“You little brat. You’re just like your outlaw mother!”
Ellie-May recognized the man as Hal Spencer, who’d once owned a farm not far from hers.
The man set Lionel down. Holding on to Lionel with one hand, Spencer raised his other hand as if to slap him. Jaw dropping, Ellie-May hiked up her skirt and charged toward him like an angry bull.
“Oh no, you don’t!” she gasped.
With a swing of her arm, she clobbered Spencer over the head with her purse. He released Lionel, but she kept pounding on him. Yelling for her to stop, he held his hands to his head to ward off the blows. Someone in the crowd laughed at the unlikely sight of a pint-sized woman getting the best of a burly man like Spencer.
That only made matters worse. Spencer’s face grew red with rage, and ugly blue veins stuck out from his neck. He grabbed her swinging purse and yanked her toward him with such force, Ellie-May almost lost her footing.
His vile breath in her face, he yelled, “Why you little—”
Matt Taggert suddenly appeared at her side and grabbed Spencer by the throat. “Let her go!”
Cursing beneath his breath, Spencer released his hold on Ellie-May and quickly turned on Matt. But Matt was ready for him. He grabbed Spencer’s swinging arm with one hand and punched him square in the jaw with the other, knocking him clear off his feet.
The crowd backed away with a collective gasp as Spencer’s unwieldly form hit the ground, but Matt wasn’t done. He reached down, grabbed the man by the collar, and jerked him upright.
“You owe the lady and her son an apology,” Matt said, his voice dead serious.
With her arm around Lionel, Ellie-May’s mouth dropped open. No one had ever before demanded an apology on her behalf. She was so shocked, so touched, by Matt’s actions and words that, for a moment, all she could do was stare at him, speechless.
When Spencer failed to apologize, Matt released him and pounded a fist into his palm as a warning.
Spencer rubbed his bloodied jaw with the back of his hand. Eyes glittering, he mumbled something beneath his breath.
Matt frowned. “I don’t think they heard that.”
This time, Spencer spoke louder. “I said, the bratty kid kicked me in the shin. He’s the one who should apologize.”
Lionel made a fist as if he was ready to fight Spencer himself. “He said a mean thing about my ma,” he said.
Ellie-May held him back, but she couldn’t help but feel a glimmer of pride. Her young son had defended her, just as Matt had, and she felt overwhelmed with emotion.
Spencer scoffed. “All I said was a man who married an outlaw’s daughter don’t deserve no hero treatment.” He scanned the crowd as if looking for others who shared his opinion. “Did you all forget what her pa did to this town?”
Matt gave the man a good shaking, his fist posed in a threatening way. “Mrs. Blackwell and her son are still waiting for that apology.”
Shooting Matt visual daggers, Spencer turned beady eyes on Ellie-May. “Sorry,” he said.
“That’s more like it.” Matt let him go, though he looked reluctant to do so.
Spencer staggered to his feet, wiped his chin with the back of his hand, and shuffled away.
Her arm still wrapped around her son’s shoulders, Ellie-May drew him close. Reaching for her daughter’s hand, she shepherded both children past the staring crowd. Head held high, she looked neither left nor right and ignored the whispered voices that trailed behind them.
Anvil chased after her, looking visibly upset. “Are you okay?” he asked.
“I’m fine,” she said. “Would you please just take us home?”
He frowned. “Are you sure that’s what you want?”
“Yes.” The day had been ruined, and there was no way to salvage it. She quickly marshaled the children off the school property and across the street to where their rig was parked. She was shaking so much, she feared her knees would cave beneath her. Had Matt not come to her rescue, she wasn’t sure what would have happened.
While Anvil took his seat, she helped the children aboard and then climbed up after them. Anvil grabbed the reins and snapped them, his face set in a grim expression.
The mare took off with a snort, and the wagon bumped up and down until they reached the main road. The children held on to each other to keep from being thrown from the seat.
