The Circle Eight: Nicholas (21 page)

He smiled at her, love clogging his throat. “Home is family,” he repeated. She was right, about everything. He was damn proud of her.

They rode back to the hat store at a brisker pace. Something told him they needed to get there before Miss Gregson came back. The proof of illegal child slavery could be sitting within the walls of the shop. Layton must have known they would go there. If all went well, they would find whatever proof Winnie needed and not get arrested.

His gut tightened the closer they got. He trusted his instincts and they were telling him to be careful. More than careful. By the time they arrived, his teeth hurt from clenching his jaw.
Winnie must have been tense too because her gaze kept straying to the left and then the right.

Nick dismounted and looked up at her. “I want you to stay here.”

Her mouth tightened. “No.”

He had to make her understand her safety was more important than her pride. “Something
isn’t right and I think you know it. Let me make sure it’s safe.” She started to open her mouth and he squeezed her knee. “Please.”

To his surprise, she nodded and didn’t protest. He pulled the pistol from its holster as he walked toward the door.
The small hairs on his neck stood on end. His hand tightened on the gun’s grip. The door stood open an inch, barely enough to let light in, but enough to let him know his instincts weren’t wrong.

Someone was inside.

He crept in on the balls of his feet, nearly noiseless in the silent shop. The bit of daylight he’d let in barely penetrated the shadows that hid what or who was there. His heart thumped steadily but he controlled his breathing, keeping all his senses on alert.

A shuffling in the back made him crouch to the right of the door. He strained to hear more but there was nothing. He started forward again. If Winnie wanted to search for the ledger, he had to find out whoever was hiding. La
ter they could figure out the details.

Another shuffling noise, this time to his left. He peered into the semi-darkness but saw nothing. The sounds from the street were muffled but he could imagine Winnie outside, impatiently waiting for him to find out who was in the shop.
If he took more than a few minutes, he was sure she would follow him. He couldn’t let that happen.

He stood up. “I’m tired of playing this game. Come on out and let’s get this over with.”

A loud noise to his right. He whirled, gun in hand. That’s when his skull exploded. Hands closed around his neck and the world turned into pain.

Winnie itched to follow him but Nicholas had asked her to wait. He’d even said please. Yet she knew something wasn’t right. She couldn’t explain it, but it felt as though someone watched them.

A group of
four men rode down the street toward her. She didn’t want to look at them or consider if they were heading toward her. The air hung heavy around the hat shop, with anticipation and danger. Winnie trusted her gut and right then it was telling her the man she loved needed her.

Before she could make up her mind to ignore his request to stay put, she
heard a thump from inside the shop. She slid from the horse with as much grace as she could muster and ran for the door. It took a few moments for her eyes to adjust to the darkened shop. She ran forward only to trip over something on the floor.

Winnie landed hard on her hands, sending pain shooting up her arms. Dirt and splinters ground into her palms. She heard a
groan and realized what she tripped over was a body. A unique scent mixed with the tang of blood.

“Nicky?” She
pushed herself to her knees, panic and fear clogging her throat. He needed her to be strong and she couldn’t let him down.

She ignored the rustle of horses outside and ran her hands down Nicholas’s body. She felt no breaks or wounds until she reached his head. Her hands encountered stickiness at the back of his skull that could only be blood.

Someone ran past her and she scrambled to find Nicholas’s gun. Whoever it was ran for the back of the shop. To escape.

“Don’t you disappear
, you son of a bitch!” She couldn’t leave Nicholas but she shouted at the bastard who had hurt him. More thumps and groans echoed from the direction the man had run. Frustration gripped her.

Footsteps outside the door notched up her fury. Her hand closed around the grip of the pistol and she swung to confront the next intruder in the seemingly innocuous hat shop.

“Stop!” She cocked the gun with one bloody hand. The shadows in the doorway stopped.

“Miss Watson?” The voice was familiar but she couldn’t remember who it was.

“Stay where you are. I don’t want to shoot you if I don’t need to.”

Someone
snorted. “Sounds like another spitfire for a Graham.”

“Miss Watson,
it’s Matt Graham.”

Relief poured through her. “Someone hurt Nicky. They ran out the back. If you hurry you might find him.”

Two of the shadows ran past her, boots slamming into the wood floor. She set the gun down and turned her attention back to Nicholas. One of the men knelt beside her.

“Winnie.” Vaughn’s hand landed on her shoulder. “We’re here to help.”

Fear and fury warred within her, and the sound of her friend’s voice let it all loose. She swallowed the tears that threatened. She would not break down now.

“What are you doing in Houston? If Layton sees you—
”

“Too late for that, Mrs. Graham.” As if she’d conjured him, the policeman stepped into the shop. “I was hoping to see this man again.”

“Mrs. Graham?” That was Matt’s voice.

“Vaughn isn’t guilty of any crime. You need to let him be and help us capture the child slavers!” She blew out a shaky breath. “But what we need right now is to find a doctor for my husband.”

“Husband? What in the hell happened in the last week?” Matt scowled so hard his eyebrows touched.

“I will explain everything
later.” She got to her feet and looked to Matt, the oldest and watched as he glanced at Nicholas and then at her.

“Is there a doctor nearby?” He asked with a bite to his tone.

“There is a hospital a few miles from here. Someone needs to carry him.” She cursed her own lack of strength. She couldn’t even lift him from the floor.

“No one is going anywhere until I have answers.” Layton blocked the door.

White-hot fury lanced through her. Winnie snatched up the gun from the floor and pressed it into Layton’s chin. “If you do not allow him to leave and receive medical care, I will shoot you. If he dies, I will kill you.”

Matt held up his hands. “I don’t know you, Layton, but I agree with Winnie. I
won’t let my brother die because you don’t have all your answers.”

