Last Chance Cowboys: The Outlaw

by Anna Schmidt

  Seth did not like the idea of lying to Amanda, but he could see that Jess was right. Lying would keep her safe. Telling her the truth would practically assure she’d put herself in danger.

  “I’ll make you a deal,” he said, and saw Jess tense once again. “I’ll follow your lead with Amanda as long as you keep an open mind when it comes to Sam. He’s not part of the gang, and I don’t want to see him get caught up in a shoot-out, should things come to that.”

  Jess hesitated then stuck out his hand. “Deal. I’ll even go a step beyond that. If I hear news of your brother—someone has seen him or such—I’ll make sure to get it to you. Have you got someone you can trust to follow up on leads until you’re back on your feet?”

  Seth accepted the handshake. “I’ve got some thoughts on that. Thank you, Marshal.”

  “Make that Jess. In spite of my concerns, I’m pretty sure one of these days—sooner rather than later—you and me might be family.” He reached for his hat and opened the door just as Amanda returned with the water. “You been listening at keyholes again, Sis?” he asked, and without waiting for an answer, squeezed past her and hurried down the stairs.

  Amanda filled Seth’s empty glass before setting the pitcher on the table. “Well?” She handed him the water and waited while he took time to drink. He knew she was well aware that he was stalling, so he did the one thing he hoped would throw her off track.

  As he swallowed the last of the water and handed her the glass, he said, “I was thinking maybe once I can do a proper job of it, I might ask you to marry me.”

  The glass clattered to the floor, but did not break. Amanda ignored it as she turned her attention to him. “I do not…I am not…how dare you?”

  He shrugged, inwardly tickled at the way her cheeks had gone all pink, and how for once in her life she couldn’t find words to express what she felt. “It’s a pretty straightforward suggestion. Just wanted to see what you thought about the idea.”

  “You mean before you committed to a formal proposal? You mean in case I turn you down flat? You mean before you invest your hard-earned money in a proper engagement present?”

  “Nope. What I’m saying is that it might be some time before I can do this right, and in the meantime, I want you to know my intentions. Now, if marrying me is not something that appeals to you, then we can—as my pa often says—cut bait and move on. On the other hand…”

  Miss Dooley opened the door and surveyed the room. “The marshal has left?”

  “Yes, ma’am,” Seth replied, his eyes still on Amanda.

  Miss Dooley flung the door wide open and advanced on Amanda. “And what have I told you, missy, about allowing yourself to be alone in a room with this man—any man?” The way she frowned at Seth, it went without saying that she was mentally adding especially this one.

  “Mr. Grover was just in the process of proposing marriage,” Amanda replied, her smile tight and her tone challenging as she gazed at him.

  Their landlady was struck speechless, which was nothing compared to what Seth was experiencing. Amanda Porterfield had a way of turning the tables and doing the exact opposite of what he might expect.

  Miss Dooley’s mouth worked as she tried to find words. Then she giggled like a schoolgirl, and without saying anything, she left the room, closing the door behind her with a firm click. Her giggles faded as she descended the stairs.

  “Well?” Amanda demanded.

  The sleeping powder the doctor had given him was beginning to take effect. Seth’s strength was ebbing and he was at a loss regarding what his next play should be. He was used to being in control, especially when it came to women. But Amanda was a different sort of woman. It was what drew him to her and drove him crazy at the same time. “Well what?” He could not help the irritation that crept into his tone.

  She smiled. “You were bluffing,” she crowed. “I knew it. My father was a fine poker player, Seth, and I used to hang around the table when he and the cowboys on our ranch played. I learned a thing or two.”

  “I was not bluffing,” he grumbled. “Marry me. Don’t marry me. I’m tired.” With that he nestled under the covers and turned away from her. For a long moment, neither moved. Then he heard the rustle of her skirt as she crossed the room.

  But instead of leaving as he had expected, she sat on the edge of the bed and reached over his shoulder to stroke his hair away from his forehead. “We’re going to find your brother, Seth. You’ll be needing a best man, after all.”

