The Annex Mail-Order Brides: Preque (Intrigue Under Western Skies Book 0)

by Elaine Manders

  He flexed his shoulders and shook his head. “The problem is you were in Bluffton the day of the holdup. Witnesses remembered your name—your whole name.”

  “I had some business to finish up in Bluffton so, yeah, several people heard my name. Then I went to the saloon to try to talk some sense in Tom. Granny asked me to.”

  “Your fight with Renfro drew a large crowd.” Rafe hung his hat on the rack. “But don’t you worry. When Cranford comes in to keep an eye on the place, I’m going out and find that polecat of a cousin of yours—and I’ll do it before the marshal gets here to pick you up.”

  “Let me go with you, Rafe. Renfro and Tom have to be hiding out around here. The posse shot those other two not six miles away.” Josh clenched his jaw as he stared at the ceiling for inspiration. “And Granny told me she was missing food. The hens weren’t laying as much. I should’ve realized then Tom was sneaking up to her place and stealing food. That means they can’t be far.”

  Rafe rubbed his nose with the back of his hand. “That’s the way I have it figured too, but I can’t let you out. That bounty hunter, Gant, is still out there. He’d sooner bring you in dead than alive, faster way to get paid. You got to stay in jail for your own protection.”

  “Gant was the one who shot at me on the trail.” Josh had recognized the man in the church.

  “Yeah, that was before the bounty went up. He went on to Sacramento on another job. Just got back right before the wedding. He’s got a look-out on this jail and just biding his time till the marshal gets here.”

  Frustration made Josh reach out through the bars with another appeal. He hit his forehead on the iron bars, and pain shot through him, making him draw back. The sound of the front door opening tethered him.

  Ramee stood in the opening, silhouetted by the outside light. Their gazes locked for a split second, and she ran across the room into his arms. Slipping her hands through the bars, she wrapped them around his waist.

  They gazed into each other’s eyes, unspoken feelings hung between them like the fruit on low-hanging branches.

  He cupped her face. “Ramee, you shouldn’t be here. I’m sorry, darling, but it’s—”

  She pressed her hand to his mouth. “Lil told me everything. It’s not your fault. We’ll get you out.” She glanced over her shoulder. “Won’t we, Rafe?”

  “You bet we will. Before the end of the week, you’ll finish that wedding, and you two will be on your honeymoon. Don’t you worry none about that. But I was telling Josh he has to stay in jail for now because that bounty hunter is still hanging around.”

  Ramee’s brows knitted with concern. “He is. I saw him at the boardinghouse. He told the clerk he’d be back in a couple of hours, then he got on his horse and rode out of town. I watched him. He followed that same road we went to see Granny.”

  “Good,” Josh said, “maybe when he catches Tom, he’ll see it’s Tom on the wanted poster.”

  Ramee strode to Rafe’s desk and took the poster. “The resemblance is so strong. How can we convince the marshal when he gets here?”

  That was the question Josh had been stewing over, but he wanted to ease Ramee’s mind. “Don’t worry about that. When Tom’s caught with Renfro, he’ll know.”

  But worry still etched her features as she strode back to his cell and reached up on tip-toe, lifting her lips for a kiss. “I agree with Rafe. You should stay right here until the men bring Tom in.” She kissed him again. “In the meantime, I’ll be praying.” Her fingertips brushed his cheek. “I love you.”

  “I love you too,” he said, never feeling so helpless as when she stepped out of his reach. There was nothing left to do but pray.

  Straightening her shoulders, Ramee turned and marched to the door, the wanted poster still in her hand.

  Rafe got busy with his paperwork, and Josh lay on the hard, narrow cot. He hadn’t been a Christian long enough to know the right way to pray, so he began with the Lord’s Prayer. After that, words fell away. There came a time when all a man could do was pray, and he was pushed into that position, he reckoned.

  After a while, he dozed. Rafe’s stomping boots woke him.

  Josh shot up like a cannon blast to see what riled the lawman, but Rafe was muttering to himself as he pounded the floor. He took off his hat and slapped it against his leg. “Consarn it. Where is Cranford?”

