“I couldn’t do what you said.” Elise’s voice was so soft that Ronan almost didn’t hear it.
“What?”
“I couldn’t get away from him as you taught me.” She looked guilty as if she’d done something wrong.
“Hey, that is not your fault. There are some situations where you just can’t get away. Especially when a weapon is involved. Goodness, that has even happened to me. You don’t have to feel bad about it. If this was anyone’s fault, it was mine. I knew how dangerous Hank was, and I still insisted on bringing him with us. I thought I could handle him, but clearly, I was wrong.”
“You knew him before?” Elise didn’t look surprised.
“Yes, I did. I caught him once before.”
“What happened?”
“I had been after him for a while; he has a pretty decent bounty on his head. On my way to capture him, I ran into two smaller bounties. By the time that I had all three of them together, you could say I was a pretty happy man.” Ronan smiled at the memory. That was the one good part about the entire story he was about to tell Elise. “But Hank got loose. I underestimated him. I was working alone, and I let my head take over after I became prideful about catching three criminals in one go.”
“What did he do?” Elise’s eyes were wide, and she had stopped rubbing her elbow. As much as Ronan hated discussing the story he was telling, he was happy to do so if it meant distracting Elise.
“He captured me, tied me up, and gave me a good beating.”
“I’m sorry.” Concern filled Elise’s face.
“Unfortunately, that wasn’t the worst thing he did. He left me out in the middle of nowhere … I presume to die. He said that I deserved a long and painful death after what I put him through.” Ronan scoffed. He didn’t believe he was the one in the wrong, considering all the crimes Hank had committed. “He then took both of the other criminals and turned them in for bounty by hiring someone else to take them to the sheriff’s office instead of him.”
“How did you get away?” Elise bit her lower lip, glancing at the woods as if she were afraid Hank would be coming back to get them. Ronan wasn’t about to tell her that her fear was unfounded when he was actually afraid of the same thing.
“I used that technique I taught you. My hands were tied behind my back, so it took considerable time. I was also found by a kind couple who helped me recover.”
“Why didn’t you tell me? I suppose I sort of suspected that you knew Hank, but you know you could have told me.” Elise seemed like her feelings were hurt.
“I know. I just hate talking about that story, you know? It’s like the worst moment of all my jobs. Even worse than the last one I told you. I hate thinking about it, and I hate knowing that because of me, Hank has gone free to hurt more people twice now. The worst part is, he vowed revenge. I am afraid that now he’s loose, he may come after us as soon as he gets his hands on a gun. We really need to get a move on.”
He quickly packed up the few supplies they had used the night before and rolled up the blankets and strapped them to the horses. He put the extra saddle on top of his bedroll and tied it on. He picked up the pistol and wiped it off, checking the barrel to be sure no dirt had gotten inside it. He put it into his belt and pulled his shirttail over it.
“All right. Let’s go. I’m glad that you told me, by the way,” Elise commented.
Ronan nodded curtly. He was glad that he’d told her too. He followed her to her horses. He saddled both of the remaining horses quickly and put his hand out to take hers. Her hand was smaller than his and fit into his larger one perfectly. It was warm and soft and made him want to keep on holding it even after she was on top of the horse.
Once she was properly in the saddle, he handed her the reins and forced a smile. “At least he didn’t take the horses.”
“At least. I don’t want to do any more hiking without horses.” Elise grinned.
Ronan couldn’t blame her. After their last bout of walking, he never wanted to walk anywhere long distance again. Ronan looked up at the cloudless sky. It was going to be a hot day.
Even though they were in a hurry, they kept the pace steady; they didn’t want to wear the horses out before they arrived. The sun was burning hot, covering their backs with sweat.
As they went, Ronan thought of his many journeys alone between these cities. Traveling alone was a benefit and a disadvantage. The one benefit was that he didn’t have anyone to worry about. But he did enjoy having Elise with him. It was nice to have someone to talk to, to share with, and to protect.
He pushed those thoughts and feelings back. After how he’d abandoned her and her father, there was little chance that she would ever think of him that way, and he deserved it. He wondered if he would ever see her again after he left her in California. The thought of not seeing her again made him sad. It made him feel devastated. He hated feeling so attached to a person like that. When he got attached to people, bad things happened. That much was clear.
Ronan cleared his thoughts and focused his eyes on the road ahead. They needed to get to Las Cruces before dark. If they didn’t, they would be in grave danger, with Hank roaming about who knew where.
