The Lawman's Bride (Harlequin Historical Series)

by Cheryl St. John

  Amanda just stared at her in stunned disbelief. “What are you saying?”

  “I told you that you don’t know what kind of man he is, because I do. I know he’s not who he seems. This is all an act. He wants to manipulate me, so he’s using you to get to me.”

  Tears welled up in Amanda’s eyes. “You are being cruel! Why don’t you want me to be happy? You have all the admirers you need! Why are you trying to spoil this for me?”

  “I’m not. Please believe me.”

  “You’re saying Mr. Morgan doesn’t care about me? That he really wants you?”

  “Not in a good way,” Sophie said. “To control. That’s the kind of person he is. You have to listen.”

  “I can’t believe this. I can’t believe you’re so selfish and—and—jealous that you’d stoop to something like this! It’s hurtful, Sophie. Plain hurtful. And mean.”

  “I know how it seems,” Sophie said, her throat tight with regret. “I’m so sorry. You got caught in the middle through no fault of your own. You’re in this position because I came here and let down my guard enough to make friends. I know your feelings are hurt, but I can’t let this go on. I can’t let him use you. It would only be worse.”

  “You think he’s using me because he loves you?”

  “No. He only wants to hurt me,” she answered. “To get what he wants.”

  “I don’t even know who you are anymore.” Amanda’s voice quivered.

  Sophie barely knew herself. Her life was a mess, and she was a big fraud. She’d put the people she cared for in danger. “Can you trust me when I say I know he’s not good for you?”

  “We can’t be friends anymore.” Amanda’s lips pursed tight as though she was holding back more.

  “I am your friend,” Sophie pleaded. “Please, listen.”

  “I’m not listening. Ever again.” Amanda turned and fled from their room.

  Sophie bit back the sting of tears and collected her wits.

  There was still one more alternative. One option she hadn’t shuffled with the deck of ideas.

  She could buckle to Garrett’s manipulation.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Sophie studied her likeness in the mirror. It was her or Amanda now. And she wouldn’t let it be Amanda. She dressed her hair and changed into her walking boots. Minutes later, she’d run down the back stairs and was headed for the Strong, the only other hotel as nice as the Arcade. It being a Sunday night, he probably hadn’t gone to a gaming hall. All the wealthy men were home with their families.

  She found him in the hotel dining room. Garrett looked up from his newspaper. He set a teacup in its saucer.

  That self-important smile spread across his face. “Well, well, well. To what do I owe the pleasure of this unexpected visit?”

  A waiter immediately swooped in to pull out a chair for Sophie. He brought her a rolled napkin, silverware and a water glass. “I’ll come back for your order, miss.”

  “I’m not eating, thank you.”

  “What do you want?” she asked, as soon as the waiter was out of earshot. “What will put a stop to this and make you go away?”

  “You’re not thinking clearly if you think you can get rid of me.”

  “What do you want from me? Besides the money, which I’ve told you is gone.”

  “I want you to recognize the error of your ways, my dear, and make your indiscretions up to me.”

  “How?”

  He leaned back and laced his fingers on the tabletop. “I’ll let you work it off. Once the entire amount has been amassed you can be free.”

  “Steal that much money?”

  “Come now. Steal is such an insulting word. We relieve greedy people of the excess they’re perfectly willing to hand over.” He picked up his cup.

  She couldn’t do what he was demanding in Clay’s town, under his nose. She couldn’t not do it or she would endanger the man she loved. “Pay it all back?”

  He took a leisurely sip. “Surely you don’t think I’d settle for only a portion. Not after you took it all?”

  “The money we took was always all yours,” she told him. “I never got a share. I never chose how you spent it.”

  “I gave you everything you ever needed,” he argued. “The finest clothing and jewelry.”

  “That you selected and made me wear. I never had what I needed or wanted. What I needed was freedom.”

  Anger flickered across his narrow features. “Does your lawman give you freedom? Tell me, did he set you free today?”

