Nevada Heat (31 page)

The man tilted his hat brim up and looked at the sky. “Well, then, you best pick things up a bit." He turned his gaze back to the women. "Got a late start already with all that kissin' and such!" Buck gave Shelly a wry glance and continued. "Still got quite a ways to go to town, too." With that, he spurred his horse ahead a few feet and cantered down the middle of the trail.

“Is Buck going to be living near you and Dave?"

“I don't know," Shelly answered hesitantly. In fact, she didn't have the vaguest notion of where they would all be living when they got back to Texas. But, she reminded herself, as long as Buck and Dave were Rangers, she had no doubt she'd be seeing plenty of Buck Farley.

She gave her best friend an uneasy glance. It didn't feel right, not telling Miranda about Dave and Buck. Shelly turned and looked off at the distant mountains.

She' d always been able to talk to Miranda about anything. But this… it wasn't that she didn't trust her friend. She did. But Shelly was simply too afraid for Dave's safety to take the risk of the wrong people finding out.

As easygoing as the folks in the bandit stronghold were, they wouldn't take kindly to knowing that two Texas Rangers had been living with them. Pretending to be something they weren't in order to track down one of the outlaws' own.

No. She shook her head and told herself that as soon as it was safe — when they were all out of the canyon she would tell Miranda everything. Until then, Dave and Buck's lives demanded her secrecy.

Determinedly she changed the subject. "Enough about Buck. Miranda, I'm gettin' married! What in hell am I gonna wear?"

Miranda's laughter floated out to Buck, who shook his head disgustedly. He hoped Dave and Jesse knew what they was getting into.

#

Jesse marched down the street like a man possessed. He stopped at every building, checking through rooms, closets, wherever a man might hide. Despite the voice in the back of his mind screaming at him to hurry, he went through the town thoroughly. Carefully. He had to make sure. He had to look everywhere.

He had to find the bastard.

Tom Forbes. Jesse's insides twisted. He'd had the man he'd been looking for so long right in the palm of his hand and let him get away!

He darted around the few people littering the street, his gaze continually searching for the big man with sandy-blond hair. Forbes had to be in town.

But when he'd searched every building, Jesse was no closer to finding the elusive man. There had to be an explanation. The man's horse was in the corral.

At the end of the street he stopped suddenly, his chest heaving in an effort to catch his breath. At least, he told himself, the horse was there a while ago.

An ominous fear gripped him and Jesse sprinted to the corral fence. Stepping onto the bottom rung, he carefully looked over the dozen or more horses in the paddock. His breath caught in grim disbelief, he looked again.

One of the grays was gone.

"What's goin' on, Jes?"

Jesse spun around. "You seen Forbes?"

"Shit. You on about him again?"

"Goddammit, Jim!" Jesse leaped off the fence and ran to the blond. “Did you see him?"

Jim took a step back and answered warily, "Sure. Sure I seen him. He saddled up and rode out about a half hour ago."

"Sonofabitch!"

Jesse turned on a run and raced for the stable. He'd thought Miranda safely out of Forbes's reach, at least temporarily. He should have known. He should have checked the corral first. His brain churned with dire possibilities.

He kept seeing Miranda as she was the night before. Cradled in his arms, a soft, satisfied smile on her lips as they lay together in quiet contentment. A rush of fear swamped him, obliterating the sweet memory. He couldn't lose her.

Not now.

Not ever.

Jesse knew, as surely as he knew his own name, that Tom Forbes had set out after Miranda. His only hope now was to catch up to him before Forbes reached the others. In a few brief minutes that seemed to last forever, Jesse had his horse saddled and ready.

He left the animal standing in front of the stable and ran back to the small bunkhouse. Hurriedly he grabbed up his saddlebags and rifle and raced out again.

Jim Sully was still standing in the shadow of the corral when Jesse spurred his horse into a gallop and left Bandit's Canyon behind him.

#

A small group of people stood at the end of the street an hour later, watching a wagon roll off down a long-unused trail.

