“Did anyone see you there?”
“Everyone, I suppose.” She hesitated, and then continued. “Oh, yes, come to think of it, I talked to the captain and the Bannock brothers. I’m sure if you ask they’ll tell you they saw me.”
The man nodded. “Thank you, ma’am. We’ll do that.”
She slammed the door shut, her nerves jumping.
Pinkerton!
It was a name she feared more than any other.
No one knew who Lady Chablis really was, no tintypes had ever been made, and no etchings created as far as she knew. Pinkerton had always been a land agency. She wasn’t aware they had spread their men as far as the riverboats. After rushing back to her bedroom, she pulled out her suitcase and began packing. She’d planned to make several more hits while on board, but now she would have to think up some clever excuse and get off the boat at the next port.
She hurried around her bedroom, throwing everything she had into a scratched-up, brown, square bag she used for traveling. She then took her velvet drawstring bag that held her stolen jewels, and her working clothes, rolled them up, and pushed them down into the false bottom of her bag. When everything was done, she quickly left her room and made her way toward the captain’s quarters to tell him that she would be getting off the boat at the next port. While on her way there, she found him with several guests crowded around him.
“Captain,” she called out.
When he looked over and saw her, he said. “Ms. Du Peret, I’m so glad to run into you. I’m just taking the names of those passengers who wish to leave the riverboat at the next port. It’s a shame everyone’s trip has to be cut short. I hope you don’t intend to leave us, as well.”
“Yes, I’m afraid I must,” Camille said.
“Oh, I’m so sorry.”
“Yes, well, I just can’t afford to stay on board with a jewel thief loose. I have many valuable items, and I don’t want to take the chance of losing them.”
“I understand. Well, as you can see, you’re not the only one. We’ve had many that have decided to leave. It’s an unfortunate thing to have happen, but in view of the circumstances, I can hardly blame them.”
“By the way, when will we be pulling into port?”
“Not until the day after tomorrow, I’m afraid. Oh, yes, just so you’re prepared, when you get off, the Pinkerton Detectives will be going through everyone’s luggage.”
“Oh? What for?”
“They suspect that since the thief knows she’s—”
“A woman?” Camille said, acting surprised.
The captain hesitated, realizing his mistake. “Yes,” he finally said, “but that’s all they know right now. I wouldn’t worry about it if I were you, Ms. Du Peret. The search is just a formality. I’m sorry for the delay it will cause you, but I’m sure you can understand why they have to do it.”
“Of course, thank you.”
Camille felt the blood drain from her face as she turned away from the captain. He had let it slip that the thief was a woman. If they knew that, they might know other things. They were getting too close. How could she last two more days? She had to get off!
She walked away unhurriedly, remembering the false bottom where her jewels were. She couldn’t feel good about hiding them there. Knowing the Pinkerton Detectives, she knew such a thing wouldn’t fool them for a minute. Thank God she’d run into the captain. Now she could be prepared for the search.
* * * *
Tonight, she wanted to stay in her cabin, but she had to act as if nothing was wrong, so she dressed in her finest and went to the casino. The air felt tense. It seemed as if everyone looked at everyone else with suspicion. As she gazed around to see who was there, she happened to spot the Bannock brothers all dressed up in their fancy lace-trimmed shirts. For some reason, her feelings about these brothers warred against each other. On one hand, she wanted nothing more than to lay naked in their arms, but on the other, she hated the way they threw money around. They dressed richly, and their smell was a mixture of expensive men’s cologne, and a musky, masculine scent of cigarettes and whiskey. It was a scent that she could gladly get lost in.
She hadn’t planned a heist tonight, but when she saw their gaudy riches and their devil-may-care attitude, she was tempted to make the Bannock brothers her last heist aboard the Twilight.
