Outright anarchy only caused death and desperation.
The opening of the bordello had brought in more cowboys and less outlaws. Cowboys, you could control. Outlaws had no control.
The sun beamed down on her, and she knew winter would soon be here, but today was warm, almost hot. Opening the door to the sheriff’s office, she strolled in. “Good afternoon, Sheriff.”
“Emily, I’m glad you came as soon as you did. Have a seat,” he said, walking around his desk to lean against it directly in front of her chair. “Where is Miss Callahan?”
“She hadn’t come in yet when I left. Why? What’s going on?”
“I’m suspicious. I think she’s really Ruby McKenzie. Look at the telegram I received from the sheriff in Mineral Wells,” he said, a frown gathering between his eyebrows.
She reached out and took the message. As she read the few lines, outrage pumped through her veins like a slow burn. She looked at the sheriff. “This description fits her,” she said, her voice cool and refined. “Any idea who she’s after?”
“No,” he said. “And she hasn’t made any arrests.”
Though Emily had never had a run in with the law, she knew many of the men who frequented her saloon had bounties on them.
“And her friend Deke Culver I learned is also a bounty hunter. The two of them must be working together.”
Emily thought of the man she’d seen almost every night in her saloon, the way one of her whores had tried to seduce him and Ruby’s reaction. All the evidence had been right there in front of Emily, and she’d let herself be duped by this girl. Until now. Ruby would soon find herself working upstairs or dead, her choice.
“What are you going to do?”
“I’ve already sent one of my deputies over to the hotel to bring them both back. Seems they’ve broken several laws in our city, and they’ll be spending time in the calaboose.”
Emily smiled. “I knew you would handle whatever problems we found on those two. After several days in jail, I’m sure Ruby will love to work off her fines in the bordello. Then once we’ve tired of her, you can dispose of the body.”
The girls who worked for her knew better than to double cross her or the consequences they would face. Everyone obeyed except for Hannah…and even she had recently been following the rules.
He reached down and lifted Emily’s chin with his hand. “I don’t know where you learned such shrewd business skills, but it makes me appreciate you all the more.”
She smiled at him. “I’m glad you approve. I enjoy our arrangement.”
“Sunday night?”
“Of course,” she said, knowing exactly what he expected and even looking forward to their time together. The man liked control, and for one night a week, she let him have what he needed.
“What about our prisoners?” she asked, wanting to make certain the pair would not get away from the sheriff.
“Should be in the jail just any moment now,” he said with a laugh. “I’m going to enjoy Miss McKenzie’s visit, and Deke Culver has captured his last bounty.”
Emily stood, smiling. She laid her hand on his arm and gazed up at him. “I know I can always count on you, Sheriff. I would stay, but I’ve got other business to attend to. Let me know when you have them in custody.”
He pulled her against his chest, his hand gripping her ass. “I’ll send you a message.”
With a caress of his cheek, she pulled out of his arms. “Thank you, Sheriff.”
Walking out the door, she sighed. She’d use the sheriff as long as she could, but now, she had to get back to the saloon. Back to her business. And she would be talking to Hannah to learn if she knew Ruby was a bounty hunter.
Stepping off the wooden sidewalk to the street below, she glanced down a side street. There they were. There was Deke, Hannah, Ruby, and Rivera riding away from the hotel.
“Sheriff,” she yelled, turning around and sprinting back up the steps.
He came running out of the building. “What? What’s wrong?”
“They’re getting away. They have Rivera and Hannah. They’re riding away.”
“Damn it. We’re going after them.”
*
Deke heard the church bells ringing and knew they’d been detected. Even in outlaw towns, church bells were used for communication.
Rivera was barely hanging onto the saddle; still, they had to ride fast.
“Come on, ladies. We’ve been discovered,” Deke said. Reaching down he made sure the pup was secure, and then he kicked the sides of his horse.
