The Brides Of Tombstone 01 Mail Order Outlaw (16 page)

“Enough talk. Go get it. Now. You—,”he pointed the weapon Lizzie. “Come with me and don’t try anything.”

Harvey and Lizzie left out the kitchen door to the outside.

Mal listened for their footsteps and knew when they’d left the porch. He got up and fetched his Sharps repeating rifle from the corner of the kitchen where he kept it always loaded. He ran to the front of the house and out the door to the porch. He could still see them riding away.

Raising the rifle to his shoulder he took aim, but then he put down the rifle. They were too far away and he might hit Lizzie. He couldn’t take that risk.

He ignored the pain in his side. The bleeding hadn’t stopped and before he went anywhere, he needed to slow the blood loss. He had lots of sheets that had been covering the furniture. He went to the pantry and used his knife to tear off a good-sized strip and folded it into a pad. Once he had it ready he took a deep breath and couldn’t help but wince. The wound throbbed, but there was nothing to be done. He unbuttoned his shirt and placed the pad on the wound, then closed his shirt again, and tucked the shirt tightly into his pants, using the garment to hold the pad in place.

He kept pressure on the bandage until he got to the barn, then he saddled Satan and galloped toward town. First though, he needed to stop at the Cobb ranch to tell Atina what happened and get her to put a real bandage on his wound. He wouldn’t be able to see a doctor right away.

Ed rode into the yard and was met by Atina.

“Where is Lizzie? What has happened?”

The pain was gaining hold. “I need your help. Harvey has Lizzie and he shot me. I have to get him ten thousand dollars or he’ll kill her. I’m headed to see John Peterson, but I need you to dress my wound first.”

“Come inside.” Atina wasted no words.

He followed her into the kitchen.

“Sit and take your shirt off.”

Mal did as she said, wincing at the pain.

“Doesn’t look good, but then you already know that.” She put a new pad on the wound. “Hold this while I wrap you.”

She took a long strip of cloth and wrapped it around him several times before tying it off.

“That should hold until you see a doctor. If you make it that long.”

“I know, Atina. Don’t remind me. Doesn’t look like I’m getting married tomorrow whether Lizzie would have showed up or not.”

“Not tomorrow, maybe the next Saturday. Hmm?”

“Maybe. I have to go now.” He put his hand on Atina’s shoulder. “I’ll get her back or die trying.”

“There will be no dying this day, for you or Lizzie,” Atina said with a narrowed gaze. “You will get her back.”

Her tone held a certainty he wished he shared. “Yes. Goodbye.”

“Goodbye, Malcolm Brandon.”

Mal studied her face and saw her wink at him. “You know.”

“I know and I know what you will choose. Now we have to wait for my daughter to come to the same conclusion. Go.” She waved her hand. “Bring her home.”

He nodded, ran to his horse and mounted. Then he turned the animal toward town and kicked it into a gallop. There was no time to spare.

Fifteen minutes later, he was at John Peterson’s house in Tombstone. Mal got his saddle bags, went up to the door and knocked. After a moment John answered.

“Malcolm. What are you doing here at this hour?”

“I need you to open the bank. I need ten thousand dollars.”

“I’m afraid you’ll have to wait until Monday. Ten thousand dollars is a lot of money. You sure you want to take that much out?”

Ed drew his Colt revolver and aimed it at Peterson. “You don’t have any choice. Harvey Talbot has Lizzie, and unless I give him ten thousand dollars tonight, he’ll kill her. That will not happen. The money is mine and Lizzie’s. I want it now.”

“Okay,” John nodded and grabbed his hat off a peg behind the door. “Come with me. We’ll go to the bank. I don’t want anything to happen to Lizzie anymore than you do.”

“I thought you hated her.”

John shrugged. “I’ve always liked Lizzie but she wouldn’t have anything to do with me, so I pretended not to like her. Guess I got mean about it because I was embarrassed. But honestly, she’s a fine woman and I don’t want anything to happen.”

