The Pursuit (Family of Love Series) (A Western Romance Story) Read online

  “Do you think she left with him willingly?” Max asked. “Even if it was a kidnapping, do you think she might go with him peacefully so that she wouldn’t get hurt by him?”

  Mark and Adam shared another look. “Yes, I suppose she might have. But I just don’t see our Molly B acting like a shrinking violet. That’s not her.”

  Mark nodded. “He’s right. Molly is a roaring fire. She isn’t about to back down.”

  “That doesn’t mean she might not have a plan of her own, then, though, does it, Papa?” Max glanced at Mark, too, to invite him to answer the question if he could or wanted to. “She’s smarter than Luke, isn’t she?”

  “That she is, son. Or so it seems. So, you may be right, that may be exactly what’s goin’ on with her. Good thinking. We’ll have to watch out for traps when we go to the cabin. That is, if they aren’t at Luke’s or we don’t find Molly at the little house.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  THE SEARCH

  THE SEARCH

  “So, if Luke’s grandfather has a cabin near here, why didn’t he just stay there?” Mark asked as they rode to the small shack Luke was occupying during his stay in Wickenburg.

  Adam looked over at him. “I think it’s pretty run down. Part of the roof has come in.”

  “He’s working on the schoolhouse, why didn’t he work on the cabin?”

  Adam grinned. “You talk like I know the man well. I haven’t spoken to him more than a handful of times. I never really thought much about him, just another face in the crowd, you know?”

  “Yeah, I do.”

  “I know where the cabin is. Not exactly, but about where it is.”

  “How did you find that out? He tell ya?”

  Adam shook his head. “Sam told me last time I was in Horse N Saddle.”

  “So he tells the bartender and Sam doesn’t ask him anything about it?”

  Adam chuckled. “I guess that’s probably what he did and that’s why he got the explanation about the roof and such. You ask a lot of questions, Mark. You a woman?”

  Mark grunted and gave Adam a dirty look. “I just want to find Molly. I hate the thought that she’s in danger. I’m gonna strangle that man if he took her.”

  “I’m guessing he probably did take her.” Adam said.

  “Yeah, I think so, too.”

  “But why would he want her? What could he possibly…” Adam stopped, shaking his head. “I’m not going to think about it. I don’t want to think about it.”

  “Me neither. She is a wealthy woman, though. Maybe he found that out and took her for some kind of ransom.”

  “Who’s he gonna get the money from? Her relatives live in Virginia and Alice certainly doesn’t have access to Molly’s money.”

  “I don’t know. It’s a pain. I’m gonna strangle that man.”

  “There’s his house there. That’s the one, right?” Adam pointed to a shack between two larger buildings in the distance.

  Mark nodded. “Yeah, that’s the one. Caught him there yesterday.”

  “You caught him there? Doing what? He lives there.”

  Mark shook his head. “Not what I meant. I didn’t actually catch him there. I went there to tell him to back off Molly.”

  “You didn’t.” Adam stared at his friend, and then moved his eyes to the shack in the distance. “What did he say?”

  “He told me Molly was a grown woman and would make her own decisions.”

  “Sounds reasonable,” Adam murmured in a low voice, avoiding Mark’s eyes.

  “It’s not reasonable,” Mark countered. “He’s a low down, dirty dog and he needs to be buried.”

  “Whoa, Mark. I know you’ve got your sights set on Molly, but you’re gonna have to be calm. We don’t know what’s happened. She could have left with him willingly. I know, I know…” Adam lifted one hand to stop Mark from protesting against such a thought, which he had opened his mouth to do. “It’s really, really unlikely. But I’m just trying to tell you to have an open mind so that you won’t end up with egg on your face.”

  “There won’t be any egg on my face. There will be a fist on Luke’s face.”

  Adam shook his head. “Now you’re just talking like a schoolboy. Come on. I don’t think he’s here, but we might as well check thoroughly before heading back to your place.”

