The Wedding Ransom (30 page)

Rafe recovered from his surprise and rounded on Lucky. “You say you want to help Maggie? Then why aren’t you on the road? She needs that Lake Bliss water you went to fetch.”

“We have Bliss water.” Gus moved the coffin out of the way then motioned toward Rafe. “Once we realized Maggie left without a good supply, Snake and I decided to bring her some. We have a full dozen small kegs inside the hearse. Make your muscles useful and unload it for us.”

Rafe stepped closer to the hearse, then stooped over and peered inside. Sure enough, he counted twelve small water caskets lining the insides of the wagon. Relief rolled off him in waves. He broke into a smile, then glanced at the pirates. “You don’t know how glad I am to see those barrels. She’s been powerful sick.”

The pirates demanded an update on their granddaughter’s condition, and Rafe filled them in on the particulars. When he concluded by informing them that their granddaughter was currently sleeping, Snake, expressing the desire to stretch his legs, joined Lucky in the short walk up to the hotel to secure rooms for the evening. Gus and Rafe watched the two men go. “You people are crazy,” Rafe said, observing the ailing pirate’s careful steps. “Snake was supposed to stay in bed for weeks.”

“Don’t you worry none, Malone,” Snake said over his shoulder. “I’m not about to croak until I make you pay for your villainy.”

Rafe showed his lack of concern with a snort. He turned his attention to the water kegs, sliding the nearest cask from the bed of the hearse and hoisting it onto his shoulder. “I’ll come back for the rest in a bit. I want to have some of this ready for Maggie as soon as she wakes up. Her anxiety level is gonna shoot through the shingles when she learns that Snake climbed out of his bed and into a coffin to make the trip up from Lake Bliss.”

“Now hold on, boy,” Gus replied, scowling. He grabbed Rafe’s sleeve, stopping him. “I’ll have you know that this buggy was a perfect solution to the problem of how to get here. Snake couldn’t abide the ride without lying down, and the springs on our wagon were shot. It jostled him too much. When we spotted the hearse along the El Camino Real with its empty burying box, it seemed like a sign from heaven.”

The unmistakable odor of Lake Bliss water oozed from the keg, surrounding Rafe as he gave the old pirate a sidelong look. “Those kind of signs tend to make most folks nervous.”

“Don’t you know Snake MacKenzie better than to think he’d be scared of a coffin?” Gus replied with a chortle. “Why, by the time we added the extra padding to the box he swore it was the most comfortable bit of traveling he’d ever done.” He paused a moment, then asked, “How is she doing, Malone?”

Rafe set the keg on the ground. “Not good. The worst of it seems to come and go. She’ll feel better for a time, then all of a sudden it hits her like a buffalo charge. It’s hard to watch, Gus. Real hard.”

The old pirate nodded sagely. “I’d weep like a baby after my turn to sit with her. Now you see why we searched the world over for a cure. You have to understand why it’s so important we save Hotel Bliss.”

Rafe nodded. His gaze drifted toward the window of the small room off the kitchen where Maggie lay sleeping. With her uppermost in his mind, he voiced his decision for the first time. “I’ve decided to help, Gus.”

“The treasure?” Excitement lit the buccaneer’s eyes. “You’ll go after the treasure?”

“Yeah.”

“How come? What changed your mind?”

Rafe considered all the possible replies, distortions, and deceits he could tell them, but for some reason he spat out the truth. “How can I not help? I love her.”

For a moment, Gus froze as stiff as a new rawhide rope. Then satisfaction shimmered across his face and settled into smugness. “We have nine days before our option to buy the hotel expires. Can you leave tomorrow?”

“Wait a minute. Nine days? I thought you still had months before you had to leave Bliss.”

“The judge’s deadline for us to leave the hotel was six months. Hill, the buzzard, wouldn’t give us that much time as far as the sales contract goes. We only have nine days left.”

“Then I’ll head out at dawn.”

“Good. I’ll go with you, of course. I reckon my fanny can stand a day in the saddle and surely the innkeeper has a horse I can rent.”

Rafe folded his arms. “I don’t work with partners, Gus.”

“You will this time.” The old man squinted against the setting sun as he gazed at Rafe. “One man can’t possibly haul the entire treasure, and if you’re going to bother with grabbing some of it, what’s the logic in not snatching it all?”

