Unending Devotion (Michigan Brides #1)(96)

She’d go along with the woman for a little while and buy herself some time to try to figure out what God had in mind for her. This time she would try to trust Him.

With a choked breath, she nodded her head and tried to make herself look as broken and humiliated as possible.

Maggie’s eyebrows shot up, and she stared at Lily for a long moment, as though trying to grasp the sudden change in Lily’s attitude.

“Fine,” Maggie said slowly. “We’ll get you dressed up real pretty, and then you can show us what a good girl you’re willing to be.”

Lily hung her head, but inside she was standing up tall and fighting with all her might.

“But don’t think you’re going to find a way to leave.”

Maggie’s warning jolted through Lily. She shook her head and hoped the woman would read it as submission.

“One wrong move, sugar, and you’ll be back in this closet faster than you can blink.” Maggie reached for her arm and dragged her into the deserted hallway. “And if that happens, I’ll make sure you learn your lesson. I never, never put up with lying. Never.”

Lily tried to ignore the fear swarming through her.

She could only pray that God would provide a way of escape. And soon.





Chapter

28



They would kill him if they recognized him.

Connell slouched, his stomach tight and ready for the first punch or shot of lead.

The bouncer at the door eyed him up and down, then nodded and moved aside to let him enter the saloon.

He ducked his head, pulled the borrowed derby low over his eyes, and stepped into the crowded, smoke-filled room. The room reeked of dirty socks and flesh that hadn’t had a good scrubbing in months.

The drunken laughter and piano music drowned out the loud chopping of his heartbeat. He’d never been good at playacting, but he forced his feet forward, trying to exude the swaggering confidence of a man who frequented such establishments on a regular basis.

He lifted his chin long enough for a quick glance around the room. Two more bouncers. One standing at the bottom of the stairway. And another by the money pail at the bar.

That brought the total to four so far, including the one at the gate and the one he’d just passed at the door.

If Bass’s map of the Stockade was still correct, there would be two more bouncers—somewhere upstairs. For a total of six.

Connell scuffed his boots in uncharacteristic laziness and headed toward an empty chair at one of the round tables where several shanty boys were drinking and playing cards.

“Deal me in the next hand,” he said in a raspy voice that he hoped disguised his own. He didn’t wait for their acknowledgment. Instead, he scraped the chair across the floor and lowered himself into it, making sure to jingle the coins in his pocket as he sat.

Their frowns of protest smoothed into eager acceptance. One of them chortled and called out to a girl at the bar. “Bring this fella a drink, sweetheart. And bring more for the rest of us too.”

The scruffy faces of the shanty boys at his table didn’t look familiar. But that didn’t mean they wouldn’t recognize him. He was too well known, even among other camps, to get by for very long without someone figuring out who he was, even in disguise.

His foreman at Camp 1 had been more than willing to loan him his work clothes. And now his odor was as sour as any other shanty boy. The shirt was stiff with dried sweat, and the stains and grime of many days’ hard work were ingrained into every fiber.

Vera had darkened his hair with soot from the stove. She’d blackened his fingernails and had added a smudge or two to his face for good measure. She’d even brought out a foul-smelling concoction of hers she claimed would change the color of his day-old scruff. But he’d had to draw the line somewhere.

The disguise would only buy him minutes. And he wouldn’t fool Carr, especially because the good-for-nothing scum was no doubt expecting him.

Connell had asked the other men to hold off storming the Stockade—to give him fifteen minutes to locate Lily, to have her safe in hand before the battle began. There was no telling what Carr would do to Lily if they didn’t have her before the fighting started.

But he had a feeling rescuing her first was wishful thinking. He didn’t know where she was and had no way of searching. Even so, the men had reluctantly agreed to let him go in alone for fifteen minutes under disguise, urging him to be cautious. If Carr caught him too, then he’d have two hostages. The men would likely be helpless, unable to do anything except what Carr demanded to get him and Lily back.

Connell’s heart rammed against his ribs, just as it had done since he’d climbed Dead Man’s Hill. The clock was ticking, and he needed to make every second count.

He had to find out where Carr was keeping Lily. That’s the only thing that really mattered anymore—the only thing he could think about.

“Heard Bella’s back.” He chanced another glance around the tavern. Half a dozen girls in their fancy silk dresses sashayed with swinging hips through the room. Some delivered drinks from the bar, while a few others were hanging on the arms of men or sitting on laps giggling and flirting.

He’d wager the low-cut dresses exposing the creamy flesh of their bosoms was enticement enough for most of the shanty boys. The girls surely didn’t need to do much more to interest a man in going upstairs.