The Wildes of the West #1: The Daughters of Half Breed Haven: Old west fiction of action adventure, romance & western family drama (The Wildes of the West/Half Breed Haven)

by A. M. Van Dorn

  She went back to her chair and stared at the open journal on the table. “Our brothers … well, they’re a little bit of a different story. I suppose Blue River kind of did his own thing too, but not my brother, Dutch, though. He was a one-woman man and had eyes only for Rachel. I’m sorry, Bright Feather. Rachel was the Christian name she took when she converted and married Dutch. I called her by that name for so long, it’s second nature. It is nice to be talking about the days when she was simply Bright Feather.”

  “Did Dutch ever disapprove of your dalliances?” Allie asked.

  “No.” Cattie shook her head quickly. “He knew we were going to do what we wanted to do and who we wanted to do it with, but he also wanted to be sure we were safe. Let me show you something he gave each of us for Christmas. I think it was in 1870 … too long ago to remember for sure.”

  Cattie searched through the big steamer trunk she had earlier gotten the journals from and retrieved a small box from it. She wiped dust from its cover with her palm and gently opened it, eventually bringing out four pearl studded derringers, which had boldly inscribed initials on them.

  “My brother was a wonderful man,” Cattie continued her voice solemn with remembrance. “I don’t get a lick of surprise to hear he gave up his chance to allow your brother to escape the Titanic. These guns … he told us to have our fun, but to always keep them handy if any of our paramours ever got out of hand. He said they were small enough to be tucked under a pillow and not easily felt. It was an idea he got from a conversation he once had with Cassandra. He thought it would be nice if we each had matching weapons.”

  “Ah yes,” Allie said with a chuckle. “I recall that is how she got the drop on Clay Travers—Cassandra! She must have been a brilliant woman, evidenced by the way she figured out that elaborate con the card shark was pulling.”

  “I detect a tone of admiration,” Cattie laughed. “But yes, that she was, though; very brilliant,” she admitted. “And that was her last official case with the Pinkertons. She had to come back here after what happened to our father.”

  “Yes, I must know more,” Allie almost jumped out of her chair with excitement. “Who were these despicable men? I mean, they were really willing to attempt murder all for the purpose just to buy a piece of land? Land to build a petty watchtower on?” she asked.

  “A watchtower!” Cattie snorted. “I had a bad feeling about that pair from the get go. The fire tower story was a pure pack of lies. What those two jaspers were after was somethin’ of immense value and that was why they were so ruthless. Those two, a couple of jackals they were! Xavier Johnson was the brother-in-law of Everett and pretty much his henchman when he wasn’t shovelin’ manure down at Toomes Livery. Now that Everett, by the way, was the slimy owner of not only a gambling den, but also a whorehouse over in Carter’s Creek, which now is nothing more than a ghost town these days. We Wildes had quite the adventure over there once stoppin’ a land baron who had taken over the town—oh, I’m sorry, that is a whole other story. I’m sure you want to hear more about this one.”

  “To say the least!”

  “It was an agonizing time for us after Blue River pulled Papa out of that gully,” Cattie recounted. “I rode like the devil himself was after me to fetch the doctor and he worked on him. His leg was badly broken, but his life was hangin’ in the balance from the blow to his head. I got word to my aunt and uncle and, of course, Dutch. They were all close enough to come immediately. That vigil is still fresh in my mind for so many things happened during and afterwards …”

  *****

  Cedar Ledge,

  Arizona Territory.

  May 1868.

  Catalina kept mute on the couch at the middle of the sitting room as territorial governor Nathaniel Duvalier and his wife, Connie, stepped into the house with comforting smiles. Nathaniel clasped Catalina’s hands first, consoling her with absolute silence and a nod of his head. Catalina and virtually everyone in the family just called him Nate or Uncle Nathaniel. Connie, on the other hand, immediately sat beside Catalina, patting her shoulders.