  They dismounted and went up to the front door, each of them with one hand placed firmly on the guns at their side. They were quiet, their eyes peering around. Adam gestured to Mark to go around back by the right side of the shack while he took the left.

  They both walked around the house and met in the back.

  “I saw no movement through the windows. Should we knock?” Mark was staring at the shack.

  “I’m gonna knock. You stay back here in case he runs out the back door.”

  “Okay, you got it.”

  “If he does come out this door, don’t you kill him. You understand? If he knows where Molly is and you kill him, we’ll never find her.”

  Mark uttered a swear word under his breath and nodded. “I won’t kill him, Adam. But I’m not promising he isn’t gonna get severely beaten.”

  Adam nodded back. “Just try to stay calm, my friend.”

  Mark watched as Adam went around to the front door. He could hear Adam knock and call out to Luke. The shack remained silent. Mark didn’t wait to see if Luke would come out the back. He could tell no one was home. He walked around to the front to see Adam coming from the front door.

  “You think we should check inside? You think it’s locked?”

  “I can’t imagine someone like Luke not locking up his house, even if it is a shack like this.”

  Mark scanned the front door. “I bet I could kick that in.”

  Adam snorted. “Max could kick that in.” He turned to his son, who had been silent their entire ride, listening to them. “You wanna kick that door in, Max?”

  Max raised his eyebrows. “You want me to, Papa?”

  “I think you can do it. You think you can do it?”

  “I sure do.”

  Adam lifted one hand toward the small, rickety door. “Have at it.”

  Max slid down from his horse and, his eyes moving from Mark to his father and back, walked to the door. He stood for only a moment before lifting one leg and slamming his foot against the door, just next to the knob. It broke open immediately, swinging into the shack and slamming against the opposing wall inside. Max turned back to them with a grin.

  “If he’s here, you’re sure to have just sent him to his grave with that kick,” Adam grinned, rubbing his son’s hair back and forth. Max chuckled and swatted his father’s hand away. When Adam withdrew his hand, Max made a point of smoothing his hair back down.

  “Papa, I hate that.”

  While they were playing around, Mark had passed by them and looked inside the shack. It was disheveled and not in the least clean. He took a few steps inside, glancing back to see Adam and Max still horsing around with each other, large smiles on their faces.

  He didn’t have a smile on his face. He wanted to know what Luke did to Molly. He was sure the man had taken her. He went to the empty kitchen and looked around. Other than the kitchen and the front room, there was one small bedroom attached. The mattress on the floor was stained and dirty. He drew himself back in disgust. Luke was not in any of the rooms. “It smells awful in there. I’m not going in. If he was here, we’d know it. And so would he. Let’s get out of here. I’ll bet he took her to that cabin.”

  “He’s not here.” Adam nodded in agreement. “Let’s go to the little house first and see if Molly has returned. Maybe she just went for a walk.”

  “Okay. I don’t think she went for a walk, though. She knew I was coming by before church.”

  Adam nodded as he pulled himself up into the saddle of his horse. “I know. I’m trying to think positive.”

  “That’s a good thing, I reckon. But I’m not having an easy time doing that. I… I really like Molly.”
<
br />   “I know you do. I know you are worried. I’m glad you’ve found someone to care about, my friend. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you like this about a woman.”

  Mark felt his face heating up as it filled with blood. “I have never felt like this before. I want to find her so bad, it makes my head hurt.”

  Adam nodded. “Worry can do that to a man. Just stay calm. We’re gonna find her and she’s gonna be okay. How many times have we been through situations like this? We just gotta keep going until we find her. I know we’ll find her.”

  “I know, Adam. I know.”

  They rode along the dirt road to Mark’s property, which was not as far from Luke’s shack as Mark would have liked. It looked as deserted as it had that morning. Mark shook his head before they even got to the house. “She’s not gonna be here, Adam. It looks just like it did when I left.”

  “Unless you can see through those walls, Mark, I want to check. Did you go inside this morning when you stopped by?”

