The Scoundrel's Bride (30 page)

Jess Tanner was a pleasant-looking man, smaller than Zach, with sandy-colored hair and mustache. A pair of round wire-rimmed spectacles magnified the intelligence reflected in his brown eyes. As the two men shook hands in greeting, they shared a look that spoke of friendship strongly forged.

The light in Mr. Tanner’s eyes altered perceptibly when Zach introduced her as his wife. For a moment, he stood frozen, obviously shocked. Then, throwing Zach a look of surprise that made Morality blush, he bowed over her hand and said, “I’m pleased to meet you, Mrs. Burkett. I always knew when Zachary decided to settle down he’d find a beauty.”

“Thank you, Mr. Tanner,” Morality replied. “My husband has spoken of you often. I’m pleased for the opportunity to meet you.”

“We always like to capitalize on our opportunities, don’t we, wife?” Zach put his arm around her waist and said to Tanner, “My wife is not only beautiful, Jess, she’s famous, too.”

Tanner’s brow arched and Zach explained. “I first met Morality at her uncle’s revival meeting. You may have read about her in the newspapers. She’s called the Miracle Girl, and she has taken Cottonwood Creek by storm.”

“You don’t say.”

“Yep. Morality was cured of blindness by a miracle. The townsfolk think she walks on water.” He smiled down at her as he added, “I do, too.”

Tanner nodded, looking as if some great mystery had been solved. It left Morality feeling a tad uncomfortable, but she couldn’t say precisely why.

Her questionable cooking skills ever on her mind, Morality convinced her husband that dinner that evening should be eaten up at the inn. The meal proved to be a lively affair with Zach arguing politics with both Daniel Gallagher and Tanner. Even Martha and Johnny Kincaid joined in the debate, and eventually Morality felt comfortable enough to offer an opinion or two of her own. It was quite a change from previous experience, when Reverend Uncle disapproved of her having an opinion, much less expressing it.

Talk evolved to the upcoming state-wide races, and conversation became heated when Daniel declared for E. J. Marston. Jess gave a fierce and stirring argument against the congressman, proving to Morality beyond a doubt that his political views were colored by defense of a friend. Zach sat through the discussion without uttering a word, but she could sense the tension escalating inside him. When he abruptly stood and strode from the room, she wasn’t terribly surprised.

She rose, intending to go to him, when Jess put his hand atop hers and said, “Let me, please? I have news that will make him feel better. Do you mind?”

Actually, she did mind. Zach was her husband. It should be she who offered him comfort, not his friend. But Jess Tanner knew her husband better than she; he’d probably know just what words or reference would soothe Zach’s soul. Conscious of the curiosity in the others’ stares, Morality nodded slowly. “If you think that is best.”

“Zach and I planned to go frogging tonight.” Tanner stood. “It’s good and dark now, so I think I’ll see if he wants to head on to the creek.” After thanking Martha for the meal, he left the inn.

Morality finally broke the heavy silence by saying in a falsely bright tone, “Well, they don’t know what they’re missing, do they?” She looked from Daniel to Johnny. “Martha helped me make a pie this morning. Are y’all up to trying it?”

In the kitchen, she cut the pie, making sure to leave two pieces. She was worried about Zach. Perhaps she’d made the wrong decision. Perhaps he needed the comfort of his wife’s arms more than that of his friend’s words.

She shouldn’t need an excuse to go to him. She was his wife. Morality bit at her lip as she gazed at the two remaining slices in the pie tin. “I’ll take them dessert.”

She thought it a decent enough reason. After all, it was a very good pie.

AT A low spot on a feeder creek not far from the Angelina River, spring rains overflowed the banks and created a pond that held water just a few months out of every year. Deer and raccoon tracks dotted its edge. Bobcat and bear occasionally lurked in the nearby forest, stalking their prey, while snakes slithered from the grasses, sliding noiselessly into the dark water.

The air was heavy with the pungent scent of pine, and moonlight cast an eerie, silvery glow across the scene. A bullfrog’s occasional full-throated croak seemed to summon the ghosts. Or the demons.

Back from the water’s edge a lantern bobbed. The light moved closer. Two steps. Four. A pair of eyes glistened golden in the light.
Whump
.

Splash
. Frogs leapt for the pond.

“Did you get him?” Zach asked quietly, holding the lantern toward Jess Tanner.

