Brighter than Gold (Western Rebels Book 1)

by Cynthia Wright

  “I’d love to.” She kissed Mrs. Barnstaple’s cheek. “Good-bye!”

  As she emerged onto Fulton Street, Katie’s smile faded. She’d tried not to think about Jack and Maggie Barnstaple; she’d told herself that he couldn’t feel anything for the other girl, not when he’d shared such intimacy with her. But if the worst were true, it cheapened everything that had passed between them. The fact that she had turned him away was little comfort. Katie continued to feel an intense attraction to Jack and that shamed her, especially because the memories of their lovemaking were still so vivid.

  Fate seemed intent on testing her, for when Katie rounded the corner of Main Street, bound for the saloon, she saw Maggie Barnstaple and Jack standing in front of the dry goods store. He was holding her bolts of lace and striped silk, and the two of them were laughing at the antics of a calico kitten in pursuit of a butterfly.

  Before she could think, Katie fled back around the corner. She knew only that she couldn’t face them. No sooner had she leaned against the wall of the Douglass Saloon to collect her thoughts than a beefy hand gripped her wrist. She gasped and stared into the face of a man she recognized as one of Aaron Rush’s henchmen. He wore a derby that partially covered the scar that slanted across his forehead.

  “Excuse me, sir!” She tried to free her wrist from his grasp, fixing him with an angry glare.

  “Settle down, missy, and heed my words,” the man growled. “You’re too pretty to be sticking your nose into affairs that don’t concern you. Watch yourself, or something might happen that’d make you wish you’d behaved more like a proper lady!”

  In spite of the wave of fear and revulsion that swept over her, Katie’s outward composure did not waver. “You may tell Aaron Rush for me that his cowardly threats do not frighten me in the least. Unlike so many of the so-called men in this town, I will not be bullied! Now, unhand me!” She twisted free and walked away, head high.

  “You’d better think again, girlie, before you find yourself in the kind of trouble that you can’t smart-talk your way out of!” the man hissed after her.

  Katie strode onward, sensing that he had turned and gone off down the street. After a minute she realized that she was walking back the way she had come, but she had no desire to return to the saloon. Lim and Abby were both there; they didn’t need her. Besides, that hideous man was probably lurking on Main Street, waiting for her to pass him again so that he could mutter more threats in her ear. Without conscious direction, then, she continued up Fulton Street, her mind flashing back and forth between images of the man in the derby and Jack and Maggie laughing together in front of the dry goods store. She ached inside, she felt jumpy, and she longed to escape, if only for a few hours.

  Samuel Clemens had stopped in the saloon again only two days ago. Fresh from a bath at the barbershop, and wearing a new shirt, he had regaled Katie with tales of his unsuccessful attempts at pocket mining. And before taking his leave, he had invited her to visit Jackass Gulch any time she wished.

  It was the perfect solution, Katie decided, and, feeling a little better, she stopped at last to look around her. To her surprise, she found herself on the very doorstep of the livery stable. When she entered and heard Willoughby’s joyful whinny at her appearance, she took it as a sign that she was doing the right thing.

  * * *

  Samuel Clemens stood in the doorway of the Gillis cabin, shading his eyes against the sun as he watched Katie MacKenzie ride up the grassy, golden hillside scattered with scrub oak, pine, and manzanita.

  She waved, and Sam waved back, drinking in the sight of her. Katie had hitched up her dress and petticoat to sit astride the horse, and her slim calves gleamed in the sunlight. Her slender shoulders and firm young breasts showed to great advantage in her snug bodice, and her smiling face glowed with good health. The wind had nearly loosened her braid, but it still flew out behind her like a banner, announcing the free spirit of its owner.

  When Sam walked forward to help Katie dismount, he nearly succumbed to an urge to declare her beauty aloud, but he caught himself in time. “Well, this is a surprise,” he said instead. “Welcome to Jackass Gulch, Miss MacKenzie.”

  “Didn’t you invite me? I might be mistaken....” Her tone was light, teasing. “And you must call me Katie. Everyone does.”

  “I seem to remember my friend Jack using a more proper form of address.”

