by Lori Wick
out. She knew it was still Aurora, but she couldn't quite
picture where. She'd been tired the night before and eager
to get on the train that morning. Was it that morning?
"Is it still Wednesday?"
"Yes."
"Do you have the time?"
"Miss Hewett/' Eliot tried this time.
"Stop calling me that."
"All right, Annabelle, why do you wish to know the
time?"
"That's enough!" Darvi's voice cracked with enough
force to surprise even herself. She stared at them, eyes
furious, her hands coming out to make her point
"I don't know whaf s going on here, but you will stop
calling me that name. My name is Darvi Wingate. I was on
the train this morning bound for St Louis when two men
threatened me with a knife and removed me from my seat
I want some answers, and I want them now."
"I should have known she was going to make this
179
hard," Eliot said to Seth.
"Yeah, I suppose you're right Lef s give her some time
to think."
The men filed from the room then, and Darvi was completely
confused. Her attention strayed around the small
living area as she searched for answers, so she was startled
when one of the men returned.
Seth handed Darvi her satchel.
"I thought you might want this."
Darvi took the bag.
98 lori wick
"The gun is out," he added, holding her eyes for long
moments before exiting once again.
I have to think, Darvi told herself, trying to ignore the
headache. With that her eyes caught sight of the door. Bag
in hand, she went to it and found it open. Hating to leave
her gun and thinking she might be dreaming after all, she
began to walk out onto a wooden landing that led to a tall
flight of stairs. There was a door at the bottom. She was just
180
closing the apartment door when she heard, "Did you lock
that door?"
Darvi didn't even bother to catch the latch. Knowing
she'd been found out, she lifted the front of her skirt and
flew down the stairs as fast as she could move. She didn't
make it halfway before an arm caught her around the
waist. Darvi froze, waiting for him to let go, but he didn't.
Not seeing any other way, she began to scream and
struggle. A sound had barely escaped her when a hand was
put over her mouth. The voice at her ear was quiet, almost
gentle, but the words were no less serious.
"The last thing I want to do is hurt you, but I can't have
you escaping or screaming." Saying this, Seth shifted her
so she could see his face. The terror in her eyes nearly got
to him, but he still said, "Understood?"
Darvi nodded and stayed quiet when he slowly
removed his hand.
"Now, back up to the apartment you go. We have to
come to some type of agreement before you leave."
"What agreement?"
181
"Well, ifs like we said. Mr. Silk wants you to come to
dinner, as you missed seeing him today."
Back in the apartment, Darvi turned to see him put her
satchel on the floor while the other man locked the door.
"I don't know who Mr. Silk is, and I didn't come here on
my own. I don't know how much plainer I can make it,"
The men said nothing. The one nearest the door pocketed
the key, and the one who had caught her on the stairs only
looked at her. A moment later they exited the room again.
"excuse me," dakota interrupted the man at the ticket
window.
"Yes, sir, what can I do for you?"
"I was just wondering if there's any chance you
remember a woman buying a ticket this morning? She
wore a navy suit and had reddish blonde hair."
The man nodded. "I remember her. Headed to St.
Louis."
"Yes, she's the one. Do you happen to know whether
she was on the train when it left?"
182
The man looked thoughtful. "Well, I assume she was.
She didn't come back to say she missed the train. They
always do that when it happens."
Dakota debated how to ask the next question delicately.
"Did you by any chance happen to see her leave the station
area?"
"I didn't see her go, but then I can't see as much as the
men out front. You might want to check with them."
"Thank you."
Dakota stepped away from the window fighting the
frustration rising within him. He'd already talked to the
men who worked along the tracks. They hadn't seen
anyone leaving who matched Darvi's description and told
him to check with the man at the ticket window.
99
100 lori wick
/ don't think I can do anything else, Lord. Is it a lack.of trust
183
to wonder if she's all right? If that wasn't Darvi, then why
haven't I seen another woman like her in town today? But
Dakota's questions went unanswered. He honestly didn't
know what to do. His money, including the funds that
Brace had given him, was down to nothing. If he stayed in
town, it would have to be outside tonight. He was more
than willing to do this if there was a need, but if this was
nothing more than a case of mistaken identity... On the
other hand, if Darvi needed him, Dakota would never
leave her.
Deciding to stay in town one more night and keep his
eyes open, Dakota went in search of a cheap meal. He
hadn't eaten since breakfast, and it was now way past
noon. He had to assume if he didn't have answers by
morning, he would have to leave well enough alone.
