Nora smiled. “Mr. O’Shaughnessy helped me. I’ve known him since I was a little girl too. He never could say no to me.”

  So the big Irishman had been lying about not seeing anything the night Nora disappeared. That didn’t come as a complete surprise to Longarm. He had already decided that she must have had help of some sort to get away.

  “He even took me to the stage station and made sure I got aboard safely,” she went on. “I know it bothered him terribly, because he felt as if he was being disloyal to my father, but he believed me when I told him how important it was that I leave Denver.”

  “You didn’t tell him why?”

  “No. I didn’t want to put him in any danger. You see, I’d already realized that Jonas would kill me before he would allow me to ruin his plans. He told me as much when he was raging at me and trying to ... to ...”

  Longarm reached over and patted her hand lightly. “That’s all right. I know what you mean.”

  She shook her head. “He was like a ... a different person. I couldn’t believe it was him, that he would try to do such a thing to me. I ... I’m a virgin.”

  Longarm didn’t quite know what to say to that, so he just nodded and tried to look sympathetic. He had all the information he needed now. Nora’s testimony would be enough to scuttle Palmer’s scheme and save the government millions of dollars.

  Assuming, of course, that she was willing to testify.

  “If I take you back to Denver, will you tell your story to my boss?” he asked.

  She hesitated, then said, “My father would be ruined.”

  “Maybe, maybe not. Back when folks were getting ready to build the transcontinental railroad, deals were made that were almost as shady as this one your father and Palmer are trying to pull. And your father’s not the one who tried to have you killed. That was all Palmer’s idea. I talked to your father twice, and all he wanted was to find you and get you back safely.”

  She caught hold of Longarm’s hand and squeezed it. “I can’t tell you how glad I am to hear you say that, Marshal Long. I ... I suppose I can believe that my father is capable of stealing money—I heard that with my own ears. But to murder his own daughter ...”

  Longarm shook his head emphatically. “Not a chance in Hades, ma’am.”

  She smiled. “I can’t allow Jonas to get away with it, can I?”

  “Well, all I can tell you is that when a fella tries to kill me, I ain’t usually in the mood to let him walk away afterward.”

  Nora’s hand tightened on his. “I’ll testify, Marshal,” she said. “Get me back to Denver, and I’ll tell the world what Jonas Palmer has done.”

  That was what Longarm wanted to hear.

  And he hadn’t even been forced to tell Nora about Palmer’s mistress, which was good. The gal had been hurt enough already.

  Lieutenant Gillette and the other Rangers rode back into Monahans that afternoon, leading the extra horses they had taken with them that morning. Bodies were tied onto the extra mounts, some of them carrying double. Longarm was sitting on a ladder-back chair on the boardwalk, talking to Walt Gibson, who was seated next to him. They saw the Rangers returning, and stepped out into the street to meet them.

  “I reckon everybody’s accounted for,” Gillette told Longarm. “We found Wallace and all of his bunch, and Carter and all of his. All dead.”

  Longarm had already spotted Dutchy’s body, and he felt a twinge of regret. He had almost liked the stocky outlaw. But Dutchy had known which side of the law he was riding on. Longarm couldn’t feel too sorry for him.

  He was glad, though, that Nora wasn’t here to see the results of all the carnage in the sand hills. She was in her room over at the boardinghouse, and he hoped she stayed there until the Rangers got their grisly burdens down to the undertaker’s.

  Gillette hitched his horse into motion again. Longarm watched the Rangers ride slowly along the street, and knew that this part of the case was truly over. All that was left was getting Nora back to Denver and making her story public.

  He walked over to the boardinghouse and went upstairs. Nora answered his knock and smiled when she saw it was him. “Hello, Marshal.”

  “Call me Custis,” he said. “How do you feel about riding?”

  She looked puzzled. “I don’t know. I don’t mind, I suppose.”

  “Good. I was thinking that instead of waiting for the stage we might ride over to Brownwood. Walt Gibson tells me there’s a spur line there that runs up to Fort Worth, and we can connect with the Texas & Pacific there. We can get back to Denver a lot faster by rail, even if we have to go the long way around.”

