Free Mark of the Hunter by Charles G. West

She took a step back and looked at him as one would gaze at a problem child. “You are planning to come back, aren’t you? I mean, whenever you finish with this important job you have to do.”
    He took a minute to answer, unable to understand why she was interrogating him in such fashion. Stony and Slick were always talking about what a fine-looking woman Eileen was, but no one ever suggested that she was a little bit loco. It would be a shame if she was touched in the head, because Stony and Slick were right. She was a fine-looking woman. He was not at all blind to that, but he never fantasized anything about her for the simple reason that he figured she was far above men like him—that and the fact that, for some reason he could not explain, he always felt uncomfortable when she came around. There was no room in his life for a woman, anyway, as long as he had his vow to complete. “I reckon I’ll be comin’ back,” he finally said. “I ain’t got nowhere else to go.”
    â€œAnd that’s the only reason you’d come back here—because you don’t have anywhere else to go?” She was pressing him hard, hoping he might realize there was a better reason to return to the Triple-T.
    â€œI guess so,” he answered, puzzled by her question.
    â€œWell, when you’re deciding whether you are or not, here’s something to think about.” She stepped quickly to him, rose on her tiptoes, and kissed him hard. She stepped away then, spun on her heel, and was gone, leaving him standing, confused and dazed, trying to figure out what had just happened. Whatever possessed her to kiss him, and why? Of all the issues he had encountered in his young life, women were the subject he knew the least. He suddenly had a strong desire to change his mind and forget about leaving. After a few moments of indecision, however, he reminded himself of his sworn obligation to find Levi Creed and punish him for the death of his mother. He knew there would never be peace in his mind until that promise to her was fulfilled. He hesitated a moment more when another thought occurred. There was a good possibility that Mike’s daughter, Eileen, might be
tetched in the head
. He decided on that explanation for her impulsive kiss, although it would be difficult to dismiss the strange tingling he imagined he still felt on his lips.
    Equally uncertain about what had just happened in the tack room, Eileen questioned her sanity as she walked back to the kitchen.
What on earth was I thinking?
she asked herself. The trouble was, and she knew it, that she was not thinking rationally. The sudden impulse to kiss him was the only way she could think to shock him out of his constant emotionless detachment. She smiled to herself when a picture of her horrified mother formed in her mind.
She would have had a cow,
she thought. She shook her head then, wondering if she had just opened a door that would have best remained closed. After all, her mother was right—they had known absolutely nothing about Cord Malone before he set foot on their ranch. But she had to admit that the strange young man had stirred feelings in her, at least enough so that she wanted to know more about him. Maybe she was wrong, but she thought that she sensed a decent soul behind the scarred forehead—
and malleable enough so that I could shape him any way I wanted,
she thought. “Hell,” she swore aloud, “he’s leaving and we’ll probably never see him again. It was just a kiss, anyway.”
    â€œWhat did you say, dear?” Muriel Duffy asked when Eileen walked into the kitchen.
    â€œOh, nothing,” Eileen said. “I was just thinking that it’s getting colder outside.”
    â€¢Â Â Â â€¢Â Â Â â€¢
    The morning broke chilly and clear, and Cord was saddled up soon after taking advantage of a hearty breakfast provided by Slop, who was one of the few, along with Stony