Courtney realized that meeting Denton had been too coincidental. She’d been so gullible to believe him. Yet, she’d been desperate to find her groom and get married quickly just to leave this state. It was her fault for trusting so easily.
The pounding of horse’s hooves on the road caught her off-guard, and she jumped. Riding toward them was a man wearing a silver star on his leather vest. Slowly, Denton moved toward the man on the horse. Her mind screamed that this was her chance to run.
Taking cautious steps, she backed away from the crowd. Her heartbeat hammered against her ribs, and her mind told her now was the time to run as fast as she could.
She lifted the bottom of her dress and darted toward the busy street up ahead. These ladies’ boots wouldn’t allow her much speed, which meant she must find someplace to hide before Denton discovered her gone.
Not looking back, she quickened her pace, even if her heels were killing her. As she turned the corner, her gaze jumped from one building to the next, from one person to the other as she tried not to bump into anyone in her haste. Up ahead was the saloon. Surely, she’d find somewhere in that building to hide, even if it was upstairs where the painted ladies were housed.
Decision made, she headed directly for the saloon. The noise from the crowded street made it impossible to hear if Denton was following her, but she couldn’t take even a second to look back to see. She must keep moving forward.
Three more steps and she’d be entering the saloon – a place she never thought she’d enter. But desperation was an emotion that didn’t have room to judge.
Suddenly, someone grasped her hand tightly, stopping her. She glanced over her shoulder and peered into Denton’s worried eyes.
“Miss Parker? Are you ill?”
He didn’t know the half of it, and at this moment, it was all she could do not to lose the contents of her stomach right here, right now. “Please, let me go.” She tried to free her arm from his strong grip. However, he wouldn’t release her, and instead, pulled her away from the saloon and down an alleyway between two buildings.
Tears of defeat filled her eyes, but she continued to tug her arm free. Finally, he brought them to a halt and faced her, taking both of her shoulders in his grasp as he stared deeply into her eyes.
“Courtney, please stop struggling. I’m not going to hurt you.”
She blinked rapidly, trying to dry her tears. “Tell me who you really are, Denton, because at this moment, Iknowyou’re not a livery owner, and I’m starting to think that Timothy Graham isn’t your brother at all.”
Different emotions played across Denton’s face, and Courtney wondered for a moment if he was going to deny the accusation and talk his way out of it. But then, he sighed heavily, and an apologetic smile touched his mouth.
“It was the handcuffs that gave it away, wasn’t it?” He shrugged. “When I saw the bank robbers, I just reacted.”
She swallowed hard. “So, you do work for the sheriff?”
He shook his head. “Yes and no. I’m actually a bounty hunter.”
Her gut tightened, and more tears filled her eyes. “And you came looking for me, didn’t you?”
Denton nodded. “One of my good friends is Terrance Greenwood. He asked me to find the person responsible for killing his father.”
The pent-up emotions she’d been holding in since seeing Albert’s dead body came rushing forth. Sobbing, she fell against him. His arms wrapped around her and kept her from crumbling to the ground. Panic welled inside her, knowing she was innocent but not knowing how to convince the bounty hunter of this fact.
“Miss Mills,” Denton said as his palms slowly moved over her back, “you need to tell me what happened yesterday morning.”
“I... didn’t... kill him.” She didn’t want to move. With her face pressing into his muscular chest, and his comforting arms around her, for a moment, she felt protected. The feeling wouldn’t last, she was certain.
“But I need to know what really happened. If I’m to find the person who did this, I need to know everything that you saw and did when you arrived at the manor yesterday morning.”
She nodded, breathing a little easier. Perhaps she would be able to convince him of her innocence, after all. His calming voice gave her hope that he would hear her out... and believe her words.
* * * *
COURTNEY FOUND IT ODDthat Denton would want to take her to the Blue Creek Ranch. He’d mentioned that was where he’d stayed last night and that Clark Turner was his cousin. Knowing that Denton had lied about everything he’d told her made her not want to trust him. Yet, he was the only one who could help her – if she could convince him of her innocence.
Clark and Pearl Turner were nice people, but Courtney could tell that they looked at her with doubt in their eyes. She wanted to scream, cry, or just punch someone really hard to let out her frustrations. But she must be patient. That was the only thing she had going for her right now.
During the stressful trip to the ranch, it was hard not to gaze upon God’s creating hand with the landscape. Blue Creek Ranch was absolutely breathtaking. And calming. Autumn was changing colors on the leaves, and the coolness in the air was refreshing. Even when they reached the house where Clark and Pearl lived, Courtney found it charming and welcoming.
Pearl brought two cups and the steaming pot of coffee to the table where Courtney and Denton were sitting. Pearl poured coffee into their cups and then turned and left the room. Denton took a sip of his coffee before pulling out a small pad of paper and a pencil from his coat jacket.
Courtney wrapped her cold hands around the hot cup, but she wasn’t ready to drink anything yet. However, the heat from the cup wasn’t warming her as she’d hoped.
