Read “He had two blades,” Keenan said for Free Online

elbow beneath her cloak to help her stand. She flinched at his touch but didn’t pull away.
    One of the men from her tribe stepped forward. Keenan held her hand out to the man, but he avoided it. Instead, he stiffly pulled her against his side.
    Keenan crouched before Serena’s brother and glanced at the woman. “Ye called him William?”
    She nodded.
    “Yer brother?”
    She sniffed loudly and nodded again.
    Keenan carefully checked William’s pockets. A few coins, tinkled together but nothing more. Keenan looked around and spotted Gerard’s coin purse next to William along with a bloodied knife. But the papers were nowhere. What would a gypsy want with the letter anyway?
    The gun lying near the body must have shot William, but where had Gerard found the gun? It wasn’t his. When Gerard had started drinking heavily, Keenan took his firearm from him so he wouldn’t shoot anyone or himself. Keenan probably should have let the idiot keep his weapon, another failure on his part.
    A pounding crept up the back of his head as Keenan looked between the two men. What an ass he’d been to let his guard down. Without Gerard and his letter, his brother’s cause would require months to rebuild. He shook his head in disgust at himself.
    “William didn’t take his money and didn’t kill him,” Serena said firmly as she wiped another scarf along her nose.
    Keenan threw the purse of coins at her feet as he stood. The loud thump caused a stir amongst the Rom gathered.
    Serena spoke to the people around her. “William didn’t take the coins. It was the others,” she insisted as she waved her hands toward the other end of the bridge and looked back at Keenan. Frantic appeal bled from her eyes. “The man threw your friend’s coin purse on William after he shot him. Because William saw him, and his woman paying off Gerard’s murderer, some local ruffian.” The words flew desperately out of her. Several Rom backed away, disappearing into the shadows.
    “What man and woman? What murderer?” Keenan grabbed her arms.
    “Out of the way, you filthy Rom,” a rotund man huffed across the bridge with two men behind him. They held guns and were sloppily dressed as local authority. The remaining people backed up to allow them into the scene.
    The marshal glanced at the bodies. “What crime goes on here?”
    “Gerard Grant has been stabbed, killed,” Keenan said.
    “And my brother has been shot. He is bleeding.” Serena pulled away from Keenan to squat back down at William’s head. She smoothed his black hair from his face.
    The marshal pointed to the weapons each man had. “Looks like the Rom picked his purse and they fought a bit. The gentleman was gutted but got off a shot before he died. Thieving Rom.” The marshal spat on the ground near William’s foot.
    “That’s not what happened,” Serena shouted.
    “And how would you know that, little miss? Or were you in on it?” The marshal leered at her. “I saw you dance with the Rom people. You might not look like them, but you travel with them.”
    Keenan saw her wide eyes, her trembling hands. She didn’t look like someone who would aid her brother in thievery. But times were hard for the poor. Maybe they only meant to take the money, and the boy ended up defending himself. But again, Gerard had nothing to defend himself with. The details didn’t make sense. He needed to question Serena about what she saw. But how could she have seen others if she wasn’t involved? He had left her back at the wagon moments before coming upon Gerard.
    The marshal motioned to the two soldiers with him. “Bring the Rom and his woman.”
    “No.” Serena bent down to cradle William’s head.
    “She’s not involved,” Keenan Maclean said above her. Whether she was or not, he didn’t want her dragged off by these men.
    “And what would you be knowing about this, Scot?” the marshal said with transparent contempt.
    Keenan stood to his full height and stared the shoddy man in his