Archer, Jane (25 page)

As soon as the local banks had opened, she had reluctantly wired to New York for money. Now Stan Lewis was sure to find her. She only hoped that once she was out of New Orleans, Stan Lewis and Giles Jarmon would not be able to find her in the vastness of Texas.

So she'd taken the chance, gotten the money, then had set about finding passage to Corpus Christi, the closest port to the Bar J Ranch in south Texas. She had been lucky. A schooner was sailing in three days; her money would arrive in time.

Before leaving, she had given Ebba money to go out and purchase whatever clothes for her she could, with a special request to get a riding habit and boots. She did not dare shop for herself, too afraid that Giles or Madame LeBlanc would find her.

Ebba had been gone all afternoon, but had finally returned carrying many packages and boxes. Either she had been unable to buy or had chosen not to buy, any simple gowns. The ones she had purchased were luxurious and expensive. But there was no time left to shop again so Alexandra had thanked Ebba, grateful for anything at all to take along on her escape.

She had given the horse and carriage to the Negro family who had helped them, and also a substantial sum of money to Ebba to help her when she got up North.

Alexandra enjoyed the interlude on the ship; it had proven pleasant and restful, the clean salt air flushing the humid rot of the dying South from her spirit, healing her. She'd shared a cabin with several Northern women who were going to join their husbands in Texas, soldiers stationed at the fort in Brownsville, and since an escort of soldiers would be waiting in Corpus Christi to meet the women, they had assured Alexandra that she would be welcome to travel with them for it would be much safer than trying to hire an unreliable escort.

So, by the time they had arrived in Corpus Christi, Alexandra felt happier, more secure, more like her old self, and was looking forward to completing her promise to Olaf and Eleanor. The soldiers had been waiting, as expected, to escort the women and were more than happy to include Alexandra in their party. There had been wagons for the women to ride in and room for their trunks and the other military supplies which had also arrived on the schooner. She'd felt quite safe as they had ridden inland and then south towards Brownsville on the tip of Texas and near the Mexican border. The major had assured her that even though they would not go by the Bar J Ranch, he would send an escort with her over to the ranch.

The four days they had traveled to get there had been long, hot, and dusty, but Alexandra had enjoyed the company of the other women and the obvious admiration of the soldiers. One man in particular had been most attentive—Lieutenant Blake. He had always been there to help her, making sure she was comfortable. The major had even let him escort her to the Bar J Ranch, and she'd felt quite safe in his presence.

Suddenly, Alexandra's thoughts were jerked back to the present as she saw a brown adobe building in the distance. Could that at last be the Bar J Ranch? The flat, prairie lands all looked alike to her.

"That's the Bar J hacienda, Miss Alexandra," Lieutenant Blake said, glancing at the beauty riding beside him. He was sorry she would not be going on to Brownsville with the rest of the party. But he didn't think a woman like this one would stay long in desolate south Texas. There was nothing here but a lot of half starving Rebels who'd fled the dying South after the war, and thousands of wild cattle and mustangs. No, it was certainly not the place for a fine Northern lady like Miss Alexandra Clarke, but she'd been adamant about coming. At least they had gotten her there safely, but if she didn't want to stay, he'd be only too happy to take her back to the others.

"It's like nothing I've ever seen before," Alexandra said, studying the adobe structure. At least it wasn't a one room shack, but still it was hardly a mansion. The structure was Spanish in architecture with a flat roof and a rounded archway in front. It seemed to fit the countryside, blending in with the colors and the stark, flat land. The sun was intense and it was already hot, much too hot for May; she wondered if it ever got really cold in the winter.

"No, ma'am. I doubt if it is. You'd be used to something much finer," Lieutenant Blake said.

"Finer, perhaps, but not as appropriate," Alexandra said thoughtfully.

Lieutenant Blake grunted, thinking that she didn't have any idea of what she was getting into. The Indians were about tamed, but the men of Texas were wild and almost impossible to control. The fort at Brownsville was supposed to keep things in order, but in this wide expanse of land, there was little they could do. Miss Alexandra was just too innocent a young woman to understand what she was getting into, and she wasn't strong enough to last through the hardships that were innate to the country. But she was stubborn as well as beautiful and was determined to see for herself, he thought. Well, give her a month, then she'd be begging for someone to take her away—to anywhere that was civilized.