“Happy to hear you say that, John. Mighty glad.”

John shut the door to his house behind him and walked with Mal to the bank. He opened it up and they went in.

“Bring your saddle bags here.”

“Just so you know, I expect to be bringing back the money, but I need to get Lizzie away from him. I don’t know that he’ll let me bring him in alive, but we’ll see.”

“Do you need my help, Malcolm? I can go with you if you like.”

“Thanks for the offer.” Mal was surprised, but pleased that John would make such an offer to help Lizzie. “I’m afraid if he sees two men riding into his camp that he’ll hurt her, or even kill her. I can’t take that chance.”

“Understood.”

John filled the saddlebags and gave them to Mal.

“Are you sure you’re well enough to do this. I can’t help but notice your shirt,” he pointed at Mal’s right side, “is soaked with blood.”

“Yeah,” he glanced inside his shirt to see if the bleeding had stopped or was soaking the bandage again. “A present from Harvey, to make sure I do what he wants. Atina wrapped me up so I should be okay for a while, anyway.”

“Good luck, Mal.”

“Thanks, John. I appreciate your help with this. I’ll get the money back as soon as I can.”

“You just get Lizzie back. That’s what’s important.”

Ed nodded and then walked the two blocks back to John’s house where he’d left his horse. He secured the saddle bags before galloping south out of town toward Harvey’s camp.

CHAPTER 11

When they arrived at camp, Lizzie looked around for a way to escape but didn’t see any unless she somehow could over power Harvey. That wasn’t likely to happen when he made her hold out her hands and tied them together with a length of rope.

Harvey had made camp in the gully where a creek once flowed. He lit a fire and made Lizzie sit on the ground next to it. Then he got out his coffee pot and made coffee. He acted like the situation was all completely normal.

“Now girlie, we wait. I know my little brother, and he’ll move mountains to get that money so you can go free. Too bad, I’d have liked to have a taste of you, but Ed really would kill me. He may not have done so before, but I don’t think he was in love then.”

“Love? What would you or he know about love?”

“Me? Not much. But Ed? He’s got a soft spot. He was raised by his ma until he was thirteen, and she died. A mistake I thought. I told Pa to go and get him when he was about ten. Train him early, but Becky, that’s Ed’s ma, she was a favorite of Pa’s and she wanted to keep Ed with her, so Pa let her.”

Everything Mal had told her about his upbringing was true. He really didn’t join his father because he wanted to.

“Why’d you come here Harvey? Did you follow…Ed?”

“Na.” He shook his head. “That was just lucky. I didn’t know where Ed went when he left. I was as surprised to see him as I’m sure he was to see me.”

“Why didn’t you just leave and let Ed be?”

“Cause me and Ed are brothers, and brothers should watch out for each other.”

“And since you felt Ed was putting you and all you represent to him behind him,” she jutted out her chin. “You thought you’d come in and just remind him where he’s from. Right? But the little ingrate didn’t want to be reminded. Did he spurn you, Harvey?”

“Damn right, he did. Acted like I wasn’t even there.”

“So, you did the only thing you could. You demanded what you see as your share.”

“Right. Share and share alike. Whatever he’s got is mine, too.” He sneered and gave her a sideways look. “That includes you, girlie.”

“My name is Lizzie. Use it.”

“Lizzie. What’s your last name, Lizzie?”

She hesitated. “Cobb. Why?”

“No reason. Just wondered.” He pondered for a bit and then asked. “You wouldn’t be any relation to Roy Cobb, would you?”

Concern crossed her mind. Why would a criminal know her father? “He’s my father. What’s it to you?”

“Oh, nothin’. Pa used to ride with a gang over by Phoenix about twenty-five years ago. There was a lawman, big man, even bigger than Pa. Name was Roy Cobb. He caught Pa robbing the mercantile and threw him in jail until the circuit judge came.” He stirred the fire with a long stick. “Then for some unknown reason, he let my Pa go. Could be Ed’s mama begged him to. Ed was a little bugger then, just about three and his ma, Becky, was a looker. Even I was interested in her and I was only about twelve or thirteen at the time.”

