by Jodi Thomas
“I’m not here about the wedding . . . well, not directly anyway. I’m here to deliver a message from a friend of yours. She wanted me to tell you she’s safe and exactly where she wants to be at the moment.”
“You’re the one Victoria eloped with? You’re the one I thought I saw her with on the balcony?”
Killian’s half smile seemed sad somehow. “You might have seen us on the balcony. But no, I didn’t elope with her. I’m just a friend who offered help and she took it.”
Both looked over toward the windows where the man in the tweed suit continued to read. He didn’t move.
“I want to see her, but I’m needed here. Did you hear about the trial in Dallas?” Rose said.
“Everyone in town is talking about it. Jeb Tanner escaped and his brother seems to have been misplaced in the hospital.”
Rose’s eyes widened. “I hadn’t heard about Owen, only Jeb.”
Killian shrugged. “I also heard your cousin the ranger is out tracking them down. He’s one of the best men Texas has. He’ll find them.”
For a blink, pain flickered in her pretty eyes. “No,” she whispered. “They found him first. Duncan is fighting for his life. He’s been shot.”
Killian fought the urge to swear. “Men like Tanner have the advantage because they’re willing to shoot a man in the back.”
“I guess so. All I know is that he’s hurt and I need to get him home as soon as possible. If the doctor thinks he can make the trip, tomorrow morning we’ll be on the train. But before I go, if possible, I’d like to see Victoria.”
“I’ll take you to her before dawn. August, if he’s still around, never gets up very early so it should be safe. We’ll meet here. I promise to have you back in ten minutes.”
Rose seemed surprised that her friend was so close, but she didn’t argue. They shook hands and he stood as she left the café and hurried back up the stairs. He didn’t have to ask where Duncan was—he knew—and the little lady was standing guard over him until she could get him home.
Chapter 24
When Rose returned, Hallie disappeared into the maid’s quarters, saying she’d take the first shift in the morning. Stitch slipped out the balcony door, promising he’d be back by dawn. He’d checked the windows and doors twice, making sure Rose and her patient wouldn’t be bothered. Rose wondered if he didn’t sleep in sight of the balcony.
Finally, for the first time since she’d woke with Duncan beside her, Rose was alone with him. He’d mumbled a few times as if in pain, but the mixture of herbs and opium the doctor gave him allowed Duncan to rest so his body could begin to heal. He still looked so big and strong as he slept. Except for the slice of bandage covering his arm and shoulder, she found it hard to believe he was hurt.
For a while she sat by his bedside, keeping covers over his shoulder and checking to see that no fever had crept into his body. She thought of all the times he’d been hurt when he was growing up. Her papa would always tell her that he’d heal, but that didn’t keep her from worrying about the boy. Once when he’d almost drowned trying to swim the river, she’d made a pallet on the floor by his bed so she could make sure he kept breathing all night.
Martha, their housekeeper, used to say that the Lord gave Duck to Rose so she’d have something to worry over and give the rest of the family some peace. Twenty years and nothing had changed.
“You’re always such a worry to me,” she whispered as she felt his forehead for the hundredth time. “Half the time I don’t know what I’ll do with you and the other half I wonder what I’d do without you.”
As the night aged, she could no longer keep her eyes open, so she carefully lay down beside him, touching only his hand that rested outside the covers.
He’d rolled onto his good shoulder, so he faced her. She closed her eyes listening to his slow steady breathing for a while. Just how much he mattered to her settled against her heart. It was more than friend, more than family, a piece of him lived in her heart.
She was almost asleep when she heard him whisper, “Rose, are you safe?”
“I’m safe, Duncan.” She brushed her hand over his. “And so are you. We’re here together.”
“Good,” he answered, almost as if he were talking to a dream. “I love you, you know that, don’t you?”
