Lady Renegade. Carol Finch

father, a former military officer, had made certain she could take care of herself. She was very familiar with the tree-choked hillsides of the Osage reservation and she could protect herself with a variety of weapons.

      Her wandering thoughts trailed off when she glanced at Anthony’s note again. The honest truth was she had procrastinated in stopping by to see Anthony. He had been courting her for over three months but her feelings for him hadn’t progressed past the friendship stage. Unfortunately, she had the impression that Anthony had developed the kind of affection for her that she couldn’t return. It wasn’t that he wasn’t attractive, with his sandy-blond hair, thick-lashed blue eyes and lean physique. He just wasn’t…

      She sighed heavily. She wasn’t sure what love was, but she didn’t think this was it.

      “Thank goodness you’re here.” Anthony suddenly appeared from the deepening shadows to envelop her in a hug. “I was getting worried, sweetheart.”

      “Papa and I have been busy with inventory and customers,” she explained as she backed from his embrace.

      He nodded and smiled. “I should have come to the trading post since we’re running low on a few supplies, but I’ve had dozens of last-minute chores to wrap up here.”

      “Last-minute?” she repeated curiously.

      He reached out to trail his forefinger over her cheek. “I have a confession, Lori,” he murmured as he stared deeply into her eyes. “Every hour I’ve spent with you leaves me wanting to spend even more.”

      Lori smiled weakly, but she didn’t have the heart to lead Tony on by saying that she felt the same. When he clutched both of her hands in his own, she tensed. He looked so serious, almost impatient to spew out the words she didn’t want to hear.

      To her dismay, he went down on one knee and stared up at her with a hopeful smile. “I’m in love with you, Lori. I want you to marry me and come away with me so we can make a clean break and a fresh start. We can go wherever your heart desires. Colorado, California, Montana. Anyplace you say.”

      Her jaw sagged but she couldn’t formulate a sentence when her mind was whirling like a cyclone. He wanted her to elope with him? Leave the territory abruptly? Why?

      Tony never spoke much about his past and now she wondered why. Was he a wanted man? Was the law about to catch up with him? Did he feel the desperate need to run for his life?

      She knew that Judge Isaac Parker in Fort Smith had sent out several dozen Deputy U.S. Marshals to apprehend outlaws that fled into the territory in hopes of outrunning their crimes. Had someone recognized Tony from a Wanted poster and turned him in?

      “Lori? Sweetheart?” Tony squeezed her hand. “Will you do me the honor of marrying me? We can be off tonight so we can begin our new life together and leave this place far behind.”

      Lori pulled Tony to his feet. “Why do you want to leave the territory in such a rush?” she questioned intently.

      Tony glanced this way and that, provoking more questions she wanted answered. “I hadn’t meant to fall in love with you, Lori, but it just happened. You fascinate me. I want you to come with me. We can leave tonight. Right now. I have money saved up for our trip.”

      He certainly avoided her questions, leaving her to suspect that he was a fugitive of justice. Her concern escalated when he kept glancing every which way, as if he anticipated trouble.

      “Will you?” he persisted. “I promise I’ll take good care of you, Lori.”

      Lori didn’t need a man to take care of her. Her father had spent years ensuring his only surviving child could handle herself with a pistol, rifle and knife and manage several hand-to-hand combat maneuvers. She’d perfected those skills while dealing with several unsavory characters that stopped at the trading post and used the ferry that transported passengers, wagons, stagecoaches and horses across the river.

      “I’m sorry, Tony,” she said as gently as she knew how. “You are a dear friend and you know I treasure your companionship. But—”

      “But you don’t feel the same way I do,” he interrupted in disappointment. His broad shoulders slumped but he nodded acceptance. “You can’t blame a man for asking. I know I’m not your first proposal.”

      “None of them have been as flattering and tempting as yours,” she replied honestly.

      “At least I have that. I’ll miss you like crazy, sweetheart.”

      When he eased closer to kiss her goodbye Lori sincerely wished she could feel something besides a lukewarm reaction to his embrace. Nevertheless, her heart knew what it felt and there was no convincing it otherwise. She tried to be honest, especially with herself. She couldn’t give Tony what he wanted. She refused to consider marriage until she discovered that unique feeling her father claimed he had shared with her mother, even years after she and her young son had succumbed to diphtheria.

      Her wandering thoughts broke off and she snapped to attention when she heard a crackling of twigs in the underbrush. Heavy shadows enveloped the trees, concealing whoever or whatever lurked in the near distance. Tony muttered a curse when a gunshot rang out in the gathering darkness. Lori heard a bullet whistle past her head before it plugged into a tree beside them. She tried to object when Tony tucked her protectively behind him. She tugged on his arm to bustle both of them behind a tree for protection, but another gunshot erupted before they reached cover.

      She knew the instant the bullet found its mark. Tony staggered against her, gasping for breath. When another shot ripped through the trees, Lori grabbed one of the pistols in Tony’s double holster and returned fire. She heard the thrashing in the underbrush and thud of horses’ hooves. But her focus was on Tony, who crumpled to the ground.

      “Sweet mercy,” she whispered when she saw the bloodstains spreading quickly across the left side of Tony’s shirt.

      She dropped to her knees beside him when he lifted his hand to her.

      “I’m sorry,” he gasped. “I didn’t mean to drag you into this. But I do love you. Now run! Get out of here before it’s too late.”

      His apology baffled her. Why did she need to escape? Was she considered guilty by association? Escape from whom? Who was after him? A bounty hunter who had discovered Anthony Rogers’s true identity and tracked him down? What had Tony done that earned him a bushwhacking?

      “Go…now…” He panted for breath as he clutched his chest.

      “No, I want to help you,” she insisted, using his kerchief to stem the flow of blood oozing from his wound.

      Almost frantic now, Tony shoved at her hands, but she could tell he was losing strength with each passing second.

      “Go, damn it. Get out of here! If you care anything about me at all, you’ll do as I say and flee for your own safety!”

      Stumbling to her feet, Lori looked around, wondering if Maggie Burgess, the widowed owner of the station and ranch or one of the hired hands had heard the shots. Where was the help Tony desperately needed?

      A moment later, she saw Maggie appear from the corner of the station where stagecoach travelers took their meals.

      “Over here!” Lori yelled. “We need help!”

      Maggie clutched the front of her skirts and raced across the lawn toward the copse of trees.

      “Damn it, get out of here!” Tony mumbled weakly. “Please, sweetheart. It’s the last thing I’ll ever ask of you. Go…”

      When his lashes fluttered shut and he sagged lifelessly on the ground Lori backed up four paces. Frantic, confused and uncertain where the sniper lurked, she wheeled toward her horse, Tony’s pistol still clutched in her fist.

      “Oh, my God!” Maggie Burgess wailed as she raced toward Tony’s unmoving form. She glared at the gun in Lori’s hand and then at Tony. “You killed him! Why? Because you chased after him and he wanted nothing to