by Laura Beers
“What if they didn’t?” he pressed. “What if they abducted these three women and are keeping them on the ranch.”
Sheriff Washburn sat back down on his chair. “Do you have any proof?”
“Timothy Barrow saw a man loading Miss Price into a wagon and driving north from their property?”
The sheriff clenched his jaw. “You want me to take the word of an eight-year-old?” He glanced over to the darkened window. “We’ll go visit Henry tomorrow.”
Taking a commanding step toward the desk, he declared, “It has to be tonight.”
“It’s dark outside.”
“I am aware of that.”
Sheriff Washburn frowned. “What if you’re wrong?”
He shrugged. “Then, we will apologize and keep looking. I’ll search every homestead from here to California if I have to.”
“If I say no, you’ll go without me, won’t you?”
“Absolutely, I will,” Dawson vowed.
“Fine,” Sheriff Washburn said, rising from his chair. “We’ll ride out and meet with Mr. Davy tonight. However, if we’re wrong, we wait until the morning to continue our search.”
“I can agree to that.”
Sheriff Washburn reached for the hat on his desk. “Come on. Let’s get the horses from the livery, assuming Paul is still open.”
As Dawson followed Sheriff Washburn out of his office, he knew that he would do whatever it took to get Alexina home safely. And back into his arms where she belonged.
10
Alexina’s eyes felt impossibly heavy as she attempted to open them. She heard a man’s voice from somewhere far away. “I think you might have killed her.”
“I didn’t hit her that hard,” another male voice replied.
“If you killed her, we might not get another chance for a woman.”
“I didn’t kill her!”
She groaned as she tried to ignore the pain radiating from the back of her head. What had happened? She felt like she’d been hit by a train.
“She’s alive!”
“I told you, you idiot.”
Another man’s voice spoke up. “Give her some space.” That voice almost sounded familiar, but she couldn’t place it.
She heard booted steps. “Alexina, wake up, dear.” It was the man that just spoke. But how did he know her name? And why did he just call her ‘dear’?
With great effort, she forced opened her eyes. And blinked. Three black-haired men, all with similar features, were staring back at her, and the one closest to her was Henry Davy.
“What happened?” she asked, bringing her hand to the side of her head.
Henry smiled kindly at her. “I brought you home.”
“Home?”
Her eyes took in the log cabin with a brick fireplace in the corner and a narrow set of stairs leading up to the next level. She was sitting on a crudely built sofa in the main room. There was a door in the front, and a rear door next to the set of stairs.
Henry gave her an encouraging nod as he knelt in front of her. “Yes, you are to be my wife.”
She closed her eyes, hoping this was just a bad nightmare, but when she didn’t immediately wake up, she knew this was truly happening. It seems she was at Henry’s homestead, and these two men must be his brothers.
“She’s scared,” one of the men commented behind Henry. “I would be, too. I’d hate to be your wife, Henry.”
“Shut up, Billy,” Henry growled, turning his head to look at his brother.
Slowly, her hand slid down toward the pocket of her skirt, and she was frustrated to discover that her pistol wasn’t tucked away in its pocket.
Henry reached for her hand. “I removed the pistol from your pocket. I couldn’t possibly leave a weapon on you, now could I?”
“Why are you doing this?” she asked in a raspy voice.
Coming to sit next to her on the sofa, Henry explained, “My brothers and I needed wives, and we were tired of waiting for mail-order brides.”
“So, you came up with the genius plan of abducting women?” she asked incredulously.
Billy spoke up. “It was Henry’s idea. He got me my Sarah.”
“And he got me Deborah,” the other brother said.
Her eyes roamed the room. “Where are these women?”
“Upstairs,” Henry shared. “We wanted to make sure you were still alive before we introduced them to you.”
Furrowing her brows, Alexina attempted to make sense of all of this. “By abducting us, you won’t ever be able to bring us to town.”
“Why would we need to bring you to town?” Henry asked.
“What if one of us needs a doctor?”
“Then, we’ll go to the next town over.”
Sensing his logic was flawed, Alexina wanted to know what level of craziness she was dealing with. The only way to tell was by asking more questions.
“Will we never be able to go to church again?”
He shook his head. “Not until we’re sure you won’t try to run away.”
“Will our children be able to attend school?”
He gave her a baffled look. “Why would we need to send our children to school when you are a schoolteacher.”
Right. “Do I have the option of not being your wife?”
Henry’s eyes turned fiery. “You do not. As far as you are concerned, you belong to me from here on out.”
“I belong to no man,” she said, tilting her chin defiantly.
Without warning, he slapped her face with the back of his hand. “You belong to me!” he exclaimed.
Alexina held her throbbing cheek. It was time for her to play the demure woman until she found a way to escape.
She nodded and whispered, “I understand.”
“Good,” Henry declared, rising. “Once you have proven yourself trustworthy, you will start earning privileges, such as going to the outhouse without an escort.”
Alexina bit her lower lip as if trying to prevent herself from crying.
Taking her silence as acceptance, Henry turned toward the stairs. “Ladies. Come down here at once.”
