Wild Winds

by Janelle Taylor

  Despite their long friendship and cooperation, Hawk had never told the “soiled dove” the truth about what he really was, an undercover U.S. marshal. Sometimes he felt bad about deceiving her, but secrecy was necessary to carrying out his assignments and protecting his life. Now that his task was personal, he was especially grateful to Callie: she had been the one to discover Newl’s plan to hire somebody to break Ben out of prison and had alerted him.

  “There aren’t any rewards out on Barber and Jones, yet,” Hawk reminded Callie, “but there will be if I can prove they were involved in the Prescott crime. I know the two of them, along with three others, one of them probably Ben, murdered and robbed my family in Texas last December. I’ve been tracking those sidewinders ever since, but they keep eluding me, except for Toby Muns and Coot Sayers, who’re both dead. No matter what or how long it takes, Callie, I’m going to prove it and punish them.”

  “I’m real sorry about yore family’s murders, Hawk,” Callie told him. “I know Barber and Jones were supposed to be in on that robbery, but I ain’t been able to learn where their seats are apolishing saloon chairs now. You know I hafta be careful who I ask about ‘em and how I do it, or they could come looking for me to shut my mouth for keeps. But I learned a lot of other good stuff. I been spying on the old man and his wife since Ben was dragged away. Lordy, was that a happy day for me and the other girls. Until the Law rode up, he was spending half the day and night here, going from room to room to get a taste of all of us, like he was stocking up for lean times. And he shorely got ‘em,” she added. “I can’t believe that bastard escaped. I hope you catch him fast, Hawk, so he won’t go sneaking back here to pester us agin. Lordy, I hates ‘im. He wants things from the girls no decent man oughta want or even think about. He acts all sweet and proper in public, but I knows ‘im, and he ain’t good atall.”

  “What have you learned from your spying, Callie?” Hawk returned the topic to his main interest. “It won’t be much longer before my time’s up in here with you and I have to leave.”

  The blonde trailed her fingers over Hawk’s lower thigh as she hinted, “You sure you don’t wants me to ease yore urges first?”

  “Thanks, but this is business and we’re rushed.” He captured the fingers that almost had reached his groin and smiled. “I’m afraid I can’t concentrate but on one thing at a time.”

  “I could have you con-cen-trating on just me for a while. I’m the best girl here. I really know how to treat a good man like you.”

  Hawk smiled again and explained in a gentle tone, “You know I can’t do that with a friend, Callie, and we are friends. But thanks for caring.”

  “Oh, well, it was worth a try, you handsome devil. Lemme see … Oh, yeah, the old man has hired another detective to work on Ben’s case, a woman. How about that? She’s beautiful and must be plenty smart. I was sneaking around when the old man got a telegram from her a few weeks back. His wife got it and brought it over and I heard them talking about it. The old man said he was gonna hire her to bust Ben outta prison and to prove he’s innocent. I don’t know how he thinks she can do what’s impossible.”

  “She did bust him out of prison, Callie, remember?”

  “I mean, prove he’s innocent, ‘cause he ain’t; he’s as guilty as sin, and I surely know plenty about sin. Anyhow, the old man musta done some tall talking, ‘cause Miss Margaret Anne Malone—ain’t that a fancy name for a lady from St. Louis—made a bargain with him.”

  “Miss Malone is a detective from St. Louis?” Hawk could hardly believe what he was hearing.

  “Yesiree, but when the Law learns what she’s done, she’s in big trouble; and the old man and her ma won’t be able to helps her outta it.”

  Hawk’s alert heightened. “What do you mean, ‘her ma?”

  “This lady detective from St. Louis is Mrs. Catherine’s daughter; she’s Ben’s sister of a sorts, I guess.”

  “Miss Malone is Ben’s stepsister? Her mother is married to Newl?”

