Loving the Lawman (Roses of Ridgeway) (8 page)

The crowd was much thinner inside Ruby's Diner than it usually was on a weekday, and Valerie couldn't help noticing all the empty tables as she made her way to the back, near the window overlooking the duck pond.

Ruby ambled over, removing the pen behind her ear and readying her small pad of paper. "What you having today, Miss Valerie? The usual?"

Valerie nodded. "I'm looking forward to some of that delicious tomato soup. But I'm waiting for Noah to join me."

Ruby winked. "I knew you'd get on well with that handsome sheriff of ours. I'll come back in a bit."

After Ruby was gone, Valerie fixed her eyes on the glassy surface of the pond. There were a few mallards splashing about, and she took in the scene, hoping it would calm her nerves. In the four days since Janice had been found, she'd barely left the mercantile. Her father had insisted she stay inside while the new light horsemen settled into their job. She'd understood his concern, in fact, she'd shared it. Still, it felt good to be out of the house, especially since she was meeting Noah on his lunch break.

The bell over the door chimed, and she shifted her gaze toward the door.

There he was, looking as handsome as ever in his regular uniform. As he slipped the Stetson from his head, he revealed that glorious head of blond locks, the striking blue eyes, and the strong, manly features of his face.

When their eyes met, he gifted her with a bone-melting smile, then began striding in her direction. Moments later, he slid into the chair across from her. "Afternoon, Valerie."

She could feel the heat burning her face as she returned his greeting. "How are you today, Noah?"

"A little tired, but I'm doing much better now that I'm with you." He reached across the table, capturing her trembling hand in his large, sure one.

She held his gaze, sinking into the mesmerizing beauty of those eyes.

"Ahem."

She looked up to see Ruby standing over them, grinning. "Look at you two." She placed two tumblers of cool water on the table, then readied her pencil again. "What'll it be?"

After Noah ordered his roast beef sandwich and Saratoga chips, Ruby sauntered away, leaving them alone again.

They ate their meal together in relative silence, with a bit of banter about the food and the weather. She wondered how he must be feeling, considering the events of the past week. Even with the new posse her father had installed, the large part of the responsibility for keeping the people of Ridgeway safe still rested on his shoulders. She wondered also how he felt about their relationship, now that he knew she could bear him no sons. He's shown little reaction when she told him, and hadn't mentioned it since, leaving her with no indication of his feelings.

When they'd finished eating, she set her empty tumbler down. "Do you have to be back soon?"

He pulled a gold pocket watch from the inside of his vest, then shook his head. "I've got a little bit of time. Let's go out to the pond. The men are still training at the festival grounds."

After he paid their ticket, he stood and extended his arm. "Shall we?"

She took his offered arm, as she smiled at the gentlemanly gesture. They left the diner, and retreated behind the building.

She could hear the sounds of the men firing their weapons a few miles away as they sat down in a soft spot in the grass on the pond's edge. He sat to her right, and she leaned her body against his, enjoying the comfort of his solid, steady presence. He draped an arm casually around her shoulder, and she inhaled the masculine scent of leather and tobacco exuding from him.

She let her eyes focus on the water, where a mother mallard and her ducklings were busy gliding along the glassy surface. Their rhythmic movements did much to soothe her busy mind.

"I will catch whoever assaulted Miss Smart. I want you to know that." His sudden declaration broke the silence.

She turned her eyes up to him. "I have every confidence that you will, Noah."

The hard lines of his face softened at her words. "I appreciate that. But I do have something to request of you."

"Yes?"

"Promise me you'll keep yourself safe until these brutes are caught." His eyes held such seriousness, it gave her pause. "Don't walk or ride alone in the darkness, and always be aware of your surroundings, alright?"

She nodded, noting how relieved he looked to have her agree. "I'll do my best."

"Good." He caught her chin in his hand, and lifted it gently. "Because if anything ever happened to you, I couldn't bear it."

She trembled, and before she could form a response to his sweet words, his brought her up to his kiss.

As his lips crushed against hers, she became lost in the sensation. Her insides seemed to be melting as he drew her even closer to the muscled lines of his body, his tongue delving into the cavern of her mouth.

All sense of time and place fell away, until there was nothing in existence but the two of them, and his magical presence.

When he pulled away, she was breathless, dazed.

"Noah, about my being barren..."

With a brief shake of his head, he dismissed her. "We don't have to talk about it."

She sighed. "I want to know how you feel."

His arms still around her, he averted his eyes. "I don't know how I feel about that. But I do know how I feel about you." There was something in his voice, a slight change in tone she could detect, but couldn't define.

She felt the tears coming to her eyes. "Noah."

Releasing her from his embrace, he stood. "I must get back to work. If I stay..." he paused, letting his eyes convey his desire, "I may never go back."

That started the trembling again, but doing her best to ignore it, she responded quietly. "I understand. I'll see you later, Noah."

He touched the brim of his Stetson, and with a few long strides across the grassy field, he was gone.

Valerie remained at the pond for several long moments, not wanting to get up. As she gazed at the mallards, and listened to the soft sounds of the insects and the wind, she replayed the kiss in her mind, over and over again.

**

Rifling through the papers in the lower drawer of his desk, Noah, pulled out several documents and lay them across his desk. Finally, after all the tedium of filing paperwork, he'd found some cogent use for it.

He thumbed through the copies of reports that had been filed in the neighboring towns. Each month, the sheriff in Oakland, which was twenty miles to their west, as well as the lawman in Marysville, located across the Sacramento River from Ridgeway, sent their report filings to him, and he responded in kind. The idea was to pick up on trends in crime that might lead to major arrests.