Stopping in front of the entrance to the hacienda, Lieutenant Blake put his large hand over Alexandra's gloved ones, saying, "Remember to come to me if you need help, Miss Alexandra. You will have friends in Brownsville when we get there. Remember that,
please."

She turned her bright eyes up to his face, looking at the strong jawline, the intense brown eyes. "Thank you for your interest, Lieutenant Blake, and for bringing me here safely. If I, indeed, need help, or want to leave the Bar J Ranch, I will certainly think of my friends at Brownsville."

"Well, what brings you folks this way?" a voice hailed them, as a man walked slowly toward them from the hacienda.

Alexandra watched him closely, realizing that her time had come. She looked over at the lieutenant. He quickly dismounted and came over to her horse, then helped her down, his hands lingering on her small waist longer than was necessary, but Alexandra didn't notice, her attention caught up with the man who approached them.

"What have we got that the army needs now?" the man drawled as he stopped beside Alexandra and Lieutenant Blake, his eyes squinting in the sunlight as he eyed the group of soldiers unfavorably.

"We've come for nothing of yours, sir," Lieutenant Blake said smartly. "We've brought Miss Alexandra Clarke to you."

"Oh?" the man said slowly, his attention focusing on Alexandra. A beautiful woman, a rare beauty, he thought, as his eyes quickly looked her over. But what was she doing here?

Alexandra stared at the man, forgetting her manners completely. There was a feeling of aristocracy about him even though he was dressed so strangely in tight fitting pants, an open necked shirt, high boots with very high heels and a red scarf tied around his neck. There was an extremely large hat planted securely on his head, but she could see the sharp black eyes under it appraising her. And there was something familiar in his features.

"Well?" he asked, still watching Alexandra.

"I've come to see Jacob Jarmon and his uncle, Lamar Jarmon."

The man's expression didn't change, but there was a slight twitch to his lips as he spoke. "Well, now, what would bring a fine Yankee lady all the way out here to see two hombres like that?"

Alexandra felt her face turning red. "I am Alexandra Clarke. I have just come from the Jarmon Plantation in Louisiana."

The man's mouth tightened, but not in friendship or pleasure. "So?"

This was not proving to be easy. Why had she ever thought they would welcome her with open arms? But she plunged on. She'd come too far not to continue. "Eleanor—"

"Eleanor?" the man asked quickly, his face softening for a moment before the hard mask came down again.

"She sent me to see her son and his uncle. She's dead."

The man uttered several strong oaths as he turned quickly away from them and began pacing the hard packed dirt in front of the hacienda. His hands clenched and unclenched as if it took great effort to control himself. In a moment he came back, pushed his hat back on his head, then said, "Welcome to the Bar J, Miss Clarke. If you're a friend of Eleanor's, then you're our friend, too. I'm Lamar Jarmon. You can call me Lamar, everyone does. Her son is here. You can meet him later."

Alexandra smiled back, her heart giving a tiny jump in relief. She'd been accepted!

"You'll be staying then, Miss Alexandra?" Lieutenant Blake asked discouragingly.

Alexandra looked at him, then back at Lamar Jarmon. And as she looked into the dark eyes of the older man, she said, "Yes, I'll be staying—if I'm welcome."

Lamar Jarmon said slowly, deliberately, "You're welcome, but I must warn you right now that anyone staying at the Bar J has to pull their own weight and it's not a woman's world. You won't like it here."

"Yes, I understand. I'll do whatever is necessary, but you see, Eleanor asked me on her deathbed to come here. There are things I must tell you and then, I want to stay a while, just a while," she said gently, imploringly, her green eyes soft and moist.

"If Eleanor sent you and you're determined to stay after having traveled this far into Texas, then you know what you're getting into. But I'll warn you again, Texas is no place for a woman—not a woman like you."

Alexandra flushed again, but this time in anger as she said, "Mister Jarmon, I am not a child. I know what I'm getting into. I made a promise to Eleanor and I never break my promises."

