Rapture's Tempest (51 page)

Mark had positioned his men strategically along the levee near the landing sight of the
Liberty Belle
and then had retreated with Jim and Marshall a short distance away to wait until she’d tied up. From their vantage point, they could watch as the steamboat carefully maneuvered into the place at the wharf boat. When the final line had been thrown, they moved forward cautiously.

“Let’s go.” Mark signaled his men. Congregating at the foot of the gangplank, he issued further orders. “I want three men here, armed and ready, just in case there is trouble. We don’t anticipate any, but in situations like this, you never know.”

“Yes, sir.”

“The rest of you follow us. We’re going on board and, if necessary, we’re going to search every cabin until we find them. Ready?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Then, let’s go.” Mark, Jim, and Marshall led the way up the gangplank.

“I know Captain Dalton. Let’s see if I can find him.” Jim started up the stairs on his way to the pilot house.

Captain Dalton, having seen the soldiers approaching, was on his way down, and they met on the promenade deck. “Jim? What’s the meaning of this?” he thundered, wondering at this armed invasion of his boat.

“John, do you know Captain Mark Clayton?”

“No. I don’t believe I’ve had the honor.”

“Mark Clayton, this is John Dalton.” Jim introduced them and they shook hands.

“We have reason to believe, Captain Dalton, that two of the spies who were responsible for the attack and subsequent destruction of the
Enterprise
are on board your vessel.”

“Who?” he demanded.

“In reality, their names are Annabelle and Nathan Morgan, but they’ve come aboard your ship under the names of Mr. and Mrs. White.”

“Why, he was just down in the saloon a few minutes ago.”

“Is he still there?” Mark asked.

“To the best of my knowledge. Let’s go check.” Captain Dalton led the way.

“What about the woman?” Jim questioned.

“I haven’t seen her since they came on board back in St. Louis, but they’re in cabin number twenty-four.”

“Thanks.” Jim left them and headed toward the stateroom.

“Jim?”

“You take care of Nathan. I’m going for Annabelle.”

“Be careful.” Marshall warned, and Jim wisely heeded his advice.

Jim didn’t bother to knock, not wanting to give her time to prepare. Instead, he stealthily turned the knob and opened the unlocked door soundlessly. He had been ready for trouble, his hand resting on his revolver, but the sight that greeted
him convinced him that there was no need. Annabelle was alone, and she was sound asleep.

Moving into the room, he closed and locked the door behind him and then went to stand by the bed. It amazed him that she could look so beautiful in her sleep. But he knew what kind of a treacherous woman she really was, and her beauty stirred only contempt in him.

“Are you going somewhere, Annabelle?” He spoke loudly, wanting her to awaken suddenly.

Her eyes flew open, and she looked up groggily at the man who stood over her. “Jim…” His name was a whisper on her lips. “What are you doing here?”

“I’m looking for you,” he said solemnly.

Annabelle sat up quickly, her eyes narrowed as she tried to figure out what had happened. “Where’s my father?”

“By this time, I imagine he’s with Mark. They were going down to the saloon to pick him up.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, it’s over, Annabelle.”

“Over?” She was trying to pull herself together…to figure a way out of this. Where was her father? Could he really have been taken by Mark, or could Jim be lying? How could this have happened when they were so close to getting away?

“You must have considered yourself most fortunate that you were at our house when the note from Sam Wallace arrived. That bit of advance information gave you the extra time you needed to get out of town before we came after you.”

Annabelle stood up and walked across the cabin from him. She was caught, and she knew it. Turning to face him, she lifted her chin defiantly. “Yes, it did.”

Jim was stunned by her brazen confession. He had expected her to deny everything…to play the innocent victim, not readily to admit her involvement.

His gaze hardened as he stared at her. He had never really known her at all. She had created an image for him, and he had believed what he’d seen. He wondered if she had been determined
enough to have gone through with her marriage to him, just to get the information. Looking at her now, he knew that she would have done it, and the thought sickened him.

“Let’s go,” he told her, his tone one of disgust.

But Annabelle wasn’t about to give up that easily. She was prepared to barter the only thing she had left for her freedom…her body.

