“Yeah, my pa got her as my new ma. We’re a family now. We just need money so Pa don’t have to run around for his work.”
Ben asked a question this time. “Why does he run around? Is it so he can sell his horses?”
Eenie shrugged. “I don’t know. It’s so we can get money, I think.”
A wagon caught Ben’s attention and Eenie’s father was forgotten quickly. “Hey, let’s go spy on the cobbler. Our ma says he’s odd cuz he won’t fix anyone’s shoes.”
The two younger girls followed behind him. Hiding at the edge of a building near the back of the wagon, Ben hushed the giggling girls and waited.
Jubal Yarborough sat hunched inside his wagon, looking at a paper. His lips mumbled as he ran his finger over it like he was tracing something. Bent over the paper as he was, Eenie thought he looked like a scarecrow which had fallen from its pole. It made her want to laugh except Ben told them not to.
Someone called from near the wagon’s front. The cobbler grumbled and climbed out of his wagon. The kids ducked back into the shadows as he stepped onto the ground and moved to see who called.
Ben pointed suddenly. “The paper he’d studied must have hooked onto his clothes. See, it’s over there.”
The kids silently moved toward it, sneaking out of their hiding spot. As she looked down at it, Eenie saw an X and knew immediately her family needed this map.
“You can’t take that!” While Ben whispered the words, his tone shouted that she was doing wrong. “It’s not yours.”
Ignoring him, Eenie grabbed up the paper and ran. The others followed her. When she reached the livery, she stopped, and the brother and sister caught up with her.
Annie frowned and shook a finger in Eenie’s direction. “You’re a thief.” Her words were said in a sing-song, teasing sort of tone. The other girl ignored Annie’s words.
“It’s a treasure map. My family needs it. I want my pa to be home every day.”
Ben looked over Eenie’s shoulder. “What do you suppose those are?” He pointed to long, three-sided boxes positioned in spots on the map. “And you think that thing near the X is a house?”
“These remind me of canyons out on Paps’ ranch. Pa took me over most of that place.” Suddenly the little house made sense.
“There’s a shack there. Near a canyon, too.” Tonight, she’d study the map some more.
Ben gave her a challenging look. “You just think you know what those marks are. Bet there ain’t a treasure.”
The determined girl turned mutinous. “You don’t know everything, Ben! I’ll show you.” She folded up the paper and hid it in the pocket of the pinafore covering her calico dress.
A bellow of rage came from the direction of the cobbler’s wagon. Ben grabbed his sister’s hand and ran. Probably for home, Eenie thought.
Thinking she’d better hide too, she called into the livery and then joined Paps. While she curry combed a small horse for him, she dreamed of the treasure she’d find soon.
“Please. I don’t wanna stay in town after school.” Eenie began her plan right away the two mornings later, and her father fell into it just like she wanted.
He nodded. “I expect it gets to be a long day for you, sweetie. Go ahead and ride the pinto to school.”
So far so good. Her new ma frowned. At the girl’s huge grin, her ma’s eyes narrowed slightly. Did Ma know what she was up to?
Amy Sue said her mother always knew what she was doing. It was why the girl was afraid to have fun or pull pranks. Maybe Eenie’s new ma could tell what she’d planned. She was a teacher, too, after all.
The girl waited, but her ma didn’t say anything. Just went back to finishing her breakfast.
The school day went on and on. Ma got after her more than once as Eenie stared out the window and dreamed. Finally, the day was done and she rushed to grab her coat. The sound of her name froze her where she stood.
“Enid Anderson, what are you planning?” Ma’s eyes narrowed again. Eenie knew ma thought she was out to prank someone.
“Honest, Ma. I’m heading home. No pranks. I promise.” She crossed her heart as she said those words, but Ma’s eyes stayed narrowed with suspicion.
“You’d just better, young lady. I expect to see you when I get home.”
Eenie crossed her fingers behind her back and promised Ma she would. Maybe she could get the treasure fast.
Ben and Annie waited outside the school for her. He spoke in a low voice. “You really gonna do it?”
