Mr. Dangerous (14 page)

“Have you seen or talked to your father since?”

“Nope. I have no idea where he is or if he’s even still alive.”

“That’s quite a story.”

“It sure is. Sometimes I can’t quite believe it’s my life.”

“I know how you feel,” Delaney said, thinking of her mother.

They rode in silence, both reflecting on the strange course of their lives and the serendipity of their meeting. Delaney felt so grateful to have met Wade, to be riding through the Montana countryside in his arms.

Wade felt like he was in a dream. He never thought he’d meet a woman who’d feel the freedom of the land like he did, who understood him. The clouds parted for a moment, and a streak of sunlight flooded down. Wade made Whinny stop to enjoy the warmth for a moment, and Delaney leaned her head back against Wade to soak up the sun on her face.

A horse galloped over the hill, and a voice boomed, “Wade!”

Wade turned quickly, alarmed. As soon as he saw it was Jacob, he relaxed.

“Jacob, what a surprise. We were just heading back. Is everything okay?”

“No.”

“What’s wrong?”

Delaney looked between the two men.

“I came over to tell you I got another letter from the bank. It said if they don’t receive payment in three days,
three days
, they’re going to take our land. Two weeks ago the letter said months. Now this letter says
three days!
I’m telling you, it’s a scam.”

“I hear you,” Wade said. “I probably have the same letter waiting for me in the mailbox. What are you going to do?”

“Well, that’s why I came over here. I have a feeling we’re going to have to work together.”

“I had an idea the last time we talked, but I don’t think it is a good one,” Wade admitted.

He looked down at Delaney. She looked so small and innocent in his arms. He didn’t want to do anything to hurt her, but he felt like he didn’t have a choice in sharing his risky plan.

“What is it, Wade?” Jacob asked.

“I don’t know if I should say.”

“Tell him, Wade,” Delaney urged.

“All right then, I’ll tell you, but I never said it was a good idea.”

“Let me hear your bad idea.”

Wade licked his lips and said, “We rob the bank.”

Both Jacob and Delaney stared at him with their mouths open.

Finally, after a ridiculously long time, Jacob said, “So let me get this straight. You’re proposing that we
rob the bank
that is trying to rob us?”

“That’s exactly right.”

“Wade, you’re a genius,” Jacob roared. “It’s insane, but it’s genius.”

“But it would never work,” Wade cried.

“Jacob’s right,” Delaney said. “It’s genius. The bank would never suspect two young cowboys to have the wits to do something like this. I think you could pull it off.”

“Really?”

“Really,” Jacob and Delaney said at the same time.

They agreed to meet the next day and figure out a plan. Jacob rode off, smiling like an idiot, and Wade turned back toward the house.

“Do you really think it will work?” he inquired.

“I don’t know,” Delaney said. “But there is only one way to find out.”

*

Wade twiddled his thumbs as he waited for Delaney to get off work. The diner was busy, and she’d had to stay half an hour later. Jacob would be waiting for them. He picked at his chili, which was only half eaten. He couldn’t bring himself to order a piece of pie. Verna kept asking him if he wanted one, and Wade kept saying he was all right without one.

She asked Wade how dinner with Delaney went last night. To him, it felt like an indeterminably long amount of time had passed since then, but he realized that to Verna, it was the last exciting event she’d witnessed. He decided to make it worth her while; he asked her to lean in, and he whispered, “I kissed her.”

Verna squealed like a high school girl and clapped her hands together. “Oh, Wade! That is just wonderful!”

Delaney looked in their direction and smiled.

“She’s perfect for you,” Verna added as she squeezed his shoulder. “You sure you don’t want a piece of pie?”

“Yes, Verna, I’m sure. Thank you, though.”

She left to help another customer, leaving him alone with his chili once again. He just wasn’t hungry. There was too much to worry about. If planning went well tonight, they’d be robbing a bank tomorrow. He felt like it was too fast, but Jacob only had tomorrow and the next day before either paying up or losing his land. Wade had checked his mailbox, and sure enough, he too had an envelope with his fate sealed in it. Life as he knew it depended on this bank robbery as much as Jacob’s life did.

He watched Delaney clear some plates and sighed. Why was it that as soon as he found the girl of his dreams, he had to face this? He felt guilty for putting her through this, but she said she was committed to helping them, and he knew he couldn’t force Delaney to do or not do anything.