Somehow, Ellie-May had lost a kid glove, and she sighed in annoyance. Not only was it her best pair, the gloves had been a gift from Neal. Now, she used the single glove to fan her heated face.
Alicia was the first to break the tense silence. “How come that man said you were an outlaw’s daughter?”
Gripping the reins tight in his hands, Anvil shot Ellie-May a worried look. “The man is plain loco and don’t know what he’s talkin’ about.”
“It’s all right, Anvil,” Ellie-May said. She’d always known the day would come that she’d have to tell her children about their outlaw grandfather. Of course, she’d hoped—foolishly as it turned out—that the time and place would be of her own choosing.
“My pa…wasn’t a very nice person,” she began, searching for words.
“Was he a bad man?” Lionel asked in his usual blunt style.
Ellie-May exchanged a glance with Anvil. As a child, she’d heatedly defended her father. He didn’t do the things they said he did, she’d argued. It was all a terrible mistake. Eventually, she’d had to face the truth, but it had been a long and painful journey to acceptance.
“Yes,” she said simply, hoping that would be answer enough. She wasn’t ready to tell them the rest. That her father was a thief and murderer.
“What did he do?” Alicia asked.
Ellie-May sighed. She should have known that Alicia’s curious mind would demand more than the vague answers she was prepared to give. “He…hurt people.”
“Does that mean we’re bad, too?” Lionel asked.
“Heavens, no!” Ellie-May squeezed her son’s hand. “We can’t be responsible for another’s actions. We can only control our own. That’s why I don’t want you hitting people.” She never thought to say such a thing to her son, but today she had seen a side of him she’d not known existed.
“But, Ma…he called you an outlaw.”
“I know, Son. I know.”
“And you hit him.”
“That’s because I didn’t want him hurting you.”
Lionel gazed up at her with eyes that looked too old for his young face. “I didn’t want him saying bad things about you.”
Ellie-May’s heart melted in her chest like ice in the sun, and she could no longer bring herself to scold him. “I know, Son. I know.”
“And Ranger Taggert didn’t want him saying bad things about you, either,” Alicia said.
Lionel grinned. “I told you he’d make a good pa. That’s cuz he won’t let anyone hurt us.”
Anvil met Ellie-May’s gaze with raised eyebrows. “I won’t let anyone hurt you, either,” he said.
Ellie-May cleared her throat. “That’s because you’re a good friend,” she said, emphasizing the word friend for Lionel’s sake. “Just as Mr. Taggert is a friend.”
She never thought to call Matt anything but a threat to her family. Still, for good or bad, their paths kept crossing. The man had come to her rescue twice in less than two weeks. Three times, if she counted his help with the broken step, and each time, she’d felt their bond grow stronger. They also had something in common—they both knew what it was like to have an outlaw in the family—and that connection had made her feel less alone.
If that didn’t complicate matters enough, there was also the kindness he’d shown to her children. To Jesse. To her.
Matt Taggert had scared her from the first moment she’d set eyes on him in her barn. He’d seemed so formidable, so strong, so utterly sure of himself. At t
he time, he’d made the shotgun in her hands seem less potent than a broomstick.
He still scared her. Not only for what he could do to her and her family but for what he was doing to her heart.
19
Matt and Jesse caught a late midday meal at the Feedbag Café following the school dedication. Jesse was wound up tighter than a toy soldier, and his constant babble drew disapproving looks from the other diners.
Eyes shining, he made a fist and punched the air with a triumphant look. “Pow!”
Watching him, Matt tapped the table with his fingers. He’d hoped to impress Jesse with his investigative skills, not his fists, but he could hardly blame the boy for seeing no merit in such a dull and unproductive pursuit. Nothing worse than following a cold trail.
Neal Blackwell had taken his secrets to the grave, and apparently that was where they would stay, for Roberts sure in blazes wasn’t talking.
