The Reluctant Bride (43 page)

“I hate him. I wish he was dead.”

Russ could sympathize. It would have been easy to hate Stocker, blame everything on him, but that wouldn’t fix anything.

“Don’t think about him. Think instead about yourself, about what you want to learn, what you want to do.”

“Is that what you did?”

“Not at first. I spent several years in prison before I learned not to waste my time on anger and hate. The boys and I decided to put the past behind us, to concentrate on building something here. It wasn’t easy, but we did it.”

And now he was ready for the next stage, a family, but he knew he’d never have one without Tanzy. Her leaving hurt, but her betrayal, her working for Stocker, hurt even worse. He couldn’t understand it. She wasn’t a cruel person, but she couldn’t have come up with anything that could have hurt him more. This was yet another time when a woman who was important to him had turned to a Pullet instead. What was wrong with him that made a man like Stocker Pullet preferable?

He was young and better looking, but Stocker was richer and more influential. He tried to do the right thing while Stocker forced people to do what he wanted. He couldn’t understand why Tanzy couldn’t see through Stocker. He guessed it was just another case of him not being able to understand women. His record was truly dismal.

But even as he reached that conclusion he rejected it. He didn’t understand what had gone wrong, but things had been different this time. They did understand each other. Something had happened to change her mind. She had been upset that he would burn Stocker’s buildings in retaliation, but that didn’t explain why she would go to work for Stocker, a man she disliked. There was something here he needed to figure out before his future slipped through his fingers.

“I don’t know what I want to do,” Tardy said. “Miss Gallant said I ought to get more schooling, maybe even college, but Aunt Ethel doesn’t want me back.”

“You stay here and do a good job and we’ll see about some more schooling.”

“I can’t get ready for something like that without help. Miss Gallant is the only one who can help me.”

“Talk to Oren. Maybe he can help,” Russ suggested. “Right now I think we ought to go back and eat our supper.”

“Welt isn’t such a terrible cook, but he’ll never take the place of Miss Gallant.”

That was the problem. Nobody could take Tanzy’s place.

The last week had been one of the most interesting in Tanzy’s life. She’d taken up her position as hostess in Stocker’s saloon. At first the men didn’t know how to treat her. Some had tried to act like she was one of the girls who sold drinks and dances. Tanzy quickly set them straight on that. She didn’t sell dances, she didn’t sell drinks, and she would not be mauled. She started carrying a small fan to use to rap offending hands. Even when drunk, the men could feel the sharp discomfort across their knuckles.

Some avoided her, unsure of what to do. When that happened, she could go up to the man, start him talking, and soon beckon one of the other women to keep him company. Some attempted to treat her with such formality she had to exert herself to get them to relax and enjoy themselves. She quickly figured out Stocker didn’t need her, that he’d only hired her because he liked doing anything he could to anger Russ, but she wanted to keep her position long enough to find out what was going on.

To that end she encouraged everyone to talk to her. A few beers, a few smiles, and a sympathetic ear and there wasn’t much most men wouldn’t tell her. She went to her bed every evening weary of it. She asked them about their lives, their families, their work. She asked them to tell her about the West, not neglecting any details. She asked about the rustlers because she’d been told they were lawless killers and that wasn’t at all what she was used to. She learned a few things, none of it very useful. Cattle were being stolen from everyone, but not enough to threaten anybody’s livelihood. There hadn’t been any robberies since the attempt on the stage. The men who’d tried to kill Russ wouldn’t say who hired them.

A stranger came to talk with Stocker one night just after she was supposed to have left. She had gone into the office where she kept her things and heard a voice she didn’t recognize. That wouldn’t have meant anything if she hadn’t heard Stocker say Russ’s name.

She froze, listening intently. She couldn’t tell what the other man was saying, but apparently what he said made Stocker angry for he started shouting. She couldn’t make out a lot of what he said because the other man was speaking, too, but it was clear he was talking about Russ and stealing cattle.

