Beautiful Bandit (Lone Star Legends) (30 page)

“Oh, Josh Neville,” she said, counting the bills, “I assure you, the pleasure’s all mine.”

“What’s that?” growled a gruff voice from the back room. “Did I hear right? Is there a Josh Neville out there?”

Frowning, Dan whispered to Tate, “Who’s that?”

“Leo Broderick,” the sheriff said, shaking his head. “Man rode into town leading a whole circus of charlatans and thieves, tryin’ to pawn off liniments and potions and some bogus concoction called ‘Lydia E. Pinkham’s Herb Medicine.’”

“Since when is it against the law to sell herbal remedies?” shouted Leo.

“When it makes people sick enough to almost kill ’em, that’s when,” Tate retorted.

“Josh,” Leo yelled, “vouch for me, old friend. Tell him how we shared a dormitory room at the Yale School of Law!”

Josh couldn’t believe his ears. Not that Leo Broderick, sitting in the Laredo jail for selling…potions? “Mind if I go back there, see if he really is who he claims to be?”

“Well, all right, but take care to stand clear of the bars, or he’ll have your watch and your wallet and whatever else you might’ve stowed in your pockets, all before you can say howdy.” Tate narrowed his eyes to add, “The man’s a quack. Slipperiest snake-oil salesman I’ve ever come across, and I’ve seen my share, especially since the confounded Missouri-Pacific laid down tracks.”

“Speaking of tracks,” Dan said, walking alongside Josh, “we really ought to make some. We can’t keep Charlie tied up with his head in a sack any longer than necessary. It just ain’t right.”

“If that really is the Leo Broderick I went to school with, this won’t take long,” Josh said, frowning at the memory. “I’ll just have a word with the man, and then we’ll be on our way.”

He left his concerned cousin in the sheriff’s office and headed for the back room, where he found Leo in the middle cell, clinging to the bars like a monkey at the zoo. “Well, if this don’t beat all,” Leo said, grinning. “Josh Owns-Half-of-Texas Neville, in the flesh.”

Josh ignored the loathsome taunt, just as he had done during their college days. “Leo. What sort of mischief put you in a Texas jail cell?”

“Trumped up charges, that’s what, made by that Wish-I-Was-a-Sheriff boor out there.” Leo poked his right hand through the bars. “So, how’ve you been, friend?”

“Well, since I’m the one standing on this side of the bars,” he teased, shaking Leo’s hand, “I’d have to say I’m a good sight better than you.” It surprised Josh to see how much Leo had aged, and a surge of guilt coursed through him. “What’s Tate charging you with?”

“My memorization skills are as bad now as they were in school, so I couldn’t recite the list if I tried, but I’m happy to give it a try.” Squinting up at the ceiling, he began counting on his fingers. “Operating a flea circus without a license, selling medicine without a medical degree, charging the good folks of Laredo to step up and take a peek at my freak show….”

If he didn’t know better, Josh would have said Leo sounded proud of himself! “Flea circus? Leo, you were top of our class, before—” He couldn’t bring himself to admit that he’d been a big part of the reason Leo had left Yale without graduating.

“Why work hard when you can work smart?” Leo said with a shrug. He nodded, indicating Josh’s hands, then held up his own, as if to prove his point. “See? No calluses here.”

Josh saw no point in saying that in his book, blisters and calluses topped sitting in a jail cell any day. “How long have you been in custody?”

“Three days. The judge was out of town. Or so I was told. So much for my right to a speedy trial, eh?”

“Have they set a date?”

“Tomorrow morning, nine o’clock sharp. Provided they can round up six sober men in this fine community of upstanding citizens, that is.” Leo’s dark eyes narrowed. “So, did you stick it out? Did you get your law degree?”

It hadn’t been easy, attending classes eight hours a day, working another six at the lumber mill, studying, and trying to sleep in that crowded dormitory, but Josh had done it. He’d graduated with full honors and in record time, because every minute away from the ranch and those he loved had seemed like torture. “Yeah,” he said, “I finished.” And he remembered Dinah’s delighted surprise when she’d noticed the framed certificate hanging on the wall of his parlor.

