But tonight didn't seem the time. A fog had settled over the town earlier, and now a slow rain hung in the air. The weather would make her escape easier, but it left a feeling that the whole world was crying.
Travis held her hand as they moved in the darkness down the alley to where Roy had the wagon waiting. When he reached the wagon, he turned and lifted her into the back between boxes and bundles of what looked like supplies, then swung in beside her. In an instant they vanished beneath blankets.
Travis opened his arm and pulled her against him as Roy set the horses into motion. He moved slowly, as if he were in no hurry. To all that might glance in their direction, Roy looked much like Owen did when he made deliveries.
"You all right?" Travis whispered. They were so close she felt his breath on her cheek.
"Yes."
They remained silent for a few minutes, and then he whispered close to her ear. "I wish we were back in your room on the third floor."
"Me, too," she answered, remembering how she'd lain beside him without her clothes and without embarrassment.
"Rainey?" he mumbled.
"Yes."
"I love touching you."
She stilled. It was the first time she'd heard him use the word love. He hadn't said he loved her, just touching her. The wagon rattled along. Rainey closed her eyes and remembered how it had been for a few short hours. No one would ever guess that the hard man beside her could be so tender. He'd made her feel beautiful, if only for a few hours. The memory of the way he'd kissed her warmed her still.
After a while the wagon came to a stop and Travis slipped from beside her. "I'll be back in a minute. Don't move."
Rainey poked her head out enough to see the outline of the judge holding Duck at the back door. The boy began to fight and kick the moment he recognized Travis coming toward them. The judge let him go. Duck flew down the path to Travis.
As always, Travis engulfed the boy in his hug. Watching, Rainey saw how much the child meant to him.
"Thanks," she heard Travis say as he moved closer to the judge. She couldn't hear more. Roy climbed from the wagon and loaded more supplies.
Travis finally stepped away from the judge and said, "We'll be in touch."
When he put Duck in the wagon, Travis told him to lie down in a voice Rainey thought sounded harsh. Duck didn't seem to mind. He smiled back at Travis and cuddled down next to Rainey. Travis lay on the other side of the boy and covered them all with a buffalo hide as Roy started moving again.
Rainey reached her hand above the boy and touched Travis's shoulder. "Where are we going?"
"You know that cellar where Dottie collected the wine you stole?" Travis whispered.
"No," she said. "I'm not going there." She couldn't bring herself to even think of climbing back in that cellar. She'd face the kidnappers again before she'd hide in the darkness of that place.
His hand gently brushed her cheek. "Dome's waiting there with a lantern. The saloon is long closed. We'll only have to pass through to her part where her husband's restaurant used to be. It was the only place we could come up with where no one would look and you both would still be close."
Rainey tried to slow her breathing as the wagon rattled. The boarded-up restaurant would be the perfect place to hide. It was right in the middle of town so the Rangers would have no trouble watching over them, and no one probably even remembered Dome's husband once ran the place.
When they got to the alley, she pointed to the cellar door. Roy opened it and Travis moved down first with Duck on his arm. The boy didn't like the idea of going into darkness any more than Rainey did. He hid his face in the collar of Travis's coat.
Rainey followed once she saw the warm glow of a lantern lighting the way.
The cellar didn't look nearly so frightening in the light. Bottles and barrels were scattered around, but after a few feet there was a clear path to the back stairs. Halfway up the stairs divided, one set to the saloon, the other to the restaurant.
"My husband's partner closes when the last customer leaves, and doesn't open up until noon or after. We'll be settled in by then."
Rainey followed Dottie into the small restaurant kitchen. Two huge ovens stood in one corner with a low fire burning in one. Pots and pans hung from an iron circle above a worktable. Except for the dust the place looked as if the cook had just walked out.
Dottie spread her hands in welcome. "Roy and I thought no one would notice smoke in this fog, so we braved a fire. I've been dusting off everything while I waited for you to get here, but I'm afraid the place still has a layer of dirt on it."
Travis sat Duck by the lantern and crossed to the far door. "I'll check out the front. Duck, you stay with Rainey."
To Rainey's surprise, Duck nodded.
Dottie set another lantern on the counter. "My husband loved this place. He'd cook every night, but we didn't make any money until he started having a private card game in the restaurant after nine." She sighed as she ran her hand along the wood as if saying hello. "Life was so sweet. We'd work here, then go home to a little house he'd built for me. When he died, I tried, but I couldn't sell this place. Finally I had so much debt I had to sell my house. I thought of trying to make this into a home, but who wants to try and sleep when the other half of the building is a saloon."
"I love the kitchen," Rainey whispered. "Your husband really knew what he was doing when he set it up. It's a baker's dream."
Dottie looked around. "It's cozy, isn't it? The judge said I could stay with him and the Baileys' were nice enough to offer me a place until my arm heals, but somehow, I wanted to come here. It's like I'm scared and I need my Henry to protect me." She smiled. "Maybe a little part of him is still here."
Roy bumped his way into the kitchen carrying blankets and supplies. "Where do you want these?" he said. "The judge sent over food enough for an army."
"Here, oh the counter," Dottie said. "The front is full of the furniture I couldn't sell."
Travis returned. "Roy give me a hand and we'll move something against the front door. Then the only way in and out of here will be through the cellar. There's a streetlight right outside the windows. It shines through the boards, so we'll have no trouble seeing in there."
Roy dropped the supplies and followed Travis.
Dottie pointed with her free arm as Rainey began to organize the blankets. "The judge insisted on sending twice what we'll need." She grins. "He worries about me as much as my Henry would have. Do you think it's a sign that his name is Henry, also?" She smiled. "If I married him, I wouldn't have to go about learning a new name."
"I see your point. It wouldn't do to call your second husband by your first husband's name."
Dottie nodded. "I think it's a sign."
Rainey carried another load to the corner. "We can make beds over here. We'll put Duck's closest to the stove so he'll be warm."
"He might get burned."
Rainey shook her head. "He's careful and I think it makes him feel safe."
A half hour later Duck was sound asleep and Dottie lay beside him, her injured arm propped on pillows. Her soft snoring blended with the crackling of the fire. Roy sat on the chair by the stairs to the cellar half asleep. In many ways he reminded her of Travis. Neither man ever seemed to go off alert. Being a Ranger was far more than a job she realized; it was a way of life.
Rainey poured out a cup of coffee from the pot left warming on the stove and passed through the door to the front room. Travis sat watching the street from a small opening in the boards covering the windows.
"You awake?" she whispered, knowing he would be.
He turned in her direction. "Coffee would help."
She moved slowly toward him. "I've got a cup."