Mail-Order Groom

by Lisa Plumley

  I’ve got some advice for you, too, Mariana had said. Take the window instead. Realizing now what she’d meant, Savannah felt even more disheartened. It was just like a criminal’s “woman” to taunt her with the escape she couldn’t have.

  Roy took his time greeting Mariana with a hearty kiss and a leering, licentious whack to her ample backside. Mariana giggled, then leaned over and whispered something to him. They both glanced slyly at Savannah. Appearing pleased by whatever news Mariana had shared, Roy turned to the others.

  “You all might as well settle in.” Cheerfully Roy rubbed his palms together as he examined a fearful Savannah. “I just decided I might as well take my own sweet time with this one.”

  Chapter Seventeen

  “Nope. I’m sorry.” The boardinghouse owner gave Mose a rueful shake of his head. He seemed tired—which, given the late hour, was altogether appropriate. The place was otherwise deserted, with most of its occupants settled in for the evening. “I’m afraid I don’t have any rooms available right now.”

  “You mean you don’t have any rooms available for me. A colored man.” Mose’s deep, irate-sounding voice thundered through the anteroom reserved for boardinghouse business. “Isn’t that right? You don’t have a room for a darkie like me.”

  “No. No! I never said—I mean—it’s just that—”

  “That,” Mose interrupted. “Makes me…unhappy.”

  His intimidating tone was plain—even from Adam’s position in the boardinghouse hallway, where he’d crept when the owner wasn’t looking as part of the plan he’d devised on the way here.

  Marveling at Mose’s performance now, Adam shook his head. He wasn’t sure how the big man had learned to appear so menacing, but his skills were certainly useful tonight.

  “Please. That’s not what I said.” With clear apprehension, the man eyed Mose’s burly arms and impatient expression. “I said we don’t have any rooms. That’s all.”

  “But I’m here specifically to meet up with my partners,” Mose explained tautly. “Roy Bedell and his brother Edward Bedell. They said they’d be here. They’re expecting me. You wouldn’t want to…interfere…with our business dealings.”

  Something about that statement seemed to jostle loose a scrap of cooperation. The boardinghouse owner gave a jerky nod.

  “Yes. I mean, no! No, I wouldn’t want to interfere with any business of the Bedells. They are staying here, but they said—”

  Adam listened while the boardinghouse owner babbled on about Roy Bedell’s “explicit instructions” to him. It sounded as though Roy had, as usual, coerced everyone within earshot into cooperating with him, however undeservedly or criminally.

  At the realization, Adam tensed his muscles. Impatiently he leaned around the corner to watch the proceedings. Given the bartender’s description, he knew this was the right boardinghouse. He’d have liked to take the place right then—to burst into every room until he found Savannah. But he had to tread carefully. Getting her back from the Bedells would require all the wits he had. It would require Mose’s help, too.

  Even now, the big man was capably providing it. “Would you at least let me leave them a note?” he asked. “I’d be obliged.”

  “Fine.” Sounding harassed, the boardinghouse owner pulled out paper and a pencil. Halfway in the process of handing over the items to Mose, he hesitated. He frowned. “Uh… Would you rather I wrote the, uh, message for you, s-sir?”

  Mose glowered. “Are you suggesting I can’t write?”

  “I’m…not sure? I only want to help,” the man said.

  With an exasperated exhalation, Mose grumbled. “Which room is it? I’ll just put a note under the door myself.”

  Clearly expecting to be given the paper, he put out his massive hand. The boardinghouse owner gave it a wary glance.

  Adam held his breath. Unless this worked, they would be hampered in finding Savannah and the Bedells. But then the boardinghouse owner appeared to decide that Mose’s gigantic fist could just as easily smash his desk as it could write a note.

  He pushed the paper and pencil at Mose’s hand. “Please feel free to let yourself out after you’re done.” He appeared to look forward to that event. “I’ll be locking up for the night soon.”

  The boardinghouse owner scurried away. Just as his feet touched the threshold of what appeared to be his own quarters, Mose cleared his throat. Emphatically.

  “Which room?” he asked. “You never said.”

  Nervously the boardinghouse owner told him.

  Ten seconds later, Adam and Mose were on their way there.

