“Papa—Your Honor,” Catalina grinned. “If the court pleases, that box of gold can be counted out. You will no doubt find there is four thousand dollars' worth of nuggets in there."
“I’ve been hoodwinked, Kincaid!” Drummond ranted. “I’ve got to get out of here and get back to my offices.” He turned to leave, sparing a scowl for Catalina. “You she-devil, you are behind this!”
Catalina gave him a smile that said she was truly the she-devil he called her.
“Halt right there!” her father shouted out in his best ‘judge’ voice. “I haven’t dismissed anyone.”
He made a gesture with his fingers and the sheriff stepped in front of Drummond, blocking his way out.
“Speak up, daughter of mine, and explain what you know of this conundrum.”
It was the opportunity that Catalina had been waiting for.
“It’s funny, Percy.” she began. “Your safe in your back office had what appears to be four thousand in nuggets in there in a chest identical to the one sittin’ in your front office filled with rocks, when you’re here, claimin’ it was stolen. Seems like you missed your true callin’. You should have been a magician like some new friends I just made. It all came so clear when I realized you were practicin’ sleight of hand—usin’ two identical boxes. The gold never left your offices that day, Mr. Drummond. Anyone who saw you loadin’ a box onto the stage saw you with the one filled with rocks. Distraction, misdirection, and deception. Yep, a magic act at its finest; I’ll give you that!” Catalina fired her words rapidly at him.
“Preposterous!” he responded, looking very sickly like he wanted to throw up.
“Why would you do this, Mr. Drummond? Make this whole thing up? You played me and my deputies like fools!” the sheriff said.
“I admit to nothing!” Percival shouted.
Catalina was not yet through with him.
“Think about it, Sheriff. I don’t know what favor you owed him to agree to have men guarding the chest of rocks for its value as evidence, but why wouldn’t he put it in the safe if he had one? Maybe because the safe was already full of the so-called missin’ gold! Plus having your men around added an extra layer of protection for the real gold. Smart thinkin’. Of course, he didn’t plan on me staging that stampede to distract the guards so I could switch the boxes.”
“Who is this woman to come in here and fling these kinds of accusations at my client?” Kincaid bellowed. “Does anyone not care that she just admitted to causing mayhem on the main street, and breaking and entering?”
Not a person replied to his tirade. The judge’s face was impassive as he regarded the scene before him. The sheriff and his deputies remained unmoving, simply ignoring the lawyer.
“Yes, this is preposterous!” Drummond exclaimed, rallying up. “I don’t know why she’s doing this, but this troublemaker is trying to set me up! Are we going to take the word of an ignorant Mexican? The insult had barely left his mouth as he swallowed hard, obviously remembering who the judge was. He looked up into the scowling face of Judge Whip Wilde and Catalina smiled smugly. “I mean … why would I do all of this?” Drummond shouted trying to recover from his faux pas.
Unknown to the ass, he had just shot himself in the foot with his question.
“Why indeed?” she said and took the sketchbook out from under her arm and searched out Ruth Anne’s face in the gallery.
“I’m sorry for doin’ this Ruth Anne but a little embarrassment is gonna help clear Jackson but good!”
“I don’t know what you are talking about Cattie but you do what you have to do for my Jackson!” Ruth Anne called out with sincerity.
Satisfied, Catalina held up the book as she began another round of explanation. “Some of you ladies might want to turn your heads for a wee bit,” she announced before holding up the book flipping one page after the other.
Pandemonium erupted in the court as some women swooned and men leaned forward with interest.
“These are his sketchin’s, Pa—Your Honor,” she explained. “He’s obsessed with Ruth Anne. He has deluded himself into believin’ he might have a chance with her if Jackson were out of the way, down in Claymore Prison. So, he set this whole thing into motion. And look, Percival, your plan has failed.”
She said pointed to where Jackson was held. Ruth Anne, seeing her man acquitted, had run to him and the two were locked in a lover’s embrace.
“Looks to me like you are the one to face a slew of charges, Mr. Drummond,” the judge said sternly.
“Do something, Kincaid!” Percival pleaded with his lawyer.
“Your Honor, I must excuse myself as prosecutor,” the lawyer said evenly. “This news of Mr. Drummond’s deception comes as a complete shock to me,” the lawyer said.
“Kincaid, how dare you! You …” Percival swore roundly, but Kincaid paid him no mind at all.
“I am also tendering my resignation to Mr. Drummond as his attorney right here,” Kincaid continued, turning to Drummond. “I am offering one last piece of advice, however, do not speak any further unless you wish to incriminate yourself further,” Kincaid finished
“I love it!” Catalina mocked. “A rat desertin’ a sinkin’ ship. You’re sure as sugar are a class act, Kincaid!”
