“The murders didn’tcontinue.”
Kali blinked. “What?”
“When he was gone, theystopped.”
Damn, she had been sure she’d been on tosomething. What had happened then? Had the murderer figured thingswere too hot and he dared not strike again? Or had it simply beencoincidence that Cedar had left at the same time as this cutthroatstopped attacking women in San Francisco?
“I’m not after the wrongman, Miss McAlister,” Lockhart said softly, gently, as if he wassorry he had to hurt her feelings by telling her a truth she didn’twant to hear.
Kali sat up straight, agrowl in the back of her throat. It wasn’t the truth. “Listen, mister,I’ve seen him do a lot of good up here. He’s brought in heaps ofmurdering criminals. You two should be allies, notenemies.”
Lockhart snorted.
Kali leaned forward, gripping the edge ofthe table. “You weren’t around when he first told me about hispast, so he had no reason to lie to me. He volunteered theinformation.”
“Miss McAlister, I’velearned that most men tell tall tales, especially to women theywant to bed. That fibs are commonplace doesn’t make them true orany less insidious.” Lockhart drew his shiny steel Colt and raisedit above the table.
Kali tensed. He had no law-abiding reason tokill her, but the gun’s appearance made her nervous. He’d see ifshe reached for the man-stopper in her front overalls pocket, but,out of sight beneath the table, her hand drifted to the pocketwhere she kept the pair of smoke nuts.
Lockhart laid the revolver down in front ofher and leaned forward, eyes intent. “They call this gun thePeacemaker, and it’s here with me to kill Milos Kartes and bringpeace to the spirits of those he murdered. Half a dozen innocentwomen in San Francisco, dead by his hand. His guilt was determinedby a jury of his peers. Evidence, not tall tales, condemned him. IfI come across Cudgel Conrad, I’ll kill him, too, because he’swanted a hundred times over for his crimes, but his isn’t the caseI was assigned. I’m here to get Kartes.” He gazed straight into hereyes. “And if you get in my way, Miss, I’ll have the Mounties lockyou up until I catch up with my man.”
Kali wanted to declare that Lockhart wasfrom the United States, and had less sway with the RCMP than Cedardid, but his hard, unwavering stare stole her defiance. She had tofight to not squirm and look away. Seconds ticked by as she triedto come up with a strong, intelligent reply, but she couldn’t thinkof anything.
A scream came from a hallway behind thestage.
Kali lunged to her feet, tipping her chairover. Lockhart leaped up even faster. With his Colt in hand, hevaulted over the table and sprinted for the hallway.
The fiddle halted, and the dancers stopped.Kali started to follow Lockhart, but caught herself. If themurderer was back there, he supposedly liked to torment his victimsbefore killing them. He couldn’t do that in a public place. If hewas kidnapping a girl, he might run out the back.
Kali pushed past groups of gawking men andheaded for the front door. If she could get around the buildingquickly enough, maybe she could stop, or at least delay, someonecoming out the back.
She ducked past a burly man in the doorway,gasped a breath of fresh air, and sprinted down the boardwalktoward the alley. Muffled grunts and whimpers of feminine distresscame from behind the building. Kali dug into a pocket and pulledout one of her smoke nuts. She jumped off the boardwalk and intothe ally. Mud squished audibly beneath her feet, and she winced,hoping the kidnapper had not heard. Striving for quiet, sheadvanced more slowly than she wanted.
A shadow passed over her, and Kali glancedup. The buildings on either side of her hid all but a slice of thenight sky, and she saw nothing but stars in the gap.
“Your imagination,” shemuttered under her breath.
Kali picked her way through the sucking mudas quickly as she could. She reached the back of the saloon andpeeked around the corner.
A towering man with a torso as broad as agrizzly’s was stalking toward her. That had to be Sparwood. A womanthrashed in his arms, but he kept her crushed against his chest,her feet dangling a foot above the ground. Her flailing wasuseless.
Kali tightened her hand around the smokenut, but hesitated before arming it. The shrapnel her weapon flungwould hit the woman, too, probably harming her more than the man,since he was holding her before him like a shield.
