A cowboy strutting down the street paused to converse with them. Their postures remained stiff and uninviting. Probably the first time they’d acted this way in the face of an interested customer. The man’s swagger deflated. Several abrupt words, and hand gestures, were exchanged before he moved on.
If Gertie’s hired thugs weren’t on the street, then more than likely they were inside the Star. Anyone with injuries like theirs couldn’t stand guard without attracting unwanted attention. They’d need a doctor.
He searched the street again. Sure enough, Doctor Rhodes strode toward the Star with his familiar rolling pace that consumed the distance between him and his destination.
Noah sprinted out the back door and down the alley. His head pounded like the recent cattle stampede, like the one from his nightmares. His brother’s face flashed in his mind. Falling. Fast. He stumbled the final steps without seeing his surroundings.
Using the nearest wall to prop himself up, he sucked in a deep breath. The twinge in his side helped clear the throbbing in his head. He had to stay focused if he wanted to save Sadie.
He also had to hurry.
Flattening his spine against the wall, he scuttled sideways until he stood an arm’s reach from Front Street. A never-ending stream of people flowed by, but not the one he needed. Not until a hunched man carrying a beat-up case appeared.
Noah grabbed his arm and yanked him into the alley.
“What in tarnation—?”
Ignoring his aches and pains, Noah pressed the struggling man against the wall. “Now’s not the time to raise a ruckus and draw attention our way, Doc. I need your help.”
Every part of Rhodes froze, except for his gaze which traversed Noah’s face before narrowing. “What happened to you, Deputy?”
So, he looked as rough as he felt. “I had a run-in with a trio of Gertie’s men.”
Even though they were out of sight of the Star, the doctor glanced in the saloon’s direction. His eyebrows arched questioningly.
Noah nodded. “I’d bet my ranch that they’re the same ones you’ve been summoned to patch up.”
Rhodes snorted a laugh. “What’d you do to make them so riled?”
“They wanted Sadie to return to the Star. I said no.”
“Was she injured as well?” Rhodes’ voice dropped along with his jaw.
“Not when I last saw her.” Worry that she might’ve been hurt since then made Noah’s gut twist. “Doc, I need a favor. Can you—”
“Last saw her? They succeeded in taking her?”
Frustration and guilt added to the storm brewing inside Noah. “She went with them.”
“That can’t be right,” Rhodes shot back, shaking his head. “Not now. Miss Sullivan wouldn’t—”
“They threatened to put a bullet in me if she didn’t cooperate.” When Rhodes opened his mouth to comment again, Noah cut him off. “Let me finish. I’m short on time and resources. Sadie’s at the Star, and Gertie’s got a couple of her girls standing guard outside. I need someone to create a diversion while I cross the street and sneak in. After that, I could use that same someone’s help inside as well.”
Rhodes drew himself up. Without his customary hunch, he looked Noah straight in the eye. “Tell me what to do.”
After he did, Rhodes headed toward Front Street only pausing to call over his shoulder in a low voice, “Better clean yourself up. Otherwise you aren’t sneaking anywhere.”
Gritting his teeth against the pain in side, Noah shrugged out of his vest and wiped the garment over his face until it didn’t come away with blood. Then he tossed the vest in the alley behind him and focused on the man continuing his journey up the street with a stride even swifter and more purposeful than before.
Rhodes drew even with the Star and the two women on its veranda. He kept going. The pair turned as one, calling to him. He didn’t stop. The women chased after him. They each grabbed an arm and tried to tug him toward the saloon. He resisted. The women pulled harder, their gazes fixed on him, their backs to Noah.
Keeping his head down, he crossed the street. When he reached the boardwalk on the other side, he stayed close to the shop fronts as he approached the Star. The doctor continued to resist the two women, who continued to keep their backs to the Star and him.
Almost there, Doc. Just keep them busy a moment longer.
He stepped down into the alley beside the saloon—and came face to face with a towering stranger with eyes sharp as blue ice. The sun reflected off the pair of .45s the man held between them, glinting as deadly as his eyes.
