35

We’re goin’ to the barn.” As the woman put her hand on Thea’s shoulders, propelling her down the steps and toward the outbuilding, Thea realized it wasn’t only the bandanna that bore that horrible perfume. The woman had dabbed it on her wrists, sending waves of it wafting through the air as she moved.

Jackson had been right. The female member of the Gang did indeed wear the perfume Thea had smelled on Daniel’s shirts, and now she was here, threatening Thea.

Thea stopped abruptly and swiveled, looking up at her captor. The almost full moon revealed medium brown hair, brown eyes that flared with anger, and a form that—despite the masculine clothing—was distinctly feminine.

Almost gagging at the perfume that had once tainted Daniel’s shirts, Thea shuddered. Though she wanted to resist, there was no way she could overpower this woman who was more than half a foot taller and whose muscles rivaled any man’s.

A feeling of impending doom settled over her. If only she had insisted Jackson stay, she would have been safe, but she had not. She straightened her shoulders and lifted her head in the only gestures of defiance she had at her disposal. There was no point in regretting might-have-beens. She needed to find a way to escape.

“Get movin’.” The woman pushed Thea forward. “You and me’s gonna talk, but don’t get no ideas about screamin’. Ain’t nobody gonna hear you out there,” the woman taunted.

Even if she could have spoken through the bandanna, Thea saw no need to mention that there was no one to hear her anywhere. Jackson had not yet returned. Angus was unconscious or worse. If Ethel wondered where Thea and her husband were, she wouldn’t search for them, because Thea had impressed on her the necessity of remaining in bed for at least four hours. All that meant that Thea was on her own, and yet she wasn’t alone.

Taking comfort from the fact that, while there might not be any humans nearby, God would always hear her, she offered a silent prayer. Dear Lord, I know you see and hear everything. I know you’re watching out for me, and I pray that you will give me the strength to get through this night. Feeling strength flow through her veins, Thea marched forward, determined that whatever happened, she would not give this woman the satisfaction of seeing her cower.

“Well, that’s more like it.” Apparently, her captor mistook Thea’s newfound courage for acquiescence. “Inside.”

They’d reached the barn, the structure that sheltered the ranch’s milk cow during the worst of winter’s cold. Thea knew that at this time of the year it held only a few bales of hay and a small supply of feed corn. With no windows and only one door, it was the ideal place to hide a captive.

The woman shoved Thea inside, lit a lantern, then closed the door behind them. “Sit down.” She pushed Thea onto one of the bales. “Like I told you before, you and me’s gonna talk.”

As she pulled something from her pocket, Thea felt her eyes widen with recognition. One of her questions was answered when the woman flicked open Daniel’s watch and stared at the portrait.

“Yep. I got it right this time. Yer the one what made Daniel change.” Though the lantern provided little more light than the moon had, there was no mistaking the fury in her eyes. “We had a good life, but you had to go and wreck it. Well, Mrs. Michener . . .” She spat the words. “You’re gonna pay fer that, but first you’re gonna tell me where Daniel hid the gold.” She yanked the bandanna, pulling it down onto Thea’s neck. “Start talkin’.”

Thea inhaled deeply, savoring the partial freedom of not being gagged, even though it meant smelling the woman’s perfume. The relief was temporary. Thea knew that, just as she knew that the woman had no intention of letting her live. Her only hope was to stall.

“Who are you?” Thea wanted confirmation of what she suspected.

The woman’s eyes narrowed, and her face contorted with anger. “You mean Daniel din’t tell you? Shame on him. It don’t seem fair that he din’t tell you about me, ’specially when I had to listen to him talk about you.” She deepened her voice, attempting to imitate Daniel. “‘I’m goin’ straight now, Charity.’ That’s my name,” she said in her normal voice. “Charity James.”

Thea nodded slowly. That was one of the names Jackson had mentioned when he returned from the orphanage. He’d believed she was the fourth member of the Gang, and he’d been correct.

