River Queen Rose

by Shirley Kennedy

  “Couldn’t be better.” Rose pulled out a chair. “I just rented a house on M Street. It’s small but very nice and in a nice part of town. Lucy will have her own bedroom. I’m going to start looking for a good school to enroll her in. I can hardly wait to tell her.” Her gaze swept the kitchen. “Where is she? I hope she’s not outside playing in all this mud.”

  Ben frowned in puzzlement. “But doesn’t she already know?”

  “What do you mean? I’m here to tell her.”

  Coralee looked even more baffled than Ben. “But Lucy’s not here, Rose. Surely you know that.”

  “What do you mean, she’s not here?”

  “Well, I guess there’s been a mix-up.” Coralee took a sip of coffee, not yet concerned. “Mason Talbot came by yesterday. He said you’d found a place and were too busy to pick her up yourself, so you asked him to do it.”

  Rose’s breath caught in her lungs. She could hardly speak above a whisper. “So what you’re saying is, Lucy’s not here and Mason has her?”

  “Of course, that’s what I’m saying.” Coralee’s pleasant expression slowly faded. “Oh, dear, is something wrong?”

  Ben spoke up. “I don’t understand, Rose. You’d warned us you were about to take Lucy, so when Mason stopped by, we assumed you sent him. Never gave it a thought, otherwise. What’s this all about?”

  Rose pushed back from the table and stood, nearly knocking her chair over in the process. “I did not give Mason permission to take my child. He’s kidnapped her!”

  “What are you talking about? Mason Talbot is highly regarded in this town. Surely he wouldn’t—”

  “He would! You don’t know him, Ben. Of course, he would.” Rose turned to Drucilla, who’d been listening in stunned silence, coffee cup halfway to her mouth. “I must get back to town. Are you coming?”

  Drucilla set down her coffee cup with a bang. “I’ll get my clothes and meet you at the buggy.” She practically ran from the kitchen.

  Coralee pressed a hand to her heart. Finally she understood. “He seemed so sincere, like he was doing you a favor. We should have realized—”

  “Not your fault.” Rose headed out of the kitchen. Over her shoulder, she called, “Mason’s totally to blame, but don’t worry, I’ll soon get her back.”

  But could she? Fear and anger knotted inside her as she climbed into the buggy. How could she deal with a man as evil and ruthless as Mason Talbot?

  Clutching an armful of clothing, a harried-looking Drucilla climbed in beside her. “What will you do?”

  Rose picked up the reins. “I don’t know why he’s done this, or what he wants, but I’ll soon find out. I will do anything to get my child back, Drucilla. Anything.”

  * * * *

  Upon arriving at the River Queen, Rose hastened to Jake’s office, where he sat working on the books. After a quick look, he asked, “What’s wrong, Mrs. Peterson? You look upset.”

  She wasn’t about to confide in Jake, but he could be helpful. “I need to know where I can find Mason Talbot, and I need to know right now.”

  “Well, let’s see. He hasn’t moved into that fancy mansion of his yet, so he must be still living at the Egyptian. That’s my best guess, anyway. He lives in suite 310 on the third floor.”

  “Thanks, Jake.” He might have his faults, but he knew when not to ask questions. She turned to leave.

  “Can I help in any way?”

  “No!” she called as she hurried out the door. “This is something I must do by myself.” Next stop, the Egyptian. She took a deep breath against the panic. Not easy, considering never had she been so consumed with rage, as well as sheer terror, both at the same time.

  Chapter 19

  A sick fear coiled in the pit of Rose’s stomach as she hastened along the third-floor hallway of the Egyptian Hotel and Saloon. She knocked on the door of suite 310, fighting the urge to ball her fists and pound. Mason opened the door. Dressed in a morning coat and silk cravat, he lifted his eyebrows in phony surprise. “Well, well, look who’s here. Do come in, Rose. Is something wrong? You don’t look your usual cheerful self.”

  She ignored his mockery and stepped inside. Her eyes darted around what she could see of his suite of rooms, but no sign of Lucy. “Where is she? What have you done with her?”