  Shocked, Sophie asked, “What do you know about him?”

  “I know everything about you. You belong to me, remember?”

  “Leave him out of this. This is between you and me.”

  “You leave him out of it, Gabriella. For both your sakes. Take my instruction and don’t stand too close. Word is out that I will pay well for the bullet that pierces his heart.”

  Sophie’s heart chugged with horror at the information. The realization sunk in at last. If she was no longer of use to Garrett, she became a liability. She knew too much. He wouldn’t think twice about killing her. To him she was and always would be an acquisition. “What do you want?”

  “I’m working on a cattleman. You will be the clincher.”

  Sophie knew the routine. She disguised herself and lured the cattleman to a hotel room. Garrett showed up once they were both naked and took the man for all he was worth not to tell his wife and expose him to other public humiliation. The same schemes she’d run away from and hoped were in her past. Now he wanted her right back where she had been before. “And then what? Then you’ll leave?”

  “I’m being generous here. I have an investment in you. A big investment. I could always take it further. I could turn you into the highest priced whore this country’s ever known.”

  Her stomach lurched at his pronouncement, at the superior way he spoke as though he still controlled her every move.

  “But I haven’t done that yet, have I?” His voice was as syrupy sweet as though he was proclaiming love. “You must appreciate my generosity. If you know what’s good for you, you will cooperate. A couple of takes like this one and I’ll be set to move on.”

  Sophie knew better. She would never work enough off to get out of his clutches. He always wanted more, more, more. This would be no different. The degrading feeling that accompanied all those years settled on her shoulders like a weight.

  However…going along would buy her time. Time to get Amanda away from him. Time to tip off Clay.

  “And Amanda. If I do this, you’ll leave her alone?”

  “As long as you’re my girl, I won’t need her, now will I?”

  Sophie summoned all her fortitude, accepted the weight of what she had to do and called upon her inner strength. “Very well then.”

  Garrett raised his cup with a self-satisfied smile. “I’ll send word when and where to find him. I’ll make sure he’s had the required drinks. The rest is up to you. You know the signal. Turn the light off and on. Open the window.”

  She knew. She’d done it more times than she could count. For Garrett the beauty of all this was in the perfection of the con. He appreciated the art of a perfect scheme. She’d always been exceptional. She stood. “Don’t hurt the marshal.”

  “His fate is entirely up to you now, my love.”

  Sophie turned and hurried away.

  Amanda didn’t speak to her that night, and Sophie couldn’t blame her. She would most likely feel the same way in her place. She lay awake long after the sound of her roommate’s soft breathing told her she was asleep.

  Guilt had been a part of her for so long, she didn’t know what a night felt like without it. Telling Clay partial truths had relieved her conscience about taking what she wanted with him. She’d fooled herself into believing she wanted to change and that she could actually take the steps to do so. But she was still a coward. Still being controlled by her own fears.

  When was she truly going to stop playing a role an
d actually be the honest normal person she wanted to be? Neither Amanda or Clay knew how dangerous Tek Garrett was. Her life wasn’t about pretending or trying anymore. The only true changes that had taken place were in her heart, and they were disturbing changes. Her life had become more about caring than about hiding or protecting herself.

  She was sick and tired of lies. Sick and tired of running and of being afraid. It was time to face her fear head on and make the only choice that really counted. She was ready to make the ultimate decision and risk her freedom.

  She was ready to tell the truth.

  But she needed a plan. Clay would want to think the best of her if she blurted out the whole story right now. He would be tempted to reason and excuse, and she wouldn’t put him in that position. He had no evidence that she or Garrett had done anything wrong. She had to provide that first.

  Sophie’s head reeled. Giving herself up was the only way to expose Garrett. This was her chance to do that, and she had to do everything right. As much as it tortured her to think of it, convincing others of the truth would be easier if she cut some of the bonds she’d formed. It would be easier for them all the way around once she was arrested and sent to jail.

