Chapter Thirty-Four
Same day — Late afternoon
Luke looked over to Madelaine as she rode right next to him toward the gang’s compound up north.
She had a fierce look on her face, and he admired her greatly for her immense courage.
At first, he’d been reluctant to let her come on this mission, but he knew that she needed this closure as much as any of the men following them, to see Phineas and Ezra arrested for their crimes.
Today, Madelaine was dressed in men’s attire.
One of the boys had lent it to her for the dangerous task they were about to face together.
It had been Luke’s single demand to allow her to join them—to at least wear a disguise for her own safety—because none of them knew how this would pan out.
The only thing that could possibly identify her as a female was her long, thick black braid, casually hanging over her back, but even that could pass for the hair of a foreigner, since there were several who wore their hair like that.
By the time they left town, it was already late afternoon, and the light was fading fast, which was yet another advantage—providing the gang hadn’t already packed up and left their hiding spot in the woods.
When Caleb checked the horse barn at the fairgrounds this morning, all their horses and men were all gone, so now Luke feared that they might be too late already.
Whatever the outcome was—they had to try.
Looking back over his shoulder, Luke once again needed to reassure himself that the number of men riding with them would at least give them a fighting chance at taking these thieves.
He was pleased to see that there were more than the original crowd who had signed up during the second meeting.
Even more people in town had come together—they were ready to fight back.
It was reassuring. Luke knew that he couldn’t do it without them.
They rode in silence as they got nearer to the gang’s compound.
Everybody had been briefed that they would have to leave their horses behind to sneak up on them on foot.
Luke had assigned several deputies to spread out with their individual groups so they would be able to surround the criminals.
They each had fifteen minutes to get into position before he would give the signal—two rapidly fired shots—when all of them would storm the compound, hopefully surprising the thieves with their attack.
Luke had also made it very clear to all of them that nobody was to be harmed.
Madelaine had to promise to stay behind near the horses, to wait and see what would happen. She’d be close enough to witness the attack, but far enough away not to be in imminent danger. Luke looked at her again and hoped her determined expression meant that she would stick to the plan.
“I love you,” he whispered over to her, which seemed to startle her a little. “Please don’t do anything reckless tonight,” he said when she looked at him. She smiled and shook her head.
“I won’t. I trust that you will handle it well, my love.”
Her whispered words filled him with extra confidence. “You are the most capable sheriff in this territory, and with God on our side, we will win this. I am certain of it.” There was not an ounce of doubt in her voice.
“You are a very special woman, you know that?” he whispered with a smile, and it turned into a chuckle when she nodded proudly.
“Only because I am married to a most special man,” she said earnestly.
At this point, Caleb broke off with his group to ride up and around the ridge running along the camp so he could sneak up from behind, while Timothy kept toward the river’s edge to the west, so he could come in from Luke’s left side. Everybody seemed eager to go.
As soon as Luke and his men reached the spot where they planned to hide their horses, Madelaine helped secure the animals. Luke grabbed her hand and pulled her against his chest.
“You are my world, Madelaine. Whatever happens, never forget that,” he whispered close to her ear.
“And you are mine, husband,” she replied. She surprised him when she rose up on her toes and kissed his cheek. He almost didn’t want to leave her there.
The men proceeded as planned, each taking previously agreed positions. Luke was all too pleased when he heard the usual racket coming from the abandoned house and saw the soft glow of the fire burning in front of it. They were still there.
As they sneaked up on them, Luke saw Phineas holding up a bottle of liquor, loudly singing some unrecognizable song while Ezra stood in front of the fire with an angry scowl on his face. Luke tried to see if Alvarez was anywhere near them but he couldn’t see him, which worried him greatly.
When it was finally time, Luke gave the signal. He fired two shots in rapid succession, and all Hell broke loose. Men rushed toward the house from all sides, running down the ridge to Luke’s right and left. The thieves were most certainly surprised—they scattered around like headless chickens.
Luke kept his eyes mostly on Ezra, who immediately turned to run toward the back, where the horses were kept.
As he rushed after him, he saw out of the corner of his eye how one of his men ripped the bottle from Phineas’ hands and whacked him over the head with it.
The despicable man fell flat onto the ground, unconscious.
Now, Luke was able to focus on Ezra, who was surprisingly fast on his feet.
Luke followed him close on his heels around the house toward the back where he tried to grab one of the tied-up horses.
That’s where Luke found Alvarez, with a rope around his neck, tied up like a dog right there with all the horses. When Alvarez lifted his face, recognizing Luke, his reaction was instant. He pushed out his leg just as Ezra ran past him.
“Argh! You bastard!” Ezra yelled as he stumbled and fell to his knees.
Luke jumped onto his back, immediately gaining the upper hand as he pulled Ezra’s arm behind his back, wedging it in with his knee.
Ezra fell forward face first into the mud and horse droppings.
His blond hair was caked in it and he screamed bloody murder as Luke rolled him on his back, bringing his other arm forward, shackling him with a set of solid iron handcuffs.
Luke rushed to free Alvarez from his rope ties, grabbing him by the shoulders, happy to see him.
“Are you all right, Al?” Luke asked. The older man nodded, clearly shaken but smiling widely as he took Luke in.
“I thought I was done for!” Alvarez choked, visibly moved, and the two embraced in a quick hug. Then Luke handed him a pistol so he’d be able to defend himself in all the chaos around them.
“Keep to the south, you’ll find Madelaine and our horses there! You’ll be safe!” Luke told him but Alvarez laughed, cracking his neck as he cocked the gun.
“And miss out on all the fun? No way!” Alvarez exclaimed as he straightened his back and ran after one of the thieves trying to get away. Luke watched for a second as Alvarez smacked the man clean over the back of his head, knocking him out cold, before he went after the next.
