Coal Black (Book 5)

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Full Circle Revenge

When Martin Cooper arrived in Redwood, he pulled his hat down low and wearing an old duster with a pack made him look like an evening traveler. He turned down the alley on the backside of the blacksmith shop and walked his horse past the abandoned building beside Victoria's shop before he dismounted.

He was going to burn the place down with Victoria in it. Cooper set to work building fires at the corner of the building behind the outhouse. Using the wood from the woodshed, he built one at the back door and carried more wood to lie against the wooden structure.

The last fire he built was under the stairs leading to the apartment. The door opened, and Hannah ran down the steps to the outhouse. Cooper froze in the shadows and the thought raced through his mind; she is going to see me when she opens the door.

When the door closed, he bolted down the alley to the street. He didn't know which way to go. He couldn't be seen. Cooper crossed through the porch and then ran to the end of the shop to the back door. After he caught his breath, he looked around and listened for the evening sounds. His hands were shaking when he lit his cigar. Cooper used the same match to light the kindling.

His plan was to start the fire and ride out. After lighting the corner of the building, he went to his horse to get the lantern to use the oil on the steps. His rifle was gone.

"Shit! I left it by the staircase," muttered Cooper.

He carried the lantern, crept down the alley to find his rifle. He stopped to listen for noise. One more fire and he could leave. When he ducked under the staircase, he located it on the ground where he had been crouching. He unscrew the cap on the lantern, and Cooper heard a door open.

* * *

Ever since the news of the escaped prisoners reached Redwood, the entire town had been unnerved. Victoria had been a nervous wreck at the thought of Cooper returning to Redwood. The wedding was on Saturday, and she couldn't shake the awful thought that he would find a way to ruin her wedding.

She was filled with dread at the thought of him. Victoria made Thomas teach her how to escape when a man grabs a woman. He didn't take her seriously until she told him flat out how it felt to be helpless when Wayne Stinson tried to rape her. Then Thomas understood it was in her best interest to build her confidence and skills to defend herself.

During the week, Victoria and Hannah had ridden out to the dump and practiced with their pistols and their derringers. Target shooting gave them both confidences. It was the nights that worried Victoria the most. On Sunday night, Victoria carried her pistol with her in her pocket of her robe, but it felt awkward when she went to the outhouse. The next two nights, she carried her derringer with her. Thomas liked when she waited to go to the outhouse until he returned from his nightly rounds of the town.

But Victoria had drank too much tea this evening, and she needed to use the outhouse. She opened the door and ran down the steps to the outhouse. Moments later, when she stepped out of the enclosure, a hand went over her mouth.

"Hello, Victoria."

She recognized the voice: Cooper. He smelled atrocious and was swearing a shabby duster. Victoria felt a surge of anger rise in her spine. With a swift movement, she smashed her boot heel into his instep. He yelped in pain and tightened his grip on her.

"You whore. Listen to me. We are going to get rid of you, your mother, and this damn building. You hear me?"

Then Cooper drug Victoria over to the steps and threw his cigar on the kindling with the lamp oil. The fire ignited in a poof of flames. He held her close and moved under the staircase, closer to the fire.