Tracie Peterson - [Land of the Lone Star 03] (22 page)

“She did what?” Tyler said as the supper discussion turned to his ranch.

Hannah looked momentarily upset. “I suppose I shouldn’t have said anything. I know Carissa wanted to surprise you herself.”

“She bought the ranch?” Tyler asked. “How in the world did she do that? Why did she do that?” He didn’t know whether to be relieved or angry. Right now what he mostly felt was confused.

“Because the county was going to sell it out from under you,” Hannah answered, seeming to put aside all of her doubts regarding the secret. “Judge Peevy came and told us what was happening.”

“And she just up and bought it?” Tyler shook his head. “But why?”

“Carissa said she had to try to save it for you.”

Tyler tried to imagine Carissa’s logic in the matter. “For me?”

Hannah smiled. “Yes. She knew what the ranch meant to you. She had some money her father had left for her and Gloria to live on. She pooled all of her resources, and Judge Peevy secured the property for her.”

Tyler was stunned by her generosity. “Then she can just sell it back to me.”

“No.” Hannah shook her head. “She signed a contract saying she wouldn’t.”

Tyler frowned and looked at William. “Why would she do that?”

Hannah continued. “It was the only way. They wouldn’t allow purchase for those who fought for the Confederacy. The contract required that she never sell it to anyone who’d done so.”

“Maybe she figured she could sell it to me and then I could sell it to you,” William offered. “After all, I didn’t sign any such contract. When we find her, we’ll figure it all out. I’ll get Judge Peevy on it.”

“The contract also said she couldn’t sell it for five years,” Hannah interjected. “It states that Carissa has to live there for that time.”

“Five years?” Tyler asked. “What in the world was she thinking?”

Hannah looked at him with a smile. “Well, personally, I think she had it in mind to save it for the both of you. The contract didn’t say anything about marrying a Confederate. If you two marry, the place will automatically return to your ownership. At least in part.”

Tyler warmed at this thought, but it still seemed impossible to believe that the ranch hadn’t been put out of his reach. “We heard it had sold. I despaired of even returning to Texas.”

“I know. Bless the sheriff and his good intentions, but again . . . I wish he would never have sent that telegram.”

Tyler’s mind whirled about the idea that Carissa had purchased his family’s ranch. What was she planning? Did she want the ranch to be their home?

“When I left, she was hardly speakin’ to me,” Tyler said aloud. Then he looked around to see if anyone had heard him. Of course they had.

“She was upset about Ava, that’s all,” Hannah replied. She helped Daniel with some green beans, then turned back to Tyler. “She thought Ava was a rival, but I set her straight. She’s completely gone over you, Tyler. She and Gloria both.”

He couldn’t help but grin. “Truly?”

William rolled his eyes. “And he’s gone over her. Show them what you bought Mrs. Lowe when you were in Abilene.”

Tyler felt his face grow hot, but he did as William instructed and pulled the ring from his pocket. He opened the leather box and revealed the contents. Hannah and Juanita gasped.

“A wedding ring! Oh, she’ll be so happy,” Hannah declared, then just as quickly fell silent. She looked at her plate and Tyler could see that she was thinking of Carissa’s circumstances.

“I will get her back,” Tyler said, replacing the leather box in his pocket. “If Herbert Lockhart arranged to take her, he’s got no reason to keep her. He’s after you and, well . . . we ain’t gonna let him have you or Carissa.”

“That’s right.” William cut into a piece of ham and avoided Hannah’s gaze. “If the sheriff hasn’t sent word in the next two days—we’re heading out on our own. I’ll need for you to pack us some supplies.”

To Tyler’s surprise, Hannah didn’t protest. “I’ll have it ready.”

“Tyler and I will go alone. The rest of the men will stay on here at the ranch to offer protection. I’ll see to it that they’re paid, and I know Ted Terry will spare his fellas. We’ll see Ted tomorrow and let him know what’s going on.”