They were only five steps from her hidingspot. There was no time to think of a better plan. The man wouldtake at least some of the shrapnel, and Kali could attack him underthe cover of the smoke.
She armed the smoke nut and drew back herhand to throw. Someone grabbed her wrist.
Kali spun, her free hand reaching for theman-stopper, but she thought it might be Cedar or Lockhart andwasn’t as quick to draw as she might have been. She didn’trecognize the dark figure before her, though, and a calloused handcaught her other wrist before she could grab the gun. Someone elseappeared and ripped the smoke nut from her grasp, then hurled itonto the roof. It went off, shards of metal pinging against stovepipes and chimneys, but the building kept it from doing any gooddown in the alley.
Kali tried to twist free of her captor’sgrip, but he was strong and he wasn’t alone. Three other men hadcome into view. Behind them a rope ladder dangled from the sky. Notthe sky. The pirate airship. Even with the limited view and thenight darkness, she recognized its black silhouette blotting outthe stars above.
Mud squished behind her. “What we got here?”a deep voice rumbled over the continuing struggles of his femalecaptive. “Two for the price of one?” He laughed, a dark, cruellaugh that sent a chill down Kali’s spine. “She’s familiar too. Youthe one what was skulking around in the woods?”
The chill deepened. Had he been watching allthe time? While she and Cedar questioned the other pirate?
“Hurry up,” someone said,already jumping for the ladder. “There’s a Pinkerton detective onhis way out, and Ralph can only keep him busy so long.”
As the men backed toward the ladder, Kalirallied for one more escape attempt. She tried to jam a knee intoher captor’s groin, but he saw the move coming and blocked her.Someone grabbed her from behind and slipped a bag over her head.Kali twisted her neck and tried to bite the man through the burlap.She caught something-a hand? — between her teeth, but a fist slammedinto her temple. Pain ricocheted through her head. The bag made itstuffy and hard to breathe, and she gasped for air.
“Feisty wench, ain’t she?”Sparwood asked, predatory hunger in his voice.
“Just like you like ’em.”The other men laughed.
Idiot, Kali, she cursed herself. They nevershould have believed that pirate’s story.
She sucked in a deep breath to scream forCedar, but she’d barely gotten the “C” out when a hand clamped downon her mouth. Someone hoisted her legs into the air and wound ropeabout her wrists and ankles. In heartbeats she was tied tight. Shebit down on the hand gagging her, and a man cursed. Before shecould try to scream again, another fist collided with her head. Herdazed body refused to comply with her brain’s orders to keepfighting, and the men hauled her up the ladder.
The shrapnel being flung from her smoke nuthad ceased, and only its smoke lingered in the air as they climbed.Kali cursed Lockhart for being slow, but more, she cursed herselffor not sticking with Cedar. Talking to Lockhart had been a wasteof time, and now she was captured, in the hands of a rapist andmurderer, surrounded by a whole crew that apparently supportedhim.
Part VIII
Kali’s captors dragged her into the bowelsof the airship. Though the bag over her head stole her sight, thestifling heat told her where they were. The boiler room.
The man carrying Kali dropped her like asack of corn meal, and her shoulder hit hard, sending a fresh stabof pain through her. While men shuffled about, and chains clackednearby, Kali fantasized about commandeering the ship, sailing tothe North Pole, and making these louts walk the plank. She’d leavethem on a sheet of ice where they could become a nice snack for apassing polar bear.
Someone
grabbed her by the head and pulledoff the sack, removing numerous strands of hair at the same time.It was hard to glower effectively from one’s back on the floor, butKali gave it her best.
The men ignored her icy stare. A burlypirate clapped a leg iron around one of her ankles. Its chain ranfive feet to an eyelet in front of a bin of coal and two furnaces.The pirate cut the rope that tied her ankles together. Kali liftedher bound wrists, hoping he would do the same for them. He didnot.
“We don’t allow anyonefree passage on our vessel,” a graying reed of a man said. Scarspeppered his face, and he wore an eye patch like the pirates instorybooks. He lacked only a parrot to perch on his shoulder,though such birds were probably hard to come by in northern climes.He took a shovel from a scruffy man cloaked from head to foot insoot. “Everybody here works, ain’t that right, Chum?”
