Read Online The Tracker by Mary Burton - Free Book Online

on the table and lifted Rose to her shoulder. She patted her on the back until she burped.
    Nick’s heart tightened. Clearly, Ellie loved the child, and Frank would use that love to get his gold. The outlaw would kill the child if need be. Nick knew he’d never let that happen.
    “There’s water in the basin in your room,” Ellie said, moving toward the stove. “And I’ve stew on the stove. Once you’ve dressed, I’ll make a plate for you. And be mindful of that wound or you’ll rip every stitch.”
    Clearing his throat, he retreated to his room. The sooner he dressed and ate, the better help he’d be to Ellie. They’d all been damn lucky so far that Frank hadn’t shown up.
    But he knew their luck would run out sooner rather than later.
     
    A S THE MARSHAL dressed, Ellie’s nerves danced on the edge as she ladled the stew onto a tin plate. Unconscious, his presence filled the cabin. Awake, it dominated.
    The worries that had festered since his arrival grew threefold. She didn’t want any part of a hunt for Frank. She wanted to live a normal life with Rose.
    She’d stayed these last six days because Nick had needed her. But soon he’d be able to care for himself. And her chances of escaping him narrowed each day. If she and Rose were going to run, it would have to be very soon.
    Ellie sighed as she laid the baby in her cradle. She didn’t want to run. She liked working at the coach stop with Annie. This house had been more of ahome in two short months than the Silver Slipper had been in twenty years.
    But she couldn’t afford sentimentality now. If the marshal could find her, so would Frank.
    She had to run. But to where?
    Her limited options frustrated her. She couldn’t return to Butte and the town of Thunder Canyon was too close. If only she did have Jade’s gold. She and Rose would go far away to a big city like Denver or Chicago and buy a place just big enough for the two of them.
    But she didn’t have Jade’s gold. She’d have to find work.
    With a plate of hot stew in hand, Ellie turned toward the table. She started, nearly dropping her plate, when she saw the marshal standing there. He wore black from head to toe and he’d combed back his hair and washed his face. He looked good.
    Hot stew sloshed onto her skin and burned her hand. Quickly she set the plate on the table and reached for a rag.
    “You all right?” he said.
    “My word, you move as quiet as a cat.”
    “Old habit.” He stared down at her. “Forgive me.”
    The regret in his eyes looked genuine and her anger softened. She suspected this man rarely apologized for his actions.
    “Have a seat,” she said, nodding to a chair.
    Standing close to him, she felt the energy radiating from him. Tarnation, but breathing seemed harder when he stood close.
    “Thank you,” Nick said.
    She was hungry but would wait until he’d finished. Miss Adeline had trained her to feed the customers first and then herself.
    The marshal stood by his chair. “I won’t eat until you sit.”
    Ellie glanced at him. She suspected his leg pained him. “What?”
    “I do not eat while a lady stands.”
    Ellie’s gaze followed his outstretched hand to the empty chair. The idea of sitting across from him made her skin prickle. “I’ve got plenty of chores to do. You go on and eat. I’ll get something later.”
    “Make yourself a plate. Sit,” he said. He stood military-straight.
    Her nerves jumped. “It’s a rule I have. I don’t eat with the customers.”
    He shrugged. “Then make a new rule.”
    The determined set to his jaw suggested he was just stubborn enough to stand there all day. And frankly, she was hungry. Her stomach rumbled. Giving up, she fixed a plate and sat across from him. Only when she sat did he sit.
    He took a bite of stew. “This is good,” he said. He took another bite and another. He was half starved.
    “Thanks.”
    “No, this is very good.” He took another bite.
    “Eat up.”
    For several minutes they ate in