by Bobbi Smith
“I’m gonna miss Nick,” Tommy said. “I can’t believe he’s gone.”
Danny knew Nick and Tommy had played together whenever they could. “Neither can I,” he told him.
They looked at each other in silence for a moment and then Tommy went on to bed, knowing he’d get in trouble if anyone caught him up and moving around.
Danny finished eating the bread and then lay back down. He pretended to be sleeping, but, in truth, he was waiting until he was sure everyone was asleep. Only then did he risk making his escape. With great stealth, he gathered his few belongings. He took the pillowcase off his pillow and used it to stow his things. Very quietly he climbed out the window and dropped to the alleyway below.
He couldn’t stay at the orphanage.
Not anymore.
He wasn’t sure how he was going to do it, but he was going after his brother, and once he’d found him, they would leave this town and never come back.
Filled with resolve, Danny moved off into the night to begin his search.
The following morning, the boys were shocked when they woke up to find Danny gone. When Miss Helen learned that he’d disappeared, she immediately sent some of the adults out to try to find him, but Tommy and the other orphans had a feeling they would never see Danny again.
It was one week later, on Christmas Eve, when Tommy was awakened by the sound of a pebble hitting the window to the bedroom there in the orphanage. Excitement filled him for a moment, for he believed he might be hearing Santa and his reindeer, but then another pebble hit the window and he knew it wasn’t Santa coming to the orphanage.
Tommy crept from his bed to push the curtain aside and look out into the dark alley. Since he knew it wasn’t Santa, he hoped it would be Danny coming back. He’d missed the older boy.
“Tommy!” came Nick’s hushed call when his friend appeared in the window.
“Nick?” He recognized Nick’s voice and was shocked to see him hiding in the alley.
“Get Danny for me!”
“Danny? I can’t!”
“Why not?” Nick came out of his hiding place and moved closer. He wanted so much to see his brother. He needed to be with Danny.
“Danny’s not here!” Tommy called back.
Their conversation woke some of the other boys, who came to join Tommy at the window. “What’s going on?” one asked.
“It’s Nick. He’s back, looking for Danny,” he told them quietly.
“What do you mean Danny’s not here?” Nick was shocked by the news. “Did he get adopted, too?”
“Wait there,” Tommy told him, and he started to sneak out of the sleeping room.
“What are you doing?” one of the older boys asked, knowing he would get in trouble.
“I gotta go talk to Nick. I gotta tell him what happened.”
With that, Tommy left the room, and after putting on his coat, he moved silently down the hall to slip out the back door. He found Nick waiting for him and saw several of the other boys hanging out the window watching them.
“Why did you come back?” Tommy asked. “You got adopted.”
Nick looked miserable. “I ran away. I had to. The Millers were nice enough, but Danny’s my family, and he always will be. It’s Christmas—I want to be with my brother. Where is he?”
“When Danny found out you were gone, he ran away. He snuck off that first night after you were adopted, and we haven’t seen him since. I’m sure he was going after you. Miss Helen even had some people searching the streets for him, but they never found him. Nobody knows where he went.”
Nick stared at his friend in complete misery. The home he’d been taken to was a good one. The couple who’d adopted him were kind, God-fearing people who’d treated him well, but he needed his brother. He was lost without Danny. He didn’t know what to do now. It had taken him three days to make it back to the orphanage. And now to find Danny gone . . .
“What is going on out here?” Miss Helen demanded as she came out of the building with several of the older boys who’d gone to get her.
Nick and Tommy were scared, but they knew better than to try to run away.
Nick spoke up. “It’s my fault.” With shoulders slumped, he went to face the headmistress. “Tommy didn’t do anything, Miss Helen. It’s me, Nick.”
“Nick?” She was shocked to find the young boy standing there before her in the middle of the night. “What are you doing here? You should be with the Millers.”
“I ran away.”
“But your family . . .” She could only imagine what his adoptive parents were going through right then, worrying about him.
