His Mail Order Bride Was the Prettiest Woman He Ever Laid His Eyes On
Chapter 12
Crowe smiled.
“You were supposed to marry Jonathan.”
Eleanor stood beside Thomas.
“You forged my signature.”
“Yes.”
“You killed my aunt.”
Crowe’s smile faded.
“No.”
Eleanor stepped forward.
“You burned the courthouse.”
“Yes.”
“You tried to kill Samuel.”
“Yes.”
Thomas raised his pistol.
Crowe laughed.
“Shoot me and you lose everything.”
Thomas stopped.
Crowe continued.
“The registry burns.”
He held a candle beside the papers.
“One movement.”
Thomas lowered his pistol.
Crowe smiled.
“That’s better.”
Eleanor looked around.
There were three men behind Crowe.
All armed.
She whispered to Thomas.
“Wait.”
Crowe stepped closer.
“You were always an inconvenience, Reed.”
Thomas said nothing.
“You needed money.”
“Yes.”
“So I thought you would be easy to control.”
“You were wrong.”
“Yes.”
Crowe looked at Eleanor.
“She ruined everything.”
Eleanor smiled.
“No.”
Crowe frowned.
“What?”
“You did.”
She kicked the table.
The candle fell.
Thomas fired.
The room exploded into chaos.
Eleanor grabbed the registry.
Crowe fired.
Thomas knocked her down.
A bullet struck the wall.
One of Crowe’s men lunged.
Eleanor struck him with the heavy ledger.
Thomas fought another.
Crowe ran.
Thomas chased him toward the river.
Eleanor followed.
Crowe reached the dock.
A boat waited.
Thomas raised his pistol.
“Stop.”
Crowe turned.
“You won’t shoot.”
Thomas stared.
“Why?”
“Because you’re not a killer.”
Thomas lowered the weapon.
Crowe smiled.
Then Eleanor stepped beside him.
“You’re right.”
She raised her own pistol.
“But I am.”
Crowe froze.
She didn’t fire.
Instead, she said,
“Drop the gun.”
Crowe did.
The sheriff arrived moments later with six men.
Samuel Gray had sent word before Thomas and Eleanor entered the warehouse.
Crowe was arrested.
The forged documents were recovered.
The registry survived.
And for the first time, Eleanor’s inheritance was truly hers.
But Thomas still had one problem.
His debt was due in six days.