  “You have got to keep your chin up,” she encouraged. “William Henry will be alright. Oh, thank God, your younger brother was there to help him out of the ravine back home for treatment. Your father is one of the toughest men I know and get over this, he shall.”

  “Thanks.” Catalina whispered, reaching up to clasp the older woman’s hand. “I’m glad you both decided to come.”

  “Nonsense.” Connie exclaimed. “Where would we rather be!”

  “True.” Nate joined in. “Your father is a good man; the sort that should never be dismissed.”

  “I surely appreciate that, Uncle Nate,” Catalina told him. “But you’re the governor of the territory and your demands, probably outnumber the trees in those big old forests behind us.”

  “True, but none of that matters. William Henry is like the brother I never had, and I am going to see him through this,” Nate affirmed.

  Catalina was about to thank them again when the door to one of the inner rooms upstairs creaked loudly open and Dutch stepped out of it. He looked tired in his Calvary uniform as he took the stairs to the sitting room, but as usual, his blond hair was neatly combed while his lantern-shaped jaw clenched with each step that he took. Catalina rose to her feet immediately and met him at the bottom of the stairs.

  “Has there been any change?” she asked him.

  Dutch shook his head, “No, the doctor said the broken leg will heal on its own, but the blow to his head will continue to be a concern. There is a fifty-fifty chance he will come to … or he may never awaken again.” His blue eyes reflected his deep concern.

  At least, she knew why he looked so tired and worried now, Catalina thought to herself. She buried her face in her palms first before burying it in his chest. Dutch, drew her closer, sadly staring over her head at the governor and his wife who had become solemn too due to the news.

  “The girls?” Dutch asked as soon as he noticed that Catalina had become still and had stopped sobbing.

  As if in response to his question, Blue River and his older sister Bright Feather bustled into the house through the front door just then, looking concerned just like everyone else. A warm expression reflected on Dutch’s face, despite the situation, as soon as he set eyes on the Indian maiden.

  “I have sent out telegrams in Catalina’s name to New York and Philadelphia,” Blue River reported.

  Dutch nodded at him appreciatively, slowly stepping back to look into Catalina’s face. He said nothing to her afterwards, but his blue eyes were promising that they were going to survive everything. He motioned Bright Feather to the passageway that led to the dining hall, with a nod of his head, and left Catalina with Blue River, who immediately began to ask for an update on Whip’s health.

  “I have to thank you for looking after Blue River, Bright Feather,” Dutch whispered as soon as he joined her in the passageway. “He was a bit shaken after the incident.”

  “Oh, Dutch, my brother is a strong person and that strength comes from his love for your family,” Bright Feather replied. “He cannot imagine a world without your father.”

  Dutch bit his lips and thanked her once again with a brief smile, his demeanor becoming more passionate.

  “About Blue River …” he began, holding her hand. “He also gains his strength from you, his kind and loving sister—a most remarkable woman, if I am any kind of judge.”

  Bright Feather returned his smile and let him take her other hand. “Your kindness shines like the moon over the forest,” she told him. “It is always a strange thing, is it not? How he is your brother … and he is my brother, at the same time. I am grateful for that connection that brought us together.”

  “You know, your return to Arizona is changing my life. I long for so much more with you,” Dutch’s yearnings were her own he knew but theirs was not an easy path.

  “… and yet, can we ever truly escape the shadow cast by my mother’s love for your fath
er, having destroyed what our tribe once was? My uncle, Chief Thunder Cloud, when he eventually learns of our love, will not be pleased as how his sister’s love for your father led to the shattering of our tribe.”

  It was not the first time she had expressed her concerns over the tribe’s likely misgiving of their paring, but Dutch was hardly discouraged.

  “What happened with your people and how it affected your tribe and gave rise to the scourge that is Black Hawk and his Omegas will always be one of Whip’s greatest regrets,” he said. “He’s told me that many times, but he would do it all again because that gave him Blue River.”

