"She's lying, Judge, " Rebecca countered. "I was there." Heads turned
back and forth from one side of the courtroom to the other as
accusations were volleyed. Daniel crossed behind Jessica and handed
the judge a paper.
Rafferty noted the seal at the bottom of the sheet, read the contents,
and nodded. "Well . . . well . . . " Shaking with rage, Jessica was
irrationally determined to make Rebecca tell the truth. First, she
knew, she would have to make the woman lose her control.
"Move back, Jessica, " Cole ordered when she took a step forward.
Jessica quickly did as he ordered, but didn't take her attention off
the woman she was determined to destroy.
"Cuff that prisoner, Sheriff, " Daniel ordered.
"It was you, " Jessica shouted. "You set the fire. You tried to kill
my son. You hurt Grace. You shot Marshal Cooper. Surprise,
RebeccaţCooper didn't die. Oh, yes, he's alive and well, " she
taunted. "And quite able to recall who he saw and what happened. The
judge is reading all about it right now. Cooper wrote a nice long
letter." The news staggered Rebecca. She collapsed against the back
of her chair and stared at Donald, imploring him with her eyes to help
her.
Donald was thoroughly enjoying himself. There was a hint of a smile on
his face as he sat there with his head tilted ever so slightly to the
wall while he watched and listened. How thoughtful of the marshal to
insist that the only living person who could possibly identify him stay
on the opposite side of the courtroom. She couldn't see him in the
crowd, not with the sea of faces gawking at her and Rebecca. Thanks to
the overly cautious marshal, Donald didn't have to worry.
He would continue to sit back and patiently bide his time. He knew
Rebecca expected him to help her escape, but he had no such intention,
of course. He would wait it out and then sneak away. The poor dear
was looking quite desperate now. Donald knew exactly what would happen
as soon as he gave her asignal. She would jump to her feet and attempt
to use that pathetic little gun she had hidden in her pocket. One of
the lawmen would shoot her, of course.
Donald also knew what Bell would do. He wouldn't continue to stand
there with his head hanging down, his shoulders stooped, and his hands
limp at his sides, looking like the sheriff's whipping boy. Why, he
hadn't moved a muscle since he'd shuffled across the room to the
railing in front of the star witness.
The cold-blooded murderer was as cunning as a fox. He was waiting for
his opportunity to spring into action. The sheriff had already relaxed
his guardţthe old fool was still looking around for his handcuffsţand
barely paying his prisoner any notice at all, which Donald knew was
just fine with Bell. The sheriff was going to have to get close to
Bell in order to shackle him, and when he did, Bell would attack.
Donald expected him to go down in a blaze of bullets, and while the
deputies and the marshals were firing, Donald would fold into the
inevitable stampede as the crowd swarmed out the doors to escape.
A man in the back row jumped to his feet and reached into kis hip
pocket, drawing botk Cole's and Daniel's attention.
"Hands up, " Cole shouted as he strode up the center aisle amid the
spectators, his gun trained on the stranger.
"I'm unarmed, I'm unarmed, " the man stammered. "I just needed my
handkerchief." He then sneezed, drawing smiles from those around
him.
Jessica was trying to figure out who Rebecca was looking at in the
crowd. Who would she know in Blackwater . . .
"Cole, " Jessie screamed as she rushed across the room, "he's here.
The leader . . . he's here." Daniel raced toward her and jerked her
back just as Donald gave the signal to Rebecca.
Rebecca leapt to her feet and fired one shot through the sheriff's
temple, but before his legs could begin to fold, Bell was behind him
and had his gun. He fired at the deputy guarding the side door,
hitting him in the center of the chest, then whirled and fired at
Jessica. Daniel shoved her to the floor in the nick of time, but the
bullet caught him in the left shoulder.
Pandemonium broke loose as the crowd jumped to its feet, obstructing
Cole's view.
Bell, diving for cover at the side of the witness-box, fired at Daniel,
but the shot went wild, for Daniel was already in motion. He shot the
gun out of Rebecca's hand. She screamed and fell backward. Daniel hit
the table, slid across on his side, his gun blazing. Bell lunged back
and froze. Daniel fired again as he dropped to the floor, rolled, and
fired again, this time at point-blank range.
Indifferent to the ear-shattering screams surrounding him as people
tried to escape, Daniel dropped his empty gun, grabbed the other one
out of his left holster, and slowly got to his feet.
It wasn't over yet. Daniel slowly extended his arm, cocked his gun,
and waited. His eyes bored into those of his enemy. Golden brown eyes
stared back.
Cole was desperate to get to Jessica. He fought like an animal to get
through the crazed people clawing their way to the doors. He hadn't
been able to get a clear shot since the first gunshots were fired, for
the crowd had swelled to its feet and surged in on him, screaming and
shoving and pushing to get away.
Cole was finally able to shove his way through the crowd. His gun was
out, but when the last men were shoved aside and he finally had a clear
view, his heart dropped.
Donald had Jessica in front of him and was backing toward the side
door. One arm held her tightly around the waist. The other held a gun
under her chin, the barrel pressed against her throat.
Jessica was fighting like a wildcat, scraping his arm with her nails
and kicking his legs with her heels.
He seemed impervious to her struggles. "What we have here, gentlemen,
is called a standoff. I'll blow her head off, and I'm sure that by
now, with my rather colorful history, you know I'd get a kick out of
watching your expressions after I kill her. Oh, I know you'll get me,
but not before I see how you react when her head explodes." His voice
hardened into concrete. "It'll be messy.
I've done it before." Jessica dug her nails into his skin, drawing
blood. "Stop it, " he ordered. "What's it going to be, Marshals? "
he demanded as he edged back.
Cole was slowly advancing down the center aisle. He was about five
feet away from Daniel, coming toward him at an angle now, when Donald
shouted to him. "Stop right there. I don't mind dying, " he
boasted.
"I've seen so much of it lately. If you want her to keep on breathing,
you'll stop right there and drop your guns." Neither marshal
reacted.
Cole's arm was rigid. Daniel shook his head.
"You aren't getting out of here. Let her go."
"I can't do that, " he said. "She's going with me. Look there.
Rebecca's crawling toward the judge's chambers. That's my girl."
Jessica kicked hard and struck bone. She felt as if she were being cut
in half, so forcefully did he squeeze her.
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