Chapter 19
Dakota desperately needed a bath. With all the mud from the storm, she looked and felt a mess.
She wasn’t usually bothered by things like that, but her hair had become knotted, and her clothes were just plain disgusting.
Besides, they were close to Rapid City, and they couldn’t go walking around the town looking the way they did.
Luckily, they managed to find a small creek running through a valley. It was a beautiful area, and they were both tired. “It’s already noon,” Dakota said as she dismounted Riot. “I say we wash ourselves and our clothes, and camp here for the night.”
Blade looked up from his bag, which he was rummaging through. “That’s not a bad idea. Maybe we can find Daniel early tomorrow and make our escape while we have some daylight left. It’ll be nice not to flee at night for a change.”
“I couldn’t agree more.” Dakota walked over to Blade and peered into his bag. “What are you looking for?”
“Nothing much,” Blade replied. “Just checking how much coffee we have left. You know I won’t make it through the day without my morning coffee.”
Dakota shook her head. “I think you might be addicted.”
“Maybe, but there are much worse things to be addicted to, so I think I’m okay.” He held up a bag of coffee beans. “Might be enough for a week or so. We should get more just in case, though.”
“Sure,” Dakota agreed, focusing her attention on the creek. The water looked thoroughly inviting, and she couldn’t wait to submerge herself.
“I’m going in,” she said, not bothering to look back. The hot sun was beating down on her skin, and she needed some relief. Grabbing her dirty clothes from her bag, Dakota rushed to the water.
“Tell me when you’re in,” Blade called.
Blade wouldn’t peek. Dakota knew it, but she also couldn’t help but wonder if it was out of respect or because he simply had no interest in her romantically whatsoever.
Pushing the thought away, she stripped out of her clothes and padded into the water.
The rushing water was cool to the touch and enveloped her as she sat down.
To her relief, the water was deep enough to submerge her whole body.
If it hadn’t been, Blade might have refused to join her.
“You can look!” she half-yelled, pulling one of her dirty shirts into the water.
It didn’t take long before Blade was standing on the edge, telling her to close her eyes. She didn’t want to, but did as she was asked. She could hear him undressing and stepping into the water.
“All right, you can open your eyes.”
In front of her sat Blade, his entire chest exposed. Unlike her, he had positioned himself on his knees, and his tanned skin glistened under the sun. Dakota’s pulse quickened at the sight, and she quickly looked away, focusing her eyes on the shirt she was washing.
“I’ll hang everything to dry when we are done washing,” Blade offered. “The sun is excruciating today, so it won’t take long to dry.”
Dakota busied herself with washing all of her dirty clothes but couldn’t stop herself from glancing at Blade.
He was in the process of grabbing an item of clothing from the bank, and she found herself transfixed by the way his muscles moved.
She’d seen him shirtless before. They used to swim in the lake all the time when they were kids, but this was different.
They were grown up, and something inside her had shifted.
“I’m done washing,” she told him. “I’ll quickly hang them.”
Blade shook his head. “No need, I’m done too. Just admire the hills over there while I strut around naked behind you.”
It was supposed to be a joke, but instead of laughing, Dakota nearly choked. Luckily, it sounded like a chuckle. Turning her back to him, Dakota closed her eyes, trying to think of anything but Blade as she heard him moving around behind her.
“They’ll be dry in no time at all,” Blade said, his voice much closer than she expected. “You can look again.”
Dakota opened her eyes and turned toward the handsome young man in front of her. He wasn’t close enough to touch, but if she leaned forward and reached out . . . She imagined what it would feel like to brush his light blond hair off his forehead, what it would feel like if he touched her.
“So, is there anything else I should know about Daniel Evans?” Dakota asked, trying to distract herself.
She was being ridiculous and shouldn’t be fantasizing about her best friend.
The feelings she had for him weren’t completely new, but she had managed to suppress them well, and she planned on continuing to do just that.
Blade had never shown any interest in her other than friendship, and she couldn’t allow herself to say or do anything that might ruin their relationship.
She would much rather have him as a friend than not have him at all.
Blade shook his head. “No, I’ve told you everything I know.”
Leaning forward, he splashed water onto his face. “This feels great.”
“Sure does,” Dakota agreed as she grabbed hold of her braid and started undoing it. “I have to wash my hair, see if I can get these knots out.”
“I can help,” Blade offered, causing Dakota’s heart to flutter.
She considered saying no, but that would just be dumb. Blade had done her hair for her many times before, and it didn’t have to mean anything.
“Thanks,” she replied. “Let me soak it a little, and then you can try.”
The two of them spent the next while simply enjoying themselves.
They washed the dirt off their bodies, and then Blade untangled her hair.
There was nothing romantic about it, but his touch affected her in ways that it really shouldn’t have.
When that was done, Dakota decided that it was time to get out of the water and into some clothes.
Blade, being the gentleman that he was, fetched her clothes for her and then went to get dressed behind some trees, leaving her to dress.
Her shirt was completely dry, and although her denim jeans were a little damp, they were good enough to put on.
Once they started a fire, the last moisture would evaporate, and hopefully, she could get her thoughts in order, too.
***
“We got lucky,” Blade said as they watched Daniel. “Can’t believe we found him already.”
Dakota could feel her anger boiling under the surface, begging to be released. She had never even met the man before, but she hated him.
“So, what now?”
They had spotted Daniel as he arrived for work.
They were making their way into town and happened to pass him.
It was still early, but the road running past the ranch was quiet.
Daniel was busy fixing the fence and was working alone.
Other men were working in the fields, but they were far off. Daniel was an easy target.
“I say we just do it right now,” Blade stated, pulling his neckerchief up to cover his face.
“I was thinking the same thing,” Dakota agreed, adjusting her neckerchief too.
“Over there.” Blade pointed to the wire fence that ran the perimeter of the property. “It’s broken. We can just slip through.”
Dakota looked to where he was pointing. There was a gap in the fence big enough for them and the horses, and it wasn’t far from where Daniel was working.
“Are you ready?” Blade asked.
“Yes, let’s do it.”
Dakota squeezed her legs around Riot, urging him to start moving. She could hear Blade and Africa right behind them.
“This one is all yours,” Blade said. “But I’m here if you need me.”
“Thank you,” Dakota replied, knowing that she could count on him. Blade wouldn’t let anything happen to her.
Once they slipped through the fence, Dakota increased Riot’s pace, drew her Colt, and rushed directly at Daniel. With no cover, Daniel noticed them from a distance and pulled his pistol, pointing it at her.
“Shoot it out of his hand!” Dakota yelled, trusting Blade’s aim more than her own.
The words had barely left her mouth before the pistol fell from Daniel’s hand and a loud shot rang through the air.
Nobody in the surrounding area would have missed it.
They had to hurry now. Daniel turned around and started running, but he was on foot and didn’t get very far before Dakota reached him.
Running past him, Dakota kicked out her leg, the heel of her boot hitting him on his upper back and sending him toppling to the ground.
Pulling on Riot’s reins, Dakota turned him around and aimed her pistol at Daniel, where he lay on the ground. “Turn around. I want to see your face,” she instructed.
Daniel did as he was told, looking up at her, confusion clear on his face.
Dakota reached deep inside, channeling all her hate and anger. “This is for my mother,” she said, and then pulled the trigger. The .36 slug penetrated his temple, killing him instantly.