The Judge's Daughter

ONE

**READERS - I would love it if you would help me find my errors. I enjoy it when my readers help me edit. <grins>

Wyoming, 1876

Ya win some, ya lose some. And today, Austin Tanner felt as though his luck was changing for the better because he was going to catch him an outlaw.

Scooting slowly on his belly, Austin moved a few feet upward until reaching the top of the knoll. His horse was tied to a tree below, and hopefully, the suspect he was spying on wouldn't know of Austin's presence. This would be his last case as a Bounty hunter, and he was going to leave his eight-year career with pride for all that he'd accomplished.

Of course, he'd have to catch the gunfighter, Ted McQueen, first.

As Austin studied the surrounding area, confidence grew inside him. The sun had barely begun to peek on the horizon, and it would soon wake McQueen, who was lying on his bedroll with a blanket over him. The tricky gunfighter had been on the run for three weeks, and Austin had been hot on his trail but never fully catching him.

A week ago, when he was in Crawford, Nebraska, Austin thought that would be the day he'd catch McQueen, but unfortunately, the man slipped through his fingers. Austin wouldn't allow that to happen this time. Now, in the early morning hours, he couldn't wait to slap handcuffs on the outlaw's wrists for killing four people in the past six months.

McQueen might be one of the fastest draws in Wyoming, but Austin was born and raised in Montana, and he considered him faster than anyone he knew. Austin hadn't gone up against anyone famous, but he didn't have to, either. Usually, he shot the pistol right out of the criminal's hand before the weapon was completely out of the holster.

Sadly, Austin had also killed a few men, but it was only to protect himself or those innocent people who were in the line of fire. He'd had enough of killing and catching criminals. Soon, he would live a normal life, find a good woman, settle down, and have children.

Austin studied the small camp that Ted McQueen had set up for himself. It surprised Austin that the criminal didn't try harder to hide, especially since the man was on the run. Then again, Austin had met many criminals who thought they were above the law and invincible. Those men were easier to catch, in his opinion.

Being as quiet as he could be, Austin slid down the other side of the knoll, moving closer to McQueen. Thankfully, the shadows still covered many areas on the land and under the trees. Austin was sure the gunfighter wouldn't know he was there until it was too late. At least, that's what Austin hoped.

The closer he came to the outlaw, Austin could hear the gentle snores coming from the man as they bounced out of the thicket of trees nearby. McQueen hadn't moved, which gave Austin hope that everything would work out according to plan.

However, he noticed something odd about the sleeping man whose snores floated through the air. The lump under the blanket hadn't moved. A black, felt hat covered the outlaw's face, and the blanket covered the rest of him. Yet, for a man who snored loud enough to wake the dead, why hadn't the blanket moved?

Child of awareness ran over Austin's body, and he paused in his steps. Prickles of unease grew in his belly, telling him to beware. Slowly, he reached for his gun.

Suddenly, out of the corner of his eyes, there was a movement coming from the trees. At first, he thought the early morning shadows were playing tricks on him, but before he knew it, the shadow grew into a form.

McQueen!

The outlaw held a long tree branch and swung it at Austin. He stumbled backward to keep the limb from missing him, but it still struck his shoulder, knocking him off balance. Austin decided to brace himself from hitting the ground instead of withdrawing his gun. He hit the ground and quickly rolled, knowing McQueen was going to try and whack him with the tree branch while he was down.