(3'"3"3'
"I need to let Cassy know I won't be home tonight,"
184
Eliot said of his girlfriend.
"Maybe Nate's in town. He could tell her," Seth replied,
speaking of Cassy's son.
"I'll head out and check." Eliot stood. "How is she
doing?"
"The last time I looked she was reading her Bible."
The men shared a smile, and Eliot slowly shook his
head. "She's good. I'll give her that"
"That she is, but I must tell you, the lady fascinates me."
"You've seen her column in the paper, big brother. Don't
forget she has claws."
Eliot left to the sound of the other man's laughter. Seth
went back to his paper. He had only just returned to his
reading when Darvi came to the door.
"May I please leave now?"
Setting the paper aside, Seth shook his head. "We have
to come to an agreement," he said, keeping his voice gentle.
185
A Texas Sky 101
"You're going to have dinner with Mr. Silk, and you're
even going to tell your readers about it, both before and
after. You've had some pretty ugly things to say about him
over the last year, and it's time to do some repair work."
Looking as devastated as she felt, Darvi turned away.
Not giving her more than a few moments alone, Seth followed
her. He found her sitting and looking toward the
window, but s
ince it was growing dark outside, he knew
she could see little.
For a time, Seth cursed Jared Silk's very existence. None
of this was going the way they had planned. Nevertheless,
Seth knew he had a job to do.
"I'm sorry you won't cooperate, Miss Hewett, but if
you'll just work with us, you can go home."
"Please don't call me that"
The lantern was not turned very high, but it did illumine
the side of Darvi's face, catching the smooth skin on
186
her cheek, the adorable shape of her tumed-up nose, and
that incredible mouth. Seth felt his heart turn over with tenderness
for her and wanted to shake his head at this
interest His boss would be enraged if he knew. Annabelle
Hewett was the enemy, and he would do well to remember
that!
"Now listen," he spoke harshly, coming close to Darvi
and towering over her as her head whipped around. "I've
got better things to do than sit around here and wait for
you to admit the truth. You can knock off this act and come
dean. You know what I want, and I'm not going to wait forever."
Nearly growling with frustration when the light would
not give him a clear view of her eyes, he turned it higher.
The tears, fear, and confusion he saw were almost his
undoing, but he made himself go on, albeit in a quieter
tone. Reaching for an old newspaper, Seth sat next to Darvi
and searched until he had found her column.
102 lori wick
"Look at this. You say right here that Jared Silk is a con
187
artist, but do you have any proof? You stir up a lot of
trouble for one of the town's more popular businessmen.
Mr. Silk just wants to know what you have against him. He
believes if he could speak with you, you would see that
you have him all wrong."
Darvi looked at the paper, telling herself she was not
going to cry or panic. She tried to lick her lips, but her mouth was alarmingly dry.
"I didn't write this. I don't know how else to tell you.
I'm not Annabelle Hewett. And if your plan is to starve me
until I say that I am, then you're going to have a corpse on
your hands."
Seth stopped dead in his tracks. This was not supposed
to have taken all day. They hadn't given Darvi a tiling to eat
or drink. He was saved from falling all over himself when
he heard the door open. He met his brother when he was
no more than a foot inside, the smell of food enveloping
him.
"We forgot to feed her!" Seth whispered in panic.
"I remembered that when I was out," Eliot whispered
188
back. "I've brought some dinner from the hotel."
Seth straightened his tie and jacket and even smoothed
his hair. Chin raised and determined to be all business, he
returned to the living room.
"We have some dinner for you now. Come on through
to the kitchen and eat."
Hoping he was not playing games with her, Darvi went
ahead when he motioned for her to precede him. The room
was not overly large, but she was directed to take one of the
four chairs around the kitchen table. The smell of food
assailed her; her mouth ran with saliva so suddenly she
had to swallow several times. She'd been praying all day
for strength, but if they planned to make her sit here and
not eat, they might have a hysterical woman on their
hands.
ATbxasSky 103
"Here you go." Eliot set a plate in front of her, some silverware
189
on the side. A glass of water came next, but Darvi
just sat, her hands clenched in her lap. The men had food
f / of their own, but she was afraid to trust this situation.
Trying not to look at her, Seth started on his food. Eliot
couldn't. He watched her sit there for a few seconds and
then spoke up.
"You can eat."
"I don't have to do something first?"
"No."
