“That’s shocking.”
“Yeah, well, some wagon train bosses are ruthless. If they’re late getting the train to where it has to go, they lose money.”
“Go on.” McGuire’s story was rather rambling and it took a while for him to get to the point.
“A tin-horn, Abe Valentine was.…”
“Valentine?”
Yeah, Abe and his wife Ellen. With them were two of the prettiest gals you ever did see, Christina and Molly. They had come from back East as Mail Order Brides. Anyway, to cut a long story short, Jake got hitched to Christina and me to Molly and we took them to Paradise.”
Marcus cut him off. “Paradise?”
McGuire gave a grunt of laughter. “That’s what Jake called his ranch. It was a nice little spread with plenty of grass. More importantly it had water, with a creek that never ran dry running through it. He asked me to be his forearm. Best job I ever had.”
McGuire stopped for a moment and took a deep breath as if trying to compose himself. “Roy Chadwick had a huge spread next door to Jake. He had driven off or killed most of the other small ranchers and was desperate to get his hands on Paradise. He offered to buy it and when Jake refused to sell, threatened to kill him, but Jake still wouldn’t budge.
One day the three Chadwick sons rode over and roughed up Christina. Johnny was about five, George still a toddler. When Jake arrived home and found out what happened, he went loco. He set out to get the Chadwick boys, low down skunks they were, too. He tracked them down, killed the two oldest boys and put the youngest one in a wheelchair for life.”
Marcus shook his head as McGuire stood and picked up the coffee pot.
“Roy Chadwick vowed revenge on Jake, anyone of his blood, or anyone who befriended him. He couldn’t get rid of Jake on his own so he hired a couple of low down killers to do his dirty work.
They sneaked over to Paradise and murdered Jake and Christina as they slept. They were strangers and didn’t realise Johnny and George were there as well, otherwise they’d have been killed too.”
Marcus had never heard of anything so cold-blooded. What type of man would commit such a heinous crime?
“Johnny found his parents and rushed over to get us. We realized we were all in danger so we left Paradise. The Valentines took Johnny and we took George and fled for our lives. I came here. This place isn’t much but I was born here. The Valentines settled near Deadwood.”
McGuire took a couple of slurps of coffee before continuing.
“Abe died and Ellen moved further west to be with her brother and his family. She took Johnny with her.”
“Why didn’t he stay with you?”
“We wanted to keep him, but we had George and three boys of our own. This place is poor, the ground hungry and dry, and we were only able to scratch out a living. We couldn’t afford another mouth to feed. Besides, Ellen needed Johnny as she had three youngsters under four to worry about as well.
A couple of years ago, Johnny found us. Young fool had already been in trouble with the law, too much like his father, wild and with a temper to match,”
“What a terrible story.”
“Yeah, well it gets worse. Chadwick claimed Jake shot his boys when they were unarmed. It was a lie, but if Jake hadn’t been murdered, he’d have hung. Justice.” McGuire’s mouth twisted. “Only for the rich and powerful.”
“What a dreadful story.” Marcus felt physically ill, and his head was pounding. “You’re not even Georgina’s uncle, and she’s been living here without another woman…”
“Tarnation, man, don’t you see, that was one of the reasons I couldn’t tell George who she really was. I always let her think Molly and Christina were sisters. She was only seven when Molly died. What could I do? Dump her in an orphanage?
“I suppose you didn’t have much choice.”
Johnny got some girl with child and had to marry her. He was no angel, but didn’t deserve to be persecuted and shot down like a rabid dog.”
“Georgina’s name is Valentine?”
“No, Valentine was the name of the people who took Johnny in. Their real name is Ridout.”
“Ridout?”
“Yeah. George wouldn’t hold you responsible for something beyond your control, just like you shouldn’t blame her.” McGuire sighed heavily. “There’s been too much grief and bitterness caused by one man’s greed and thirst for revenge. If you love George and want to marry her, go to her. If not, like I said before, we’ll take care of Johnny’s boy and her.”
