Tarnished Angel (9 page)

    Lily, the daughter for whom she lived, had sacrificed her innocence. The she had informed her mother that she had accepted her
fatebut
only temporarily, and not without malice.

    China Mary knew the game her daughter was so artfully playing. Lily was committed to making Harvey Dale her slave. From the sounds presently emanating from within, she was certain Lily was making her anger felt at being summoned like the servant Harvey Dale wished to make of her.

    China Mary paused in her thoughts. More
soundsthis
time Harvey Dale's voice, low in supplication. He was pleading! Lily had accomplished that which her mother had yet been unable to do. But the flush of triumph was brief, for the game was not yet over.

    China Mary took a deep breath and turned away from the bedroom door. It would not do to torture herself. Better to turn her thoughts to other, more promising matters.

    So, Harvey Dale needed a woman to serve as his daughter's   maid and companion. She knew of a woman who was suited to the position, but before she sent her to Harvey Dale, she would make very certain that the woman remembered where her first loyalties lay.

    A hard smile flicked across Mary's lips. She descended the staircase before her, squeezing her bulk around its curves, and stepped down on the first floor once more. Raising her hand, she snapped her fingers. Her eyes glittered as a gray-bearded Oriental responded to her summons.

    "Ming
Keng
, summon Lai Hua to me immediately."

    With a short nod, Ming
Keng
turned. Within seconds the slight old man was moving down the street to her command. Following his progress with a keen eye until he disappeared from sight, China Mary took another deep, steadying breath. The small smile that finally curved her lips was inspired by neither joy nor amusement.

    
Yes, Harvey Dale, your arrogance and your contempt will be your undoing. You will see, Harvey Dale, you will see
…

  Jake Walsh shifted on the hard ground but continued to watch the Dale residence, as Ross had done the day before. Unconsciously brushing an insect off his shirtsleeve, he grimaced at the unrelenting heat of morning and extended his arm to grasp the spyglass lying beside him. His grimace turned into a full-fledged frown. As he had countless times since he had arrived on the hillside outside Tombstone at dawn, he raised the glass to his eye and muttered a low curse under his breath.

    Damn Ross and his schemes! He had taken over the job of watching the Dale household for a day at Ross's request, but he wasn't cut out to be a watchdog, or anything close to it. If Ross was so interested in Devina Dale's comings and goings, he would have to watch her himself after this.

    Jake gave a low snort as his intense scrutiny revealed nothing more than a large woman emerging from the back door to dump rubbish into a bin in the yard.

    Disgusted, Jake lowered the spyglass to the ground beside him. He took off his hat and ran his hand impatiently through his light, sun-streaked hair. His fair complexion felt flushed, and he wiped the perspiration from his brow with the back of his arm. He didn't like the way things were going. He didn't like it at all.

    Damn, he had never seen Ross so intense, so completely wrapped up in his thoughts. He hadn't been the same since he'd found out the blonde on the coach was Devina Dale. Jake paused to amend that thought. No, Ross hadn't really been the same   since he met Dale girl. He had been having trouble getting her out of his mind even before he found out who she was, but now that he knew… Jake shook his head.

    He didn't like Ross's plans for the girl, either. They were too risky. If things went as he planned, they'd have Dale just where they wanted him, but there was no way they'd be able to keep the girl identifying them afterward. Hell, then they'd be on the run and they'd

    But who was that? Reaching for the spyglass, Jake focused it on the small figure approaching the Dale residence. He caught his breath as the figure moved quickly around to the rear entrance of the house and paused at the door. Within a few minutes, the large woman responded. After an exchange of words, the woman pushed open the door to allow the smaller woman entrance.

    Jake paused for a long moment before again lowering his glass to the ground. Continuing a squinting, unconscious surveillance of the house, he shook his head in disbelief. If this meant what he thought it meant…

    Jake gave a short laugh, which brought a spark to the weary blue of his eyes. Ross Morrison was one lucky bastard! Hell, maybe this was a sign! Maybe Ross wasn't so crazy after all. Maybe this whole thing would work out to their advantage, just like Ross said.

    His flash of optimism fading just as quickly as it had come, Jake took a deep breath. The only thing he knew for sure was that he was in this thing with Ross to the end.

    Adjusting his position on the hard ground and cursing the heat of the morning sun, Jake raised the glass and continued his scrutiny of the Dale household.

    Anyway, right now, it looked as if things were starting to go Ross's way.

    Bright morning sunlight shone through the windows of the staid, dour room that served as her father's library as Devina, her light eyes wide, turned away from the diminutive Oriental girl and faced her father. Her attempt to control her astonishment was decidedly inadequate.

    "Father, you must be joking!"

    Harvey Dale's brow knit into a frown. "Why would I be joking? Lai Hua comes very highly recommended. She will   serve as your personal maid and also as your guide and companion until you become more accustomed to Tombstone. I am assured that her work will be more than satisfactory."

    Darting a quick smile toward the petite girl who listened to their exchange in silence, Devina tried once more. "I don't doubt that Lai Hua will be adequate as a personal maid, but, Father, really, she's so tiny! Do you really expect that she's capable of providing protection against the lawless elements of Tombstone you seemed so determined to shield me from? Truly, should she and I walk together on the streets, I think it would be I, rather than she, who would need to do the protecting."

    "Nonsense!"

    "Father, take another look, please! I stand at least three inches taller than this woman, and top her weight by at least twenty pounds."

    Harvey darted an annoyed glance toward the Oriental girl, who listened patiently as she was being discussed. In truth, he had been as startled as his daughter when Molly had ushered Lai Hua into the library a short time earlier, stating that she had identified herself as Miss Dale's new personal maid.

