Lady Deception

by Bobbi Smith

  "Elizabeth's room is connected to Hadley's. I found their tickets, and they're not due to sail for New Orleans until late tomorrow. Whatever we do, we've got to do tonight."

  At that moment, they heard someone in the hall, knocking on another door. They put their ears to their door and listened. They were rewarded when they heard Hadley speak.

  "I made our dinner reservations for seven-thirty downstairs in the dining room."

  "Good," Elizabeth answered him. "I'd like to do some more shopping this afternoon. Do you want to come with me?"

  "All right."

  Cody and Luke heard her door shut, and then their voices faded away as they moved down the hallway.

  Cody and Luke exchanged looks.

  "We'll take them tonight."

  "What are we going to do until then?" Luke asked, impatient, wanting it to be over.

  "I think," Cody said thoughtfully, studying Luke, "we're going to have dinner downstairs in the dining room."

  "But Hadley knows me. He'll recognize me right away."

  Her smile was quixotic. "Not if I have anything to do with it."

  "What have you got in mind?"

  "I have to do some shopping myself. You can come with me if you want or you can stay here."

  "I think I'd better come with you, but we have to take care. I don't want to come face-to-face with Hadley on the streets of Galveston. It wouldn't be pretty." Luke rested his hand on his sidearm.

  "I know. Give me a minute to change; then I'll be ready to go."

  Luke waited for her in the hall and as soon as she came out they were on their way. An hour later they were back, and Luke wasn't looking particularly happy.

  "We have to do this, don't we?" he said.

  "We could sit in their rooms and wait for them. But if we go downstairs and eat dinner when they do, we can see how much they drink and be able to judge how quick their reaction time will be. It's a shame I can't drug them. It would be so much easier."

  "Drug them?" Luke glanced at her in surprise.

  "What do you think I had in your whiskey that night I shot Sully?" she asked.

  His eyes widened. "No wonder you kept wanting me to `take a drink and relax.'"

  Cody smiled innocently. "I had Stalking Ghost all ready to help me get you out the window once you were knocked out. Only trouble was, things didn't go the way I'd planned."

  Luke just shook his head. "I'm glad I wasn't in the mood for heavy drinking."

  "Looking back, so am I.If you'd been unconscious when Sully broke into the room, they might have discovered my disguise and you might have been killed."

  "Perhaps I should give up drinking altogether."

  "I never knew a man who died from abstinence."

  "Yeah, but sometimes life can be much more fun when you're not abstaining." He gave her a knowing look, remembering.

  Cody felt the heat of his look to the very depths of her soul, but she fought against it.

  "We've got work to do," she said brusquely, forcing them back to business.

  Gray-haired and wearing a mustache, Luke Majors had aged 25 years when Cody got through with his makeup and disguise. She sat back to study her handiwork and nodded in satisfaction.

  "I don't think Hadley's going to recognize you now," she said with pride in her accomplishment.

  "Let me take a look." Luke spun around in the chair where he'd been sitting while she worked on him, to gaze at his reflection in the dressing-table mirror.

  "Well? What do you think?" Cody asked.

  Luke was so intent on staring at his strange reflection that he didn't answer right away. Finally all he could mutter was, "Damn."

  "Is that good or bad?"

  He glanced at her, and she saw that he had the strangest look on his face. It was sad, and pain filled his eyes.

  "What's wrong?"

  "Nothing." He paused.

  "Nothing?"

  Luke looked up at her again. "I look the way I remember my father."

  She could hear the emotion in his voice. "That's good, isn't it? What was his name?"

  "His name was Charles."

  "What happened to him?"

  "We were separated during the war. I got word about six months later that both he and my brother, Dan, had been killed. I think they died at Gettysburg, but I was never sure."

  "I'm sorry.

  "So am I.He was a good man; so was Dan. There isn't a day that goes by that I don't think of them. My father and I tried to keep Dan from enlisting, but he insisted on it, and there was nothing we could do to stop him."

  "I've noticed that that is a family trait."

