Denton's Bride (Runaway Mail-Order Bride Book 1)

by Marie Higgins

  They’d taken her buggy with Denton’s horse tied to the back, and as they rode through the main street in Helena, Courtney pulled back in the seat and stopped fidgeting. She didn’t want to draw attention to herself.

  Denton had also worn a disguise. He’d told her that several people in Helena recognized him, and they would definitely notice when he suddenly had a woman on his arm. He wore a top hat like an upper-class gentleman and even found a fake mustache and spectacles. Out of the two, he was the one who looked like someone entirely different. She still felt that her face and eyes would give her identity away.

  They stopped at the hotel, and Denton climbed down, using his walking stick for show only, and helped her out of the vehicle. She kept her gaze down to the ground as she hooked her arm around his and moved with him inside the building.

  As Denton stood by the counter to check them in, she pressed herself to his side and kept from looking around the lobby. He checked them in as Mr. and Mrs. Duane Parker. She wasn’t sure if her fluttering heart was due to her nerves, or because she looked forward to pretending to be his wife. The kiss they had shared last night had stayed on her mind, keeping her from getting much sleep, and definitely keeping her daydreaming during their journey. Denton was a very passionate man, and being married to him would be an everyday thrill for her.

  Denton tipped a lad who worked for the hotel into bringing up their trunks. Of course, she knew it was only her clothes in the trunks, but nobody else had to know that. Denton played the part of the aristocrat gentleman perfectly. It eased her worries slightly that perhaps nobody would notice they were in disguise. It was a good thing he was with her. She would have botched this up by now on her own.

  They didn’t say anything as they climbed the stairs to their room, and once they were inside and the trunks were hauled up, Denton closed the door and locked it. She sighed heavily and yanked off her wig, tossing it on the bed. She scrubbed her fingers through her hair, pulling it out of the tight coil it had once been, but she didn’t care. Her poor scalp had been punished enough.

  Denton chuckled and took off his mustache and spectacles. “I take it that the wig didn’t suit you, Mrs. Parker?”

  She rolled her eyes. “All it did was make my head itch.”

  “Then, I’m relieved you won’t be going out with me this evening when I visit Albert’s estate.”

  “I will stay inside and read a book.” She nodded decisively.

  “And, you mustn’t answer the door – not for anyone. I’ll have a key, so you don’t need to worry about me.”

  He moved to the bed and took off his top hat and his long coat. He dug through his carpetbag and pulled out his regular coat and hat. Courtney had to admit she thought he was much better looking this way.

  “Do you think Albert’s children are still at his estate?”

  Denton shrugged. “I don’t know, but I would think they are. They need to get their father ready for burial, and then they’ll have to figure out what to do about his estate.”

  Courtney moved to the wall and leaned her back against it as she watched Denton prepare himself to leave as the bounty hunter. What they were pretending was very improper, but what other choice did they have? Although this was wrong, being away from her heartless parents and on her own gave her a sense of freedom she’d never had before. She liked feeling as if she was in control of her own life – even though at the moment, she still felt helpless. That would change. She was confident Denton would discover something.

  “I’m sure Louise will claim the estate, especially when everyone else has their own place to live,” she said, returning to the conversation.

  He glanced at her and winked. “I was thinking that very thing.”

  “Then, am I to assume she will be the first one you start questioning?”

  “You assume correctly, Mrs. Parker.”

  She smiled, loving how he kept calling her that name as if he enjoyed their role play. Of course, she knew it would come to an end. The only thing she wouldn’t miss would be the wig.

  He stuffed his pistol inside his coat and turned to her, smiling. “I have a good feeling about this. God willing, I’ll catch the killer today.”

  “And I will pray that you do.”

  He stood staring at her for several undisturbed seconds, and her heartbeat quickened. Would he kiss her before he left? She wouldn’t mind it at all. He took another pistol out of his carpetbag and placed it on the bed.

  “I’m leaving this here for you, just in case you need it.”

