The Beholding, page 4
“Reckon they wanted the paper, Mommie?”
Tess stood and brushed folds from her skirt, trying to stop the racing of her pulse. But she felt the pressure of Luke’s hand cupping her own as if he still held it.
“What paper?” Luke’s investigative sixth sense prickled with premonition.
“Daddy’s paper.”
Tess delved into the pocket of her skirt and pulled out the pouch. “Tommie might be right, Luke. I found this in Clifton’s things this morning. I didn’t have time to read it all or I’d have been late for the burial. It’s a bill of sale for someplace called Harper Hall. Tommie and I are going there to claim it since there’s nothing left for us here.”
She handed him the document and Luke scanned it carefully. The vagueness of details made him suspicious, but the fact that Harper Hall was located in Georgetown, Colorado, only increased his interest. Did the hall tie in with her husband’s misdeeds? Was she really desperate enough to set out for the unknown on the slim chance this might make a difference in her and her son’s life? Perhaps she purposely misled him about what awaited her in Colorado.
Either way, he had been assigned by the Denver Stock Exchange to learn the truth. The fact she was heading for Colorado was the first real clue that she could actually be involved with the mine scams. “When will we be leaving?” he asked, taking an estimating glance around the room. “Doesn’t look like there will be much to pack now.”
“We?”
“If you think this is all a joke, Mrs. Har—Tess, you’re wrong. You have something someone wants. Or they think you have. Maybe it’s this paper, then again maybe it isn’t.” Luke returned the document. “Even if all you have to worry about is the unfriendlies you’re going to meet on the trail, you can’t take the chance on leaving here without a gunman to protect you. You and I both know there isn’t a man on the post who’s going to agree to escort you across Indian territory.”
“But I’ve posted an advertisement.”
“Yeah, and a dozen men have already turned it down. Until the War Department quits shuffling military jurisdictions and can maintain surveillance, there isn’t a soul who’ll risk his life for you. I took down your notice. Consider the job filled.”
Anger flashed through Tess. “Don’t you think that’s a bit presumptuous, Mr. Reeves? Do you really believe Tommie and I could travel with you anywhere?” She glanced at her son, careful with her choice of words since she hadn’t revealed to him Luke’s role in Clifton’s death. “What gave you the right to take down my notice?”
“Let’s just say I’m going that direction anyway. You’ll keep me from having to eat my own grub, and I’ll see to it you keep that comely head of hair. It’ll make me sleep better at night knowing you’re protected.”
“I’m sorry, no. I’ll find someone else, thank you.”
“Aww, come on, Mommie. I yike Mista Yuke.” Tommie tugged on her skirt. “Why ya wanna be so fussy?”
Luke had already checked at the livery and with the paymaster. He knew she didn’t have enough money to purchase a wagon. Lending a ride might prove profitable in discovering her part in this mess. “I’ve kept a wagon outfitted to take back the stolen rifles. Since that fell through, why not plan on putting your belongings in with mine? We can be off in the morning.”
How could she convince him he was the last person she wanted for a guide? “Look, Luke … Mr. Reeves … or whatever name will make you listen. I’m trying very hard not to be rude, but I can’t make any decision at the moment until I clean up this mess and decide what’s worth repairing.”
“If the three of us work at it, it won’t take as long.” Luke walked over to the counter and grabbed a washbowl. “Tommie, will you fill this for your mother? Maybe she won’t mind wrangling us up something to eat while you and I get started.”
The bounty hunter was persistent if nothing else. And it did make sense to get the meal preparations out of the way. Nodding reluctant approval to Tommie, Tess made a silent vow to find someone besides Luke Reeves for a guide. Anyone.
Indecision kept the boy rooted for a moment until he decided he liked the idea better than he disliked it. “I gotta wash?”
Luke rolled up his sleeves. “Only whatever part we get dirty, partner. How’s that?”
“No fair, I always git everthang dirty.”
“Then I’ll wash, too, and that’ll make it no fair for both of us.”
Two scrubbed gentlemen, one freckled-faced and the other ruggedly handsome, sat on the edge of the wagon bed with Tess.
