Panic filled Maverick, and he acted quickly. He jumped on Fred, knocking the drunkard to the ground. The pistol flew from his hand. Maverick grasped it and then hit it against Fred’s forehead. Seconds later, the man was out cold.
Maverick jumped off the porch and ran to his steed, which somehow had wandered to the other side of the house. He cussed and ran as fast as he could to get his horse. Finally, he was able to mount. As he urged the horse forward, he prayed he’d be able to catch up with the men who took Hannah. He couldn’t let anything happen to her.
FIVE
Hannah’s head swam with dizziness, and her stomach lurched. The side of her head throbbed painfully. Groaning, she raised her hand to feel what was causing so much turmoil. When her fingers brushed against the lump on her skull, she cringed as another pain shot through her.
What in tarnation had happened to her? The last thing she remembered was hearing Maverick’s worried voice as he talked with the person on the porch. She had left the couch to see what was going on when something struck her head.
Who had done this to her? And, would Maverick come to her rescue? Because as she looked around the meager shack as she lay on the floor, she knew she wasn’t in Maverick’s home at all.
As she tried to sit up, her head pounded harder, making her stomach lurch again. It was a good thing she hadn’t eaten anything, or it would be on the floor next to her any minute now. Another pain in her body confused her. Why were the muscles in her belly, hurting?
She placed a palm over the spot where her unborn child would soon show itself. Had something happened to her baby? And yet, all that ached were the muscles. She prayed her baby was still healthy, and that no damage would come to the child.
But now... Hannah needed to figure out where she was, even if it made her sick to open her eyes and to listen to the voices echoing in the shack. Yet, after a few minutes, she still didn’t recognize any of the voices. Then again, she’d only been in Stumptown for a few hours and had only talked to a handful of people. Why would she recognize anyone’s voice?
Silently, she prayed for strength. Since she was the only one in this pitiful looking room, that meant nobody was keeping an eye on her. She could try and escape... if only she could sit up.
Once again, she tried to maintain her balance and lift off the floor. The swimming in her head increased, and she dry heaved. All right, so maybe now was not the time to leave.
Footsteps squeaked on the floor, coming from another room. The person stopped in front of her, but she didn’t dare open her eyes. However, a scent drifted around her, and she smelled... freshly baked bread? No, that couldn’t be right.
“Hey, Miss.” The man’s boot pushed against her shoulder. “Are ya hungry?”
Her stomach growled, and she was certain he heard it.
“Well, here’s some soup and bread.”
He placed a tray in front of her and then left the room. She opened her eyes. True to his word, there was a bowl with steaming broth and vegetables inside, along with two slices of bread. It would be difficult to eat lying on her side, but she had no other choice, since sitting up wasn’t an option.
It took her a few minutes to create the awkward movement from dipping the spoon in the bowl and then bringing it to her mouth without spilling on the floor. Soon, she didn’t care what she looked like and moved the bowl very near to her chin so that she could slurp the danged soup.
The food helped to soothe the dry heaves a bit, thankfully. Hannah closed her eyes again and rested her still throbbing head on her arm. Her belly wasn’t full, but a little food was better than no food.
How much time had passed as she drifted in and out of sleep, she wasn’t sure, but soon, the voices from the other room became louder. They were angry about something. She didn’t care, just as long as they didn’t try and involve her again. For a moment, she wondered if they just wanted to use her as ransom. After all, she was supposed to be marrying one of Stumptown’s wealthy bachelors. The man who’d come to talk to Maverick hadn’t sounded very happy, so there must be more of them.
Slowly, she rolled to her back and opened her eyes fully. The lump on the side of her head didn’t throb as much now, and the pain wasn’t as fierce, either. The small room only had one window, and by the look of it, the sun was starting to descend on the horizon. Would Bryan know she was gone? He probably suspected Maverick of taking her, and of course, if he went to Maverick’s house and she wasn’t there, the two brothers would come to look for her, right? But if that were the case, why was she still here?
The angry voices in the other room grew quiet for a moment, and then came the sickening sound of a body being beaten. Squeezing her eyes closed, she tried not to focus on what she heard, but it brought back memories she had wanted to keep hidden – memories she wished had never happened. Luca McMillian was the reason she left the traveling group of actors. He was a sweet-talker, but when he consumed too much whiskey, he turned violent. She had been with him during one of these episodes, and she left with only a few bruises on her face and a sprained wrist. She’d been lucky that it hadn’t been worse.
The footsteps shaking
