“Don’t move,” she commanded in her sternest tone.
When the figure turned, Ruby raised her arm, prepared to defend herself.
Seeing the weapon in her hand, a frightened voice cried, “Please. Don’t hurt me.”
In the moonlight Ruby saw wide, terrified eyes in a woman’s pale face.
Taking a step back, Ruby set the lantern down with a clatter and held a match to the wick until it caught. Light flooded the room, making the woman cringe.
“You!” Ruby said in a strangled voice. “So, the buttons you stole weren’t enough. You came back for more.”
“No. Yes. Please, I’m sorry.” Tears shimmered in pale gray eyes and the woman sank to her knees on the floor.
Holding the lantern aloft, Ruby studied this stranger. She was much younger than she’d appeared at first glance. Perhaps no older than fifteen or sixteen. With a hungry, haunted look about her.
“You’re not much of a thief.” Ruby’s stern, heavily accented voice cut like a knife. “A few puny buttons will bring you little profit.”
“I was desperate. I only took them because they were small enough to fit in my hand. I thought...that is, I’d hoped...I could trade them.”
“For what?” Ruby demanded.
“For some food.”
Ruby felt as if she’d taken a blow. It took her a moment to catch her breath. “And did you? Trade the buttons for food?”
The girl shook her head. “I was afraid. Afraid you had reported them stolen and someone would recognize them if I tried to barter them.”
“So you’re hungry.” Ruby thought about the linen-wrapped parcel of food that she’d brought from the ranch. There’d been no time to eat it. And, in truth, no inclination, since she’d had little appetite lately.
“Have you no family?”
“No.” There was a catch in the frightened voice, but the stranger offered nothing more.
“How long have you been without food?”
The girl shrugged. “A couple of days.”
The thought of going days without food was so shocking, Ruby had to busy herself for a moment setting the lantern on a table, adjusting the height of the flame, so that she could buy time to think. “So you came here looking for something to steal?”
“No.” It was a choked cry. “I came to Hanging Tree to look for work. But I couldn’t find anything,” the girl said, “except at a place called Buck’s.”
Ruby experienced a sickening jolt. She knew how the girls at Buck’s saloon earned their living. Cowboys, often fresh off the trail, were crude and rough. And often cruel.
“So you have no work. And no money. And you came back here tonight to find something even more valuable to steal?”
“I...didn’t come back to steal,” the girl said.
“Then why did you come back?”
The girl’s gaze darted to the chaise in the corner. “I saw this room when I was here before. I thought I could sleep here, and no one would be the wiser.”
Ruby took a good, hard look at this girl, who knelt before her. Could it be she was too weak to stand? Or was she just very good at playacting?
On impulse she caught the girl’s hand and helped her to her feet.
The trembling in the girl’s limbs was no act. Nor was the pallor on her cheeks.
Ruby led her to the lounge, and the girl sank down gratefully. Ruby removed the linen-clad packets of food from a shelf. When she unwrapped them, the girl’s eyes widened.
“What is your name?”
“Patience. Patience Carter.”
“My name is Ruby Jewel. Here, Patience,” Ruby said, placing the food in her lap. “You must eat something.”
“You mean you’re giving this to me?”
Ruby nodded.
“But why? I...stole from you.”
Ruby gave a nod to the food. “Eat. And then we’ll talk.”
She watched with satisfaction as the girl began to eat. It was obvious, from the way she choked down the food, that she was starving.
“Oh, Patience.” Ruby sighed as she turned away and began to pace. “What am I to do with you?”
“I suppose you’ll want to summon a sheriff,” Patience said before biting into another piece of corn bread.
“The thought has crossed my mind.”
Ruby could see the way the girl was struggling to hold herself together. Any minute now she would probably lose control and start to cry. If she didn’t faint first. She removed a jug of buttermilk from a bucket of water and poured a cup.
“Drink,” she said.
The girl drained the cup in several long swallows.
“Do you sew?” Ruby asked suddenly.