  Rafe hadn’t completed the circle he was wearing in the floor when the door flew open and Slim Cranford came in. “Sorry, I had to get a buggy ready for a lady.”

  “Sure, that’s a lot more important than holding down the jail.” In a huff, Rafe buckled on his holster. “I’ll be back…sometime tonight.”

  Before he got to the door, it slammed open. Mrs. Hollingsworth stumbled in, agitation pinching her thin features. She wrung her hands. “Sheriff, you’ve got to do something.”

  Fear knotted in Josh’s throat, and the hair on his neck stood up with dread.

  “What happened, ma’am?”

  “Miss Abbott hired a buggy and left town.” Mrs. Hollingsworth wrung her hands some more. “It’ll be dark before long.”

  “Was that Miss Abbott I got the buggy for?” Cranford asked. “I was wondering who she was.”

  “Hush,” Rafe ordered Cranford, then changed his tone as he addressed Mrs. Hollingsworth. “Do you know where Miss Abbott was going?”

  Josh knew where she was going. He clenched the iron bars until his knuckles turned white.

  Mrs. Hollingsworth looked about to cry. “To Mr. Volker’s grandmother’s. She asked me if I’d go with her, and I told her of course not, it’ll get dark soon and anyway, we shouldn’t go off without a gentleman escort. I left to go to the dry goods store for a packet of needles, and I got distracted by some other wears, but when I got back, she was gone. I know that’s where she went because the clerk told me she’d secured a horse and buggy at the livery.”

  “Did she say why she wanted to go to Granny Volker’s?” Rafe asked.

  “She said the grandmother could always tell the difference between Mr. Volker and his cousin. Miss Abbott wanted to bring her back so she could convince the marshal they had the wrong man.”

  Josh tried to pull the iron bars apart. “Rafe, we’ve got to go after her. Tom and Renfro are hiding out in that area.”

  Rafe ignored him. “Well take care of it,” he assured Mrs. Hollingsworth. He all but pushed her out the door before returning to cell. “I’m going after her. You’re staying here.”

  “She didn’t go the regular trail. When I took her up there before we went another way. That’d be the way she’d go.”

  “How do you know Tom and Renfro are hiding out up there?”

  “I didn’t tell you and I didn’t tell Ramee, but when Granny told me she was missing food for the last week, I figured Tom and Jim were holed up in the cave Tom and I used to play in when we were boys.”

  “So you been trying to protect Tom?”

  “I was going to tell you before I took Ramee to the ranch after we married.”

  “Then tell me which way to go.” Rafe’s voice rose in irritation.

  “Let me go with you, Rafe. You heard Ramee say Gant left earlier. He’s not out there waiting for me. If anything happens to Ramee… I don’t care whether I get shot by the bounty hunter or Renfro or hung.” At the moment all that mattered was keeping Ramee from running into those killers. “Please Rafe…I love her. What if you were me, and it was Lil?”

  Rafe blew out a huff. “Throw me the keys, Cranford.”

  Chapter 23

  Long shadows darkened the path before Ramee, making it look more sinister than when she’d traveled this way with Josh. She took comfort from the fact a full moon was already visible in the dark blue sky.

  Maybe this was a fool’s errand, but she had to take the chance. When that marshal arrived in the morning, he’d take Josh with him to do who knew what. She knew justice was swift and not always sure in the West. Suppose they didn’t find Tom, and Josh was tried for the crimes.
He could be facing the hangman’s noose before the end of the week.

  Granny had said she could always tell the difference between the cousins, even from their photographs. She could testify the man on the wanted poster wasn’t Josh, and she wouldn’t be prejudiced, either, since she loved Tom and Josh equally.

  As she rounded the last bend leading to the little farm, she caught sight of two horsemen coming from the opposite direction. Could it be the bounty hunter and a friend? Two of the posse?

  Not wanting to take a chance, she drove the buggy into a clearing between the trees on the side of the trail. Staying out of sight seemed the most prudent choice. She got down from the buggy and went to the horse’s head to keep the gentle bay mare quiet.

  When the men got within fifty yards, they stopped at the thickest part of the forest. Had they seen her? No, but they’d stopped for some purpose. They dismounted and spoke to each other.

