The Trapper

by Barbara Goss

  They went upstairs to their room to talk. Joanna shrugged. It was the strangest household, and she didn’t feel welcome or comfortable there.

  “What is it, Hank?”

  “We’ll be getting six hundred dollars. The man has agreed to the reward. I just need to set up a meeting place. Any suggestions? I don’t want to lead him here. He can’t know who I am.”

  Nancy's hands flew to her cheeks. “Six hundred! Oh, my! I don’t know where to meet him or how to hide your identity. I’ve never done anything like this before. Is this even legal?”

  “Sure, it is. It’s a reward.”

  “Then why do you need to hide your identity? It isn’t like blackmail, is it?”

  “No, I don’t suppose it is. You’re right. I’ll just meet him at one of the saloons, then.”

  “And where will the woman be? She won’t like going inside a saloon.”

  “Right. Maybe I’ll meet him at the livery, then.”

  Nancy nodded. “That’s good. The first thing I’ll do is shop for food.”

  “Yeah, those servings haven’t been enough to fill a pigeon.” He hugged Nancy. “Should I tell the woman or wait until I set the meeting place?”

  “Wait, I think, just in case it falls through.”

  “Right. This money will change our lives. We can pay up some bills, get some food, and still have money left over.”

  “Yes, and you’ll be putting that into the bank, Hank. And you’ll be finding a job.”

  “Yes, dear.”

  Jared came out of the telegraph office and joined Ross who was waiting with the horses.

  “We need to ride to Russell. The message said he—or she—will be at the livery at twelve noon tomorrow. I’m to hand him the money, and he’ll hand me Joanna at the same time. What could go wrong? If I don’t see Joanna, he doesn’t get the money.”

  “Seems pretty cut and dry, but I’m going with you.”

  “I can’t believe it. At this time tomorrow I could be holding Joanna in my arms.”

  Ross slapped him on the back. “I hope so.”

  “Will Amelia take care of Bear if I bring him over? We’ll have to stay overnight in Russell.”

  “Sure, she’d loved to.”

  Jared and Ross arrived in Russell early. They secured a hotel room and had a quick lunch at a nearby café until noon.

  Jared carried the money in an envelope in his breast pocket as he and Ross slowly approached the livery on foot, both of them wearing guns. Ross always wore his guns. Jared seldom did, but this precarious situation called for protection, just in case. Jared still didn’t trust McKenna, and he wondered if he could somehow be connected to the deal. He was sure McKenna had kidnapped Joanna—was this his way of getting money from him? Regardless, he’d pay it and get her safely home. He'd permanently damaged her foot, not to mention that he'd been the one to tell Rebecca of their impending marriage, causing her to be kidnapped. Now he planned to marry her and bring her to a one-room cabin where they’d live on pelts. He had nothing to offer her and now his savings would be gone. He felt attracted to her, but the main reason he’d suggested they marry was to protect her from McKenna.

  Now what? Hadn’t he done enough to that poor woman? He wondered if he could somehow get out of the marriage promise for her own good, but first he'd need to rescue her.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Ross nudged Jared as they approached the livery. “There she is.”

  Jared followed Ross’s eyes and saw her sitting on a wagon bench beside a man he didn’t recognize. The couple faced away from them and hadn’t spotted them yet, so Ross pulled Jared into the swinging doors of the saloon.

  “Hey, what are you doing?” Jared asked.

  Ross peeked out in the direction of the livery. “Good. They didn’t see us.”

  Jared’s temper flared. “What’s going on? I want to get to Joanna. What’s wrong with you?”

  “I know that man. His name is Hank Ludwig, and he robbed me five years ago.”

  “Robbed you?”

  “Yes. I hired him as a cleaner, and he ran off with things stolen from the rooms of guests: money, jewelry, and so forth. It’s making me leery of this transaction.”

  “Just let me go and pay him, then you can do whatever you want with him. Please, Ross.”

  “I don’t feel right letting you go out there to deal with him alone. He’s a crook and who knows what else?”

