Hill Country Cattleman

by Laurie Kingery

  “But what if she still refuses?” persisted one of the drifters. “Can’t you be charged with kidnapping or somethin’?”

  “I don’t think she will—she won’t want her name tainted like that, and besides, I think she’s just waiting to be...encouraged to say yes. But if it comes to that, that’s where Allen comes in. Clever of me to keep him secreted away in reserve, wasn’t it? He will be seen all over town tomorrow, even chat with the sheriff himself. Then he’ll retire for the night in my room at the ranch, and Mrs. Morales, my housekeeper, will be able to testify I spent all night in my own bed, if need be, and not know the difference. If that uppity Englishwoman has the nerve to claim I had her tied up in a cabin all night, she’ll look like a crazy woman, someone to be pitied.”

  Uppity Englishwoman? He was talking about Violet! No matter how she had once felt about Violet Brookfield, she had to get out of there and warn her!

  Her meeting with Detwiler forgotten, Ella began to crawl along the floor behind the counter, hoping she could reach the curtained area without being seen, and that there was indeed an exit there.

  One of the men whistled. “You’re smarter than a tree full of owls, Allbright.”

  “That’s Mr. Allbright to you,” Allbright said, his voice now chilly. “After all, I am paying you.”

  She was nearly to the curtain. She hoped she could crawl under the curtain without rustling it and alerting them to her presence. Mrs. Powell was going to be furious when she saw her disheveled appearance, Ella thought. The floor was so dusty and grimy she’d never be able to explain what she’d been doing....

  “Sorry, sorry,” the deeper voiced of the two men said. “Guess I jes’ got carried away by the brilliance of it, that’s all, Mr. Allbright.”

  “Very well, are there any questions?” Allbright asked stiffly.

  “You said there’d be a signal for us to rush in an’ tie her up,” the other henchman said. “What’s that gonna be?”

  “Hmm.... How about, ‘But, Miss Violet, I’ll be devastated if you refuse me’? I’ll say it loudly, so it’ll carry through the window. That’ll be your cue.”

  Ella lifted the curtain. Beyond it, she could see an open door, and Dolly standing there, smoking a cheroot, oblivious to the plotting being carried out in her absence. This was the most critical moment, the moment in which Ella might be discovered. She took a deep breath, ready to lift the curtain and slide under it—

  And inhaled so much dust she sneezed before she could pinch her nose.

  “What in blazes? I thought we were alone!”

  Ella tried to scramble to her feet, knowing she had to run now, knowing only speed could save her. But before she could even get her legs under her, they were on her and yanking her out onto the saloon floor.

  “It’s that girl that came in here while we was waitin’ fer you! I plumb forgot about her!”

  “Grab that empty bottle! We’ll shut her up!”

  Ella yelped, hoping Dolly would hear her, and covered her head with her hands. But her hands were yanked aside. Then everything went black.

  * * *

  Violet rose the next morning, full of a sense of purpose. She was done waiting. She’d told the Lord this morning she was going to ride over to Colliers’ Roost, to beard the lion in his den, so to speak. She was going to ask Raleigh Masterson what had happened on that trail drive, and how it had changed him. She was going to tell him she wanted that change in herself, too.

  And if Raleigh gave her the slightest bit of encouragement, she was going to inform him that she was in love with him, and if he’d have her to be his wife, she would stay in Texas forevermore.

  The race would take place in a fortnight. They’d lost precious time they could be training the horses together. Didn’t he want to win, after all? And she was going to ask him to take her out to the prize ranch and show it to her.

  If Raleigh didn’t win—oh, but she hardly dared think of that possibility—surely Edward wouldn’t be so angry that he would deny her some sort of dowry, at least enough that she could buy a place. Now that she had talked to both Milly and Nick in the past few days, she believed Edward would see that she was happy here in Texas and as head of the family give her and Raleigh his blessing.

  But it would be so much better if Raleigh won. He didn’t seem an overproud man, but every man worth his salt wished to be the provider.

  She hadn’t told Milly or Nick what she intended to do, only that she was going for a ride. It would be better to surprise them later, if and when she and Raleigh had good news.

  She had just left the lane that led from the ranch house to the main road when she saw Drew Allbright trotting toward her on one of his black stallions. She squelched the sinking feeling in her stomach. There was no time like the present to inform her would-be suitor that she couldn’t see him anymore. He’d been charming company, and it had been kind of him to have her come to the branding, but he wanted more than she could give. Her heart belonged to another.

  “Good morning, Miss Violet! I see you’re out riding. Perfect—you’ve saved me the time of coming to the ranch house and inviting you,” he said, giving her a blazing smile.

  “Yes, but I’m afraid I was on my way to the Colliers’ ranch—”

  “But you have to see what I’ve found just over the hill from my property,” he told her, excitement shining from his eyes. “I hadn’t been that way before, but I discovered it yesterday. You need to see this for your book’s Indian scenes!”

  “See what? I’m afraid I don’t understand—”

  “A genuine Comanche camp. Tepees and everything.”