He had to be talking about stealing Russ’s cattle.

Tanzy knew Stocker hated Russ and wanted to get rid of him, but she’d never considered the possibility that Stocker would hire someone to steal Russ’s cattle. Or did she have it wrong? Had Stocker hired someone to rustle cattle from everybody so he could blame it on Russ? That possibility seemed even more farfetched until she considered the depth of Stocker’s hatred for Russ. He’d said he wouldn’t be happy until Russ was dead. Getting him convicted and hanged as a rustler and a killer was a way to do that.

Tanzy waited to hear more, but the man left. She hurried to leave the office but only saw his back. Stocker was still in his office. She stood there trying to think what to do next. It wouldn’t do any good to face Stocker with her accusations or go to the sheriff with her suspicions. She needed some proof Stocker was behind the rustling, but she had no idea how to get it.

If she could search Stocker’s office, maybe she could find something to take to the sheriff or even the commander at the fort, but Stocker kept his office and his desk locked. She didn’t know what she would do, but she would think of something. She’d shoot Stocker herself before she allowed him to cause Russ to be hanged. Maybe that made her as bad as her father and brothers, but she didn’t care. She was fighting for her future.

Tardy, what are you doing here?”

“I came to ask if you’d teach me some more.”

She hadn’t been able to sleep after last night. Unable to stay cooped up in her room, she’d left the hotel early and walked down to the schoolhouse so she could be alone and have some time to think.

“You must have gotten up mighty early to be here at this hour.”

“I stayed with Aunt Ethel last night.”

“I thought she wouldn’t let you back in the house.”

“She didn’t know. I snuck in after dark.”

“Somebody’s bound to tell her they’ve seen you.”

“I don’t care. Russ said he’d see about me getting some extra schooling, but I need somebody to teach me so I’ll be ready. I came to ask if you could help me.”

An idea occurred to Tanzy. “I’ll help, but you’ve got to help me, too.”

“How can I do that?”

Tanzy told him what she’d heard.

“You mean you still love Russ?” Tardy exclaimed, his face lighting up. “You’re not leaving him?”

“Of course I’m not leaving him. I was angry at first, but—”

Tardy threw himself at her, knocking the breath and the rest of her sentence out of her. “I
told
Russ you loved him, that all he had to do was ask you to come back.”

Tanzy laughed as she pried Tardy’s arms from around her waist. “What did he say?”

Some of Tardy’s excitement faded. “He said he had never understood women, not his mother, his sister, or you, so maybe it was best that he never got married. But he didn’t mean it. He’s been going around looking like he lost his best friend. He doesn’t even complain about Welt’s food. Tim swears at least once a day he’s going to kidnap you and bring you back. If he knew that you—”

“You can’t breathe a word to a soul.”

“Why?”

“Because it would ruin everything. You’ve got to act like you’re still mad at me. People will tell me more if they think I don’t like Russ. They know you do, so you have to pretend to be coming to me only because there’s nobody else. Until we find out what’s going on, you can’t tell anybody what we’re doing.”

Tardy’s eyes shone with eagerness. “What do you want me to do?”

“We’ve got to find out what Stocker’s plans are so we can stop him. I’ve tried to get into his office, but it’s always locked with a padlock. He’s got a padlock on his desk, too, so there’s no use thinking you can pry it open without splitting the wood.”

“Can you steal the keys?”

“I don’t know where he keeps the keys, but that’s not what I want you to do. I need to know when that man comes to see him again. I want you to study every night in the room where I keep my things. When anybody goes into Stocker’s office, come let me know. That means you’ll have to be very quiet and stay awake.”

“Where am I going to stay?”

“Do you think you could convince your aunt to let you move back in with her?”

“Why would you want me to do that?”

“It’ll look better. Besides, she hates me, so no one will suspect you’re helping me.”

“She hates me, too.”