She had a will of her own, and that was part of the reason he was so drawn to her. Her long braid swooshed back and forth as she walked, tickling the small of her back. She was unbearably beautiful. With an armload of plates, she went back to the kitchen, and re-emerged a few minutes later.

“You ready to go?” she asked, and kissed Wade on the cheek.

“With you? I’d go anywhere,” he replied charmingly.

They both waved to Verna on the way out, and she giggled.

Delaney rolled her eyes, and Wade said, “She’s just being sweet.”

“She’s being annoying is what she’s being. She doesn’t need to make such a big deal about us.”

“You don’t think we’re a big deal?” Wade asked with a smirk.

Delaney slapped him playfully on the shoulder. “That’s not what I meant!”

Wade picked her up and carried her all the way to the car. “Tell me,” he said. “What did you mean then?”

Delaney leaned forward and kissed him passionately. It had been a long day at work, and being in Wade’s arms was more than a relief. He kissed her back tenderly, backing her up against the car. Delaney sighed and melted into him. Wade took a small step back, and Delaney slid down until her feet were on the ground.

“You want to go home?” Wade asked her.

“Yeah, I do.”

She skipped around the front of the car and hopped in. Wade shook his head; she was way too much. He got in, started the engine and pulled out of the parking lot.

“Jacob is going to be there when we get back,” he said. “Are you ready to start making plans for tomorrow?”

“Yes. I don’t have work tomorrow so it’s good timing. And I had an idea.”

“Lay it on me. We need all the ideas we can get.”

“I want to steal my uncle’s car.”

“What?”

“You heard me. I want to steal my uncle’s car. Think about it. We are going to need a get-away vehicle. Way not use his car?”

“Because if the police find the car or get the plates, they are going to trace the car back to him.”

“Exactly.”

“Delaney, that’s brilliant.”

“I know.”

Wade pulled into the driveway and parked the car.

He said, “I’ll have you tell Jacob, then. That’s the first part of our plan.”

Delaney smiled. “Yes, sir.”

Jacob was drinking a beer with John in front of the fire when they got inside.

“Wade! You didn’t tell me about the letter from the bank!” John yelled as soon as they entered the living room. Delaney stood by his side, holding his hand.

“John, I—”

“You what? Didn’t think it was any of my business?”

“I’m sorry, Wade,” Jacob put his hands in the air with an apologetic shrug. “I didn’t know you hadn’t told him.”

“John, I was worried about you,” Wade said. “You’ve been so sick. You refuse to see a doctor. I didn’t want to worry you. I thought I could handle it on my own.”

“You think robbing a bank is handling it?”

Jacob cut in. “John, honestly, we’ve thought of everything else. Nothing has helped. If I don’t round up thousands of dollars by the day after tomorrow then my ranch will be the fifth ranch the bank has taken over. It’s a scam they’re running, and we’ve got to do something to stop them. We’ve got to break the chain.”

“I see,” John said, pulling on his beard with his fingers. His wispy grey hair curled around his ears, and his mustache bent at the tips. He looked angry still, but his expression softened to contemplation rather than rage.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you,” Wade said. “I really thought I could take care of this on my own.”

John was silent for a long time. He closed his eyes. Finally he spoke. “It’s okay, Wade. What we need to do now is figure out the best way to rob this bank in the next twenty-four hours.”

Wade, Jacob and Delaney all dropped their jaws.

“What are you saying?” Wade asked.

“What I’m saying, Wade, is I’m going to help you,” John said, a Cheshire cat grin spreading across his face.

Chapter Six

The old man looked from Wade to Jacob to Delaney. The three of them were staring at him in disbelief.

Eventually, Wade said, “You can’t be serious.”

“Oh, I am very serious.” John crossed his legs and folded his hands over his knee. “I’ll have you know,” he paused for the sake of suspense, and then coughed into the crook of his arm, “I’ve been going to that bank longer than you’ve been alive. I know it like the back of my hand. You should be begging for my help, not gawking at me with your mouths wide open.”

“He makes a good point,” Jacob said, shrugging his shoulders. “We need someone who knows the bank well. Someone who can help us come up with a plan.”

“Right,” John said. “I know everyone who works there. I can tell you how they’re going to respond.”

“Jesus Christ! What would Betty say?” Wade exclaimed.

“Betty and I got into a lot of trouble in our day. She would be right here helping us figure this out.”

The thought of his wife gave him strength. He had decided to help out in part to honor her memory.

