by Bobbi Smith
"Chet's here, too, but he was just getting ready to leave," Stacy said in an artificially sweet voice.
"There's no need to rush off, Chet," Jim said.
Sheriff Protzel put in, "Yeah, it's good that you're here. I have a few things I need to talk with you about, too."
"Really?" Chet was surprised by the lawman's remarks. "I'll be glad to stick around then. I've got the time."
"Good," the sheriff said, satisfied that everything was falling into place.
"Let's go into the parlor," Stacy offered, leading the way.
They followed her.
"Please, make yourselves comfortable," she invited. "Sit down."
"I prefer to stand," the lawman began. "There are a few things I need to get straightened out."
"About what?" Stacy asked, her mood turning more serious as she realized this was no casual social call.
"Well, about Chet." Sheriff Protzel looked at the other man.
"What is it?" Chet asked, playing the innocent. He suspected the sheriff might have come there looking for him because of the incident with Suzie. The thought of talking about it in front of Jim and Roni irked him, but there wasn't anything he could do to avoid that now. He just had to sit tight and play his cards right.
"Well, Chet, it seems there have been new developments in the Ben Thompson murder case."
"What's happened?" Stacy asked quickly, startled by his revelation.
"From what I've been able to figure out, the wrong man was sent to prison," he went on.
Stacy looked up at the sheriff, tears filling her eyes. "I told you my brother was innocent!"
"I believed you, but the case against Walker was too solid, and I couldn't find anyone else who had a motive—until now." He left his sentence hanging for a moment.
"What do you mean? You've found the real killer?" Chet asked, acting excited even as an edge of panic gripped him. He didn't think he'd said anything incriminating when he'd been with Suzie the other night, but then again, he had been drunk out of his mind.
"We have," Sheriff Protzel said. "Thanks to new information I've received."
Stacy was devastated. "But even if you do know who really did it now, it won't bring my brother back."
"Yes, it will," Walker said as he appeared in the doorway that led to the dining room.
"Walker?" Stacy cried out in complete and utter shock at the sight of him. She stared at him in disbelief for a moment, and then pure joy filled her heart. She ran across the room and was enfolded in his loving embrace. "You're alive! I can't believe it!"
"Neither could we when he first came to us," Jim said, smiling at the sight of Stacy's joy in being reunited with her brother.
"But how did you survive that flash flood?" Chet was shocked, but for different reasons. He acted concerned. "The telegram Jim got said you'd drowned."
"The prison guards believed I drowned, and that was fine with me. It gave me the time I needed to get back here and find the real killer," Walker said tersely as he drew back from Stacy.
Chet wasn't sure what was coming next. "Who is it? What did you find out?"
"Maybe you're the one who should be telling us what really happened that night," Walker challenged him.
"I've already told you what I remember," Chet blustered. "I stayed there at Roni's office with you and Jim for a good part of the night. Then I left for home."
"But did you?"
"Did I what?" he countered.
"Did you go home?"
"Walker, what are you saying?" Stacy was bewildered as she looked between her brother and Chet. She could tell that Walker was expecting trouble at any second, and Chet just looked confused.
"Of course I went home. Where else could I have gone?"
"To see Suzie. Then, when you were through with her, you went after Ben Thompson. It was the perfect setup for you. Frame me for the murder and then get Stacy and the Dollar all for your own," Walker charged.
"You're crazy!" Complete and total panic was filling Chet. He realized if it came to a showdown, he was completely outnumbered.
Suddenly Stacy made the connection, and she was horrified by what Chet had done. "Did you really do it, Chet?"
"No, these accusations are nothing but lies. Whoever told you this is just trying to make trouble for us as a family. They don't know what they're talking about. I didn't kill Ben Thompson!"
"According to Suzie, you said, 'Everything's supposed to be mine with her brother out of the way.'"
"Of course, she would lie to you. She's a whore! What did you pay her? She'll do anything for money!" Chet exclaimed.
