A small smile teased Iris's lips. "Mrs. Slater, I'm willing to bet that both Cole and Malachi are aware that there is not much that can stop your sister when her mind is set. But, yes, Mrs. Slater, your husband has been in town. So has Shannon's and so's your brother-in-law Jamie. They went out tonight to try to un-hold-up a train."
"What?"
"Kristin, I had to come. I had to see you. We must come up with a way out of this awful situation!" Shannon said.
Kristin was still staring at Iris, a frown marring her features. "My husband," she murmured. She stared at Shannon. "And her husband…Miss Andre, what husband?"
"Why, Malachi."
"Malachi!"
"Shh!" Shannon jumped to her feet.
Kristin sat at the foot of the bed, staring at Shannon incredulously. "Malachi!" she gasped. "Shannon, that's impossible! The two of you are incapable of sharing a room for ten minutes without all hell breaking loose. You and… Malachi?"
Shannon smiled uneasily. "It—er—it seemed like the thing to do at the time."
"They had threatened to hang him," Iris supplied with a shrug.
"But—" Kristin began.
"I'll tell you all about it at some other time," Shannon promised quickly. "Kristin, are they treating you well?"
"Well enough."
"No one has—"
"No one has physically abused me," Kristin said flatly. "Fitz thinks that if he can't get Cole to come out of hiding by just holding on to me, he'll pass a rumor that he's willing to deal." She hesitated. "So Cole is here. Oh, God, Shannon, don't let him do anything stupid! What is this about a train? Please, talk to him. Make him see that he can't win. Tell him to go home and get the baby and leave the country. Tell him—"
"Kristin! You know that he'll never do that."
"I have the perfect plan," Iris said softly.
Kristin and Shannon spun around to look at her. She smiled. "It will be easy enough to find another night when Fitz is occupied. And if not, I know how to occupy Fitz. Then we come with more of the girls. And we bring a few shawls and the like. And we all leave together. We just walk away, all of us, together. I guarantee you, none of the men will feel like moving."
Kristin stared at her in silence, then burst into laughter. "Oh, Iris, it's wonderful. But I couldn't let you do something like that! Fitz would surely get even with you—"
"With all of us? What could he do?"
"Fitz would find something."
"No. Because he would never be able to prove it. He wouldn't discover you missing until the next morning, and you could all be halfway to Texas by then. He wouldn't know which of us were involved, and it would be hard to hang a whole whorehouse. I think the men of this town would finally rebel."
"Neither Cole, Malachi or Jamie will let you do it, either," Kristin warned.
"They won't know!" Shannon said.
"But—" Kristin began.
"Shh! We'll be back," Shannon told her.
"Be ready," Iris warned Kristin. She grabbed Shannon's arm and pulled her to her feet. "We've got to move now, or they'll suspect us of something tonight, and we don't want that."
"Take care!" Shannon warned her sister, and hugged her fiercely again. "We'll be back."
"Come on!" Iris tugged on her sleeve.
They hurried to the door together. There was no one on the upstairs landing and they hurried down the steps. When they reached the bottom, Fulton was blocking their way. Iris smiled at him. "Thanks, Fulton. We'll be seeing you soon."
"You bet you will, Iris."
"Why, Fulton, what's wrong with you, honey?"
Fulton stepped aside. Shannon gasped, stunned.
Bear stood there. He was the massive jayhawker who had carried Kristin away after the righting between the jayhawkers and the bushwhackers, and it was obvious from the glint in his eyes that he remembered his brief glimpse of Shannon.
"What's going on?" Iris asked uneasily.
Shannon didn't say anything. The big man walked toward her with a wide grin plastered against his beefy features. "It is her," he said flatly. His arms crossed over his chest, he walked around Shannon. "Saw you when I was coming down the street, little miss. I thought I recognized you." He spun in a sudden fury and banged Fulton on the head with his hat. "Couldn't you see how much she looked like that Slater woman? They're as like as two peas from the same pod, you damned fool."
"Don't go beating at me, Bear!" Fulton protested. "Herbie said that the women were all right."
"Well, Herbie's going to have to answer to the boss, and that's that," Bear said. He grinned at Shannon and Iris. "Let's go and see the boss man, little lady."
Bear grasped Shannon by the arm. Iris slunk back against the wall. Shannon bit hard into Bear's fingers. When he screamed, Iris pulled out her small pistol.
"Let her go, Bear," Iris said.
Bear lifted up his hands. Shannon grabbed the Colt she was carrying from her skirt pocket. She drew the gun and held it on Fulton. "We're going to walk away. I'm going to go back up and get my sister out, and we're going to walk away."
"I think not, ma'am," a deep male voice called out.
Shannon spun around and looked up the stairs.
Kristin stood on the top step now, biting into her lip.
Behind her stood a tall, lean man with snow-white hair and cold gray eyes. He wore an elegant brocade vest and a frock coat and he held a small silver pistol to Kristin's skull. "Drop the gun," he told Shannon.
"Don't do it!" Kristin charged her. "Get out, Shannon, just get out—oh!"
The man cracked Kristin hard upon the head and she fell at his feet. He smiled at Shannon and aimed the gun toward her sister's back. "Drop it."
"Do it, Shannon," Iris advised wearily. "That's Fitz. And he will shoot her, without a thought."
"Why, thank you, Iris," Fitz drawled softly, "for that fine commendation. Girl, drop the gun."
Shannon inhaled and exhaled. Fitz cocked the gun. Shannon slowly bent and lay down her Colt.
"That was a very fine idea, young woman." He nodded to Bear. "Bring her to my office."
Bear set his arms upon Shannon. She tried to shake him off. "I can walk on my own!" she spat out.
"Fitz, you can't hold this girl—" Iris began.
"Iris, I am so disappointed in you!" Fitz said, shaking his head with a half smile. "Fulton, escort our friend Iris to my chamber, will you? Iris, I don't know what promises you made to get in here, but we'll just discuss them all. Later. And you will pay up."
Fulton grabbed Iris, sweeping her little pistol from her hands and jerking her around. "Come on, Iris. You heard the boss."
"Fitz, you can't hold her! Fitz, you—"
"I can, and I will, Iris," Fitz said. He stepped over Kristin and started down the stairs. "Get her out of here, Fulton. You'd better start worrying about yourself, Iris. Harboring a known criminal like this one here. Why, we could just shoot you down on the spot, Iris, and no court of law in the country could have a thing to say about it. Fulton, get her out of here!"
"Fitz, you'll pay!" Iris vowed as Fulton wrenched her arm behind her back. Iris cried out in pain. Shannon couldn't bear seeing Iris so hurt on her behalf. She flew at Fitz, her nails gouging his flesh.
"Let her alone, you bastard!" she hissed.
She didn't expect the iron grip of the man. He caught her flailing fists and pressed her against the banister. When she tried to kick him he lashed out, slapping her so hard that she staggered to her knees. He jerked her to her feet and prodded her before him. He threw her through a door in the foyer, and she fell to the ground.
He followed her into the office, stepping over her skirts. He closed the door behind him and walked around his desk to sit, idly watching her for several moments.
Shannon barely dared move. She stared at the man and waited.
"Well, well, well," he murmured at last. "My net is closing fast around all the little fishes."