“See, my papa did yours a good turn. Can’t you return the favor and let me go?” Crazy or not, she’d try anything to get him to let her go.

“Sorry, girlie, er, Lizzie. You’re my only leverage over Ed. He seems real taken with you.”

“He is.” She thought about Mal. She loved him, would do anything for him. Just as he was doing for her. “We love each other.”

Harvey spit on the ground near her feet.

She moved them back quickly.

“You better be right about that. He’s all that’s standing between you and a bullet.”

Fear of being shot, raced through her. “He’s a good man. Even after all these years spent with you and your father, he still came out a good man.”

“He always was soft-hearted. He never did have the gumption to do what needed to be done. Now me, I don’t have none of them…feelings to worry about.”

Harvey pulled his gun, checked the chambers to see if they were all full. When he was done, he leaned back on his saddle and tilted his hat over his eyes. “Better get some shut-eye.”

Lizzie pulled her feet up underneath her and tried to keep warm. The desert got very cold at night and even next to the fire she was chilled. “I need a blanket.”

“Ain’t got one to spare. You’ll have to get closer to the fire if you’re cold. So you’re really planning on getting hitched to Ed?”

“I think so. I’ve got a decision to make before that happens. We were supposed to get married tomorrow…until you came to town and ruined everything.”

“Oh, well, I’m just sorry as I can be,” he said in a high falsetto. Then he laughed. “Ed won’t stay married. He’s gonna miss the life we had too much.”

“The life you had?” She slowly shook her head and jutted out her chin. “Running from the law, never having a home or people who love you. Never staying in one place for longer than a few days lest you get recognized. That’s no life.”

“It’s the one we have and the one we’re used to. Ed’s no different than me where that’s concerned.”

“You’re wrong. He wants a home and a family. Children to call his own and to raise to be good, upstanding men and women. Not the scum of the earth like how your father raised you.”

“You say another word about my pa and your face will be very warm when I shove it in the fire. You just shut up, girlie.”

Lizzie knew enough to do just that. She could only push Harvey so far. He wouldn’t be allowing this much if it weren’t for the money Ed was bringing. No she wouldn’t think of him as Ed.
He is Mal. Malcolm Brandon. That’s who he wants to be and who I know him as. He’s Mal.

Oh, Mal, please hurry.

* * *

Ed rode as fast as he dared in the dark of the night. As he got closer to the dry creek south of town, he saw the glow from a fire.
That must be Harvey’s camp.

“Whoa,” he said quietly, pulling up on the reins. “This is as far as you go, boy.”

Satan seemed to understand him and nickered in response.

Ed slid from the horse and grabbed the saddlebags. From there he walked in a wide circle. He knew better than to just walk directly into the camp.

Harvey would shoot him and then Lizzie and take off with the money. Instead he worked his way around to the back of the camp, left the saddlebags next to a large boulder, then drew his gun and walked the fifty yards to the camp.

“You’re getting slow, little brother,” said Harvey from under his hat.

Only then did Ed see that Harvey’s gun was pointed at Lizzie. With a slow move, he put his own gun away and held up his hand, palms outward.

“Mal,” said Lizzie as she sat up.

“I’ve got the money you want. Now let her go.”

“I don’t think so. Somehow, I think there must be more and I intend to get it all.”

“There is no more to be had. You took everything the bank had on hand. I had to hold my gun on the bank president to get him to open up and empty the vault.” Harvey never was good with numbers, he didn’t know how much money a bank had on hand.

“That’s just my point. If he gave you ten grand without blinking an eye, then there must be more where that came from. I want it all.”

“There is no more. You won’t even get this ten thousand unless you let Lizzie go.”

“What do ya mean?”

“I left the money with my horse and unless Lizzie goes to get it, you won’t have it at all. Nobody can get near my horse except me or Lizzie. He’s a mean one. He’s not named Satan for nothing.”