Chapter 17

CHAPTER 17

J onah crossed to her in two long strides, pulling her into his arms. ""Are you all right? Are you hurt?"

"I'm okay." She looked past him. "Your brother."

He spun to where Sampson still lay curled on the ground.

Patsy strode forward and dropped to her knees by his side. "Can I see it?" She pulled Sampson's wrist forward to get a better view of the gash across his lower arm.

The mass of blood made Jonah's middle churn, and he forced his gaze away to gather his wits. They needed to get Dinah and her doctoring skills.

But first, he should check the man lying motionless, the one who'd done all this damage and likely a great deal more. Make sure he would never again lift his hand to hurt someone Jonah loved. And where were the others he'd seen riding away before he discovered his cabin ablaze?

Jonah crouched and flipped his body over, the lifeless eyes telling him all he needed to know. But he felt for a pulse in his neck anyway.

Nothing.

He turned to help Patsy, his mind catching up with all that had happened, though the throbbing in his nose made it hard to focus. Eric had broken his nose a year before, and Jonah recalled too well the difficulty of recovering from this particular injury. He swiped blood dripping from his jaw, the least of his worries, as he crouched beside Patsy. "What can I do?"

Should he send Patsy to get Dinah? He couldn't let her go by herself though, not with the possibility of dangerous men still lurking in these woods. They would have to bandage Sampson as well as they could, then take him back to the house.

Patsy had already tied a strip of green cloth around Sampson's bicep. The fabric dug in, nearly disappearing in the crease of his shirt, but the flow of blood had slowed. Patsy wrapped a second strip of fabric around the gash to act as a bandage. "I'm not sure if this is right, but I'm trying to stop the bleeding. We need to get him back to the house."

She sounded worried, though she was doing everything she knew to do.

He touched Sampson's shoulder. "Can you sit a horse? We've got to get you back to Dinah."

His brother's skin was so white that it practically glowed in the moonlight. His eyes were squeezed shut, but he gave a small nod. "Yeah." The word came out like a grunt.

Jonah straightened and looked around to get his bearings. They'd left their horses tied not far away, and the animals should still be there. Sampson could ride double with him.

He pushed to his feet, but the distant sounds of hooves through the forest stopped him up short.

He spun to find a gun. These riders might be his brothers—but they might not.

A rifle lay near the spot where Patsy had almost died. He scooped it up and strode forward to wait where he could see through the trees. With the rifle stock tucked in his shoulder, he kept every sense alert. A quick glance back showed Patsy had picked up her rifle again and was coming to join him.

"It might be my brothers." He spoke just loudly enough for her to hear.

He'd like to tell her to hide behind a tree until he knew they were safe, but she'd proved she could hold her own as well as he could. He wouldn't try to force her into the shadows so he could play the hero. All he could do was pray God kept her safe.

Please, Lord.

The noises grew louder, and finally two riders emerged from the shadows.

Jericho. And Miles.

Jonah lowered his gun as he let out a long breath. "Over here. Hurry."

He and Patsy moved back into the clearing as his brothers reined in. Jericho took in the scene, his focus stalling on Sampson's curled body. "What happened?" He leaped to the ground and strode toward their little brother, even as his gaze locked on Jonah.

"It's a knife wound. He's lost a lot of blood, but Patsy tied off the arm. We need to get him back." Facing Miles, Jonah motioned toward the tied horses. "Go get our mounts. They're tied just out of sight." That way he could quickly bring Jericho up to speed.

Jericho knelt beside Sampson, his demeanor turning almost tender as he rested a hand on his shoulder. "How you doin', Sam?"

He managed a pained smile. "Fine."

The two had nearly come to blows an hour ago, but surely Sampson could feel the unconditional love in Jericho's greeting. They were a family, no matter what mistakes they each made.

Jericho ran a hand over Sampson's hair as his gaze roamed the injured arm. "Dinah will be tickled to have someone to doctor."

