The lieutenant hadn’t seen him yet, and Nolan used the distraction to his advantage. He slipped around the side of the house and positioned himself near the porch. The lieutenant was fired up about something, and Nolan wanted to know why. The information might prove useful.
“Quit your racket.” Dakota Red stumbled over the threshold. “What’s happened? You ain’t supposed to be here.”
“You’ve been discovered.” The lieutenant slapped his hat against his thigh. “The cavalry is only an hour behind me.”
The outlaw strode to the edge of the porch and looked right and left, as though the cavalry might be galloping down the street at that very moment. Nolan reared back. When the footsteps receded, he crept closer to the corner once more.
“What do you mean?” Dakota Red demanded, snatching the lieutenant’s collar. “Did you snitch?”
He slammed the lieutenant into the side of the house.
“No, you fool.” Lieutenant Perry struggled free, his breath coming in harsh gasps. “Two passengers came through town yesterday. Did you see them?”
“Sure. But they didn’t see us. They didn’t stay longer than the time it took to change out the horses.”
“They saw something, all right. Apparently one of the drivers thought the stagecoach man was behaving strangely. Then the captain went on patrol and didn’t report back like he usually does. Turns out the captain suspected your stagecoach man of aiding outlaws. Two of the captain’s men decided to hitch a ride on one of the stagecoaches and scout the town, see if they noticed anything strange going on at the relay station.”
“Well, they didn’t see us.” Dakota Red’s voice had taken on a defensive note. “They didn’t even get close to the relay station.”
“No. But they saw the captain’s horse. Your idiot brother left the horse in the corral for anyone to see. What happened to the captain, anyway?”
“Shot him.”
“Good.”
Clearly the lieutenant thought his captain was dead, and Dakota Red hadn’t corrected the assumption. But why? “How was Charlie to know some fool cavalrymen would have the brains to sneak through town? You told me they were all a bunch of idiots.”
“Apparently, I was wrong.”
“Apparently, you were. What do we do now?”
“If you want to live, I suggest that you run,” the lieutenant replied. “Fast and far. They didn’t see you, they only saw the horse. Right now, they still think the stagecoach man is involved. Leave him as bait while you make for the border. By the time they figure out he’s innocent, you’ll be long gone.”
The boards creaked as Dakota Red paced the porch. Nolan flattened his back against the chipped paint of the house.
“If you’re fortunate, the rain will slow them down,” Lieutenant Perry said. “Cross the river and head north.”
“I thought you said they was gonna be watching the river.”
“The captain called off the watch two days ago. They think they have the element of surprise on their hands. Once you get across the river, cut the ropes. They won’t be able to follow you.”
“You’re being awful helpful,” Dakota Red said. “How do I know that you’re not setting us up?”
“I don’t want you getting caught. They don’t know that I’ve been helping you. Let’s keep it that way. If something happens and you do get caught, blame everything on Nolan West. He’s such an odd fellow, he’s the perfect man to take the fall for us. Tell the cavalry he killed their captain. He was a real favorite with the men. They’ll hang him before he can prove his innocence.”
“You’d let him hang to save your hide?”
“Sure. And you’d do the same.”
Nolan’s chest seized. He’d considered the lieutenant a friend at one time. How could the man set him up to hang?
What a coward. The captain had more honor in his little finger than this spineless idiot.
Dakota Red grunted. “We’ll do what we have to do.”
“Just make sure my name stays out of it.”
The cavalry officer left the porch, grabbed his reins, and mounted his horse. “I can’t stay. They think I’ve ridden ahead to scout the place.”
“What do we do with the rest of the hostages?” Dakota Red scraped his hand through his greasy hair. “They may not know about you, but they know about us.”
“Lock them up. Let the cavalry deal with them. Just make certain the stagecoach man is blamed for the captain’s death. No one will believe anything that odd fellow says. The cavalry won’t care about a botched kidnapping when they have a murderer on their hands.”
Nolan’s ears buzzed. The lieutenant was as good as caught, but he was too arrogant to see his own mistake.
Lieutenant Perry kicked his horse into a canter.
Charlie joined Dakota Red on the porch. “What was that all about?”
“We’ve got trouble.”
“Then why is the lieutenant running? Shouldn’t we nab him?”
“Let the lieutenant run. If he turns on us, we’ll turn on him.”
Shouting orders, Dakota Red quickly returned inside.
Nolan stepped from the shadows. The only thing that had kept them safe these past days had been the promise of gold. Without the promise of instant riches, there was no way Dakota Red and his men were going to simply abandon the town without taking something of value.
His throat tightened. There was only one thing of value left: the hostages.
* * *
Tilly had no more stepped out the door than Charlie grasped her around the upper arm. “C’mon.”
Her stomach clenched but there was no time to acknowledge her shock. He shoved her into the relay station once more and crowded in behind her. Dakota Red must have entered from the back. He had hold of Eleanor, and he forced her into a chair.
The girls whimpered and crowded around their mother.
“Stop!” Tilly shouted. “You’re frightening them.”
“That’s the idea, lady,” Charlie drawled.
Snyder dragged Captain Ronald from the bedroom. The captain limped behind him, his face ashen.
