Texas Pride: Night Riders by Greenwood Leigh

Author:Greenwood, Leigh [Greenwood, Leigh]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Sourcebooks, Inc.
Published: 2012-03-06T08:00:00+00:00

Chapter 13

Ivan had expected there would be trouble before the night was over, but he hadn’t expected it to embroil him or Carla, and he hadn’t expected it to involve weapons. Everyone had been told to leave their guns at home or in their wagons or saddlebags. Apparently no one had thought to mention knives. Hoping to attract no attention, Ivan spoke quietly to Bricker.

“Put away your knife.”

“I’ll put it up when you get out of my way,” Bricker snarled.

“You and Riley were sent here to protect the people of Overlin, not harm them.”

Apparently Bricker didn’t believe in talking through situations. Without warning, he threw himself at Ivan.

Ivan wasn’t expecting an unprovoked attack, and he didn’t move fast enough to keep Bricker’s knife from making an ugly gash in his forearm. The pain was searing, but its most profound effect was on Ivan’s outraged code of behavior. No man with even a modicum of self-respect would behave like this in public. When one did, it was up to others to show him the error of his ways.

With a roar that was almost primeval, Ivan attacked Bricker with such ferocity it managed to penetrate the drunken rage that filled the man’s brain. He attempted to back away, but Ivan’s iron grip had closed around Bricker’s wrist. With a sharp snap, he broke it. The startled man screamed and dropped the knife. That didn’t stop Ivan from lifting him off the ground by his belt and shirt collar and tossing him halfway across the dance floor.

The whole episode took only a few seconds, but everyone around them fell silent, some of the dancers freezing in position as though turned into wax effigies. One woman uttered a small shriek when Bricker’s body passed within inches of her head. He hit the ground hard and lay still. In the background, the band continued to play a lively rendition of “Sourwood Mountain.”

Into this void stepped Myrtle Jenkins. “That man belongs in jail.” She pointed to two husky young men. “Carry him there immediately.”

So dreaded was Myrtle’s disfavor that the young men would probably have picked Bicker up and obediently hauled him off to jail if Riley hadn’t emerged from the crowd. “What happened?” he wanted to know.

Without giving anyone else a chance to speak, Myrtle strode up to Riley. “Carla said she was too tired to dance, but the drunken fool tried to force her. When Ivan stepped between them, he attacked Ivan with a knife. Unfortunately Ivan broke his wrist rather than his neck.”

“I’m sorry,” Riley apologized to Carla. “Bricker is a good man, but he has trouble holding his temper.”

“He can’t hold his liquor, either,” Myrtle added. “Now take him away. You don’t want to ruin these good people’s celebration.”

Offering apologies all around, Riley and two of his men got Bricker to his feet.

“Take off your coat. I need to see your arm.”

It took Ivan a moment before he could calm the rage still boiling through his veins to understand that Carla was speaking to him.

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