Whiskey Rose (Fallen) (14 page)

Blind fear made her run. She did
n’
t know where she was going she just knew she had to hide. She ran into the saloon and ducked behind the bar. She pressed herself into the corner up under the bar as far as she could. She grabbed a bottle of whiskey and took a long swig straight from the bottle. She closed her eyes tightly trying to calm her pounding heart. It felt as if it was going to pound right out of her chest.

Matt approached very slowly. He did
n’
t know what was going on but he knew enough to be wary. Where she had put herself had cornered her. If he approached her he could make it worse and yet he could
n’
t not. Her knees were pulled up and her head was down on them.  He stopped a good foot and a half away and eased down to the floor.

“
Rose
?
” he whispered.

“
I’
m sorry
,
” she said,her voice muffled
.“
I am so sorry
.
” She lifted her head and then he saw the tears. His heart halted within his chest.

“
No, no do
n’
t be sorry.
I’
m sorry. I did
n’
t mean t
o
…”

“
I
t’
s not your fault
.
” She sniffed.

“
Rose, all teasing aside. I am not going t
o
… I would neve
r
… You do
n’
t have to do anything yo
u’
re not comfortable with
.
” He stammered.

“
I know that
.
” Her voice was thick from tears. She looked up at him her eyes were shiny and wet,wide as saucers
.“I’
m afraid
.
” He moved forward forgetting that he was trying to leave space.

“
What are you afraid of
?
”

“
Everything
.
” He put his arms around her and she buried her face in his chest.

“
I wo
n’
t let anything happen to you. I will protect you. I promise
.
” She cried against his chest and it burned all the way through him. He did
n’
t know what had had happened to her but it must have been bad. The fainting, the disguise, the locked doo
r
… it should not have taken paralyzing fear for him see it. He did
n’
t move at all he just held her until the tears subsided. When she finally lifted her head he gave her a handkerchief and she laughed.

“
You do have all dozen in your pocket
!
” 

“
Down to nine now
.
”

“
What is your sister in law going to say when she finds out you do
n’
t have them anymore
?
”

“
I think she would say they went to a good cause
.
” She wrapped her arms around him and laid her head on his chest. She took a deep breath and sighed and he relaxed a fraction.

“
Are you ready to go back to your room
?
” She shook her head
.“
Why not, i
t’
s cold in here
?
”

“
Yo
u‘
re warm
.
” He stood up holding her securely around the waist and lifting her with him. She kept her head on his chest as he walked her back to the bedroom. He pulled back the blankets and waited while she slid in then covered her. He locked the door before he went to the sofa and made his own bed.

“
There is something I need to do
.
” She said into the darkness.

“
Wha
t’
s that
?
”

“
I need to go away for a few days
.
”

“
Alright
,
” he said not really following what she was saying.

“
The girl
s
… they think when I g
o
… i
t’
s to se
e
… well you I guess
.
”

“
Oh I see. Where do you go really
?
” Hisquestion was met with only silence so he withdrew it
.“
Tha
t’
s okay, w
e’
ll tell them we are going together this time
.
”

“
You do
n’
t mind? I do
n’
t want to stall your investigation
.
”

“
I do
n’
t mind. I need to check in with my captain anyway
.
” The truth was,the investigation was
n’
t really going all that well anyway. He had
n’
t uncovered anything that led him towards the killer.

“
Matt
.
”

“
Hmm
?
”

“
Thank you
.
”

Matt led as they rode out of town. Rose wouldn't tell him where she was going but she did say it was towards Austin. So they rode together until they were well out of town then he stopped.

"So I will meet you right here in say 4 days?"

"Alright." she smiled.

"See you in a few days." he kicked the horse into a gallop up the road. As soon as he was out of her sight he veered of the road and doubled back. She was still in the same place. He was surprised to see she had dismounted she had already taken off her wig and her curly hair was tamed into a long braid down her back. Now he was really curious. He'd never seen her even leave her bedroom without it. He hadn't paid attention when they left but now he realized that she was wearing a very conservative dress buttoned to her chin. She never wore the makeup that the other girls did but as she tied bonnet strings under her chin he realized that she looked like someone who would never be caught in a saloon.

