“Shut up.”
The man with Hunter looked toward the window. “Sanders, we need time to get the money and horse. That building could very well disintegrate under your feet.”
“Then you’d better hurry.”
Almost blinded by rage when Sanders smacked Emily in the face, Hunter took deep breaths to keep from charging into the building and killing Sanders with his bare hands.
“Calm, down, Henderson. Don’t react.” McNeil spoke out of the side of his mouth. “The man’s nerves are already stretched. You can see it in his eyes. One false move and that gun will go off.”
So it had been Sanders who’d murdered Louis. They should have guessed. They were so focused on the killer being one of the partnership’s clients who’d been fleeced of their money, they’d skipped right past the man who seemed so nondescript. As a Texas Ranger, he should have learned over the years that it was the unassuming ones who usually got away with it because they were so unnoticeable.
“I gotta get her out of there. That building is unsafe.”
“I know. But first we have to remove Sanders from the picture.” McNeil paused. “I have an idea. Go with me on this.”
McNeil cupped his hands and shouted. “Sanders. Tell us how much you want and I’ll send Hunter to get the money and horse.”
“What?” Hunter swung to face McNeil. “I’m not leaving.”
“Shut up. Follow along.”
Sanders looked down at them, his eyes shifting back and forth. “Two thousand dollars. And a horse. A fast one.”
McNeil spoke softly, barely moving his lips. “I want you to slowly reach behind me and take the gun I have stashed in my belt.”
“Behind you? I thought your gun was tucked under your arm.”
McNeil tossed him a grin. “Never give away all your secrets, Henderson. You should remember your Texas Ranger days. The gun in my belt is your old Walker Colt. You were always the best shot on the team. Go to the building Sanders’ office is in and you’ll be able to pick him off.”
“Are you crazy?” he hissed. “He’s got a gun pressed up against Emily’s head.”
“I’ll do my best to distract him, have him ease up on his hold. But our best chance of hitting him is with you.”
Sweat beaded Hunter’s forehead as he glanced up at Emily. A bruise had already formed on her face where Sanders had hit her. Tears ran down her pale cheeks, whether from fear or pain, he didn’t know. Everything possessive in him reared up and gripped him like a vise.
Memories flooded him of how he had huddled under a desk and watched his father killed before his very eyes. He’d never gotten over the guilt of not doing something to prevent it, even though he’d been a child and had told himself numerous times there hadn’t been anything he could have done. But this time he could, and the murder of someone he loved would not happen again.
McNeil began negotiations with Sanders, discussing how the money should be bagged, what type of horse he wanted, and how much time it would take to do it all. While Sanders was busy with that, Hunter stealthily withdrew the gun from McNeil’s back and slid it into his belt, underneath this jacket.
“Sanders, Henderson’s going to leave now to notify the authorities what your demands are.”
The man wiped the sweat from his forehead with the sleeve of his jacket. “Just make it fast, or me and the girl will be buried in a jumble of bricks and boards.”
Hunter backed away, his eyes never leaving Emily’s until he reached the back door of Sanders’ office building. Once inside, he removed the gun from his belt and checked the chambers. Five shots. He only needed one.
Never had a shot held such high stakes for him. If he missed, Emily was dead. He hurried up the stairs and entered the Smith and Sanders office. He dropped to his knees and crawled to the window, peeking out. McNeil was keeping Sanders engaged, but he still had the gun pressed against Emily’s head. He couldn’t take a chance on shooting unless Sanders lowered the gun.
Resting his weapon on the window sill, he peered through the sight. It felt good to have the weapon in his hand again. He’d brought down many a bad criminal with this gun. A clear shot was possible, but not with Emily jammed up against Sanders the way she was now.
“Come on, McNeil, get him to release her,” Hunter muttered.
Almost as if the Captain had heard his plea, he said something to Sanders, and the man moved away from Emily. Years of training kicked in and within a split second Hunter pulled the trigger of the Walker Colt.
Chapter 25
The sounds of Emily’s screams as Sanders fell backward rang out in the stillness, terrifying him. Had he hit her instead of Sanders? A roar filled his ears as he hopped up from his spot on the floor and watched parts of the building across the way crumble. Emily grabbed onto the window frame while the structure shook and trembled.
Hunter flew from the office, down the stairs and out the back door. McNeil held his arm out and stopped him as he reached his side. “You can’t go in there, Henderson. The building is about to collapse.”
“What the hell happened?”
“When you hit Sanders, he fell backward and the weight of his body crashed through the floor. The whole damn place is about to cave in.”
Hunter laid the gun carefully at his feet and called up to Emily. “Emily. Don’t move.”
She stared down at him, her eyes wide. “I can come down the stairs. Mr. Sanders fell through the floor, but the stairs are still there.”
“No!” Both men shouted at the same time.
They’d begun to attract a crowd. Several people milled around, pointing and offering advice.
