Chapter One

Bandera, TX 1885

“Mom, Mom! There’re chocolates! Can we please get some chocolates?”

Lily grinned at the familiar voice and watched as the little girl with flaming red hair ran past her to pull at the hem of her mother’s skirt.

“Please, Mommy,” the little girl whined. “We haven’t had chocolates in ages.”

“No, dear.” The woman’s voice was just as kind as it had been when she’d invited Lily to join their wagon train, just weeks ago. “We haven’t enough money. We’ll have to wait until we get to Kentucky.”

The little girl pouted, sticking out her bottom lip, and Lily was overcome with the desire to make her smile again. She had grown fond of the little girl and her family for reasons she couldn’t quite explain.

Lily glanced at the chocolate stand, which overflowed with so many treats that they could barely fit on the table. It would be so easy to walk past and slip one into her pocket. Nobody would suspect it a thing.

She looked at the young girl, whose face still looked glum, then back at the stand. Lily had already shifted her weight, ready to walk toward it, before she stopped herself.

No, A little voice in her head scolded. That isn’t who you are anymore.

Pleased by how quickly she’d been able to contain her impulses, Lily leaned her back against the cool stone of a building. Smiling, she closed her eyes.

The entire town of Bandera smelled of livestock, but every once in a while, a lady would pass by, her perfume flooding Lily’s senses. Other times, a strong breeze would nearly knock the tattered cowboy hat off her head, filling the air with the musky scent of animals once again.

Freedom, she decided, had a smell just as distinctive as the burned porridge she’d always associated with the orphanage.

Lily weaved through the town’s center, smiling at each person she passed, regardless of whether she knew them from the wagon train. Being in public without looking over her shoulder felt good.

As she glanced over the heads of the people around her, she peered into the shops, wondering if any of them sold belts—and if she even had enough money to buy one. Her trousers, which had once fit, even if they were a bit large around the legs, seemed to hang off of her hips more loosely with each passing day.

She resisted the urge to check her reflection in a shop window. She knew what she’d find: sunken cheeks that made her already large eyes look disproportionate and long hair the exact same brown as her eyes, hanging halfway down her back in disheveled waves.

She could’ve been pretty—she could tell by the way people looked at her, by the way the men stared at her—if it hadn’t been for the wild look in her eyes that always seemed to make people quick to avert their eyes. Hers was the look of a wounded animal, poised to attack before she had a chance to be hurt again.

Suddenly, Lily stopped in her tracks, causing a man behind her to bump into her.

“Sorry,” she mumbled, but her mind was elsewhere. Goosebumps were spreading from the back of her neck down her arms, despite the dry heat that engulfed her. Before she could place why, her instincts were telling her something was off.

A laugh rang out—a laugh she knew all to pieces—and before she even heard people throughout the town screaming, “The Noose is here!” she’d already known it with certainty.

He found me.

Lily whipped her head around, searching for where the laughter had come from; however, once everybody in town started running the other way, it wasn’t too hard to discern.

She saw him before he spotted her. She darted to the side of the street and crouched behind a barrel, folding her long limbs underneath her.

Suddenly, there he was, standing in front of a small crowd of tightly-packed people—those who’d been unable to escape—as his men walked circled around, daring any of them to run. His muscles rippled beneath his shirt as he paced back and forth, but his smile was calm. Inviting, almost.

Lily could practically hear his thoughts: Come out, come out wherever you are. She was much too smart to believe that Emmett Lee Jones had stumbled upon this town by accident. From the moment she’d heard his laugh, she’d known he was here for her.

This was the moment she had been dreading since she snuck away from Emmett and his men weeks ago, but deep in her gut, she’d known it would come.

Quickly scanning the town square, Lily spotted an abandoned black-eyed Susan six-gun sitting underneath the chocolatier’s stall. She dodged for it, praying the revolver was loaded.

“Perhaps you know where she is, hmm?”

Lily watched in horror as Emmett crouched down and lifted the young girl by the vibrant hair Lily loved so much. “Or do you need a little… incentive?”

Someone in the back of the crowd tried to make a run for it, but Herb, a sadistic man with less than half of Emmett’s charm, shoved the teenaged boy to the ground.

“Not so fast,” he snarled.