After a few moments, he’d not worried about Hannah on a horse. It was evident she knew how to ride, and Ruby certainly knew how to sit a horse. But Rivera was slowing them down, holding them up. The man barely knew what was going on, and if they lost him, then everything they’d gone through would be for naught.
And Ruby wouldn’t rest until he’d been captured. She’d be back in Hide Town before the sun sank, trying to locate and seize the outlaw again.
“Let’s go,” he yelled, urging them to ride faster. Hannah kicked the sides of her horse and led the way, but Ruby was not leaving Rivera’s side.
Deke had prayed they would have more time before the sheriff realized they were gone and had taken Rivera with them, but somehow they’d been outed. In this part of Texas, the only thing standing between Indian Territory and the Brazos River were a few scrub bushes and some mesquite trees. Nothing else. Nowhere to hide, unless they rode along the river. At least on the river there were cliffs with a few trees, cliffs where they could either hole up or a sharp shooter could take aim at them.
With sudden clarification, he knew they had only one chance. Get to Fort Griffin where soldiers were stationed and they could tell the law about Hide Town, where only corruption existed.
He rode up beside Ruby, their horses legs stretched at almost full gallop. “Change of plans. We’re going to Fort Griffin.”
“No,” she screamed as they rode. “The soldiers are not in town. There’s no law to protect us.”
Deke nodded in understanding. There was no one to stop the sheriff and his men from coming into town and taking their prisoner and Hannah back to Hide Town.
“Okay, to the Brazos,” he said and took off to lead the way with Hannah right beside him. The girl had a fierce look on her face, like she would defy anyone who tried to take her back.
Ruby hung back, riding alongside Rivera. Deke knew that soon, very soon they would see a posse, and he just hoped they made it to the river before they caught up with them. That was their only hope of escape. Reach the other side, and hopefully, the posse would give up or he and Ruby would have to shoot their way out of here.
A shot resounded. A bullet whizzed not far from his head; his nerves tingled with alarm. They’d run out of time, and they’d yet to reach the riverbank. He pulled his gun out and leaned over his horse, taking aim at the sheriff. Maybe if he shot the leader, the others would ride back to town.
Bouncing in the saddle, he fired his weapon. The bullet went astray.
When he glanced back he could see the posse, but Ruby had slowed way down. She and Rivera were almost a quarter mile behind him.
He watched as she grabbed the reins of the man’s horse and speeded up the galloping animal. Rivera swayed in the saddle, and Deke feared he’d fall.
“Leave him,” Deke yelled, and she shook her head vehemently. He watched as she put more distance between her and the posse. His knuckles gripped the reins tightly, fearing for her safety. If they captured her, he’d have no choice but to go back. They weren’t getting Ruby without a fight.
He and Hannah reached the river and begin to ride their horses down the steep bank to the water. Carefully, they made their way, letting their horses take the lead, bouncing in their saddles.
He glanced back over his shoulder, waiting for Ruby. If she didn’t make it to the bank by the time he got Hannah down, he’d return for her.
Reaching the river’s edge, Hannah looked at him anxio
usly, her eyes wide, and for the first time fear shown from them.
“Go ahead and cross,” he directed her.
“I can’t swim.”
“Your horse will get you across the river.”
“I’ll wait for you,” Hannah said frightened. “I hate water.”
“No,” he glanced back behind him. He could hear horse’s hooves pounding. The posse had to be close. With dread, he went ahead, and leading Hannah’s horse, they began to cross the river. The water climbed up higher and higher on the horse reaching his waist, soaking each of them as they finally reached the other side.
Deke glanced behind him, knowing if Ruby wasn’t making her way down the bank, he’d return across the river and drag her back with or without Rivera, he didn’t care.
A horse screamed, and he watched in horror as Rivera’s horse buckled, the animal’s leg breaking. His heart wrenched with pain for the animal. Ruby stopped and climbed down off her animal.
She helped Rivera from the stricken horse. The outlaw swayed on his feet, the sleeping powder obviously making him drowsy.