His gaze lifted to take in Patsy. She was disheveled, but she looked…strong. With a nod to the dead man, Jericho said, "He hurt you?"

She shook her head. "I'm all right." Her voice rasped, probably from that monster choking her.

Jericho surely heard it, but he only frowned at Patsy, then rose. He turned and stared down at the body for a long moment, his jaw hard. "Who is he?"

Before Jonah could answer, Sampson spoke. "Douglas." His voice sounded tight and strained. "He joined on with…those men…after I…met them."

Jonah stared at his brother. Maybe this man was connected to the others, but maybe his presence here at the same time as the sapphire thieves was coincidence. "Actually, Patsy and I first saw him in Missoula Mills. He was cheating at the card table and tried to start trouble. Then he attacked Patsy on our way here. He ran off when he realized he was outnumbered. He might have come for revenge."

But had he stolen sapphires too? And burned down the cabin?

Where were the other men Jonah had seen earlier?

Miles led the two horses into camp.

"Let's get you home and patched up," Jericho said. "We'll figure out the rest later."

Together, Jericho, Miles, and Jonah hoisted Sampson onto Jericho's horse so he could hold him steady for the ride back.

Jude and Gil arrived, summoned by the gunshots.

Gil had managed to catch Patsy's horse, though not another that'd been running alongside it—Douglas's, if that actually was the man's name.

The brothers draped his body over Sampson's mare, and at last they were ready.

Jericho took charge, as always. "Miles and Gil, ride ahead and let Dinah know we're coming."

The two disappeared into the night, and the rest of them started at a slower pace. Every grunt of pain from Sampson made Jonah's gut clench with worry. Hang on, little brother. We'll get you help.

A glance at Patsy on her own mount showed her face paler than usual. Yet her expression still held that strength she always possessed. She would struggle in the coming days with the fact that she'd killed a man. Everyone did. Taking a life was no small matter, even in self-defense. But Jonah would be by her side through whatever they had to face.

And his cabin. Exhaustion weighed his chest again as the image slipped in of that blackened smoking skeleton. He would rebuild. He wouldn't let this loss take him down. But maybe…maybe he and Patsy could plan the new version together. If she'd have him.

He'd wait to ask until she was ready. But he wasn't letting her go again. Every part of him knew this was the woman God had created for him. His perfect match. A blessing he'd given up hope of ever receiving.

But God had a much better plan than Jonah had ever imagined.

T he morning light filtered through the curtains behind Sampson's bed, casting shadows on Jonah's brother's face as he lay propped up against pillows, his arm wrapped in bandages. Though still pale, a hint of color had returned to Sampson's face after a night's sleep.

He'd stayed in Patsy's room—the spare bed chamber in the main house. Patsy had moved up to the loft with Lillian so Dinah could have ready access to Sampson throughout the night.

Now, the rest of Jonah's brothers gathered around the bed to talk through all that'd happened the night before. What a nightmare it had all been, but at least they'd lived through it, which was more than could be said for Douglas. They'd searched around the camp and found no other clues, though it appeared several men had camped there.

Jericho cleared his throat. "We need to figure out who took the strawberries and what our next move is."

Jonah nearly rolled his eyes at the code word they used for the sapphires. Everyone here knew what they mined, even Patsy after last night. But this was a habit Dat had insisted on so they wouldn't slip up and name the gems around strangers.

Jonah perched on the bed. "Tell us about the man—Douglas. You're certain it was him?"

Sampson nodded. "I took another look after we got here last night. I'm sure." His voice sounded strained, like even talking used up a lot of his strength. "He joined up with the others a couple days after you left Missoula Mills."

"He must have gone straight back to Missoula after he attacked Patsy by the creek."

"You mentioned that last night." Jericho turned to Jonah. "Tell me exactly what happened there."