“Thank you, McGuire, I’m in your debt. I’ll go now. If Georgina accepts my proposal, we’ll be back within a short time. We’ll get married straight away so we can go and collect Johnny’s son.”
“Yes, get the boy as soon as you can. If Mrs. Shannon dies, goodness knows where he’ll end up.”
Marcus mounted his horse and rode away, every inch the aristocratic Englishman. Silently, McGuire uttered a prayer that he had done the right thing. In his heart, he felt sure he had. Marcus seemed a decent man, even if he was a member of the English aristocracy. He obviously loved George and would always look after her. Nothing else mattered anymore.
* * *
Marcus found George sitting on the ground with her back resting against a tall pine tree and staring out into the distance. She did not even hear him ride up so deep was her distress.
“Georgina,” he called her name twice before he got any reaction. Finally, she turned her head, but gave no other sign of having seen his approach.
“McGuire told me where to come. I’ve been worried sick. Why wouldn’t you see me?” He lowered himself down beside her. “I want us to be married. I’ve already spoken with McGuire and he’s given his consent. I love you, Georgina, and I can make you happy. Normally, I’d wait until you feel better about Johnny. I know how much you loved him, but he’s gone, my darling; pining for him won’t bring him back. McGuire agrees with me. We must marry straight away so I can protect both you and Johnny’s son.”
His voice dropped until it became little more than a whisper. “He’s free now, don’t you see? No one can hurt him anymore. They can’t cage him. He was like a bird, a creature of the wild who needed to be free. He would not have survived if they’d locked him away, so he wouldn’t want you to be sad, would want you to remember the happy times. Even at the end he wasn’t unhappy because they didn’t catch him. He remained free.”
A shudder shook her, and he held her close. “Cry, Georgina. Cry for all the Johnnys who want to be free and never can be. Cry because you loved him, then forget all the sadness and only remember the good times.”
Great shuddering sobs racked her body and Marcus held her close, while the gentle breeze, heavy with the perfume of wild flowers, caressed them both. Finally, there were no tears left to shed.
“Will you marry me, Georgina?”
“I can’t marry you. Your father is a Lord. You’re rich and must marry someone of your own standing. Your friends and family could never accept me, no one in England would.”
He swore. “I acted like a swine. Forget those ugly things I said, I was a jealous fool. I’ve loved you from the first time we met in that dingy little inn. I wouldn’t admit it for a time, even to myself. I fought my feelings for you, said all those wretched things. In that prison cell, I took a good look at myself and the way I had lived before coming out here. The picture was ugly.
Deep down I knew I wanted you for my wife, but there was Johnny, always Johnny. I was practically demented with anger and jealousy because you preferred him to me. It nearly killed me thinking of what you might have shared together, because I wanted you all for myself. I wanted to be the first man to know you, the only man,” he went on passionately. “It was pre-ordained. You were special. I knew it the first time I set eyes on you.”
“Oh, Marcus.” She stroked his cheek. “I wanted to tell you so many times about Johnny, only I promised.”
“Don’t say anything more, Georgina. McGuire told me the whole story a
bout your parents and what happened to them.”
“He’s never told me much.” She felt strangely hurt.
“McGuire’s a good man. He wanted to tell you, but the right time never came up. Marry me, Georgina. I love you and I can make you happy.” His lips moved against her hair. “We’ll go together to claim Johnny’s son.”
Marcus kissed Georgina and she clung to him. He held her tightly as if he never wanted to let her go. After they were married and she was under his protection, he would relay McGuire’s story to her. She had a right to know and he wanted to be the one to tell her. She would be devastated, anyone would be, but he would be there to comfort her, offer support and do anything necessary to ease her pain.
Chapter Thirteen
Marcus and George were married the next day at the house of the local preacher, with his wife and McGuire as witnesses. As Marcus slipped Christina’s wedding ring onto her finger, she had to blink back happy tears.
