Although the injured woman winced when she moved, she did manage a wan smile. “I know you did. It was the right thing to do. I’m just glad I didn’t know about it beforehand.”
Pulling her sniffling child close again she held him, kissed him and stroked his hair. “We don’t know how to thank you, do we, Danny?”
Samantha knew that the dreadful reality of her situation would hit the new widow soon and erase her smile. Once that happened, Lindy was liable to go into shock, which could be more dangerous than her wound, so it would be best to keep her focused on other things for as long as possible.
“Why don’t the two of you come over here with me?” Sam suggested, meaning to remove them from proximity to Ben’s body.
“If you don’t mind, I think I’d like to stay right here for a few more minutes,” Lindy said with surprising calm. “We want to say goodbye.”
When Samantha saw her begin to speak privately to her son while gazing at the prone figure of the man who had given his life for them, she was in awe. Ben Southerland had been the kind of short-tempered, abusive husband who gave all men a bad name, yet he had come through like a real hero when it had counted.
Sam let tears of sympathy stream down her cheeks without embarrassment. There was good in even the worst people, wasn’t there? Above all, she hoped that Danny was able to remember that the last thing his daddy had done for him had shown his love.
* * *
John stirred. Moaned. Were those sirens he was hearing in the background? He sure hoped he wasn’t dreaming.
His eyelids felt leaden, his ears buzzed. Forcing his eyes open he saw a rough, stained, plank floor and began to recall glimmers of the events that had landed him there. In the deep reaches of his consciousness he thought he remembered hearing shots fired.
Anxious, he started to push himself up, preparing to do battle again if necessary and wondering what had become of the weapon he’d had when he’d burst into the cabin.
Samantha restrained him. “Hold on, mister. You need to lie still. There’s no danger anymore.”
“What’s going on?” Quickly scanning the now quiet room and finding no active threat, he clapped a hand to the back of his head. “Ouch. That hurts.”
“I’m not surprised. You took a hard hit,” she said, peering into his eyes. “Your pupils are equal and reactive. That’s a good sign.”
“What about the rest of these men? What did you do, wipe out the whole gang by yourself?”
He saw Sam’s smile fade before she nodded toward where Lindy and Danny were.
“No. You and Ben did that. You finished the first man after Ben missed him. Then the other guy tried to shoot Danny and Ben dropped him with a perfect shot. It cost him his life.” She sighed noisily. “I think he used the gun he stole from you.”
John remained sitting, trying to take it all in while he waited for a wave of dizziness to pass. “Did you ever figure out what led to all this?”
“I think so. Ben was apparently doing some money laundering for a gang of criminals. When he got into the fight with you at the hospital and ran, they thought he was trying to either cheat them or steal from them and they sent a couple of thugs to settle things. Ben tried to explain himself when he got here but they weren’t in the mood to listen.”
John grimaced. “A fine hero I am. I came all the way up here to rescue you and missed half the fight.”
“You’re still my hero,” Samantha said with a teary smile. “Always were, always will be.”
“Do you mean that?” John was almost afraid to hear her answer but he’d had to ask.
“With all my heart,” she said quietly, allowing him to slip an arm around her and draw her closer.
“You’ve forgiven me?”
“Oh, yes. And I’m not angry at God anymore, either.”
“Were you?”
“Yes. I lost faith when I prayed and didn’t get the answers I thought I should. It’s taken me all these years to realize that most of the problem was my attitude, not what others did or didn’t do.”
She cuddled closer. “I was a part of something today that I wouldn’t have believed if I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes. A man I didn’t think deserved a second chance, no matter what, stepped up and proved me wrong.”
“Speaking of second chances…” John hesitated long enough to lift her chin with one finger so he could see her full reaction as he asked, “Will you marry me?”