  He remained unperturbed and smiled pleasantly, as if blind to her distress. He graciously waved toward a chair. “Do sit down. If you’re looking for your daughter, don’t bother. She’s not here.”

  She remained standing. She’d heard the edge of hysteria in her voice and forced herself to speak calmly as she could. “Then where is she? I know you took her.”

  “You won’t sit down? Are you sure? I could order tea and we could have a good chat.”

  He was toying with her, deliberately trying to enrage her, but she must keep her wits about her. “Just tell me where she is. I’ll go get her right now, and nothing more need be said.”

  His excuse of a smile disappeared. “Let’s get down to business, shall we? Lucy is in safe hands. She—”

  “Where?” She could contain herself no longer. “What have you done with her? How do I know she’s all right? How do I know—?”

  “She’s fine, Rose. No need for hysterics. I assume you want me to return her?”

  What a cruel, spiteful question. How she’d love to lash back with a scathing reply, but for now she was in his hands and must listen to whatever rubbish he chose to say. “How could you even ask such a question?”

  By now, he’d lost the last semblance of his feigned amiability and was gazing at her with cold, hard eyes. “Before we go any further, I want you to understand why by all rights the River Queen belongs to me.”

  “Do go on.”

  Mason’s pent-up anger began to reveal itself as he started nervously pacing the floor. “I had my eye on the River Queen for years. Kept waiting for the owner to sell, and when he did”—he was spitting his words out—“your husband stole it out from under me.”

  “That’s not what I heard. Emmet bought it fair and square. It wasn’t his fault you were out of town.”

  Mason shrugged with indifference. “And then, when Emmet died—”

  “When you deliberately murdered him in cold blood.”

  “So Jake’s been talking?” With a sneer, he waved his hand in a gesture of dismissal. “Such an accusation will get you nowhere. When Emmet died and Ben was ready to sell, you had the gall to claim the River Queen was yours. You, a mere woman, thought you could thwart me. It was all I could do…”

  He came close to choking on his words, as if the very thought of her owning his precious hotel was too much to abide. “Tomorrow at ten o’clock, we will meet in Mr. Field’s office, where you will sign over the River Queen to me. You will be pleased and happy that I have agreed to buy the hotel. You did your best but found it a great burden, far too much for a woman, and will be greatly relieved to be rid of it. You can forget my offer of forty-two thousand. You’ll be more than happy to receive what I offered the first time.”

  The gall of the man! “You’ve kidnapped my daughter, and that’s against the law. I should go straight to the sheriff.”

  “Joe Clark? I played poker with him last night. If you go, give him my regards.”

  She frantically searched for a rational argument—a threat—anything to make Mason listen to reason, but nothing came to mind. He had the upper hand, and there was nothing she could do about it, not for now anyway. “If I sell you the River Queen, how do I know I’ll get my daughter back?”

  “You don’t know, but what choice do you have?” He feigned a look of sympathy. “Poor Rose, it didn’t have to be this way, you know. I wanted to marry you. You could have lived in luxury the rest of your life. Been the mistress of that fine mansion I’m building. Enjoyed the prestige of being the wife of one of Sacramento’s esteemed civic leaders. But in
stead…” He shrugged sadly. “An Australian? I thought you had better taste than that.”

  She ignored his insult. Lucy was all that mattered. “Please don’t hurt her.”

  “I’m not a cruel man and resent your implying that I am. I would never hurt Lucy. Actually, it’s not necessary. All you need to know is she’s not close by so don’t waste your time searching. This is a big country. She could easily disappear and live the rest of her life in a place where you’d never find her.”

  She clenched her fists. “Lucy had better be all right. If you’ve hurt her, I’ll…I’ll…”

  “You’ll what?”

  His mocking attitude made her humiliatingly conscious of how helpless she was. “All right, Mason, I’ll be there. You give me no choice.”

  He smiled pleasantly. “Tomorrow. Ten o’clock sharp in Mr. Field’s office. I trust you won’t forget.”

