Keeper of the Books (Keeper of the Books, Book 1) (36 page)

Rachel gasped.
 

“Both of them were hit in the chest by stray bullets. I had never felt so sick in all my life.”

“I’m so sorry, I had no idea,” Rachel said.
 

Nate swallowed and shook his head. He picked up a piece of dried grass and tossed it into the fire. It burned up in less than a second.
 

“I went after Scruff,” Nate continued. “I went after him and I intended to kill him.”

“And you would have every right,” Rachel added.
 

But Nate shook his head again. “You might not think that once I get through telling you the story. I tracked him down until I got to his house. I started shooting at everything. Windows. Doors. Outhouses. I wanted to drive the same fear into Scruff as he had into Abigail and my mother.

“Finally, I went into the house and found Scruff in the middle of his living room. He wasn’t injured, but he stood there like a scared dog, a gun in his hand. He took a shot at me, but missed. A shot him in the arm and he dropped his gun. I told him about my mother. I told him about Abigail. He saw the tears in my eyes and he knew I was there for blood. Once he knew he was about to die, I shot him through the chest and watched him bleed out.”

His eyes traveled to Rachel, but she only looked at the fire. She didn’t say anything, but nodded as she took in the story.
 

“If that was how I left it, I wouldn’t feel any regret,” Nate said. “But I was a young fool. I thought if I torched the house, the lawmen wouldn’t see what had happened and there wouldn’t be an investigation. If I torched it, I wouldn’t be wanted for murder, even if it was right. So, that’s what I did. I broke open some whiskey bottles and lit a match and stood in the yard as the house was engulfed in flames.”

“I don’t think that’s so bad,” Rachel said. “He torched your barns and killed your loved ones. He deserved it.”

“Yes he did,” Nate said with a nod. “And I felt vindicated until Levi Thompson came sprinting in on his wagon. He hadn’t been a part of this feud. His only sin in all this was being brothers with Scruff.
 

“Well, he jumped off his wagon and stared me in the eyes for what felt like a minute. I should have run before he saw, but I wasn’t thinking straight. Levi didn’t say anything to me, and instead he ran straight into the burning house. That was when I knew I had to get out of there, so I ran.”

“He went into the house? Why?” Rachel asked.

“I knew since Levi had seen me, there was a chance that I was in trouble with the law. I didn’t go back home. Instead I went to a nearby town where nobody knew me. I stayed there a few days, missing the funeral of my mother and Abigail. I was too afraid to go home because I thought the sheriff might be waiting for me. As it turned out, my instincts were right.
 

“There in that little town, I picked up a newspaper and saw the headlines. There on the front page was a story about Scruff’s murder. But it wasn’t just Scruff I killed that night. Apparently, Levi, his wife, his two daughters, and his little son were visiting Scruff that night. When Scruff had heard the shots outside his house, he’d told Levi’s family to hide away and stay quiet. And quiet they stayed until the smoke was too much and the fire consumed their bodies.”

Rachel stared at Nate from across the fire. It was one of those stunned silences where the person listening wasn’t sure what to say. But Nate didn’t need her to say anything. He just needed her to hear the rest of it.

“That’s when I knew I would never hold a regular job again. That’s when I knew I would never get the chance to settle down somewhere. That was the night Levi Thompson vowed to hunt me down and kill me. It’s taken him ten years to get this far.”

“So, he wants to kill you because you killed his family,” Rachel said, more to herself than to Nate. She then shook her head. “But you didn’t know they were in there. You couldn’t have known.”

“Doesn’t matter,” Nate said. “I’m still the one who killed them. I shouldn’t have gone after Scruff in the first place. And if I were Levi, I would be going after me until the end of days as well. I would have caught up with me a lot sooner than this too. Truth is, I’ve had a couple of close calls with Levi. Then there were the times I could have killed him but didn’t. Once, I aimed my rifle at the back of his head, ready to pull the trigger, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it.”

“Why not?” Rachel asked. “He’s out to kill you, wouldn’t it be safer that way?”

