His words were partially lost to her, for her mind was unclear. “Buck”—she groaned—“The…baby. I…lost it. Our baby.”
Hank frowned. He knew nothing about women having babies, nothing about miscarriages. She looked terrible. Was she bleeding to death or something?
He touched her warm forehead. “What’s that? You lose a baby, honey?”
“Last…night,” she whispered. “I’ve got to bury…my baby…table.”
Hank looked at the table, where a towel lay. He rose and carefully opened it, grimacing at the little bloody mess that lay within. “My God!” he whispered. Then he looked over at Harmony. The girl was obviously very sick. He quickly got some water. She had lost a lot of blood, and she would need water. Gently, he raised her head and helped her drink.
He wondered why Buck had left her here alone. The whole town was whispering about why, after seeing an assayer, Buck Hanner had ridden out of Cripple Creek and never returned, about why he hadn’t stopped to give Jack Leads an explanation of his departure. And the whole town was wondering about Harmony Jones. She’d been on the mountain ten months. If Buck had gone back up to her, he’d told no one. Now Hank could see that Buck wasn’t here. Apparently he hadn’t come here when he’d left Cripple Creek, for the cabin was nearly empty of food.
To Hank’s relief, Harmony drifted off again. He hadn’t the slightest idea what to do for her so he decided to wait until she was conscious and could tell him. In the meantime he’d get some food together for her and make a pot of soup. But first he would bury the baby. He picked up the little package with a heavy heart. Surely Buck hadn’t deliberately deserted her. Not Buck Hanner. But what else was one to think? There was no other answer, yet it made no sense. No sense at all.
He shook his head, and picking up the partially formed infant, he walked out of the cabin. Now he knew why the door hadn’t been bolted. She must have been too weak to do it. “Poor child!” he muttered. He’d watch over her, for Buck. He couldn’t believe Buck wouldn’t be back.
Harmony sat up in bed sipping the hot soup gratefully. But there was no softness in her green eyes. They looked lifeless and bitter. It was over now. Done. She would revert to her old independent self.
“There is really no other explanation,” she told Hank coldly. “Buck Hanner isn’t coming back. I would like to believe that he’s dead”—she met Hank’s sorrowful eyes—“but there’s been no report of his body being found, has there?”
The man sighed and shook his head. “This is a big country, Harmony. A man can die and not be found for days—weeks.”
“Buck was good with a gun, good with everything. That leaves only one conclusion. He took my gold and left.”
Hank scratched his head. “I can’t believe that, honey. I just can’t.”
“I can,” she said matter-of-factly. “People have been walking away from me all my life. My parents abandoned me when I was six years old, Hank—left me on the docks of St. Louis. If a kind man hadn’t come along when he did, I’d have been hauled off by a couple of thugs and sold into some kind of slavery, but my parents didn’t care.” She sipped more soup. “Don’t worry about it, Hank. I’m used to it.”
He watched her finish the soup. He didn’t believe her. She was building a wall around herself, hiding her feelings. She was turning from a sweet child into a cold woman. There was even a cruel streak about her now, a hardness despite her smallness and her youth.
“I’ll be well enough to travel in a few days, Hank,” she was telling him. “I’d like you to take me to Cripple Creek, where I’ll find help in getting good men up here to mine my claim. I’ve hit a mother lode.”
“I…uh…I seen that. I was scratchin’ around out there. You hit it big, Miss Harmony, right big. You’ll be a rich lady.”
“Of course I will,” she answered. “That’s what I had in mind when I came out here, to be rich and independent. Buck turned my mind for a while, but he’s done me a favor. He’s really taught me not to trust anyone but myself. I take it you didn’t stuff any of my gold into your pockets?”
She saw the hurt in his eyes and hated herself for making such a remark. She didn’t know why she was behaving this way, but she couldn’t seem to stop herself. If felt good to hurt someone else. It actually felt good. It relieved some of her own hurt, hurt that she refused to fully recognize. She had forced herself not to think of Buck Hanner with anything but hatred, but that hatred was being directed at the wrong people. It was Buck she wanted to hurt most of all, but he wasn’t here. Hank was.
