Shotgun Bride Read Online Free PDF Page B

chest and stared, unable to suck air into her lungs, as feathers eerily drifted down over the bed and the curtains, caught halfway out the window, flapped against the sill.
    A loud commotion sounded outside her door. Still shaking, she pushed herself off the floor and brushed the hair from her face. A violent shudder hit her body. If she hadn’t gotten up, she’d be dead. Her parents must be watching out for her, because something had woken her.
    She wanted out of Dodge City, now. She grabbed up the chair and wedged it under the doorknob. Next, she lowered the window and unable to climb back into the bed, huddled in a corner. Several terrifying questions rolled like a steam engine through her. Who and why did someone want her dead? Or were they after the cowboy down the hall? Was he somehow involved?
    Someone banged on her door. “You all right in there?”
    No, she wasn’t, but there was no way she was going to open that door. “I’m fine.”
    In a cabin, well off the beaten path, Tobias Hawkins sat on the porch, drinking a glass of whiskey. He smiled at the sound of approaching horses. Tossing back the last drop, he set the glass down and rubbed his hands. Miss Kathleen Barnes must be dead, and the deed to her land would soon be in his possession. Three of his men rode up to the porch, dismounted, and gave him a wary look.
    “Give me the papers.” Tobias stood and stretched out his hand.
    One of the men stepped closer and spread his hands out wide. “She didn’t have them with her.”
    “What?” He grabbed a handful of the man’s shirt and jerked him close. “Where are they?”
    “Take it easy, boss,” the other man said. “I searched her bag. No papers. Harv stopped her in the hall to give me more time. I swear to you, they weren’t there.”
    Hawkins shoved the man back. “She better be dead.”
    “I didn’t have a chance.”
    Hawkins threw the empty glass against the wall.
    “Hang on. Harv went back,” the man said.
    Swiveling his gaze to Harv, Hawkins pinned him with a stare. “Well?”
    “She’s dead, I promise,” Harv answered.
    Stabbing a finger in the other man’s chest, he said, “You, get yourself to New York and find out if she left the documents there. Harv, you snoop around and find out if she met with anyone here. I want those papers.”
    Hawkins reached for a refill, realized his glass was shattered and cursed. Bottle in hand, he kicked the chair and stormed off to his horse. He had a wedding to attend, as soon as Baca returned. The delay chafed, but his recalcitrant daughter had decided to change her mind, forcing him to send a telegram instructing Baca to guard some worthless trunks of her clothes. She wouldn’t disobey him again.

Chapter 4
    The next morning dawned gray and overcast with a threat of rain in the air. The perfect match to Kathleen’s somber mood as she struggled for answers. The impending thunderstorm would slow the stagecoach down if the clouds burst open. And she wanted speed. Wanted to put last night’s scare far behind her.
    A fresh shiver nicked her. She snatched up her bag and headed out, not allowing herself to look back at the shredded pillow or the shiny cartridges scattered under the bed.
    She stomped off toward the stagecoach station in the dim, muggy morning. The smell of rain teased her senses while little dust devils danced up and down the rutted street. Signs creaked on rusty hinges and her footsteps echoed loudly off the wooden planks. Roosters crowed, heralding the dawn even though the sun, buried beneath the thick layer of dark ominous clouds, hardly lightened the sky. Sweat plastered stray hairs to her scalp and trickled down her brow.
    Bag gripped tight in her hand, she glanced nervously around the deserted street. A sudden gust of wind whipped her skirt around her ankles and cooled her heated skin. A low rumble of thunder reverberated against the wooden buildings while lightning ripped through the sky, filling the air with electricity and