  Jared gritted his teeth. “We need to get Joanna. Forget what happened five years ago— I’m going out there.”

  Ross pulled Jared back by his sleeve. “Think about it: we can get Joanna and keep your money while we’re at it.”

  “We can’t risk it, Ross. I need to get Joanna back.”

  “I’ll approach him from behind while you circle around to the opposite side of the wagon. When I press the gun to Hank’s back, you grab Joanna. There’s hardly any risk. We got them.”

  A myriad of thoughts ran through Jared’s mind. He’d caused so much harm to Joanna already, and if this plan of his brother’s failed, he’d be responsible again. Still, without the money he'd have no future to offer Joanna. He sighed. “All right.”

  Ross led Jared through an alley between the saloon and the butcher's shop behind the buildings. They crept along the rear of the saloon and peeked around the corner. They had a good view of the back of Hank’s wagon. Hank looked left to right nervously, and Jared knew he was getting ready to leave if they didn’t do something fast.

  Joanna sat in the hot sun, wishing she had her parasol. Where was Jared? Hank had promised he’d be there to take her back to Hays. Where was he? Hank was getting nervous although she didn’t know why. He was doing them a favor, so why was he furtively glancing around as if he were expecting trouble? Joanna had an odd feeling just then.

  It was quiet, but a slight sound caused her to turn her head and she spotted Jared tiptoeing toward her. She gasped and smiled, but then everything happened at once. Gunfire sounded. She was grabbed by Jared and dragged behind a building so fast, her head spun. Before she could grasp the situation, Jared had pushed her against the building, told her to stay put, and ran back toward the wagon.

  Joanna’s fear and curiosity hadn't registered his words, and so she ran after him.

  Hank was standing by the wagon with a gun in his hand, while Ross lay in a heap a few feet away.

  Hank aimed the gun at Jared, about to pull the trigger.

  Joanna yelled, “No!”

  Hank jerked his body her way, and the bullet hit her, knocking her to the ground.

  Jared flew at Hank the moment his gun fired at Joanna. He was able to knock the gun from his hands and knock him out with a hard fist to the jaw. By then, the sheriff and onlookers had formed a crowd around them.

  “Lock him up,” Jared yelled to the sheriff. To the crowd that had gathered, he yelled, “Someone get a doctor!”

  He ran to Joanna first and moved her close to Ross, whose eyes were now open. “Is she all right?” Ross asked groggily.

  Jared cradled Joanna in his arms. “No, she isn’t. He shot her.”

  “Where?”

  “I’m not sure. There’s blood all over the front of her dress. Pray, Ross.”

  “I am.”

  “Where are you hurt?”

  “He clipped my shoulder. I’ll be fine.”

  An elderly man ran up to them. “I’m Doc Harris. Which one is the most seriously wounded?”

  Jared stood and handed Joanna to the doctor, then he helped his brother to stand. “Can you walk to the doctor’s?”

  “If you hold onto me,” Ross replied.

  The men followed the doctor to a small house at the end of the main street. The doctor wasted no time getting Joanna into a bed. “You men will have to wait outside while I treat her. My wife will take care of you,” the doctor told Ross.

  A pretty, elderly woman came into the sitting room to tend to Ross’s shoulder wound while Jared paced the floor, praying aloud. He turned to his b
rother and said, “This is all my fault.”

  “No,” Ross corrected, “this time it’s mine.”

  The doctor finally came out of Joanna's room. He wiped his brow and took a seat beside Jared. “She’s resting. I gave her something to make her sleep. She was shot in the chest, and as far as I can see, she has a broken rib. I removed the bullet, but I had to do some surgery to get it, and she lost a lot of blood. I think she’ll make it. She’s young and seems robust. Her breathing is good, and her pulse steady.”

  “What can I do?” Jared asked.

  “Nothing for now. She’ll sleep for a good twelve hours or so. I’ll check on her periodically.”

  “I feel like I should stay here with her. Sit by her bed or something.”

  “Truthfully, she’ll be able to appreciate that more in the morning. Right now, she needs sleep and a doctor to check on her.” The doctor looked at the two men over his spectacles. “Say, you two aren’t from around here, are you?”

