Under a Texas Star (24 page)

"You've done a good job," he remarked. "Seems like you got everything. And in clear print too. I reckon you've got a fair notion about how things are handled. Ever thought of pinning on this badge when we go?"

Troy took a deep breath and let it out slow. "I can't say the thought hasn't crossed my mind. You and Landers have given the law a good name around Fortuna. But no thanks, all the same."

He looked over at Winters, who was engaged in an animated discussion with Mr. Pervis and his sister-in-law, the proprietor of Quinton's General Store.

"Mr. Winters has put a lot of time and trouble into training me," he said. "What I know of legal procedure, I know because of him. It may not be as exciting, but I plan to be a banker."

"I know you'll do well, whatever you put your hand to, Troy." Jase held out his hand. "Good luck."

"And to you, Ranger."

Jase looked over at Marly. She was navigating the crowded room with three mugs of steaming coffee in her hands.

"Here," she said, setting a mug on the bar.

"Thanks. I need it."

He could have used a stiff shot of whiskey too.

Chapter 18

Marly put the other two mugs down on a table. Hank claimed one of them. She pushed the other in front of Jed McKinley. He was still recovering from his wound and looked pale and thin. He had his bad arm propped on the table for support.

He reached for the coffee with his good hand and raised it to his lips. "No salt?"

Marly grinned. "No salt."

He gave her a puzzled look. "You been awful pleasant, considering."

She found a chair and pulled it up to the table. "It's nothing."

"You got Quaker blood?" he prodded.

Hank looked as if the question had also crossed his mind.

"I don't think so," Marly said. "The way I look at it, you acted foolish and you paid for it. And you'll continue paying for it 'til you take care of that bond. That's good enough for me."

Jed smiled crookedly. "Well, at least I got a regular job now."

Tyson wasn't quite as stoic. He glared across the room at Marly and McKinley, as though he were trying to decide which one he hated more.

"Give it a rest," Birke advised him. "You got better than you deserved. You try anything and you're likely to find yourself buying a six-by-three plot of land."

"Don't count on it."

Birke scowled. "But I do. You know the marshal can outdraw you. And I suspect Landers can too. If not, I promised Marshal Strachan I'd keep the boy out of trouble. I reckon that includes keeping him alive."

Marly observed the two men.

What had she ever done to deserve such animosity? Or such devotion?

"Don't come between me and Landers, Birke," Tyson growled, "or I'll shoot you too."

Birke squared his shoulders. "Then you better kill me with the first shot, Tom, 'cause you won't get a second."

Tyson spat.

Birke sidestepped and the gob ran down the wall behind him.

"You'll clean that, Tom Tyson, or do another night in jail."

"You can't
―"

"Yes, I can. Marshal ain't taken that deputy's star back yet and you're on a short lead."

Jase made a beeline for Birke once Tyson had gone for a rag.

"You handled that well, Birke. Like you got experience in this area."

Birke shrugged. "Got experience
in most areas, one time or another."

"You know, I think I'm gonna let you hold on to that badge. Least until a new marshal is appointed. Unless you change your mind about takin' the job yourself."

"Aw, shit."

Jase leaned against a clean stretch of wall. "Thought you'd say that."

The Oasis had been specially prepared for the evening and it was a sight that Marly thought she'd never forget. Everything that could be polished was mirror bright. Every bit of glass was crystal clear. The ladies wore their best gowns, without any gaudy embellishment, and many with lace collars that made their necklines more demure.

Señora Consuela de Vegas graced the lower rooms in her fine silk and jet beads. Fred wore a formal black suit, tailor-made, with a pristine white starched shirt and silk cravat. He continued to serve Miss Jezebel, but he could have as easily been a lord as a butler.

Jezebel graced the event by wearing one of her most spectacular gowns. Satin threads and glass beads formed peacock feathers encircling the enormous hooped skirt of blue satin. With her bare shoulders draped in a lace shawl, her costume was as appropriate for an antebellum ballroom as a bordello.

All the prominent citizens of Fortuna were present in their finery. Winters had even persuaded his wife to attend. Her puritanical upbringing showed in the tightness of her polite smiles.