  Nora nodded slowly and said, “All right.”

  Longarm could tell that something was bothering her. It was probably sinking in on her that she was about to go home to testify against her own father, as well as the man she had intended to marry. It wouldn’t bother her to put Palmer behind bars, but despite what Longarm had told her earlier, they both knew there was a good chance Bryce Canady might go to jail too.

  But then she took a deep breath and her chin lifted defiantly. “I’ll be ready to ride whenever you are ... Custis.”

  Longarm smiled. “Yes, ma’am.”

  The ride from Monahans to Brownwood, almost due east across the prairie and rolling plains of West Central Texas, took three days. Lieutenant Gillette and the rest of the Ranger troop accompanied Longarm and Nora, just to make certain there was no more trouble. The journey was peaceful, and within hours of arriving in Brownwood, the two of them were on a train rolling northeastward over the spur line toward Fort Worth.

  Longarm smiled to himself as the train crossed a trestle over the Brazos River. A while back, he had paid a visit to the Brazos country and wound up chasing what was supposed to be some sort of monster. He had nearly gotten himself killed a time or two during that episode, and he wondered why he kept getting in such fracases every time he visited the Lone Star State. After all, he was a peaceable man, but folks kept trying to kill him anyway.

  Time sort of ran together when a fella was traveling by rail, Longarm knew. From Fort Worth, he and Nora rode north to Kansas City, then changed trains and headed west toward Colorado. They spent hours talking, getting to know each other, and Longarm found the young woman to be mighty pleasant company. Nora was smart as a whip, even though her father had always figured her main asset was her beauty. She would marry an important man, such as Jonas Palmer, and spend the rest of her life as little more than a lovely adornment to him. That had been Bryce Canady’s plan for her anyway.

  A lot of things were going to change once she got back to Denver.

  Nora and Longarm both had berths on the sleeper. Longarm had wired Billy Vail from Fort Worth to let him know that he was returning with Nora and that she was unharmed. Vail’s immediate answer had been to spare no expense in getting the young woman back home. For once, Longarm’s expense vouchers would not be questioned.

  Longarm’s wire had also warned Vail not to tell Canady and Palmer about Nora’s return. Longarm was sure his boss was mighty puzzled about that, but he trusted Billy to honor the request.

  Night was falling over the Kansas plains when Longarm and Nora left the train’s dining car. Longarm was wearing a brown tweed suit he had bought in Kansas City. He tugged on the brim of his hat as he said to Nora, “Well, good night again, I reckon.”

  “Custis ... don’t leave.”

  Longarm frowned slightly. “Ma’am?”

  “Don’t call me ma’am,” she said, “and don’t be so ... so thick. We’re going to be in Denver by tomorrow night, aren’t we?”

  “More than likely,” Longarm said with a nod.

  “And after that nothing will ever be the same again.”

  He shrugged. “I reckon you could say that.”

  “Then this is our last night together, and I ... I’ve made up my mind about something.” She squared her shoulders and went on boldly. “I’ve decided I don’t want to be a virgin anymore.”

  Her brazen declaration didn’t come as a complete surprise to Longarm. He had sensed her growing interest in him. And as for him, well, she was a beautiful young woman and he was as human as the next fella, but ...

  “I don’t mean any offense, Nora,” he said quietly, “but I ain’t in the habit of deflowering maidens.”

  “You’ve never been with a virgin before?” she challenged.

  “Well, I can’t rightly say that....”

  She stepped closer, and he could feel the heat coming from her. She put her hand on the back of his neck and came up on her toes to press her lips softly to his. The kiss started gently, almost chastely, but within seconds it had grown harder, more passionate and intense. Her body seemed to melt against his, her curves molding to him as his arms instinctively went around her.

  She drew her mouth away from his and whispered, “I promise I won’t weep and wail and carry on about my lost virtue. This is what I want, Custis. Really and truly.”

  Longarm was already hard, almost painfully so. When she reached down and rubbed the palm of her hand over the bulge at his groin, he had to bite back a groan of pleasure.