“I’m sorry, Hank,” she declared, leaning back. “I didn’t mean that. You’ve been good to me, nursed me. You could have taken advantage of me, but you didn’t. I guess I’d have to say you are one person I trust, but not completely. I’ll never trust anyone completely again.”
He came over and took the bowl from her. “It’s all right, Miss Harmony. You’ve been through a lot. But I wish you wouldn’t draw your conclusions yet. I just can’t believe Buck would up and leave you like that. I’ve known him a long time. He’s a good man, dependable—”
“He’s a drifter,” she cut in. “A drifter with a dream. I gave him just enough gold to realize that dream without having any responsibility attached, and I gave him something more precious than my gold. I’ll never get that back. He stole my pride, Hank—my pride, and my faith, and whatever love I had inside of me. There is nothing left for me now but my gold, and I like to keep busy. So I will decide how to spend my money—get into some kind of business, perhaps. I’ll go to Cripple Creek, maybe give Wade Tillis a run for his money. That would be fun.”
Hank sighed. “If that’s what you want,” he answered.
“That’s exactly what I want. I helped run a very large supply store back in St. Louis. I know all about business, Hank. It’s time I applied my knowledge. And do me a favor.”
He looked at her with sad eyes.
“Don’t mention Buck Hanner again,” she told him firmly. “He’s gone, and that’s that. I’m trying very hard to forget him, so the less you talk about him the better.”
He frowned. “You’re the one who brung up his name,” he reminded her.
Her eyes flashed angrily. “You just remember what I said!” she spat out. Then she turned over, pulling the quilts up around her neck.
Harmony Jones was not even halfway through town before most people were in the street, staring at her and shouting questions. “How’d you do, little girl? Where’s Buck Hanner?” There was a little laughter, but she kept her eyes straight ahead. She sat astride Hank’s mule, while he led it. It had been a long, hard journey back, and she just wanted to go to the assayer’s office, then get a room and sleep. “Glad you’re back!” someone shouted. “We’ve been rootin’ for you!” “Hey! It’s Harmony Jones!” someone else yelled. “Harmony Jones is back!”
Just before they reached the assayer’s office, Wade Tillis stepped out in front of them. He was taller and more handsome than Harmony had remembered, but he still had that scheming look about him. He nodded to her, removing his hat. She remembered what Buck had told her about him. Had that, too, been a lie? Perhaps there was more to the story. This was the man Buck Hanner hated with a passion. Harmony smiled at him. If Buck Hanner hated this man, then she would like him, just for spite.
“Hello, Mr. Tillis,” she said pleasantly.
He studied her beautiful but too-thin form. “You don’t look well,” he told her. “Is there anything I can do?”
Her eyebrows arched, as half the town stood around and watched them talk. “I was…sick. I’m better now,” she answered. “And after I see the assayer, there is something you can do for me. I need men…lots of them…men who know how to dig tunnels and mine a rich vein.”
His eyes lit up. “I suspected as much. Buck Hanner put your name on a lot of land around your mine before he left town with some heavy-looking bags.”
She flinched at the pain that swept through her heart. The mere sound of Buck’s name tortured
her, and she hated her weakness. Her eyes glared coldly. “Well, at least he had the courtesy to do that much. I would like to talk to you about Buck Hanner, Mr. Tillis, but I need to rest after I see the assayer. Would you consider dinner tonight, at the hotel? We can talk then.”
The man grinned broadly. “I would be honored,” he replied. “And…uh…congratulations, Miss Jones. You did what most of us thought impossible. You not only struck it rich, you survived. We all admire you.”
She smiled sarcastically. “Yes, Mr. Tillis. That is one thing I have learned about myself. I am a survivor.”
He winked. “And a shrewd businesswoman, I’ll bet. I can help you there.”
“We’ll see,” she answered. “Seven o’clock, tonight.” She looked at Hank, who appeared distressed by the conversation. “Let’s go, Hank.”