It was a pity she couldn’t find incriminating evidence against the sly lawyer. She was sure he was in on the whole thing as sure as she knew her own name.
“We’ll see how you love this! You’ve ruined everything!” Percival growled and grabbed the sheriff’s gun from its holster. Catalina was faster; she had guessed what sort of person Drummond was, and she drew her own gun with lightning speed.
A shot rang out and Percival cried out, clutching his shoulder. Catalina blew at the smoke trailing from the tip of her gun, daring anybody to say anything.
Nobody did. They had all seen Drummond raise a gun to her.
“Now, I thought this time, you were going to kill him for sure,” Blue River grinned at her over the resulting uproar.
“Nah, I like the idea of what he’s gonna be facin’ down in Claymore Prison,” Catalina answered with a chuckle.
“And let the record show that Mr. Percival Drummond will be adding to his list of charges, the attempted murder of Catalina Mercedes Wilde, my beloved daughter. The case against Mr. Campbell is dismissed,” the judge said before slamming the gavel down and exiting from the bench to hug his daughter.
“You are your father’s daughter, my Cattie,” he said to her, and she beamed.
As they embraced, Catalina saw movement out of the corner of her eye. Percival was crawling on the floor, reaching for Ruth Anne.
“Please, Ruth Anne, I did it all for you!” he said pathetically. Catalina could only shake her head at yet another man trying to excuse his evil actions by blaming the woman.
Jackson squired his beloved away, and as he did so, he kicked over the table holding the gold, causing the chest to crash to the floor and shower Percival with glittering gold; the seeds of his own destruction. Together, Jackson and Ruth Anne left the courtroom. Nobody stopped them. They were almost out the door when Catalina noticed that Kincaid was gone.
“Gotta go, Papa,” she told her father.
Her father nodded and she hustled out of the court and caught up to the lawyer outside the doors. She grabbed his arm, halting him on the courthouse steps.
“Unhand me! I must get back to Alamieda where I have other … honest clients!” he said loudly.
“You listen to me, Kincaid!” she hissed at him. “We both know that you are neck deep in what happened here. You’re slick enough to weasel your way out of going down with Drummond, you coward, but now, I am goin’ to be watchin’ you. I’ll be watching real close, you mangy hound. If you do anything ever again that will hurt my friends or family, you’ll be answerin’ to me!” she told him fiercely.
He shook her off without a word and charged down the steps muttering under his breath it was Catalina who would be sorry to make an enemy of him. Catalina wat
ched him go. She affirmed to herself she would be watching him, like a hawk. The likes of him were like rabid dogs; they just never stopped till they were put down.
Ruth Anne and Jackson walked up and joined her on the courthouse steps just then.
“Looks like you saved me again, Cattie,” Jackson said.
Catalina turned to him with a smile, dismissing the lawyer from her thoughts. She was pleased that Jackson called her Cattie. Only friends and family did that.
“Thanks so much for getting to the bottom of this whole frame up and finding the real gold chest,” Ruth thanked her profusely. “I did hear that you lost two steers and I am so sorry about that.”
“Think nothin’ of it,” Catalina laughed. “Hell, I’ve already toasted a wagon in this whole shindig, what’s two steers? Lijuan will be ornery as a mule about it, but she will find a way to make up for the loss. My sister is a grand master when it comes to Cedar Ledge’s finances,” she told them with a grin.
“Nonetheless, we find ourselves deeply in gratitude to you once again. I am a free man because of you,” Jackson said firmly with a nod.
“Well, we would like to offer you another one of our special thank-yous tonight in celebration of Jackson’s freedom,” Ruth Anne said with a little smile. “Say eight o’clock at my place, back in Alamieda?” she asked coyly.
Catalina grinned and reached out to touch both of their faces briefly. Back in Halmstad, she had to pass on Sigurd and Nanna Bergendahl’s offer of a thank you meal, but this was one thank you she was NOT going to pass on. Her feelings were especially brightened at the prospect of another go around with the pair as well as knowing she had left Naomi Dorrett with the promise of a rematch and real soon at that!
“My sisters and I have saved the day plenty of times before and received many a ‘thank you’ for it, but I sure doggone like the way you two show your gratitude best. I’ll be there with bells on or off!” she told them with a wink as she watched Blue River approach from within the courthouse. Bright Feather also appeared, riding up from the distance, trailing Blue River’s and Catalina’s horses behind her own.
In no time at all, the brother and sister were up on their horses.
“C’mon, Blue River, Bright Feather!” she called. “Maybe we can see if we can’t rope them two steers that ran out onto the desert after all. If we do, we can save Lijuan from having an even bigger hissy fit when she gets back. Heyahhh!”
