Leah was pouring another cup of coffee and nearly dropped it at the sight of the man stepping from the shadows. Or perhaps he was the shadows because he was by far the biggest man she’d ever seen. Both Wesley and Travis were big, powerfully built men, but this young man nearly dwarfed them. He was at least six feet eight inches, maybe taller, well over two hundred pounds. He wore baggy, coarse linen trousers tucked into tall black boots molded over giant calves. His upper body was bare except for a sheepskin slung over one shoulder, and his arms could only be described as massive. They more resembled sculptured tree trunks than arms. The man, truthfully not more than a boy, had a handsome, unsmiling face set on a neck that looked to be about the size of Leah’s waist.
“Jus’ one of the boys,” Abe repeated, a chuckle in his voice.
“Coffee?” Leah managed to ask, her neck craning to look up at the big man.
“Bud likes to keep his hands free,” Abe said, not allowing the boy to answer. “You folks just passin’ through?”
“Hunting,” Wes answered, still not moving from where he’d slept and not turning his back on the giant near him.
Abe creakily lifted his spindly little body, tossing the dregs of coffee on the ground. “We got to be goin’ now. Thank you kindly, missus.” He handed the empty cup to Leah and it was then she was sure he recognized her. His close little eyes bored into hers and swept down her dress, which was far better than anything he’d ever seen her wear before. “Come on, Bud,” Abe said and started into the darkness, the silent giant moving noiselessly behind him.
Leah’s head spun with thoughts, the first of which was that she was sure Abe was up to no good. Of course he’d never done anything honest in his life as far as Leah knew, so she wasn’t surprised by this thought.
“What do you think they wanted?” Wes asked, watching her.
Leah jumped guiltily at the sound of his voice. She couldn’t very well tell someone of Wes’s class that the nasty creature was her brother and had probably meant to knock them over the head and rob them. Maybe he’d refrained because he had some family feeling. More likely he’d not harmed them because they were awake. Abe was a backstabber.
“I guess they were just traveling, like us,” she said, then stretched exaggeratedly. “I certainly am tired. I’ll be asleep again in minutes.”
With great show, Leah rearranged her pallet, smiled merrily at Wes, yawned, and looked for all the world as if she went right to sleep.
Never in her life had she been more awake. Somewhere near them in the forest was her sly, devious, cowardly, thieving, treacherous older brother—and she knew he’d want payment from her for not causing them misery.
Every pore of her body seemed to be listening. She held her breath as Wesley, seeming to believe her words, settled down to sleep.
An hour went by and Leah’s body began to ache. When was Abe going to make his move? She planned how she’d roll toward Wes and grab the rifle.
Another hour passed. She began to wonder if she really could shoot her own brother.
A noise from Wesley startled her, but it was only a soft snore followed by his turning over.
When Abe’s signal came, a high-pitched whistle, Leah was past ready. Slowly, making no noise, she pushed herself out of the blankets and left the campsite. She didn’t allow herself to consider the forest at night or remember that great, enormous man who trailed her brother, but she made her way over fallen logs, past frightening shadows toward the whistle that would repeat itself when she lost her way.
She traveled at least a mile before Abe oozed himself from behind a willow tree.
Leah jumped back, her hand to her throat.
“Scare you, baby sister?”
“Only as any other criminal would.”
Abe looked almost hurt. “I thought maybe you’d be glad to see me. I sure was glad to see you.”
“Where’s that creature of yours?”
Abe merely nodded upward to a space above her head.
Leah glanced to the side to see the shadow of a huge arm. Again she gasped as she turned to see the young man not ten inches from her. She moved away from the towering mass of him while he remained impassive.
Abe took her upper arm. “Don’t mind Bud,” he said, pulling her away. “He ain’t too, you know.” He tapped his head with his finge
r.
“I don’t guess he has to be,” Leah snapped as she jerked out of Abe’s grasp. “When did you last have a bath?” She wrinkled her nose.
“Ain’t you the fancy one! Last time I seen you you was dirtier ’n I ever been. I guess that was before you took up with the likes of the Stanfords.”
Leah drew herself up rigidly. “I happen to be Mrs. Wesley Stanford.”