  Mark nodded. “I did. But I didn’t really look. I was only in the living room. I didn’t search the house. When she didn’t answer, I left.”

  “Better take a good look through the house. Search it. She might be hurt. She could have fallen and hit her head.”

  Mark grunted. “I wish I’d thought of that this morning. If she did hurt herself, she’ll be there still, and I could have helped her already.”

  Adam didn’t respond at first. As they dismounted, he said, “Don’t concern yourself if we find her in there, Mark. There was no way for you to know she might have been hurt.”

  “My first thought was that she had been picked up by you and your family. I don’t know why I thought that. She knew I was coming to see if she wanted to go with me. Surely she would have preferred to ride with me.”

  “I believe she would have, yes,” Adam nodded. “I know Alice is her cousin, but it’s different when you are invited by a man. I mean for a woman. You know what I mean.”

  Mark chuckled. “I know what you mean.” He lost his smile as he continued, “Do you think Luke will hurt Molly?”

  Adam pulled in a deep breath and pressed his lips together as he puffed out his cheeks. “I… I really don’t know, Mark. It’s hard to tell when people are who they say they are. People pretend to be your friend and then they betray you at the first opportunity that will benefit them. I’m tellin’ ya, Mark, it’s gettin’ harder and harder to understand people these days.”

  “You sure it isn’t because you’re old as the hills and losing your mind?” Mark grinned at Adam.

  “Well, at least you can joke, Mark. That’s good to see.”

  Mark shrugged. “It’s all a façade. You said to be positive.”

  Adam laughed. “Just keep trying to be positive. That will make you happier than anything else while we’re under this stress.”

  “Stress…” Mark repeated. “I’m not under nearly as much as Molly is… granting that she’s still… alive…”

  “You’re heading down a negative path, my friend. Follow me, I’m gonna take you to that cabin.”

  Mark turned Journey in the direction Adam was taking and followed him down the road till they reached a trail leading off into a woodsy area. The path was well worn on the ground, but the surrounding foliage had a field day growing over the path and meeting up top like a natural arch.

  He looked around him, searching for landmarks so that he could find his way to and from the cabin with ease. He would purchase the cabin after he put Luke in his place. He’d rebuild it and sell it for the highest profit he could get. And then he’d give all the money to Molly. That is, if she was at the cabin and still alive.

  He shuddered.

  Of course she was still alive. He wouldn’t allow himself to believe otherwise.

  Luke hadn’t seemed to be much of a threat, even when Mark went to visit him. He didn’t get a violent vibe from the man, which made it all the more confusing for him that Luke could have done something like kidnap Molly. It was so foolish. Molly would probably have given him the money he needed, if only he’d asked for it. She was that type of person, Mark could already tell. She was generous and kind. She was beautiful and soft-spoken, but she wasn’t weak. She had a stubborn streak and he’d noticed she was quick to converse. She was friendly to everyone. She’d already gained a solid reputation among the townspeople as a welcome addition to the Wickenburg family.

  Mark’s heart beat hard as they went through the brush. Several times, he had to lift his hand to push an overhanging branch out of the way. “It doesn’t look like anyone has been to this place in a long, long time.”

  “There are probably other ways to get there but I think this is probably our best bet. Especially if he’s there. Then we won’t have to worry about him seeing us coming up from the front.”

  “How many times have you been out here?”

  Adam, who was leading, turned in the saddle to look back at him. “I’ve never been to this place. I would have told you about it in the first place, if I had been here before. It only crossed my mind because of this situation. With Molly disappearing so soon after her arrival, and the way he’s been stalking her, I have to think this is where he would bring her.”

  “I think you’re right. Glad we’re coming up from behind though. I don’t want to spook him. We don’t know what he’d do to Molly. Or what he’s already done to her.”

  “Stop thinking like that, my friend. Let’s just get there and see what’s going on.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  THE CABIN IN THE WOODS

  THE CABIN IN THE WOODS

  The three men came to a clearing and Adam put up his hand for them to stop. He turned in his saddle and looked behind him.