Lily felt her cheeks flush. “That’s enough!” she shouted, running toward Emmett, who was holding the little girl by her hair. Lily’s legs were shaking, whether from anger, fear, or a combination of both, she couldn’t be sure. “Put her down.”

She’d expected Emmett to look triumphant, perhaps sneer at her; instead, he smiled, his teeth a gleaming white in the sun. Thought her heart used to flutter when he smiled at her like that, now she recognized the gesture for what it was—a predator baring his teeth.

“There you are. Have you missed me?” Emmett’s tone was just as charming as ever, but Lily couldn’t help but feel like he was taunting her.

“She knows The Noose?” Lily heard a soft, small voice whisper, before a parent shushed the child quickly.

She turned to see a small boy, one she’d made faces with mere days before, sticking out her tongue at him to make him laugh. He looked away quickly when their eyes met, and it was plain that he’d suddenly become afraid of her in a way he hadn’t thought to be before.

No, she wanted to say to him, It’s alright. I’m not like him. However, she swallowed the words; she couldn’t even be sure they were true.

The hurt must have been visible when she raised her eyes to meet Emmett’s, mock concern evident in every line of his face.

“Oh, Poppet.” Emmett shook his head. “You don’t mean to tell me you’ve come to care for these people?” He tutted softly. “Would be a shame if something were to… happen to them.”

Emmett examined his gun casually before looking up at Lily and grinning broadly.

Seething at the thinly veiled threat, Lily lifted the pistol and fired at Emmett. Her arm throbbed with the recoil, and she struggled to hide her reaction.

Anger and surprise flitted across Emmett’s face as he took several steps back, staggering away from her. He’d clearly thought she’d still had too much softness in her heart to actually shoot.

However, he quickly regained his composure, shaking his head and smiling once again. “Oh, Poppet… You never were a very good shot.”

Before Lily could react, Emmett had lifted his gun and pulled the trigger.

Immediately, she felt like somebody had thrown boiling water on her shoulder. She screamed in pain and fell to the ground as blood dripped down her arm and onto the cobblestones beneath her.

Emmett walked closer to her, crouching down so that they were face to face. “Why did you have to leave, Poppet? Why did you have to start all of this?”

She flinched at the smell of his breath, hot on her skin. “It’s not too late, you know. We can forget you took this little side trip. You can come back today—wouldn’t you like that?”

Lily pressed her hand against her shoulder where the bullet had grazed her, trying to stop the bleeding. She glared up at Emmett and, unable to find the words to express her revulsion for him, gathered all the saliva she could muster and spat in his face.

He laughed and stood up, wiping his face on his sleeve.

“Why would I ever go with you? You just tried to kill me!” she exclaimed, but Emmett only laughed.

“We both know that, if I was trying to kill you, you’d be dead.” His voice had grown quiet, almost loving, as though he had done her a favor—and, in a sense, he had. Lily knew there was truth to his words.

You don’t earn a nickname like “The Noose” for missing your targets.

With her hand still clutching her shoulder, she struggled to her feet, with Emmett mirroring her.

“I’ll come back with you over my dead body.” Lily wasn’t sure if her voice was shaking from fear, pain, or blood loss. Cold sweat gathered on her brow, and her hands were clammy; she could only hope she looked stronger than she felt.

Emmett scowled, and if Lily hadn’t known him better, she’d think he was just mildly annoyed, but she could see the rage in his eyes.

“No, not your dead body—that wouldn’t give either of us what we want—but maybe… over theirs?” Emmett jerked his gun toward the people behind her.

Lily’s heart sank. She’d known these men and women for a few weeks, at most, but she realized she felt protective of them. After all, they’d been the ones to take her in, to rescue her—without knowing who they were rescuing her from.

“How about we make a deal? For each minute you refuse to leave these people and come back to your real life, one of them will have to die.” Emmett pulled a pocket watch out of his pants—a watch Lily had stolen for him when she’d been hardly more than a child herself—and stared at it for a moment. “Starting… now.”

Emmett looked up and grinned before quickly raising his gun and shooting the first person he saw.

“No!” Lily screamed, diving for the old man, who now lay bleeding on the ground. She barely registered the gasps of the people surrounding her as she desperately pressed her hands against his chest, trying stop the bleeding, even though she knew it was in vain.

Just as he’d said, Emmett always hit his target.

