To Love and to Cherish (29 page)
Read To Love and to Cherish Online
Authors: Leigh Greenwood
Naomi wondered if the Indians had more arrows than everyone in the wagon train had bullets. She counted the boxes of shells. Six left. The sun was still high in the sky. Night was several hours away.
The Indians stopped to regroup. Once more Naomi was forced to watch and wait.
How long? A minute? Half an hour? Time seemed to stop. It was so hot under the wagon at times she could hardly breathe. The images before her eyes grew faint and indistinct, but she fought off the dizziness that threatened her.
The smell of blood from Ethan's wound filled her nostrils and made her sick to her stomach. She shooed the flies away.
A cry from Cassie Greene riveted Naomi's attention. She looked out on the plain. The Indians had lined up for another charge. How many were still out there, twenty? Thirty?
It didn't matter. There was no more suspense. No more fear. They would all die. She could face the certainty of death, but her pride wouldn't let her face it cowering under a wagon. She would meet them on her feet, a rifle in her hands.
“Load for me,” she ordered Ben. Her voice was hoarse now, barely an intelligible whisper.
“They'll kill you,” Ethan protested, pulling her back as she started to crawl from under the wagon.
Naomi turned on him. “They're going to kill us anyway.” She heard her voice as though from a distance. She sounded slightly hysterical, but she felt utterly calm. Her gaze bored into him, and her voice dropped to a rasping whisper. “Don't let them take me alive. I can stand anything but that.”
Ethan turned his eyes away. “You know I can't do that.”
She grabbed him, made him look at her. “Promise me.” It was no longer a request.
He averted his face. “Christ!”
She seized his chin and forced him to look at her.
“I know what they do. I'd go mad.”
It was an awful thing to ask of a man. It was especially cruel to ask of a seventeen-year-old, yet Naomi didn't hesitate. Her gaze, intense and resolute, locked with Ethan's. “You've got to promise me.”
“All right,” Ethan replied, but he didn't look at her.
“Swear it! I'll haunt you if you don't.”
“I said I would.” This time Ethan looked straight into her eyes, and Naomi knew he meant it. She rose to her feet.
At almost the same moment, the Indians charged along a broad front. Naomi lifted her rifle, but before she could bring it level, a series of thundering shots rang out and Indians fell from saddles like toys knocked over with the back of an angry child's hand. Naomi stared dumbfounded as the attackers divided into two groups, wheeled in panic, and galloped off in opposite directions.
“What's happening?” Ethan asked Naomi.
“Over there!” Ben cried, pointing.
In the distance Naomi could see a man's head above the grass. Then he burst into full view. A rider on a great Appaloosa was galloping toward them.
No one followed him. He was alone. He had attacked the Indians all by himself. He had to be crazy.
Naomi looked to where she had seen the Indians disappearing, but they weren't running away any longer. Attacking from opposite directions, they formed a semicircle around the rider. His only chance was to reach the wagons before one of their arrows buried itself in his back. His horse was magnificent. Such an animal could easily outrun the Indian ponies, but could he outrun the Indians' arrows?
The whooping and screaming warriors loosed their arrows to no avail. Naomi was hopeful he would reach the wagons when she saw the closest Indian draw his bow. She fired at him but missed.
“Shoot him!” she shouted to Ethan, who had dragged himself from under the wagon to kneel next to her. “Hurry before it's too late!”
Ethan didn't hit the Indian, but he caused the brave to drop his bow. Before she could sigh with relief, an Indian rose out of the grass not thirty yards away.
The Indian leader she thought Ethan had killed! He drew his bow and aimed for the stranger's back. Before she could shout a warning, she heard the twang of the bowstring, the zing of the arrow through the air, and the sickening thud as it buried itself in the man's back.
Rifle fire burst from all around her, and the Indian fell to the ground, truly dead this time.
With a tremendous leap, the Appaloosa jumped over the Kessling oxen and landed inside the ring of wagons. The stranger toppled to the ground virtually under the hooves of the frightened, milling animals.