The girl seemed confused. With a mouth full of chicken she nodded, then swallowed and said, “A little. I don’t think I’m very good. But my ma taught me a few stitches before she died. I was able to patch my clothes. And my pa’s.”
“Bon. That is good.” Ruby resumed her pacing, then turned. “Would you like to learn a trade? I could teach you to sew.”
“You could?” Puzzled, Patience set down the corn bread she was about to eat. “But why would you do that for someone who stole from you?”
“Because you need work. And a place to stay. And I need an assistant.”
“An...assistant?” The girl’s eyes lit up. “Do you mean it?”
Ruby nodded. “I do. If you really want to work.”
“Oh, yes, ma’am. Truly I do.”
Ruby turned away and folded the quilt, draping it over the foot of the lounge. “Finish your meal. Then, if you wish, you may sleep here on the chaise.”
“I...can see that you were about to sleep here.”
“Millie Potter will have room at her boardinghouse.”
“But why should you give up your bed? You’ve given me enough already,” the young woman protested.
Ruby smiled. “Yes, I have. But tomorrow you will begin to pay me back. I’ll expect you to help me clean and sew and even deliver some of my goods. Do you think you can do that?”
Patience nodded.
“Bon. That is very good. Tomorrow I’ll see just how well we work together. Now I’ll say good-night.”
As she stepped from the shop and pulled the door closed, she could see the young girl’s face, mouth still gaping, eyes wide as saucers.
Under the cover of darkness she made her way to Millie Potter’s. And as she walked, she thought about the strange fate that had brought this girl to her door.
“Oh, Papa,” she whispered. “Quent told me you always went out of your way to help the people of your town. I want to be like you. But what if I’ve made a terrible mistake? What if I’m being a fool for trusting this stranger?”
At the door to the boardinghouse, Ruby knocked and waited. When the door finally opened, Millie, in night clothes, peered at her.
“Ruby.”
“I know it’s late,” Ruby said apologetically. “But I wonder if you might have a room left.”
“I’ll always make room for you,” Millie said with a smile. “I’m afraid I have only the smallest one left, though. All the other rooms are filled. But the bed is comfortable.”
“That’s all I need. Thank you, Millie.”
“Come in. I have coffee. And I’ve baked some cinnamon biscuits for tomorrow’s breakfast.”
“Thank you. Please don’t fuss.”
“I don’t mind. You go ahead into the parlor. I’ll be right along,” Millie said, hurrying down the hall.
The parlor was dark except for the glow of embers on the hearth. Ruby shivered and drew her shawl around her shoulders.
“Here we are.” Millie Potter bustled into the room carrying a tray. She set it on a table with a clatter, then began filling cups with hot black coffee. “Wait’ll you taste these cinnamon biscuits.”
She handed a cup to Ruby. “You’re up late.”
“Oui.” Ruby sipped, then set the cup aside. “I hired an assistant today. A young woman named Patience Carter. D
o you know-of her?”
Millie nodded. “I met her briefly. She came looking for a job. I had to tell her I didn’t need her. What do: you know about her?”
“Very little,” Ruby admitted. “Except that she has no family and is in need of money.”
“How did you happen to hire her?”
“She...came into my shop in need of a job. And I got very busy today and realized I needed help.”
“And you hired a perfect stranger?”
Ruby felt a need to explain her bold actions. “She is just a poor girl, Millie, struggling to survive.”
“Maybe. Maybe not.” Millie pursed her lips, thinking. “Maybe you ought to have Quent Regan check out her story when he gets back to town.”
“No,” Ruby said quickly. Too quickly.
Millie arched a brow, studying her in a strange way.
“I don’t...wish to trouble the marshal.”
“But that’s his job. At least let him talk to her. He can find out where she’s from, and then notify a lawman from her territory, to make sure she isn’t in any trouble.”
Ruby closed her eyes, wishing she could agree to her friend’s suggestion. Suddenly overcome with weariness, she said, “Forgive me, Millie, for putting you to so much trouble. But if you don’t mind, I really need to go to my room now.”
