Chapter 13
Dakota’s heart was racing as they made their way out of Stanley.
The confrontation with Liam was stuck in her head, and the picture of his lifeless body, stained with blood, was engraved in her mind.
He had gotten exactly what he deserved, but seeing somebody killed right in front of her eyes was still a lot to take in.
She didn’t feel bad about it, but at the same time, it still caused her to feel uneasy.
They didn’t slow down as they raced down the main road.
Nobody had seen them, but the shot would have been heard, and surely somebody would have come to check and see what was happening.
She wasn’t sure whether shots being fired so late at night were a common occurrence in Stanley, and she also wasn’t sure whether the sheriff and his men would come after them.
Blade was pushing Africa to go fast, though, so she did the same, urging Riot to keep up with them. An hour or more must have passed before Blade eventually slowed down a little.
“We should get off the main road,” he stated.
“I doubt that they’ll come after us. Usually, sheriffs only chase outlaws to the border of the town, and we’ve long since passed that.
” Blade reached up and adjusted his wide-brim hat as he rode.
“I don’t want to stop, though. We should keep going just in case. ”
Dakota nodded, still feeling uneasy. “I wouldn’t be able to sleep now anyway.”
“You okay?” Blade asked, slowing down a little more so that he could look at her.
“Yeah.”
Blade frowned, raising a brow. “You would tell me if you weren’t, right?”
“Of course,” Dakota replied. “I tell you everything.”
“True,” Blade agreed with a chuckle as he started to veer off the road.
It was so dark, and Dakota was a little scared since she honestly couldn’t see much.
Riding on the road was all right. The path had been laid out, but steering Riot into the wilderness when she could barely see a couple of feet in front of her gave Dakota something else to worry about.
At least it took her mind off Liam, so in a way, it was a good thing.
Blade led the way, and Dakota followed him. For some reason, he didn’t seem to mind traversing the rocky, overgrown ground.
“We’ll go slow,” Blade said, as if he could read her mind. “We don’t want Africa or Riot to get hurt.”
“Can you even see where you’re going?”
Blade laughed and glanced over his shoulder. “A little, but that’s enough. At this pace, we’ll see a cliff before we fall off it.”
Dakota shook her head but joined in his laughter. Blade didn’t seem worried or scared, and his mood rubbed off on her a little. They didn’t speak much but continued making their way through the unknown terrain. After hours of trotting, Blade finally brought Africa to a stop.
Letting go of his reins, Blade stretched his arms above his head. “I think I need to close my eyes for a little while.”
“Honestly, if you didn’t stop, I would have asked you to,” Dakota stated as she slid off Riot. “I’m exhausted.”
“And hungry,” Blade added.
“You want to make a fire?”
Blade shook his head. “No, let’s just eat some dried meat and get some sleep. I want to continue on our way at dawn.”
“Works for me,” Dakota agreed with a shrug.
They weren’t in a forest, but there were a lot of trees in the surrounding area, so Dakota led Riot to the closest one and tied him up. There was some long grass for him to chew on, and she would make a point of finding a nice pasture where he and Africa could graze the next day.
To her relief, Blade tied Africa up as well and then removed his bedroll.
Dakota did the same, making sure to grab her flash and their dried meat as well.
They laid their bedrolls out next to the horses and then sat down.
Dakota used the tree as a backrest, allowing her body to relax a little.
She held the brown paper parcel containing the meat out to Blade.
“Thanks,” he said with a smile as he popped a piece into his mouth.
Dakota did the same, watching him closely. He didn’t seem worried at all. In fact, he looked relatively happy even though he kept yawning.
“How are you feeling?” she asked. “You know, after killing him . . .”
“It felt good. The world is a better place without him, and we can cross a name off my list.”
“But did it bring you any relief?” Blade always said that it felt like his need for revenge was heavy and that he carried it with him everywhere.
Dakota craved revenge, too. The men who killed her and Blade’s families deserved to die, but her need for revenge didn’t feel heavy; it felt like fuel, driving her forward.
“Yeah, I think so,” Blade confirmed. “I think it’ll take a while to really sink in, but the moment I pulled the trigger, something changed in me.”
“Is that a good thing?” Dakota asked, tilting her head to the side.
Blade nodded as he took another piece of meat. “Sure is.”
“I don’t know,” Dakota said thoughtfully. “I don’t regret coming with you, and I want to see this through, but seeing Liam get shot and die right in front of me rattled me a little.”
“That’s only normal.” Blade took a sip of water and moved closer to her.
With a little help from the moon above, she could just make out the scar on his forehead.
It was usually covered by his shaggy blond hair, but sometimes it showed.
The bullet had been meant to kill him, but it had only taken some flesh and skin with it.
Ironically, the scar resembled the shape of a blade, and its owner and namesake wore it with pride.
Dakota pulled her attention away from his scar and looked into his eyes. “Why do you say that?”
“Well, even though you didn’t technically kill Liam, you were an accomplice, and that’s scary. I still remember the first man I killed like it was yesterday.”
“Did it scare you?” Dakota could remember it, too. Blade had told her the story enthusiastically back then, but he only seemed excited. Dakota couldn’t really remember a time, except for the days directly following the massacre, when she had seen Blade truly scared.
“I don’t know if scared is the right word, but it definitely stayed with me. I don’t think I will ever forget the look in his eyes as he lay there in front of me. He knew he was going to die.”
Dakota took a deep breath, trying to imagine the scenario. “Didn’t it bother you?”
“Yes and no.” Blade shook his head. “It’s difficult to explain. Killing him didn’t bother me because I knew he was a bad man. Knowing that he had a wife and kids who relied on him did.”
“So how did you move on from that feeling?”
“I don’t think it is something you move on from. You just have to accept it and learn to live with it. Eventually, it starts to fade on its own, especially since you know you did the world a favor by removing a dangerous criminal.”
It made sense. The world was definitely safer without Liam Reed in it, and although she didn’t know all the horrible things he had done over the years, she was certain that they had saved many lives by taking him out.
“I know you’re right.” Dakota leaned forward and gave him a quick hug. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” Blade chuckled. “And try not to be too hard on yourself. After a couple of hours of sleep, you’ll already start to feel better.”
Dakota was sure he was right since she did not regret their actions or feel any guilt. It was just a feeling of unease, and she had dealt with much worse than that before.
They finished the dried meat and then settled into their bedrolls.
“That was an easy kill,” Blade said from beside her. “We got lucky.”
“I know,” Dakota agreed. “You think we’ll get lucky with the rest of them, too?”
“We can only hope.” Blade shifted, turning onto his side. “Tomorrow we’ll find some water and start our trek to Montana, but for now, try to get some sleep.”