“I’ve called you in to let you know there’s word out that the fight’s going down tonight. One of the cars has been moved north of Juarez near the New Mexico line, and the other, three-and-a-half miles downriver in Mexico. Some local men say it’s to take place between those two stone monuments that are about six miles apart and mark the border between Texas and Mexico. Stuart’s thinking about moving the markers so the confluence of the three territories can meet smack dab in the center.”
“I can just hear the papers now.” One of the Rangers grinned. “Maher rushed Fitzsimmons in New Mexico, but Fitz dodged away and dashed into Texas.” His grin instantly faded at the glare issuing from his superior officer.
“Stuart’s playing a shell game with us,” Mabry continued. “Now you see it, now you don’t. He’s been shifting the cars around on various sidings, shuffling them in among others, always one step ahead of us when we think we have them cornered.” His voice thundered with anger. “Just when we’re sure we have the right car, we open it and there isn’t any gear to be found.”
“I’m certain the fight’s not happening tonight, General.” Thomas spoke up, wishing he didn’t have to bring Laney into the conversation but knowing duty required it.
“You know something we don’t?” General Mabry’s attention leveled on Thomas.
Thomas nodded. “That lead you have me investigating is making Maher a pair of boxing gloves. I can’t say for certain, but I believe he won’t agree to the fight without them. And I know for a fact that she’s not done with them.”
“The man has one pair of gloves?”
Thomas shook his head. “No, I’ve seen him spar with others, but something about the ones she’s making for him is forcing Maher to wait before he takes on Fitzsimmons.”
“I hope you’re right, Longbow, but we’ve got to be prepared in the event you’re wrong. Do you know when she’s supposed to be done with them?”
“In the morning.” Thomas knew Laney would never forgive him for what he’d just done. “About seven.”
“Then we’ve got what we want from her. I’m taking you off this business with the woman after she hands him those gloves, and I want you focusing all your attention on Maher. I don’t want him making a single move that you and Ted here can’t confirm.” He gave the same instructions to the two Rangers shadowing Fitzsimmons, then told all four men to report back by midnight unless they were knee-deep in canvas and camera equipment.
Thomas reluctantly left the meeting and found where Pete Maher was having supper. By the time he reported in to General Mabry at midnight, followed the boxer wherever he intended to spend the night, and tracked him to the meeting with Laney at seven, he was in for a very short night.
Maher took a good while to eat, giving Thomas plenty of time to think about being pulled away from his investigation of Laney. Tomorrow would be the last time he’d see her. The last time he’d get a chance to see if she was all right and…and…well, to let her know she’d come to mean something to him.
But what? What could she mean to a man like him? A man with no roots. A man who wouldn’t know the first thing about helping raise a child she so obviously wanted. A man whose one true strength was always being able to leave everything behind and ride on to the next adventure without any second thoughts. Maybe General Mabry had done him a big favor by ordering him away from Laney. Maybe he wasn’t meant to have a woman like her in his life.
Twilight deepened to night and the sound of firecrackers brought Thomas out of his gloomy thoughts. Colorful flares lit the streets and dancing Chinese dragons made out of vibrant cloth wove their way in front of the windows. Interested in the revelry, the boxer left the remainder of his meal and strode to the door to watch with all the other onlookers.
Thomas moved near Maher so he wouldn’t disappear into the crowd. To his surprise, he noticed Dannell O’Grady marching along with the group of photographers who were part of the team of filmmakers who had brought the new Kinetoscope. What was he doing with them? The man always seemed to show up in the oddest places. Something didn’t sit well with Thomas about O’Grady’s presence among the photographers, but he couldn’t leave Maher to find out more. He had a strong suspicion that he might have been investigating the wrong O’Grady all this time. He’d bet odds that the brother-in-law knew when the fight would occur.
Dannell noticed Maher watching the procession and waved his cane at the boxer. “Hey, Pete, come and go to the depot with us. Fitz is boarding one of the trains. Want to be there to help us see him off?”
