Read Online Slocum and the Grizzly Flats Killers (9781101619216) by Jake Logan - Free Book Online Page A

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    The shock went up his legs and centered in his injured rib. He almost blacked out as pain hammered at his senses. He gasped, went to one knee, and clutched his side. Through the red haze threatening to make him pass out, he stumbled forward, got his arms around the woman, and used his falling weight to pull her down.
    They crashed to the ground in a heap. Slocum was too stunned to keep her from wiggling away and sitting up. They were both covered in mud and ice. The cold worked its way into his bones and helped some to deaden the pain in his side. But not enough.
    â€œYou’re injured. Did someone shoot you while you were up there?”
    â€œSniper,” he grated out, rolling onto his back. “I did all the shooting. He ran off, into the canyon.”
    â€œToward the gold!”
    â€œHe wouldn’t bother shooting at us,” Slocum said, consciously lying since the sniper had been sighting on Mirabelle alone, “if he already had the gold. He’d hightail it out to California, where nobody’d ask questions about why he had a crate full of gold coins.”
    â€œYou opened the wound in your side. I see blood oozing through your vest.” She pushed back his coat and gentle fingers probed.
    As carefully as she explored his wound, the light touch made him wince and almost cry out.
    â€œDo you want me to stop?”
    â€œYeah,” was all he could say. Slocum lay there, gathering his strength and fighting waves of white-hot agony piercing his chest.
    He finally conquered the pain enough to sit up.
    â€œI’m going after him,” he said.
    â€œBut you’re injured! You can’t hope to fight him.”
    â€œHe might be one of the gang left to spy on the camp, to see if anyone else would come back. There wasn’t enough equipment and supplies for more than one or two unaccounted-for men, so they wouldn’t expect to face very many. But now they know you’re still alive.”
    Even as he spoke, he wondered why the dry gulcher had tried to shoot Mirabelle if that were true. They had tortured before to find the location of the gold. Taking her captive would give them the chance to find the location now that the others were dead.
    Dead and buried. Slocum got to his feet, aware that he had fallen on top of the mass grave. Nobody under the ground cared, but it gave him an uneasy feeling walking on the grave site.
    â€œI’ll go with you, John. You’re in no condition to hunt down that man alone!”
    He considered all the things he could do—and what wasn’t possible.
    â€œYou ought to go back to town. Hitch up the horse and return tonight.”
    â€œNo.”
    Letting her drive in the dark was chancy. The road was in terrible shape, though dropping temperatures would cause the mud to freeze and likely prevent her from getting stuck in the light buggy. That seemed a better idea than having her tag along as he followed the sniper’s trail.
    He stood straighter and felt light-headed.
    â€œI’ll take the horse,” he said. “You’ll have to stay here. Will you be all right with that?”
    It wasn’t a good solution but avoided having to protect her if—when—he caught up with the ambusher.
    â€œThere are plenty of blankets from camp,” she said in a dull voice. “Can I make a fire?”
    He started to say no, then decided there wasn’t any reason for her to freeze if he was chasing down the spy. It would take someone as good as an Indian scout to get past him, even in the dark. Still, he wasn’t fully recovered and sudden movement sent knives of pain into him, dulling his senses.
    â€œGo on, light a fire,” he said. He moved closer and took Mirabelle in his arms.
    He wasn’t sure what he intended, but it ended up in a kiss that didn’t satisfy either of them. With that, he got his horse, took the reins in hand, and jumped on bareback. The horse protested a moment, then settled