McKinnon's Bride (Willow Grove, Texas Series Book 1)

by Sharon Gillenwater

  “Rode together for four years.” He set his cup on the table and turned the chair around, straddling it, resting his arms on the top of the chair back. “Now, we have to figure out what to do about Ira.”

  “Will the sheriff arrest Wyman on what you tell him?”

  “He should. I’ll testify against him in court, and I expect we can find some witnesses from the saloon that night who saw us talking—and him giving us money. But if we can persuade Ira to tell everything he knows about him and Doolin, we’ll have a stronger case. Stronger against Doolin, too.”

  “He’s terribly afraid of Wyman. Can we convince him?”

  “I think we’d do better after Cade gets here. Make him realize he doesn’t have many options.”

  “Isn’t he liable to start shooting if Cade simply rides in? Maybe we should tie him up.”

  “Do I detect the desire for revenge?”

  “If so, you’re the one who should be hogtied.” She waved away his argument. “I know you thought you had to so I wouldn’t hit you over the head and escape.”

  “You would have if you’d had the chance.”

  Jessie laughed. It seemed like the first time in forever. “Yes, I would have.”

  “I’m not sure he’d be too cooperative if we hogtied him.”

  She thought of her earlier plan to escape. “What if we only distract him for a few minutes when Cade arrives? I assume you’re going to watch for him and bring him in here?”

  “That was my plan. What do you have in mind?”

  “A peach pie. Originally, I was going to give it to both of you, but now I think it should just be for Ira.” They had stored the salt and sugar on the table in an effort to keep the ants and mice out. She tapped first one bag and then the other. “I declare, my eyesight is a bit poor in this dim light. They need to make brighter printing on these sacks. A body could get them mixed up.”

  Starr laughed, rocking the chair forward on the back legs, then down again when it squeaked in protest. “I like the way you think, Jessie. No wonder Cade wants to marry you. He always said he’d rather have an intelligent wife than a pretty one.” His voice softened. “Lucky galoot got both.”

  Jessie smiled and put the pan of biscuits in the oven. “What happens if Cade doesn’t find us?”

  “We hogtie Ira and haul him to town. Show up at the trial, hopefully before your brother goes on the witness stand against Doolin. You can count on Wyman being there. If we do it right, the sheriff will arrest him, at least for questioning. No matter what, I don’t intend to let him get away.” His expression hardened, his eyes growing cold, deadly. “He won’t get the chance to kill anyone else.”

  Chapter 26

  Squatting, Cade studied the ruts in the grass where a buggy had turned off the road. He looked over at Ty. “What do you think?”

  “It’s the right direction, and they were in a big hurry. But I don’t see any reason for such a sharp turn. He could have slowed down and turned fifty yards farther. The prairie isn’t any different there than here.”

  “Maybe it’s a trap,” said Asa, nudging back his hat. “He’ll figure Quint is looking for his sister, so he makes it easy to follow them. But when we get close enough, he picks him off from a distance with a good chance of getting away. If Quint’s dead, Doolin goes free.”

  “Makes sense,” said Cade. “Quint, you’d better stay here and let us scout the area.”

  “No, I’m going with you. They’re just as liable to shoot any of you as me. Maybe he’s injured and made Jessie drive. She can handle a buggy as good as I can. It would be like her to try and give us something to follow.”

  Cade frowned and remounted. “I guess that’s reasonable, though not as likely as Asa’s theory. You won’t stay here anyway.”

  “Got that right.”

  Cade and Ty led the way, keeping some space between them. Every once in a while they spotted the buggy tracks again where the grass gave way to plain dirt. Sometimes, it seemed as if the driver went out of his—or her—way to make certain the tracks were discernible.

  As they drew nearer to the hills, he grew more uneasy. There were dozens of places a man could hide and pick off a rider with a good rifle. They were out in the open, without even a prickly-pear cactus breaking up the flat sea of grass.

  Suddenly a flash on a hill about a hundred yards ahead caught his eye. “Take cover!” He turned toward an outcropping of rock and brush about fifty yards to their left. Spurring their horses, they reached their destination without anyone shooting at them.