“He ain’t dead.” Snyder chortled. “He’s not even close to dead. They was exaggerating his wounds.”
Dakota Red sneered. “Not surprised. Whatever you was planning, it’s too late. The cavalry is coming.”
Tilly narrowed her gaze. “Where is Nolan? What’s happened to Mr. West?”
“You’d best worry about yourself, little missy. You got your own problems.”
Charlie had that same speculative gleam in his eyes.
“What about the gold?” she asked.
“There’s not going to be any gold.”
Nausea pitched in her stomach. They knew. They’d somehow discovered the ambush. The glint in Charlie’s eyes sent a ripple down her spine. Since they weren’t getting the gold, they had nothing to lose. She made a desperate lunge but something in her eyes must have given her away.
Charlie snatched her arm with such force she feared her shoulder was separated. A second later he released her. He jerked sideways and fell. It took a moment for Tilly to comprehend what had happened.
Charlie grappled with Nolan on the floor.
Her heart seized in her chest. Nolan was safe. At least for now. Charlie was out for blood.
Dakota Red snatched his brother’s collar and hauled him upright. “We don’t have time for this, you fool.”
Nolan pitched to his feet and caught her around the waist. Shock and fear muddled her thoughts. She sagged into his embrace and rubbed her sore shoulder.
“C’mon.” Dakota Red nudged the captain with the barrel of his gun. “We’re locking y’all up for safe keeping.” He threw back his head and laughed at his own joke. “Ain’t that rich? It’s
y’all going to jail.”
They gathered all the hostages and led them to the jail cell. As the outlaws marched them down Main Street, Tilly’s feet sank into the earth. Standing water had puddled in the low spots along the road. A sudden sense of foreboding shook her.
Nolan followed her gaze and she nudged him. “What does this mean?”
“The river is flooding.”
Charlie caught up with them. “What are you talking about, stagecoach man?”
“Feel the ground,” Nolan said. “Look at the standing puddles. The river is starting to flood.”
“It ain’t.” Charlie spat into the puddle. “It’s rainwater, is all. What are you playing at?”
“This isn’t from the rain. The water table is rising. If the Niobrara breaks the embankment, the whole town will be swept away.”
Dakota Red pushed Eleanor ahead of him. “Don’t make me no never mind. The boys and I are leaving just as soon as we lock you all up tight.” He glanced over his shoulder with a grin. “I sure do hope you’re wrong, stagecoach man. Otherwise y’all are going to drown.”
Tilly gasped. “What are we going to do?”
“We’ll think of something.”
The outlaws crowded all seven of them into the jail cell. Tilly carefully watched Nolan. He glanced at the piece of floorboard he’d cut out when he’d freed Caroline. The water beneath the boards had risen. They might have a reprieve. The outlaws didn’t have a key, which meant there was no way of locking them inside.
Snyder appeared and handed something to Dakota Red.
The outlaw waved the key before them. “Look at what we found in the house. Thanks for fixing the door, stagecoach man. You’ve been a real help. This wouldn’t have worked before.”
He turned the key with a resounding click and stowed it in his pocket.
Eleanor sobbed. “What’s going to happen to us?”
“Maybe the cavalry will get to you in time.” Dakota Red shrugged. “Or maybe they won’t. Ain’t my problem anymore.”
With a last tip off his hat he hurried out the door.
Eleanor collapsed on the cot and hugged the girls to her side. The captain sat beside her and wrapped his arm around her trembling shoulder.
Tilly narrowed her gaze on the pair. Eleanor didn’t protest the contact.
The captain stretched out his injured leg. “Don’t listen to him, ma’am. My men will reach us in time.”
“They’re not far behind,” Nolan said hoarsely. “The lieutenant came through town a few minutes ago with the warning. He was riding hard. They’ll be here.”
Tilly shivered and tried not to look at the water seeping through a low spot in the floor. Omaha had flooded in the past. The rushing water was swift and unmerciful.
Elizabeth whimpered and the captain hoisted her onto his knee. “Don’t you worry, little lady. My men are the fastest and the bravest. You’ll be riding out of town soon.”
Since her attention was focused on Nolan, Tilly noted how his demeanor shifted the moment the door closed behind them. His breath came in quick shallow gasps and his eyes turned glassy and unfocused.
They’d left a chair propped in the corner the day they’d rescued Caroline, and she dragged the legs through the puddle. Nolan didn’t appear to see her as she guided him toward the seat.
She crouched beside him and brushed the hair from his forehead. “Are you all right?”
“Nothing is wrong,” Nolan said, his voice strained. “The captain’s men will be here.”
Victoria and Caroline each rested their heads on their mother’s opposite shoulders. Eleanor stroked their hands and murmured soothing words. Tilly’s heart softened toward her sister. Eleanor could be harsh and unyielding, but she adored her girls.
Nolan’s words rang in her ears. Eleanor only knew how to be perfect. Her marriage to Walter had not turned out the way she planned, and Walter’s death had come as a shock. Eleanor had lashed out the only way she knew how. She’d lashed out at Tilly. Nolan was correct: their relationship needed to change, and Tilly was the only one who could force that change.