  Bright Feather nodded before she asked, “You … you should know things are going well at the conference. I must return there in morning to continue my aid, but I will return to Cedar Ledge as quickly as I can to be with you. There has still been no word back about the Colonel’s request to keep me on permanently. It is our best chance to quell our longing to be together. The idea that we might be able to see each other with each sunrise …” she said, her voice trailing off.

  Dutch nodded, obviously remorseful at the news. “I’m afraid that’s the military for you. They don’t like to make snap decisions, but once the chain of command finds out how you helped salvage the conference, they’d be crazy not to take you on,” he said firmly, knowing it was the absolute truth, considering how had it not been for his love, the entire peace council would have fallen apart when the pair had teamed up to settle a dispute that had arisen due to a renegade warrior’s attempt to sabotage the conference in his quest to seek war over peace.

  Bright Feather looked away, apparently disappointed. Impulsive about assuring her that they could one day be together, Dutch raised his palm to her face, loving the way she closed her eyes at his touch. He lowered his head to her lips, intending to kiss her, but the mesmerizing moment was cut short by shouts from the balcony above the living room.

  “Whip is having a seizure!” the doctor was screaming.

  Bright Feather fluttered her eyes open immediately and nodded at him to go. He let go of her with a look of anguish in his eyes before racing up the stairs with everyone else, silently praying that things wouldn’t become more complicated than they already were.

  CHAPTER 4

  * * *

  Canal Street,

  Chinatown

  New York City

  New York.

  May 1868

  “I have been looking for them for hours. I was told they are siblings—a man and woman—and they sell fireworks around the area. Do you know them?”

  Honor Elizabeth ground her teeth in frustration as the fifth person she asked that night shook his head and said he had no idea if those she was looking for existed. Persistent, Honor continued down the densely packed and bustling streets before stopping at a fruit vendor’s stand a few steps away from her and approached the Chinese vendor with a friendly smile. The old woman’s grey eyebrows lifted as she smiled back too. She quickly offered Honor one of her cabbages, thinking that she was looking to buy some of her goods. Honor shook her head, though, hoping that the woman could at least help her.

  “Hi. I am looking for someone,” Honor stated. “Two people actually—siblings, a man and a woman. Fireworks seems to be their family business.”

  “Fireworks?” the old woman questioned. “No pictures?”

  Again, Honor shook her head. If she had sketches, at least she wouldn’t have to stress herself this much to look for them.

  “No.” she sighed. “The firework business is all I have on them.”

  “Well, I sell good cabbage, fresh carrots, and lemons. I don’t know no fireworks business.” The Chinese woman sighed too, offering Honor the cabbage once more.

  Honor smiled at her, dropping a coin in her empty hand instead of buying the cabbage that she offered. She thought about moving on to another of the many stands jam packed into the area when she noticed that someone was intently watching her from across the street. He had a hood over his head, making most of his face almost invisible. As she moved down the street, approaching a couple that were grinning at each other in front of a gift shop, the strange man walked along the other side of the street too, keeping his eyes on her.

  “Hi!” Honor greeted the couple.

  Both of them obviously were New Yorkers, but not residents of Chinatown, evidenced by their white skin. They held each other’s hands and faced her.

  “I was hoping you could tell me where I can find a firework shop. It is owned by Chinese siblings—a man and a woman. I was told I could find them or their shop around here.”

  Honor found herself wishing she had a little more information to go on other than that the siblings owned a shop. She wasn’t exactly looking to meet the Chinese man and woman, but there was someone with them that she desperately needed to find.

  “Chinese? Everyone around here is Chinese except us … and you, it would seem,” The man laughed, making reference to her creamy mocha skin and the black curly ringlets of her hair that hung all the way to her shoulders.

  “Fireworks shop, you say?” the woman asked her.

  “Yes indeed.” Honor reiterated, already filled with hope that somehow, they might know where it was.

  “Sorry, we are just visiting New York from the capitol and we wouldn’t know of any. Besides, Sarah and I don’t like fireworks. But I think we might have passed by such a shop somewhere near by here.”

