“A pretty face always fools you.”
“Then it’s a good thing you’re so ugly, ain’t it?”
Gabe ate the sausage, chewing slowly as he pondered that bit of news. Doc was protective of Tess, hmm? Protective to the point of violence? As soon as he finished his breakfast, he figured to head over to the barbershop and get in line to get his ears lowered. Experience had taught him that barbershops provided better information than saloons. That’s where he’d start his behind-the-scenes investigation into good ol’ Doc and the railroad shenanigans.
At that moment, the saloon doors swung open to reveal a new visitor, and all thought of Doc and haircuts disappeared from Gabe’s mind. “Mack?”
Mack Hunter strolled into the café like he owned it. “Hey, Whip. I figured I’d find you either eatin’ or cheatin’ at cards. Guess you haven’t made it as far as the poker table yet.” Motioning to a pair of men seated at the table nearest the door, he said, “Just a warning, folks, but I wouldn’t recommend dealing cards with this shark. He actually plays fair, he just wins so much it makes you think he must be cheating.”
“What are you doing here?” Gabe asked, dropping his fork onto his plate. He sat back in his chair, folded his arms, and narrowed his eyes in suspicion. “You told me you wouldn’t make this trip for all the bad whiskey in a Hell’s Half Acre saloon.”
“Speaking of which…” Mack turned to the waitress. “Can I get a whiskey here or do I need to go to the saloon for that?”
The woman provided him with two glasses and a bottle of whiskey which he took to Gabe’s table. He poured them both a drink then sipped his with a sigh. “I’m not here by choice. Jared sent me.”
Gabe lifted a brow. “Looking for me?”
Mack tugged an empty chair closer and propped up his boots. “And I have a letter for you from him. I thought I’d have to travel to this Aurora place to deliver it, so when I spied that Sparkle woman I met in Dallas down the street and she told me you were here, I was right pleased as a pig in slop.”
Gabe lifted his hand, palm out. “Don’t bring up pigs. Or camels for that matter. And it’s Twinkle, not Sparkle. Tell me why you’ve come.”
Mack scowled, took a sip of his whiskey, then said glumly, “Actually, I’m just passing through on way west. Jared has loaned my services to the T&NO Railroad. Their people have hit a wall trying to flush out a gang of train robbers causing havoc in these parts. Since I was going to be in the neighborhood and Jared had a letter to send you, we decided I should deliver it in person.” Eyeing Gabe’s plate he added, “Are you going to eat all that bacon?”
“Help yourself.” Gabe pushed his plate toward his friend.
Mack helped himself to two slices. “So, tell me what is up with you? Did you find your runaway wife?”
“I found her.”
“So what’s the story?”
“You know, I’ve been here for a while now, and I guess I’m still not certain.”
Mack gave him a measuring stare. “That doesn’t sound like you, my friend.”
Gabe had to agree. Seeing Mack again caused him to recall the sense of urgency that had gripped him in Dallas to hash out the past with Tess. Funny how that feeling had faded. Reckon that proved physical demands beat mental compulsions hands down. Uncomfortable with that thought, he asked his friend for the letter.
Mack slipped a hand inside his jacket and removed an envelope from the inner pocket. He tossed it to Gabe.
Recognizing his boss’ distinctive scrawl, Gabe experienced a sudden and surprising sense of dismay. He eyed the letter like a bowl of cold grits. If Jared had summoned him back to work, what would he do?
He wasn’t ready to leave Tess.
He picked up the missive and started to read. “He says there’s a letter from the governor?”
Mack removed a second paper from his pocket “He told me to give you his first.”
Gabe nodded. Apparently the governor had made a request of Gabe, and Jared wanted to reassure him that whatever his decision, he always had a job with the Brazos Valley Rail Company. The railroad owner also devoted a paragraph to scolding him for running off without providing the low-down on the pig-racing beauty. That was only to be expected. Jared was a nosey sonofabitch.