Chapter 29
Hank let out an exhilarated laugh. He was free. There had been a couple of moments under Ronan and Elise’s watchful eye when he thought he wasn’t going to be free again for a very long time. But then Ronan had fallen asleep, giving him the time he needed to get out of his bounds.
Hank looked back. They weren’t following him; that was probably a good sign. Hank was almost disappointed. He expected more dedication from Ronan. But Ronan had his chance, and now Hank was free.
Hank set his jaw. He needed to get to his hideout and stock up on supplies. He was lucky that he had been staying in the area. He had hidden a large sum of money and a few weapons not too far from here.
His stomach lurched as he heard a noise behind him. Surely Elise and Ronan hadn’t caught up to him without him hearing? Hank pulled his horse to a stop, listening closely.
What happened next took him off guard. One moment, he was alone in the forest, enjoying his freedom. The next moment, he was surrounded by Indians, having ropes wrapped around his body and being pulled down from his horse.
Hank groaned. How could he have such luck? He had just managed to get free, and now he was back in bounds.
“What do you want? If you are going to kill me, just do it already,” Ronan shouted to the nearest Indian.
The man looked young, maybe no older than twenty. The Indian smirked at him and stepped out of the way. An older Indian took his place who had an air of authority.
“Have you seen two people? One white man and white squaw, traveling here?” The Indian glared at him with angry eyes. His English was broken and had a strong accent, but it was understandable.
“Why do you want to know?” Hank decided to try and gather as much information as he could before answering. From their description, they could be talking about anyone, but maybe, just maybe, they were talking about Ronan and Elise. If that was the case, maybe he was in luck after all.
“We want to know because they steal from us. They leave when they are not supposed to.” The Indian man did not look happy. If Hank had to guess, the Indian was the chief.
“I’ll make you a deal. If you’re talking about the two that I think you are, I’m not particularly happy with them either. They tied me up and want to take me to jail, so let’s make a deal.”
“You have nothing to offer.” The Indian chief looked proud of himself.
“I do have something to offer. I know that you Indians like to trade things. I have a good amount of money, more than you would need for a good number of things. I’ll trade it with you if you let me work together with you to find these two. You can even have them if you want; I just want to see their faces when you catch them.” Hank grinned at the idea.
He would love to see Ronan’s face when he realized he’d been caught. That he couldn’t prot
ect Elise or get them out of the situation. It was going to be hard for Hank to exact revenge on his own, but if he could convince the Indians to team up with him, it would definitely be possible.
“OK, we make deal with you.” The Indian did not look happy about the deal.
“Why are you looking for them? I mean, I’ve heard of people escaping with a few things from the Indians before. You don’t usually hunt them down.”
The chief looked conflicted for a moment. “The white squaw is medicine woman.”
“Well, I’ll be.” Hank shook his head. He wouldn’t have thought that Elise and Ronan were worth much, but it seemed that to the Indians, they were worth a lot.
***
Once everything had been discussed and agreed upon, they were off after Ronan and Elise. They were riding at a much faster speed than Hank normally would have gone at, but apparently, the Indians were quite eager to catch up to Ronan and Elise.
Hank stopped trying to make conversation after a while. The chief was the only Indian who understood anything he said, and the rest looked at him as if they wanted to go back on the deal and go through with killing him. Hank wondered if the Indians would keep their word. As far as he’d heard, Indians were honorable and kept their word. He also knew that he needed to keep his and give them his money, or there was no way he was getting out of this situation alive.
“Up there! There they are!” Hank pointed to two small figures on the horizon. It was clearly Ronan and Elise. There was no one else in sight. They weren’t going that fast. Hank was sure that if they didn’t make much noise, they could sneak up on them before they realized what was happening.
He smiled; even if he did end up dying or going to jail, he would do so happily knowing that he had helped punish Ronan for everything he’d done to him. Hank had been waiting for the day for years.
After their last encounter, he was more than angry to find out that Ronan was alive, and as long as Ronan was alive and roaming free, Hank knew he would always be looking over his shoulder and wondering if someone was after him. That was the expected life as a criminal anyway, but with Ronan, it was personal. Hank expected that Ronan really wouldn’t give up until he saw Hank behind bars for good.
The Indians all exchanged glances of excitement, and Hank could tell they were more than happy about their find. He only hoped that Ronan or Elise didn’t look back because they were close to Las Cruces, and if they became aware of the fact they were being followed, there might be a chance they could slip away.
Chapter 30
“Should we head back?” Elise asked. She had been thinking about it for quite some time and had finally worked up the nerve to say it out loud.