“You’ll have to jump. Just ease out of the window, and let yourself go. I’ll catch you.”
“No, I think I can go down the stairs.” She stubbornly hung onto the widow frame. Puffs of dust billowed out from the broken windows on the first floor.
“Emily, honey, listen to me. You cannot come down those stairs. The situation is very precarious.”
“I can’t jump. It’s too high.”
“The entire building is about to break apart. It’s not safe, Emily. You have to jump. Just fall into my arms, that’s all. You know I’ll catch you.”
She closed her eyes and shook her head.
“Emily, trust me to catch you,” Hunter pleaded, his arms outstretched.
Trust me to catch you. Trust me. Trust me.
Trust me to take care of you, Emily, I’m your father.
Trust me little one, Mummy will always be here for you.
Trust me to handle it all for you, Emily. I will soon be your husband.
Could she trust one more time? She knew in her heart that question wasn’t only for the leap of faith she had to take from this window. Now that Hunter would be exonerated from the murder charges, there was no longer anything standing in the way of them being together.
Attempting to steady her nerves, she looked out again, fighting the nausea from glancing down. Hunter stood with his hands up, motioning for her to climb out. There were so many people down there, gawking up at her and pointing. She still hadn’t recovered from the sight of Mr. Sanders flying backward, his blank eyes staring at her as he landed on the floor, the boards immediately giving way under his girth.
She’d screamed as he’d fallen, taking several seconds to process that he’d been shot in the chest by something powerful enough to whip him backward and crash through the boards. At the thunderous noise of the surface collapsing, she’d grabbed the window frame and held on, sure any minute she would fall through the space and join Mr. Sanders.
“Emily. Please, step out on the windowsill and drop. I will catch you.”
Trust. It all came down to trust. If she would trust Hunter with her life, she could surely trust him with her heart. Stiffen
ing her shoulders and taking a deep breath, she sat on the sill and swung her legs over, both hands gripping the window. Her heart beat a rapid cadence. It was such a long way down.
Something in the building shifted, and once more she grabbed ahold of the window frame.
“Emily. Jump. Now!”
If she didn’t do it now, she would probably die. Staring into Hunter’s eyes, she pushed herself away from the building and dropped. Within seconds she landed with a thump into Hunter’s arms, both of them falling backward.
“I can’t believe it. I did it!” Emily’s words were muffled as Hunter kissed her face, her eyes, her mouth, while those around them cheered.
“What the hell is going on here?” The Chief of Police strode up with Jesse right behind him.
Hunter stood and gave Emily his hand to help her up.
“What’s happening here is me presenting you with the real murderer of Mr. Louis Smith.” McNeil thumbed back the brim of his hat as he regarded the Chief. “If you can get into that building without it falling down around your ears, you will find Mr. Sanders in there, dead from a bullet wound—”he pointed at the gun lying at Hunter’s feet”—that Mr. Henderson used to keep Sanders from killing Mrs. Smith.”
The Chief fisted his hands on his hips and shifted a toothpick from one side of his mouth to the other. “I think you ought to start at the beginning, Captain. All I’m hearing is Henderson here shot and killed another of Galveston’s citizens.”
The Captain slapped the Chief on the back. “What do you say we all go to the police station so we can give you our eyewitness accounts?”
“Wait a minute, didn’t you say there was a dead body in the building?”
“Yes, there is, but he will be dead for a while. I suggest you get your coroner to retrieve it and haul it away before that building falls down.”
“That building was condemned last year. No one’s supposed to even be in there.”
“Tell that to the dead guy.” McNeil grinned as he joined Hunter, Jesse and Emily, heading away from the area.
“We need to have a doctor look at that bruise.” Hunter turned her face toward him. “If he wasn’t already dead, I would kill him for doing that.”
“You did,” Jesse said.
“I can’t believe I’m a free man.” Hunter stretched out his long legs and cupped his hands behind his head.
They were all holed up in Jesse’s hotel room, having just returned from the police station. Based on their recount of what had occurred at the offices of Smith and Sanders, and the ensuing chase and shooting, the district attorney dropped the charges against Hunter.
“That leg seems to be a lot better than the doc who saw you in Austin said. You interested in returning to the Rangers?” McNeil leaned forward, his expression questioning.
Hunter hesitated. He loved the Ranger life. Now that he wasn’t driven by finding his father’s killer, he could do a lot of good by corralling all the outlaws and getting them locked up. For a minute it had sounded appealing.
Then his glance slid to Emily who considered him with schooled features. She was his future. Even though he hadn’t yet made it official by proposing to her, that was his next step. He couldn’t imagine a future without her. The Rangers paled in comparison. He wanted what he’d shoved to the back of his mind for years while he’d pursued his father’s killer.
As much as he’d enjoyed sleeping under the stars and being beholden to no one, he was more than ready for a real home, a wife, children, and respectability. How he would earn a living to support this dream had yet to surface. But he was strong, healthy, and a hard worker. With Emily by his side, he could accomplish anything.
