North of the Line by Paul Bedford

Author:Paul Bedford [Bedford, Paul]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Robert Hale
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Seven

As a long-serving federal officer, Jesse Bronson had come upon many a scene of death and misery in his time, and if this one wasn’t the most unpleasant, then it sure would do until something worse came along.

Sprawled in front of the sod cabin, apparently drenched in her own blood, lay a woman in a long cotton dress. A cursory glance was sufficient to determine that her once handsome features were now waxy and totally devoid of life. Of the three children visible, the two youngest were weeping over her still form. The eldest, a boy, was huddled next to his father who appeared to be recovering from a blow to the head. Close by, a moaning figure apparently liberally peppered with shot lay abandoned by his cronies.

‘Looks like you actually managed to hit something with that scattergun of yours,’ the marshal commented dryly as he urged his latest captured animal over towards the shattered family.

The Mountie grunted unhappily. He took no pleasure in shooting people, and his career north of the border had generally involved far less bloodshed than of late. Tellingly, the amount of violence that he encountered always seemed to increase when he was in Bronson’s company. The body count on their previous foray together had been truly staggering. ‘If your felons stayed in their own country, I wouldn’t even need the poxy thing,’ he retorted.

As the lawman from Montana reined in by the groggy farmer from Scotland and then dismounted slowly, Angus Fraser peered anxiously up at him. Uncovering his marshal’s shield, Bronson gruffly demanded, ‘What happened here, boy? Speak up. I’m a lawman. You’ve nothing to fear from us.’

Haltingly, tearfully, the youngster related the terrible happenings. The shocked expression on his previously innocent face served to add depressing power to the grim tale.

‘And they rode off with the strongbox still unopened?’ the peace officer prompted.

Although obviously bewildered by such a question, Angus nodded his agreement.

‘Then we need to keep pushing them,’ Bronson remarked to his companion. ‘That box will both slow them down and keep them together.’

‘And I’ll be coming with you,’ John Fraser suddenly announced in his still distinctive Scottish accent. It would take more than five years of absence from the old country to erase that.

Bairstow recoiled in surprise. ‘I’m sorry, mister, but that’s just not possible. This red jacket tells you that I’m a sergeant in the Mounted Police. It’s my job to apprehend those men, and I just can’t allow a civilian to be endangered.’

With his son’s help, Fraser had finally got back on his feet. His head was throbbing like an anvil strike, but next to the enormity of his loss that was nothing. ‘Endangered is it?’ he roared with uncharacteristic anger. ‘And what do you call the murder of my wife?’

Momentarily lost for words, the Mountie could only stand there and accept the justified tirade.

‘You weren’t here to save Laura from those butchers,’ the farmer continued, tears now flowing freely down his cheeks. ‘But I’ll be there when

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.