  There was a measure of irony in all this. She was planning how to make the truth convincing! Mind made up and her emotional guards reconstructed, she closed her eyes and willed herself to sleep.

  As much as she had taken pride in her position at the Arcade, as fond as she was of Amanda and the other girls, by far the biggest loss of all was going to be Clay. She’d been selfish in letting that bond develop. In letting herself care. In letting him care. He didn’t deserve what she’d done. Or what she was going to do. He deserved to love a good woman.

  The next morning Sophie tugged a wrinkled apron from her laundry bag and pulled it on over her uniform. She hauled her valise from under the bed and used kohl around her eyes, rouge on her cheeks and lips and powdered her nose.

  Amanda stared at her, but she didn’t say a word. She hesitantly followed Sophie down the stairs. Olivia and Goldie noticed Sophie and followed at a safe distance.

  Sophie checked the blackboard for morning duties. Her name was listed under silver polishing yet again. She erased it and rewrote her name on the list of girls waiting tables, then took a place on the floor.

  It only took Mrs. Winters seven minutes to spot her and double check the board. She huffed into the dining hall, her cheeks bright pink. “Miss Hollis! What is the meaning of this?” She stopped in her tracks. “Is that—is that—what is that on your face? I want to see you in Mr. Webb’s office right now.”

  Sophie followed.

  Mrs. Winters hammered the door with a fist, then raked her agitated glare over Sophie’s apron and back to the offending color on her face.

  “Come in.”

  The woman gestured for Sophie to lead the way into the room. “Three deliberate offenses right before our eyes,” she sputtered. “And certainly no accident this time. Just look at the impudent girl.”

  Mr. Webb rose from his chair and studied Sophie’s appearance.

  “And she changed her assignment on the duty board!”

  “Do you have anything to say for yourself, Miss Hollis?” the manager asked in bewilderment.

  “I’ve polished silver every Monday for the past month. Mrs. Winters gives me that assignment purely to irritate me, I’m convinced.”

  “Mrs. Winters may assign any duties she chooses. It’s a privilege to work in a Harvey House.”

  “It’s a drudge,” she replied. “We’re treated like schoolchildren. What’s the harm in tasteful cosmetic enhancement?”

  “You see, it is deliberate,” Mrs. Winters confirmed. “She had one last chance.”

  “You’d been doing so well,” Mr. Webb said, disappointment clearly audible in his tone. “I don’t understand this change that’s come over you. Your appearance and conduct are unacceptable, as you well know.”

  Sophie turned her concentration to a single daisy in a glass of water on his desk and waited.

  Her skin prickled beneath her uniform.

  “Then you are dismissed, Miss Hollis. You are no longer a Harvey Girl. You may pack your belongings and leave without pay.”

  “What about my contract?”

  “You’ve broken the terms of your contract. You are fined your most recent earnings. You may spend one more night. After that you will not be allowed in the dormitory.”

  “I won’t need another night. I’ll be gone today.”

  “Turn in your uniforms and aprons,” Mrs. Winters ordered.

  Sophie untied her apron and whisked it over her head with a flourish before tossing it toward a startled and red-faced Mrs. Winters. “With pleasure.”

  She turned and swept from the room, her heart hammering.

  That had been easy. Strange how her livelihood had been so fragile that it had dissolved in a matter of minutes. Working here had never been about the position or the esteem. It had been about integrity, about earning her own way and gaining respect. She was putting her true integrity to the test now.

  Several girls were staring as she exited the hallway and made her way through the dining hall. She could have taken the back route through the kitchen, but this was better. This way they’d all know.

  Emma hurried to walk beside her. “Sophie, what happened?”

  “They let me go,” she said.

  With a stricken expression, Emma touched her arm. “What will you do?”

  “I’ll be fine. I know how to take care of myself.”

  “Will we see you?” Rosie asked, joining them. “Or will you have to go back home now?”