She knew that shortly they would go beyond the black curtain and spend most of the night gambling, so she looked around, making sure she wasn’t being watched. With the ease of a prowling cat, she slipped out of the casino and hurried back to her cabin where she quickly slipped into her working clothes and cap. Walking silently, she left her cabin and crept along the wall from one shadow to another until she finally found their cabin. After looking both ways, she picked the lock and managed to slip in without making a sound.
Once inside, she couldn’t believe her eyes. The wall safe was standing open with bundles of money there for the taking. She also found a wallet, diamond stickpins, rings, and cufflinks of pure gold just lying around. She grabbed her velvet bag and had just begun to fill it when she heard a deep, smooth voice behind her.
“Good evening, Lady Chablis.”
She whirled around and saw the Bannock brothers standing side by side, Jesse with his Derringer raised toward her. “Oh, God, no!”
“I’m afraid so,” Jesse said as he advanced toward the door and closed it softly. His movements were swift, quick and professional as he grabbed her bag, emptied it out, and then searched her. Finding nothing, he asked, “Don’t you even carry a weapon?” Before she could answer, he looked closely at her face and then reached a finger up and rubbed at the black stuff. “What the hell is that?”
“It’s wheel grease. My skin is light. I use it to blend in with the shadows.” She looked down at the Derringer Jesse still held. “I don’t like guns,” she said, pushing the barrel away from her with one finger. “Would you please put that one away?”
“I don’t imagine anybody likes them too much, but they come in handy in situations such as this one.” Quickly passing his Derringer over to Beau, he grabbed a cloth from his bath earlier, soaped it up, and rubbed her face clean. His voice turned dark and sensuous as his eyes searched her face. She thought he might kiss her, but instead he whispered, “It seems we always meet where there’s soap and water.”
As she looked deeply into his eyes, she hardly felt it when he grabbed her cap and pulled, releasing her wealth of red hair. Seeing the look of desire in his eyes, it occurred to her that maybe she could use his feelings for her to persuade him to let her go.
“Please let me go,” she whispered. “I’m not dangerous. I don’t even own a gun. I’m not a killer, I just…steal a little. I promise to get off the riverboat and never come back. You’ll never see me again.”
“What do you think, Beau?” Jesse asked. “Should we let her go?”
“Only if she promises to give the guests back everything she’s taken, and—” He hesitated as if he were thinking.
“And?” Jesse prodded as he looked back at Beau.
“A little replay of the night we met her.”
Jesse’s eyes widened in surprise. “Beau, remember what we agreed on. No more…” But when he looked back at her, his words faded. “Very good idea,” he whispered seductively.
The look in Jesse’s eyes triggered an excitement in her that began to build. Her heart pounded wildly, and a hellish heat deep in her cunt turned her juices on in anticipation of a big cock she hoped would be penetrating her soon. The night of wild sex they’d had was always uppermost in her mind. At first it was only a memory, but then it grew into a fantasy she couldn’t let go of. But now—at this moment—she felt frightened when she thought of it actually happening. With a slight tremor in her voice, she said, “If I do this, will you let me go?”
“We’ll talk about it,” Jesse whispered as he gathered her close and rained kisses on her neck and face. “Mmm, you smell like soap.�
�� He smiled. “When I think of you I’ll always remember those soap suds. Beautiful, drifting soap suds.”
Her eyes closed as his breath fanned her skin. She turned her lips toward it, wanting, reaching, begging for his lips while her working clothes were gradually being peeled off her. The moment they fell to the floor, he pressed her body against the wall and lifted her hands, holding them captive beneath his. His lush lips nibbled at her neck for long moments before they moved with nail-biting slowness into the deep shadows of her cleavage. With lingering movements, his lips traced a sensuous path to her nipples, brushing them with his hot breath, and claiming them with his tongue.
Jesse, oh, Jesse!
His name echoed in the black stillness of her mind as she recalled the smoldering passion she had known before. His mouth, his touch, his passion that swirled in and around her sent her senses reeling. His touch held magic as his fingers roamed from one sensitive spot to the other, driving her mad with delight. A feeling so strong, gusts of desire shook her.
