Chapter 23

Carter and the others returned to camp. He wanted to hit something. They’d found no sign of Mr. Briggs or his kidnappers. They’d fanned out in pairs, which had disappointed Carter. He’d wanted to be paired with Ellie but knew Wilbur would make sure she stayed safe. They’d returned to camp with nothing to show for the day’s search, but now their attention was focused on getting supper and turning in.

One of them looked at Carter as he pulled his saddle off his horse. “Have you seen Wilbur? Or Grant?”

Dismounting, Carter looked around at the riders filing back into camp. Not only did he not see those men, there was no sign of Ellie.

He fought the concern clawing at him. The campfire was still burning, and everything they’d unpacked was still there on the ground, but Ellie was ... gone.

Calm down, man. You know Ellie. She probably trekked out a little farther to see if she could find her father. He clenched his jaw. That woman was going to be the death of him. She’d probably separated from Wilbur and got herself lost. Well, he should just leave her to wander around. When was she going to learn?

Of course, with all she’d gone through, it was no wonder she felt she had to do something. At least he’d left her his rifl—

Hang on.His rifle was still leaning against the tree by the small mounting stump he’d set up for Ellie that morning. She hadn’t even bothered to take it with her! What was she thinking? Her willfulness and stubborn streak were going to get her killed if she wasn’t careful.

“I ain’t seen nobody but you fellas.” Shorty, a young fella who’d proven himself a solid rider, piped up. “Where’s that gal that was here earlier?”

Good question. Carter shook his head.

“Maybe she’s with Wilbur and Grant.”

Carter seriously doubted it, but said nothing. He couldn’t just leave her out there by herself. He prepared to mount his horse again. “I’ll go look for them.”

Shorty angled him a look. “You want help?”

“No. You fellas deserve a rest. Ellie’s my problem.” He climbed into the saddle. “I’ll find her.”

Just then, Wilbur came into the camp. He was more than a little bit excited. “I lost track of you guys and ended up on the river south of here. I found a place ... a cabin. I think it’s our place. It’s not very big and right on the river. I slipped up close to the window and heard a man talking about waiting to hear from Mr. Hill. There was at least one person with him. Maybe two. I couldn’t see in so I can’t say for sure, but it seems promising.”

“Are you sure you can lead us back there?” another of the posse members asked.

“Pretty sure. It’s not all that far away.”

Great. Carter shook his head. Should he go with Wilbur and the others, or go find Ellie? “Where’s Ellie?” Panic started to bubble in his chest. “Did you see her after you left camp?”

Wilbur shook his head. “No. We got separated early. I thought she was behind me, but when I looked, suddenly, she was gone.”

Carter let out a groan and swiped a hand down his face. That woman was going to be the end of him.

Shorty looked from Wilbur to Carter. “What about Grant Wallace?”

Again, Wilbur shook his head. “I didn’t see nobody. Like I said, I got lost. But I think we ought to go right away and check out that cabin.”

Blast! He wanted to find Ellie first and make sure she was safe, but she’d never forgive him if something happened to her father because he’d gone looking for her. Besides, the men in the posse needed him to fulfill his obligations.

Please, God, guide her back to safety.

The others mounted up, and when everyone was ready, one of them called out, “Show us the way, Wilbur.”

Carter urged his horse forward. Why had Ellie gone out on her own? She knew it wasn’t saf—

For a moment, his breath left his body. What if...

What if she didn’t go off on her own? What if she’d been discovered and taken by the men who’d taken her father?

He spurred his horse into action. “Let’s go, Wilbur! Now!”

“Are we lost?” Ellie looked around them.

Grant didn’t seem all that concerned. “No, I left the others up by the river. We’ll be there in just a few minutes.”

“Did you see my father? Is he all right?”

“I didn’t get a chance to see him, but the fellas were sure this was the right place to come.”

Just then a light appeared in a clearing directly in front of them. Ellie strained against the darkness to see what was up ahead. “Is that a cabin?”

“It is. That’s the place where I left the others.”

She felt her heart pick up its pace. Please God, let Father be all right. Don’t let him be dead.