“Yes, I got him. Didn’t smash him flat, either.” Tanner opened the tow sack and tossed the stunned frog inside with half a dozen of his unfortunate brothers. “You’re pretty worthless for frogging when you’re mad, Zachary. Too much anger behind the club.”

“I don’t like eating frog’s legs anyway. Seems to me if a man wants to eat something that tastes like chicken, he might as well go straight for the bird.” Zach glanced at the sack and added, “Don’t you have enough already? I’m cold, and I’d like to get to bed before midnight.”

Tanner’s smirk was readily visible in the lantern light. He tossed the bois d’arc stick to the ground and asked, “Need a little warming from the little woman?”

“You bet. I am a newlywed, after all.” Zach searched the ground for a place to sit, deciding a flat rock a few yards back from the water’s edge was the best he could do. “I assume you suggested this frog hunt so we could speak privately.” Sitting down, he said, “Talk to me, Jess.”

Tanner swung his tow sack slowly back and forth. “No, I want your story first. I all but swallowed my tongue when you introduced the woman as your wife.”

A rustle in the forest behind them caused both men to turn and look. Zach shrugged. “Probably a coon. Around here they’re brash little critters. Keep an eye on your sack, or they’re liable to snatch it out from under you.”

“Nobody’s getting my breakfast.” Tanner slung the bag over his shoulder, then with a chuckle in his voice added, “A churchwoman named Morality?”

“She’s all right,” Zach said, feeling the need without understanding why. “While she may not be the sort of woman I usually cotton to—”

Jess snorted at that, but Zach ignored him and continued. “She’s nice to have around. She’s good, but there’s a spark of ornery in her, too. There’s this boy who has been traveling around with Morality and her uncle. She protects him like a mother hen, and she can get downright riled when he’s in trouble.” He hooked his arm around his knee and added, “Or when she’s lied to. You should see her then. That red hair of hers only hints at her temper.”

“You married a woman who hates to be lied to?” Tanner lifted the lantern to inspect a fallen log, knocked a nest of spiders off its surface, then sat.

“Ironic, isn’t it?”

Tanner dropped the sack at his side and placed the lantern between them. The lenses of his spectacles reflected the flame as he said quietly, “Tell me how it happened.”

Zach gave him a rundown of what had transpired since his arrival in Cottonwood Creek. Tanner listened without interruption, and when the story was done he commented thoughtfully. “Good move. From the sound of it, she’s just what you need to win over the town.”

“Great luck, isn’t it?” Zach’s tone was as dry as West Texas in July. “So what if I destroy her life in the process?”

From inside the bag came the weak croak of a frog. Zach kicked at the sack and the noise stopped.

Tanner asked in a soft, serious voice, “Do we have a problem here, Zach?”

Zach scooped up a rock and lobbed it over the water, the
kathunk
of its splash sounding like his stomach felt. “No,” he said, finally. “I’ve dreamed of revenge for most of my life. You and I have planned it for years. I’ll use anything and anyone I must to see it accomplished and nothing will stand in our way. I simply won’t let it.” He tossed a second rock and said, “Now, tell me how things look on your end.”

Tanner spent some time detailing the progression of their scheme from the Texas Southern side of the action. “It’s all proceeding according to plan. I dealt with four inquiries about the Cottonwood Creek spur before I left New Orleans. There shouldn’t be a doubt in anyone’s mind that we’re legitimate.”

“Good. What about the stock? Were you able to get what I needed?”

He nodded. “I have a load of phony stock certificates in my baggage—all the lower denominations you requested.”

“Good. I am entirely out of five-share certificates, and I have only a few tens left.”

Jess leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “There is something else you’ll want to know. I’ve managed to convince my father to invest more than we had hoped in Marston Shipping.”

“Wonderful!” Zach grinned and sat up straighter. “That’ll make the estimable Archibald Grimes Tanner look that much guiltier in the eyes of the Texas Southern stockholders when we bring it all down.”

“Which won’t be long now.” Jess’s voice rang with satisfaction. “Before leaving New Orleans, I manufactured and left in place all the evidence we’ll need to send that damn son of a bitch to jail.”

Zach eyed his friend. Jess rarely swore, but when he did it was always in reference to his father and usually followed by a storm of rage. True to form, he pushed to his feet, grabbed his club and the lantern, then made quick work of stunning three more frogs at the water’s edge.