  “Yesiree, about two years past, if I remember right as rain. The old man has both of them womenfolk blind as bats in sunlight; Ben wasn’t with his pa that day; Ben don’t hunt no more than I’m a boy. That bastard is wild as a buck, mean as a rattler and greedy as a sneaky little packrat. Luck’s with you tonight, Hawk, ‘cause I saw her sneaking a visit with them earlier when I was catching a breath of air on the upstairs porch. If you follow her after she leaves town, she might lead you to Ben and his friends, ‘cause she’s supposed to try and clear him. Her capture— and Ben’s naturally—could earn us big rewards, and you’d have a chance to get your revenge on that malicious gang.”

  Hawk was shocked at Callie’s revelation. “How do you know Maggie Malone is Mrs. Carver’s daughter?” he asked. “Are you sure you understood them correctly?”

  “The old man hires me to clean their house when the woman who works for them has too much to do by herself, it’s too big for his proper wife to tend alone. I saw her daughter’s picture and heard her name. And I saw letters to her on the table, heading right for St. Louis. I can read; I ain’t good at it, but I ain’t dumb neither.”

  “Nope, you’re very smart, Callie.” Smarter than you know. “Is Maggie close to Ben?” Hawk asked.

  “After the old man married Mrs. Catherine and brought her here from St. Louis, her daughter stayed behind for this is her first visit. Far as I know, she’s never met Ben, and she would hate him if she did. I know I hate him and I hate his visits to me. So do the other girls. Catch him, Hawk, so he can’t ever bother us agin. Please. He’s bad to the core—” Callie paused as if suddenly remembering something. “I’ll tell you what Mrs. Catherine did a few weeks past—she hid all of her daughter’s pictures. I guess so the Law wouldn’t see ‘em and guess she was helping Ben. That Maggie’s in for a big surprise and big trouble when she learns she’s been fooled.”

  “You keep your eyes and ears open, Callie, but don’t get caught snooping or eavesdropping, or you’ll be in big trouble yourself.”

  “Don’t go worrying about me, Hawk; I’m plenty careful. If you keep paying me good, this time next year, I’ll have me enough money to leaves this job. I might even open one of them fancy dress shops or a nice restaurant somewhere far away.”

  “I have no doubt you’ll do fine with whatever you choose to do, and I’ll help all I can so you can afford to make the changes you deserve. Well, I best get going; we don’t want to arouse anybody’s suspicion. Thanks for the help; you always come through with something important for me. Just make notes up here,” he advised, tapping her head, “and I’ll check with you soon to see what else you’ve learned. Stay safe, Callie Mae.”

  “Ride careful, Hawk; these men are the worst of their kind.”

  He nodded, then left the Paradise Club and went to the hotel. He saw light coming from beneath Maggie’s door, so he assumed she was back from her stealthy visit to the Carvers’, and he was moving with enough caution not to be overheard returning from his own task.

  After he was inside his room, his senses whirled with the mixture of what he had learned tonight and with what had taken place between him and Maggie earlier. He could almost taste the sweet flavor of her. She had felt wonderful in his arms; as if that was where she belonged—and that was definitely where he wanted her to be, forever. He needed her at his side day and night to make his life complete. Until he met Maggie, he had never been tempted to marry; now, he looked forward to that state with eagerness and joy. It was strange, he mused, that they had lived less than two hundred and thirty miles apart for years, both had lost a father, and both had lived on ranches.

  Since Maggie didn’t know Ben, she couldn’t be in love with that snake, just drawn into his dilemma with colorful lies and family loyalty. But that didn’t mean she lacked a sweetheart elsewhere, say in St. Louis. Yet, if that were true, she wouldn’t be leaning romantically toward him, and she surely was. Well, at least he now had solved some of the mysteries about her.

