High Mountain Drifter by Jillian Hart Page A

papers. "If Ernest thinks I'm going to live in fear, he's wrong. I am going to live my life, going to go on as if he isn't out there. Well, as much as I can. He can't hurt what matters most. I won't let him."
    "Then I guess you'd better help with the papers." Hard not to love this girl, she thought fondly, turning her attention to the stacks upon stacks. "I'm starting a burn pile and a keep pile. I suspect most of it can be burned."
    "Why did she keep all this stuff?" Verbena chose a big pile and heaved it into her arms.
    "Mother couldn't throw a thing away, and frankly, as her illness progressed there was less time and so much to do, and she needed a lot of care. Some things just got left by the wayside, like clearing out cabinets and sorting through old records."
    "I know she wasn't good to you." Verbena tucked the stack against her, balancing it carefully, and reached for her cane. "Everyone says so. It had to be hard taking care of her. When Ma and Pa were so sick, it was difficult for so many reasons. We didn't want to fail them, we were terrified we'd lose them. I can't imagine how that had to be with a parent like Grandmother."
    "I did my duty." Duty. That's what Mother had called it. A daughter's duty. But then, Mother thought she owned her children like a possession. Unhappy remembering, Aumaleigh shot a glance at the night stand and the letter.
    "We're here to love you now, so we'll try to make up for it." Verbena dumped the stack on the bed where it bounced, sheets of paper spreading across the old log cabin quilt.
    "Well, I intend to love you girls right back." Yes, she was so grateful for her wonderful nieces. She chose a big clump of papers off the top of a tottering pile. "Now that harvest time is over, things are slowing down on the ranch. I'll have more time, as soon as I find Maebry's replacement, that is."
    "She mentioned she was leaving you."
    "She was thoughtful enough to wait until things slowed down. It may be a feat to find a replacement. There isn't a big pool of potential employees here in Bluebell." She chose a clear spot on the bed to unload the papers. Old receipts from the feed store, it looked like. Maybe a hundred of them. "Maybe I'll get lucky and there'll be someone nearby, like over in Deer Springs."
    "That's a much bigger town, so probably." Verbena went on, adding her hopes for a future employee. Maybe someone around her age, since it would be nice to have more friends.
    Aumaleigh found her gaze straying to Gabriel's letter again.
    * * *
    Interesting. Zane pushed open the line shack's door, hinges squeaking. It smelled damp from being unheated, held the stale scent of old fear. His stomach fisted knowing what had happened in this place, and what else Ernest had intended to do here. Verbena's sweet face flashed into Zane's mind as he crossed the threshold. Those kind, sapphire blue eyes, the rare beauty of her face, the adorable little curve of her chin. The way she cared about everyone, even him.
    Sure, that got to him, how she'd been concerned there was a chance that Ernest might be able to hurt him--him, an experienced bounty hunter. Well, her worries were unnecessary, but nice.
    Jaw tight, he crossed the rustic cabin, boots knelling, took in the single room, the bare essentials. Stove in the corner, shelves bare but ready for food and pans. A small table shoved up against one wall with four spindly chairs. Bunk beds built at the far end, around a window that looked out on the hillside below. A hunk of rope lay on the floor, fallen, frayed from being cut away. Something dark stained it.
    Verbena's blood, he realized, ribs aching.
    A man like Ernest thought himself so smart, above the law. Above rules. Zane braced his feet, rifle in hand, picturing how it must have been for Ernest. Tucked up here in the trees, you could see anyone coming up either trail as plain as day. He would have felt superior here, safe, found it funny he was hiding on the McPhee property, in plain sight. That of all