  Dismounting quickly, they ducked down behind the rocks, searching the hillside. “What did you see?” asked Quint.

  “A flash of light.” Crouching low, Cade moved around the rock for a better view.

  Ty moved beside him. “Rifle?”

  “Maybe.” He shifted so Ty could look, too, and kept watching the spot where he had seen it. “There it is again.” This time, the flash was followed by another…a pause…then several more, deliberate and carefully timed. Cade turned around, keeping low, his back against the rock and looked at Ty in disbelief. “Did I see that right?”

  “It’s our old company signal.”

  They crept back around to Quint and Asa. “Somebody up there is signaling us with a mirror,” said Ty.

  “Catching the sunlight to let us know they’re there.” Quint rubbed the side of his nose. “You must have told Jessie some good tales.”

  “Not this good. It’s a specific signal we made up in our Ranger company,” Cade said. “One man would scout ahead, then use it to tell the rest of us to join him.”

  “Then you have a friend up there?” Asa frowned thoughtfully.

  “Or an old one who’s become an enemy.” Cade stood and caught his horse’s reins. “I’ll ride up and see who it is. You stay here and cover me. If he starts shooting, return his fire. I’ll try to stay out of the way.”

  “I’ll go,” said Ty. “Jessie would a whole lot rather have you in one piece than me.”

  “Probably.” Cade swung up into the saddle. “But she’s my woman. I’m going.”

  “I am, too.” Quint reached for his horse.

  “Not this time.” Cade nodded at Ty to keep Quint there. “We need you to put Doolin in prison. Besides, if I get shot, she’ll need you to take care of her.”

  Quint glared at him. “You just want to play the hero.”

  “The hero gets the girl.”

  “She’s my sister.”

  “She already thinks you’re a hero. It’s my turn.” Cade laid his rifle across his thighs and nudged the horse to a walk.

  As he neared the hillside, a man carrying a rifle stepped out from between the rocks and worked his way down toward Cade. He stopped a little above him and pulled his pocket watch from his vest and flipped it open. “You made good time. I didn’t expect you for maybe another hour.”

  “Ransom, what are you doing here?” Cade rested his hand on the rifle, his finger ready to slip onto the trigger. He knew full well that his old friend—if he still was a friend—didn’t miss the movement.

  Ransom kept his rifle at his side, ready to swing into action if needed. “This is going to sound bad at first, but hear me out before you try to shoot me.”

  “I won’t try. I’ll do it. Is Jessie up there?”

  Starr nodded. “She’s up in the dugout, baking a special peach pie.”

  Cade stared at him in disbelief. Had the whole world gone loco? “Ransom, I’m tired and cranky and want to see the woman I love. My finger is gettin’ itchy. Now, tell me what’s going on.”

  “Well to put it bluntly, I kidnapped her.” He held up his hand when Cade lifted the rifle. “To protect her.” Cade lowered the gun again. “Why don’t you go back and get the rest of your men, and I’ll explain it to everybody at once. She’s fine…well, almost fine. She has a little cut on her side, but that was an accident. I sure hate that I hurt her. But we got it wrapped up and stopped the bleeding. All that bouncing around on the road. It�
�s not bothering her much this morning.”

  Cade’s head was practically spinning, and his temper short. He leveled the rifle at the man who once was his friend. “You’d better start making more sense real fast.”

  Ransom pretty much ignored him. Which was typical. Even when he’d felt threatened, he’d never shown it. His face lit up. “You found the handkerchief and piece of her dress?” Cade nodded. “And where we turned off the road? Couldn’t think of any other way to make it easy for you to see where we were going. Had to make it up as we went along.

  “Go get Ty and the others. I assume one of them is Jessie’s brother?” He sat down on the rock, and Cade almost punched him. “I’ll wait here. It’s a long story.” He checked his watch again. “And we don’t have much time. That pie ought to be ready to eat in about twenty minutes.” He met Cade’s gaze, his expression growing somber. “I’m still on the right side, Cade. And I’m still your friend. You have my word on both counts.”

  When it came right down to it, that was good enough.

