Midnight Flame

by Lynette Vinet

  “I never thought I could be this happy again.”

  Jim squeezed her. “Me either.” A long silence stretched between them. Finally, he said, “Lavinia, I want to ask you something. You don’t have to tell me, because it doesn’t make any difference. But did you ever have a baby?”

  Her breath died away. “Why?”

  His hand massaged her abdomen. “There are faint marks a woman gets when she’s borne a child. I know a lot has happened in the past eight years, and I don’t condemn you, but … Hell, maybe I shouldn’t have asked. You’re starting to cry. I’m sorry.”

  She sat up, shaking her long hair about her shoulders. She viewed him through a haze of tears and pain she thought she had buried along with her baby. “When I left here with Papa, I was carrying your baby, Jim. Papa sent me to Uncle Sylvester’s, thinking it would be better for me to have the baby there. But it was lonely. I was away from my home, my family … from you. It was awful, and I was sick most of the time. The baby was yours, and I so wanted that baby.” She sobbed the moment Jim sat up and enfolded her in his arms. “We had a baby girl. She was stillborn. The slaves helped me bury her in a little cemetery along the River Road.” Lavinia’s sobs gushed forth, and she found she couldn’t still them. For so long, she had held herself in check. Just to be in Jim’s arms, to know that he still loved her, was more than she could bear. She had never been able to unburden herself of this pain with anyone. Believing Jim was lost to her had made the baby’s death unbearable. But now, he held her and stroked her hair, his tears mingling with her own, and she felt cleansed of the past, of the pain. He kissed her when she began to grow quiet and held her face between his hands.

  “My brave love. I never thought or imagined you’d gone through all that alone. I can’t make it up to you, but I’ll try. I will. We can have other children one day. Will you marry me, Lavinia? I love you so much that I hurt to think you might not want me.”

  She threw her arms around him, and her face glowed with happiness and love. “Yes! Everything’s all right now. I love you, too. I do.” Lavinia rained warm kisses over his face, his body, until the flame was rekindled again.

  As Jim lay later with her curled like a kitten in his arms, he didn’t think everything was fine.

  Seth Renquist had spoiled their chance for happiness by framing him for a robbery he hadn’t committed. Because of Seth, Lavinia had been sent away to live in Louisiana and had borne a dead child among strangers. Perhaps if she had stayed at the ranch, if Seth hadn’t told Arthur he had stolen the money, Lavinia would have married him and not have been put under this terrible strain. Maybe their daughter would have lived.

  Jim’s eyes slid to the gleaming gun in the holster belt hanging over the headboard of the bed. Jim decided at that moment that a debt had to be paid. One of the bullets in the gun was engraved with Seth Renquist’s name.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

  “Tony!”

  Laurel woke, her sleep disturbed by a vague feeling of uneasiness. Dawn’s soft light filtered in through the lace curtains at the window. In a half-wakeful state, she moved her hand to Tony’s side of the bed and felt a cold emptiness.

  Getting out of bed, she dragged the sheet with her and wrapped herself within the linen folds and went to the window. Soft fingers of light caressed the tops of the hills in the distance. In the yard below and in the direction of the bunkhouse, nothing stirred. A strange silence permeated the ranch. She wondered if Tony was still at the bunkhouse, sleeping away a night of drinking and merrymaking with the hands. He had told her he would be back, and she felt an unwilling degree of disappointment. Though she had shared Tony’s bed for only a few nights, she had gotten used to his presence beside her—something she had vowed to fight against. But she knew she was weakening where Tony was concerned.

  Clutching the edge of the sheet in her hand, Laurel didn’t know if they had a future. She had agreed to a stupid bargain, believing that he would make her play the wife in all ways, but so far, he hadn’t. Was he attempting to win her favor again by going slowly with her? She knew he could very easily have seduced her and she would not have put up a fight. All Tony had to do was touch her, and she was lost, beyond all reason, in his arms. But she couldn’t deny to herself that she wanted him again or that perhaps she was using the threat against Lavinia as an excuse to be his wife.

  A little smile snaked across her mouth as she realized that Lavinia had nothing to do with her coming to Tony’s bed. It was clear to her now as it had always been. She loved Tony and would tell him so, but first he had to forget this silly revenge against Lavinia before she decided to allow him to make love to her.

