The Horseman's Bride (16 page)

“I’m listening.” McCabe had stopped. His eyes flickered toward Clara, but he kept his pistol trained on Tanner. “This better be good, you little bitch,” he muttered.

Clara ignored the epithet. “Think about this,” she said. “A thousand dollars isn’t that much money. A big spender could go through it in no time at all.”

“So?” McCade’s voice dripped contempt. “I’d say that’d be my problem.”

“My horse is worth ten times that,” Tanner interrupted. “Take him and let us go.”

McCade grinned. “I’d pretty much figured that stallion into the deal already. Unless you can come up with a bill of sale, I’d say he’s stolen property, and I have as much right to him as you do.”

“Listen to me!” Clara raised her voice. “This isn’t about the reward or the stallion. This is about the oil.”

That got their attention. Both men were staring at her. Without giving them time to speak, Clara plunged ahead.

“I know you’ve seen it, McCabe. Your tracks were in the bog. And you know that if it’s there, it’s likely under Seavers and Gustavson land as well. Why else
would you have shown up at the ranch with flowers that day, after my accident, if you weren’t trying to court me?”

McCabe looked startled, but the pistol didn’t waver in his hand. “You mentioned something about an offer,” he said coldly.

Clara’s chest felt so tight she could scarcely breathe, let alone talk. She willed herself to speak the words.

“Let Tanner go, and I’ll marry you,” she said. “We can find the preacher first thing tomorrow. My share of the land, and the oil, will be yours. You’ll have all the money a man could ever want. But without me, my father won’t let you anywhere near it.”

“Clara, for God’s sake—” Tanner took a step toward her, but McCabe held him at bay with the pistol.

“Sounds interesting,” he drawled. “But for all I know, soon as this yellow bastard’s gone over the hill you’ll change your mind. How do I know you’ll keep your word?”

Clara was trembling. “I swear it,” she said. “I swear it on Tanner’s life.”

“No!” Tanner lunged toward her, ignoring the pistol. “I’m not leaving you, Clara! McCabe can have me. He can kill me—hellfire, I’ll probably die anyway before long, but you can’t do this. I—”

The butt of McCabe’s pistol crashed into the side of Tanner’s head. The words trailed off as he crumpled to the ground.

“Now…” McCabe turned back to Clara. “Where were we? As I recall, you’d just sworn to become my wife.”

“Only after I know Tanner’s safe.” Clara was trembling.

“Hmm…” McCabe frowned thoughtfully, playing her. “If I were buying an auto, I’d certainly ask for a demonstration ride before I put down the cash. Makes sense to do the same for a woman, don’t you think?”

“What are you saying?” Clara edged back against the tree where he’d tied her, mindful of the trail’s slippery edge.

McCabe walked toward her, using his free hand to unbuckle his belt. His fingers fumbled with the fly of his trousers. “Before I accept your terms, I’d like a little demonstration of what I’ll be getting. Get down on your knees, Miss Clara, and open that pretty mouth. I’m guessing you’ve done this sort of business before.”

“No…” But despite her protest, Clara sank to her knees. Her whole being wanted to shrink away from him, but there was no place to go and he was right there in front of her, fully exposed. She wanted to be sick.

He laughed at her hesitation. “Come on, honey, have a taste. It’s no worse than a lollipop. You might even get to like it.”

“No…please…” Clara begged. But she’d do anything to save Tanner, even this, she reminded herself. She closed her eyes, just wanting this awful nightmare to be over.

McCabe laughed. He was still laughing when Tanner slammed into him from the side, knocking him off balance. The pistol flew out of his hand as he reeled sideways and toppled over the edge of the trail. His
scream echoed through the darkness as he hit the brushy slope below and crashed through the trees.

Startled, a flock of sage grouse exploded out of the scrub. As their cries died into silence, Tanner inched his way back from the rim and managed to sit up. Blood smeared the side of his head where McCabe’s pistol butt had struck. His breath came in gasps.

“Are you all right?” Clara stood and braced herself against the trunk of the aspen where she was tied. Her voice shook.

“As well as could be expected.” Tanner managed a raw laugh. “But I’m afraid McCabe went over the edge with the key to these handcuffs on him. Can you get loose?”

“I’ve been trying the whole time, without much luck. Last year in Denver I saw a Tom Mix movie where his horse chewed through the rope and helped him get away.”

“I don’t think Galahad’s trained to do that. Anyway, he’s up the trail, tied to a tree.” Tanner exhaled raggedly. “Would you really have married that snake?”

