Brodie's Gamble (4 page)

A few minutes later, she dropped her hands. “We aren’t married, Sheriff. Not properly.”

Brodie pondered this a moment, needing to understand what she meant. “Why were you with him then?”

Her face drained of color as she caught her bottom lip in her teeth. “It’s been close to two years now. My family traveled from Illinois to Colorado after my father sold our farm and bought a business in Denver. When we arrived, my father met with the banker who helped him with the purchase. That’s when he found out there were problems. I didn’t understand what happened. All I remember is my father being very angry and my mother trying to calm him down. One night, they left the hotel room, leaving me to watch my two younger brothers.” She swiped at the tears on her cheeks, pain filling her red-rimmed eyes. “I woke in the middle of the night to find two men in the room. My parents’ bed was empty and my brothers were sound asleep. Before I could say a word, the men gagged me and used something to knock me out.”

“Chloroform?” Colin guessed.

Maggie shrugged. “After several days of traveling, we ended up in Nevada. They stowed me in a cabin, checking on me a couple times a day. It must have been at least five days later when they returned with three other men. One was Arnie Stoddard. He paid the men before loading me onto a wagon.”

“He
paid
for you?” Brodie couldn’t hide his disgust. “Forced you to live with him?”

She nodded, unable to meet his gaze. “Arnie told me if anyone asked, I was to say we were husband and wife. He said if I didn’t do what he ordered, I’d be sorry. I tried once to get a message to a family we met on the trail. When Arnie found out, he beat me until I couldn’t stand.” She sucked in a shaky breath. “I didn’t try again.”

Sarah placed a hand on her stomach, nausea sweeping through her at what the young woman had endured.

Brodie stood, pacing toward the cells, trying to sort out what Maggie revealed. She’d been wronged, kidnapped, and forced to live with a man as his wife. He could understand the rage she must feel, the need to seek revenge and get away. Did that rage include murder? Turning back to her, his features dispassionate, he sat back down, leaning close.

“Tell me. Why do you think you killed him?”

“I hit him on the head. He fell to the floor and didn’t move.”

“Did you check to see if he was still breathing, if he had a pulse?” Brodie rested his arms on his knees, his gaze never wavering from her face.

“I didn’t want to get too close. If he was alive, I knew my life wouldn’t be worth as much as your stale coffee.” Her face colored. “No offense, Sheriff.”

“None taken.” Brodie chuckled, acknowledging the quality of the lukewarm brew. “So you left.”

“As fast as I could and came here. It took a bit of time since we live so far back in the hills.” She stood. “Do you need to arrest me?”

Putting his hands on his knees, Brodie pushed up from the chair, his face softening. “No, Mrs. Stoddard. Not until we learn if you really did kill your husband.”

“You want me to go back to the cabin?” The shocked look in her eyes spoke louder than any words. “I can’t.”

“I’m afraid you don’t have a choice, Mrs. Stoddard.”

“It’s Maggie King, and why don’t I have a choice?”

He sighed. “Because you confessed to possibly killing your husband and I have to find out if you did.”

“He’s
not
my husband,” she ground out, frustration now warring with fear. “He kidnapped me, made me do things…” Her voice cracked. She squeezed her eyes shut, covering her mouth with her hand.

No matter her tale or how much he wanted to believe she hadn’t killed him, Brodie had a job to do. Ignoring her outburst, he continued. “He may have just been knocked out. By the time we arrive, I wouldn’t be surprised if Arnie is long gone. You need to show me where the cabin is located, and I’d rather you do it willingly.”

“How about Colin and I go along?” Sarah suggested.

“
Nae
,” both men said simultaneously.

“You’ll not be going this time, Sarah. I’ll ride along in case Brodie needs help.”

“But Colin—”

Wrapping an arm around her waist, Colin pulled her close. “There’ll be no arguing on this. We don’t know what happened and I’ll not put you in danger. We’ll get this done, then meet you at the hotel for supper.” He kissed her temple.