Tyler cut into his own ham steak and tried not to think about what Carissa might be having for supper that evening. Perhaps her captors weren’t even feeding her. He frowned and tore at the steak with a little more effort than was needed. If they hurt her, he’d see to it that they paid the price.

Lockhart wouldn’t allow Carissa to prepare supper. Instead, he instructed Long Knife to tie her to the chair and free her hands. At least this way her sore wrists were relieved of the tight leather straps.

The man called Jesse was a puzzle to her. He looked as if he might be part Indian, but he wasn’t as dark as Long Knife, so he certainly wasn’t full-blooded. Jesse called Long Knife “brother” more than once, however, so Carissa was confident they were related at least by one parent.

The real puzzlement was Lockhart himself. Carissa couldn’t quite figure him out. He seemed amiable enough with his men, but there was a meanness and a hatred that he held toward her that she couldn’t understand. Perhaps he hated all women. Or maybe he just hated her because she was a constant reminder of his failure to capture Hannah. Either way, Lockhart made her skin crawl.

She remembered Hannah’s comments about Lockhart arranging for the death of her father. Then he had threatened to kill her brother and sister if she didn’t marry him. Apparently it all had to do with his desire for money. She studied Lockhart as best she could without him noticing. He didn’t seem suited for this rough kind of life. He wasn’t in the best of shape; he looked like he could stand to lose a few pounds. His hair had thinned and was balding on top, making him look quite a few years the senior of any other man in the room. It seemed so strange that he would risk being recaptured by sticking around the area, and yet here he was.

Supper passed with the men rambling on about one thing or another related to their mistake in taking her. Carissa tried her best to focus on every word while appearing completely uninterested. She was pleasantly surprised by the rabbit stew. The men had proved to be well skilled in the kitchen. One had managed some very edible biscuits to go along with the stew, and all in all the meal was filling and flavorful. Carissa ate, even though she wasn’t hungry, determined to keep her strength up. She didn’t intend for these cowards to get the better of her. In fact, with every passing hour she was getting angrier.

“You don’t say much for a woman,” Lockhart said, eyeing her over the table. “That’s a nice surprise.”

She fixed him with a stare but refused to reply. Lockhart smiled. “I figure if looks could kill, they’d be digging my grave.”

“You got that right,” one of the men said with a laugh. Carissa now knew one man was called Roy and the other one Sage. They seemed to be either related to one another or the best of buddies.

Sage had to join in. “She sure enough did that same thing to us. She asked Long Knife a lot of questions, though. I think maybe she’s sweet on him.” The man elbowed Roy and both men laughed. Long Knife said nothing.

Lockhart wasn’t amused. “I can’t rightly blame her for her hatred. This isn’t . . . or rather wasn’t . . . her fight. I suppose now it is.”

Carissa continued to look at him and narrowed her eyes. “You haven’t seen half the fight yet.”

Tilting his head, Lockhart studied her for a moment. “You know, I have an idea. Long Knife, pull her hair down and cut it. We’ll have Sage ride it back to the ranch . . . better yet he can take it to Cedar Springs. That way no one needs to know who brought it. I’ll write a letter demanding ransom for her return. We might not have Hannah, but we needn’t go empty-handed. The way I see it, we can ransom her for a good sum of money and then lay low until they think we’ve given up on getting our hands on Hannah.”

“You can’t cut my hair off!” Carissa said in protest.

But already Long Knife was on his feet moving toward her. Lockhart just laughed. “You women are a fussy bunch about your hair. It will grow back . . . where as fingers or hands don’t.”

She took his meaning and settled down. Even when Long Knife pulled her braid loose, Carissa said nothing. She felt the pull on her braid as he cut it from her head. He held it up and showed her that he’d only taken about half the length.

“Good,” Lockhart said, nodding. “Now I’ll prepare the financial demands. Sage, you’ll need to ride this back immediately. Keep to the untraveled ways and deliver it to the sheriff’s office at night. We’ll address it to the Barnetts—after all, he just made himself a nice profit on cattle as I understand it. If he’s not yet back to the ranch, he soon will be, according to Miss Lowe.”