  Honor tilted her head at the beautiful woman beside the man, whose name obviously was Sarah and put more questions to them. “Now where was that?” Honor asked. “It was still on Canal, yes?”

  The couple fell silent upon her questions. She didn’t have to be clairvoyant to know that they had no definite idea where it might be located.

  “Sorry, I don’t think I know where exactly where it was. All the streets seem similar to us and we barely paid it much mind. As I said, we do …”

  “… not like fireworks,” Honor completed the man’s sentence under her breath, rolling her eyes.

  She wasn’t getting anywhere asking people questions. She needed to find the siblings. It was the only way she could find her sister.

  “I can help you.”

  Honor had totally forgotten about the man that was watching her earlier. She turned from the couple to stare directly into his deep brown eyes and grim face featuring the cut and angular edges of his cheeks and chin.

  “You can?” she asked the Chinese man.

  “Yes, you are actually looking for a fireworks shop with an apartment on the top floor.”

  “Perhaps. I do not really know. This place is owned by some siblings?” she asked him.

  He nodded, sticking out his tongue and licking his lips as in thought, in a slimy way that irritated her. “You might have to help me refresh my memory about the shop.”

  Honor stared at him blankly for a while, wondering what he meant.

  “You know the shop and the siblings, but you cannot remember where it is?”

  His laughter was coarse to the ears and brief. He stepped towards her with a callous look.

  “You are new around here, aren’t you, pretty?” he asked. “A man has gotta be given a jolt to remember some things, you know? Help me help you.”

  Honor thought he was daft for a second or two before she finally figured what he wanted. She clenched her teeth and quickly retrieved a huge roll of notes from her purse and peeled off some bills. The way he grabbed it from her hand showed that he was getting impatient with her naiveté.

  “So?” she asked him.

  “Oh, I remember now.” His grin became wide, showing surprisingly white teeth. “Just down Canal Street to the right. It’s the only red brick house in the middle of the street. There isn’t any sign to show it is a firework shop. A little woman lives there, and her brother too.”

  “Oh, thank you. Thank you very much indeed.” Honor couldn’t hide her joy. She thought about shaking his hand, but desisted from doing that when she noticed that his face h
ad taken on a harder look.

  “How about the entire purse?” his voice was menacing and mocking at the same time.

  She didn’t have time to ask him what he meant or hold on tight to her purse. Shiny silver metal briefly flashed in his hand as he swiped it towards her wrist, expertly cutting loose the straps of her purse.

  “Now, this should do,” he chuckled, turning away from her and walking down the street calmly as he rifled through the purse on his way to a local opium house to indulge his vices with all of Honor Wilde’s money.

  Honor Elizabeth was completely still. She had just had a man attack her with a knife, even after she paid him generously for his help. The maniac had done away with her purse, too, and no one had batted an eye around them.

  “Did you see that?” Honor finally inhaled a short breath to calm herself.

  The couple was still behind her and both of them shook their heads and hurried off as if they had not witnessed anything. The vendors at the sides of the street uniformly turned to their wares too, leaving her totally perplexed and shaken.

  She nodded her head with resolve and once more set off down Canal Street, thumping her feet. Her sister had better be with the siblings. She had gone through a lot of trouble just to look for her.

  *****

  Yanlin ushered Lijuan into the room with a soft tap on the back. His apartment was a small unit with two cozy rooms upstairs. The small hall downstairs was his fireworks shop, which he co-owned with his sister. Immediately he led Lijuan into one of the rooms, he slowly closed the door and turned to find her staring at him with a hungry smile.

  What was she going to do to him again? He had agreed to her terms yesterday when she brought it up, hadn’t he? It was why he had spent the day searching for just the type of man she had requested. Blonde, blue eyes and in his mid-twenties, and of course, he had to be handsome. It had been no easy task finding a man of that description in Chinatown, but fortunately for him, he remembered a man he had met that fit that description, who worked as a stevedore on the docks. After approaching the man, Gabriel, it had taken some convincing that he was serious in his offer.