  “But I spoke to the preacher and his wife about their ordeal with the Indians, and they were able to give me lots of information—”

  “But it’s not the same as being there, is it? I’ll bet this was the very camp they were held in, and it’s all just as they left it. The savages probably fled as fast as they could, afraid for their hides, once the Chadwicks got free. Just think, Miss Violet, you can walk among the tepees and buffalo hides, smell the smells, get the real sense of the place. Wouldn’t it add so much to your writing, that ‘verisimilitude’ you spoke of?”

  He was so enthused about what he could show her, and how it would help the writing. She couldn’t bear to hurt his feelings by telling him she’d already written those scenes and was satisfied with them. And it was just possible that there might be some invaluable nugget of detail that she could gain. And on the way back, she could thank Drew for showing her the Indian site and then very gently explain that her heart belonged to another. Once he’d gone, she could still go see Raleigh.

  “Will it take very long to get there?” she asked.

  “No,” he said, smiling broadly. “It’s just past the border of my ranch and over a hill.”

  Drew couldn’t believe his luck. He’d been prepared to seek her out at her brother’s house, but this way no one at the ranch would know she had left with him. Fate was showing him his plan was destined. The high-and-mighty Brookfields wouldn’t even miss her until it was too late to change the outcome.

  * * *

  Ella blinked as she felt the cool, wet cloth sponging her forehead. “There, thank God, she’s coming around,” she heard a woman’s voice say.

  Her head ached abominably and she felt a stinging pain in her forehead. She opened her eyes and saw a blonde woman lifting the cloth away and, beyond her, an auburn-haired man standing by her bedside.

  Where was she? She thought the man might be Dr. Walker, and the woman his wife, but she didn’t recognize this place.

  “Wh-what happened? Where am I? I’ve got to get up, warn—”

  Mrs. Walker’s hand gently pushed her back into the mattress. “It’s all right, Ella, you’re in the doctor’s office. You’ve been hurt.”

  Her husband, the doctor,
knelt by the bed and studied her carefully. “You were found in the saloon unconscious, your head bleeding.” His expression questioned what she had been doing there, but she didn’t have time for explanations.

  “Then it’s not too late,” Ella said, sinking back onto the soft mattress. “There’s still time to warn her what he’s planning for tomorrow.”

  “Who? And which tomorrow? You’ve been unconscious since yesterday afternoon, Ella.”

  The news sent her into a panic. She jerked upright in the cot. “What time of day is it?”

  “Easy now,” Dr. Walker said. “It’s midmorning. But what’s the problem? Who are you talking about?”

  “Miss Violet. And that Andrew Allbright fellow. I need to speak to the sheriff immediately!”

  But when he’d been summoned, Sheriff Bishop only looked puzzled. “That can’t be. Allbright was just in my office, passing the time. Wanted to know if I’d have dinner at the hotel with him, but I told him my wife was expecting me at home at noontime. He couldn’t be up to any mischief like you’re saying if he was right there talking to me just five minutes ago.”

  Ella wanted to argue, but this is where everything got fuzzy in her memory. Allbright had said something about making it look like he was in town, not with Violet, but for the life of her, she couldn’t think how that could be. Or had he thought better of his evil scheme, and not taken Violet?

  The skull-busting headache she had wasn’t making thinking any easier. A faint memory penetrated the fog in her brain....

  The two drifters had crouched over her, staring at her. “She’s done for,” one of them had muttered, and started to rise.

  “Not yet she ain’t. Cut her throat.”

  “She’s done fer, I’m tellin’ ya. Any minute now that saloon girl’ll come back, or someone else’ll come in. I’m gettin’ outa here. I ain’t about t’ swing just so Allbright can have that highfalutin foreign woman!”

  “You’ve got to go out to the ranch and make sure Violet’s all right!” Ella insisted, clutching the sheriff’s sleeve. “You have to!”

  “All right, all right, simmer down, Miss Ella. I’ll ride out there and check,” Bishop said, but it was clear he didn’t quite believe any threat existed.

  * * *

  “So where is this Indian camp you spoke of?” Violet said, shading her eyes and peering around her at the endless clumps of mesquite and cactus, juniper and cedar brakes on the slopes of the hill. “I don’t see anything but that deserted-looking hovel down there.” She pointed at a crude dwelling at the base of the hill they’d just ridden around, centered in a cluster of taller trees. It looked like there might be a creek behind it, beyond a lean-to that might have sheltered livestock, but she couldn’t tell. This time of year, a lot of the creeks in the hill country were only dry, cracked earth. “We should water the horses....”

  “It’s just around that hill,” he assured her.

  “That’s what you said when we came to the last hill,” Violet complained, pointing behind her.

  “You’re hot,” he said solicitously. “Why don’t we cool off in that cabin? It’s not deserted, actually. I had my men put some refreshments inside in case we needed them by the time we got this far. We’ll refresh ourselves, then ride on to the Indian camp, all right?”

  This place was a good deal farther than Allbright had made it sound, Violet thought irritably. She wished she’d stuck to her guns and told him she had done all the research she needed for her novel and had other plans for the morning. But at the moment a cool drink sounded like something for which she’d pay a king’s ransom. She’d wouldn’t feel so querulous after “wetting her whistle,” as the Texans said. It would make parting with him afterward easier.

