Quinlan had been angered by his mother's words and yet Will was at fault. Yes, he should have chosen her, but at the time, he showed very little interest in finding a wife. His mother had been the one to find his beautiful woman, but that didn't mean he didn't love her. 

Shoving his things into his duffel bag, he hated going off. Especially now. After last night, there was no doubt they were meant to be together forever. She made him happier than he'd ever been and he loved her innocence, her patience and kindness, and how she insisted on them making certain this marriage would work before they consummated the union. 

Now they had, and she could be expecting while he was going off on a journey with no guaranteed return date. 

Walking into the bedroom, she saw him packing his bag. "You're leaving."

"I have no choice," he said. 

"But you promised me you would never leave me."

He stopped and went to his wife. Moments earlier, she'd been furious with him and now they would be separated for possibly months.

"Only until I find Lee. The man has a vendetta to resolve and I'm the person he hates the most. He'll come after me and I don't want you involved. In fact, I think you should go into town and stay with my parents."

The look she gave him was one he hadn't seen from his wife before. A stubborn gaze that let him know quickly his suggestion had been heard, duly note, and discarded. No, she wasn't going anywhere.

"All right. Double check the doors are locked at night. There is a pistol in the nightstand in case you need it."

"And you think I could fire that gun?"

She had a point, but he couldn't go off and leave her without any protection. "Maybe my parents should stay here while I'm gone."

"No," she said. "I'm home alone. So you hurry back to me."

As he took her in his arms, his heart ached. Just when they finally discovered each other in a real marriage, he was leaving and may never return. The thought of being separated from her was killing him.

"About my mother choosing you--"

She placed her fingers over his lips. "I'm hurt. Somehow that doesn't seem to be important right now. We'll discuss this when you come home," she said with a sigh. 

"In the meantime, Will Adams, you better not make me a widow. I've just gotten married, I'm starting to like being your wife, and I hate you're leaving. So get this man and you come back safe and sound to me."

Will layered his mouth over his wife's knowing this would be their last private kiss before he came home to her. The kiss evoking the memory of how he spent the night in her arms. Remembering the way her body felt against his, he was determined to do everything to return as quickly as possible. 

"Quinlan," he sighed as their lips broke apart. "I never thought any woman would make me feel this way. Though I must leave, it's tearing me up inside."

"Good," she said. "Come home to me, Will."

Before his courage weakened, he grabbed his bag off the bed and hurried out the door. He hated Lee now more than ever for taking him away from his wife. 

Will had been gone three days, nine hours, and twenty-seven minutes and with each passing day, her heart seemed to crack a little more. There was no scheduled time on when he would return. Only when he caught this outlaw who had it out for him and his friends. 

Standing at the door of the schoolhouse, Quinlan rang the bell to let the children know the day was beginning. As she closed the door behind them, she realized she hadn't seen Isatai this morning. Normally, he sat on the hill, gazing down, making certain that Pecos arrived safely. The boy was here, so maybe everything was fine.

With a swish of her skirts, she turned to the class. "This morning, we're going to have a test on spelling words. When I call your name, I'll give you a word and you spell it for me and give me the definition. These are the same words from last week along with a few others. For every correct answer, you receive five points added to your grade."

"John, your word is antique and be sure to use it in a sentence."

"A n t i q u e. My grandmother’s antique dresser sits in my mother's bedroom."

"Very good," she said. "Jane, spell march and give me the meaning of the word."

A quiet little girl stood, her blonde curls perfect. "M a r c h. March has two definitions. It's the third month of the year or it’s the way a soldier walks."

"Excellent," Quinlan said and looked down her list of students and words. "Sam, your word is search."

The kid frowned and rose from his desk. "S e a c h. They searched all night for the missing child."

"Your sentence is right, but the spelling is wrong. Search is spelled S e a r c h. No points."

Same dropped back into his chair shaking his head. 

