After the Ashes(32)

By the time he led a saddled Lucky from the barn, Lorelei sat atop Corey’s horse while her brother soothed Langston’s frightened animal with soft words and a scratch behind the ear. Once Braddock mounted, Corey quickly followed suit.

“I’ve got eyes in the back of my head, kid. So don’t even think about it.”

Corey cut his gaze across to the horizon, letting Braddock know he wasn’t making any promises. Braddock contracted his thighs, sending Lucky into a trot.

Lorelei easily caught up with him. “Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me yet.” Braddock used his heels to send the horse into a full gallop.

As they rode hard across the desert, he wondered how soon it would be until she was cursing him. He was already cursing himself.

***



Braddock had a long, hard ride to mull over his situation. Only one solution satisfied him. Beat the truth out of Corey Sullivan once and for all.

When they finally reached the tall red rocks that hid a slowly fountaining underground spring, the sky was stained a bloody pink. The blue canopy of night closed quickly around them as they stopped to make camp for the night.

After Braddock dismounted, he helped Lorelei slide off the pinto’s back. Her knees buckled, forcing her to grab his shoulders to stay on her feet. Once she regained her balance she made a show of straightening her wrinkled skirt. The way she tried to hide her obvious exhaustion fueled Braddock’s volatile temper.

When Corey came trotting up behind them, Braddock wrapped his left hand around the palomino’s reins and gripped Corey’s shirtfront with his right. He dragged him to the ground before the kid could grunt a protest.

With feet braced, hands balled in fists, Braddock willed Corey to stand and take a swing at him. “You’d better start spilling your guts, kid. Where’s Mulcahy?”

“Get away from me, you crazy bastard. I didn’t ask for your help.”

Braddock hauled him up by his leather vest. He gave Corey a teeth jarring shake to let him know he was serious. “Where’s Mulcahy?”

“I don’t know.” Corey remained limp. He didn’t even try to fight back. He was smarter than Braddock gave him credit for.

Braddock reared back his fist.

Lorelei clutched his arm before he could follow through with the punch. “What are you doing?”

Braddock tried to gently shake her off. “Let go. He has it coming.”

Corey closed his eyes tightly, preparing himself for the blow. For once he kept his smart mouth shut.

Lorelei wrapped both hands around the bend in Braddock’s cocked arm and tugged with all her body weight. “I’m not going to let you hurt my brother, no matter what he’s done.”

Braddock dropped Corey to the ground. He could easily shake her off, of course, but he couldn’t see slinging her into the dirt. As soon as Lorelei released him, he paced in the other direction. She would stick by Corey no matter what he’d done, nor how much it cost her. Braddock had to admit he admired her loyalty, even if it was stupid. Apparently his West Point lessons were harder to shake than he imagined.

Braddock took off his hat and ran his fingers through his hair. His schooled code of honor wasn’t what had gotten him in this mess—running from the law, tied up with a bumbling outlaw and a vulnerable woman. His own personal code of ethics, tarnished as it was, had finally been forced out of retirement by his bad behavior. He had used Lorelei, and he didn’t like his actions. She had filled a hole in him, if just for a little while, and he had opened up a wound in her she had just gotten closed. He would fix the mess in her life if it was the last thing he did. Then she was on her own. He couldn’t save her from all the harsh realities of the world if she refused to let go of her worthless ideals. Ideals got you killed.

He stomped back over to Corey and Lorelei.

“You’d better tell me everything that happened from the moment you met Mulcahy.”

Lorelei draped her arm around her brother’s shoulders. “I told you what happened. Corey didn’t know what they were going to do.”

Braddock stared hard at Corey. “Not that load of shit. The truth.”

“Why are you so angry?” Lorelei asked.

“Do you have any idea how much trouble you’re in? You pointed a rifle at a U.S. marshal. As far as the law’s concerned, you’re as guilty as he is. And I stole a horse, for Pete’s sake. You do know that’s a hanging offense, don’t you?”

She had the good sense to pale and drop her arm from around Corey. “I wouldn’t have shot him. I just didn’t want you to get hurt.”

“From now on, don’t worry about me or him.” He jabbed a finger in Corey’s direction, aching to do so much more. “Worry about yourself, Lorelei, ’cause right now we’re all in the same boat, and it’s sinking.”