  Ramee strained to hear, but they were too far away, then they started walking toward her, looking first one way, then another, as if searching for something. They must be a part of the posse.

  They were coming nearer, and they’d surely see the buggy when they got this close. She wished it was possible to take it further into the woods, but the growth was too dense. The man who led the way appeared familiar, and the moon beams grew stronger as they fell on his face.

  Could it be? Relief gave flight to her feet. It was Josh. He’d convinced Rafe to let him out. As he came within yards of her hiding place, she ran toward him. “Josh!”

  He froze when she slammed into him, wrapping her arms around his middle.

  But he didn’t embrace her. Something was wrong. She jerked back, stupefied.

  “You’re not Josh.” Shock strangled her voice.

  The man grinned, his features looking like Josh, but different. “No, I’m not Josh, but if you keep hugging me like that, I’ll be Josh for you.”

  She wrenched out of his grasp, but the other man came up from behind and grabbed her by the wrist, twisting it until she quit fighting. “Who do we have here?” His foul breath choked her.

  “That’s Josh’s woman,” Tom said. “He might be around here somewhere.”

  “No, he ain’t.” Renfro dragged her to his horse. While dusk had snuffed out the last bit of warmth, the air didn’t chill her as much as her captor’s evil smirk. “She’s my woman now, and we have another hostage.”

  He whirled her around, tying her hands behind her and threw her to the ground, tying her feet together. Now she knew what a trussed chicken would feel like if it wasn’t dead.

  “Let me go.” Ramee tried to put force behind her words, though her heart threatened to jump out of her chest. “Josh is in jail, but the sheriff and a posse are right behind me.”

  “I got her horse.” This came from Tom, who led the rented bay by the leathers.

  Disoriented, Ramee struggled to call a sensible thought to mind. Renfro hefted her over the horse, face down, and tied her in place. She had a feeling she was in for a rough ride with a good view of the ground.

  It hadn’t rained for some time. Dust kicked up by the horses’ hooves kept Ramee coughing until her throat was so raw she couldn’t have spoken if she’d wanted to. Pleading with the coyotes would do no good anyway. Better to pray.

  Would she see Josh again in this life? She regretted the grief he’d surely suffer. Would he find someone else to marry while she became a distant memory? In the face of eternity, did it even matter? Time would have no meaning to her in heaven, and she’d be waiting for him, regardless of how long they were separated.

  They left the trail and climbed. Ramee could only lift her head enough to see the terrain rising and the trees getting sparse. Were they taking her all the way up the mountain? They traversed around boulders and downed trees. The evidence of a landslide, likely, though it must have been several years ago since rotten tree trunks littered the landscape and the grass was scarred where some object had gouged out bare earth.

  A full moon lit their way as they went on until Ramee lost all feeling from her hands and feet. Her stomach ached from being constantly jostled on the horse’s back. She heard the sound of water running. They stopped abruptly.

  Although she was ready to get off the horse, she cringed when Renfro touched her. He pulled her down, slinging her over his shoulder and dropping her on a hard surface. Every bone in her body jarred. “Get the fire started.” He barked the order. Apparently, he considered Tom his lackey.

  Ramee leaned back onto a stone surface and sent a sweeping gaze around her. They were in a rock overhang with the signs of a camp spread out in front. This was where they’d been holed up for some time.

  When the fire flared, she noticed a man tied up like her on the other side of the overhang. The bounty hunter, Gant. He was gagged, fear bulging his eyes as he met her gaze. She sent a prayer of thanksgiving that they hadn’t gagged her—at least not yet.

  Although she wore her wool coat, she shivered, and welcomed the blaze Tom got started. The outlaws huddled over the fire, talking low, chewing on jerky. They didn’t offer her any, and her stomach roiled. She couldn’t have eaten any, if they had.

  She dropped her head back and gazed into the night sky. Although the bright moonlight made the stars appear dimmer than that time when she’d watched them from Josh’s wagon, they were a welcomed friend. A strange calm descended as the Spirit within her assured her all would be well. The heat from the fire seeped into her weary bones, and she felt herself dozing.