“As appealing as your offer sounds, I must refuse.”
Had Emily’s shoulders slumped in relief?
“You could do a lot of good, Henderson. You were always one of the best on our team.”
“Thanks for the offer and compliments, I appreciate it. But I have in mind another type of future.” He smiled at Emily who ducked her head and blushed to the roots of her hair.
“Ah. I see how the wind blows,” McNeil said. He slapped his thighs and stood. “Well, gentlemen—and lady,” he nodded in Emily’s direction, “if I can’t talk this tinhorn into returning with me, I need to be on my way.”
They all stood and Hunter walked him to the door. He stuck his hand out. “Thanks so much for your help, McNeil.”
“You’re welcome.” He opened the door, then stopped and looked at Emily. “Take care of him, ma’am. He’s a good man.”
Once more Emily’s cheeks grew red as Jesse grinned at her.
“We need to get packed up. I want to catch the four-forty train to Oklahoma City.” Jesse moved to the wall where his suitcase stood open.
Then he turned and took in the sight of Hunter and Emily staring at each other. “Um, before I do that,” he headed toward the door, “I think I’ll go on down to the corner store and pick up a newspaper.”
Neither Emily nor Hunter acknowledged Jesse as he left the room.
Once the latch closed, Hunter held his hand out. “Come here.”
Emily didn’t hesitate. She quickly made her way around a chair, and threw herself into his arms.
“God, it feels so good to hold you.” He ran his palms over her body, then pulled back and focused on her face. “Your bruise looks awful. Are you sure you’re all right?”
“A bit of pain, but nothing I haven’t had before.” She flinched, and once more rage swept through Hunter at the thought of how many reasons he had to hate Louis.
He placed his knuckle under her chin and raised her head. “Remember I told you when this mess was cleared up, I had an important question to ask you?”
Emily nodded, her eyes as big as saucers. He assumed she knew the question. Was her look one of refusal? His heart beat double time as he dropped to one knee and gripped her hands in his.
“I love you more than anything in this world. I want to spend the rest of my life taking care of you, building you a home, and giving you children. Will you marry me?” He held his breath as she continued to regard him.
“I’m afraid,” she whispered.
He yanked on her hand and pulled her down alongside him. “What are you afraid of, sweetheart? Surely you don’t think I would harm you in any way?”
“No. That never crossed my mind.” She paused, seeming to search for the right words. “What I’m afraid of is depending on someone again. I’ve been let down too many times by those who were supposed to be caring for me. Once I was free of Louis I swore I would never again allow anyone else to promise that to me.”
He turned her body so she sat snug between his bent knees, her back to his chest. Wrapping his arms around her, he leaned his chin on her shoulder. “I understand.”
Her head whipped around and she regarded him with raised eyebrows. “You do?”
“Yes, honey, I do. I’ve had to do a lot of thinking myself lately. Once I released myself from the guilt of doing nothing while my father was killed, I realized as much as I want to, I can’t always be there to take care of those I love.” He kissed her temple. “So I can understand your fears of having to rely on someone else.”
“What are you saying?”
“When we get back to Guthrie, I’m going to ask Jesse to help me get started in an investigation business. He already has a few clients in need of such services. I’m confident I’ve had enough experience with the bad guys to make a living at it.”
He nuzzled her neck and then eased his mouth over hers in a searing kiss.
“So, what I was thinking,” he continued as if nothing had happened, “I might need someone to go into this venture with me. A partner. You know, take care of the business end of things.” He gazed at the ceiling. “Now if I had a wife who could do tha
t for me, well, then . . .”
Emily turned completely around and placed her hands on his shoulders. “Are you telling me we could be partners?”
“Um, the idea has crossed my mind.”
She narrowed her eyes. “Will I get paid?”
“Of course.”
She leaned forward and kissed him. “I accept.”
“What? My marriage proposal or the partnership?”
“Both.” She kissed him again. “Will I get a gun?”
“No.” He stood and helped her up.
“Why not?”
“Because you won’t have to shoot the office files.”
He tugged her hand and kissed her.
“You’re being too protective.”
He kissed her again. “I know.”
The door opened and Jesse strode in. “You two ready to go home?”
Hunter wrapped his arms around her. “I never asked you if you wanted to live in Guthrie, or if you had a preference.”
“It doesn’t matter.”
“Are you sure? Where would you like to live?”
She shuddered. “Anyplace but here.”
Epilogue
July, 1908
Emily hugged her sister-in-law, Heidi, both of their rounded bellies getting in the way of their embrace. “You’re looking good, Heidi.”
“Thank you. You are, too.” Heidi looked around the garden. “Let’s take that bench over there, under the shade of that tree.” Arm in arm the women strolled over and settled in.
Anyplace But Here (Oklahoma Lovers Series Book 5) Page 24