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Chapter Twenty-Eight

Z eke frowned. The sheriff still hadn’t left the ammunition shop. Something was wrong. His gaze went to the man on the roof of the dress shop. The man was watching the entrance of the ammunition store, as if he also wanted to know if the sheriff was going to leave it.

Zeke was beginning to think that the man on the roof and the owner of the ammunition store were working on something together, and that something had to involve Lee and Wilson.

Keeping low, Zeke made his way to the other side of the roof and looked at the schoolhouse.

This was so frustrating. It was impossible to see if someone was behind that schoolhouse from this vantage point.

He was tempted to climb down the ladder of the saloon and go to the roof of the bank.

The parapet wasn’t as tall over there, but he could still stay hidden from the other man’s view and see behind the schoolhouse.

Just as he was ready to get off the saloon’s roof, he saw the man from the roof of the dress shop pull out his gun.

Without thinking, Zeke got his own gun ready. This was it. Something was about to happen. He crouched behind the parapet then peered around it.

Noting the man’s attention going to the roof of the bank, Zeke glanced over at it and saw a man climbing up the ladder to get on the roof. Zeke blinked. It was Lee! Zeke’s gaze went back to the schoolhouse. If Lee was looking out at the schoolhouse, then Wilson had to be there.

Lee made it to the top of the bank’s roof, but before he had a chance to hide, a gunshot rang through the air.

Zeke tensed. At first, he thought the shot came from the dress shop’s roof but quickly realized the sound had come from the street.

His gaze went to the alley by the dress shop, but the wagon hid the person who had shot at Lee.

Lee grabbed his arm and quickly retreated to the corner of the roof, putting himself just out of Zeke’s view. The man from the dress shop’s roof hurried to the edge, peered down, and started shooting at whoever was down there.

Blaze! Zeke bet that was Blaze. Blaze was the only person he knew who was smart enough to avoid detection like that.

Zeke aimed his gun at the man on the dress shop’s roof and shot him. The man fell off the roof and landed on top of the barrels. The barrels wobbled. The man fell off of the barrels, and one of the barrels tumbled on top of him. Given that the man didn’t move, Zeke guessed he was dead.

Recalling Lee, Zeke managed to crouch out of his view right before a gunshot went flying over his head.

Another gunshot went in Lee’s direction.

Zeke stood up and shot at Lee but missed.

Lee, having his attention divided between Zeke and Blaze, started firing in both directions.

Zeke managed to duck right before a bullet hit him.

A temporary lull in gunfire let Zeke know that Lee had run out of bullets.

Since he didn’t have a clear view of him, Zeke quickly took the moment to load his gun, too.

He gave another glance around the roofs and saw that no one else was on top of any other buildings.

Then he scanned the area below. Blaze was running for the bank.

Zeke caught sight of another man running. This was the owner of the ammunition store. He had his gun raised and pointed in Blaze’s direction. Zeke shot the gun out of the ammunition owner’s hand.

A fight erupted from the roof of the bank.

Zeke turned back to the bank and saw Blaze punch Lee.

The gun flew out of Lee’s hand. Since Lee was no longer an immediate threat, Zeke looked back at the ammunition owner and saw him scrambling for his gun.

Zeke thought about shooting the gun further out of reach but saw how close the gun was to the barrel full of dynamite powder that was lying on the street.

Zeke’s gaze went to the schoolhouse. He saw the other man who’d been in the ammunition store earlier that day dart out from around the schoolhouse. That man lifted his gun to shoot Blaze. Zeke managed to shoot first, and the man dropped to the ground.

“Get Wilson!” Blaze yelled to Zeke as he pinned Lee down on the roof.

Zeke gave a quick scan of the area. The ammunition owner was retrieving his gun. “Watch out below!” Zeke showed Blaze where the ammunition owner was then hurried down the ladder.

Blaze stood up and shot at the man. Zeke heard the man shoot back. Another shot rang through the air before the dynamite exploded. Zeke fell off the ladder and landed on the ground. Though the explosion hadn’t swept through the saloon, it had shaken things up.

Zeke hurried to get up and ran for the schoolhouse.

With what he had gathered, three men in town were helping Lee and Wilson.

Those three men had been in the store with Faye.

That meant Faye might be waiting for him behind the schoolhouse with Wilson.

If so, that put him at a disadvantage. He ran behind the nearest tree.

