“What are you staring at, simpleton?” Dusty and hot, Elizabeth irritatedly flipped open her fan. She hadn’t wanted to return to Peavine, not when Belmont had so much more to offer. But business was business.
She glanced around, not seeing anyone but hearing cheers echoing down the deserted street. The weasel-looking stage master shifted from foot to foot, apparently in a hurry to join whatever festivities the grand citizens of Peavine were having. Probably something gauche, like wrestling. Giving a tumultuous sigh, she rolled her eyes, hoping she could endure the next few days until she vacated this little hovel all together.
“Don’t just stand there. Get my bags and take them up to my house.”
“But, the races,” the man whined. “I gots a bet on Tom from the Nightingale beating the Northern Pride and Judgment Day mines, along with ole’ Scott’s Golden Fleece. Why, I’ll even bet--” he broke off when Elizabeth froze him with her stare.
Elizabeth snapped her fan shut, silently consigning the man to the devil, along with all the grumbly old men in this town. She narrowed her eyes, recalling the particular old man who had caused her such aggravation in the first place.
Lucky had practically dragged her to the stage, insisting the man at the telegraph office had sent him because her aunt was sick in Belmont. Her parents' relatives were an obscure lot in Elizabeth's mind, and she didn't even recall having an aunt, but she had allowed Lucky to put her on a coach. Any excuse was better than none to get out of this hick town, if only for a few weeks. Once she had arrived at Belmont and discovered its amenities, she had never even bothered to telegraph. It wouldn’t hurt Clayton to stew a little.
In fact, if she and Clayton didn't have plans, she never would have returned at all. Belmont had a fine hotel with maid service and an opera house, and they had whiled away the afternoons playing lawn croquet. So, even though she discovered Lucky had tricked her, she had decided to stay for awhile.
Besides, in Belmont she had met William. She gave a little sigh. How she had hated to leave his arms, but she had assured him she would be back, right after she took care of business. And speaking of, her first piece of business happened to be walking toward her right at that moment.
Clayton Scott, suave even in the July heat, stirred her blood. So did William, but then Clay was here and William there, and a girl couldn't be expected not to enjoy the pleasures of whatever town she currently resided in. Now could she?
With no prelude, Clayton grabbed her arm and steered her around the corner and part way down the alley. Circling her waist, he pulled her to him. "I want to pick up where we left off," he whispered in her ear, grinding his hips suggestively.
Heat instantly pooled between Elizabeth's thighs. "Oh, I like it when you play rough."
"I'm glad you're finally seeing it my way."
Elizabeth pressed her breasts to his chest. "I've always seen it your way."
Clayton pulled back slightly, looking down his narrow nose at her. "It didn't appear so for the last month."
She gave a delicate shrug. "I can't help it if that old geezer sent me on a wild goose chase." Thinking again about William, she smiled. He had definitely been on the wild side. "I didn't plan to be out of town for a whole month."
Clayton shook her. Blonde brows came down over flinty eyes. "A whole month? What are you talking about. You only left town for two days with Cole."
"Jesse Cole?" Elizabeth laughed outright. That was one man she could do without. Though she had entertained a crush for him years ago, he didn’t consider her the center of his universe. As far as Elizabeth was concerned, that relegated him to non-being status. Besides, he was a crummy miner and would probably die in that hole their fathers had dug without ever finding any gold. That was precisely why she had hooked up with Clayton.
Clayton scowled again and when Elizabeth tried to circle his neck for a kiss, he jerked her arms down, grabbed one forearm and practically dragged her down the street to his rooms. He never said a word until he slammed the door to his hotel suite and turned the key in the lock.
"Take it off." He glared at her.
"Mmmm, aren't we anxious," Elizabeth purred as she reached up to take the pin from her hat. She had barely placed her new confection on the dresser before Clayton spun her around, jerking on her jacket. Buttons flew everywhere.
Elizabeth shivered in delight at his brutal handling. She moaned as he cupped her breasts, pebbling the nipples between thumb and forefinger.
"Who are you?" He growled the words as his mouth came down on hers, crushing her lips before his tongue forced them to open. So caught up in his ferocious lovemaking she didn't understand his question, she tore at his clothes, wanting to feel hot, bare skin beneath her palms.
"Give it to me, baby," his coarse words rasped against her neck. He nipped her skin with his teeth and the ache in her intensified.
"Yes! Now!" She echoed his thoughts. She undid her skirt and shoved it down her hips. She watched as Clayton pulled off his shirt and vest as one piece, flinging them to the floor and then undoing his trousers. He didn't even give her time to remove her stockings, but pushed her roughly up against the wall. With one stroke, he impaled her with his length and she cried out.