  Trying not to tremble visibly in Roy Bedell’s presence, Savannah stood with her posture poker straight as he approached her. He nodded as he examined her. His baby-faced appearance did little to soften the overall impression of cruelty he gave. As though ready to demonstrate that quality, he faced Linus.

  “Linus. You been here all night, like I told you to be?”

  “Yep. I sure have been.” With a nervous gulp, Linus nudged himself farther back on the bed. The mattress dipped sloppily.

  “Well now.” Considering that, Roy rubbed his hand over his jaw. Whatever his injuries had been, they hadn’t hampered his ability to shave cleanly. Or to quaff whiskey. His voice sounded low and soft. “I guess that means that must have been your gun that my new lady friend, Miss Reed, was wavin’ at me just now.”

  Stiffly Savannah shifted her gaze to Mariana. She expected the other woman to snootily point out what Savannah had specified to her earlier—that she was Mrs. Corwin now—but Mariana didn’t. Instead she only watched Roy and Linus with rapt attention, just like the other three Bedell brothers did.

  “Well…” Guiltily Linus glanced at the gun, which was currently being held by his brother. “She couldn’t have waved it very threatenin’, like.” He tried to smile. “Look at her—she’s just a wee bitty little thing, not fit to scare you, Roy. I—”

  Lightning fast, Roy raised his arm. He hit Linus. Hard.

  The impact of fist against flesh and bone made an awful sound. Savannah flinched. She recoiled, feeling sick.

  Linus gave a muffled yowl. With tears in his eyes, he slapped his hand to his cheek. Above his fingers, with their clean, chewed-up nails, his gaze looked accusatory…and miserable.

  “The point is,” Roy said in a frighteningly patient voice, “that she shouldn’t have had a chance to brandish a pistol at me at all. Now should she? Not if you were doin’ your job, Linus.”

  “You tol’ me,” Linus murmured, “that you wouldn’t smack me again. Not in front of—” Trying to be surreptitious, he aimed a nod in Savannah’s direction, not looking at her. “You know.”

  Roy guffawed. He glanced at Savannah, then at Linus, his eyes wide with spiteful humor. “That’s right. I forgot—you went and got yourself sweet on The Seductive Sensation, didn’t you?”

  The other brothers laughed, too. Mariana shook her head silently at all of them. Savannah could only cringe as Linus raised his hangdog head, bringing his wounded visage into view.

  “You promised me that, Roy,” he muttered. “You did.”

  Still standing over him, Roy exchanged amused glances with the other Bedell brothers. “Tell me, boys—did I promise that?”

  “Nope,” one of them said. “Don’t reckon you did, Roy.”

  This time, Linus’s disillusionment seemed doubled. “You know he did, Curtis! You was right there, you lyin’ dog.”

  “You’re the one who sounds like a dog, whinin’ like that.” Roy grinned at his comparison. “How ’bout you bark next, eh?”

  “Aw, lay off him, Roy.” Mariana stepped forward. She took his arm in hers, stroking it. “Linus was just tryin’ to make a deal, to shortcut you gettin’ your money, and it all went wrong on him. You can’t fault him too much for tryin’, can you?”

  “A deal?” Seeming placated, Roy peered at Linus. A glimmer of near respect shone in his gaze. “That true, dimwit?”

  Sullenly Linus nodded. His
cheek already looked bruised.

  “’Sides, can’t we just get on with this?” Mariana gave Savannah an exasperated glance. She stroked Roy again. “I’d just as soon have this business over and done with. Settled.”

  “And rush this? Come on now, Mariana! You told me you’d been tangled up in criminal dealings for half your life,” Roy objected. “I can’t believe you’re gettin’ cold feet now.”

  “I ain’t,” Mariana groused. “I just don’t like her.”

  “Ah.” With measured strides, Roy left Mariana. He crossed the room back to Savannah, bringing a chill with him. He lifted his hand, brushing his knuckles beneath her chin. His gaze bored into hers. “I like her. I like her a lot. I think we’re goin’ to get on famously, you and me. At least for a while, we are.”

  At his ominous tone, Savannah shuddered. She had no concept of what Roy Bedell meant to do to her…but she’d bet it would be at least as bad as what he’d done to his brother. Linus appeared to have endured that mistreatment many times over.