Charity James deepened her voice again. “‘No more robbin’ for me. Gonna make a life for my wife and baby.’”

Despite the gravity of the situation, Thea’s heart leapt at the realization that Daniel had cared enough for her and their unborn child to want to abandon his criminal activities.

Charity James’s laughter held no mirth. “Well, that’s where he went wrong, thinkin’ me and the others would let him leave. The four of us been together for too long to change, but Daniel figgered he was different. He figgered we’d never find him, but he weren’t as smart as he figgered. We found him and we found you.” Charity smiled, a smile that sent a shiver down Thea’s spine. “Now we’re gonna find the gold, ’cuz you’re gonna tell me where it is.”

The gold. Everything centered on the gold that Daniel had apparently stolen from his partners. Had he thought Thea wanted or needed it? If Daniel had told her about it, she would have insisted he turn it in to the authorities, but Daniel had never mentioned any gold.

Thea looked directly at Charity James, willing her to believe her. “I don’t know where it is.”

Charity did not believe her. Her lips curving in disgust, she raised her arm and slapped Thea’s face. “Yer lyin’.”

Though her face stung from the blow, Thea kept her voice steady. “I am not lying. Daniel never talked about gold. He told me he was a traveling salesman.”

“He was. When he weren’t helpin’ me rob folks, him and me pretended to be upstanding citizens.” This time Charity’s smile was genuine, as if she found the thought amusing. “Daniel would tell folks he was a salesman. I pretended to be a missionary, collectin’ money for orphans in China. Can you imagine that? Me, a missionary.” She laughed.

“Well, by the time folks figgered out what was goin’ on, Daniel and me had planned our next heist. That’s why we done what we did, to figger out when rich folks would be travelin’ or when a payroll was comin’ through. You can learn a lot by listenin’.”

Thea doubted that Charity recognized the irony in her words, but she was learning a lot by listening. The woman’s story confirmed Jackson’s theory of why he and Leander had been unable to find the Gang between robberies. Jackson had suspected they’d pretended to be ordinary citizens, but he had been looking for four people together, not realizing that they’d gone in different directions.

“What about the other two?” Charity had only accounted for herself and Daniel.

“Will and Rob?” The curl of her lip left no doubt about Charity’s opinion of them. “Them two are too dumb to plan anything. They hang out on a ranch between heists. Right now they’re probably drinkin’ themselves silly in some saloon.”

She shook her head. “Time’s a wastin’. There ain’t no point in talkin’ about me and the boys. Yer the one what’s got the answers.” Charity stood over Thea, her lips twisted into a snarl. “Where did Daniel hide the gold?”

“I don’t know.” Though Charity wouldn’t be satisfied, it was the simple truth. Not once had Daniel mentioned either gold or a hiding place. Charity was the one who’d known him for most of his life. Surely she would have a better idea of where he might have stashed the loot than Thea, who had been his wife for such a brief time.

“Well, now, Mrs. Michener, I ain’t believin’ that. I reckon a man who was head over heels in love the way Daniel was woulda tole you everythin’.” Charity’s expression darkened with something that might have been jealousy. “I ain’t never seen a man so crazy about a woman. The only other gal what caught his eye was Violet, but that weren’t nothin’ compared to the way he talked about you.”

Charity’s scowl deepened. “Heaven knows I tried to get him interested in me, even got me the most expensive perfume in the store, but he weren’t havin’ none of it.”

As Charity’s final words registered, Thea’s heart began to pound. Thank you, God. He’d answered one of her prayers. Although she would never have dreamt that the truth about whether Daniel truly loved her would come like this, there was no doubting the sincerity of Charity’s statement.

Thea could feel peace settle over her like a warm blanket, chasing away the fears that had hounded her ever since Daniel’s first trip to San Antonio. She hadn’t been wrong. He hadn’t lied. Daniel had loved her, just as she had loved him.

