Outlaw Hearts

by Rosanne Bittner

  “You’ve got time to light out of here, Jake,” Jess told him. “You know I’ll look after the family till you can send for them again.”

  A quick gust of wind swept down from the mountains and blew Jake’s hat off. He breathed deeply of the sweet smell of pine and mountain wildflowers. “No,” he answered, running a hand through his still-thick hair. Its near-black color now showed streaks of gray at the temples. “No more running. It wouldn’t do any good this time.” He turned and faced Jess, and Jess was almost startled at the change in his face, suddenly older, a look of defeat in his eyes. “Before it wasn’t just to keep my own freedom. It was to be able to raise my family, to keep the truth from the children. I won’t be able to do that now, so what reason is there to run? If I did, and I sent for them later, the only one who might come is Randy. The children won’t want anything to do with me after this. That’s what it was all for, Jess, for Lloyd and Evie.”

  Jess felt a deep ache in his chest. “I’m sorry, Jake. Whatever happens, I’ll look after the family for you. They’re like family to me too.”

  Their eyes held, and Jake nodded. He knew without their ever talking about it how Jess felt about Miranda. “I’d appreciate that.” He stooped down to pick up his hat and put it back on his head.

  “I think you’re wrong about the kids, Jake. You underestimate how much they love you.”

  Jake shook his head. “Evie has her mother’s forgiving heart.” He turned and dumped his coffee over the fire to put it out. “Lloyd and I have been closer because of working together these last few years, being alone together. He trusted me, and I’ve destroyed that trust. So many times he asked questions about my past, and so many times I almost told him but couldn’t. I know him. He has a fierce pride. This will crush him.” He sighed deeply and faced Jess. “I’ll need your horse. Mine has a bruised leg, and I don’t want to waste time getting back to the house. Maybe I can get there before Gentry and his men do. I don’t want them to make trouble for Randy and Evie.”

  “They could already be there, Jake.”

  The two men just looked at each other for several long, silent seconds, realizing this could be the last time they saw each other. There was no more running this time. Jake could be facing a firing squad or a noose before it was all over. Jess could see the man fighting tears as he put out his hand. “You’ve been a good friend, Jess. I’m trusting you to keep my family safe, help them however they need it.”

  Jess grasped his hand and nodded, clearing his throat to find his voice. “This ain’t your fault, Jake, when you think about it. It’s your pa’s fault. If not for him, none of the other would have happened.”

  Jake released his grip and walked to Jess’s horse, feeling as though someone had set a boulder on his chest. “Trouble is, Jess, Lloyd’s going to say the same thing. This is going to change his life, and he’s going to say it’s all my fault.” He mounted up. “He’ll be right.”

  He turned the horse, and Jess noticed his jaw flexing, knew the man was struggling not to break down. “It’s been close to twenty years, Jake, and you’ve been a good husband and father and a law-abiding man all that time. Maybe the judge who hears your case will take that into consideration.”

  Jake smiled bitterly. “It won’t matter. Even if they let me go, I’ll have already lost something a lot more important to me than my life.” He turned the horse and headed down the steep embankment.

  Jess turned away and viciously kicked dirt over the fire. This wasn’t fair. After twenty years, Gentry should have left it alone. Goddamn bastard! He must have found out the reward was still good on Jake.

  He picked up Jake’s gear, his thoughts filled more with Randy than with Jake. Not many women loved with the kind of devotion and forgiveness that woman showed. She’d risked so much to be with Jake. He wished there would be more he could do to comfort her, but if Jake was hanged or put in prison for life, there would be nothing he could do but watch over her, provide for her as best he could. Nothing would take away the pain, and he knew he could never take Jake’s place in her heart.

  ***

  Miranda heard the creaking of leather saddles, the clinking of stirrup irons and bit and spur chains, the soft thud made by many horses as they trotted on the dry, dusty trail that led to the house. Many riders were coming! She had lived in this remote area long enough to know one had to always be wary, and she quickly took down her Winchester from where it was cradled over the door. “Stay inside, Evie,” she ordered her daughter. She opened the door and stepped out onto the porch to see soldiers coming.

