Hunter's Moon (Hunter Family Saga; Half-Moon Ranch 1) (32 page)

"Not when Edmund's around, I'm not."

"Oh."

"Brent, congratulations on your marriage,"
Edmund said smoothly as he joined them.

"What do you want, Edmund?" Brent knew
Edmund must have an ulterior motive for coming
out to speak with him. The man certainly hadn't
approached them to offer his best wishes.

"I saw you come out of the sheriffs office,"
Edmund said. "Is there trouble out at the ranch?"
His gaze lingered on Abby, taking in the sweet curve
of her hips in her pants.

"What goes on at the Half-Moon is none of your
damned business, Edmund," Brent told him coldly.

Abby was surprised by his reaction to Edmund.
She took his arm. "Let's go."

"Well, I just wanted to help," the banker said.

"The only way you can help me right now is by
getting the hell out of my way," Brent said in a growl
as he walked quickly on, taking Abby with him.

Edmund stood back and watched them go.

"Give your bride my best," Edmund called after
him sarcastically.

Brent did not respond. He just kept walking.

Fury ate at Edmund. No one treated him this
way! No one!

Brent Hunter was an arrogant bastard, and
Edmund was looking forward to the day when he
got what was coming to him-him and his pa and
their whole damned family.

Except Abby, of course.

He would never want anything bad to happen to
Abby. He wanted her for himself.

"Brent, why did you talk to Edmund that way?"
Abby asked when they were out of earshot.

Brent glanced down at her, his expression still
grim. "I didn't tell you what happened when I
confronted him about the loan he made to Pa for the
Sullivan land."

"No, you didn't. What did he do?"

"He pulled a gun on me."

"What?" Abby was completely shocked. "Why?"

"I was furious with him for making the loan. I
told him to cancel the sale. He refused and said it
was already completed and there was nothing he
could do. He actually seemed quite pleased about
the deal-even though I had specifically asked him
not to make any more loans to Pa."

"But why was he going to shoot you?" she
repeated.

"I was so angry that I was ready to hit him. I
didn't, but I wanted to. He pulled a gun out of his
desk drawer and held it on me."

"I've always felt uneasy around him, but I never
expected him to do anything like this. Thank God
he didn't shoot you."

"I don't trust Edmund. Watch yourself around
him," he advised her. "No matter what he might say,
he is no friend to our family-not to us or to Pa."

Dan and Crystal had just left the boardinghouse,
where Dan had rented a room from Anne, when
Mr. Bryant, the telegraph operator, chased him
down.

"Mr. Stewart? I got the wire you've been waiting
for," he called out.

Dan and Crystal stopped to wait for him to catch
up.

"Thanks for coming to find me," Dan said as he
took the wire.

"I was just glad to finally get a response."

When Mr. Bryant left them, Dan opened the
envelope and read Sheriff Spiller's message. Crystal
was watching his expression, and she could tell
immediately that the news was not what he'd hoped
for.

"What is it?"

Dan looked up at her. "Sheriff Spiller hasn't seen
or heard from Hall since before the last time I wired
him money. He's holding on to what I sent him in
case he does show up."

Their gazes met in understanding. There was
nothing they could do now but wait and pray that
nothing came of Hall's threats.

"We'd better go tell Brent," Dan said.

When Crystal and Dan reached the mercantile,
they sought out Brent and Abby so they could tell
them the news.

"Until this Hall shows up someplace, we'll just
have to be careful, that's all," Brent said. He tried
not to sound too worried, but he was already
planning ways to keep Crystal safe.

"I'm staying on," Dan told him. He wasn't going
anywhere until he was sure his sister was safe. "I'll
keep an eye out here in town."

"Have you asked Ken over at the Lone Star about
a job yet?" Brent asked.

"I plan to talk to him later today."

Crystal, Abby, and Brent went on with their
shopping, while Dan decided to wait outside for
them.

Melinda had just started into the mercantile when
she found herself facing a handsome young man
she'd never seen before.

"Why, thank you," she said sweetly as he held the
door for her. "You're new in town, aren't you?"

"Yes, I am. My name's Dan Stewart. What's
yours?" he asked appreciatively.

"I'm Melinda Barton. It's nice to meet you." She
smiled up at him.

"Dan..." Crystal had realized she'd forgotten to
tell Dan something, and she had come after him.

"You!" Melinda looked past Dan to see Crystal.
She was stunned for a moment by the change in her
hair color, and then her expression turned to one of
loathing. She still hadn't recovered from the
devastating news that Brent had married the saloon
girl. She'd heard the talk of their elopement at
church and had cried for an entire day.

"Hello, Melinda. I see you've already met my
brother," Crystal said calmly.

"Your brother? Oh, how nice." Without another
word, she walked past them both. She was disgusted.
She'd finally found a good-looking man and he
turned out to be Crystal's brother.

"You know each other?" Dan looked at Crystal.

"Oh, yes." She didn't want to elaborate. "I'll
explain later."

Melinda caught sight of Brent at the back of the
store, and she made her way toward him. She had a
few things she wanted to say to him.

"Hello, Brent," she said, cornering him and
ignoring Abby, who stood at his side.

"Why, Melinda, hello," Brent said. He suddenly
wondered if his day could get any more
complicated-first the run-in with Edmund, and now Melinda. The thought of staying out at the cabin
permanently just him and Crystal-held great
appeal at that moment.

"Melinda," Abby said politely.

Melinda had eyes only for Brent.

"I just saw your lovely bride." Melinda couldn't
keep the sneer out of her voice. "Crystal is her name,
right? Or is it really Ruby? The woman uses so many
aliases, I wasn't sure."

