Yours Again (River City Series) (24 page)

Chapter 25

Just
as Taos reached the barn, Tommy slammed into his legs.

“He’s
got her, Pa!” The boy’s eyes were wide with fear and he struggled to catch his
breath.

“Who’s
got her?”

“The
bad guy. He jumped out and dragged me behind the wagon. Said he’d shoot me if I
yelled. He waited ’til she came out and then he let me go and grabbed her.”

Taos’s
blood ran cold. “Go to the house, and stay there!” He shoved the boy in the
direction of safety and crouched near the barn door. He peered around the
corner, catching a quick flash of white lace in one corner of the dark
building.

Tommy
crawled next to him, stirring a choking cloud of dust in the process. “He tried
to shoot me when I ran, but Momma bit him.”

Taos
hesitated.
Momma?
It barely had time to register as he realized Lawson
had just tried to shoot his son. “Go to the house!”

“You
gotta save her Pa.” Tommy ran for the house.

Taos
gazed through a crack in one of the barn boards, trying to see. A wet nose against
his ear made Taos nearly jump out of his skin. He grabbed the dog’s thick coat
and dragged him to the doorway. “Get him, boy!”

The
dog darted inside, barking at the top of his lungs. Taos peered around the
corner just as the large black dog jumped and snapped at Lawson’s gun arm. Lawson
thrust Samantha between himself and the hairy mutt, but the dog darted around
her skirts, nipping and biting his legs. Taos cocked his gun and edged forward,
trying to get a clear shot as the dog antagonized Lawson.

“Taos!”

The
urgency in her voice brought Taos through the opening and to a dead stop as a
bullet whizzed past his ear. Lawson clung to a struggling Samantha with one
hand and tried to hold the gun steady with the other.

His
appearance was disheveled. Hay matted Lawson’s black hair and his once-shiny
boots were now scuffed and caked with dirt. His face was pale and the black
marbles within reflected a sinister mixture of desperation and insanity. Lawson
ranted as the gun waved in a deadly arc.

“You’ll
see. It will be even better this way.” He aimed the gun at Taos. “Throw that
down, over in the corner.”

Jimbo
jumped and snapped and Lawson moved the gun from side to side, directing it
first at the dog, then at Taos again. Taos quickly realized that he and
Samantha could both be shot purely by accident. He did a quick mental inventory
of his options. Getting the gun away from Lawson seemed to be the top priority.

Taos
held up both hands and dropped his gun a few feet away.

“Kick
it over there,” Lawson growled.

Samantha
squirmed and slid to her knees. Lawson yanked her up and tried to get a better
grip as the gun continued to wave back and forth. Her hair tumbled over her
shoulders and partially into his face.

“As
a widow, you get everything he has too. Then we can make a new start. A new
life together. You’ll just have to trust me that this is best.” He spoke to the
back of Samantha’s head as the arm with the gun drooped.

Taos
stood still and looked for the opportunity to make his move. “Let her go,
Lawson.”

Samantha
twisted in Lawson’s grip, trying to kick out. The gun moved upward.

“Oh,
no. She’s mine. She was always meant to be mine. No cowboy could ever take care
of her like I can. You’ll see. You’ll all see.”

Taos
darted to one side and shoved the gun away. Lawson’s arm snapped back, the gun
pointed right at Taos. A shot rang out, followed by another.

Taos
smelled the gun powder, heard Samantha scream, then his knees buckled.

Samantha
tore from Lawson’s grip, falling on her knees at Taos’s side. The bullet had
cut a path through his left shoulder, and warm sticky red liquid oozed from the
wound and dripped into a growing puddle in the dirt.

“I’m
fine,” Taos whispered.

She
nodded through tears and stuffed her handkerchief under his shirt to help stem
the bleeding. A new fear gripped her, dwarfing her terror of the last few
minutes as his life drained away. The puddle grew, and blood combined with her
tears as she pressed her hand against the wound.

“Where
did he go?”

Taos’s
whispered question made her jump, and she looked to where Lawson had been
standing. He was still there, though not standing. The gun lay in his hand, but
his long slender fingers had gone limp. Lawson’s eyes stared into a glassy
nothing and blood trickled from a large hole in the middle of his chest.

Taos
raised his head trying to look.

“He’s
dead.” Samantha looked toward the door, trying to locate the source of the
bullet that killed Lawson, and saved them both. Darren must have heard the
commotion and come back to help them, she reasoned. The sun silhouetted a form,
but he seemed too far away.