Bat appeared by the man’s side, his Colts drawn as well. “We were coming to get you.”
Noah’s relief turned to frustration when Bat gestured for them to follow him into the alley where’d they’d be out of sight. He did so reluctantly. He could use the law’s help, but Sadie needed him now. He had to explain the situation fast.
Bat spoke before he could even open his mouth. “What on God’s green earth did you do to your face?”
Noah waved his hand dismissively. “What happened to me isn’t important.” What Sadie had written at the bottom of Edward’s letter was important. In case something happens, I need to leave these words behind. His hands tightened into fists. Nothing was going to happen to her.
“Noah, this here’s Wyatt Earp.” Bat inclined his head toward the man studying him with an unwavering intensity.
Wyatt holstered one .45. Keeping the other drawn and ready, he shook Noah’s hand. “Glad we finally meet. Heard a lot about you.”
“People in this town talk too much.” Noah’s frustration consumed every drop of his relief over finding Bat. He strode back toward Front Street.
“The trick is to only listen to half of what Bat says.” Wyatt’s voice came close behind him.
Noah glanced over his shoulder. Wyatt’s blue eyes were steady, without a trace of the mischievous amusement that often beset Bat.
Noah nodded. “Wish I’d met you sooner. That tip would’ve come in handy during the last few weeks.” He stopped short of Front Street and peered around the corner of the saloon. Bat and Wyatt did the same.
The women had linked arms with the doctor and were steering him toward the saloon.
Noah reevaluated his plan, adding Bat and Wyatt to the mix. “Bat, have you seen Sadie?”
“No.” Bat gestured toward Rhodes. “What’s the doc doing?”
“Creating a diversion.”
Rhodes and his escort disappeared through the saloon doors.
“And what’s he doing now?” Bat asked.
“He’s our inside man. Gertie has—”
“Didn’t know the doc had it in him.” Bat snorted. “Happy to have him onboard, but what’s our destination? We can’t prove Madam Garrett started that stampede. We didn’t witness her committing a crime.”
“I watched her take Sadie.”
The marshal’s gaze cut to the jail. His jaw turned hard as granite. “How many men did it take for her to remove Miss Sullivan from your care?”
“Three.”
“Well, neither she nor her minions will have her for long.” Bat glared at the saloon. “We’ll arrest the madam for assault and kidnapping. The charges won’t stick, but they’ll gain Miss Sullivan’s freedom.”
“There’s more.” He told them about Edward’s letter.
Bat released a low whistle.
Wyatt drew the .45 he’d holstered a minute ago. “She’s gonna be mad as a badger when we barge in and ruin her plans.”
“Odds are she’ll have moved her loot, but she can’t have taken it far.” Bat set his foot on the Star’s veranda, then paused and looked over his shoulder. “Wyatt, why don’t you go in the back while me ’n Noah take the front?”
The lawman sprinted off.
Before Bat could turn back to the veranda, Noah laid a halting hand on his arm. “Best I go a different route, but first I need a favor.”
Bat cocked an eyebrow. “What kind?”
“Sadie
might be in her room upstairs. I took some hits to my ribs and need some help climbing. Can you give me a boost onto the balcony?”
Bat did as requested.
Ignoring his body’s numerous complaints, Noah heaved himself over the balcony’s railing, then crept toward Sadie’s window. “Hold on. You’ll be safe soon,” he promised under his breath. But he couldn’t shake the icy hand of fear that had hounded him since he’d allowed Gertie to take Sadie from his side.
What if he didn’t reach her before the fears she’d expressed in her letter came true?
* * *
Wardell dragged Sadie down the Great Western’s hall, only halting when they reached the last door at the far end of the corridor. It led into the best suite in the hotel, Edward’s old residence. Keeping a tight hold on her, Wardell slipped a small but ornate key out of his waistcoat pocket.
Her gaze darted over her shoulder. An insurmountable stretch of hallway stood between her and the stairs, and salvation. Any sounds coming from below were muffled.