Clayton handled her roughly and usually left love marks on her skin, but she loved the brutal strength of him and the forceful way he took her to the heights of ecstasy. Where William had been sweet and gentle and pandered to her every wish, Clayton saw to his own pleasure first. Elizabeth was just the type of girl who could hold her own and she always came right along with him. If she couldn't, he would have never seen her bed after that first time.
Clayton jerked one last time, sending her over the brink and straining for more. She cried out and offered her mouth to his kisses, drinking in the heat that was him. Gradually she became aware of the rough wall paper scratching her back, one stocking bunched down around her ankle, and a wetness slowly seeping down her leg.
Clayton released her and stepped back, his eyes still dark and stormy.
"Are you quite satisfied with yourself now?" She padded over to the washstand, rinsing a cloth and cleaning herself. She looked at him casually over her shoulder and found he hadn't moved. He still stared at her with questioning eyes. "That was a little fast. Don't tell me you haven't gotten any from Molly’s girls for the last month?"
"Goddamnit! Why do you keep saying that? I've seen you practically every day for the last month, even if you haven't been putting out."
Elizabeth turned to face him squarely. "Clayton, I have been in Belmont for one month. If I had been here, rest assured I would have screwed you -- more than once a day if you wanted, just to keep from going out of my mind with boredom."
"I'll kill her." He began to swear as he picked up his clothes, jamming a bare leg into his trousers.
"Who?" Elizabeth stood directly in front of him, naked except for a delicate French lace camisole and silk stockings, re-tied above the knee with ribbon. She knew she looked good, and jealousy struck her that Clayton's mind was on another woman.
"Elizabeth. You...her." He stopped dead still, his gaze racked her form. Her nipples tightened automatically and the heat started all over again.
"Are you playing some kind of sick trick?" He jerked her to him. "I'm warning you, Elizabeth, I've taken enough off you this last month."
"It wasn’t me, Clay, honest." She rubbed her hips suggestively against his.
"Prove it."
"How?"
"Do it like you did that time in Virginia City." He released her arms and stood there, hands on hips.
"Baby, you're all mine," Elizabeth purred as she slid her hands down his chest and circled the length of him.
* * *
"C'mon, Lucky, you can have just one drink," Carlos cajoled.
"Naw, I can't. I promised Zeke I wouldn't do it this time."
Carlos shook his head, not understanding. "What do you mean this time? Cole gave us the day off to have fun! Besides, nothing is going on now 'til the fireworks, and we'll be back long before that."
"Well, I guess one little drink won't hurt none. After all, you being Jesse's foreman and all, I can't see it coming to no harm."
"There you go," Carlos agreed, slapping him on the back and nudging him through the door of the smoky, dusky saloon. When Lucky looked across the room at one of the dance girls, Carlos slipped the powder into his drink.
"Here, drink up. Don't want to make you late getting to wherever you gotta go." Carlos forced a laugh, hoping he'd given Lucky enough sleeping draught to put him out. Mr. Scott had given him specific instructions to follow, and if he didn't get rid of Lucky and Zeke, he wouldn't get the charges set on time.
As soon as Lucky began to sway back and forth, Carlos hoisted him out of his chair, put an arm around his waist and walked him out of the saloon, joking with the bartender about Lucky having too much to drink. He stashed him under a mound of hay in the livery, then began the hike up to Jesse's cabin.
Earlier, he had watched as Jesse walked Miss Elizabeth home and then headed towards the tree line. It wouldn't take much to lure Jesse Cole to his mine. All the man thought about day and night was finding the damn motherlode. Well, the way he and Scott had it planned, Jesse never would find what he sought, unless it was in another world.
* * *
"Then it's someone who looks like you, damnit." Clayton exploded in anger at the thought that anyone, much less a female, had taken him for a fool over the past month.
Elizabeth's exact recreation of their night in Virginia City had sated his sexual appetite, and had convinced him that she was the real Elizabeth. Then who was the charlatan? Who had tied him in knots for thirty days?
Glancing out the window at the darkening sky, he knew it was time to set their plan in motion. He couldn't recall anything he had said to the other woman that would have leaked information, so he felt relatively safe.
He swung his legs over the bed, reaching back to swat Elizabeth on the butt. "Get dressed. It's time."
Elizabeth rolled over and stretched, the sheet sliding down past her hips to reveal the naked length of her. "She's not going anywhere, Clay. She thinks she's safe." Elizabeth secretly chuckled at the idea that someone, who apparently looked like her, had been living in Peavine for the last month and poor Clayton hadn't been able to get her into his bed.
