Hell's Belle by Shannah Biondine Page A

churned around town now,
he'd end up sorry again.
    Jordy knew Del
wanted the Bell girl. Damn, but he itched and burned and craved for no reason
at all. He'd been up late last night, half stiff, still thinking the should
have kissed her. Yeah, he wanted her and he'd tried to hide that fact, but
Jordy had seen anyhow.
    Goddamned Jordan.
    Why'd he have to go
and save Del's miserable life? So he could own it ever afterward? So he could
run it, like one of those costumed clowns at the county fair, dangling puppets
on a string? Maybe so he could make something of it, unlike his own.
    "Goddamn you,
Jordy."
    Del slowed as he
reached the outskirts of the town itself and the two-story Bell & Son
Emporium loomed up ahead. He'd spent a good hour calculating about money,
rehearsing in his mind how to approach the elder Bell, how he'd handle
negotiations…and now every bit of what he'd planned seemed pointless.
    He was dying of
snakebite, and the only thing he feared more than death itself was the cure.
    Fletcher Bell was
on the porch, handing several wrapped parcels to a fellow loading his buckboard
when Del rode up and tossed Caramel's reins over the hitching post of the
store.
    "Ah, so you've
come back."
    Del didn't bother
reminding the man he'd given his word, even underscored it just the day before
with his niece. He slid out of the saddle and onto the planking. "Stopped
by early yesterday. Found out you'd gone out of town. Did your niece give you
my message?"
    The older man waved
as the driver headed off, then turned back to Del. "My niece and I do not
converse. If you have information of any importance related to my enterprise, you'd
best impart that directly to me or my son. You don't see mention of her on our
business name, do you? There's good reason for that."
    Well, he'd
certainly opened himself up for what Del planned to "impart" on him.
    "All
right," Del said amiably as he could. "Where do you want to have this
little set-to? I've got a couple of things to say and we need to review your
facts and figures."
    The man stared at
Del as if just now discovering this wasn't another pup he could order around
like his worthless son. "Upstairs, shall we? That way it won't interfere
with Lucius seeing to customers." They stepped inside the store and
Fletcher waved to his son. "Lucius, you're on the counter. Twila, look
sharp in case he needs assistance."
    Del followed to a
staircase partially hidden near the back storeroom, and could have sworn he
heard the older man grumbling under his breath as they took the stairs to his
living quarters. He waved toward a small kitchen table. Del kicked a wooden
chair around and plopped down, not even bothering with the courtesy of removing
his cowboy hat. He wouldn't be staying long.
    "First of all,
I gave you my word I'd pay for your damages. I assume you've got a total
prepared."
    "Oh,
yes." The man reached inside his coat and withdrew a small book. He consulted
it, flipping a couple pages, and looked back at Del, naming a figure that was
frankly lower than Del anticipated.
    Del nodded.
"Sounds equitable. Here." He reached inside his vest for his money
pouch and peeled off a number of bills. "By the way, I don't believe I
caught your given name in all the uproar the other day." It wasn't true,
but Del was mending fences here. "Mine's Delancy, but folks mostly call me
Del. Would help if I knew your first name, so people don't think I've confused
you with your son."
    "His name's
Lucius. I'm Fletcher," the fellow replied, counting out the money Del had
just given him. "I appreciate your prompt remuneration."
    The way he'd said
that made Del want to pop him one right on the end of his pointed nose. Del had
met his share of sore losers, but this pompous ass excelled as a sore winner.
    "Now, another
thing." Del cleared his throat and glanced around the modest living
quarters. "When I got back from selling my stock, I heard a pretty bizarre
recounting of why I owed you that money. And since then, I've