Would anyone hear her when Wardell finally made her scream? Would anyone care?
The scrape of Wardell’s key turning the lock shattered the quiet. A shiver of alarm unbalanced her, made it all too easy for Wardell to shove her inside the room. The door banged shut behind them with the finality of a death sentence.
Edward’s former home remained unchanged, filled with heavy, masculine furniture in the finest polished wood, framed on two sides by tall windows draped in burgundy and gold brocade. Seeing the room again elicited a bone-chilling horror.
Don’t look, she warned herself as Wardell dragged her across the room. But she couldn’t stop her gaze from gravitating toward the desk, and the floorboards to its left. Someone had tried to scrub out the stain. A faint circle of reddish brown remained, marking the spot where she’d found Edward, his blood draining out of him along with his life.
Bile burned her throat. She lurched back only to have Wardell jerk her forward again. His mouth came down on hers.
She bit him. Hard. He released her with a shove that sent her sprawling onto the bed. She scrambled off the other side and retreated. She could do little more as Wardell herded her into a corner.
He laughed as he ran his thumb over his bloody lip with slow deliberation. “You’ll pay extra for that.”
Rigid with fear, she retreated as far from him as possible. A wall ended her flight.
Wardell removed his hat and tossed it aside. His jacket and waistcoat followed quickly. “It’s time I showed you what your life should’ve been like for the past year.” He dropped his trousers. His hand went to his erection. “After a couple of rounds on your back, you’ll be docile enough to put even your mouth here.” He released himself and reached for her instead.
Bracing her spine against the wall, she kicked him—exactly where he’d talked about her touching him, and with as much force as she could muster. His eyes bulged and his lips parted in a silent cry. She astounded herself as much as Wardell. She’d become increasingly stronger since she’d stopped taking her medicine.
He dropped like a thief when the hangman’s trapdoor disappears beneath his feet. Then he curled up in a whimpering ball, clutching his crotch.
She sprinted for the door. Elation gave her speed. Her heart pounded with the joy of her impending freedom. She wrenched open the door.
Her chest squeezed tight and she shuddered, feeling as if her blood were being drained from her.
The one thing that remained constant was the figure in the doorway. Handsome John stood between her and the hall. His giant frame blocked her escape, bleeding all hope dry.
CHAPTER 22
Crouched on the Star’s balcony, Noah paused outside Sadie’s yellow curtains and listened. All was silent behind the frayed but cheerful fabric. He parted the curtains with the barrel of his rifle.
The late afternoon light couldn’t chase the shadows from the bedroom, but the furnishings remained so sparse only a cursory glance was required to determine that no one was inside. It was the same room as before, but without Sadie present he was swamped by a heavy sense of loss.
He climbed through the window. The first time he’d done so, he’d brought her breakfast. She’d been asleep with her red hair streaming across her pillow in wild disarray. Lord, he’d wanted to kiss her. Only her jitters had stopped him, that and his excuse that he was only there to help.
When had it all changed? When had he begun to love her?
Probably from the moment he’d seen her singing on the Star’s stage. He’d felt the same way as when he’d watched her standing in the middle of his stampeding herd. Hellfire. She’d stolen his heart from the beginning. Why else had he come back to Dodge and refused to leave?
He had to find her.
Sighting down the barrel of his rifle, he cracked open the door. The hallway was empty. Muted conversation came from the far end, drifting up from the main floor. He crept toward the sound and the words became clearer.
“Hold still,” a disgruntled voice commanded.
“Yeow! You tryin’ to kill me?”
Feminine laughter followed.
“You’ve fractured your tibia,” the first man replied. Noah recognized the dry tone as Doc Rhodes’. “The best I can do is splint the bone and wrap it. Complaining won’t help.”
“Yeah, it ain’t dignified to carry on so,” a new voice added. “Yer overreacting.”
“Shut yer hole! Or I’ll bust one of yer legs ’n we’ll see who’s overreacting.”
“Vince is right. He’s got a broken nose and lump on his head the size of a turkey egg. I got a bullet in my shoulder. But you don’t see us bellyaching like ol’ biddies.”
