The Bones of Paradise by Jonis Agee

Author:Jonis Agee
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2016-06-11T04:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

The lawyer tipped his hat with a smile. “See you found Pearl Stryker. Family’s probably looking for her.” Dulcinea appeared puzzled and the gray stallion chomped the bit. The girl in Graver’s arms stiffened and banged the bottle against his chest so hard he almost dropped her.

“Seems she’s done being rescued,” Chance said as he stepped from his saddle and handed the string of horses he led to Larabee.

“Put me down,” Pearl slurred and pushed against Graver’s chest. When he let her legs drop, she gave him a shove and almost fell. Her head came up and she squinted her eyes. “Where am I?” She turned to Graver, raised the bottle as if to crown him over the head with it. “What did you do?” she screamed. Larabee stepped up, took the bottle from her hand, and awkwardly patted her back. She snatched the bottle again, cradled it against her stomach, stepped off the boardwalk, and fell flat on her face in the muddy street in front of the horses.

“You men certainly have a way with women,” Dulcinea said. “You just going to leave her there?” Rose smiled and covered it with her hand.

The lawyer looped his reins over the hitching rail and stepped carefully through the mud to the girl. “I’ll take her home. I know Stuart and Mary must be worried sick about her.” He eased the girl onto her side and tried to sit her up, but she was floppy as a set of old clothes, so he bent down and lifted her over his shoulder and stood, ignoring the mud smearing his shirt and pants. Dulcinea beamed with approval and patted her horse on the neck.

Rose’s gaze followed the man. “Not many houses that direction . . .”

Graver pulled his hat lower and started down the block, where a crowd had gathered.

“Graver!” Dulcinea called after him.

He stiffened his shoulders and thought of that Tennyson poem he’d memorized when he was eighteen and living in a line camp one winter in Wyoming, nursing cows and trying not to go crazy. Into the valley of Death rode the six hundred . . .

He heard the stallion huff up next to him as he strode along the boardwalk, skirting debris. “Mr. Graver.” Dulcinea’s voice was high and nervous. “Please—”

Graver knew he should keep walking. “Lady,” he began. “You don’t own me. I’m going to see if those people up there need any help. If they do, I’m going to stay until the job is done. Now you take that fancy horse and your fancy manners and your orders and . . .” He looked at his hand, realized he had grabbed the rein and Dulcinea was trying to ease it away. When he suddenly let go, she tipped back and the horse rocked on its hind legs and reared.

Her face blanched as she urged the horse forward and down.

“I’m sorry—” He put one hand on the rein, the other on her foot. He could feel the tremor through her boot.

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.