Redemption's Edge by Shirleen Davies Page B

into the air and yelling at the bawling animals, trying to get them to follow his commands.
    Bull and Rude also fired into the air, getting the reaction they wanted. The lead animals began to turn, the others following, circling around to join the back of the herd. It took time before the cowhands got the cattle settled down. Their success wasn’t a matter of luck as much as an expectation they knew they could control the herd.
    “What the hell happened?” Ellis glared at Bull after he’d pulled down the kerchief covering his face.
    “Gunfire. It came from the ridge a couple miles back.”
    Ellis let out a string of curses. “It’s time we go after that son-of-a-bitch.”
    Like the others, he was certain who ordered the stampeding of their herd. The same person who shot Hank and who’d tried to run Pat off the land for years—King Tolbert. He’d tried this same tactic several times over the years, yet they’d never been able to prove his men had been the ones to do it. Most of the time, they’d stopped the running cattle and recovered any who’d become separated. A couple of times, they’d lost more than a few head, and on one occasion, a wrangler had been injured, breaking a leg and cracking a few ribs.
    Bull nodded, as angry as Ellis at the continued attacks, wanting to hunt down and punish those responsible, but accepting they’d do nothing until the Pelletiers gave the word. He glanced at Rude, who sat astride his horse on the front edge of the herd, drinking from a canteen, and looking in the direction of the gunshots. Bull knew someone had been tipping off Tolbert to their daily routine. He couldn’t believe any of the ranch hands, his friends, would put the others in danger. Still, he planned to be more vigilant.
    “Let’s get the cattle moving and talk to the Pelletiers. With luck, they were able to find more men.” Bull made a slight clucking sound and his horse pulled out, following the cowboy’s subtle commands.
    It took three hours to get the cattle to a large pasture not far from the ranch house. Joe and the new men joined them and helped to split the herd into groups. By dusk, the tired ranch hands slid off their horses and headed for the supper Bernice had set out in the bunkhouse.
    “How’d it go?” Dax asked as he sat alongside Luke on a long bench and grabbed a plate.
    Ellis spoke up. “We’ve got more trouble. Someone tried to scatter the herd, but we got them under control. It had to be Tolbert’s men.”
    “What do you think, Bull?” Luke asked.
    “I agree with Ellis. I saw a flash of light from a ridge not long before the shots rang out. They didn’t aim at us. Their goal seemed to be to spook the cattle, get them out of control, and make us lose a few.” He glanced at Rude. Something about the man’s silence didn’t sit right. “We’re good, though. Still have the same count.”
    Ellis scrubbed a hand over his whiskered jaw. “When we going to go after them, General?”
    The new men glanced up at the mention of the military title. Rude knew his bosses were from the south. Now he also understood at least one had fought in the war.
    “I met Tolbert in town today. Seems it’s time Luke and I paid him a visit.”
    Luke agreed. “We’ll ride over tomorrow morning.”
     

Chapter Six
    Rachel sat up and rubbed her eyes, having been roused awake by the loud knocking. “Coming!” She grabbed her wrap, slipping it on before yanking the door open to see Al, the bartender at the Wild Rose.
    “We need the doctor, Miss Rachel. There’s been a fight at the saloon. One of the men has been shot pretty bad. We’ve got him out front of the clinic.”
    “I’ll get the doctor.”
    Charles hurried through the back door. He’d thrown on pants and a shirt, but still looked disheveled from Rachel shaking him awake. He looked down at an unconscious man, covered in blood and laying on the table.
    Al and another man stood to the side, the eyes of the younger one showing a combination