"Oh, we didn't have to pay her anything," Sheriff Protzel said. "She talked willingly once she knew we'd keep her safe from you. You're under arrest for the murder of Ben Thompson, Chet."
Rage overwhelmed Chet.
Everything he'd planned and dreamed of had been destroyed, and he knew he had to make his break for it right then or he would never see the light of day again—not until he was on the scaffold waiting for the hangman's noose. He knew he had no choice but to run, but he knew he was going to need some cover. He reacted instantly, grabbing Roni in a savage grip and drawing his gun.
Roni started to fight him, to try to break free, but the press of his gun against her side stopped her cold.
"Let her go!" Walker started to go after Chet, but stopped when he saw him holding the gun against her. He knew Chet well enough to be sure he would use it.
"Don't anybody move," Chet snarled, keeping his back to the wall as he pressed his gun even harder against Roni, making her squirm. "That goes for you, too, Jim. I see you're packin' today. Expecting trouble, were you?" He looked at the banker, who was wearing his gun belt.
"Let her go," the sheriff ordered. "There's no way out of this for you, so you might as well come back to town with me peaceably."
"I'm not going anywhere with you! I'm leaving and I'm taking the doc here with me. If anybody tries to stop me, she'll be the first one to take a bullet," he threatened, looking arrogantly at Walker. "You willing to risk that?"
Chet had already proven he was a cold-blooded killer, so there was no way Walker was going to let him leave the house with Roni. Whatever was going to go down was going to happen right there. He would not let Roni out of his sight—not even for a moment.
Chet started edging toward the door. "Don't think I won't use this gun on her. I got nothing to lose," he growled. "Either way I'm going to end up dead, so I might as well take as many people with me as I can!"
"Give it up, Chet." Walker tried a calm tone on him. "Like you said, there's no way out of this for you, so why don't you just put the gun down and turn yourself in?"
"You go to hell!"
"I've already been there," Walker said coldly, trying to figure out the best way to get Roni away from Chet.
"All of you, put your guns down on the floor. Walker, Jim, Sheriff—Do it! Now! Or, so help me, I'll shoot Roni right here where she stands! Like I said, I got nothing to lose!"
Roni wanted to fight Chet and break free, but his harsh hold on her, along with the deadly press of the cold metal gun against her side, kept her still. She looked at Walker, and for a moment, their gazes met. She knew if there was some way out of this, Walker would find it.
"Do it!" Chet commended.
Stacy cast a quick glance at her brother and saw the look of fierce determination on his face. She knew Walker was going to take action. Chet had picked the wrong man to cross.
"All right, Chet," Jim said, slowly drawing his gun. He thought about getting a shot off at him, but the way Chet was holding Roni right in front of him, it would be impossible. "We'll do exactly what you say. Just don't hurt Roni." He put the gun down next to him.
"Hurry up!" Chet demanded.
"Okay," Sheriff Protzel quickly assured him as he, too, drew his gun and put it on the floor. He was frustrated. He had to do whatever he could to make sure Roni wasn't harmed, but he didn't like facing a vengeful fool like Chet unarmed.
"
Let's go, Walker! Now or so help me, I'll kill her!" Chet looked over at him, desperate madness shining in his eyes.
Walker looked at Roni for one moment longer and then, slowly, drew his gun and bent down to lay it on the floor. He knew this was his one chance to save her.
In one smooth move, he drew the knife he'd been carrying with him in his boot and threw it at Chet.
Walker's aim was perfect.
The knife caught Chet in the shoulder of his gun arm. The unexpected agony made him ease his hold on Roni, and in that instant, she jerked herself free.
Walker needed no other opportunity.
He launched himself bodily at Chet, knocking the gun from his hand and tackling him to the floor. In a savage move, he yanked the knife out of Chet's shoulder and pressed it to his throat.
Chet froze as he stared up at the man he'd betrayed.
Chapter Twenty-five
Walker glared down at Chet as he held him pinned to the floor and saw the absolute terror in Chet's eyes. He knew Chet believed he was facing death, and he liked putting that fear in him. He was ready to finish what he'd started, but Jim and Sheriff Protzel had both gone for their guns and were now backing him up.