It was a wonderfully liberating thought, erasing the months of pain when she had believed him unfaithful.

On the heels of that epiphany came another. The last of her doubts was gone. Her questions had been answered, her fears vanquished, replaced by the knowledge that her love for Jackson was deeper and stronger than anything she had felt for Daniel. It was a love that would endure for as long as Thea lived.

But that might not be long. Thea closed her eyes as the reality of her situation once again weighed on her. Charity James was an angry and vindictive woman who had no intention of letting Thea live beyond the night. When Thea did not give her the answers she sought, she would probably slit her throat the way she had Helen’s. And then Jackson would always wonder whether Thea had returned his love.

She offered another silent prayer. Dear Lord, let me live long enough to tell Jackson how much I love him. When she opened her eyes, she was smiling.

“What’s the matter with you? You ain’t got no reason to be smiling. You’re gonna be as dead as Violet and the one what looked so much like you.”

It was as Thea had feared. Charity was a woman who thought nothing of ending human life.

“Ain’t nobody gonna rescue you.” As if to assure herself that no one had arrived, Charity swiveled around to stare at the door, then took a step toward the stall.

It was the opportunity Thea needed, the only one she might have. She jumped to her feet and ran toward the door, but it was to no avail. Before she could reach it, Charity knocked her to the ground and stood with her foot on Thea’s right leg. Even if she’d wanted to kick, she would have hit only empty air.

“You ain’t gettin’ away so easy. Shoot! You ain’t gettin’ away at all. Once you tell me where the gold is, you’re gonna meet up with Daniel agin.”

The threats were no surprise to Thea. What did surprise her was that Charity had voiced them. “Why would I tell you where the gold is when you’re planning to kill me anyway?”

“’Cuz if’n you tell me, you kin die quick. Otherwise, it’s gonna be slow and painful just like that other woman.”

Charity spat again. “That durn Daniel. He led me on a goose chase. He tole me you and him was livin’ in Llano. Took a while to figger out that he was lyin’ and that you were someplace different. Daniel weren’t so smart, though. I figgered that the name started with an L.” She shook her head in disgust. “You got any idea how many L towns there is?”

She reached down, grabbed Thea’s arm, and yanked her up. “Sit,” she commanded as she pushed Thea back toward the bale. “Now stick out yer feet.”

“Why?”

“Why do you think?” Charity picked up a length of rope that had been hanging over the edge of the cow’s stall. “I’m gonna make sure you don’t try to escape agin.”

Knowing there was no way she could overpower the woman, Thea extended her legs. Though she would be unable to walk, somehow she would find a way to outsmart Charity.

“Well, that’s more like it. Seems you learned a lesson.”

To Thea’s surprise, Charity wrapped the rope around her calves, leaving her feet and ankles unbound. Though it would be difficult, Thea would be able to walk, almost as if she were in one of those three-legged races that had been such a popular part of Independence Day celebrations. Still, it was an odd way to restrain someone. Though Thea suspected there had to be a reason for the woman’s action, she could not imagine what it was, particularly since Charity had made it clear that she did not expect Thea to leave the barn alive.

“Now, where’s the gold?”

“I don’t know.” Thea wondered how many times she would have to repeat those words before Charity believed her.

Instead of the scowl Thea had expected, the woman smiled—a smile so evil that Thea could not help cringing. “Well, now, that’s a real shame.” Charity pulled a knife from one of her pockets and laid it on the bale. The position was deliberate, Thea knew, designed to taunt her with the fact that she could not reach it with her hands tied behind her back.

“I tole you we could do this easy or hard,” the woman said as she began to unfasten Thea’s shoes. “I reckon you’re gonna have a different answer once I start slicing those feet of yers. The last one screamed mighty loud.” She pulled off the first shoe and chuckled. “Well, look at that, will you. Daniel’s wife has purty stockin’s.”

