Smolder on a Slow Burn by Lynda J. Cox

Author:Lynda J. Cox [Cox, Lynda J.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: romance, western
Published: 2015-08-25T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twelve

Treat your friend as if he might become an enemy.

~Publilius Syrus

The gibbous moon bathed the rolling Wyoming landscape in a soft, silver light. The sign post pointed to the west, claiming Federal was only another ten miles. A federal marshal in a town named Federal…what were the odds, A.J. wondered.

“We’re almost there, Alli. I’ll find us a room and then get a doctor. It’s going to be okay.” He had been talking to himself for better than five hours. Despite his best efforts to keep her awake and talking, she had slipped into a deep sleep.

He pressed his spurs into Sugar and the mare snorted but changed gait from a walk into a slow lope. He’d kept both horses moving, though never in a trot to avoid jarring Allison any further. The nag dragging behind was already bordering on exhaustion, his coat streaked with sweat and dust. Sugar was breathing heavily and he was traversing a tightrope to keep both animals moving without totally playing them out.

Dawn was turning the eastern horizon pink when he rode into Federal. On the corner of the Laramie/Cheyenne Road and Federal Avenue a three story hotel rose on his left. He guided Sugar to the hitching rail and dropped a rein. He slid off, cradling Allison to his chest. His legs almost buckled as they’d long ago lost all feeling and he leaned back against Sugar’s warm shoulder for a moment, determining if his left leg was going to give out under him.

The mare shoved her nose into his back, as if urging him to hurry. He mounted the steps onto the porch and pushed the door open with his shoulder. The front desk was empty but the sounds of pots banging in the kitchen led him forward.

He shoved his way through the double swinging doors. A woman he assumed to be the cook smothered a scream and pulled a young boy behind her.

“I don’t mean no harm to anyone, but I need a doctor. Please.”

It only took the woman a moment to decide. “Donnie, run down the hallway and wake that doc who just got into town yesterday. He’s in room ten. Tell him to come to room twenty-two.” She shoved the boy toward the swinging doors and A.J. stepped aside to let him pass. “Let’s get her into a bed,” she said.

“Thank you, ma’am.” A.J. followed the portly woman through the silent dining room, up a half-flight of steps and halfway down the hallway. She opened a door and stood aside. A.J. gently lowered Allison onto the bed. He smoothed the hair from her brow, and whispered, “It’s going to be okay now. They’re getting a doctor.”

He straightened as Donnie led the doctor into the room. “Is she dead, Ma?” the boy asked.

A.J.’s heart sank. The doctor was little more than a boy, no more than twenty if he was a day. In spite of the thick moustache, he didn’t look old enough to be shaving. He’d pulled a long frock coat over what appeared to be striped night clothes.

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