“Danny is my family, Miss Helen.“
Miss Helen ordered Tommy and all the other boys to go back inside to bed. Then she took Nick to her office and forced him to sit in the chair before her desk. This was Christmas Eve. Things were supposed to be quiet and peaceful, and now she had to deal with this.
“What do you think you’re doing, running away like this?”
“I can’t go back to the Millers without my brother.” Nick knew she was furious, but right then he didn’t care. Nothing mattered but being with Danny.
“You have to,” she said. “As I’m sure Tommy told you, Danny is gone. He ran away the same day you left for your new home.”
“Where did he go?” He looked up at her in agony, worrying about his brother. “Didn’t he leave a note or something?”
“No. We have no idea where he disappeared to. We looked for him for several days, but found no trace of him.”
“Danny’s got to be here somewhere.” All he could think about was his poor brother alone, hungry, and cold on the dark, scary city streets.
“He’s gone, Nick, and I don’t believe he’s coming back.”
“He’s probably still out there looking for me.”
“Whatever the case, I need to return you to your new parents. I’m sure they’re worried sick about you. They love you so much. Why, they’re probably on their way back here, looking for you right now.”
Nick wanted to just get up right then and run away from the orphanage. He wanted to take off and search for his brother, but there was little hope that he would ever find Danny on his own, not after so many days had already passed. A great and heavy sorrow filled his heart, but he knew he couldn’t give up. To satisfy Miss Helen, he answered, “Yes, ma’am.”
Miss Helen was glad he hadn’t tried to cause any more trouble. She couldn’t wait for morning to get there, so she could take the necessary steps to reunite him with his adoptive family. At least, the Millers would have a blessed Christmas, getting Nick back.
Chapter One
Sagebrush, Texas
Eleven years later
Hank Moran was filled with rage as he sat at a back table in the Gold Dust Saloon, drinking heavily. The day before, Jack Anderson had fired him from his job as foreman on the Lazy Ace. He’d known Jack had a reputation as being a hard man to work for when he hired on, but he never thought Jack would turn out to be as bad as he was. Hank had hated the time he’d spent working for him and now that he’d been fired, he hated the rancher even more. Humiliated, he kept drinking and planned just how he was going to get even.
Sally had been waiting on Hank since he’d come in several hours earlier. She’d heard the talk about him losing his job and had recognized immediately that he was in one ugly mood. She’d made it a point to stay away from him except to serve his whiskey, for she knew from experience Hank would look for a fight when he got this drunk.
As Sally made her way toward Hank’s table to get him a refill of whiskey, she noticed the good-looking stranger who’d just walked into the saloon. Tall and darkly handsome, the new man stood out in a room crowded with drunken, rowdy, unwashed ranch hands. She offered him a quick smile but kept moving. She’d definitely find the time to see what he wanted as soon as she could, but right then she had to get Hank’s drink to him before he started trouble.
“Here you go, Hank.”
“ ’Bout time you got here,” he snapped.
“Wanted to make sure it was just perfect for you,” she purred, trying not to sound irritated as she set the tumbler of whiskey before him. “You look like you could use some fun, Hank.”
“There’s only one thing I want to do,” Hank snarled.
“What’s that?” she asked, believing he was going to say he wanted to get bedded that night.
Hank looked up at her. “I want to get even with Jack Anderson for what he did to me.”
His expression was so full of hate, Sally found herself feeling very uneasy around him. “Well, for right now, drink up, and enjoy yourself.”
She moved away, hoping to get a chance to flirt with the new fella, who was making his way up to the bar.
Dan had taken a quick look around the saloon and then gone to the bar to order a shot of whiskey.
“You’re new in town, aren’t you?” the bartender asked as he set the tumbler on the bar and filled it with a generous amount of liquor.
“Just rode in this afternoon. Nice town you’ve got here. Seems real peaceful,” Dan said, pushing the money for the drink across the bar to him.