“I’d have done anything to save you.” Clara felt herself beginning to crumble. A sob jerked her chest. “I love you so much,” she whispered.

“And I love you, my brave little Clara. But this isn’t a movie. The only happy ending we can hope for is to get you safely home.”

“I won’t leave you like this!” she declared passionately.

He ignored her words. “I’ve got a knife in my boot.
I can’t reach it by myself, but if we work together we should be able to cut through your ropes. Move back over here, away from the edge, and we’ll try it.”

Clara moved carefully to the spot he’d indicated, her back to his. This wasn’t going to be easy, but at least, if she got loose, she could take him back to the cabin while she took the stallion and went for tools to break the handcuffs apart. Even with McCabe gone, Tanner wouldn’t be safe in the open. There were cougars, bears and wolves in these mountains. Mostly they kept out of sight, but a helpless human could be vulnerable prey.

Maneuvering Jace’s boot within reach of Clara’s bound hands was more awkward than either of them expected. Minutes passed as Clara fumbled for the knife.

“This is all so unfair!” she sighed. “You only shot the man to save your—” She broke off as a faint sound reached her ears. “Listen! I hear horses! Somebody’s coming up the trail!”

“Let’s hope the hell they’re friendly,” Tanner muttered, rising and shifting his position to protect her as best he could.

They waited in breathless silence as the riders wound their way closer. Judging from the sound of hooves on the trail, there were at least two horses, maybe three. Whoever was out there at this hour, it wasn’t likely they were up to anything good.

Now Clara could hear the murmur of voices—men’s voices, blessedly familiar. Her heart leaped. “Papa!” she shouted. “Uncle Quint! We’re up here!”

Tanner moved behind her. She heard him mutter something under his breath. It sounded like, “Thank God!”

Moments later, two tall riders came around the bend, trailing Clara’s black gelding. Jace recognized Judd Seavers in the lead. The man behind him was a stranger with dark eyes and thick chestnut hair. His features bore a striking resemblance to Clara’s. Uncle Quint, she had called him.

They were an imposing pair—noble in bearing, fearless in the way they sat their horses, like two knights from the storybooks Jace had loved as a child. He knew instinctively that he could trust them.

He knew, as well, what had to be done. When he’d left Missouri, he’d hoped to keep running indefinitely. But the choices he’d made had finally caught up with him. By accepting Clara’s help, he had placed her in terrible danger. As long as he remained at large, she and her family would be compromised.

For her sake, he had to end this.

Over the past months, Jace had been haunted by the dread of confinement and hanging. All he could do now was face what lay ahead with courage and dignity.

Judd had his knife out before his boots touched the ground. In a matter of seconds he had sliced through the ropes that bound Clara’s hands. She stumbled into his arms. “Oh, Papa, thank heaven you’re here!” she murmured against his shirt.

Quint stood looking on, his face a study in naked
emotion. Jace caught the glimmer of a tear in his eye. It was evident that he cared deeply for his niece.

Clara had pulled away from her father. “How did you know where to look for us?” she asked.

It was Quint who answered. “When we discovered you were gone, and that you’d taken Tarboy, we pieced together what we knew. Your grandmother told us the rest. She didn’t want to break your confidence, but she was worried about you. We all were.”

“It’s my fault.” Jace stepped forward to face the two men. “I was the one who got Clara into this mess. She’s done nothing wrong. She was only trying to help me.”

“No!” Clara moved to his side. “Tanner didn’t want my help, but I insisted on coming up here to bring his horse. He saved my life tonight. McCabe would have killed us both.”

“We found McCabe’s body lower down, not far from the trail.” Judd’s stormy expression confirmed that he’d noticed McCabe’s unfastened trousers. “We’ll be asking you some questions about what happened.”

“No need for questions. I’ll tell you everything.” Jace felt Clara’s fingers tighten around his arm as he spoke. “I’m wanted for killing my sister’s husband back in Missouri. His friends put out a one-thousand-dollar reward for me, dead or alive, and McCabe was trying to collect it. Clara got caught where she never should have been, and he used her as bait to draw me into a trap.”

“You killed your brother-in-law?” It was Quint asking the question. “There are two sides to every story. I’d like to hear yours.”

“Clara knows the story. She can tell you later.” Jace felt an unaccustomed sense of peace. He’d been running long enough. It was time to come clean and face the consequences before he brought any more grief to this good family.

“I’ll tell you now!” Clara exclaimed. “The man was an abusive monster. Tanner shot him to save his sister’s life! You’ve got to help me get these cuffs off him so he can get away from here.”