Eenie stuck out her chin and nodded. “Yep, I know the shack is east of the ranch buildings. There’s a canyon behind it. I’m gonna get my treasure.”
He folded his arms across his chest. “It’s not yours. You stole that map.” Not bothering to answer, Eenie walked away.
At the livery, she asked Paps for a shovel. The old man threw her an odd look. He might think the request was strange, but he gave it to her. “Tomorrow, tell me why you want it. I expect it will be a good prank.”
The girl nodded. She’d brag about her treasure tomorrow and set him straight then.
Securing the shovel behind the saddle, Eenie climbed onto the mare. Leaning forward, she patted the horse’s neck. In a whisper, she told the horse, “I think I’ll name you Treasure.”
Anticipation gave the two of them wings as Treasure raced for the ranch. The horse wanted her warm stall in the shed. As they neared the buildings, Eenie forced her unwilling mount away from the homestead and toward the hills.
Time passed slowly. The line shack was farther away than Eenie remembered. Near dusk, she almost gave up. Then the gray shack appeared in the distance. Veering away from it, she headed for the canyon marked on the map.
The sound of cattle surprised her. Men busily branded fully grown animals. Her pa had told her once that they branded them when they were half-grown. This didn’t make sense.
And they were in her treasure canyon. How would she be able to dig?
A sudden shout frightened her. A man with a hot branding iron threw it down. Pulling a gun from his holster, he ran toward her.
Pulling on Treasure’s reins, she turned the horse to race for safety.
Chapter 9
“Miss Per—Uh, Mrs. Anderson?”
Delia looked up from the papers she graded to smile at Ben. He sounded so unsure that it pained her. She wanted all of her students to be able to speak to her without being afraid.
“It’s okay, Ben. Come here and tell me what’s on your mind.”
“Well,” he scuffed a foot on the wood floor as he stared downward. Suddenly, he straightened his shoulders and met her eyes. “It’s ‘bout Eenie.” Again he fidgeted before saying the rest in a rush. “She stole something.”
Delia rose and moved to stand in front of Ben. Leaning down with a hand on his shoulder, she urged him to continue. “Tell me what she took.”
“Mr. Yarborough had a map. Eenie took it and is gonna get the treasure today.”
None of that made sense to her. Hearing the name of a dangerous man connected with her new daughter sent a chill through her. The driving need to rescue her child filled her.
“Do you know where she went?”
At Ben’s explanation, Delia groaned. She would have to ride a horse!
She scrawled a quick plea for help and handed it to Ben. “Take this to Sheriff Knight, please.” Some sense told her Eenie was in trouble and they’d need the sheriff.
Once upon a time, there was a girl who could speak with the birds. Since they flew around the town, they told her secrets. It was those secrets that got her into trouble.
The story her mother told her time and again flitted into Delia Perkins’s mind. The secrets got the girl into trouble. Or, maybe, the girl found the trouble herself by not minding her own business. She knew that had been the lesson her mother wanted Delia to learn years earlier.
Too bad her new daughter didn’t know the lesson. Perhaps then, Delia wouldn’t be tied to a chair in a supposedly abandoned cabin.
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br /> Voices murmured outside the ill-fitting door started her struggling again. She was thin—no slender, she reminded herself. As she’d wriggled, the chair twisted as if it meant to break. With the Lord’s blessing, that might happen. Then she could squirm until the ropes—
Suddenly, the door groaned and Delia heard a thump against it. Like an impatient giant had knocked on it. Oh no! Did she have giants to fight against now as well as rustlers?
Why did she ever take that silver star? She had been thrilled to have her first teaching job. It would have been sufficient excitement, surely.
But no. When the man collapsed, she had to reach out and accept the badge.
Secretly, she’d gladly repeated the oath he led her through. That led her to Rol which led her to rescuing their daughter. Could she really regret her new family?
At least she’d freed Eenie before the men caught her. When the line shack came into sight, she’d hidden her horse in a close stand of trees. Sneaking up to the lone window, she’d peered into the building. Eenie appeared very young as she sat tied up on the chair, crying pitifully.