“She was just angry at you for revealing she had wanted to marry Russ. I expect that hurt her pride. Did you bring any books?”

“No, but there’s plenty in the schoolhouse.”

“Then let’s go in and get started.”

Tanzy had to wait only two nights for the man to return, but she wouldn’t have known it if she hadn’t taken the precaution of checking on Tardy at least once an hour. She’d found him asleep on two occasions that evening. Clearly he was not one for late-night revels. She didn’t see him beckon to her until one of the men asked when Stocker had started letting beardless boys in the saloon after midnight.

“I’m helping him with some studies,” she explained. “Apparently he’s got a problem.”

“I’ve got a problem, too,” one of the men said.

“You’ll have a bigger one if you tell me what it is,” Tanzy said as she got up and left the table.

“I told you to watch what you say,” one of the men said in tones that were neither soft or dulcet. “That’s a mighty particular lady. She don’t put up with any rough stuff.”

Tanzy smiled to herself. If she could convince this crowd she was a lady, Ethel wouldn’t have a leg to stand on.

“There’s some guy in there I’ve never seen before,” Tardy said.

“You got a look at him?”

“I was taking a short walk to wake up when he came in. I don’t think he saw me, but I caught a glimpse of his face when he opened the door.”

“Okay. Be very quiet and let’s see if we can hear anything.”

Tanzy put her ear to the wall, but she couldn’t make out anything they said. After several minutes of trying different spots in the wall with no success, she said, “You try listening at the wall. I’m going outside to see if I can hear anything through the keyhole.”

“What if he catches you?”

“I’ll be careful. Now be quiet and listen very hard.”

Tanzy eased open the door and tiptoed into the hall. The noise from the saloon was louder out here. She reached Stocker’s door and put her ear against it but couldn’t make out more than an occasional word. She knelt down and put her ear against the keyhole.

“Have you got the herd together yet?”

“Yeah. Right now my boys are holding a couple of hundred cows, some from every rancher within a hundred miles.”

“Good. Tomorrow I want them on the move so we can drive them into Russ’s valley. I’ll organize a posse from town to arrive before he can chase them out again.”

“We’ll have to kill the guard at the pass.”

“Nobody will care. I’ll see to that.”

Stocker went on, “I’d love to be with you, to see Russ’s face when those cows stampede into his valley, but I have to be in town to lead the posse.”

“Get your sheriff to organize it. It’ll look better if you’re not involved.”

“That’s a good idea. I’ll do that.”

Tanzy started to stand, but her muscles had cramped from being crouched down for so long and she stumbled and fell against the door. The man wrenched it open before she could get her rebellious muscles to work.

“What the hell are you doing?” he demanded.

Chapter Twenty-seven

“I twisted my ankle and was coming to tell Stocker I’m going home,” Tanzy said, scrambling madly to think of some excuse to explain her presence. “I must have stepped on an uneven board because it gave way right as I started to knock on his door.”

The man gave her a hard look, but he reached out to take her arm and help her stand. She might have gotten away with it if Tardy hadn’t burst out of the other room at that moment. “What are you doing to her?” he asked.

“What’s he doing here?” Stocker demanded.

“He studies in the room you gave me,” Tanzy said, hoping to stave off any ill-considered remark Tardy might be encouraged to make.

“Take your hands off her,” Tardy said to the man. “If you hurt her, I’ll tell Russ.”

“Why would Russ care about her?” Stocker asked.

“Tardy thinks I ought to marry him,” Tanzy said. “He won’t believe me when I tell him I want nothing to do with Russ Tibbolt.”

Tardy had finally recovered enough to shut his mouth, but it was too late. The look the man was giving her was definitely menacing. Before she had time to guess what he might do, he’d pushed her inside Stocker’s office, grabbed Tardy, and shoved him in behind her. When Tardy tried to fight, he hit him so hard he knocked the boy out. He pulled his gun and aimed it at Tardy.