“Oh, aye, Cap’n,” thesooty man said.
Kali remained quiet. Working in the boilerroom sounded far better than being mauled by that Sparwood, but shewasn’t about to say so. The other woman the pirates had kidnappedwas nowhere to be seen, and Kali scowled at the realization ofwhere she must be. Would she be next?
“Take all of her things,”the captain said.
Invasive hands pawed at Kali, and shegritted her teeth. With her wrists tied and her leg chained, shecould do little to fight the intrusion, though she stood with oneleg slightly in front of the other, blocking the view of the anklethat held her vial of flash gold. She hoped the man wouldn’t thinkto check her socks. Maybe she should have taken the vial back toher workshop and locked it in its safe, behind a series of boobytraps. Too late now.
Unfortunately, the man searching her provedadept at finding things. He removed her remaining smoke nut, hergun, and every single tool in her pockets.
“Tarnation, girl,” thepirate said, “you rob a tool shop?”
“Your murderers caught mewhen I was in the middle of a project,” Kali said.
“I ain’t murderedanyone.”
“You let it happen on yourship.” Though she was responding to the man searching her, Kalilooked the captain in the eyes when she spoke. She thought of theairship hovering above the alley behind the Aurora, and of thatladder dangling down. “You even help out, don’t you?” Thatexplained why Cedar hadn’t found a trail at the murdered woman’shome. “You drop that bastard down and pick him up when he’s done,don’t you? You help him perpetrate the idea that there’s somethingotherworldly involved in these murders, since there’s nothing butthose fake bead patches to be found.”
Kali was surprised the pirates had chosensuch a public target this time, a woman getting ready for a show ina saloon full of people. Maybe it’d been a last hit before the shipcleared out of town. Or maybe they’d counted on Sparwood getting into steal the girl without anyone up front hearing about it. Kali’sstomach clenched at the idea of him leaving a bead patch in thechanging room and people blaming “spirits” for the girl’sdisappearance.
The captain lifted his chin in response toKali’s accusations. “Sparwood’s my best worker and fights betterthan ten men combined, and he doesn’t ask for a cut of the loot. Hejust wants the leeway to pursue his…hobby.”
“That’s loathsome,” Kalisaid, “and so are you if you help.”
“What’s this?” The mansearching her had found all of her tools and weapons, and moveddown to her ankles. Kali winced when he patted at the lump there.Having these slimy pirates running around with such power was thelast thing she wanted.
The man pulled out her vial and held italoft. The flakes inside the clear container appeared no differentfrom regular gold, but they glowed softly, sending occasionalstreaks of yellow lightning coursing through the glass tube.
“That,” a new voice saidfrom a hatchway leading to an upper deck, “is what I was hopingshe’d have, and it’s why I’ve offered you more money than the Scarof Skagway for her capture.”
The owner of the voice climbed down aladder, boots ringing on the metal rungs. He clasped his handsbehind his back and strolled toward the furnaces to join thecaptain and others in regarding Kali.
A pale-skinned man, he wore an all white,expensive suit, tailored to fit his body. His boots were likenothing Kali had ever seen. Snake skin? Or maybe alligator orcrocodile? She’d read about such creatures. The man bore noweapons, but all the pirates, the captain included, offered subduedgreetings and touched their knuckles to their hats or foreheads inpolite salutes.
“Mister Conrad,” thecaptain said, and Kali’s head jerked up. Cudgel Conrad? Cedar’s nemesis? “Weweren’t expecting you until morning,” the captain went on, “so Iwas fixing to get some work out of her. But if youwant-”
“No, no,” Conrad saidpolitely, as if he were passing on an after-dinner dessert offeredby a waiter in some classy restaurant. “Work her all you wish.There’ll be plenty of time for questioning later.” He hadgreenish-blue eyes, the only spot of color on him, and theyhardened then, reminding Kali of marbles as they bore into her.“First, there remains a spot of business to which I must attend.It’s time to make sure that dear detective gets hisman.”
Kali curled her lip.“You’d best be more worried about that man getting you.”
Conrad yawned.
