A Texan's Honor (6 page)

Still, he didn't
act
like an errand boy. Nor did he go out of his way to make himself pleasant. If her father was right and the Abbots and Abercrombies were more concerned about the stock than about her, they would be very angry with him if he returned empty-handed. Bret didn't strike her as a man willing to accept failure.

She left the dining room and climbed the stairs to her room.

As she began to undress, she found herself looking forward to the next few weeks. She had no intention of changing her mind, but it might be interesting to get to know more about Bret. She was more intrigued by him than by any man she'd ever met. She smiled at herself in the mirror. Besides, spending time with a man as handsome as Bret couldn't be all bad.

Bret wasted no time getting to his room. The whole evening had been like a bad play. He undressed and packed his clothes carefully so he wouldn't have to do it in the morning. Once he was sure there was nothing that could cause him to be late, he got into bed. But he didn't go to sleep. He couldn't stop thinking of Emily.

She could say she didn't care about clothes, but her gown had been chosen with an eye for setting her off to her best advantage. There was nothing about it that could have been considered in poor taste, but it was provocative. He wasn't sure whether Jem had been more uncomfortable about his clothes or having to look at his boss's daughter.

Not that Lonnie was unaffected either. But he was so busy being angry at Bret, trying to defend Emily against any imagined insult, he didn't have time to give his full attention to Emily. That was just as well as far as Bret was concerned. He didn't like the idea of Lonnie leering at Emily like it was his right. Not that Bret had been much better at controlling himself. He'd spent the whole evening trying to keep from asking the one question that nearly popped out at least three times.

Why would such a beautiful, intelligent woman want to lock herself away in a dusty corner of Texas with no one but cowhands to keep her company?

Of course, he didn't ask that question. It would set her so firmly against him he'd never convince her to leave. And he had every intention of returning to Boston with Emily Abercrombie at his side. Nor did he intend to return until he had convinced Emily's father to give him the voting rights to his stock. That would be his price for making sure Sam Abercrombie's daughter was safe when he was no longer able to watch over her.

There was, however, one small problem with his plan. He hadn't figured out how to do it.

The knock came before Bret was finished dressing. “Who is it?” he called though the door.

“Jinx,” a thin voice answered. “You said I was to be here at six.”

Bret opened the door. “You're early.” He'd hardly gotten the words out of his mouth before he saw that Jinx was still dirty and had a bruise on his cheek. “You were supposed to take a bath. Did you find it more fun to get in a fight?”

“I didn't get in no fight.” Jinx kept his head down. He didn't sound nearly as feisty as he had yesterday.

“Did you slip on the wet floor? Fall down the stairs? Run into a fist?”

“Bastard!” Jinx turned to leave, but Bret grabbed him by the collar, pulled him into the room, and closed the door.

“Okay, I deserve that, but I also deserve the truth. You didn't use my money the way I asked, so I want it back.” Bret held out his hand.

“I ain't got it.”

“What did you spend it on?”

“I didn't spend it.” Jinx looked defiant, but he also looked scared.

“Then what happened to it?”

Jinx dropped his gaze to the floor. “He took it.”

“Who took it?”

“Lugo. He said I must have stole it. He said nobody would have given a street rat like me money for a bath.”

“Did you give it to him?”

“Do I look stupid?” Jinx demanded. “I ran, but he caught me. He hit me and took it from me.”

Bret thought he'd gotten over being angry at the things that had happened to him, but it took only this to make him realize he hadn't forgotten anything at all. “Where does Lugo live?”

“Next to the wash house. He saw you. He said you was too much of a fine swell to even notice the likes of me.”

Bret finished dressing. “We're going to his house.”

“He's asleep.”

“I think I can convince him to wake up.”

Jinx looked Bret up and down. “You don't look like you did yesterday. You a Pinkerton or something?”

“No, but you might say I'm incognito.”

“What's that?”

“It means I'm trying to look so unlike myself, nobody will know who I am.”