  “No, we’re from Hays,” Ross said.

  “There’s a hotel down the street,” the doctor said.

  “We have a room already,” Jared said, standing. “We’ll be back tomorrow morning, then.”

  Jared and Ross checked into their hotel room and prepared for bed. Ross was soon snoring, but Jared tossed and turned, playing the violent scene over and over in his mind. What had gone wrong with Ross’s plan? When he’d walked up to grab Joanna, she’d turned and gasped when she saw him. That was when he saw the man with her swing around with his gun drawn. He spotted him first, but the sight of Ross had made him react quickly and he’d fired at him. If only he could have gotten to Joanna before she'd seen him. He’d prepared to put his finger to his mouth as a signal to be silent. Maybe he’d approached too soon, or Ross too late.

  After a fitful sleep, Jared and Ross got dressed and grabbed a quick breakfast at the café before heading over to the doctor’s house.

  Jared couldn’t wait to see Joanna. He envisioned walking into the room to see her big brown eyes brighten when she saw him, but he was disappointed; she was still asleep.

  The doctor checked her dressing and told them they could sit with her.

  She looked so pale. Usually her cheeks were rosy, especially when she was happy, but now she laid there, pale and lifeless, and his heart hurt in his chest. This poor woman should rue the day she ever laid eyes on him.

  Around mid-afternoon, Jared saw Joanna’s eyes flutter, and he straightened in his seat. Ross also leaned forward. They waited and after a few more flutters, she opened her eyes. She glanced from left to right and then her eyes rested on Jared, and she smiled.

  Jared wondered how she could look pleased to see him after all he’d put her through.

  Joanna tried to sit up, but she grabbed her chest and fell back down. “Will I live?”

  Jared grabbed her hand. “Of course, you will. You just need to recover from being shot.”

  Joanna studied the ceiling for several moments before saying, “I remember. I thought he was going to kill you, Jared. Thank God he didn’t.”

  Jared felt his eyes sting with tears that he blinked away. “I would rather that he'd have shot me.”

  “Where's Hank now?” she asked.

  “In jail where he belongs.”

  “I suppose he does.” She looked up at Ross. “Are you all right? I saw you lying on the ground.”

  Ross pointed to his arm. “It's just a flesh wound, I saw Hank ready to shoot Jared, but I couldn’t get to my gun. When I fell, the gun slid from my hands. You, my dear, saved Jared’s life.”

  “I didn’t plan to…it all happened so fast. I just remember screaming when I saw he was going to shoot Jared. Then, somehow, I was knocked over.”

  “Rest,” Jared said. “We can talk about what happened when you’re all healed and healthy.”

  “I just need to know one thing,” Joanna said. “Why would Hank shoot either of you? I don’t understand. He said you were on your way to Russell to transport me back to Hays. I’m confused.”

  “He wanted a six-hundred-dollar reward for returning you, and I have the money.” Jared patted his pocket. “Ross recognized him when we arrived. I guess Hank robbed the rooms of hotel guests a few years ago and fled and because of that, Ross didn’t want me to pay him. He thought we could capture him and turn him in.”

  Joanna closed her eyes and sighed. “Oh, dear.”

  “Yes. Hank isn’t the good Samaritan,” Ross said. “He was taking nearly all of Jared’s savings in return for you.”

  “I had no idea,” Joanna said. Her eyes started to close though she struggled to keep them open.

  Jared squeezed her hand. “You need rest. If you’re going to recuperate you need all the sleep, you can get. Ross and I will go to the café and get a bite to eat, but we’ll be back after you rest.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  Joanna flinched in her sleep. She woke and sighed. She’d dreamed that Jared had been shot. In her dream, she’d run to him and found him dead, shaking him over and over before Ross had pulled her away. Silently, she thanked God it had only been a dream.