“Jim…” Though she was nervous, she lowered her tone and walked toward him slowly. Her expression was openly seductive.

He didn’t speak, but eyed her calmly as she began to unbutton the bodice of her dress.

“I know you found me attractive once. I can make you feel that again,” she murmured, stopping directly in front of him and pressing intimately against him. “I’ll do anything you want, if you’ll let me go.”

“Annabelle—” Jim found her behavior repulsive and he took her by her forearms and held her away from him “It’s time I got you back to Mark.”

“But…” She was totally shocked at his refusal to take her up on her offer.

“Button your dress and move.” He directed her toward the door. “They’re waiting.”

“You’ll pay for this, Jim Westlake!” she hissed, out of control in her fury. “Wade will get you for this!”

“I’m afraid not, my dear,” he told her as he opened the door for her, still holding her by her arm. “You see, Wade MacIntosh is dead.”

“He’s dead?” Her eyes widened in shock at the news.

“He was killed this morning in a shootout with Mark.”

“Oh, no!” She swayed as the reality of it hit her. It was over….

Accompanied by Captain Dalton, Mark and Marshall entered the saloon and immediately spotted Nathan, still at the bar in a discussion with some other men passengers. He did
not look up as they came forward, and it wasn’t until Mark spoke to him that he realized his precarious situation.

“Nathan…your trip is over,” Mark said levelly.

Turning almost in slow motion, Nathan paled as he came face-to-face with Mark and Marshall. “You! How?”

“It doesn’t matter how we found you. The important part is that we did find you,” Marshall told him.

“Marsh, check him for a gun,” Mark instructed. When Marshall found that he was clean, Mark continued, “Now, let’s move out of here nice and easy.”

Nathan’s mind was racing. What could he do? He thought of running, but as soon as they left the saloon and he saw the soldiers Mark had with him he gave up the idea. Worrying about Annabelle, he glanced nervously up the companion-way as they came out on deck. To his horror, Jim Westlake was bringing her down the steps.

“Annabelle! Are you all right?” His worry was real.

“Yes.” Her tone was flat when she answered him.

Somehow, Nathan thought, he had to create a diversion to give Annabelle a chance to get away. Hoping that she would have sense enough to run when he did it, he gauged his distance to the railing. And then, when he knew the soldiers had relaxed their vigilance, he raced for the rail and jumped overboard. He thought the fall would never end as he tumbled the two stories into the cold, dirty water.

“Get him!” Mark shouted to his men still on the levee.

Marshall, who waited until Nathan surfaced to make his move, dove expertly into the river near him. Easily overpowering the older man, he swam the short distance back to the bank with him in tow. The three guards were there to take him from Marshall as he staggered up onto the levee.

Nathan looked up at the boat in hopes that Annabelle had taken advantage of his diversion, but Jim Westlake was still holding onto her possessively. He shook his head at the wasted effort and followed the guards off down the riverfront.

Marshall stood, soaking wet, waiting for them to leave the
steamer. “How did I do?” he asked, grinning, as Mark finally came down the gangplank.

“I didn’t know you could swim so well.”

“Neither did I.” He laughed as Jim joined them, still keeping a hold on Annabelle.

“Sergeant!” Mark called to one of his men.

“Yes, sir?”

“Take Miss Morgan on board the
Mound City
and lock her in this stateroom.” Mark handed him the key to the cabin.

“Yes, sir.”

“And, Sergeant? ”

The young man looked back at his captain questioningly.

“Be careful.”

“Yes, sir.” He took Annabelle by the arm and led her none too gently toward the other boat.

The three men stood together in silent companionship as they realized that they had accomplished what they’d set out to do. They had caught all the people responsible for the attack on the
Enterprise
. Exchanging happy looks, they clapped one another on the back and headed for home.

Delight sat wearily in the front parlor with Renee. Stifling a yawn, she gave her friend a helpless look. “If they don’t get home pretty soon, I’m going to be sound asleep.”

“I know,” Renee agreed, slowly losing her own battle to stay awake. “What time is it, anyway?”

“It’s after one.” She glanced at the mantel clock.