“Darren!”
she called.

Taos
groaned and motioned toward his brother. The form walked a few feet closer.

A
small hand gripped a still smoking gun.

Samantha
stared. “Tommy!”

“Tommy?”
Taos tried to focus his gaze on his son.

“Yes
sir,” Tommy came closer. His face seeming to age with each step.

“Where
did you get that gun?” Samantha could hardly rationalize what her mind told her
had happened.

“It’s
the ’mergency gun.”

The
two adults stared at him in stunned silence.

“Well,
it looked like a ’mergency to me.”

The
pounding hooves thundered toward the trio. Darren jumped off his horse and ran
to Taos’s side, skidding to a stop on his knees. He lifted the handkerchief and
looked at the wound.

“Not
as b-bad as it c-could have been.” He strained to pull Taos to his feet with
Samantha’s help. “We need to g-get him in the h-house. I’ll get D-Doc Bentley.”
He glanced over at Lawson. I’m glad Taos plugged him with one s-shot.”

“He
didn’t,” Samantha positioned herself under Taos’s arm and tried to steady him.
“Tommy did.”

“Is
Pa gonna be alright?” Tommy asked.

“He’ll
be fit as a fiddle in no time, he just needs some r-rest.” Darren assured him.
He tousled the boy’s hair. “You did good, Tommy.”

Darren
and Samantha half carried, half dragged Taos to the house.

The
boy walked toward the still body in the barn. He nudged Lawson’s knee with the
toe of his small boot. “I’m real sorry, mister, but I didn’t have no choice.”

Tommy
stared at the unseeing eyes. “I thought there would be angels or something.” He
mumbled and knelt down, laying a small hand on Lawson’s shoulder. “Maybe bad
people don’t get no angels.” He started toward the door, then looked back. “I’m
sorry you didn’t get no angels, mister.”

Chapter 26

Doc
Bentley snapped his black bag shut and removed his small spectacles, cleaning
them with a neatly pressed handkerchief. Taos lay on the bed, his shoulder
bandaged, his skin chalky white. Samantha paced at the foot of the bed waiting
for the doctor to say something. The room was stuffy and confining. Small
tendrils of hair stuck to the moisture on her forehead.

“He’ll
pull through.” He returned the spectacles to their position on his nose.

“Seen
worse, young lady.” His penetrating eyes assessed her up and down, and he
seemed to nod his approval.

“You’ll
take fine care of him I’m sure,” He picked up his bag and started toward the
door. Samantha released a relieved breath and stared at Taos.

“He’ll
be fine, really. Up and working in a week or so.” The doctor patted her
shoulder and left.

Taos’s
chest rose and fell with each breath. Samantha moved to the edge of the bed and
leaned over, placing her hand lightly over his heart. A small drop of moisture
slid down her cheek as she felt it beat strong under her fingers. The arguments
of the past few days melted away. She stared at his face willing him to open
his eyes. Her tears gathered reinforcements, refusing to stop their mad rush down
her cheeks. They clouded her vision. She swiped her hands across her cheek.  

“The
doc said he was gonna be all right, didn’t he?” Darren stood in the doorway
frowning at her as she nodded. Darren cleared his throat and shuffled his feet.
Tears made him antsy. His eyes opened wide as Samantha rushed toward him and
hid her head in his chest. The initial shock gave way to uneasiness as Darren
awkwardly tried to comfort her. Not sure exactly what to do with his hands, he
finally decided that a stiff pat on her quivering shoulder was the way to go.

“It’s
gonna be all right.” Darren said the words as much to himself as to her. He
glanced toward the bed as Samantha sniffled. He had never envied an injured man
until this second, and something about having to deal with an emotional female
made him think that being shot wasn’t all that bad. At least you could be
unconscious through this part. His attention snapped back to her when he
realized Samantha stared up at him, her brows furrowed.

“Did
anyone ever tell you that you offer about as much comfort as a tall board?” She
smiled and turned back to Taos.

“Haven’t
had much practice at it, but I intend to work on it.” He shrugged his shoulders.
“Why all the water?”

Samantha
glanced at Taos. “I said some really terrible things to him the last few days.”
She sniffled. “I couldn’t have lived with myself if, well, you know.”

