Lucy clamped her hand down on Lynn’s, squeezing hard. “Joss knows I can dowse.”
Lynn’s eyebrows flew up. “And you were going to tell me this when?”
“I’m sorry,” Lucy said, eyeing the riders as they grew closer. “I never thought she’d use it against me.”
“That’s ’cause you’re a decent person,” Lynn said. “I would’ve figured it right off.”
The horses were close enough that Lucy heard the front man shout to the others. They slackened their pace, fanning out to face her and Lynn.
“All right then,” Lynn said, eyeing their formation. “You talked long enough to earn a spot here on the road. Things go south, you head for the grass and use the pistol. You’re better at short range, anyway.”
Lucy only nodded, words stolen from her as the men came within thirty feet, then close enough to see one of them wasn’t a man at all. “Damn her,” Lucy said at the sight of Joss.
“Don’t worry about that now,” Lynn said quietly. “You keep still.”
The horses slowed to a walk, then a halt, as the five men and Joss formed a line. Lucy glared at their onetime companion, the unfamiliar burn of hatred pulsing through her. Joss only stared back.
“Afternoon, ladies,” the man in the lead said, nodding toward Lynn, who nonchalantly nodded back.
“Afternoon.”
“It’s a nice day for a ride,” the man continued, crossing one leg over his pommel.
“I prefer to walk myself,” Lynn said, eyes roaming over the mounted men as she spoke. “Like to get back to it, if you don’t mind.”
“That can wait a bit, I imagine,” he said, still friendly, though Lucy noticed he was watching Lynn’s hands instead of her face. “We hear you shoot like a man.”
“You heard wrong,” Lynn said coldly. “I shoot like a woman.”
A titter swept through the men, and Joss shifted uncomfortably in her saddle.
“One of my men got a little taste of your talent last night,” the man continued, smile fading. “He’s not feeling so well today.”
“Funny, my daughter took a hit and is feeling fine.”
“Joss here says that ain’t your daughter.”
“Joss say anything else?”
The man smiled again, a cold flexing of facial muscles that didn’t extend to his eyes. “Enough to get her a nice safe place to live for a while, assuming the young one comes along without any trouble.”
The man switched his gaze to her, and Lucy instinctively stepped back, wishing she could puddle into the ground along with the water at Lynn’s feet.
“Sorry,” Lynn said, a small smile on her own face. “I’ll be giving you trouble.”
“Why can’t we take ’em both?” one of the other riders said to the leader, but his eyes were riveted on Lynn. “I like women with more hair on them than the dowser has got.”
“You keep the blond one long enough, her hair’ll grow,” another one said, eyes crawling over Lucy’s body.
“Ain’t nobody taking anybody,” Lynn said, her voice dropping all pretense of civility.
“I told you she’s dangerous,” Joss said, nervously watching Lynn. “Take care of her and grab the little one.”
“I like ’em dangerous,” the one who was interested in Lynn said, walking his horse right up beside her. He took a handful of her hair and tugged on it. “You’re awful pretty, to be so mean.”
“I been trying to do better about killing people,” Lynn said. “Then fate puts you in my path.”
Lucy knew the tone well enough to drop before Lynn’s rifle cracked, the shot catching his horse in the neck and sending the animal rearing, the rider flying. The horse fell to its knees, lifeblood spilling into the dirt. Lynn crouched behind its flailing body. Lucy rolled to the side and felt the stitches in her shoulder rip as she flung herself into the ditch and pulled her own pistol into position.
The horses panicked at the smell of blood, and the men fired wildly as their mounts struggled against their bridles. Shots rang past Lucy in the grass, but none came close. More blood sprayed from the dying horse Lynn hid behind as she waited patiently to come up for a shot. When she did, the leader fell, a neat black hole in his forehead.
The rider of the dead horse had been bucked off, breaking a leg. He was crawling east as best he could, trying to stay out from under the hooves of the pawing horses. Lucy drew a bead on another rider but hesitated a second before pulling the trigger. Lynn’s shot rang out first. The man fell in a heap, his horse trampling his skull.
Joss was screaming, inexpertly yanking on the reins and spooking her horse more. It bucked wildly, frightened by its strange rider, and Joss went sailing over its head.
The two remaining men fired desperately. Lynn crouched behind the dead horse, squeezing herself into the smallest possible target. She came up briefly, fired quickly, and one of the men shrieked and grabbed his arm. His gun clattered to the road. He turned his horse east, disappearing in a cloud of dust, one of the riderless horses following behind.
The last man tossed his gun down and put both hands in the air. Lynn glanced over the body of the horse, saw him unarmed, and rose to her feet. Lucy emerged from the grass and walked to where Joss lay curled in a ball, moaning.
“Don’t kill me,” the man said, his voice shaking as Lynn approached his mount. “Wasn’t my idea.”
“I know whose idea it was,” she said, looking blackly at Joss, who cowered under her glare. Lynn sighed and looked back at Lucy.
“Don’t kill him,” Lucy said. “What good would it do?”
“They know you can dowse.”
“I won’t tell nobody, honest.” The rider moved to cross his heart, but Lynn trained her gun on him.
“I really think I should shoot him,” Lynn said.
Lucy glanced down at Joss, who was sitting up and cradling her foot. “Save your bullets,” Lucy said.
Lynn looked between the rider and the man with the broken leg, who was still trying to crawl east. “I’m taking your horses,” she said. “Pick your buddy up off the ground. I see any of your people following us, you’re the first person I shoot.”
“Understood,” the man said curtly, sliding down off his horse and handing the reins over to Lynn. He motioned to Joss. “What about her?”
Lynn looked at Joss with a hardness in her eyes Lucy had never seen before. “She’s staying here. Just like that.”
Joss moaned and tried to grab Lucy’s leg, but she stepped out of reach. Lynn walked away from the fallen riders without another glance, handed the reins of one horse to Lucy, and gathered the two remaining, walking past Joss as if she weren’t there.
“Please, Lynn, listen to me,” Joss pleaded, as Lynn walked by. “Don’t leave me here. I can’t walk.”
Lynn didn’t answer and motioned to Lucy to get on her horse as she mounted her own, draping the reins of the riderless horse around her pommel. Lucy bit down against the pain as she pulled herself awkwardly into the saddle. Fresh blood broke through the honey coating her wound, the bitter metallic smell mixing with the sweet tang of honey. As they rode past Joss, Lucy glanced down to see a bloody streak of bone sticking out above her foot, already attracting flies.
“Lynn? Lynn!” Joss’ voice cracked as she pleaded. “Leave me the horse, at least. You’ve got an extra horse—just leave me the goddamn horse!”
Lucy dug her heels into her horse, and it moved faster, Lynn’s picking up the pace beside her. A cry of rage ripped the air, and a shower of dirt and pebbles rained down on them as they rode away. Joss kept screaming Lynn’s name, but the next fistful of rocks didn’t reach them.
“Lucy! LUCY!!!”