Page 38 of Heart of Stone

“Well it ain’t like I made this up,” Stone snapped. “No, we caught your man Hendry settin’ the stable on fire, and he decided that lettin’ us know that you were payin’ him to do the dirty work was a damn sight better than rottin’ in jail all by himself.”

For the first time, James’ mask cracked, and Stone caught a flash of genuine alarm in James’ eyes. “Men like that will say anything if you pay them enough.” He was obviously trying to bluster his way out of trouble, but he sounded far less self-assured now.

“Or do anything, if you pay them enough.” Stone was pleased at the way James was finally starting to show that he wasn’t completely confident. “But you know, there’s the little matter of Priss’s will. You got a reason to make me fail and to pay to make it happen, since you’d get the whole ranch by makin’ me give up.”

James’ eyes narrowed dangerously as he stared at Stone in silence, and when he spoke at last, his voice was hard and cold. “Maybe Hendry did tell you that I hired him, and maybe you can suggest I had a clear motive, but you won’t do a damned thing about it,cousin. Not unless you want the whole town to learn yourotherlittle secret.”

Stone glared. “And what little secret would that be?”

“That you prefer the company of men,” James replied, pointing at Luke. “That man in particular.”

A ball of lead suddenly formed in Stone’s stomach. Somehow James must have figured out about him and Luke, or maybe he was just guessing, but he wasn’t going to let James think he’d won. “You have proof of this, of course?” he asked, parroting James’ words and tone. “Otherwise, that’s slander, as I believe you mentioned.”

“The rumor alone would be enough to ruin both of you.” James’ smirk returned. “But as it happens, I can support my claims with words straight from your own mouth, cousin. You do seem terribly concerned about your foreman’s happiness, and there is that night you mentioned. The one you spent together in bed.”

There was a sound of blood rushing in Stone’s ears as white hot fury enveloped him. It wasn’t so much the threat that James would expose him and Luke; it was hearing James mention that night, daring to sully it with his words and twist it into a tool for his own purposes that sent Stone over the edge. He wasn’t even aware of what he was going to do until he was suddenly looking at James down the barrel of his gun.

“Not if I kill you first.” Stone pulled back the hammer with a decisive click.

“Stone, no!” Luke exclaimed, stepping forward as if to stop him. “He ain’t worth it!”

“I ain’t lettin’ him ruin your reputation,” Stone replied coldly, not giving a damn about what happened, so long as Luke was protected. “I’d rather hang and have the satisfaction of knowin’ he didn’t win.”

James’ bravado seemed to have deserted him completely, and he stared at Stone, paralyzed with total fear, eyes wide like those of panicked deer. Stone snarled, disgusted by the man’s complete lack of guts, but he couldn’t take the chance that James would actually carry out his threat. Slowly, his finger began to tighten on the trigger; whatever happened, Luke would be safe, and that was all that mattered.

“Mr. Harrison, please don’t kill him.”

The soft female voice came from the hallway, and Stone’s gaze snapped over James’ shoulder to where Agnes Wilson stood, her face white and her eyes full of entreaty. “Please don’t,” she repeated. “I heard it all, and what he did was wrong, but I love him!”

Stone blinked, lowering the gun because he sure as hell wasn’t going to shoot anyone in front of a lady. “You love him?” he asked, staring at her, unable to believe he’d heard her correctly. “After what he’s done, you can say you love him?”

Agnes nodded and blushed. “I knew he was full of himself and selfish, but he isn’t all bad, I know it.” She glanced at James, frowning. “He just wasn’t raised right. Back east, some folks think it’s all right to do whatever they have to do to win. He just needs someone to show him what’s right.”

Stone couldn’t have been more shocked if Raider had suddenly come up to him and demanded wages. “You’re worth fifty of him!” He shook his head in confusion. “Beggin’ your pardon, ma’am, but a rattlesnake is still poisonous even if you cut off his rattler.”

“Don’t let yourself get fooled by some pretty trimmin’s, Miss Agnes,” Luke pleaded, gazing at her earnestly. “He ain’t goin’ to worry himself about makin’ you happy, and you deserve better than that.”

Rather than defend himself, James inched closer to Agnes, moving behind her as if seeking protection. Stone sneered, not surprised he was cowardly enough to hide behind a woman’s skirts!

Agnes drew herself up, looking very dignified. “Thank you kindly for your sweet words about what I deserve, but the fact of the matter is, I know what I want.” Her voice was firm and certain. “I’m twenty-four years old, and I don’t have any real prospect of a husband around here, especially since two of the most attractive bachelors are already spoken for,” she added with a smile at them both. “But I do love him, warts and all, as the saying goes. If you will spare his life, Mr. Harrison, I can assure you he will leave Serenity, and he will never breathe an improper word about you and Luke. I swear it.”

Stone was at a loss, and he looked at Luke, seeing his own dumbfounded expression mirrored on Luke’s face, before he returned his attention to Agnes. “You’d marry him?” he asked, wondering if he’d understood her correctly.

“If he’ll have me,” she replied quietly. “He hasn’t exactly asked me, of course.”

Stone shook his head. He didn’t know what Agnes thought she saw in James Rivers, since all he could see was a backstabbing dog who was lower than a horse thief, but Stone had never pretended to understand the way the heart worked. If she could say she’d marry James, even knowing everything he’d done, that was her decision.

“Well, what do you think, Luke?” he asked. After all, this was Luke’s decision, too. “Should I kill him, or shall we have an engagement party?”

“I’d rather not see anyone’s blood spilled.” Luke was still watching Agnes with a blend of concern and disbelief. “Not even his. And not in front of Miss Agnes”

“I’ll marry her,” James spoke up quickly, falling on the suggestion with pathetic eagerness. “We’ll go back to Boston, and I won’t say a word to anyone. Just don’t hurt me!”

Of all the strange things Stone had seen in his life, this had to be about the strangest, but he was just as glad to settle the matter without being arrested for murder. And James sure wasn’t getting off scot free, either; little Agnes seemed to have a will of solid iron, and Stone had the notion that being married to her was going to either make or break Mr. James Rivers.

“Well, then, I suppose we should congratulate the happy couple, Luke.” He looked at James, his expression implacable as he holstered his gun. “But let me tell you one thing, you coward. If I hear that a hair on her head has been harmed or she’s suffered one moment of sadness because of you, I’ll come all the way to Boston and blow your head off. Do you understand me? Any more dirty dealin’ and you’ll pay. Miss Agnes is the only thing standin’ between you and me, and you’d best make sure she stays happy and healthy for a long, long time.”

James didn’t look too happy about that, but he nodded with the air of a man who saw the prison door slamming shut. “I understand.”

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