  “Well”—she turned away to pat Willoughby’s damp neck—“I like to keep Mr. Adams at arm’s length. We don’t always see eye to eye.”

  Deciding that it might be wise not to pursue the matter further, Sam took the horse’s reins and hitched him to the post in front of the cabin. “Tell me, then—to what do I owe the honor of this visit?”

  Katie gave him a fresh, honest smile. “I was having one of those days that makes you long to be anywhere else! This seemed like a good place to escape to, and I knew I’d enjoy your company. I admire you and your work tremendously, Mr. Clemens—”

  “Sam,” he corrected.

  “Sam.” Katie beamed. “I’ve been wanting to have a real conversation with you ever since we met.”

  “Dear lady, I am at your disposal.” His eyes danced above the heavy mustache.

  “Are you certain I’m not interrupting? Were you writing when I arrived?”

  “No and no. I’ve done very little this past week except sleep, eat, exchange yarns with my friends, and make a few halfhearted attempts at pocket mining. I’m afraid I’ve been shockingly lacking in virtue since I arrived in the foothills.”

  “Perhaps you needed a respite,” Katie suggested.

  “I did. We all need one from time to time, hmm?” He smiled at her and winked almost imperceptibly as they strolled toward a grove of pine trees. “Besides, I’m lazy at heart, and always glad of an excuse not to work. Why don’t you sit down under this tree, I’ll get you some refreshment, and you can tell me what’s been frustrating you in Columbia. All right, Katie?”

  She nodded and did as he suggested, watching until he disappeared into the spare rectangular cabin with its stone chimney. The rustling pines offered welcome shade from the sun, and Katie leaned against the broad tree trunk behind her and closed her eyes, breathing in the clean, fresh scents of autumn. Sam appeared a few moments later with two battered tin cups.

  “I apologize for these,” he said with a wry smile. “My host, Jim Gillis, is a mountain bachelor, and lives as such. And all I could find to drink was cold coffee and whiskey, so I brought water instead.”

  “That sounds wonderful. Thank you.” Katie accepted the cup and drank deeply. “I was thirsty!”

  Clemens joined her on the ground. “I’ve heard a little about you already, Katie MacKenzie, but I’d like to know more. Won’t you enlighten me?”

  “Oh, there’s really not much to say.” She waved a delicate hand. “I came here to learn about you. I’m just a girl who has spent her life in one town. I’ve never fit in with the other well-behaved, traditional females. I helped Papa in his saloon after my mother died when I was ten, and ever since the Griffin killed Papa I’ve run the saloon with the help of my friends. I’ve never yearned to marry and take care of a man. There are too many things I want to do myself! I’ve read all my life, and dreamed of traveling. I’d like a life like yours, Sam.” Katie sighed. “I suppose I ought to have been born a man.”

  “And deprive the world of your vivacity and beauty?” Sam cried. “No, my dear, I think not. There isn’t the least doubt in my mind that you were born in the right body!” He paused to admire the soft blush that stained Katie’s cheeks, charmed by her fresh modesty. “Besides, you don’t have to be a man to pursue your dreams. This is the West, Katie. You’ve flouted convention in Columbia, so why not flout it somewhere else—like San Francisco? What is it you’d like to do?”

  “I’d like to write. I want to be a newspaperwoman.”

  “I thought you already were.”

  “Oh—yes, I suppose so, but much of the time it feels as
if Gideon and I are playing at printing a newspaper. How did you get your start, Sam? Did you dream of writing as a child?”

  “Lord, no!” He laughed heartily and smoothed his mustache. “I think it’s human nature to yearn to be what we were never intended for. I have had just two powerful ambitions. One was to be a riverboat pilot; the other a preacher of the gospel. I accomplished the first, but was interrupted by the war. The second was impossible for me because I hadn’t the call, or the gift, if you will.” Sam leaned back against the tree and paused to drink from his tin cup. “I’ve become a writer almost by default. It galls me to face facts, but the truth is that this is where my talents lie. I still pretend to myself that I might be able to make a serious contribution to the literary world, but I am slowly coming to terms with my real gift...”

  Katie leaned forward, fascinated. “And what is that?”

