The Golden Rules of Love: Western Romance (16 page)

***

The first thing he became aware of was the dull ache just behind his eyes. He went to rub them, only to realize that his entire skull ached. As his hand moved through his hair, a voice penetrated the fog in his mind.

“Mack, Mack, are you all right? What the hell happened?”

“Annie,” he could hear the slur in his own voice. “They took her. Rake…”

“Who took Annie and Rake?”

Mack waved his hand. “No, no. Rake helped Jasper and Reverend Michaels take Annie.”

Tom sat back on his heels, looking stunned. “What do we do?”

“Find her.”

“How?” Tom pulled Mack up.

Mack rubbed his head, trying to clear the cobwebs. “It was hard as hell to find Jasper, but Annie…who isn’t going to remember seeing Annie?”

Tom gave him a genuine smile. “That’s a damn good point.”

“Can you row?” Tom asked, helping him into the boat. “We need to get guns and more men. We need to hurry.”

Tom made it to the boat in fifteen minutes. Cookie stayed with Mary Beth on the ship, but Finnigan and Fergal loaded up with weapons and climbed into the dingy. “Bring her back.” Mary Beth’s voice cracked with emotion as she pleaded with them to find her friend.

Mack gave a quick nod and rubbed his head again. As his head slowly cleared, his skin tingled with raw emotion. What if he didn’t find Annie? Where might they have taken her? The second the dingy glided next to the dock, Mack jumped out. The others were quick to follow and they headed straight for the nearest camp.

They passed a group of men, “Have you seen a pretty redhead?” Tom called.

“You mean a woman?” one asked incredulously.

Tom kept walking and didn’t answer. Mack knew exactly why he didn’t bother explaining. If they had seen Annie, they wouldn’t be asking.

He passed another group. “Have you seen a pretty red-haired woman?” They stared at him like he was crazy before shaking their heads.

A half hour later, Mack was feeling hopeless. Between the four of them, they had asked hundreds of men. Mack held his head in his hands. How else could he find her?

“Excuse me.” The man’s voice grated on Mack’s nerves. His head snapped up. “Did you say you were looking for a woman?” Mack’s heart jumped. “Yes.”

“Pretty red hair. Travelling with three men and not looking too happy about it?”

“Yes,” he said, his breath coming out in short gasps.

“Saw them headed up the hill over there. A few miners have tried mining the caves. I don’t think they found much, so they’re mostly abandoned.”

Mack felt tears of relief prick the back of his eyes but he didn’t let them out. Now was the time for action. “How long ago?”

“Maybe an hour.”

“The name is Collin Mackinnon. I’ve got a boat out by the island. Come find me. And thank you.” He shook the man’s hand and then began sprinting up the hill.

***

Annie watched Mack fall with absolute horror. A blow like that could kill a man. Jasper grabbed her arm and she instantly stomped on his foot with the heel of her boot. He yelped in pain and let her go.

Annie didn’t wait; she made a dive for the dingy. She had to get help but Rake grabbed her around the waist and the reverend closed in on her other side. “Why are you doing this? Mack trusts you!” She cried as she tried to get an elbow into his gut.

“And I trust him but I don’t trust you,” Rake gritted out as her elbow hit its target.

“You could have killed him,” she cried as she tried to twist away.

“I would never do that to Mack. I gave him a little tap.” Rake held her tight. The reverend grabbed one of her wrists and Jasper grabbed the other and they tied them in front of her. Realizing she couldn’t fight her way out, she did the only other thing available, she screamed.

“Enough of that.” Jasper placed a pistol against her temple. “Now listen close. You’re gonna tell me where Garrett put the gold. If you cooperate, I’ll let you go.”

“But I don’t know―“

He pressed the pistol harder. “I know that isn’t true. He told me that you were the only one who knew. And here you are. Why else would you come?”

She stared at him. She had no idea what he was talking about. “He only ever sent me one letter and he didn’t say where it was.”