Fisher sighed and walked on toward the assayer’s office, while Wade Tillis watched. Already he was hungry for Harmony Jones’s gold and brains and body. Now that Buck was out of the way…
He grinned. Only Wade Tillis knew that Buck Hanner would never again grace Harmony Jones’s doorway. He chuckled. Harmony Jones was now free for the taking, but she was smart. He’d have to be careful with that one.
Harmony wore a plain skirt and a white, high-necked blouse that had puffed sleeves. She nodded to Wade Tillis as he entered the restaurant, whereupon he removed his hat and then walked briskly to her table.
“What would you like to drink, Mr. Tillis?” she asked curtly. “I’m buying tonight.”
He looked surprised. “You? That isn’t very ladylike.”
“I couldn’t care less what is ladylike. Not anymore. Besides, this is a business meeting, Mr. Tillis.”
“Won’t you call me Wade?” he said smoothly.
When a woman came to take his order, he asked for white wine. Harmony sipped a little from her own glass, for one brief moment remembering the first night Buck Hanner had made love to her, both of them drunk from celebrating the killing of the grizzly. Hadn’t Buck saved her from that too? She shook away the thought.
“All right,” she answered. “And you may call me Harmony. But that is as far as your privilege goes.”
He shrugged. “I had no intention of pursuing it any farther.”
She blushed a little, realizing she had been too forward. “I am willing to pay you, Wade, to arrange to have my claim mined properly. I obviously can’t do it by myself. I’ve hit a rich vein, and the claim is good. We’ll need the proper papers signed, and you’d better realize I know a good deal from a bad one. Don’t try to cheat me or I’ll have you hung. You’ll be managing the mine. I’m told you do a lot of that around here, and you do it well.”
He nodded. “Thank you. You’re absolutely right. Who told you about my business dealings? Buck Hanner?”
Her eyes flashed and she felt her cheeks flush. “Perhaps you can tell me what happened between you and Buck,” she replied.
He grinned, leaning back and taking a sip of the wine the waitress had brought him. “What did he tell you?”
“Never mind what he told me. I want to hear your side.”
Wade’s smile faded. “I did what was best for my niece. How was I to know she’d get sick and die? The point is, Buck Hanner is a no-good. He was a drifter, never stayed in one place more than a year, had a woman in every town he hit. I had him checked out. There was only one thing Buck Hanner really wanted, and that was a big ranch of his own. He would have used my niece to get it. He only wanted her money.” His eyes narrowed. “And if you think real hard, you’ll see that was all he wanted from you. I’m sorry.”
Her heart throbbed with pain at the memory of the assayer’s words. “Yes, Miss Jones, Buck Hanner was here. He had the gold assayed, and I must say it was worth a fortune. I offered to take it and hold it, to give him money for it, but he refused. He said he had someplace to go with it, and he set me to getting you access to more land around your claim. Then he left.”
“Did he say where he was going?” she asked.
“No, ma’am. Only that he needed the gold for something else. Plenty of others saw him leave town, but he didn’t tell anyone where he was going. He said you’d be down soon to finish up these claims. We thought maybe he’d gone back up the mountain to you.”
She had trouble hiding her bitter disappointment. “He didn’t come back up the mountain,” she answered quietly. Then she looked directly at Wade Tillis. “If all he wanted was my money, Mr. Tillis—I mean…Wade—then why did he leave right away? If he had stayed and married me, he could have had all of it.”
Wade laughed. “He didn’t need all of it. He’d earned some himself, cheated others to get more, then he cheated you. To stay would have meant taking on the responsibility of a wife, maybe children. Buck Hanner doesn’t want those things.”
The pain came again, a terrible, stabbing pain that almost took her breath away. Would she ever forget the sight of the tiny life she had expelled?
“Buck had enough gold to get him off to a good start,” Wade was saying. “That’s all he wanted. He certainly isn’t the kind of man to settle down with one woman, not Buck Hanner. I’m afraid you let his looks and his gentle way fool you, Harmony.”