  Clemens smiled crookedly. “My true calling is to literature of a low order—humor. God seems to want me to make others laugh. It strikes me as a rather poor, pitiful business, but I fear it’s what I was made for.”

  She was silent for a moment as she digested this. “I think that your gift is great enough that you can put it to any use you choose, but I also believe that the ability to write humor is a rare and special talent. There are very few people who possess real wit, and you are one of them! Wit is what sets your work apart.”

  “I appreciate your kind words, dear Katie.”

  “I am completely sincere! And whatever your real gift may be, I must tell you how much I admire the articles you have written speaking out against corruption and the persecution of the Chinese in San Francisco.” Her expression was earnest. “You have set an example that I am trying to follow right here in Columbia. You may be aware that we have our share of crime and corruption, too.”

  “If you mean the Rush mine, yes, I’ve heard, but I must caution you against using me as a model of any sort.” There was nothing playful about Sam’s tone now. “Speaking out against corruption can be dangerous, even for a man. Those who mix crime with their business dealings are not above committing other crimes, especially when they’re threatened. You might assume that you’re safe because you’re female, but I wouldn’t depend on it.”

  “But someone has to have the courage to take a stand!”

  “Leave it to the men who can defend themselves, or run away if they smell danger, as I did.”

  “You?!” she exclaimed in disbelief.

  “I hate to disillusion one of my admirers, but that’s part of the reason I’m here. I began to hear rumblings, and it seemed wise to remove myself from San Francisco until they died down. And in all honesty, I did have another motive. I’m still young and foolish enough to entertain dreams of easy wealth. Pocket mining could be my ticket to a life of ease! That’s what Jim Gillis has been doing while living here in this cabin, so his brother Steve and I thought that we might as well give it a try, too. Let me show you around.” Sam got to his feet and held out a hand to her, seizing on the distraction before the conversation could drift onto shakier ground. He didn’t know what he’d do if Katie raised the subject of the Griffin.

  She was too polite to interrupt him, so she waited, following Clemens over the hillside as he explained pocket mining to her. “You may remember that a dozen years ago, there was a veritable city on this hillside, or at least that’s what Jim Gillis tells me.” He glanced at Katie and received her nod. “Well, as you know, when the placer gold played out, this town died along with the dreams of its inhabitants. Those who stayed on, however, found an alternative to working for Rush and Van Hosten, an alternative to hydraulic mining.”

  Katie found that her interest was piqued. “I have heard bits and pieces from miners at the saloon, but I’ve never fully understood what pocket mining meant.”

  “Well, it’s risky. The men with families who are forced to work for Rush in order to put food on their tables would find this less dependable. Unlike ordinary placer mines, the gold here isn’t distributed evenly through the surface dirt. It’s collected in little spots, and they are far apart and hard to find... but if you discover one, you have yourself a fortune.” Sam gestured at the gouges in the hillside. “It can take years. Jim Gillis spent the first eight months of the year digging around this hill, buying his groceries on credit, until he finally discovered a pocket and took out three thousand dollars of gold in a couple of scoops of his shovel. He paid off his debts, then went on a spree until every cent was gone, bought more groceries on credit, and returned here to start digging again.” Clemens grinned as he told the story.

  “He sounds like a colorful character! My childhood was crowded with men like Jim Gillis. They settled these hills, and though most either died from hard living or moved on, they’ve left their stamp. It’s just too bad that all their dreams couldn’t have come true.”

  Sam chuckled. “I’ll echo that sentiment. I confess to a few dreams of my own but I haven’t much hope that they’ll be realized here. My luck was abysmal in the mines of Nevada.”

  “Well, at least you have some other skills to fall back on.” Katie glanced up at him as she spoke and stepped sideways into a hole that had only been partially filled in. Her ankle turned as she lost her balance and cried out, but Sam reached out and caught her before she could topple over.

  “Take care, Katie MacKenzie,” he said with a fond smile, enjoying the sensation of her soft, female form in his arms. “Certain people would hold me responsible if you were hurt in my care.”