“Yeah,
I know,” he said as he watched one last straggler slide down her cheek. He felt
an instinctive urge to brush it off with his thumb as if it would ease the pain.
Instead he shoved his hands in his pockets and stared at this brother.

Darren
had been more worried about the things that needed saying. Not that he really
doubted that Taos knew how he felt, but somehow the time had never really come
to tell him out loud.

“Aunt
Mattie always said that at the end of life it’s the things you didn’t do,
didn’t try, or didn’t say that you regret the most.” She stared into nothing
lost in thought.

Darren
squinted at her. It was like she could hear his thoughts out loud. Taos and
Charlie both told him that she could read minds, but sometimes they exaggerated
things. The sun streamed into the window as it marched toward the horizon. There
were animals to feed and a section of fence to check before dark.

Samantha
started toward the door. “I’ll fix you something to eat before you go.”

A
little chill crept up his back. “Go where?”

“Feed
stock and check that fence.” Her voice trailed off as she walked down the hall.

“It’s
a sorry day when a man can’t even think in front of a woman.” He mumbled and
followed her.

A
sharp knock sounded at the back door just as Samantha set a plate of ham and
eggs in front of Darren. Billy Baker’s red head came into view as he peeked
through the screen.

“Miss
Sammy?” He held a letter and she motioned him inside. The boy stopped and
stared at Darren’s plate.

“Is
that for me?” Samantha asked.

Billy’s
head jerked back to her. “Oh, uh, yeah, ma’am. Ma said you could come get it
like everybody else, but I thought it might be important.” His gaze drifted
back to the steaming eggs. Darren paused, the fork half way to his mouth, as he
eyes met Billy's.

The
boy licked his lips.

“Can’t
eat being stared at.” Darren groused.

“Would
you like to join us?” Samantha smiled at Darren’s irritation.

“Um,
my ma might not ’preciate it.” He shuffled his feet.

“She
won’t know if you don’t tell her.”

Billy
grinned and nodded, trying to scoot out of the way as Tommy barreled in the
back door.

“Smells
like breakfast.” A small dirt cloud rose as Tommy whacked the front of his
jeans with his ragged straw hat.

“Hey!”
Darren frowned, swiping at the dust that now filled the kitchen.

Tommy
shrugged, “Fell down.”

Samantha
gazed at the writing on the envelope. It was from Mattie. She felt a tingle of
excitement. The postmark was dated just a week ago and well after John had left
Boston. He had lied! She was alive. No matter what was in the letter, Mattie
was alive! She slid the precious communication into her pocket and quickly fixed
more eggs.

Both
boys sat at the table.

“How
come you’re eatin’ with us?” Tommy tilted his head at Billy.

“She
said I could.”

“Because
we feed every stray that wonders through the f-fence, that’s why.” Darren
picked up his plate and cup and went to the porch to eat, away from the greedy
stares of the youngsters. He let the door bang loudly.

Billy’s
eyebrows popped up.

“He’s
always grumpy when he’s hungry.” Tommy heaved a sigh.

Samantha
had the boys eating large helpings of eggs, ham and biscuits in no time, then
hurried upstairs and checked on Taos. He was still sleeping. She sat in a chair
in the corner and tore the envelope open. Her heart pounded and excited, happy
tears filled her eyes as she read.

Taos
opened his eyes and tried to focus. Samantha came into view as she sat and read
a letter. She smiled from ear to ear, crying at the same time. He must still be
dreaming. The pain in his shoulder distracted him for a moment and he stared at
the ceiling, willing it to the back of his mind. Samantha shifted in the chair
and laughed a little at something she read. He snapped his eyes shut as she
glanced toward him. He peeked with one eye to make sure she was concentrating
on her letter again.

She
was beautiful. She was mean too. The last few days had been nothing but
frustration, only to end up with him getting shot. He was beginning to think
that every ounce of human kindness had drained out of her before Lawson showed
up again. He‘d known prize pigs that were treated better than she’d treated him.
Maybe this whole event had changed her attitude. Now was a perfect time to see.
He grunted and shifted a little to get her attention. She rushed to the bed,
still clutching her letter.

“Taos?”

He
groaned and cracked his eyelids open a fraction.

She
sat on the edge of the bed and put her palm against his forehead. “Are you
awake?”

“Yeah,
I guess I am.” He tried to make his voice weak and thready.

She
grinned and held up her letter. “Guess what! Mattie is alive and she wants me
to come home!” She reread the letter silently for the tenth time as Taos stared
at her. “She says that she is up and around, and has been worried sick about
me.”