“I knew that.”

“That's because you're a very smart kid. Now let's go see Lugo. Why aren't you living in an orphanage?”

“I ran away when they tried to lock me up in that place.” Jinx backed away from Bret. “You're not taking me there, are you?”

“No. I just wondered why you were living on the streets.”

“I'm not living on the street. I got a place to stay,” Jinx said proudly.

Bret recalled some of the places he'd slept. The wash house was pretty good by comparison. “What if a family wanted to adopt you?”

“I don't want to be adopted. They'd make me go to school, take baths all the time, come home when it got dark, and put on clean clothes in the morning. It would be worse than being in prison. Besides, nobody would want to adopt me.”

Bret thought he detected a note of wistfulness in that last statement. “I know a couple who just might be willing to put up with a brat like you.” He tousled Jinx's hair. “You'd have to go to school, take baths, wear clean clothes, and learn to eat at a table, but you'd have a nice place to stay, all the food you could eat, and somebody who'd make sure nobody hurt you or stole from you.”

They left the hotel and headed down the street toward the wash house. Jinx's footsteps lagged as they approached Lugo's house.

“How do you know anybody who would take me in?”

“I was an orphan when I was your age.”

Jinx stopped in his tracks. “You couldn't be no orphan. You got money and a whole trunk full of fancy clothes.”

Bret turned to look at the boy staring up at him,
disbelief and the glimmerings of hope in his eyes. Bret knew if he interfered in this child's life, he had to be prepared to take permanent responsibility for him.

He must have seen dozens of orphans in Boston, yet not one had caused him to take a second look, wonder about their lives, remember his own years as a homeless outcast. Had he been so focused on making a place for himself that he couldn't see anything else, or had he been afraid to see himself in those upturned faces, to remember that his family hadn't wanted him, either? Had being back in Texas unleashed a part of him he'd stored away and tried to forget? He didn't want to believe he'd become so heartless, he couldn't care about kids like Jinx.

“I had no money and only one set of ragged clothes when I was adopted,” Bret said. “I was angry at the whole world, mean to other kids, distrusted and disliked everybody, and constantly started fights.”

“If I'd been one of those kids, I'd have beat the shit out of you.”

“I'm sure they wanted to, but our parents taught us to like and trust each other.”

“How'd they do that?”

“By loving us first. After a while, we couldn't help loving them back. And once we did that, it was easy to start liking each other.”

“They wouldn't like me.”

“Why wouldn't they? I like you.”

Jinx couldn't believe that. “Preacher Jones says kids like me are the spawn of the devil.”

“I'm sure he would have said the same of me. Now it's time to wake up your boss.”

Bret had to knock two times before he got a response.

“Go away,” a voice from inside shouted. “Come back when it's daylight.”

“I leave town in less than an hour. I have to talk to you now.”

Bret got no response.

“It's about beating Jinx and stealing his money. The sheriff might be interested in hearing what happened.”

Bret heard a string of curses followed by what sounded like someone stumbling around in the dark. A few moments later the door opened; in it stood a man who exactly fit Bret's image of a person who would beat a helpless child and steal his money. He was unshaved, his hair matted, his clothes dirty and ill-fitted to his fat but muscular body.

“What lies has the little bastard been telling you?” Lugo demanded.

“He said you accused him of stealing the two dollars I gave him, that when he wouldn't give you the money, you beat him and took it from him.”

“He's a damned liar.” Lugo raised a threatening fist at Jinx, who moved closer to Bret. “Why would a man like you give a street rat money?”

“Why I gave it to him is none of your concern, but I
did
give it to him. I'm here to see that you give it back. And to tell you that if you lay a hand on him again, you'll answer to me.”

Fixing his gaze on Bret, Lugo seemed to forget all about Jinx. “Are you threatening me?”

“You can take it like that if you want,” Bret said.

“You cowhands are always coming into town thinking you're somebody important.” He lumbered toward Bret. “Nobody pushes Lugo Cates around.”

