Four others joined them, and they rushed forward. If the gang had taken precautions to cover their tracks before, they certainly didn’t now.
It was easy to follow them, and it didn’t take long to spot them. They were no longer on horses. Nick wasn’t sure if the horses had been spooked or if they had sent them off like many of his companions had done.
He recognized Jake as the man holding Lana’s arm. Her hands were tied behind her back and she was gagged. As Jake turned to face him and brought Lana with him, he saw the stark fear on her face.
Her hair had come undone and framed her face in messy tangles. Nick wanted to run to her and get her away from Jake, but he knew he couldn’t.
Jake was pointing a pistol at them and had a look of determination as if he was saying he would do whatever he needed to do to get away from this situation unscathed.
“Jake, let her go. She didn’t do anything to you.” Nick leveled his gun at Jake, but he wasn’t sure he could take a shot without Jake doing something to Lana.
Between him, Derek and the townsmen, they outnumbered Jake and his men. But he knew that the criminals weren’t going to give up without a fight, no matter how outnumbered they were.
“She does have something to do with me. You both do. It’s your fault we are in this situation.” Jake was snarling like a rabid dog.
“It is not her fault that we are in this situation. It is your fault. It is you who is a criminal, not her.” Nick’s hand trembled slightly on his weapon. He hated feeling so out of control and seeing Lana in danger because of him.
He never should have included her in this operation.
“Did it ever occur to you that if you would have minded your own business, we would have robbed the bank and been on our way? We never wanted anyone to get hurt. That is on you.”
Nick shook his head, he wasn’t going to let place the guilt of what he had done on him.
“No one was supposed to get hurt. What about Daniel! He was hurt, he was killed. And what about all the ranchers who depend on that money in the bank to get them through the winter? Don’t you think they will be hurt too?”
Recognition flashed into Jake’s eyes, but no remorse. Anger filled Nick’s veins. How could this monster stand there and act like he was innocent of doing people wrong when he had torn Nick’s family apart and destroyed families’ livelihoods?
“Daniel was not hurt. He received what he deserved. He owed me money and I told him very clearly that if he didn’t pay, he would pay with his life.” Jake’s voice was cold and calculated. “He knew the risk when he decided to gamble with me.”
“He was a father; his children will grow up fatherless because of you.” Nick was yelling now. He knew that he was no longer in control of his emotions.
“I didn’t ask him to have children.”
“You will pay for your crimes. That is why we couldn’t let you go! You will pay for what you did.” Nick’s voice was as strong as steel and as cold as a river in winter.
“Will I? Or will she?” Jake motioned to Lana whose eyes were growing wider as they exchanged words.
He knew she probably would have said something by now, but she was wearing a gag that prevented her from doing so.
Nick’s eyes saw movement behind Jake. The men from the town had gotten behind him. There was no escape for Jake now. He needed to find a way to separate him from Lana.
Nick knew that in a way Jake was like a trapped animal, and when he realized that, he knew he could become dangerous very quickly.
As Nick was trying to think of what to do, the rest of the men acted without waiting. They rushed Jake, running towards him, their weapons raised.
Nick didn’t run towards Jake, he ran toward Lana as he heard a gunshot split the air.
‘Dear God, please don’t let her be shot.’
Time seemed to stand still as he ran toward her, wishing with all of his being that he could have protected her from this moment.
Chapter 38
Lana’s eyes met Nick’s as he ran towards her and she crumpled to the ground. Her legs were too weak to support her any longer. They had been walking for hours and then running for the last bit.
She had been so scared that no one would come. When they had, she had hardly been able to believe it.
She couldn’t call out to Nick. She couldn’t say anything because they’d put the gag back on her. They had probably figured that she would yell at her rescuers or something to jeopardize their position.
While Lana hadn’t been able to make any noise, she’d still managed to break branches and scuff the ground in several places.
While she knew one of the men was walking behind searching for clues they had passed, they were in a hurry and she knew he wouldn’t be able to catch everything.
She had hoped that Nick would see the clues she left behind, and it turned out that he had.
When Nick reached her, he scooped her into his arms and began to untie her hands and then removed the gag.
Lana pulled in huge breaths of air. Running with the gag on had nearly caused her to pass out. She couldn’t breathe well, and she couldn’t get enough oxygen with it on.
