The old grill that covered the little window came away without much force and soon Paul was heading back toward the Coverington landing, one eye on the lookout for any gunrunners sent out as night guards and the other for any sign of the missing Barkley family and the ‘Party One’.

His search took him along the riverbank between the Barkley and Coverington landings. He was about two miles from the Coverington landing when floating in the river he saw a sight that made his blood ran cold.

Floating face down and holding onto a piece of wood with words ‘Party One’ was….

“HEATH!”

“Come on Heath Breath.” Paul encouraged “ Get that river water out of those lungs.” He was kneeling by Heaths side. Heath was lying on his stomach as Paul pushed on his back, trying desperately to get whatever river water Heath had breathed in up and out of his lungs.

The silence of the riverbank was broken as Heath hacked and coughed up the water that had invaded his lungs and had nearly killed him. For Paul it was a welcome sound.

“Better?” He asked as he propped Heath up against a near by tree once he’d finished coughing.

“Yeah.” Heath whispered. “You okay?’

“Yeah thanks to Susannah Coverington, one brave lady.”

“A quality both she and Ed shared.”

“Still do, Heath Ed’s still alive. They’re both locked in the basement of the Coverington house at the moment.” Paul’s joyous mood turned sombre as he asked “The others Heath. Heather, Nick, Jarrod Audra, Victoria and Margaret what happened?”

“Long and complicated story.” Heath said as he sat himself up a little higher.

ON THE ‘PARTY ONE’ AFTER RUSHMORE AND PARTY HAD LEFT.

“Heath? Heath come on wake-up.” He heard Nicks voice calling.

Slowly lifting his head he looked around and found himself in one the crew cabins below decks.

“You ok boy?” Nick asked.

“Yeah.” He’d replied as he shock his head to clear the last of the cobwebs. “You?”

“Headachy but other wise ok.”

Beyond Nick he could see the still form of Jarrod.

“Jarrod!”

“He’s still alive” Nick had reassured him. “Not yet awake, but alive.”

By now he was sitting up and looking around him. Besides Nick and Jarrod the room was also occupied by Capt Simms, the engineer and the bloody body of the engineers mate.

“He was working with them.” Nick said neutrally “They paid him in kind.”

“Mother? Heather? Audra? Margaret?”

“Locked in the galley upstairs. Safe I think.”

“And Paul?”

“Gone, they must’ve taken him.”

“How long?”

“Ten maybe fifteen minutes.”

“We’re drifting.” Simms put in. “They left us here and set us adrift.”

“Think you recovered enough to help me try and shift this door.”

Together he and Nick managed, after some resistance, to force the door open. By then Jarrod too was on his feet.

“Do what you can to get us going Captain.” Nick had ordered, automatically taking charge. “We’ll free our mother and sisters and join you.”

After giving a quick nod and with his engineer beside him Simms had headed toward the boiler plant, while he Nick and Jarrod had gone forward to the galley.

“That was when all hell broke loose.” Heath said returning to the present. “Unknown to us others had slipped quietly on board while we were freeing the ladies and guiding them to seats. As you can imagine they were pretty shaken all of them.”

Paul nodded. Even his spitfire fiancée would’ve been just a little shaken after that.

“There was a shot. Sounded like it came from below in the engineering spaces. Before Nick, Jarrod or I could even think about moving or responding to the threat we were overpowered again.”

“By who?” Paul had now gone beyond fear to downright dread. “ Rushmore again?”

“Nope. This lot were shanghi merchants, slavers if you like.”

“This far up river?”

“Yeah.” Heath replied bitterly.

“So how’d you end up in the river unconscious and clutching a piece of floating debris?”

“At some point during the struggle that started after they busted through the dining room door, one of them and I ended up on the observation deck he took a swing at me with something, can’t remember what, and we both ended up in the river. I remember the explosion, seeing the boat go up, and a smaller faster boat pull away just before the ‘Party One’ went up.”

“What about Simms, the engineer and Silas?”

“The engineer is dead. Silas I don’t know.”

“And Simms?”

“Simms?” Heath snorted. “Simms was behind it all.”

“Squirm all you like Barkley.” Albert Simms, shanghi merchant and one time riverboat captain jeered. “Unlike those fools that call themselves gunrunners my boys know how to tie knots so that they stayed tied.