His lips were hot, his body, as it pressed against hers, made her tingle with tiny vibrations of liquid fire. She arched beneath him as he kissed her, savoring his smell, his male strength, the heat that wrapped around her engulfing her body in flames. She abandoned herself to the whirl of sensation that touched the soft core of her body.
He then pushed himself between her legs, and with only a few groping movements, he seemed to magically remove his pants, making his cock available to her.
She writhed, the feeling of his tongue, his body, his cock, alive and anxious as it pulsed and twitched. Finally, she felt him moving his hands down to her ass, pulling her closer and closer until he plunged his cock so deep inside her, she could feel herself being stretched to accommodate him. More and more, wider and wider, she stretched until she gasped, feeling her cunt deliciously covering him like a tight glove.
She whimpered as his cock began to move in and out, encouraging her sex juices to slide down over him. The subtle pulsing of his cock was like a pair of wanton fingers stroking her cunt lovingly. Oh, God, how could she stand it?
As he pushed her body hard against the wall, his hips moved hard and fast, his frenzied movements building up an ecstatic fire as his cock plunged in and out so hungrily, Camille could hardly breathe.
In passion, she clung to him, arched her body, offering him her very soul to ravage. She couldn’t get enough. When his hot juices began to flow, his hips made one last thrust. “No,” she whispered, “not yet, Jesse, please!”
A cold wind blew over her until she realized another hard body had taken Jesse’s place. Beau gathered her close, his hands closing over her breasts, his hot, moist breath singeing her skin. With strong arms, he lifted her and laid her on the bed. As he opened her thighs, his lips covered every inch of her breasts with hungry kisses.
“I’m here, Camille,” he whispered while pulling off his pants and throwing them aside.
The moment he touched her, she could feel the heat of his body course down the entire length of hers, setting her on fire. Her body rose to meet him, anticipating the erotic pleasure she craved. She quickly responded to the unholy seduction that came from his lips, his touch, and his pulsing cock that lay heavy between them. Just when she thought he would let her drown in sweet agony, he settled himself between her legs, and pushed his cock in.
She immediately felt her wanton side rise, and lifted her legs. She wanted to ride him. She wanted him to ride her. It was skin to skin, body to body, man to woman, nothing in between but hot, burning sweat.
Oh, God, she could feel his enormous cock as it began to grind in and out of her, sending her into the glorious stratosphere of a place she’d never been. His hardness electrified her, and a long, deep-throated moan slipped through her mouth as he made her his own over and over again.
Shivers of delight spread through her, causing her to arch her body. As the thrill of an approaching orgasm finally grabbed her, she pressed her hips against him, and shattered as never before. She felt warm and satisfied, but still responded to his continued plunges that caused a multitude of throbbing orgasms to follow with every thrust. She finally wilted, so limp and weak, she fell back exhausted.
She’d never known such a lovely collapse.
Chapter 6
“I’VE paid my debt, now what?”
The words were like a bucket of cold water thrown on him, and his smile fell from his face. Well, why not? Jesse thought. Why did he think it should have meant more to her than simply, “paying her debt?”
With a voice that held no warmth, he said, “We’ll go back to your cabin, you’ll get the jewels you’ve stolen, and we’ll tell the captain.”
“But he’ll turn me in.”
“Not if you’re in our custody.”
“I don’t understand.”
“I’ll simply tell him that we recognized you at the riverboat, and have had our eyes on you since.”
“It’s true, isn’t it? You have been watching me. This was all a trick, wasn’t it? You swine! And the night you came into my cabin, you knew what you were doing, didn’t you?”
“The only thing we knew for sure was that there was something suspicious about the little gal in soap bubbles. Well, we sure found out what it was, didn’t we?”
