This was it. This was the moment they’d waited for. Either they’d make it to the train—or the magistrate would be waiting for them. And if they weren’t there, ready to ambush them—would they find her uncle waiting for them, instead?
When it got close to the town, where the train would be coming, Jake took them deep into the woods, had them set up camp—then sent Kid to scout the town.
An hour later, Kid came quietly back through the woods. He stared at Kat. Finally, he turned to look at Jake. The magistrate—and her uncle’s men—are all over that town,” he said.
Kat swallowed.
Jake’s gaze had narrowed on him, then he nodded. “I wonder how on earth they knew where we were heading,” he said. “I’ve taken them in circles.” Jake stopped, like something occurred to him. “I chose this town because we wouldn’t have to worry about them searching the train for more than sixty miles.” He took off his hat, moped his forehead with his bandana, then settled his hat back on his head, looking out across the hardwood trees. “Obviously, whoever wants your grandfather back is well informed—and saw the advantage of this little town as well.” His gaze narrowed.
Kat could see that Kid wondered the same thing. She glanced at Jake but said nothing. What could she say?
Finally, Jake peered across the hardwood trees. “Okay,” he said, “we’re still getting on that train here. They’ll be expecting us. And that will be our greatest asset.”
Kat frowned. “How’s that?”
Jake gave her one of his rare smiles. “Because we’ll give them what they’re looking for,” he said.
They set up a makeshift camp and settled her grandfather in the lean-to, they’d put together. Then, Jake rode out, saying he wouldn’t be back for a day, maybe more. Kid sent one of the men to another town, to pick up another wagon and some grub. The man came back a couple of hours later with the wagon full of supplies, and they hunkered down to wait.
Jake returned, late the next afternoon, and had Kat and Kid follow him back to the last town they’d ridden out of. There, he pointed out a young man and woman, who he’d had holed up in the hotel, now coming down the walk.
Kat stared across the way at them, then began to get Jake’s plan, grinning.
Just before dark, several days later, Jake handed Kat some gear to hide her hair—and her gender. She wrapped her hair and put on the overly large hat. She settled into the large overcoat and mounted up. Kid did much the same, minus wrapping his head. Kid went to buy their tickets and a berth, and Jake led Kat, with her grandfather’s wagon, through the woods toward the end of the train. They stayed in the shadows of the woods—and waited for the commotion to start.
They spotted the wagon, heading down a side-street for the train, laden down with farming supplies. The magistrate immediately converged on it, pulling the wagon over to the side of the street, near the train—and while they searched the wagon for her grandfather, Jake and Kat quietly slipped her grandfather onto the train.
A few minutes later, Kat sat, staring out the train window, unable to comprehend what she was seeing. She stared, feeling shock rock through her body. This couldn’t be happening. This didn’t make any sense. She looked up at Kid, her mind numb. She had completely trusted her cousin.
But there he stood, just the same. And he appeared not to just be standing off to one side—but seemed, instead, to be giving the orders.
Her mouth dropped, as she watched George direct some men to do his bidding.
She’d been completely taken in by him. She tore her gaze from him, once more looking up at Kid. This time, Kid’s own reaction registered, as she stared up at him.
He looked down at her, the same shock showing on his face, the way it must be showing on hers. She shook her head, mutely.
She heard Jake move behind her and turned to look at him.
His steely-gaze stared out at George. “Well, I’ll be damned,” he said.
“So I wasn’t the only one completely fooled by him?” she asked, her voice hushed in her pain.
He looked down at her. “No,” he said. “We were all taken in by him.”
Kat should have felt some relief in that. If George had managed to fool Jake, he could probably fool anyone. But the simple fact was—he’d completely taken her in. He’d damaged something she trusted inside of her. He’d put a dent in the trust she’d had—in her own instincts. She wasn’t sure she could ever fully trust her gut again.
Something important had been stolen from her.
Anger rushed through her veins as she realized this. She couldn’t let him do this to her. She had to find a way to move past this—but he’d been family. Yet—then again—so had her uncle, and so had Ethan.
Still, she hadn’t liked Ethan—or her uncle. She’d liked George.
Chapter Thirty
The Long Ride Home
Kat propped the pillows and blankets around her grandfather, trying to get him as comfortable as possible, while they waited for the train to move. She knew she’d relax—when they finally got underway—when the train actually moved. Until then, she kept reaching for the knife, still strapped to her calf.
Relief, to be onboard, did reach through to her, on some level. She hoped that her grandfather could rest now—maybe heal—for the several days he’d be onboard this train, heading West. He needed to be still, not moving around. Not that the train held still. But her grandfather needed this chance to rest—and she swore not to allow anyone to take that from him.
They’d had to drag him all over the country—trying to save his life. They’d had to chance killing him—to save him. Dragging him around hadn’t killed him, and that alone attested to his inner strength. She’d seen men die of less.
Kat couldn’t get over the way things had changed in such a short time. A few days ago, she’d resigned herself to staying with her grandfather on his estates. Now, she was on her way home—with her grandfather in tow.
If the train ever moved.