Rafe opened his mouth to protest, but then reconsidered. While he much preferred the idea of working alone, what Gus said made sense. He risked the same punishment no matter how much, or how little, he stole. Might as well get Maggie the whole tamale while he was about it. He jerked his head toward the kitchen. “Lucky will take good care of her, won’t he?”

“Yeah. Her and Snake. Before we leave maybe we should see about getting a bed for Snake set up down here so Lucky won’t need to be tramping back and forth all the time.”

“What in the world possessed you to bring him here, Gus?” He gestured toward the hearse. “Weren’t you afraid that casket might come in a little too handy?”

Gus removed his hat from his head and slapped it against his thigh. Red dust rose in a cloud at the motion. “Let me give you a clue about old folks, at least about the four of us. We may be wrinkled-up winter on the outside, but inside we are hanging on hard to spring. We are free men, Malone. Men with dignity. Nobody is gonna tell any of us what we can and can’t do.”

“But Snake could—”

“No ‘buts’ about it. Snake wanted to make this trip, and while the rest of us had the right to argue with him, not a man jack among us had the right to stop him. Maggie understands that. You’d best come to understand it, too. We come as a package, after all. When you marry her, you marry us, too.”

“Marry!” Rafe’s head snapped around to glare at Gus. “Who said anything about marriage?”

Gus’s brows lowered in a scowl, and in its cold fury Rafe saw signs of the young pirate who had cast fear into the hearts of men across at least five of the seven seas. The buccaneer barked, “You said you love her.”

“I do.”

“You love her. You bedded her. You’ll marry her.”

Rafe’s chin came up. He didn’t like being put on the defensive. “Not necessarily.”

The old man braced his hands on his hips and leaned forward. “Careful, Malone,” he said in a low mean voice. “I’m the only person standing between you and Snake MacKenzie’s cutlass.”

Rafe didn’t want to point out the foolishness of thinking that Snake, in his current condition, could possibly cause serious injury to Gentleman Rafe Malone. Instead, he attempted to diffuse the situation by speaking candidly. “You’re rushing me, Gus. You’re rushing us. I just figured out how I feel about her, and Maggie has been awfully tight lipped as to how she feels about me. I may not be as old as you, but life has taught me a few lessons of my own. I have less than a handful of rules that I live by now, and those are sacred.”

He ticked them off on his fingers. “I don’t get drunk anymore. I stay the hell away from politics. And I refuse to even consider marrying a woman unless we are both slop-silly in love.”

Gus pursed his lips and rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Slop-silly in love, huh?”

Rafe nodded. “Wearing one another’s brand burned into our hearts.”

Gus moved his hand to scratch the nape of his neck. Wincing, he said, “Now that you mention it, I don’t know that Maggie is that attached to you.”

No matter how correct the observation might be, hearing it from Gus got Rafe’s back up. “She’s attached to me,” he snapped. “Why, she probably does love me but is keeping the news to herself. That’s a difficult thing for a person to admit the first time they fall in love, you know.”

Gus shook his head. “Nah, that’s not it. Maggie’s been in love before.”

Rafe’s heart fell to his knees. “She has!”

“Yep. Some fella back at school plumb near broke her heart.”

Rafe made a conscious effort to relax his hands now fisted at his side. In all the talk and secrets they’d shared, she’d never once mentioned any schooltime beau. Wasn’t that a fine howdy-do? Still, Maggie couldn’t have loved the scoundrel too awfully much. She’d come to Rafe’s bed a virgin.

“Look,” he said to Gus. “We can save this entire discussion for later. Right now I think we should wake your granddaughter long enough to get her dosed up with Bliss water and on the road to recovery.”

Gus nodded. “That’s right. Maggie’s health comes before anything else. But promise me something, Malone. As soon as she’s better, I want you to get this question settled. You find out whether she’s slop-silly in love, and if she’s not, you do what needs doing to get her that way.” He paused for a moment before asking, “Have you told her you’re going after the treasure? That’s bound to help.”

“It’s not why I’ve decided to help, and no, I haven’t told her what I’m doing. I don’t want to bribe her into loving me, Gus. That cheapens it for both of us. And I don’t want any of you to try and influence her, either. When we leave in the morning, I want Snake and Lucky to keep their mouths shut about where we’ve gone and why.”

“The kelp you say,” Gus replied with a scowl. “Maggie needs to know what we’re doing. The poor gal has fretted herself half to death over the thought of losing the hotel. I don’t doubt for a second that contributed to the attack she’s suffering through this very moment. Why would you even consider allowing her to continue to worry?”