Looking at her list, searching for the next student, the bang of the door being kicked in startled her as a man forced his way into her classroom. A little girl started crying.

"All you had to do was knock and I would have opened the door," she said. Horror raced along her spine as she gazed at the tall muscular man who wore his guns slung low on his hips. Something about the way he stared at her made her skin crawl. What did he want?

"Shut up. You're coming with me," he said. 

Fear scurried up her spine and she knew she had to resist him for as long as possible, and yet, there were the children in her care. If she fought him, she worried they would be injured. "I'm...teaching. The school board doesn't approve of me leaving the children alone."

Laughter resounded from his lips and then he sent her an ugly smile. "Lady, if you don't come with me right now, you won't need to worry about these kids."

The man pulled his gun from his holster and pointed the weapon at Jessica, who began to cry.

"All right, I'll go with you, just don't hurt the children."

The man gave her a smile that didn't reach his eyes. "Me? I love kids." 

Swallowing, she tried to keep from quivering, realizing she would need her wits about her if she were going to stay alive. 

"Children wait here until after we're gone, then run home."

He gave her a wicked grin. "Hold out your wrists."

What in the world did he want her hands for?

"Now," he yelled and another one of the girls began to sob quietly. 

"I'm all right, children," she said calmly as she held out her wrists. "While I'm gone, John is in charge. Tell Will I've gone with Mr....what is your name?"

Quickly, he bound her hands together. 

"Lee," he said. "An old friend of your husband's.”

Her heart catapulted in her chest. This was the man who killed Will's brother and Al. She didn't doubt for a second that he wouldn't hesitate to kill her as well. 

"Let's go," he said, shoving her toward the leaning door. 

Slowly she moved through the gaping hole, alarm making her heart pound in her chest. When she reached Pecos’s side, he leaped from his chair and tackled the man, taking him to the ground where he pummeled him with his small fists.

The man's clenched hand slammed into Pecos’s head, knocking the boy out cold.

"Nooooo," she cried, trying to run back to the kid, but he shoved her hard, causing her to hit the door. 

"Let's go," he said. 

He pulled the door shut as well as he could and tied it with rope. "What are you doing?"

"Now those brats won't hightail it into town and tell everyone what's happened," he said. "We need a good head start."

At least they were safe inside, she told herself. But then she saw him take out a match and hold the flame against the wooden building. 

"Stop, what are you doing. Those are babies, children, you can't harm them."

"Watch me. Little brats shouldn't have gotten in the way," he said. "Now they're going to burn."

Praying, she hoped the lumber wouldn't catch, but soon the side of the schoolhouse had a flame licking up the side, dancing like evil over the wood. 

Terror at the sight rent a scream from her, the sound reminding her of her childhood and she filled her lungs with air, hoping someone would hear her fear. The man's fist silenced her screams as her world darkened.

Will sat around his small campfire, absolutely hating being separated from his wife, but certain this was what he needed to do. So far, no luck finding Lee, but he would keep searching, looking for him and following up on leads. Sooner or later, the man would show up somewhere and when he did, Will would end this man's reign of horror.

The wood crackled and popped sending sparks rising into the air. Nothing worse than enjoying a beautiful night under the stars alone. And yet he knew Quinlan had no business being here at his side. But as usual, Lee's timing was the worst.

The sound of a horse nearby had him glancing around and the crack of a branch sent his fingers reaching for his gun, wanting to be prepared in case Lee found him first. After all, the man wanted him dead as much as couldn't wait to kill Lee.

His gut was telling him his hideout was somewhere along the river.

"Will," a voice called and he jumped to his feet.

"Sheriff? Is that you?"

"Yes," he replied. "Don't shoot us."

What was Zenith's sheriff doing out here when his wife was expecting their baby any day. A scurry of fear trickled down his spine. Could something be wrong with Quinlan?

Sheriff Zach, Isatai, Ruby, and the newest Lipstick and Lead graduate, Dora, rode into camp. His uneasiness all but overwhelmed him. All of his friends gathered around. Why?

