Authors: Sarah McCarty
She lowered her sleeve from her nose. “Do you know the life that waits for her, Mr. Ochoa?”
He cut a glance to the door. Lin’s voice was pretty low, but it was possible the deputy had heard. The last thing he needed was for the sheriff to know who he was.
“My name’s Michael.”
She blinked and then nodded. “My apologies. I forgot. Mr. Michael, what do you think is the life my cousin will enjoy when she leaves here?”
“I think she’s going to have pretty dresses like the one you’re wearing. I think she’s going to find a nice man of her culture, and I think she’s going to forget all about the time we spent together except as a smile in her voice when she talks to her grandchildren about the adventure she had when she was a young woman.”
Lin shook her head. “You have no knowledge of our culture.”
She said that with a great deal of disgust.
“I know you take care of your own.”
“Yes, but what is our own is very specific.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means that purity of blood is highly valued. Fei is not Chinese. She is only half. I do not know how it is among your people, Michael, but among the Chinese, a woman of mixed ancestry has limited options.”
“You mean she’s not going to marry a prince?”
“She will not marry at all. There are many levels of belonging for women of our culture. As I am pure Chinese and of good family, I will marry a man of prominence. The marriage will be arranged for me. I will likely be first wife.”
“First wife?”
“I have heard it is not uncommon among many Indian cultures to have more than one wife.”
“I was raised white.”
“Oh. Well, in Chinese culture a man is allowed more than one wife and many concubines. All have a place in the household, but their status differs. I will be first wife. First wife is a position of great respect and, over the years develops much power, as long as I produce a son. This will be my destiny, because I am of pure blood and good family.”
“Fei is of the same family.”
“But not of pure blood.”
He didn’t like what he was hearing.
“My influence right now is small, but I can try to find Fei a position of concubine—”
“That sounds like a mistress.”
“It is similar. As I was saying, I can try to find her a position of concubine within my household so I can offer her protection, but my future mother-in-law may not like this. She could see the two of us in the same house as a threat to her power, so I can make no guarantees.”
“Just because Fei’s mother was American?”
“Yes. Perhaps if Fei were properly submissive and strived more to please, it is possible that she could be second or third wife to a lower-ranked family, but it would not be a happy time for her. Always, she would be taunted because of her blood. And her children, if she were allowed to have any—”
“What the hell do you mean ‘if she were allowed to have any’?”
“First wife may decide that such children should not be born so as not to bring shame to the family.”
“Son of a bitch.”
“No culture is perfect, Mr. Ocho—Michael.” She paused. Then, “Fei is not made for such a life. She enjoys her adventures and longs for more. She has always been this way. Even as a child.”
I have decided to embrace my American ancestors.
He could see why now.
“Then why did she go with you?”
“You made it clear there was no place for her in your life. The same pride that will not allow her to be concubine will also not allow her to be a beggar for your attention.”
“Why the hell didn’t she tell me this?”
“You repeat yourself.”
“Likely because I’m pissed.” He hadn’t sent Fei to safety. He’d sent her to hell.
“Where is Fei now?”
Lin looked at the door and then back at him.
“You might as well tell me all of it.”
“She ran away last night. I know not to where. She did not leave a note.”
“Because she didn’t want to be found, or because she was stolen?”
“I saw her leave.”
“You saw her leave and you didn’t tell your uncles?”
“My uncles are burdened with anger because of my loss of face.”
“Nobody knows about your loss of face.”
She smiled. “And it will stay that way. But still, they know, and their knowing I am afraid may cost Fei.”
So she let her go.
“It’s a dangerous world out there for a woman alone.”
“Yes.”
“And that explains why you’re here.”
She nodded again. “I know Fei argues and has strong opinions.”
“I rather like that in her.”
“This I know, too. I came to ask you, Mr. Ochoa—” he didn’t bother to correct her this time “—how much room there is in your heart for Fei?”
“A lot of people will tell you I don’t have a heart.”
