Under a Texas Star (26 page)

Chapter 19

They took their first break on the bank of a creek.

As the horses drank, Marly said, "I've thought of a name for my horse. Portia." She smiled. "I was considering Darcy."

"Darcy is a man's name. She's a mare."

"You're assuming I meant Fitzwilliam Darcy. I meant Mrs. Elizabeth Darcy."

"Why'd you change it to Portia then?"

"I remembered the Merchant of Venice and Portia, who dressed up as a man for the sake of the man she loved. Dressed up as a man of the law." She gave him a mischievous wink.

Jase winced. "The way you say that...well, you dressed up as a boy for the sake of Charlie Meese, not me."

God, he hoped that was the case.

She pursed her lips. "Maybe I'll go back to Darcy."

"Portia's good," he said, laughing at her response. "I was just teasin'."

He glanced away, realizing that they were completely alone for the first time in a long while. For a minute, the only sounds were the wind in the grass, the babbling of the brook and the quiet snuffling of two horses chewing their cud.

"Please don't tease me about Charlie," she said, breaking the silence.

"Okay."

Another silence fell.

Then it was his turn to break it.

"Do you still have feelings for the man?"

It was out before he could stop the words.

"Yep. Anger. Shame. Embarrassment." Her voice dripped with sarcasm. "Did I mention anger?"

"You did. Is that why you keep trackin' him? Out of anger?"

"Mostly. He stole money and implicated me in the theft. No one really thought I was to blame. That just made it worse. It was worse than him making Aunt Adele think he'd ruined me. "

"He made a fool of you."

"Exactly! I was so angry and hurt when I set out. Now, finding Charlie just seems like a job to do. Like catching Baker."

"Then let's go."

Jase stood, brushing the dirt and grass off his chaps. Once his back was to Marly, he allowed himself a pleased grin.

Meese was just a
job
.

Their routine reestablished, they took three breaks in the day before stopping for the night. After dinner, Marly took the first watch. Jase took the second, waking her up earlier than usual so they could be on the road as close to sunrise as possible. The break at mid-day seemed shorter and they rode longer in the afternoon.

Marly noticed that Jase was more watchful. Picking up his tension, she wasn't inclined to take naps in the saddle. The easy relationship that they shared made it easy to forget about leaving Fortuna behind them. El Paso was ahead and all that mattered were the horses and the trail. The latter gave them enough to worry about. As they climbed the Sacramento Mountains, the going was as rough as the landscape was beautiful.

On the fourth day out, Jase spotted an Apache scout. That evening, they rode well past sunset. Off the beaten track, on a site picked for security not comfort, they stopped for rest.

"Don't bother gatherin' fuel," he said. "There'll be no campfire tonight."

They ate a cold meal, then Jase settled in to sleep, while Marly sat with her back against a tree and her carbine in her lap.

"Don't worry," he assured her. "Apaches don't like fightin' at night. Just keep an eye on the horses." He yawned. "And wake me if you hear anythin'."

An hour later, Jase woke up and glanced over at Marly, who was wide awake. And shivering.

"S-sorry," she said, her teeth chattering. "I didn't mean to disturb y-you. I was getting c-cold."

The temperature had dropped considerably.

Jase shook his head at his own stupidity. Of course the weather was going to be more extreme up here in the mountains. They might even get frost, though it was almost summer.

He rearranged the bedroll so they could bundle under the blankets and lean against the saddles.

"Come here. Don't want you catching a chill."

Without objection, Marly settled in beside him and he tugged her closer, ensuring that the blankets covered them both. She kept one arm on top of the cover, holding the rifle. Jase's freedom of movement was a little restricted, but his right arm was free and his Colt was handy.

Just in case.

He let Marly doze off. His shoulder cushioned her head.

When Portia fretted at the distant sound of a coyote, Marly woke, instantly alert. She relaxed again, but didn't go back to sleep.

"If you're sleepy..." she said.

"I'm okay."

He shifted so she would be more comfortable. Then he stroked her hair, smoothing down a strand that was tickling his chin.

"I doubt this is gonna be a restful night for either of us."

They dozed on and off until the first shards of light crept over the mountains. Stiff and tired, they saddled up and rode out.

The path Jase chose was a torturous one for several miles. Once out onto open ground, the horses were itching for a good gallop. He pointed out their direction and let Marly take the lead.

At noon they stopped at a creek, filled their canteens and watered the horses. They didn't stay. It was too open, too exposed.

"We'll stop soon, Marly." He had an idea. "I bet you can't carry a full pot of water while ridin'."

She grinned. "I'll take that bet."

The first trick was mounting Portia without losing the water in the pot. The rest would have been easy, except that Jase kept changing paces on her.

"Not bad," he said when they stopped. "We'll try the egg and spoon test next."

She pushed her hat back. "You trying to make a rodeo star out of me?"

"Could do worse. At least we now have water for the coffee
―without usin' our canteens. I don't know about you, but I'm overdue for a cup of coffee."

He was impressed when Marly remembered her trail lore. She built a smokeless fire and then fixed a hot dinner. Jase started the coffee.

"We'll keep going 'til we rea
ch El Paso," he said. "That means a long ride this afternoon. You best catch a nap."

"How about you?"

"Me too."

Neither got much sleep.

Soon, they were up and on their way. Since the sun was still high, they took an easy pace, alternating between a slow trot and a walk. Once, they dismounted and led the horses, letting them graze as they walked. By late afternoon, they watered the horses again.