“Yes, I know that.” She smiled. Even though they fought often and worried about each other always, deep down she knew he loved her. She’d seen it in his eyes whenever he’d come home. Even if the room would be full of McMurrays, he’d always search the crowd until he found her and then she swore she’d see him let out a long breath as if everything was right as long as she was there.
“How about we go home tomorrow?” she said as she smoothed his hair back from his eyes.
“I’ll go if you’ll go.”
“Fair enough,” she answered, realizing as she spoke just how much she wanted to leave. “I have to go check on Victoria at dawn to make sure she’s all right, but then we’ll book tickets for the trip. Stitch says he can fix you a bed that will be as gentle as a cradle on the train. You can sleep the day away and we’ll be home long before dark.”
Duncan shifted in pain. “I couldn’t stop last night until I got to you. You’re in danger, Rose. Beware.”
“Stop talking and get some rest.”
He laughed. “You know, I learned to talk just so I could talk to you and now you tell me to stop.”
“I’m warning you.” She grinned and used a threat she’d used for years. “Go to sleep or I’ll tell Martha.” The old housekeeper at the ranch had always frightened Duncan more than any of the strong powerful men.
“All right,” he whispered. “Only stay close.” He threaded his fingers through hers.
As his breathing slowed in sleep, Rose worried if she was making the right decision. On the train they’d be an easy target. Here, as long as no one knew Duncan was in her room, maybe they were safe. Only for her, and she guessed for him as well, there was never anywhere truly safe but Whispering Mountain. The ranch was like a fortress bordered by rivers and backing into a mountain. Anyone coming onto their land would have to come straight on in full view of the front of the ranch headquarters.
As Rose watched him sleep, it occurred to her that maybe she’d never married because no man she’d met had quite measured up to Duncan. He was smart and funny and brave. He believed in doing what was right and had no tolerance for men who prey on the weak.
She grinned. Only problem was, loving him was like loving a wild animal you knew could never be tamed. Still, she felt more alive when he was around and now and then almost believed she could be brave too. In a way, he was everything she wished she were. Reckless. Free. She knew she’d someday settle down and marry some sensible gentleman who’d be the perfect husband and father to their children, but when she dreamed, she’d dream of running free with Duncan by her side.
He might love her, but she’d never ask him to give up his freedom and settle down.
He tightened his grip on her hand. “You’re safe,” he whispered as if he were the one worrying about her even in his sleep.
“I’m safe,” she answered, and almost added, Until tomorrow.
Chapter 25
Thursday
Second Avenue
An hour before dawn Stitch straightened from his cramped quarters behind the old door to the apartment. Through the slits in the wood he could see Victoria sleeping in her chair by the window with blankets wrapped around her.
The night had turned colder and he guessed she’d let the fire go out in the stove again. Icy rain tapped on the window but didn’t wake her. Stitch felt cold all the way to the bone, but he’d have to bust through the boards blocking the door to light the fire, and that would surely wake the little lady. She might like talking to a ghost, but she wouldn’t be too happy to see him in the flesh.
She’d cried a few times during the night and twice she’d called for Shawn. Each time, Stitch had leaned against the thin door and answer
ed in what he hoped was a low ghost voice. He knew she just wanted to know that she wasn’t alone, but it made him feel like he was truly helping to talk to her. Over and over again he’d say, “It’s going to be all right, honey.”
He grinned as he watched her sleeping. She reminded him of some kind of windup toy. Once she’d stopped crying, she’d tried on clothes in the other room until she’d found a black pair of riding trousers and a simple blue shirt.
“I’m going to be ready to run when Killian says it’s time.” She’d braided her light blond hair, talking all the while about how she’d survive on her own. “My father will go without me. If I don’t cooperate, I’ll be dead to him. So, I’ll change my name and disappear among ordinary people. I can get a job. Surely there is something I can do.”
Stitch wanted to tell her she’d make it fine on her own, but the poor girl didn’t even know how to stock the stove. He felt sure cooking, cleaning, and sewing were skills she’d never acquired. If she and Killian did stay together, they’d be eating apples and scrambled eggs for the rest of their lives. If she had to make it on her own it would be a toss-up which got her first, starvation or cold.
