Art, who had been listening for the sound of an approaching horse, was surprised when he heard Jasper's voice. It sounded as if the man was taunting poor Minnie. He sent a hand signal to Mitch, who, in turn, made a bird call down toward the wash where his uncle was hidden. Every muscle in Art’s body tensed, he had his weapon at the ready, and sweat beaded on his brow despite the nippy bite to the air.
Jasper's voice droned on. "Ho, finally! The end of this here canyon is in sight. What do you think? Will you be able to keep up after we get out of the close confines and back on solid ground?" Laughter rang out from the canyon, familiar yet unsettling. Art wondered how a man could change so much. Had his deputy been acting all these months? Pretending to be a man of the law? Or had something changed, turning him from protector to outlaw? And what did he mean by keep up?
Art's breath caught in his throat as he saw them come through the canyon opening. Minnie was on the side of the horse opposite from him, but he could see her hands were bound, and she was tied to the horse somehow with no leeway in the line. Any shot fired would spook the horse and mean certain death for her unless she could somehow swing up onto the horse's back. That would be a tricky move anytime, but for the petite Minnie in this situation, it would be nigh unto impossible.
Hoping Mitch was as good as he said he was, Art stood up, rifle trained on his former deputy. "Jasper, I'm asking you to hand her over."
Jasper's attention swung to Art, "Well, hey, Sheriff. I was hoping I'd see you."
****
Minnie gasped at the sound of Art's voice, accidentally inhaling more of the filthy gag into her mouth. She couldn't see him, but she knew he was in trouble. Jasper raised his pistol to fire, and she yanked frantically on the rope securing her to the pommel. Digging her heels into the sandy ground, she threw all her weight into pulling on the rope. If she could get the horse to move, even an inch, it might throw Jasper's shot off and give Art a chance.
Please God.
****
Art watched as Jasper pulled his gun. His intention was to draw the man's fire so Mitch would have a chance to cut Minnie loose and get her to safety. He kept his eyes trained on his former deputy, watching every move Jasper made. Much as he wanted to, Art couldn't let his gaze wander to Mitch for fear of tipping Jasper off to his true intent.
"Jasper, if you surrender now, I'm sure we can work something out."
"Come on now, Sheriff. You and I both know if you fire that gun, your lady friend here is buzzard food. Now put the gun down slow and careful."
The crack of the rifle was almost deafening enough to drown out the sound of its echo chasing down the canyon.
Art instinctively tensed when the shot rang out. A moment passed before he realized he hadn't been shot. His eyes sought Minnie and found her on the ground, scrambling away from the horse, while Jasper screamed and lost his seat. Art's boots chewed up and spit out the dirt as he raced toward the woman he loved. He got to Minnie and swung her up off the ground and into his arms as Mitch grabbed the horse's reins before it could bolt.
Wilcox came jogging up from his spot further down the way and slapped Mitch on the back, "Amazing shot."
The younger man was obviously pleased but didn't acknowledge the praise.
"Sweetheart, oh sweetheart, are you okay? Did he hurt you?"
Minnie's hands were still bound, her gag firmly in place. With shaking hands, Art untied the gag then pulled his knife from its sheath so he could cut the binds holding her hands. Once he had Minnie free of restraints, he cupped her face in his hands. His voice hoarse with emotion, he said, "You can't ever do that to me again, okay?"
Minnie blinked and nodded, her green eyes luminous.
Art asked, "Are you hurt anywhere?"
"My wrists where the ropes were, and my head a little, but that's all."
Art leaned in until his forehead touched hers. "I can't lose you, Minnie. I love you too much. I'd go out of my mind if anything ever happened to you."
Minnie reached up and placed her hands over his where they cradled her face. "I knew you'd come for me because my heart told me you would," she said. "I love you, too, Arty Paulson."
Her words washed over Art, a warm bath on a cold day. He claimed her lips with his own, gently at first, and then with growing insistence.
Minnie's stomach chose that moment to growl in protest of its empty state. She laughed, and the moment was broken.
Art ran his hands down her arms, reassuring himself she was actually there with him, whole and unharmed. "Are you sure he didn't hurt you?"
Jasper still lay on the ground, howling in pain. Minnie refused to even glance at the fallen deputy. "He didn't hurt me, but please gag him. I'm tired of listening to his whiny voice."
Mitch wasted no time silencing the prisoner.
"You said your head hurts." Art gently smoothed her ebony hair when what he really wanted to do was pull her close and never let go.
Minnie offered a delicate shrug. "He knocked me out."
Art's muscles tensed, and he took a step toward Jasper. He'd already known from Mrs. Smith that his former deputy had hit Minnie to silence her. Hearing it again, though, brought out every protective instinct in him.
Minnie put her hand on his arm. "Honest, Arty, that's all he did. It could have been a lot worse."
"Listen to her, boy," the senior Wilcox said. "Let the law deal with him if he doesn't die from that lead in his leg first."
Art glanced at the man and saw an intensity in his eyes that belied the cajoling tone of his voice. He gave a brisk nod before turning his back on Jasper, thankful Mitch knew how to make an effective gag.
Meanwhile, Detective Wilcox handed Minnie some beef jerky, nodding his greeting as he did so.
****
Minnie saw the detective from San Francisco, and her eyes widened in fright. "Wh-what are you doing here?" she asked. Had he finally come to arrest her and haul her away to prison? When he didn't answer straightaway, she examined the other man with Arty. She recognized him from the jail. "Aren't you supposed to be locked up?" she asked. Turning to Art, she demanded, "What's going on here?"
Then, without looking at the detective, she reached out and pulled the jerky from his hand. "I want some answers," she said, tapping her foot as she took a bite.
Art beamed at her. There was no other way to describe the look on his face. "I'm too happy to see you alive. You're not going to intimidate me."
Minnie glared at him.
He winked. "It's almost night. We might as well camp here and head back in the morning. If we ride hard all day tomorrow, we should make it by nightfall."
Wilcox said, "If I knew the terrain, I'd volunteer to go back now and put her parents' minds at ease. It won't do any good, though, if I get lost along the way."
"We stay together," Art said.
The senior detective began building a fire pit. "At least we'll have some heat while we sleep tonight," he said.
Minnie, still tapping her foot said, "I want to know what's going on. Is Mum okay? What happened in town?"
Art put a hand on her arm and said, "Let us get settled. Then I'll answer all your questions."
****
Art tried to be useful around camp, getting things situated and helping tend Jasper's bullet wound, but his efforts were hindered when he couldn't take his eyes off Minnie. It took her a while, but she at last sat down on a nearby rock. He smiled at the thought of how she'd stood there, arms crossed, tapping her toe, chomping on jerky, her impatience evident.
Minnie's pluck shone bright, even through her fatigue, hunger, and confusion. If she was able to be that irritated at him so close on the heels of being rescued, then she was going to be fine.
"Man, you've got it bad," Detective Wilcox said to him.
Art gaped up at the man and saw merriment twinkling in his eyes.
"You've been whistling for the last ten minutes. Out of tune, I might add."
Art, who hadn't even realized he'd been making any sound at all, said, "I'm going to marry that girl. Wouldn't you say that's something worth whistling about?"
A serious look coming into his eyes, Wilcox put a hand on Art's shoulder and said in low tones, "She went through a lot with her first husband, and she's been through even more here. Don't rush her. She might need time."
"I appreciate the advice." Then, nodding toward where Mitch sorted through their food supply, he said, "For earlier, too. If you hadn't said something, I wouldn't have put Mitch on that side, and we might have lost her."
"Enough said," the detective replied before walking over to help his nephew.