He pressed his face close to hers. She heard Mack moan and breathed a small sigh that he wasn’t dead. She’d give anything to wrap her arms around him.

“You’re lying. And you better start telling the truth soon or you’re gonna be right next to Mack.”

Annie took a breath. She and Jasper had never liked each other, and she believed him when he said that he would hurt her. “Jasper, I’m not lying. I have the letter. You can read it.”

“Where is it?”

“I-in―in my pocket,” she stuttered out.

Rake still held her around the waist while the reverend grasped her arm, his body pressed to her side, his reeking breath wafting across her face. Jasper reached in the pocket of her dress and pulled out the two pieces of paper.

He read each one, his face twisting at his own words. “How come you kept this?”

Some of Annie’s fear fell away. It was replaced with the anger that had fed her on the long trip out west. “You think I came here for the gold but I didn’t. I came for you.”

“What does that even mean? Where is the gold?” He shuffled through the two pages again. “There must be another letter.”

Annie wanted to stamp her foot. Of course there wasn’t another letter. But then, she wondered, did Jasper know something that she didn’t? “Do you know how many times he wrote to me? Are there more letters?”

Jasper blinked, his face scrunching up. He scrubbed his face with his hands. “I only ever remember him writing the one letter. We went to get―”

“She’s playing with you,” Reverend Michaels said, giving her arm a jerk. “Come on, let’s get her to the cave. Maybe that will spark her memory.” Then he leaned close to Jasper, saying, “Don’t you forget your promises now.”

Annie felt her skin tingle with cold fear at those words. It was something in his tone or the way his eyes brushed down her that told her she wasn’t going to like whatever they had planned.

Jasper eyed the other man and gave her arm a tug. It was much gentler than the reverend’s had been. She didn’t want to leave. Not just for her own safety but because Mack hadn’t moved.

“We’re hunting for gold. That’s it for now.” His voice was level but he eyed the other man wearily. He leaned down and whispered in her ear. “I won’t let him hurt you, Annie.”

Annie started thinking fast. She knew Jasper. As long as he needed her, he wouldn’t hurt her. She didn’t know Rake that well but from what she had seen, he didn’t seem to be a mean man. Misguided maybe; although, he had knocked Mack out with an oar. But Reverend Michaels, that man was a snake. No doubt about it.

If she were going to get out of this, she had to turn the other two men against him. That was her best chance. They started walking through a camp and she felt the barrel of a pistol press into her back. “You want to live, you keep your mouth shut,” the reverend hissed.

Clenching her teeth, Annie remained silent. If she had the chance, she would kill that man. Her hands were tied and the three men stayed close but she made eye contact with every miner she could. Somebody needed to remember seeing her.

The miners thinned out and their small group started marching up a hill. It was steep, and without her hands, Annie nearly slipped several times. Jasper linked his arm through hers to keep her steady. “Jasper, I need to ask you something.” She felt the pistol press into her back again but she ignored the pain.  Annie had travelled two thousand miles to ask this question.

“All right.” His voice shook slightly.

“How did Garrett die?”

He sucked in his breath. “I didn’t lie, if that is what you’re asking.”

“I believe you,” her eyes pleaded with him. “I just want to know. When he sent that letter, I thought we had a future, and then it was just gone.” She had to remind Jasper that she was the wife of his best friend. He shouldn’t hurt her.

He closed his eyes for a second. “He got killed in a scuffle with some other miners. They wanted his gold bars. I guess that isn’t technically an accident; though, I don’t think they meant to kill him.”

“How do you know the miners didn’t take it?”

“Why are you two doing so much talkin’?” The reverend poked her again with the barrel of the pistol.

Rake reached back and, quick as a snake, he grabbed the gun from the Reverend’s hand. “I’ll hold that while they work a few things out.”

“What are you two workin’ at anyway?” the reverend’s voice growled out.