“Praise the Lord, hallelujah, it’s my lucky day!” Leo did a little dance in the small space between his cot and the stone wall of his cell, and, when it ended, he stuck his face between two bars. “So, what’ll it take to talk you into representing me? I’ve got money. And a girl….”

Those last words echoed in Josh’s head like a Chinese gong and caught him off guard. He tried to concentrate on present facts: Charlie and Dan were outside; he’d promised not to keep them waiting; his frail grandmother was laid up at home with apoplexy; he missed Dinah more than words could explain. “I’m in town just for the day,” he began. “Came to buy a stud bull for the ranch, and—”

“Tell me,” Leo interrupted him, “how’s my little Sadie?”

Josh stifled a nervous snort, because there wasn’t anything amusing about what came to mind. The only child of elderly parents, Sadie had been a waitress at the restaurant in New Haven where Leo would take most of his meals, leaving generous tips and plying her with compliments. Eventually, she’d accepted his invitation to a Shakespearean stage production. Leo had showed up too intoxicated to watch the play, and Sadie had spent the next several months trying to sober him up. Lonely, confused, and brokenhearted, she’d turned to Josh for help, but even working together, his girl and his friend hadn’t been able to fix whatever was wrong with Leo Broderick.

Those hours with Sadie were Josh’s best memories of his Yale days. She’d made him feel smart and heroic, and, by the grace of God, he’d managed to convince her that she deserved better than a drunken gambler. Then, one day, when Leo saw them walking hand in hand, he knew they’d fallen in love—and he never spoke to either of them again. A few months later, when he dropped out of school and disappeared, they blamed themselves. After the wedding, cuddled in their dark bedroom, they’d wondered whatever had become of Leo Broderick. With time and maturity comes wisdom, however, and, before long, they’d stopped feeling responsible for Leo’s actions.

“Sadie died giving birth,” he blurted out.

Leo’s face blanched, and he drove a hand through his hair. “I’m sorry, my friend. Sorry as can be.”

Josh felt a little guilty for delivering the news so tactlessly. “Happened three years ago.” He could have added that the pain of his loss had lifted significantly, thanks to a diminutive, green-eyed beauty who called herself Dinah. But he chose not to.

“So then, maybe you’ll take my case—for old times’ sake?”

“Like I said, we’ve got a bull tied up out there, and we need to get on the road, so that—”

“Do just this one thing for me, and we’ll call it even. No hard feelings.”

How many times had he heard that line before? It had taken less than a week at Yale to figure out there was no such thing as “just this one thing” with Leo. Josh pictured Charlie in his makeshift pen on wheels, straining at his ropes to get free. He pictured Dan, pacing impatiently as he checked and rechecked the knots.

“It’ll all be over in a matter of hours,” Leo pressed. “You’ll be on the road by lunchtime tomorrow.”

Would Leo have stayed at Yale and earned his law degree if Josh hadn’t stolen Sadie’s heart? Josh gritted his teeth. He’d never been able to come up with a suitable answer to the question before, so what made him think he’d find one now? Could he really hope to erase years of guilt, once and for all, by helping him now? Probably not, Josh thought, but it sure was worth a try. “Give me a few minutes to make some arrangements and I’ll be back to discuss strategy.”

As he headed outside, Josh relied on the grateful look on Leo’s face to give him the courage to face Dan with the change of plans.

35

Mrs. Neville,” Kate began, “I hate to bother you with everything else that’s on your mind, but it’s your mother-in-law….”

Eva’s face paled as she put down her fountain pen and looked up from her desk. “Is she—is she all right?”

“She’s still with us, if that’s what you’re asking, but I can’t get her to eat. All she wants to do is sleep.” Kate clasped and unclasped her hands. “I thought—I hoped, maybe, you and Mr. Neville, and his brothers and their wives—if each of you visited her—she loves you all so much that—well, maybe, you’ll be able to convince her to eat something.”

Nodding, Eva slumped in her high-backed chair. “I’m glad you came to me, Dinah.” With a wave of her hand, she invited her to sit down in the seat across from her. “You’ve been such a help to us, a real blessing.” She leaned forward, folding her hands on the blotter. “So thank you. I know you wanted to leave here long before now. And everyone at the Lazy N knows that, if it weren’t for you, we’d probably have lost Esther on that awful Sunday….”