“You want trouble, just show up on payday weekends. Things can get a little wild then, but you’re right—for the most part it’s pretty quiet here in Sagebrush, and we like it that way.”
“That’s good to hear,” Dan said, and he meant it. In the years he’d been on his own, he’d moved around a lot. He’d been in some real bad places and he’d met some real bad people. He’d been through hard times, but he’d managed to survive by working hard, learning how to use a gun, and watching his own back. He knew no one else was going to do that for him. He had to take care of himself.
“You need anything else, just yell. My name’s Wayne.”
Dan just nodded to him as he lifted his glass to take a drink. He was ready to settle in and relax for a while.
“You got everything you need, handsome?” asked a saloon girl as she sashayed up next to him. She leaned back against the bar to give him a full view of the low-cut bodice of her dress and smiled brightly.
“Now that you’re here, I do.” He returned her smile. “Can I buy you a drink?”
“I’d like that a lot.”
Dan signaled Wayne, and the bartender moved back down to the end of the bar to see what he wanted.
“Give the lady whatever she wants,” Dan said, paying him.
“I do like the way you think.” She gave him a look full of promise.
Wayne poured the drink and was about to move away to take care of his other customers when Jack Anderson walked into the saloon. The hair on the back of Wayne’s neck rose. Considering the mood Hank was in, this was trouble. He just hoped the former foreman stayed so busy drinking that he wouldn’t notice Jack at the bar. Wayne wanted to avoid any kind of fight between the two men tonight.
“Evening, Jack,” Wayne said, keeping his voice down. He set about pouring the rancher a glass of his favorite bourbon. He wanted to ask how everything was going out at the Lazy Ace, but hesitated. “What brings you to town tonight?”
“I had a few things I had to—”
“Anderson?”
Hank’s shout brought a sudden silence to the room.
Jack hadn’t noticed Hank when he’d come in, but it didn’t surprise him to hear the man’s slurred yell from the back of the room. Hank had proven himself to be nothing but a drunken troublemaker right from the start, and Jack was glad he’d finally gotten rid of him. Jack kept his drink in his hand as he slowly turned to look in Hank’s direction.
“Yes, Hank?” Jack said calmly. He didn’t want any trouble with the fool. He just wanted him to move on.
Hank was as drunk as he’d ever been, and his fury was real as he stood, knocking his chair over in the effort. He staggered toward the bar, ready for a fight.
One of the other men sitting at a nearby table knew what was going to happen, and he got up, hoping to stop Hank from doing anything too stupid. He grabbed Hank’s arm, but Hank hit him savagely, and the man fell heavily to the floor.
Hank gave the other men standing around a threatening look. “Get away from me! All of you!”
Dan had dealt with men like this one before, and he knew what was coming. He moved away from the bar and drew the young barmaid with him.
“Get out of sight,” Dan told her in a low voice as others in the room scrambled to avoid getting caught up in the coming confrontation.
“Hank’s out for revenge,” she whispered frantically. “Jack just threw him off his ranch.”
Dan nodded to her and turned back to watch the two men as they faced each other down.
Jack’s expression was one of disgust as he set his drink aside. He slowly looked at the drunken fool who’d come to stand before him. “It’s over and done with, Hank. Let it go.”
“No, it’s not over and done with,” Hank threatened.
“Yes,” Jack inisisted, “it is.”
He started to turn his back. He hoped ignoring him would make him go away, but it didn’t work.
Jack’s actions only enraged Hank even more. Hank drew his gun and held it straight at the other man. “You’re wrong, Jack!”
“Hank, put the gun away,” Wayne ordered from behind the bar, more than a little tense. He never thought Hank would be stupid enough to draw his gun.
As a bartender, he’d seen this many times—stupid men doing stupid things when they were trying to prove they weren’t stupid. Wayne knew Hank didn’t realize he was only showing everyone just how right Jack had been to fire him. Wayne edged toward the end of the bar where he kept his shotgun.
