Their loving words ceased as they kissed. Their bodies joined, fusing their spirits and souls. The blissful tensions mounted within them until they could no longer hold back the flood of desire which coursed through them. Their dams of restraint shattered and they were washed away by stormy passion.
Carrie Sue and T.J. were swept passed beautiful islands of sensation which tossed blossoms of delight into their paths. They were carried onward by powerful waves, caressed and stimulated by love’s waters, and sent gasping for breath as they were pulled beneath the rapturous surface time and time again. The stormy tide seemed endless; yet, eventually they arrived on a peaceful shore. There, they lay exhausted from their stirring efforts, savoring their wondrous triumph.
They were tired, but it was a serene fatigue. They knew they needed sleep, so they didn’t tarry long at their location. They rinsed in the river, dried off, and donned their riding clothes. They would sleep dressed, in case they had to make a fast getaway.
As T.J. put a dry wrap on Carrie Sue’s sprained wrist, she laughed and said, “I don’t even know your name. What does T.J. stand for?”
He completed his task and sat beside her on the bedroll. “It’s time for you to learn more about me since we’re going to be married soon. Just hold your temper, Red, until I explain everything. I took the name Rogue because I was angry with my father for getting himself and my family killed. I was pretty bitter and was striking out at anything. When I was at the orphanage, the people in town called me a half-savage rogue, and the name stuck to me.,”
“You mean it isn’t your name?” she inquired, all ears.
“Nope. My real name is Thaddeus Jerome Jamison, but I’ve gone by T.J. since I was born. Sometimes close friends call me Thad.”
“Thad Jamison? The Thad Jamison, the mysterious legend?” she said, panic striking her when he nodded. “You’re a …a Texas Ranger, aren’t you?” When he kept his tender gaze locked to hers and nodded, her mouth went dry and her lips remained parted. Her heart pounded. Her chest rose and fell rapidly. She felt cold, weak, nauseous. She felt as if he had just stabbed her in the heart with a knife. She stared at him.
T.J. vowed in a serious tone, “I meant everything I said tonight, Carrie Sue. I love you and want to marry you. I want us to go to Montana where you’ll be safe. If we stay here, I can’t have you.”
“But you’re a lawman, a famous lawman. Why would you help me escape? Are you hoping I’ll be tricked into leading you to Darby? That’s what I suspected all along, but I let you get to me with your lies!”
He demanded, “Hear me out, Carrie Sue. Dammit, I love you and want to marry you. I swear I’m taking you to safety. I could never let you be captured, or jailed, or hanged. The only way to save you and have you is to leave Texas and the Rangers; that’s what I’ll do. Give me a chance to explain everything, please.”
“What have I got to lose? I’m your prisoner already. Talk, Mr. Ranger, and I’ll listen, but don’t expect me to be duped again.”
“Just keep an open mind until you hear what I have to say. When I met you, I was on Curly James’s trail, for the reason I told you. He did barbwire me to that tree and leave me to die, on Quade Harding’s orders. Harding discovered who I was and that I was investigating him. The Rangers had received tips on his underhanded dealings and I was sent to check them out. He overheard me talking with another Ranger. That’s why I’ve had to stay clear of him; he knows I’m Thad Jamison. We figured if he believed I was dead, he would relax and make a slip. We assigned another undercover Ranger to him, Dave Clemmens, but he was killed recently. When they found his body, there was a note pinned to his chest.” He told her what the note said and how it was signed. When she gasped in shock and her eyes widened, he added, “You don’t have to convince me your brother didn’t do it. I know Darby Stover wasn’t involved in any way.”
Carrie Sue remained quiet and alert.
“If you’re wondering if I was spying on you in Tucson, yes, I was. You can hardly blame me for being suspicious of a woman who acted so strangely and had such skills. But I had no idea who you were; I swear. I lied about Nighthawk’s injury and collecting those rewards because I needed a logical reason to hang around town waiting for Curly.”
“How did you know he was heading for Tucson?” she probed.