  Immediately her heart leaped to alarm. They were led by that tall, skinny Lieutenant Gentry. Had Jake’s suspicions about the man after meeting him at the picnic been valid after all? She couldn’t be sure that was why the man was here, didn’t want to give Jake away by being too defensive. Maybe there was some other reason the man was here, but a sick feeling began to churn in her belly when she saw Gentry was hauling along what looked like a prison wagon.

  She lowered the rifle, nodding to Gentry as he rode closer. “Good afternoon, Lieutenant.” She set the gun aside. If not for Evie, she supposed she would gladly shoot the man right out of his saddle and suffer the consequences, but she wanted no bullets flying with Evie around. “What brings you way out here?”

  Gentry looked around warily. “Your husband about?”

  The sick feeling became a sharp pain in her stomach. “No.” Jake! He was here for Jake! Why? After all these years, why had God let this happen?

  “How about the boy? He still in Pueblo?”

  Miranda folded her arms, dread turning to anger. It seemed a silly thing to come to mind all of a sudden, but she thought how ironic it was that today she was wearing the yellow dress Jake had always liked. She had kept herself trim enough all these years that she could still wear it, kept the dress cleaned and pressed for special occasions. She always wore it when she knew Jake could be home any day. “Yes. I’m here alone with my daughter.”

  Gentry turned and motioned to one of his men. “Get the rifle. Check the house and get rid of any weapons that might be inside.”

  Miranda quickly hoisted the Winchester. “I want an explanation first!” she demanded, aiming the rifle at the private. The man stopped in his tracks, and Miranda moved her gaze and her line of fire to the lieutenant. “You can’t just come riding onto people’s personal property and invade their home without a damn good reason, Lieutenant!” Miranda said firmly.

  The lieutenant dismounted, facing her then with a look of authority. “Lady, I think you know the reason I’m here. Your husband is a wanted man, and I have every right to come here and arrest him.” He stepped a little closer, a victorious look in his steely blue eyes. “You’d better think this through. My information tells me that Jake Harkner is no easy man to take down, but he’ll come in quick enough if he thinks his family is in danger. Now, do you really want to use that thing against twelve men? I’ll have you shot down, woman, you and the daughter both, if you interfere, and I’d be within the law to do it. You’ve knowingly harbored a fugitive for years, and pointing that rifle against me and my men creates a picture of self-defense. You want your daughter to get hurt over this, or be left without a father and a mother? It’s your choice, lady.”

  Miranda slowly lowered the rifle. “You bastard!” she nearly growled. “Why are you doing this? Jake has led a decent life for nearly twenty years now! You have no good reason to do this!”

  The man reached out and yanked the rifle from her hands. “Go on inside and check it out,” he told the private. The young man hurried past him, and Gentry kept his eyes on Miranda, thinking what a pretty woman she was for her age. “I have a lot of reasons, lady. Five thousand of them, to be exact, unless your husband gives us trouble. Then I’ve only got three thousand reasons.”

  Miranda struggled to keep her composure. The last thing she wanted to do was crumble and weep in fron
t of this haughty man. “How did you know Jake? How did you find out?”

  “He looked familiar to me that day I saw him at Parker’s shindig. I started scratching my memory, remembered a man named Jake who was damned good with those guns he wore. I bought stolen rifles from him during the war. A friend of mine remembered him too. He’s a sheriff now, down in Southern Missouri. He knew more about Jake than I did—sent me this.” The man reached into his jacket and pulled out the wanted poster. “Doesn’t look a whole lot like him anymore, except for those eyes. It’s Jake, all right. I checked with the Missouri authorities, and the money is still good. I aim to collect.”

  Miranda unfolded the poster. There was the Jake she had found that day lying on her bed, the old, hard, bearded, mean Jake Harkner, the man he had left behind so many years ago when he discovered he was worth something to someone, discovered he could actually love and be loved in return. She handed the poster back to Gentry. “The man you will be arresting is not the man in this poster. Turning him in now would be like turning in an innocent man.”