“Of course.”
As Millie led the way down the hall to the little bedroom off the kitchen, she pondered all she’d seen and heard.
Everyone in town said Quent Regan had left town in a vicious temper. He’d been pacing like a wildcat in a cage.
Unless she missed her guess, the reason for all that pent-up anger was the woman trailing behind her. The woman who was close to tears over nothing.
Maybe Quent Regan had finally met his match in Ruby Jewel.
If those two ever went head-to-head, Millie would have to put her money on Ruby.
Ruby washed and dressed, then examined her reflection in the chipped looking glass in the small, cramped bedroom. Morning sunlight streamed through the window, making last night’s lack of sleep all the more noticeable. There was no denying the dark circles around her red-rimmed eyes.
It was all Quent Regan’s fault. She couldn’t escape him even in sleep. His image had been there, like an annoying gnat. And though she’d swatted and scratched, she hadn’t been able to evade his sting.
To make matters worse, as she stepped from the room she could hear his deputy’s voice, chatting with Millie Potter.
Both Arlo and Millie looked up as she entered the kitchen.
“Good morning, Ruby. Look who’s joined us for breakfast.”
“Oui. I see.” Ruby forced her lips into a thin smile. “Good morning, Deputy Spitz. I thought you usually took your breakfast at the jail.”
“Good morning, Miss Jewel.” He eyed her over the rim of his cup, and she had the distinct impression that he and Millie had been discussing her. “The day is too fine to stay indoors. This gave me an excuse to walk through the town.”
“Coffee?” Millie asked.
“Oui. Please.” Ruby took a seat at the table.
“How did you sleep?” Millie was watching her closely. Almost as closely as Arlo. “Was the bed soft enough? Did you have enough blankets?”
“Everything was grand, Millie. I slept like a baby,” Ruby lied. Without thinking, she poured a liberal amount of sweet cream into her coffee, then sprinkled cinnamon and sugar on top.
“What are you doing?” Millie asked.
“This is cafe au lait. Coffee and cream. The way I always drank it in Bayou Rouge,” Ruby explained. “Would you like to try it?”
Millie made herself a cup, sipped, then sighed. “Oh, Ruby, that’s tasty. How about you, Arlo? Care to try it?”
“No, thanks. I’ll just drink plain old Texas coffee,” he said.
“How about some of those cinnamon biscuits you missed last night?” Millie moved a plate of warm biscuits closer to Ruby, along with jam and honey. “I think Arlo’s already eaten half a dozen.”
Ruby shook her head. “No, thank you. But if you don’t mind, I’ll take a few with me. For my assistant.”
“Assistant.” Arlo perked up. “You’ve already hired an assistant at the shop?”
“Yes, I...” Ruby felt both of them staring at her and fought to ignore the flutter in the pit of her stomach. “I couldn’t resist hiring her.”
“Business must be very good,” Arlo remarked.
“A little slow, of course, since I’m just beginning. But I sold two gowns yesterday, along with a bonnet and a length of lace.”
“Isn’t that wonderful?” Millie cracked eggs into a bowl and began to beat them. “Arlo likes his eggs scrambled. How would you like yours?”
“No eggs, thank you. I’ll just finish this coffee and be on my way.”
As Millie turned to the stove Arlo said conversationally, “I looked in on your shop on my way here.”
“And what did you think?”
“Looked a bit prissy for my taste.”
“Well, what did you expect? It is a ladies’ shop.”
“I found the door ajar. Closed it before I headed over here.”
Ruby blanched. Coffee sloshed over the rim of her cup. She took no notice. All she could think of was all those lovely gowns and bonnets. The bolt of expensive lace. The buttons, and feathers, and... All gone? Oh, sweet heaven. And all because of her foolish belief that she could be like her papa.
She scraped back her chair and got to her feet.
Millie turned. “Where are you—?”