Kat knew Kid walked the train, looking for anyone who might have followed them onboard. She also knew Jake had sent several men ahead, looking to see if they’d be ambushed ahead somewhere.
Kat looked around the berth, waiting. Time crawled, as she watched a spider walk across the floorboards. Normally, she would put it outside. But she didn’t dare draw attention to them.
It seemed like hours, but eventually the train blew its whistle, and a few minutes later, she felt it jerk forward. But Kat quickly realized she couldn’t take that deep, cleaning breath, quite yet, after all. Tension made her shoulders stiff.
Unfortunately, she’d come to realize that just because they were finally on their way home—didn’t mean they hadn’t been followed. And it didn’t mean their enemy wasn’t on the train with them, now. Someone had spent years planning this—and as dangerous as they’d been before—they were bound to be in a rage at being thwarted.
The first several hours proved uneventful, and early the next morning, after the train had stopped in a small down for nearly an hour, Jake stepped into the small cubby, making it feel that much smaller. Kat didn’t like the feeling—but waited for him to speak.
He glanced at her grandfather, then at her. “Pete met the train,” he said. “He confirmed they know about the train. Hawk’s scout is following them now. Apparently, they’re waiting for someone to join them. They’ve placed two men on the train and a bunch to stop it, once we get further west, in the wide open spaces.
Kat set her jaw at this. “So we’ll be taking him off the train again?”
Jake nodded.
Kat eyed her grandfather. “When?
“Omaha,” he said.
“Omaha?” she said, raising one brow at him.
Jake nodded. “I’m betting they’ll hit the train, somewhere between there and Cheyenne. They wouldn’t try it sooner. They’d be much more likely to get away with it—when the reach the wild lands, close to Wyoming.” Jake stepped toward the door.
Kat nodded. “That’s p
robably what I’d do too,” she admitted. She glanced up. “Could you ask Kid to step in if you see him?”
Jake had turned to shut the door. At this, he touched the brim of his hat. “Will do,” he said, then closed it behind him.
Kat turned back to her grandfather, thinking about who she’d seen at the train station. She still felt the shock of it. There seemed no possible way that he’d had anything to do with what his father planned. How could he? He loved his grandfather.
But, then, a son should have loved his father too—not poisoned him. Kat would never understand the greed that could cause someone to turn on their own family—that caused someone to try to harm their own family more-or-less try to kill a member of their own family.
Even though she’d witnessed Hawk’s family try and do just that.
But she still couldn’t understand the inclination. Nothing about it made any sense to her.
Later that evening, Jake came back to take his turn watching over her grandfather, so Kat took the opportunity to get some grub—and she wanted to find those men, Jake had seen slip onto the train at the last moment. Slipping through the cars, Kat walked quietly down each isle of the train.
She’d worn a dress to blend in, her trusty blade strapped to the inside of her thigh—her cat-like gaze taking in every passenger on board. But she saw no one who even remotely looked like they were on board for anything—but traveling to their next destination.
Yet, she knew that Jake hadn’t made a mistake, so she slipped through the cars, continuing her hunt. When she reached the cars with the berths, she began sliding open doors—apologizing as she caught people off guard.
That didn’t stop her from opening the next berth.
On her fifth car, she found two men waiting for her. They’d obviously been listening to her come down the way, opening doors and saying sorry. Both men were dressed in suits, and they had little city pistols drawn. Kat smiled.
The men hadn’t prepared for a beautiful, well-dressed woman, who walked straight into their berth. One of them smiled and started to pocket his pistol.
That was a mistake. Kat’s smile turned feral, as she pulled up her skirt and yanked her blade.
She’d stuck the one who kept his gun—and had her blade at the tip of the other’s throat—when Kid found her.
“I’ve been looking for you, kitten,” Kid said, grinning. Kat pulled back her blade, glancing at Kid.
“Tell this crazy woman I don’t know what she wants,” the man said.
Kid grinned—again—this time at the man—then knocked him out, cold.
Kat smiled at Kid, as she lifted her skirt and tore off a great chunk of her petticoat. He’s brows shot up, watching her. She handed the material to him, and he bound and gagged their quarry.
“Turning for the door,” Kat said, “I’ll send Jake.”
When she reached her grandfather’s berth, she quickly appraised Jake of the situation. If Jake was surprised at what she told him, he didn’t show it. He did seem pleased to have something else to do, though, and he quickly headed down the way, toward the car she’d indicated.
Kat turned to her grandfather, who still slept. She watched him breathe. If only he’d wake up again, she thought. Who knew if he would—and even if he did, they didn’t know if he’d still have his mind. She sat down next to him, taking his hand into hers. If only they’d gotten to him sooner.
A single tear slipped down her face, and she wiped it away with her free hand.
They had the men, who’d boarded the train, either looking for an opportunity to ambush them—or more likely—to keep an eye on them for their boss.
And, soon, they would face their enemy.
She could feel it. She anticipated it. The time had come—and someone would pay for what they’d done to the only real living family she had left.
A couple of days later, Jake stopped in to see if she needed a break. She shook her head, and Jake turned to leave.
“Are we still taking him off in Omaha?” she asked him.