“Mrs. Lowe,” Carissa corrected. “I have a young daughter waiting for me back at the ranch.” She didn’t know why, but she thought perhaps it would influence Lockhart’s actions.

He merely gave a hint of a nod. “My pardon, Mrs. Lowe.” He went to his saddlebag and produced a pencil and piece of paper. “So how many head of cattle did William take to market?”

Carissa couldn’t understand why that was of any interest to Lockhart. “I don’t know. Something like two thousand.”

Lockhart grew thoughtful and for a moment said nothing. “So if they got at least thirty a head, he should have come home with sixty thousand dollars.”

Carissa remembered the men talking about a great deal more money, but said nothing. She watched as Lockhart began to write. She couldn’t help but wonder what he had planned.

“I think asking for the entire sixty thousand is only fair. Barnett took a good number of years from me.”

“But it wasn’t just his cattle,” Carissa said. “He had Tyler’s . . . Tyler Atherton’s cattle and Ted Terry’s, as well. You can’t expect him to give you their money.” She hoped that her feelings for Tyler weren’t apparent.

Lockhart didn’t seem to notice or care. He merely shrugged and kept writing. “That’s really Barnett’s problem. He caused me as much grief as Hannah did, and it’s only right that he suffer. Let him work out the dealings with his Union friends. If they want you back, they’re going to have to bring me that money in a week’s time. Or next time we’ll cut something more permanent from your body.” He met her gaze and his expression turned cold. “Like your head.”

C
arissa stared at the closed door of the shack and wondered when the men would return. Earlier that day Lockhart had assigned the men various duties and each had ridden out without another word. Finally, Lockhart ordered Jesse to get their two horses and they departed, as well. She had no idea what was happening, with exception to Sage making the delivery of her hair to Cedar Springs—and he’d left two days prior.

“If you know what’s good for you,” Lockhart had told her, “you’ll not try to escape. First of all, you are in an area far from civilization, as you already know. You wouldn’t make it even a mile before succumbing to complete disorientation. Not only that, but Long Knife and Roy are riding watch. They would catch you quicker than lightning could strike. And then I’m afraid I would have to punish you.”

Carissa had no doubt he meant every word and that the punishment would be cruel. Not that she could even truly attempt escape. Lockhart had taken her shoes and stockings and had handcuffed her to the iron-framed bed. She had a chamber pot and a pitcher of water, but little else. At least the bed offered a place to rest.

The hours ticked by in excruciating slowness. Carissa watched the shadows play on the wall as the sun crossed the room. The heat was soon unbearable, and she found herself longing once again for a cool bath. She leaned back on the bed and tried her best to imagine swimming in the waters off the coast of Corpus Christi. When she’d been much younger—before the war—there had even been Sunday school outings and picnics near the water. What carefree days those had been.

The light was beginning to fade when she heard the sound of an approaching rider. She wasn’t sure if it would be one of the men who held her captive or someone else. She feared being found by Indians, but she was uneasy about her captors, too. Jesse had eyed her in a rather leering manner the day before, but surprisingly, Lockhart had put a stop to it, warning each of the men that they were not to touch her.

The door opened and Long Knife strode in with a small sack. Carissa shot up from the bed and stood to face him as he drew near. “What in the world is going on with you people?” she asked.

He looked at her oddly for a moment, then smiled. “You have a lot of fire. It’s hidden down deep, but it burns hot.”

“Tell me what’s happening. Where has everyone gone?”

“We’re seein’ to business. We’re watching for anyone who might have been able to track us here. Lockhart has other business that he doesn’t see fit to tell us about.”

“Is Jesse really your brother?” she asked without thinking.

Long Knife laughed and opened the gunnysack he’d brought. “Yes, but just barely. We had the same mother, but different fathers. Why do you ask?”

She shrugged. “I just wondered. You two don’t look that much alike.”

He pulled some jerked meat from the bag and handed it to her. “My father was Mexican and Comanche. Our mother was Kiowa and Cheyenne. Jesse’s father was white.”

“Well, that would account for why you are so much darker.”