Grabbing a towel to hide her nakedness, she jumped up, whirled around, and faced both of them. “So all this was a dirty trap, right? You, with your lace shirts and diamond stickpins. You didn’t fool me for a minute. It was your boots and western hats that gave you away. Where are your six-guns? I never did think that tiny, little Derringer quite fit the picture you and your brother conjured up. You’re not riverboat gamblers. You have ‘bounty hunter’ written all over you!”
“Sure, we’re bounty hunters,” Jesse shouted, saying the words that would hurt her like he had been hurt. “But we make most of our money gambling on the riverboat. All we had planned was a leisurely trip along the Delta, but when we saw you, we had no choice but to do what we’re paid to do. We might not have done anything if you hadn’t pulled that heist because all we had was an old, beat-up wanted poster to go by. Now that you’ve shown your true colors, we have no choice but to bring you in.”
“So that’s it,” Camille said angrily. “I should have known. You’re going to turn me in after all. Money, that’s all I am to you. You think nothing of letting me rot away for years in some stinking jail just so you can put your sticky fingers on a few more dollars. Bounty hunter is just another name for what I do.”
“Not quite. We’re licensed and have badges.”
“A license to kill,” she hissed. “I’m surprised I’m still alive.” At that moment, she slumped down on the side of the bed and raked her fingers through her hair listlessly. “Okay, so what are you going to do with me now?”
“First of all, you’ll turn the jewels you’ve stolen over to us, and we’ll turn them over to the captain.”
“But he’ll turn me over to the Pinkerton detectives.”
“Not if I tell him we’re Pinkerton men, and we’re working with the Black Dispatch aboard ship.”
“We just now had sex. You told me if I did that, you wouldn’t turn me in. Aren’t you going to keep your word?”
“I said we would talk about it. Camille, the people aboard the Twilight have to get their jewels back. That means the captain will have to know who you are, but he won’t turn you in if you’re with us. I just explained why.”
“I don’t believe you!” she shouted.
“I don’t care what you believe, Ms. Du Peret. You either come with us, or go to jail.” Jesse grabbed her arm and turned her toward the door. “Now, let’s get you back to your cabin, so you can change.”
She went with them begrudgingly. Once inside her cabin, she tearfully retrieved all the jewels she’d stolen since she’d been on the riverboat.
“My God,” Jesse said, as he stared at the sparkling items. “It almost hurts your eyes to look at th
em.”
* * * *
Camille began to pace and wring her hands. She gazed longingly at the veranda, and walked out, feeling the balmy wind off the water. She looked down at it, almost tempted to jump. She should have known better than to come aboard this floating jail. She never thought about what she would do if she were caught. She’d been blinded by all the rumors she’d heard about the rich people who rode these riverboats to gamble. She’d been stealing for years, and figured with what she could get this trip, she could retire. She turned when she felt a hand on her arm, and looked up at Jesse.
“Time to get dressed.”
“I don’t feel well.”
“I don’t give a damn how you feel. We’re going to see the captain.”
“The captain?” she said nervously, as if she’d forgotten.
“To give him the jewels, of course. We also have to stop by the casino. We’re due for a poker game, and they’re expecting us. If we don’t show up, they might get suspicious. We have to carry on as if nothing has happened.”
“But why do I have to go? Why can’t I just stay here and—”
“I don’t trust you, that’s why.”
“What do you expect me to do, jump ship?”
He looked down at the water. “If you thought you could get away with it, yes.”
She wasn’t in the mood to flirt, but needed to try something, so she looked up at him and smiled. “We’ve been a little more to each other than just friends. Why can’t you just let me go? You’ve got all my stash, what more do you want?”
His gaze trailed down her body. “Don’t you know?”
A slow burn began in her groin, and even now, with the ache from his lovemaking all over her, she still wanted him. While her gaze delved deeply into his, she moved closer and reached her hand down into his jeans. “If I—”
“No. Not even if you…” All at once his eyes closed. “Oh, God, Camille. You’re starting something here,” he said, his voice husky with desire. “You know that, don’t you?”
“What are you going to do about it?” she whispered.
Rogues and Riverboats Page 4