She was far too aware of the clean smell of soap, leather and the man whose legs dangled on the other side of Tommie’s. Luke Reeves’s strong profile drew her attention to his lips and the way he enjoyed the meal. Though her better sense warned her to be rid of him as soon as he completed helping her straighten the mess, hospitality ruled. The meal seemed small compensation for all the work he’d done.
As her gaze traveled upward to admire the dark sooty lashes foresting his eyes, Tess’s heart thudded to a stop. A light sensation waved through her when Luke regarded her with lazy interest. Her heart pounded wildly, flooding her face with a blush that only caused more embarrassment.
“The food tastes better under the stars, don’t you think?” he asked.
Tess nearly choked on a gulp of food. Luke thumped her on the back to relieve her distress.
“There are few indoor kitchens between here and Wichita,” he informed her. “By the time we get to the overland stage, you’ll be glad for a meal you won’t have to cook. But I doubt any will be as good as this one, even then.”
“How long will it take us…” Why did that single two-letter word seem suddenly so intimate? Tess meant she and Tommie and the guide she chose, but she could find no word which would clearly exclude Luke Reeves. “… to cross the territory? Is it really that dangerous?”
Glancing at the boy, Luke held out his tin. “Would you take mine and your mother’s plates inside? Then I’ll let you practice tossing my lariat, like I promised earlier.”
“Sure will, Mista Yuke!” Tommie grabbed the utensils and made a beeline for the house.
Luke slid off the wagon bed and stood. “I didn’t want the boy around when I answered you, Tess. Give me a minute to get him settled. And by the way, does he always mix up his L’s?”
“If he slows down and thinks about what he’s saying, he speaks well,” Tess fiercely defended her son. Her hackles slowly lowered as she realized it was merely a question and not meant to degrade Tommie. “He just gets in too big a hurry and his speech doesn’t keep up with his thoughts.”
“Maybe we can work on that some,” Luke said as they strolled to the front of the wagon staked near the Harpers’ living quarters. The bounty hunter set up three bottles. “I used to have the same trouble myself when I was a kid, but it was with R’s.”
Tommie joined him before Luke revealed any more of his past, and Tess felt mildly disappointed. It seemed difficult to imagine this man as anything but the rough-edged man standing before her.
When Luke explained how to form a lasso and toss the rope over a quarry, Tommie squealed with appreciation. The smile that darted across Tess’s lips quickly faded. Had Clifton ever taught him the trick? She couldn’t remember. Though she had many misgivings about Luke, appreciation for the man swept through her. He was thoughtful to her son, and that revealed a side of the bounty hunter worth knowing.
“Now you practice real hard,” Luke instructed, “because it’ll come in handy down the road.”
As he joined her once again, Luke’s voice lowered, offering an intimacy not shared with her son. “Now, back to your question. It will take us a couple of weeks at best, a month at worst. Depends on whether or not we run into hostiles.”
“Indians?”
“Not necessarily.”
Luke turned toward her, his gaze roaming over her as if estimating her worth in some way.
“With the war still fresh on folks’ minds, we’ll have to watch out for all kinds of raiders. God knows you’re a lady, Tess, but a Southern lady. Some Northerners might think that will give them the right to harass you, if they take a notion. Then there’s a few Blacks who will attempt to steal anything, horses, wagons, food, if we don’t keep” our eyes open for thieves. Most don’t mean any harm, but the Proclamation left them a bit short of things they need. Indians are probably the least of your worries, but you can’t discount them. As long as we don’t violate any tribal hunting or burial grounds, we’ll keep our scalps intact.”
Tess suppressed a shudder. She’d heard of a few occasions where women caught in a raid were killed, or worse. Boys Tommie’s age usually ended up adopted into the tribe. With his limp, would his captors take time to discover his worth or consider him useless?
“But that means we’ve all got to work together,” Luke continued. “Both of you must do as I say without question when I say do it.”