Gabe held out his hand and wiggled his fingers for Mack to hand over the governor’s letter. What he read ignited a spark of excitement inside him. “He wants me to report to Austin after the first of the year,” he told an obviously curious Mack. “He’s offered me the task of designing legislation to revamp the Texas Rangers, then sell the new plan to the state legislature.”
“Well that job should suit you like a broke-in pair of denims. You’ve been griping about the Rangers for years.”
“Not the Rangers themselves,” he protested. Then, recalling the captain come a-courting to Tess, he added, “Not all of them, anyway. It’s the organizational structure of the corps that is the problem. Times have changed. The Indian wars are over. Texas is heading into a new century with new problems and a population that continues to grow. Its institutions need to recognize the world has changed.”
“You don’t have to lecture me, Montana. I’ve never argued with you on this subject, have I?”
“Yes, you have. You resist change like Tess’s pig resists the skillet.”
A grin split Mack’s face. “And how is the fleet porker? You turned her into barbeque, yet?”
“Careful, there, Hunter. Your northern roots are showing. Texans barbeque beef, not pork. We pan-fry pork.”
“And how about the pig’s protectress? Have you put her on to sizzle, yet, my friend? That’s the question that truly brought me out here, you know. I might have talked my way out of this job for the T&NO if I weren’t dying of curiosity about your wife.”
Gabe eyed his friend, then purposely glanced back down at the letter. “The governor says he thinks I’m the perfect choice to tackle this task because of the notoriety the schoolhouse incident gave me, and the fact I’ve been stringent in my charge that the Rangers have allowed incompetent agents into its ranks in recent years.”
“I get the distinct impression you are trying to avoid talking about the lady.”
“I’m not answering the question you asked, no.”
“Still pretending to be a gentleman, I see.”
Gabe gave his friend a pointed stare. Mack was a rogue of the first water, and he’d long taken much pleasure in needling Gabe over his discretion where the women in his life were concerned Mack never knew the reasons behind Gabe’s reticence—at least, not until now.
Gabe might have left Tess physically, but mentally she’d remained right there with him. As a result, whenever he’d taken a woman to his bed, he’d made love to a memory. Using women that way shamed him, and he tended to avoid the exercise except when his body got the better of him. Mack being Mack, had long questioned Gabe’s reluctance to take advantage of the amorous opportunities that came his way. He’d dubbed his partner’s behavior “gentlemanly.” Gabe never bothered to correct him.
“So,” Mack continued. “What do you think about Governor Ross’s proposition? You ready to dismantle the Texas Rangers?”
Gabe tossed the letter onto the table and shook his head. “I wouldn’t think of it. The Rangers still have a place in the law enforcement hierarchy in this state. But like I said, times have changed. The frontier is disappearing. Our citizens have different needs than they did twenty years ago.”
“So you’re gonna take the job?”
Gabe thought of Tess. He couldn’t float along forever. Hell, except for his goal of bedding his wife, he’d had about as much purpose of late as those damned stars of hers. The governor didn’t want him in Austin for another three months. By then, he and Tess surely will have worked something out. Either that or all this pent-up sexual frustration will have driven him crazier than even the Aurorians. “Guess I’ll have to get around to asking the rest of those questions.”
“What questions?”
“It’ll be good for Texas,” Mack replied seriously. “You’ll do the state more good doing this than by bringing in train robbers and other nefarious outlaws.”
Gabe shrugged, then asked Mack about the gang of robbers he’d traveled this far to apprehend. They discussed the string of robberies taking place for a time and then, when Mack mentioned vandalism, Gabe’s ears perked up. “That’s been happening not far from here,” Mack said. “You know anything about it?”
“Not really.” Gabe relayed the little he knew about the storage shed fire and Captain Robards’s accusation.
Mack nodded. “I was told about the fire and a few other instances of trouble.”
“What other trouble?”
“Minor things for the most part. Tool theft, malicious pranks. I dismissed them as having anything to do with my robbers. They told me the ranchers in this area blame that mischief on a religious sect who’ve made a home out in the desert.”
“The Aurorians aren’t a religious sect,” Gabe corrected.
