Page 50 of Rangers Last Promise

“You don’t believe that?”

“I believe Grant chose every word carefully. If he meant Miller, he could have written his name.”

“Then who was the man in command?”

“That’s what we need to find out.”

A noise sounds downstairs.

Doc turns toward the staircase.

Every light in the upstairs hallway goes out.

My hand reaches for the weapon inside my room.

This time, the tavern’s emergency lights don’t come on.

A man shouts below us.

Then a gunshot shakes the building.

Doc pulls his weapon and pushes me behind him.

“Stay here.”

I grab my gun from the nightstand.

“You should know me better by now.”

Together, we run toward the stairs.

6

DOC

The gunshot comes from Wolf’s office.

I reach the stairs with Mara directly behind me. The tavern below is completely dark, but I know the layout.

Bar to the left.

Fireplace to the right.

Wolf’s office at the end of the short hallway behind the kitchen.

A table crashes.

Someone grunts.

Then Trigger shouts, “I’ll check out back!”

I take the last three steps in one jump and land behind the bar. Mara drops beside me, her weapon already raised.

“Where’s Sheriff Tate?” she asks.

“Outside checking the roadblocks,” Wolf answers.

“Trigger went after the shooter.”