Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight

Chapter Three

Edward's POV

We'd been camped outside Tombstone, Arizona for three days now waiting for the right moment to go looking for the sheriff's daughter. Carlisle had confirmed that Sheriff Charlie Swan was indeed here, he was who we were looking for. Yesterday Carlisle had returned saying the girl looked like her mother only with her father's eyes. We quietly slipped into town, Jasper and myself were charged with following the girl home once we spotted her. Alice, Jasper's wife waited back at camp. We knew she could take care of herself.

When the girl reached a small farm, we knew was her home we camped out waiting for the right moment. Sometime later the sheriff turned up, he was short with dark hair, Carlisle had been right about the girl looking like her mother because she didn't look like this man. We slipped closer to the house hearing an argument taking place between the sheriff and an Indian Ranger. The same ranger Carlisle had told us to watch for.

At night fall Jasper and I slipped into the house, he waited by the back door while I went up the stairs looking for the girl's room. When I found it, I saw she was still awake I picked up a pebble that was on the floor that had gone unnoticed by the rooms occupant and tossed it softly at the window. When she looked toward the window I slipped close to her and grabbed her placing my hand over her mouth to keep her from screaming. She didn't put up as big a fight as I thought she would. I lead her down the stairs to the back door where Jasper was waiting. Once outside I gagged and blindfolded her before passing to Jasper and mounting my horse. He handed her up to me than mounted his own horse and we headed back to camp.

When we got there everyone was waiting for us ready to go. Emmett had taken it upon himself to bring a whore with him it seemed as he had a firm grip on the blonde woman sitting with him in his saddle. We headed out toward Canyon City, an outlaw hided out. I felt my captive breathing evenly in and out and I knew she was asleep. I took the opportunity to ask about the blonde woman Emmett was clinging so tightly to.

"Whats with the Blonde, Em?" I asked him.

"I've been wondering that myself," Carlisle said and Jasper nodded.

"Ya'll shoulda' seen the man she worked for, a real piece of work that one. Royce king the Third. I saved her from a beaten' from one of his lackeys." Emmett explained, we nodded, he has a soft spot for damsels in destress, especially blonde damsels.

Sometime around dawn we noticed we were being followed by the ranger from the house, they must have noticed the girl was gone. Jasper left the group but returned not forty minutes later. The ranger didn't reappear again. We spoke every once in a while, through the long ride, but for the most part stayed silent. The Swan girl drifted in and out of sleep as we rode up to the only river between here and Canyon City. We stopped and Jasper dismounted then came around to my right reaching up for me to hand the girl to him. I handed her over then dismounted myself, I took off her blindfold and ungagged her then walked to the river to get a drink.

"Did we lose the Indian Ranger?" Carlisle asked Jasper.

"Yeah, several miles back, not sure what happened but we lost him," Jasper replied.

"Good, now we don't have to kill 'em," Carlisle said, like he really cared whether the man lived or died, the doctor in him died long ago.

Emmett joined us after feeding and watering the horses, "Where to now, boss?"

"We'll head to Canyon City, no one but outlaws like us knows it's there. Once there we'll decide the ransom price, then we'll send someone to give the word to the good sheriff." He gave a smirk and we laughed.

"Wait," the girl said. "Please take me home, my pa has nothing!" apparently, she didn't know him at all. "He's nothing but a sheriff!" she was in tears now. She knew nothing about the man she called pa.

"Your father must have lied to you if you truly believe that?" Carlisle said to her. "Gag her, Edward. We don't need her running her mouth the whole way there.

"I'm sorry," I whisper as I followed his orders, I truly did feel for her.

"We've lingered long enough, let's leave before the ranger catches up with us." Carlisle said I mounted my horse and Emmett handed the girl up to me and we made our way to Canyon City.