“Yes, it would,” Nate said. “There’s just something about killing off an entire family, wiping every one of them from existence. It’s one of those things a man ain’t sure he can live with. For some reason it always felt like leaving him alive was showing him mercy, as if I’m giving him the opportunity to start a new family to carry on his name after he’s gone. But if he felt anywhere close to the same as me when I lost Abigail, I know the mercy would be in killing him. Stopping him from feeling that emptiness that comes with loss.”

“You really loved her,” Rachel said.

“More than life itself,” Nate said, thoughtfully.

“So, if you came face-to-face with Levi right now do you think you could kill him?”

Nate shook his head. “I don’t know. It’s true that I deserve his justice, but I know he would go after you and the others too. I suppose if I knew he was going to hurt you or Alban or Marum, I would do what I had to in order to stop him. But if it was just me…I’m still not sure I could kill him. Something about it just ain’t right.”

“Now, you listen to me,” Rachel said, the fire dancing in her eyes as she stared hard at Nate. “If that man comes up on us and has you cornered, you need to kill him. I understand he’s been through some terrible things, but it’s time one of you finished this. You can’t have him looming over you your whole life.”

Nate nodded at this, but he wasn’t sure he could agree. It was hard for Nate to express just how much regret there was in his life. The story of Levi was just one of many that Nate regretted. In a way, he figured she was right. He either needed to let Levi kill him or he needed to do it to Levi. And if Levi threatened the lives of others in order to get to Nate, then Nate supposed it ought to be him who came out on top. He already had to live with the fact that he’d killed an innocent family.

“I’m sorry for the way I’ve acted toward you,” Rachel said, cutting into his thoughts. “I was angry and it wasn’t right.”

Nate shook his head at her. “You had every right to be apprehensive about me. Your instincts were right, even if you didn’t know the whole story. I’m sorry for lying to you. I just didn’t want to make things worse.”

“My father really wants to help you,” Rachel said. “I’m sure it doesn’t hurt that going back home isn’t an option anymore.”

“Guess that’s my fault too.”

“That’s not what I’m saying,” Rachel answered. “It’s just that we don’t have anywhere else to go. And taking you to the Sentinels allows him another adventure. It’s been a long time since he’s been on an adventure. I think he’s missed it.”

“I suppose his life as a soldier was full of action?”

“He went all over Galamore,” she said. “He saw more things in a year than most will ever see in a lifetime. He gave it all up to take care of me, Droman, and Marum.”

“A life of adventure ain’t an easy thing to give up,” Nate said. “Especially if it’s the honest kind. But even the thought of giving up being an outlaw has its drawbacks. There’s a certain thrill that comes with running from the law. I’m not saying that’s a good thing, but it ain’t easy to give up.”

“Well,” Rachel said, “if I had a glass I would raise it. Then I would toast,
here’s to our adventure to giving up all adventures…”

Nate smiled at this and raised his invisible glass and clanked it to Rachel’s, and they pretended to lift the glasses to their mouths and drink.
 

“You have a real drink we could toast with,” Rachel said.

“You know, it’s the strangest thing,” Nate said, “the more we move, the less I feel like I need it. I can’t really figure why. Past two days, I haven’t even really thought about it.”

He reached for the flask in his front coat pocket and pulled it out. The flames flickered off the reflective gray metal as he stared at it. “You know, the stuff ain’t even all that good. I mean,
this
is better than what I get back home, but even still…it’s pretty nasty stuff.”

“I know,” she said. “I’ve had it. I don’t like it.”

“Gets the job done, I guess,” Nate answered.

He set the flask back into his front pocket over his heart and let it rest, not even tempted to take a drink from it. He didn’t really know why he kept it. Something gnawed away at him, telling him he’d need it in the coming days. It was fall, so cold nights awaited them. A good slow burn in the belly was always a comfort on those kind of nights. It would be a waste to throw it out.

Hours went by before the two of them decided it was time to get some rest. Their conversation was light, but pleasant. It was the first time Nate had seen the side of her that would make her a bearable companion throughout the trip. If anything, it would be nice to not have her staring daggers into him every time he moved or opened his mouth.
 