“And a lot of people will tell you that Chinese are dumb like mules. Saying something does not make it so.”
“No, it doesn’t.”
“You evade my question.”
“Probably because I don’t have an answer.”
“You do not care for her?”
He cared too damn much. “I kinda stopped myself at the knowledge that she wasn’t for me.”
“You did not stop yourself from her bed.”
That was definitely censure.
“I’m not a saint, Miss Yen, and Fei is a very tempting woman.”
“Yes, she is, and only a fool would let a woman like that leave his life.”
“I don’t recall there being any ‘let’ about it. She was just as clear about how I wasn’t for her.”
“Because she is afraid.”
“Of what?”
“Of being under a man’s thumb. I have no doubt, if Fei were a full-blood Chinese, she would be the empress of our country, so great are her skills. But because she is not, she is held back. In our world, she cannot be what she wants to be. The only way she sees that she can be that woman is to have no one else in her life. It is a wrong thought, but it is the one that she holds.”
“And what do you expect me to do about it?”
“I expect you, Mr. Ochoa, to be the man you declared yourself to be.”
“And who is that?”
“Hers. For better or for worse, I think are the words of the ceremony in your country.”
She looked at him, from head to toe, making him vividly aware of the state of his clothing, his lack of hygiene.
“And right now, I do not think it gets worse for either of you.”
With a bow she turned and knocked at the door. And that fast, the competent woman who’d just politely read him the riot act was gone and in her place was the demure proper lady. “That’s a nice trick.”
She glanced at him over her shoulder and, for once, she didn’t hide her smile. “Yes, it is.”
S
OON
AFTER
L
IN
LEFT
,
Shadow heard the front door of the jail close, followed by heavy footsteps running down the wooden walk outside the jail.
Shit. That couldn’t be good. Getting off the bunk, Shadow tested the lock on the cell door. There wasn’t a lot of give. Next, he went and tested the window. There was a bit of weakness in the concrete around the bars, nothing a few months of digging couldn’t work loose. But the way the deputy had bolted out of there, Shadow had a feeling he wasn’t going to get a few months to work on it.
Ten minutes later there were more footsteps along the walk and then the front door to the jail opened. From the sound of it, the deputy had gone and fetched the sheriff.
“I told you it was him. I heard her say his name and I looked it up.”
The statement only confirmed his fear. The door opened and the sheriff came in holding the flyer. Shadow had seen the flyer before. The picture wasn’t that flattering.
“You’re Shadow Ochoa, aren’t ya, boy?”
“I haven’t been a boy in a long time.”
“Then let me ask you this. How long has it been since you’ve been Shadow Ochoa?”
“What’s the date?”
“June twenty-seventh.”
“A year, four months and three days.”
The deputy started calculating on his hands. “That’d be about right, Sheriff.”
The sheriff shook his head. “He’s not disputing who he is, Ryan, or the date of his crime.”
“Oh.” For a blessed minute Ryan was quiet. And then, “Does this mean I get the reward, Sheriff?”
“We split it fifty-fifty, just like it says in your contract.”
“How much is it?” Shadow asked. It’d been a while since he’d checked.
“Two thousand.”
Shit. The army was pissed. It might have been a mistake to play those tricks on the colonel, but he’d discovered that living without Hell’s Eight didn’t leave him with much purpose. And since dead was dead, he’d figured it didn’t matter how much angrier the people charged with sentencing him got. But now he’d met Fei, and she was out there somewhere alone, and he couldn’t afford to be in jail.
“You and the deputy are going to be rich men.”
“And you’re going to be dead,” Ryan gloated.
The sheriff tapped the flyer against his palm. “You should have had more sense than to pick a fight when you’re wanted by the law, Ochoa.”
He should have had more sense about a lot of things. “If sense was my strong suit, Sheriff, I wouldn’t have killed a man in front of half the U.S. Army.”
The sheriff grunted. “You’ve got a point. I’ve sent a wire to the nearest army post. Colonel Daniels will be here in two days.”