She sat down on the bed and began to eat the jerky. Long Knife considered her for a moment, then pulled another piece of meat from the bag. He placed it on the small table beside the pitcher of water.

“It might be late before Lockhart gets back.”

And then he was gone just as quickly as he’d come. Carissa couldn’t help but wonder just how far from the shack he would go. Was there really no hope of escape? She tugged at the irons but knew there was no way to disengage from the rails of the bed frame. A part of her wanted to break down and cry, but another part was just mad enough that she wouldn’t. Instead, she’d keep her thoughts on Gloria and Tyler. Those two gave her a will to go on—to fight against despair. She had no idea if she would ever see them again, but that was the hope she clung to.

Without tracks to follow or word from the sheriff, William had forced them to wait a good four days after returning to the ranch before he’d agree to head out. Tyler had threatened to leave on his own more than once, but each time William had convinced him to sit tight. On the fifth day, Tyler decided he’d had enough and that no matter what William said, he was going after Carissa. While William understood his friend’s frustration, there was no real way to know where they should look for her. Leaving without some idea of where to go would simply waste more time. Plus, the sheriff would have no way to get in touch with them if they were wandering aimlessly around the countryside, looking for clues.

“I’m leavin’ now,” Tyler told William and the others at breakfast. “I’m going to search for Carissa, and this time you aren’t going to talk me out of it.”

William eyed him momentarily, then nodded. “I wasn’t going to try. I think it
is
time we take matters into our own hands. I figure we’ll head southwest like they traveled, and we’ll just ask everyone along the way if they saw a man traveling with a woman.”

He paused with a biscuit halfway to his mouth and added, “We’ll offer to bribe folks if necessary.”

“Good.” Tyler returned his attention to the cup of coffee he’d been nursing. He had no idea how to go about finding Carissa, but just sitting here was driving him insane.

“I wish the sheriff would come and tell us what’s happening,” Hannah said, helping Robert with his eggs. “It seems like it’s been more than enough time. He could have at least sent a telegram.”

“Maybe they couldn’t get anyone in town to ride out here and bring it,” William replied. “Then again, maybe the lines are still down.”

“I suppose it’s possible.” She picked up a piece of cinnamon roll and handed it to Robert.

Marty yawned and poured syrup on her grits while Andy helped himself to a hefty slab of ham and a roll. He popped a large piece of the latter in his mouth and smiled as he chewed.

“Sure good sweet rolls, Hannah,” Andy said, shoving another piece in his mouth.

She smiled. “Glad you like them. I’m also very glad you’re back unharmed.”

Andy flashed a glance at William and then nodded. Tyler knew they had no intention of telling Hannah about his injury during the stampede. The men had all agreed that what happened on the trail was best kept among themselves. The women would only fret, and there would be other cattle drives to contend with next year. No sense in setting the stage for future battles.

Brandon entered the room at that point, carrying Laura in his arms. “Sorry we’re late. I was coaxing Mrs. Reid to join us.”

“I’m glad you did,” Hannah said, jumping up to pull out an empty chair. “Sit here by me. That way I can get you anything you need.”

Laura shook her head. “No one needs to make a fuss. I’m doing much better. I feel a great deal stronger.”

“And we want to keep it that way,” Brandon told her. “So you will allow us to help you, or you will be banished to your room once again.”

Hannah grinned. “I think he’s serious.”

“I know he is,” Laura admitted. Brandon placed her on the chair and took the seat on the other side of her.

At the far end of the table, Pepita managed an animated Gloria. Tyler couldn’t help but notice that the child was once again refusing to sit at the table without her doll. He supposed she was being indulged because of Carissa’s absence, but the toy only served to remind him of the tangible loss for Gloria . . . and for him.

“So when will you two leave?” Hannah asked.

Tyler turned from watching Gloria and motioned to the table. “As soon as I’m done eatin’, I figure to get on the trail.”

“I’ve had Juanita put some supplies together for you.” Hannah seemed to approach the matter almost casually, but Tyler knew better. “There should be enough there for a couple of weeks.”