Jake glanced at her and nodded. “Should reach the station by noon tomorrow, unless they have any further delays,” he answered.
Kat nodded. “Seems to be the thing with these trains.
Jake nodded. “There’s been a lot of them,” he said. “Can’t imagine what causes all of them.”
Kat laughed. “They haven’t managed to take off on time, yet,” she said. “It’s frustrating. Okay,” she said, as she had a few days before, “could you send Kid here when you see him next, then?” she said, when he stepped out.
Turning, Jake touched the brim of his hat and closed the door behind him.
Kat turned to look at her grandfather. For once, his eyes were open. He licked his lips, and she quickly picked up a glass of water, bringing it to his lips, and helping him up on one elbow so he could sip at it. When he lay back down, he looked at her. “You will come back with me?” he asked, “When I’m well enough to return?”
She hadn’t even gotten him to the ranch, and he was already worrying about when he’d return. She wanted to shake her head—but found that she couldn’t.
A deep sadness washed over her. She couldn’t stay home in the West. She couldn’t marry Kid the way she wanted until she dealt with her uncle and cousins. And she couldn’t get off this damn train to engage in the battle, like she wanted. What more could go wrong?
Now, her cousin had a gang of men waiting to ambush the train. They had to try and take her grandfather off the train—before they succeeded. And they had to try and do so without getting him killed.
She turned her face away from her grandfather.
She’d never felt more sad.
Chapter Thirty-One
The Long Ride
To Kat, the train ride seemed to take an eternity. Maybe sitting and not moving, bothered her, Kat thought. Or maybe constant need for vigilance did. Either way, expecting a fight that never seemed to materialize had never been where she excelled. Fighting was what she did. Right now, she could only sit and watch her grandfather sleep, predicting a battle she could anticipate but only wait for, and doing so for several weeks straight in a row, now.
Warriors were taught to sit quietly for hours, for the kill. Kat had never been good at that. She wanted to move—to get on with it. Patience didn’t work for her. She’d get antsy. She’d want to fidget. She’d give herself away. She’d found a different way to fight.
She fought head on.
The frustration ate away at what little tolerance she’d possessed—and caused her to be grumpier than she’d remembered being. On top of that, the train ride caused her stomach to be upset. She didn’t like that at all. She didn’t remember that being the case before, and didn’t understand why it would be the case now.
Even so, all afternoon, Kat held her grandfather’s hand and planned, in her mind, for every contingency, for what her uncle might have waiting for them down the tracks. Toward evening, she took a break, and while Kid watched over her grandfather, she went for a walk through the cars to stretch her legs and try to get her blood flowing. Later, Jake took his turn watching him, and she and Kid went to sit in one of the cars, just to talk.
Lately, Kat had missed doing that—sitting and talking. She wished they could be out under the sunshine, rounding up horses or cattle, sitting there in their saddles, talking, while they watched the horses or cattle, moving around them, grazing—or watching the foals jumping and running, or the calves butting heads and playing.
For a long time, she and Kid sat and watched the countryside slide by the windows of the train, holding hands. Soon they would be in Omaha, and Kat realized she might get to see Mandy in passing, when they exchanged places. She only hoped they weren’t placing her in any danger by leaving her on the train.
Jake didn’t think so. He’d been pretty sure that the battle lay ahead of them—in the ambush.
A couple of hours later, the train stopped in the small town, before Omaha. There, they found out that there’
d be an unexpected interruption, for several hours, while they repaired something.
More delays.
Aggravated, Kat told the men that she needed to be the one to get off the train this time. Jake sat down near her grandfather, motioning for her to go. She’d been on the train for days. She knew they needed the fresh air too—but they’d had several opportunities to stretch their legs, while Kat had only had a few.
Kat walked along the boarded walkway, lining the stores of small town, as she headed, quite naturally, out of town. But she didn’t find the pine trees she’d been use to—and it wasn’t long before she returned to town. She came along a mercantile. It wasn’t very big. It was just a small town. But she found a locket in the display and bought it. She’d seen Mandy wear one like it—where she carried a likeness of her on one side—and Hawk on the other. When she flipped it open, it even had a place in the back. She smiled. Maybe one day she’d put other pictures in the back—like pictures of their children.
Her head jerked up. And that was when Kat knew she had to fight, with everything she had inside of her, to make sure her cousin didn’t win. She had to see that future that she’d just had a glimpse of—she had to meet the children that she knew she and Kid would have.
And she would love them like none other.
The shop owner wrapped it in paper, and Kat slipped it into her pocket, patting it to make sure that she held it safely there.
She would get through this. She would face her grandfather—with her love for Kid—and then they’d just have to wait and see what would come from that. Maybe she would have to return with her grandfather—but she would make it back home. She’d make sure of it. Cheyenne was her home. And her place was with Kid.
She heard the train whistle, announcing that it would soon depart, and she headed back to the train depot. When she got back to where it sat, bellowing steam, she spotted Kid stepping down from the platform, looking around for her, and she smiled. She knew the train should be getting ready to leave in the next few minutes—and realized Kid must have grown concerned that she’d miss it.
Dark Warrior: Kid (Dark Cloth Series Book 2) Page 19
