The Rocky Mountain Heiress Collection (37 page)

Sam Stegman rose to envelop Gennie in a bear hug, then shook Elias’s hand. “Mr. Beck sent for me,” he said to Gennie. “Said I’m to hire on permanently. Or at least until they catch the fellow who made the threats.”

“I see we’re all here,” Daniel said from the doorway. “Sam, Elias, why don’t you join me in the library? Tova, we’ll need some strong coffee.”

The others did as they were told, leaving Gennie alone in the kitchen with only the plinking sounds of Charlotte’s pianoforte practice for company. Then Sam’s words sunk in.

“Until they catch the fellow who made the threats.”

Her heart sank. That awful miner from Leadville. What was his name? Bergman? No, Batson. She sucked in a shuddering breath as a thought occurred: the man she’d allowed in the house this morning might very well be one of them.

The conference in the library lasted over an hour, and when Daniel emerged, he seemed in no mood to speak to her.

“Please, Daniel,” she said as he brushed past her on the stairs. “It’s important.”

He paused, one hand on the banister, and then turned to look down at her. “If it’s about last night, don’t bother. We both know that was a mistake neither of us will make again.”

His flat, resigned words stunned her, as did his back as he climbed the stairs. A moment later, a door slammed.

Daniel stood behind the door he’d just slammed and cursed himself for a fool.

He’d begun his day with long-overdue morning prayers and a reading in Psalms, even though he’d had to thumb past Georgiana’s obituary to do it. The Lord had met him there, and the result had been more disturbing than comforting.

There was much to think on, too much for one man to untangle in one day. The vows he’d pretended to make to a woman who belonged to another were foremost among the items that pierced his conscience. Then there was last night’s near miss in the buggy. What was it about Gennie Cooper that made him feel like a young pup and an old worn-out dog at the same time?

It was a conundrum. No, she was a conundrum.

He paced the room, then returned to his spot at the door. It had occurred to him during the sleepless hours of last night that he only had to send one telegram and the wedding that had been engineered to deceive could become real.

They’d both signed documents in front of the parson and the mayor of Leadville. Those documents were now shredded and gone. Still, the smallest bit of doubt gave him pause to consider…

Consider what? Stealing a woman from the man she was supposed to marry? Daniel took up pacing again. That would make him no different than Edwin.

He stopped short, the situation suddenly clear. He and Eugenia Flora Cooper would be no more. There was nothing good to be had from considering anything but a swift end to a sordid situation.

This decided, he went to his writing table and began to draft a note to Hiram. While he’d entertained the idea that perhaps he’d turn over the Leadville operations to Hiram so Daniel could remain permanently in Denver, he now knew that would be folly.

Someone knocked on his door. “I must speak to you.”

Daniel looked up. “Go away, Miss Cooper.”

“I will not.” She threw open the door and stepped inside. “If it is the last thing I do as your daughter’s governess, I will make you listen to me. I know you’re a hardheaded man, but I did not know until now that you would allow that stubborn streak of yours to put your daughter in danger.”

He heard his pen clatter to the floor, unaware he’d still been holding it. “Do come in, Miss Cooper,” he said, “though I warrant your reputation will be greatly compromised should you cross my threshold.”

Daniel winced and looked away. Until now he’d been guilty of many things, but cruelty had not been among them. As a diversion, he retrieved his pen, hoping Miss Cooper would make the wise choice and flee.

He completed his mission to find she had not. She brought to his bedchamber a rose-scented presence that was impossible to ignore.

“All right,” he said wearily, “what is it?”

“That Batson fellow? The one who chased Charlotte and made such a fuss?” When he nodded, she continued. “He was here.”

“What?” Daniel rose so quickly that his chair toppled. “When?”

“No, wait,” she said, touching her throat with her hand. “I misspoke. He was not actually here this morning, but I think one of his associates was.”

He swallowed the words he wanted to say, then took a deep breath. “Sit,” he said as he righted his chair, then pointed her toward it. When she complied, he bent to regard her at eye level, much as he would do with Charlotte. “Now, Miss Cooper—”

“Stop calling me that!” She rose and stabbed his shoulder with her index finger. “I have guarded your daughter with a pistol and my life, taken up sewing and mending, learned to wash dishes, and even gone through a marriage ceremony for you. And then there’s last night and all those times before when I kissed you and you kissed me, and we could have—well, we didn’t, and we shouldn’t, because I still don’t know what to do about Chandler, since I don’t think I love him at all, but oh, how I did want to—”

“Miss Cooper!” He held his hands in front of him in case the vision in blue silk once again brandished her index finger in his direction. “Gennie.”

Then he heard it. The very big thing she slipped in among all those other things.

“You don’t think you love him?”

“I said that, didn’t I?” She fell onto the chair with an inelegant flop, a stunned look on her face. “Oh my.”

“Indeed.” Much as he wanted to dwell on this fortuitous turn of events, Daniel shook his head. “You said something about an associate of Batson coming
here
? To Denver?”

Gennie shook her head. “Here. To our home. Your home,” she corrected.

“Why do you think…?” He paused. “No, tell me what happened.”

Gennie recounted her story of the man’s early-morning visit and his refusal to identify himself.

“Did you notice anything unusual about him? Something for the authorities to go on?”

She told him about the limp and the scar on his arm, and Daniel strode to the hall. “Elias,” he called. “Would you and Sam meet me in the library again? It appears our conversation regarding the threat to my family should be amended to add new information.”