Eliof s reply was very quiet. He had just gotten a taste
of what his brother had seen. He made himself look down
at his plate, but he couldn't miss the way she picked up her
water, her eyes closing in relief as she drank. Drinking
often, she began to work her way through the food. The
rice was wonderful, but the chicken looked so good that
she soon had a piece in her hand. She was just starting to
feel normal when she glanced up to see that someone had
filled her water glass again. Pausing only to wipe her
hands, she reached for it. Not until that point did she
realize the men were watching her.
190
For some reason, color filled her face as she slowly set
down her glass. To her surprise, the men rose. They set
their plates on the side counter and turned to her.
"When you're finished, come back to the living room so
we can talk."
This order came from Eliot, and Darvi only nodded
before they went on their way. She finished slowly, managing
to eat every bite. It was during this time that her
brain went back to work. She knew that the living room
was out the door and to the left, but the one man had not
exited that way. He'd come from the other side.
Working not to scrape her chair on the floor at all, Darvi
stood up, wiping her face and hands as she went. She
didn't move her plate and did everything she could to
keep her feet silent. Determined not to look toward
104 lori wick
the living room/ she planned to hit the doorway and head
right, hopefully out the first door she came to. And it
worked/ right up to the moment she had her hand on the
191
knob. It was then she noticed the large hand that had
appeared just over her head. It was holding the door shut
Darvi turned in disgust to find Seth looking down on
her. Having gained back some of her old pluck/ she lifted
her chin into the air.
"I almost made it," she told him before slipping past
and heading to the living room.
Seth was glad she couldn't see him, giving him time to
wipe the smile from his face.
"Please sit down," Eliot instructed her right away, his
tone firm.
Darvi complied.
"I've got a sample of the articles I want you to write.
You'll put one in tomorrow's paper, and the other one will
go in the day after you dine with Jared."
He tried to hand the papers to Darvi, but she wouldn't
take them. Eliot let his head fall back, frustration written all
over him. He didn't want to strike the woman he thought
to be Annabelle; he just wanted to release her back into the
alley and be done with it.
192
"I don't write for the newspaper," Darvi tried again. "If
you want to take me down there and ask them yourself,
thaf s fine. Maybe then you'll see I'm telling the truth."
This was getting ridiculous. Jared's scheme had seemed
a little far-fetched when he'd plotted it for them, but now
this attempt to execute it was just plain foolish
ness.
"May I leave?"
The men looked at her.
"No," Seth spoke up, trying not to be led by his heart. "I
still think we can work something out"
"But it's dark out; I have to go."
"Where do you have to go?"
A Texas Sky 105
Darvi didn't answer. She just knew she needed to get
out of there.
"Did you find Nate?" Seth asked of Eliot.
"Yes."
Seth stood.
193
"If you'll come with me, Miss Hewett, I'll get you settled
for the night."
Darvi could not believe her ears. She could see these
men did not mean her physical harm and that they truly
had mistaken her for someone else/ but that didn't make
the whole episode any less frightening. For the dozenth
time that day, Darvi was forced to push Dakota's face from
her mind. He would have taken such good care of her if he
were here, but he wasn't, and she had to accept that.
Following the man who picked up her satchel, Darvi left
the room behind him. They went down the hallway and
past the kitchen to a small bedroom. There was very little
in the room. He set her satchel on the small bed.
"The window is nailed shut, but even if you do figure a
way to open it, it's a two-story drop. If you need something,
I'll be across the hall or in the living room."
Seth said all this while forcing himself not to look at her.
He headed to the door and almost made it but looked back
even as he had his hand on the knob. It was a mistake.
Darvi stood looking around the room, that expression of a
194
lost, forlorn child back on her face. Seth couldn't get out of
there fast enough. He nearly ran to the living room and
threw himself onto the davenport
"Something doesn't add up, Eliot, and I don't mean
maybe. If that woman is Annabelle Hewett, she's the
greatest actress who ever lived."
"I was thinking the same thing. It has crossed my mind
that she's playing us for the biggest fools alive, but if s getting
harder to buy."
The men sat in silence until Eliot had another thought.
106 lori wick
"Could it be a relative, even her daughter or younger
sister?"
Seth shook his head. "She's never heard of Annabelle
Hewett. She can't be faking that"
"I thought for a moment that she was going to tell us
someone was waiting for her or that she had someplace to
be, but then she stopped."
195
"I thought the same thing. It even looked like she wanted