Ruth Anne smiled and embraced her lover and they watched from the courthouse steps as the trio from Cedar Ledge rode off into the sun.
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HALF BREED HAVEN WESTERN SHORT STORIES: THE FORBIDDEN RANCH
(An Honor Elizabeth Wilde adult western adventure)
I am naked and there is a killer in the house!
Honor Elizabeth Wilde, with her knees drawn up and nearly touching her chin pressed her back against the butcher block that sat in the middle of the kitchen trying to ball herself up as small as possible. It wasn’t fear that was causing her to shrink up it was a strong desire to remain undiscovered until she had come up with a way out of this most unfortunate predicament she had now found herself in.
For a moment her eyes rolled upward, she knew she could not see it but Honor knew it was there sitting on top of the butcher block. The six-inch knife still sat buried in the key lime pie right next to the two plates holding equal size slices that Josiah had carved out and placed on them only a few minutes ago before the evening had devolved into one of life or death. Honor was thinking hard about the knife, just as hard as she was about the fact that it the intruder came into the kitchen for any reason he would see the two plates and know Josiah was not alone and her discovery would be a certainty.
Gently she turned herself around onto her knees, her large bare breasts that were part and parcel of being one of the four Wilde sisters pressed against the cool wood of the butcher block as she slowly raised up and used both hands to snatch the two plates away as quickly as possible. Honor put them on the floor and slid them underneath the nearby sink. In short order she had done the same with the pie itself but the knife remained in her hand. Now she at least had a weapon.
She wiped the residue of key lime pie on her left thigh and then examined the knife. It wasn’t the weapon her Bowie knife was but it was sharp and would serve her nicely if…or rather when she needed it. For a moment she thought of her knife and of her Colt. 45. Both were back in her room at the hotel. She had left them behind because she had just been going on a simple date for heaven’s sake! Her rendezvous with Josiah from the livery stable had hardly seemed like it would call for her to show up armed. Besides, what would the man think if she arrived at his home, a Bowie knife on one hip and the six shooter on the other?
Water under the bridge dear Honor she thought as the sound of brutish laughter was coming from the bedroom. Josiah was being taunted by the very man who had crossed half a continent to catch up with him and the brute was clearly enjoying every minute of it.
“When I lay them pictures of your black hide out in front of him Dumont is gonna make me a rich man! All gonna be worth it boy! This gravy train I’ve been a riding ever since the end of that northern war of aggression is gonna end for me but it’s gonna end big!”
The voice dripped with mirth and hatred entwined but Honor hadn’t paid much attention to the words that followed he had mentioned the pictures. Earlier she had heard him mention the camera. Slowly she felt her lips took a turn upward and she nodded her head up and down twice, making her curly ringlets shake. The photography equipment, that was what was going to help her.
Honor’s eyes looked up at the small open window above the sink. When she had arrived earlier the pie had been sitting in the windowsill where it had been cooling. When Josiah had plucked it from the sill he had never bothered to close the window. She found herself most grateful for that fact because who knew how much noise it might make if she had to open it.
Slowly she stood and looked back over and looked at the door to the bed room. Max’s place was small and the door to the bed room opened right out onto the combined living room and kitchen. All the brute had to do was open the door and this time he would be sure to find her she fretted knowing luck had saved her before when he had first kicked the door in. Time to be hasty she concluded and looked at the knife and tossed it out the window. Gently she pulled her body up onto the sink.
Honor Elizabeth again gazed back over her shoulder before she began to crawl through the tiny opening. She froze for a moment as her heart shaped ass bumped wooden part of the frame just below the glass. This would be a hell of a position to be caught in if the killer burst into the kitchen just now. If things weren’t so deadly serious she could almost have laughed at the image. Honor continued to wriggle forward and a moment later she tumbled the three to four feet to the ground, landing on her side before rolling over onto her belly. Reaching out she felt around until her hand closed around the hilt of the knife.
And a reminder this and other Wilde adventures now available or coming soon.
THE WILDES OF THE WEST #1: THE DAUGHTERS OF HALF BREED HAVEN
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HALF BREED HAVEN #2: IN DANGER’S SHADOW
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COMING SOON in 2018
HALF BREED HAVEN WESTERN SHORT STORIES: THE FORBIDDEN RANCH
(An Honor Elizabeth Wilde adult western adventure)
HALF BREED HAVEN WESTERN SHORT STORIES: SING THE DEATH SONG
(A Dutch Wilde & Bright Feather adult western adventure)
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HALF BREED HAVEN WESTERN SHORT STORIES: DISASTER AT DEVIL’S CANYON
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Silver, Gold And Deception: Catalina Wilde Western Adventure (Half Breed Haven Book 4) Page 13