Page 56 of Cheyenne

The priest smirked. “I’m also the priest who discovered you’d been messing around down there and it was gone. I couldn’t figure out where it was, even when I knew you were trying to put it back. You can imagine the pains I’ve gone through to figure out where it was.”

He strode up to Micah and held out his hand. Micah didn’t want to give it to him, but his blood ran cold when the barrel of the gun rose to Cheyenne’s head.

“Don’t give it up, Micah,” she warned him.

There was no way Micah would let Cheyenne die. He handed the amulet to the priest.

Eli lunged at them. “Give the amulet to me!”

BANG!

Micah tackled Cheyenne to the ground, covering her with his body. He looked toward the church; the gunshot must have come from there.

Most of the others were on the ground, shouting. Some of Eli’s guys were running toward the church.

The Stone and Cross men swept into the cemetery, shouting out orders.

“Put your guns down and keep your faces pressed to the dirt, gentlemen,” Brooks ordered.

“Get down,” Raine shouted. Micah turned and saw him pinning down the priest. “Give me that amulet!”

Micah held Cheyenne close as fear surged through him. She could have died.

CHAPTER 31

Cheyenne

Once the danger was over, the Stone Family Inn became their base of operations. All the Stones and Crosses were packed into one room. Raine ceremoniously brought the amulet down to the map that Truman had sent him. Everyone surrounded him, waiting eagerly.

Micah’s hand was tight around Cheyenne’s, and he gave her a look that she couldn’t read. Porter stood at her other side, and though she couldn’t see his face, she could tell he was ticked off at her. In fact, all her brothers were ticked off.

On the way from the cemetery to the house, Micah had told Cheyenne that he’d been scared she would get shot. She’d been scared that he would get shot, too. She felt horrible about all of it.

Raine squinted and tried to see something. After a couple seconds, he pulled back. “No. Nothing.”

Brooks stepped forward. “May I try?”

Raine gave him the amulet. Brooks tried and failed to see anything, and each of the others proceeded to do the same.

Cheyenne didn’t feel like she should try, but after Porter was done, he held it out to her. “You might as well.”

She looked through the amulet. She’d figured she wouldn’t see anything, but she was still disappointed.

Micah cleared his throat. “I need to talk to everyone.” When their attention was on him, he continued, “First, it’s my fault. All of it.”

“No,” Cheyenne protested, “it’s?—”

Micah frowned at her. “Please, let me.”

Cheyenne relented, but she was boiling mad as he confessed to everything they’d done. He made it seem like he could have prevented it.

After he was through, she yanked her hand away from him and said to the group, “I’m the one who wanted to go look for gold. I’m the one you all should be mad at. Micah tried to protect me. Don’t blame him.”

Porter let out a low growl. “Oh, believe me, Cheyenne, you’re not off the hook.”

The others agreed with him.

Trey stepped forward. “While we appreciate the fact that you will hold Cheyenne accountable, we want you to know that Micah will be held accountable, too.”

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