Rafe didn’t know how to explain his feelings to the old marauder. He wasn’t certain he understood them himself. On the one hand, he’d be proud as a peacock in full spread to present her with the means to save her home. On the other hand, the knowledge that Maggie would know he had broken his word to Luke left Rafe shuddering with a deep and stinging shame. “Lie to her, then,” he gruffly replied. “Whatever it takes short of clueing her in on the truth. I won’t have her knowing, Gus. I want your promise. I want your word.”

The old pirate shrugged. “Let’s go check on Sleeping Beauty, shall we? I need to see how she’s doing for myself.”

Rafe didn’t realize until four hours into the ride the following morning that Gus had never given him his word.

~~~~~~~~~~

Maggie woke up slowly. As she shook off the heaviness of sleep, she slowly came to realize a difference in the signals her body was giving her. Moving wasn’t as difficult this morning. She rolled over in bed without gritting her teeth and flexed her knees without biting back a groan. A smile hovered at the comers of her mouth as she slowly opened her eyes.

Sunshine lit the room. The scent of frying bacon drifted from the kitchen. Snake MacKenzie’s opinionated voice debated the pros and cons of adding ale to the batter for fried okra with the widow Craig. It was music to Maggie’s ears. Her smile burst into full blossom and she flung off the covers and slid off the bed and onto her feet. “What a glorious morning.”

Last night she’d gone to bed with a sense this might happen. The papas’ arrival alone had made her feel better. Once she’d finished scolding Snake for leaving his bed at Lake Bliss, she’d rejoiced in the improvements she spied in his appearance. While he continued to look tired and weaker than normal, she took the color in his cheeks and the grin on his face as a good sign. As they dosed her to the gills with Bliss water, the papas had talked about their trip, and she’d laughed at their stories until her sides hurt. Too soon, her grandfathers’ voices had joined Rafe in shoeing her back to bed, all of them demanding her promise to put her energy into getting well.

Now, to her joy, it looked as if their combined efforts had done the trick.

She found fresh water in the pitcher on the dresser and quickly washed and dressed. Happiness filled her, and she hummed a high-spirited song. It was always a pleasure to overcome her illness, and this time was no exception. She delighted in the ease with which she lifted her hands to her hair to braid and pin it. Gazing into the looking glass, she pinched her already colorful cheeks and considered the next battle she had to fight.

The time to save Hotel Bliss was ticking away. She couldn’t waste another day. Obviously, now that the papas and Rafe had arrived she’d need to readjust her plans. Maybe Rafe had an idea on how to help without compromising his promise. “We will need to have a strategy meeting,” she said to her reflection. A distinct growl from her stomach caused her to grin and add, “Right after breakfast.”

She found Lucky and Martha seated at the kitchen table. Snake stood over a pot on the stove. A quick glance around revealed neither Rafe nor Gus. Perhaps they’d already eaten.

“Good morning,” she said brightly.

“Why look at the sprightly spring in her step,” marveled Mrs. Craig.

“Magpie!” Lucky’s expression lit like dry kindling. “You’re back, aren’t you? Whipped that old nasty devil all over again. Lord-a-mercy, girl, it’s good to see you looking so perky.”

“It’s good to feel perky.” Maggie stopped beside Lucky and bent to kiss his cheek before moving on to Snake. She wrapped her arm around his waist then peered into the skillet. “Bacon and fried ham. Are you making flapjacks, too?” When he nodded, she continued, “Good. I’m hungry enough to eat a horned frog backward.”

“She even has her appetite back.” Lucky smiled over his cup of coffee at the widow. “That corks it, then. Maggie’s whipped the Challenge again.”

It felt good to pitch in and help with breakfast. The inn had seven overnight guests, not including Maggie’s bunch, and the widow Craig declared herself thrilled to have surrendered her cooking duties to Snake. “It’s been a long time since I’ve been able to put my feet up this time of day,” she said. “While I’d likely get tired of it over time, for this morning it’s downright relaxing.”

While she labored beside one beloved papa and listened to stories told by another, Maggie’s heart felt light and happy. Even Snake’s grumbling about her cooking skills made her want to sing. A couple of times it crossed her mind to mention Andrew Montgomery and the treasure, but she decided not to risk ruining the first meal she’d felt like eating in days with topics certain to sour the stomach.