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* * *
Lucille, Leonard, Irene, and Belle made their way down the street towards Leonard’s house. They had only gone a few paces when Decker’s voice shot out at them. It was loud and close and sounded madder than hell.
“Deputy! Stop!” Leonard turned around, his heart thumping hard in his chest. He wished nothing more than for this day to be over.
“Marshal Decker,” he said, trying to keep his voice level. Letting on that he was upset would only make things worse. “There you are. I’d wondered what had become of you.”
“Where are you going?” Decker demanded. His face was a mask of anger.
Leonard hesitated. “Lucy wasn’t feeling well after all the commotion, so I was taking her home.” Lucy put her hand on her belly and let out a groan in an effort to play along. Decker merely glanced at her disinterestedly.
Leonard was all too conscious of Irene and Belle hovering near them. There was no way the marshal could have known of their involvement—he didn’t think—but it made him nervous all the same. He would feel better if the women would just get out of there before Decker started asking them questions.
Amos came running up behind them. “They got away,” he said. “Those darn bandits got away again. Whoever they are, they’re good. I’ll give them that.”
“They did not get away,” shouted Decker. His neck began to grow, veins popping out all around it. He turned to Irene. “Did you see anything?” he asked her, his voice a low-pitched growl.
Irene shook her head. He shifted his eyes to Belle, who shook hers as well.
Decker blinked and leaned in towards Belle. “Your husband owns the barbershop, doesn’t he?” he asked her. She nodded. “Where is he now? I need to get in there.”
Belle hesitated. “I can let you in,” she said. “I have a key.”
“Hurry up with it then. It’s possible those bandits are inside there right now.”
“I didn’t see them go back in,” said Leonard.
“Maybe they got in through a window or a side door,” Decker said, leading them back to the building they were trying to escape from.
Leonard whispered to Lucille, “Go home. Take Irene with you.” But he could tell from the look in her eyes she had no intention of going anywhere without him. It both warmed his heart and irritated him at the same time.
Belle skipped a step ahead of them and almost fell. Amos caught her just in time. The crowd that had thinned seemed to be gathering back together again.
“Anyone see where they went?” Decker shouted, hoping someone might have an answer for him.
“Disappeared up your rear!” someone shouted and a few people cackled loudly. Decker’s face flushed.
“Hurry it up,” he said to Belle. “I want that door open.”
Leonard watched closely as Belle lifted her key to the door. She hesitated, her hands shaking as though she was scared to open it, and he realized the problem—the door was already open. She hadn’t locked it when they’d run out of there. It would look strange for the shop door to be unlocked, and Belle must have been worrying over it.
“Marshal,” Leonard said, drawing his attention away from Belle.
Decker’s eyes fluttered towards him. “What?”
It was just for a second, but it was all Belle needed. She slipped the key into the lock and pretended to unlock the door. Decker never realized the classic “clicking” sound the lock should have made when it was turned was absent.
“Never mind,” Leonard said. Amos was paying closer attention, however, and he frowned slightly as Belle pushed the door open.
Inside the shop, the marshal and sheriff ran from room to room checking things over. There was no sign of anything out of place.
“I’m not sure the bandits were ever in here to begin with,” Amos said. “I don’t see a broken window or anything. How could they have gotten in? I think whoever spotted them first made a mistake.” Decker let loose with a string of curse words that almost made him blush.
Decker looked around at them. “Well,” he snapped. “What are you all doing in here? Let’s go, we’ve got to track those bandits down!”
Belle and Irene shuffled out of the shop ahead of them. Amos, Leonard, and Lucille just behind them. Decker went out last. Now that the chase was over and the bandits had disappeared, the crowd appeared to be losing interest.
Decker looked around hopelessly. “Where’s everyone going?” he demanded. “You can’t all leave. Get back here! We’ve got to find them!”
A couple of drunk men stumbled past them. “I know where those Beauty Bandits are hiding,” said one of the men.
Decker looked at the man with earnest interest. “Yes?” he asked, hope lighting in his face. He refused to give up even at the bitter end. For that, Leonard had to give him credit. The man might have been a toad, but he was a dedicated toad.
The drunk man who’d spoken pointed one long, bony finger at Lucille, who flinched. He smiled at her, then moved his long, bony finger to point at Decker. “There she is,” he said, still pointing at the marshal. “The ringleader!” He burst out laughing, and his friend joined him.
Leonard almost felt bad for Decker—almost.
Decker grumbled and started back for the station. “That girl in there’s got to know something,” he muttered.
“Effie?” Lucille asked with alarm.
Decker was already several paces ahead of them and moving fast. “She’s a thief. Their kind all stick together.”
It was Amos who put a stop to Decker’s fanciful nonsense. “You leave Miss Bates alone,” he said. “You know damned well she’s got nothing to do with the Beauty Bandits, and I won’t let you pin those crimes on her even if she is a thief and you’re a marshal.”
“What are you going to do about it?” Decker demanded, stepping nose to nose with Amos.
“You’ve got people you answer to,” Amos said. “I’ll make sure they know what kind of man you are. The kind that blames innocent young women for crimes they didn’t commit just because he can’t do his job.”
Decker’s face grew red, and his eyes turned dark. He opened his mouth but only hot air came out. He drew in a breath and finally managed to say, “I’ll find those Beauty Bandits if it’s the last thing I do.”
He stomped off then, leaving them alone and able to breathe freely. Amos headed back to the station, and Leonard told him he was taking the rest of the day off. Amos just nodded and gave a soft smile.
“Let’s get home,” Leonard said to Lucille.
She took his hand and looked at Irene. “Will you find Francis and Betty and let them know everything’s all right?”
Irene nodded, and Lucille let go of Leonard’s hand to embrace the woman. She hugged Belle next. “Thank you,” she said. “What you four did was completely foolish, but it worked. I owe you my freedom.”
“Anything for a friend,” Irene said and blushed lightly. Then Leonard slipped his hand over Irene’s and headed back home.
* * *