Thea closed her eyes, trying not to think about what Charity was threatening to do. She cringed at the realization that Charity had tortured Helen before killing her. It was no wonder Jackson had shown Thea only Helen’s head and neck. From the way Charity was acting, she had probably sliced more than Helen’s feet.

Thea tried not to shudder, not wanting to give Charity the satisfaction of seeing her fear. Perhaps if she focused on the woman’s poor grammar and the way she began so many sentences with “well,” Thea would be able to ignore the pain that was bound to come.

Had there been no teachers at the orphanage, or had Charity simply been a poor pupil? As the questions swirled through Thea’s brain, a memory began to emerge.

That’s it! That’s where it was! She knew where Daniel had hidden the gold.

Jackson gripped the whiskey glass so tightly he thought it might shatter. He’d always believed anger to be white hot, but he’d been wrong. What he felt now was icy cold determination—determination to bring the Gang to justice, determination to save Thea, determination that he would not fail another person he loved.

You didn’t kill Micah. Thea’s words echoed through his brain. That might be true, but it didn’t mean that he hadn’t failed to keep his brother safe, and it didn’t mean that he wouldn’t fight to keep Charity from killing Thea.

Jackson laid the still-full glass back on the table, then rose and walked toward the bar as if he had not a care in the world, knowing he must do nothing to alert Will and Rob to his identity. As casually as he could, he walked behind the bar, wrapped an arm around Faith’s waist, and whispered in her ear. To anyone paying attention, he would seem to be nothing more than an amorous cowboy, but the words he whispered were anything but amorous.

“The two strangers are wanted men,” he told Faith. “Get a message to Travis. Tell him part of the Gang of Four is here. Whatever you do, don’t let them leave.”

Faith shifted her position, turning her back to the room so no one could read her lips. “Where are you going?”

“The Harris ranch. Their leader has Thea.”

“Oh!” The word escaped on a whoosh of breath. Recovering quickly, she pressed a kiss to Jackson’s cheek. “I could tell you that kiss is for luck, but you don’t need luck. You’ve got God on your side.”

The words melted some of the ice that had encased his heart, reminding him that he was not alone in this fight. “Thanks, Faith.” He sauntered out of the bar and sprang into Blaze’s saddle.

I need your help, Lord. You know what’s in my heart. You know that I love Thea and that Stuart and I need her. I pray that you will keep her safe. The prayers continued as he raced toward the ranch, giving thanks that there was enough light from the moon that Blaze would not stumble in a rut.

When they arrived, Jackson saw two dark forms at the side of the house and an unfamiliar horse grazing in the small paddock near the house. The horse was Charity’s, he assumed, though there was no sign of the woman, and the silent lumps . . . Jackson sighed. The absence of barking dogs left little question of their identity.

Please, Lord, let me be in time to save Thea. Where was she? The night was oddly silent, but the lights in the house indicated that someone was still awake. Jackson flung himself off Blaze and mounted the porch steps two at a time, desperate to find Thea before it was too late. He was reaching for the door when he stopped abruptly, his attention caught by the sight of a body slumped on the porch floor. The ordinary work clothes could have belonged to any man or to a woman who dressed like a man. Was it Angus or Charity? There was only one way to know.

Disappointment threatened to overwhelm Jackson as he turned the body over and recognized Angus. The rancher who’d bragged about his ability to kill varmints had been no match for Charity James. Few men were, but Angus had been luckier than most. Though unconscious, he was still alive, perhaps because Charity hadn’t wanted to spend the time to kill him when Thea was her quarry. There was no time for Jackson to try to revive him. Angus would live, but Thea was still in danger.

His sense of urgency growing by the second, Jackson strode into the house.

“That you, Angus?” a woman’s voice called from the back of the building. “Where you been all this time? Don’t you wanna see yer son?”

It appeared that Thea had successfully delivered Ethel Harris’s child, but judging by the woman’s annoyance, she was no longer with her. Charity must have taken Thea somewhere.