"Why's he takin' that road?" Ezra asked of no one in particular.

Birdwell turned to look at the much smaller man. "Pike don't want to take any chances. Now that he's headin' home, he don't want to run into any lawman that might be wanderin' around loose." He glanced back to, the slow-moving wagon, stubbornly rolling over the uneven, rocky road. "Wants to get Serena and that baby home safe."

Ezra nodded and left abruptly, headed for Big Pete's. Every leave-taking affected the older man, but he always found consolation in the bottom of a bottle.

Birdwell's gaze fixed on the little wagon, now barely in sight. Pike had gotten out. Barring something going wrong, he'd have his family safely out of Bandit's Canyon forever. No more runnin'. No more hidin'. Pike Dexter the outlaw would disappear forever.

Birdwell pulled in a great gulp of air and nodded to himself. He was doin' the right thing. No matter how much he missed the girl, it was good and proper for Miranda to get the hell out of her desert home. And Jesse would be good to her. He felt sure of it. Besides, if he ever heard different, Birdwell would just go and have a "talk" with the man.

Turning away from the dwindling farewell group, Birdwell started walking back to the restaurant. It was his turn to cook again and he'd best get started. What with Miranda and Shelly off to town, he'd most likely get no help at all with dinner or supper. But, he thought, smiling halfheartedly, he'd best get used to doin' for himself anyway.

“Pike already gone?"

The big man's black eyes snapped up to Jim Sully as the young man hurried toward him. "Yeah. A few minutes ago."

“Durn it." Jim slid to a stop and rested both fists on his hips. “Wanted another look at that youngster before they went." He grinned up at Birdwell. “Been a long time since I seen a baby close up."

Birdwell nodded and kept walking. Jim fast-walked to match the bigger man's strides.

"So," Jim asked, smiling, "how're you holdin' up, Birdwell?"

“What d’ya mean?"

"Why the weddin' of course!" He gave the man's broad back a playful slap. "I swear the way Miranda and Jesse are carryin' on, you'd think nobody ever done this before."

“Hmm?” Birdwell looked at him. “What?”

“Well, first Miranda and Shelly take off for town draggin' Buck along practically kickin' and screamin'!" Jim chuckled and shook his head. "Them two women about never go off to town, even though it’s the one place most of us can go without worryin'."

"They got to get some female things." Birdwell shook his head. Sometimes Jim Sully talked just to hear the sound of his own voice. "Nothin' strange about that."

“Maybe. But ol’ Jesse's actin' like he's one bullet shy of a full load."

"What the hell are you talkin' about!"

Jim frowned.

Birdwell knew the man disliked having his stories interrupted, but enough was enough!

"Well…" Jim took a deep breath. "He was runnin' all over town like a band of Apaches was hot on his heels."

"Why?"

"Shit, who knows?" Jim scratched his head. "Kept askin' me all kinds of questions about Forbes. Then he ups and goes off to talk to Wilma." He snorted. “When he come back from there, he was pokin' into everything, lookin' everywhere like a hound who couldn't sniff. Then he charges over to the stable, sees ol’ Forbes's horse is gone, and saddles up himself."

Birdwell stopped and cocked his head.

“Why?”

Jim shrugged. “When I told him that Forbes left town already, he got all hot under the collar, started racin' here and there… you'd think he'd have the sense to be pleased the bastard left. I sure as hell was!"

“What'd he do?"

“Who?” Jim's brow furrowed. "Forbes?,'

"No, damn you anyhow! Jesse!"

"Oh." The blond scratched his head for a long moment, and just as Birdwell was getting set to reach for his throat, he continued. “Kept mutterin' 'Miranda' over and over, grabbed his war bags and rifle, and took off outta here like his seat was on fire!"

"When?" Birdwell fought down a spiral of uneasiness and somehow kept his voice calm. "When did he go?"

“I don't rightly know exactly."

"Guess!" he shouted, his patience spent.