“Clock is ticking, Poppet,” Emmett said casually. “Forty-five seconds until someone else dies—that is, of course, if I don’t get impatient.”

Lily stared at the man. She couldn’t look away. There was nothing she wanted less than to go back to Emmett, but he wasn’t leaving her any choice. She’d come to care for these people who had taken care of her.

Just two days ago, the man Emmett had just shot had offered her an extra helping of food, claiming she was much too slight. Lily was ashamed to admit she’d accepted, despite knowing he would likely go without.

And now, here he was, moments away from death.

She looked up at Emmett, shoulders slumping in defeat. She couldn’t let the cowering, whimpering people behind her die on her behalf—and she knew Emmett would continue shooting until no one was left alive.

He smiled at her triumphantly; he had her cornered—and he knew it.

Lily sighed and nodded slowly. “Alright,” she murmured. She had hoped she’d escaped Emmett and his gang for good. “I’ll come back.”

Slowly, as though she had to convince herself to move, she took a step toward him. However, before her foot could connect with the ground, she heard gunshots ring out—only, this time, the shots were coming from behind her.

Lily ducked instinctively. “Cover your heads!” she yelled as the people from her wagon train screamed. She watched as Herb fell to the ground.

Good. The world will be safer without him. Lily’s eyes darted around wildly as Emmett’s men ran away, some of them nursing wounds.

She tottered, losing her balance, and felt her body sag, wondering faintly why everything was suddenly blurry.

Then Emmett’s face appeared in front of her, angry but self-assured. “I’m afraid I’ve got to run, Poppet,” he said, too calmly for the situation, “but I’ll come back for you. You can hang your hat on that. You will be Mrs. Emmett James.”

Just like that, he was gone.

“Are you alright?” Lily looked around wildly, suddenly breathless. “Was anybody else hit?” she asked, but the words weren’t coming out right. People were staring at her in horror.

The world swam before her eyes, and the last thing Lily saw before everything went black was her own hand on the cobblestones, covered in blood.

Chapter Two

It had promised to be a calm ride—dull, even—so dull, in fact, that Jasper had been dreading it for days.

He hated taking the tourists who flocked to Bandera, the cowboy capital of Texas, for a ride through town. He hated how the men puffed out their chests as they sat (incorrectly, mind you), on horseback. He hated the way their daughters batted their eyes at him, as though they were already planning to move onto his family’s land and become a rancher’s wife. He resented how the tourists came in droves, how their interest felt like a mockery of the very thing he’d dedicated his life to, just as his father and grandfather had before him.

But the ranch hadn’t gotten any cheaper to run, and the travelers came full of enthusiasm, with even fuller wallets. It didn’t matter how much he resented it; when the opportunity to capitalize off the tourists came, he had no choice but to take it.

Jasper mentally prepared himself for a slow, boring day. The only reason he’d bothered to bring his weapon that morning was for protection against the rattlesnakes hiding in the fields they’d pass through.

And yet, just as they made it to the outskirts of town, the sounds of gunfire and screaming filled the air, and Jasper suddenly hoped the number of bullets he and the ranch hands had between them would be enough.

“Willie, Roy,” Jasper shouted, springing into action, “y’all take these riders on back to the ranch and keep an eye out! The rest of us are going into town.”

He nodded solemnly to the other eight ranch hands, who already clutched their shotguns, and tapped his boots to his horse’s flanks three times.

It wasn’t his job to protect the townspeople or wagon trains full of travelers heading in each direction, and yet, here he was, endangering himself and his ranch hands, riding directly into trouble.

Jasper scoffed. If not me, who else? The sheriff likely wasn’t even in town—he was too busy trying to recruit men to do his job so he wouldn’t have to.

He quickly took in the scene in the town square: outlaws wielding guns, keeping a group of travelers from attempting an escape, while an imposing man—clearly the ringleader—stood out front.

Jasper would’ve liked to take the leader out. Though he’d never been one for spilling blood, in his experience, the rest of the gang members would drop their arms if their leader was incapacitated. However, the man was too far, and Jasper knew he risked hitting an innocent if he tried to shoot him. Instead, he aimed for the man closest to him and fired his weapon.

Within moments, Jasper’s men were dodging bullets, and he could only hope that none would lose life or limb. He suddenly wished he hadn’t engaged, but what else could he have done? I can hardly leave these people to die.