"Don't do it, Walker," the sheriff ordered. "Let the judge sentence him. Let's do this real legal-like."
Walker was so tense it took a few moments for what the sheriff had said to sink in. Only then did he slowly let go of Chet. Knife in hand, he got back up and stood ready, just in case Chet was fool enough to try anything else.
Sheriff Protzel got Chet to his feet and shoved him out of the house. Chet fell in the dirt at the foot of the porch steps and lay there in misery, bleeding heavily. Jim kept his gun on him while the lawman got his rope and made short order of tying him up.
Roni knew Chet was wounded and followed them outside. "Do you want me to bind his wound?" she offered.
"That's okay, Doc. I'll take care of my prisoner." Then Sheriff Protzel made a makeshift bandage from his bandana and stuffed it inside Chet's shirt to stanch the bleeding. That done, he dragged the prisoner to his feet.
"You ain't dying," the sheriff scoffed as Chet staggered before him. "Let's get you on your horse."
Chet was a defeated man as the sheriff pushed him up into the saddle.
Zach and several of the ranch hands had realized there might be trouble up at the house. They had been on their way there to see if Stacy needed help when they'd seen the sheriff push Chet out the door. They stopped to watch for a moment, then hurried on to find Stacy. They had just about reached the house when they saw Walker and Stacy step outside to join Roni on the porch.
Completely caught off guard by Walker's unexpected appearance, Zach stopped where he was to stare at him in amazement. The other men did the same.
"Hello, boys." Walker greeted them with a big smile.
"Walker!"
They wasted no time running the rest of the way up to the house to shake his hand and welcome him "back from the dead." They were all eager to hear the story of how he'd survived.
"I'll fill you all in on that later. Right now, I need a few of you boys to ride back into town with Sheriff Protzel and help him keep an eye on the man who shot Ben Thompson."
"What?" Zach and the others were startled by the revelation.
"That's right," Sheriff Protzel added. "Walker was wrongfully convicted. Chet here is the man who killed Thompson."
Zach looked up at the man who, in a few more months, would have married Stacy and become the owner of the Dollar. "Good work, Sheriff."
"Don't thank me." He nodded toward Roni and Jim. "Thank the lady doc, there. She and Jim are the ones who put it all together. I just came along for the ride."
Walker went up to Sheriff Protzel to shake his hand. "And I'm real glad you did."
The lawman looked him square in the eye. "So am I, Walker. Welcome home."
It was a powerful moment for Walker as he realized for the first time he really was a free man again.
"I'll take care of everything with the law. You just get back to running the Dollar like your pa wanted you to."
"We'll get saddled up and be ready to ride, shortly," Zach told Sheriff Protzel.
A few minutes later, Walker stood with Roni, Stacy and Jim on the porch, watching them ride away.
Chet was slumped in the saddle, knowing he was going to pay the price for what he'd done.
When they had ridden out of sight, Walker, Roni, Stacy and Jim went back into the house.
As they returned to the parlor, Stacy looked over at her brother and started to both laugh and cry at the same time. "I still can't believe you're here."
Walker opened his arms to Stacy and gave her a big brotherly hug. "Neither can I."
Roni and Jim were smiling as they watched them together, celebrating the joy of their reunion.
"You know, Walker, it sure is a good thing you know how to use a knife," Jim said, grinning.
"That's right," Roni added. His expert throw had saved her life. "That's the second time you've saved the day using one—but this time I don't think it will get you thrown out of school."
Walker looked over at the woman he loved and asked, "What do you think it will get me this time?"
Roni went to Walker as Stacy left his side. Roni's expression was serious as she looked up at him. All the love she felt for him was plain to see in her eyes. "A woman who will love you forever."
Walker didn't care that Stacy and Jim were there. He gathered Roni close and kissed her.
"Let's go," Jim said to Stacy, taking her arm to draw her from the room so Roni and Walker could have some privacy.