Jackson entered the room, his eyes searching for signs of the woman he hoped would one day be his wife. What he found was what he’d expected: Ethel Harris in bed with her baby in her arms.

“Where’s Thea?”

“Don’t know.” The new mother was clearly displeased. “She went out to fetch my man. She ain’t come back, and neither did he. Where’s Angus?”

Jackson had no patience for explanations. “He’ll be here soon.”

He raced out of the house and looked around. Since Charity’s horse was still in the paddock, she and Thea had to be somewhere on the ranch. As his eyes adjusted to the darkness again, he spotted a faint light leaking from below the barn door.

Moving silently, Jackson did a brief reconnaissance of the building. No windows. No other door. As much as he hated going in blind, knowing he could be ambushed, he had no choice. Slowly, he slid the barn door open enough that he could see inside. Thankfully, it did not squeak and betray his position.

Jackson’s thanks died on his lips, and his blood ran cold at the sight before him. Charity James was bent over Thea’s bare feet, a wicked-looking knife in her hand. He didn’t need to imagine what she was doing, for rivulets of blood had dripped onto the dirt floor. She was torturing Thea as she had Helen.

“Well, now, looks like I gotta go deeper next time.” God was definitely watching over Jackson, because Charity appeared oblivious to him. “Where’s the gold?”

Though Thea had been staring at Charity, she glanced sideways and spotted him. Her eyes lit with what appeared to be relief, and the look she gave him was filled with such love that it warmed Jackson’s blood faster than the August sun dried morning dew. Without making a sound, Thea mouthed the sweetest words in the English language, “I love you.”

And he loved her. God had led him to her and had kept her alive this long. Now it was up to Jackson to save her.

Charity raised the arm holding the knife and prepared to slice. No! He wouldn’t let her harm Thea again. Thea would not be a victim. She would not die as Helen had.

Knowing that he had the advantage of surprise and strength, Jackson leapt forward and grabbed Charity’s arm. In one swift movement, he wrested the knife from her and tossed it aside. As she spun around, shock blanched Charity’s face.

“You!” she screamed.

“Yes, me. The Ranger who’s been tracking you.”

Jackson yanked her other arm behind her and handcuffed her.

Screaming curses, the leader of the Gang began to kick at him. He’d anticipated that and easily sidestepped her, then knocked her to the ground. This woman wasn’t going to hurt anyone again.

Though she struggled to rise, Jackson kept his weight on her and pulled out the rope he’d stuffed into his back pocket. Within seconds, he’d bound her feet and tied her to the empty stall. That would keep her temporarily. As soon as he cared for Thea, Jackson would return with the leg irons that he’d left on Blaze, fearing they might clank and alert Charity to his presence.

“You, you—” Words seemed to fail Charity until she turned her attention back to Thea and began to curse her. “Where’s my gold?” she demanded.

“There’s no more gold in your future, Charity James,” Jackson told her, satisfaction at having apprehended her mingling with sorrow over the pain she’d inflicted on Thea. “The only thing you’ll be seeing is a hangman’s noose. The State of Texas doesn’t take kindly to murdering women.”

There was not a doubt in Jackson’s mind that Charity had been the one who’d killed Helen Bradford. The memory of the woman’s bloodied feet had turned his stomach more than once, and now Thea was the one who’d been subjected to the same torture. At least she was still alive. Thank you, Lord.

While Charity continued to curse, Jackson picked up the knife and sliced through Thea’s bonds, freeing her hands and feet. “We’ll get you to the Goddard ranch. Austin will know what to do for your feet.”

Thea shook her head. “I don’t need a doctor. I have salves and bandages in my bag back in the house. That’s all I need. I’m not sure I can walk that far, though.”

“You won’t need to.” Without a sideways look at the outlaw who was still shouting obscenities, Jackson swept Thea into his arms.