“No.” Jace spoke with icy calm but his heart was aching for her. “I love you, Clara, but I won’t implicate your father and uncle in my trouble. I’ve done you and your family enough harm already. It’s time I face up to what happened and let a judge decide whether it was right or wrong.”

“No!” she gasped. “What if they hang you? You told me yourself you couldn’t get a fair trial in Missouri! This can’t be right!”

He continued as if she hadn’t spoken. “Take Galahad home and keep him, Clara. He’s yours. As for me—” He turned to face Quint and Judd. “Gentlemen, I’d consider it an honor to have the two of you escort me to jail.”

C
lara took the stallion at a careful pace down the mountain trail. By the time she reached the foothills, pewter light was streaking the eastern sky. In an hour’s time the sun would rise on a bleak and anxious day.

By now, Judd, Quint and Tanner would be reaching the outskirts of town. Tanner would be mounted on Tarboy, his hands still cuffed behind his back. She imagined them stopping by Sam Farley’s place to turn over the prisoner and let Sam know about McCabe. Once the marshal had grumbled himself awake, the four men would proceed to the jail, where the handcuffs would be removed and Tanner would be led to a cell. Clara had imagined the closing of that iron-barred door a hundred times on her way down the hill—a cold, metallic clang, as final as a death knell. She would hear it in her sleep.

Not that she’d given up—that would be unthinkable. She was already preparing to fight for the man she
loved. The first thing she planned to do was contact the one person who might be able to help him.

Emerging from the foothills, Clara spurred the stallion to a gallop. The big bay was hers now, the most splendid gift she’d ever received—but under the worst of circumstances. It wasn’t joy she felt as they flew across the open pastures. It was a pulse-pounding urgency. Time was her enemy—and every minute she lost was a minute of Tanner’s life.

The lights were on at the farmhouse. Mary had probably been up all night, worrying and waiting. By the time Clara loped the stallion into the yard, her grandmother had come out onto the porch, clad in a rumpled housedress and an old sweater. She rushed down the steps, her braids frizzy, her face haggard in the wan light.

“Thank the good Lord you’re safe!” she exclaimed. “I’ve been praying for hours! But where are the others? What’s happened?”

Clara slid out of the saddle and looped the reins over the hitching rail. “Please phone my mother and let her know everybody’s all right. I’ll tell you the rest as soon as I’ve caught my breath. But before that, I need to make one telephone call.”

“Coffee’s on the stove.” Mary didn’t waste time scolding. “Pour yourself a cup while I call your mother. Don’t you want to talk to her yourself?”

Clara shook her head. “She’ll be upset, and I need some time. Tell her I’ll be home soon.”

Mary bustled back into the house. Clara followed more slowly, stretching her tired limbs as she walked. The
twinge of soreness between her thighs brought back the memory of Tanner’s loving. No regrets, she vowed. No regrets ever, no matter what the days ahead might bring.

From the kitchen, Clara could hear Mary’s voice on the telephone. Leaning against the counter, she poured a mug of coffee and took a sip. The strong black brew jolted her to full alertness. Outside the kitchen window, the birds had begun their awakening calls. Leaden gray clouds hung heavy in the morning sky.

“You said you need to make a call.” Mary had come back into the kitchen. “Go ahead. I’ll fix you some breakfast.”

Clara moved out into the shadowed parlor where the phone was mounted on a wall near the door. Her hand shook as she picked up the receiver and waited for the local operator’s voice.

“This is long-distance,” she said. “I don’t have the number, but I need to speak with Mrs. Hollis Rumford in Springfield, Missouri. It’s an emergency.”

An eternity seemed to pass while she waited, fiddling with a strand of her hair while she listened to the buzzes and clicks on the line and the muffled exchanges between operators. At last, so faintly she had to strain to hear it, she heard the ringing on the far end of the connection.

“Hello?” The female voice was low and throaty through the static.

“I need to speak with Mrs. Rumford, please.”

“This is Mrs. Rumford. But I can barely hear you. What is it you want?” Her tone was chilly.

Clara shouted into the receiver. “My name is Clara Seavers. I’m a friend of your brother’s. He’s been arrested.”

“Jace? What happened? Where is he?” The voice had become breathy, almost frantic. “You can’t let them take him away till I can get there!”

“We’ll try. He’s in jail in Dutchman’s Creek, Colorado.”

“Dutchman’s Creek? How do I—?”

