Chapter One
Galveston, Texas
“You little thief!” the man roared from the doorway, freezing all three girls in place.
What happened next was a blur of motion: his grip on Etta’s wrist; his heated threats; Ada’s fist slamming into his throat.
It was all June could do to pull her away as the man released Etta with a shout of pain. “Run!” she yelled, snatching Etta’s free hand. Before he recovered, the three girls were already sprinting down an alleyway, safely out of sight and hearing.
But June didn’t let the girls stop—not for another few miles. They kept up the pace, darting through alleyways and side streets, until they reached the inn outside of town. She didn’t even let up until she’d locked the door of their room behind them.
They had to get out of town. Fast. Before news broke that the most sought-after housemaids in town were stealing from people.
“Grab the bags. We’re leaving. Now,” June ordered in a panic.
“We can’t go back to Trey empty-handed!” Ada’s voice cracked.
“Do you think I don’t know that?” June snapped, grabbing Etta’s arm to keep her from tripping. “That’s why we have to leave! Now, hurry!”
In a few breathless minutes, the girls had haphazardly gathered their few possessions and she was hurrying them back down into the street.
Etta whimpered, still clutching the brooch she’d been caught stealing. “I didn’t mean to get caught. I’m sorry…”
Gasping for breath, June glanced over her shoulder, scanning the streets for signs of any pursuit. It looked like they were in the clear for now. She turned back to look at the younger girl. “It’s not your fault, Etta. We did what we had to do.”
“Then why does it feel so bad?” Etta’s voice broke as tears welled in her eyes.
June and Ada sighed simultaneously, each looping an arm around their friend. As far as June was concerned, Etta was right. It was worse than bad. It was awful.
And the worst part was that she was the reason the girls had become tied up in all of this.
I should never have accepted Trey’s offer.
***
June led the girls quickly to the Galveston post office.
From all the gossip at the inn during the past few days, she’d heard about a wagon train that was heading out west. She bought passage for the three of them with darn near the last coin they had left, which might not have been the best choice—but she didn’t care.
Now that Etta had been caught, she’d do anything to get them all away.
Trey Bishop was going to be waiting for them, and he would want them to deliver what they promised him.
Their chances of lasting another day in Galveston without trouble were over, and now she had to come up with a plan, and fast. But in the meantime, the wagon train would carry them further from the city.
At least that might be long enough for her to come up with something!
There was another breathless rush as June snatched the tickets and pulled Ada and Etta behind her until they reached a small vacant seat at the back of a large, boisterous man with plenty of seats in his wagon.
He welcomed them without a second thought, but June didn’t breathe easily until the Galveston city buildings were a smudge on the horizon.
The wagon they were on rumbled beneath them, and it swayed across the heavy and beaten path. She sighed heavily and tipped her head back, her eyes closing. We’re so doggone close to getting out. The train was by far their best chance at escaping Trey’s grasp.
She didn’t know where in the world this wagon train was off to—somewhere further west—but she knew that anything was better than sticking around town and then being thrown in jail.
This wasn’t the first time they had been caught.
She knew they would be safe from the law.
They always were—Trey made sure of it. But this time, she knew they’d be in deep trouble with him because they’d left behind all their loot—and he was expecting her to pay up.
All except a stupid brooch and a few measly coins.
June was still trying to piece together a plan: something that would satisfy Trey and get them off the hook. But she knew from experience that it wouldn’t be easy. Especially not without anything to show for our theft.
Ada sat cross-legged beside her, examining her scraped knuckles, while Etta huddled next to edge of the wagon, staring down at the passing ground.
They were each quiet for a long time, lost in their own individual thoughts. It wasn’t until Ada let out a sharp breath that the silence finally broke. “We didn’t get enough,” she said bluntly. “We got out,” June reminded her. “That’s enough for now.”
Ada shook her head. “Not for Trey, it’s not. You know what he’ll say. We can’t show up empty-handed.”
June’s stomach twisted. She’s right. Trey would expect them to come back with something. One brooch wasn’t going to cut it.
“We’ll figure it out,” she said, more firmly now. “We always do.”
