Devil's Ride West by David Nix

Author:David Nix
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Sourcebooks
Published: 2022-04-22T00:00:00+00:00

Stacy knew the best remedy for fretting was a heavy dose of hard labor. She’d been mucking stable stalls for an hour in an attempt to bury concern over what Gus had just told her about Paynter’s run-in with bounty hunters. They’d found him; who might locate him next? And could he keep fending off mobs of desperate men intent on killing him? She was starting to regret dragging him away from his refuge with the Shoshone. She’d always known things could go badly sideways, but that had seemed a distant prospect—until now. Her scattered thoughts kept her from noticing the visitor until she spoke.

“Stacy.”

She jumped to find Rosalyn outside the stall, her expression grave. Stacy instantly suspected that she’d come with a report of Paynter’s death. She carefully leaned the shovel against an empty corner and steeled herself for the bad news.

“Miss Ashley. What brings you?”

Rosalyn lifted an eyebrow as if recognizing Stacy’s mounting distress. “Hopefully not what you suspect.”

Stacy stepped from the stall and surveyed the length of the stables. A woman unknown to her stood in the doorway watching the street. Stacy motioned toward the stranger. “Do you know her?”

“Mrs. Guilfoyle. The ranch cook and my trusted confidante. She’ll warn us if anyone comes.”

“Where’s your shadow, then?”

“You mean Ketchum?”

“Yes, that bandit bastard.”

Rosalyn offered a wry smirk of agreement. “I gave him two dollars and sent him to the Red Hen saloon. It’ll be an hour before he comes looking for me, and his senses will be sufficiently dulled by then to not pay much attention.”

Stacy nodded with mild relief but was still thrown by Rosalyn’s secretive visit. “What’s goin’ on?”

Rosalyn grabbed Stacy by the hand and pulled her farther from the door. “Those Philadelphia, uh, gentlemen paid us a visit yesterday at the ranch. Lucien sent me outside so he could speak to them in private. I eavesdropped, of course.”

“Naturally. What’d they say? Do they know where Paynter is?”

Rosalyn shook her head. “They do not…for now. That’s why I’ve come—to warn you all.”

“About what?”

“Those men intend to watch you, Gus, and anyone else who knows Paynter. They assume that one of you will eventually lead them to his hiding place, wherever that might be. You do know where he’s hiding, right?”

“I do. Just me and Gus and nobody else. Until yesterday, that is.”

This time it was Rosalyn’s turn to show alarm. Her eyes went hot. “What happened?”

Stacy told Rosalyn what she’d learned as relayed from Paynter through Gus. “So Paynter’s already told us to stay away for our safety and his. He’s a man alone now, watching through the night and waitin’ for the next attack. And the full moon is only a few days off. We ought to be hearin’ from the killers soon.”

“Killers? There’s more than one?”

“Paynter thinks so, as do I.” She told Rosalyn about what they’d found at the Zhou claim and how it had matched the tracks at the Stefka mine.

“So,” said Rosalyn, “if he catches whoever’s doing this, he’ll be at a disadvantage.

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