  “All right, Max, you’re gonna have to be really quiet, okay? You aren’t as strong as Luke or as big as him. Do you want to stay behind and act as a lookout?”

  Max shook his head. “No, Papa, I want to be with you if you need my help.”

  Adam and Mark shared a look. “Let him come along, Adam,” Mark said. “He is a smart boy. I’m sure he will be careful.” He turned in his saddle to look behind him at Max. “You will, won’t you?”

  “Of course, Uncle Mark. I really will, Papa. You don’t have to be worried about me.”

  Adam snorted, turning back around. “You won’t be alive a day without me worrying about you.”

  Mark grinned at Max, who returned it, before turning back to face the clearing.

  “The cabin is on the other side of this clearing and up that hill there. Do you see it?”

  Max and Mark nodded.

  “If you want to reach it by the main road, you have to go around that way.” He pointed at the winding road they could barely see through the trees, cacti, large rocks, and brush that surrounded the clearing. He glanced over his shoulder. “You two see the road?”

  They both answered that they did.

  “When we leave here, depending on what happens here, that’s the road we’ll take. No sense in trying to be sly about it if there’s no one here.”

  “If they aren’t here, Papa, where would they be?”

  Adam looked back at him, shaking his head. “I don’t know. I don’t even know if Molly is with Luke.”

  “I think we can safely assume he’s got her,” Mark said.

  Adam nodded, shifting in the saddle. “I know. I think so, too. All right, let’s get through this clearing and hope we don’t get seen.”

  “Papa, I have an idea,” Max said, stopping them from moving forward into the clearing. Adam turned the horse slightly so that he could look at Max without turning himself around in the saddle.

  Adam nodded. “Go ahead, son.”

  “Well, I’m smaller than the two of you. Maybe if I cross the clearing by myself and look around the cabin, there’s less chance we’ll get caught.”

  Adam immediately shook his head. “I’m not letting you risk yourself like that, son. I’m…”

  “I mean it, Papa. I
could get there quietly and I know how to be sneaky. I’m always hiding and scaring Riley.”

  Mark burst out laughing, which he cut short when he thought it might be heard from the cabin.

  Adam struggled not to grin. “That’s very mean of you, Max. But I don’t see how that is the same as going where there may be extreme danger. Riley isn’t going to kill you.”

  “I think she’d like to sometimes.”

  Again, Mark let out a sharp laugh, which he gulped back down as quickly as he could.

  “She probably would. But you can’t handle Luke alone, should he see you.”

  Max frowned. “Please, Papa, I can do this. I will be right back, I’ll just look around a little and come back and tell you what I saw.”

  Mark raised his shoulders. “It does sound like a good idea to me, Adam. Why don’t you let the boy have a shot at it?”

  “I don’t know. That doesn’t sound logical to me. I don’t want him hurt.”

  “He’s a growing boy. Let him grow up a little more. It’s an adventure. And he’s smart enough to be extremely quiet. We’re right here. If he needs us that bad, he can yell for us and we’ll be there in less time than it takes for a lamb to shake its tail.”

  Adam looked skeptical, moving his eyes back and forth between Max and Mark.

  “You sure you want to do something that risky, Max?”

  “I do, Papa. I can do it. Please let me try.”

  “You better be careful.”

  “Of course, Papa. I don’t wanna die.”

  Both Mark and Adam chuckled at that.

  “All right. Dismount and get on over there, then. But just look around a little, see if his wagon or his horse is there, and then come back.”

  “Okay, Papa.”

  Mark and Adam watched the young man get down from his horse. He handed the reins to Mark, who was closer than Adam, and began across the clearing. There were many large rocks in the clearing. They were sculpted flat in many places by the water that had once streamed through the dried river bed. Max took the opportunity to hide behind each one that provided him cover as he stealthily went from one side of the clearing to the other. Adam moved his horse a little closer but did not come out into the clearing. He wished he could get closer.