“We need to be careful so we don’t get shot.” Grant stopped his mount. “Climb down, and we’ll lead the horses the rest of the way.”

What? That didn’t make any sense. “Why would we get shot? They know you came back for me, don’t they? If Carter told you to get me, surely the others expect us to show up.”

Even so, Ellie climbed down from her horse, since Grant had dismounted and reached out to take hold of her gelding.

“They won’t know it’s us, necessarily. They could think some of the men who took your pa were coming back to the cabin.”

She hadn’t thought about that. She fell into step beside Grant. “Do you think Carter and the other men have already gone in and taken control?”

“Could be. If they saw an opportunity, I’m sure they’d try it. Come on, we’ll get a little closer, and I’ll tie the horses off.”

They walked about twenty feet, and Grant found a small tree and tied the horses to it. “Come on.” He took hold of Ellie’s arm.

Ellie pulled away. “I don’t need help.”

“I don’t want to risk you falling and letting out another scream. You nearly split the sky with the last one.”

She smiled. “I didn’t mean to scare everyone.”

They were nearly upon the cabin. “Hey, Alvin, it’s me, Grant.”

Alvin? She didn’t recall anyone on the posse with that name. The door opened. Her eyes widened. Grant’s brother! The angry one from the store. Tremors crawled up her spine. What was going on?

Alvin seemed just as surprised as Ellie. “What’s going on, Grant? Why are you here? Did you get word from James Hill?”

Grant pushed his way inside, Ellie in tow. “No, I joined the posse that’s looking for you so I could get to you first. You know you don’t have Louis Hill, right?”

Ellie looked from Grant to the other man, trying to follow the rapid-fire conversation. Where was Carter? The rest of the tracking group?

“He keeps telling me he’s not Hill. I thought he was lying to fool us.”

Ellie looked around the cabin and saw a man tied to a chair. No, not just a man ...

“Father!” She yanked her arm free from Grant’s grip and rushed to his side. “Are you all right? Why haven’t they cut you loose yet?”

Her father moaned. “Oh, Ellie, how did they capture you too?”

Capture her? There was a bandage on the side of his head. Perhaps the blow he’d sustained had left him confused.

Enough!Father needed to lie down. She went to work on the ropes, but Grant came and took hold of her, pulling her away.

She spun on him. “What is happening here? My father is injured. Why are you stopping me?”

Grant’s gaze hardened. “Because you’re our prisoner now.”

Prisoner? Had they all gone mad?

“Why did you bring her here?” Alvin sounded, and looked, furious.

Grant shook his head and pulled Ellie to a chair. “Sit there and be quiet.” He grabbed a piece of rope hanging on the wall and came back to her chair. He wrapped it around her midsection and the chair.

“No! What are you doing?” Ellie grabbed at the offending rope and tried to slip out of it—

And saw stars.

Someone had struck her! In the face!

“No! Leave her alone!” Father’s weakened voice came to her as she tried to blink away the stars. When her vision cleared, Alvin stood in front of her, ready to strike her again.

Grant grabbed his arm and shoved him away. “There’s no need for that.” His words to his brother were low and ominous. He turned to Ellie, and his eyes locked onto hers. “Is there?”

She swallowed hard and managed a small shake of her head, which sent it pounding. She put a hand to her aching face. “Why are you doing this?” She fought against the ropes tightening around her wrists, flailing her legs, rocking the chair from side to side. “Let me go!”

“Alvin, grab her legs!” Grant glared at his brother. “But don’t hurt her.”

The bulky man caught her ankles in his strong grip and pushed until her legs met those of the chair.

Grant secured her to the chair and stepped back to face his brother. “I came by this way earlier and saw you out getting wood. Without a mask.” He looked at Father. “So your prisoner knows what you look like.”

Alvin stiffened. “So what?”

“I brought the woman here for a little more insurance. As soon as the posse knows she’s been taken, they won’t be so inclined to come shooting their way in.”

Grant’s brother eyed her, then turned away. “The posse will never find us.”

“Of course they will!”

The desperation in Grant’s voice sent a chill through her. Desperate men did awful things.

