Soiled Dove

by Brenda Adcock

  Clare smiled at her. “I’m glad you regard it as your home. What did you tell Amelia about where you’ll be sleeping?”

  “Just that I would be sharing your room because it’s closer to the kitchen and I have to get up very early to feed the men.”

  Clare looked around to make sure they were alone. She leaned down and kissed Loretta softly.

  “Not too early, I hope,” she said.

  Amelia and Loretta prepared a Thanksgiving feast that amazed Clare. She couldn’t remember the last time she had looked forward to celebrating a holiday, but this year, thanks to Loretta, she had something to be thankful for. With fewer worries about the smaller herd, Clare felt free to spend more time at home, with occasional trips to take hay to the herd. The winter was milder than Clare expected and they had been blessed with average snowfall. It left the ground white and sparkling clean, but still maneuverable on horseback. For the first time for as long as she could remember, Clare looked forward to walking into her house each evening. Ino had even stopped making comments about what others would say if they knew about the relationship between the two women. Clare was suddenly determined to live her life without worrying about what others might say. She personally invited Willis and Rosario Manning and their children, as well as the girls from the saloon who had befriended her, including Peg.

  Cyrus and Hettie looked radiant when they arrived by buggy at the ranch. After dinner, which consisted of numerous trips back for seconds and thirds by most of Clare’s hands, Loretta and Hettie threw cloaks around their bodies and took a walk together to let their dinner settle.

  “That was a wonderful meal, Loretta. We have so much to be thankful for this year,” Hettie said.

  “It’s the new life we were all seeking. Are you enjoying married life?”

  “Very much, but this is only the beginning. Cyrus is anxious to have children.”

  “Is that what you want as well?”

  “I love children, but Cyrus keeps talking about the Twelve Apostles. I don’t think I’m quite ready for that,” Hettie said with a blush.

  “Does he make you happy? That’s all that matters.”

  A broad smile, accompanied by reddened cheeks, crossed Hettie’s face. “I’m embarrassed to even think about how happy he makes me, Retta. I didn’t know it was possible to feel so…so fulfilled and,” she lowered her voice, “so wanton. Anything that wonderful must be sinful.”

  When Loretta began laughing out loud, Hettie pressed a hand over her mouth before the sound could draw anyone else’s attention. Soon both women were reduced to subdued giggles.

  “I’m so happy for you, Hettie,” Loretta finally managed.

  “Someday you will know the same happiness.”

  For the first time, Loretta wished she could tell someone that she had found happiness. “I know I will,” she said instead.

  They walked back toward the main house slowly.

  Hettie looked up at the gray clouds that were beginning to drift over the mountains. “It’s been a wonderful day,” she sighed. “But it looks like more snow may be coming. We should start back to town soon.”

  “It’s been wonderful having Amelia with us this week. She seems happy and I hope you’ll let her visit us again soon.”

  Hettie nodded and pulled her cloak closer as a cold breeze blew around her ankles. Loretta opened the back door to the house, but before she could enter she ran into Peg. Peg smiled at her and Loretta couldn’t bring her eyes to meet Peg’s. The saloon girl stepped aside and made way for Hettie to enter the house.

  “I wanted to tell you that I appreciated the invite, Mrs. Langford,” Peg said as she stepped outside. “I hope I didn’t make the day too uncomfortable for you.”

  Loretta stepped back a little. “I’m sure Clare was happy you could join us,” she said.

  Peg looked back toward the house. “It’s good to see Clare happy. And I’m pretty sure you’re the reason.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “I ain’t blind, honey,” Peg said with a smile. “I’ve known Clare a long time.”

  “I’m aware of that,” Loretta said more harshly than she intended.

  “She’s a good woman. She needs another good woman to take care of her and love her. I ain’t been a good woman in a long time. Just take care of her.”

  Loretta wasn’t sure what to say. “I will.”

  Peg laughed. “Don’t worry, sweetie. Clare and I have talked and your secret is safe with me.” She extended her hand to Loretta.