  “I’ll find him, and somehow we’ll make everything all right,” she mumbled and lit the oil lamp to search for her clothes. Tony’s jacket was lying on the rocking chair on top of her pants. She reached for the pants, but the jacket fell onto the floor, and a piece of wadded paper tumbled out of the pocket. Laurel’s curiosity got the best of her, and she unfolded it, smoothing out the wrinkles with her hands, until she deciphered Jean’s name at the bottom of the letter. She moved closer to the lamp and began to read the letter, which was dated two days after Tony had left Louisiana.

  Dear Tony,

  I hope you arrive safely in Texas. The past weeks haven’t been happy ones for you. I am mending nicely at home. Denise keeps me quite busy with books and newspapers and her constant chatter. Doctor Fusilier doesn’t think I will be able to walk for at least another two months. The breaks weren’t as serious as he originally believed. Still, I don’t like being the invalid.

  Monsieur Lancier visited me yesterday. He’d gone to Petit Coteau and found you gone. Needless to say, he was very upset. To my surprise, he was sober. Simone’s tragedy isn’t your fault. You must believe this and not hold yourself responsible. Monsieur Lancier told me that he knows you were blameless, that Simone was headstrong. I didn’t tell him about the child she carried, and neither did Doctor Fusilier. What is the point? Simone is gone.

  Tony, I write this letter to express in words that which I couldn’t do in person. No matter your feelings for Simone, you must put her memory to rest. I know you are in pain, but you must go on with your life. Laurel is the answer you seek, and I’m pleased you’ve gone to Texas to claim her. Heaven knows you don’t need a ranch, but you do need the lady. As you’ve always told me, Laurel is yours and will be your wife forever, no matter about Simone. Bring her back, mon cousin. I’m fond of her, and you’ve been hell to live with the last few months!

  Express my devotion and love to Laurel.

  Denise also sends her best.

  Your cousin,

  Jean DuLac

  The paper shook in Laurel’s hands. Utter shock at the letter’s news held her rooted. She wanted to laugh and weep at the same time. Tony was playing her for a fool. No wonder he couldn’t bring himself to speak about Simone. The woman he loved, the woman who carried his child, was dead. Such stoic grief from anyone else would have touched her heart, but instead she felt her heart shattering into jagged shards. She had thought she might have a chance to win him from Simone, but she couldn’t fight such a bittersweet memory.

  Tony hadn’t come to Texas only to help Arthur. He had come for her, not because he loved her but because she was a possession to him. What would have happened had Simone not died? Would she have been forced to share Tony with the woman, live in the same house with her and her child? Was that part of the reason behind this bargain not to harm Lavinia? He had known she would do anything to protect Lavinia from his wrath. Had he concocted this scheme before Simone died and still decided to bring her home to Petit Coteau even after Simone’s death to prove a point?

  “Damn him!” she railed through tears of anger. “He won’t manipulate me anymore.” She threw off the sheet and hurriedly dressed, eager to confront Tony once and for all. She would let him know she wasn’t returning to Petit Coteau with him, that she would buy the ranch and run it herself. There was no way in hell that
she was going to take second place in his heart or live with Simone’s memory for the rest of her life. And as far as harming Lavinia, just let him try.

  ~

  Buck Dawson was waiting in the parlor when Laurel descended the stairs. She was dressed in Levis and a plaid flannel shirt to ward off the chilly morning air. Her hair hung loose and wild around her shoulders, and a buff-colored wide-brimmed hat hung on her back, held in place by a string at her neck. With each step, her hair and hat bobbed slightly.

  “What is it?” she asked him brusquely, intent on seeing Tony and setting him straight.

  “I —I —” Buck stammered, not used to Laurel’s abruptness. “Today’s payday, ma’am.”

  “Oh, yes, it is. I’m sorry to snap at you. Come into the study.” Buck followed her into the room. “I thought Jim paid the hands.”

  “Usually he does, ma’am, but he was called away around two this morning. He and Mr. Duvalier and some of the other hands left quick like. Those rustlers have struck again, and we heard tell that one of the hands on the north forty was shot.”

  Laurel looked blank. “Rustlers?”

