Vengeance Trail by Bill Brooks Page B

desire
     or his interest in the chalky-skinned woman who stood practically naked on the balcony.
    “Alright! You go on an get it over with, Lowell. But, I’m givin’ you just thirty minutes to get your business taken care of.
     I’ll go and see if they sell anything in this town besides
playsure
; things we
need
, like beans and flour and coffee. Come tomorrow morning, you’ll be damned glad one of us kept our attention to the matters
     at hand!”
    “Fine, Carter, you go and take care of that stuff, I’ll be waitin’ when you get back.” Lowell hardly noticed or cared where
     his brother rode off to.
    He walked his horse over to a black iron hitch post shaped in the form of a horse’s head, dismounted and tied up.
    An ornate wrought-iron gate gave entrance to a cobblestone courtyard that he figured would allow him access to the building
     itself.
    The courtyard contained a small pond that had gold fish in it and a stone cherub holding a pitcher from which water poured.
     Also in the courtyardwere trees with moss hanging from their branches; the smell of dampness hung in the air.
    Lowell found a set of stairs, some weak with rot, leading up the side of the building where the woman was. He was careful
     in climbing.
    She was waiting for him, standing there in the doorway.
    As he drew near, he could smell the sweet scent of lilac, could see the perspiration of her skin, the blackness of her hair.
    She had large dark eyes that tracked his movements.
    “So, you have come to see Danielle, eh, come to taste her charms.” Her speech was strange, exotic, haunting.
    “If that’s you, darlin’, then you’re what I come here for.”
    “Come in, chere,” she offered, stepping aside to allow him to enter.
    He removed his hat and knocked some of the dust from his clothes before sidling past her.
    His heartbeat increased.
    The room was large and open. He could see where the shuttered doors opened unto the balcony. White limp curtains hung from
     the open windows. A brass bed was shoved against one wall, an armoire against another; a steamer trunk with worn leather straps
     sat at the foot of the bed.
    The room was silent and warm. Pewter sunlight filtered through the open windows and fell across the bare board floor.
    She reached for him, reached for the buttons of his shirt.
    “Come, lay on the bed, chere,” she whispered. Hefound himself becoming lost within her beauty, within the sweetness of her kisses. Time itself became lost.
    “Lowell!” He heard his name being called from a distance.
    “Lowell!”
    He realized that he had dozed, had been lulled by the warmth of the room. He shook off his drowsiness and moved to the balcony
     forgetting for the moment that he was naked.
    “Goddamn it, Lowell! Put your clothes on and let’s go!”
    Carter shifted restlessly in his saddle directly below him, a large grain sack of supplies tied to his saddle horn, his countenance
     grim.
    “You don’t get down here this minute, boy, I’ll leave you here—I damn well mean it!”
    It seemed like no time at all had passed since he first climbed the stairs. He turned, looked sheep-ishly at the woman sitting
     on the bed. She smoked a black cheroot. He thought to himself that he could stay here with her forever.
    “Sorry, Danielle…that’s Carter down there…I promised I’d be but half an hour…”
    She gave him a wan smile but showed no particular interest.
    He sat on the side of the bed, dressing as best he could, wanting to hurry, wanting not to.
    He had only known one other woman in a carnal way—a neighbor’s daughter back in Autauga County. But, the girl had been fat
     and homely and buck-toothed and hadn’t known dip about pleasing a man. Lowell figured that the neighbor girl didn’t count.
    “Me and Carter’s got business to take care of, got to go to Texas. But I’m thinking that as soon as it’s over with, I’d like
     to sorta come back this way…” He fell silent, hopeful that she would be happy over