  She stared at the weapon and gulped. “I’m not sure I can use one. You saw what happened the last time I held a gun.”

  “I have faith in you.” He winked. “Besides, that last time you held a gun, the bank robbers had pointed the gun at us, so it was a natural reaction to have.”

  “All right. I just hope I don’t have to use it.”

  “Me, too.”

  He headed toward the door, and her hopes sank. It looked as if she wasn’t going to get a kiss goodbye after all.

  “Remember,” he said as he rested his hand on the doorknob, “don’t open the door for anyone, and stay away from the window.”

  “I’ll do nothing but read and sleep while you’re gone.” She gave him a reassuring smile.

  He left the room, and she heard him lock the door on the other side. Sighing, she frowned. Already, she missed him. The rest of the day was going to be very boring.

  DENTON WAS DETERMINED, and he wouldn’t let anything get in the way. He’d convinced himself that he needed that minor distraction when he kissed Courtney last night, but now he would do what he was being paid for and find Albert’s killer. He wouldn’t allow himself to think of the beautiful woman who sighed like an angel and kissed so passionately. And he definitely wouldn’t daydream about his future and how he’d love to settle down with the perfect woman and have children. And thinking about living in a small town with his family and changing professions would have to come later, too.

  It hadn’t taken him long to reach the Greenwood estate. The butler, Mr. Tibbs, let him in.

  “Good afternoon, Tibbs,” Denton greeted nicely.

  “Good afternoon, Mr. Reed.” The older man arched a bushy white eyebrow. “If you have come to speak with Master Terrance, he is not here.”

  Denton’s enthusiasm waned slightly. “When will he return?”

  “Not for a few days. He is traveling to Stumptown.”

  “Stumptown? Did he say why?”

  “He just said he was looking into purchasing a fishing boat.”

  Denton wanted to roll his eyes, and at the same time, he squashed the jealous feelings of not knowing what it was like to have that much money. “Then, I’ll have to speak to him when he returns.” He glanced around the spacious hallway. “Is any of Albert’s children at the estate today?”

  “Master Clive and Miss Louise are here.”

  “Splendid.” Denton’s hopes lifted again. “Can you tell them I’m here? I’d like to speak with them in the parlor.” He nodded toward the nearest room.

  “Yes, Mr. Reed. I’ll fetch them now.”

  As Denton moved into the room, his gaze partook of all the marbled statues and busts used as decorations. Mr. Greenwood must have had an obsession with these. Denton was willing to bet he’d find them in every room on the estate's main floor.

  He walked to one that looked to be the size of the bust that smashed Albert’s head. As he picked it up, he weighed the object in his hands. In his mind, he pictured a petite woman like Courtney trying to lift it high before quickly bringing it down and whacking someone over the head with it.

  Denton shook his head. There was no way Courtney could do this, which meant... He frowned. Perhaps he should take Louise off his suspects’ list since she was petite like Courtney.

  That left Clive. The man had a gambling problem, and if he knew that his father had changed the will, Clive might want to lash out at his parent.

  “I hope you are here to br
ing us some good news, Mr. Reed.”

  Denton jerked out of his thoughts and turned toward Miss Greenwood. She wore a black mourning dress, and her dark red hair was pulled back in a tight coil at the back of her head. Her face was pale, and the color of her hair only made it worse. He’d never seen her look so drab. Black was definitely not her color.

  “Good afternoon, Miss Greenwood. I actually don’t have any good news to give you, not yet.”

  She scowled. “You didn’t find Miss Mills?” She huffed. “Then what have you been doing these past few days?”

  Denton didn’t like it when people assumed he wasn’t doing his job, but he held his tongue under the circumstances. “I did find Miss Mills.” He nodded. “I questioned her, and I don’t think she killed your father.”

  Louise gasped loudly. “You’ve got to be joking. Of course, she killed Father. She was about to marry a man twice her age, and she wanted out.”

