by Bobbi Smith
They slipped quietly from the hotel. When they reached her house, he kissed her one last time and watched until she was safely inside.
Determination settled over him as he turned away, grimly ready to finish what the Sheldons had started. He did not know that Amanda was watching him go from the window or that she was praying that he would be safe.
Amanda turned away from the window and was surprised to find Eileen watching her from the top of the steps.
“He’s still going?” the older woman asked as she came downstairs.
“Yes . . . But we’re going to be married as soon as he gets back.”
“That’s wonderful!” Eileen went to her and hugged her. “Your father will be thrilled. He thinks the world of Jack.”
“So do I.” Amanda sighed. “I love him so much, Eileen. I couldn’t bear it if something happened to him.”
Eileen gave her a sympathetic look. “I know, but nothing is going to happen to our Jack. He’s the best. He’s going to hunt down those Sheldons and get back here as quickly as he can.”
“Do you think he’ll be back by noon?” Amanda asked, forcing a smile.
“As good as he is, anything is possible.” Eileen laughed. “He’ll be back. You’ve given him something to live for. Nothing will stop him from returning to you.”
“I hope you’re right.”
Eileen hoped she was, too. Jack had told them how dangerous the Sheldons were. With all her heart, she prayed that they were caught soon. She loved Amanda like a daughter and wanted her to have the happiness with Jack that she herself had never had with Andrew. She slipped an arm around Amanda’s waist.
“Do you want to go to bed or shall we have a very early breakfast and start planning your wedding?”
“Let’s have breakfast,” Amanda said, smiling. She knew Eileen was trying to distract her and she was glad for her efforts. “I can’t wait to tell Papa.”
They walked into the kitchen, looking toward the future.
Rock Water turned out to be every bit as decadent as Cody and Luke had heard. Cody was quickly hired on as Armita at the saloon. She always went into these situations not quite knowing what to expect. In El Terrón it had taken a long time to find out what she needed to know, but this time she was surprised and pleased by the looseness of the talk. She supposed it was because most everyone in town was on the wrong side of the law that no one cared who talked. Alice and Nina were filling Armita in on the clientele.
“Nina, when are your two favorite customers coming back?” Alice asked her sarcastically.
“Never, I hope,” the girl spat.
“From the look on your face, Alice is teasing you about them being your favorites. Who are they? Maybe I should watch out for them, so I can avoid them,” Cody said.
“Their names were Hank and Willy. They were brothers. I don’t know their last name and I don’t care.”
Cody was careful to keep her reaction hidden, but she tensed at the mention of the first names. It had to be the Sheldons. There couldn’t be two other brothers in the same area with the same names. ‘ ‘What did they do that was so horrible?”
Nina shivered visibly. “The one named Hank seemed nice enough at first, but I was wrong. They were mean and ugly—both of them.”
“You were lucky they left then,” Cody remarked, wanting to lead with that question.
“Yes, but I feel sorry for the man they are after.”
“They were after a man? Were they lawmen?”
Nina laughed coldly at her. “No, the one they were after—he was the lawman. A Ranger named Logan.”
“How did they find out where he was? Rangers usually keep on the move, don’t they?”
She shrugged. “All I know is that they read something in the newspaper about how this Ranger had arrested a gang in Del Cuero and was heading back to San Rafael.”
“If they are as mean as you say, I wouldn’t want to be that Logan right now, and I really wouldn’t want to be one of the girls in San Rafael,” Cody said.
“Me either. I hope they never come back here.”
A few men drifted into the saloon then, and Nina and Alice went to see to their needs. Armita got ready to put on another show. Luke hadn’t come in yet, but when he did, she’d warn him to be ready to ride at midnight. They had to get to San Rafael fast. The Sheldons were closing in on Jack.
The following day at the saloon everyone wondered what had happened to the beautiful Armita. She had disappeared without a trace.
Chapter Twenty-one
“I heard some interesting news today,” Jenny said almost snidely as she came to stand by Susie at the bar.
“What?” Susie was always eager to hear gossip.
‘‘I was in the dry goods store and I heard two women talking. You know, that Amanda Taylor and the old lady who lives with her.”
“Yes. So?”
“So, it just turns out that your precious Jack Logan is getting married.”
“What?”
“That’s right. For all that you said he showed you a real good time that night, I guess you didn’t please him enough. He’s marrying the Taylor girl just as soon as he gets back to town.”
“I didn’t even know he’d left,” Susie said with a shrug.
“I thought you liked him.” Jenny had hoped to upset her. She was jealous of Susie because all the customers seemed to like her best.
“I do like him, but I didn’t want to marry him. Amanda Taylor is a lucky girl.”
“I’ll say,” Jenny agreed.
“Where did Jack go, do you know?”
“They were talking about it, but all I heard them say was that he had some Ranger business to take care of.”
“That’s right. I heard he’d gone back to work for the Rangers. I heard he was real good at his job, too.”
“He must be. Look at how quickly he brought in the ones responsible for robbing the stage.”
“I don’t know what kind of a life it’s gonna be for his wife, being married to a Ranger.”