"Stop being a prig and enjoy yourself," Marly overheard the woman's sister, Mrs. Lily Quinton, say. "New England is miles and years behind us."

Then the indomitable lady dragged her hapless daughter off to corner Matt Egan.

Amabelle and Kate bore down on Marly, who was listening to Nels Penrod tell her about a colt he had helped his brother foal last spring.

"Nels," Amabelle interrupted, "I think you better watch Lloyd and Ruthie. They've been trying to convince the bartender that they're allowed to drink beer."

"Oh, lord!"

Nels was responsible for his adolescent twin cousins, though he was only a few years older. He said something unintelligible to Marly, then hurried off to rescue the bartender.

"They won't be sitting for supper yet," Kate said.

Amabelle smiled. "Let's go for a walk, Deputy Landers."

The young ladies each took one of Marly's arms, giving her no choice but to accompany them outside. They escorted her to a private stretch of veranda, overlooking the flower garden. Only then did they let go of Marly's arms and face her.

"You should have told us," they said in unison.

"Told you what?"

"That you aren't a boy," Amabelle snapped. "Matt told me after the shooting. He was afraid I was getting too attached to you."

Marly tried to think of something to say.

"I told him I knew all along," Amabelle said. "I wasn't going to let him know I was fooled. Besides, if you were a boy, you'd be too young for me. I haven't met the man I'm going to give my heart to. To be fair, I did think you made a sweet boy and I am grateful for all you did about Gabe
―even killing him."

Kate gasped. "Amabelle!"

"That does not excuse you from not telling us," Amabelle said. "It's possible you might not have trusted me, but you
were
conspiring with Kate. Yes, she told me! Surely you could trust her?"

Marly chewed her bottom lip. "It's not a question of trust. I never wanted to lie to either of you. It's not just me I'm protecting. What would it do to Marshal Strachan, a Texas Ranger, if it got around? Besides―and I don't expect you to understand this―I prefer being a boy.
I'm more comfortable."

Kate and Amabelle exchanged glances.

"I'll believe you're more comfortable," Kate said. "And you are good at it. I think we should forgive Marly, Amabelle."

"I think so." Amabelle smiled. "Whoever you are, Marly Landers, you've been a good friend to me. Thank you."

The girls took Marly's arms again as they went back into The Oasis. Just before letting her go, they gave her a kiss on the cheek.

Marly heard Bob Johnstone swear.

"Don't let the girls wind you up," Shea O'Brian said.

Marly raised a brow.

Maybe Shea was getting over Miss Amabelle like his sister hoped.

Soon, Marly and the other ladies were helping people find their seats. Jezebel offered a full course meal at a price most guests could afford. Egan and a few ranchers pitched in to cover the guests of honor and supply beer and champagne.

Knowing they wouldn't have to pay, Jase had offered to buy Birke's supper so he could attend. However, it turned out the man had a saving disposition and a streak of pride. He took care of his own expenses.

Before sitting down with the ranch owners and business proprietors, Birke leaned over to Marly. "I wish I'd stayed at the hotel."

She felt much the same.

The tables were arranged in a horseshoe with Jase and Marly at the head. Jezebel sat on Jase's other side. Amabelle had been placed next to Marly, but Egan changed places with his sister.

Since Mrs. Temple-Quinton had already finagled to put her daughter beside Egan, the lady took it as a personal slight. Miss Rose Quinton, on the other hand, was relieved. When Amabelle hurriedly invited Kate and Shea O'Brian to sit with them before the seats were taken, Rose was made happier still.

Seeing a hint of a blush touch Rose's cheek when Shea sat down, Amabelle seemed inspired to put someone else's romantic interests before her own. After making introductions, just as the soup was being served, she asked Shea to change places with her so she could talk to Kate more easily.

Marly watched Amabelle's machinations with approval.

"Mr. Landers," Egan announced in a loud voice, "I think I have just the thing to cheer you up."

"I didn't think I needed cheering up," she replied.

"I don't know 'bout that," Jezebel interjected. "You seem unnaturally quiet for such a mouthy kid."