Her eyes sparked as she pushed him away. “You’ll not be treating me like a child, Colin MacLaren. I can ride and shoot as well as anyone.”

Colin and Brodie laughed at her overblown boast.

“Sarah, lass, you can ride and shoot a gun. It’s your aim we question.” Flashing her a cocky grin, Colin turned to Brodie. “You ready?”

Brodie glanced at Maggie, seeing rage and fear in her eyes. He hoped she’d give him no trouble.

“Come on, Mrs. Stoddard. It’s time we discover if you really did kill your husband.”

Maggie’s stomach churned the entire ride to the cabin. She didn’t have a horse, so Brodie had settled her in front of him, an arm holding her tight to his chest. It wasn’t the closeness she minded. His warm body helped protect her from the chilling winds whipping through the trees. What bothered her was the way her body responded to being held so close, almost intimately, against him.

And the way he continued to call her
Mrs. Stoddard
.

“Do we continue on this trail?” Brodie’s warm breath caressed her neck. He should be ashamed, knowing quite well what he was doing, but couldn’t seem to muster any guilt at the way her body trembled against his. She probably wasn’t even aware of her effect on him or how much he enjoyed it.

“About another mile, then the trail narrows as we get closer to the cabin.” Adjusting herself in front of him, she heard Brodie groan. “I’m sorry. Did I hurt you?”

Brodie gritted his teeth, pulling her tight to stop her from squirming. Maggie’s voice held no trace of mockery, and he realized she had no idea how his body had responded to her slight movement.

He sucked in a breath. “No. I’m fine.” It had been a stupid idea to have her ride in front of him. He told himself the decision saved time by not having to locate and saddle a horse for her. Feeling moisture building along his brow, Brodie acknowledged the real reason. He’d been fascinated by her from the moment she’d stormed into the jail.

The mere presence of a woman had never affected him the way Maggie did. No matter how much he pondered the reason, he couldn’t come up with a satisfactory answer. Yes, even with her disheveled appearance, she was pretty—beautiful in fact. The ordeal she’d been through, the fear he saw on her face, enraged him. Her determination to report what happened, even if it meant going to jail, moved him in a way he couldn’t define. He’d never met a woman who seemed so innocent, so full of contradictions. Perhaps his attraction was pure fascination and nothing more.

“There.” Maggie pointed to a rundown cabin hidden in the trees ahead.

Colin arrived first, dismounted, then drew his gun. A moment later, he helped Maggie to the ground and waited for Brodie.

“Show us where you left him.” Brodie stepped toward the open door, then stopped as he glanced around the interior.

Maggie moved in front of him, then drew back, a hand coming to her throat.

“He’s gone.” Turning in a circle, she scanned the room. “He was right there.” She pointed to a spot close to the fireplace.

Kneeling down, Brodie touched an almost dry stain on the floor. Rubbing it between his fingers, he glanced up at Colin. “Appears to be blood.”

Colin continued to search, finding nothing. “If he were bleeding, he would’ve left a trail. I don’t find anything.”

“Let’s take a look outside.” Brodie led the way to the back of the cabin, searching the bushes, around the woodpile, and inside a poorly maintained stable. Pushing his hat back on his head, he furrowed his brows. “You probably knocked him out. Once he regained consciousness, he got on his horse and rode out.”

Maggie nodded, hoping it were true, believing she couldn’t be that lucky.

“Brodie,” Colin called from behind the stable. “There’s something you need to see.”

Maggie followed, stopping when she saw what appeared to be a shallow grave.

Colin picked up a handful of dirt, letting it fall through his fingers. “Fresh. My guess is it’s a few hours old. If it were longer, there’d be a crust on top from last night’s drizzle, and possibly animal markings.”

Brodie’s blood went cold at the discovery. He’d hoped whatever they found would clear Maggie. The mound of dirt before him didn’t bode well for her.

“I’ll get a shovel.” Brodie continued to survey the area as he walked back to the stable.

“Get two, Brodie. I’ll look for a blanket.”