  “Yep. I’d say we’re going to get along real fine.” Roy lowered his hand, crudely trailing his fingers down the front of her dress. “I guess I hit the bonanza with you, Miss Reed. What with you bein’ famous, and all. I’m goin’ to enjoy this plenty.”

  “Wait.” Savannah lifted her head. “If you want my money—”

  “Money? Yeah, I want that, all right.” Roy nodded, seeming absorbed in her shawl. He rubbed its lacy texture between his fingers, making Savannah yearn to slap them away. “But now I’m thinkin’, why should we quit at the money? Seein’ as how you and me, we’re two of a kind, I guess we should prob’ly—”

  “I’m nothing like you!” Savannah burst out, unable to help herself. His comparison rubbed up against everything she wanted to deny about herself. “We are not two of a kind.”

  “We’re not?” With a dubious grin, Roy raised his eyebrows. He cast a mocking glance at his brothers, then addressed her again. “Are you sure about that? Because from where I’m standin’, we’re definitely the same. In fact, I’d go so far as to say we’re downright meant for each other, you and me.”

  Unable to fathom what he meant, Savannah stared at him. The look in his eyes scared her. If only she had left sooner…

  “We’re star-crossed lovers, Miss Reed. Brought together by fate and happenstance,” Roy opined, sounding delighted with the idea. “I’m from a famous criminal family, you’re from a famous criminal family—we’re like royalty or somethin’. Damn near it.”

  He knew about her. He knew she was a “Ruthless Reed.”

  Inwardly Savannah despaired. It was bad enough that the Bedells had captured her. Bad enough that they intended to kill Adam the first chance they got. Bad enough that they would take all her savings and maybe kill her, too. But to add the fact that Roy Bedell was cognizant of her scandalous past and now meant to taunt her with it… It just piled on the agony. All that remained was for the people of Morrow Creek to learn about the same disreputable history Roy had…and shun her for it.

  It was still possible, Savannah thought, that the Bedells would simply take her money and leave her alone. But even if they did, her hoped-for new beginning was crumbling before her very eyes. There was nothing she could do to stop it.

  All she could do now was try to stay alive. If her skills as an actress had worked on one Bedell brother, it occurred to her, maybe they would work on a second brother, too.

  Forcing a smile to her face, Savannah made herself look Roy in the eye. “Why, now that you put it that way… That’s a downright fascinating idea, Mr. Bedell,” she lied in her most flattering tone. “I’m so happy you pointed that out to me.”

  This time, Roy’s grin seemed truly genuine. “I’m glad you think so.” Dropping her shawl, he twisted to look at Mariana. “See? I told you she’d see the rightness of us bein’ together.”

  Mariana scoffed. “You want a medal or somethin’?”

  “Now, Mariana. Don’t get all het up.” Outrageously brash, Roy spread his arms. “There’s enough of me to go around!”

  The other Bedell brothers laughed and jostled each other.

  “I’ll help pick up the slack,” the one called Curtis said.

  “Me, too,” another offered with a smirk. “Happy to help.”

  The prospect of being at the mercy of these ruthless men was almost more than Savannah could stand. Searching for an ally, however inadequate, she glanced at Linus. But he only kept his pitiful gaze fixed on the floor, seeming unaware of the proceedings around him. There’d be no help from that quarter.

  “The only man I’m interested in is you, Mr. Bedell.” Steeling herself, Savannah inhaled, then touched him. Roy’s shirtfront felt unpleasantly stiff. The feel of his body beneath her palm made her queasy. “Can’t we go someplace a little more private and talk some more about that bond we share? Please?”

  At least then she’d be away from the other brothers. At least then she’d have a chance to appeal to whatever decency Roy Bedell still possessed. Maybe she could strike a deal with him.

  Guilelessly Savannah batted her eyes at him, using the maneuver to survey his entire appearance. He had a gun belt, too. But if she could get him to turn slightly, if she could somehow manage to slip her hand lower without being noticed…

  Never had she needed her sleight-of-hand skills more.

  But with everyone watching, she could hardly perform magic.

  “You can call me Roy.” With a suggestive lifting of his eyebrows, the confidence man examined her, too. Not caring who was watching, he skimmed his hands over her body. “Please do.”

  With revulsion, Savannah shuddered. She swallowed hard, then nodded. “I didn’t know you’d be so handsome, Roy.”