“What?” Ronan looked surprised.
“I mean, should we just go back, and I stay in my father’s town? Maybe I shouldn’t be going to California. With everything happening, maybe this has all been a giant mistake. Maybe it is a sign that California isn’t the right place for me.”
Ronan shook his head vehemently. “That is not true. You wanted to go to California. I know it seems scary right now, but you will get there eventually.”
“I just … I just don’t like seeing you go through all this trouble for me.” Elise hated to see how much danger Ronan was putting himself in. First, the entire incident with the wagon train and then the Indians. Maybe it would have been better for her to travel alone. Then she wouldn’t have been risking Ronan too.
“Even if I minded taking you, which I don’t, at this moment, it is closer to Las Cruces than to going back. We need to keep going if we are going to make it to California. Besides, we might have to face the Indians if we head back.” Ronan stopped suddenly, and his head turned back slightly. A look of worry filled his eyes.
“Ride faster!” His words were short and unexpected.
“What?”
“Ride faster! I think someone is following us.” Ronan’s voice was tight and urgent. Elise didn’t hesitate; she dug her heels into her horse’s sides.
“Who do you think it is?”
If Ronan’s voice had been worried before, it was urgent now. “It’s the Indians. Ride faster, Elise! I think Hank is with them, and they’re close.” Ronan was speeding up too.
Elise glanced back. Ronan was right. About eight riders were after them. They were still a good distance off, but they could see them because of the flat ground separating them. Elise was fairly certain that if there had been hills or mountains between them, they wouldn’t have seen their enemies until they were right on top of them.
“What do we do? What are they going to do with us if they catch us?” Elise was yelling. Over the loud sound of the horse’s hooves, she knew that it was hard for Ronan to hear her.
“Keep riding! I think I see Las Cruces up ahead. If we get inside the town, they’ll protect us. The Indians won’t follow us into town, and neither will Hank.”
Elise nodded without reply. She couldn’t reply with how fast she was going. The horse was thundering underneath her. She could feel every time its hooves hit the ground. She kept trying to glance back and see how close the Indians were, but every time she did, she felt like she was about to fall off the horse, so instead, she made herself stop looking.
As they rode, she imagined that the Indians were getting closer and closer, almost close enough to grab her, and then she would try to look again. It was a terrible cycle.
“We are almost there!” Ronan shouted over the noise of their horses.
Elise looked up to see he was right. She could see the buildings’ solid outline ahead of them, but they were still a good way off. She didn’t know if they were going to make it. The Indians were very close too. So close she could see that the chief was with them as well as Hank. She wondered what Hank had offered them to make them allow him to participate in their hunt.
Elise felt sick to her stomach. She didn’t want to find out what would happen if the Indians caught her and Ronan. She would never forgive herself if something happened to Ronan because of her.
“Ride faster, Elise!” Ronan’s voice shook her from her frantic thoughts. She pushed her feet further into the horse’s side. She could tell that Ronan was holding back a little for her. She wondered if he would have a better chance without her. But she’d come to know him well enough to know he wouldn’t be leaving her behind.
The closer the town became, the closer the Indians became. She didn’t know if they were going to make it. She had no idea what the Indians wanted, but she knew that whatever it was, it wouldn’t be good for them, considering that Hank was with them.
They raced closer and closer to town. As they thundered past the marker and into the main street, Elise felt like she would cry from relief.
“Slow down; we’re safe. You can slow down now.” Ronan’s voice reached her from somewhere.
Elise pulled on the reins, and her horse slowly stopped its galloping. As soon as the horse stopped moving, Ronan jumped down from his horse and rushed over to her, reaching up to help her down. Several townspeople turned to look at them and glanced up the road at the Indians who had stopped just short of the town’s borders and turned back.
Elise nearly jumped into Ronan’s arms, letting him steady her for several moments. Her hands were shaking, and she was breathing hard.
“I thought … I thought they were going to catch me.”
“I know, but we are safe now. See, they are turning back.”
“What are we going to do? We don’t have a bounty; how are we going to keep going? What if the Indians come after us anyway?” Elise looked to the town’s entrance, making sure the Indians hadn’t bravely followed them into the town.
“They aren’t going to follow us, and I have a plan. I know a man who lives on the outskirts of Las Cruces. He’ll give us a place to be for now. Then we will find jobs and save some money for supplies. Before you know it, we’ll be traveling again. But for now, I think we could both use the rest, don’t you? And we need to wait a while so that they give up on
us.”
A Long Way to Love: A Historical Western Romance Book Page 22