“Leave him,” Deke yelled. They would catch Rivera another time.
Ignoring him, she glanced behind her, and even Deke could see the posse riding fast, closing in.
She slapped her horse on the rump, sending him down the embankment. Half dragging Rivera, she walked to a cliff hanging out over the river. Suddenly, Deke knew what she was going to do.
“No,” he screamed, his heart pounding at the realization.
She disregarded his screams. He stared, recognizing at this moment that he loved this woman. Had probably loved her since the first time they met, and now he was going to witness her death. He was going to watch another woman he cared about die. Ruby was the fiercest, most loving woman he’d ever known. She challenged him, made him stronger, and now he was going to lose her.
“No,” he screamed again, wanting to stop her, paralyzed with fear, knowing he couldn’t stop her.
Backing up, she ran, dragging Rivera with her, pulling him along as she hurtled the two of them off the cliff. With a loud splash, they landed in the middle of the river.
Another bullet landed in the dirt beside his feet, and Deke stepped behind a large rock. The pup raised his head and licked his chin.
“Sorry, girl,” he said and pushed her back down into the sling. Now might not have been a great time to have a dog.
He searched the river, trying to see where Ruby had come up. The skirt she was wearing would weigh her down, and Rivera could choose that moment to hold her under the water and kill her if he wanted to.
The posse could shoot her in the water. Deke’s heart pounded in his chest. A body popped up out of the water. It was Rivera. He was unconscious or dead.
Ruby was nowhere in sight. Nowhere.
Pain flooded Deke’s chest like someone had wrenched his heart out of him. She was gone, and he couldn’t jump in to find her. He couldn’t save her.
The posse sat on their horses, watching Rivera’s body float down the river. A petticoat drifted alongside the man, but there was no sign of Ruby.
Tears clogged Deke’s throat, and he wanted to scream in anguish, yet he had to keep his wits about him. There were guns across the river that wanted him dead. That wanted Hannah dead.
A shot hit the rock in front of him. He stepped around and fired, hitting the sheriff in the arm. Quickly, Deke stepped back behind the shield.
“Son of a bitch,” the man screamed.
Another round of bullets echoed along the river embankment. When the firing stopped, Deke heard horses galloping away.
He peeked out from behind the stone. They were riding away, leaving. After a moment, when he was certain they were truly gone, he hurried down the embankment, running along the river, searching for Ruby. He jumped into the river, looking everywhere, hoping he’d see her and find her in time to save her.
Walking knee high in the gurgling river, he searched, the rocks making walking difficult.
The body of Rivera floated down a ways.
With a splash, she rose out of the water and stood giggling, wiping the wetness from her face. “That was fun.”
She was alive. She was breathing, and she didn’t appear harmed. And he loved her.
She bent over and laughed. “Flying off that cliff and landing in the water. I’ve never done that before. That was fun, hiding from them.”
She stood in the river, chuckling like she’d had the best time.
He stared at her like he was seeing a crazy woman as anger surged, threatening to choke him. He’d thought she was dead.
He’d thought she’d drowned.
He’d thought he’d lost her forever.
And yet she had probably played this perfectly. She’d hidden beneath Rivera, her nose out of the water just enough to breathe while she floated down the river with his body.
Deke felt the urge to scream at her. He was so angry, and yet they didn’t have time. They needed to get out of here just in case the posse had a change of heart and decided to return.
She smiled at him, noticing his silence for the first time. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine.” The words were curt and to the point. “Let’s go.”
She whistled, and her mare that had been standing a ways down the river swam across to the bank. “Where’s Hannah?”
“She’s on the ridge, waiting for us.”
“Help me get him out of the water,” she said, pulling Rivera’s body to the edge.
Somehow, she’d managed to hang onto Rivera under the toughest odds. Yet, how many more times could she escape without someone putting a bullet in her? Deke couldn’t watch her die.
“Is he dead?” Deke asked.
