The Cactus Creek Challenge (22 page)

Ben’s chest puffed up. “Nope, between Amanda and the twins, they were hot on your trail pretty quickly. Not to mention Thomas, who has all the earmarks of a first-rate scout.”

Thomas blushed and kicked a tuft of grass, hands shoved deep in his pockets. The twins hung from the stair railings, feet dangling on one side, heads on the other. “This is the best school day ever,” Ulysses said. “When we have days outside with Miss Bucknell, she makes us write poems about trees and flowers.” He screwed his face up, his tongue sticking out and his eyes crossing to an alarming degree. “I like tracking bandits better.”

“Now, now, Miss Bucknell has her way of doing things, and I have mine, and both are important.” Ben felt obliged to stand up for Cassie, especially since he’d undermined her curriculum and methods and turned everything upside down at the school this last week. “I wish y’all could vote in the Challenge though. Let’s head inside. My dad has agreed to talk to us today about some of his favorite tracking techniques and tell you about how he faced down the Dickenson Gang right here on the streets of Cactus Creek and saved my life in the bargain.”

As they swarmed up the stairs and inside, Ben held his father’s arm. “We need to talk after school. Can you meet me at the sheriff’s office and bring Doc Bucknell and Hobny with you?”

“Trouble?” His father’s eyes brightened, and his focus sharpened on Ben’s face. He reminded Ben of a hunting dog that had been retired but had just caught the scent of game.

“Plenty.” And the biggest might be convincing Cassie to quit the Challenge at least as long as that gold was in town.

The minute school was out, Ben headed toward the jail. Surely by now Cassie had taken time to think of all the things that could go wrong while she was in charge of the gold shipment and realize that he should take over protecting it.

The council had arrived ahead of him. Hobny’s Adam’s apple bobbed precariously. He always looked like a wading bird who had eaten a fish too large for his gullet. Ben found himself swallowing hard and often whenever he was around Hobny Jones.

His father was in one of the jail cells examining the new pillows and straw ticks. His silvery moustache twitched when he caught Ben’s eye, and he gave a quick wink and a glance toward where Cassie was busying herself tidying the already tidy desk. She rammed the edges of a stack of papers against the desktop and snapped them down into a pile. Her eyes shot bright jade arrows through him, and her pert little mouth looked ready to bite a nail in half. He almost smiled, she looked so worked up. Kinda cute, too. Not too difficult to see she wasn’t pleased with his calling of an ad hoc council meeting.

Every chair in the jail had been called into service, and Ben was forced to stand, leaning against the wall near the window. Doc Bucknell, calm as ever, smoothed out the telegram on the desktop and read it silently.

A low grunt caught his attention. Poor Jigger sat on a chair in the corner, nursing his broken wrist. Ben went to his side.

“How’s it feeling?”

“Hurts like sixty, Boss. Doc says the swelling should go down in a few days, but I can’t even move my fingers right now.” The skin was tight around the deputy’s eyes, and his mouth bore signs of strain. “Who’s going to look after Cassie now?”

Ben patted him lightly on the shoulder so as not to jar his injury. “Don’t worry about it. You just do what Doc says and heal up. I’ll take care of Cassie and the gold.”

“No, you will not.” Her voice cut through the air. She wasn’t yelling or hysterical. No, her voice was dead calm and determined. “I’m capable of both looking after myself and the gold shipment, and I resent that you’ve called a council meeting without consulting me first.”

Doc Bucknell rose, put his arm around her shoulders, and drew her back to her chair. “Cassie, we’re going to sit down and talk about this rationally. Ben did the right thing alerting us to the issues. We’re not saying you can’t do the job, but it’s a serious matter and it bears some discussion.”

Though his tone was reasonable, it didn’t seem to take Cassie’s indignation down any pegs. She crossed her arms, plopped into the chair behind his desk, and set her jaw in a mutinous expression that reminded him not a little of one the twins wore every time he told them they couldn’t do something.

