Chapter Twenty-Two
"Surprised Heath? You didn't suspect me, did you?" Roland White's narrow features gloated with satisfaction, as he regarded the shock in Heath's eyes. "Big mistake, but not your only one. Boys, tie up the woman." He waved his gun at his henchmen, who manhandled Sarah to the ground, binding her hands and ankles.
"No, your gun won't help you Heath." Roland stated, as he leveled his firearm and expertly shot at Heath's hand. The bullet grazed the knuckles, which caused Heath to drop the gun, as blood seeped out from his skin. "I am glad that all the tedious hours of practice at the shooting club are coming in handy. Killing you is going to be the greatest pleasure I've experienced in a long time." The lawyer didn't know it, but the look of madness was apparent in his pale blue eyes.
Heath pressed his bleeding knuckles against his pants, awed at Roland's marksmanship abilities. He regarded the older man, who he'd dismissed as a dandified courtier and realized how badly he had misread his opponent. The lawyer's body was taut and firm; the rough clothes only emphasized the well-toned muscles and Heath realized that the man was not at all what he had presented himself as. Roland White, with his ability to blend into the background was clearly a great nemesis, and Heath hated to admit at how he'd been taken in by the lawyer's charade.
He had always prided himself on being able to see through any man and was furious at how duped he'd been. Even as his anger swelled up inside him, Heath realized that he needed to control the emotion, if he was to save Sarah and himself. She was so pale and shaking that Heath wondered if she was going to pass out, which made him want to tackle the masked men head on. The barrel of the Colt Peacemaker in his face though forced him to tamp down his fury and emotion.
Now though, having seen the lawyer's true colors, Heath saw how Roland White had been perfectly positioned to try to kill him. The only question was why, and as he thought that Heath wondered if he could distract the man enough, to buy him time to come up with an escape plan. He knew that criminals liked to talk about their exploits.
"Since you are going to kill me anyway, can I at least know why?" Heath made it a point to appear nonchalant as he made his inquiry. In his experience bad men holding guns would get very riled when the opponent didn't kowtow to them, which could distract them. "Honestly I thought we were getting along famously." He managed a smile which belied the fear and fury coiling inside his body.
"Don't play dumb with me, you bastard – which is what you are – you know all about my scheme. I heard about your trip to the mines yesterday." Roland White stiffened with anger, as he made his accusatory statement. "I had the perfect financial windfall going on, until Joseph married Hester. That witch!" While the lawyer was not quite foaming at the mouth, it was clear that yet again Hester had driven a man to the point of madness.
"Yes, Hester was very good at finding any man's weakness; you've been lining your pockets at the expense of the VanDer Hoffen mines." Heath replied, still not sure what he was supposed to know, but willing to go along with the charade. He was truly curious, as he remembered his visits to the sites, even as he wanted to keep Roland White talking.
"There is no reason to replace perfectly good equipment every couple of years! Once Joseph became successful he was more concerned about his status in society and politics. It made it easy for me to doctor the books, so it looked like we bought equipment, when in fact the money went straight into my pocket." Roland explained, adding several other details that made sense to Heath. It tied in now with his questions after visiting the mines. "At first I welcomed Hester, thinking that not only would she keep Joseph distracted, but with the way she spent money, I could probably siphon off even more from the accounts." The lawyer's gun shook slightly, and Heath saw that the lawyer was still furious at Hester, even as she was dead in the ground.
"Hester saw right through your scheme though, didn't she?" Heath was jumping to conclusions, but knowing the woman was pretty sure he was right. Roland's response showed that he'd hit the bulls-eye.
"That bitch! I had the perfect scam going on, until she figured it out!" Roland's composure was starting to slip, as he responded to Heath's comment. "Honestly I was skimming almost six figures a year, on the mining equipment. However, she went over the VanDer Hoffen financials with an eagle eye and soon saw what I was doing. The she-devil gave me the option of paying her a percentage of my financial misdeeds or she would tell her husband about my activities. Not only that but she kept her own records of what I'd done. I have spent hours trying to find her evidence against me."
Heath shook his head, appalled at everything Roland was telling him, even as the barrel of the gun came closer to his forehead. The break-ins at Hester's house, the attacks on him; none of it had to do with mining reform. Instead it had all been about one man's greed, and Heath wished he would not have been so focused on his project. As he looked over at his wife, shaking with fear, and then regarded the deranged lawyer holding the gun, Heath wondered if this was really the end.
Sarah's silk skirt was soaked by the wet ground, while her arms and legs were tightly bound, to the point that she couldn't feel her fingertips. She had paid careful attention to what Roland White was saying, and felt a hard knot in her stomach. Her secret nest egg was the blackmail that Hester had been doing to her husband's lawyer. Suddenly the journal that accompanied the money made sense; it documented specific financial transactions. Those transactions would be known to both the lawyer and her husband, because of the mines.
For one moment she thought about confessing to the whereabouts of the journal and cash, but then decided it wouldn't do any good. Roland White wanted Heath dead – had wanted him dead since they'd arrived in Denver. Sarah cringed as she recalled how charming the lawyer had been to her, to all the Barkleys, even as he was plotting the killing. It came to her now that not only Heath was going to die, but so was she, unless maybe?
If she told Roland she knew where the ledger was, he would keep her alive – at least until he had them in his possession. Sarah calculated on how she could maneuver the situation, to get the lawyer to keep Heath alive while they retrieved the journal. It was clear that the information in the leather bound book was a serious threat to Roland White. Before she could say anything though, Heath spoke.
