Man From Boot Hill Read Online Free Page B

interrupted, “but I need to leave Ben here at the office in case something else comes up.”
    Catherine’s first impulse was not to believe what the sheriff said. Then again, she’d found it was healthier not to believe what most folks said when they started the conversation eyeing her like she was a slab of meat. “I’ll come with you,” she offered.
    “That won’t be necessary, ma’am. You should go on home and wait for your husband.” Stilson didn’t even try to hide his distaste. “If he comes back early, I’m sure you’ll want to know about it.”
    “Fine.” With that, she turned her back to the lawmen and headed out the door. Sheriff Stilson followed behind her, mounted his horse, and rode down the street. Catherine watched to make certain the lawman was headed in the direction of Van Meter’s ranch. After that, there wasn’t much else for her to do. She walked home before the deputy with the wandering eyes offered his services as an escort.
     
    The Van Meter ranch sat five miles south of Ocean. Kazys began straining and wheezing halfway there, but Nick knew the animal could push on a little farther. If those killers figured he was dead, there was no reason for them to run their horses to death to get where they were going.
    Then again, those killers also had a head start and, undoubtedly, much younger horses.
    The shadows had taken over the landscape and the pale glow of the half-moon wasn’t nearly enough to chase them away. Even after Nick’s eyes had adjusted to the dark, he was wary of riding at a full gallop. The trail was dangerous. Anything from snakes, rocks, or rodent holes could be lying under the cover of darkness. Any one of those things could break the horse’s leg or possibly snap Nick’s neck in a fall.
    Nick weighed what he’d learned about those gunmen and thought about the rancher they were out to meet. On the other hand, he couldn’t do anyone any good if he was lying hurt or lost his horse in the middle of this open stretch of land.
    Nick swore under his breath and pulled back on his reins. Kazys maintained as best he could.

FIVE
    “You know what the best thing is about owning land?” Joseph Van Meter said as he stretched out his legs and sank into the large porch swing.
    The woman next to Joseph was curled up with her legs tucked underneath her body. Shoulder-length blonde hair fell in tight curls around her face as she tried to find the spot in the distance that had captured her husband’s attention. “I give up,” she said. “What is it?”
    “Enjoying the quiet nights with nobody around to mess them up.”
    “You mean nobody except for me and the kids?”
    “You three don’t count.”
    She leaned away from him and gave Joseph a good smack on the chest with the flat of her hand. “We don’t count?”
    Joseph put on a grin that was almost hidden by the beard on his face. “You know what I mean. You don’t count when I’m talking about other folks.”
    “Is that good or bad?”
    Joseph snaked one arm around her waist and muscled her onto his lap. He easily positioned her so she was lying across his lap and one of his hands could work its way beneath her skirts. “That’s a good thing, Anne. It means you and the kids aren’t like the idiots in town or all those loud cowboys who storm through here like a pack of dogs.”
    “If I remember correctly,” she said, squirming and trying halfheartedly to keep his hand from getting much farther, “you were one of those cowboys not too long ago. In fact, I thought you were handsome back then.”
    “Just back then?”
    Anne took her hand away from his roaming touch and used it to brush her fingers along Joseph’s chin. “You know what I mean,” she said, adjusting herself so her husband could get a good feel of whatever he liked. “That’s a good thing.”
    Running his hand along her thigh, Joseph leaned in and kissed her powerfully on the lips. Soon, they were shifting to new positions on the swing until