Oklahoma kiss (45 page)

      
Warren heaved a deep sigh. "I’m still mad as hell, though, and very disappointed in both of you. But Adam, at least you're man enough to do the right thing by her. I’d like to know your plans, but I would prefer to discuss them over in our room." His jaw tensed and his mouth tightened as he stared at the mattress and rumpled sheet. "I don’t feel very comfortable here."

      
Adam slowly got to his feet and wiped the trickle of blood from his mouth with the back of his hand. He glanced at Blair, noting her troubled, shamed expression, and it was almost like he knew what she was thinking. "All right, we'll discuss our plans in your room. But for Blair's sake, I don't want what happened tonight mentioned in front of Coy. They've always been close and if she wants to tell him, let her do it in her own good time."

      
Warren nodded. "I find no fault with that. In fact, as far as I’m concerned, it ends here with the three of us."

      
They walked across the hall to the room and when Warren opened the door, he gave a startled cry. The window had been completely raised; Coy's clothes that had been neatly folded on the dresser top were gone and so was Coy.

      
"Damn it to hell, someone has got to Coy!" Warren shouted. "When I came in, Jake said everything had been quiet." He looked frantically about. "They must have come in through the window!" He turned angrily to Blair. "Damn it, if you hadn't left him alone . . . !"

      
Adam protectively stepped in front of Blair. "That's enough, Warren, don't blame her for something she had no control over! If someone did seize Coy, she couldn't have stopped them. In all likelihood, she would have gotten hurt or abducted herself." He glanced around the room. "Open your eyes and look around, Warren. Do you see any signs of a struggle? I don't. It appears that Coy left on his own accord."

      
Warren did as Adam suggested, but he still was not convinced. "I-I agree that it looks that way," he reluctantly admitted. "But there was no reason for Coy to leave."

      
Obviously concerned, Adam glanced at Blair. "Sweetheart, did he say anything at all that might indicate he was thinking about slipping away?"

      
"No," she whispered, her face ashen. "Except . . . now that I recall, he did seem awfully eager for me to talk with you."

      
Adam rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Just how badly hurt is he?"

      
"Not as bad as I first thought," she conceded. "After the effects of the whiskey wore off, and after he took a few doses of my medicine, he seemed much better except for being stiff, sore and badly bruised."

      
"Could he have managed to leave on his own?"

      
"Probably . . . I’m not sure. But, Adam, please don't try to ease my conscience by putting the blame on him. If there is a chance someone abducted him. ..."

      
"I'm merely trying to learn the facts, sweetheart." He hurried over to the dresser and picked up a lamp. "Warren, get that lamp on the table and I'll take this one. We'll go out the back way and around to the window to see if there are any footprints."

      
Kneeling outside the window, Adam and Warren studied the ground for signs. Both raised their eyes almost at the same time and stared at each other.

      
"Well . . . what do you see?" Blair anxiously demanded to know.

      
"There is only one set of prints here," Warren said slowly. "If Coy didn't sneak out, that leaves only one alternative. Someone had to have obtained a key to the room, because there was no sign of forced entry, come in through the back, and carried him off that way. Jake was on guard all night and he would have heard something . . . so that ‘one other alternative' holds about as much water as a sieve. I’ll have to agree with you, Adam, Coy must have left on his own accord."

      
"Fire! Fire!"
a man shouted as he ran down the street frantically waving his hands in the air. "My store's on fire! Get the water tank down here! Form a bucket brigade!"

      
Immediately the entire town seemed to burst into life as men poured out of the buildings, and in a matter of minutes, they came running from their homes a block or so away. Some came with galluses hanging about their waists, some with one boot off, one on, and some even wearing nothing but their longjohns. They all knew if a fire went unchecked, it could rapidly spread from one building to another until the entire town lay in smoldering ruins.

      
Adam and Warren silently looked at each other. They had recognized the man’s voice. It was Radigan. Regardless of how the fire had started, they both knew the Townsends would be blamed by all of the people who had sided with Radigan, and it was sure to even raise doubts in some of those who had not sided with him.

      
Adam sighed heavily. He tried to ignore the question that badgered his mind. Had Coy deliberately waited until he could slip away and start the fire for revenge?

      
"I have to see if I can help. Warren, perhaps it would be best if you and Blair went to your hotel room and stayed. It might be safer there."

      
"We’ve nothing to hide," he stated adamantly, glancing at Blair. "I'll help put out the fire . . . not for Radigan, but for the town. Regardless of what has been said or done to us, this is our home, too."

      
The next few minutes were nothing but sheer bedlam until the men became organized. Some men had been through fires before and it was to them that the others turned. Horses were quickly hitched to the water wagon and it was driven as close to the fire as possible without terrifying the horses, then bucket brigades were formed. Hot embers fell on some of the men, but none were seriously injured. It did not take long for them to realize the store could not be saved, so they devoted their efforts to saving the buildings standing alongside it Finally Radigan's store caved in and the fire quickly burned itself out.

      
Radigan slumped into the middle of the street, dropped his head into his hands and cried deep, rasping sobs. "All I've worked for is gone! My entire life's savings went up in smoke ... in less than an hour's time!" he sobbed miserably. Gazing dully around him, his eyes fastened on Warren's soot-streaked face. He scrambled to his feet and lunged at him. "You did it! You started the fire that wiped me out! I'll kill you, you Indian-loving son of a bitch!"

      
He hit Warren, knocking him to the ground, but Warren immediately came charging after him. His fist connected with Radigan's chin, but Warren held him by his shirt front to keep him from falling down.

