Wagon Hiest Part III

Rosalind took the opportunity to roll over and hide behind the wagon. Her head ached from hitting the ground. She hadn't even seen the men that threw her off her horse. The battle happened so fast and turned out the opposite of what she'd wanted. She fought through the dizziness, trying to focus her thoughts on the present.

"I had a heart. You stole it. Marvin Harris, you're the biggest thief of them all."

Silence. She wondered how badly he'd been hurt. Was he shot? Could she live with herself if he died? Even though he'd left her and broken off their engagement, the only thing she thought she could steal from him was his money: money that was supposed to be hers anyway.

Rosalind peaked over the rippling cloth of the wagon as a breeze blew through the valley. A shot whizzed by her head, sending her falling backward.

Marvin was healthy enough to send her to the grave. Scrambling up, she crawled around the wagon until she could see his feet. One of his legs bent at a hideous angle. The other bled in a streak down to his spurs.

That leg had wrapped around hers at one point, many nights ago. The memory still blazed in her heart, and she squashed it down. How many girls had he promised to wed before her?

No, it had to stop here. Rosalind sniffed up her tears and raised the gun, aiming for his chest.

Marvin's words stopped her finger from pulling the trigger. "You should have taken the silver I left you and settled for that."

The meager pittance he'd left on the nightstand made her feel like a prostitute, not the daughter of the Sheriff. She bit down a clever retort.

That's what he wanted. He could tell by her voice which part of the wagon to shoot.

No, this time she couldn't talk back, even though all she wanted to do was tell him off.

Rosalind decided that money was hers. Her fingers shook as she pulled the trigger.