“Not much of one, I’d think. I sure wouldn’t want to be married to a Texas Ranger. It’s a dangerous job.”
They started to talk of other things, unaware of the two trail-dusty, unshaven men standing just a short distance from them at the bar.
“That marriage is going to be a short one, if they have time to get married at all,” Hank said to his brother with a smile.
“Sometimes we just get lucky,” Willy said, feeling very good about being in San Rafael. “He may be gone right now, but his intended is here and we know he’ll be back. All we have to do is lay low and wait for him to walk right into our trap.”
“Shall we spend the night here and check out Miss Amanda Taylor in the morning?”
“That sounds like a plan to me.”
“I think I’ll get a shave and a bath and a woman while I’m here,” Hank said.
“Enjoy. I’m just going to drink.”
Hank had one more whiskey and then snared Susie around the waist and kissed her. “You know how to show me a good time?”
“I sure do, honey,” she cooed.
“Good. Get me a bath up to one of the rooms, and I’ll let you wash my back.”
“Is that all you’re going to let me wash?” she asked, giving him a hot look.
“Woman, you can wash whatever you want on me. The night is yours.”
“I think I’m going to enjoy you, cowboy.” She took his hand and led him upstairs.
Willy just watched them go and shook his head. He knew what Hank was thinking. From the conversation they’d overheard, Logan had bedded Susie, and now Hank wanted her. It wouldn’t surprise him in the least if Hank went after the Taylor girl after they’d taken care of Logan. That might just be worth watching.
He ordered another whiskey.
When Hank emerged from Susie’s room the next morning, he found his brother sleeping at one of the tables. He kicked his chair to wake him.
“Let’s go. I want to check on
that Taylor woman. Susie mentioned that she works at the stage office some days. So we can walk past there and get a look at her. I want to see what kind of taste Logan has in women.”
Willy stood up, still groggy from all the liquor he’d drunk. He was half-staggering as he followed his brother from the saloon. They were careful not to draw any attention to themselves as they moved through town. They walked past the stage office and saw the dark-haired beauty through the window. Once they’d moved far enough away, Hank just had to remark on her.
“He’s got fine taste in women,” he told his brother. “I wouldn’t mind sampling some of that.”
“You wouldn’t mind samplin’ some of anything that wears skirts.”
Hank grinned a leering grin at him. “Some meat is better quality. She’s a looker.”
“And that’s all you’re gonna do—just look. We’re here for Logan, nothing else.”
“We’d better ride out of town and find us a campsite. If he’s off running with the Rangers, it may be a while before he comes back. Somebody’ll start wondering about us if we stay in town too long, and we don’t need that.”
They picked up supplies at the general store and left San Rafael that morning. They would check back in a day or two to see if Logan had turned up. Patience was the answer to finding him, and they would wait as long as they had to.
Cody and Luke had some planning to do before they could ride into San Rafael. It took them an extra day to put their new disguises together, but finally Sister Mary’s Salvation Show rolled down the main street. Cody was dressed in a high-necked, long-sleeved black gown, and Luke was dressed in a black suit and tie. They looked solemn and holy and ready to convert the entire town. The wagon they were driving was painted with revival slogans—Repent And Be Saved! The End Is Near! Cody hoped the last one was particularly true. She wanted the end to be near. She wanted the Sheldons back in custody.
As they passed through town, Cody reined in at every corner. Luke jumped down and nailed up handbills proclaiming the news that they were in town and that their revival would start the following night and run for five straight nights.
Cody hoped five nights would be all it would take to locate the Sheldons. They were here somewhere. She could feel it. All she had to do was flush them out and trap them. As Sister Mary, she would have far greater access around town than she would have had as Armita, and, having enlisted Luke’s help as a preacher, she was ready. With her gun hidden in the cut-out middle of her Bible, she could minister to the needs of both the poor in spirit with her preaching and the poor in morals with her gun.
Sheriff Riley saw the wagon coming and called out a greeting.
“Hello, Sheriff. I must say you have a beautiful town here,” Cody said as she reined in before him.
“Why, thank you. It’s a quiet place, and we like to keep it that way.”
“You must have a lot of law-biding, God-fearing people in San Rafael.”
“Sure do.”
“It’s no wonder, being named after Saint Raphael and all. We’re going to enjoy our visit. It should be a profitable one for you and for us.”
“I hope so. Anyone preaching the good news is always welcome here.”
“Any suggestions where we might set up our tent?” Luke asked.
“Right on the outskirts of town up ahead will be fine. You should draw a good crowd.”
“We plan to do our best to deliver our message,” Cody added. “Repent and be saved! The end is near!”
“Will you both be preaching?”
“Yes. I’m Sister Mary and this is my partner, Luke. When he’s preaching he goes by Brother Luke,” she said earnestly. “His speeches are inspiring.”
“Well, good luck to you. I’ll be looking forward to hearing you. When will you be starting?”
“Tomorrow night. Eight o’clock.”
“I’ll be there.”
They rode to the site the sheriff had suggested and began to set up their tent. They had an entire day to get the word out around town that Sister Mary’s Salvation Show had arrived—and to locate the Taylor Stage and Freight Line’s office and find out where Jack was.