“Must
be nice to have someone care about you.”

The
tone of his voice surprised her and she looked up at his angry face. “What’s
wrong?”

He
shifted and leaned, struggling to prop pillows underneath him. “I’m shot, and
all you can think about now is getting back to Boston.” He pounded at the
pillows in frustration, using what little strength he had. He was weak as a
kitten. “No, ‘I’m sorry for getting you shot’ or ‘I’m sorry I was such a shrew’
or even ‘Are you hungry?” He grunted.

Samantha
slowly rose to her feet, “I’m not a shrew.”

“I
beg to differ.” He refused to look at her, but stole a glance every time she
turned her back.

“You
can beg all you want, but it doesn’t change the fact that I was merely
responding to the ill treatment you were dishing out. Not only that, but you
were obviously pretending a minute ago with all that groaning just to try and
get me to feel sorry for you.”

“I
should have known it wouldn’t work.” His shoulder hurt worse now and he
scrunched down in the bed.

“I
have been worried sick about Mattie since I got here, and I just found out she
isn’t dead. Why are you making me feel like I’m the one in the wrong?”

“’Cause
you are.” It was the only response he could think of. He immediately felt like
a whiny little boy. He was glad Mattie was alive, too. But he did not want Samantha
running off to Boston when things were not right between them.

“No,
I’m not. And as far as you getting shot, it’s just too bad he didn’t hit you in
the mouth.”

He
glared at her then stared out the window.

 “Mattie
wants me to come home. Do you want me to go?”

 He
continued to stare out the window. It was time for her to choose. Taos was her
husband, but he couldn’t force her to stay. “I won’t stop you.”

She
nodded stoically and headed toward the adjoining door to her room. It closed
quietly behind her. Taos felt like he’d been stabbed in the heart.

Chapter 27

Samantha
plopped down on her bed and propped her chin in her hands. Part of her heart
expected him to call her name. She listened for the better part of a half hour,
but nothing. There was no question now. He didn’t care enough to court her and
getting shot on her account had made up his mind. Mattie was alive, and she wanted
Samantha to come home. She stood and looked slowly around the room. This was
home. She shook her head and cleared her throat. He would never see one tear. No
sir, not one. She was through crying. Samantha threw herself into packing; it
was easier to be busy.

Darren
pushed open the door and stuck his head into Taos’s room. Dark was closing in,
and he could see his brother sitting up in bed, staring out the window. The
house had a strange quiet to it. He couldn’t explain it, but it just didn’t
seem right.

“You
coming in or not?”

Darren
walked to the window and stared out into the shadows. “How you feelin’?”

Silence.

“Doc
said you were gonna be fine.”

“You
check that fence?” The tone of his voice told Darren there was more wrong with
Taos than a bullet wound.

“Yeah,
needs s-some work. Not too much though.”

Silence
again.

“Could
get to it at the end of the week if you’re up to it by then.”

“Yeah,
I ain’t hurt too bad.” Taos took a deep breath.

“I
wasn’t too s-sure for a minute there.” Darren tugged at the curtain, grappling
with uncomfortable emotions.

Taos
chuckled. “Takes more than one bullet to kill a Williams.”

 “Don’t
go around testing that theory out. I’d miss you around here, you know.”

“I
know.”

Darren
breathed a sigh of relief in the now near dark room. “How about some light in
here?” He flipped on the lamp.

“What
I’d really like is some food. I’m starving.”

“Where’s
Sammy?” Darren quirked up an eyebrow as he just now realized she hadn’t been
downstairs.

“She’s
leaving.”

Darren
went still. Apparently quite a few things had transpired since he left. “Why?”

“I
told her to go.”

“You
what
?” Darren looked as incredulous as he sounded.

Taos
groaned, annoyed at having to explain himself. “She got a letter from Mattie
asking her to come home, and she asked me if she should go. And I said, ‘Go.’ It’s
as simple as that.”

“That’s
not all there is to it.” Darren knew Taos thought he could make a cow patty
into chocolate cake if he laid on enough icing.

The
muscle in Taos’s jaw twitched as he worked his teeth back and forth and ignored
the comment.

“What
did you do?”

“She
started it.”

“I’ll
j-just bet.” The accusation was clear.

“I
woke up and all she could talk about was going home. She didn’t even care that
I was shot.” Taos frowned.