  Buck nodded. “Yeah, the ones who done been stealing some of the Little L’s herd the last few weeks. Mr. Duvalier and Jim are going to catch them and string them up. I know you’ll be real glad when they’re caught.”

  “Yes, I will.” Laurel looked down, unwilling to allow Buck to see that she didn’t know what he was talking about. She had never heard anything about rustlers, and she had ridden with Jim and Tony. Evidently neither one of them had seen fit to tell her what was happening on the Little L because she was a woman. A new wave of anger rushed over her at the realization that Tony, for all his mouthing off that he was proud of the job she had done on the ranch, believed she should be protected from this vital information. The arrogant man! Who did he think he was to hide such knowledge from her? Her resolve to find him today and take him to task redoubled.

  She found the key to open the desk drawer where she kept the loose cash. To her amazement the drawer was empty of greenbacks and gold pieces. She had been robbed! To hide her surprise and dismay, she flashed Buck a weak smile.

  “I hope you and the other men can wait until tomorrow for your pay, Buck. I have to send Jim into town to the bank. I forgot that an expense came up the other day, and I used all the cash.”

  Buck’s face fell, apparently disappointed. “I’ll throw in a bonus for everyone’s help in tracking down the rustlers,” she offered. Buck smiled his pleasure.

  “Sure, ma’am, that’s fine. Most of the fellows are on the range with Jim and Mr. Duvalier anyway. Nobody will be looking for anything tonight but a good long sleep.”

  Laurel thanked Buck, and after he sauntered out of the room, she heaved a huge sigh. No one knew where she kept the key to the drawer but Jim and Buck, who hadn’t known until now. And Seth, It didn’t take her long to analyze the situation. Seth had stolen the cash and taken off. Why he left without waiting to collect on his part of the ranch was a mystery to her. However, he apparently hadn’t left empty-handed.

  At the moment, she couldn’t concentrate on Seth and his crime. She went to the kitchen and had Rosita make her a small breakfast, which she hurriedly ate under Gincie’s admonishing stare. When she was finished, she saddled her horse and rode to the open range, intent on finding Tony and joining the search for the rustlers.

  ~

  By the time Laurel came into view of Tony and Jim, with Lavinia riding beside him, the morning sun had receded behind gray clouds. A crisp, wild wind blew across the range, and Laurel noted that toward the west, the sky was nearly black. Some of the hands rounded up the steers and others branded the unmarked strays. When her roan sauntered toward Tony and stopped beside him, she shot him a look of venom.

  “I suppose it’s fine for Lavinia to know about the rustlers, but I’m to be excluded. Thank you for your trust and confidence in me, Tony. And you, too, Jim. I appreciate it.” Her voice dripped sarcasm. Jim flushed and Tony stared stoically ahead.

  “I had my reasons for not telling you.” Tony shifted his weight in the saddle, the only indication Laurel had that her wrath caused him to feel uncomfortable.

  “Miss Laurel, don’t blame Mr. Duvalier,” Jim quickly interjected before Laurel had a chance to say anything else. “It was my idea not to tell you just now.”

  Laurel’s eyes slid to Lavinia, and Lavinia smiled a warm rich smile that lit up her sapphire orbs like the most exquisite jewels. “I was with Jim when the news came that one of the hands was shot during a rustling. Otherwise, I doubt I’d have been told anything either. I tagged along with Jim. So, don’t send me those killing looks. I’m as much in the dark as you.”

  Laurel decided the best tactic was to forget Tony’s slight for the time being. He appeared to be in no mood for a confrontation, and she decided that she would wait until they were alone before she offered to buy the Little L and send him packing. She truly didn’t want Lavinia to learn that Tony was the man who had vowed revenge upon her. She would insist that Tony leave the ranch and remain mute on the subject of Auguste St. Julian. Especially now. Something in the way Jim leaned toward Lavinia, and the answering motion of her body, the way they intimately exchanged secretive looks, told Laurel that Lavinia had found her true love again. Nothing and no one would spoil Lavinia’s newfound happiness, she vowed to herself. Not even Tony.

  Tony’s voice pierced through Laurel’s thoughts. “We better get a move on if we’re going to track down the rustlers. I don’t think the women should come along. Things could get dangerous.”

