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days ago, there was a prison
break at McAlester and two men escaped. Local cops caught the first one right
away but the other headed for the hills. I’m known as a pretty fair tracker so
they sent me. I picked up his trail early on and I’d been following him for two
days before I found him. Unfortunately, he wasn’t alone. A bunch of his kinfolk
had set up camp off the beaten path and planned on getting him out of the
country, probably to Mexico. So I walked into an ambush.”
    “It’s
a wonder they didn’t kill you then,” Tina said. “I’m glad they didn’t.”
    Joshua
glanced at her as a funny half-smile played over his lips. “Yeah, me, too,” he said.
“Anyhow, under normal circumstances, I would’ve taken him into custody but
there were six against me. One of them knocked me out long enough to take my
weapons, my badge, and my wallet. They were in the process of tying me up,
laughing and joking about how to kill me, when I broke loose. I ran because it
was the only chance I had. Since they were all armed, they pursued me and started
shooting. Their damn hounds were on my trail, too, barking and baying like
crazy. The armed idiots caught up with me, well within range, so I bailed off
the bridge.”
    Even
though she’d witnessed the latter part of his getaway, Tina shuddered. If their
aim had been true or the men in pursuit drew closer, she could have watched his
dead body hit the river. “You took a chance,” she told him.
    “Yeah,
I know. I’m a risk taker or I wouldn’t be a marshal.” His smile faltered as he
added, “I’m not in shape, though, to go against anyone at the moment. I don’t even have a weapon.”
    Tina
gave a dry, brief laugh. “I can help with that, Joshua. Gramps owned quite a
few guns, both pistols and rifles. We’ve got access to his personal arsenal if
necessary, and he taught me to shoot alongside the boys.”
    “I
hope I don’t need you for backup.”
    She
bristled. “I can handle it. I’m one helluva shot.”
    “Hey.”
Joshua released her hand and cupped her chin in his. “I don’t doubt it. But, I
don’t want you in the line of fire. I’d rather you not be hurt, Tina. I’m not
nearly as good a nurse as you are.”
    The
compliment mollified her. “So what happens now? Do you think they’d come here
looking for you?”
    He
shrugged both shoulders. “It’s possible. I imagine they spent the rest of yesterday
combing the river for me. Best case scenario—they think the shot, the fall, or
the river did me in, but since they won’t find a body, they won’t be sure. Worst
case, they realize someone helped me. If so, they’ll hunt until they find me. No
one else knows about their hidden camp but me.”
    And
she’d thought the Emergency Room back in Dallas provided excitement, until now.
    “Won’t
they move if they think you might lead the authorities to the location?”
    “I
doubt it. Its way back in the hills, almost impossible to find unless someone
knows where to look. It’s too good a spot to abandon unless they must. I’m
pretty sure they know I took a bullet and I doubt they think I could survive
the fall. They’ll be wary but I don’t expect they’ll move yet. And when they
do, they’ll head south toward the border.”
    So
much information clogged her mind and froze her senses. Tina spent a few
moments trying to process it and sort everything out. Visions of armed men
storming the A-frame cabin filled her imagination but instead of increasing her
fear, the idea brought anger. So far, one of their group had broken out of the state penitentiary and the others did their damndest to kill Joshua. Although she didn’t know him well,
Tina pegged him as a good man. They’d hurt him in the process and if they
learned she sheltered him, they’d want to kill her too. “You can’t let that
happen,” she cried.
    His
fingers released her chin and he trailed his hand across her hair. Joshua
caressed her cheek, slight and soft. “You’re a