“The other two men told me before I killed them. They were to link up in El Paso, then head for Tucson to work for Ferris. I got them first, then beat Curly there. Mitch sent me a telegram about that Union Express job. That’s the day you saw me coming out of the telegraph office when you were with Ferris. The Stover Gang was my next assignment, but I didn’t connect you with the Texas Flame. I suppose because I was too involved with you to think clearly. You had my head clouded. But what could I do? I couldn’t tell you who and what I am: I’m sworn to secrecy by the Rangers and the President. And I couldn’t offer you anything without being honest with you. I figured, whatever would a proper schoolmarm see or want with a common gunslinger like T.J. Rogue? But Lordy you twisted up my guts with crazy feelings.”
“Which is more important, T.J., your job or me?” she challenged.
He urged, “Let me finish first, then you’ll know the answer. When Joe Collins came to my room the night before we escaped, he showed me the new poster for Carrie Sue Stover. I was stunned. I couldn’t believe you were the Texas Flame, but it all made sense.”
“Joe Collins? He’s that lawman who came to my room?”
“Yep, but that was a ruse to force you to take me along when you fled. He wasn’t hurt, and he was never on our trail. That’s why I could come and go as usual; he wasn’t after me. I’m sorry, love, but it was the only way I could get you out of town safely and quietly. I realized why you were in Tucson and I was sorry it wasn’t going to work out for you, thanks to that damn Quade Harding!”
He mastered his anger so he could continue. “I wanted to save you and help you, Carrie Sue. I couldn’t let you face posses and bounty hunters alone. And I wasn’t about to put the woman I love in prison or at the end of a noose. At first, I was going to offer you a pardon if you’d help me capture your brother’s gang. But I knew you’d never betray or endanger him for any reason. Yet, I hoped you’d want to stop his life of crime on innocent victims. If I could help you get a pardon, then you could lead a normal life somewhere, hopefully with me. I knew you must be tired of running and hiding and being an outlaw. I recalled little clues you dropped about your old life, about prison and such. I believed you wanted out, and I was determined to help you go straight. But first, I had to defeat your brother. Nobody’s ever been able to get near Darby Stover, so I used you. I’m sorry and I feel guilty as hell, but I felt I had to get him any way necessary.”
T.J. propped his elbows on his raised legs and rested his chin on interlocked hands. “But something happened along the way. I had rescued and was protecting a beautiful desperado with hopes of her assisting my case, but there was no one to protect me from you. I discovered I loved you and wanted you desperately. I had to find a way to clear you. The problem is, you’re guilty; you’re an outlaw. No frame or misunderstanding to clear up for exoneration. What could I do? Lordy, I was as ensnared by your past as you were. I didn’t want to ask myself what you would do and say when you learned the truth about me. I didn’t want to think about how my capturing your brother would affect our relationship. I kept telling myself I should be thinking only of my mission, but how could I with you nearby? Lordy, I’ve never been in such a predicament, such a scary trap.”
“So what happens to me? To us?” she inquired sadly.
He didn’t reply. “That day I vanished in the Chiricahuas, I went to tap into the telegraph line. I sent messages asking for the government to help the Apaches, as I promised Naiche when I saw him. I wired Collins about Martin Ferris. And I wired the Rangers and President about granting you a pardon. I told them you were aiding my case.”
“But that was a lie!” she shrieked.
“I know, b
ut I was desperate, Carrie Sue. I had to remove the threats to you. How could we have a life together if you were killed or imprisoned? I told you, I was going loco over our situation. When we reached Deming, I sent more telegrams and picked up some waiting for me. I learned about those jobs in Hillsboro, Eastland, and Big Spring which your brother supposedly committed. I know he’s innocent of those charges, Carrie Sue, and I’m certain Harding’s to blame. I also let Hank Peterson know we were on the way to his place.”
She asked, “Who is Hank Peterson? And Mitchell Sterling?”
“Retired Rangers who still give help when we need it. They’re deeply respected and the authorities listen to them. They’re both good friends of mine. I’ve worked with them many times in the past and they agreed to help me in this matter. They know I love you and I’m trying to carry out this mission without damaging our relationship.”