There was no time for a wedding breakfast or even a celebratory drink; they simply mounted their horses and headed off to find Johnny’s son.
“Not much of a wedding for you,” Marcus remarked after a time. “I always thought when I finally got married there would be lots of pomp and ceremony.”
“I don’t care, I’m just happy to be your wife.” She gave an excited little giggle.
“Tonight, my darling, when we spend our first night together as man and wife, I hope to make it up to you. I’ll take you to paradise, Georgina, I swear it.”
She shifted her horse closer to his so their legs might touch every now and again. George was wearing her normal trousers and shirt, Marcus similarly attired. They wanted to travel as quickly and inconspicuously as possible to pick up little Danny.
“You don’t think they would have moved or anything?” George asked worriedly. “We might not be able to find him.”
“Don’t worry, my darling, they wouldn’t have heard of Johnny’s death yet. Even if they have moved, we’ll scour the whole Dakota territory until we find him,” Marcus promised.
When they stopped by a creek to rest and water their horses, and eat some jerky, Marcus told George about her parents.
She started crying before he was even halfway through it.
“Don’t weep, my darling.” He held her close, resting his chin on her bright curls. “What happened was a terrible miscarriage of justice.”
“How could men do such evil thing?”
“Power and money becomes an obsession and combined with revenge, it brings out the worst in men.
“I don’t think we should tell Danny about this. Let him think we’re his parents.”
“We’ll have to wait and see what happens. I had a frightful row with my uncle about not marrying Kathryn. My Aunt has always wanted to return to England. They’re in a hurry to go now because there’s a chance for Kathryn to marry a Duke. His wife is dying and he’ll need a suitable wife to replace her. They wouldn’t want to miss out on a chance like that. I’ve offered to buy his place and my uncle accepted. Well, we are doing a swap really. His ranch in exchange for a manor house I recently inherited from my Godmother. It’s quite close to London so it would be perfect for them. I’ve often thought about starting up a stud, breeding horses for the army, but only if you want to.”
“I’d live anywhere with you, Marcus.”
Daringly, she kissed him full on the mouth. When she would have drawn away, he put a hand on either side of her head to keep her close, so he could stake a claim to her lips. She was so soft and lovely, he thought, letting his mouth devour hers, taking all her sweetness and still craving more. Finally, he dragged his lips away.
“Oh, Georgina,” he groaned. “I want you so badly it’s killing me to be denied.”
“If you want to, Marcus, we could…”
“No, my darling.” He trembled against her. “When we consummate our marriage, we’ll do it in a nice comfortable bed by glowing lamp light so I can gaze upon your loveliness. I want us to be able to touch and taste each other. I want to make love to you slowly, to worship your body with mine,” he went on passionately.
She put a finger to his lips and he drew it gently into his mouth. “It doesn’t matter now. You love me and you married me and that’s all I care about.”
“I’ll make it up to you, I swear,” he promised huskily, reluctantly putting her from him and standing up.
“We have to keep moving, Georgina, we’ve got a lot of miles to cover before dark. McGuire said we shouldn’t travel at night, too easy to get lost.”
They mounted and rode away, and the midday sun beating down from a bright blue sky burned their backs. McGuire had told him of an inn where they could spend their first night, but they would have to camp out for the second one. After they picked up the boy, Marcus decided they would take a coach from Londrigan to Deadwood and spend a few days there before heading home. He wanted to take Georgina shopping for her and the boy. How they would cope with a child, who was little more than a baby, he couldn’t begin to imagine.
On and on, they journeyed through great tracts of open range. George started to feel weary. She was used to roughing it, so how was Marcus coping? She kept glancing at him, but he did not seem to be showing any real signs of fatigue. When dressed in his fancy clothes he looked like a dandy, but he had spent time in the army and this obviously stood him in good stead now.