  And before he could digest those last words, she left the room.

  Twelve

  Amanda could not recall a time when her world had seemed so chaotic, and yet wasn’t that what she had craved all those long, boring days back on the ranch? Still, she needed to put things in order.

  There were the Baxter children to consider. With their father in jail, they might easily fall back into old habits. There was Seth’s brother, who was no doubt in danger, and although she did not know the young man, he certainly deserved help. And finally, there was Seth’s ridiculous marriage proposal. Of course, he hadn’t meant it. He had been trying to throw her off asking what he had told Jess. Sometimes men could be so transparent.

  But with everything she had on her mind, her greatest concern was Seth’s welfare. Phony proposal or not, she loved him, and although Addie had assured her he would make a full recovery, her friend had given no indication how long that might take. The man had been shot. He could be bedridden for weeks. Every time he moved, his grimace told her he was in pain. And wounded or not, she had no doubt he would do whatever necessary to be sure his brother was safe, even to the point of jeopardizing his own health.

  She knew her brother well enough to realize that stopping the Stock gang was his main concern, whether or not he had jurisdiction. Jess could not stand by and allow innocent people to be robbed of their life savings. No, he would not make finding Seth’s brother a priority, no matter what he had told Seth.

  Later that evening, she had dinner with Addie at the hotel where she and Jess had decided to stay the night. Addie told her that Judge Ellis was trying to convince Jess to take on the sheriff’s job. They had even gone so far as to deputize him, but he was more concerned about making sure Addie got home as soon as possible to be with her father. Amanda had hoped she might persuade Jess to at least alert the militia to be on the lookout for Seth’s brother.

  “I have to say I never would have thought that sweet Mrs. Rosewood was somehow mixed up in this whole business,” Addie said as they finished their dessert.

  Mrs. Rosewood—of course.

  The night of the robbery Judge Ellis and the district attorney had told Miss Dooley to lock Mrs. Rosewood’s room after it had been searched for clues. But what if they had missed something? Later that night, she impatiently waited until Ollie had left for work, and Miss Jensen and Miss Dooley were sleeping, before using a hatpin to pick the lock on the widow’s door. Before turning in for the night, Addie had administered Seth a dose of pain medication, and when Amanda checked, he was breathing deeply and evenly—fast asleep.

  There was enough light from the streetlamps to allow her to move around without bumping into furniture or otherwise alerting others. On the bed lay an outfit of trousers, a shirt, and a man’s jacket. The woman had intended to change. What had stopped her?

  The dressing table was cluttered with hairpins and bottles of cologne and open jars of creams. More clothes hung in the wardrobe—the trappings she had used for her disguise as a grieving widow. It was as if she were a snake casting off one skin for another.

  Amanda allowed herself a wry smile at the analogy. The woman was a snake, all right—and so were her two sons.

  Disappointed, she was about to leave the room when she noticed a piece of torn paper on the floor just under the bed. She picked it up and took it closer to the window to read. It was part of a train schedule. At first she dismiss
ed it as unimportant, but then she realized she had a clue that would help catch the gang.

  She tiptoed out of the room, making sure to lock the door behind her, and headed straight for her room to change into riding clothes. She was just pulling on her second boot when she looked up and saw Seth leaning unsteadily against her door.

  “Want to tell me where you think you’re going?”

  “You should be in bed.”

  He grinned. “Come with me, and I’ll go.”

  “You are impossible.” She finished dressing and stood.

  “And you, my lady, are not going anywhere.”

  “I have news for Jess and the others.”

  “Jess is right down the street—no need for riding clothes.”

  “Jess and Addie left for Whitman Falls.” It was a small lie. She knew they were at the hotel packing.

  He hesitated. “What news?”

  She handed him the scrap of paper. “I don’t think the outlaws are on horseback or headed for the border. I think they knew that’s what you and the others would think, so instead they planned to escape by train. The next train headed south is tomorrow at noon. I think they are still in the area.”

