The Judge's Daughter

THREE

Grumbling, he dismounted and moved to her horse. In one swift movement, he swung in back of her and took hold of her reins while still holding the reins to his own horse. Just as he'd figured, Miss Lawson was trembling, so he wrapped an arm around her waist as he led them toward his house.

It didn't take long before he was dismounting again and helping her off the horse. She still didn't say a word, even when he led her inside his home and to the couch. He took the afghan off the back of the couch and wrapped it around her. She stared at the hearth. Although he needed to start a fire, he first needed to take the horses into the barn.

Austin questioned his actions as he quickly stalled the horses. He was Miss Lawson's prisoner, yet he still brought her into his home after her shock. Why? Now that he wasn't under her command, would he send her away? But then guilt was a heavy burden, and he truly felt sorry for not being able to find her father's killer. He had always wanted to finish what he started. This case should be no different.

Although he looked forward to his new life, he would put it on hold for a few more days. Not every day did a dying gambler leave four acres of land to a stranger... six strangers, to be precise. Thankfully, Austin was included with his five other Bounty hunter friends. Each man got to build their own home and live off the land any way they chose.

Austin had always wanted to be a blacksmith. He loved using his hands to make things, and when he was a Bounty hunter for six years, he didn't do enough with his hands – except for shooting a gun and perhaps holding a pretty lil' lady once in a while.

Austin walked toward his newly-built log cabin. His blacksmith barn would be the next to go up. However, he was very satisfied with his new home. Finally, after all these years of living from hotel to hotel or sleeping under the stars, he was able to have a place all to himself. His furniture had been delivered last week, and he hadn't really had the time to use it yet.

The smell of wood burning in the fire, and seeing the white smoke rise from the chimney, reminded him of his uninvited guest. Miss Lawson must have come out of her daze and started a fire. He hurried inside to make sure she did it right. He didn't need his whole cabin burning down when it was still very new.

When he entered, Miss Lawson knelt in front of the hearth, using the poker to stir around the logs as the fire grew larger, and slowly heated the room. She still wore the afghan around her shoulders. As soon as he closed the door, she looked over her shoulder at him.

He gave her an encouraging smile. "I'm happy to see you're amongst the living now."

She rolled her eyes and released a soft snort. "I wasn't dead."

"No, but your mind was." He moved closer to her. "I'm assuming you're all right now."

She nodded. "Yes." She licked her lips. "I must apologize for what happened. When I saw the cougar..." She shivered and tightened the afghan around her shoulders. "That's how my mother died."

Austin couldn't stop his heart from softening as he understood her reaction now. "I'm so sorry that happened."

"I thought I'd be all right." She shrugged as tears filled her eyes. "But when I saw the cougar coming straight for me, I froze in panic. I could see my life flashing before me."

He reached down and took her hand, pulling her up. She dropped the poker and turned, allowing him to led her back to the couch. He should be used to seeing women cry. In his line of work, he saw it constantly. But there was something about Ellie Lawson that tugged on his heartstrings. He figured it had something to do with feeling guilty about not finding her father's killer.

She wiped her eyes and laughed lightly. "I'm fine. Really, I am."

"I'm glad to hear it." He stepped toward the kitchen. "Would you like some coffee or tea?"

"Tea would be nice." She tried to smile.

He gave her a nod and moved into the kitchen. "So, Miss Lawson? Am I still your prisoner?"

As he waited for her answer, he added firewood to the stove and lit it. He heard her footsteps moving in the other room until she walked into the kitchen. She held her rifle. However, the expression on her face wasn't as stern. Her pretty hazel gaze nearly pleaded with him.

"That's actually up to you, Mr. Tanner. I need your help to find my father's killer. I don't want to have to force you, but I will."

Austin shrugged and moved to get the teakettle. "I still think about your father's case and wonder why I couldn't solve it. I don't like to admit defeat, and as you know, I had to with this case. However, I'm willing to look at it again if only to clear my own conscious."

Miss Lawson expelled a deep breath, and her shoulders relaxed. She put the rifle on the table. "Thank you, Mr. Tanner." Her voice was tight, so she cleared her throat. "I suppose I should ask how you got out of the handcuffs."

He chuckled, setting the kettle full of water on the warming stove. "In my years as a bounty hunter, I've had a couple of outlaws try to escape after I had handcuffed them. So, over the years, I tried to learn how they accomplished such a difficult task." He grinned. "I'm happy to say that it took me to feel like a criminal to escape my handcuffs."

She arched an eyebrow. "Are you going to share your findings?"

"The buckles on the saddle." He winked. "So, if you ever have to handcuff another person, make sure there are no buckles."

"Or, I can just make sure their hands are behind them?"

He nodded. "Yes, I think that will work, too."

She sat at the table, resting her arms on the edge. "Tell me, Mr. Tanner, what people did you suspect of killing my father?"

"First off," he moved to the table and sat across from her, "if we are going to be working closely on this case, I would like you to call me Austin."

"All right. Then I suppose you can call me Ellie."

He smiled. "Thank you, Ellie." With her being much more relaxed like this, Austin would enjoy working with her. He hoped she would have a better outlook on the case. He needed a fresh pair of eyes – and what pretty eyes they were.

"When your uncle first hired me," he began, "I thought the murderer was someone he had sent to jail. I also wondered if the suspect could have been a family member of the criminal your father had sentenced to hang. I thought I'd found a trail, which led me out this way. Unfortunately, it turned out to be nothing. I met up with some other bounty hunters who were also looking into your father's murder. We compared notes, and we really couldn't figure out who might have killed the judge. Everyone seemed to have a plausible alibi."

Her frown deepened. "Well, I want to help in some way. Perhaps I can give you information about what Father was doing the day before, or even the day that he died."

"That will be helpful, indeed. However, I think we need to go back to Kansas to look over the things collected at the crime scene. I'm sure the sheriff will still have those."

"Yes, that's a good plan."

"Since it's early in the day, we should start as soon as possible." He glanced over her attire. "Do you have any luggage?"

"No. All I have is what's in my saddlebag and what I'm wearing."

Austin was surprised that any woman would travel so lightly. Yet, he thought highly of her for wanting something so badly that clothes weren't an issue. "Splendid. Let me throw a few things together, and we'll be on our way."