  He began, “This is against my better judgment....”

  She smiled. “Then I’ll just have to prove you wrong.”

  Chapter 21

  She was as good as her word. There was no false coyness, no hesitation on her part when they were in her compartment. She undressed eagerly and openly, and she was just as eager to see Longarm’s naked body. Her only moment of hesitation came when she saw the length and thickness of his shaft, and that slight nervousness was quickly replaced by anticipation as she wrapped her fingers around it. “It’s rather ... large, isn’t it?”

  Longarm managed not to laugh. He leaned forward instead and occupied himself with tonguing one of her erect pink nipples. Her breasts were fuller than he had thought they would be just by looking at her fully clothed. He cupped and molded them and sucked at the nipples until she was shivering with need.

  “Oh,” she said softly. “Oh, Custis ...”

  He eased her back on the bunk and parted her legs. The triangle of finespun hair that covered her mound was a shade darker than the honey-blond hair on her head. Longarm dipped a finger into her cleft and found her already wet and ready for him. He moved over her, positioning his hips between her wide spread thighs. The tip of his shaft found her opening and eased inside. She gasped at the sensation as her feminine folds parted to receive him.

  He thrust forward slowly. There were two ways of doing this: fast and hard, so that the pain was over with quickly, or by taking his time so that she was thoroughly aroused and might not notice the discomfort as much when the moment came. He was going to proceed deliberately, he decided. He bent down to kiss her, and her lips parted under the stroking of his tongue. He eased his manhood more deeply within her as he reached down between them to tickle the little sentry just above the gate he had penetrated.

  Nora started to squirm and buck under him, and she took her lips away from his to whisper urgently, “Now, Custis, oh, please, now!”

  Well, if that was the way she wanted it ...

  Longarm drove his hips forward, feeling the fleeting resistance as the barrier met his shaft and then gave way. Nora might have screamed had her mouth not been pressed hard against his. Her bottom came up off the bunk to meet his thrust. Her hips pumped in time with his, falling into the age-old rhythm despite her inexperience.

  The heat and the tightness of her sheath insured that Longarm’s climax swept over him quickly. That was all right, he supposed, because by that time, Nora had already spasmed a couple of times herself. He drove himself as deeply into her as he could and held himself there as his fluid began to pour out in spurt after throbbing spurt. Nora clutched him tightly, her fingernails digging into his buttocks as he emptied his seed into her. Her head thrashed from side to side in ecstasy.

  When Longarm stopped shuddering, he held himself up with his hands so that his weight wouldn’t crush her and leaned down to kiss her. They were both breathless and covered with a fine sheen of sweat. Nora looked up at him and smiled. “You see,” she said, “I told you I wouldn’t cry.”

  But as Longarm looked down at her in the dim light of the sleeping compartment, he saw something shining in her eyes.

  That was all right, he told himself. Right about now, he was feeling a little misty-eyed himself.

  That was just the beginning. Nora had a lot to learn, and evidently she was determined to learn it all in one night. The lessons stretched on into the next day, and by the time evening was approaching again, there wasn’t much about Nora Canady that could be regarded as virgin anymore, Longarm supposed. But she was happy about it, and if she was happy, so was he.

  Unfortunately, evening wasn’t the only thing that was approaching. The lights of Denver were already twinkling on the horizon.

  Longarm and Nora left the train at the station and went straight to the Federal Building. Billy Vail knew when their train was supposed to arrive, and he was waiting at the office for them. He was alone, Henry having long since gone home for the day.

  “Damn it, Custis—” Vail began, then stopped short and took a deep breath. “Begging your pardon, Miss Canady,” he said to Nora. “I’m mighty glad to see that you’re all right. You had a lot of folks mighty worried.”

  “I’m sorry, Marshal Vail,” she said.

  “When you hear her story, Billy, you’ll understand why she left Denver like she did,” said Longarm.

  “I hope so.” Vail looked at Nora. “But what I want to know is why this big galoot of a deputy practically ordered me not to say anything to your father and Senator Palmer about him finding you.”