“I don’t think so. I think he bumped his head when we jumped,” she said. “I’ve never done anything like that before. It was fun until I felt like my petticoats were going to drown me. When I pulled them off, I could swim in the deeper parts of the river.”
He’d thought she’d been dead. He feared he’d killed another woman. And she had enjoyed herself so much, she was laughing. Relief and rage filled him, but he bit back the retort that sprang to his lips.
He lifted Rivera up and placed him on the back of Ruby’s horse. He tied the man across the back, wrapping the ropes around the horse and the man’s body.
“There, that should hold him until we stop to make camp. Let’s get out of here before that posse returns.”
Chapter Fourteen
When the sun had completely sunk behind the western sky and they could no longer see where they were going, Deke let them stop for the evening. But there would be no fire tonight, and Ruby wasn’t looking forward to a night without the comforting heat of a campfire.
She watched as Hannah took out their supplies from the saddlebags. She located the hardtack and placed it on a hot rock she’d found that had been sitting out in the sun all day.
“My ma showed me how to do this,” she said, handing Ruby the warmed up hard biscuit.
Deke sat not far from where Ruby and Hannah laid out on their bedrolls, his face hard, staring off into space. The puppy lay beside him, and every little bit, he would throw her a piece of the hardtack biscuit, and the dog would gaze at him with adoring eyes. Even in the darkness, Ruby could see the bond that had developed between the man and his dog.
But something was wrong. Since this afternoon, he’d been quiet and surly and distant. Last night he’d cuddled and comforted her in ways she’d never imagined. Tonight, he barely glanced in her direction.
“Here, Deke,” Hannah said, handing him another biscuit.
He took it and quickly ate the food. Then he stood and disappeared into the darkness with the dog trailing after him.
Ruby frowned. She didn’t know what was amiss, but he wasn’t acting himself. Even at his worst, Deke was always amicable. Tonight, he’d withdrawn so far into himself she didn’t know if she could reach him. She needed to check on him. Find out what was wrong.
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“Hannah, can you watch Rivera? I need to talk to Deke,” Ruby said standing.
Rivera had not awoken since the splash in the river. Maybe he’d hit his head somehow when they jumped. She didn’t know if it was a temporary condition or permanent, and frankly, she didn’t care.
“Sure, what do I need to do?” Hannah asked.
Ruby pulled out her extra six-shooter and handed it to Hannah. “He should continue sleeping, but just keep the gun trained on him. If he wakes up, give me a shout. I won’t be gone long or far.”
“Okay,” Hannah said, taking the gun from her. “I’ve never used one of these before.”
“It’s easy, just point and shoot.”
Hurrying out of the dark camp, she looked for Deke. Walking along the river, she saw him with the horses, his head resting on his mare’s forehead as he rubbed her ears.
“Hey, you all right?” she asked.
He whirled around to face her. Grabbing her by the arm, he all but dragged her away from the animals. “No, I’m not all right.”
This wasn’t exactly the reception she’d expected. Once they were away from the horses, he released her. “Do you know what it was like for me today to watch you jump off that cliff, not knowing if you were going to live or die? Do you have any idea how scared I was when I couldn’t find you or even search the water because they were shooting at me?” His voice was rising higher and higher in the darkness.
“No, but I was okay. Other than a few bruises, I’m fine.” She’d never seen him so angry. Her fun-loving, caring man was red-faced, his eyes dark and his body tense. For a moment, her stomach leaped into her throat at the anger she could see on his face in the moonlight.
“Well, I’m not fine. I probably lost twenty years watching you fly off that cliff and hit the water. I thought you were dead. I thought I’d lost you.”
“I’m okay,” she said, staring at him, trying to make him feel better. She touched his arm; the muscles were rigid. She shrugged her shoulders. It was sweet he’d been worried, but she’d found the jump exhilarating. Suspended between the earth and the water, she’d felt like she was floating in the air. “I’m sorry you got frightened, but it was actually kind of fun.”
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