little shiver went through him at the thought of the young woman getting caught in an explosion like that. Somebody as pretty as she was shouldn’t be running such risks, he thought.
“Hello, Matt.”
The man’s voice came from behind Matt. He turned and saw Linus Grady, the gambler who’d killed Seward Stone in the hotel. Grady smiled and went on. “I see you found the other place where folks can play a hand of poker in Cottonwood.”
“Yeah, we heard about it from Ike Loomis,” Matt replied. He inclined his head toward his blood brother. “This is Sam Two Wolves, by the way. I don’t recall if you fellas were ever introduced this afternoon or not.”
Grady nodded. “I’m pleased to meet you, Sam. Care to sit in on a game?”
“Thanks, but I don’t play poker that often,” Sam said. “That’s Matt’s game.”
Grady turned back to Matt and asked, “How about it? I don’t think we’ll have the same problems here that we did earlier. Red Mike makes sure everyone stays in line.”
Matt thought it over for a second, then shook his head. “No, thanks. It’s been a long day, and I’m a mite tired. Reckon we’ll go back to the hotel and turn in.”
“Maybe another time,” Grady said with a nod. He turned and strolled toward one of the felt-covered tables, where a game was starting.
“Seems like a nice fella,” Sam commented.
“Yeah, but you don’t want to back him into a corner,” Matt said, thinking about how Grady had reacted with deadly, lightning-quick reflexes when Stone attacked him.
“Do you really intend to call it a night?”
Matt picked up his mug of beer and took a long swallow. “Aren’t you tired?”
“Well, I suppose so.” Sam smiled and patted his stomach. “And still full from that wonderful supper Miss Hannah prepared.”
“Still moonin’ over her, that’s what you mean,” Matt said with a grin. He drank down the rest of the beer, tossed a coin on the bar, and nodded. “Let’s go.”
Mike Loomis stood beside the door to the anteroom, arms crossed over his chest. He nodded to Matt and Sam as they approached and asked, “Takin’ your leave, gents?”
“For now,” Matt said. “We’ll probably be back while we’re still in town.”
“You’re welcome anytime.” Loomis opened the door. “Just go on out once this door is closed. Be sure to shut the outside door behind you. The latch will lock when you do.”
They did as instructed and a moment later stepped out into the warm night. Matt couldn’t get the young woman they had seen in the saloon out of his mind as they walked back up the street toward the hotel.
Maybe because he was thinking of her, he noticed her more readily when she drove past in a buckboard, handling the reins attached to the four-horse hitch with practiced ease. Matt stopped short on the boardwalk and turned to look after the vehicle.
“What is it?” Sam asked as he came to a stop, too.
Matt nodded toward the buckboard as it rolled along the street toward the west end of town. “That Harlow girl who was down at the saloon,” he said. “That was her on the buckboard that just passed us.”
“Are you sure? I wasn’t really paying attention.”
“I’m sure.”
“Well, I guess she was going home. She must have finished her business here in town.”
Matt frowned. “A girl like that doesn’t have any business driving around by herself in the middle of the night.”
“She looked to me like she could take care of herself,” Sam said. “She was carrying a gun, after all.”
“How much good do you reckon that gun would do her if she ran into Bickford and Porter and that gang of bloodthirsty special marshals?”
“The buckboard was empty. What could they do to her?”
“If they suspect her and her family of making moonshine, who knows what they might do?” Matt shook his head grimly. “You saw how quick they were to blow up that shack.”
“They’re not going to throw a bomb at a girl driving an empty buckboard, no matter what they might suspect her of,” Sam said tolerantly.
“Maybe not, but something else bad could happen,” Matt insisted, “especially if she drew that gun and started shooting at them. You think that bunch would put up with that?”
Sam frowned and rubbed at his chin in thought. “Probably not,” he admitted. “What have you got in mind, Matt?”
“I think we should follow her,” Matt replied without hesitation. “Just to make sure she gets home safely, you understand.”
“We don’t know where she lives, and she’s already driven out of town. By the time we could get our horses ready to ride, she’d have a good lead on us.”
“Well, then, time’s a-wastin’, isn’t it? Come on.”
With that, Matt turned away from the hotel and strode determinedly toward the livery stable where they had left their mounts. Sam lingered on the boardwalk just for a second, staring after his blood brother. Then with a sigh and a shake of his head, he started after Matt.
