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words.
    “Remember to stay close to me,” Charlie murmured into her hair.
    The next few moments were a blur of terror and motion. While the other men were distracted, Charlie pushed Opal off the horse and followed her down, covering her body with his when they hit the ground.
    “Hey!” One of the men cried out and then a gun boomed, but Charlie had already rolled them away. His horse whinnied and galloped off, disappearing into the darkness.
    “Stay low to the ground,” Charlie ordered softly, pushing Opal forward behind an outcropping of rocks.
    “I’ve got a derringer in my pocket,” she whispered fiercely as she scrabbled over the rough, rocky incline, scraping her hands in the process. “It only has one shot.”
    “And I’ve a knife in my boot,” Charlie responded, hand at her waist. “Neither does us much good except at short distances. What we need is a good hiding spot. Maybe we can find the mine shaft…”
    A shot rang out and rocks chipped a few feet away, spraying Opal with fine gravel. She cried out, unable to stifle the noise, and Charlie’s arms came around her, pulling her into his chest.
    “Are you hit?”
    “No, no—” she gasped, “It just frightened me.”
    Light from one of the lanterns spilled in their direction. Could the bandits see them? Charlie swept her fully into his arms. “It should be here—”
    And suddenly, they plunged past a leafy, fringed obstruction into a deeper, more consuming darkness.

     
    Opal’s grip on his shoulders had tightened to the point of pain, but Charlie wasn’t going to complain. He had one shot at getting them out of this, and he intended to make it work. He couldn’t fail. Not now.
    “The mine shaft was partially covered by that overgrown tree. You’d better pray they weren’t close enough to see where we ducked inside. If they think we’ve disappeared into the night, they might chase after and then we can head in the opposite direction. Maybe run into one of the other cowhands.”
    Realizing he still held her close to his heart—an apt metaphor—he slowly released her, steadying her with hands at her waist. It was impossible to tell without a light, but he thought they were far enough back in the cramped mine shaft that they wouldn’t be seen from outside, even if one of the bandits got close.
    “So we just… stay here in the dark?” She sounded small and scared.
    He wished he could see her face. He settled for cupping her arms with both hands, rubbing his thumbs gently in little circles. “Let’s stay put for a bit, at least, and see what they do.”
    Voices grew louder outside the mine shaft and Charlie squeezed Opal. “Quiet now.”
    Yellow light flashed and Charlie held his breath. If they spotted the mine’s entrance and came in, he and Opal were as good as fish in a barrel. Easy targets. But the light dimmed and the voices faded, and he breathed out a sigh of relief.
    “Now what?” Opal breathed the words, the warmth from her breath burning his collarbone through his shirt.
    “You all right to stay here for a minute? I’m going to take a peek and see which direction they’re headed.”
    Her muted agreement was only slightly reassuring but Charlie edged toward the opening anyway. He stilled when he caught sight of the men, not far off. They were setting up camp. And too close for him and Opal to sneak off into the night. If they moved out of the mine shaft, they would be seen in the light from the lanterns.
    Charlie backed into the cave, returning to where he’d left Opal. He could sense her, even though he couldn’t see her in the pitch-darkness of the cave.
    “They’re sitting just outside,” he said softly. “Making camp.”
    Her fingers curled into the front of his shirt and he realized she was shaking. His arms went around her shoulders almost of their own accord and he pulled her tight to his chest.
    “Are you all right?” he asked past the lump of sudden fear rising in his throat. “Sure you’re not