Immediately, Alexina could hear footsteps coming down the stairs. She glanced over and saw two women walking down the stairs in simple light blue dresses. Their hair was pulled back into low buns, which only seemed to highlight the bruising visible on their faces. These poor women have been beaten into submission, she thought.
“Is supper almost ready, Sarah?” Billy asked as he stared at the red-headed woman.
Averting her eyes, she nodded. “Yes, it’s just simmering now.” Her voice was timid.
“Good,” he replied. “I’m famished.”
The other brother walked up to the fair, blonde-haired woman. He kissed her cheek, and Alexina couldn’t help but notice how she cringed at his nearness. He whispered something in her ear, and she nodded.
Taking advantage of the distraction, Alexina moved her right foot, and was pleased when she realized Henry hadn’t found the sheathed dagger in her boot. Nor had he found the derringer tucked into her corset. Unfortunately, the derringer could only fire two shots, and there were three men.
Henry walked over to the door and declared, “We need to put the horses away before dinner. Come with me, Billy and William. If we all go, we can hurry and get back for supper sooner.”
William looked over at her. “Do you think it’s safe to leave Alexina alone?”
In response, Alexina lowered her gaze submissively to the floor.
“I do, especially if we lock them in,” Henry chided, acting as if his brother was a simpleton. He opened the door and stood to the side as his brothers exited the log cabin. Once they had stepped through, he closed the door and locked it from the outside.
Immediately, Alexina jumped up from the sofa. “We don’t have a lot of time. We need to find a way to escape.”
Sarah shook her head. “It’s impossible. We’re locked in from the outside on the front, and the back door has a lock on it.”
“What about the windows?” she asked, walking over to the back door.
“Those are nailed shut,” the blonde-haired woman revealed.
Taking the iron lock in her hand, Alexina knew that she could pick this lock. She turned to face the ladies. “I’m assuming you are the missing schoolteachers.”
They looked at her with blank stares for a moment.
Sarah spoke first. “We are. I am Sarah Jolley.”
“And I am Deborah Price.
Coming closer to the two women, she kept her voice low. “My name is Alexina, and I’m a Pinkerton agent. My partner and I have been searching for you, along with the entire town of Hidden Ditch. Everyone is rooting for you to come back safely.”
Sarah let out a relieved sigh. “You’re a Pinkerton agent?”
“Yes, and I can pick that lock,” Alexina stated, pointing toward the back door. “But you both need to be prepared to run.”
Deborah shook her head vehemently. “If we try to escape, and we fail, they’ll punish us. Or worse, kill us.”
“I am not staying here another night, Deborah,” Sarah said in a firm tone. “I can’t stay here. I would rather die trying to escape.”
Alexina gave her an approving nod. “Good. Now where can we run to?”
Walking over to the window, Sarah pointed at a cropping of trees thirty yards away. “The outhouse is by those trees, and I’ve seen plenty of places to hide near there.”
“It sounds like you’ve been planning your own escape,” Alexina commented with an arched eyebrow.
Sarah nodded. “I was just waiting for the right opportunity, but I didn’t want to leave Deborah behind.”
“Thank you,” Deborah said softly.
Reaching into her hair, Alexina pulled out two long hair pins. “I’m going to unlock this door. Once it’s open, we will all run as fast as we can to those trees. Don’t stop for any reason. If you fall, get back up and keep running. Understood?”
“Hold on,” Sarah stated, heading over to the kitchen and picking up a cast iron pan. “I’m ready.”
Alexina smiled. “Good choice. I have a derringer and a dagger, but a pan could also come in handy.” She approached the door. “Ready?”
She pushed the two sharp pins into the lock and gently moved them about to catch or lift the internal pins. She felt the mechanism giving away, and she heard the unmistakable click of the lock being opened.
“Do all Pinkerton agents know how to pick locks?” Sarah asked from behind her.
“All agents that are worth their salt do,” she replied, removing the lock from the door.
Alexina slid off her skirt to reveal her trousers, and she removed the derringer from her corset. She holstered it onto her thigh before turning toward the women. “When I open this door, we’ll all run to the cover of the trees.”
“I’m scared,” Deborah whispered, wringing her hands together.
“Don’t be,” Alexina encouraged. “My partner will be here soon to provide additional back up. I want you to find a secure place to hide, and I’ll take out the men, one by one.”
Sarah placed her arm around Deborah’s shoulder. “You know what our future is if we stay here. Do you truly want to stay here another night with William?”
Deborah shook her head. “No. I do not.”
“Then we take this chance… together,” Sarah pressed.
“Together,” Deborah agreed.
Reaching for the door handle, Alexina started counting down. “Three… two… one…”
She opened the door and was pleased to see Sarah and Deborah immediately start racing toward the trees. She closed the door and followed them. Just as she was about to clear the trees, she heard one of the men shout, “They’ve escaped!”
At the sound of a man shouting, Dawson reined in his horse near the edge of the Davy’s Ranch. “Did you hear that?”
“I did,” Sheriff Washburn said. “It sounded like it was coming from Davy’s home.”
“We can’t just ride onto their property or we’ll be sitting ducks,” Dawson contended. “How much further to the house?”