“Keep your heads down,” Jasper shouted as he and his ranch hands continued firing at the gang, “and mind the women and children!”

They didn’t have to fight for long. The gang clearly hadn’t been expecting to be met with resistance, and the ones left standing fled quickly.

The lead bandit was the last to leave. He took his time mounting his horse, staring at Jasper with a look that sent shivers down his spine.

Jasper got the distinct impression that the man was memorizing his face, already plotting his revenge. He didn’t have time to dwell on it, though, as a little voice shouted “Help!” from the front of the crowd.

Urging his mount to a trot, Jasper rode toward the source of the cry and found a young woman unconscious on the ground, surrounded by travelers from a wagon train. Long waves of hair partially covered her face, and her arm was soaked in blood.

“She was shot by that man,” a nearby woman said, her voice quaking. “Is she…”

Jasper met the woman’s eyes, plainly understanding what the woman was trying to ask. She obviously couldn’t bring herself to say the word “alive.”

Brushing the hair back from the unconscious woman’s face, he found her face pale, her skin cold. He held a finger to her neck, feeling the faint pulse of her heartbeat.

“She’s above snakes, alright.” Pulling out his jackknife, he snapped it open and cut a strip of cloth from his shirt sleeve to tie around her arm. It’s not a great tourniquet, but it’ll have to do.

He lifted her from the ground, surprised by how light she was, considering her length. “Joseph!” he shouted to a nearby ranch hand. “Let’s bring this woman back to the ranch—she needs medical attention.”

Joseph nodded, then helped Jasper get situated on his horse with the woman slumped in front of him. Jasper clutched her middle with his left arm, taking the reins with his right. Though he was confident he’d be able to keep her steady, he knew it would be impossible to fight off the gang if he were ambushed on the way home.

“We’ll need to ride back as fast as we can,” Jasper said to his men, who had begun to gather around him. “Stick close by me—I’ll be a sitting duck with her on my horse.”

“Excuse me, sir?” The same woman with the shaking voice approached him timidly. “She has a horse—that one, there. I realize it may be a lot to ask, but she really loves that horse… I’d hate to see her lose it.”

Jasper followed the woman’s eyes to see a speckled white mare, larger than he would’ve expected a young woman to be riding.

“Louis,” he said, looking at another of his ranch hands, “tie up to that horse, will ya? Let’s see if we can bring her back.” He knew it may be foolish, but he couldn’t help but try to bring the horse along. Still, he couldn’t ask his men to risk their lives to save the animal. “At the first sign of trouble, though, you cut her loose. Understand?”

Louis nodded and began roping the horse.

Just as Jasper’s men mounted up, he heard the little girl whisper to her mother.

“Why did The Noose try to take her?”

He felt his heart sink. For years, he’d heard tales of The Noose—a bloodthirsty outlaw who was rumored to be just as dangerous as he was deranged. Jasper had always assumed the tales were exaggerated, or that the dastardly deeds of multiple men had been attributed to one.

And yet, as the woman assured her daughter that they would be safe, Jasper pictured the tall man with strong cheekbones covered in overgrown scruff and the cold, focused expression on his face.

Suddenly, he was sure the stories he’d heard weren’t the half of it.

It was only once they’d ridden out of earshot that Jasper let out a long string of curses. What the hell was I thinking? He’d endangered his ranch hands, and though none of them had lost their lives, many were looking worse for wear.

The tourists he’d been taking on a ride were likely to spread word of their grand experience, and while Jasper wouldn’t mind halting the visits from travelers, he knew they could use the money.

But that wasn’t the worst part; the worst part was what the little girl had said—that the man whose gang he’d shot at, whose kidnapping he’d thwarted, was The Noose.

“The Noose, Chessy,” he said, and his horse, Chestnut, let out a low whinny. “Of all the gangs I could pick a fight with, I chose The Noose’s.”

He saw me, Jasper remembered. He stared right at me, and for a long while. He may not know my name, but he’ll know my face. And he seems the type to hold a grudge.

He adjusted the young woman on the saddle, checking again to make sure she was breathing. “What do you think he wanted with her, girl?”

The mare only snorted.