As Tanner returned with the frogs dangling by their legs from his fist, Zach shook his head and said, “We’re a sorry-assed pair, you know it? The frogs around here will be glad to see us go.”

“I can’t argue with that.” Tanner’s expression was grim as he tossed the frogs into his bag, then silently took his seat, replacing the lantern in its previous spot. “At least I’m better at holding my temper than I used to be, and I haven’t had the dream since we set the scheme into motion.” He sighed heavily. “But sometimes, like tonight, all I need do is think of my father, and I see Catherine’s broken body all over again.” His voice dropped. “I wish I could kill him outright.”

Zach whispered a sigh. “I know what you mean, Jess. Since I went back to Cottonwood Creek there have been nights that I’ve actually started for Marston’s house, shotgun in hand. Only thing holding me back is knowing that what we have planned for the bastard will hurt him worse than a gunshot. Him and his damn family—every one of ‘em.”

The rustling sounded again, and Tanner stared off into the trees. “Did I ever tell you she was pregnant?”

Zach jerked up his head. “Catherine?”

“Yes. A few months along. We hadn’t told anyone because we anticipated the wedding a bit. I try not to think about it.” His voice trembled slightly as he added, “I’ve always wondered if it was a boy or a girl.”

“Hell, Jess, how did you keep from killing him the day of the accident?”

The sound of his answering laughter raised the hair on the back of Zach’s neck.

“You mean the day my father murdered my wife and child? The day he worked her into a frenzy with his vile accusations, then demanded she leave our home on a horse he knew full well was half loco? I’ve told you that story before. I tried to kill him, but I failed. When it came down to it, I didn’t have the guts to pull the trigger.”

Lamplight cast devilish shadows on Tanner’s face, and his eyes glowed with demonic light. “I’m stronger now. And as you said, our strategies are superior to a quick, easy death. My father will suffer. He expects he has gotten away with murder, both literally and figuratively. Well, before long now, he’ll go to prison for a crime he didn’t commit. That will drive him insane.”

A contemplative silence fell between them, broken solely by a whippoorwill trilling his vigorous
prrrip’-purr-rill
’ nearby. Eventually, Zach said, “Well, we’ve both taken out our frustrations on hapless frogs, and you have enough meat for three men piled in that bag. I guess we can go on with the next stage of the plan.”

“When will you head back to Cottonwood Creek?”

“Tomorrow, I reckon. We’ve had a proper amount of time for a honeymoon.”

Tanner rubbed a finger across his mustache. “I still can’t believe you married her. You must have really put on an act to fool her.”

“You should have seen my performance at her uncle’s revival. I stole the show, Jess.” Zach flashed him a cocky grin. “Stood up there lying through my teeth and had each and every one of them hanging on the edge of their seats. I’m damn good when I want to be.”

Jess stretched out his legs and said, “I’m glad to know you haven’t lost your touch. We’ll need that ability for the next phase of our plan. Speaking of which, how soon do you want me in town? Will this marriage of yours expedite matters?”

Zach lifted his shoulders in a shrug. “I won’t know for sure until I get back to town and see how folks take the news about me and their Miracle Miss. A lot will depend on her uncle. The man is a sharper, Jess, a worthless son of a bitch who works a good scam. He won’t take kindly to losing his collection-plate special.”

“What’ll you do about him?”

“Oh, I’ll take care of him. I have a couple different ideas in mind. Actually, I’ll enjoy paying ol’ Reverend Uncle back for a thing or two.” Zach’s laugh was downright evil. “Now, as far as our timetable goes, why don’t you plan on arriving around three weeks from now. I imagine that’ll give me plenty of time to wheedle most everyone out of their savings. That’ll leave just under two months until the election, so the timing should be just about right to set up the Marstons for their fall.”

Jess nodded, and Zach continued. “Before we leave here I’ll give you directions to my place in Cottonwood Creek. When you get to town, sneak on out there. We’ll go over everything one last time before your public arrival. Then we’ll have our falling-out—”

“I have an idea for that,” Jess interrupted. “Why don’t I seduce your wife? That would be—”

“—the end of you,” Zach finished for him. “Keep your paws off Morality, Jess. We might have shared a whore or two in the past, but I’m not letting you within spitting distance of my wife.”