Pushing up the window slowly, Delia winced at the noise it made. When no one came, she shimmied through it and held a finger to her lips when Eenie saw her. With flying fingers, she untied her daughter and boosted her through the window. “Run for the trees. The horse is there. Don’t wait too long for me. I want you to get to safety.”
The girl ran without looking back. Delia hiked up her skirt and lifted a leg over the window’s sill. Leaning her torso forward to push the rest of the way out, she felt the pull of a hand fisting in the back of her dress.
“Well, look ‘ee here. The little girl’s changed into a woman.” And so she’d ended up tied to the chair she’d freed Eenie from only moments before. This had to be the gang Rol wanted to arrest. He’d been waiting until he could find the herd, he’d said. Well, Delia knew she was near them as she could hear the lowing. Ironic that they were hidden on the very ranch where the marshal lived.
Now, if she could manage to break the weak wood of the chair, she could escape and tell him. She rocked and wiggled, hearing a satisfying crack break the silence of the room.
At sudden noises, she froze. Outside, repeating blasts of a rifle joined the pops from several handguns. The sound added momentum to her wiggling motion as she worked against the remaining ropes.
A crack of wood sent her tumbling to the right side. Still, the ropes held. With the tipping of the chair, she could slide her right shoulder down and—
She had it! The shoulder was free. Her arm moved under the previously snug rope. Sliding her hand backward, Delia’s heart pounded a wild dance tune as she realized she’d soon be out of the bindings.
At another crack of the chair, she tumbled backward. With her legs and skirts flying upward, she heard the door thud open.
No! Just a little more time, Lord. That’s all she’d needed. Just a bit and she’d be free and gone from the room.
Chapter 10
Pounding hoofbeats and a shout calling his name drew Rol away from his horses. He should have been out searching the area for signs of the rustlers. Odd, but it was becoming harder and harder to leave his work training the new broke animals.
The noise pulled him away from them. The sight of Will, Sheriff Knight’s deputy, atop a horse had him standing speechless. The man’s round form bobbed like a ball on the waves of a lake as he struggled with one hand to keep his seat. At the same time, Will was waving his hat and yelling Rol’s name.
Reining his horse in suddenly, Will brought it to a halt close to him. The deputy gasped, starting and stopping several times as he tried to get his breath. Rol thought both the ride and the yelling stole what energy this heavy man had.
Finally, his words began to make sense. “Sheriff says—” He worked for another deep breath and let it out. “Your women are in danger.”
Rol wanted to run for his stallion and his rifle. Common sense stopped him. He knew he needed more information.
Reaching up since Will remained mounted, he gripped the man’s arm and shook it. “Where are they? What ranch?” It had been the piece of the puzzle he could never solve. Which ranch hid them?
While still wheezing, Will managed a cackle. “This one, marshal.” He emphasized the title. Evidently, he didn’t think much of the thieves hiding on the very ranch where a U. S. marshal lived.
Ignoring the man’s disdain, Rol calmly continued to gather facts. “Any idea where?”
The man easily spoke now, his breathing regular again. “Yep. Kids stole a map from Jubal Yarborough. Imagine that!”
His hands fisted, yet Rol kept his voice even. “But what about the spot? Where on the ranch?”
The man paused as if delivering the key line in a melodrama. Rol was beginning to nurse a dislike for the lummox. “Some box canyon near a line shack. Sheriff thought you’d know it.”
Nodding, Rol felt relieved that he did remember the spot. Only a vague relief though, since his wife and daughter were in danger. He’d know real relief when they were both safe.
Putting everything but the job to round up the gang out of his mind, Rol saddled the black stallion. Leading him out of the shed, he momentarily started at seeing Will waiting for him. “You going with me?” Doubt hung heavy in his voice.
“Sheriff knows the spot and’s headed there. Said for me to come with you. He’d need us both.” Will gave a firm bob of his head with the words, sending his hat off. The man became a juggler, trying to catch it. Rol watched the comedy and almost clapped when the man managed to snag it before the hat fell to the ground.