Leigh Greenwood is the author of the popular Seven Brides, Cowboy, and Night Riders series. The proud father of three grown children, Leigh resides in Charlotte, NC. He never intended to be a writer, but found it hard to ignore the people in his head, and the only way to get them out was to write. For more information visit
www.leigh-greenwood.com
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Cactus Creek Cowboys
by Leigh Greenwood
USA Today
bestselling author
A stranger to the rescue
Colby Blaine has been a loner his whole life. And he isn't about to change now. But that doesn't mean he can ignore people in trouble. When he rides up on an inexperienced wagon train under attack, he doesn't hesitate to jump into the fray. It's only after the raid that he really lands himself in hot waterâ¦
Naomi Kessling is certainly grateful to Colby for saving her family and agreeing to lead their train to safer territory. But the man has an infuriating way of knowing just how to get under her skinâhe asks too many questions about a past she doesn't want to remember, and his touch makes her long for far more. Yet the more time they spend together, the more Naomi sees that perhaps it's Colby who needs rescuing the mostâ¦
Praise for Leigh Greenwood:
“Leigh Greenwood is one of the best.”
âRT Book Reviews
For more
Leigh Greenwood
, visit:
by Leigh Greenwood
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with all the right moves
Nate has been on the vengeance trail so long, he nearly forgot what a real home looked like. And Roberta is mighty fine incentive to stay put for a whileâeven if she has a stubborn streak as wide as the great state of Texas. She might be convinced she's healing the wound in his chest, but neither of them know she's also soothing the hurt in his heart.
“Readers will enjoy the battle of wits between these two stubborn protagonists.” â
RT Book Reviews,
4 Stars
“Strap yourself in for a wild ride with this cowboy and the stubborn love of his life.” â
Fresh Fiction
For more Leigh Greenwood, visit:
by Leigh Greenwood
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Ivan may have charmed everyone in town into thinking he was the perfect gentleman, but Carla knew better. There had to be a chink in his armorâa red-hot passion under that calm, cool gaze. But once she finds it, she may be in for more than she ever bargained forâ¦
Praise for Leigh Greenwood:
“For a fast-paced story of the Wild West, Leigh Greenwood is one of the best” â
RT Book Reviews
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Bachelors of Battle Creek
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New York Times
bestselling author
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But Cooper swore long ago that he'd never marry, and he aims to keep his wordâ¦especially now that the demons from his past have returned to threaten everythingâand everyoneâhe holds dear.
Praise for Linda Broday:
“Takes me back to a West that feels true. A delightful read.” â
Jodi Thomas,
New York Times
bestselling author
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USA Today
bestselling author
She's a woman with a secret
Elizabeth Wainright is on the run. Accused of a murder she didn't commit, she has no choice but to cut ties with her old life and flee west. The last thing she wants is attention, but when her stagecoach is attacked, she suddenly finds herself under the fierce protection of one of Montana's famed vigilantesâ¦whether she likes it or not.
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Lawman Mitch Brady is sworn to uphold justice in the wild lands of 1860s Montana. He's never met a man he's feared, and he's never met a woman more desperately in need of his help. Something's shaken the secretive Elizabeth, but as he gets to know the beautiful city belle, he finds the only thing he wants more than her safetyâ¦is her trust.
Praise for Rosanne Bittner:
One of the most powerful voices in Western romance.” â
RT Book Reviews
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by Rosanne Bittner
Maggie Tucker has just gone through hell. Outlaws murdered her husband, looted their camp, and terrorized Maggie before leaving her lost and alone in the wilds of Wyoming. She isn't about to let another strange man get close enough to harm her.
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From that moment on, Sage will do anything to protect the strong-yet-vulnerable Maggie. Together, they'll embark on a life-changing journey along the dangerous Outlaw Trail, risking their livesâ¦and their love.
Praise for Rosanne Bittner:
“A wonderful, absorbing read, with characters to capture the heart and the imaginationâ¦it's a romance not to be missed.” âHeather Graham on
Outlaw Hearts
“Power, passion, tragedy, and triumph are Rosanne Bittner's hallmarks.” â
RT Book Reviews
on
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For more Rosanne Bittner, visit:
