Demanding Satisfaction [Bride Train 9] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) (39 page)

They pushed inside the crowded jail. In addition to the sheriff, deputy, Max, Willy, and himself, the jail was full of Tanner’s Ford ranchers. Three Elliotts, Trace, Ranger, and Ben, as well as Ross MacDougal, Sin Statham, Jed Adams, Luke Frost, Cole Taylor, and Zach McInnes.

What was missing was a prisoner.

“As you can see, Hames is gone,” said Sheriff Keene. He held up his hands as voices demanded more. “He didn’t escape, he was taken.” He looked at his deputy with disgust.

“How?” asked Max.

“My deputy,” said Keene with a heavy dose of sarcasm, “said he was snoozing when a crowd of women snuck into the jail. He says they held him up at gunpoint, stuck him in the cell, and took Hames.”

The deputy dropped his bare head, but it didn’t hide his red face. He held his hat in both hands. Unless they could get Hames back, the man would never be able to hold his head up again. They needed a body, preferably live, to hold a trial. Otherwise the crimes Hames had committed would disappear like a puff of smoke. Max scrubbed his face with his hands. Sam felt like doing the same.

“Those women who took him. They the ones he tortured?” asked Sam. The deputy nodded. “Did he want to go with them?”

“Hell, no! But they hit him on the head with a pistol and hauled him out anyways.”

“Dang!” said Max, heaving a sigh. “We’ll be lucky to find him alive.”

“They promised not to kill him,” added the deputy eagerly. “Said that had a few things to say and they’d be saying it personal-like.”

“Personal-like?” drawled Zach.

The deputy shuddered. He dropped his hat to cover his crotch. “One of ’em said he might be missing a few parts when they give him back.”

Sam winced along with the rest of the men.

“They say where they’d be taking him?” asked Luke. The deputy shook his head. “Dammit, you can’t hang a dead body,” said Luke, snarling. “I told my wife I’d see him hauled away in shackles or hanged in front of me.”

“I don’t blame the women,” said Sin. “His attacks were personal, and they want the punishment to suit.”

“Anyone seen Tess this morning?” asked Sam. “We all saw what he did to her face. But she said she had Isaac’s mark all over her body. If anyone wanted to get personal with Hames and a branding iron, Tess would be a good choice.”

One look from the sheriff and the deputy scuttled out of the jail.

“I hear Ross MacDougal can track anything,” said Keene.

“Send Willy,” said Ross.

“Me?” Willy, eyes wide, looked at the grown men staring back at him.

“Like me and my partners, you’re a Southerner,” said Cole to Willy. “Though I feel like my mama ought to warsh out my mouth for saying so, that son-of-a-gun Hames came from the South. Can’t do anything about that, but Casey said you can track a snake half a mile over bare rock and catch anything, man or beast. I’d appreciate you doin’ your best for Molly, Sarah, Tess, and all the other women. And their families,” he added with a nod to Luke.

Willy waited for Trace’s nod of approval before rushing out.

“There’s something else,” said Ben when the door shut behind Willy. “I searched the room Hames rented.” He grimaced. “I found letters he’d written to his mother, even though she had already passed. I don’t want the boy hearing this.” He put his palm on his stomach. “It was bad enough reading them. That man is one sick son of a bitch. And I do mean that literally.”

“Where were they?” asked Keene.

“In the case for his type-writing machine, in a hidden compartment along with his masks. I locked them in the hotel safe. Don’t want anyone else to read them if they don’t have to.”

“I have a right to know why he did this to my wife,” demanded Luke.

Others added their demands to know. Ben rubbed his eyes with one hand. He sighed.

“This is what I learned by skimming through them. His family were slave owners. His mother came from a higher society level than his father and was much stronger in personality. She doted on her only child. Reading between the lines, she fondled him and insisted he kiss her inappropriately. She was disgusted by her husband’s weakness and, therefore, made all the decisions for the plantation. His father spent his time writing for a small local newspaper.”

“So he was shamed by having to work as a reporter out here,” mused Sam.

