Page 96 of Texas Destiny
Austin came to his feet. “Where you goin’?”
“Back to the ranch.”
They rode hard through the night. Houston wasn’t at all certain what he would say to Amelia, what explanation he could give Dallas.
He’d held his silence, sacrificing his right to say anything. She had pledged herself to Dallas, had become his wife. Vows Houston thought he’d ignored thrummed through his head with the rhythm of the pounding hooves: to love, honor, and obey … until death parted them.
He only knew that he had to see her, had to talk to her, and had to understand why she hadn’t turned away from him, repulsed by his confession. Good Lord, if he didn’t know better, he’d swear she had looked as though she loved him more.
Would a night in Dallas’s arms sway her heart away from Houston? And if it didn’t, what difference would it make? She could already be carrying the son that Dallas wanted so desperately.
Black smoke billowed in the distance, darkening the brilliance of the dawn. The familiar panic and the accustomed fear settled into Houston’s gut. He urged his horse into a faster gallop, with Austin following him like a shadow.
“What is it?” Austin yelled behind him.
“Trouble!”
His horse tore up the ground with the intensity of the gallop. Houston leaned low, pressing Sorrel to ride with all her heart. Good judgment told him to slow as he neared Dallas’s home, but the eerie silence urged him on.
Someone had reduced the barn to smoldering embers and the corral to broken planks of wood. With black soot and sweat smeared over their faces and clothes, the men milled around in front of the house as though lost.
Houston jerked his horse to a halt. “What happened?”
Slim lifted a shoulder and a vacant gaze. “Don’t know. We were all in the bunkhouse drunk as skunks after celebrating the wedding. We heard a gunshot. Got outside, but it was too late to do any good. Barn was on fire, horses gone. The boss is still out cold. Cookie’s with him. Jackson took off at a run to find some help, but on foot, it’ll take him a week to reach another ranch. The rest of us ain’t no good without a horse beneath us.”
“Amelia? What about Amelia?”
Slim dropped his gaze. Houston dismounted and grabbed the man by the shirtfront, pulling him up to eye level. “Where’s Amelia?”
Slim shifted his gaze to the other men. They stepped back. Houston shook him. “Goddamn it! Is she hurt?”
Slim swallowed. “We don’t know where she is.”
Roughly, Houston released his hold on Slim, his heart pounding so hard, he was certain every man in the state could hear it. “She has to be here. Find her! Now!”
“She’s not here,” a seething voice echoed from the doorway.
Dallas stumbled down the steps and leaned against the beam for support, breathing heavily, blood trailing near his temple.
Houston placed a steadying hand on his brother’s shoulder. “You’ve been shot.”
“It’s just a crease. That’s the least of my worries right now. God damn horse thieves took Amelia.” Dallas pushed away from the porch. “I’m going to get her back. Nobody takes what belongs to me, by God. Nobody. Austin, I’m taking your horse.”
Austin scrambled off his horse so quickly that he lost his footing and his backside hit the dirt. In an unsteady gait, Dallas headed toward the gelding. Houston knew it was determination alone that got his brother up into the saddle.
“I’m coming with you,” Houston said as he mounted Sorrel.
“Suit yourself. Austin, you’re in charge here till we get back.”
Austin’s eyes widened. “Me?”
“You got a problem with that?” Dallas asked.
Austin shook his head vigorously. “No, sir.”
“Good. Any orders you give are coming from me, so don’t give any orders I wouldn’t give.”
“Yes, sir. We’ll get the corral rebuilt. Reckon you’ll be bringin’ the horses back.”
