The Lawman's Surrender: The Calhoun Sisters, Book 2

Read The Lawman's Surrender: The Calhoun Sisters, Book 2 for Free Online

Book: Read The Lawman's Surrender: The Calhoun Sisters, Book 2 for Free Online
Authors: Debra Mullins
delayed?
    She had no choice; she had to escape tonight.
    Caldwell would return, she had no doubt about that. And he would bring more men with him next time. She had no intention of being there when he did.
    She looked down at the keys in her hand, the keys she had picked up off the floor during the struggle. The keys she had slipped into her bodice to hide from Jedidiah.
    These were the keys to her freedom. And later that night, as the town slept, she would use them.
     
     
    Jedidiah had planned to take Susannah on the stage to Colorado Springs, and from there catch the train to Denver. Now that Wayne Caldwell had entered the picture, he discarded that plan.
    Wayne had shown some smarts by backing off, but Jedidiah knew he’d be back. His kind always came back. The trick was to get Susannah out of town before Caldwell regrouped.
    Jedidiah yanked on the straps of his saddlebags, double checking that all his gear was secure and buckled tight. His Palomino stood patiently, used to such behavior. A second horse, a sturdy little paint he had picked up for a decent price from a miner passing through, waited nearby, saddled and ready to go. After Jedidiah finished, he led both horses out of the livery and into the night.
    Trains and stages ran on schedules. They were predictable and could be intercepted. But two people on horseback, picking their own winding trail to Denver, would be a lot harder to track.
    He’d already spoken to Benning about his plan to leave in the middle of the night and gotten his agreement. He only hoped Susannah didn’t give him any trouble. If she did, he’d be forced to bind and gag her, and darned if part of him wouldn’t enjoy the experience. The woman had a mouth on her that could bring a man the utmost pleasure or tear him to ribbons. Unfortunately, she seemed oblivious to the first and far too inclined to the second.
    He left the horses tied up behind the dry goods store and crept over to the jail, keeping to the shadows. He wouldn’t put it past Caldwell to have a man watching the jailhouse.
    It’s what he would have done.
    The creak of a door made him freeze in the shadow of the building. He drew his gun and watched as a figure slipped out of the sheriff’s office. The person was too small to be Deputy Horner or Sheriff Benning, and it certainly wasn’t Caldwell.
    The swish of a skirt reached his ears. Jedidiah muttered a curse and shoved his gun back in its holster. He reached into his pocket, then stepped out in front of the obviously feminine figure. Her perfume reached him before she did, the sweetness of jasmine sprinkled with a hint of spice.
    He grinned at her shocked gasp, and she dropped the carpetbag she carried. He took her wrist.
    “Evening, Miss Calhoun,” he said, slapping the handcuffs closed. “I see you’re ready to go.”

Chapter Four
    “What are you doing here?” Susannah hissed, her pulse pounding from the scare he’d given her when he’d stepped out of the darkness. “Get these things off me!”
    He smiled, his teeth a flash of white in the shadowed planes of his face. “I told you I was going to escort you to Denver. And here you are, all packed and ready to go.”
    “I’m not going anywhere with you. Now take these things off!”
    “You know I can’t do that.” He took her arm, then bent down and scooped her bag from the ground. “You wouldn’t want me to lose my job, would you?”
    “If you don’t let me go, I’ll lose my life !” She dug in her heels as he half-dragged her behind the dry goods store where the horses stood waiting. “Darn it, Jedidiah Brown, don’t you hear what I’m saying?”
    “I hear.” Keeping his grip on her arm, he hooked her bag over the saddle horn, then turned his complete attention on her. “Listen up, princess—I’m going to see justice done, no matter what. That’s my job. Do you understand me?”
    “I understand,” she replied, nonplussed. Jedidiah Brown always got his man—or woman—and his efficiency

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