  “I lied about that,” Sophie told them. “I don’t really have any family in Pennsylvania. I just made it up to get this job.”

  She felt Amanda’s gaze from the other side of the room. There were no customers at this hour, and their voices carried. She glanced and found her roommate looking.

  Amanda looked away.

  “You mean—well, where is your family, then?” Olivia asked.

  “I don’t have one.” She turned to Rosie. “If you see me it won’t be like you’re thinking. I’ll be staying in Newton a while longer, but I won’t be going to any dances.” She was letting them all down. They’d befriended her and trusted her. They’d even looked up to her for advice. What a fake she was.

  Amanda didn’t follow her upstairs, and Sophie hadn’t expected her to. She went straight to her room and packed everything she owned into two satchels and a trunk Jimmy brought up from storage. She tipped him, and paused. “Jimmy.”

  “Miss?”

  “Did you and Marshal Connor have a talk recently?”

  “Haven’t seen the marshal ’cept in passin’.”

  “You didn’t tell him about our arrangement?”

  “My errands for you? No, miss. Gave you my word I wouldn’t tell no one.”

  “Thank you, Jimmy. Can you get a wagon? I’d like you to move my things to a hotel this afternoon. I’m going to make the preparations right now.”

  “Sure. You’re leavin’ the Arcade?”

  She nodded. “I’ve been dismissed.”

  “Sorry to hear that. Don’t sound quite right.”

  “Oh, it’s right. And I’ll be fine.”

  He nodded and ducked from her room. He was only allowed on the floor under special circumstances, and his first task was finished.

  Sophie put on her most comfortable shoes, her porcelain-blue dress with embroidered trim, then settled her straw hat on her head and left the Arcade.

  The city directory at the post office listed fourteen hotels, and she knew some of those to be boardinghouses. She wrote the addresses on a piece of paper and tucked it into her reticule. All of the establishments were on Fifth, Sixth or Main Street, centrally located near the heart of town.

  She selected three to look at, toured the rooms and facilities and decided on the Enterprise Hotel on North Main. She had enough money to pay for her room a
nd anything else she might need for at least a month or more. If what she had planned all fell into place, she wouldn’t make it near that long.

  After returning to give Jimmy directions, she went back to her new room to wait for him. Within the hour he arrived and delivered her belongings. She paid him generously and he wished her well.

  Sophie unpacked her clothing, hung it in the armoire and filled the bureau drawers. She had accumulated a lot of clothing during her time in Newton. She would miss access to the sewing machines. As if making new dresses mattered.

  What was she thinking? She would miss a lot of things, like her own clothing and her freedom. She’d miss a lot of people, too.

  Her throat constricted with regret and grief.

  Taking the wooden box Clay had given her from a bag, she placed it right out in the open on her bureau. She ran her hand over the paper label and the wood, opened the lid and let the pungent tobacco aroma drift to her.

  As bad as things were, she reminded herself how liberating it was to shake off more shackles and have her own room without constricting rules. She could smoke all the cigars she wanted right here. She could likely sit in the dining room with a cigar if she didn’t mind some raised eyebrows.

  A small writing desk was positioned beside the window. She took paper and pen and perched there to list the people she would contact and their cities of residence. On another page she wrote out what she wanted each missive she sent to say, and then she put on her hat and hurried to the Western Union Telegraph Company beside the train depot.

  The long-necked angular man who read her letter and the list of recipients tipped his head back to squint at her through the spectacles on the end of his nose. “One dollar each, fifteen cents extra for New York.”

  “I suppose one would send a letter if she had more time,” she replied.

  He continued to squint.

  She plucked fifteen silver dollars from her reticule and made a neat stack on the dusty counter. Beside it she placed fifteen cents and challenged the man with a raised brow.

  “Whatever you say, lady.” He took the coins and her papers and folded himself onto a creaky chair behind the counter. Sophie listened to the frantic clicking as he sent the messages, one after the other.