Page 38 of Riches Beyond Measure (Golden State Treasure #3)

Twenty-Nine

“Go guard the back door, Rombauer.”

Rombauer, his hulking figure moving with surprising grace, went to keep watch at the kitchen window that was beside the door facing the barn.

Eyeing him through an open doorway, Annie’s heart sped up when Rombauer pulled out his own gun and pointed it at the ceiling as he waited for Cord to return to the house.

She turned to glare at Hardy. “You sure did a good job acting like a university professor.”

“I am a professor.”

“No, you’re a thief and a liar and a would-be murderer. We’ve got folks searching for you all over California—the ports, the train stations, your university.”

“When I stole that dagger, I knew I was changing careers.”

Annie remembered then that she’d tucked it in her reticule before church and had never given it back to Cord. “Why the dagger? We had dozens of artifacts to pick from. Then again, you stole them too, didn’t you, you thief?”

“Yes, I have in my possession a lot of things, all of which are quite valuable. But the dagger was something I couldn’t walk away from.

I’ll use all those trinkets to gain for myself a comfortable life in Spain, which will include a job in their most prestigious museum.

I’ll write scholarly books to serve as textbooks all over the world, and I’ll become famous as a result.

” Hardy paused, then added, “But that dagger was what I most wanted. I had it too ... but then the knife disappeared.”

“Disappeared? What do you mean?” Annie wondered what was happening with Cord. She was straining to catch sight of Rombauer at the back door when Hardy drew her attention back to him.

“I brought it along with me to the archeological site. I threw the rest of the armor away, thinking you’d probably guess the theft to be the prank of some mischievous students.

The other artifacts we found are fascinating, but that dagger was the most valuable by far.

I’ve seen similar pieces in my life, but they’re very rare.

And then when we got to Cornerstone and packed everything into crates, I couldn’t find it. ”

“So you lost it. What makes you think we have it?”

A cruel smile twisted Hardy’s face. “Because I’ve been watching the ranch.

After we boarded the train in Dorada Rio, we got off in Sacramento and hid the crates, then bought fresh horses and rode back.

I searched everywhere, every step of our trip.

No knife anywhere. Then we went back and searched the dig site.

That’s when I saw the ship. Apparently, your family had already stripped the shipwreck of anything of value.

” He shook his head. “I didn’t realize they’d found you and your husband and those fool MacKenzie brothers. ”

“We were all fools—you’re right about that. Not just the MacKenzies, but all of us. Fools for trusting you two.”

Hardy snorted. “True enough. Anyway, I recognized what that dagger was from the first and began plotting how to steal it. Rombauer and I camped out at an overlook near the ranch, waiting for our opportunity. When the earthquake hit, I saw everyone running around in panic and knew that was my chance to go steal it. After I realized we’d lost it, I returned to my lookout post to see if you’d recovered it.

I saw your husband carrying the dagger in a sheath—I recognized the distinctive hilt—and looking like a pirate.

And I spotted him wearing it to church this morning, so we decided to follow you here.

Now, when your husband comes back into the house, I’ll get it back and we’ll be on our way. ”

Annie, her heart pounding with fear, wondered if she should hand over her reticule with the dagger now.

Would Hardy and Rombauer truly just take it and leave?

Or would the two men, who’d been willing to let four people die in an underground cellar, kill them all right that minute without giving it another thought?

“Why?” she asked. “What is it about this dagger? Does it have some historical significance that you didn’t tell us about? Why did you throw the armor and other weapons aside and keep only the knife? What makes the dagger so important?”

Hardy’s eyes flashed. “The dagger has no more historical significance than any of the other artifacts we found, but what it does have is a hollow core in the handle, one that contains diamonds. The end of the hilt twists off if you manipulate it just right. I’d heard rumors that Cortés had a thirst for gold and diamonds especially.

He didn’t just conquer a land; he stripped it of its wealth.

When he sailed back to Spain, he converted the spoils of war into diamonds.