Luke was about to pick Ezra up off the ground when he got jumped by one of the gang members. He managed to throw the other man off, and after a short scuffle, he apprehended him, tying the rope he’d just cut off of Alvarez around his wrists.
Things wound down a little after several long minutes, and as Luke picked up Ezra a second time, dragging him with him toward the front of the house, he saw that his men had captured most of Ezra’s. Some stragglers had escaped, but the rest surrendered. It was almost a clean victory.
As Luke dragged Ezra in front of the firepit, he saw Caleb taking care of Phineas, who had woken up from being knocked out. Luke pushed Ezra to his knees, who cried out in pain at being handled so roughly.
“You will regret this!” Ezra yelled at him. “You will all regret this! I am a powerful businessman! I have money, and I have connections! You will all feel the consequences! You haven’t seen anything yet!”
His voice lost its threat toward the end when he ran out of air.
“You mean the money you stole from all of the people in the region? Are you even aware what the punishment for murder is around here?” Luke challenged him. Ezra’s face went pale, but he still tried.
“I never murdered anybody!” he screamed. “You have no proof!”
“We have enough evidence to link you to at least five murders over the span of eight years!” Caleb injected. “You are done, Ezra Blackthorn!”
“Impossible!” Ezra yelled arrogantly. “I never laid a finger on anybody…!”
“No! You paid us to do it!” Lucas screamed from the side, and when Luke turned toward the tall trapper, he couldn’t help but smile. “I should have never gotten involved with you!” Lucas spit to one side as he glared at Ezra. “I can prove it,” he added, turning to Luke.
Ezra fell silent, obviously seething with anger. None of that was relevant when Luke heard Madelaine call his name as she ran toward him. Luke let go of Ezra, who barely managed to save his face from slamming on the ground a second time. He turned to Madelaine, and she jumped right into his arms.
“Are you hurt?” she asked, searching his face with a worried expression. Luke shook his head.
“Never felt better,” he said, and it was the truth.
Timothy joined them, and he helped pick up Ezra, who was still yelling and screaming.
Madelaine pulled away from Luke, and he watched as she walked over to Phineas, who had his wrists in handcuffs on his back, and was held up by Caleb. Surprisingly, Phineas smiled a devilish grin when she approached him.
“This isn’t over, Maddie,” Phineas said to her. “You won’t win this. The ranch is mine…”
“May God forgive me,” Madelaine said and then slapped him so hard Phineas stopped speaking and stared at her in bewilderment.
“The ranch is mine, and you will never again step foot on it! I hope God forgives you for what you have done while you sit in jail!” she said between gritted teeth.
“Whatever the Lord decides to do with you, it’s in His hands now, and you are no longer my concern,” she said coldly.
Since everybody was apprehended, Luke and the others could finally relax. When Alvarez walked around the corner, breathless but smiling, the world was right again. They had won.
However, what happened next would shatter Luke’s world into a million pieces.
Ezra began yelling random Biblical verses, all taken out of context, none making any sense. “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me,” he screamed. “All things are possible with God!”
In a twisted turn of fate, Ezra spun around to Timothy and managed to grab one of his revolvers, pulling it out of its holster while simultaneously kicking his opponent so hard with one leg that Timothy stumbled backwards, falling over a rock and onto the ground.
Before anybody could get to him, Ezra cocked the gun, swung around, aimed it at Luke, and pulled the trigger. All this happened within a split second, but it was enough for Madelaine to jump right in front of Luke.
Luke watched in horror as Madelaine was spun around when the bullet hit her.
***
“How is she?” Timothy asked as he walked into the room where Madelaine had been lying in bed for two days. Luke hadn’t left her side since he’d brought her here.
“She hasn’t woken up yet,” Luke said. His voice sounded as rough as he felt.
“I am so sorry…” Timothy began, but Luke held up his hand to stop him. He didn’t need to hear his apology. Timothy had apologized hundreds of times, and Luke knew that this hadn’t been his fault.
“Just… don’t,” he said. “If God allows it, she will pull through.”
Luke heard Timothy’s retreating footsteps, then the closing door.
Leaning over Madelaine, he brushed her hair out of her face, even though she hadn’t moved.
He felt useless and couldn’t really do anything to help the situation.
Dr. McPhearson had reassured him that her wound wasn’t fatal and that with good wound care, all she needed was rest so her body could recover on its own, but so far, nothing had happened.
Luke was close to losing hope, but this time, he didn’t want to lose his faith again, too.
He needed Madelaine, and he needed God. He took both of her hands into his and began to pray.
He’d been praying for her almost the entire time.
He’d talked to her, even shouted at her to wake up.
None of it had worked, but he kept trying.
“Heavenly Father, please don’t take her from me,” he said, desperately. “I beg of You! Heaven doesn’t need another angel right now; Belle and Simon need her here, so please make her wake up. Bring her back to me, please! She is all I have…”
He couldn’t be sure, but he thought he felt a twitch of her hand. Staring down at her dainty fingers, he willed them to move, but they didn’t. Choking on a sob, he put his hand down and gave in to his tears. He couldn’t take it.
Suddenly, he felt something touch his hair. When he looked up, Madelaine’s fingers were resting on his head. Straightening, he scooted closer and stared at her face.
“Madelaine? Are you there?” he called out to her. “Madelaine, please wake up!”
Her eyes fluttered, and when she finally opened them, Luke’s heart seemed to flood over. He cried openly, grabbing her hands, kissing them over and over again.
“Thank You, God! Thank You Lord in Heaven! Thank You!” he called up to the ceiling, and Madelaine smiled.