A Texas Sky (Yellow Rose Trilogy) (40 page)

was a polite man, but all business. Some of his terms confused

Darvi, but she asked enough questions to understand

what her role would be the next day.

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"All of this will be quite unnecessary," he said more

than two hours later, his papers already in his case, "if Mr.

Silk will simply admit to guilt--something we don't

expect. But one can always hope."

Darvi could think of nothing to say to this, but something

niggled at the back of her mind, even as the man

stood, thanked her, nodded to Dakota, and went on his

way. Dakota, good at his word, was with Darvi the whole

time. He had been silent during the proceedings and was

still quiet, giving Darvi time to think. A few minutes later

she knew what was bothering her.

"This is all about Jared Silk, isn't it?"

"What do you mean?"

"No charge is being brought against Seth and Eliot for

abducting me."

"Not at this time. Your testimony is about their involvement

with Silk."

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Darvi looked thoughtful and said with quiet conviction,

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"I'm going to have my say in that courtroom, Dakota. Even

if none of the lawyers asks me about it, I'm going to tell

them what happened to me."

Dakota smiled. "Go to it."

That smile was all Darvi needed until she had one more

thought.

"Dakota," she asked, "why aren't Seth and Eliot in jail?

Why is Seth allowed to roam the streets and look for me?"

"Because the law is imperfect, Darvi. I also suspect that

his lawyer might have had something to do with it, along

with the fact that you weren't here to file any charges."

Darvi knew she would have to be satisfied with this.

She wasn't really content with it, but right now nothing

could change her helplessness in the situation.

"I guess we'd better head back to my aunf s," Darvi was

saying as the door suddenly opened.

"Oh! You are here," Renee spoke with relief as she

entered. "I wasn't certain what could be taking so long, and

I had myself convinced that Seth Redding had found you."

"He might find her," Dakota put in calmly, "but he

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won't take her."

Renee looked up at the Ranger's face and suddenly

knew why Darvi was so trusting of him. Darvi's aunt liked

Dakota---she liked him a lot--but there was no missing the

steel in his eyes right now. Renee almost shook her head.

She would not choose to tangle with this man if she was on

the wrong side of the law. She thought anyone who did

was a fool.

"Well, lef s go home," she said quietly, simply wanting

to see Darvi safe behind closed doors.

"That's fine," Dakota confirmed, "but if you don't mind,

I'll answer the front door for the rest of the day."

All Renee could do was nod, but in her heart she was

more determined than ever to see Darvi marry this man.

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Sunday turned out to be a very quiet day, which made

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the noise and crowded courtroom all the harder to take the

next morning. It seemed that every person in town had

turned out for this event, and Darvi knew that, as his witnesses,

if the lawyer had not saved seats for them in the

front row, they would have been outside with dozens of

others who were denied entrance.

The courtroom was set up with a center section of seating

flanked by two angled sections. Renee, Dakota, and Darvi

had seats in the far right side. Once situated, Darvi settled

her skirts around her, Dakota on her right and her aunt on

her left, before glancing around. She had barely shifted her

eyes when she spotted Seth in the far left section. The way

the seats angled, they had nearly perfect views of each other.

He was looking straight at her, his eyes reflecting caring

and interest. Darvi didn't look at him for long but shifted

her own gaze back to the front. Dakota, on the other hand/

kept watching.

The moment Darvi turned away, Seth leaned and spoke

to a man--assumably his lawyer--who shook his head no.

He then wrote a note and gave it to his lawyer. He read it,

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handed it right back, and once again shook his head no. At

that point Dakota turned away, but not before seeing that

Seth's eyes came right back to Darvi, who was still watching

for the judge to enter. That the man was desperate to see the

woman across from him was only too dear.

Dakota gave one more glance Seth's way, and that was

when he spotted Cassy and the children in the front row of

the middle section. All three looked pale and sober, and

Dakota was glad for Darvi's tender heart. His own felt a

little broken as well. He had chosen to deceive Cassy in

order to rescue Darvi. Given a choice, he would do it all

over again, but it wasn't something he enjoyed.

The judge finally arrived. He was a large man with stern

eyes, and the audience was very quiet as he took his place

and cast those penetrating eyes over the room. No time

was wasted, however, and in less than five minutes, things

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were underway. Mr. Danby, whose strict business manner

seemed to have melted into something a bit mote dramatic,

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called many witnesses forward to testify, but the defense

offered no cross examination until Annabelle Hewett was

called to the stand.