“I can see that now,” said Wade, his face breaking into a smile. “All right, then. We’ll accept your help, John. But I don’t want anything bad happening to you or Delaney. So the two of you will help with planning, but I don’t want you in the bank with us.”

Wade realized how official he sounded, that he was stepping into the role of leader, that it felt good.

“But Wade,” Delaney cried, not wanting to be left out. “You need our help.”

“I’m not saying we don’t. But we need bodies on the periphery—with the car or causing a distraction. Jacob and I will perform the actual crime.”

“Fine,” Delaney said. “Do you have a plan in mind? Why don’t you tell us what you were thinking?”

“All right. I mean, it’s all just starting to come together in my mind right now.”

Wade sat down across from Jacob and John with the coffee table in between them. Delaney followed his lead.

“So I was thinking, Jacob and I will walk into the bank followed by John, but instead of coming in with us, he will fall down right in front of the door, causing a scene that will block anyone from coming or going. I will go up to a teller, pull my gun out and demand they fill up bags of money for us.

“Jacob will be behind me, covering my back if anyone tries anything. When Jacob gives John the signal, he will get up and walk off to the car, which will be parked around the block. We’ll have the timing so that right as we’re leaving the bank, John will be pulling up.

“Then we’ll drive somewhere in the middle of nowhere where Delaney will be waiting for us with Whinny and Jacob’s horse. We’ll divvy up the money and ride home, abandoning the car.”

After he finished, the room was quiet as everyone processed what he had said.

“Well, Wade, I guess you didn’t need my help after all,” John said. “Sounds like you have it mostly figured out.”

“I sure am impressed,” Jacob said.

“What about the car?” John asked. “We can’t take ours, or they will know it was us.”

“That’s where Delaney comes in.”

Wade stopped and gestured for her to speak up. She blinked and said matter-of-factly, “I was thinking I could steal my uncle’s car.”

John raised his eyebrows. “Are you sure?”

“I’m positive.”

“And what if they trace the car back to him?”

“He’s a drunk. He’s abusive and out of control. It’s better him than us.”

“That’s harsh, but true,” Jacob commented.

John twisted the tip of his beard between pointer finger and thumb. He was thinking about the crime itself. If they wore masks, they’d have the advantage of inciting fear, but disguises would be more inconspicuous.

Then he had an idea. “What if Jacob and Delaney switched roles.”

“I already told you, John. I don’t want Delaney anywhere near the crime.”

“Hear me out,” the old man said, wagging his finger at Wade. He coughed, and continued as soon as he caught his breath. “If Delaney goes into the bank with you, dressed up as an older, wealthier customer who wants to open a new bank account, and you go in and point an empty gun at her head, then there is no threat of hurting anyone. No guns are loaded, no possible shootings. It’s as if you’re threatening a stranger, but you’re not. It’s a show.”

“We scam the scammer,” Jacob added.

Wade turned and looked out the window. The rolling green hills were so beautiful. He remembered playing out there when he was younger, how he learned to ride Whinny right outside the house. He wasn’t sure about this new plan. The idea of involving Delaney made him incredibly uncomfortable. Jacob twiddled his thumbs, waiting to hear what Wade would say.

He didn’t want to admit that he liked this plan better; it made more sense, and there was a lesser chance of anyone getting hurt. And then suddenly, in the silence, Delaney agreed.

In her soft, sweet voice, she said, “I’ll do it.”

Wade felt as if his heart dove right out of his chest, and he snapped his head around to face her. “Delaney, I don’t want—”

“Wade, I know, but John is right. It’s a better plan.” She reached out for his hand and squeezed it.
How is she so calm?
Wade thought to himself. “We don’t want anyone getting hurt.”

“No, we don’t.”

“So then, I’ll be with the horses?” Jacob asked.

“That’s right,” John confirmed. “We’ll have to decide on a place we can drive to that is within riding distance of the ranch, but not too obvious.”

“I know where.” Jacob proposed an abandoned farmhouse that Wade was familiar with. It was quite a distance, but they’d be able to ride home from it in a couple of hours.

“It’s a plan then,” Wade declared.

The room then fell silent as everyone felt the weight of their plotting, of the potential consequences that might befall them. Jacob considered his family; they would have nothing without their ranch. He had a two-year-old son, a four-year-old daughter, and a pregnant wife. His children had never known another home, and his wife was a cowgirl through and through.

