Rugged and Relentless Read Online Free PDF Page B

Cora.
    “Evie?” Cora’s voice sounded weak, but her grip would most likely leave bruises on Evie’s arms as she struggled to sit up—no mean feat for a woman lying prostrate on the floor in a corset. Little wonder she seemed breathless. “You don’t understand.”
    “Ssshhh, dear. Rest a moment.”
    “No!” Cora gave a sudden lurch, eyes glittering with a fierce light. “Don’t you see? Braden’s alive!”
    Seems I’m not the only Thompson sister with a secret penchant formelodrama
. Evie shook her head.
    “No, Cora—you fainted. Things will clear up in a moment.” She motioned to Naomi. “We’ll get you a drink of water.” As she spoke, she maneuvered her sister onto the sofa and propped her against one of the arms, where she’d be less likely to fall.
    “Lacey!” Cora all but shoved Evie away in a bid for the other woman’s attention. “Tell her!”
    “She’s right.” Naomi’s voice whispered in her ear, her closest friend putting a hand on her shoulder as though to brace her for news that would turn their world upside down yet again. “Perhaps you’d best sit down.”
    Call her silly, but one glance at Cora’s wild-eyed expression made Evie reluctant to hear them out. She shrugged away Naomi’s hand, using the scant moment it took to reach the ottoman and pull it toward the tea table to seek peace.
    Lord, my prayers for Your provision never specified what path You’d choose—it wasn’t my place. More than that, it seemed we’d learned that lesson the hard way when all our carefully laid plans for Hope Falls fell apart. But now it’s plain to see my sister and I will be swept into something unbelievable. Grant me the faith and strength to see it through and the heart to do so with good humor!
    She situated herself on the ottoman, pulled one of Cora’s hands into hers, and declared, “All right. Tell me everything.”

    “I don’t know nuthin’.” The man shook his head hard enough to bruise his brains. If, that was, someone assumed the down-on-his-luck gambler possessed any in the first place.
    Jake didn’t assume. Resisting the impulse to get better acquainted with the delectable cook had left him too surly to bother.
The time is long past for me to find Twyler and finish this so I can get back to the things that make life worth living
. “Yes, you do.” Jake intentionally widened his stance, an unspoken threat. “Not much, but you know something about Twyler. Spill it.”
    The barkeep at the saloon where those poker games had been held couldn’t tell him much that afternoon, but he’d pointed the way toward the entrenched gamblers who might remember more. From there, persistent questioning and more rounds of whiskey than Jake bothered to count pointed him to this sad excuse for a man.
    “Nuh-ugh.” A nervous swallow. “He was a mean cuss, but that’s all I know. Bad news, but old news, if you catch my meaning.”
    Seemed Twyler’d been smart enough to cover his tracks, this time. But intimidation wore off in time—and for once, the lag between Jake and his prey might pay off.
    “You shared a room with him—where’d he say he was headed?” He casually pulled back the flap of his duster, revealing the holster sitting on his hip. If intimidation worked, he’d beat Twyler at his own game.
I have to
.
    “Dunno.” A shifty glance from Jake’s gun to the street behind him, where no one wandered after dark. No one to interfere. The grizzled gambler started to wheeze.
    If the man were younger, in better health, or boasted more fight and less fear, Jake’s conscience wouldn’t set up a fracas.
But at this rate, I’ll be no better than the murderer
.
    “Sorry to waste your time.” Jake shifted so his coat closed then took a step back to give him more room to breathe. He eyed the man, unable to give up altogether but unwilling to bully the old fellow.
Wonder if cold, hard cash would wipe away the memory of Twyler’s threats
. He’d just decided to give it a try