Maggie continued to stare at the mound of dirt. It hadn’t been there when she fled and ran toward Conviction, leaving Arnie’s crumpled body on the floor of the cabin.

Weeks ago, after a fight with Arnie, his younger brother, Joel, had ridden off. She didn’t want to think about the reason for their fight, knowing he’d left because of her. Arnie would’ve killed him if he’d stayed. After Joel left, Arnie sent their middle brother, Syd, to San Francisco. He hadn’t returned.

“You’ll need to step away.”

Maggie startled at Brodie’s voice, his appearance pulling her from thoughts of Joel and Syd. Without a word, she moved several feet away, watching as the two men began to dig. It didn’t take long before they spotted clothing, the body lying face down. She stifled a gasp, her body going still when she recognized the shirt Arnie had been wearing.

“Do you recognize him?” Brodie asked, seeing her ashen expression.

“It’s Arnie.” She backed away, shaking her head, glancing between Brodie and Colin. “He was in the cabin when I left. How could he be here? I don’t understand.”

Brodie didn’t know what to make of her claim of possibly killing Arnie, then finding his body buried behind the stable. Kneeling down, he brushed away more dirt before his gaze caught sight of a wound on the back of his head where Maggie had landed her blow. Turning the body over, he sucked in a breath.

“Colin. Take a look at this.”

Bending down, Colin stared at Arnie’s face, which was bludgeoned beyond recognition.

Glancing over his shoulder, Brodie confirmed Maggie hadn’t tried to get away. He wondered what thoughts were running through her mind as she looked at the body of the man who’d caused her so much pain. A man she may have murdered.

Brodie stood, brushing dirt from his pants, then his hands.

“How many times did you say you hit your husband?” he asked Maggie as he moved toward her.

“He was
not
my husband,” Maggie hissed, then calmed herself, knowing getting angry with the sheriff wouldn’t help her at all. “Once, on the back of his head.”

“You didn’t hit him anywhere else?”

She tried to glance around him at the body, but he blocked her view.

“No, it was once. I’m certain of that.”

“What did you use?”

“The first thing I could pick up—my iron skillet. I don’t understand, Sheriff. Are you saying he was hit more than once?”

“I’ll look inside for the skillet, Brodie.” Colin gave him a meaningful glance as he left them alone.

Maggie watched him walk away, fear gripping her.

Brodie crossed his arms and studied Maggie, waiting until she swung her gaze back to his.

“We’re going to take the body to town for the doctor to examine, then you’re going to tell me again what happened this morning.”

“But, I—”

Brodie held up a hand to stop her at the same time Colin walked toward them, an iron skillet in his hand.

Brodie’s steely gaze bored into hers as he pulled a set of handcuffs from a pocket. “Marguerite King Stoddard, I’m placing you under arrest for killing your husband, Arnold Stoddard.”

“Wait.” She shot a look at Arnie’s body, her stomach roiling at a face so smashed no one would be able to recognize him. She tried to twist away as Brodie grasped her arm. “I hit him on the back of the head, not his face.”

“We’ll talk about it in town,” Brodie answered.

“No.” She ripped her arm from his hand, then walked to the shallow grave and pointed. “I didn’t do that to him. I hit him once and he dropped to the ground. We were inside the cabin, not outside.”

“Enough. You’ll have your time before a judge.” Brodie gripped her tighter this time. “I don’t want to hear any more lies, Mrs. Stoddard. No matter what he did to you, I’ll expect the truth about how he died.”

“I came to you, told you what I did. I didn’t do what you see there.” Panic rose as tears welled in her eyes. “You have to believe me.”

Yanking her around to face him, he grasped her shoulders. “I don’t need to believe anything, Mrs. Stoddard. You’re the one who’ll have to tell a judge and convince a jury. Until then, you’ll be a guest in my jail.”

Chapter Three

“Are you sure about this, Brodie?” Colin lowered himself into a chair as Brodie walked in from locking the cell door behind Maggie.

Tossing the keys on his desk, he let out a heavy sigh. “What would you have me do, Colin? She admitted hitting him, thought she’d killed him.”