  Words failed her. She could not remain in his presence another moment and fled from his room.

  As she drove the buggy back to her hotel, she never felt so alone. She had no one to lean on, and it was all her own doing, the price she had to pay for being an independent woman. When she got back to the hotel, most likely she’d cry on Drucilla’s shoulder and get lots of sympathy, but what could Drucilla do? She couldn’t stand up to Mason Talbot. Neither could Ben. Neither could anyone except…

  Deke.

  The Australian was the only person in the world who would fight her battles, only she’d lost him. Now she had too much pride to ask, especially when he would probably wish her well but turn her down.

  A raindrop fell on her forehead, then another. They’d had enough rain to last the whole season and then some. Surely it wouldn’t last.

  * * * *

  The rain never stopped. Rose lay awake most of the night, listening to the pounding of a constant deluge. Where was Lucy? Who, if anyone, was taking care of her? Was she sheltered and warm? Was she cold, wet, and frightened? Despite her agonized questions, she must have finally drifted off to sleep because toward morning, she was jolted awake by a frantic pounding on her door. She sprang out of bed, threw on her robe, and opened the door to find Jake, wide-eyed with excitement, standing in the hallway. “Come quick,” he said. “We’re about to flood.”

  She threw on her clothes, ran a comb through her hair, and rushed downstairs to find the gambling tables deserted. No one stood at the bar. Through the swinging doors, she saw a crowd gathering along the boardwalk. When she joined them, an astounding sight awaited her. The street had transformed from a busy thoroughfare jammed with horses, mules, wagons, and carriages, to a slow-moving river occupied only by a few small boats. Jake came up beside her, dubiously shaking his head. “We’re lucky we’re up pretty high off the street, but I dunno, Mrs. Peterson. You can see the water’s about to flood over the boardwalk. I’ve sent for sandbags. All we can do is stack ‘em up and hope for the best. Trouble is, they won’t work if the water keeps rising.”

  She fought off a momentary panic. She must remember she owned the place and couldn’t be acting like some frightened female desperate for guidance. She was the one in charge, the one to make decisions. “You’ve lived around here for years, Jake. What do you think? Will the water keep rising?”

  “Probably. You know how much rain we’ve had. The ground’s soaked through. Every gulch, ravine, creek, and river is full to overflowing, and when that happens, the water has no place else to go but to flood the city. I’ve seen it happen before. A few years back, the American and Sacramento Rivers both overflowed their banks and pretty much wiped out the whole town.”

  “What about us?”

  “Every hotel along the river could be flooded. Some are built so flimsy they’ll likely collapse. Some will stand, and that includes the River Queen. She’s built of brick, so it isn’t likely the walls will cave in, but if that water gets through the door, it’ll do a lot of damage.” Jake’s expression turned grim. “I’ll get the men started on the sandbags.”

  Rose turned away and headed back inside, her mind spinning with all she had to do. The guests on the second floor needed to be warned. The restaurant! Where was Gaston? They could start stacking chairs on the tables, everything high up as it could go. She must find someone to take care of the bar. It had looked deserted. Not a good idea leaving all that expensive liquor lying about with no one to keep an eye on it.

  Gaston raced by, Gus and Cecil the bartender close behind. He looked concerned but not panicked. “Don’t worry, madame,” he called. “If we can save the restaurant, we will.”

  Drucilla followed after. Seeing Rose, she slowed down. “I’m going to help Gaston. I’m worried about the family, but there’s no way to get home.”

  “They’ll be all right.” She tried to sound optimistic. “Ben will know what to do.” But would he? The farm lay close to the rising river. Here was a new concern, piled atop all the others. So much to worry about she hardly knew where to start.

  She had reached the staircase when she came to a sudden stop and pressed her hand to her mouth. Dear God. In all the excitement, she hadn’t forgotten Lucy for a moment. Flood or no flood, her little girl still came first, and at ten o’clock she was supposed to be in Mr. Field’s office signing away the hotel. But what was she thinking? His office would be flooded, same as here. There wasn’t a chance in the world the prudent solicitor would be sitting at his desk waiting for her to arrive. So what would Mason do now? Would he give her another chance, or was her little girl gone forever? What should she do? Her knees started to buckle. With a moan of distress, she tried to force herself to keep going but wasn’t sure she could. No one to help her. Never had she felt so desolate and alone.