“The only thing he learned from his father was that he had the absolute right to do whatever he wanted to any slave. Hames took him at his word. He learned to enjoy violence so much that he couldn’t achieve satisfaction unless the girl fought and he subdued them.”

“You saying he had to rape them or his cock didn’t work?” asked Jed with disbelief.

Ben nodded. “There’s more. His mother hated the children his father made on the slaves. His father knew this and, to get back at his wife, insisted they be house servants. His mother, in revenge, praised Hames for using them.”

“For raping his own half sisters?”

“The woman he really wanted was his mother,” said Ben, curling his lip in obvious disgust. “She was perfect to him. When the war started, his father put everything behind the Confederacy. For once he was treated with respect and honor. When he realized the end was coming, he committed suicide.”

“And his mother?”

Ben’s look of disgust increased. “Her final revenge on her husband was to take a Union soldier to her bed. Hames found them at it and shot them both. He then burned the place to the ground, took everything he could carry, and ran.”

“This is in the letters?”

“Yes. They also detail every woman he mutilated or murdered.”

“Why?” demanded Luke. “Can you tell me a reason?”

“For some sick reason, Hames decided that he and his mother would re-create the Garden of Eden when they both went to Heaven. But they had to be perfectly formed, without blemish. When he put that bullet hole in his mother, he destroyed his purpose in life. He believed it was her fault he would not enter the Garden of Eden.”

“But why hurt so many others?”

Luke’s anguish was reflected on Ben’s face. “In his twisted mind, Hames thought if he could mark enough women, it would make his mother whole again, and she’d be waiting for him at the Pearly Gates.”

There was silence as each man mourned the destruction of so many women, just to fulfill the sick fantasy of a crazy man.

“I hope those women take their time but keep him alive,” said someone in the back of the room.

Sam didn’t know who said it, but he agreed. Hames didn’t have to be whole to stand trial. Sophie said he burned women because he hated the sight of blood. A hot poker cauterized wounds so they wouldn’t bleed. A few determined women could burn a large portion of Hames’s body and not kill him.

“I hope Willy takes a couple days to find the man,” said Ross. His expression showed the Bannock warrior side of him more than the Scot. “If I find Hames, I’ll take a turn at him myself.”

“Not if I get to him first,” promised Luke.

Max, belly full, leaned back in the chair. Baird’s private dining room was crowded with Tanner’s Ford men, as well as he and Sam. Josh, Max expected, was still guarding Sophie. They were about to leave the jail when Baird’s man arrived requesting a meeting.

“Decent of you to provide breakfast, Baird,” said Ben. “I assume you have word of Mr. Frederick Smythe’s whereabouts? I heard he dropped off the map shortly after Hames was caught.”

“I do indeed.” Harrison Baird interlaced his manicured fingers over his ample belly. “I’m afraid Smythe has not kept company with the right sort of men. He’s been encouraged to tell his tales of murder, mayhem, and all manner of illegal doings.”

“Will there be anything left of him to bring to trial?” drawled Max. “Hames might already be dead. My employer would not be pleased to have us escort two coffins back East.”

“Rest assured that he has not been permanently harmed. However, there is little proof of his guilt.”

“Can’t we hang anything on him?” asked Jed.

“I understand you have good reasons to see the man gone,” said Baird. “But while he might not stand trial, there’s enough information to convince him to move elsewhere.”

“Such as?”

“We can’t prove it in a court of law, but Smythe arranged to have various mines ‘salted’ with gold to increase the selling price. These played-out mines were owned by politicians and a certain senior member of the railroad I represent. They sold the worthless claims to greenhorns with more money than sense. Smythe wanted to be paid wholly in gold for his efforts, but received forged shares stolen from a company safe. Neither Smythe nor the officer realized the shares were counterfeit, and marked.”

“Those are the shares you asked Willy to buy,” said Trace.

“Correct. Mr. William Wright, a most pleasant young man”—Baird nodded at the red-faced man still eating—“managed to get Smythe talking. Mr. Wright confirmed the name of one of those we thought responsible for the theft of the shares, and various other unexplained happenings. The shares have been destroyed, and Mr. Wright’s gold replaced.”