  He preened. “That’s what all the ladies say.” Abruptly his expression changed. His whisker-free jaw hardened. “Right afore they start beggin’ me for mercy. What do you say, Missus Fancy Dancin’ Corwin? Are you gonna beg me for mercy, too?”

  Corwin. He knew she was married to Adam!

  That must have been what Mariana had whispered to him, Savannah realized. Doubtless being the wife of the detective who’d sworn to track down Roy would not endear her to him.

  Panic-stricken, she squirmed away. But Roy Bedell was too fast for her. He caught her in his pitiless grasp, then spun her around so her back was to him. She had a wobbly view of the other heckling Bedell brothers, of a dissatisfied-looking Mariana, of the ugly boardinghouse room with its useless window.

  With his arm tight across her throat, Roy laughed. “Go on, Mrs. Corwin. Start beggin’ right now, ’cause you’ll need a head start. I ain’t feelin’ much inclined toward mercy tonight.”

  Choking, Savannah struggled. She kicked her foot but could not make contact. She wrenched her arms, smacking her hands against Roy’s body behind her, but her efforts were useless.

  “Let me go!” she cried. “I’ll give you whatever you want.”

  Roy laughed harder. “Oh, you’ll do that, all right—”

  The door crashed open behind him, surprising everyone.

  Taking advantage of the only opportunity she was likely to have, Savannah wrested away. She teetered, almost falling against the bed. She righted herself just in time.

  Just in time to see Adam.

  Hard-faced and toweringly tall, he pushed through the doorway. His gaze took in the assembled Bedell boys and Mariana, then arrowed in on Roy Bedell with unforgiving intensity.

  “You never should have taken her, Bedell,” Adam said. “This time—hell, every time—you went too far. Step away from her.”

  “Do it,” a man behind Adam urged. “Right now.”

  Mose. Shocked, Savannah recognized her friend. Belatedly she spied the gun in his hand…and in Adam’s. They’d come!

  They’d come to rescue her. And now they would want to sacrifice themselves. For her. She couldn’t let them do it.

  But before she could do anything to try to change things, Mariana spoke up. “Corwin!�
� Oddly she laughed. “For a world-famous detective, it sure took you long enough to get here.”

  Adam shifted his gaze an inch sideways. “Evening, Mariana.”

  They knew one another? Dumbfounded, Savannah stared. Then she realized this whole gang knew one another. Even now, Linus gazed familiarly at Adam with a woeful, speculative expression.

  “Kidnapping is a crime, Roy.” Adam kept his gun leveled at the confidence man. “So are extortion, stealing and murder. I’ve got all the proof I need to put you away for good. I’d suggest you come along with me peacefully. Your brothers, too.”

  Strangely enough, Roy only laughed. “Now, why would I go and do somethin’ like that, Detective?” He took an audacious, sauntering step forward, unbothered by the two firearms trained on him. With a sideways lunge, he grabbed Savannah. She kicked, but he held her fast, then went on crooning. “’Specially when I’ve got your wife here that I can use to make you let me go?”

  Seeing Savannah in Roy Bedell’s arms nearly blinded Adam with fury and fear. He’d taken too long to catch hold of her himself, he realized with a fresh surge of regret, and now Savannah was still at risk. Looking at her wide-eyed gaze and scared expression, he felt his heart beat with raw terror.

  Forcibly he made himself shrug. “Do whatever you want with her. All I’m after is you, Bedell. If that means losing her…” Adam frowned in thought. “Well, that’s the same as would have happened if I hadn’t brought you in tonight, isn’t it?”

  Stricken, Savannah stared at Adam. Tears sprang to her eyes.

  Beside him, Mose gave a growl of displeasure. Adam couldn’t bear to look at him and see the disillusionment in his face.

  “That’s cold-blooded, Detective,” Mariana observed from the other side of the room. “Even for a crazy bastard like you.”

  Gratefully Adam transferred his gaze to his partner. He’d been relieved to see that Mariana was safe—that she was here at all. Evidently, he realized, she’d gone undercover among the Bedells to try to bring them in. It was just like her to go above and beyond. Now she’d done the same to bolster his lies. “That is pretty cold-blooded,” Roy agreed. He kept his hands harshly on Savannah. “That’s even worse than me. That’s why I don’t believe you, Corwin. You’re too good to act that way.”