Chapter 25

25

Maeve jerked her head up as high as she could raise it, considering she was draped over a saddle.

Dakota knew these men? What was going on?

They charged through a narrow pass dividing two hills. She'd heard the man riding with her call it a draw . She'd never heard the word used in that way before. The draw was so narrow, there was only room enough to ride single file.

Dakota took the lead, followed by the man who'd waited for them behind the store. Dakota had asked if he was Ezra's son, and the man said "grandson." His name was Raul. Which meant the man who had her was Ezra. And Dakota knew them somehow. From what she'd overheard, someone had died, kin of theirs, and they blamed Dakota for shooting him dead.

Dakota had told her he had men hunting him. These men apparently. And hunting him only—they had nothing to do with Ginny and her husband.

Maeve was torn between relief and wanting to scream. How many evil men were there? Why did they all seem to be after people she knew and loved?

Dakota had said she should know what followed him so she'd know to stay away from him, and she wouldn't want him paying her any personal attention.

Well, the man had certainly been right about that.

The draw opened into a rugged upward slope that was much wider but had no visible trail. Ezra and Raul pressed on regardless, dodging boulders as they climbed. The horses were growing tired from the treacherous ride, especially the poor animal she was riding double on.

Maeve spoke quietly, not wanting to stir up Ezra more than he already was. "Why do you want to harm us? What has Dakota done that has made you so angry?"

"He killed my grandson."

Maeve gasped. "That's terrible. Why didn't you get the sheriff to go after him instead of you doing it?"

"The law ain't gonna protect my kin. I plan to do it myself."

"The law won't help you? Have you talked to them?"

She felt a hard rap on her head. Not enough to knock her out, but it hurt plenty.

"Shut yer mouth. Yer man's gonna die. Then we'll prob'ly set you on foot, let you find yer own way home. We needed to get outta town so we could settle our feud without any witnesses around."

Maeve considered that, deciding right then that any further questions would be unwise. She herself was a witness. No one had seen these men grab her and Dakota and run. No one except her. She very much doubted they would go and kill a man in cold blood right before her eyes, then allow her to live.

That rap on the head had served to clear away her panic and her anger at Dakota. She felt an almost deadly calm wrap around her until she was able to think clearly.

She had to get away. Either that or overpower these two men. That wasn't likely to happen since they were both bigger and stronger than she was, and armed. Which meant she'd need to catch them off guard, by surprise. She had to outthink them. And since Dakota's life was in jeopardy, she had to take him with her.

Or did she? Would they put aside killing Dakota if she somehow got free?

One thing they didn't know was that Maeve had a gun with her. Beth had done her best to arm everyone. Because Maeve didn't carry a reticule with her, Beth had bought her a small handgun and holster in Cheyenne which could be strapped around the ankle. Beth then demanded that Maeve show her the gun, a five-shot derringer, every morning and prove to her it was loaded.

Of course, Maeve couldn't get to the derringer. Yet if she picked the right spot, threw herself off the horse, dodged behind some boulders or trees, and didn't die in her desperate attempt to get free, would they still kill Dakota? Or would they try to recapture her first?

It might be enough of a distraction that Dakota could get away, too.

She braced herself to take any chance she was given, no matter if it was reckless and dangerous and could maybe get her killed. But doing nothing was even worse.

She thought of her ma with a twinge of pain in her heart. She'd like to see her again. Maeve dying would hurt Ma terribly.

Well, she'd apologize to Ma and Bruce if she ever saw them again, but for now she paid attention to what was going on around her. The man who'd kidnapped her. The landscape around them. She had to get out of this mess.

With a sigh, she thought of something her ma used to say: "A woman's work is never done."

"I want to talk to Thaddeus," Ginny said.

The deputy, sitting in a chair with his feet up, lurched to an upright position, then leapt to his feet while clawing for his gun.

"Don't shoot." Nell stepped between Ginny and the deputy, with her gun quickly tucked out of sight.

Beth shoved her gun into her pocket only a second or two after Nell. "Mama, put your gun away. We're sorry, Deputy. We didn't mean to come in like we'd planned for a shootout. But we are, as you'd suspect, on edge."

The deputy, looking very nervous, finally relaxed and blew out a pent-up breath.

"Are Mr. Rutledge and Mr. Sykes well secured?" Mr. Etherton asked.

The deputy nodded. "They are, sir. Locked up tight."

"You understand that my client, Mrs. Rutledge, feels she's in danger as long as her husband is in town."

"They're right here in jail, so she's not in any danger. Their lawyer has tried to get them free, and Mr. Rutledge has been allowed to attend the trial, but under guard. He will not be allowed to walk free, not as long as the charge of attempted kidnapping of his wife, and the assault on his wife and Miss O'Toole, are outstanding."

"And where is Dr. Horecroft?" Beth doubted the man would spend his time hanging around this jailhouse.

"He isn't under arrest. He followed us back to the jailhouse, spoke quietly with Mr. Rutledge for a couple of minutes, and left."

"My husband, please?" Ginny asserted herself again, though not with her gun out this time.

The deputy looked to the judge, then the lawyer, then Ginny. He shrugged. "It's all right with me. Promise you'll stay well back from the bars, ma'am. The sheriff said Mr. Rutledge grabbed Mrs. Jones through the bars the last time you were here, so he can't be trusted."

"We think he had a hand in the kidnapping of the two people who are missing, the people your sheriff is chasing after, along with the men who came into town with us. I'm hoping my husband will tell us something that will help find them."

The deputy looked at the judge again.

"We promise to stay out of grabbing distance," Judge Nolte reassured him. She then turned to Ginny. "Won't we, Mrs. Rutledge?"

Ginny managed a small smile at the stern tone. "Yes. I've no interest in letting that awful man get his hands on me, not ever again."

A reminder to the deputy that Thaddeus Rutledge had grabbed her and tried to run off with her.

"Michaela?" The judge turned to her daughter, who'd come into the jailhouse with them, carrying her little brother.

"Yes, Ma?"

"Will you stay here and keep the little ones occupied? I'm sorry I've been making you watch Buck all the time. I hope to look around Cheyenne once this mess is sorted out. I heard there's a man in town who came to study how Clint cooks and has a fine restaurant here."

Michaela grinned. "I'd as soon watch a pack of children as see the inside of a jail. But I'm planning on being a schoolteacher in a few years, so I could use the practice managing children."

Once Beth and Ginny had handed over Beth's children, the deputy led the way to the door that shut the cells away from the rest of the jailhouse.

Thundering hooves from behind snapped Jake's head around. The sheriff was catching up just as they rode into the narrow gap between two rugged hills.

Seb said, "Pull up. We can ride in together."

Sheriff Peters and his two companions caught up. "Are you sure they went in this way?" Peters asked.

"We tracked them here, Sheriff." Kat turned her horse to face them.

"We have to keep moving. Lots going on in town, but we've no time to discuss it now. Let me go first. It's a treacherous business following armed men with bad intent into a rugged stretch. It's my job to face such danger, not yours. The men with me are U.S. Marshals."

Brand said to one of the Marshals, "I recognize you. You were involved in the troubles with the Deadeye Gang in Pine Valley. I'm Brand Nolte. My wife is justice of the peace in Pine Valley."

"Morgan Sawyer. I remember you and your wife." From horseback the Marshal studied the ground and said, "Three horses. The same ones we've been after since we picked up the trail. I'll go first, Sheriff, if you don't mind."

Jake knew he had competent men with him, and yet the itch to rush ahead nagged him something terrible. He was very much afraid they had no time for caution.