Unable to stop it, Rol groaned before agreeing. “We’re riding fast. They’re a ways from here.”
This time it was Will’s turn to groan. “Just did a fast ride.”
The marshal grinned darkly. “Time to man up and do another.” With that, he and the black streaked out of the yard.
He ran over what clues he’d gathered as he galloped toward the line shack that was the furthest out. While he’d lived in the area, no loads of hay had been seen near here. Hank Lucas never mentioned pastures that showed unexpected signs of cattle. Did he have a man that patrolled the fences on this far piece of the ranch? Could be an inside man kept Lucas unaware?
Paps knew about Rol’s true job as a marshal. He passed on tidbits of news to help him locate the gang. Even Paps hadn’t heard or didn’t know about the gang hiding out on his ranch.
Of course, the old man didn’t run cattle and no horses would be kept in those far pastures during winter. Many of the animals had already been trained and sold in the summer and fall. The rest were in the barn or in corrals near the homestead.
Possibilities raced along with Rol as he covered the miles from one end of the ranch to the other. With the afternoon light waning, he cautioned himself to stay alert as he rode the black hard over the uneven ground. Injuring his animal wouldn’t get him to the shack any sooner.
Deputy Will didn’t seem the type of man he’d want to take to a gun battle. Rol didn’t bother even once to look over his shoulder to check if the man was keeping up with him. Secretly, he thought the man might be more trouble than help.
Still several hundred yards from the cabin, he saw a figure step out of a small stand of trees. He made cautioning movements with his hands. Paps!
Reining in, Rol dismounted in one smooth movement. Keeping his voice low, he slipped into the role of a lawman. “What do you know about the scene?”
Paps looked beyond him and held up his hand, palms out, in a stopping motion. As Will reined in his weary horse, he lost his balance and tumbled from the saddle with a loud oath. Both Paps and Rol hushed him.
“Canyon behind my line shack is blocked off.” The man’s tone was bitter, his face stony. “Sounds like a good-sized herd’s in there. Sheriff’s sent a man up top to count the number of men working the cattle.”
When Paps stayed silent, the younger man rushed out his question. “My girls? Any sign
of them?”
The old man actually laughed in a low, amused sound. “Wondered if you’d ask after that woman I helped you get.”
To Rol’s way of thinking, now wasn’t the time for teasing. He growled low in his throat and tried again. “Has anyone seen them?”
Paps nodded. “Bout an hour or so ago. Your Eenie was riding hellbent for leather in the direction of town. Said her ma freed her but was caught. Sent her on to the doc’s to be checked over.”
Before continuing, the old man shook his head. The movement erased any relief the husband felt at hearing Eenie was out of danger. “No one’s been able to get close enough to the line shack to see if the teacher’s inside.”
Not too far from where they waited, the report of a rifle echoed. “Must have been in the canyon.”
This was why Rol didn’t like working with small-town lawmen. They were sloppy and often trigger happy.
Pops from multiple hand guns. Blasts from shotguns. The area became a battle scene quickly. He grabbed the rifle from the saddle scabbard after ground tying his mount. Slipping through the scant cover of the few trees, he headed in the direction of the line shack and his woman.
No matter his sworn duty, at that moment Rol’s vow to be a good husband weighed heavier on him than his vow to fulfill the warrants he held. He would do everything in his power not to lose another wife.
Low, nearly inching worm-like on his belly, he made his way to the spot where the sheriff and two others were making a stand. “How’s it looking?”
Knight scowled. “Two are down. Not sure yet how many are in the canyon.” Then he pointed with his shotgun barrel toward the shack. “Got the one guarding it. Should be okay. If you use some stealth.”
Caution had Rol crawling low to the cabin. Each step reinforced the idea that his career as a marshal needed to be his past. He crawled inch by inch toward his future.
At the door, he stood. Opening it so that he stood behind the door, he waited for one of the gang to come out, handgun firing. When he heard nothing more than the loud crack of wood, Rol slipped into the shack.
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