“Don’t even think about going for your shotgun, Wayne,” Hank raged, glaring around the room. “And the rest of you, stay out of this! This is between the boss and me.” He looked back to Jack and motioned toward the door. “Move, Jack. Go on, get outside.”
“There’s nothing to be gained from this,” Wayne warned him. Instead of stepping up to help, his other patrons were backing off. They knew how dangerous Hank was when he got this drunk. Wayne could only hope someone had managed to sneak out the back without Hank seeing him and go for the sheriff.
Dan knew the drunken fool had murder on his mind. He glanced around the saloon and realized no one else was going to do anything to help. He was going to have to stop the drunk by himself. Dan waited just long enough for Anderson to reach the swinging doors before making his move.
“Anderson, run!” Dan shouted as he charged forward and launched himself at Hank.
Hank panicked and got off one wild shot in Jack’s direction just as Dan tackled him from his blind side. They crashed to the floor in a violent struggle, rolling savagely around until Dan was able to knock the gun out of Hank’s hand.
In all his years on his own, Dan had become pretty good at fighting. He finally managed to overpower Hank and knock him unconscious. Grabbing up the gun, Dan got to his feet and stood over him. He watched Hank for a moment, wanting to make sure he wasn’t going to cause any more trouble.
Wayne rushed to his side, armed with his shotgun, ready to help.
“That was real brave of you,” he told the stranger, impressed by his quick action. He had little doubt the man had saved Jack’s life, and then, thinking of Jack, he yelled, “Jack! You all right?”
Jack came back in through the swinging doors, holding his bloodied upper arm. “He winged me, but it’s not bad.” Jack turned to the newcomer, his expression serious. “I owe you my life.”
“I was glad to help,” Dan offered, relieved the older man hadn’t been more seriously wounded.
“What’s your name?” Jack asked.
“Dan Roland.”
“Well, Dan Roland, I’m Jack Anderson, and I want to buy you a drink.” Jack looked to Wayne.
The crowd in the saloon had moved in closer to see what had happened now that all the fighting and shooting were over.
“Harry! Charley! Get Hank over to Sheriff Tho
mpson at the jail. Now!” Wayne yelled to two of his regulars. “Tell him what happened and make sure he locks Hank up.”
The two men grabbed the unconscious man and hauled him away.
“Carl, go get the doc,” Wayne instructed another man sitting at the far end of the bar. “Jack needs his arm looked after.”
Carl hurried to do as the barkeep had ordered.
“Jack, let’s tie that arm up with this towel, till Doc Clemens gets here.” Wayne hurried back behind the bar to put his shotgun away and get one of the bar towels. He went back to Jack and quickly helped bind his upper arm to stop the blood flow. That done, he got his bottle of bourbon and refilled Jack’s glass. “I’m thinking you could use a stiff one right now. Drink up—on the house.”
“Thanks, Wayne,” Jack said. “Give my new friend Dan Roland here whatever he wants. I’m buying his.”
Wayne looked to Dan. “Want some of my bourbon?”
“That’ll be fine,” Dan told him.
“Looks like we were both wrong, thinking it was a peaceful night in Sagebrush,” the barkeep said as he quickly served him his drink and refilled Jack’s glass again.
Dan couldn’t help smiling. “I was going to say, if this was peaceful, I can imagine what your payday weekends are like.”
Wayne chuckled as he moved away.
“Let’s go sit down,” Jack invited, taking up his glass and leading the way over to a table.
Calm returned to the saloon.
“Do you always jump into fights that aren’t your own?” Jack asked as they sat down again.
Dan took a drink of his liquor and gave him a half smile. “Only if I think somebody could use my help.”
“That can get you into trouble sometimes,” Jack joked.
“I know. It already has,” Dan returned.
“What brought you to Sagebrush? Are you passing through or planning on staying around for a while?”
“I was just passing through when I rode in.”
“You need work?”
“You hiring?”
Jack looked him straight in the eye as he answered, “You got any ranching experience?”
“I do.”