"What are you all doing here?"

"Looking for you," Zach said.

“Your trail was easy to track once I knew your horse. Quinlan has been taken," the chief said.

Cold icy tentacles of terror spiraled through him and he understood why he couldn't find the man he searched for. The outlaw waited for Will to leave, so he could abduct his wife.

"Do you know what happened," he asked, his voice hard, his heart breaking. The man would murder her just to torture him.

"Yes, he took Quinlan and set the school on fire with the children locked in the building," Ruby said her voice filled with fury. "My niece was inside."

"Did they all get out?" Will asked, knowing his wife would not have willingly let him harm a hair on her students. Those kids were her life. 

"Only because Chief Isatai saw the smoke and arrived in time to get them out. Some of the bigger children broke the windows and started dropping the younger ones out, but the chief opened the door."

Anger so intense he had to walk it off rode him hard like a bronc at a rodeo. Not only had Lee taken his wife, he tried to kill most of the town’s kids. No words could describe this madman's actions. Will had to control his rage or charge out of here in a blind fury risking everyone.

"Was anyone harmed?"

"All were terrified except Pecos," Dora said calmly. The woman had a cool air about her that didn't let much disturb her, yet he knew she also had a mean temper from what the rumors he heard. But maybe she had a reason to be angry.

"Pecos was injured. The children said he tried to stop him, and the man punched my son. For two days, we thought he was going to die," the Indian said. "I'm here to kill this man."

Will understood why the chief felt that way, but he would have to beat Will for a chance at the outlaw first. 

"Isatai, we've had this discussion already," the sheriff said. "The plan is to take the criminal into custody and let a jury decide his fate. And believe me, when they learn he torched a schoolhouse, there's a rope and a tree just waiting for him. You don't risk children's lives."

Will clenched his fists, the urge to hit something strong within him. He was with Isatai. No judge, no jury, no hanging, just justice for the wrongs Lee committed. But he wouldn't argue with the lawman. 

"Does anyone know where he took Quinlan? Or what direction?"

"The tracks were clear until we came to the Brazos and then they disappeared," Zach said. 

The Brazos...he killed David along the banks of the river. Al's body had been found in Fort Worth, a little more than a day's ride from the river. Bluffs ran along one side of the bank in some areas. 

"David was shot not far from Bath Bend." The locals named the curve in the river for obvious reasons. 

"There are lots of places on the river for a man to hide. Somewhere close, he must have a hideout near the bluffs," the chief said, gazing at Will who nodded in agreement.

"That's where we'll start in the morning," the sheriff said.

But that wasn't what Will wanted. This outlaw would murder them all given the opportunity, and he didn't want his friends risking their lives.

"No, I'm going by myself. He took my wife. If we all go in at once, he will kill her."

Ruby, known for love of the hunt, all but growled. "Look, I didn't go off and leave my husband and babies at home not to catch the man who threatened our children. Quinlan is a great woman and none of us want to see her die. But we're all in this together. All of us want him dead."

The sheriff shook his head. "No, we will convince him to surrender."

Will ran his hand over his face. "I really appreciate what you're doing, but nothing is going to stop me from going in and rescuing Quinlan."

It didn't matter what they said, he would do this alone to keep the others safe. 

"Well, if you get shot dead, what good are you to her then?" Dora asked. "Did you ever consider she'd want you to think about your safety instead of going in like a hungry lion ready to extract your revenge?"

The Indian smiled at Dora. "Let's see what tomorrow brings. Tonight, we rest. In the morning, we ride and when we locate this devil, then we will make a decision on how to stop him."

The decision was made. Will would be gone when they woke in the morning.

Dora nodded. "A good plan. Now I'm going to spread my bunk roll out here and try to get a few beauty winks in before we leave at dawn."

One by one, his friends laid their heads down around the campfire, but Will faked his own sleep. They would be riding out at first light, but he planned on leaving even earlier.