Read Online Dorothy Garlock - [Wyoming Frontier] by Midnight Blue - Free Book Online Page A

would have something to do with common labor being a disgraceful waste of an education!
    Exhausted when she was finished, Mara viewed the room with satisfaction. It was clean and smelled of soap and damp wood. She arranged the few dishes in the cupboard and brought a cloth from her trunk to put on the table. The room was a poor imitation of what it once had been, but it was a start.
    While carrying out a pail of dirty water to throw in the yard, she saw a group of horsemen coming up the road toward the house. She paused on the porch, wiped her hair back from her face with the back of her hand, and watched Aubrey and Cullen hurry from the bunkhouse to meet the riders. They stopped in the road, but one man came on up to the house.
    “Howdy.” The man tipped his hat to Mara and she nodded.
    “Howdy, Marshal,” Cullen said. “Looks like you’ve been ridin’ for awhile. Bring your men on down to the bunkhouse, eat a bite ’n have a cup of coffee.”
    “This isn’t a social visit, McCall. We’re trailin’ four men. The tracks led right here.”
    “Four men came in early this morning ’n wanted to do some horse tradin’. Said they were part of a posse trailin’ a gang that killed a nester ’n his woman. They had badges—”
    “You gave them fresh horses?”
    “Why, ’course, Ace. They were part of your posse.”
    “You know goddamn well they were not part of my posse!” The marshal beckoned to his men. “Go on down to the corral and take a look at those horses. Who ya got here now, McCall?”
    “Same as always. Me and Pa, the twins, Steamboat ’n old Riley.”
    “And that’s all?” he asked. His disbelief was obvious.
    “That’s all.” Cullen looked the man in the eyes and lied.
    The marshal walked his horse toward the porch. “How do, ma’am?”
    Mara came down the steps.
    “I must apologize for my cousin’s rudeness in not introducing us. I’m Mara Shannon McCall.” She held out her hand when the man dismounted. He removed his hat before his calloused hand clasped hers. He was thin as a whiplash, had a strong, weathered face and sandy hair that contrasted with the dark mustache that swooped down on each side of his mouth.
    “Ace January, marshal out of Laramie.”
    “I’m pleased to know you. Perhaps you knew my father, Shannon McCall, who built this place?”
    “No, I’ve only been here for about five years. I came out after the war.”
    “I’ve been in Denver for the past seven years, but I’m home now to stay,” she said smiling, and pulled her hand from his.
    “That’s mighty good news, Miss McCall.”
    “I’m glad to know there’s a lawman in the area. You’re welcome anytime, Mr. January.” Mara glanced past the marshal and saw the look of agitation on Cullen’s face. Let the little weasel squirm, she thought, and smiled sweetly at Ace January. “I’d invite you in, but I’ve just finished mopping and my floor is wet. The next time you come this way, stop by and I’ll bake you a layer cake.”
    “I’ll not let you forget that, ma’am.” The lawman’s eyes crinkled at the corners when he smiled. They seemed reluctant to leave her face. She was the softest, most wholesome-looking woman he’d seen in a long time. How in the hell could she be related to two no-good bastards like Cullen and Aubrey McCall? No matter, he thought. Her presence would not deter him one bit if he got proof the man he was looking for was here. He’d swoop down on this place and burn it out regardless of the girl and that poor crippled wife of Aubrey’s just as he’d had to burn out other outlaw nests.
    Mara stood on the porch and watched the posse leave the homestead. She had the feeling the lawman didn’t like her cousins and that they didn’t like him. Well, no matter. He seemed to be a nice man doing his job. The next time he came this way, the house would be put to order and she wouldn’t be ashamed to invite a guest into her home.
    “Cousin Aubrey,” Mara called. “Will you