“Hey, there’s something you have to see.”

Winnie turned to see Brody, the brother-in-law with a gun in his hand. “Caleb has two men back here.”

Layton stepped around her and she let the gun drop to her side. The weight of it heavy in her hands. She shook so hard, her teeth clacked together.

“Nick’s hurt. You and Caleb can deal with the two men. Vaughn, help me carry him out to the horses. We’re going to bring Nick ourselves.”

Winnie almost wept at Matt’s pronouncement. The men picked Nick up and brought him out to the horses. In the
daylight, he was pale as cotton, blood dripping from the back of his head. Angry red marks encircled his neck.

She sucked in a breath. “He was strangled.”

“Fuck.” Matt glanced at her in apology. “Move. Faster.”

They got to the horses in record time. Matt let Vaughn take Nicholas’s weight. The oldest Graham swung up into the saddle and reached down to pull his brother onto his lap. The look on Matt’s
face was one of worry, fear and love. Tears stung her eyes at the sight. His family truly loved him so very much. If only he could see how loveable he was.

“Help her onto her horse and let’s go.” Matt was definitely used to giving orders.

Vaughn, an apology in his gaze, almost threw her into her saddle and handed her the reins. He mounted his own horse and the unlikely trio set out for the hospital.

It took less than ten minutes at the pace Matt set. People jumped out of the way given the pounding hooves streaking down the street. Winnie didn’t care. She hung on and whispered to her horse, urging the mare to lead them to the doctor. Nick could be dying and she wouldn’t let something like being polite to her neighbors get in the way of saving his life.

By the time they arrived, she was covered in perspiration but she ignored it. At that moment, she didn’t care if she was covered in the worst offal. Nothing mattered but Nicholas.

She didn’t wait for Vaughn, but slide down off the horse, landing with a thump. She ran into the hospital on shaky legs.

“We need a doctor quickly!”

The only person in the lobby was an older nurse. The woman was startled and dropped the tray she’d been carrying with a clang.

“Good heavens, ma’am! You don’t need to shout.”

“Yes I do. My husband was strangled and beaten. He needs a doctor. Please.” Without permission, tears began to leak from her eyes. Emotional exhaustion threatened and Winnie hung on, determined to save Nicholas’s life.

The nurse’s expression hardened. “Then let’s save his life. Bring him in to the first room on the right. I’ll fetch the doctor.”

Gratitude was pushed aside by urgency. Winnie ran back outside to see Vaughn accepting Nicholas’s weight. Matt hopped down and took his brother back.

“This way.” She held the door open for them. To her dismay, more tears fell down her cheeks. She couldn’t take her gaze from Nicholas’s still form. “First door on the right.”

Matt entered the room foll
owed by Winnie and Vaughn. The cot in the room had clean white sheets and Matt laid his brother down with a gentleness she hadn’t expected.

“Get the doctor,” he barked.

Winnie ran from the room, looking for the nurse. To her relief, the older woman was moving down the hallway with a young man behind her. No matter who he was, he had to save Nicholas’s life. If he didn’t, Winnie might not ever recover.

He had given her life back to her. With his gruff love and his insistence on finding her daughter. Winnie would have lived the rest of her life, unfulfilled and lonely if not for Nicholas Graham.

She stayed by his side while the doctor assessed him. Matt stood on the other. Two people who loved him giving him their strength.

“Someone tried to kill this man.” The doctor’s pronouncement made Matt snort.

“I know that, doc. How about you save his life?”

The doctor, a sandy-haired man not much older than her, gave Matt a withering look. “That is what I am attempting to do, sir.”

Matt nodded and folded his arms. “Then get to it.”

Winnie watched the rise and fall of Nicholas’s chest. The room was quiet except for the soft murmur of conversation in the corner between the doctor and Matt. The doctor had swathed Nicholas’s head in bandages and his face was nearly as pale as the cloth. Nicholas lived but, according to the doctor, he’d seen people strangled who lived but never woke.

Winnie pressed her forehead into the side of the cot and fought for control. Emotion made her throat tight.
How she wished she could turn back the clock and refuse the offer to ride home from the Circle Eight with Nicholas. If she had, he wouldn’t be on a cot fighting for his life, half-strangled and beaten.

Then again, if she hadn’t traveled with Nicholas, she would never have experienced the sweet joy of loving him. She wou
ldn’t trade the time with him no matter what. An hour of wonderful was worth more than living for a hundred years in with a mediocre existence.

She picked up his hand and kissed one knuckle. “Don’t make me follow you to heaven and drag you back by your hair.
I wouldn’t be happy with you.”

He didn’t stir at her words. Winnie pulled his hand to her cheek and closed her eyes at the feel of his callused skin against hers. When he twitched, her eyes flew open.

He watched her with his beautiful blue-green eyes. She yelped and kissed him as gently as she dared on his cheek.

“Nicky.” The one word held so much emotion, she barely got it out.

He cupped her cheek and croaked, wincing.

“Your throat probably hurts. Someone tried to strangle you.”

His brows snapped together.

“Don’t worry. I wasn’t hurt. Your family arrived to help.”

His gaze moved to Matt who stood at the end of the bed. Winnie saw a combination of relief and surprise cross his expression.

“Hey, Nick, heard you had a pinch of trouble.” Matt nodded his head toward Winnie. “Miss Watson hasn’t told us everything yet and I have some to share too. I reckon we ought to talk.” Matt glanced at Nicholas’s throat. “
Maybe you should just listen.”

“I’ve told him about Grace, or rather, about Martha.” Winnie’s heart stuttered to speak her daughter’s name. “And all we discovered about the child slavery ring
including how we plan to get Martha back.”