A near riot ensued as people caught wind of Dannell’s words and speculated at their hidden meaning. Maher vanished into the crowd, with Thomas in hot pursuit. People flocked from every side street, joining the parade. Dancing cloth dragons caused a maze of confusion, making it difficult to get anywhere fast. In a matter of minutes, a thousand people had joined the throng moving toward the depot platform where Fitz and Maher were supposed to meet up with each other. Half-a-dozen Rangers tried to control the gathering crowd. Dannell shoved his way onto the train, while others tried to board even as the conductor yelled, “All aboard!”
The train began to chug away before Maher could reach it, but the boxer suddenly halted in his tracks and started laughing uproariously. Thomas thought the man had lost his mind until he noticed what had caught Maher’s humor. As the train pulled out, the notorious lion-taming opponent hopped off and waved to the departing Pullman. The rumor had all been a ruse!
The people who had tried so hard to make the train but couldn’t, muttered under their breaths as Fitzsimmons strolled up to Maher and shook his hand. “Ever feel like the mouse that just made the cat chase his tail?” he asked, roaring with laughter. He gave his competitor a wink. “Proves my point, doesn’t it. There’s still plenty who want to see this thing come off. Don’t let Stuart talk you down on your fee.” He punched Maher good-naturedly on the shoulder. “We’re still worth all this wait.”
For two men whose goal was to beat the kingdom come out of each other, the pair of boxers seemed bosom buddies on the issue of keeping the rumor mill active and turning. Thomas considered Maher above such antics but, he supposed, with all this current controversy over his profession, the man had to keep things stirred up or lose the battle against the politicians.
Thankfully, Maher called it a night just before Thomas was due for his meeting with General Mabry, and Thomas was able to show up on time.
“Where’s Sawyer?” General Mabry asked when Thomas and the men who were tracking Fitzsimmons arrived.
“Last time I saw him, he was on the Silver City Special,” Thomas informed him. “Maher gave him the slip. Sawyer thought Maher was heading in to Las Cruces.”
General Mabry was not pleased, and Thomas was glad he wouldn’t be in Sawyer’s boots when the man checked in with the general.
“I’m calling in Fitzsimmons and Maher in the morning after that meeting with the glove maker,” the general informed them. “They’re gonna know we’ll board all trains at all hazards and keep a’coming. I’m tired of being laughed at. By them and everyone else who’s got a hand in all this side play. I’ll revoke those orders to fire high, gentlemen, if there is any more counterplay against us. I have the authority from the president himself to shoot the principals first, and fire on anyone trying to help second. Make that clear to everyone. And Longbow…”
“Yes, General?”
“That includes glove makers.”
Chapter 12
Hitting Below the Belt
“Laney?”
Laney shifted in her work chair and laid down the glove she’d been working on. She stretched tired shoulders and yawned, exhausted from more than eight hours of working without a break. But she was almost done. All the padding had been stitched in. Seven lucky shamrocks on the right, six on the left. Just one more to go.
Uncertain that someone had actually called her name, she stood and moved into the front room of the shop. It had to be at least two-thirty in t
he morning. Maybe she’d only imagined the voice on the wind. Besides, who could possibly be paying a call at this time of morning. And for that matter, why?
“Laney, open up.” The whisper came again, this time more adamant. Caution flared within and warned her to be careful about opening her door. No telling how many others now knew she was making Mr. Maher’s gloves. She edged back the curtain to the front window and looked out.
Dannell. Standing there in his business clothes and cane. She expected him to be less sturdy on his feet, and in his usual alcoholic stupor by now. That alone should have been enough to make her go back to work and leave him standing there. But the light from the gas streetlamps revealed a strangely sober, panic-stricken face. She didn’t trust him paying such an untimely call, but the fear that something might be wrong with Gideon overruled caution.
