Travis wanted to scream "No!" The last thing he wanted to do tonight was talk with another female. But he knew what Dillon was trying to do. He was giving Travis a chance to be part of the team. If he had any hope of remaining a Ranger, he had to do his duty, but talking to this thin, homely woman seemed impossible.
He finished off his drink and stood. No use putting it off. There would be pride in trying, even if he failed. The failure would lie in not giving it his best shot.
He walked to the bar and ordered another drink.
"Evening," he said as he stood beside the woman and waited for the bartender to return.
Her smile seemed painted on. "Evening, fellow. You tired of talking to your friends and want to have a little fun?"
He glanced back to see the three Rangers leaving. They knew if he learned anything, he'd report in, and for now they'd be wasting their time watching. It looked better if they appeared to be calling it a night, leaving him behind. One man who'd been drinking might look like easy pickings to a girl wanting to make some money.
"What do you have in mind?" He forced himself to smile back at the barmaid who wore enough paint for a war party.
"Depends on how much silver's in your pocket. For the price of a drink, we can talk. A few bits more and I'll give you a taste of what might be for sale."
He placed a few coins on the bar. "A bottle, bartender, and two glasses. The lady and I are going to have a few drinks and get to know each other."
She tugged him to one of the back tables where the smoke hung in a gray cloud thick as soup. The bony woman ignored a chair and took a seat on his knee. He wanted nothing more than to toss her off, but instead, he shifted her to his good leg and told her he'd been wounded recently.
She asked no questions about his wound, but two drinks later she was whining about every injury she'd ever suffered. Her voice reminded him of a violin that was badly in need of tuning. She had a way of never ending a sentence. She just rolled on and on with breaks only when she needed a drink.
Her friend circled by and helped herself to Travis's drink. He knew he'd not touch the glass again. She laughed and asked him if he were man enough for two women.
When he said he was, but his pocketbook wasn't, she snorted, letting him know that at this hour of the night the price could be negotiated.
The girl on his knee began to whine about never having enough money to buy a new dress.
Travis stilled as if the air had suddenly grown frosty. Without a doubt in his mind he knew who he was talking to. Snort and Whiny, the two women Rainey had described in her letter. She said she heard them talking every night. Except for the night they'd whispered about murdering someone, Rainey commented that Whiny always complained and Snort tried to make her laugh.
He counted houses from the alley and guessed if he went out the back door of this bar he might be directly under the boardinghouse's third-floor window.
These women might not know anything about Seth Norman, but they were plotting a murder. The world seemed full of criminals tonight. He studied them carefully, trying to decide if they had been just passing time, or if one or both of them could truly be setting a plan into action.
"Have a seat," he said to Snort. "It looks like a slow night, and I've enough money to at least buy you a drink."
When the older woman plopped down, he filled both their glasses and said with a smile, "Now tell me ladies, do either of you know where I might find a way to make some fast money?" He forced a smile. "I'm not too particular about it being strictly on the up and up."
They giggled and eyed one another as only people who share a secret do.
"You have any ideas?" he pushed.
"Nothing," Snort said, obviously deciding not to take a chance on him. "We're just looking to have some fun." She leaned close and rubbed her mouth against his throat. She wasn't kissing him. Her action seemed more that of an animal smelling prey. She had considerably more meat on her bones than Whiny, but unfortunately most of it was flabby.
Travis fought down a shudder. No matter what else he learned tonight, he knew one thing. He hadn't been attracted to Rainey simply because she was a woman.
If a woman had been all he needed, there were two pressing up against him now who seemed more than willing. He stared at the bottle knowing he could never get drunk enough to want to sleep with either.
The one Rainey had called Whiny let the strap of her dress fall. Her pointy little breast slipped from the faded dress and drooped over the fabric. She looked up to make sure Travis watched. "See something you like?" she whispered in his ear. "I'll let you hold it for free, if you like."
Travis gripped the whiskey bottle so hard he was sure it would shatter in his hand. "No," he managed to say. "Maybe another time. I have to go."
He tossed a coin on the table. "Please, finish the bottle for me tonight, and I'll see you again when I'm more flush."
Whiny shrugged. He'd said the one thing to make her lose interest. He was broke.
Travis walked out the back of the bar and closed the door behind him. The cold night air hit him full in the face, sobering him completely. Like a deer, he wanted to push a hard breath out and get rid of the smells he'd just breathed in, but the alley was no place to draw more air in.
He looked up and could barely make out the third-story window. As he'd hoped, it was open. It seemed halfway to the moon.
"Rainey," he said as calmly as if she were standing right beside him. "Rainey, I know you're not asleep. Answer me."
After a moment she whispered, "What are you doing down there?"
"I met your two friends. We need to talk about them tomorrow. They may be in far more danger than you think they are."
The alley was silent for so long he feared she might not answer. Then her answer carried on the air. "Where?"
"The café where we had dinner. Noon."
"I'll try. But I'll not promise."
He smiled. Even if she did promise, he wouldn't believe her. "Rainey," Travis said as he started down the alley.
"Yes?" she asked.
"Good night, Sunshine."
"Good night," she echoed. "And don't call me Sunshine."
He walked all the way home with a grin on his face. Maybe she didn't hate him half as much as he thought. After all, she'd almost agreed to see him again. Maybe his brain would be clear enough in daylight to keep him from saying something crazy.
He crossed the grounds of the capital and entered the side door of the Bailey home. As always, the house smelled of beeswax and roses. He'd heard it said that Mrs. Bailey always kept fresh roses in every room during the summer when she could charge twice as much for a room, and there were plenty who would pay it to have their families close while they did their business.
When he opened the door to the sitting room he shared with his sister, he found Duck sitting on a short stool by the fire.
The minute the boy heard Travis, he jumped up and ran to him. As always, Travis swung him up and held him safe and sound.
The boy smiled.
Travis hugged him tightly and sat down in the chair beside the fireplace. "It's all right, Duck. It's all right. I'm not going to leave you. You will always be safe. If I go out, I promise I'll come back." Travis felt like he gave the same speech every time he left the room. Maybe it was not the words, but the sound of his voice that always seemed to settle the child down.
Sage appeared at her bedroom door with her arms crossed in anger. "He won't go to sleep without you here, Travis. And I can't go to sleep knowing he's sitting waiting."
She walked farther into the room, her new blue dressing gown swishing against the polished floor. She leaned down to the little iron teapot that was delivered every night even though no one ordered it.
"He's fine with me while it's daylight, but as soon as the sun sets, he starts watching for you." She poured herself a cup. "Tonight he went from window to window waiting for you to come back."