“Are you all right? Were you shot?” Nick was running his hands up and down her arms.
At first, she couldn’t answer. Her mouth was so dry from the rag that had been in her mouth for the past several hours. “I-I’m fine,” Lana finally managed to whisper. Her voice sounded as if it belonged to someone else. It was dry and raspy and sounded terrible.
She could feel that her lips were cracked, and it felt as if her throat hadn’t had water in forever.
She hadn’t had anything to eat or drink since before they had started their mission to stop the robbery.
The running, walking and smoke, being under the sun had all taken a toll on her body and she was beginning to think that a person could only live two days without water because she was feeling desperate.
“Do you have any water?” Every word hurt to say, but she had to speak.
Nick nodded and pulled a canteen from his belt. “Here, drink.”
He helped her and she took several long gulps the cool liquid bringing her burning throat relief. Once she’d been able to drink a small amount and had a second to get her bearings, her eyes met Nick’s.
“You came for me,” she said softly.
“Of course, I did. I’m sorry… I told you it would be easy. I never imagined the deputy would-” Nick glared over in the direction where the sheriff was tying up the man that they all knew as Deputy David.
“No, I’m sorry, I failed.” Lana’s eyes filled with tears. She wasn’t sure where her body got them. She felt so dehydrated she was almost certain she could drink an entire bucket of water. “I went to the sheriff’s office. When I realized that he was with Jake, I tried to get away, but I wasn’t strong enough.”
Lana realized that she was shaking. The only thing keeping her from passing out was Nick’s strong hands on her shoulders and his expression of worry staring at her face.
“Don’t blame yourself, please don’t blame yourself. Jake and his men are terrible criminals. None of us could have accounted for what they would do.” Nick’s words were comforting and sincere.
“I’m just glad you’re all right. I thought they were going to hurt you or kill you.”
Nick shook his head, “You don’t have to worry about me. I know how to take care of myself.”
“I know,” Lana knew that he thought that, but that didn’t mean that sometimes even the strongest people could be hurt. She had thought her parents were invincible. She’d thought she would have them forever, but they’d been taken from her by a simple illness.
“I don’t want to lose anyone else,” A tear escaped her eye and ran down her cheek. Nick reached out and brushed it away. His hand felt warm against her cheek.
“No one wants to lose people they are close to, but sometimes, that is just what needs to happen. I think I’ve learned that the hard way.”
Lana knew he was right, but it didn’t make it any less painful. “I’m just glad I didn’t lose you this time.”
Lana realized for the first time how much Nick really meant to her. The entire time she’d been captured, he’d been all she had been able to think about. She had thought about what he would think if she died.
She had felt devastated that she wouldn’t be able to see him again. She had felt torn apart that she wouldn’t be able to tell him what she thought of him, how much a part of her family he had become.
“You’re a mess,” Nick’s soft chuckle brought her back to the present. “We need to get you to the doctor. We wouldn’t want your wrists or any of these cuts to get infected.” His voice was somber once more.
Lana looked down at her wrists. She hadn’t even realized how much damage she’d done to them. A large patch of red cracked skin made its way in a full circle around both wrists.
“I’m so thirsty. Do we have to walk? Did you bring horses?” Lana hoped that he had. She wanted to laugh as she remembered when she’d hated the idea of riding horses and Nick had told her she would prefer it to walking one day. It seemed that day had come.
“We did bring horses, but we had to send most of them away when the shooting started. We didn’t want them to get killed. They are probably still around here somewhere. Maybe we can round a few up. Hey, take it easy on the water. You should take it slow and drink a little at a time,” he cautioned.
Lana nodded, but she was sure the disappointment showed on her face. She felt so exhausted, she wasn’t sure how she could possibly make the trek back home. She knew he was right. If she drank too fast her stomach might revolt and yet she was very hungry.
“I don’t suppose you have anything to eat? I’m starving.” Lana’s stomach rumbled in agreement.
“Those monsters didn’t feed you or give you anything to drink, did they?” Nick’s face was red with anger and Lana wondered if she’d made a mistake by telling him.
“No, they didn’t. I was invisible to them but in a way that was good. I was afraid to have them notice me too much.”
Nick fumbled in his saddlebags and after a minute, produced some hardtack and a biscuit. “Here, it isn’t much, but hopefully it will hold you over until we get home.”