Simms, Jarrod, Nick and two of Simms companions were all crowded in a small cabin below decks of the little steamboat.

Simms stood before Nick and Jarrod who were tied up and sitting on the hard wooden floor.

“And” He continued looking directly at Nick. “Just in case you decide to pull any fancy moves these two will be staying with you. The captain of the fine sailing ship you are both destined for doesn’t mind if he receives his crew in less then perfect condition. So don’t provoke my boys.”

“You’ll never get away with this Simms.” Nick growled and strained against the ropes that bound his wrists.

“But that’s the beauty of it Barkley I will. By morning all the good folk of Stockton will find floating down the river will be a few scorched planks maybe bearing the name ‘Party One’ and nothing else. Everybody will assume you all were either killed in the explosion or drowned with thrown into the freezing water. Your bodies never to be recovered. All except for that blonde brother of yours shame he went over the side. But his dead body will only strengthen the belief of the town’s folk. The fourth one of you I may yet get my hands on, though I’m not sure just what kind of shape he’ll be in. The price the four of you would’ve fetched would have seen me through all my remaining years on this earth.”

“What about our Mother? Our Sisters and my Wife?” Jarrod shot at him.

“Ahh. The ladies.” Simms purred, “Yes, damn pretty those three younger ones. They’ll fetch a good price for me in the brothel district. The bidding will be fast and furious once my friends see what I have for them this time. As for the older one, she’s not what my friends want. And after what she’s seen I can’t really let her go now can I?

“SIMMS!” Nick began to struggle against his bonds and earned a whack across the face for his troubles. “You’ll pay for this.”

“And just what do you have in mind Barkley?” Simms laughed in Nicks face. “Empty threat Barkley, empty threat.”

Still laughing he turned and left the room. Leaving Nick and Jarrod with two massive guards standing between them and freedom.

In what could loosely be called the Captains Stateroom the Barkley women were also trying to think up a way out of their current predicament.

“Ladies.” Simms’s voice sounded from the doorway. “I’ve come to tell you your fate.”

“And just what would that be?” Victoria asked from the front of the group.

“You three.” He pointed to Audra, Heather and Margaret. “Are going to make me rich. You on the other hand Mrs Barkley are useless to me.”

“And where are my sons?”

“Down below contemplating their new careers as sailors.” Simms gloated. “ The master of the ship they are destined for is as we speak waiting for us in the harbour.”

“What have you got in mind for us?” Heather asked.

“You three will be starting new careers as workers in one of the brothels on the docks. Three of the leading brothel owners are also waiting to see what cargo I’ll be bring back from my little trip in land.”

He turned to the men who’d accompanied him.

“I’m going to see about getting the guns we need. You know what you have to do.” He paused as the others acknowledged the instructions. “ And remember what I said about damaging the goods..” With that he turned on his heels and left.

Heather gave Margaret, who was standing next to her a sideways glance. Margaret caught the look and nodded back. As one the two girls moved quickly and took up positions in front of Victoria, blocking any chance of a shot reaching the Barkley matriarch.

A tense stand off then developed. Orders conflicted with each other. “Take care of the older woman”. Vs “Don’t damage the goods.”

In trying to make a grab for Victoria, the larger, heavier one of the pair found himself on the receiving end of a series of slaps from Heather. Not that they did much damage but the bite she inflicted did.

“Grab her.” He yelled to the other one.

“But the boss said…” He protested, fearing Simms wrath.

“He’s not here now, but I AM. NOW GRAB HER. NO WOMAN DOES THAT TO ME AND GETS AWAY WITH IT.” He was still wringing his hand. Heathers teeth had done some considerable damage. “BRING HER HERE.”

“But.”

“DO IT.” When his companion didn’t move. “ GET OUT OF MY WAY.” He brushed he second man aside and grabbed Heathers waist. “NO WOMAN DOES THAT TO ME AND GOES UNPUNISHED.”

Try, as they might neither Victoria, Audra nor Margaret could free Heather form his grasp. All they could do was watch in horror as the larger man opened the door and dragged Heather through it and down the corridor outside.

Through the creak left open they could hear the sound of skin hitting skin and then it came. The long terrifying scream of “ NOOOOOOOOO!”