His parents had lived on the ranch for nearly as long as John had, and his brother had quit his job in marketing just to come back home and live well. There was nothing out there for Jacob that he didn’t already have. Losing his ranch meant losing his way of life, as it did for Wade.

John gazed upon the younger folk with compassion and sympathy. This was not an easy task they had ahead of them. Finally, he suggested they all go to bed and get some sleep.

“See you all at noon, then,” Jacob said, as he closed the front door behind him.

Delaney watched him go, and then said, “Goodnight, John.”

“Goodnight,” John said, as he organized his blankets on the couch. 

Wade took Delaney by the hand and walked her to his old room. It was so surreal that she was here.

“Would you like to come in for a little while?”

Wade stood in the doorway, his hand on the doorknob.

“You sure?”

“Yeah, come sit with me for a while.”

“All right then.”

His room was small, but spacious enough for a bed and a desk. He grabbed the chair from the desk and was about to sit down when Delaney said, “Why don’t you sit on the bed with me?” She started unweaving her braid as he sat down next to her. Her fingers moved quickly and her hair fell loose around her shoulders in silky tendrils. “Do you feel ready for tomorrow?”

Wade sighed and rubbed his palms on his jeans. There wasn’t any feeling ready for something like this.

“Not at all, but it’s either do something and risk everything or do nothing and definitely lose everything. I’d rather take my chances.”

“You’re right, it’s not much of a choice.”

“No, it’s not,” Wade agreed. Delaney’s knee touched his thigh. He could feel the warmth radiating through the fabric of their clothes. The desire to turn toward her and pull her close to him was strong, but he felt too nervous—he didn’t want to make her uncomfortable, especially in her new space.

He wanted her to feel empowered in her new room, her new home. It surprised him when Delaney reached out to grab his hand. Wade took her hand in his, and looked into her eyes.

“How did all of this happen?” he asked sincerely. “It’s all too much.”

“It’s a lot,” Delaney agreed, “but it’s not too much. You are so strong, Wade. You’ve already been through so much. This is just another obstacle to navigate through. And I’ll be here right by your side.”

“Thanks, Delaney, but I meant you, too. How did you happen? How did
us
happen? We’ve only known each other a few days.”

“True, but it feels like it’s been much longer. Doesn’t it?”

“Yeah, it does. It’s just so strange. I’ve been alone for so long, it’s hard to accept that you’re here. That you’re in this with me.”

Delaney scooted closer to Wade and gazed at him with big, honest eyes. She leaned in to whisper in his ear. “I don’t know how it happened, but I’m here with you, and it feels really perfect.”

Wade smiled, and felt a stinging behind his eyes. He tried to look away, but Delaney grabbed his chin, forcing him to look at her. For a moment it looked as though she were about to say something, but instead she bent forward and kissed him tenderly. Wade caressed her from her collarbones all the way up behind her ears, and then grabbed her around the back of the neck. She melted as if every muscle in her body relaxed a little bit.

“Wade…” she sighed as she parted her lips in anticipation of being kissed again. Wade relished her willingness, her openness, the desire they both shared. She lifted her arms above her head as he pulled her shirt off. It fell on the floor, forgotten. She gripped the front of Wade’s shirt tightly and bit his bottom lip.

Energy grew between them as their kissing became more and more impassioned. Delaney went to unbuckle his belt, but Wade grabbed her hand and brought it above her head. He nuzzled his face in her neck and said, “I just want to lie here with you.”

Wade wanted her so badly, but he was also filled with anxiety about tomorrow. He wanted their first time to be beautiful and serene, not stressed and hurried, on the eve of their crime. Without saying anything, he knew Delaney would understand. And when she whispered, “Okay,” in his ear, kissing his forehead, he knew she did. They lay together—legs intertwined and heads together—for a long time, simply breathing each other in, until they fell seamlessly into sleep.

*

Morning came too quickly. When Wade heard the roosters, it felt like he had just closed his eyes. The sun was shining and it looked like yesterday’s rain was gone, at least for now. As he sat up and rubbed his eyes, Delaney curled around him and brought a hand up to rub his back.

“Good morning,” she said.

“Good morning.”

Wade looked down at her. “You are so beautiful,” he mused, and kissed her on the cheek.

“Are you ready for today?” she inquired, her big eyes searching his face for clues as to how he was feeling. He gave nothing away as he ran his fingers through his shaggy red hair and exhaled fully.

“I’m as ready as I can be. What about you?”

“The same. I’ll admit, I’m a little nervous.”

“You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to.”