The Tracker Read Free Page B

several of the girls moved away from him as if he smelled bad.
    “Where’s Monty?” Frank shouted. “His brother wants him!”
    Ellie tightened her hold on the baby. The girls had whispered that Frank, Monty and Jade had robbed the railroad. She’d been too busy with the birthing to listen, but now she wished she knew more.
    Miss Adeline scurried out of her backroom office, a tumbler of whiskey in her hand. Shock registered on her face when she saw Frank Palmer before she plastered on her trademark smile. “Frank!”
    “Where’s Monty?” he demanded.
    “Upstairs with Kelly.”
    “Monty!” he shouted.
    Frank’s arrival couldn’t be good. Ellie moved to the door leading to the back staircase and opened it. Lingering on the top step, she stood ready to dash downstairs if need be.
    Monty stumbled out of a room, fastening his pants. His face was a mirror copy of his brother’s. The only difference was that he stood several inches taller. Behind him, Kelly, dressed only in a chemise,strolled out. She took one look at Frank, backed into the room and slammed the door.
    “Frank?” Monty said, panic in his voice. “How’d you find me?”
    Frank drew his gun and started toward the stairs. “I want my gold back.”
    Monty glanced around, as if looking for a place to hide. He shoved a trembling hand through his thick black hair. “I don’t have your gold, Frank. Jade’s the one that hid it. She got mad a few weeks ago when she caught me with a whore. While I was sleeping off a drunk, she stashed it somewhere. Don’t worry, once she cooled off, I was gonna talk to her. You know how I can sweet-talk her.”
    “I’m tired of your talk, Monty. When you picked Jade over me, you saw to it that things would never be the same between us.” Without warning, he shot Monty in the heart. The man dropped to the floor dead.
    Ellie jumped.
    The girls screamed.
    Miss Adeline swayed, pressing her hand into her stomach.
    Casually, Frank replaced his gun in its holster. “Now, which room is Jade’s?”
    Miss Adeline struggled to keep her expression calm. “Last door on the right.”
    “Time ol’ Mrs. Palmer and Frank had a chat about my gold.”
    Ellie pressed her back against the stairwell wall, her heart thundering in her chest. Frank would soon find out that Jade was dead. And then he’d start to ask questions. He’d want to know who was with her when she’d died. Miss Adeline wouldn’t hesitate to tell him Ellie was the one he wanted.
    In that split second, Ellie decided to run.
    She started down the back staircase, no longer questioning the fact that she and the baby had to leave the Silver Slipper and Butte for good. They’d have to disappear if they wanted to live.
    Nerves nearly made her trip when she reached the last step. She caught herself on the railing with one hand, clutching the baby with the other. Quickly, she laid the baby in a large, shallow basket she used for shopping and bolted out the back door.
    The night air was warm. A sliver of moon dangled in the black evening sky. Clouds drifted from the west. The scent of rain was heavy.
    Ellie thought of the horses Miss Adeline kept at the livery. She could take one and be gone before anyone thought to look for her outside of the brothel.
    She started to run. She’d taken just five steps when she ran into a wall of hard muscle. She’d have fallen backward if strong arms hadn’t captured herforearms and steadied her. It felt as if cold steel banded her arms. Naked fear nearly stopped her heart.
    “Who fired those shots inside?” The cold, menacing voice had her lifting her gaze.
    Dark eyes stared down at her from under a low-crowned black hat. The man’s rawboned face was all hard planes and angles. Several days’ growth of beard covered his square jaw. His nose looked as if it had been broken before.
    She pulled back, a small choking sound in her throat. She couldn’t find it in her to speak.
    The stranger tightened his long fingers on her arms. He