In a few hours he’d have to make a decision. Miss Rose wanted him to go with her to take Duncan home, but he needed to stay here and help Killian get Victoria to safety. He had no doubt if the major or August Myers found her, they’d make her go through with the marriage and Stitch couldn’t stand to see the beautiful little lady be any more unhappy.
But if he stayed here, that would leave Rose and Hallie to protect the ranger on the journey home. If the outlaws caught up with Duncan McMurray, he and both the women would end up dead. Rose might nurse Duncan back to health, but she wasn’t a fighter even if she did think she was tough enough to wear a gun. Stitch figured most women wouldn’t fire if the time came, so a gun around their waists might as well be a belt.
While Stitch worried, he heard footsteps on the main stairs that climbed the far wall. In the stillness, he listened and counted. Two people were coming up to the apartment.
Miss Victoria must have heard it also, for she jerked awake, fought her way out of the blankets, and stood so that she’d be behind the apartment door when it opened.
For a few heartbeats, neither of them breathed, but then Stitch heard Killian’s voice whisper from the other side of the entrance. “Victoria? It’s me. Is it all right if I come in?”
As she had the day before, Victoria was in his arms by the time he took two steps into the room.
It made Stitch smile to see Killian hug her wildly as if he’d counted the minutes as well since they’d last been together. The judge wasn’t a man who smiled often, but he always seemed to smile at her.
Victoria let out a little squeal of joy as she noticed Rose behind Killian.
The two women hugged and both started talking at once. Stitch laughed so hard that he feared they might hear him. Killian looked lost in the flood of squeals and pats.
“I’m okay,” Victoria said three times before Rose believed her. “I promise.” She hugged the judge’s arm. “He saved me.”
Victoria kissed Killian’s cheek and Rose did the same. As Rose pulled off her cape and moved to the table and chairs by the window, Victoria never stopped talking. “I didn’t want to marry August Myers from the beginning and I told the major, but as always my father was talking and not listening. Myers was a war hero and that seemed to be the only requirement needed to marry his daughter and father the major’s grandsons.”
She offered Rose one of the blankets for her lap. “I let the talk of marrying Myers go on a month, thinking he’d forget about the crazy idea, but all at once the wedding was on. The major travels up here on business often and I thought if I moved the wedding to Fort Worth, I could see Killian and ask him what to do. Father agreed to having the wedding here. I think he was looking for a way to get out of Austin. He said we’d attract less attention than we would from the capital.”
“Where is he planning to move?” Rose asked as she held Victoria’s shaking hand. Neither seemed to notice Killian banging about trying to relight the stove.
Victoria let out a little cry. “It’s a big secret, but I guess it doesn’t matter now. He’d planned to take me to Brazil. He and Myers have a plan to start a new colony there next to the Norris Settlement. They think with hard work and a great deal of money they’ll build their own kingdom.”
Killian moved to her side. “Surely they’re not taking slaves.”
Victoria shook her head. “No, they can hire cheap labor down there. They plan to get as much money here as possible and buy all they need once they are there.”
“Lucky your father is rich,” Rose said. “Most folks, even with land, are barely getting by. I’ve heard many of those who moved to South America after the war returned with even less than before.”
“That’s just it. The major ended the war with nothing. If I hadn’t had a little trust fund from my mother’s family we couldn’t have kept our home in Austin. When this idea began to form, I noticed some of the men he called business partners didn’t look like the kind who usually visited the house. Now, suddenly, he’s been spending money. Wagonloads of goods are already at the dock in Galveston waiting for us.”
Killian began to pace anxiously. On one round he checked the stove that was now offering some warmth in the room. “You need to keep the fire going,” he snapped.
Victoria looked like she might start crying.
“I’m sorry,” Killian said. “I just don’t like you being cold up here.”