But it wasn’t Neal or Roberts on Matt’s mind, or even the fella who had ruined the school dedication. It was Ellie-May Blackwell. He felt bad for her. Bad for her children. Today should have been a special day for them. Instead, Ellie-May had been forced to leave under unpleasant circumstances and had missed the dedication altogether.
He only wished he’d been able to catch up to her before she’d left. Maybe he could have persuaded her to stay. But he’d lost her in the crowd, and by the time he realized she had left the premises, the dedication ceremony was over.
Drawing a napkin to his mouth, Matt tossed a nod at Jesse’s plate. The boy was so busy fighting off an imaginary foe that he’d hardly touched his food.
“Eat up. Your food is getting cold.” Where Jesse was concerned, those were words Matt had never expected to say.
Jesse reached for his fork and stabbed at a piece of meat. “Would you teach me how to fight like that? I want to be a good Ranger, just like you.”
“You don’t have to be a Ranger to do what’s right.” Matt toyed with the food on his own plate. For some reason, he didn’t feel like eating. “That man was about to hurt Mrs. Blackwell. I’d have gone after him even if I wasn’t a Ranger.”
Jesse gave him a knowing smile. “Is that cuz you like her?”
“I don’t like…” Matt cleared his throat. “Not the way you mean.”
Not only would involvement with a suspect’s widow be unprofessional, he had no desire to settle down. Least not until he’d settled his business with his brother and found justice for his father’s death.
Ellie-May had once asked him how many outlaws he would have to capture before he considered the score settled. He didn’t know. What he did know was that he couldn’t stop. Not yet. Maybe never.
Still, he couldn’t shake the vision of clear blue eyes and a wide, dazzling smile that had once again sprung to mind unbidden. The same vision came to mind a dozen times a day at the least expected times. It had even followed him in his sleep.
Aware, suddenly, that Jesse was watching him with a funny look on his face, Matt shook his thoughts away.
“Doesn’t matter who you are—Ranger or not,” he said. “You don’t let anyone hurt a woman or child. Call it a rule.”
Jesse’s mouth was full of food, so all he could do was nod, but the knowing look remained.
Swallowing his irritation, Matt reached into his pocket for his money clip to pay for their meal. Instead, he found the lady’s glove that he’d found on the ground. The delicate scent of violets did nothing for his peace of mind.
He stuffed the glove back into his pocket. Drat the kid. He knew too much or thought he did. But Jesse was wrong. Matt’s interest in Ellie-May Blackwell was purely professional—nothing more!
“Eat up,” he said, his brusque voice forbidding further discussion.
* * *
Ellie-May had just finished putting the last of the supper dishes away when a knock sounded at the door.
“Now who could that be?” she wondered aloud. It would soon be dark, and visitors rarely strayed out this far so late in the day.
Anvil looked up from the table where he was teaching Lionel to play chess. “Want me to get that?” he asked.
Ellie-May wiped her hands on her apron. “I’ll get it.”
Leaving Anvil and Lionel to their game, she rushed from the kitchen to the parlor and opened the door. Surprised to see Matt Taggert on her doorstep, his tall form outlined by the fast-setting sun, she felt her heart take a leap.
He greeted her with a crooked smile. “Hope it’s not a bad time.”
“N-not at all,” she stammered. Hoping, praying, that this was just a social call and had nothing to do with his investigation, she glanced over her shoulder at her daughter on the sofa playing her music box. Not wanting to chance the children hearing something they shouldn’t, Ellie-May stepped outside and closed the door behind her.
The sun had stained the sky a vivid red, and a cooling breeze swept over the land, but it did nothing to calm her heated face.
“Just wanted to make sure you’re okay,” he said.
Pushing a strand of hair behind her ear, she regarded Matt with a wary look. “Yes, we’re fine,” she said. “Th-thank you for coming to my rescue today.”
His mouth twitched. “The way you were beating up on your assailant,” he drawled, “I believe he was the one in need of rescuing.”