  Luke's mood lightened at her observation. "I can't imagine why you'd think that. Shall we change and go to dinner, Miss Jameson? I believe I am too old to have anything less than honorable intentions toward you tonight."

  "You can have all the intentions you want, Mr. Majors, but we've got a job to do, and we're going to do it."

  Luke started back to his own room, but as he opened the door he saw Elizabeth and Hadley leaving their rooms. He turned back inside pre tending to have forgotten something and waited until the sounds of their voices had faded away. He and Cody shared a knowing look before he once more attempted to go. This time he was successful.

  When he called for Cody a short time later, Luke was once again taken by her beauty. This night, she was wearing a short-sleeved, low-cut, emerald green gown that was fitted at the waist, emphasizing her slender figure, and flared to a slight bustle in the back trimmed in matching rosettes. She was stunning.

  "I don't feel quite so old anymore," Luke said, his gaze warm upon her.

  "Then I'll carry a mirror with me to remind you," she told him, smiling up at him as they made their way down the stairs.

  The hotel dining room was well known for its gourmet fare, and it was reasonably crowded. Cody caught sight of Elizabeth and Hadley already at a table, and though Hadley did glance their way, there was no flicker of recognition in his regard. His had been merely a male's leering appraisal of a pretty woman; there was no flicker of recognition as his gaze swept over Luke at all. Luke was pleased.

  Luke and Cody were seated close to their table, but not too close. They could hear snatches of the conversation, but it was mostly general; their quarry said nothing that would help them with their plans. Cody and Luke enjoyed their meal and watched with interest as Elizabeth and Hadley fin ished dining and left the restaurant to retire upstairs.

  "How much time do you want to give them?" Luke asked, ready to follow them right then.

  "An hour. Then we make our move. They'll be relaxed by then and probably ready to go to bed. If we can catch them unawares, things will go smoothly."

  They retired to their own rooms shortly thereafter to get ready for the action to come.

  Luke had donned his regular clothes and had strapped on his gunbelt when he went to meet Cody. She was wearing her riding clothes, too, for freedom of movement, and had buckled on her own gunbelt.

  "You ready?"

  "As I'll ever be. Let's get El Diablo."

  Luke led the way, but Cody was the one who knocked on the door.

  "Yes, who is it?" came Elizabeth's call.

  "The maid, ma'am."

  "What do you want at this time of night?"

  She sounded irritated, but Cody could hear her unlocking the door. When it started to swing open, Luke made his move. With brute force, he shouldered the door open. Elizabeth uttered only one small cry before Luke clamped a hand over her mouth and jerked her back against him. He held her pinned there, his gun pressed to her side.

  "Don't make a sound or you're dead," he told her in a low voice.

  Elizabeth's eyes had narrowed to slits as she glared at Cody, but Cody was unmoved by the mal ice she saw there. All she wanted to do was arrest these two and head for Del Fuego. She quickly gagged Elizabeth, and Luke dragged the outlaw to the bed so he could cuff her by one hand to the bedstead.

  "That should hold her while we get
Hadley," Luke said as he started for the connecting door, leaving Cody to keep an eye on Elizabeth.

  He turned the knob cautiously and was relieved to find it unlocked. No light shone from under the door, so he hoped it would be a simple matter to catch Hadley already asleep. His gun at the ready, Luke threw the door wide and charged into the room.

  Cody stood with her gun on Elizabeth, not trusting her one bit. "Don't try anything, Elizabeth. I shot Sully, and I can shoot you."

  She saw the woman's eyes widen as she spoke and thought it was in reaction to her statement. Only when Hadley's strong arm closed around her neck and his gun wets pressed against her back did she realize what had happened. The outlaw must have heard them entering Elizabeth's room, and he'd exited his own to come back around through her doorway. He'd closed it behind him, too, so no passersby would know what was going on.

  "Drop your gun," he ordered quietly, not wanting to alert Luke to his presence.

  There was no forgetting Hadley's voice. It was as cold and deadly as ever, and, trapped, Cody did as she was told. Elizabeth quickly stripped off her gag and smiled victoriously at her. At that moment, Luke had completed his search of Hadley's room and had come up empty-handed. He turned, ready to tell Cody they'd have to wait for Hadley to get back, when he saw what had happened.

