Oklahoma kiss (46 page)

      
Later, after the crowd disbursed, Adam called Matthew aside and quietly explained that Coy had disappeared, and why he had said what he did.

      
Matthew thought about it for a moment, then he said, "I can't really blame you. Even though they were fairly tame tonight, I saw how bloodthirsty the townspeople were. Many were wanting that store owner to be right. Since you were her alibi, and didn't want your future wife's name sullied, you really had no choice . . . except you now have your neck stretched about ten feet over the chopping block."

      
"Yeah, I know, and there are several people standing around holding sharp axes. But still, the fact remains: Coy is in bad shape. I can't see him skulking around starting a fire when he knows his family would be suspected first. It doesn't sound reasonable, and Coy might be hot-headed but he isn't stupid. If the fire was deliberately set, I'll bet my bottom dollar that it was done to frame them. I have a plan that should get her safely out of town without raising questions. But, I'll warn you now, you'll be involved and if anything goes wrong, your neck will be right alongside of mine on that chopping block. If we manage to pull this off, I want you to find Seth later and let him know what's going on."

      
Matthew smiled. "I'm with you, Adam. If I remember right, your hunches have not been wrong yet."

      
"Let's hope this is not the first time they are."

      
Lowering his voice even further, he told Matthew what he wanted him to do.

      
Adam walked over toward Warren and Blair who were standing on the sidewalk waiting for him to finish. As he approached, Blair started toward him but stopped when he gave a curt shake of his head.

      
Not knowing who might be listening, he spoke in his normal tone of voice, "Warren, I think Blair and Coy would be safer out at the ranch where there will be more men to stand guard. Maybe I’m being too cautious, but if that fire was deliberately set, it looks like someone is trying to frame one of you . . . it's my guess they'll try again. The way sentiments are running, if someone suggested having a necktie party with a Townsend the guest of honor, there might not be anybody around to stop it. Since you want to take part in the run tomorrow, you're welcome to catch a few hours sleep in my jail—you can sleep easy there. Matthew will be on duty and he will stop any trouble if anyone tries to start it. So, if you'll go get a buckboard and make it as comfortable as you can for Coy to ride in, I'll personally escort Blair and your foreman to the ranch. Oh, and Warren, get a board so that we can handle him easier when we carry him to the wagon. Blair, while he's doing that, I'll walk you to the hotel so that you can be getting your brother ready for the trip home."

      
Completely confused by much of what Adam just said, Blair asked hesitantly, "A-are you sure you want to go to so much trouble?"

      
"Do as he says, Blair," Warren stated abruptly. "He's right. You and Coy need to be home where it's safe." He wasn't sure what Adam planned to do, or how he intended to produce Coy, but he certainly wasn't going to waste time arguing.

      
Blair glanced up at Adam when he took her by the arm and started walking quickly toward the hotel. "What . . . ?"

      
"Hush, Blair," he muttered, trying not to move his lips any more than possible. "I'll explain everything when we get to your room."

      
Adam cautiously opened the door and looked about. When he saw that it was safe, he stepped aside so Blair could enter, then he shut the door which left them in total darkness.

      
A strange, yet vaguely familiar voice said, "I've already pulled the shades so if you want to light a lamp, feel free to, just keep the wick turned down low . . . and your voices too."

      
"Adam, who . . . ?"

      
"Just light the lamp, Blair. The less said, the better."

      
"But the lamps are outside," she whispered.

      
"No, I brought them in," the voice said.

      
Feeling along the dresser top for a lamp and the tin of matches, Blair carefully removed the globe and struck a match, then she lit the lamp. Although curious to see who the mysterious voice belonged to, she adjusted the wick before turning around.

      
Matthew Cahill sat in the big chair that had been positioned so that he could see from the hall lamps who was entering the room. He held a double-barreled shotgun in his hands for protection. When Blair turned to face him, he politely nodded his head. "I doubt if Adam has had a chance to tell you yet, so I guess I should introduce myself. Until we get out of town, I am your brother, Coy Townsend."

      
Suddenly, Blair was filled with such intense dis appointment, tears flooded her eyes. She slumped onto the side of the bed and sadly shook her head. "Adam, from the way you talked, I actually thought you had found Coy."

      
Adam sat down beside Blair and gently urged her to rest her head against the crook of his arm. "I’m sorry for misleading you, sweetheart, but I didn't think it would be wise to let anybody know he had disappeared. And I couldn't tell you differently until now, because I didn't know who might be listening. Matthew will pose as Coy until we get outside of town, then he will slip back to the jail. Naturally, his face will have to be disguised." He handed a rolled bandage to her. "In case anyone gets curious, it needs to look professional, so you should do it."

      
"But, Adam . . . what if Coy is seen? They'll know you were telling a lie."

      
Adam tried to make light of it. "If that happens, let's hope my horse can outrun theirs."

      
Her eyes probed his worriedly. "There are so many things that can go wrong . . . you're taking a terrible chance for Coy."

      
"Don't put stars in my crown for nothing, sweetheart. It's not for Coy; I'm mad as hell at him for running out on you like he did. I did it for you . .. for us. Even though your family had friends in that crowd outside, they could have leaned either way if they heard something they didn't like. They wanted to know your whereabouts and I was the only person who could give you an alibi."

      
The tenderness in his expression would have amazed her if I she had seen it before tonight. "Believe me Adam, I understand your reasoning, but it's bad enough that you are laying your reputation on the line. You shouldn't have involved Matthew in this scheme, though."

      
Matthew spoke up, "Ma'am . . . Blair, he didn't involve me, I involved myself because I wanted to help." He shrugged and grinned —the gesture resembled Adam so much —"Just look at it this way: once we get out of town I’ll take the bandages off and slip back into town. No one will ever be able to prove a thing."