  Jared was still alive. She could hear him talking to Ross. Joanna turned her head to look at him. He sat with one ankle over his knee as he chatted with Ross, who was standing, leaning on a dresser. How had she ever thought Jared looked fierce? He was the handsomest man she’d ever seen. She closed her eyes and let his voice fill her ears. His baritone voice was irresistible, and she loved hearing it as she and lay there, still, with her eyes closed, listening.

  “We’ll need a buggy or wagon to transport Joanna back to Hays,” Jared said.

  “I’ll ride back tomorrow and bring one back. I need to check a few things at the hotel anyway.”

  “Good. By the time you get back here she should be able to travel. We’ll take it easy.”

  “And then what, Jared? Will you still get married, now that McKenna is no longer a threat?”

  Joanna tensed because Jared didn’t answer right away.

  “I’m not sure,” she heard him say so quietly she could barely hear the words. Her heart pounded. She dared not open her eyes because if they knew she was awake, they wouldn’t continue the conversation, and she needed to know Jared’s plans.

  “The reason you were marrying her was to keep her from McKenna—or was that just an excuse to marry her because you two are in love? Or is it a little bit of both?” she heard Ross ask.

  “It just seemed like the right thing to do then. I care for her, of course I do, but—”

  “How’s our patient today?” Doc Harris asked as he came into the room, cutting off Jared’s reply. Joanna opened her eyes to see the doctor’s smiling face.

  Doc Harris dug into his black bag. “I’m glad you’re getting plenty of sleep. Sorry if I woke you.”

  She simply nodded and remained silent while the doctor examined her.

  What had Jared been about to say?

  “You’ll be fit to go home in a few days,” Doc said. “Is your rib still sore?”

  Joanna nodded.

  “Yes, it will be for a while, but it’s healing just fine.”

  The doctor turned to Ross and Jared. “If you two want to go for a walk, my wife is going to bathe Joanna.”

  Jared walked over to the bed and took her hand. “We’ll be back.” He kissed her forehead and left the room with Ross.

  Jared took a bite of his liverwurst sandwich. “I wish our café was owned by a German. I could really get used to this food.”

  Ross drank from his cup of lentil soup. “You never did tell me whether or not you plan to marry Joanna.”

  “It’s sort of complicated, that’s why.”

  “You're either in love or you aren’t. Amelia and I weren’t sure if you were marrying for practical reasons or romantic reasons.”

  “A bit of both, I guess. I care for her…all right, I love her, although we’ve never said those three words to each other. It’s just that since she came into my life, I�
�ve done nothing but hurt her. Everything that’s happened to her was all my fault. I feel like she’d be better off without me. She deserves better. And what do I have to offer her, besides? I love her, but I couldn’t be happy living in town or running the newspaper. It’s just not me. I want to be in nature. I love my cabin and…I’m just not sure I want to give it all up, as well as risk injuring Joanna further.”

  “You have enough money to do something that you can both live with,” Ross said.

  “Like what?”

  “I don’t know…buy a farm or something.”

  “That’s a thought. I won’t live close to town, though. Do you think I have enough money?”

  “If you don’t, I know Father would help you.”

  “I don’t want his money. I want to do this on my own.”

  Ross snapped his finger. “I heard that Herman Berger is selling his land and moving back to Germany. His mother is ill, and he needs a quick sale so he can leave.”

  “How much land, and where is it?”

  Ross smiled. “Not far from your cabin in the woods, in fact. It's just on the other side of that forest. It’s very secluded. He has a log home and a huge barn. He was going to start raising horses. In fact, he already has some stock.”

  “Horse breeding? That sounds like something I’d love to do. I love horses.”

  “And,” Ross continued, “I bet Amelia’s father at the livery would help you learn about breeding.”

  “I’ll make Herman an offer, then. If he takes it, I’ll propose to Joanna all over again since I’m not sure if she really wants to marry me. She might have just jumped at my offer to save herself and our family. Maybe if I have her safely in a home of our own, I won’t do anything to harm her again.”

  “Of course, you won’t. You two just had a rough start, is all. I think you both need to get to know each other better. If seems to me that those three words need to be spoken by both of you before you even talk about marriage.”