  “Miss Greenwood,” Denton said, trying to stay calm, “I’ve been a bounty hunter for a few years. By now, I think I’d know what makes a person guilty and what makes them innocent.” He stepped closer to her. “Please, let me do my job. I assure you, I know how to find a killer.”

  She shook her head. “You may be Terrance’s friend, but you’re not mine, and I don’t have any faith in you at all. You probably took one look at Miss Mills and decided that someone that lovely couldn’t possibly be a murderer.” She folded her arms across her chest. “Miss Mills probably batted her long eyelashes at you, and you fell head-over-heels.”

  Denton received the impression that Louise was jealous of Courtney. Then again, Louise really wasn’t considered that pretty. He was sure that when men looked at her, they only saw dollar signs. Her rotten temperament was something most genteel women didn’t possess, either.

  “Miss Greenwood? Did you actually see Miss Mills kill your father?”

  “Of course not.”

  “Where were you that morning? Maybe you saw something that might lead me to the killer.”

  “I was in my room, asleep. You can ask the servants if you don’t believe me. I usually sleep until mid-morning.”

  Denton didn’t believe her. She’d used the word usually, which led him to believe that she just might have been awake that morning. Yet, even if she was awake, would she have the strength to life the bust of George Washington? He might have to test her.

  “Did you not plan on attending your father’s wedding ceremony?”

  She rolled her eyes. “Why would I? Father knew I didn’t approve of his fiancée. None of his children approved of her.”

  “So, none of you were going to attend the ceremony?”

  “Not one of us.” She shrugged. “And Father knew that.”

  Denton slowly walked toward her and pointed to the bust of Marie Antoinette on a pedestal. “I’ve always wondered about these in your father’s home. Why does he have so many?”

  “That was my mother’s pride and joy while she was alive. She made them. Her signature is on all of them.”

  He arched an eyebrow in surprise. “Really? How amazing. Where is her signature?”

  She lifted the bust of Marie Antoinette and showed him the bottom. Although he pretended to look for the dead woman’s signature, he mainly studied how Louise held the bust. She didn’t seem to struggle with it, yet he could see it was heavy by the way she cradled it in her arms.

  Disappointment crept over him. He really wanted Louise to be guilty so that he could arrest her right now.

  “I must admit,” he said, straightening, “that I’ve never seen anything like it. Your mother had a great talent.”

  “Yes, she did.” Louise placed the bust back, turned toward Denton, and took a deep breath. “I wish my mother were still alive. Then none of this would have happened.”

  “Indeed.” He blew out a heavy breath. “Have you seen Clive? Tibbs was supposed to have found him for me.”

  She shrugged. “I’m not my brother’s keeper, which is a good thing, or I’d be at the saloons and gaming tables most of the time, and if you must know, I have better things to do with my days.”

  “I’m right here,” Clive snapped as he swaggered into the room.

  The man’s eyes were bloodshot, and Denton could smell the stench of alcohol – and a painted lady’s cheap perfume – from across the room. Hopefully, the man was in his right mind to answer some of Denton’s questions.

  “Oh, heavens to Betsy, Clive.” Louise fanned her hand in front of her face. “I’m guessing you were locked away in a bottle of whiskey all night and morning?”

  Clive threw his sister a scowl. “Leave me alone. We each grieve in different ways.”

  Louise huffed and turned to Denton. “Are you done asking me questions?”

  “Yes. You may leave.”

  “Finally. Now, I suggest you go do the job Terrance hired you to do, or I’ll tell him to find someone else.” She spun around and hurried out of the door. Her booted heels clicked on the wooden floor in the hallway.

  Denton counted to ten under his breath. He wanted to put the woman in her place, but perhaps he’d do it at a later date. He turned his focus on Terrance’s brother and motioned to the nearest sofa. “Do you need to sit, Clive? You don’t look too steady.”