“Wilson’s running for his horse!” Blaze called out to him. “There’s no one else behind the schoolhouse!”

Zeke hesitated for a moment then realized he trusted Blaze. He might not fully trust Faye, but he did trust Blaze. So he ran for the schoolhouse.

When he reached it, he saw that Wilson had just reached a tree in the cemetery where a horse was tied up.

Using the schoolhouse for protection, Zeke shot at Wilson.

Expecting Wilson to shoot back, Zeke ducked behind the schoolhouse just before a bullet zoomed past his head.

Zeke saw the door of the schoolhouse and hurried to go into the building.

Wilson shot a couple more times, but since Zeke was inside the schoolhouse, he wasn’t in any danger of being hit. Zeke made his way to one of the windows. He opened it enough so that he could poke his gun out.

Then he waited. He needed a clear shot. He didn’t have time to reload his gun, and he only had a couple more shots left. He took a deep breath and focused on Wilson who was, no doubt, using the lull in activity to reload his gun.

Everything was happening so fast that Zeke barely had time to process it all. But his blood was pounding all through him, and his body was primed for action.

Focus. Just focus.

He had spent his entire life waiting for this moment. If he didn’t prove he could be a lawman in this very moment, he would go back to Flagstaff in disgrace. Whatever happened, he could not let Wilson get away.

Wilson remained still for a whole minute.

He was probably trying to figure out what to do next.

He didn’t know Zeke’s exact location, and that worked to Zeke’s advantage.

All Zeke needed was a part of Wilson to shoot.

Any part. But Wilson had to be exposed enough where he couldn’t just retreat back behind the tree.

After a tense moment of eerie silence passed, Wilson moved around the tree and shot at the spot where Zeke had been outside the schoolhouse.

Zeke fired his gun, and the bullet landed in Wilson’s side.

Wilson stumbled then shot back. The bullet shattered the glass right above Zeke’s head.

Zeke fired his last shot and hit Wilson in the chest. Wilson fell back and landed on the ground with a loud thud.

Zeke hurried to put more bullets in his gun. When he peeked back out the window, he saw that Wilson hadn’t moved. Wilson could be dead, but he couldn’t afford to take his chances. He cautiously made his way out of the schoolhouse.

Blaze came running over to him. “Did you get him?”

Zeke nodded. “I think he’s dead. How is Lee?”

“He’s dead, too.”

The two headed for Wilson.

“I wanted to tie him up,” Blaze added, “but I ended up having to shoot him.”

“It might be better this way. I mean, they would have hung anyway.”

“I realize that, but I almost think their deaths were too quick for all the grief they caused.” When Zeke glanced his way, he shrugged. “I’m not perfect, Zeke. A part of me hoped they would suffer for all they did.”

“I understand that, but I figure they’re meeting their Maker right now. Justice will be served.” And quite frankly, that was the kind of justice that Zeke thought should terrify anyone more than anything a judge could do.

They reached Wilson’s body, and sure enough, he was dead.

“So, how does it feel to be a hero?” Blaze asked as he picked up Wilson and flung him over his shoulder.

Zeke tucked his gun back into his holster. “To be honest, I don’t feel all that different. Am I supposed to?”

Blaze smiled. “I think you were always a hero. It was just hidden away where no one could see it. Now, everyone will know what was there all along. Come on. Let’s find the sheriff in this town.”

“I think I know where he is.” Without another word, he led Blaze to the ammunition store.

“I have to say that you two make a good team,” Sheriff Hoff told Zeke and Blaze the next morning.

Bernadette squeezed Zeke’s waist, a gesture that let him know she was proud of him. He grinned at her and drew her closer to his side.

Blaze stood by the doorway of the jailhouse.

His gaze went to the empty cell, and Zeke could tell a part of him still wanted Lee and Wilson to have had to face a judge.

But none of the men who had been helping Lee and Wilson had survived the day, either.

This was why Zeke’s ma used to tell him that it was important to be on the right side of the law.

Eventually, a person’s deeds caught up to them.

As she would say , You reap what you sow.

Faye was standing by a small window, her arms crossed as she looked outside.

Though Zeke now knew, without a doubt, that she had been Wilson’s sister, he still didn’t know what to make of her.

He didn’t think she was inclined to break the law, of course.

But she had a way of being too masculine for his liking.

He much preferred someone soft and sweet like Bernadette.