  "Well, well, well," Hadley sneered, greeting his adversary. "So we meet again, Luke Majors."

  "Just as I was hoping we would," Luke taunted deliberately.

  "Oh, really? You were looking forward to this reunion?" He chuckled. "I have to tell you, now that's it's happened, I am enjoying myself. I do give you credit, though. You were very good, but it looks like I'm better."

  "I wouldn't count on that. I can still outgun you." Luke was standing in the doorway, his gun out and aimed straight at Hadley. "Just let her go."

  "I don't think so. You put your gun down and take those cuffs off my sister."

  "No." Luke slowly and deliberately cocked his gun. "You two are wanted dead or alive, and we're taking you in one way or the other."

  "Like hell you are!" Elizabeth erupted, seeing her brother's indecisiveness. "Enough of this, Hadley! Shoot him!"

  In an abrupt move, she lunged toward her nightstand and knocked the burning lamp to the floor. Flames erupted as the oil spread across the floor toward Luke. Hadley started to fire at Luke just as Luke lunged into the room, but Cody jabbed her elbow back into his stomach and the shot went wide. Hadley's grip on her loosened enough for her to tear herself from his grasp and throw herself from him just as Luke fired the fatal round that took Hadley square in the chest. He was thrown back against the wall and fell heavily to the floor.

  "You murderers!" Elizabeth screamed as the fire grew. "You killed him! You shot my brother!"

  Cody didn't waste time with her, but grabbed the bedspread and threw it on top of the flames. It took her a minute, but she finally managed to smother the fire.

  They could hear loud voices in the hall and then someone pounded on the door.

  "Open up!"

  Luke walked to the door and opened it. "Go get the sheriff. There's been trouble here."

  The man who stood there looked shocked at the sight of Luke and the gun he still held in his hand. He could see the carnage and destruction in the room, and he quickly ran for help.

  Elizabeth was still screaming at Cody and Luke. "Ill get you two for this! I'm. going to see you two rot in hell for what you've done!"

  Luke turned on her. His expression was stony as he spoke. "You may very well see me in hell, but the good news is, you'll have gotten there first. Now shut up or I'll be tempted to take you in just like your brother."

  Elizabeth's glare was venomous, but she knew Luke Majors was a killer. As long as she was alive, there was hope she could find a way out of her situation. She didn't cry often, but as she stared at her dead brother, emotion welled up within her. Hadley had always been there for her, and now he was dead. She would seek revenge for him if it was the last thing she did!

  The hotel manager appeared then and Luke went out into the hall to explain what had happened.

  "What's going on here?" the sheriff asked as he came running down the hall a few minutes later.

  "These two are the leaders of the infamous El Diablo gang operating out west near Del Fuego. They're wanted for murder and bank robbery, and we're taking them in," Luke explained as he handed over the wanted posters for the sheriff to see.

  "A woman? Are you sure?"

  "We're positive," Cody said as she came out to join the discussion. She knew Elizabeth wasn't going anywhere until she let her go. "I'm Cody Jameson, and this is my partner, Luke. We're planning to take them both back to Del Fuego. We'll be leaving first thing in the morning."

  The sheriff read the posters carefully and saw that they were legitimate. "Is there anything I can do to help you?"

  "Could we borrow a cell for the night for the woman? All he needs is an undertaker."

  "I can help you with both."

  "We'd appreciate it," Cody told him.

  "I'll get Elizabeth," Luke said.

  "And I'll help."

  She went with him, not trusting the other woman one bit. Together they released her from the bedstead, then handcuffed her hands together. They led her from the room. Elizabeth remained strangely silent. They'd expected her to keep screaming curses at them, but she went along quietly.

  A short time later, Hadley had been taken to the undertaker to be prepared for the trek back to Del Fuego, and Elizabeth was safely locked away in a jail cell.

  "Well be leaving for Del Fuego in the morning," Cody informed the sheriff.