Ada smirked, but there was no humor in it. “Yeah? And what happens when we don’t? You think Trey’s gonna pat us on the head and say ‘Better luck next time?’ We’ll be lucky if he doesn’t throw us out on the street. Or worse—”
“Stop,” June demanded abruptly, tilting her head toward the front of the wagon, where their driver was sitting, oblivious.
“Then I guess we’d better get started.” Despite the moving wagon, Ada pushed herself to her feet, brushing off her dress.
“What do you mean?” June asked, her brow furrowing.
Ada gestured around and muttered quietly, “You think this wagon isn’t full of stuff we could use or take back? Food, clothes, tools, jewelry—we’ll just take what we need. We used to do this all the time, even before the false cleaning business.”
June hesitated for a moment. “Ada…”
“We don’t have a choice,” Ada said, cutting her off.
“You know that as well as I do. If we go back with nothing, we’re as good as dead.
Once this train arrives, we’ll be in San Antonio, and we can count our lucky stars and catch a ride back to Galveston with money in hand.
We may get enough for him…” she added hopefully.
“It’ll never be enough,” Etta remarked, just loud enough for June to hear.
There was a pang in her heart. As much as she wanted to believe Ada, she knew Etta was right.
At this point, nothing they could steal would be good enough to make up for a botched job.
And she knew all too well how Trey handled failure.
***
The wagon train lurched to a stop in the open plains, sending a cloud of dust swirling overhead.
June glanced around nervously. There’s nothing out here.
Why are we stopping? She listened carefully for gunshots or other signs of conflict…
but as far as she could tell, there weren’t any bandits threatening the train, either.
For some reason, that seemed almost worse. Whatever had made the train stop, it couldn’t be good. Her hand tightened instinctively on Etta’s wrist, almost protectively, her thumb brushing against the rough wool of Etta’s sleeve.
She glanced over her shoulder and her heart sank in dismay as she spotted a bulky figure on horseback riding back from the front. He was a large, husky man, and as he drew closer, she saw that he had a large handlebar mustache.
By the way he was scanning each of the wagons, he was looking for someone.
Someone in particular.
Then his gaze landed on June, her head poking up above the side of the wagon, and her heart went right into her feet.
“You,” he barked, pointing a finger at her as he urged his horse alongside the wagon. “Out.”
June straightened her back and raised her chin as defiantly as she could.
Beside her, Ada was sitting down again, frozen, her fists clenched in her lap, tugging at the loose blue fabric of her dress.
Etta looked down at the floor of the wagon, guilt flooding through her face.
It was clear as day that she was practically melting into her seat, her pale face barely visible beneath the brim of her bonnet.
The marshal dismounted and came to stand beside their wagon. His boots thudded heavily against the dirt, and he folded his arms across his chest.
“Sir, I’m not sure what you mean,” June replied almost haughtily. Her voice was steady, feigning offense, but her pulse was hammering traitorously in her ears. She was anxious—in fact, she felt just as guilty as Etta looked—but there was no way she would ever show it. “We’ve done nothing wrong.”
The marshal snorted and his face scrunched in anger, flushing red.
“Don’t play dumb, girl. You think I was born yesterday?
Passengers’ bags don’t empty themselves.
This ain’t the first time I’ve seen this.
I’ve found more than one group of women pulling this stunt across the West. I can spot thieves a mile away. ”
June opened her mouth to protest, but Ada beat her to it, her voice sharp and bitter. “If you’re accusing us of stealing, then prove it. Otherwise, leave us be.”
But even she looked anxious. The marshal’s instincts were dead on.
The three of them usually stole from the rich.
It didn’t matter whether their victims were the rich people whose houses they cleaned, or the wife of some wealthy man on a train on his way to establish his fortune somewhere further out West. Perhaps the marshal had even caught wind of some of their previous crimes in other towns—he might never have pinned them so easily otherwise.
But June wasn’t going to be the one to fess up. And she knew her friends well. Neither of them were going to admit to anything, either.
The marshal’s lip curled into a sneer. “Prove it? I don’t need to prove anything. I’ve got witnesses.”
June’s stomach dropped. Witnesses were bad.