“Sure, boss,” Elias said. “Should I have Isak fetch that Pinkerton fellow?”

“Yes, that would be a good idea.”

Daniel went to Gennie and, against his better judgment, helped her to her feet. “Come tell Elias and Sam what you’ve told me.”

She nodded, mute.

An overwhelming urge to protect her hit him. “It will be fine. I’ve taken every step to see to your safety and that of Charlotte.”

“Oh, of course,” she said blankly as she followed him downstairs to the library.

By the time she finished her story and answered Elias’s questions, Isak had returned with Hank Thompson, the local Pinkerton agent. Gennie told her story yet again and answered the questions that followed.

The doorbell rang, and Elias disappeared down the hall, grumbling. He returned with a telegram for Gennie.

She looked at it and paled. “Might I be excused now?”

“I’m done with my questions, so there’s no need for you to stay.” Closing his notebook, Hank looked at Daniel. “You’ve got a man watching the ladies as we discussed?”

“Sam Stegman.”

“The prizefighter?” The Pinkerton man grinned. “You rich folks sure do have connections.”

Daniel saw Thompson out, then returned to the library to find Gennie gone. “Isak,” he called as he stepped outside, “saddle up Blossom. I’m in the mood for a ride.”

“Blossom?” Isak shook his head. “Can’t do that, sir.”

“You cannot saddle my horse for me? I’d best hear a good reason and fast.” The sound of horse hoofs caught his attention. “Is that…?”

“Blossom? Yes sir. Miss Cooper asked for the sidesaddle but I didn’t have it at the ready, so she said it wouldn’t be too scandalous for her to ride like us menfolk, long as she kept to the side streets and avoided downtown.”

Daniel tried to listen to the stable boy, but all he heard was the clip-clop of horse hoofs fading into the distance. “Is the buggy still ready?”

“Yes sir,” Isak said. “I apologize, but I thought the Pinkerton man might need a ride back into town, so I—”

“Perfect!” Daniel headed to the other side of the carriage house and leaped into the buggy. He headed in the direction the obviously affected governess had gone.

He caught up to her easily, given the fact she was not only a novice horsewoman but also knew nothing about Denver. The street she’d taken dead-ended at the river, and having no way to cross, she’d been forced to double back.

“Get off that horse immediately,” he shouted.

“Leave me alone,” she called. “I’m having a Wild West adventure.”

Circling back toward Deadwood proved futile, for the prairie was flat and visibility stretched for miles. Mae had two choices: either race for the hills or face whoever had the nerve to tail her, and fight it out.

She chose the latter, not because she was a woman with a death wish, but because she was a woman who never backed down. Loading her weapons in the open might prove disastrous should the stranger spur his mount and try to overtake her. The horse she rode was untried, and for the price she paid, likely not the best she could be riding.

Gennie ignored Daniel and spurred the horse on. She could thank Isak for the assistance in learning to ride what she discovered was quite a gentle animal. Indeed, the aptly named Blossom was a flower among horses. The thought made her laugh even as Daniel Beck made her frown.

“If you persist in following me, I shall be forced to ride into town and report you to the authorities.”

His laughter held no humor. “Go right ahead, Gennie,” he shouted over the sound of the horses’ hoofs, “and while we’re there, I will report you as a horse thief”

The statement deflated her, and Gennie reined the horse to a slow trot. “Have it your way, then,” she said. “Men always do.”

He looked surprised. “What does that mean?”

The telegram in her pocket was explanation enough, but he was the last one to whom she’d show it. “I’m leaving soon, Daniel,” she said. “Won’t you let me have this one last ride?”

Another laugh. “You are a dramatic woman, Gennie. You act as if you’re going away today.”

“Tomorrow,” she corrected as she directed the animal off the road and onto a narrow path that lead along a tributary of the river, praying Daniel would not try to follow on foot. To be certain of it, she spurred Blossom to a canter. She heard Daniel shout her name a few times, but the horse easily outpaced him. When she felt she’d put enough distance between them, Gennie slowed the horse to a trot, then, where the river flowed under the railroad trestle, dismounted.

While the horse drank, she held the reins and tried to remember how to walk. Unaccustomed to the jostling of even the slowest of rides, Gennie decided she may have caused some sort of permanent damage. She couldn’t walk more than a few steps without wincing from the effort. Thankfully, Blossom would take her all the way home. After that, a warm bath should do the trick.

A shot rang out and the horse startled, yanking the reins from Gennie’s fingers. Another shot, and the horse bolted, disappearing in the direction they’d come.

“Wonderful. Now I’m in a fix.” She sighed.

“Miss Cooper?” a decidedly male and somewhat familiar voice said.

Gennie turned to see Isak standing behind her, his hand on the gun at his hip. His face held no humor. “Isak? What’s wrong? Did Daniel send you?”

Isak shrugged off his frown and gestured to the thicket. “Yeah, Mr. Beck sent me. Let’s go home.”

She followed with difficulty, wincing with every step. “How far are we going?” she asked after a few minutes. “Even though you’ve been a great teacher, I’ve not got the stamina I should.”

“Not much farther,” he said. “You can make it.”

They emerged into a clearing, a coach parked at its center.

“Oh good,” Gennie said. “I was afraid I’d have to walk all the way home. At the rate I’m going, that would take all day.”

“After you.” Isak handed her inside the darkened interior.