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happened.
 Jennie s here. Her father met her and Ned on the road coming back from Hastings.
No minister would marry them without their parents consent.
She took hold of his hand and finished removing the bandage. She gently touched the
bruised flesh.  This looks painful. She motioned him to the sink and pumped water over
his hands.
As he washed with the bar of soap, he thought about the young couple in love but not
allowed to be together. Ned seemed nice enough when Jim went to the hardware store.
He wondered why the Albrights didn t want him for their daughter. Maybe his house
wasn t as nice as this one or his family as rich.
Catherine handed him a towel to dry off with and glanced at the window. With the
sun setting so early, it was full dark out.  Nathan should be back by now. I hope he s all
right.
Jim held up one finger and shook his head. He held up both hands, ten fingers and
nodded.  More, he signed.  More men. One. Bad.
She nodded.  You re right. We should get help. Nathan might be in trouble. I could
wire the marshal in Hastings myself.
Too late. It will take too long. His gut instinct told him they were in the middle of
something and waiting for reinforcements from the city was a mistake.
She touched his arm and leaned to kiss his cheek, a light, feathery brush of her lips.
 You stay here. I ll go get Herbert Nordstrum to send a telegram.
He caught her arm as she moved away, wanting to protest her running around town
in the dark by herself. But he realized letting her accomplish this errand was the only way
he would be free to do what he needed to. Cupping her face in both hands, he kissed her.
The yielding softness of her lips left a burning impression on his even after he pulled
away. For one more moment, he held onto her, his eyes drinking in every detail of her
face and form in case this was the last time he saw her.
 It s all right. Catherine smiled and touched his cheek with her fingertips.  I ll be
back soon. She glanced past him at the kitchen door.  The Albrights are upset and
arguing so you should probably wait here in the kitchen.
With a last quick kiss on the cheek, she pulled away from him. Taking a shawl from
a hook in the entry, she left from the back door off the kitchen.
Jim counted slowly to twenty, then he followed her into the night.
* * * *
Monday was one of the quietest nights at the Crystal, which was a problem. Jim
would have preferred the staff be too busy to notice him. His first impulse had been to
ride to the Gundersons to ask Mike and Dean for help, but their farm was too far away,
and the prickling feeling inside him told him Scott needed help soon. The same went for
the idea of rousing a posse of men in town. Either plan would take time and complicated
explanations. Jim decided to go alone to check on the deputy.
But first, he needed a gun.
Murdoch kept a pistol behind the bar. It would be easy to grab, as long as no one
noticed him. Since he didn t work here anymore he had no good reason for being at the
Crystal, but he was like a shadow to most people. They generally didn t register his
presence.
He entered the saloon by the back exit and lingered in the hallway, looking to see
who was tending bar. It was Ted. Murdoch wasn t anywhere in sight. Good. Jim scanned
the room. Only a few customers were seated at tables, the rest filled most of the bar
stools. Not so good.
He stood another moment, watching Ted pouring drinks, taking money, and finally,
leaving the bar unattended while he went into the kitchen for something. Jim was about to
walk toward the bar when a light hand touched his back. He spun around.
Shirley Mae was right behind him, a smile curving her red-painted lips. The bruises
from her beating had faded to smudges of yellow and lilac, not quite hidden by the
powder she d applied.
 Hello! She waved.  We ve missed you. How ve you been?
He nodded and turned away, anxious to be rid of her, but Shirley wasn t in a hurry to
get back to work. She tugged on his arm until he looked at her.  How s your new job?
He shrugged.  Your creepy boss is here. She pointed across the room.
Jim s heart flew into his mouth. Grant Karak sat with his back to them, half hidden [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]