Once they were free, Tilly vowed to renew her efforts to get to know her sister. Eleanor had changed over the years. They both had. And it was time they were reintroduced to each other.
“It’s being locked up, isn’t it?” the captain said, startling Tilly from her reverie. “Don’t worry. We’ll be out soon.”
It took a beat for Tilly to realize the captain was speaking to Nolan.
Nolan braced one hand against the wall and stood. “It’s the confinement.”
“Do you get the nightmares?” the captain asked.
Tilly glanced between the two. They were speaking to each other as though no one else was in the room. Eleanor and the girls were lost in their own world, oblivious to the conversation.
“Yes,” Nolan said. “I get the nightmares.”
“I used to get them, too.” The captain glanced at Eleanor’s profile, his gaze filled with unmasked longing. “For a year after the war, I didn’t sleep a full night. I’d wake up screaming. Thought they were going to cart me off to the sanitarium.”
“Did you have any other, um, problems?”
“I drank all the time when I first got back. My wife died while I was gone. A fever. I left for the war with the whole world ahead of me, and I returned to nothing.”
Eleanor’s hands clenched in her lap. Though her attention was focused on the girls, she was most definitely listening to the conversation.
“I know the feeling,” Nolan said wearily. “Too well.”
“You don’t like me much, do you, West?” The captain’s wide grin was at odds with his words.
“The feeling is obviously returned.” Nolan’s breath rasped. “You thought I was riding with Dakota Red.”
“I apologize. We were both prejudiced in our actions.”
“I don’t follow.”
“I can tell a man who served in the war just by the look in his eyes. I’ll walk across the street to avoid that look. I came out here to forget about the war.”
“As did I. Being locked up like this, I want to tear myself apart.”
“Why do you suppose there’s so much regimentation and order in a soldier’s life? When the world has gone mad around you, a man needs to feel as though he has control over something. Except it’s all a lie, isn’t it? All that forced order is a lie.”
“You’re a good man,” Nolan said, his voice gruff. “I’m sorry I didn’t see that before.”
Tears burned in Tilly’s eyes. She was an unwelcome observer in these events. The two men had suffered, and they were bolstering each other as best they could under the circumstances. Neither would admit weakness, and nor should they. Such circumstances were bound to leave their mark on a man.
From the moment they’d arrived, Nolan had been warning her away from him. Not overtly, but subtly, with his actions more than his words. Her chest tightened. She’d teased him about the thing he most dreaded. She’d cajoled him for his idiosyncrasies, feeding his unease. What an insensitive idiot she’d been.
“I owe you an apology, as well,” the captain said. “My instincts were wrong, and I’ve cost us. I should have left the military when I’d planned.”
“You’re leaving?” Eleanor asked, her eyes wide. “You’re leaving the cavalry?”
“There’s no honor in our fight with the Indians. I can’t be a part of it anymore.”
“What will you do?” Eleanor tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “We might as well pass the time with conversation.”
Tilly smothered a grin behind her hand. She’d never have believed it, but Eleanor was as taken with the captain as he was with her. They made a fine pair. With all that was happening around them, what harm could come from a little flirtation?<
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“My family owns a seed company and plant nursery in Wichita,” he said. “My older brother took over the business, and there wasn’t room enough for the both of us in the beginning. The business has grown over the years, and he needs help. There’s rich farmland in the area. Everyone is moving west. Why shouldn’t I profit?”
Eleanor gazed at the captain with a look Tilly had never seen her bestow on Walter. Certainly Eleanor had loved Walter, but he’d been their father’s choice. Had Eleanor been more in love with the idea of marriage than the man she’d married? Tilly sighed. None of that mattered, she supposed. Walter was gone and Eleanor had a wistful gaze that Tilly had never seen before.
Nolan slid his arm around her waist and she rested her head on his shoulder. He took her hand and placed it over the steady beating of his heart and placed his fingers over hers. Outside a heavy rain fell, and water seeped through the cracks in the roof.
“What about you, West?” Captain Ronald tipped back his head. “What did you do before the war?”
“Farming. We lost the land to carpetbaggers after the war.”
“I could use a good man.”
Eleanor glanced at them and blinked. Tilly stiffened, preparing for a lecture. Eleanor only flashed her a rueful smile and turned her attention to the captain once more. Tilly’s shoulders sagged. Things were changing between them already.
“I’m honored by the offer,” Nolan said. “But I’ll probably travel farther west after this. Maybe the Wyoming Territory.”
“You’ll run out of places to run one of these days.” The captain chuckled. “What will you do then?”
Nolan tensed. “Maybe by then, I won’t need to run anymore.”
She desperately wanted to apologize to him. To assure him that her teasing had meant nothing. She didn’t think there was anything wrong with them. Nothing more than anyone else. The space was too close and her feelings were too raw. She couldn’t expose herself before all these people. Tilly shivered and Nolan tugged her closer, rubbing her upper arm.
The door opened and Dakota Red, Charlie and Snyder appeared. “Change of plans. They’re closer than the lieutenant led us to believe. We need some insurance in case they catch up to us while we’re crossing the river.”
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