“I’m sorry, Millie. I must go.”
As Ruby started down the hall, Arlo jumped up to follow.
“What about your eggs?” Millie called after him.
There was no reply. He was already halfway out the door. He wasn’t about to miss this. It was the most exciting thing that had happened since the marshal left town.
Ruby stopped outside her little shop. With a quick twist of the knob, she strode inside, with Arlo right behind her.
“Patience,” she called as she swept through the empty shop.
There was no response.
A quick glance at the wall assured her that the gowns were still where she’d left them. As were the bonnets, the feathers, the jars of buttons.
She let out an audible sigh as she strode toward the back room. She opened the door and looked around. The chaise was empty, the quilt tossed carelessly to one side. Nothing else in the room appeared to be out of place.
“Well,” Arlo said from behind her. “At least your new assistant didn’t strip your shop bare before she left.”
“But where would she have gone?” Ruby started to pace. “She has no home, no family.”
“Is that what she told you, Miss Jewel? How do you know it was the truth?”
“I don’t understand. Why would she lie?”
“She could be a runaway,” Arlo said. “Maybe she was tired of ranch chores. It happens sometimes. A woman marries young, hoping to escape a hard life, only to find that marriage and young ones and her new chores are even worse than the life she ran from.”
Ruby shook her head, trying to deny what she was already starting to believe. “She did look like someone on the run. She was starving. And exhausted.” And, she thought, her boots had been caked with mud, her gown threadbare. “But she seemed so sincere.”
“If you’d like, Miss Ruby, I’ll check out the Wanted posters, see if anything shows up about her.”
“Yes, thank you, Arlo. I suppose I should...”
They both turned at the sound of footsteps. Patience raced through the open doorway, then skidded to a halt when she saw the deputy. She visibly paled.
“Patience,” Ruby called. “When I found the shop empty, I thought... Where were you?”
“There’s a lovely little stream just over that meadow outside of town. I wanted to wash before you got here this morning, Miss Jewel.”
Little drops of water still glistened in her
corn-silk hair. And her face, though still pale, was scrubbed clean. As was her gown.
“You walked all that way just to wash?”
Patience bobbed her head, as eager as a child. “I didn’t want you to be embarrassed by your new assistant.”
Seeing the way Ruby and Arlo were watching her, her smile faded. “Maybe I’m not your assistant anymore. Have you changed your mind, Miss Jewel?”
Ruby ignored the look in the deputy’s eyes and hurried across the room. “Of course I haven’t changed my mind. You’re still my assistant.”
“Oh, thank you, Miss Jewel. I’ll work hard. I’ll do anything you want.”
“I know you will, Patience. And your first assignment is to go to Millie Potter’s boardinghouse at the end of town.”
The smite was back on the young girl’s face. “Yes, ma’am. And what do you want me to do there?”
“I want you to tell her you’ve come to eat the eggs she scrambled for the deputy.”
Though Patience looked confused, Ruby urged her to the door. “Go now. And tell Millie Potter to add your meal to my bill.”
The shy smile bloomed. “Yes, ma’am. I will. And...” She started away, then called over her shoulder, “I won’t be long.”
When they were alone, Ruby avoided Arlo’s eyes and began folding the quilt. “I’m glad I was wrong. I’m glad we were both wrong,” she amended, still feeling the sting of guilt.
“I hope you’ll take some advice, Miss Ruby.”
She set the quilt at the foot of the chaise and began smoothing the wrinkles.
“Just remember. Sometimes a stray will bite the hand that feeds it.”
She waited until he walked away. Then she sank onto the chaise and stared after him. Her hand reflexively went to the rope of gold at her throat, from which dangled an onyx and a ruby.
“Oh, Papa,” she prayed. “I’m making such a mess of things. I wish you were here to help me sort them out.”
Then, as she fingered the two precious stones, she felt a sense of peace. Hadn’t Onyx Jewel told her, when he’d presented this gift to her on her sixteenth birthday, that he would always be with her?