“You can change trains in Denver. There’s a station here. Tell the stationmaster to call the Seavers Ranch. We’ll pick you up. We can talk then.”

The static on the line was getting worse. Clara could barely hear. “I’ll be on the next train west!” Ruby Rumford shouted. “And I’ll be bringing my lawyer!”

“You’ll be bringing
what?
”

Clara waited for an answer, but the line had gone dead. Hanging up the receiver, she turned to find Mary standing at the entrance to the kitchen, her hands on her hips.

“There’s bacon and eggs in the skillet,” she said. “Come sit down at the table, girl. You’ve got a lot of talking to do.”

By the time Clara had ridden home, let the stallion loose to graze and calmed her frantic mother, it was midmorning. By the time she’d bathed and changed for the day, Quint and Judd were just returning from town.

They came through the gate and up the drive on their tired horses. Tarboy trailed behind on a lead, his saddle empty. Watching from the porch, with Annie and a dev
astated Katy beside her, Clara felt an ache rise in her throat.

She ran to meet them by the barn. She arrived as they were climbing out of their saddles. “Don’t worry about the horses,” she said. “I’ll take care of them. That’s the least I can do.”

Judd’s eyes were bloodshot with weariness. “Fine,” he said. “Is your mother all right?”

“Yes, I told her everything.”

Well, not quite everything
, Clara amended silently. She was still pondering her mother’s response to this latest misadventure. “You’re a grown woman, Clara,” she’d said. “Whatever you’ve done, you’re responsible for your choices and their consequences.” It was almost as if she knew and understood what had happened.

But it was Tanner Clara was most concerned about. Quint answered her unspoken question. “Tanner’s in jail. Sam Farley locked him up this morning. There was no trouble.”

“Did he say anything—anything for me?”

“Only that you weren’t to come and visit him. He didn’t want you to be seen coming and going from the jail. He strikes me as a proud man, a decent man. And your grandmother seemed to think the world of him. He didn’t say much on the way to town, but I believe what you told me about him. I’d be interested in hearing the whole story.”

“I’ll tell you after you’ve had a chance to rest,” Clara said. “This morning, as soon as I got to Grandma’s, I telephoned his sister in Missouri. She’ll be on her way
here by train. I think she said she was bringing a lawyer.”

“Good idea,” Judd commented.

“She wants Tanner kept in Dutchman’s Creek until she can get here. Will that be a problem?”

“Shouldn’t be,” Judd said. “Between the paperwork for the extradition and the inquest into McCabe’s death he’ll likely be here for at least a week.”

“The inquest?” Clara felt a jab of fear.

Judd gave her a stern look. “You broke the law by helping Tanner, Clara. But Sam’s willing to keep you out of it if he can. Quint and I will testify that we found McCabe below the slope with his neck broken and his pants undone. Sam says, as far as he’s concerned, the man was pissing off the side of the trail and stumbled over the edge. Let’s hope that’ll be the end of it.”

“But the marshal knows what really happened? He knows I was there?” Clara asked.

“He does. But he says a young girl in love is entitled to a few mistakes. And I judge him to be a wise old man.”

Clara stood with the horses as her two fathers walked toward the house. Only as they went inside did her knees begin to shake. She sagged against Tarboy, pressing her face into his warm, satiny neck.

Never in her life had she known Judd Seavers to bend the rules. But he had allowed the rules to be bent for his daughter. And her mother had not only forgiven her but set her free. To be surrounded by so much love was almost more than she could stand. It would have been
easier if they’d railed at her, lectured her, sent her to bed without supper for what she’d done. Clara had never imagined that growing up could be so complicated.

A young girl in love is entitled to a few mistakes
.

Maybe she was finally beginning to understand her parents.

For the next three days, time crawled. Clara’s menstrual period started the day after her return, dashing her meager hope that she might be carrying Tanner’s baby. She’d imagined how it might be, having a child with his blazing blue eyes and quick mind. But she’d known it wasn’t likely, and she’d been right. An unaccustomed sadness crept over her, deepening with each day. She ached for the sight of him, yearned for his touch. But he’d left strict orders that she wasn’t to visit him in jail. To try, and have him turn her away, would crush her.

The inquest into the death of Lyle McCabe went off without a hitch. As Judd had predicted, McCabe’s death was ruled an accident. His body was released by the coroner and buried, without ceremony, in the city graveyard. By the time the hole was filled in, most of McCabe’s wild cronies had left town.