"That doesn't matter. The plan has already been set in motion and it's time. Now get dressed."
Elizabeth gave a sigh as she began gathering her clothes. That was one thing about Clayton she didn't like. His ambitions were going to get him into trouble someday...soon.
She recalled the day she had found the codicil to her father's will, shortly after his death. She had realized that Jesse would never marry her, so according to her father's words, he would get the mine and she would get the bank. Which had been fine because she never thought he would find any gold anyway, and the cash of the bank was immediately gratifying -- just the way Elizabeth liked things.
But when she had shown the papers to Clayton, who was handling bank business, he had come up with a plan where, together, they could have the bank and the mine. He had explained that Jesse had given all the men stakes in the mine, so they had to take care of things before he found any rich veins. If Jesse were dead and no one knew about the codicil, a quarter of the mine would belong to Elizabeth, and they could use the bank's money to buy out the miner's shares.
A very clever plan, Elizabeth thought, as she dressed. She slid a look at Clayton, and wondered what he was thinking. He appeared quite anxious to see this thing through, and she wondered if he had changed the plan in her absence. Or perhaps had plans that didn't include her at all.
Well, she would just have to wait and see. She was sole trustee of the bank, even if Clayton managed it. She just might decide to buy the Nightingale shares herself and leave him out of it. Then she could go back to Belmont and William, or perhaps even tour Europe and find herself a Duke.
* * *
Ellie gave a last glance around the room she had occupied for most of the past month. She had nothing to take with her except memories, she thought as she laced up her hiking boots and pulled her jeans down over the tops. Straightening, she tucked her shirt in and turned to leave Elizabeth’s bedroom. A glint from the table at the window caught her attention and she scooped up her lighter. It was a dollar nineteen cent disposable and since she quit smoking, she didn’t need it.
She started to lay it back down on the table, thought better of it and stuffed it into her pocket. Nobody knew exactly what would happen today. To preserve history as much as they were able, she’d better not leave any evidence of her presence.
A great weight pressed down on her shoulders and she felt a sadness beyond measure at leaving Peavine. She would even miss Zeke and Lucky. As she rounded the corner to the parlor, the front door opened, and thinking she must have conjured up the two, or that Jesse had returned, she pasted on a weak smile.
“Oh, my God,” Ellie exclaimed. It was like looking in the mirror.
“Who the hell are you?” The woman screeched, taking a step back.
Ellie knew without doubt who stood before her. But she couldn’t think of an answer to Elizabeth’s question. The first words out of her mouth were, “Jesse doesn’t think you swear.”
“There’s alot about me Jesse doesn’t know, and thanks to my getting here in time, he never will.”
Elizabeth started towards Ellie who spun on her heel and raced towards the kitchen.
The instance she crossed the threshold, strong arms grabbed her from behind, jerking her to a stop. Without hearing his curse as she kicked him in the shin with her hiking boots, Ellie knew Clayton held her. The evil scent of him was overpowering.
Elizabeth sauntered in, moving to stand right in front of Ellie. With a perfectly manicured forefinger, she tilted Ellie’s chin up then very slowly moved her head from left to right. “She’s really rather coarse, Clay. How in the world would you mistake her for me? And you say Jesse Cole is head over heels in love with her?”
Ellie struggled against his hold. Her heart beat frantically, knowing Jesse’s life depended on the outcome of the next hour. Even if Clayton and Elizabeth held her hostage, Jesse would still be safe. Zeke and Lucky would see to that, or so she thought until Elizabeth spoke again, her voice catty. The woman knew exactly how to strike home.
“Maybe if he loves Elizabeth so much, I should go ahead and marry him. Then we could have the bank and the mine.”
Ellie refused to believe her. She relied on bravado to keep her voice from quivering. “Jesse will never think you’re me. Besides, he knows the plan and he’s ready for you. Zeke and Lucky know, too. You’ll both go to jail.”
Clayton’s arms tightened painfully, forcing her elbows closer together behind her back. Her shoulders burned and she tried to stand up straighter to ease the sharp pull. She only succeeded in causing Clayton to shift his hold, releasing one hand to bring it around in front to cup her breast.
Breath hot and vulgar close to her ear, he issued his ultimatum. “You owe me, bitch. Perhaps you want to pleasure me now to save your life.”
From the front of the house, Ellie heard a faint shuffle of boots and a knock on the door. Just as she sucked in a breath to scream, Clayton clapped a hand over her mouth.
“It’s that old coot, Zeke,” Elizabeth hissed, dousing the kitchen lantern. “I thought you said Carlos would get rid of both of them. Silence her and get out front with me.”
