The Fire in Ember - DiAnn Mills [115]
Ember, where are you?
Throwing back the quilt, he carried his boots down the loft for the last time. No point disturbing Parker with his tossing and turning on a creaky mattress. He might as well stay up and keep thinking and praying through the worries — oh the worries.
The enormity of trouble besetting Rocky Falls needled him, and it didn’t make him feel any better about Oberlander claiming Ember was working with the cattle rustlers. Leon’s death, followed by Ted’s and the ranch hand’s from the Wide O were reasons for every rancher to get trigger happy. John had almost been number four in the killings. Some folks were taking advantage of Oberlander’s offer and were selling out to him. The idea of someone capitalizing on a man’s loss sent a hollow feeling to the core of John’s soul. He still believed Oberlander had a hand in the misfortune.
While he sat on the porch steps with only his thoughts and his coat for company, the sound of horse hooves drew his attention. He wrapped his fingers around the rifle beside him and waited until he heard Wirt’s voice.
“Davis, you run and get your mama,” Wirt said. “We’ll help Mark down from his horse.”
Alarm jolted John, and he rose to his feet. “What’s wrong with Mark?”
“I’m fine. Just a bad headache. When I get my hands—”
“Hush,” Evan said. “Someone hit him in the back of the head. He’s got a nasty cut and a lump.”
“I — ”
“Quiet,” Wirt said. “Listen to your brother.” He jumped down from his horse. “John, I’m sorry. I didn’t get there in time to help.”
John hurried to help Wirt and his brothers with Mark. “What happened?”
“Rustlers hit him in the head just before they run off with all of our cattle.” Evan’s words ripped through John. Ember gone and now this?
“All of our cattle? Did you see any of the men?”
Mark moaned. “Just before I got hit, a man said this was from Bert.”
Bert? “You must have heard wrong.”
“Then where is she? My guess is she’s gone. Joined up with her no-good brothers,” Aaron said, his voice resounding against the night. “Sure would like to ask her a few things. She’s behind this. I’m sure of it. What kind of person uses others and then betrays them? Tell me, John. Does she care about you or is she using you?”
“Calm down. We’ll wake her and see what she knows,” Evan said.
“No, you won’t,” John said, his voice brimming with anger at what this meant. “She’s been missing all day. We’ve tried to find her—”
“What?” Evan said. “What do you mean she’s ‘missing'?”
“Gone. Not here.” John swung Mark’s arm over his shoulder. “I tried to follow the tracks of two horses that were involved, but they rode into the mountains.” She can’t be behind this.
“Mark’s right,” Aaron said, and John didn’t dispute him.
“Come daylight, I’ll ride with you to where the cattle were stolen,” Evan said. “I’ve already thought about alerting Bob Culpepper and Uncle Parker.”
John allowed the tragedy of the night to sink in. “Parker’s here. And we’ve got about three hours until daylight.”
The door squeaked open, and John realized Davis had wasted no time in getting Mama out of bed.
“Mark’s been hurt?” Mama’s voice cracked.
John and Evan carried him between them into the house.
“Looks like Ember’s had a hand in this,” Aaron said. “Our cattle are gone. John was shot. Now Mark’s got a lump on his head. Men are dead. What did we do to her that she’s caused all of this trouble?”
John should have defended her. He should have said Aaron didn’t have proof. But John didn’t know what the truth was anymore. And he feared they were right.
CHAPTER 54
As soon as the pink and purple hues of near dawn touched the horizon, John, Parker, Wirt, and Evan dug their heels into their mounts and rode across the 5T to where the cattle had been stolen near the summer pasture. At the site where sparse and worn grass and shrub existed together, all that remained were cattle prints and the telltale remains of a campfire.
John dismounted first to look for boot prints. Lack of sleep and feelings as torn as a battle-scarred flag, he weighed