      
Adam interrupted, "All of this talk will be for nothing if we don't get a move on it. We need to leave the moment Warren arrives with the wagon." Adam watched carefully while Blair wrapped the bandages around Matthew's face. He tried not to think that his career as a lawman could be over before this night ended, but it was something he could not quite push from his mind.

      
Chapter 27

      
Adam breathed a deep sigh of relief when Jake stopped the wagon in front of the ranch house. Except for a tense moment back at the hotel when a man commented on how heavy Coy was when they carried him out to the wagon, everything had gone surprisingly well. Once, while on their way to the ranch, Adam had heard the jingle of harnesses and the drum of hoofbeats, but the sounds were west of the road and far away. It would have been senseless to try and find out who the riders were; they could have been more settlers riding toward Doughtery, or soldiers coming from Fort Sill to prevent some settlers from sneaking across the river too soon in hopes of staking claims on the choicest sections of land before the actual run.

      
Adam dismounted, slipped his hands around Blair's waist and helped her from the wagon. "Sweetheart, I’m going to saddle a fresh horse and head on back to town. If someone sees Coy, there's bound to be trouble and I don't want Matthew to have to handle it alone." Uncomfortable with long good-byes, he merely brushed his lips across her cheek.

      
Blair's throat tightened at the thought of him having to leave so soon. "Can't you come in and eat something first? You must be nearly starved to death."

      
Ignoring the emptiness in his stomach, he shook his head firmly while raising one foot to the stirrup. "No, I can't take the time."

      
"Then at least stop back by the house before you leave and I'll have a couple of sandwiches made. You can eat them on the way back to town."

      
"That, I can do," he said over his shoulder.

      
"Adam, wait." She remained silent until he had swung his other leg over the horse before continuing, "If you hear anything at all about Coy—either good or bad —please let us know. I realize you and Matthew are the only law in Doughtery and you have too many duties to perform as it is . . . so I'm not asking you to spend hours riding to and from the ranch every day just to keep us posted. We'll send a man in each day and he can bring back the message if there is one. And, it goes without saying, if Coy shows up here, we'll let you know immediately."

      
"Fair enough." Adam nudged the horse with his knees, then quickly reined him. "Blair, I really haven't had a chance to ask yet, but do you have any idea why Coy took off the way he did?"

      
Shaking her head, her brows drew together in an agonized expression. "No, no idea whatsoever."

      
Adam wasn't sure whether to believe her or not. She was blind to all of Coy's faults and would probably go to any lengths to protect him.
Would she go as far as jeopardizing your and Matthew's safety and reputation?
"Well, if you think of something that might help, let me know."

      
"I will . . . and Adam, be careful and just remember how much I love you," she murmured softly as he rode away.

      
Jake started to follow Adam to the barn, but Blair motioned for him to stay. She waited until Adam was out of hearing distance, then she told the foreman, "Under the circumstances, I have no idea whether Warren will take part in the land rush or not. So, unless he or one of my other brothers is here to say differently —although I’m sure you have already received instructions concerning what to do if push comes to shove —there are a few orders that you will have to take from me."

      
Uneasily, Jake shifted on the wagon seat. "Miss Blair, I don't mean any disrespect, but you're dragging me right in the middle of somethin’ that should be settled between you and Warren. Besides . . . it's like you said, he has already told me what to do if we're hit with trouble."

      
"Will you hear me out first?"

      
Clearing his throat, he bobbed his head. "Yes, ma'am." Now that she was a grown woman he could not bring himself to call her by the many different nicknames he stuck on her as a child.

      
"As soon as Adam leaves, I want you to go to the bunkhouse and select two men who are very accurate with rifles and have them saddle three of our best horses. I intend to search each and every place on the ranch where Coy might be hiding. I could probably do it faster alone, but having two armed men along should pacify Warren."

      
Jake removed his hat and scratched his head. "I don't think I ought to. I doubt if Warren would like it."

      
"Are you refusing to follow my orders?" she asked coldly, feeling her temper rise out of frustration.

      
"I'm forced to, Miss Blair," he replied reluctantly.

      
"Very well then, I’ll saddle a horse myself and go alone." Squaring her shoulders, she lifted her chin defiantly. "And if anyone tries to stop me, I'll shoot him in the knee —you know I am capable of doing it, too!"

      
After Adam stopped for his sandwiches and left, Blair quickly changed into a pair of britches, a shirt, and her riding boots. She then filled a saddlebag with food and extra ammunition, grabbed a jacket for warmth against the early morning chill, and stepped out on the porch. She noted with satisfaction that three horses were tied to the hitching post and two armed men were standing on either side of Jake.

      
Jake dropped a half-smoked cigarette to the ground and stubbed it out with his boot. Shoving his hands into his back pockets, he said, "Miss Blair, this is Lawton Purcell, and Carrel Dickson. They came to work at the Bar 4 while you were back east —so they don't know you like most of the other men do. I've already explained to them that they had better treat you like a lady, but they could trust you to pull your weight like a man."

      
"Fair enough," she said with a curt nod. "Come on, men, let's ride."

      
Although the hour was still fairly early, the sky was light when Adam dismounted and tied the horse to the hitch rail behind the jail. He looked about uneasily. It was too quiet; not even a dog was barking and the streets were so empty, he had the strangest feeling that he had just entered a ghost town. By this time of the morning, the shops were usually bustling with activity.

      
He hurried to the front of the depot, entered his office and met Matthew and Warren just as they were leaving. "What's going on out there?" he asked.