“Alvin, they’re close. We gotta ride. Get clear out of Montana. If we get out of here before that posse arrives, we should be able to get clean away.”

Grant’s brother motioned to her and Father. “But they know our names now.”

God, help us!

Grant grabbed Alvin’s arm. “It doesn’t matter. We can disappear. Plenty of good places to hide, but we don’t have time to argue about it. Look, we’ve got some money and gear. Let’s just ride.”

Alvin’s features darkened. “So who’s the man we took, and who is she?”

Grant waved a hand at them. “He’s nobody! He’s not worth a dime! The only person who would care that we have him is her. She’s his daughter.”

“Where did Hill get off to?” Alvin paced the room. “Maybe we can go there and take him after all.”

“No! Listen to me. Hill left on his private car hours ago. He did exactly as we figured and hired himself a team of guards. We’ll never get close to him again. We need to just give up on this and go. Right now.”

Alvin’s dark gaze came back to Eleanor. “I don’t know. They’re hearing all of this. They’ll tell the marshal what our plan is.”

Grant rubbed a hand through his hair. “We haven’t said anything yet that will give us away.”

“I say we kill them and then go.” Alvin narrowed his eyes as he studied Eleanor’s face.

A shiver jolted up her back. It was as if she were staring into the face of death. Alvin’s cold blue eyes were void of feeling. He seemed completely at ease with the thought of killing. Had he done it before?

“Kill me, but please, spare my Ellie!”

At Father’s pleading words, Grant gritted his teeth.

What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee.... In God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me.

Ellie caught her breath. She’d read those verses from Psalm 56 just a few nights ago. Now they sang through her, calming her racing heart. I will not fear ...

“It’s all right, Father.” Was that her voice? That confident tone? “I’m not afraid. God is with us. I trust Him to protect us.”

And she did. With all her heart.

Grant groaned. “Forget about them, Alvin. I’m telling you we don’t have time. Come on. At least come outside with me in case the posse shows up. We can figure the details out as we go. We can go find the boys and make another plan. They’re probably already back in town, snug in their beds.”

Alvin hesitated—

I trust You, Lord.

—then nodded and turned to Grant. “Let’s get out of here.”

Thank You, Lord! Thank You!

Alvin grabbed his stuff, and he and Grant hurried out the door.

Ellie looked at her father. “Are you all right?”

He managed a shaky smile. “Scared. I have to admit, I’ve never been more scared.”

If only they’d untied her! She needed to find out how bad his injury was. “Are you hurt badly?”

“I don’t think so.” Father shifted in the chair as if testing his body for pain. “Somebody hit me on the side of the head. I was knocked out, and when I woke up, I was tied to this chair.”

She nodded. “They hit Mr. Hill over the head too. They thought they had him when they took you.”

Father shook his head, then grimaced. “Ouch. Not ready to move my head much yet. I figured out their mistake when that fella kept insisting I was Louis.”

Ellie was torn between tears and laughter. “They left a note with Mr. Hill. Apparently, they thought they could force his father’s hand with the railroad and keep the train coming into Kalispell.” Ellie strained against the ropes. Grant had tied them too tight. She wasn’t getting free.

Father closed his eyes, as though keeping them open was painful. “Louis’s father, Mr. Hill, has already invested the money to move the line. He wasn’t going to just stop that work and return here.”

His voice seemed to weaken as he talked. Lord, please help me get free.

A gunshot sounded not far from the cabin, followed by several more. Ellie looked at her father. They weren’t safe yet.

She drew a deep breath. “I need to tell you something. I’ve returned to Jesus, Father. Returned to the faith that Mother taught me when I was young. All those things she used to say came back to me as I started reading the Bible.” Tears blurred her vision. Ellie blinked rapidly so she could see her father’s face as she shared her joy with him. “I wanted to talk to you. I’ve... I’ve turned back to the Lord, Father. I’ve asked Jesus to save me, just like Mother taught me all those years ago. That’s why I wanted to talk to you at the picnic. I want so much for you to not be upset with me.”