“What about Stickley?” demanded Jed. The judge had forced Jed to marry Victoria twice, causing her humiliation and worse.

“He and Smythe were go-betweens, with Stickley located in Helena,” said Baird. “There’s not much to hold him on. And no need, since we have what we want from Smythe. The man’s dirty, but nothing will stick to him. He’s been encouraged to visit Deadwood, where there is no law. We’ll let Seth Bullock straighten him out.”

“I want more.” Trace pushed away his plate. He set his elbows on the table and gave Baird a piercing look. “Smythe threatened my daughters, nieces, and other children. Even if he didn’t touch them himself, when a man sells little ones as sex slaves, he’s as guilty as if he touched them himself.”

“While we haven’t been given the official task of catching such men,” said Max, interrupting the growing mutters from the ranchers, “if there’s any way we can help, we will.”

“Thank you, Mr. Gibson,” said Baird. “But it’s best if the law doesn’t get involved.”

“Why the hell not?” demanded Ranger. He pounded on the table. “That bastard wanted to sell my Emma!”

Baird held up his hands in a calming gesture. He waited until they were quiet, though Max still heard a few mutters. “Mr. MacDougal persuaded Mr. Smythe to tell us the location of certain pieces of evidence.” He gave Ross a pointed glance.

“Dammit, Ross, you didn’t skin him alive, did you? I don’t want to see you hang.”

Ross shook his head at Max’s question. “I showed Smythe the poker I’d stuck in the fire. He was tied to the chair, shirtless. I blindfolded him. Then I reminded him what Sophie did to Hames. I made a lot of noise pulling that poker from the coals. When I touched it to his bare shoulder he screamed. I threatened to do the same to his face and he told us everything we wanted, and a lot I’d rather not have heard.” His lip curled in disgust.

“You put a hole in him?”

Ross shook his head. “No, I did what my grandfather did to me when I was a boy. He picked an iron from the fire, letting me see it glow. It was a moonless frozen night. The only light was from the fire. He told me to hold out my bare arm and close my eyes. It was a test of my bravery. I wasn’t to flinch or say a word. Then he stuck that iron on my arm. I felt it burn right through to the bone, but I passed the test.”

“Your grandfather did that to you?” Cole had been silent up to that point.

“He was the Chief, with absolute power. You see, a warrior must be tested in many ways.” Ross unbuttoned his cuff. Everyone watched while he pushed the shirt up his arm. There was no mark. “I felt the pain but overcame it. When I opened my eyes I found my grandfather held the cooling iron in one hand.” He raised an eyebrow and looked around the room. A smirk pulled up one side of his mouth. “In the other was an icicle. Cold burns as does heat, but leaves no scar.” He tapped his temple with a finger. “A warrior must also fight with his mind.” He pushed his sleeve back down.

Sam’s laughter rose above the admiring comments of the others. “I like that.” He turned to Max. “Let’s try it on Josh.”

“Mr. Baird,” said Max, ignoring his twin, “what evidence did you find?”

“A book which used to belong to Orville Rivers.” Baird’s mouth turned down in disgust. “Hames took it when he died. They both had rooms at Mrs. Emslow’s boardinghouse, which Hames says he now owns. He sold the book to Smythe, and I now have it in my safe.”

He gave Ross a quick nod.

“What’s in it?” asked Trace.

“It lists the names of men, their preferences, and suggestions as to what, or rather who, would meet their needs. It includes the sex, race, hair color, and acts each man wished his child slave to perform. A suggested price was also included.” Baird’s jaw clenched and dropped his head for a moment. He inhaled, looked up, and met Ranger head-on. “Your Emma was listed with a very high price due to her hair and unusual eye color. Johnny would have brought somewhat less. Molly’s and Jessie’s names were crossed out as they were no longer virgins.”

Max’s gut burned. His hands fisted in impotent rage. There was nothing any of them could do to Rivers. They had to trust he’d gone to Hell and was suffering worse than what he’d inflicted on the innocent.