“Findin’ gold,” Jasper shot back. “Annie, the whole reason Garrett died was because he hid the gold and he wouldn’t tell anyone where it was. He said it was his future―yours and his and the baby’s.”

Annie’s face pinched at the mention of the child. “Thank you for saying that, Jasper. When he left, I thought it was because he didn’t care…” She stopped, unable to go on. A sob rose in her chest.

“He cared, Annie. He came out here for you.”

“Then why did he leave me in St. Louis?” Her pain was evident in her voice.

Jasper looked at her with a mixture of surprise and fear. “He was scared, I think. He was worried about becoming a father and having nothing to give a child. What happened to the baby, Annie?”

“I didn’t have any food,” she said, fighting back tears. “It wasn’t five days after you left that I lost the…” She swallowed, trying to get rid of the lump in her throat. A tear trickled down her cheek.

She could have sworn she saw tears in his eyes. She glanced over at Rake and he was staring at the ground. She couldn’t see his expression.

They had nearly reached the top of the hill. “I’m sorry, Annie. That must have been…” Jasper’s voice trailed off. She shook her head. “It’s in the past.” She took a deep breath. “Jasper, why am I here? You want me to help you find the gold?”

“He said he told you where it was. He said it was in the letter.” Jasper sounded desperate.

“I’ve read that letter a thousand times. There’s nothing in it. He didn’t tell me…” She stopped. They had reached the mouth of the cave and Annie’s mouth hung open. It was large and set up almost like a room. There were lanterns and beds. A table with a few chairs and a kitchen of sorts was set up to one side. “What is this place? How did it all get here?”

“A few things I brought myself. The rest…miners carried it up. They abandoned it when they realized it had no gold.  But there is gold in here somewhere. Garrett put it here. That’s all I know.”

She went over the words of the letter in her head. Turning each sentence over in her mind, she searched for something she missed. I know you must be angry with me, Annie, and I know you have a right but I’m going to do right by you. There wasn’t a single clue in that line. I’ve found gold. I melted it into three gold bars and I’ve hidden it away. Well, at least that line and Garrett’s story matched up but it gave her no information. I thought of you when I did it…it’s in the heart, Annie. She had always assumed that line was a declaration of love. But could it mean something else?  I’ll tell you why I had to hide it when I see you. I should have never left you and gone off with Jasper. As soon as I can get this gold out of here, I’ll come back and it will be just me and you. I’ll give you everything you ever dreamed of.

The reverend’s hand came to her back and she jolted away. He grabbed her hair and yanked her head back. “I don’t know why Jasper’s decided to play nice but I’ve always known you’re up to somethin’. Why else would you come all this way? You know where the gold is and you’re gonna tell us.”

Annie bit back her cry. She wouldn’t give him the satisfaction. “I can’t tell you what I don’t know.” He whipped her around and raised his hand to strike her. Annie braced herself for the impact.

“We ain’t there yet. Hold your horses.” Jasper stepped in front of her.

“If you think I know where it is because the reverend says so then you’re going to be disappointed. That man is a snake oil salesman. Jasper, you think on everything you know about me. Did I ever seem like I was after riches? Did I marry Garrett because I thought he was going to give me the high life? I am a fool but I was never―“

The reverend reached around Jasper and cracked her on the head. “You shut your mouth. You made me promises, Jasper. You said that if I helped you get Annie to find the gold that you would give her to me once it was done.”

“I lied,” Jasper whispered.

A deafening blast sent Annie to the ground with her hands over her ears. Rake threw himself on top of her as rock rained down on all of them. Annie kept her eyes squeezed tight.

The dust settled back to the floor and Rake and Annie lifted their heads. The reverend lay motionless on the floor. Annie swallowed hard.

“Get up, Annie.” Jasper’s voice rang through the cave. Annie winced. Rake stood and pulled her with him. It wasn’t lost on Annie that Rake had protected her. “You’re right about him; he’s no good. But I ain’t much better and I have been waiting to find that gold for a long time. Why did you come here? I want the truth now.”