Looking down again, Jasper was relieved to see that the woman’s wound seemed to have stopped bleeding, though the blood had already soaked through her shirt and onto his. It was a strange shirt—not so much because of its pattern or material, but that the checkered, lightweight cotton looked more like something he’d wear in the field than something a woman would wear.

He wasn’t sure he’d ever seen a woman in trousers, either. Even his mother—rest her soul—had donned a lightweight dress when she’d worked on the ranch.

“Why is she wearing men’s clothes?” he wondered aloud, but Chestnut, as usual, gave no response.

A strong breeze sent the woman’s hair flying, tickling his nose. “And why does she wear her hair loose?” Jasper knew what his father would’ve said—that it was unbecoming, unladylike for a woman not to fix her hair or dress properly.

Jasper himself wasn’t bothered by her lack of convention; it simply added to his curiosity about the woman.

She slumped forward again, and Jasper noticed a smattering of small, faded bruises along the nape of her neck; the faint, greenish markings trailed down underneath her shirt, so he couldn’t see where they ended.

Who is this woman? Her clothes, hair, bruises… Jasper had never heard of a woman traveling with a gang before, but if there was one, isn’t this what she might look like?

On the other hand, the little girl had said The Noose was trying to take this young woman. Why would he need to abduct her if she’d already been part of his circle of thieves and murderers?

There was a sudden, loud gasp, and Jasper was startled to find the woman’s eyes boring into him as she panted.

“It’s alright, it’s alright,” he said quickly upon seeing the fear on her face. “I’m going to take care of you. It will all be alright.” The woman inhaled sharply, looking as though she might scream, before her doe-like eyes fell shut again.

Really, he didn’t know if she would be alright, but he was going to do everything in his power to help her.

“We need to pick up speed!” Jasper called as they reached the western fields of the Young Ranch and tried to push Chestnut faster, despite the additional weight she was carrying. The sun had already set, and dusk darkened the land as they approached.

“Is that Jasper?” He heard his youngest brother’s voice and sighed with relief that they had made it to safety. “Who’s on his horse?” Eric’s voice was filled with concern as he dropped the axe he’d been sharpening and ran to Jasper’s side.

Jasper clumsily tried to hand the woman off to his brother, but the operation was awkward. “Robert!”

He looked around, hoping his other brother would come help, but was surprised to see that his other brother hadn’t moved from the bench where he sat cleaning saddles.

Robert finally got up and sauntered over to them, and Jasper resisted the urge to shout at him for ignoring the urgency of the situation.

“What’s going on here?” Robert drawled.

“She’s injured,” Jasper replied. “Shot in her shoulder. We need to get her inside.”

Despite his initial sluggishness, Robert helped Eric get her off the horse.

“Put the horses in the barn,” Jasper called to the ranch hands. “The woman’s, too. Those of you who’re injured, meet us inside.”

Jasper jumped off his horse, handing the reins to one of the ranch hands and walked alongside his brothers towards the house.

“What happened?” Eric asked, looking Jasper over. “Are you hurt?”

Jasper shook his head. “There was a gang in town.” He paused, then added, “The Noose’s gang.”

Robert let out a low groan. They’d all heard of the gang’s cruelty.

Jasper continued, “They were attacking a wagon train. This girl was injured.”

Robert looked at his older brother incredulously. His next words came slowly, as though he thought Jasper a fool. “And you just had to rush to the rescue?”

“What was I supposed to do?” Jasper’s tone was sharp. “Leave all of those people to die?”

Robert opened his mouth as if to argue again. However, when Eric shot him a pleading look, he subsided—at least for the time being.

The three brothers shuffled toward the house, each supporting a portion of the girl’s weight. Jasper was glad for the help; he was drained from the fight and holding the young woman on the ride home.

As they neared the back door—they rarely went in the front—Catherine rushed out, wiping her hands on her apron. “What’s this commotion?” she said, her voice light; then, her eyes grew wide as she took stock of the situation.

“My God,” she muttered before turning her head to shout, “Andrew! Come quick, we need your help!”

A middle-aged man emerged from the house, his face bewildered at the scene. Despite his obvious confusion, he quickly sprang into action.

“Catherine, is there a room available for the girl?”

“Yes, Andrew, just need to put sheets on the bed.”

“Well, hurry to it!” After she disappeared into the house, Andrew turned his attention to Jasper. “The ranch hands—are any injured?”