  “It all ties in together, Billy,” Longarm told him before Nora could say anything. He slid a cheroot from his vest pocket and went on. “We’d better all sit down. Miss Canady’s got quite a story to tell.”

  Vail’s eyes got wider and wider as Nora explained about the land swindle being planned by Bryce Canady and Jonas Palmer. His face flushed red with anger as he heard about Palmer’s efforts to have Nora killed. When she was finished, he banged a fist on his desk and exclaimed, “Blast it, Palmer probably thinks he can get away with anything just because he’s a senator! Well, he’s about to find out different.”

  Longarm cocked his right ankle on his left knee and asked, “Do you know if he’s in town, Billy?”

  Vail nodded. “He’s here, all right. Paying me a visit nearly every day wanting to know if I’ve heard anything from you. It wasn’t easy lying to him the past couple of days, but now I’m glad I did. If he knew the two of you were on your way here, he’d have probably had somebody waiting for you at the station.”

  “Somebody with a gun,” Longarm said dryly.

  “How do you want to do this, Custis?”

  Longarm leaned forward in his chair, glancing at Nora as he did so. She still seemed to be all right, a little pale but determined to go through with whatever was necessary.

  “Send word to Palmer to meet us at Mr. Canady’s house in an hour,” said Longarm. “I reckon it’s time for a show-down.”

  Jennings, the bald, solemn-faced butler showed Longarm and Vail into Bryce Canady’s study later that evening. Canady and Jonas Palmer were both standing near Canady’s desk, each of them holding a glass of brandy. Canady put his aside hurriedly and stepped forward to meet the two lawmen. His face was drawn tight with tension.

  “Gentlemen,” he said. He looked at Longarm. “I assume that since you’ve returned, Marshal Long, you have word of my daughter.”

  He thought Nora was dead, Longarm realized. He saw the grief in Canady’s eyes, barely contained by the man’s iron self-control. But it would have come pouring out if Canady had heard the bad news he was expecting to hear.

  Longarm was glad he didn’t have to deliver such news. There was that much to be thankful for in this mess anyway.

  He glanced at Palmer. The senator looked tense too, but it was a different sort of anxiety. For the most part, though, Palmer’s stony expression was unreadable.

  “Yes, sir,” said Longarm with a nod. “I do have word of your daughter.” He stepped over to the door Jennings had closed behind them and grasped the knob. “She’s right here.”

  Canady gasped in surprise as Longarm threw the door open. Nora stepped through the doorway into the study, clad in a black dress and hat, with a veil over her face. She lifted her hands to the veil and raised it, and Canady cried out, practically sobbing with joy, as he saw his daughter’s face. He took a step toward her.

  A hell of a lot happened in a short time after that.

  Longarm saw Palmer’s right hand dive underneath his coat. The senator had to know that by now Nora had told her story to Longarm, Vail, and God only knows what other authorities. His career was ruined, and he faced years in prison, if not a hangman’s rope. All that was left to him was vengeance—vengeance on the woman who had ruined his plans.

  Longarm’s Colt came out of its holster only a whisker of time after Palmer jerked a pocket pistol out of his coat. Vail yelled a warning and tackled Canady, knocking the railroad baron off his feet. Both of the middle-aged men sprawled on the expensive rug on the floor of the study. At the same instant, a huge form practically flew through the door, knocking Nora aside. O‘Shaughnessy bellowed in rage as he threw himself toward Palmer. The gun in the senator’s hand cracked once, and O’Shaughnessy stumbled under the impact of the bullet. Longarm fired an instant after Palmer.

  The slug crashed into Palmer’s right shoulder, shattering it and sending the gun flying from Palmer’s suddenly nerveless fingers. Palmer screamed in pain and fell back on Canady’s desk, his arm flopping loosely.

  Longarm stepped over to him and kicked the gun away, then grabbed Palmer’s shirtfront and jerked him upright.

  “Quit your caterwauling, Senator,” Longarm told him through clenched teeth. “You’ll live. Live to hang, more than likely.”

 

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