  Hawk was re
lieved he had an ace up his sleeve which might prevent her arrest when the truth was exposed, if he could persuade her to let him use it. If he could capture Slim, Pete, and Ben and prove their guilt and recover the stolen money as he’d vowed when his superior agreed to the unusual strategy, she might avoid any charges against her and be safe. To ensure that possibility, he must keep her trusting him and close to him. He couldn’t tell her the truth at that point since she might think he was only using her for ulterior motives. She might take off on her own out of a feeling of betrayal or to prevent him from capturing Ben in her misguided belief her stepbrother was innocent. He had to wait until she saw the bitter truth for herself, then confess everything to her and hope for the best.

  As he peeled off his shirt, Hawk remembered the telegram he had stuffed into its pocket earlier. He retrieved and opened the envelope and studied the message. Fortunately for him, Maggie was using her real name during this investigation. He was impressed to read that she was one of, ifnot the best, female detectives anywhere, and was employed by the prestigeous Carlton Agency in St. Louis.

  He told himself he should be ecstatically happy with the progress he was making on his assignment and especially about finding the perfect woman for himself. Yet, his mind and heart were troubled. He was worried about being able to save Maggie from a grim fate following her exposure and tormented about what that loss would do to him. He was concerned about not winning her after she learned the truth about him. He was tense about the perils looming ahead for them as they confronted their evil foes. He was pained about how the truth about Ben and her futile deed would affect her.

  He was also worried about a secret he held that could repel her—his Indian blood. He recalled what his parents had told him and he had witnessed while growing up about what they had endured when they met and married, a white man to a Cheyenne maiden. The fears and animosity many people held toward any Indian had made it difficult for their relationship to be accepted. His parents and even his grandparents had confronted resulting hostilities, prejudices, and rejections. It had gotten better over the years as his beautiful mother, with her ebony-hair and fawncolored skin, learned to dress, speak, and behave as a “proper white woman.” She was often mistaken for a lady of Spanish descent, with the abundance of Mexicans in Texas. As so many of the tribes were conquered and confined to reservations, anti-Indian feeling had diminished a little years ago.

  Now, Apaches under Geronimo were raiding and skirmishing again. That great Chiricahua leader could not accept the loss of his freedom and homeland to invaders. Part of the whites and Army officers considered him vile, while others understood his feelings and befriended him to a certain degree. With Geronimo and his band on the move again in Arizona, New Mexico, and Mexico, it refreshed many people’s distrust and enmity for all Indians.

  Hawk’s gut instinct told him Maggie Malone wasn’t like that; but at this crucial and unpredictable point in time, he couldn’t risk discovering if he was wrong. With that “flaw” added atop his deception, he fretted, were her understanding, forgiveness, and acceptance too much to hope for? Was he dreaming of and seeking the impossible? God and Maheoo have mercy on him if he was being blind and foolish.

  He removed the remainder of his clothing and lay down, needing to sleep before their journey to Tombstone tomorrow morning. As a shocking idea came to mind, he bolted upright on the bed. After deliberating it, he grinned, nodded his head, and reclined once more …

  Following their midday meal and while sipping tea, Maggie wondered where Hawk had gone after excusing himself from the table. They had reached Benson earlier on the Southern & Pacific Railroad and would catch the Southeastern train to Fairbank in less than two hours, then ride their horses the remaining three miles into Tombstone to arrive there before dusk.

  As she waited, Maggie’s thoughts were in a turmoil. She wanted and needed to believe in Ben, but something within her prevented her from doing so. Maybe, she reasoned, it was a combination of intuition and years of experience that birthed distrust. Her mother had told her that Ben was highly skilled with weapons, had faced down a gunslinger, and wouldn’t “harm innocent people.” Yet those facts could explain how Ben might have shot the teller and why the man hadn’t been slain. Considering Ben’s impulsive and daring visit to her hotel room after his escape, maybe he had a hazardous wild streak. And maybe a cocky one made him think he couldn’t get caught and wasn’t taking any risk of going to prison. Now that she knew the truth about the trouble between Frank and Newl, she was tempted to believe that Frank hadn’t tried to frame Ben with false testimony and had instead acted out of sheer and sadistic joy at having an opportunity to punish Newl through his son. Yet there were several dubious points concerning that Prescott crime that baffled her …

  Please, God, guide me toward the right path.