“No wonder everybody else went to bed. You know, they might not make it back until tomorrow. Maybe we should go on upstairs, too.”

“No. I’m going to wait down here for him. But why don’t you go to bed? You know Roger’s going to wake up at seven, regardless. You’re going to need a little sleep.”

Renee smiled as she stood up. “That’s true enough. He’s a regular alarm clock. I’ll see you in the morning.”

“Good night,” Delight called softly, as Renee headed on up to bed.

Getting up, Delight picked up the lamp and carried it with her to Marshall’s study. The flickering golden flame cast wavering shadows about as she entered the dark paneled room to select a book from his large library. Checking the titles of the beautiful leather-bound volumes, she finally chose a well-worn book of poems and went back to settle in on the sofa.

She had been reading for almost an hour when the words began to blur before her eyes. Wanting to stay awake, but knowing that the battle was lost. Delight curled up on the sofa and fell asleep.

“Gentlemen,” General Fields was saying as he lifted his glass of bourbon. “To a job well done.”

Mark, Jim, and Marshall joined him in that toast. It had been a long, dangerous day, but they had succeeded.

“Have you made any decisions concerning replacing the
Enterprise
?” the general asked.

“I’ve made some inquires,” Marshall told him. “There is a steamer for sale in Cincinnati. We could have her refitted and ready to sail in about six weeks, I should think.”

“Good. But can you fulfill your contract? There will be at least two more gold shipments in that time. Do you have a boat available?”

“We own four other packets, all of which will suit our purpose,” Jim told him.

General Fields nodded. “Now that we’ve eliminated the informers from our midst, we should be safe.”

“We’ll be ready whenever the shipments come in, sir,” Marshall assured him.

“Thank you for everything. We’ll be in touch.” He shook hands with Jim and Marshall both.

As they turned to leave, Mark started to follow.

“Captain. I’d like to speak with you for a few minutes.”

“Yes, sir.” Mark thought all their business had been concluded, and he was surprised by the request. “Jim—Marshall, I’ll see you tomorrow. Tell Dorrie I’ll be by as soon as I can.”

“Okay.” Good night.”

When they had disappeared from the room and closed the door behind them, Mark turned to face his commanding officer.

“Yes, sir?”

“I wanted to commend you on your handling of this investigation. You alone suspected that we had an informer in our midst, and, by your perseverance, you uncovered him.”

“Thank you, sir.”

“You are to assume the rank of major, now, Clayton.”

Mark was taken completely by surprise. “Major?”

“You’ve earned it. Congratulations.”

“Thank you, sir!”

It was near dawn as Jim and Marshall finally got away from headquarters and started home. They rode in silence, both exhausted yet excited by the events of the day.

A single lamp burned low in the parlor window, and both men entered the house, looking forward to its warmth and shelter. Heading into the parlor, they stopped, the sight that greeted them making them smile.

“I guess Renee gave up on me,” Marshall chuckled. “I’ll see you sometime later today.” And with that, he went up to his wife.

Jim crossed the parlor quietly and stood staring down at her gentle loveliness for long minutes before kneeling beside her. With infinite care, he leaned forward and kissed her softly.

Delight stirred at the touch of his lips and smiled sleepily. “I knew you’d be home soon.”

She caressed his cheek and then slid her hand behind his
neck to pull him down for another kiss. It was a warm, loving exchange, and Delight’s heart swelled with her love for him.

Without breaking off the kiss, Jim shifted his weight until he was lying beside her, and Delight turned on her side to give him more room.

“Have you been here all night?” he asked huskily as his lips explored the sweetness of her throat.

“Yes,” she whispered, shivering at the force of the emotion he was arousing.

Jim’s control slipped as she responded to him without restraint. He had wanted to be with her ever since his confrontation with Annabelle…a confrontation that had left him feeling somehow soiled. He needed to taste the splendor and peace of Delight’s love again.

“Darling?” He spoke softly.

“Um?” She wriggled closer to him.

“I think we’d better go upstairs…” He gave a low chuckle as she murmured a protest and sought to draw him to her for a kiss.

“Do we have to?” she protested when he refused her tempting ploy; she didn’t want to move from this haven.