𝘍𝘖𝘙𝘎𝘐𝘝𝘌𝘕𝘌𝘚𝘚 𝘈𝘕𝘋 𝘙𝘌𝘛𝘙𝘐𝘉𝘜𝘛𝘐𝘖𝘕 | ʀᴅʀ

Chapter One

1888, West Elizabeth, Great Plains

"They're getting away!" Rosalie shouted, her brown gaze narrowed on the thundering wagon in the distance, the wheels kicking up dirt as it spun wildly and thumped over the dry ground.

At twenty-two, Rosalie's blonde curly hair was now waist length, the top part pulled back into a tight braid out of her face, the rest loose underneath. Her father's black cowboy hat was secured atop her head despite her rough riding.

Her deep red button-up was rolled to her elbows, her black pants dirty and pulled over her brown boots, silver spurs glittering in the sun. A black bandana covered the bottom half of her face, her brown eyes narrowed over the fabric as she stared down her target in the distance from under the brim of her hat.

Rosalie tightened her grip on the reins and dug her heels into Blitz's sides, the black stallion huffing as he pushed on, feeling his rider's urgency as she tried to gain on the wagon.

"Come on boy!" She shouted. "It seems I gotta clean up after everyone else, like usual!"

"It ain't my fault John spooked the feller!" Arthur shouted, appearing beside her as Boadicea pushed to match Blitz's speed, the hooves thundering underneath them as they rode at breakneck speeds. "I told him to wait n' he didn't listen! I told you this ain't the kind of job for him to come on with how he's been actin' lately!" He shouted in aggravation, giving her a look.

Rosalie rolled her eyes, not in the mood for his lecture.

"I don't want to hear it! I thought John was doing just fine!" Rosalie shouted, leaning over and urging Blitz to ride faster.

There was the sound of another horse beside them, kicking up the dry dirt and huffing from the exertion of their high-speed chase.

Rosalie glanced over, meeting the gray eyes of Mac Callander, his blonde hair swishing in the wind underneath his bowler hat as they rode. His eyes were squinted from the bright sun and dirt being kicked into the air. His knuckles were wound tight around the reins of his brown and white American Paint mare, Annie.

"If you sissies are done fightin', we got more important things to worry about right now, like gettin' that damn wagon! We ain't got a lot of time!" He shouted, nodding in the distance toward the wagon.

He was right. They needed to catch up quick.

Rosalie shouted in aggravation and thundered forward, leaving Arthur and Mac in her dust. Mac couldn't help the grin underneath his brown bandana at her form picking up speed. Arthur only shook his head and pushed Boadicea forward to catch up so they didn't lose sight of her.

"Come on, boy, we've done this before, haven't we?" Rosalie said under her breath as they neared the wagon, patting his neck in encouragement.

Blitz snorted in response and increased his speed. Rosalie grinned, but it was quickly wiped off her face at the sound of a gun being fired and a bullet whizzing past her ear.

"Shit!" She shouted, tugging Blitz to the side.

Leaning over the back of the wagon, standing in the driver's seat was a man with a long beard wearing a gray rodeo hat. He pointed a rifle in her direction, the barrel still smoking. His partner continued to drive the wagon, whipping the horses wildly with the reins as they tried to get away.

Rosalie went to grab the revolver at her hip, but before she could even unholster the weapon, gunshots rang out from behind her. Two shots were placed in the man's chest. He tumbled out of the wagon and hit the dirt in a bloody heap.

She glanced over her shoulder to see Arthur with his revolver outstretched, Mac thundering beside him. She mentally thanked him for covering her ass, and took off even faster, gaining on the wagon now that she had an opening. There was only the driver to deal with now.