Her fingers trembled as she grabbed the key to the shop from her apron pocket and struggled to unlock the door. “Is it Gideon?” she asked, dreading to hear his reply, yet knowing that in past troubles Gideon had always counted on her to come to his aid, not his uncle.
Dannell pushed his way inside, not giving her time to stand aside. She stumbled backward, but he reached out and grabbed her wrist to keep her from falling.
“You’ve got to come with me,” he demanded. “There’s trouble.”
Laney didn’t ask any questions and didn’t take time to lock the door. She allowed him to pull her outside to the waiting hansom, knowing he had no knack for manners when he could not handle a situation well. At least he had the presence of mind to come get her so she could handle whatever was happening.
A million thoughts raced through her mind as she took a seat beside him. Was Gideon hurt? Was he ill? If so, how could they get to him in time? She finally found her voice. “Is it Gideon? Is he all right?”
“I told him we’d call him back.”
Dannell patted her hand to offer comfort, but she quickly jerked it away. They both might share affection for Marc’s son, but she didn’t trust Dannell enough to accept his show of reassurance.
“Then he’s not…He’s alive and talking?” The worst of her fears were eased now. A broken arm, a bruised ego, trouble with a headmaster at school, or anything else Gideon suffered she knew she could endure, but the possibility of losing him like she had lost Marc was almost unthinkable.
“Alive? Of course, my dear.” Dannell tapped the roof of the hansom with his cane. “To the Vendome Hotel, driver.”
When he saw the look of surprise cross Laney’s face, Dannell explained, “I would have told you immediately if the boy had been killed. He’s just in a little trouble and I’m afraid it’s something I have no time to deal with. You and your work with Maher have made a lot of trouble for me that you can’t even imagine, Killaney. I told Gideon that I would get you and the two of you could work his trouble out over the phone.”
Anger welled inside Laney, making her wonder whether this phone conversation was meant to help Gideon or get her to Dannell’s hotel room. “And the phone I’m to use is in your room, I suppose?” she asked suspiciously.
“Where else at this time of morning, my dear?” Dannell sounded as if she had lost her only sense. “We wouldn’t want to make family improprieties public knowledge, would we?”
He’d never thought twice about any of his own improprieties. Whatever a twelve-year-old boy might have done could hardly be considered reputation killing. “I’ll make the call to Gideon in the lobby,” she insisted, knowing full well if Dannell managed to get her alone in his room, he would try to take advantage of her. “I know for a fact there’s a phone by the dining hall. If anyone cares to listen in, I’ll give them an earful when I’m finished talking with Gideon.”
She couldn’t hide her disgust, now that she knew Gideon was not in any real danger. “I’ve got customers who are going to be plenty upset if I’m not back in time to complete their orders this morning.”
Dannell smiled. “You mean Pete Maher’s gloves, don’t you? Not done with them—eh? Excellent. That’s even better than I hoped.”
“What do those gloves have to do with you?” she asked, deciding he must have learned about them from Mrs. Darrow.
Laney realized that she had left the door to the shop unlocked. Anyone could steal the gloves and no one would be the wiser for it. Did Dannell know about the bonus as well? Did he know that without it, she had no chance of getting custody of Gideon?
“Let’s just say I used some of my friends’ money to place a few bets. Bets that need Fitzsimmons to win the bout.”
“You’ve embezzled your customers’ money, haven’t you?” Her disgust deepened. He was playing several games. Gideon was just one of them.
“They’ll never know. I’ll win it back. Having you with me assures that. Maher won’t box without those gloves, and we both know it.” Dannell raised his cane and tapped again. “To the depot. I’ve changed my mind.”
Laney reached for the door to the hansom, but the cane flashed out and struck her hand sharply. She jerked it back, facing the man whom she’d grown to disapprove of immensely over the years. “Where are you taking me?”
Dannell chuckled softly and kept his cane ready to strike. “That depends entirely on you, Killaney. We can do this my way or your way. I think you might prefer it my way, if you ever want to see the boy again. And if you really must know, there are a couple of boxcars that I’ve helped to keep mighty secret. No one will find you there.”
