Rubies for Whitney

EIGHT

Jake's first instinct was that of a U.S. Marshal, which meant cowering in the café was not an option. If Cora – or anyone else – asked questions, he would worry about answering them at that time. For now, he was going to stop the bank robbers.

By the time Jake had found a horse to borrow, the two robbers had mounted their steeds and rode hell-bent toward the end of town. Jake jumped on the horse and took off after them. Keeping hold of one pistol for when he would need to use it, he concentrated on getting as close to the bandits as much as possible. Then and only then would he be satisfied to shoot. Until that time, there was no use firing his weapon and wasting bullets when he knew he was too far away.

If the two fools stayed together, he had a chance of catching both. But, if they separated, he didn't know what he would do. Which one had the bag with more money? And would catching one eventually help him catch the other?

Jake leaned lower toward the animal, trying to make the horse run faster. If he had his own steed, Jake knew for certain he would catch up to the two bank robbers. Riding through the middle of town was difficult with so many people out. He prayed that no child would run out into the street. Although Jake would stop, he doubted the bandits had that kind of heart.

Just as Jake feared, the two separated when they reached the fork in the road. Grumbling under his breath, he had to make a fast decision. Should he follow the one riding out of town, or the one who rode down of the side roads, heading toward the residential area. Without another thought, he followed the one heading out of town. Jake prayed that Cora had alerted the sheriff by now, or all Jake's actions would be for naught.

Once they were out of town and away from putting anyone in danger of catching a stray bullet, Jake pushed the horse faster. The bank robber looked over his shoulder toward Jake, then the man aimed his gun and fired. Jake wasn't worried. He was too far away for any harm to come to him or the horse. Obviously, the bank robber didn't know the first thing about guns. Thankfully, that was Jake's expertise.

The road turned slightly, and he continued to follow the man. But soon, the road split, and the bank robber took the main trail. Trusting his gut, Jake took the upper trail. Although the road wasn't traveled as often, it appeared to not have as many bushes or tress as the trail the other man took. Jake pushed the horse faster, gaining the upper hand.

The trail descended slightly. The thief wasn't too far below him, still riding hard. Studying the distance between them, it appeared to be a good ten feet. Now he had two decisions. He could either shoot the bandit or jump off his horse and pray he landed on the other man, knocking his off his horse.

Jake really didn't want to shoot the man. Plowing his first into the bank robber's face a few times and knocking him senseless would be better. Then, Jake could extract information from the man as to where his friend would have gone.

Decision made, Jake slid his revolver back into the holster and waited for the time he could jump. Finally, as if fate were lending a hand, up ahead there was a clearing in the trees between the two trails. Jake adjusted himself on the horse and waited... then leaped. The fly through the air didn't take long before he landed directly onto the man.

A loud groan escaped the man's throat, and although the bank robber tried to struggle, Jake had the upper hand. He fisted his hand and rammed in into the man's face. The movement caused both men to fall from the horse. Thankfully, Jake used the thief's body to lessen the fall, even though it still hurt. At least he hadn't broken any bones... even though he doubted the other man could say that.

On the ground, the thief wrestled with Jake. He noticed the man must have lost his gun, because the thief spent more time searching for it with his hand than trying to block the hits Jake gave him. Then, the thief threw a punch, slamming into Jake's chin. Ignoring the sting vibrating through him, Jake grabbed a handful of dirt and tossed it into the thief's face. The man released several cuss words as he rubbed his eyes. This gave Jake time to get one more hit in as his fist connected with the thief's nose. The crack of breaking bones rent the air, following by the outpouring of blood from the man's nostrils.