Page 81 of Fairest of Heart

He scooted over on the bench seat near the wall and made room for her next to him. He tucked her close to his side so she could lean on him if she tired. Then he piled her plate high with bacon, eggs, biscuits, and gravy and handed her a fork. After closing her eyes and murmuring a quiet prayer of thanks, she tucked into the food with purpose if not enthusiasm. Doc had told her she’d need nourishment to regain her strength, and she seemed to be taking his advice to heart.

Having finished his breakfast several minutes ago, Titus studied the inventory he’d made of the items the men had identified as missing. The sheer length of the list stirred his ire, but he kept his emotions in check. These good men had just been robbed of nearly everything they owned. They needed a level-headed lawman who would shoot straight with them while still offering hope.

“The cash will be hard to recover,” Titus admitted, “but the jewelry and other personal items are more distinctive. If we find those in her possession, we’ll have just cause to seize her cash as well.” He tapped a line near the bottom of the page. “These watches, though, are going to be what puts her behind bars. A woman might be able to make a judge believe it a coincidence that her silver-backed brush set matches the description of the one taken, or that the gold band in her collection belonged to her grandmother and had been in the family for years. But she won’t be able to explain the inscriptions on those watches.”

Doc took off his glasses, rubbed the lenses on his handkerchief, then propped them back on his nose. “They were supposed to be a Christmas gift. Then Tate . . .” He cleared his throat and looked up to meet Titus’s gaze. “I just didn’t have the heart to give you yours and leave Tate’s alone in that box. I’m sorry, son. If I hadn’t been so focused on what we lost, that watch would be in your pocket now instead of in that wicked woman’s stash of ill-gotten gains.”

“I’m glad it’s in her stash, Grandpa.” Titus set his jaw. “I’m going to use it to take her down.”

“How? You told me yourself she’s likely on a train bound for Colorado right now. Out of your jurisdiction. Out of your reach.”

Titus quirked a sly grin. “But not out of the reach of a US Marshal. I happen to know one stationed in east Texas. John McHenry. I’ll wire him on my way out of Glen Rose. He can meet me at Ranger headquarters, then the two of us can head up to Denver. I’ll need to turn in the jewels, let Captain Bill know to add a count of attempted murder to Narcissa LaBelle’s charges, and ask him to get a warrant for her arrest.” He turned to Penelope and took her hand. “Now that we have a witness who can tie Madame LaBelle directly to her crimes, we can wire the law in Denver to be on alert. They will likely have her in custody before McHenry and I even step off the train.”

Penelope squeezed his fingers. “What if she doesn’t go to Denver? What then?”

If she didn’t go to Denver, finding her would be nearly impossible. But he couldn’t blurt that out and extinguish the few coals of hope still smoldering among the men sitting around the table.

“We’ll track her down one way or another.” Titus laced his voice with all the bravado he could muster. “But I don’t think she’ll deviate from her original plan. She lost the gems she’d been collecting, and the items she took from here won’t make up the difference. She needs her salary and the freedom of movement her acting gig provides. Plus, she doesn’t think she’s in danger.”

He rubbed the soft skin on the back of Penelope’s hand with his thumb. “You’re the only one who can positively identify her as the one who distributed the poisoned cider, and she believes you’re dead. In her mind, Hunt is too infatuated to turn on her, but even if he does, she’s taken precautions to tarnish any testimony he might provide by painting him as the thief. She’s clever, and she knows it. But arrogance leads to overconfidence. Let her think she’s won. Let her assume I can’t touch her once she crosses the state line. Let her vigilance relax. That’s all the opening I’ll need.”

Penelope twisted on the bench to face him, the worry in her eyes making him want to fold her in his arms and promise her that everything would be all right. But there were no guarantees in this life, and he wouldn’t make her a promise he might not be able to keep.

“Be careful.” Her broken whisper cut straight through his chest. “Narcissa’s not afraid to kill to get what she wants.” She nibbled on her lower lip.

Titus wrapped an arm around her waist and tugged her close. He pressed a kiss onto her forehead, then murmured low in her ear. “I’ll have McHenry there to watch my back, and I’ll have you here praying for my safe return. A man couldn’t ask for better protection.”