When he'd been on the road outside of town the day Miss Smart had been found, seeing the broken trip rope had triggered something in his memory. He'd read about a similar recent incident in one of the neighboring towns. He couldn't recall where the crime had happened, but he remembered the report.

He spent a few moments skimming the text of the each report until he came across the one he was looking for. It was from Oakland, referring to an incident that had taken place less than three weeks prior to Miss Smart's assault.

Report Date: September 2,1883

Taken by: G. Vickers, Deputy Sheriff

A female citizen, Miss Clara Kane, asserts that she was riding alone at dusk, returning home from her family visit. Her horse fell victim to sudden injury- upon inspection the beast's forelegs were injured by a rope, which had been strung taut across the road. Hearing some sounds, Miss Kane ran back toward town, and was pursued. However when she reached the town borders, and engaged another citizen leaving the saloon, the unknown assailants fled.

Actions Taken: Increased evening patrols by sheriff and appointed deputies, Miss Kane advised not to travel alone.

The case was eerily similar to Miss Smart's, save for the fact that Miss Kane had been lucky enough to escape such horrid treatment. Setting the report aside, he shuffled his small stack of wanted posters.

One caught his attention. His lawman's instinct began vibrating through him, and he could feel the hairs on the back of his neck perk up as his mind processed the information.

The poster had the sketches of three men, known as The Bitters Gang. Beneath the men’s portraits were lists of their accused offenses. The first, "Crazy Charlie" Paul, was wanted for horse theft and armed robbery. The second, "Mad Joe" Nims, was wanted for attempted rape, assault on a female, and public drunkenness. Bud Bitters, the leader, was wanted for a long list of wrongdoing, including cattle rustlings, unpaid bar tabs, armed robbery, and more.

Noah shook his head as he perused the charges. It seemed these three deviants aspired to the lofty goal of committing every crime known to man. He noticed that of all the crimes that had recently taken place in Ridgeway, each man in the gang had been accused of one of them in the past. Could it be that the notorious Thieving Three had set their sights on terrorizing his sleepy little town?

He sat back in the chair, rubbing his cupped palm across his chin. He recalled the night Henry Carl's stallions had been stolen, as well as the snatching of Miss Parker's handbag. Whoever had stolen Ray's horses had been riding one of them when the purse snatching occurred, as the distinct Ridgeway Livery markings from the horseshoes had been left in the road.

The door swung open as Ricardo returned from his coffee break. "Any new breakthroughs?" Ricardo eased into the chair on the opposite side of the desk.

"I think we're dealing with these nary-do-wells." He slid the wanted poster over the surface of the desk, toward Ricardo.

Picking up the poster and examining it closely, the Spaniard shook his head. "Bitters' Gang, eh? I've heard of them. They're bad news, the lot of them."

"I know. And I've got a feeling they will be back for more."

"Don't worry. When they come back, we'll be ready." Ricardo's lips thinned, and he folded his arms over his chest. "No way are we letting them victimize anyone else in our town."

Noah took a deep breath. Knowing that someone else was helping to shoulder the burden of the town's safety did much to ease his troubled mind. He rose from his desk, with the poster in hand, and strode over to the small closet near the hallway leading to the cells. After rifling around inside the semi-dark space for a few moments, he found what he was after: a hammer, and a small box of nails.

"What are you about to do?" Ricardo rose from his chair, and followed him as he went to the wooden board mounted just outside the office door.

"Something I've never had to do before. Hang a Wanted poster."

"Can I help?"

"Here, hold the nail."

Ricardo's brow furrowed.

He chuckled. "Don't worry, I won't smash your finger."

With a bit of hesitation, Ricardo did as he was asked.

Before Noah could drive the nail, however, a female voice called out to him.

"Excuse me, Sheriff."

Both men turned to see Mary McKee, Doc Wilkin's nurse, standing there on the walk.

She spoke again, in her soft, quiet way. "Miss Smart is awake. The doctor wants you to talk to her."

Noah handed the hammer over to Ricardo. "Looks like your fingers are safe from me for now. Hang the poster, then wait for me here."

Ricardo nodded. "Give her my best."

Reaching inside the door for his hat, Noah placed it on his head, then followed Miss McKee over to Doc Wilkins' clinic.

Inside the space, he removed his hat again, and hung it on the coat rack near the entrance door. Following where Mary led, he was brought to the room in the back where Miss Smart was convalescing.

The small room was lit by a stream of light flowing from the single small window in the back wall. Other than that, the space was fairly dark. In the center of the room, Janice lay on a short-legged bed, with Doc Wilkins sitting next to her on a wooden stool.

"Sheriff, she's been talking a lot, and I think you ought to hear what she's saying." The aged doctor gestured to his patient, who lay with her eyes closed, mumbling something.

Noah grabbed an empty chair, and slid it close to the bed before sitting down. He looked over the schoolmarm, and was glad to see that a good deal of the swelling in her face had gone down. As a result, she looked more like herself, which he saw as a good sign. "How is she doing, Doc?"

"Fairly well, considering what she's been through." Doc Wilkins sighed. "She suffered some internal damage to her female parts, from the ravaging, and I've treated her as best I can for that. Odds are she won't be able to bear young ones." He rose, fetching a damp cloth from a basin, and laid it on her brow. "Someone also struck her in the back of the head, and she suffered some trauma from that as well."

He shook his head. Because of some crass brute's unspeakable acts, Miss Smart might be barren. He wondered what would become of her, so he asked. "What kind of effect has all this had on her?"

"I'm not entirely sure. I'm a family practitioner, so this isn't my area of specialty." Doc Wilkins pushed his copper rimmed spectacles up his nose. "From my brief study, though, I can deduce that she's suffering from amnesia of some kind. She doesn't seem to know where she is, but she's been mumbling a lot. Every so often, she screams."