“The land surrounding the south side of the Davy’s Ranch is covered by trees, but it’s a straight shot to the cottage if we cut through the trees here,” the sheriff revealed, dismounting.
Dawson dismounted and secured his horse’s lead to a tree. “If I know my wife, she would have tried to hide in these trees.”
“What if she hasn’t escaped yet?”
“Then, I will go to hell and back to find her,” he vowed.
The sheriff frowned. “Do I need to remind you that abducting a woman is not a capital offense? There’d better be no killing.”
“I worked as a deputy for eight years before becoming a Pinkerton agent. I know that killing a suspect is always the last resort.”
“Good,” the sheriff stated, removing his pistol from his gun belt. “Stay close. I don’t want to lose you in the cover of the trees.”
With his pistol in his right hand, Dawson started following the sheriff through the trees, with only the moonlight providing any light.
The sound of a snapping twig in the distance caused his head to whip toward the noise. “Sheriff,” he murmured, attempting to get his attention. But the sheriff was already too far ahead.
Dawson headed toward the direction of the noise. Unexpectedly, someone jumped out at him, and reared back, preparing to swing a dark object at him. He grabbed the attacker’s wrist and twisted it to the side. A woman whimpered as she dropped the object onto the leaf-covered ground.
Recognizing this woman was not a threat, he dropped her wrist and asked in a low voice, “Who are you?”
She stilled. “Sarah Jolley.”
“You’re one of the missing teachers,” he responded in a relieved tone. “Is Alexina with you?” He took a step closer to see her more clearly.
A red-headed woman stared back at him. “Are you her partner?”
“I am.”
“You are a Pinkerton agent, too,” she said, breathing a sigh of relief.
“I am.” His eyes scanned the surrounding area. “Where is Miss Price?”
“I’m here,” Miss Price answered, stepping out from behind a tree.
“Where is Alexina?” he asked again.
Miss Jolley pointed south. “She went back to try to intercept the men.”
“Of course, she did,” he mumbled. Reaching into his boot, he pulled out a small pistol. “Do either of you know how to use this?”
Miss Jolley nodded. “I do.”
“Good,” he said, extending it toward her. “You both need a better place to hide.”
Miss Jolley accepted the pistol and hugged it to her chest.
“Are we dealing with just Henry and his two brothers?” he asked.
“Yes,” Miss Price answered.
Dawson nodded approvingly. “The sheriff is with me. I want you to hide and only use that weapon as a last resort. Understood?”
Miss Jolley nodded her understanding.
“Go and hide. We’ll find you shortly,” he said, taking a step and kicking something hard with his boot. He reached down and picked up a cast iron skillet. He turned back toward Miss Jolley. “Is this what you were swinging at me?”
“It was,” she confirmed.
“Well done!” He extended it to Miss Price. “That might come in handy as well.”
Taking off into the trees, he was grateful that his eyes had adjusted enough that he could see around him.
“Girls!” a man shouted, his voice echoing through the trees. “You will pay for this!”
Creeping closer to the voice, he ducked down and saw a man approaching him with a shotgun in his hand, scanning the trees.
Dawson was about to confront him and order him to stop when suddenly, the man crumbled to the ground, not moving. Behind him, stood Alexina with a pistol in her hand, wearing trousers. She holstered the derringer to her thigh before reaching down and pulling the shotgun out of the man’
s loose grip.
“Alexina,” he whispered.
“Dawson?” She cocked the shotgun. “Good. You’re here. We have two suspects left. One is Henry Davy.”
She turned to leave when he urged, “Stop.”
Turning back toward him, she gave him an exasperated look. “Dawson…” She stopped speaking when he rushed over to her and pulled her into a tight embrace.
He pulled back slightly and looked at her. “I’m so glad that you are safe.”
“I won’t be unless we round up the other two suspects,” she stated firmly. “Whatever has come over you needs to stop. This is not the time to be sentimental.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he said with a mock salute.
She turned to leave again when he shared, “Sheriff Washburn is with me. Try not to shoot him.”
Without saying another word, she disappeared back into the cover of the trees.
Keeping his pistol low, he started walking through the trees looking for Henry or his brother. A shadowy form of a man appeared up ahead. He kept low and moved to intercept him. As he drew closer, he saw a dark-haired man with a long stick in his hand. He stepped behind a tree and waited for the man to approach him.
The moment the man was next to the tree, Dawson took his right fist and plowed it into the man’s jaw. The man fell to the ground without making a sound.
One suspect left. Henry Davy.
Dawson heard a commotion near him, followed by a pistol discharging into the night. He immediately charged toward the noise but stopped when he saw Sherriff Washburn on the ground with Henry Davy standing over him, a gun aimed at his chest. Dawson crouched behind a large shrub, attempting to formulate his next course of action.
“Don’t do this, Davy,” Sherriff Washburn pleaded. “If you kill me, you’ll be hunted down, caught, and hung.”
Davy laughed. “With what evidence?” He cocked his pistol.
Bringing up his revolver, Dawson aimed it at Davy’s heart, but before he could pull the trigger, Alexina stepped out from behind a tree, her shotgun trained on Davy.
“It’s over, Davy,” she declared. “Put down your gun and walk away with your life.”