Page 97 of Texas Destiny
“Damn right I will. Along with my wife.”
Dallas had a reputation for protecting what was his. In his wildest dreams, Houston never would have thought anyone would be fool enough to try and take what belonged to Dallas Leigh, but as he was discovering, the men who had taken Amelia were fools. They left a trail that a blind man could have followed.
“They’re not too cautious,” Houston observed.
“Since they took all the horses, I don’t imagine they expected anyone to come after them for a day or so. That mistake will cost them dearly.”
They caught up with the horse thieves near dusk. They were ensconced in a canyon, smoke spiraling from their campfire. Houston and Dallas climbed the bluff and crawled on their bellies to its edge.
“I count six,” Dallas said. “We could pick them off from up here.”
Houston took Dallas’s word for the number. His gaze was trained on Amelia. From this distance it was difficult to measure, but he didn’t think she looked hurt.
“They might take it into their heads to use Amelia as a shield,” Houston said.
“True enough, but it looks like there’s only one way in. We’d make easy targets if we went that route,” Dallas said.
“And we’d put Amelia at risk if we go in there with our guns firing. She’s sure to get hurt.”
“Then what would you suggest?”
“I go in alone.”
Dallas jerked his head around.
“If I can get close to her,” Houston continued, “I could at least protect her while you fire from up here. If I can get my horse close enough to her, maybe I can get her up on it, and we can ride out.”
Dallas clenched his jaw. “She’s my wife.”
“But they know what you look like. Besides, you’re a better shot than I am and my horse is faster. Figure I can go in there claiming to be an outlaw looking for a place to hide.” He lifted a corner of his mouth. “My face ought to convince them I’m telling the truth.”
Dallas flinched and gazed back into the canyon. “I don’t want the two of you trapped in there. I won’t start shooting until you can get your horse close to her. Use the diversion to get her on the horse and get her out of there. I’ll take care of the thieves.”
“See that you do.”
“It’ll be night soon. We need to work fast. If anything goes wrong …” Dallas’s voice trailed off.
Houston grabbed Dallas’s coat and jerked him around. “Just make sure Amelia comes first. No matter what happens, she gets out of there alive.”
Amelia had never been so terrified in her entire life. She hugged the rocky canyon wall wishing she could melt into it and disappear. If she survived, she didn’t think she would cherish her green wedding dress or its memories.
The ropes chafed her wrists, her jaw still ached. When she didn’t think anyone was looking, she’d tried to gnaw the knots loose. Her attempt had earned her a flat-handed slap and tighter knots.
She saw a man, his arms raised, walking into the canyon leading a horse. Two men sauntered behind him, rifles trained on him giving them the advantage and a false arrogance. She recognized the weathered hat, the dusty black coat, and the horse. Houston didn’t look at her or call out to her with reassurances. Perhaps he had no reassurances to give. Or perhaps he was simply biding his time. He seemed remarkably calm for a man who had just walked into a nest of vipers. She kept her gaze locked on him, watching for any small signal that would indicate he had a plan to rescue her.
“What have we got here?” the man she knew to be leader said as he came to his feet, his hand resting easily on the butt of his gun.
Houston walked farther into the camp, hoping to give Dallas sight of the two men behind him. He didn’t know how to signal to him that another man was guarding the entrance.
“He was just ridin’ in, pretty as you please, whistlin’ some song like he owned the place,” one of the men who had been tailing him said as they both stopped walking sooner than Houston would have liked. He didn’t know if Dallas could see them from his vantage point at the top of the bluff.
“I do own the place,” Houston said, trying to imitate the authority Dallas always carried in his voice. “Or at least I do when I’m lookin’ for a place to hide out for a couple of days.” He squatted, lowered his arms, and warmed his hands before the fire, praying no one could see how badly they were shaking. “I don’t mind sharin’ the place, though.”
The man he assumed was the leader narrowed his eyes. “You hidin’ from the law?”
“I’m hiding from anyone who’s looking for me.”
The man scratched his scraggly beard and chuckled. “Know that feeling. You got a name?”
