Protection

Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Bliss sifted through her father’s old newspapers, looking for something interesting to read. One would think that in so many years’ worth of newpapers that there would be at least one interesting article.

Lifting a paper from the top of the stack and walking to sit in her father’s office chair, Bliss read over the front page.

“One thousand dollars will be rewarded to the person who captures Kassidy Klaine, dead or alive. If you have seen this woman, please notify the local authorities immediately.”

Bliss read the article on the second page about a recent freight office robbery that Kassidy Klaine had pulled off. It had been very well detailed and thought out. What she read near the bottom shocked her.

“She was accompanied by the Slade brothers. It’s speculated that they could be the three men that rode with her when she robbed the bank in Casteelburg, Montana. The capture of the Slade brothers will be rewarded with five hundred dollars each. If you have any information on Kassidy Klaine and her gang’s whereabouts, please report to your local authorities as soon as possible.”

Bliss’ eyebrows drew close together. Who was this Kassidy Klaine woman and how had she been associated with the Slade brothers? To her knowledge, the Slade brothers had died nine years ago.

Flipping back to the front page, Bliss noticed the date.

The newspaper was ten years old.

Deciding to get to the bottom of the story of Kassidy Klaine and her posse, Bliss went through the newspapers and picked out every one she could find that had her name as a headline. Her father never paid attention to the newspapers anymore, anyway. She took the stack of papers to her room and placed them under her pillow and out of sight. She would read them later. As for the moment, she had laundry to gather for Grace.

*****

I don’t know what it is about her overwhelming need to get Clint out of here, but I think her cute plan to make him leave just might work. Making a man miserable is her specialty when she wants to show it, and she has plenty of experience doing it.

Clint asked me about Seth Ryder today. I can’t figure out if the man is nosy or if all of these questions are really helping him protect Bliss. Either way, I know that he’s the one being hired to do this, so we have no choice but to trust him.

Bliss, Clint, and I leave for Plateau tomorrow to get supplies. I sure am glad that Clint is coming along. I probably couldn’t control myself out there alone with the likes of Bliss Cooper. I can’t believe that I haven’t told her how I feel. She has a right to know if a man thinks she’s the greatest invention since life itself, doesn’t she? I’m just nervous that she won’t trust me. She has trust issues with men and I can’t blame her. The past she’s had with men isn’t something to be proud of. I just want to prove to her that not all men are low-lying dirt bags.

I suppose that I’ll keep my mouth shut for the time being and just keep praying for her. That’s the most a man can do for his woman, isn’t it?

Colt closed his journal and set it aside under his bed roll.

“Kidd? You gonna help me with these here stables or not? You been up there for half an hour,” another cowboy said down below him.

“Comin’,” Colt muttered, scooting across the floor to climb down the ladder.

*****

Bliss retrieved her father’s dirty clothes from his room and placed them in her basket. Daddy always kept his room the same way Momma had kept it. The same quilt on the bed, the same pillowcases on the pillows, the same pencils on the writing desk, the same books on the shelves, and the same rug on the floor. Bliss couldn’t help but think of her mother when she was in Daddy’s room.