Lost Trail by Paul Lederer

Author:Paul Lederer
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781480488205
Publisher: Open Road Media

SIX

‘Praise the Lord,’ Tanner, who was not an especially religious man, breathed as they reached the town limits of Ruidoso late that afternoon. Becky Canasta, dirt on her face, her expression glum, hair straggling free of her straw hat, bore little resemblance to the goddess he had once seen in the moonlight. She had a small travelling bag tied to her saddlehorn. Just now she was wearing blue jeans, and a red plaid shirt.

She looked far more exhausted than Tanner felt. But after all she was returning from a life of peril and entering an uncertain new life.

As for Tanner – now it was done. He had the money stolen from Ben Canasta, minus that spent by the Morgan Pride gang along the way, and he had Becky. He was looking forward to returning to the C-bar-C, having done his job well. For now he meant to take a much-needed rest. Knowing the way, Tanner rode directly to the hotel, still feeling the warm glow of success.

‘I need a bath, a bed,’ Becky said in a dry, throttled voice.

‘Any minute now,’ Tanner said as he swung down from his horse, shouldered the saddle-bags which contained Morgan Pride’s share of the stolen money. Becky had hesitated when Tanner had demanded the money, but finally she had showed him a disused pantry where Pride had concealed the loot.

Now as they entered the hotel, the weight of the saddle-bags on his shoulder was reassuring rather than being a burden. They passed the desk of the hotel, and Becky inquired with her eyes. ‘I’ve already got a room here,’ Tanner explained. ‘We’ll get you another after I’ve had the time to sit down with Chad Garret and talk things through.’

Becky’s eyes were dubious but not necessarily worried. After all she had spent the past week in the company of a gunman. Walking into Tanner’s room, despite the fact that it was something a lady just did not do, held little threat for her.

Tanner stopped in front of the hotel room door, rapped twice, frowned as he got no answer, then figured that Chad was already up and gone, probably to some restaurant to alleviate his constant hunger.

‘Just a minute,’ Tanner said, and he stepped into the room. It was empty; Chad had gone out somewhere. Gesturing Becky in, he dropped his saddle-bags on the unused bed and heard Becky drop her travelling bag on the floor behind him. The room was musty and Tanner opened the window a few inches.

Turning, he looked the room over, because another thought had occurred to him – perhaps Chad had not gone out voluntarily. There were still men on their back trail. Perhaps Charlie Cox hadn’t given it up yet, even Ted Everly, if he had not grown weary and disgusted with the long trail, could have found them by now.

‘Does that mean anything?’ Becky asked as she stood, unbuttoning the collar button of her flannel shirt. Tanner looked in the direction of Chad Garret’s rumpled bed where a note lay on the pillow.

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