Blade had no idea how to reply to a compliment like that, so he simply shrugged. “Let’s get them back to town. I want to check on Millie.”
Wolfe knew Millie’s situation better than most people, although the whole town knew what had happened. Nobody spoke about it anymore, though. To them, it was just a ranch raid that took place seven years ago, but to Blade, it was the day his life had changed forever.
Together, Blade and Wolfe loaded the bandits onto their horses and then led them back to town. The men cried from the pain, complained, and begged. Blade and Wolfe ignored them.
“Sometimes I find it hard to believe how capable you are,” Wolfe said as they trotted along the dirt road.
“Why? You’re the one who taught me how to shoot and fight.”
“Still, you’re only seventeen,” Wolfe pointed out. “It’s remarkable.”
Blade couldn’t help but smile at this. He had come a long way. “Thanks.”
He had been a skinny boy who knew more about ranching than shooting or fighting when his family was massacred. He and Millie had survived, but they were forever changed.
Chapter 2
“We better get going,” Dr. Clive Masterson said as he put on his coat. “Will you get the buggy while I grab my bag?”
“Of course,” Jace replied, eager to please. Dr. Masterson was friendly and welcoming, but he was still Jace’s new boss and mentor. Coming straight out of college, it was his first job, and he wanted to impress. Dr. Masterson was intelligent, and Jace knew that he could learn a lot from him.
Hurrying outside, Jace made his way to the side of the building where they kept the horses and led them to the buggy. He might have studied medicine, but he had grown up on a farm and knew the labors and struggles of everyday life.
In the week that Jace had been in Silver City, he had only worked at Dr. Masterson’s office in town. This was the first time that they were going to see patients at a different location, and he felt both excited and a little anxious. He wasn’t someone who got nervous easily, but they had been called upon to treat a few outlaws who were locked up at thesheriff’s office, and he had never before been face-to-face with a bandit.
Jace fastened the horses to the buggy just as Dr. Masterson came rushing out. “Always remember to put a sign on the door if we’re going to be away from the practice,” he offered as advice.
Jace glanced at the door and saw a handwritten piece of paper stuck to it. Written on it in big bold letters was a message telling anybody who might have an emergency that they could find Dr. Masterson at the sheriff’s office.
“I will,” Jace agreed as he took Dr. Masterson’s medical case and lifted it onto the buggy. “Do you want to steer, or should I?”
“Go ahead,” Dr. Masterson said as he got on and took a seat.
Jace nodded, hoisting himself onto the buggy as well and grabbing the reins.
The sheriff’s office wasn’t far from their practice, so it didn’t take long for them to get there.
“What do you need me to do?” Jace asked, feeling a little panicked now that they had arrived.
Dr. Masterson gave him a knowing smile. “First, you need to relax,” he instructed. “And then you just follow my lead. Treating outlaws is no different than treating anybody else. We do our job as best we can and leave serving justice to Sheriff Wolfe.”
Jace let out a long breath. “All right,” he agreed. “I’ve got this.”
“Good. Now let’s go see in what shape these men are.”
Jace followed Dr. Masterson into the sheriff’s office. He felt a little shaky but was trying to stay calm. Inside, two men greeted them. One was Sheriff Wolfe, whom he had met briefly on the day he first arrived in Silver City. The other was much younger and carried an array of weapons.
“Thank you for coming so quickly,” Sheriff Wolfe said the moment they entered.
“Anytime,” Dr. Masterson replied. “This is Jonathan Holden, my new apprentice. Jonathan, this is Sheriff Ethan Wolfe, and this is his assistant, Slade Cassidy.”
“Nice to see you again,” Sheriff Wolfe greeted.
“Call me Blade,” Blade corrected, holding out his hand.
Jace shook it. “I guess you can call me Jace, then.”
The young man gave a nod, let go of his hand, and took a step back. “I’ll take you to the bandits. Three have bullet wounds—two in the shoulder and one in the upper leg. The fourth one has cuts on his hands.”