  “Rose?”

  His voice came from behind her. She turned and looked into the depths of two warm grey eyes. “Hello, Deke.”

  His mouth curved into that crooked little grin. “Looks like you could use some help.”

  Chapter 20

  At another time, Rose would have handled those first moments with Deke far differently. In the most minuscule of details she’d have wanted to know why he finally came to her. In turn, she would have revealed the depth of her despair when she thought she’d lost him. They would have talked on and on, immersed in their feelings for one another, and then, all differences settled, they’d have blissfully fallen into each other’s arms. But that was before the Sacramento River overflowed its banks. Now the water was rising, Lucy was missing, and time was a luxury she couldn’t afford. “Do I need your help? Oh, Deke, I’m so glad you came.”

  “I’ll help all I can, but I don’t know if we can stop the water—”

  “It’s not that. Mason has kidnapped my little girl.” Standing at the bottom of the staircase, oblivious to chaos all around, she told him how Mason had taken her daughter, that she’d agreed to sell him the River Queen because if she didn’t, she might never see Lucy again. She could hardly keep the hysteria from her voice. “What can I do? Mr. Field won’t be there in this flood and…” The words stuck in her throat. “I…I…”

  “Don’t worry. I’ll take care of it.”

  “How?”

  “Guess I’d better have a talk with Mason.”

  He was going to help. If there’d been time, she would have thrown her arms around him in gratitude, but every minute counted. “I’ll come with you.”

  “No, Rose. You’re needed here. And besides, it’s best you don’t.”

  “What will you say? I spoke with Jake, so now I know the truth about how dangerous he is. He won’t stop at anything to get what he wants.”

  Deke reached for her hands and held them tight. “Go see to your hotel and let me worry about the rest.”

  How could she not believe him after hearing the strength and resolve in his voice? “If you’re sure?”

  “I’m sure.”

  If Deke couldn’t help her, no one could.
“I’ll wait to hear from you.”

  “I give you my word I’ll find her or know the reason why.” He gave her a quick salute and turned away. She watched until he was out of sight. Her heart a little lighter, she started up the stairs to warn the guests on the second floor.

  * * * *

  Deke Fleming was a careful man. He seldom, if ever, acted rashly, and never promised anything he wasn’t sure he could deliver. Until today. As he walked toward the entrance of the River Queen, he had no regrets concerning his promise to Rose. The trouble was, at the moment, he hadn’t the faintest idea how he could rescue little Lucy Peterson from that lowlife, coldblooded murderer, Mason Talbot. He had almost reached the front doors of the River Queen when Mitch hurried in, his usual placid face twisted with worry. Seeing Deke, he declared, “The water’s still rising. We’ve lost all our ice, and we’ll be lucky if we don’t lose the ice house.”

  “We can always get more ice. Right now I’ve got a problem…”

  Deke told his friend what Mason had done. By the time he finished, Mitch was staring at him in shocked alarm. “You mean, he actually kidnapped that little girl?”

  “That he did, mate. I gave Rose my word I’d get her back.”

  “How?”

  “I haven’t figured that out yet.”

  “Blimey.” Mitch pondered a moment. “I don’t hold with violence, but—”

  “You’re thinking I should go over to the Egyptian and beat the hell out of him until he talks?”

  “You don’t want to do that.”

  “As a last resort, maybe. It wouldn’t take much. I’d wager beneath those fancy clothes, he’s a coward and a weakling.”

  “But you’ve got another plan?”

  “Not yet, but I’m working on it.”

  Mitch clasped his shoulder. “Whatever you decide to do, I’m with you.”

  “I figure I might need you.” Deke looked out the door. A trickle of water had begun to seep across the boardwalk. “Have you come to see if Cherry and the baby are all right?”