  Both Laurel and Lavinia reared up in their saddles, about to protest. Tony grinned wryly, seeming to realize what was to come, and shook his head. “But I wouldn’t think of insisting that the ladies stay behind. Please”—and he made a formal gesture with his hand—”lead the way, ladies.”

  Laurel spurred her horse forward, and Lavinia followed. Jim and Tony trailed behind until they came to a grassy hillock where the cattle grazed peacefully. For the next two hours they took count of each head until they stopped to rest.

  Thunder rumbled in the distance, and the sky darkened with impending rain. Jim was thirty feet away, tending to his horse, and Lavinia helped him. Her long auburn hair blew about her glowing face like a crimson flame. Laurel had never seen her look more beautiful.

  Tony noticed her interest in Lavinia. A scowl marked his mouth. “Lavinia’s found a new man to keep her busy. The poor devil. Maybe I should tell Jim what she’s like.”

  Laurel positioned her legs beneath her on the soft, cool grass and watched Tony take a swig from his canteen. The hard angles of his face seemed harsher this morning, and Laurel sensed a restlessness about him. Only last night he had been calm and so totally charming that she had waited for him, ready to become his wife in all ways again. Now his attention was focused on Lavinia and Jim. She realized that the thought of Jim and Lavinia upset him because of his uncle. He must think that Lavinia was going to use Jim, but Laurel knew better. Lavinia loved Jim Castille. She would make certain that Tony didn’t interfere in the relationship.

  “I wanted to speak to you about Lavinia earlier, Tony.” Her eyes bored directly into his. “This vendetta against her must stop. She had nothing to do with your uncle’s sudden death.”

  “Do you know that for a fact?”

  Laurel hesitated. “No, but…”

  He put his canteen away. “For all you know she may have caused his heart to fail. Look at her with Jim. She’s all arms and hands, practically falling all over him. The guy doesn’t have a chance with a spider like that one. Before long she’ll have pulled him into her web, and he’ll be just another victim.”

  “Jim knows what he’s getting into with her. He and Lavinia loved one another years ago. Jim told me that Seth framed him for theft, and Arthur ran him off the ranch. It was after this that Lavinia came to stay on my father’s plantation. They deeply loved one another and still do. Don’t try anything to turn J
im away from her, because I don’t think you can. He knows Lavinia isn’t perfect, and I don’t think he expects her to be.”

  Tony considered Laurel for a long moment, almost as if he were thinking things through. Pulling off his hat, he ran a hand through his thick, black hair. “You might be right, but I sense that you want to say something else to me. You were in a hell of a mood this morning when you rode up. What’s on your mind?”

  Storm clouds gathered and hung over the range, and the wind grew brisker. Laurel felt buffeted by the stiff breeze, and her own emotions warred within her. She ached to touch Tony, to tell him she loved him, but she remembered his anger toward Lavinia and his love for Simone. No longer could she allow Tony to dominate her life. The moment of freedom was at hand.

  She took a deep breath and spoke in a rush. “I want to buy the Little L and run it myself. I’m not returning to Louisiana with you. And don’t try bullying me with threats against Lavinia, because they won’t work. I’ll simply tell her the truth about who you are, and if you attempt to harm her, I’ll retaliate. I want my freedom, Tony. I don’t want to be your wife.”

  Tony’s mouth fell open. Laurel had never seen him look more surprised or stunned by the bluntness of her words. At that moment she wanted to return to Petit Coteau with him, but this senseless vengeance, the thought of taking second place in his heart forever, gave her the courage to eye him steadily and not waver in her resolve.

  “Auguste St. Julian was my uncle,” Tony reminded her, keeping eye contact with her. A shadow fell across them that neither of them noticed. “I want to know how he died. I want Lavinia to pay for his murder.”

  “I assure you, Tony, I didn’t kill your uncle,” came Lavinia’s shaky voice from behind them. “Why didn’t you just ask me what happened? I’d have told you the truth.”

  Tony rose to his feet, and Laurel quickly followed suit. “I doubt you’d know the truth if it hit you in the face.” Tony stared down Lavinia, but Laurel noticed that though Lavinia shook, she squared her shoulders and her sapphire gaze flashed fire.