  Loretta paused for a moment before she took the offered hand and gripped it firmly. “Thank you, Peg.

  I know Clare regards you as a friend. That won’t change.”

  “But no more kisses,” Peg snickered.

  “Not on your life,” Loretta said with a genuine laugh.

  Chapter Sixteen

  THE STAGE PULLED to a halt in front of the Wells Fargo office on Commercial Street in downtown Trinidad after dark. Even though there were street lamps on every corner along the main street, they didn’t make the town look any more exciting than it usually did.

  The stage from Pueblo had hit every pothole for the last sixty or so miles and by the time Jack Coulter gladly stepped from the carriage his body felt as though it had been beaten in a barroom brawl. He removed his bowler hat and rubbed a hand over his face. He glanced around the main street as he waited for his single suitcase to be tossed from the top of the stage. The coach carried a maximum of eight passengers. It was a moderately comfortable seating arrangement as long as all the passengers were thin.

  However, at least two of Jack’s fellow passengers hadn’t pushed away from the feeding trough for any extended periods of time. Jack had been squeezed against the side of the coach for several hours and his clothing reflected it.

  “Where’s the nearest hotel?” Jack asked as he caught the suitcase tossed down to him.

  “The Columbian,” the driver said. “Two or three blocks that way,” he added with a jerk of his head.

  “How about a place to eat and get a drink?”

  “Down this street a couple of blocks. Rosario’s is next to the Cattleman’s Saloon.”

  Jack looked down at his clothing and decided he needed one or two stiff drinks to ease the dry taste from his mouth before he settled in for the evening.

  He grasped his small suitcase while thinking Carter Jamison would have hell to pay if he was wrong about Loretta being in Trinidad. Jack glanced in a few store windows while making his way toward the saloon. He drooled over the food he saw on plates as he passed by Rosario’s, but continued on until he pushed through the main doors of the saloon. He stepped up to the bar and dropped his suitcase with a thud. He slapped some bills on the bar and waited for the bartender to fill two shot glasses with whiskey. He gulped down the first shot and then looked around the saloon while he sipped the second. He watched four men at a table dealing cards and smiled. If nothing else, Jack was a veteran poker player. Maybe he could recoup some of the money he had expended thus far in his search for Loretta Digby.

  “Don’t let their looks fool you,” a young man leaning against the bar said. “They’re old, but you’ll lose your underwear if you get dragged into a game with ‘em.”

  “Pretty good, huh?” Jack asked.

  “Been playing poker since the game was invented.” The young cowboy stuck his hand out.

  “Clement Garner,” he said.

  “Jack Coulter,” Jack responded as he took the outstretched hand. “So what’s exciting to do in Trinidad?”

  “Leavin’ it,” Clement grunted. “Where you from?”

  “St. Joe. I’m looking for someone. Heard she’d moved here a few months ago.”

  “Must be a good friend for you to leave St. Joe and come to the ass end of Colorado.”

  “No. She used to work for me in St. Joe. Then the bitch stole money from me and lit out. If I find her sorry ass I plan to drag her back and have her arrested. Name’s Loretta Digby.”

>   Clement tossed is drink down and motioned for another. “What’s she look like? Maybe I seen her.”

  “Short with long hair the color of fresh honey.

  She’s about twenty and has hazel eyes that can convince a man to do just about anything.”

  Clement smiled. “Sounds like a right fetchin’

  looking woman. Wouldn’t mind if I run into her, but she don’t sound familiar. Might’ve gone on farther west. What kind of work did she do for you?”

  “She’s a whore. Actually, my best girl until she pulled that stunt about stealing my money.”

  “Is that right?” Clement asked. “The sheriff’s office is across the street. Maybe the sheriff can help you locate her.”

  “I’d rather handle the matter by myself. I wouldn’t want anyone to think I was made a fool of by a whore, no matter how good she was in bed.”

  “Who’s your friend, Clement?” a pleasant female voice asked. Jack turned toward the sound and removed his hat.