"I know that the loss of your horse was a blow to you," Egan said, reclaiming the conversation. "I would like to make it up to you. I'm offering you your pick from my stable."

"No, sir," Marly said. "I couldn't do that."

"Please. It would mean a lot to me."

"Go on, boy," Jezebel urged. "Horses ain't cheap, honey, and Matt here has some of the best breed stock in the district."

There was a murmur of agreement.

Marly looked to Jase for support as everyone started expressing their opinions on Egan's horseflesh and the propriety of Marly accepting such a generous offer.

"I reckon you're too late, Egan," Jase said. "I've already taken care of Landers' mount. You'll get to see her tomorrow."

Perking up, Marly asked, "Her?"

"Yep. O'Brian gave me a good price on a sorrel mare, perfect for your weight. You both got the same color mane."

Marly smiled with delight, while Egan frowned in disappointment.

Whether out of devilry or to divert, Jezebel turned the subject.

"What a darling couple Mr. Landers and Amabelle make," she remarked in a carrying voice that would do an actress proud. "He's a little skinny." She leaned across Jase to pinch Marly's arm. "I'm sure he'll fill out. You just wait, Miss Amabelle, the boy's gonna make a handsome man some day."

Amabelle blushed.

Her brother looked just plain uncomfortable.

Jase came to Marly's defense. "Stop teasin' 'em, Jez."

"Oh, it's okay," Marly said. "She only does it because she knows I'm supposed to be polite to older folk."

"Brat!"

There was a ripple of laughter from those close enough to hear the comment. Jezebel opened her mouth, no doubt to make a snappy retort, but was interrupted by the arrival of the first course.

Fred probably did it on purpose. His timing was never off.

Once dessert and coffee were served, Jezebel stood and called for quiet. She had a few words to say.

"Fortuna owes Marshal Strachan and Marly Landers for their efforts over the past few weeks. They solved the murder of the last marshal of Fortuna, kept the peace and repaired the damage Strothers had done during his tenure as marshal. So it is with great pleasure
―that is, as great a pleasure as I could ever get from giving money away instead of making it―that I present Marshal Jason Strachan with fifty dollars in gold."

She waved down the applause. "Now wait, there's something else. I just got confirmation from Au
stin that Mr. Landers here has been appointed to the Texas Rangers."

Marly didn't know what to say.

One look at Jase was enough to confirm that he knew nothing about this. He gave a baffled shrug as he performed the duty of pinning the star on her shirt.

"Though this is surely unexpected," he told her. "I couldn't ask for a finer partner."

After a standing ovation, Marly was dragged off by Misses Egan and O'Brian. While she was shepherded from group to group by the ladies, Jase pulled Jezebel aside.

"How and why did you pull this off?" he asked.

"I have my ways," she purred, "and my connections. I poured on the charm and cut through some red tape. Anyhow, it's not like Strothers needs that piece of tin anymore."

Jase rolled his eyes toward the ceiling. "Why go to all that trouble? I didn't think you liked the kid that much."

Jezebel gave him a look of injury. He wasn't buying it.

"I figured it's jest what the boy deserves. It's what he wants, ain't it?"

Jase's eyes narrowed, but Jezebel turned away.

"Mr. Warner," she called, grabbing an older gentleman's arm. "Do you think cattle prices might go up next year?"

Jase never heard the man's answer. He went looking for Marly instead. Since the men were lighting up cigars and cigarillos, he guessed she'd escaped for some fresh air.

Marly wasn't the only one who felt the need for fresh air. When she stepped outside, she saw Shea O'Brian and Rose Quinton inspecting the flower baskets at the far end of the veranda. Rather than disturb them, she headed toward the Fortuna Hotel.

"I've been wanting to speak to you, Marly."

Egan emerged from an alley and took her arm.

Marly pulled away. "I've been right beside you all evening. You've had lots of opportunity to talk."

"Alone."

"I prefer not to be alone with you, sir, but if I don't let you say your piece, I'll never get any peace." She indicated the gate that led to Fred's rose garden. "Shall we?"

In the garden, it was too dark to see the blooms, but their fragrance filled the air.