"Crystal is my wife's name," he ground out,
deliberately using the word "wife."

"Oh, Brent. It was so cruel the way you led me
on. I thought what we shared was special."

Brent wanted only to get away from Melinda.

"I'm sorry if you were hurt, Melinda, but we both
know I didn't lead you anywhere. If you'll excuse
me." Brent moved past her, leaving Abby to follow
him.

"Enjoy your life with your dance-hall-slut wife,"
Melinda said under her breath in a snarl, just loud
enough for them to hear.

Brent heard her hateful remark, and his temper
flared. He almost went back to confront her, but
Abby stopped him.

"Let's leave. You don't want to cause any trouble
here."

"I know," he said in a growl, "but I don't like
anyone talking about Crystal that way."

They settled the bill, then went outside to where
Crystal and Dan were waiting. After loading up the buckboard, they were ready to go. Brent mounted
Storm and, after bidding Dan good-bye, they started
back to the Half-Moon. Brent was looking forward
to some peace and quiet once they got there.

After leaving the Lone Star the night before, John
Hall had ridden out of Diablo and camped in the
countryside. He had made the trek to the cabin
without seeing anyone, and he was glad. He wanted
to find Crystal, take his revenge, and disappear
without anyone ever knowing he'd been there. He
waited patiently now, hiding in the trees a distance
away, watching for some sign of Crystal. The place
seemed deserted, but that didn't matter. He would
bide his time. All that mattered was finding her and
seeing the look on her face when she realized she
couldn't escape.

Hall smiled to himself. He was going to enjoy
their reunion.

Edmund was restless in his office.

He couldn't stop thinking of Abby-of how
pretty she looked and how those pants fit her
hips.

Damn, but he wanted her. Heat burned within
him. He wanted to lay her down and strip those
pants off of her and bury himself deep inside her.

Edmund fought back a groan of pure desire. He
reminded himself he was at work, but it didn't
temper his need. He knew there was only one thing that would help. He would have to go pay Violet a
visit-right now.

"I'm going to lunch. I'll be back," Edmund
announced as he left the bank.

It was midday, so none of the bank tellers thought
anything of his sudden departure.

Edmund was on his way to the Lone Star when he
saw the sheriff coming out of his office. He
deliberately detoured toward him, hoping to find
out what Brent had been doing there that morning.

"Sheriff Dawson-good to see you."

"Hello, Edmund."

"How are things going?"

"All's quiet right now, and I like it that way."

"I was worried that there might have been some
trouble when I saw Brent go into your office today.
Is everything all right out at the Half-Moon?"

"Things are fine at the ranch, but Brent's new
wife is in some trouble."

"What's wrong?"

"There's a man who's trying to harm Crystal.
He's been chasing her for a while and might be
coming to Diablo to look for her. I was just heading
out to spread the word around town so we can be
watching for him, in case he does show up."

"What do you know about him?" Edmund
wanted to find out all he could about the Hunter
family's troubles.

His name is John Hall. They said he's darkhaired and has some bad scars on his face."

"He should be easy to spot."

"I hope. Actually, I hope he doesn't show up at
all."

"I'm sure you don't, but I'll keep an eye out
for him." Edmund moved off, smiling in
satisfaction.

So Brents darling Crystal might be in trouble.
That's just too bad....

Edmund had to make certain that no one saw
him as he entered the saloon. He casually made his
way to the rear alley and then let himself into the
building. The back hall was deserted, as he'd
expected, and he made his way up the rear staircase.
He had done this before and knew the safest way to
get to Violet's room unseen.

Edmund was eager to ease the burning ache in his
loins. He knocked softly on the door.

"Come on in," she called out.

He let himself into the room silently. Violet was
still in bed, wearing only a filmy gown that left little
to his imagination.

"Edmund! This is a surprise," Violet said in
purring tones.

He immediately began to strip off his clothes. She
did the same, tossing her gown to the floor. When
he came to her she welcomed him with open arms.
He always paid her very generously, for he knew it
guaranteed her silence. It wouldn't do for word to
get out around town that he enjoyed himself with a
saloon girl.

Edmund lay with her and had started to kiss her
when he got a good look at her body.

"What happened to you?" He was shocked by the
bruises on her pale flesh.

"I had a rough customer last night," she
answered.

"I'll say you did."

"He wasn't only mean, but he was damned ugly,
too. He had the most horrible scars on his face."

"He was scarred?" Edmund repeated, instantly
alert.

"Yes," Violet said. "Why?"

"No reason," he answered coolly. She obviously
hadn't heard yet that the sheriff was looking for just
such a man, and he wasn't about to tell her-or
anyone else, for that matter. The more misery Brent
Hunter had in his life, the better.

"I think he was just passing through. He didn't
stick around long after he left me."

"Did you enjoy all his rough stuff?" he asked, a
wicked gleam coming into his eyes.

"The only thing I enjoyed was the money he gave
me."

Edmund was tempted to be brutal with Violet,
too. If he pretended she was Iona, he wouldn't have
any trouble being violent with her, but the last
person he wanted to think about was his drunken,
useless wife. No, Abby was the woman he wanted.
He wanted to close his eyes and pretend Violet was
the younger woman.

At that thought, the lust within him flared even
hotter. He wasted no time taking his pleasure of
Violet several times over. Only knowing that he had
to return to the bank drove him from her bed nearly
an hour later.

Violet watched Edmund as he dressed and then
left her room. She said nothing, but she wondered
what had inspired such a fiery display of passion
from him. She got up to count the money he'd left
on the dresser for her, and when she'd finished
counting, she was very glad that he'd come to see
her.