  Gentry just grinned. “A man is never innocent of his past, lady. What’s done is done, and can’t be undone. I’m hauling him back to Missouri for the reward money.”

  Oh, how she hated him! “And I wonder who is truly the decent man here. If someone offered Jake ten million dollars to do what you’re doing, he wouldn’t take it! You’re the sinner, Lieutenant, and you’ll burn in hell for this!”

  “Will I?” His eyes moved over her insultingly. “Well, then, I expect you’ll be there with me, after spreading yourself all these years for a no-good outlaw.” He watched the crimson come to her cheeks. “Tell me, Mrs. Harkner, just what was it that attracted you to the man? Was it the danger? Did it excite you to know he’d raped women?”

  Miranda could not control the urge to slap him. She hit him hard across his cheek, with such force that the man stumbled slightly sideways. In an instant he backhanded her with a shocking blow to her left cheek, knocking her to the ground.

  “Mother!” Evie screamed. The girl had just come to the door to ask why the soldiers were there, why one of them was tearing through the house looking for weapons. She ran to Miranda and knelt over her, cradling Miranda in her arms and looking up at the lieutenant with tears in her eyes. “What are you doing?” she screamed. “How can you hit a woman like that?”

  “Don’t tell me your pa’s never hit her,” Gentry sneered. “I expect that’s why she married him. He probably forced her into his bed and then she felt obligated. You’ve got a lot to learn about your father, little girl. You take your mother in the house and let her explain.” He pulled a pistol from its holster on his hip and pointed it at Evie. “Do like I say. I don’t want any trouble and I don’t want anybody to get hurt. Soon as we have your father in our custody, we’ll leave you be. Now, you tell me when your father is expected home, and don’t lie to me, girl!”

  Evie stared at the gun in shock. What was happening? What did her father have to do with all of this? “I…he…”

  “Leave her alone,” Miranda demanded weakly, putting a hand to the side of her face as she managed to get to her knees. Pain shot through her left cheek and eye like thousands of needles. “He was due home…yesterday, so he should show up…anytime.”

  “Mother,” Evie whimpered, helping Miranda get to her feet. A dark bruise was beginning to swell on Miranda’s left cheekbone, just under her eye.

  “It’s all right,” Miranda tried to assure her. “Come inside.” She glared at Gentry. “We’ll let this angel of Satan do his dirty work.” She forced back tears, standing proudly in front of Gentry. “Jake didn’t do the things he is wanted for, Lieutenant, but you want that five thousand dollars, so you don’t want to hear that he’s innocent.” She forced her voice to be strong, ignored the pain in her face. “I just hope when you’re off spending that money, that you’ll think about all the lives that have been destroyed by what you’re doing today! Of all the things Jake did in his past, he’s still ten times the man you are. He’s never hit a woman or threatened a child! You’re a coward, Lieutenant Gentry, a stinking coward!” She smiled defiantly. “How interesting that you had to bring twelve men along to help you arrest just one man in return! What you don’t even realize is that if he didn’t have to worry about his family’s safety, even twelve men wouldn’t be enough, Lieutenant! Not enough to take down Jake Harkner!” She turned and put her arm around Evie, leading her into the house just as the private came out with her derringer.

  “This is all I could find besides the rifle, Lieutenant,” the man told his officer. “Harkner and the boy must have any other weapons they own with them.”

  Evie helped Miranda to a chair, and Miranda looked around to see every cupboard opened and emptied, every drawer. Her trunk was open, everything tossed out of it. She looked into Evie’s frightened eyes. “I’m sorry, Evie. Your father had a very tragic past that he never wanted you or Lloyd to know about. Now I suppose there is no choice but to tell you. You mustn’t hold it against him. He loves you so much. People can change, Evie. They can be very sorry for some of the things they have done, but sometimes the law doesn’t forgive, and they have to answer for things in spite of how much they might have changed. That is what is happening to your father. He’s going to need our love and support more than ever now.”

  “Mother, what are you talking about? I don’t understand!”

