He forced his full attention back to these kidnapping lizards.
Robert and Thomas had already pushed in around Enoch, and each had a stranger at the end of his gun barrel. The sheriffkept his weapon aimed at Clayton, and Mandie’s mother stood curled into herself behind Robert.
Enoch motioned her out into the hall with Mandie while he kept his gun ready for any scoundrel who thought he might make a break for it.
At last, the women were safe. He glanced around for rope. Something to tie these men up.
“Nelson!” Sheriff Hawkins called toward the front of the saloon, his voice strained but steady despite the bloody mark widening over his left shoulder. “Bring rope if you have it. And send someone for the doctor.”
The saloon owner’s footsteps pounded down the hallway, and within moments, he appeared with coils of rope and wide eyes as he took in the carnage.
“Help us tie them up.” Enoch grabbed a section of the cord and stepped toward the stringy-haired man who’d held Mandie. The wretch didn’t resist. He looked stunned by how quickly Clayton’s plan had crumbled.
As he worked, Enoch eyed Clayton, who had slumped to the floor, his face ashen and his breathing labored. Blood seeped through his fingers where he clutched his middle, but his dark eyes still burned as they fixed on Enoch. “This…isn’t…over.”
“Yes, it is.” Enoch’s voice came out more of a snarl.
Robert and Thomas secured the second kidnapper while Enoch finished with the first, then moved to help the barkeep with Clayton. The sheriff, despite his wound, managed to keep his pistol steady on Clayton until they finished the job completely.
“Easy with him,” Hawkins grunted as they hauled Clayton upright. “He’s gut-shot, but I want him alive for trial.”
As soon as the men were bound, Enoch slipped from the room to find Mandie. If they’d hurt her in any way…
She stood pressed against the hallway wall, her arms wrapped around herself. Her beautiful, dark hair spilled loose over her shoulders, and her gown hung torn at her neck, dirt streaking the silk, but she was whole.
Safe.
“Mandie.” Her name came out rough, all the fear and fury of the past hour condensed into those two syllables.
She turned at his voice, and the relief that flooded her face nearly brought him to his knees.
In three strides, he reached her, gathering her into his arms with a desperation that shook him to his core.
“Are you hurt?” His hands moved over her shoulders, her arms, checking for injuries while his eyes searched her face. “Did they?—”
“No.” She pressed her face against his chest, her voice muffled but steady. “They didn’t have time. You came so quickly.”
He buried his face in her disheveled hair, breathing in the scent of her, grounding himself in the solid reality of her presence.
His bride. Safe in his arms, where she belonged.
Behind them, boots thumped, and he eased Mandie out of the way so his brothers and the sheriff could escort their prisoners toward the front of the saloon.
He couldn’t bring himself to go with them. He couldn’t leave the woman in his arms.
“Your mother?” He eased back just enough to search her face.
“Shaken, but unharmed.”
Relief eased through him. He pressed his lips to her forehead, then pulled her tight. The last of the tension finally began to drain from his shoulders. “I thought I’d lost you.” Thewords scraped raw from his throat. “When I saw those combs in the dirt…”
“I’m here.” Her hands fisted in the back of his shirt, anchoring him to her. “I knew you’d come. I prayed you’d come quickly.”
“I’ll always come for you.” Those words formed in his very core.
She nodded against his shirt. “What about our wedding? Can we get started with it soon?”
The question caught him off guard, and something like a laugh escaped him. “You still want to get married today? After all this?”