“I never met anyone named Nobody. But if he could make you act like a decent human instead of a bully who beats up kids and steals from them, I'd like to shake his hand.”

Lugo came down the steps with a roar, apparently
intending to run Bret down. Bret sidestepped, then landed two quick punches in his stomach that doubled the other man over. He followed that assault with an uppercut to the jaw that sent Lugo reeling backward.

“I don't want to fight you,” Brett said.

He didn't have a choice. Lugo came at him again, roaring like a maddened bear, depending on his weight, size, and aggressiveness to overwhelm anybody who tried to oppose him. Bret pounded Lugo's body with a series of short, sharp jabs.

“My hobby is boxing,” Bret said, dancing away each time before Lugo could move to meet him. “You can either give Jinx his money and promise not to hit him again, or I can batter your face until it looks like a cow carcass after wolves have been at it.”

Lugo's answer was another blind charge. Again Bret stepped aside, then battered Lugo's body before he could get his hands on his elusive enemy.

“Stand still and fight, you damned coyote!” Lugo roared.

Bret's answer was a blow to the jaw that sent Lugo staggering backward. Lugo shook his head to clear it, spun around until his gaze focused on Bret, then charged again. The same sequence repeated itself several more times before Lugo staggered and sank to his knees.

“Now will you give Jinx his money?”

Lugo nodded.

“Get it.”

Lugo staggered to his feet and finally managed to climb the stairs and go inside. Bret flattened himself against the side of the house and motioned for Jinx to do the same. The boy had barely gotten into position when Lugo came charging out of the house with a
gun in his hand. Bret stepped forward and brought his hand down on Lugo's wrist with such force he could hear the sound of bones breaking.

“You'll have to get the money yourself,” he said to Jinx over Lugo's moans. He picked up Lugo's gun. “Are you going to leave Jinx alone? You might as well agree. With your wrist like that, you can't really stop me from doing whatever I want.”

Lugo's eyes were filled with hate, but pain dulled his features. Bret didn't know how much faith he could put in a promise extracted under these conditions.

“I won't hurt the little bastard as long as he does his work,” Lugo said.

“I'll be back through here in a few weeks to check up on both of you.” Bret emptied the bullets from Lugo's gun, put them in his pocket, and tossed the firearm into the water tank atop the wash house. “Just in case I don't get back as soon as expected, I plan to explain the situation to the man at the desk in the hotel. I'm also going to leave some money for Jinx. If you touch so much as a single penny, I'll break your other wrist.”

“Why do you care about this kid?”

“I was an orphan once. I know what it's like to be beaten and cheated. I don't like it any more now than I did then.”

“Are you really coming back?” Jinx stuck close to Bret as they returned to the hotel.

Bret could tell he was scared, but he was also starting to look at Bret with worship in his eyes. “I will definitely be back. And I want you to think about going to stay with those people I told you about.”

“Couldn't I stay with you?”

“I live in a single room in a city up North. Jake and
Isabelle have a huge house on a big ranch right here in Texas. You could have your own room.”

“Those people might not like me as much as you do.”

“I promise they'll love you. Think about it while I'm gone.”

“I will if you promise to come back.”

Bret hesitated, but he'd already made a commitment to Jinx. He couldn't get out of it now. “I'll come back.”

Emily didn't see Bret when she arrived at the livery stable. Lonnie and Jem had the horses ready, and a cowhand and a dirty little boy were checking the ropes that secured Bret's suitcase and trunk on the packhorse. She should have known that any man who dressed like he did, who seemed accustomed to drinking expensive brandy, and who was part of the Abbott family, would hire someone to do his work for him, but she had expected him to be ready to leave at the appointed time.

She recognized the boy as the one who'd helped with the luggage at the train station, but she wondered where Bret had found that cowhand. His clothes were well-worn but clean, his boots scuffed but recently polished. Even the hat showed signs of long use. But it was the body inside the clothes that drew her attention.