Darvi watched her aunt move to the witness stand in

graceful confidence. The defense was out to prove that the

reporter's testimony, which was quite damaging, was

nothing more than the rantings of an overemotional

female. Their tactic fell very flat. Renee kept her cool,

calmly answering all questions and putting holes in several

theories. From her vantage point, Darvi thought Jared Silk

looked angry enough to kill.

The day moved on slowly, and Darvi, to her surprise,

wasn't actually called to the stand until the next morning.

She thought she caught the softening of the judge's eyes at

one point, but in her nervousness she couldn't be certain.

She took the stand and tried not to feel the awful pounding

of her heart

"State your full name, please."

This came from Mr. Danby, and Darvi did as she was

told.

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"Darvi Leigh Wingate."

"Address, Miss Wingate?"

"49 Brighton Road, St Louis, Missouri."

"Thank you, Miss Wingate. Correct me if I'm wrong, but

were you not taken against your will from a train in the

Aurora train station on the sixth day of September?"

"Yes, sir, I was."

"And am I right in thinking mat two men took you from

the train?"

"Yes, sir."

"And am I also right in believing that those two men are

in the courtroom today?"

Darvi's heart froze and then pounded on, making her

feel breathless. She was certain she had told him this. Had

he not heard her, or had he misunderstood?

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Mr. Danby, who thought she would answer immediately,

seemed to freeze as well. He looked at Darvi's

stunned face and tried again.

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"Would you like to me repeat the question?"

"Yes, please."

"Can you point out the two men who took you from the

train?"

Darvi's heart sank. "No, I cannot"

Mr. Danby blinked.

"Maybe you need a little more time," he said, his face

going slightly red, his eyes showing some strain. "Look

around the courtroom again. Take all the time you need."

Darvi had all she could do not to look at Dakota and

nowhere else, but she made herself take stock of the entire

room. She had not been with those men for very long, but

she was very sure they were not in the room. She looked

back to Mr. Danby.

"Did you see mem?"

Darvi began to shake her head no and then verbally

answered.

"You're sure?" Mr. Danby tried'again, but Jared Silk's

lawyer had had enough and came to his feet

"The woman has more than answered the question,

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your honor. What more could the man need?"

The judge waved him back down.

"Do you have another line of questioning, Mr. Danby?"

the judge asked, his tone almost bored.

That man came just short of tugging on his collar.

"No, your honor," he admitted at last

"Your witness, Mr. Robbins," the judge said to Jared's

attorney.

"Thank you, your honor."

Darvi watched him come forward, a kind smile on his

face, but it didn't fool her. She knew that all men had a

right to a fair trial, but this man was out for blood.

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"Now then Miss Wingate, there seems to be a bit of a

misunderstanding here. You don't even know Jared Silk,

do you?"

"No, sir, I don't."

"Have you even been into his bank or laid eyes on him

before today?"

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"No, sir."

"So anything you might have heard about Jared Silk is

what you've read in the newspaper or been told by

someone else. Isn't that right?"

"Yes."

The man's smile was just short of benevolent as he said,

"That will be all."

"You're dismissed, Miss Wingate," the judge told her.

Darvi looked down just then and into Dakota's eyes.

While he held her gaze, he raised his chin.

"Your honor," Darvi said a bit loudly, causing the judge

to turn in surprise.

"Yes, Miss Wingate?"

"I would beg your indulgence, sir. I do have something to

say, if I could just say it without having to answer questions."

"This witness has been dismissed!" Mr. Robbins nearly

shouted, his calm face deserting him in a flash. Even Jared

came to his feet

"Sit down, both of you," the judge said in a frigid voice.

"I want to hear what the lady has to say."

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Darvi's eyes were huge in her pale face as she turned to

face the judge, who was leaning toward her in full attention.

Darvi made herself swallow and start

'If s true, your honor, that I've never met Jared Silk, and

that the men who took me from the train are not here today,

but the two men who held me captive against my will are

here today and have told me they work for Jared Silk."

Darvi glanced their way and kept on. "Their names are

Seth Redding and Eliot McDermott I never saw the two

men from the train again, but Mr. Redding and Mr. McDermott

kept me in an apartment and made it very clear that I

couldn't leave until I agreed to meet with Jared Silk."

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"Why would they do that if you don't know the man?"

"They thought I was Annabelle Hewett, and even when