Jim's eyes popped open. "'Bout an hour, I reckon."

Forbes. It always came back to Tom Forbes. The man had been nothin' but trouble for years. But what was it now? What was it Jesse knew that he, Birdwell, didn't? The big man tried to draw a deep breath, but found his chest tight with an unnamed dread.

Suddenly then, Birdwell took off at a fast trot toward the stable. He wasn't sure why Jesse was actin' so peculiar. But it didn't feel right. Something was wrong. Something that Jesse might not be able to handle alone. And if the younger man was worried about Miranda… then Birdwell figured he ought to be, too.

#

Buck was singing again. Miranda rolled her eyes and tried to close her ears to the hideous sounds coming from the man's mouth. It was a wonder his horse didn't buck him to the ground just to shut him up.

Shelly laughed quietly beside her and Miranda glanced at her friend. "How can you even laugh at that?"

"At least he's not complaining," Shelly answered from behind her hand.

Miranda shrugged and nodded. It was true. She'd never heard a man kick up such a fuss over going shopping!

“I talked to Wilma last night," Shelly said in a suddenly serious tone.

“About what?"

"One of the men got a little rough with her and —“

"Is she all right?" Miranda snapped a quick look at the other woman.

"She will be," Shelly's lips twisted sardonically. "But right now she's fed up with outlaws, or so she says."

Miranda's gaze went back to the road stretching out ahead of her.

"Anyhow," Shelly went on, "I thought you should know that Pete, Wilma, and Alice are gonna be movin' on."

“What? Moving on? Where? When?"

“They don't know." Shelly shrugged and straightened her skirt.

“Because of this man?"

"No. Leastways not completely." Shelly pulled in a deep breath and said, “Pete says he's stayed in one place too long already. And Fat Alice'll go wherever he goes… and Wilma" — Shelly snorted — “hell, she'd be happy anywhere. Long as she's got a bed and some cowboy to…" She glanced at Miranda and let her voice trail off.

A twinge of sadness at the prospect of the end of the life she'd always known touched Miranda briefly then faded away. Everything was changing so quickly. For years Bandit's Canyon had been the one thing she could count on. Its familiar rock walls and ancient buildings. The same people coming and going like visiting family. And now it was over. She shook her head slightly. Oh, right now it was only Pete and his girls. But soon the others would leave, too. She herself would be leaving the canyon behind and finding a new life. It was only right the others should, too. It was probably for the best, she knew.

And still, the thought of her home, abandoned to the desert wind and the blowing sand, brought a chill she had to fight to be rid of.

"Miranda?" Shelly touched her friend's arm gently. “You all right?"

“Yes.” Miranda nodded firmly and tightened her grip on the reins. “Yes, I'm fine." She turned a weak smile on Shelly. "At least I will be."

"Yeah, I know. Kinda scares me, too." Shelly looked away, her gaze moving over the wide expanse of desert on either side of the buckboard. "Goin' somewheres else… meetin' new folks…" She shook her head. "What about Birdwell? What's he gonna do when you're gone?"

As soon as the question was asked, Miranda knew the answer. In fact, she'd probably known all along, she just hadn't put it into words before. “He'll go with us. With Jesse and me."

“He will?"

"Of course. It makes perfect sense. We'll need help with Jesse's ranch in Texas anyway." She turned and smiled sheepishly at her friend. "And besides, I couldn't bear to be separated from him. He's as much my father as Judd Perry is."

Shelly nodded firmly. “Think Jesse will go along?"

Miranda thought for a long moment before answering. "Yes. Yes, I do." Memories of Jesse's hands moving over her body in the moonlight, his soft voice whispering to her about Texas, and the steady beat of his heart beneath her cheek filled her. She knew as sure as she was breathing that Jesse wouldn't deny her her family. "In fact," she added on a sudden impulse, “I think we'll try to talk the Sullys into coming along as well." She laughed shortly. "Lord knows they're terrible outlaws… maybe it's time they went back to being working ranch hands!"