Three days later Baton Rogue, Louisiana Owen was leaving the bait shop to go fishing at sunrise when he saw Big Roy‘s two cronies, Mitch and Lance, walking toward him. Despite the six men who lingered inside, talking and laughing, and the old man crossing the street from the pier to the shop, he felt isolated. He recognized the twin rail-thin brothers from the saloon. By the looks on their faces, he knew that they meant business...and that business was him. Without waiting for them to catch up to him, he bolted down the street. ―Come back here!‖ As if I’m that stupid! Owen didn‘t bother glancing back as he raced passed an elderly couple and a small group of men. A dog jumped in front of him, barking, and he tumbled, his fishing supplies flying out of his hands. He quickly debated picking them up, but the sound of eagerly approaching footsteps behind him made up his mind. Scrambling to his feet, he turned the corner of a street and ducked into an alley. He fou
Owen entered the restaurant, aware of the looks he was getting. Oh well. He‘d just have to act like he didn‘t notice the snickers. He was lucky to even be alive. Taking a deep breath to steady his nerves, he found a seat in the corner of the spacious room and sat down. The boots that were much too big for him scraped across the hardwood floor. He had to pull up his pants so they didn‘t fall down. Rope. He needed rope. Or a belt. But then, a pair of pants that fit would do even better. He took a deep breath and allowed himself to relax. He made it to Omaha. That meant his problems were finally over. No one would be looking for him this far out west. ―What can I get you?‖ a woman wearing an apron asked, holding a pad and pencil in her hands. Right. Food. He quickly picked up the piece of paper in front of him and read the list of menu items. ―Do you have any fish?‖ She grinned. ―No. We don‘t. Hey, you sound funny. You aren‘t from here, are you?‖ ―No, ma‘a
He lowered the hat over his eyes and hastened down the boardwalk, hoping no one realized that the man in the Wanted poster was him. Yes, he had murdered Mitch, but it had been to defend himself. How did the sheriff in this town know about that anyway? Big Roy. He must have sent his cronies out to spread the word about me. It made sense. Since they couldn‘t get him, they figured they‘d frame him. Great. If the sheriff in this town knew Owen was a wanted man, then chances were good that no matter where he went, he‘d run into other sheriffs who knew the same thing. Except if he ended up in a small town. He quickly pulled out some of the change from his pocket. Did he have enough to get to the end of the world? That might be far enough. ―Now, hold it right there,‖ someone said from behind him. He gasped and raised his hands, dropping the coins which rolled on the boardwalk and settled several feet away from him. He‘d been found! This was it. He knew what ha
Jenny stared at the calendar on the wall in the parlor. It was September 29th and Irving hadn‘t arrived in town yet. She glanced at Jeremy who played jacks with Sally‘s son, six-year-old Greg. One-year-old Isaac sat in the corner of the room and chewed on a stuffed toy. Jenny looked over at her sister who didn‘t say anything, which was unusual for her. Then her gaze shifted to Mary, her sister-in-law, who was the mother of Isaac. She usually enjoyed her time together with her two closest friends. But she couldn‘t today. ―Irving did say he‘d be here before October 1st in that letter, didn‘t he?‖ Mary asked, as if she could read her mind. Jenny exhaled and rubbed her temples, willing her headache to ease. ―That‘s what he said.‖ ―He does have tomorrow to show up.‖ Mary‘s voice drifted off. The silence hung heavy in the room. What could any of them say? Irving probably wasn‘t coming. Jenny took a deep breath and clenched her hands together. ―Maybe I should marry
―A real kidder, huh?‖ the blond woman standing on Jenny‘s right said. ―Well, I‘m Jenny‘s sister, Sally. And this is our sister-in-law, Mary.‖ Owen couldn‘t take his eyes off of Jenny. He tried to...but he couldn‘t. ―I really appreciate this, Irving.‖ Jenny glanced down at her son and smiled. ―We both do.‖ Owen knew he should tell them all the truth. This was the time to do so. He took one last look at the train station and then turned his attention to Jenny. Was there really a contest? She was much more attractive. And Irving wasn‘t here. And everyone expected Jenny to get married today. And Jenny looked very happy about it. He looked down at the boy. ―How old are you?‖ ―Four,‖ Jeremy answered. ―You been taking good care of your ma?‖ he asked. The boy puffed up his chest and nodded. ―Yes, sir.‖ The group chuckled. Well, the boy seemed like a good kid. Owen returned his gaze to Jenny who appeared hopeful. Who was he to let them a
As soon as Jenny closed the door to the room in her boarding house, Owen frowned. ―Is this it?‖ She nodded. ―I know it‘s small, but it‘s all Jeremy and I needed. Well, until now.‖ His gaze drifted from the small boy to the two beds. One was his, obviously, and the other was hers, but this wasn‘t what he expected. He cleared his throat. ―Can I talk to you...‖ He glanced at the space that consisted of a dresser and a washstand. ―Over there,‖ he finally said, pointing at the window on the other side of the room, which was only a few paces away. At her prompting, Jeremy went over to a box in the corner of the room and pulled out a toy train set. ―What is it?‖ she asked, looking concerned. ―Um...‖ He tried to think of how to phrase this. Lowering his voice so the kid wouldn‘t overhear, he asked, ―Is someone going to watch him tonight?‖ ―No,‖ she whispered. ―He stays with me.‖ ―Yes but—‖ he glanced at Jeremy who was focusing on his toy—―what abo
Owen groaned and rolled over in the bed. Maybe he should sleep on the floor. Laying next to Jenny in the dark was driving him insane. The bed wasn‘t that big, and the fact that Jeremy was asleep in the small bed next to them wasn‘t that much of a deterrent. At least, it wasn‘t as much of a deterrent as it should have been. He closed his eyes and tried to focus on what he needed to do. Really, he had some serious problems coming up. If Irving had been a fisherman, there wouldn‘t be anything to worry about. But Irving wasn‘t a fisherman. He was a deputy. And apparently, a good one. In fact, from reading Irving‘s note, Owen could tell that the man took his job seriously. Owen tried to imagine doing the things that deputies did...whatever those things might be. Chasing the outlaws, naturally, was one of them. He never thought that he‘d be one of those outlaws. Seeing his face on a Wanted poster had been a chilling experience. Killing Mitch had been as well, but that wasn
―I sure do, Pa,‖ Jeremy said. She hoped her brothers would approve. Though she knew they couldn‘t do anything about her marriage, she longed for them to accept her husband. After she made the huge error in judgment with Clyde, it‘d be nice to know she could do something right...even if the sheriff had to arrange it for her. On their way to the church, Owen slipped his hand through hers. The contact felt natural, as if they had always known each other. It was a wonderful feeling, knowing she was safe with him. He wouldn‘t run off on her or Jeremy. Somehow she knew that this was the kind of man she could trust. When they reached the yard, Sally waved to the other family members. ―Oh good! Irving‘s right over there.‖ Owen must have noticed Jenny‘s anxiety, for he squeezed her hand. ―Everything‘s going to be just fine.‖ Then he let go of her and picked Jeremy up and told the boy, ―Now you make sure to tell them lots of good things about me, alright?‖ ―I sure