“Now you really start to scream. No woman does that to Charlie Smith, no woman.”

Standing there ogling the partial disrobed Heather lust glinted in his cruel eyes. A spirited beauty and all woman. With a violent shove he sent her sprawling onto the rough cot that served as the bed.

“Get off me you creep.” Heather continued to try and distract Charlie. He was so much bigger than she was and could really hurt her badly if he put half a mind to it. She knew what he was going to try and do. He meant to rape her.

As he was about to commence the awful deed the door flew open and Simms appeared with a loaded rifle in his hands.

“I SAID NO TOUCHING THE MERCHANDISE.” He yelled as he fired the gun.

“But she.” That was as far as his protest went. Blood poured out of the chest wound. Charlie slumped against the nearest wall.

“Put her back in with the rest of the women.” He turned the gun on Charlie’s mate. “Unless you want what he got. And find her something to wear.”

Relieved that Charlie had been stopped and that he’d gotten away without punishment Charlies mate grabbed Heather and pushed her back toward the room from where she’d been taken.

Relief was the emotion felt in the stateroom when the door opened and Heather was rudely shoved in

“Sweetheart are you all right?” Victoria gathered her daughter in her arms. “We heard you scream and then the shoots.”

“I’m all right, the shoots weren’t fired near me.” Heather said putting on a brave face while the pirate was still in the room. Her pride refused to allow her to cry in his presence.

Once the door was locked again she broke down

“Oh mother.” She sobbed on Victoria’s shoulder

“Now the truth. Are you really all right?”

“Yes.”

“Did that brute try to…?”

“Yes… he wanted to rape me,… he was almost did.” Heather replied through her sobs “Simms shot him before..”

Victoria nodded, her daughter had almost been subject to the worst possible thing that could happen to a woman. Her daughter had come through unscathed, and now all Victoria wanted her to do now was rest and try to forget. Heather was made of fairly strong stuff, her birth and upbringing had seen to that and now that strength would help her get past this, that and the love of her family.

Meantime down in the hold both Nick and Jarrod had heard the scream faintly and then the shot. Both had, on instinct, tried to rise and fight their way out of the room they’d been locked in. They had both recognized the voice and both were despite to escape and help their younger sister. The end result was that both of them had landed on flat on their backs. With their hands tied behind their backs they were both fairly powerless against the two guards Simms had left with them.

Yet oddly enough the struggle had left them in a much better position then they had previously been in. Nick to his surprise hand landed close to a section of the wall from which protruded a small jagged metal bar. It had missed his back by the merest inch and had ended up near his tied wrists, slowly as not to be detected he began the long process of cutting his bindings. Happy and Cheerful, the nicknames he’d mentally given to the two guards, watched on oblivious to what he was doing.

“Down.” Paul warned Heath as footsteps approached their position.

Both crouched down and out of sight as Captain Simms of the doomed ship ‘Party One’ passed their location and headed in the general direction of the Coverington place.

“Simms is going to be in for one hell of a shock.” Paul observed. “Little does he know he was carrying the goods he’s going to be buying from Rushmore all along.”

“That gives me an idea.” Heath smiled. “We’ll wait here until he passes again and then”

“Just a little more.” Nick thought to himself as he felt the pressure on his wrists easing.

“Two or three minutes.” As the ropes became slacker his temper and the speed at which he was rubbing the ropes back and forward across the metal grew. There had been no sounds either good or bad from the rooms above them in some little time. He desperately wanted to get free and make sure his mother, sisters and sister-in –law were safe. If like he suspected, those creeps had indeed raped his younger sister then he wanted to give each and every one of them a taste of hell.

Looking across to his brother he gave Jarrod the smallest of winks.

Jarrod, having seen the wink Nick had given him, got ready, Nick was up to something and it was best to be prepared. The worry he felt for his sister was replaced temporarily by anticipation.

A noise from the corridor outside caused Nick to hasten his efforts.

The door burst open as, to the surprise and joy of the two tied Barkley brothers, Heath, the brother they both assumed was lost to the river and Paul, their soon to be brother in law, charged in. Caught by surprise, and with their backs to the door, the two slaver guards were no match for the two younger men and capitulated with out a fight.

“About time.” Nick complained, but the with the widest of grins on his face. "What took you both so long?”

