Outlaw's Bride Read Free

too.”
    Herman fired him a warning look, which Andy ignored. He wouldn’t let Herman treat him like a baby, too.
    Carrying his fishing rod, Andy followed the old man across a path through the sparse woods. A few minutes later, Andy heard a horse nicker and the path opened to a small clearing. Herman stopped abruptly and Andy nearly bumped into his back.
    â€œDamn,” the old man muttered.
    Andy stepped around him and stopped, shocked. A man lay on the ground with blood staining the green grass around his body. Andy put a hand to his mouth, hoping he wouldn’t lose his breakfast.
    â€œYou gonna be okay, boy?” Herman asked.
    Andy’s throat wouldn’t work, so he nodded. He forced himself to look again at the man dressed in black, but this time he lifted his gaze to the man’s face, rather than his blood-soaked shirt. The boy’s stomach flip-flopped as he recognized him. “That’s the gunman who stopped by the house yesterday.”
    Herman stepped closer and scratched his gray-bearded chin. “Yeah, I seen him in Billy’s last night havin’ a drink.”
    The stranger groaned and Herman quickly knelt beside him, placing a hand on his chest. “Looks like the Reaper ain’t got him yet.” He pulled a wad of cloth from his pocket and pressed it against the man’s side. “Andy—catch that horse and ride back for help or this feller’s gonna die.”
    Andy’s heart pounded in his chest as he tiptoed toward the horse, trying not to scare her. He finally got close enough to grasp the reins that hung to the ground. Leading the mare to a stump, Andy mounted the animal, then gave the horse’s sides a kick with his heels. The sorrel leapt forward, almost unseating him. The boy had to grip the saddle horn with one hand as he used the other to steer the horse.
    Ten minutes later, he drew the mare to a halt in front of his ma’s boardinghouse. She’d know what to do. He slipped to the ground and his legs almost collapsed beneath him. He had to wait a moment until his knees stopped wobbling.
    â€œMa!” Andy hollered as he ran up the porch steps and into the house. “Ma, where are you?”
    Mattie rushed into the foyer as she wiped bread dough from her hands. Seeing her son in one piece, she breathed silent thanks, then took hold of his shoulders. “What’s wrong, Andy? What happened?”
    â€œWe… f-found a man … hurt bad. He was shot,” Andy said in between gasps. “Need help.”
    Mattie removed her apron and tossed it over the banister. “You stay here while I go get Dr. Murphy.”
    Mattie raised her skirt hem as she dashed out to the hitching post. Though Green Valley was a small town, it was large enough to have both a fulltime doctor and a lawman.
    Mattie soon dismounted in front of Kevin Murphy’s office and flew in without knocking. The young doctor glanced up from his desk, his somber gray eyes magnified slightly behind round spectacles.
    â€œYou have to come quickly,” Mattie exclaimed. “Andy says there’s a wounded man outside of town who needs help.”
    Kevin rolled down his shirtsleeves and grabbed his jacket from the back of his chair. “What’s wrong with him?”
    â€œAndy said he was shot.”
    Kevin met Mattie’s gaze. “You’d better get Sheriff Atwater, too. If there’s been foul play, he’ll have to look into it.” He leaned over to snag his medical bag from the desk. “I’ll need your help. Meet me in the livery.”
    Fifteen minutes later, Mattie sat on the wagon’s hard seat beside Kevin as they rolled into her yard. Sheriff Atwater rode beside them on his horse, his forehead creased with more wrinkles than usual. Mattie couldn’t blame him for being worried. Gunplay was rare and murder even rarer in these parts. The last time anything this serious had occurred was over ten years ago, when