The image of Esther, gray-faced and limp in the church pew, flashed in Kate’s mind. Then, Eva’s chair squeaked, rousing her from the unpleasant memory. “I’m the one who should be thanking you,” she admitted. “You didn’t know me from Adam, and yet you took me in and gave me a safe place to rest and heal. I’ll be indebted to everyone at the Lazy N for the rest of my days.”

Josh’s mother laughed softly. “The gratitude is mutual, believe me.”

Kate smiled and stood up again. “I’d best get back to Esther, and let you get back to your work.”

Eva heaved a huge sigh. “Keeping the books for this place is quite a job, I tell you. I don’t know how I’d have done it and cared for Esther, too. You’ve been such a help!” She got to her feet and walked around to Kate’s side of the desk. “Esther turned eighty-two on her last birthday. Did you know that?”

“No, ma’am.”

“She has talked about Ezra more often than usual these past few years. It’s been a source of concern to Matthew, in particular, since he’s the eldest son.” She bit her lower lip, then continued, “He told me on the night she fell ill that he fully expected to pay a visit to the undertaker. And that you’re the reason we’ve all had this time, this opportunity to tell her how much she means to us.”

She gave Kate a hug, then slid an arm around her shoulders and walked her to the door. “Tell me, Dinah, have you ever played bridge?”

Kate pictured Etta Mae and her dancing girls, giggling from behind fans made of playing cards. “No, but I’ve watched many a game.”

“Well, what you’ve done for us trumps anything we could have done for you. I’m ever so sorry about your ankle, but I can’t help thinking the injury was divine providence, since it resulted in Josh’s bringing you home.” She walked back to her desk. “Just between you and me, I won’t be the least bit disappointed if Josh insists that you make this your permanent home.”

There was no mistaking the woman’s meaning, and Kate felt helplessly silly as she stood there, smiling and nodding, trying to come up with a proper response.

“Rest assured, I’ll corral the family,” Eva said, preparing to go back to her work. “I like your idea of each of us going in, one at a time, in hopes that, while we’re there, she’ll stay awake long enough to take some nourishment.”

It pleased Kate that Josh’s mother approved of her plan. “I’m on my way to the kitchen now to see about bringing her some soup. Can I bring you anything?”

“Why, thank you, Dinah. A cup of tea would be lovely.”

Kate headed straight for the kitchen to fix two trays—one for Esther, one for Eva. Oh, if only Josh were here so she could tell him about their lovely chat! He’d been gone only a few days, but it felt more like weeks. She thought about him almost constantly and wondered if she’d been on his mind, too. Not likely, she decided, grinning, what with Daniel to keep him company and ranch business to occupy his mind.

An hour later, after yet another failed attempt to feed Esther, Kate sat in the window seat and gave the cradle a gentle nudge with the toe of her shoe. As it rocked to and fro, a sob ached in her throat. And here, she’d thought she’d come to grips with knowing there wouldn’t be babies in her future, thanks to Frank! Evidently, what she really needed to accept was that she’d never get used to the idea of being barren.

She held the curtains aside to peer out at the backyard, where little Willie squealed and giggled as Susan chased after him with a washcloth, evidently intent on wiping jam and cookie crumbs from his mouth.

Beyond the yard, mountainous clouds hung dark and heavy in the vast sky. Thankfully, Josh and Dan had traveled south; with any luck, they’d be home before the storm hit.

“I—I w-want….”

Kate leaped up and rushed to Esther’s side. “Well, hello there, sleepyhead!” She tidied the covers and fluffed her pillow. “Are you hungry?”

“No.” She focused on something near the window.

Kate followed the line of her gaze, then met her eyes. “The cradle?”

Esther nodded, and the left side of her face broke into a smile. “You…will be…next.”

Even if Frank’s attacks hadn’t left her too battered to carry a child to term, what man would want a woman like she to be the mother of his children?

“B-boring.”

“Boring?” Kate echoed. Lord, she found herself praying, don’t let this be a sign that the end is near—not when the family hasn’t had a chance to say good-bye. Not with Josh and Dan so far from home….