Lana took it and took a big bite. It was the most delicious thing she had ever tasted. Lana was surprised when Nick turned her towards him.
“Lana, before we go, I just need to apologize to you. I’m sorry for everything that I did when you first came.”
Lana shook her head and giggled, “There is nothing to apologize for. I forgive you. I enjoyed being stubborn. I enjoyed watching your mustache twitch whenever you were making plans on how to scare me away.”
“In the last few weeks, I’ve come to realize how much you mean to me,” he said taking her hand.
Lana smiled. “You mean a lot to me too,” she responded with a smile.
“You mean more to me than a friend or even family, Lana. I love you. I know that it doesn’t make sense and you must think I am a terrible person because of the way that I treated you. But if you’ll give me another chance, I will prove to you how much I really do care about you.”
“I-” Lana’s heart pounded in her chest. Nick loved her. He felt the same way about her as she did about him. “I love you too,” Lana managed to say softly, as tears filled her eyes.
Now that she had said the words, she felt the fear of rejection. What if Nick changed his mind?
Visions of Henry and what he’d done to her filled her mind. He had said he had loved her and yet he had done the worst possible to her. But Nick wasn't like that. He had already proved what kind of man he was.
“You’ve made me the happiest man alive, Lana. I never imagined that you could feel the same way about me.”
Lana beamed and she let out a little gasp as Nick pulled her against him in an embrace.
This was what it was like to feel safe and loved and it felt very good.
Chapter 39
Nick looked down at Lana. She had fallen asleep, her head leaning against his chest. They had managed to recover a few of the horses. She was wrapped in a blanket that someone had brought, sitting in the saddle in front of him.
“So, what’s going to happen with Jake and the others?” Nick asked the sheriff. They were riding side by side, heading back to town. It shouldn’t take long to get there.
It was late afternoon and the sun was already starting to lower in the sky. Nick wanted to repay Jake with what he had done to Daniel. But he knew that killing Jake wouldn’t be right, no matter what he had done.
Jake should receive justice by the law.
“They’ll be taken to jail for the night. In the next couple of days, they will have a trial. But I’m sure they will spend the rest of their lives locked safely away where they can’t hurt anyone ever again. And a couple of them may meet their maker at the end of a rope. The Linden gang is responsible for the deaths of more than one man.”
Nick nodded, “Do you believe me now about Daniel?”
The sheriff nodded, a look of regret on his face. “I believe you. I should have believed you the day you came into my office. It would have saved all of us a lot of trouble. We recovered the money from the bank but there is no way to recover Daniel.”
“Would it have? Maybe it would have caused more. Maybe Jake and his gang would have been more aggressive if we would have handled things differently.”
The sheriff nodded, “Still, I owe you an apology. In this life, we can never be sure who people are. I shouldn’t have judged Jake because of his disability, and I shouldn’t have judged you because of your family circumstances.”
Nick shrugged. “It made sense. I mean, I didn’t blame you. If I had been in your position I probably would have thought the same thing. I was on a bit of a rampage after Daniel died.”
The sheriff chuckled. “If you ever uncover another bank robbery or anything else, you come straight to me and you will be the first person I believe.”
“I’ll do that, sheriff. Who knows, maybe in the future I’ll be a deputy.”
“You’re welcome to the job at any time. We are actually short a deputy.” The sheriff looked back to where David was, tied up and walking obediently on the line with the other gang members behind the horse.
David looked remorseful, guilty and angry. Nick wondered if the man wished he would have made a different choice. Maybe if he would have changed to really become a deputy he could have had a different ending to his life.
It just reminded him that everyone was responsible for their own lives. When people chose to do bad things, one day, those things would catch up with them.
Nick was only glad that more good people didn’t get hurt because of the bad things people had done around them.
“Before we get to town, I just wanted to say I’m sorry about Daniel. I don’t believe I ever offered my proper condolences.”
Nick felt a wave of sadness wash over him. “Ginger and I both knew that everyone in town was sad about his death. Daniel was a good and well-liked man. You don’t have to say it. Besides, now, justice will be served.”
“If it hadn’t been for your investigating, we never would have known that it wasn’t an accident. I guess in a way I blame myself.”
Nick’s eyes widened in surprise. “Why would you say that?”
An Encounter of Courageous Hearts: A Historical Western Romance Book Page 27