They went out to the kitchen and sat down at the table. For the first time, they had a moment to think about what they'd just gone through.
"I'm sorry about the way things turned out for you with Chet," Jim offered.
She looked at him across the table. "I'm not. You saved the day for me, too."
"What are you talking about?"
"I had just broken the engagement and given Chet his ring back when you rode up. He was real angry about it, and things could have gotten ugly if you hadn't shown up when you did."
"He didn't hurt you, did he?" Jim tensed. The thought that Chet might have hit Stacy as he'd hit Suzie horrified him.
"No. You got here just in time."
"Thank God. I'm glad. I don't want you to be hurt—ever," he told her. He knew she'd just broken off with Chet, but he'd kept his feelings to himself for so long, he didn't want to waste another minute. "Stacy . . ."
His tone had changed, and she looked at him questioningly, unsure of what he was about to say.
"Stacy, I love you." He waited uncertainly for her reaction, unsure of how she was going to respond.
"Oh, Jim." Stacy got up and went around the table to stand beside him. "I love you, too."
To say he was shocked was an understatement. "You do?"
Stacy reached out to touch his cheek. "I do. It's taken me a long time to realize it, but I love you, Jim."
"I never knew."
"I didn't either—until you kissed me."
He stood up and took her in his arms.
"You want to try it again?" he asked, grinning down at her.
"Oh, yes."
Jim kissed her hungrily, telling her without words how much she meant to him.
"Well, well, well, what do we have here?" Walker asked, smiling as he and Roni came into the kitchen to find the two of them in a heated embrace.
Jim broke off the kiss, embarrassed, but Stacy wasn't about to leave his arms.
"We saw what you and Roni were doing, and we thought it looked like fun," she teased.
"It is," Roni said, thrilled that Jim and Stacy had finally found each other.
"Roni and I have some news for you—" Walker began.
"What?" Stacy looked from one to the other.
"We're getting married."
"Well, it's about time!" Stacy exclaimed, excited for them both.
&n
bsp; "I'll say," Walker agreed.
"We'll have the wedding as soon as we can arrange it with the reverend," Roni said, slipping an arm around Walker. "I don't want to let this man out of my sight again."
"I understand," Stacy agreed. She looked up at Jim adoringly and then back at her brother. So much had happened so quickly, she almost felt as if she was living a dream. "Oh, Walker," she sighed. "I am so glad you're here."
"So am I, Stacy," he told her with heartfelt emotion as he held Roni close to his side. "So am I."
He was home.
Epilogue
Three Weeks Later
The parlor at the ranch house was crowded as Stacy, Jim, the ranch hands and Sandy watched Walker and Roni exchange their wedding vows.
"I now pronounce you man and wife," Reverend Collins said, smiling at the bride and groom. After all they'd been through, he'd understood why they'd wanted a small, private wedding, and he'd been happy to oblige. "What God has joined together, let no man put asunder. You may kiss your bride."
Walker didn't need to be told twice. He gathered Roni to him and kissed her.
When they finally moved apart, Roni gazed up at him adoringly. "I love you, Walker."
"I love you, too."
The reverend stepped forward to congratulate them both, and the ranch hands followed his lead.
Jim stayed back with Stacy, letting the hands and Sandy go forward first.
Zach made his way up to Walker and shook his hand. "Congratulations, Boss."
"Thanks."
"I've got the horse ready to go, and I'm all set to leave," Zach told him. He was heading out to return the horse Walker had borrowed during his escape from the chain gang.
"Good. Have you got the envelope I gave you, too?"
"Right here in my pocket," Zach assured him.
Walker wanted to more than repay the ranching family for what he'd taken that day, so he was sending a substantial payment with Zach to thank them.
"Tell them I'm grateful."
"I will—And you enjoy your honeymoon."
They were laughing as Zach left.
Jim smiled down at Stacy, who had stayed by his side. "I understand you're spending the night in town, so the newlyweds can be alone here at the ranch and have a honeymoon."