Lamar Jarmon smiled slightly, thinking that perhaps he'd judged the lady wrong, perhaps she was tough enough for Texas, at least she had a temper and was no mewling girl that would demand attention and pampering. Well, they'd see, but he knew one man who'd be mad as hell to have this little slip of a girl around the place. No, Eleanor's son wouldn't be glad to see the lady she'd sent here. Hell, he'd been so crabby and mean since he came back from New Orleans that hardly a man dared approach him. He'd always had a bad temper, but now it was almost always aflame. Well, at least things would be lively for a while. Of course, they'd have to send her away before they made the cattle drive to Kansas, but they'd cross that bridge when they came to it. He never worried in advance; it just made a man old before his time.

"Well, Miss Clarke, if you're as determined as you seem to be, perhaps you'll make it on the Bar J after all. Are those your bags on the pack horse?"

Alexandra grinned at him, showing her lovely white teeth and he caught his breath for an instant. The Bar J hands would never be the same after seeing her. There was no doubt about that, he thought. "Yes, they're mine. I didn't bring much. I didn't know what I'd need."

He nodded, thinking that women never traveled light even when they thought they did.

"You can unload, men," Lieutenant Blake said, eyeing Lamar Jarmon uneasily. Turning toward Alexandra, he said, "You realize there won't be any women here, except a Mexican or Indian perhaps. Are you sure you want to stay?"

She glanced at him, her eyes darkening. "Yes, I'm sure."

She was more determined than ever since these men were so sure she couldn't survive. After what she'd been through and what she'd learned, she could do just as well as any man. Texas, a place for men only! She'd show them!

Alexandra watched silently as the soldiers dismounted. There were only two large valises and one smaller one, but all three men assisted. They carried the bags up to the hacienda. There they waited, unsure if they should enter. They'd not been welcome in the Rebels' homes before and they doubted if this man would want them to go inside. Lieutenant Blake noticed their hesitancy and cursed to himself. The damn Rebels were so proud, as if they were better than the Northerners. Well, the North had won the war and proved just who was supreme, but the South couldn't seem to understand, or accept that fact.

"Take them in, men, out of the sun," Lieutenant Blake commanded sharply as he looked straight at Lamar Jarmon, daring him to object.

But the man simply smiled insolently. "Surely you and your men would like a cool drink before continuing," he offered.

Lieutenant Blake would liked to have refused, but he knew that the day would be long, hot and thirsty. For his men's sake, he couldn't turn down the invitation. "Indeed, yes. Thank you."

Alexandra preceded the two men, noticing the difference between this country and the plantation she'd left behind. It was clean here and the heat seemed to sanitize everything so that it was continually fresh. She liked the dry air much better than the humid, sweltering heat of Louisiana. She passed under the high arch that formed a gate in the long adobe fence surrounding the hacienda.

Inside, Alexandra was surprised to find that it was quite cool. The adobe seemed to keep out the heat, as well as the intense sunlight. The main room they entered was large and furnished sparsely with dark, massive furniture, elaborately carved in the Spanish style. There were brightly colored rugs and wall hangings on the floors and walls which she decided must be Mexican and Indian. She was fascinated as she looked about for it was all in such great contrast to her New York mansion, or the plantation. Everything that filled the room was utilitarian and a part of Texas culture. It was a man's home, a man's world. But she felt like it.

"Please sit down, Alexandra, and gentlemen," Lamar Jarmon said graciously, waving in the direction of the chairs. His use of her first name startled Alexandra but she did not object; it made her feel more welcome.

"No, thank you. We don't have the time," Lieutenant Blake said stiffly. "We must rejoin our company immediately."

"Of course. I understand. One moment, please."

Presently Lamar Jarmon was back, carrying a tray with glasses and bottles. "Help yourselves, gentlemen," he said as he set the tray down on a table. "I'll see that your horses are watered while you're drinking."

Lieutenant Blake brought Alexandra a glass of water; she quickly drained the glass, feeling much refreshed. The lieutenant returned to her side, drinking thoughtfully as he watched her. If only he could be alone with her before leaving.

He turned abruptly to his soldiers. "Men, if you're through, go see to your horses. We must be on our way."