“Well, all I know is that the ranchers accuse these folks because they recently waged and lost a legal battle against the T&NO to prevent the building of the spur. Seems they feared the railroad would interfere with whatever it is they are doing out there in the desert.”
“Actually, it’s a pretty little canyon.” Gabe murmured. He recalled Tess’s question to Twinkle and the older woman’s response his first day in Aurora Springs. Tess had asked Twinkle what she’d done now. Twinkle replied she hadn’t done anything wrong this time. “Well, hell.”
“Well, hell what Whip? Are they guilty?”
Gabe rubbed his hand along his jaw. “I do know that during my time here, I’ve not seen any indication of their involvement in any type of sabotage. I don’t know what happened before I came. I hope they haven’t done anything stupid I like these people. They’re good folk. Eccentric as all git out but that’s not criminal behavior. I may not share their beliefs, but as long as they don’t hurt anyone in the pursuit of them, I see nothing wrong with how they choose to live. It’s not a crime to be different.”
“But it is a crime to bum out a supply depot or take a sledge hammer to machine parts.”
Again, he heard Twinkle’s voice in his head. I didn’t do anything this time. “Well, like you, I don’t work for the railroad building the spur so I guess it’s not my concern.”
Mack studied his fingernails. “Never knew you to let a skirt convince you to duck your head on justice.”
Gabe leaned back, in his chair and took a defiant bite of bacon. “If I didn’t know how much you like to badger a person, I’d deck you for that.”
Mack laughed. “One of these days I’m gonna get you good and riled, Montana. It’s a goal of mine, you know.”
“I suggest you concentrate on your train robbers instead,” Gabe dryly replied. “Your investigation might take more effort than you anticipate. From what I’ve seen it’s a hard-scrabble life out here in West Texas. Men who live in this part of the world are bound to be tougher than most. You may have to don your spurs to dig your way to the bottom of this particular pile of trouble.”
“And what are you going to be doing while I’m busy cozying up to murderers and thieves?”
“I’m going to look into that recent fire.” Then, because the governor’s request established a deadline for him to leave Aurora Springs, he thought about his wife and added, “And I’m going to start one of my own.”
“What?” Mack reared back in shock.
Gabe’s lips twitched with a grin, but before he said any more, a disturbance at the door grabbed his attention. Twinkle? “Hold on a minute, Mack.”
The woman dashed into the cafe as Gabe pushed to his feet. Beneath her multicolored go-to-town turban, her face was pale, and she literally wrung his hands. “What is it?” Gabe demanded.
“Oh, Gabe, it’s terrible. You’ve got to get them out.”
“Get who out?” Gabe replied, already headed for the door. “What happened?”
Twinkle launched into a tale that slowed his steps and soon had him biting the inside of his mouth to keep from laughing. Poor Tess, all in a tizzy about that damned hunk of ham. “Tell you what,” he said when the older woman finally wound down, “You see about getting one of the wagons hitched while I see if I can’t free the prisoners. We’ll likely need to head home early after this.”
She sagged in relief. “Thank you, Gabe-dear. I knew you’d help. I’ll go for the wagon.”
When Twinkle rushed off in the direction of the livery, Gabe returned to his table where he retrieved his hat and paid his bill.
“What’s going on?” Mack asked as Gabe motioned for him to join him. “Seems that my wife and her friends have stirred up a little trouble.”
Mack polished off his drink and stood. “Where we going?”
“The jail.”
Mack’s eyebrows arched. “One of those Aurorians been arrested?”
“In a manner of speaking.” Gabe snagged his hat from the rack by the door and sauntered outside.
CHAPTER 8
AFTER YEARS OF LIVING in the wide open spaces of West Texas, Tess didn’t cotton to small, enclosed places. Five steps by three steps. There was room for a fourth, but the foul smelling bucket in the corner kept her turning around before she took the final step.
Tess paced the confined area, careful not to trip over her four-legged cellmate who had plopped herself down on the floor in front of the barred and locked door. “It’s a case of false arrest, that’s what this is. It has nothing to do with assault and everything to do with one hardheaded, mean-spirited man. I’d like to tell that Bart Collins to go sit on a cactus.”