  Miranda took hold of her hand. “I know, Evie.” She closed her eyes, struggling to stay strong. Jake! Lieutenant Gentry was going to take him away! He would surely be hanged, or imprisoned for the rest of his life. He would not come today and sweep her into his arms like always. She would not sleep beside him tonight. He might even react defensively when he came home and saw soldiers there, might shoot it out with them, be killed today. And what about the children? How was she going to explain all this in the midst of such tragedy? For years she had warned Jake to tell them, and for years he had put it off, had been so afraid of losing them.

  If only she could get out of here, ride out to him, hold him once more before he was arrested. There was no way around it, and she knew Jake would not run again. Not this time. The running was over. The pain in her chest was so fierce she was afraid she might pass out. “Sit down, Evie,” she told her daughter.

  Evie pulled a chair around the table and sat down near Miranda, who again took hold of her hands. “While we’re waiting for your father to come home, I have something to tell you.”

  “Surround the house!” Gentry was shouting outside. “Make sure the woman and the girl stay inside! Private Bale!”

  “Yes, sir!”

  “Take two other men and keep a lookout—all directions! Harkner is due back anytime. He’s a man who’s always well armed, dangerous when he’s cornered. Watch out for the boy too. He could come back unexpectedly.”

  Lloyd! Thank God he was still in Pueblo. He could get hurt if he rode in here now and didn’t understand what was happening. Miranda squeezed Evie’s hands reassuringly. “Evie, your father was once an…an outlaw; but certain things happened to him as a boy that forced him into that life at a time when he had no guidance, no love, no family. I want to tell you about it so you’ll understand what is happening; and I want you to try to find it in your heart to forgive him for keeping the truth from you. He did it only because he loves you so very much. He never wanted you to hate him or be ashamed of him. For twenty years he has worked hard at changing his life and trying to make up for his past. Now it has caught up with him, and I’m afraid we can’t do anything to help him except to be there for him and let him know he’s loved and has our support.”

  “He’s my father. I could never stop loving him.”

  Miranda could only hope she would hear the same words from Lloyd, but there was something else involved there. If Lloyd lost Beth Parker because of this, there would be no forgiving; and if their son looked at his father with the h
atred and shame Jake had always dreaded he would see in the boy’s eyes, it would destroy Jake. He would go to the gallows willingly. The love of his wife and daughter would not be enough to make him want to live, to fight for his rights. Nothing worse could happen to him than to lose his son’s love.

  ***

  “Look sharp, men! That could be him coming now!”

  Almost two hours had passed. Miranda heard the shout and rushed to the door. “Stay inside!” she ordered Evie. “No matter what happens, stay in this house.”

  Evie ran to a window to watch, her heart pounding with fear for her father. The lieutenant had told them Jess York had ridden out when they arrived at Mr. Parker’s house. She and her mother both hoped Jess had warned Jake about what was happening. Evie had prayed her father would not come at all, that he would get away while he had the chance. She could not imagine him being hanged, or spending the rest of his life in prison. Not her father! Her heart ached over the things her mother had told her, and she was struggling to understand, to forgive. She prayed Lloyd would be able to do the same. She watched her mother move away from the house and past some of the soldiers. Gentry grabbed her arm. “That’s far enough.”

  “Please, let me go to him!” Miranda begged. “Let me have a few minutes alone with him.”

  “No, ma’am. As long as you’re here and he’s there, he’ll keep coming.”

  “I know him. He’ll come anyway. Evie is still here.” She jerked her arm away. “Please! He’d never try to ride off when I’m with him. He’d be too afraid I’d get hurt. And he wouldn’t leave Evie behind. For God’s sake I haven’t seen him for over two weeks! Let me have two minutes alone with him!”

  The lieutenant watched Jake move a little closer. “All right, long as you go out to him on foot. A man can’t get far carrying two people on his horse.” He turned to one of his men. “Holt, you and Webster and Bates get inside with the girl. I want him to know that if he tries to shoot the rest of us down, his daughter is still inside with more men.”