Chapter 41
Chapter Forty-One
Rhett
Alma shoved her revolver into my ribs, prodding me toward the canyon. The wind picked up, blowing her poncho like a sail.
“Don’t fret,” she said like she was talking to an animal she was about to cull from her herd. “It’ll all be over soon, and you probably won’t feel a thing.”
“You don’t have to do this.”
“We’re past that,” she said sharply. “I’ve lived a good, long life, and I plan on living out the rest of my days here—not in a jail cell. So you’ll have to disappear.”
“You won’t get away with it, Alma.”
“Course I will,” she said, chuckling. “Everyone’s ready to be done with Thomas Smith once and for all. They’ll be all too happy to pin it on him.”
We came to the edge of a canyon. She kicked a rock over and watched it fall to the bottom.
“Too many places where you could grab on,” she muttered. “Can’t take the risk. I’m afraid I’ll have to shoot you first. But don’t worry. That will make it easier on you anyway. I’ve had to put down more animals than I can count. I know how to do it.”
My heart raced, but I knew what to do. I thanked my lucky stars for all the times I’d practiced moves with my brother Cole when he was training in martial arts. He’d taught me how to take a gun from an assailant—though I had to admit, it was a lot more nerve-racking when the gun was real.
“I’m sorry about this,” she said, lifting the revolver and aiming it toward my head. “Maybe you want to turn around so you don’t—”
Before she finished her sentence, I made my move, ducking my head out of the line of fire and grabbing her hand with both of mine, pushing the gun up. The gun went off instantly, like Cole had always said it would. I was ready for it. When Alma jerked back, I yanked the gun from her hands.
Enraged, she ran toward me, threatening to take both of us off the side of the cliff.
I pulled the trigger.
She collapsed to the ground, clutching her leg. “You shot me!” She looked at me with shocked eyes.
“You had it coming,” I muttered.
Cheyenne and Claire flew over the hill, running straight toward us. I held the gun up, showing Claire, then backed up and put it on the ground, out of Alma’s reach.
Cheyenne stopped in her tracks when she saw me, throwing her hand to her heart, before running and jumping straight into my arms.
“Careful,” I said, chuckling. “There’s a cliff right there, and I’d just as soon stay on solid ground if that’s okay with you.”
She covered my face with kisses. “You’re okay. You’re really okay.”
I held her face in my hands. “I’m really okay.”
“I didn’t know…” She looked helplessly at Alma, then shook her head. “I didn’t know.”
“Me either.” I wrapped my arms as tight as they would go around her and held her close. “I’m so sorry.”
Claire had already slapped handcuffs on Alma and radioed for medical. “Nice shot,” she said, smirking. “Non-lethal, but you stopped her in her tracks. Or are you going to tell me you missed?”
“Oh, I never miss.”
If I’d aimed differently, I’d never admit it.