  She knew he agreed when he pushed away from the door and headed across the hall to his room, where he started to dress.

  “Oh no, you don’t,” she told him, grabbing his shirt and clutching it to her chest.

  “Then go wire Jess to come back, and get Judge Ellis over here. I’ll not have you riding the countryside trying to find a bunch of thugs—and do not tell me that’s not what you were planning to do. Once everybody’s here, we’ll figure out how we’re going to stop the Stocks from boarding that train without innocent people getting caught in the crossfire.”

  * * *

  By the time Amanda returned, Seth had managed to get himself dressed, and he was sitting at the small desk in his room. He heard Miss Dooley’s voice. “I’ll make coffee,” she announced with her usual tone of resignation. She was a good soul, however, one who cared deeply about the community her father had helped build.

  To his surprise, Amanda, Jess, and Addie all crowded into the room. “Amanda said the two of you had left.”

  “Well, we’re here, so let’s get started figuring out a plan that will end this once and for all.”

  The two women sat on the side of the bed while Jess paced. “If they are still around here and planning to catch the train, there could be big trouble,” he announced, as if they didn’t already know this.

  “I’m betting they’ve split up,” Seth said, “with the bulk of the gang already heading south, and Rudy and his mother planning to take the train.”

  “I have an idea,” Amanda said. “What if we let them board the train? Let them think they’re getting away?”

  “So innocent people on the train get shot instead of the folks here? Yeah, that’s a great plan, Sis.”

  “Hold on,” Seth said. He glanced at the small clock on the dresser. “We’ve got several hours before the train rolls into the station. They’re bound to wait until the last possible minute.”

  “What’s your point?”

  Seth picked up the schedule Amanda had found and studied it. “The train makes one stop before it comes here. If we could intercept it at that stop…”

  Amanda saw where he was going with this. “We could have passengers get off there and wait for another train,” she said.

  “And so,” Jess said sarcastically, “an empty train rolls into town? Oh yeah, that should work. They won’t be the least bit suspicious of that.”

  “Hold on a minute, and let me finish,” Seth said. “We get the regular passengers off, but replace them with soldiers from the fort—armed and ready to take down the outlaws.”

  “You think they won’t notice soldiers in uniform?” He gave a frustrated grunt and turned away.

  “They could dress in regular clothes,” Addie suggested. “Of course, there need to be some women aboard as well.” She glanced at Amanda and smiled.

  “Get that idea out of your head right this minute, Addie Porterfield,” Jess said, alarmed.

  “Then the plan can’t work,” Amanda said.

  Jess paused in his pacing, and she could see that he knew she was right. “Well, maybe some soldiers could dress in women’s clothing,” he suggested.

  “No time for that,” Seth said. “We’d have to find clothes and make sure they shaved and…” His voice trailed off, and the four of them were sitting in silence when Miss Dooley arrived with coffee and biscuits.

  “Well, this is a lively bunch,” she muttered. Amanda filled her in on the plan as they served coffee.

  “Whatever we decide, the first step is to stop that train,” Seth said, “and alert the garrison at the fort.”

  “Maybe Eli Baxter could carry a message to the fort’s commander,” Amanda suggested. “It would be a way to do something that could help his father’s cause when his case comes to trial.”

  “I’ll have Bessie go get him,” Miss Dooley offered.

  As Amanda had expected, Eli was thrilled to take on this responsibility. He barely had the envelope with the instructions Addie had written for the colonel before he was out the door and down the stairs. The problem was that Ellie had come with him, and now insisted on being given some job to do as well.

  “What if we disguise her as a visiting celebrity,” Miss Dooley suggested.

  “Yes, I’d be a good actress. Mother always said as much.”

  “To what end?” Jess asked. “Put the kid in danger? No.”

  “Too dangerous,” Seth agreed. “We should dress up one of the younger men.”