  “What do you mean by that?” She held on to him and tested her ankle, ignoring the sound of approaching hoof beats. Sam didn’t look, either; he assumed the rider was one of the Gillis brothers, who were due back from Angel’s Camp. After a short silence, however, a pair of hands gripped his shirt from behind and yanked him away from Katie.

  “What in the hell do you think you’re doing, Clemens?” a hoarse, angry voice demanded.

  Before Sam could reply, Katie looked up in shock to see that her friend’s attacker was none other than Jack Adams. “Leave him alone!” she cried. “He’s been very kind to me!”

  “Oh, is that what he calls it? I imagine that there are plenty of women in San Francisco who might use a different word!” Jack released Sam but continued to glare at him. Clemens’s own eyes began to twinkle.

  “My good friend, I fear that you are giving yourself away. I can assure you that my own motives where Katie is concerned are immaculate. When you rode up, I was merely coming to her aid after she stepped in a hole and lost her balance.”

  “That’s true!” Katie exclaimed. In spite of her outrage, she found that her heart was beating rapidly. In his rage, Jack looked wildly attractive.

  “Well, that’s not what it looked like,” he said darkly, slanting a menacing look at Katie. “What are you doing here, anyway? Lim and Abby are out of their minds with worry. For God’s sake, they thought you’d been kidnapped by Aaron Rush!”

  “Were you looking for me?” She couldn’t stop the question. “Were you worried, too?”

  Sam cleared his throat. “I think I’ll leave you two alone to sort this out. Jim and Steve will be back any minute, so I’ll just head back to the cabin and see what I can scrape together for supper.” He gave Katie a nod of his curly head. “I enjoyed your visit, Katie. Feel free to ride over any time.”

  “Thanks, Sam. You’ve been very kind.” She favored Clemens with a dazzling grin. When he was halfway to the cabin, Katie turned back to Jack. “Well?” she said sweetly. “Are you going to answer my questions?”

  “You’re damned right I was looking for you, you little hellion! What got into you, leaving town like that without telling anyone?”

  He’d stepped in front of her, and she could feel the heat and energy emanating from his strong body. “I’m surprised you had time to bother with me,” she heard herself snap. “Last time I saw you, you were all wrapped up in the simply darling presence of Maggie Barnstaple. I wouldn’t have believed that you could
tear yourself away!”

  Suddenly Jack was tired of games. “Jealous?” he taunted softly. “There’s no need, my sweet. Maggie is in love with someone back in New York. She’s determined to wait out her parents’ disapproval and marry him when she goes home. There’s never been anything between us except friendship.”

  “I distinctly remember you encouraging me to think otherwise!”

  “Those were your thoughts, Kathleen. I didn’t put them there, nor did I ever verify your suspicions.”

  “Well, I didn’t put jealous thoughts in your mind today, either! I simply rode out here to get away from Columbia for a change. I admire Sam’s work, and that’s what I came to talk to him about. Nothing happened between us!”

  His eyes caressed the elegant line of her neck, lingered on her parted lips, and finally met her fiery gaze. “Good.”

  Suddenly it dawned on her that they were having what amounted to a lover’s quarrel, in spite of their agreement and her resolve that nothing lover-like must ever pass between them again. Katie couldn’t breathe. She ached for Jack’s touch, and when he slipped his hands around her waist and gathered her into his arms, she expelled an almost involuntary sigh of relief.

  “You drive me to the brink of madness,” he whispered. His mouth burned hers in a mutually ravenous kiss, their hearts pounding in unison. Her fingers clung to his back, reveling in the feel of his muscular warmth through the fabric of his shirt. Jack’s hands slid down to cup Katie’s buttocks, fitting their bodies more tightly together and fusing their arousal.

  Dimly, she realized that she would drop to the ground and give herself to him right there in broad daylight if he wanted her to. “Oh, my God, stop!” she panted, dragging her mouth away from his. “This is madness!”

  Jack released her and took a step backward. Katie lifted her hands to burning cheeks. “I’m sorry,” he said, his voice rough with shock. “I never meant—”

  “It’s not your fault.” She blinked back frustrated tears. “I don’t know what possesses us, but it can’t happen again. It just can’t!”