She murmured, “That can’t be done, T.J. How can I marry you if you destroy my brother? How can you marry me if I’m captured?”
“That’s why I found myself in such a tight bind, woman. To get the Stover Gang, I had to risk losing you. Unless I could get you pardoned. They’ve refused to cooperate on one, but I kept hoping they would reconsider because of all I’ve done for them,” he revealed.
“And?” she hinted.
“No luck,” he admitted. “One reason is the law thinks the gang’s behind those recent crimes, and they’re bad ones. When we were at Mitch’s, I wired Dave Clemmens to speed up the Harding case, but he was killed a few days later. Maybe because I provoked him into doing something rash just to help us. After you ran out on me, I was afraid you’d messed up any chance I had of getting you exonerated. Then, I got word on the Brady holdup. I’d studied your brother’s gang, so something didn’t seem right. I came to the same conclusion you did, a frame job by Harding. I had to find you before you fell into his hands again, or got into more trouble with Darby.”
Carrie Sue made no attempt to battle him or escape. “Quade is up to something more than framing us. He had my posters yanked until he could get to me. The law will know soon, because I told that newspaper man the truth to entrap Quade. I’m certain Curly was working for him, but you killed the snake before he could betray me.”
T.J. gave her a stunning response. “It wasn’t Quade, Carrie Sue. I convinced the Rangers to withdraw those posters so you would be safe on the trail. I told them I couldn’t get near the gang with you if we were being chased. They were pulled down right after we left Tucson.”
She stared at him. “I don’t understand. William Ferguson told me Quade did it. It was in all the papers.”
“That’s the story we put out to explain yanking them. We told Harding we had proof Carrie Sue Stover wasn’t the Texas Flame, and we were pulling her posters. He was madder than a hornet with his nest shot down, but he was worried about how much we knew. He guessed we were up to something; either we were using you, or you were helping us to earn a pardon. He figured he’d better comply or risk exposure and charges for suppressing evidence for years. He agreed to tell the papers his poster and reward were put out to protect you until he could prove your innocence, which is what the lying bastard claims is true. In return, the Rangers said he didn’t know what he did was illegal and no charges would be filed against him. Your posters were yanked and those old ones were put out again as the Flame.”
“If I was cleared publicly, why was I arrested?”
“Because you were caught in Darby’s camp, holding a prisoner. And that business with the Flame’s lock proved you were guilty. The sheriff wired the Rangers and told them he had captured you red-handed.” T.J. shifted his position. “I rode to Commanche with hopes you’d told the truth about going there, but you hadn’t. While I was wiring Hank about news from you, I heard about the simultaneous San Angelo and Stephenville crimes. I knew Darby was on the move again and you’d be with him. Then, word came of your capture. Lordy, I was afraid Harding would bust you out of jail before I could.”
Both were silent for a while. Then, the flaming haired fugitive asked, “Why do you hate my brother, T.J.? There had to be more than your job driving you after him. If you truly love me and want me, then you’d have given up this mission for our future. There has to be a personal motive in here somewhere. What is it?”
“As I always said, woman, you’re too smart to be fooled very long. You’re right; I did have revenge in mind. I insisted on having this assignment, before I met you and discovered who you are. Ever since March, all I could think about was killing the entire gang.”
“Why?” she demanded when he fell silent again.
T.J. needed strength on his side to win her over to his until everything was resolved, and he hoped the truth would do that vital job for him. “There was a stage holdup near San Angelo on March twenty-second. A woman and child were murdered. Do you recall that incident, Carrie Sue? Were you along that day?”
At his tone and expression, a cold chill swept over her. “Yes I was there. I can’t forget what happened.”
“Do you also remember the robbery on April twentyeighth when you became Carolyn Starns? A Ranger was killed when the stage was pursued and crashed. He was a good friend of mine. He saved my life when I was barbwired to that tree. I owed him justice, vengeance.”
Her frantic mind was still lingering on his earlier hint, so she asked, “Who were the woman and child? Did you know them?”
“Arabella and Marie Jamison.”