  Ellie turned to Amanda. “Please, Miss Porterfield. You’ve taught us that we need to do what is right to help others. Well, surely this is an opportunity.”

  “Hold on,” Addie said. “If there’s some excitement at the station that attracts attention and delays the train, won’t that make it harder for the Stocks to board and easier to be seen and captured?”

  “She’s got a point,” Jess said.

  “If I may contribute something,” Miss Dooley said as she stepped fully into the room. “I have heard that the actress, Louise Goodfellow, is touring the area. She’s very popular, and if word got out that she would be passing through…”

  Jess rubbed his chin—a sure sign he was considering the idea.

  “But not Ellie,” Seth insisted.

  On one hand, Amanda could understand the girl’s desire to take on the role. On the other, Seth was absolutely right. She could end up in the middle of a gunfight, in which case Amanda would never forgive herself. “I have a way you could help without endangering your safety, Ellie.”

  Everyone was looking at her, waiting for her to explain her idea. If only she had one fully thought out. “It seems to me,” she began, “that we will need a signal when Rudy Stock and his mother approach the train station. That’s when the musicians will start playing, and everyone will gather round to greet the train.”

  “They will want to stay well away from any activity,” Seth added. “Most likely they will look for a car at the back of the train to board.”

  “And once they do,” Amanda told Ellie, “you will let the rest of us know, so we can signal the conductor to get the train moving. By then, it will be too late for the outlaws to do anything but jump from a moving train once they realize the only other passengers are members of the militia.”

  “But where will I keep watch, and how will I let you know, and…”

  Amanda looked to Seth for answers.

  He glanced around the room and smiled. “That window there has a bird’s eye view of the town—especially the train station. I chose this room for that very reason. You, young lady, will stay right here with me, and we’ll keep a lookout together—providing I can persuade my jailers here to let me
sit in the chair there.” He glanced at Addie and Amanda.

  “As long as all you do is sit,” Addie said.

  Amanda saw that this was a way to make sure Seth didn’t become part of the action that would unfold at the train station. “I think that’s a great idea. Two sets of eyes are always better than just one.”

  “So once we spot them, then what?” Ellie asked.

  “You run to the drugstore across the street from the station, and when the marshal here sees that, he’ll signal the conductor to move the train out.”

  “We still don’t know who will pretend to be the actress getting off the train,” Ellie pointed out.

  “I am,” Amanda announced, and before anyone could debate the matter, she took Ellie’s arm and added, “Come and help me find a proper disguise.”

  “Amanda!” Seth and Jess spoke in unison, protesting her decision as Amanda closed the door behind her.

  * * *

  To everyone’s amazement and delight, the plan seemed destined to go off without a hitch. The crowd in the know gathered, soon augmented by curious bystanders. In the distance, the train whistle sounded a series of friendly toots. The crowd grew more excited as word spread of someone famous arriving. As one, they turned in the direction of the arriving train.

  Of course, there were several details the bystanders did not know. They did not know the train was occupied by armed soldiers. They did not know that Amanda—disguised as the actress in an oversized feathered hat and an elaborate brocade gown more suited to the Blue Parrot than to teaching the Baxter children—was waiting in an empty boxcar on the track next to the one that would bring the train to town. They did not know that once the train had pulled to a stop, its engine wheezing and heaving as if trying to catch its breath, Amanda would simply move from the boxcar to a platform between two passenger cars and then out into the sunlight, where she would be greeted with cheers from those in on the scheme, as well as those who had no idea what was happening.

  Seth focused his binoculars on the spot where he knew Amanda would emerge then slowly scanned the surrounding scene. Ollie led a trio of musicians toward the station, positioning them on the platform, and then doing the same with four dance hall girls. The mayor, along with Judge Ellis and District Attorney Collins, stood waiting to receive the celebrated arrival. Seth also saw the pharmacist’s daughter and Miss Dooley and others he recognized mingling with the bystanders.