The sun, drifting behind the distant ranges turned the sky pink. Shafts of crimson seeping across the mountains caused them to look as if they were awash with blood. As dusk fell, they arrived at a hotel on the edge of a small town. It had wooden shutters on the windows, and was surrounded by trees.
A balding, overweight man greeted them at the door with a cheerful grin. “Patrick O’Dwyer at your service.”
“I’m Marcus Lindquist, this is my wife Georgina. We need your best room for the night.”
“We got married this morning,” George explained, dragging off her hat and causing her hair to tumble down over her shoulders. “That’s why we want something special.”
“You’ll get it. I’ve got a private sitting room. I’ll take you there and the wife will get you a drink and something to eat. Bet you could do with a nice hot bath?”
“Is it possible?” Marcus asked, trying to remember when he had ever felt so dirty.
“Yes. I’ll get one of the men to see to your horses.”
“We need to be up and about early tomorrow,” Marcus told Patrick as they followed him inside.
The small sitting room contained four tables set with snowy cloths and gleaming cutlery. There was a brocade couch in one corner and two armchairs.
“This is nice, Marcus.”
“It’s surprising really. I didn’t expect to find a place like this out in the wilderness.”
They sat on the couch. Patrick’s wife Maureen brought Marcus the whisky he had ordered and the coffee George asked for.
“We’d like to have a bottle of your best champagne with our dinner,” Marcus instructed.
After George finished her coffee, Maureen took her into a room running off the kitchen. A large tin bath filled with steaming water dominated the little room. George wished she had clean clothes to change into, but they were travelling light, because they wanted to collect Danny quickly in case the Shannons moved away. He was all she had left of Johnny.
She lay in the warm soapy water with her eyes closed, and Johnny’s laughing face suddenly swam into view. I’ll look after Danny, I’ll treat him as if he were my own son, Marcus will, too.
She glanced down at the simple gold wedding band and suddenly thought of Christina, the mother she could not remember. All the strange snippets of conversation, the veiled warnings from McGuire made sense now. I have to look forward, put the past and all its tragedy and betrayal behind me she thought fiercely. Tonight, I’ll truly become Marcus’ wife, and we’ll have years of happiness together.
After she finished bathing, George made her way back to the sitting
room so Marcus could use the tub.
They enjoyed roast beef and vegetables slathered in gravy, with thick slices of freshly baked bread. For dessert, they had apple pie and freshly churned cream. She had one glass of champagne because Marcus insisted, but didn’t particularly like it.
“An acquired taste, Georgina. If you don’t like it, leave it. I’d like to retire soon. I’m anxious for you, my darling.” Desire leapt like twin flames from his eyes.
Later, in their bedroom, she eagerly went into Marcus’ arms. His mouth was hot, urgent against hers. Heated delight swirled through her as his hands and mouth explored at will. She felt as if her body had suddenly turned into a fireball.
He moved away from her so his eyes could worship her naked loveliness. Such pure white skin. He stroked her from shoulder to thigh, and the surge of desire her beauty aroused, caused him to become almost light headed.
She couldn’t believe what was happening to her. She caressed his body, shyly at first, but gaining in confidence until she became wanton. “I didn’t know it could be like this,” she whispered, letting him wake the passion that had lain dormant until he fanned it into life.
* * *
They set off at first light after a hearty breakfast of bacon, eggs and biscuits. This leg of their journey would be the longest and most arduous. In many places, the track disappeared into the forest. Their pace in the summer sun was steady rather than speedy, but the closer they got to Londrigan, the more apprehensive George became. What if the Shannons were gone? Johnny would never be lost to her if she had his son.
They passed no one. “I can’t believe what a vast empty land this is,” Marcus remarked.
When night fell, they camped by a creek. George got a campfire going while Marcus attended to their horses. They toasted bread on a fork over the flames, and piled beans on top.
“What do you think of cowboy vittles, Marcus?”
Outlaw Girl Page 13