Embarrassed, she lowered her gaze. Never before had she raised a hand to another. But seeing Lionel in danger made her see red, and she’d hardly known what she was doing.
“He didn’t hurt your son, did he?” Matt asked.
She looked up at him, and the concern written on his face near took her breath away. “No, Lionel’s fine. Both children are, but they had a lot of questions.” She bit her lower lip. “I had to talk to them about their grandfather.”
His smoldering brown eyes held hers, telling her how deeply he sympathized. “That must have been hard.”
“I should have told them before, but I kept waiting for the right time.” She shrugged. “I guess there is no such thing, is there? As the right time, I mean.”
“That’s been my experience,” he said. “How did your children handle it?”
“As well as they could, I suppose. All they know for now is that their grandfather did bad things. I’m sure they’ll find out the rest soon enough.”
“It would be better coming from you,” he said.
“I know.” She moistened her lips, drawing his gaze to her mouth for an instant before he lifted his eyes to hers.
“I’m sorry you missed the school dedication,” he said. “I looked for you.”
“Leaving seemed like the best thing to do at the time,” she said. “People were staring, and…it brought back too many unpleasant memories.”
“From your childhood?” he asked.
She nodded. “Yes, from my childhood.” The intensity of his look made her heart flutter, and it was suddenly necessary to remind herself who he was and how he could hurt her family. “I didn’t expect to see you still in town. Now that the stage robber has been caught.”
“Just tying up loose ends,” he said vaguely.
She wasn’t sure what he meant by that and wasn’t about to ask. All she could do was hope and pray that none of those loose ends had anything to do with Neal.
His forehead creased. “The man who attacked you… He’s not gonna give you any more trouble, is he?”
She thought for a moment before shaking her head. “I don’t think so. His name is Hal Spencer, and his problems were with Neal, not me.” After a pause, she went on to explain. “He was always in competition with Neal. When Hal lost his farm, he took to drinking. Neal tried to help him, but it only seemed to make matters worse.”
“I guess your husband’s heroic death was too much for him.”
“It didn’t help,” she said. Regarding Matt with a questioning look
, she asked, “So what brings you out here? Not Ranger business, I hope?”
Matt shook his head and reached into his pocket. “I came to give you this,” he said and held up her white kid glove.
Her hand flew to her chest. “Oh.” Their fingers touched as she took the glove from him. She quickly pulled away, but not soon enough to prevent the flare of her cheeks. “You came all the way out here to give me this?” she asked.
“And to see that you were okay,” he said.
The concern in his eyes and tenderness of his voice made it hard for her to breathe, let alone think. Overcome with emotion, all she could do was gaze up at him, her heart pounding against her ribs.
“Th-thank you,” she managed at last, her voice shakier than she would have liked. His questioning eyes made her lower her gaze. “The gloves were a gift from Neal,” she said softly. “I never thought to see this again.” She tucked the glove into her apron pocket for safekeeping.
“Glad I could be of service,” he said.
He was about to say more, but the sound of a galloping horse stopped him. “Looks like you’re about to have company,” he said.
The horseman came into view, but the long shadows prevented her from identifying the rider until a voice rang out.
“Ranger Taggert, Ranger Taggert!”
Matt spun around. “Jesse? What’s wrong?”
Before the boy could answer, his horse whinnied and reared back on its hind legs. The gelding frantically pawed the air before its front legs crashed down, hard.
Jesse was thrown from the saddle and hit the ground with a sickening thud.
20
Matt leaped off the porch and ran. With a cry of alarm, Ellie-May chased after him. By the time she reached the unconscious boy, Matt had already lifted him off the ground and was holding him in his arms.
“Bring him to the house,” she said.
Anvil and the children had apparently heard something, as the three of them came rushing outside.
“I’ll round up his horse,” Anvil said as Matt brushed past him.
Inside the house, Ellie-May moved the music box and books off the sofa to make room for the boy. She then arranged a pillow for Jesse’s head.
The Outlaw's Daughter Page 15