She stared at her wine, wanting to cry. “Is it that obvious?”
“That you thought you loved him? Of course it is,” he replied quietly. He realized he had only to be kind to her, to befriend her, and he might be able to move in on a fortune. This girl had been badly hurt. He’d done the right thing, getting Buck Hanner out of the way. “Everybody in town knew what was probably going on up there. Not that they blamed you. Buck is quite the ladies’ man when he wants to be. Don’t worry about it. No one thinks any the less of you, believe me. We’re all glad to see you buck up and come back to town determined to make a go of it in spite of Hanner. To hell with him. You’re here, and you have a gold mine. And yes, I will help you mine it, on whatever terms you state.”
She studied his dark eyes. It was all happening so easily, perhaps too easily. He was so ready to help her now, yet when she’d left Cripple Creek Wade Tillis had been her enemy. Perhaps he’d only been trying to help her after all. Maybe he’d been angry because it was Buck Hanner who had taken her up the mountain. Perhaps he knew Buck would hurt her.
“All right,” she replied.
He reached over and lightly patted her hand. “Don’t you fret one more minute about Buck Hanner,” he urged. “I know it hurts. But the hurt will go away. Besides, you’re a damned smart girl. You have more to do than settle down on some ranch with a no-good like Hanner, wasting away in some forgotten place with ten kids toddling after you. You’re too beautiful and too talented. Now that you have a real gold mine, a whole new world is opening for you.”
She smiled. “Yes, I know. I intend to get into some kind of business,” she answered. “You had better be careful, or I might end up owning more of this town than you do.”
He smiled, but there was a coldness in his eyes. “Well, well. And here I am trying to help you. Maybe I shouldn’t be so obliging.”
She picked up her menu. “Maybe you shouldn’t,” she answered. “You’re lucky Buck Hanner hated you, because the way I feel about him right now, I’m actually beginning to like you.”
Wade Tillis laughed again as he picked up his menu, but he was contemplating her shrewd business mind. She was a determined woman now, one to watch out for. But there was one way to ensure he’d not have to worry about her taking over the town. If he married her…
“I think I’ll have the T-bone,” he told her. “Some fresh meat just came in yesterday, so maybe this time it won’t be tough.”
She kept her eyes lowered, struggling momentarily against tears. Buck! He kept looming in her heart and mind. She must forget him! She swallowed and breathed deeply for control.
“Fine. I’ll have the same,” she answered. She raised her wineglass and held it out. “Here’s to a profitable business relationship,” she told him.
Til
lis raised his own glass, drinking in her beauty appreciatively. He touched her glass with his. “I’ll drink to that,” he answered. Their eyes held for a moment before they sipped their wine.
Chapter Seventeen
Harmony stood on the porch of the small home she’d rented. It was August, 1897, and a heavy hailstorm was in progress. She didn’t care that lightning was flashing around her, nor did the rain and hail bother her for the porch roof was over her head. And she hardly heard the furious thunder that rumbled and echoed through the mountains.
Nothing really mattered. She even contemplated running out into the storm to risk being hit by lightning. The hail came down in ever-bigger balls, pounding against the roof. She heard something break. Was it a window? It didn’t matter. It seemed as though the fury and thunder of the storm only matched the fury and thunder in her soul.
She stared at Pike’s Peak, far in the distance, sometimes shrouded by heavy black clouds that were moving very fast. She remembered when she’d first come to this place, over a year ago, young and ignorant and determined. It had seemed so frightening to go to the mountain and stay there alone. But she’d had Buck Hanner with her, to guide her, teach her, protect her. She clearly envisioned his face now: his sky-blue eyes, sandy hair, high cheekbones and tanned skin; his straight, handsome nose and wide, provocative grin. Why couldn’t she stop thinking about his powerful shoulders and hard-muscled arms, his strong, firm thighs and hips. She recalled the scent of him, the feel of his arms around her, the glory of being one with him.
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