My Desperado Read Online Free PDF Page B

hightail it, I'll make them damn rumors come true and haunt you for eternity."
    Her mouth fell open as she realized the implication of his words. Not only was he expecting trouble, he was expecting big trouble. "But I can't ride," she whispered.
    "You can't ride?" He glowered into her face. "Then what the hell are you doing in this kind of country?"
    Tears formed without warning and she sniffed. "I inherited—"
    "Don't!" He changed his mind about hearing her explanation and held a hard palm toward her. "Don't tell me. Just remember. Ten minutes. If I'm not out—head east." He stepped back. "And..." His voice dropped a notch. 'Take care of old Soldier."
    Panic tasted bitter. "You'll be back."
    His ribs ached. "Promise me."
    She hesitated wondering which way was east then nodded.
    He was gone in a moment, swallowed by the darkness.
    Within the quiet copse, the horse nibbled at nearby leaves as Katherine fidgeted. Five minutes passed, then ten. Katherine tightened her grip on the reins, glancing at the big animal. Ryland would be back. She was sure of it. What could happen? He was innocent of George's death.
    She waited as ten more minutes dragged by. Her heart cramped within her chest. A long gun lay nestled in its leather case near the back of Ryland's saddle. How far could that gun shoot? Which way was east? And if she called for help, who would come? Daisy had said Silver Ridge had lost its sheriff.
    A clatter of hooves sounded. Katherine spun about in her leafy enclosure but could see nothing through the foliage.
    "Mr. Grey!" The words split the night as running footsteps thundered toward the house. "Mr. Grey! George's been killed. Stabbed—clean through the heart."
     

Chapter 4
    Travis's first conscious thought was that his hands were tied behind him. He was laying facedown on a hard, cool surface, and when he tried to move, his skull protested with loud clanking throbs that sent pain echoing through his entire being.
    He lifted his head, nevertheless, and the pain increased. He closed his eyes to the ache and found the room was no darker with them shut, which had to mean there was no window nearby.
    Pieces of memory floated through his mind like milkweed seeds in the wind, with none of them settling long enough for him to grasp a firm hold. Rolling over slowly and pushing himself to a sitting position, Travis tried to concentrate.
    The woman! Her shadowed face appeared to him through a haze of pain and darkness. The girl with the soiled dove's voice and the lady's speech. He'd kissed her. Where was he? Facts filtered back quickly now, slamming into his stunned brain with painful impatience.
    He'd entered Grey's house, had spoken hardly a word—then darkness. His revolvers were gone. He must have been dragged into this room. How long had he been unconscious? Had the woman fled? Had she taken Soldier? She didn't seem like the kind to take orders well. What if she had stayed? How was she connected to Patterson's death? Why was he tied?
    Questions crowded in, increasing the ache in his head, but the only answers he could imagine were horrid and immobilizing. So he shoved the thoughts from his mind and rose unsteadily to his feet. The room swam. His ribs ached.
    Turning carefully, he searched for a way to escape. Off to his right there was a faint line of light that seemed to outline the bottom of a door. He stumbled toward it trying to be quiet, but the sounds of his own footsteps seemed to clatter loudly in his ears.
    Reaching the portal, he leaned against it for a moment, listening. Travis could hear voices, but couldn't discern the words or guess who spoke them.
    Perhaps he should just wait. For a moment weakness overtook him, and his knees buckled, threatening to spill him to the floor.
    But he willed his legs to hold him steady. Whoever had trussed him up like a Thanksgiving goose was not planning a pleasant Sunday social, and he needed to escape immediately. Clumsily turning his back to the door, he tested the