Oh, God, Ellie prayed, watching Elizabeth hurry from the kitchen to the front of the house. What chance did they have if Jesse’s foreman, Carlos, was in on the scheme?
Before she could think about escaping, Clayton spun her around, still holding tightly to one arm. She saw his fist coming at her, but didn’t react fast enough to keep him from punching her on the chin.
As lights blinked before her eyes and the darkness swirled around her, she couldn’t react to Clayton’s parting words.
“Since you like Jesse Cole so much, you might as well be blasted to hell with him.”
Then all was black.
* * *
Zeke thought it odd that so many lights were lit and nobody answered the door at Miss Elizabeth’s. He shuffled off the porch and around to the back of the house, just as the lantern there was doused. Figuring Miss Elizabeth must have heard him and was then on the way to the porch, he tried to hurry back ‘round front afore he missed her.
“These old bones ain’t working the way they used to,” he grumbled to hisself as he rounded the corner of the porch. He grumbled, too, because he couldn’t find Lucky, and the time was near when everything should be set to work right this go-round. Zeke’s knee ached him like ne’er afore, and he couldn’t help but worry.
“Well, hello, Zeke,” the woman’s voice came from the other side of the porch and as Zeke climbed the steps, he could see Miss Elizabeth sitting in the shadows with sneaky Clayton Scott.
He squinted at her; something sounded out of place. “Thought you was with--” he broke off, figuring he couldn’t name Jesse since he knew their Elizabeth had been trying to keep up the pretense of liking Scott to get information. At least until two days ago when Lucky had rescued her and took her off to Jesse’s.
“I merely came by to give my greetings to Elizabeth,” Scott murmured in the dark, and something in his voice set Zeke’s teeth on edge. “It seems like a month or more since I’ve seen her.”
Zeke wished for a lantern. T’was too dark to figure out what was going on.
“Why don’t you mosey on down to the saloon for a drink, Zeke. Elizabeth here has already told me Cole’s escorting her to the fireworks, but if he doesn’t get here in time, I’ll be happy to offer my arm.”
Zeke stepped off the porch into the dark, thinking he’d best find Lucky fast and get back up here. The hair on the back of his neck was standing straight up, he could feel it, and that meant somebody was up to no good.
* * *
“What are we going to do with her?” Clayton asked as he stood over Ellie’s still form.
Elizabeth tilted her head and looked at him as he asked the question. “I thought you were the one with the plan.” She was beginning to think Clayton rather inept, and her earlier idea took shape in her mind. Now that she had seen this impostor, she could pretend to be her, marry Jesse, and have it all. The bank would already be hers, and if Jesse did find gold, that would be hers as well.
As always, she would have to take matters into her own hands. But for a short time longer, she needed Clayton to see her plan through.
“Leave her. She’s not going anywhere and by the time she comes to, it will be too late. Carlos should have Jesse at the mine by now, so that’s where we go. If need be, we’ll send Carlos back for her.”
Expecting him to follow, Elizabeth left by the back door, hurrying along the path that lead to the trees. It had been a while since she had ventured up to the mine her father had once half owned, but she thought she could find her way. After all, she had a nose for money.
She explained her plan as they ascended the slight rise to the mine entrance. There, she waved Clayton off to the side. She could see a dim light deep in the mouth of the mine. Taking a fortifying breath, she grabbed the shoulder of her gown and jerked it down, the seam giving under pressure. She pulled a few pins from her hair, tossing them into the bushes then shook her head, causing ringlets to cascade down onto her shoulders.
Rushing forward into the mine, she screamed, forcing a breathlessness into her voice. “Jesse! Jesse! He’s after me; you’ve got to save me.”
“Who’s after you?” Jesse wasn’t as deep into the mine as she had thought, and at her outcry, he jerked his gun from its holster. Upon seeing it was her, he slid it back home. “Ellie, what the devil’s the problem?”
Elizabeth smiled to herself. So, it wasn’t just Clayton who thought she and the other woman looked alike. Her future was looking brighter by the minute. She took another faltering step, closed her eyes and dropped into a swoon. Predictably, Jesse rushed forward to catch her.
“Ellie, sweetheart. What--”
“Tsk, tsk. Isn’t that just touching.” Clayton stepped into the circle of light, catching Jesse by surprise and slipping his gun from the holster while his arms held Elizabeth. Clayton tucked it in the waist of his trousers then grabbed Elizabeth by the arm, shoving her towards the light.
“Get the lantern.”
His lips curled into a nasty smile as he waved the gun towards the darkened mine shaft. “Let’s go, dead man.”