  “This here’s Jack Coulter from St. Joe. He’s looking for an old friend,” Clement said.

  “You got something against makin’ new friends, Jack? I’m Carlotta.”

  “It’s a pleasure, Carlotta.”

  “I can make it that way if you’re looking for company,” Carlotta said seductively as she batted her eyelashes at Jack.

  “If I wasn’t starving for nourishment I might take you up on a little hospitality.” Jack flashed her a rakish grin.

  “I’ll be here all night,” Carlotta said as she dragged her index finger down Jack’s chest.

  “I’ll remember that.”

  “Friendly town,” Jack said as he watched Carlotta sashay slowly across the room.

  FOR TWO DAYS Jack asked everyone he met about Loretta Digby and no one seemed to know the name. Jack had taken Carlotta up on her invitation.

  While she was a whore, she wasn’t Loretta. The more he thought about getting Loretta back and teaching her a lesson she’d never forget, the angrier he became, taking out his frustration and anger on Carlotta.

  On the evening of his third day in Trinidad he returned to the Cattleman’s Saloon. He saw Carlotta the moment he entered and gave her a smile. Carlotta quickly whispered to the older woman with her and made a hasty retreat upstairs. When Jack had his drink, the older woman approached him. No amount of makeup could hide the fact that she had been in the business well past her prime. From the looks of her she had probably been a heart breaker ten or fifteen years earlier.

  “Ma’am,” Jack said with a tip of his hat.

  “Carlotta tells me you’re a little…energetic when you’re with her.”

  “I am a passionate man,” Jack said with a wink and a charming smile.

  “The bruises I saw on Carlotta’s body don’t suggest passion had anything to do with it.”

  “I suppose I did get a little carried away. I’ll act differently the next time I’m with her.”

  “There won’t be a next time. I won’t ask any of my girls to put up with bad behavior,” Mavis said, looking him up and down carefully. “And I’m sure they’ve all spoken to Carlotta by now. You should go back to St. Joe. Maybe they’re more forgivin’ there.”

  Jack grabbed Mavis’ arm and pulled her closer roughly. “My girls never complain about how they’re treated, especially by me. In fact, I’m only here long enough to find one of my former employees so I can charge her with theft. I don’t suppose you know Loretta Digby? I’m surprised she’s not working for you. My most popular whore until she took advantage of my good nature.”

  Jack saw something in Mavis’ eyes briefly before she jerked her arm away. “Must have been passin’

  through town. You’ll have to take your search elsewhere.”

  “Yeah. I’ll do that.

  Jack turned around and saw a young woman serving food at the café adjacent to the saloon. He smiled and walked away from the bar.

  JACK COULTER WATCHED a slightly overweight woman leave the café, shepherding three young children, and lock the front door. From where he was standing in the alleyway across the street he would be able to see anyone leaving through the saloon doors.

  He had already checked the rear door to the café and found it locked as well. The door from the café into the saloon was the only remaining exit. He struck a match and lit a cigarette. Although he had seen Amelia, he was certain she had not seen him. Their reunion was likely to be a surprise, probably not a welcome one. One thing he was sure of was that if Amelia was still in Trinidad, Loretta wouldn’t be far away.

  By the time Jack finished his cigarette, the front door of the saloon swung open. Amelia turned and waved at someone inside before walking down the boardwalk. Jack dropped his cigarette and crushed it under his shoe. When Amelia crossed the street a block away, Jack stepped out of the shadows of the alleyway and followed her, staying in the shadows as much as possible. Gradually he closed the distance between them until he was a half block behind her.

  She paused momentarily at a street crossing before moving on.

  Jack saw an alleyway a few feet from where Amelia was walking. She glanced down it before proceeding. In an instant Jack grabbed her from behind and pulled her into the alley, covering her mouth with his hand. She struggled briefly.

  “Shut up or I’ll break your fucking neck,” he snarled in her ear. He turned her around and shoved her against the brick wall of the closest building.

  Although it was dark in the alley, Jack could see her eyes widen and saw the fear in them.