“Mister Conrad, sir,” thecaptain said. “One of my men was wondering about her usefor…entertainments.”
A woman’s scream echoed from a higher deck.Kali tried to keep a defiant sneer on her face, but the timing ofthat scream, and the amused snort of one of the pirates, leftlittle doubt in her mind as to what the captain meant.
“What are your orders asto her person?” the captain finished.
“Ensure she’s able toanswer questions in the morning,” Conrad said.
“That’s it?”
“Indeed. In fact,encourage your man to make the experience memorable. Women rarelyresist my interrogation techniques, but it can make things easierif they’ve been broken already.”
Kali glowered. She wished she could do more.This fellow deserved a good kick in the bear cubs. No, he deserveda lot more than that for tormenting Cedar and killing countlessothers.
Conrad took a step toward the hatch, butpaused, raising a finger. “Actually, I do have one requirement.Don’t let your man damage her face. Should the Pinkerton detectivefail, I may need to dangle her as bait to lure in a particularlytroublesome fish.” His marble cold eyes found Kali’s again.“Despite this fish’s efforts to minimize contact with her of late,I do believe they’re close.”
“Yes, sir.” The captainknuckled his forehead again.
When Conrad left, the captain stood taller,losing his diffident manner. He pointed to the fellow smeared withcoal dust. “Give Chum your shovel, and show her the ropes. Denny,stow her gear. Malcom-” he pointed to a bearded man with a shotgun,“-you’re on guard. Stay alert, and keep her working. I don’t wantour boat lingering over downtown Dawson. Look cheery men. We’ve anice pay day coming up.”
The captain left, takingthe men he hadn’t named with him. The one who had conducted hersearch looked around, probably trying to figure out what he wassupposed to do with the armful of weapons and tools. He shuffled tothe far end of the boiler room, dropping a screwdriver on the way,and dumped everything except her gun onto a metal table bolted tothe wall. Toolboxes were secured there, and an empty crate on thefloor read propellerblades. Machine shop, Kali guessed, eyeingit speculatively as the pirate headed out. If she could free herankle and get over there, maybe she could build something usefulfor escaping. And then what? She eyed the bulkheads, looking for adoor that might lead to the engine room, but the pipes from theboilers disappeared through solid walls behind the equipment, andshe didn’t see any exits except for the ceiling hatch Conrad hadused.
The sooty man thrust his shovel into Kali’shands, distracting her from her thoughts. He drew a knife and cuther wrist bindings. “That goes in there.” He pointed at the coalbin and the furnace door.
“Excellent instructions,”Kali said. “I’ll be sure to recommend you f
or apromotion.”
It was hard to read a face coated in coaldust, but he curled a lip and growled at her, and she got the gist.He ticked a finger against a gauge on the adjacent boiler where aneedle hovered at the low end of the operational zone. “Make surethat stays between here and here. If it’s here, add more coalfaster. If it gets up here, you can slow down for a spell. There’sa safety shutoff, so don’t get any bright ideas about gettingthings too hot.”
“Wouldn’t dream of it,”Kali said.
Which was true. Sheought to be concernedsolely with escaping, maybe finding that girl and getting her outtoo, but the fact that she was within the bowels of the veryairship she wanted to claim for herself kindled ideas in her mind.Maybe she could yet take it over somehow and keep it for herself.Unless she ran out of other options, she wouldn’t risk blowing halfof the hull off in a boiler explosion.
“Now, I reckon I can getsome sleep, though the night seems young for that.” Soot-face threwa smirk at the guard, then considered Kali through slittedeyes.
She tensed. With her hands free and a shovelin her grip, she thought she could defend herself, leg iron or not,but the guard standing by the hatch was watching, his shotgun atthe ready.
“Don’t see why Sparwoodgets all the girls,” Sooty grumbled.
“’Cause he can pound youinto pieces,” the guard said. “You better leave her be and findyour hammock.”
“Guess you’reright.”
Given his defeatist words, Kali wasn’texpecting Sooty’s hand to lunge in. He squeezed her breast, mashingdown with the subtlety of a jackhammer. Kali swung the shovel,cracking him in the side of his head.
He staggered back while the guard laughedand said, “You deserved that.”
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