It was late afternoon when Cody and Luke entered the office of Taylor Stage and Freight. Dan and Amanda were both working.
“Can we help you?” Dan asked, studying the somberly dressed pair.
“Hello, I’m Luke Majors and I’m—”
“You’re Jack’s friends,” Amanda said, smiling brightly. “He told us about you. You must be Cody.”
“Jack told you about us?” Cody was surprised.
“Oh, yes. He mentioned that you were bounty hunters,” Dan said.
“Is he here?” Luke wanted to know. “We need to talk to him.”
“No,” Amanda told him. “He and Stalking Ghost rode out a few days ago to look for you. He wanted to learn what you’d found out about the Sheldons.”
Cody and Luke exchanged glances, and then Cody quickly explained the situation. “We’ve been trailing the Sheldons, and they’re here, somewhere close. They know that Jack made an arrest in Del Cuero and brought the men back to San Rafael for trial.”
Luke asked, “Have you seen any strangers around town in the last few days?”
“I haven’t noticed anyone,” Dan said thoughtfully.
“Well, keep an eye out. I’ve got the wanted poster right here, so you’ll have an idea of who to look for.” Cody pulled the paper out and unfolded it for them to see.
Both Amanda and Dan studied it carefully.
“They’re ugly. I won’t miss them if I see them,” Amanda said.
“Good, but be careful if you do see them. They’re deadly and they know about Jack’s connection to the stage line.”
“Jack and I are going to be married.”
Cody smiled brightly at her. “I’m so happy for you. Jack’s a wonderful man.”
“So what are your plans?” Dan asked.
“I’m Sister Mary. We’re here as Sister Mary’s Salvation Show. We’re both preachers and we’re holding a revival meeting that will begin tomorrow night.”
“So we should call you Sister Mary in public.”
“Please. Our hope is to somehow draw the Sheldons out into the open so we can catch them.”
“If you need anything, anything at all, just let us know. We want to see them caught, too.”
“All we ask is that you keep our identities a secret and let us know immediately if you see or hear anything.”
“We will. I hope you find them soon,” Amanda told them. “Do you have plans for dinner tonight? Would you like to come to our house?”
“Thank you. We’d love to.”
Several hours later, they were all gathered around the dining room table at the Taylor home. Dinner had been delicious, and now they were taking the time to talk. Amanda and Dan had told them how Jack had come to be working for Taylor Stage and Freight. Luke had told them of Jack’s background and then they had both filled in the details of the near tragedy with El Diablo.
“So he’s back with the Rangers again,” Luke said with satisfaction. “That’s good. Last we’d heard of him was what Steve Laughlin told us when he came out to the ranch looking for him. It looks like meeting up with you, Amanda, straightened him out.”
“Amanda is quite a woman,” Eileen said. “I don’t think Jack has ever met anyone like her before.”
At their curious looks, she went on.
“Amanda is involved in the woman’s movement. She’s a suffragist.”
“You are?” Cody looked at her with even greater respect. “That must be exciting.”
“Occasionally it is, but mostly it’s an uphill battle.”
“But one worth the effort.”
“I think so, but I haven’t had much time to deal with it since I’ve been back home.”
“Tell Cody what you were doing when you first met Jack,” Eileen encouraged her. “Tell her about The Palace. She’ll enjoy that story.”
“The
Palace?” Dan interrupted, a curious look on his face. “Exactly what is The Palace?”
Amanda smiled sheepishly at her father. “A saloon in Philadelphia.”
“Your grandmother let you go into a saloon?” he roared.
“Grandmother didn’t know. I told her I was spending the night with a friend. It wasn’t a lie. I was planning to—after we marched on The Palace.”
“You marched on a saloon?” Cody was amazed.
Amanda nodded. “I was involved with the temperance marchers, too. We went into The Palace that night and smashed up liquor bottles using axes.”
“You what!” Dan was shocked.
“Don’t worry. Jack got me out of there just in time. I didn’t get arrested, but some of my friends did.”
“Amanda—” he began in a stem voice.
“Papa,” she said with dignity, “a man who drank there regularly had gotten drunk and beaten his wife to death. That’s why we attacked it.”
“No wonder your grandmother wanted you to come home,” he said, finally coming to understand what his mother-in-law had meant when she’d said that Amanda was out of control.
“It wasn’t that outrageous,” she argued. “It was important.”
“What did Jack say when he found you there?” Luke had to know.
“He wasn’t altogether pleased,” she said mildly.
“I’ll bet,” Dan remarked drolly. “Here I promised him that you were a sweet young thing who just needed an escort home.”
Amanda couldn’t help smiling. “The first time he saw me, I was smashing whiskey bottles with an axe.”
“You’re kidding.” Cody couldn’t believe it. Amanda looked like such a lady—but then, she realized, she herself looked like a lady most of the time, too, and she was a bounty hunter.
“No, he had to take my axe away from me and carry me out of the saloon over his shoulder.”
“He did?” Luke laughed at the image her description conjured up.
“At first, I thought I’d been kidnapped. It wasn’t until he had me away from the saloon that he told me who he was and what he was doing there.”