After that, it was time to pick up the pace.

They rode for hours, sometimes giving the horses their head.

In the evening, Marly slowed Portia to a walk and Jase moved Grandee beside her.

"Tired?" he asked.

Marly shook her head and pointed ahead to where the blazing sun seemed to set the land on fire. "It's beautiful."

He saw tears in her eyes and sidled Grandee closer.

Marly slipped her hand into his and squeezed tight. For a moment they just stopped there, legs touching, hands clasped. Then the light softened to pastels and Portia whinnied, indicating they'd stood still long enough.

"We're just a couple of hours short of El Paso," he said, urging Grandee forward in a slow walk. "Almost at trail's end."

"Maybe," Marly replied. "For me, it depends if Charlie is still there. Or if he even got there."

"The money should be there."

"That's important. But so is justice. Who knows what other foolish females he has seduced. Or
will
seduce, if given the chance."

"How
did
he fool you?"

"Vanity," she said with a shrug. "He told me I was pretty and that he liked my spirit. I never thought of myself as pretty. And nobody much cared for me being spirited. Aunt Adele called me a hoyden."

Jase was dumbfounded. How could Marly not know she was pretty? More than that, to him she was beautiful. And he delighted in her feisty independence.

Though he knew the kind of woman Aunt Adele was, she had his sympathy. Marly would be just the sort of girl to put several gray hairs on such a woman's head. He also had a fair notion what kind of girl Aunt Adele would have approved of.

He was glad Marly hadn't turned out that way.

"Just as well Charlie didn't stay in Fortuna," Marly said.

"Why is that?"

"Amabelle is very pretty. We would have had a second murder by the time we hit town."

"I'll stick with you till you find him."

"What if he's left Texas?"

Jase fingered his Ranger's star. "Won't be the first time I've gone beyond my jurisdiction."

"And when we do find him?"

"Then justice will be served." He held her gaze. "I wish he didn't have a hold on you."

"So do I. Suppose I have to sever that hold before I can really move on." Her voice was sad, almost disappointed.

"Suppose so."

She gave him a timid smile. "Have I gone back to being your young ward or can I have a beer in El Paso? I didn't like it much at first, but I have a feeling one is going to go down very nicely at the end of this day."

"You can have a beer at the El Hombre. After all, you're a Ranger now."

Her eyes narrowed in suspicion. "What's the El Hombre?"

"An old friend of mine runs the place. I'm hopin' he'll let us have the back room while we're there. El Paso is a whole lot more expensive than Fortuna."

"But they have good beer?" Marly asked.

"Yep."

"In that case, let's go."

She spurred Portia into a gallop and Jase grinned at her enthusiasm. Maybe he'd buy her two beers.

They rode into El Paso around ten o'clock. By this point, neither of them cared about finding Charlie. Priorities were on finding a room, having that beer and getting a decent meal.

Their first stop was the El Hombre.

"Stay with the horses, "Jase told Marly.

She was happy to obey.

The El Hombre was at the most disreputable end of the disreputable part of town. In fact, from the look of the dilapidated buildings that lined the streets, she wasn't sure El Paso had a respectable neighborhood.

Discretely, she loosened her rifle in its holster.

Jase returned. "All set. We just gotta take care of the horses."

"Is this place okay?"

"Sure. Just looks tough 'cause it is." He swung into the saddle. "So tough that nobody dares start any trouble. Pequeño won't allow it. Bad for business. Hard on the furniture."

They returned from the livery the back way so they could drop their saddlebags off and wash up a little before supper. Their room was a furnished shed, one of many add-ons to the ramshackle building. There were two small beds with bare mattresses. Between them, a stack of empty whiskey crates served as a dresser. On top sat an enamel tin bowl and a mismatched jug of warm water. A couple of hooks on the back of the door completed the furnishings.

"Well, it ain't The Oasis," Jase commented.

Exhausted, Marly unrolled her bedding and carefully spread her oiled groundsheet over the mattress before arranging the blankets.

"Good idea," he said with a nod.

He fixed his bed, then allowed her to use the water first to wash up. She rinsed her face, neck and hands until the water in the bowl turned a muddy brown.

"Here," he said, handing her a clean bandana. "Tomorrow you can have a proper hot bath."

After he washed up, they headed out to the saloon.

The El Hombre was most certainly not The Oasis. Instead of clapboard, the construction was adobe and might have been one of the original buildings in El Paso. In the center of the room was a fire pit. An iron flue hung above it, channeling most of the smoke up the chimney. Around the pit were rough-hewn trestle tables surrounded by an odd collection of chairs, stools and benches. The floor was sawdust-covered dirt.

The bar had been built on a section of flagstone floor and there were flagstones around the fire pit. The only wall decorations were two flags, Texas and Mexico, hanging above the bar. These were partly obscured by the chandelier. It was a huge multi-branch monstrosity, a nightmare tangle of antlers and longhorn skulls. The rest of the saloon was lit by hanging lanterns.

"I got two steaks on the grill with all the fixings," a voice boomed. "You and the chico will be set soon."

Jase pushed Marly through the crowd toward the bar.

"Marly, I'd like you to meet an old friend of mine. Goes by the name of Pequeño. It means tiny."

A lumbering, massive man strode out from behind the bar. He was a good head taller and much broader in the shoulders than Jase. Pequeño further belied his name by his coloring, which was typical Scandinavian. White blonde hair and beard contrasted with a dark, leathered complexion.