"Look Roland, I think we can find common ground here. Honestly I just want the mines safely run, and you want them to be profitable. Can't we do business?" Heath offered, hoping to appeal to the lawyer's mercenary streak. He didn't like how frightened Sarah looked, or how the men surrounding her were regarding her.
"Heath, if only I could believe you. However, at the end of the day you will never abandon your need to do the right thing – even if it comes at the expense of your wife." Roland sneered in reply, looking over at Sarah, who was tied up.
"I love my wife and don't want her to die. I don't care about your scheme, and will even pay you a share of the profits." Heath exclaimed, hoping the lawyer would agree to the deal. Even as he hated making it, in the end Sarah's safety was more important. He also hoped that Roland was far enough gone in madness to go along with lure of more money.
"Do you really think I would trust you, after I've admitted to trying to have you killed, before killing you myself?" The reply let Heath know that Roland was still thinking somewhat clearly, and Heath felt a great sadness over take him. He turned his head to look at Sarah with sorrow, mouthing the words I am so sorry and I love you to her.
Sarah felt tears welling up in her eyes, as she saw the depth of feelings in Heath's eyes. She had been taken aback when he'd tried to make a deal with Roland to save her; it had gone against his principles she knew very well. He must love her very much, and she looked at him with gratitude, mouthing the same words to him that he'd said to her.
A chill wind hit her, and Sarah hoped that her death would be quick and easy. The three men holding her looked mean and nasty, and she didn't want to think about what they would want to do to her. Sarah moved her head glancing over her shoulder and was startled to see movement among the clump of white barked trees. Maybe help was coming after all? If so she realized she needed to buy some time.
"Roland I know where the ledger is, along with the money Hester took." Sarah saw Roland glance over at her, even as he kept his gun trained on Heath. Now, she only had to be careful to say enough to keep him interested, but not reveal that it was in her possession. "I was helping Priscilla clear the house out, and found them in a box of drapery fabric. I wasn't sure what to do, so I left the items there; the box is with the other items being shipped to Stockton." The story sounded plausible, and Sarah noted that Roland was now staring at her with great interest.
Heath heard was Sarah was saying, and at first was appalled at what she was doing, until he saw the lawyer's eyes turn away from him. He knew that this was his only chance, so he went to lunge at Roland, hoping to knock him down. The lawyer needed to be off balance before he could get a shot off; even as he was moving towards Roland a melee broke out in the clearing.
Nick had found out from the deputy with the injured horse where the posse was meeting, and had quickly ridden up to join them. Jack Regan had been surprised to see Nick, but listened to what he had to say. He had then told Nick his observations, and who they were pursuing and why. Hearing that Roland White was a suspect, and that he'd followed Heath out of town, didn't make a lot of sense to Nick. He was glad though that the detective wasn't going to arrest or shoot Heath, so he followed the armed men to a spot that overlooked the clearing.
The vantage point let Nick see Roland holding a gun on Heath, as three masked men tied up Sarah. Jack Regan indicated to Nick to dismount, and follow him down a path. They ended up in a grove of trees, next to the clearing, which gave them the ideal spot to hear what Roland was saying. Nick also noted how the other men of the posse were positioning themselves around the clearing, surrounding the area.
Nick had wanted to charge into the clearing right away, and had even drawn his gun but Jack put a warning hand on his arm. He understood what the detective wanted, which was Roland' confession, but Nick didn't want it to come at the expense of Heath and Sarah's lives. When he saw Heath lunge for Roland, Nick couldn't wait any longer and rose up.
He burst into the clearing, as did the other men who'd surrounded the area. His target was the lawyer, and it was with great satisfaction that he tackled Roland to the ground. As far as the rest, the odds were ten to four, and the fight was soon over, with no injuries. Nick had been afraid that everyone would start shooting, with bullets ricocheting all over. Later he found out that Jack had given men specific instructions not to fire unless as a last resort.
"Brother I have never been so glad to see you as now, but really I wanted to take the slimy bastard down! Why do you always get the last punch in?" Heath quipped, regarding his brother and Roland White on the ground. It surprised him to see Jack Regan rush in to take over hog tying the lawyer, but then Sarah's whimper caught his attention.
"My darling, oh I am so sorry!" Heath declared as he unbound the ropes and helped her to stand up. As he supported her Heath felt the hard chills coursing through her body, and noted how Sarah's face was white, and the pupils in her eyes were dilated. She was close to going into shock, and he reacted quickly.
"Please, God I need some blankets and whiskey!" Heath shouted, as he pulled her close against him. One of the men brought a roughly woven blanket up, and Heath quickly wrapped it around Sarah's waist and legs. A flask of whiskey was pushed into Heath's hand, and he forced Sarah to drink some small sips.
"She needs a doctor; can someone help me get her to town?" Heath felt so helpless, as he regarded Sarah, knowing his actions had only been stop gap measures. He was filled with guilt because her condition was all due to him. He'd been so focused on mining reform and Logan Dawes' death that he had not seen anything else going on around him.
Further Heath now realized that he should have paid attention to the warnings, from the café owner, about bandits outside of town. He had admitted to himself that there could be sketchy characters around mining towns, but had not considered the danger that he'd attracted since being in Colorado. It came to him that he'd set up this scenario, that had ended with Sarah being in grave danger.
Heath was relieved when the surrey he'd rented earlier pulled up, and further when he saw that Nick was holding the reins. He lifted Sarah up carefully, and settled her on the seat, positioning himself next to her. His last look at the clearing was Jack Regan manhandling Roland White to his feet, as the deputies rounded up his henchman. At the back of his mind were many questions, especially how the detective had come to be in the clearing. Heath knew though that explanations would take have to wait until Sarah was safe.