Once Upon a Mail Order Bride - Linda Broday Page 0,26
a narrow leather strip, hesitated for a moment before pointing his rifle at the ground. The other rough-looking cowboy followed suit.
To show good faith, Ridge returned his pistol to his holster, although he eyed the pair’s every move. “I don’t begrudge anyone water. Who’s the boy?”
“Prisoner. Taking him to Mobeetie for trial,” snapped the second trespasser. He spat a stream of tobacco juice on the kid, drops beading on his unkempt beard, and laughed when the boy cowered. The coltish kid had a gag in his mouth, and his dull eyes wore a look of defeat.
The tobacco-chewer cut his sharp eyes to Ridge. “Nosey people are apt to get shot.”
The man’s long-haired friend moved closer, squinting at Ridge. “I think I know you, mister.”
“I doubt that,” Ridge answered evenly. He stole a quick look to check if Addie had kept her distance, relieved to find she had.
Long Hair slid his hand into an inside vest pocket and yanked out several crumpled wanted posters. He handed them to his partner. “Hiram, look through there for this fellow. I know I saw that face.”
Ridge measured his opponents. Two against one wasn’t bad odds, but definitely raised the stakes. He could take down one, no problem. He wasn’t sure about the second. “Look, get your water and go about your business and we’ll all leave here alive.”
Just then Hiram froze in mid-chew, clutching Ridge’s wanted poster. He jerked his rifle up. “Ridge damned Steele. Drop your weapon!”
Ridge went for his Colt, but Hiram’s bullet tore through the fleshy part of his upper arm before he could draw. Dammit! Pain burst inside him and ricocheted through his body. He ignored what he could, jerked out his Colt, and took aim at Long Hair.
A look of surprise froze on the man’s face as he collapsed in the dirt, clutching his bloody chest.
A flurry of sudden shots came from behind Ridge. He turned to see Addie riding toward him, firing wildly. He assumed she was aiming at the second bounty hunter, but it was impossible to tell. The bounty hunters’ horses skittered nervously at the sudden burst of noise.
At the moment, he had no time to worry about that. He bent low and swiveled, turning his weapon on the man who’d shot him. Orange fire leaped from Hiram’s rifle as he fired at Ridge again.
The projectile missed by a hair. Ridge returned fire and caught the bounty hunter in the upper thigh. The man ran to his horse and leaped into the saddle. Teetering over, hanging half off, he raced away in a cloud of dust. Hell! Ridge emptied his Colt at the fleeing man without stopping him.
Ridge bent over Long Hair and found him already dead.
The boy had thrown himself flat on the ground when the shooting started and sat up slowly. Ridge cut his ropes and took the gag from his mouth. “You all right, son?”
“Need water.” The kid was scrawny and looked to be all legs. If he ever grew into them, he’d be a man to reckon with. His straight, sandy hair hadn’t seen a comb in a month of Sundays, and his face was bruised, his lip bloody.
“Sure.” Ridge removed his hat and filled it from the creek, then brought it back. The boy took long gulps.
A shadow appeared on the ground behind him. Ridge jerked around to find Addie, the Colt at her side. Concern filled her green eyes.
“Addie, I told you to ride when shooting started. And what was the deal with you firing that weapon? You shot everywhere but at the damn bounty hunter.” Lashing out was the wrong thing to do, but his drumming heart hadn’t yet settled. Blood still surged through his veins like a runaway train.
Anger tightened the delicate lines of her face. She sidestepped his reach and touched his blood-soaked shirt.
Ridge forced a calmer tone into his voice. “I’m all right. It’s not bad.”
Her temper showed in the way she jerked up her dress, tore a strip from her petticoat, then went to the creek to wet it. She wrapped it around his arm. Though her dander was still up, it didn’t reflect in her gentle touch. He’d not felt the like since he was a boy.
In the loud silence, he met her stony glare with one of his own. After a moment, he spoke. “Appreciate the caring, but next time I tell you to ride when there’s trouble,