Indignation stiffened Tess’s lagging spirit as the demand echoed in her brain and conjured up memories of other such orders. Demands she had vowed never to cower to again. Luke was already assuming too much, and she needed to set things straight with him. “Tommie, time for bed!”
He ran toward her, whimpering, “I wanna stay out here with you and Yuke.” His whine developed into a yawn.
Luke nudged him forward. “Run along now, son, and mind your mama. Tomorrow’s a big day. You need your rest if you’re going to help me scout for trouble.”
“Really? Oh boy!”
“I’ll be in soon to tuck you in,” Tess added, finding it difficult to keep the anger from her voice. “Don’t forget to wash your hands and say your prayers.”
As Tommie limped into the house, Tess scooted off the edge of the wagon bed and threaded her arms below her breasts. She didn’t want to sound ungrateful for his kindness, but she also needed to make certain Luke understood her feelings. “I think you presume too much, Mr. Reeves.”
Luke stood, towering over her in the night shadows. “Presume what?”
Too angry to acknowledge the attraction which had inspired a level of tension between them since their first meeting, she said firmly, “First of all, I have not said my son and I will be traveling with you for certain; so you’re making false promises to the boy. But more important, should I decide to purchase your services, I will question what you say and I won’t necessarily do what you command when you command it. I’m no one’s chess piece to move around at will. Whether you or anyone else guides us, or we go by ourselves, I’ll take no more orders … from anybody.”
Circumstances would no longer rule her life. Tess vowed her life would be fought and won with choices. Her choices. She could almost feel the anger building in him.
“Please yourself. If you don’t care to save your and your son’s lives”—deadly menace made his tone compelling—“then I’ll not consider it part of the job to save them for you.” He loomed over her like a phantom of the night, silhouetting the violence he held in check. Moonlight highlighted the scarred planes of his face, the powerful pull of his eyes.
“Explain yourself.”
“I won’t order a lady to do anything unless I think she’s in danger. If I say run, I mean run for your lives. If I tell you to shoot, then I mean shoot to kill. I don’t bully folks, particularly women, no matter what you might think of bounty hunters. But if I demand you react, then you react or die.”
“It doesn’t matter what I think of you.” Tess shook to her very bones, but she held her ground. “If I hire you, it will be because I decide you’re the best man for the job, not because you bullied me into it.”
She had spent her life taking orders from her father, then from a husband who loved the role of commander he was unable to acquire outside their home. Both had been wrong in their decisions, and Tess had known it. When she finally made up her mind to stand up to both father and husband, the damage had already been wrought. Could she even consider this forceful man as a guide and still maintain control over the journey?
“I’ll make no demands unless you’re in danger.”
Luke stared directly at her, and she knew he uttered the truth.
“Agreeable enough?”
His face shifted in the shadows, and she sensed he drew away. He seemed disappointed, but disappointed in what? The puzzlement left her feeling restless. The day had been too long, and she feared that those upcoming would prove even longer.
“Good enough,” she finally answered out of pure exhaustion, then hastily added, “should I hire you.” Tomorrow beckoned her to stand on her own two feet for the first time in her life and do what she knew was right. Tess needed to prove to herself she could do it. “I’ll give you my decision in the morning.”
Luke reached out as if to touch her but halted within inches of her arm. “Contessa, wait. There were two names signed up to take you.” He pulled the notice from his pocket and un-crumpled it, handing it to her.
Two? Why did he tell her now? Positioning the paper better in the moonlight, Tess squinted at the name listed above Luke’s. Jim Daggert? A choice as difficult as the first, for she trusted neither man. Yet which was the safer—the man who’d killed her husband or the one who wanted to take Clifton’s place in her bed?
“You don’t want to go with him.” Luke glared down at her with eyes that flashed dangerously. “There are things you don’t know about this man.”
What do you know of him? she wondered yet couldn’t ask, for it would reveal her own suspicions. “An odd reason for me to deny his application,” she declared, “when all I know about you is that you killed my husband. Jim Daggert was Clifton’s best friend. I owe him the benefit of an interview. Like I said, I’ll make my choice in the morning. Good night, Mr. Reeves.”