  “Where’s Retta?” he asked. “Don’t scream,” he added as he removed his hand from her mouth, but kept it close. “I just want to talk to her.”

  “You tried to kill her. I don’t know where she is.

  She moved on and I stayed here,” Amelia said between heavy breaths.

  Jack slapped her. “I can hurt you in ways you can’t even imagine, you little bitch. Retta wouldn’t leave you here alone. Where is she!”

  “I don’t know, Jack.”

  “Retta’s a thief. She stole from me. I can have you arrested as her accomplice.”

  “I didn’t do anything.”

  “You’re a whore, Amelia. No one will believe you.” He curled his hand into a fist and slammed it into the girl’s abdomen.

  The blow took her breath away. When Jack grabbed her by the throat and pushed her forcefully against the wall again, tears filled Amelia’s eyes.

  “Please Jack. Don’t hurt me any more,” she whimpered.

  “Then tell me where Retta is! With just a couple of words everyone will know what you were in St. Joe and you’ll lose this idyllic little life you’ve begun. Is that what you want?”

  “No. Everything here is normal. Please.”

  “Where…is…Retta?” Jack asked again, emphasizing each word slowly.

  “She…she doesn’t live in town. She works on a ranch outside of town.”

  “Is she fucking the cowboys? Setting up her own little whorehouse?”

  “No. She’s a housekeeper at the McIlhenney ranch.”

  “Well, that’s a total waste of a damn good piece of ass.” Jack laughed. “If you never want to see me again go on home and don’t mention our conversation to anyone.” He took Amelia’s face in one hand and squeezed it tightly. “Understand?”

  Amelia nodded and left the alley as fast as possible.

  LORETTA EXTRACTED HER hands from a new batch of dough for bread and washed her hands, preparing to get back to her daily household chores.

  Clare came down the hallway from the master bedroom. She grabbed her coat and picked up her rifle, pushing the lever-action to check the ammunition. Satisfied, she set it down and shoved her weathered hat on her head.

  “Going out?” Loretta asked as Clare began buttoning her coat.

  “Ino and me thought we'd see if we can scare up an elk. We saw a small herd near the lower meadow yesterday.”

  “Will you be gone long?” Loretta asked as she walked Clare to the door. />
  “I don’t know.”

  Loretta grabbed the front of Clare’s coat and pulled her down into a hungry kiss. “That’s so you won’t forget to come home to me. Will you return in time for supper?”

  “I’ll be especially looking forward to dessert,”

  Clare said with a smile.

  Clare stepped off the porch and made her way to the stable, where Ino was waiting for her. She shoved her rifle into its case hanging from the right side of the saddle before swinging herself up and settling into the saddle. Loretta stood on the porch and watched Clare and Ino until they disappeared over the top the hill leading away from the house.

  Loretta’s life with Clare had settled into a comfortable existence. She ran her hand across the back of Clare’s rocker, her favorite spot each evening, whether she was gazing into the flames deep in her own thoughts or using the glow of the fire to illuminate whatever she was reading.

  She had just checked her dough and begun cleaning when there was a knock at the front door.

  She hurried across the main room and pulled a curtain back to see who was at the door. Clement Garner stood on the porch with hands shoved in the front pockets of his heavy coat, looking around.

  Knowing how much Clare disliked the young man, Loretta leaned her back against the door, scarcely daring to breath.

  A fist banged at the door. “I know you’re in there, so open the damn door!”

  Loretta unlocked and opened the door no more than a crack. “Can I help you, Mr. Garner?” she asked.

  “I’m sure you can,” Clement answered with a smile Loretta didn’t like. He placed a hand on the door and shoved against it with his shoulder. Loretta retreated slightly as he looked around the front of the house before stepping inside and closing the door.

  Loretta looked at him. “What do you want?”

  He smiled and licked his lips as his eyes moved slowly from her head to her feet. “I had an interesting conversation with an old friend of yours the other night.”

  Loretta grew increasingly uncomfortable with the way the cowboy stared at her. “You should leave.