He followed at a far enough distance that she wouldn't notice him. He had done this a number of times but he had never been this interested in what his quarry was up to. It was almost midday when she reached her destination. It was actually quite a bit closer to Austin then she had let on. She traveled down a long narrow road that he realized was a driveway when she stopped in front of a white house. He dismounted and quickly made his way forward on foot so he could get closer without being seen. He saw the door open and an older woman stepped out with a small child on her hip.  Rose rushed up the porch steps and retrieved the child.  He was close enough to see her smile. He had seen that look before, the way a mother looked at her child. The look of unconditional love that couldn't be duplicated or explained. It was like seeing a different person. He had never seen her look quite so happy as when she was hugging the child. The baby had blond hair more like the wig she wore than the deep chestnut of her real hair. He, if he was a he, didn't look very old. Maybe a year. She disappeared into the house and he found himself rooted to his hiding place. So Rose was a mother. He hadn’t guessed that. Clearly no one knew. Her life was a carefully woven fabric of lies. So far he hadn’t been able to find his way through to the truth. Every time he thought he had it figured out she threw him another curve ball. He returned to his horse and backtracked back to the main road.

Following her hadn’t satisfied his curiosity if anything it only raised more questions. Who was the father? If he was in her life she wouldn’t be letting everyone believe he was her husband would she? Who was the woman caring for the child? Was that her mother? She looked old enough to be. Maybe that was the key, her mother cared for the baby and she and Izzy ran the saloon to support everyone… wouldn’t it be easier to let her raise her own child? He sighed and shook his head to clear it. At this point none of this mattered. She could have as many alter-egos as she wanted as long as none of them had murdered Benji it had nothing to do with him. But there was still the question of Orin Kline. How was she involved with him? Was he the father? If he was
, it certainly proved he was still alive.

Ros
e’
s heart was pounding with anticipation as she approached the house. She had only just dismounted when Martha opened the door. Somehow she always knew.

“
I thought I would be seeing you soon
.
” The older woman smiled. Rose rushed forward and held her hands out to the baby and Martha transferred him over.

“
Oh Clay I missed you so much
.
” She said and hugged the baby. He squealed and then stuck his drool covered fingers back in his mouth and continued to chew on them. She followed Martha back into the house. Just holding the baby made her feel better
.“
H
e’
s gotten bigger
.
” She said softly
.“
I
t’
s only been a month
.
”

“
He cut two teeth
.
”

“
You did
?
” She cocked her head trying to see around the fingers.

“
Harrison, i
t’
s about damn time you showed up. I got a case a week cold waiting for your tail to get back here
.
”

“
Yo
u’
re going to have to put someone else on it.I am working on something
.
” Captain Henning gave him a shrewd look. He had been a hell of a Ranger in his time. Now he ran the D company. H
e’
d gained a good thirty pounds, lost most of his hair and maintained the carefully cultivated moustache of a bureaucrat.  But he still had the intuition of a Ranger.

“
Close the door
.
” Matt did as he was asked then sat down in the chair
.“
Sergeant I expressly told you not to investigate Be
n’
s murder. So why do you look like a man on a personal mission
?
”

“
Because I am investigating Be
n’
s murder
.
”

“
Damn it Matt, give me one good reason why I do
n’
t throw you out of my company right now
?
”

“
Because I am the best yo
u’
ve got especially now that Benji is gone
.
”

“
Yo
u’
ve got the skill but it takes more than that to make a good Ranger. You have to be able follow orders or you might as well be a two bit bounty hunter
.
”

“
Tha
t’
s not a bad idea, with the men I have brought in I could be a rich man off the bounties alone
.
”

“
Yo
u’
ve taken your share of the bounties. You do
n’
t do this job for the money none of us does
.
”

“
No I used to do this job for the honor, for the pride of being a Texas Ranger. I though it meant something. Turns out I could be lying dead in an alley and my Captain is
n’
t going to lift a finger to find my killer.  But you can be damn sure my partner would have. Fire me if you have too but I will find Benj
i’
s killer
.
” Mat
t’
s was nearly yelling, not something he would have normally done to the Captain, he had too much respect for the man. But this was too important.

“
Have you found any leads that show Benj
i’
s murder was anything other than a random act of violence
?
”

“
Not yet
.
” Matt said deflating somewhat.

“
Then we have no Jurisdiction
.
” The captai
n’
s voice was almost apologetic.