And you can be sure that Cabrillo and others shared Cortés’s lust for wealth. ”

“All right,” said Annie, having heard enough, “we’ll give you the dagger.

We’ll tell the law to call off the search for you.

We’ll let you flee to Spain. Cord and I won’t even tell my family we were robbed.

Just don’t hurt us, please. I promise we’ll let you ride away with the dagger, but don’t hurt me and my family. ”

He took a moment to ponder what she’d proposed. “We’ll need to tie you up in some out-of-the-way room in the house here. We need a decent head start.”

It pained Annie something terrible to think of helping the two thieves get away. She knew they couldn’t be trusted, but what choice did she have? If she allowed herself to be bound, not much would stop Hardy from killing her if that was his original intention.

She heard Cord’s voice as he approached the back of the house. She knew once Cord was inside, within range of their guns, anything could happen. Tragic things.

Rombauer slid back from the door and aimed his gun.

Hardy, distracted, watched through the kitchen doorway.

It was then that Annie slid her hand into her reticule and pulled out the dagger.

She didn’t want to kill anyone, hated the very thought, but she’d need to buy herself time to dash out the front door and scream for Cord to stay away.

She gripped the handle of the knife and, using its weighty, ironhard power, slammed her fist right into Hardy’s ear. He roared, staggered back, and Annie screamed, “Run, Cord! Hardy and Rombauer are in the house!”

Hardy stumbled, careened into the wall, and went down hard.

Scrambling back onto his feet, looking dazed, he turned on her and fired the gun just as Annie threw herself to the floor.

The bullet struck the wall beyond her, sending bits of plaster in all directions.

She quick jumped up and dove through a doorway and out of sight of Hardy.

She heard Cord shouting and Hardy yelling in rage and pain.

Then came more gunfire until Hardy ran out of bullets.

Hearing the gun click on an empty chamber, Annie rushed back to the man and brought the iron butt of the knife down hard on the top of his head.

The blow sent his gun flying one way and her dagger the opposite direction.

The knife crashed into the wall, and she heard a strange pattering sound but had no time to see what had caused it.

Cord charged in and skidded to a stop in front of Rombauer, who was lying motionless on the floor. He leapt over the man and dashed toward Hardy, who lay on the floor, gasping and grunting. His head was bleeding from an ugly gash from when he’d struck the doorframe.

“Help ... I need a doctor,” Hardy groaned.

Cord turned to Annie as she climbed to her feet. “Are you all right?”

“Y-yes,” she managed. “I wasn’t hurt.”

One of the two cowhands rushed into the house then, and Cord shouted behind him, “We’re all right! We’re over here.”

“Hardy was the only one shooting. He must’ve shot Rombauer by accident.” Annie eyed the dagger lying on the floor. The blade had separated from the haft or endpiece of the hilt, and around it lay what looked like tiny bits of broken glass. Diamonds...

“You know, for an educated man, Hardy ain’t all that smart.”

The cowhand approached and said, “His partner’s dead.”

Cord nodded. “Figured as much. Tie Hardy there up good and check him for any hidden weapons. Let’s throw him over a horse and haul him to the doctor in Dorada Rio.”

“Doc MacKenzie at the Two Harts is a better doctor,” the hand said.

“A good reason to take him to town.” Cord gestured toward Rombauer’s body. “We’ll need another horse for him. No need to tie him up, though.”

Cord went and pulled Annie into his arms and held on tight.

“I need to get to a doctor!” Hardy wailed.

Cord turned with her in his arms toward the injured man on the floor. “You’re gonna live, Hardy, but only long enough to face a noose. I don’t see why you’d be in any hurry to get to the gallows.”

Hardy was sprawled on his back as if he’d given up all hope. Annie thought the man might be crying.

She let go of her husband and walked around Hardy, bent down to scoop up the two parts of the dagger, carefully returned the diamonds to the hollow handle of the knife and replaced the endpiece, then slid it back into the sheath and lastly into her reticule.

With that done, she helped Cord and the cowhand get the two outlaws ready for travel.