There was still an apprehension from her that Nate sensed, but he figured this conversation was a start. The two of them didn’t have to be friends, but as long as they could carry on cordially, the company would be happy and the trip would go by quickly.

Seeing her happy, more friendly side, he was reminded of Abigail. He wasn’t sure why, maybe it was her smile. But Rachel was different. She had a strength in her that Abigail didn’t have. Where Abigail had a kindness and softness and was so willing to expose her tender heart, Rachel was more guarded and didn’t show her tenderness so freely even though it existed somewhere.
 

Rachel wasn’t the kind of woman who needed a man. She would do well on her own for the rest of her days if that was what she wanted. Nate admired that about her.

About twenty minutes after they bedded down for the night, Nate looked over at her from across the camp and caught her staring at him. She didn’t turn her eyes quickly from him as would be natural. Instead, she kept her eyes fixed on his and smiled. They held the gaze for a little while, Nate wasn’t sure how long. Then, she closed her eyes and went to sleep.
 

Nate watched her for another few seconds before setting his head on the ground, though he never fell asleep. Instead, he listened through the night for anyone who might be after them, and watched the fire as it died and eventually burned out.

Autumn, 903 A.O.M.

Devlin felt numb. He shouldn’t have been in the forest tracking. He should have been on a soft bed somewhere gathering his strength. His body shifted with each jostle of his horse’s steps, sending a shooting pain into his shoulder every time. His head pounded and his ears rang. None of the other men seemed to care about the state he was in. He didn’t really expect it from Levi or Sheriff Strand, but for some reason he had expected Ranger Gibbons to at least offer a bit of encouragement. Devlin, however, had the sneaking suspicion that Gibbons didn’t trust him. That he suspected something strange about his encounter with Marum and Nathaniel.
 

Devlin knew his injuries were strange. If the gray elf, Marum, and the man, Nathaniel, had taken the time to beat him so mercilessly, wouldn’t they have just killed him? Was it realistic to think that the shoulder wound was an accident, and that one of them might have been aiming for his heart instead? He thought he had played it as coolly as possible, stating that he had already been knocked unconscious before he could realize what had happening. Still, he wasn’t sure Gibbons bought it. But Devlin couldn’t imagine Gibbons would assume he’d done this to himself. It seemed just a little too insane for Gibbons to question him outright.

The pain throughout his body made it difficult to concentrate on the path, but the need for Devlin’s skill had lessened since they had taken to the road. The same consistent tracks of a wagon with a set of horse hooves next to it continued onward mile after mile. Devlin’s expertise would be brought in whenever they thought there might have been a deviation into the forest. But that was unlikely considering the wagon. It was clear that they were gaining on their subjects, and possible that they would catch up to them by evening.

The morning brought a bleak overcast sky and suggested a downpour later. If not today, then the next day. In any case, if they survived their encounter with Nathaniel and Marum, there would be a night of camping in the rain and Devlin couldn’t imagine it right now. As a hunter, he’d camped in the rain on many occasions, but doing so now simply depressed him.

The others had taken note of the clouds as well and quickened their pace. Rain would wipe away the tracks as if they had never been there. Marum and the others would slip away for sure.
 

Devlin was the first one to notice the small shack off the road just a ways, and that the tracks veered in that direction.
 

“You think they’re in there?” Strand called out.
 

“It’s possible,” Gibbons said.

“Nah,” Levi said, pointing. “Look at the ground. The same sort of tracks lead out and continue up the road.”

“He’s right,” Devlin said, observing the road.
 

“Well,” Gibbons said as he pulled a pistol from his holster, “I suppose we ought to go check it out.”

The others followed behind Gibbons. Devlin did so reluctantly. With his arm in a sling, he couldn’t easily take hold of his gun and guide his horse at the same time. So, he plodded along slowly behind the others until they reached the shack. Each of them were off their horse, guns drawn, and tiptoeing toward the front porch.

“Hello!” Gibbons shouted. “Who lives here?”

Devlin looked around the yard, thinking the place had an ominous, dark feeling to it. He imagined it was a peaceful, perhaps even pretty place in the spring with the wildflowers and green leaves. But now it looked foreboding, and he didn’t want to take another step forward.