She tossed her coat off. “I’m not cold and I’m dressed to travel. I thought we were leaving today.”
Killian shook his head. “I don’t see how. Your father is gone, but August is still hanging around the hotel. Word is he’s got men out looking for you. One glance at that coat and they’d be on our tail.”
She held out her beautiful black coat with the fur lining. “Rose will trade coats with me. It’s too heavy for traveling anyway. With all the fur inside I feel like a snowman walking around and I won’t need this heavy a coat if we move south.”
Rose accepted the coat without question and Victoria turned to Killian. “See, problem solved. I’ll take her cape, pull up the hood, and suddenly I’ll be invisible.”
No one in the room seemed to believe it would be that simple except Victoria. Rose pulled off her cape and gave it to Victoria, then slipped into the fur one. “We’ll trade back when all this is over,” she said as she buttoned the long row of pearl buttons down the front.
Victoria noticed the gun belt. “You’re wearing a gun?”
“I’ll explain later, but it has nothing to do with your problem.” Rose shrugged. “Don’t look so shocked. I wouldn’t be a McMurray if I couldn’t shoot.
A sound rattled from the stairwell. Then silence.
Killian stepped in front of the women. “It’s probably only Abe bringing something to the steps.”
No one moved. After a moment, Victoria whispered, “It might be your brother.”
“What brother?” Rose asked, startled.
“Killian’s brother is a ghost. He’s been keeping me company.”
“Ghosts don’t stumble over steps,” Killian offered.
“Maybe not, but Shawn snores. I heard him last night.” Victoria giggled. “Maybe he stumbles too.”
Before anyone could argue, the door popped open from a mighty blow and two men stood, guns pointed as if waiting to be invited in.
Stitch wanted to roar and frighten them away, but they’d only fire at the panel. Killian, if he was carrying a weapon, was smart enough not to try and pull it out. Rose kept her hands at her sides.
“Which one of you is Victoria Chamberlain?” the biggest of the two men yelled. He looked rough and weather worn with the dull eyes of a man who’d faced death many times.
“I am,” Rose said before Victoria could speak. “Who are you?”
“No,” Victoria corrected. “I’m Victoria Ch
amberlain.”
The big man waved his weapon between them. “I’ll ask one more time, which of you is Miss Chamberlain.”
“I am.” Rose stomped forward. “And I’m demanding both of you leave immediately.”
The smaller man swore. “What do we do, Hargus?” Neither looked like leaving was an option they were considering. “Nobody told us what the woman looked like.”
“We kill the man and take both of them,” Hargus suggested. “Maybe there’s a bonus for bringing an extra one along.”
The shorter man shook his head. “We can’t. We only got one extra horse and part of the deal was that the bride returns with her luggage.” The stack of luggage, still locked, was piled in the corner. “We’ll have enough trouble getting away with one, and all those bags.”
The one called Hargus stared at both women as if it were some kind of puzzle he’d have to solve. “Her,” he said, pointing to Rose. “She looks rich enough to be the major’s daughter.” He flicked the weapon toward Victoria. “She’s probably the chore girl. Kill her.”
Victoria let out a little sound and Killian put his arm around her to keep her from falling.
“No!” the second man said. “I told you before, I ain’t into killing anyone unless I have to. They hang folks for doing that and I’m not dying just ’cause you give an order. Finding her is one thing. Dragging her back to her husband seems like the right thing to do, especially with the reward he’s offering, but killing—that’s not part of the deal.”
“Fine.” Hargus pouted. “Tie them up then. We’ll be long gone with the reward before anyone finds them up here. If we got the wrong one, we’ll circle back and trade out the women. How does that sound to you, Shorty?”
Victoria started crying, begging the men to let Rose go and take her, but they seemed to be finished listening. The smaller kidnapper gagged her first and shoved her in a chair. Hargus kept his gun pointed at Rose’s head, warning Killian not to fight while the short man tied him.