“We’ve been here sooner, but we thought the two of you could’ve handled this lot by yourselves.” Paul joked. “Didn’t expect to find you tied up.”

“It’s good to see you both.” The more controlled Jarrod said as Heath untied him “WE thought we’d lost you both.”

“You can’t keep a good Barkley down.” Nick clapped Heath on the shoulder. “OH and boy that’s the last time I let you fight by the water Do you know how many lives I lost with worry?”

“Didn’t know you cared so much.” Heath joked with more than a hint of mischief in his eyes.

“Nor can you keep a good soon to be Barkley down either.” Nick clapped Paul’s shoulder with his other hand. “How did you escape then?”

“Good luck, good timing and the help of Ed and Susannah Coverington.”

“ED?”

“Both he and Susannah are locked in their basement, they ‘re both still alive, or at least they both were when I left them.” Paul told them as the brothers began the task of securing the slavers “Ed’s badly hurt.”

“Mother Audra Heather and Margaret? “ Heath asked.

“Locked somewhere upstairs we think.” Jarrod looked at brother.

“What?” Paul asked.

“Jarrod what aren’t you telling us?” Heath too sensed the unease in the room and the look in his eldest brothers eyes.

“We think..” Jarrod began unsure as to how to proceed. There was no telling how either Paul or Heath would react when told that the woman closest to both of them had been raped and then possibly killed.

“We think that scum up there raped and then killed Heather.” Nick told them bluntly.

“We’re not really sure.” Jarrod put in quickly “There was a scream followed by a shot. Now before any of you go off half baked we need a plan.” He hoped his words would slow the three hotheaded younger men down. “We’re still a little outnumbered here.”

“Maybe not.”

Paul then went on to describe how he and Heath had managed to take out two more of the slavers when they boarded the boat.

“So we may only be facing Simms and possibly two or three others.”

“And one of them had better the scum who raped our sister.” Nick said with venom in his eyes and voice.

“Get in line.” Paul’s voice was loaded with hatred. “He’s mine.”

Heath, who up until this point had not voiced his rage, turned to them both. Not one sound came out of his mouth and yet both of them could tell just by looking at him that they’d both have to fall in line behind him when it came to dealing out justice to Heather’s attacker. His blue eyes usually so full of life and joy were now cold steel blue, anger and rage chiselled onto his normal open face.

Not even Nick who had worked side by side with Heath for over four years had seen that look on his younger brothers face before. It scared him, and Nick wasn’t one who scared easily

“Ok, we find the women first, get them to safety, take care of Simms and his crew.” Jarrod laid his plan out. “Then head for the Coverington place and take care of Jack Rushmore and his people.”

“Taking this lot out will be a piece of cake compared with Jack and his people.” Paul warned them. “He’s surrounded by ex soldiers, and I’m not talking about raw recruits. These are battle-hardened soldiers. We may well need help with them.”

“Simms first.” Nick growled. “Then we’ll take care of Rushmore.”

“There.” Jarrod pointed. “That must be were they’re holding Mother and the others.” He indicated down the corridor to the guard who was standing watch outside one of the rooms.

“No problem.”

“We must stay calm.” Victoria advised the younger women as they heard the sound of footsteps approaching. “Everything will be all right.”

“How can you be so sure?” Audra asked nervously. “They’re coming to take us and sell us to that. I just know they are.” She started to pace. “Sold so that we can..”

SLAP

The slap across the face she received from Margaret Barkley put a sudden halt to her near hysterical fretting.

“Mothers right.” Margaret said as she held her sister-in-law by the arms. “Panicking will do no good. Audra we need you to have a clear, cool head right now. Heather’s not going to be much help right now. Look at her.”

Looking to wear her older sister was lying on the bed curled in a small ball Audra knew Margaret was right. All the fight and bravado had gone out of her red headed sister, shock had settled in leaving her a shaking, crying mess.

“He may not have actually finished the act.” Margaret continued in angry, hate filled tone. “But I sure he came close. Closer than what she’s admitted. Now do you understand why we need you to be strong?”

Left only to imagine what had happened in that room down the corridor and what the creep had done to her sister. It was all Audra could do to nod.

“Okay, get ready.”