“Did you get a chance to read the telegram?” Ben asked. They all nodded, Hobny’s throat bouncing. “Good, then you understand how serious this is. I’m sure none of you want to risk the safety of any of the folks in town when word gets out that there’s gold here practically undefended.”

Cassie snorted, but Ben continued on. “Especially with Jigger now laid up. I propose that we cancel the Challenge and I take over my job again and Cassie takes over hers. Or, if you don’t want to cancel it completely, then we take a break while the gold is in town and resume things after it has been picked up by the army and no longer poses a threat. We can even extend the Challenge for the days we’d miss.”

“I object.” Cassie put her palms flat on the desk. “What’s the purpose of the Challenge at all if we can just bail out when things get difficult?”

Hobny cleared his throat. “You have to admit, these are some special circumstances. I’ve never even seen that much gold in one place. It would be a mighty big temptation, I would think. Especially considering that the newspaper this last week was full of articles about the Challenge and the participants. If I was ever inclined to larceny, I’d think that gold defended by a young lady would be a most promising target.”

Ben nodded. “Exactly. Dad, what do you think?”

The moustache got smoothed a few times with his thumb and forefinger while he executed his “thousand-yard stare.” Ben waited, knowing the signs, knowing he couldn’t be rushed to judgment.

Eventually, Obadiah cleared his throat. “I’m thinking we should ask Miss Cassie what her plans for defending the gold are should there be trouble. I’ve always had a notion that Cassie was about one of the smartest people in this town, and I think we should give her a chance to prove it before we dismiss her out of hand.”

Ben gaped. He’d counted on his father to be the voice of reason.

Cassie brightened, shooting a smile his father’s way. “Thank you. I do have some ideas for securing the gold.”

“Proceed.” Her father waved his hand to give her the floor.

“First, the telegram says there will be a Wells Fargo guard accompanying the shipment. Earlier today, I wired this Colonel Briggenstern who sent the telegram to make certain the guard would be staying until the gold was picked up.” She tugged open a desk drawer. “He wired me back just an hour ago. He’s sending eight men plus the guard on the train, and he says he can leave one man behind with the guard if that would be of any help.”

Ben tipped his hat back and considered this. Another man, a military man at that, would help, but it still left Cassie vulnerable, something that didn’t sit well with him at all. Not to mention, he didn’t know the Wells Fargo guard or this soldier. What was to say they might not decide to steal the gold once they saw the only thing standing between them and the money was one slip of a redheaded girl? No, it was still too risky. Surely his father and hers could see that.

The council put their heads together and talked for a moment before Doc Bucknell raised his head and asked, “What precautions do you plan to take in addition to the increased man power?”

“I’m glad you asked.” She stood and paced the narrow area between the gun rack and his desk. “I know Jigger is wounded, so I thought it might be best if he stayed here at the jail. He can still shoot if necessary, and he can take his meals here for a few days and sleep in one of the cells. I’ve been assured that the two guards that will accompany the gold will not let it out of their sights, so they’ll be bunking in here, too. If they take turns sleeping, there will be beds for everyone. My plan is to lock the gold into the first cell and take the keys down to Hobny’s office and have him lock them in the safe. That way even if someone did storm the jail, they wouldn’t find the keys here in the building, nor would they know where to get them. When the contingent from Fort Benefactor arrives, we can retrieve the keys and surrender the gold.”

Ben had to admit the idea was rather clever. He might not have thought of it, instead trusting in his ability to hold off an attack.

“In addition, I don’t intend to tell either the Wells Fargo guard or the soldier where to find the keys. Only the five of us in this room would know, and only Hobny knows the combination to his own safe, providing a further layer of protection.” She stopped pacing. “I’m not without sense, gentlemen, and I have thought this through. I don’t see how Ben could do a better job. With three armed guards constantly in attendance, the gold locked up securely, and the keys kept in a safe up the street, security is as tight as can be. Minimizing the number of people who know about the gold even being here, as well as the number of people who go in and out of the jail over that time period will increase security.”