She’d been duped. No, she’d allowed herself to be fooled. Tired from trying to get the boxing gloves done, she hadn’t listened to her good sense about not opening the door to Dannell. She hadn’t even waited to see if his panic-stricken face was brought about by concern for Gideon. She just assumed it was. She had not been careful and it might now cost her a price she prayed she wouldn’t have to pay. “This isn’t about Gideon or the money, is it?”
Dannell laughed bitterly. “I always said you were too smart for your good looks, girl. Maybe it’s all about why you refused to marry me and take me to your bed instead of my brother.”
“I told you why years ago, but you wouldn’t listen. I’ll have no man who can’t be a true father to Gideon. You made it clear you don’t really want him as your own. You just want whatever having him as your ward provides for you. If that wasn’t reason enough, you’ve made it very clear I would only be one of many women in your life. No woman wants a man who is unwilling to love a child or commit himself to her alone.”
“And you think that Ranger of yours will give up his lifestyle for living your dull, simple life? You think he wants to raise a boy who’s not his?”
“Thomas has nothing to do with this. With me or Gideon.”
“That’s where you’re wrong, Killaney. The man loves you. I see it and you know it. And I’m going to see that he never has you. That he never has that boy’s trust fund. He’ll never want you after I’m through with you.”
“You leave him out of this,” she demanded, taking her elbow and jabbing him in the side. “You keep Gideon’s trust fund, for all I care. It’s never been an issue for me. I’ll never touch a penny of it for myself anyway. It’s Marc’s gift to his son, not to me or to you.” She wanted to spit in his face. “And I’ll die before I make this easy for you.”
He thwacked her legs with the cane. Pain shot through her thighs and she began to fight him with everything she had, gouging and scratching with her fingernails, pulling what little hair he had left, biting where her teeth met flesh. The carriage rocked back and forth as he retaliated, landing a fist to her face and kicking her with his boots.
Laney did the only thing she could think of, using his own weapon against him. She grabbed the cane and shoved it backward, hitting him below his belt. A great puff of air escaped his throat, ending in a startled gasp of pain. For a single moment, Dannell let go of her and that was all she needed. She threw herself against the door, jerking the handle with both hands and throwing her body out of the speeding hansom.
“Driver, stop!” came Dannell’s angry bellow.
Laney tumbled for several feet across the roadway, shoulder over hip, ending in a thud against a wooden sidewalk. “Help!” she screamed, but it came out only as a squeak between swollen lips that tasted of blood. Struggling to her feet, she realized both Dannell and the driver were running toward her. The driver was in on the scheme!
“Help, somebody!” she screamed again, finding her footing and breaking into a crippled run. Her head was spinning, her body ached. She had no idea where she was. She only knew that she hurt in a dozen places.
Steady footsteps chased after her.
Into the night she ran, hoping for some sign of human kindness that would stop these men from catching her, or worse. Where was one of those mighty Rangers who always seemed to be everywhere except when she needed them?
A light shone just ahead like a beacon of safety, if she could just reach it. Only a few steps more. Three houses away. Two. “Help!” she yelled, mustering every ounce of breath left within her. She thought she saw a shadow move in the lit window. Open the door, she willed the shadow to hear her. Open it now! “Help me, someone, please!”
Something hard, cold, and excruciatingly painful crashed into her head, sending her downward, into a darkness deeper than the night that cloaked her attackers.
Chapter 13
Going the Distance
Seven o’clock couldn’t come too soon for Thomas. He was so eager to have a few minutes with Laney that he almost missed seeing Pete Maher leave his hotel room to head to the appointment. Fortunately, the boxer had had an equally short night, so he dispensed with the five-mile run he normally took to get his training in for the morning and just ran the distance from the hotel to the saddle shop. Thomas supposed he was just as eager to see how the gloves had turned out.
Give Me A Texas Ranger Page 33