  She allowed Allbright to assist her as she got down from Lady, though she really didn’t need the help, and stood aside while he opened the creaky door.

  Inside the cabin sat a table and chairs with covered plates, an incongruous bouquet of wildflowers, a bottle of wine and two glasses. A mockingbird’s call floated in through an open window curtained with worn calico. She could see a doorway to another room at the back.

  What if she hadn’t agreed to stop here?

  She turned back to Allbright as he shut the door behind him. “There is no Indian camp, is there?”

  He grinned. “No, my dear. As an Englishwoman, you wouldn’t know that the Comanches always take their tepees with them, no matter how hurriedly they leave. I didn’t think you’d come any other way. I’m afraid I just wanted to be alone with you, to tell you how much I care for you and want you to be my wife.”

  Violet fought back a scornful laugh. What an awkward situation she’d ridden right into. She was going to have to tread carefully here, and be careful of Drew’s feelings.

  “Mr. Allbright—Drew—while I am completely sensible of the honor you do me in confessing your feelings and, um, planning this romantic rendezvous, I must tell you—ahem!—that while you have been an enjoyable companion in the brief time we’ve known each other, alas, I do not feel that way about you and never could. I believe it’s best that I return to my brother’s ranch now.”

  His pale blue eyes narrowed, and she knew at once she’d made a terrible mistake in trusting him. Her heart began to pound in her throat, and she thought about how far away they were from anyone and anything that could help her. Fool!

  “I was afraid you’d feel that way,” Allbright said, his tone calm. “Ah, well, it’s better to have loved and lost... Have some wine, at least, before we ride back.”

  “No, thank you,” she said. She couldn’t count on the wine not being drugged. She’d need a clear head for whatever followed. Why hadn’t she listened to her brother when he’d been training her to shoot and suggested she carry a pistol, at least a little derringer in her boot? “I want to leave now,” she said. “I’d prefer to go alone, if you don’t mind. I’m sure I can find my way back.” She would be grateful for Lady’s speed, provided she could make it to her saddle.

  “I’m afraid I can’t allow that, Miss Violet. I think you’ll see things my way in a short time.”

  Fury left her breathless for a moment. “Now see here, Mr. Allbright. I wouldn’t have married you before, but now there’s no way on this green earth you could get me to consent.”

  “Isn’t there?” he said with a chuckle, sidling closer to the window, but careful to keep himself between her and the door. “I think after you’ve spent the night alone with me and your good name is at stake, you’ll see the wisdom of becoming my wife. It won’t be so bad. While I’m not some duke or earl back in England, mine is going to be a very big name in this state someday soon. And you’ll be at my side, my lovely, aristocratic wife.”

  “I think not,” Violet ground out, shaking with rage. She’d fight him tooth and nail before she’d let herself be forced into marrying him. She crouched, fingers curled into claws, trying to decide whether to launch herself at him or try to run past him to the door. There was a knife in her saddlebag—Nick had insisted she carry that much at least....

  He half turned and yelled out the window, “But, Miss Violet, I’ll be devastated if you refuse me!”

  She heard the sound of running feet outside, and then the door slammed open and two rough-looking men lumbered into the room. One of them carried a length of rope.

  Her heart began a frenzied, panicked gallop, and then she reined in her fear.

  The blood of Norman conquerors and Saxon heroes runs in your veins, my girl. Go down fighting, at the very least!

  Chapter Sixteen

  Queen Boadicea would have been proud of her, Violet thought, but just like the ancient queen of the Britons, she was conquered by superior force. In mere moments they’d trussed her up like a Christmas goose and stood staring down at her, their chests heaving with the exertion of subduing her struggles.
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  “You two can go,” Allbright told them, reaching into his pocket and handing each a gold eagle. “I know where to find you if I need you again.”

  “It’ll never blow over,” Violet declared. “You’ll all be hunted down like the vermin you are.”

  “I wouldn’t be so hoity-toity if I was you, woman,” the stockier of the two henchmen sneered down at her. “Not with what’s about t’ happen to you.”

  “Take your money and vamoose,” Allbright snapped.

  The two shambled out, and Drew closed the door firmly behind him. A moment later, Violet heard the sound of pounding hooves fading into the distance.

  She struggled to smother a whimper of fear as Allbright turned back to her. She must not show this blackguard she was afraid. God, help me!

  “You needn’t worry, my dear Violet. I have no intention of so much as touching a hair on your lovely head till we’re safely married. But you might as well be more comfortable while you’re here—which will be overnight.” Before she knew what he was about, he’d picked her up like a sack of flour and tossed her over his shoulder. She tried to pound him with her tied wrists and kick him with her likewise-bound feet, but she couldn’t do any damage that way. He carried her into the back room she’d glimpsed, lowering her without ceremony onto a pallet.

  “You’re insane,” she hissed. “You think my brother—or any decent man in Simpson Creek—will let you get away with this? You can’t force me to marry you!”

  “I think you’ll find it the wise thing to do, after we return to town. You’ll have been missing for a while, long enough for tongues to wag. I’m sure your brother will agree it’s best, especially after I tell him I want to do the right thing and make an honest woman of you.”