  "She'll be right here waiting for you."

  "We appreciate your help."

  As Luke and Cody started from the jail they glanced back at Elizabeth to find her standing at the door to her cell, watching them. She did not look cowed. If anything she appeared conniving and sly. When she saw them looking at her, she smiled sweetly at them.

  Cody felt a chill run down her spine as she left the sheriff's Office. "I've been around a lot of killers in my time, but I've never met anyone like her before. She's positively vicious."

  "I've seen men who were like her, but never a woman before. She's the consummate actress, convincing everyone that she's an innocent victim, when really she's the victimizer."

  "She's incredible. We'll have to watch her every minute on the trip back."

  "Don't worry about that. I have no intention of taking my eyes off of her. In fact..." Luke paused. "I think I may go back to the jail tonight and just keep watch with the deputy on duty. Knowing Elizabeth as we do, there's no telling what she might try tonight."

  "If you want, I'll stay with you," Cody offered.

  "One of us has got to get some sleep. You rest tonight; I'll sleep on the train tomorrow."

  "Do you want to go back now?" They hadn't quite reached the hotel yet.

  "No. I want to see you safely to your room," he insisted.

  "There's no need."

  "There's every need."

  He said no more until they were outside her door and she was unlocking it. The excitement on the floor was over, and Elizabeth's and Hadley's rooms had been closed up for the night.

  "I was worried about you tonight," he said as he followed Cody inside.

  She'd left a lamp burning low, and the room was bathed in a soft golden glow. He stared down at her now, seeing her for herself and knowing that he had met his match in a woman. He'd never known anyone like Cody before. She was smart and beautiful and challenged him in all ways. Painfully, he admitted that he'd fallen in love with her.

  He hadn't meant to. He'd despised her for the trickery she'd played on him, but now that he'd come to know her, to work with her, he recognized just how special she was. His throat tightened. When he'd seen Hadley holding the gun on her and realized she could have been killed, it had been the most terrible moment of his life. He would have done anything to save her from Hadley.

 
Luke gazed down at her. He wanted to tell her that he loved her, but he couldn't. The truth of his life stopped him cold. He had nothing to offer her. Look what had happened to him in Del Fuego when he'd tried to start up the Trinity. It was pointless for him to think that he could start over again, that he could have a life. When they got back to town, he would sell the Trinity, take whatever he could get for it, and move on. The people of Del Fuego didn't want him there. It would be best if he just kept on living the way he'd been living.

  "You were?" Cody looked up at him and smiled. "There was no need. Everything turned out fine. I told you we'd do it."

  Luke couldn't stop himself. He reached out to her and drew her into his arms. "When I saw Hadley holding that gun on you..."

  "It's over."

  "I know." He hid the anguish of his words by kissing her, hard and passionately.

  When they broke apart, her cheeks were high with color and she was breathing hard. "Luke... Luke, I-"

  He interrupted her. "I have to go."

  Luke left her standing there. He walked from her room and the hotel, a solitary man.

  The two men entered the saloon in Del Fuego and went to stand at the bar. It was late at night and business was slow. The barkeep waited on them quickly, and as they downed their first drinks, the younger of the two men spoke up.

  "I was wondering if you could give us some information."

  The barkeep eyed the man skeptically. He wasn't sure just what kind of information the stranger was after.

  "What do you want to know?"

  "We're looking for a man."

  "A lot of people are," he replied, rubbing the bar top. "Which man?"

  "A man named Luke Majors."

  The barkeep shot them a quick glance. "The bounty on him has been dropped. There ain't no point in you looking for him. He ain't worth nothing to you."

  "Maybe he's not worth anything to you, but he's worth plenty to us. We've been looking for him for a long time," the old man said curtly.

  "Sorry. I can't help you. I ain't seen him since all that trouble with the bank and all."

  "What trouble?"

  He quickly explained about the robbery and the El Diablo gang. "Last I heard, he wasn't a part of the gang, but I ain't seen him since. You can check over at the sheriff's office. Maybe Sheriff Halloway can help you."