Leaning against the side of the wagon, Luke hooked his thumbs into his gun belt. “I’ve made you and Tommie a bed out here. Don’t sleep in there. Whoever ransacked the place might come back. I can keep watch out here so you’ll be safe.”
“I don’t thunk it would be prop—”
“Proper?” Luke finished for her. A bitter laugh echoed into the night. “Then it won’t be proper every night you’re on the trail with any male guide. What do you want, Tess, safety or propriety?”
Perhaps she had lived so long with her own secrets that she now suspected everyone else of harboring them. “Can I trust you?” she asked aloud, unaware her suspicion took voice. Though innocent, the question needed an answer for so much more.
“That’s for you to decide.” His voice was low, evasive in its huskiness. Clouds drifted over the moon, cloaking his expression.
Tiny prickles of heat erupted along her spine and spread into rivulets of warmth in her lower abdomen. The sultry night reminded Tess that wherever she sought slumber, it would be alongside Tommie or alone. It wasn’t Clifton’s caress she suddenly missed, but that of a stronger embrace which she had experienced earlier that morning.
Luke tipped his hat as he sauntered into the shadows, leaving her to wonder whether she should even consider him at all.
Chapter Four
“Are you sure you won’t change your mind, Mrs. Harper?” The post commander of Fort Smith scowled at Tess from behind his desk. A serious man in his mid-forties, General Hunt wore his gray hair long in the style most frontiersmen preferred. His drooping mustache resembled Ulysses S. Grant’s. “I believe the stage is due in tomorrow. Surely you’ll find more comfort back East.”
Tess fanned away the intense morning heat, grateful for the action which hid the nervousness of her hands. Bringing her” gaze to the general’s, she insisted, “Colorado is my destination, sir.”
“Then I can be of no help.” The officer pierced her with hard-eyed irritation. “Fort Smith is to be vacated and the garrison’s troops stationed at Little Rock in the next few months. I haven’t the time or the men to spare for your request.” Picking up the papers on his desk, he tossed them at her. “Read for yourself.”
“That won’t be necessary, General. I’ll accommodate the lady.”
“Mr. Daggert” General Hunt waved the well-dressed man permission to enter. As Jim casually crossed the room and took a seat next to Tess, he doffed the hat which matched the dovegray vest worn beneath his frock coat. “I don’t usually accommodate an interruption when I’m conducting private interviews,”—Hunt’s words stabbed with disapproval—"but in this case, your timing is justified.”
The gambler extended a hand and the general shook it.
“There you are, Mrs. Harper”—the general’s gaze slanted toward Jim—"an answer to your needs.”
Taking a cheroot from his coat pocket, the gambler bit off the end, then lit it. Rolling the cheroot to one corner of his teeth, he flashed a broad smile through the smoke. “To any of them, Tess.”
Tess didn’t appreciate the way his attention lingered on her bodice. “I’m sure Clifton would appreciate your interest.”
General Hunt cleared his throat and shuffled papers while the gambler gave her the dubious honor of meeting her gaze directly. “Then it’s settled. I presume you and the boy are packed and ready to travel?”
She could deal with Jim’s other presumptions away from the general’s inquiring gaze. “Yes, we are. But I do have one other offer. I wanted to talk terms with you before making my choice.”
Hunt frowned. “I thought you said you were without means?”
Tess noted the veins in the general’s face and the muscles along his jawline tighten. She suspected the battle that surged through him. His wife undoubtedly nagged at him concerning the matter, and he wanted to see an end to it. To discover that she had attempted to coerce him into helping struck a death knell to Tess’s hopes of obtaining any military escort.
“I’ve taken up enough of your time.” Tess gathered her parasol and stood.
Both men rose. The officer half-bowed, offering a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “A speedy journey to you and your young son, Mrs. Harper. Please accept my condolences in the death of Sergeant Harper.” Picking up a pencil and blank paper on the desk, the general asked, “May I post a letter to your parents for you? Or would you like to leave a forwarding address where we can send Sergeant Harper’s final wages?”