Jonah did, starting with the ruckus the man made in the card room and ending with him fleeing into the woods after Jonah and Patsy fought him in the water. If only Jonah had given chase then, not let the man escape to do worse damage later.

How was Patsy coping today with the shock of it all? She'd been so pale last night. Brave like always, but he'd seen her fear too. If only he could wrap her in his arms now, somehow shield her from the aftermath of what had been done to her and what she'd been forced to do to save them all.

She'd still been sleeping when he came up the hill from the bunkhouse, but maybe she'd be awake when they finished this meeting.

Jericho turned back to Sampson. "And you met Douglas when?"

Sampson took a slow breath and blew it out. "I spent a day teaching the fellows to sluice mine like I'd told Jonah I was doing. Douglas joined us the second day. I thought he looked familiar, but I didn't realize he was the man who caused trouble in the saloon." He shot a look at Jonah. "I wasn't paying enough attention. I should've known."

Jonah dropped a hand on his shoulder. "It's all right."

By Sampson's expression, he didn't agree, but he continued. "Anyway, as we were working, the other two mentioned they were learning to sluice mine so they could get on with an outfit owned by a man named Mick, that he was paying fifty percent of earnings to anyone who worked with him. He supposedly had this amazing place where he was mining for high quality gemstones and raking in the profits."

Sampson's brow furrowed. "I asked to meet him. After I'd worked with those fellows for a few days, they took me on to a town name Canvas Creek, where Mick had a house. We found him in a cafe. They introduced me, and he invited us to join him for the meal."

He shook his head. "I just listened to the others talking to him and could tell the man knew the business and had connections with retailers in the east, just the way our usual buyer in New York does. It was clear during the meal that the fellows I was teaching were itching to get on with this Mick, and by the way the folks in town treated him, like he was the mayor or some sort of boss… I'd say the guy has power.

"When we were finished, I walked with him to the telegraph office so I could talk to him alone. I asked if he ever purchased gems locally in bulk, things like sapphires or rubies. He said absolutely and that he hoped one day to be the largest exporter of precious stones."

Sampson's gaze drifted to the bureau in the corner, though his mind seemed far away, as if he saw the memory play out. "I asked what price he would pay per crate for high grade sapphires. He quoted a price just shy of what we got last year. I figured, working with him, we wouldn't have to pay for transportation all the way to New York. I figured to come back and talk to you about it, Jericho. I'd agreed to meet the man again in two months' time."

Jericho's jaw tightened. "And then he sent his men to follow you home and take the sapphires without paying for them."

Gil spoke up. "Or maybe this Mick didn't do anything, and those other men you taught to sluice mine came up here on their own." He raised his brows as he waited for Sampson to comment.

Sampson squinted and paused a moment before answering. "I don't think so. I got the feeling none of those men moved without Mick giving the order to."

A heavy silence filled the room.

Jonah's stomach churned with a mixture of anger and dread. How could they possibly go up against a man with that much power and resources?

Jericho finally spoke, his voice low and determined. "Do you have any idea who the men were who came? How many would have come?"

Sampson looked almost as weary as he had last night. "That pocket watch belonged to Thompson, one of the men eating with Mick when I first met him. I think he might be a foreman or something in the operation."

Jericho turned to the rest of the brothers. "Several of us need to go to Canvas Creek, to find this man Mick."

"No." Sampson's single word was loud and vehement. "He has a lot of men and a lot of power. There's no way five or six of us could get the upper hand. Even if we found a lawman and got him involved… I don't think we're getting the sapphires back."

Jericho scowled, his lips pressed closed.

The tension in the room was thick and heavy while the rest of the brothers waited to hear what the oldest would say.

"We'll think and pray about it, then meet again tonight. Probably several of us will go scope the situation out, but let's pray before making a decision."

As they began to disperse, Jonah left the room with a restless energy thrumming through him. As concerned as he was about the mine and the sapphires—more importantly, the men who had burned his cabin down—he was more concerned about Patsy.

He had to see her.