Father opened his eyes and smiled. “Upset with you? Of course not. When you said God was with us, that you trust Him, I knew what had happened. And I’m glad.”

He was glad! “Oh, Father ...”

“Sitting here, a prisoner, I admitted I might be facing my death. I didn’t want to do that alone.”

Were those tears in his eyes?

“I prayed, Ellie. For the first time in my life, I really prayed, and I asked God to help me—to save me not only from these men who had taken me, but from my life of ignoring Him.”

The gunfire sounded again. This time closer to the house.

I trust You, God. Whatever happens, I trust You.

“Father, no matter what happens here tonight, we’ll be all right. God truly is watching over us both.”

The door to the cabin flew back, and Ellie screamed—

Carter stood in the doorway.

She’d never been happier to see anyone in her life!

“Ellie, are you okay?”

She met his worried expression and smiled. “I’m better than okay. My Father accepted Jesus. We both belong to God now.”

He’d never heard anything so wonderful as Ellie’s happy words. In two steps he was at her side and cut her loose. She jumped to her feet and threw her arms around him, hugging him like she’d never let go.

His arms closed around her for one delicious moment, then he let go—until he saw the red mark on her face. Heat boiled as he cupped her face. His fingers brushed the small welt rising on her cheek. “They hurt you?”

“That scoundrel Alvin hit her.”

She winced, both at her father’s angry words and at Carter’s touch where she’d been struck. But she placed her hand over his. “I’m fine, Carter. I promise.”

After a moment, he nodded and knelt next to Ellie’s father. But he directed a firm look at Ellie. “Are you sure you’re all right? Why did you leave Wilbur?”

Her face turned red. “I got lost in my thoughts. I wasn’t paying attention to my surroundings, and all of a sudden, he was gone. Please don’t be angry,” she whispered, then darted around him to her father. With deft movements, she examined his head injury. After all she’d been through, her first thought was for her father. Just one more thing to love about this woman.

“Grant found me on the trail and told me you wanted me to join you. I rode out with him only to have him take me captive.”

If ever a man deserved killing ... Carter pushed the dark thought away. “But you aren’t hurt?”

“No, I’m fine.” She moved the cloth they’d wrapped around her father’s head. “At least the wound doesn’t seem to be bleeding.”

Her father reached up to touch her hand. “I’m all right. Don’t either of you worry. I have a headache, but nothing all that bad.”

Carter removed the last of Mr. Briggs’s bonds. The older man rubbed his wrists where the rope had irritated the skin.

“Mr. Briggs, how many men were here?”

Ellie’s father shook his head. “All I saw was the one called Alvin.”

Ellie nodded. “Grant and Alvin are brothers.” She looked back at Carter. “There wasn’t anybody else here.”

Ellie’s father stretched his legs in front of him. “But the one called Alvin talked about ‘the boys.’ Apparently, part of their gang headed west of town to throw off the trackers.”

Carter helped Mr. Briggs stand. He wasn’t exactly steady. “Do you think you can walk to the horses?”

“I believe so.”

Carter held on to him as they walked.

Ellie supported her father on the other side but glanced at Carter. “Where are Grant and his brother?”

He hated to tell her, but he had no choice. “Dead. They saw us and started shooting. We returned fire. They didn’t survive. Come on. Let me take you both home.”

“You guys all right in there?” Wilbur was at the door, then came in to take hold of Mr. Briggs. “Let me help him.”

Carter moved next to Ellie and put his arm around her shoulders.

Wilbur looked over his shoulder at them—and grinned at the sight of Carter holding on to Ellie.

She pulled away. “We’re fine. God was watching over us.”

Carter motioned to Wilbur. “I think it would be best if you get Ellie to her horse, and I’ll help Mr. Briggs.” Miracle of miracles, Ellie didn’t protest. She just moved ahead of Wilbur and out of the cabin.

Good. Carter looked at Mr. Briggs and smiled. “I wonder if I can ask you something important? I realize it might seem like poor timing, but given the events of the night, I want to say this before anything else happens.”

Mr. Briggs’s smile was broad. He patted Carter’s arm. “You want to marry my daughter, don’t you?”