On the other side of the bars, her Aurorian family nodded in agreement. Jack’s expression dipped in a scowl. “I never liked that man. There’s something sinister about him.”
Andrew folded his arms and grunted. “His eyes are too close together, have you noticed that? I don’t trust a man whose eyes are too close together. Bad confirmation, don’t you know.”
“He is somewhat heady-eyed,” the colonel observed, thumbing his lapels. “I wouldn’t want him standing with me in battle.”
Andrew reached through the bars and took hold of Tess’s hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze. “Bart Collins is trouble, no doubt about that. I’m sorry none of us were there to help you when it happened. It wouldn’t have gone so for if we’d been with you.”
“Why did you go off on your own?” Colonel Jasper asked.
A new voice entered the fray. “That’s a good question, Colonel,” Gabe said striding into the jail. “Darlin’, why were you in the alley between the whorehouse and the saloon with nothing more than a pig for protection?”
Tess drew herself up and folded her arms. She wasn’t about to reveal her private vice, not to him and not under these circumstances. Adopting a false air of bravado, she did her best to change the subject. “Gabe, I’m glad you’re here. Please tell me you have enough money with you to bail us out of jail. We’ve already spent most everything we had on supplies, and considering the circumstances, I doubt Bart Collins would give us a refund anyway.”
Gabe chastened her with a gaze, letting her know he was aware she hadn’t answered his question. She looked away from him when another man, a stranger, entered the small jailhouse behind her husband. He snapped his fingers and said, “Now I place the face. The peach colored dress at the pig race at the fair. You’re the phantom wife?” Then he slapped Gabe on the shoulder and said, “You sonofa…uh…gun. No wonder you ‘bout tore up the Texas State Fair looking for her.”
Obviously, a friend of her husband. The smile she aimed at Gabe dripped sugar. “Phantom wife?”
He arched a brow. “An alley?”
Damn the man. He had the tenacity of the dromedaries on the trail. Tess thought it best to move on. She turned a genuine version of her smile toward the stranger. “I�
��m eager to meet a friend of my husband’s, but I hope you’ll understand I prefer to be out of jail for proper introductions.”
He swept his hat off his head and gallantly placed it over his heart. “I shall count the minutes.”
“If that’s the case, then your friend best be counting out his cash so you’re not counting minutes for days,” grumbled Jack Baker. He stepped toward Gabe, held out his hand, and rubbed thumb and fingers together.
Ignoring him, Gabe looked at Tess. “Now, let me get this straight. You belted this Collins fellow because…?”
“He fired a gun at Rosie because she was rooting through his trash.”
Gabe froze. “A gun? This incident involved a gun?”
The stranger exclaimed, “Collins shot at another lady and they arrested you for assault?”
“Rosie isn’t a lady,” Gabe said, his glare locked on Tess. “She’s a pig.”
“Dang, Montana. That’s a little personal, isn’t it?”
Ignoring his friend’s question, Gabe pushed his way past the Aurorians and stopped directly in front of the cell door, his hands braced on his hips. “Tell me exactly what happened. Every little detail.”
Tess didn’t care for his autocratic attitude, but since she was at the mercy of his wallet at the moment, she chose to comply. “I was visiting with a friend and not paying attention to Rosie. She wandered down the alley a bit. First thing I know, she’s snorting and squealing and Bart Collins is kicking her in the ribs.”
“He’s the swine, not our Rosie,” Colonel Jasper declared.
“Where does the gun part come in?” Gabe asked, a muscle working in his jaw.
Anger washed through Tess anew as she remembered the events. “Of course Rosie didn’t like being kicked, so she turned to run and that’s when she knocked him down. At that point, he lost all control and started shouting and swearing, and then he pulled the gun and pointed it at Rosie.”
“So, you attacked him?”
“I don’t know that attack is the best term. I hit him, is all. I defended Rosie.”
The Kissing Stars Page 13