  The sound of gunfire jarred her awake. Bullets ricocheted off stone from some distance. Men shouted, horses screamed. More shots rang out. Rocks crashed against rocks. The fire had gutted down, but the moon sent an eerie glow over the camp. All was clearly visible. She and Gant were alone.

  Abruptly, Renfro appeared through the thicket and ran straight for her. Off to the side, behind a boulder a voice shouted. “Give up Renfro. I have you cornered.”

  Ramee stiffened, even as her heart jumped in elation. That was Josh’s voice.

  But Renfro laughed. “Come on out, cowboy. I have your lady friend. Throw down your gun, or I’ll put a bullet through her pretty head.”

  After a long moment of silence, a pistol landed at Renfro’s feet and Josh stepped out with hands up. “Let her go. It’s me you want.”

  Tom ran up. “I think you hit the sheriff, but if you didn’t, that rock slide got him.”

  Renfro frowned. “After you get your cousin tied up, go back and make sure, and be quick about it. We don’t guess about these things.”

  Tom got some rope and tied Josh’s hands and feet. Thankfully, they didn’t bother to gag him either. As Tom started to leave, Renfro stopped him. “If you find that lawman injured, finish him off. You’ve got to get over your skittishness, or you’re going to end up like Ham and Dodge. I might not be around to do all the killing for you.” Ramee caught a shaft of something like hatred in Tom’s eyes, but he said nothing and disappeared into the brush.

  “So you’re the one who killed that Wells Fargo man and the deputy marshal?” Josh asked.

  Renfro laughed. “That’s right, and before the night’s over, I’m going to add a couple of notches to my gun.” He squatted down at eye-level to Josh. “You know why?” He sent a glance over his shoulder at Ramee. “Because me and your little lady are going to have a night of love, and we don’t want anyone watching.”

  Ramee’s fear centered on the threats to Josh. She wasn’t concerned about Renfro’s plan to ravish her. She’d learned how to handle a man who might assault her. Learned it from her mother, who knew all the tricks of her trade. But how could she prevent Renfro from killing Josh?

  Her only option was to bargain. Swallowing the lump of dust in her throat, she shouted, “Don’t. Let him go and I’ll do anything you want. I used to live in a brothel. I know how to please a man in ways you can’t imagine.”

  Renfro laughed. “I bet you can, and I’m real sorry I can’t oblige you.” He stood and
moved in front of Josh. “But I wouldn’t feel right making my old partner watch.” He lifted his pistol, aiming straight at Josh’s head. All Ramee could do was slam her eyes shut and pray as hard as she’d ever done.

  Chapter 24

  A man faced with imminent death might see his life flash before him, but Josh’s future rose up before him. Life with a good wife, kids, work he enjoyed, people he loved.

  An explosion rent the air.

  No time for regret. He drew in what he expected to be his last breath.

  Instead, Renfro pitched forward, toppling on him.

  Josh raised his gaze, and Tom stood there, smoking pistol in hand.

  All sense knocked out of him, Josh waited as Tom shoved Renfro off him with his boot.

  “Guess what they say is true, ‘blood is thicker than water’.” Tom unsheathed his knife and cut the ropes binding Josh’s feet, then his hands.

  Josh took the gun Tom offered him and sprang to his feet. More than blood at work here. Granny’s prayers had something to do with it, but it’d still take a long time for Tom to see that.

  Tom handed him the knife. “You take care of your girl. I’ll loosen Gant, then we all need to go back to see about Rafe.”

  “Is he dead?”

  “He wasn’t even shot, but he was penned down by a boulder during that rock slide. I can’t move it, but the three of us should be able to.”

  Ramee would want to come with them if Josh knew her, and he did.

  Before Tom could turn away, Josh grabbed him in a bear hug. “Thanks, Tom. I’m going to see you through this. We have witnesses that Renfro confessed to the killings.”

  When Tom disappeared into the darkness, Josh settled all his attention on Ramee. What a woman. She hadn’t become hysterical like you’d expect from a female under the circumstances.

  He fell down beside her, grappling with his emotions. This moment would live forever, as would his gratitude to God. They had won.