Except that she was a girl, and she’d be in charge of grown men, and everyone who had read the paper knew the state of law enforcement in Cactus Creek for the next two and a half weeks. Her plan had some fine aspects, and when he got his badge back, he wasn’t above utilizing them. He’d even give her credit at the Challenge Ball at the end of the month when the winners were declared. But the fact remained that she needed to step aside and let the men handle things.

Another huddle by the council, and Doc turned grave eyes on Cassie. “You’ve made a compelling case. I’m proud of you. You know what store I set by the Challenge and that I’m reluctant ever to allow a contestant to bow out.”

“And,” Ben’s dad pitched in, “you’ve proven yourself more than capable up to this point.”

“And you’ve obviously put quite a bit of thought into planning your security measures, what with wiring the colonel and getting more backup and all,” Hobny added.

“Therefore,” her father took over, “it is the decision of the council to continue with the Challenge in spite of this new wrinkle. However”—he held up one long, lean finger when Ben started to protest—“there are a few considerations to which you must agree.”

Cassie’s elation turned to caution. “Such as?”

“First, in order to protect your reputation, you will not stay at the jail past dark while the gold is here. With three grown men guarding the shipment through the night, your presence overnight is not necessary.”

She nodded slowly while Ben considered this. Her reputation. Huh. He hadn’t thought of her reputation needing protecting, but then again, he’d only just started to get used to the idea that she was almost twenty years old, not twelve. No way could she spend the night in a jailhouse full of men, no matter what the circumstances.

“Second, should any trouble arise around this jail, you will send for Ben with all haste. You will not be too stubborn or proud to get help. Understood?”

Her eyebrows darted toward one another, and a green storm brewed in her eyes.

“And third, if at any time while the gold is in your possession any member of the council determines that you or the gold are at risk, they are free to and encouraged to suspend the Challenge and remove you from the office of temporary sheriff.” He leveled a paternal stare at his daughter. “If you cannot agree to this, then I’ll be forced to shut the Challenge down right now.”

She crossed her arms at her waist. The silence stretched as she considered his conditions, but finally, while Ben prayed she would refuse so they could call this whole thing off, she nodded.

“Very well. I accept the terms.”

Ben stifled a groan. Of course she did. She was ten pounds of determination in a five-pound sack.

The council members filed out, and Jigger moved to follow.

“I think I’ll go rest my arm for a while.” He tugged on his wide-brimmed hat.

“I’m sorry about the rug.” Cassie sent him a tentative smile. “Things are pretty quiet. You can knock off for the weekend. The gold isn’t due until Monday. I can mind the jail until then.”

“Thanks.” He bobbed his head and avoided Ben’s eyes.

The moment they were alone, Cassie jammed her hands on her hips and glared at Ben. “You have a lot of nerve, buster.”

“Now, Cass, don’t get in a lather. I’m just trying to look out for you.”

“Really? How would you feel if I called a school board meeting this month without consulting you? To tell them I had no confidence in your ability to do the job. That I thought you weren’t smart enough to teach or that the children were in danger if you kept to your part of the Challenge.”

He blinked and stepped back, scratching his ear. “It’s not at all the same.”

She advanced on him and poked him in the chest. “It’s exactly the same. It’s like being tattled on, dragging my father and yours in here to complain.”

Rubbing the spot she’d jabbed, he tried again. “It isn’t my fault our dads are on the council. And it needed to be brought to their attention. If anything happens, Challenge or not, it’s my responsibility and ultimately theirs as the council. I don’t know what I’d do if something happened to you while you were doing my job.” The words popped out with a ring of truth that surprised him and made her cute little mouth drop open. Time to backtrack. “I mean, I’d feel the same if it was Jigger who got hurt in my place.”

Her mouth closed, and distance settled into her eyes. “Of course you would.”

He jammed his hands into his pockets, and his fingers crushed the piece of paper he’d thrust there and tried to ignore all day. Just the thing to change the conversation and hopefully make her forget her peeve.

“Say, there is something happening at the school that I’d like your opinion on.” He tugged the page out and unfolded it, much the worse for being wedged into the drawer slide and stuffed into his pocket. “I found this stuck in the top desk drawer at the school this morning, and I want to talk to you about it.”