  Cade nodded and turned the horse around, hurrying back to the others. He quickly told them what he knew while they were mounting up. They reached Ransom, and he explained what had happened. Cade was relieved that he related the situation thoroughly and professionally. He expected it gave the others more confidence in Starr and his almost unbelievable tale. He knew it did him.

  “You wait on this side of the bend in the creek. I’ll walk back over the hill to the dugout. Jessie will give Ira a piece of pie to distract him. I’ll whistle and you ride in.”

  Quint frowned. “How will Jessie’s pie distract him?”

  “Oh, I forgot to explain that part. She’s using mostly salt instead of sugar, so y’all might want to avoid it. Ira tends to shovel in his food, so she figures it will make him choke long enough for me to disarm him and for you to reach the dugout. He’ll be so busy coughing, he won’t have time to think about shooting.”

  Cade chuckled and pulled Quint’s hat down on his face. In a matter of minutes, the nightmare would be over, and Jessie would be in his arms. “That sounds like your sister.”

  Quint pushed his hat back up where it belonged. “She’s been hanging around you too much.”

  He shook his head, anticipation warming his heart. “Not nearly enough.”

  ***

  The baking heated up the small room, so Ira carried the chairs outside. He sat leaning back against the side of the house and kept his seat when Starr approached. “Everything still quiet?”

  “Quiet as a sleeping baby. I didn’t even see a jack rabbit.” Starr met Jessie’s gaze. “Is that pie ready to eat? I worked up an appetite sitting there watching the grass grow.”

  “I think it’s cooled enough. Ira would you like a piece, too?”

  “Yes, ma’am. I been looking forward to it all afternoon.”

  Jessie felt a little twinge of guilt. “I’ll bring some out. It’s too hot inside to enjoy it.”

  “Still have any coffee?” Starr followed her inside.

  “No, we finished it at dinner.” She searched his face. When he nodded, joy and relief took the starch right out of her knees. She leaned against the table, drawing a shaky breath.

  Frowning, he sent her a questioning look.

  She took a deeper breath and straightened. “Goodness, it’s even hotter in here than it was earlier. You don’t need to wait inside. I’ll bring the pie right out.” As he left, she quickly cut two large pieces and put them on plates. Adding forks, she carried them outside.

  “Here you are, Ira.” Smiling, she handed him a plate.

  “Thank you, ma’am.” He leaned his rifle against the building, picked up the fork and cut a huge bite. He had to work at it a bit. Jessie wondered how he could get so much in his mouth at one time, then remembered that he had crammed a whole biscuit in at dinner. The bite of pie would be easy for him.

  “Sorry the crust is tough. I don’t know if the stove was too hot or if it’s because I used the skillet.” She handed the other plate to Starr.

  “It’ll be fine.” He took his time sawing at the crust, watching Ira out of the corner of his eye.

  Ira shoved the bite in his mouth and started chewing eagerly, already cutting the next bite. Suddenly, he stopped chewing. His face contorted. His eyes watered. He coughed...and wheezed...and coughed again, spitting peaches and crust everywhere.

  Starr let loose with a shrill whistle. He pounded Ira on the back, relieving him of his sidearm at the same time, retrieved the rifle, and stepped away from him.

  Poor Ira kept coughing and wheezing. Jessie was afraid he’d sucked crust down his windpipe. “Do you need some water?”

  He nodded, tears running down his cheeks, finally pulling in a small gasping breath. “Yes,” he squeaked.

  Jessie grabbed the ladle in the water bucket and filled it as another fit of coughing hit him. Hearing horses, she looked up to see Cade storming up the creek. Quint, Ty and Asa were right behind him. She thrust the ladle in Ira’s hand and scampered away, running to meet Cade.

  He jumped off Mischief before the horse stopped and swept her into his arms, crushing her against him. “Thank God you’re safe. Thank You, Lord. Thank You.” He held her as if he would never let her go.

  And she didn’t want him, too. When she finally eased back enough to look up at him, she was stunned to see tears making a path through the dust on his cheeks. “Oh, Cade.” She wiped his tears with her fingertips, her own eyes filling.

  “I thought I’d lost you,” he whispered. “I tried not to think about it, but I couldn’t help it. I didn’t know how I’d live without you.”