      
Hearing the shouts, Adam whirled about and saw what was happening. He dropped the bucket and ran toward Warren and Radigan, acutely aware that many eyes were riveted on him, watching his reaction and wondering how he would handle the confrontation. He quickly stepped between the two men and pushed them apart. "Break it up! That's enough out of both of you!"

      
Warren threw another punch at Radigan but Adam prevented it from connecting by catching his hand and holding it. "He jumped me and I was just defending myself. If I had known this was his way of saying ‘thanks' for trying to help save his store, I would have stood by and watched it burn!"

      
"Why watch it burn, you son of a bitch? You set the damned fire in the first place!"

      
"You had better. . . ."

      
Adam shouted, "Shut up, both of you! Or you'll be cooling your heels in my jail!" He glanced at Matthew, who had joined in the fire-fighting effort. "Will you go get the handcuffs? I’m not about to listen to this bickering crap."

      
"If you think it's necessary, I will."

      
Adam's expression was furious as he glared at first one man then the other. "If he has to go after the cuffs, I'm locking you both up, but if you'll behave like reasonable men for a few minutes, we might be able to get to the bottom of this."

      
Realizing from their silence that he finally had their attention, he asked Radigan, "Now, what makes you think Warren Townsend set the fire?"

      
"Because of what happened the other night-hell, any fool could figure that out."

      
Even though Radigan's statement was a slur against him too, Adam decided to let it pass. "I realize a man's watching his livelihood burn to the ground might make him say things he shouldn't, but I don't think you should make any accusations you can't prove."

      
Radigan's face twisted into an unpleasant scowl as he said bitterly, "Hell, if I brought you two eyewitnesses who saw him strike the match, you wouldn't consider it as proof—not with you being close friends!"

      
Adam moved toward him threateningly. "Listen . . . and you had better listen good because I’m not saying it twice," he muttered through clenched teeth, "the badge I wear stands for justice and I will arrest the first man I find breaking the law whether he is my personal friend or not. But I refuse to arrest any man on mere speculation or suspicion. Now, if you will shut your yap for five minutes, I’ll question Warren Townsend and see if there is any reason why he should be suspected. But, I will not be swayed by your bigoted hatred or your jealousy of him and his family any more than I would by our friendship."

      
He turned to Warren. "Do you have any objections to answering a few questions in front of these men?"

      
Warren stood with his arms crossed and his legs splayed slightly in a haughty stance. "No objections whatsoever."

      
"Where were you tonight when the fire started?"

      
Warren eyed him warily, not sure in which direction Adam was going, and if anything would be mentioned about Blair. Then, immediately realizing Adam would never do anything to hurt her name or reputation, he decided to simply tell the truth. "About fifteen minutes before the fire started I was with you and Blair."

      
"What did I tell you? Radigan shouted to the crowd in an attempt to incite them. "They've already hatched a story so the deputy can give him an alibi!"

      
"Where were you prior to that?" Adam asked, ignoring Radigan’s ranting.

      
"Instead of dallying with all of these questions and answers, I’ll tell everybody what I did tonight and let them be the judge whether I’m telling the truth or not. Late this afternoon, I needed to change horses so I rode out to the ranch, ate supper, got my fastest horse, came back into town and stabled my mount at the livery stable. I personally took care of the horse myself, but Zeke was there and we talked about the run tomorrow. Then I went directly to the hotel. I stopped in the lobby and spoke to my foreman for a few minutes—he was playing cards with the desk clerk. Then I walked back to the room we rented for my kid brother the night so many people stood by and watched him get the hell beat out of him." He glared at the crowd with that remark. "If you ask me for exact times, I can't give them, but like I said, I was in the hotel about fifteen minutes before Radigan started running down the street yelling about a fire."

      
Adam looked at the men clustered about. "Can anyone prove he is telling the truth?"

      
Radigan was obviously perplexed when Zeke and the desk clerk stepped forward and sustained Warren's story.

      
"What about Warren's men?" An unidentified voice asked from the crowd. "Maybe some of them could have done it."

      
Adam shook his head disgustedly. What did these people want? A pound of flesh?

      
He asked coldly, "Has anyone seen any of the Townsend hands in town today ... or the other two brothers? If you have, don't be afraid to speak up, I will personally protect you if you ask for it." Considering Warren had bitter enemies in the crowd, Adam decided to add, "But let me also caution any man who is tempted to lie. I’ll find out, and I will personally see to it that he serves hard time for trying to frame a man."

      
Adam looked expectantly at Radigan when no one stepped forward or said anything.

      
Radigan was so enraged by his hatred and personal loss, he seemed to lose all sense of reasoning. "One of 'em had to do it!" When he spied Blair standing with other women across the street from them, lunacy gleamed from his eyes and spittle flew from his mouth as he shouted, "There's the culprit, right there! That little bitch set the fire!"

      
Warren started for Radigan, but Adam pushed him out of the way and reached him first. Grabbing the very top portion of Radigan's shirt, he twisted it until the man was almost choking. "You will never know how close you came to dying for that stupid-ass remark," he muttered caustically.

      
Knowing the ugly mood of many in the crowd, Adam searched his mind for a way to provide Blair with an alibi and still keep her reputation intact. Then one occurred to him. It was risky and it could explode in his face almost at any moment. But to protect Blair, it was a chance he would have to take.

      
In a louder tone, he said, "It so happens, the lady was with me tonight. And we were playing dominos with Coy until Warren arrived. And if anyone wants to call me a liar, you're welcome to try! Radigan, I've heard enough of your accusations for one night. First thing in the morning though, I'll look around and if there are any signs that the fire was deliberately set, I will investigate further. But, if not, it will go on my report as an act of God." He turned to the crowd. "Now, except for you men who plan to stand watch to make sure the fire doesn't start up again, I suggest that the rest of you go on home."