Adjusting his grip on his rifle, Noah stopped short of the landing’s railing and peered down through the posts. Two saloon girls stood giggling behind their hands, while Hank and Vince crowded around Miller. He sat on a card table with his leg stretched out in front of him. The doctor wrapped the limb in white cloth.
“You callin’ me a woman?” Miller reached for the revolver he’d stolen from Noah. “Maybe a bullet in yer other shoulder would shut yer trap.”
“For the love of God, stop squirming and let me finish.” Doctor Rhodes yanked on the bandages.
His patient complied amid a barrage of cursing.
Colts drawn, Bat burst through the front door. The instant he cleared the landing above him, he fired a shot at the roof. The saloon girls screamed and scattered like a flock of sparrows. Wyatt raced in from the back, one .45 leveled at Hank, the other at Vince. The two men raised their hands in surrender.
Miller, still sitting on the table, did not. He drew his gun.
Noah sprinted across the landing to the top of the stairs. “Drop your weapon,” he shouted.
The glare Miller leveled at him didn’t bode well.
Noah’s finger tightened on the trigger. “I said drop it.”
Miller hesitated.
Rhodes plucked the revolver from Miller’s hand and aimed it at the man’s heart. “I would advise against any sudden movements. I’m a doctor and know exactly where to put a bullet.”
Noah scanned the room below, zeroing in on the corners and the shadows. Sadie was nowhere to be seen. Gradually the commotion below him quieted. A door on his left leading out onto the landing opened a hand’s-breadth. Gertie peered out. When she saw him, she jumped back and shut the door.
Noah sprinted after her. The doorknob refused to turn. Stepping back, he kicked the door open. It crashed against the wall to hang splintered on its frame.
Gertie crouched by an iron safe. She tossed a small canvas bag inside, closed the door, and spun the lock. Then she rose to face him. Crossing her arms, she stared at him without blinking…but her eyes were wide.
The emptiness of the room sucked the hope from him again. “Where’s Sadie?”
The madam’s eyes narrowed and her brows drew together.
“Nothin’ to say, Madam Garrett?” Bat asked from beside Noah. �
��You’d better think again ’n cooperate. Tell us Miss Sullivan’s location.”
“You’re both here because of her?” Gertie’s tone rose high with incredulity.
“Don’t worry. We’ll discuss yer other crimes later. Right now, we’re only interested in Miss Sullivan’s whereabouts.”
She grimaced. “Well, ain’t that precious.”
“Tell us where she is,” Noah snapped.
“What if I don’t feel like sayin’?”
He leveled his rifle at her.
Bat hand gripped his forearm. “Hold up, Deputy. Killing her won’t help us find Miss Sullivan.”
“That’s right.” Gertie laughed. “I’m untouchable. But Sadie? She won’t be so lucky.”
Like a scavenger used to preying on weaknesses, the madam had known where to strike. Her words cut Noah to his core, shredding the fragile hope he’d been sheltering deep inside. He widened his stance, fighting to regain his balance. “What’ve you done?”
“I sold her—for the night.”
A tremor ran through him, making the rifle in his hands shake. “You’re lying. There wasn’t time.”
“I found a buyer crossing Front Street, an extremely eager one.”
Rage made him dizzy, threatened to make his finger slip on the trigger. “Where is she?”
“Right now?” The corners of Gertie’s mouth twitched. “On her back, I imagine.”
A bullet was too quick. He’d ripped her apart with his bare hands. He lunged for her. Only Bat’s hold on his arm—a tether that hadn’t been removed—stopped him.
Gertie’s smile widened until she looked positively gleeful. “My buyer always was hot for her. I should’ve sold her to him, and not Edward, when I first got her.”
Disbelief then anger clawed up his spine. He’d heard another person talk about wanting Sadie and being denied by Edward. He’d nearly punched the whoremonger when the man had stopped Sadie’s buggy on Front Street and insulted her with lewd comments.
Between Love and Lies Page 24
