trail.â
âThank you.â Mama Lou smiled. âMercy, pack your saddlebags. Youâre going with her.â
âWhat!â Belle gasped.
âI canât go.â Mercy didnât think he could stand a hard ride with a woman like Belle. âIâve got too much art to finish here.â
âAnd Iâm not taking a tenderfoot with me,â Belle added.
âYou can and you will.â Mama Lou put her hands on her hips again. âMercyâs getting weaker by the day. The quicker you get him to Diana, the quicker she can heal him.â
âIs she a doctor?â Belle asked.
âSheâs the kind of doctor Mercy needs.â
âWe canât lose him,â Big Jim said. âHeâs our friend. Besides, heâs got too many paintings to finish for the Bend.â
âWhen did Delaware Bend become the art capital of Texas?â Belle asked.
âYouâve missed out on a lot,â Mama Lou said.
âThe Red River Saloon is more famous than ever,â Big Jim explained. âTemperance Tempest marched here with the Texas Society for the Promotion of Temperance. She chopped my bar right through Luluâs belly button. Folks come from far and wide to see it.â
âI came back to repair the bar,â Mercy explained.
âAnd heâs painting a portrait of Temperance Tempest to hang over my bar,â Big Jim added.
âAnd one to put in the Lone Star Hotelâs Temperance Tempest Room,â Mama Lou said. âAnd I want a painting for my café.â
âI guess I did miss out on a lot.â Belle glanced at Mercy. âDid you fix the bar?â
âI did.â Mercy shook his head. âBut that brought on a host of other problems.â
âDang fools!â Big Jim turned toward his saloon. âYou can look at how Mercy fixed the bar while he packs up his art supplies.â
âI donât want to see it,â Belle said.
âIâm not leaving the Bend,â Mercy added.
Mama Lou pointed across the street at Mannyâs Livery Stable. âMercy, stop being ornery. Youâve got no choice and you know it. You need horses.â
Mercy caught Belleâs eye. âSheâs right, as much as I hate to admit it.â
âIâll give it forty-eight hours,â Belle agreed.
âDouble that and youâve got a deal.â Big Jim held out his hand.
Belle shook it. âBut I want everybody to understand that Iâm doing a favor for old friends. I donât know Mercy. If he keeps up with me, okay. If not, he gets left behind.â
Mercy glared at her. âIf Belle makes my life miserable, the next painting you see will be one of her. And itâll be suitable for the finest house on Fort Smithâs Bordello Row.â
Chapter 4
âI âll hear no more of you two sniping at each other. Diana comes first.â Mama Lou dusted her palms together.
âThatâs right.â Big Jim pushed open the batwing doors of the Red River Saloon. âLetâs get Mercy packed up.â
Mama Lou sailed into the saloon with her head held high and Big Jim on her heels.
Belle hesitated. She wanted to help her friends, but they were interfering with her own important plans. Sheâd stopped by the Bend to pick up supplies and say hello. Now she was setting off on an unknown path with a stranger. Yet sheâd only agreed to four days. If she hadnât found Diana or her trail by then, sheâd be free to go her own way.
She glanced at her traveling companion, wondering what she was getting into with him.
Mercy swept an imaginary hat from his head, extended his hand toward the doors, and gave an elegant bow. âPlease precede me, fair damsel.â
She couldnât keep from chuckling at his humor. âYou wonât catch me with that old ruse.â
âRuse?â
âA gentleman opens the door for a lady. As she steps ahead, he puts his six-shooter to