Juanita came into the dining room just then. “Mister Will, riders come here.”

Tyler was on his feet so fast that his chair went crashing over backward. He raced through the house and was out the front door just as the sheriff and several other mounted riders approached the house. Unfortunately, Carissa wasn’t among their numbers.

“Sheriff, we’d just about given up hope of hearin’ from you. Have you found Cari . . . Mrs. Lowe?” he asked.

The sheriff shook his head. “No, we gave up the trail a few days ago. I got back last night and found this waiting at my office. It’s addressed to William. I figure it might be related to Mrs. Lowe’s disappearance, seein’s how her name is listed as the sender.”

By now William and Hannah had followed Tyler outside to hear what the sheriff had to say. William stepped forward and took the brown-paper-wrapped parcel. He cut the string that bound it and opened the paper. Inside was a hunk of honey blond hair and a letter.

“That’s Carissa’s hair,” Tyler said, taking it from the package. He felt the silky strands, thinking of how many times he’d longed to do that when he’d been near Carissa. William picked up the letter and let the brown paper fall to the ground.

“What’s the letter say?” the sheriff asked.

“It’s a ransom note. The gist of it is that we’re to bring sixty thousand dollars in gold to the Whiskey Springs cutoff. We’re supposed to leave it there, and they will pick it up. If the gold is all there, they will send instructions as to when and where we can retrieve Carissa.” He looked to Tyler and then to the sheriff. “We’re supposed to have it in one week’s time.” Hannah whispered something in Will’s ear and he nodded.

“We can’t get that kind of gold. There ain’t that kind of gold in the South,” Tyler protested.

“He’s right,” the sheriff said, shaking his head. “The man who wrote this seems to be educated enough to explain instructions. Surely he would know that, as well.”

Tyler looked at the bearded sheriff and then to William. “We’ll have to pretend to do as he says. But how?”

“We’ve got some gold here, and the bank in Dallas will have some. We could collect what we can and fill a chest. We’ll put rocks on the bottom and the gold on top. Then we could make the drop, hide out, and watch them.”

“Won’t they check the gold right there and then?” the sheriff asked.

“We could put it in a lockbox,” William replied. “With any luck at all, Lockhart will send his lackeys for it and they won’t bother to open it.”

“So you’re convinced it’s Lockhart?”

“Hannah recognizes the handwriting. She says there’s no doubt that it’s Lockhart. He was a partner to her father for years. Not only that, but he wrote Hannah letters. I trust that she knows what she’s talking about. Besides, there really isn’t anyone else who would have a reason to take a woman from this ranch and then ask for ransom. Like we mentioned before, if it had been Indians, they would have burned the place out and killed everyone. Even if they planned to take hostages, they would have killed the men and taken the women and children.”

“He’s right,” Tyler said. He still held fast to the hunk of Carissa’s hair.

“Lockhart is a crafty individual,” the sheriff said. “I think he’s gonna know that you can’t possibly get that kind of gold right away. Maybe he expects you to bring what you can and then arrange for the rest of it. Maybe he just figures to get what he can and escape.”

“Well, whatever his plans, I intend to interfere with them,” Tyler said, his eyes narrowing. “I intend to do what I can to get Carissa back here safe and sound.”

“I do, too,” William said with a sigh, “but the sheriff is right. Lockhart can’t imagine that we would have sixty thousand in gold. I know he believed Hannah’s father left a huge treasure of the stuff, but what he left we found long ago. I think maybe we do what we can to set up an ambush in the area of this drop. If we move out and work at night, we ought to be able to use the darkness to conceal our actions. It’ll be just like some of the stuff we did in the war.”

“Well, we’re goin’ with you,” the sheriff said.

“Give us five minutes,” Tyler answered before William could respond. He met his friend’s gaze and felt assured by his nod of affirmation.

The sound of other riders drew their attention to the west. William put a hand to his eyes. “Looks like Ted and Marietta are comin’ to lend a hand.”

Tyler caught sight of the wagon and half a dozen mounted riders. “Good. We can use all the help we can get.”