  Clive brushed his hand in the air as he made his way to the piece of furniture and plopped down. Denton was surprised that the man landed on the seat cushions. Would he get the answers he sought? It was harder to read a man suffering from a hangover, but he hoped this would be the time Denton would know if the man was guilty or not.

  NINE

  “WHAT WAS MY SISTER squawking about?” Clive mumbled.

  “It’s nothing.” Denton stepped to the door and closed it. “Louise just doesn’t know everything a bounty hunter has to do to find a criminal.”

  “So, Tibbs tells me you have to talk to me.”

  Denton nodded. “I do.” He moved to a chair across from the sofa and sat. He leaned forward, resting his arms on his knees. “I have heard from Louise and Terrance, but I haven’t heard how you felt about your father marrying Miss Mills.”

  Clive shrugged. “At first, I didn’t care. It was my father’s life.”

  “What made you start to care?”

  Clive stared at the floor for a few silent moments, and his expression darkened. “Did you know,” he said slowly, “that my father was cutting us all out of his will?”

  Denton was relieved that Clive knew, only because he wasn’t sure how to touch on that awkward subject. “I learned that yesterday.”

  “Do you know how it feels,” Clive lifted his blood-shot gaze to Denton, “when your father tells you that he’s not giving you an inheritance?”

  Denton shook his head. “My father wasn’t wealthy, so no, I don’t know how that feels.”

  “You feel cheated!” Clive’s voice lifted in anger. “And when I found out that the old man was going to give everything to his new wife... That was like a kick in the gut.”

  “I can imagine.” Denton frowned. “Did you ask your father why he did that?”

  “Yes.” Clive pushed his fingers through his hair. “It’s because he was tired of seeing his children spend their money on useless things.” His expression hardened. “My father thought I wasn’t worth it.”

  “Clive,” Denton said, hoping to ask the important question with the right tone of voice as not to upset him, “did you try to stop your father?”

  “Many times.” He snorted a cynical laugh. “But the man was bullheaded.”

  “How about the morning of his wedding? Did you try to talk some sense into him then?”

  Clive shook his head. “I had been drinking quite a bit after I stormed out of the house the night before. I had fallen asleep in the stable.” He shrugged. “At least that is where I woke up after Terrance found me to tell me Father had been murdered.”

  Inwardly, Denton seethed. Just as he’d thought, the man had been too drunk to remember. Either that, or he was l
ying. Didn’t Clive realize that Denton could ask the servants who worked in the stable to see if Clive was telling the truth? Of course, Denton would do that very thing once he was finished with Clive. In fact, Denton would also find those servants who had been with Albert Greenwood the longest. They would be the dependable ones... and hopefully, the ones that would tell Denton what he wanted to know. Someone had to have seen something.

  COURTNEY TOSSED HER book on the sofa and growled in frustration. Denton had been gone for several hours, and she was anxious to hear what he’d found out. She’d promised him to stay inside the hotel, but the walls were closing in on her, and she wanted to scream.

  She left the couch and moved to the window. Keeping the curtain drawn, she peeked through the slit and looked at the busy street below. From the color of the sky, Courtney could see that the sun was making its descent on the horizon. Many people still littered the streets, and even some children were seen playing on the boardwalks while their mothers visited with other women.

  Carefully, Courtney lifted the window to let in some cooler air. So far, nobody – that she could see – had looked her way on the second floor of the hotel. She was grateful for that.

  Out of the corner of her eye, a woman with burnt-red hair, wearing a black gown with the same colored shawl, stopped near the corner of the building just across the alleyway from the hotel. Courtney only knew one woman with that wild color of hair. Louise!

  Sucking in a panicked breath, Courtney pulled away from the window, yet continued to peek out to see what Louise was doing by the saloon. The woman anxiously glanced up and down the street as she twisted her hands against her middle. Courtney wondered why someone in mourning would be out in public – and near the saloon, for heaven’s sake.

  Her stomach churned with suspicion. Although she’d promised Denton not to leave the room, she must get closer to Louise to see what the woman was doing.