“Jamison?” she echoed in dread, wondering if his next words would be my wife and child, and she prayed they wouldn’t be.
In a strained tone, he disclosed, “My brother’s wife and daughter. Tim and I hadn’t seen each other since our captures by the Apaches. We got news of each other’s survival and location around Christmas time. We were planning to be reunited soon, but Tim was killed by Mexican bandits in February. When I received the news of his murder, I sent for his widow and child. I had intended to marry Arabella and raise Marie as my own daughter, but they didn’t reach Fort Worth because of the Stover Gang.”
Carrie Sue gaped at him as those staggering words sank in. Her heart was tormented by anguish and was filled with sympathy. “I’m sorry, T.J.; I didn’t know…” She lapsed into remorseful silence.
“Those three deaths in March came right atop my brother’s in February. I was furious. Within two months, I’d gone from finding my family to not having one again. I wanted to kill every member of that gang, including Darby’s sister. I was on Curly’s trail, and the Stover Gang was laying low, so I decided to finish with him before taking off after your brother and his boys, which I figured would take a long time. Headquarters was keeping a file on Darby’s movements, but I didn’t know that the Sherman job was pulled by Darby until Joe Collins came to fill me in. You were acting strange, so I thought you were in trouble. I asked a Ranger friend to check you out so I could help you. Joe told me the Stover Gang pulled that holdup and he showed me your poster. That’s the first time I knew about you; I swear it.”
T.J. couldn’t let her believe she was his second choice or that he fell in love with her because he was agonizing over a lost family. “There’s something else I have to explain, Carrie Sue. I wasn’t in love with Arabella—I didn’t even know her—but I would have married her if she’d reached Fort Worth alive. You know from experience what happens to a woman alone, especially one with a child. I couldn’t let anything happen to my brother’s family. Maybe I was weakened by Tim’s recent death, but I honestly was going to do my best to make a home for them. Then, a crazy thing happened to me: I met you while I was chasing Curly. I fell in love with you before I learned who you were. You’re the only woman I’ve ever loved, and I could never have married Arabella after meeting you. When I discovered the truth about your identity, it was too late to back away from you and these feelings.”
Tears were rolling down Carrie Sue’s cheeks. T.J. turned to her and wiped them away, saying, “I don’t hold you to blame, love.”
“But we are to blame, T.J. That’s why I was so desperate to get away; I couldn’t stand the accidental deaths. If that driver hadn’t tried to outrun us, that stage wouldn’t have crashed and killed your friend and Carolyn. And if we hadn’t attacked that other stage, that passenger wouldn’t have panicked and shot your brother’s wife and child. We didn’t kill them, T.J., honestly. This man was babbling about them being captured and abused, so he shot them. Darby winged him, but it was too late. I swear we’d never kill women and children. If you can locate that coward, you can force the truth from him.” As with T.J., she didn’t know the irrational man had committed suicide following that grim incident.
“After all you’ve told me about Darby, I realized something didn’t ring true. Your brother isn’t what I imagined him to be. You said he ordered no killings, and I believe you. I understand that you two got shoved into this miserable life and were forced to stay there. But the accidents have to stop, Carrie Sue. I know you two don’t deserve what happened to you, but neither do the innocent people the gang attacked. If Darby doesn’t get out soon, he’ll be dead, and we both know it, woman. You have to convince him to do the right thing, to turn himself in and face his punishment.”
“He won’t listen to me, T.J.; he thinks he’s in too deep.”
“When a man’s in the right, sometimes he has to kill another man who wrongs him or challenges him. But when he’s in the wrong, there’s no justification for murder. That’s why I never became an outlaw and why gunslinging never agreed with me, even as a cover for my job. I knew if I told you the truth about me, you’d offer me anything to give up this mission. But what kind of man shows such weakness and lack of character? I did change my mind about killing Darby and his boys, but I still felt I had to arrest the Stover Gang, for the law and for my friends and family. I was hoping after it was over, you’d love me enough to understand my predicament. I figured, if your love was strong and real, you’d keep on loving me even after I got justice.”
Kiss Of The Night Wind Page 43