  When Hawk returned, Maggie noticed his broad grin. “What’s going on? I can tell something is from that animated look.”

  Hawk took a seat next to hers and leaned in her direction to whisper, “Hear me out. We’re heading after one of the slyest ruffians alive in Pete Barber; and Slim Jones isn’t a fool, either. If Barber does any checking on us, we can’t allow him to find any holes in our story or he’ll try to take us down. If we’re going to claim to be a just-married couple who’s visiting Tombstone to see if that’s where we want to settle, we might need proof.”

  “I don’t understand. What kind of proof?”

  I’m going to rope you in, woman, and never release you. “A marriage certificate. I talked with a local preacher and he’s waiting to perform the ceremony.” He saw her blue eyes widen in astonishment. “Don’t worry about getting stuck with me forever,” he said with a chuckle, “I have good friends in a judge and a lawyer, so they can remedy the situation later.”

  “You mean, actually get married?” She watched him nod. “Then have our union dissolved after we finish our work?”

  Hawk chuckled. “Unless we decide we make a great team and want to stay partners. I promise you I’ll behave as the perfect gentleman my parents tried to rear, and I’ll bed down on the floor in our room; we’ll have to share one to be convincing. Think about it for a minute before you answer, but that piece of paper could save our lives, and get you that big story.”

  Marry you and perhaps get the chance to convince you to remain wed if you like the arrangement … If I’m exposed by the Law, I can protect you by swearing you didn’t know the truth about me and I can vow I tricked you into a wedding with sweet lies and captivating charms …

  “Well, the preacher’s waiting. You want to do it or have me go tell him we changed our minds?”

  “Actually, Hawk, it sounds like the perfect precaution.”

  “Then let’s get moving, boss lady, so we won’t miss our train.” The faster I get you out of Ben’s romantic reach, the better I’ll feel. And, God willing, I’ll find a way to persuade you to stay married to me. It might also be just the thing I need to keep you out of prison.

  Maggie could hardly believe she was standing in a Benson, Arizona, church about to pledge herself to Hawk Reynolds, all the while hoping their commitment would last “forever.”

  “Are you of legal age to enter into a holy union without parental consent, Miss Malone?” the pastor asked.

  “Yes, sir,” Maggie responded in a distinct and polite tone, “I’ll be twenty-four next month. My father is deceased; and my mother is rewed and living far away, so she can’t be with us today.”

  “Do you enter into this holy union of your own free will and without legal ties to another man elsewhere?”

  “Yes, sir. I want to marry Hawk, here and now.”

  The genial man smiled at them and said, “Then let’s go on with tying this knot snug and proper so you young folks can be on your way as man and wife. My own dear wife and her sister will be your witnesses if you have no objection or others to stand with you.”

  Maggie returned his genuine smile. “None, sir, and we’re grateful to them for the
ir kindness.”

  Hawk’s heart leapt with elation at hearing Maggie’s replies and at her confident tone of voice and sincere expression. He listened as the pastor read appropriate scriptures from a well-worn Bible and made stirring remarks after each one.

  As the pastor explained the meaning of those passages, Hawk wished his parents and younger brother were alive and present, and wished his grandparents were sitting on a nearby pew to share this special moment.

  The reverend shifted his gaze back and forth between them as he read the last verse of a passage, then said, “Now, face each other, join hands, and look into each other’s eyes to speak your vows.”

  Maggie and Hawk followed his instructions; they turned toward each other, clasped hands, and their gazes locked.

  Maggie was aware that Hawk’s attire—frock coat, pale-blue shirt, dark pants, and recently polished boots— implied he had dressed for and planned this event before they left Tucson this morning, and it wasn’t a spur of the moment idea. He looked so handsome and virile and his gaze was so tender and tranquil that he almost stole her breath and clouded her wits. The contact with his hands sent quivers racing over her susceptible body.