Knowing that this might ending up being their shot at keeping their freedom and their mother alive both of the Barkley women armed themselves with what they could find in the room and took position, Margaret behind the door and Audra on the other side from her sister- in-law.

The door opened, Audra, who had armed herself with a broken chair leg, laid it down at ankle height in order to trip whoever entered the room. While Margaret, with a table leg in her hands, raised it ready to strike.

“OHUMMP” A very familiar sounding voice said as its owner fell over the table leg and flat on his face.

“NICK!” Audra exclaimed as she realized just who it was she’d managed to trip up.

“AUDRA!”

Seeing the trouble that Nick had gotten into as he’d stepped through the door Jarrod was a bit more cautious.

“MARGARET!” He exclaimed as he confronted his table leg wielding wife.”

“JARROD!” Margaret Barkley dropped the weapon she was holding. “Do you know how close I came to braining you?”

“ I know.” He picked up the evil looking table leg.” Honey are you ?”

“”Fine.” She hugged him.

“Mother?” Nick made a beeline for Victoria, with Heath and Paul close behind.

“Nick, Heath, Paul carefully.” Victoria held up a warning hand.

“What did that scum do to her?” Paul looked down on his distressed fiancée and feeling so helpless. He so desperately wanted to pick her up and hold her close.

“We heard her scream then a shot.” Nick’s blood began to boil again. “Did he, they?”

“Heather says not.” Victoria looked down on her shaking, crying daughter. “But something happened. She went into shock almost as soon as she was brought back to us.”

“The shot was Simms taking out the one who did this.” Margaret filled the men in. “And it wasn’t for any gallant reason, he just wanted his merchandise unspoiled.”

Robbed of the chance of taking revenge on the one who had actually hurt their sister, all of the Barkley brother’s eyes turned cold at the mention of Simms name, as did Paul’s.

“Heath?” Nick questioned as his younger brother pushed past him and knelt beside the cot his twin was lying on.

“Shhh” Victoria said.

Reaching out Heath gently touched the shoulder of his twin. Heather turned and looked at her brother. No words passed as the twins continued to look into each other’s eyes. Heads bowed and came together and finally they embraced.

Holding out his hand Heath helped his twin up and lead her to where the rest of the Barkley men were standing. Each in turn embraced her.

Standing beyond Jarrod, Paul watched apprehensively would she be afraid of him? Had this experience damaged their relationship in any way? The thrashing he had in mind for both Simms and Rushmore wouldn’t make up for one quarter of the pain he’d feel, if the actions caused by them robbed him of the woman he truly loved.

Haunted blue/green eyes looked at him for a moment then she was in his arms. She wasn’t afraid of him nor had she rejected him. Fear that he’d hurt her restrained him from holding her too close or tight

“Paul?” The tiniest whisper sounded in his ear.

“Honey, I’m here and will always be. I love you Heatherleah Barkley and don’t you ever forget that.”

Standing next to Margaret, Jarrod let his arm slip around her waist and pulled her to him. Nick, standing next to Audra let his arm fall across her shoulders and squeezed them. Heath, standing next to Victoria did the same. The family was whole again.

Sheriff Fred Madden looked at his over crowded jail and wondered just how he was going to cope. In one night the Barkley’s had delivered more prisoners then he’d normally have in a month.

A very bruised and battered Simms and his river pirate gang occupied one cell. The doctor had been in once already to that crew and would be coming again soon. Madden never did hear exactly which of the Barkley’s or their soon to be brother in law broke all of Simms’s ribs and his jaw and he wasn’t going to ask.

The second cell contained Jack Rushmore and his band of solider/gun runners. He had at least been there soon after the Barkley’s had arrived and was able to help with the freeing of Ed and Susannah Coverington from their basement prison. Ed would recover. The telegram he’s received earlier from Paul Roberts superior officers said that a military prison wagon and a company of soldiers were on their way and would be arriving within eight hours to collect and transport them back to San Fransisco. Rushmore was in, if possible, a worse state then Simms, again Madden didn’t ask and wasn’t told.

He’d just be glad when his jail was clear again and Stockton returned to it’s normal peaceful self.

But then again what was normal with a family like the Barkley’s in the area and their numbers set to increase with a brother-in-law who had the same trouble attracting qualities?