Judd and Quint had ridden into Dutchman’s Creek to testify at the inquest. On the way home, Judd had picked up his newly repaired Model T at the garage. He also planned to visit the land office to apply for mineral rights to the bog. Quint had gone home ahead of him with the horses.

Clara had been watching the drive all morning. She
trailed Quint into the barn and began unsaddling Judd’s tall buckskin. “Did you see Tanner?” she asked him. “Did you talk to him?”

“He wasn’t at the inquest.” Quint hefted the saddle off Tarboy and laid it over the side of a stall. “But we did stop by the jail to see if he needed anything. He said to tell you he’s doing fine.”

“He would say that. He’d say it even if he was miserable, as I’m sure he is.” Clara toweled the damp sweat off the horse’s back. “Did you tell him his sister was coming?”

Quint took a moment to answer. “We did. And his reaction was a bit surprising. He said he didn’t want her involved—practically demanded that we stop her any way we could.”

“It’s too late for that—and if my first impression counts for much, Ruby Rumford is one unstoppable woman.” Clara sighed. “Why on earth wouldn’t he want her to come, especially if she’s bringing a lawyer for him?”

“I was wondering the same thing. Maybe the man’s too proud to accept any kind of help. Or maybe…” Quint paused to brush a horsefly off his cheek. “Maybe she knows something—some secret he wants kept quiet. After all, if his story is true, and there’s no reason to doubt it, she was the only eyewitness to the shooting.”

“Maybe if I went to the jail and tried to talk to him—”

Quint laid his hands on her shoulders. His deep brown eyes seemed to wrap her in warmth. This man
was her father and he knew it, Clara reminded herself. Whatever had happened in the past, this blood tie would always be a bond between them.

“Don’t do it, sweet girl,” he said. “You’ll only get your heart broken.”

“You’re the one who told me that broken hearts can heal.”

“I know. But Tanner doesn’t want you to see him behind bars. And he doesn’t want anyone interfering. I’ve never seen a man so determined to meet fate on his own terms.”

“But if they send him back to Missouri he’ll be hanged!”

“I know. And he knows it, too. His best hope is to get the trial moved somewhere else. Not much chance of it, but maybe that’s what his sister’s attorney will try to do.”

Clara’s spirit lightened. “Do you really think—?”

Quint shook his head. “Don’t get your hopes up. Even if he isn’t sentenced to hang, he could still go to prison for the rest of his life. It’s clear that he loves you, but he doesn’t want you hurt. Letting him see your pain would be the cruelest thing you could do to him.”

Clara closed her eyes, her legs unsteady beneath her. Maybe it was time she faced the truth—no matter how much she might want to save Tanner, there was nothing she could do.

But love didn’t work that way. She couldn’t allow Tanner to give up and go like a lamb to the slaughter. She would fight at his side until there was nothing left to fight for.

She looked up at Quint. “I need to see him again. Will you drive me to town tomorrow? Maybe if you’re with me it will ease things a little.”

“You’re sure you want to do this?” Quint’s gaze probed hers. “You might be sorry.”

Clara knew what he meant. Tanner was capable of saying cruel things just to push her away. He’d done it before, but she’d seen through him and understood. Whatever he said or did, she would understand again. But that didn’t mean he was going to get away with it.

“I’m sure,” she insisted. “And after I’ve seen him, I’ll want to stop by the train station. If his sister caught an early train out of Springfield, she could be arriving as soon as tomorrow afternoon.”

Quint pondered the idea for a moment, then nodded. “Do you think Judd will trust me with his precious Model T?” he asked.

Clara managed a halfhearted laugh. “Maybe, but only if you promise not to let me drive.”

They left the next day, after a lunch that Clara was too anxiety-ridden to eat. Annie had been wanting to visit a friend in town, so she went along as well, sitting in the front seat of the auto with Quint while Clara sat in the back. Her lively patter eased the long, bumpy ride. Quint had almost certainly told his wife about Clara’s relationship with Tanner, but Annie was the soul of discretion. She would never betray a confidence.

Unfortunately, the Model T was less of a pleasure.
Twice in the course of the trip its engine sputtered asthmatically, coughed, and coasted to a stop at the side of the road. Between them, Quint and Clara were able to tinker with the car and get it going, but by the time they reached the outskirts of town they were both spattered with grease and had wasted an extra forty-five minutes.

Clara’s stomach had clenched into an ugly knot. Maybe this was a mistake. Tanner had said he didn’t want to see her and hadn’t wanted her to call his sister. Now she could be making yet another mistake. What if he simply turned his back and refused to hear her?