.
Promise and Mrs. Wellington were in the kitchen baking pies when they saw the wagon pull up to the stable. On seeing Jake leap from the wagon, Promise breathed a sigh of relief. She kept her eyes on him as he walked hurriedly to the stable, and she spotted Cole walking toward the bunkhouse.
“Charles, keep everyone inside until I find out what’s going on,” T. J. said as he and Strait walked out the door. They intercepted Colt walking to the house and spoke briefly.
When Colt walked into the kitchen, all eyes were on him. T. J. had told him that Promise was aware of their plans, so there was no reason for him to hide anything. “Everyone is fine.”
Finding Promise Page 27