    He had surveyed the young Oriental woman carefully. She was indeed small, under five feet, but for all her size, he had noted a keen intelligence in her expression. His subsequent interview had assured him that the girl was extremely well spoken, with only the slightest trace of the accent that made conversation with some of her race almost unintelligible. She was also surprisingly well educated and seemingly of a cheerful disposition that had not been discouraged by his darkest frowns.

    Having satisfied himself that Lai Hua met those particular qualifications he had stipulated, he had stepped back and surveyed her physical appearance once more. Small, yes, but not as young as she appeared. A quiet maturity shone on her youthful face that doubtless far surpassed her age in years. He also sensed an instinctive loyalty, which he felt he could well manipulate to his advantage. The other qualification, which she filled admirably, was cleanliness. She had not about her the odor he had come to associate with the common laborer. Instead, she smelled rather pleasant, far better than Molly, who sometimes offended his sensitive nose severely. Yes, she smelled of some flower. Was it jasmine, or perhaps white lilacs?

    A few more pointed questions determined that China Mary   had indeed chosen well. The girl knew Tombstone, was well aware of the boundaries set for the upper-class citizen. She would be an excellent guide and, he suspected, an amusing companion for Devina. Yes, China Mary had better instincts than he realized. This quiet, unobtrusive girl would doubtless function with greater efficiency on the job than the overbearing woman he himself had selected to chaperon Devina on her trip west.

    Having finally decided that the girl would do, Harvey found himself annoyed to realize that Devina considered his efforts a joke. He responded sharply to his daughter's comment.

    ''Devina, I am well aware that Lai Hua is shorter and slighter than you are, but I did not hire her as your bodyguard! If that had been my intention, I could just as well have assigned Molly to accompany you around town."

    Devina was becoming annoyed. "Well, what was your intention, Father? You were so concerned about my welfare yesterday that you refused to consent to my walking the streets alone."

    "My intention was to see that you did not stray into areas of the town that are unsuitable for a young woman of your upbringing."

    "Father…"

    "Kindly do not use that tone on me, Devina. Tombstone is unlike any town to which you've been exposed in your sheltered life."

    "Father, I have not been as sheltered as you seem to think."

    "Indeed?"

    The arching of her father's brow was more than she could endure, and Devina threw up her hands. Muttering low under her breath, she forced a smile. "All right, Father, anything you say. Lai Hua looks to be a very pleasant person, and I approve of your choice. Now, may we get on with breakfast?"

    "Yes, let's get on with it." Nodding at his daughter's sudden acceptance of his judgment, Harvey dismissed Lai Hua with a careless wave of his hand.

    A few minutes later, Harvey regretted his sharpness and attempted a smile. "In all honesty, Devina, I had hoped to introduce you to Tombstone myself this morning, but I made a late start yesterday and was able to accomplish very little, contrary to my intentions."

    "A late start?"

    His eyes suddenly intent upon his plate, Harvey nodded. "Yes, I… uh… I was deterred by important business, which occupied most of my morning. It left me little time, or energy for that matter."

    Quick to pick up on his hesitation, Devina pressed with concern, "Little energy? Are you feeling unwell, Father?"

    Devina frowned at the almost imperceptible twitch of her father's mustache as he devoted his attention even more intently to his breakfast.

    "Yes, quite well. I think I just… uh… overdid a bit yesterday. In any event, I feel quite well today, and I expect to make considerable headway in discovering those guilty of this assault on Till-Dale Enterprises. Unfortunately, that leaves you to find your way around Tombstone alone this morning, but I would enjoy it very much if you would join me for lunch at the Can-Can Restaurant this afternoon."

    "The Can- Can?"

    "Yes, Lai Hua knows where it is. Shall we meet at noon?"

    "Noon will be fine."

    Obviously pleased with the improved tenor of their exchange, Harvey stood abruptly. "I suppose I shall have to be going if I'm to accomplish all I hope to today. I'll see you at twelve, Devina."

    Emerging onto the street a few moments later, Harvey strode toward Allen Street.

    Devina's pace was brisk as she walked along the busy Tombstone street. Her heels clicked against the boardwalk with each step, the hollow echo of the sound registering in the back of her mind as she smiled inwardly with satisfaction at the many interested glances she drew. But she was accustomed to admiring glances. She was well aware that she was a beautiful woman who excited comment wherever she went, and she had dressed with extreme care for this, her first outing in Tombstone.

    Cocking her head in a fleeting moment of uncertainty, she was again struck with the nagging thought that perhaps the color of her dramatically stylish ensemble was a bit bold, but she had been unable to resist it when she had seen it displayed in the window of Madame
Boneil's
fashionable boutique. Pink had always been one of her favorite colors. It complemented her delicate coloring, the creamy tint of her flawless complexion, the glimmering silver-blond of her hair. If the pink in this particular outfit was a bit brighter than the shade she usually wore, if the black lace inserts in the shoulders and bodice of the close-fitting jacket were a little more revealing than she would have preferred, if the fringe on the draped skirt happened to wave a bit flirtatiously when she walked, it meant very little, since she liked the way she looked.

    Perhaps a bit outrageously, she had also yielded to Madame
Boneil's
urging and bought a saucy chapeau that was little more than a twist of pink silk, black lace, and stiff ebony feathers, which she had frowningly commented to
madame
would be more comfortable on a raven's wing than on her head. But in the end she had been won over by the total effect of
madame's
creation, and had even added to it a pink parasol and matching gloves. Yes, she had wanted to announce to Tombstone and all the people in it that she had arrived, and if she was to judge by the reaction she was exciting on the street, she had more than accomplished her purpose.