She leaned her head on his chest and let him hold her for a minute while the rest of the Diamond D occupants cleared throats, scraped chairs against floorboards, and found reasons to disperse.

He closed his eyes and absorbed the feel of her snuggled against him. Man, but he could get used to this. Titus ignored the nagging urgency in the back of his brain for several long minutes, enjoying the way her hand pressed against his chest, the quiet sound of her breathing, the softness of her hair. But duty couldn’t be postponed indefinitely. He had a job to do.

“I have to go.”

“I know.” She pulled away slightly, and he immediately missed her warmth. Then she cupped his jaw in her hand. Heat immediately flared in his veins. “Come home to me, Titus.”

His chest squeezed, making it hard to breathe. Home. He’d been away from home for so long he’d forgotten the pull that word could place on a man. Yet hearing it from her lips stirred a longing in him—a longing to redefine the term so it no longer described the place where he grew up but described the place where he would grow old in the company of the woman who held his heart.

He gazed into her soft, gray eyes as he made his vow. “I will.”

He dipped his head and brushed her mouth with his. A gentle meeting, featherlight in its newness, yet heavy with promise. Her breath caught, and the sound heated his blood. She lifted her chin, leaning into his kiss and tempting him to pull her closer and deepen the connection they both craved. But he eased away from her instead. Now was not the time. Although the thought of exploring her kiss more thoroughly when he returned made speeding his departure easier to bear. The sooner he disposed of the threat to Penelope the sooner he could find his way home.

———

Titus had to clench his jaw to keep from looking over his shoulder as he rode away from the ranch fifteen minutes later. Not that Penelope’s image wasn’t permanently branded on his brain. He could picture exactly where she stood on the back porch, one arm wrapped around a support post, the other lifted in a wave. Her yellow skirt blowing in the wind. Her smile brave, her eyes locked on his. Never had he felt more reluctant to head out on a Ranger job. When he’d mounted Rex, his boots had felt as if they were filled with lead.

Rowdy seemed to have the same lead-filled boot problem. Poor fellow had been horse-shy ever since his accident. Dusty tried to let him off the hook, assuring him that he remembered the way to the cavern Rowdy had shown them. Rowdy ignored the suggestion, his expression making it clear he didn’t want anyone poking around in his secret place without him. So when Titus, Dusty, and Coy headed to the barn to collect their mounts, Rowdy came, too. Dusty took one look at the sweat gathering at his friend’s temples, though, and informed Rowdy they’d be riding double to save him from having to saddle a fourth horse. No one commented on the lopsided logic, not when it meant salvaging a cowboy’s pride.

The ride to the caves took mere minutes on horseback. Winding through the dark caverns took longer, but they made it to Rowdy’s secret vault without incident. Well, unless one counted Coy getting momentarily wedged in one of the narrower passageways. A tug from Titus in the front accompanied by a push from Dusty in the back remedied the situation in short order, but Titus swore he could feel the air in the cavern warm from the heat of Coy’s flush even if the darkness hid it from view.

A single lantern guided them through the passageways, but the light multiplied once they reached the main cavern. Rowdy had three more lanterns fueled and waiting inside. He scrambled in and started lighting them while Titus and the others contorted their larger frames through the excavated entrance that had obviously been carved for a man of smaller stature. Once inside, however, Titus caught his breath.

The entire room sparkled. Like a wall made of diamonds. No, not diamonds. Crystals. Titus moved closer to the formations and ran a finger along one jutting formation. Quartz? Scratches marred a section of crystal to his left. Too soft to be quartz, then. Maybe calcite. Titus bent down a bit to examine the scratches more closely. Marks from Rowdy’s pickax? No, it was his name. Probably carved with a pocket knife. Titus bit back a chuckle as he ran his finger over the letters. The man had staked his claim.

“H-Here.” Rowdy’s call had Titus pivoting counterclockwise to face the next wall. The jagged limestone contained numerous indentations and shelves interspersed with occasional crystal formations.

Coy’s low whistle echoed through the chamber.

Treasures of all sorts sat on the shelves and inside those crevices. Lantern light glittered as it spilled over shiny coins, bits of bottle glass, nickel-plated fishing lures, tangles of copper wire, a silver spoon, and several cut gems that had no doubt recently been hidden within the seams of Madame LaBelle’s corset.