  “You don’t have to. I don’t care when or where the ceremony is, but we’re getting married tomorrow.”

  A slow smile spread across his face. “Your dress won’t be finished.”

  “I’ll wear it to church sometime.” She looped her arms around his neck. “I wouldn’t keep it on very long on my wedding day anyway.”

  His smile turned into a full blown grin. “About two minutes after I shut the bedroom door.”

  She brushed a kiss on his mouth. “That long?”

  “Not if you wear an old one.” He kissed her tenderly, then glanced up at the five men watching them. “Too bad we have an audience. Looks like Ira is breathing again.”

  “Poor Ira. I wonder if he’ll even try the other pie I made. I used sugar in that one.”

  Cade curled his arm around her waist, and they started toward the dugout. “Don’t tell him. Then I can have his piece.”

  “Wyman threatened to hurt his mother.”

  “Does she live in Willow Grove?”

  “No. Fort Worth, but Wyman knew all about her. If we could figure out some way to protect her, I think he would cooperate with us.”

  “We’ll see what we can do.” He felt the tear in her dress and stopped. She had discarded the pad that morning, but the strip of cloth didn’t quite cover up the hole. “That’s where Ransom cut you?”

  “It’s fine now.”

  “No it’s not.” Anger vibrated in his voice.

  “Let it go, honey. It’s as much my fault as his. I hit the knife when I tried to kick him. He was dodging. I’m sure he never intended to hurt me.”

  Cade scowled and muttered something about drowning him in the water trough.

  When they reached the others, Ira glared at Jessie. “That wasn’t very nice, Mrs. Monroe.”

  “I’m sorry, Ira. We had to do something to keep you from shooting at Cade and the others. And we didn’t want to hit you over the head.”

  “Like I did that old lady.” Ira looked at Cade, his face full of regret. “She didn’t die, did she?”

  “No, she’s fine. Nola is tough. She said you apologized for hitting her. I think she forgives you, but you’ll get the chance to ask her yourself.”

  Ira slumped down on the ground next to the dugout. “She ain’t gonna visit me in jail.”

  “You might not have to go to jail. Starr t
old me about how you were tricked into working for Doolin and forced into helping kidnap Jessie. I think we can work something out with the sheriff and the prosecutor if you’ll be a witness against Doolin and Wyman.”

  “I don’t know. I’m afraid something will happen to my mother if I do.”

  “We’ll hire someone to protect her,” said Ty. “For as long as she needs it. Or if she wants to move to Willow Grove, we’ll arrange that. Get her a nice little house in town with someone to watch over her if necessary. We know how it feels to have someone you care for in danger.”

  Ira looked so woebegone that Jessie’s heart ached for him. “I don’t have a job anymore. Even if I don’t go to jail or prison, nobody will hire me to do a lick of work for them.”

  “I will,” Cade said quietly. “I think you’re an honest man who got caught in a bad situation. I can always use a good horse wrangler. And Quint tells me you’re good.”

  “You’d do that for me? Even after I helped take Mrs. Monroe?”

  “You can rectify that by helping us put Doolin and Wyman in prison. The choice is yours.”

  “Then I’ll do whatever you tell me to. I’ve been more scared and miserable these last three months than the whole rest of my life put together.”

  “Just tell the truth, Ira. Tell the court everything you know about both men.”

  “I can do that. And I know plenty. I don’t talk much, but I listen a lot.” Ira stood, his anguish of moments earlier evaporating. “But there’s something I don’t understand.” He smiled and shook his head. “Well, there’s a lot I don’t understand, but one thing has me completely bumfuzzled. Mr. Starr, are you a lawman?”

  “Not exactly. I used to be, but now I’m a detective.”

  “Well, you ought to go back to bein’ a lawman,” Quint said. “Willow Grove needs a new deputy sheriff.”

  “And likely a new sheriff before long,” added Ty. “The U.S. Marshal’s job is open, and Proctor wants the appointment. After busting up the rustlers, he’ll probably get it. The sheriff’s job would be yours for the asking.”

  “How do you know that?” Ransom leaned Ira’s rifle against the dugout.