They Shamed Her for Carrying Another Man’s Child—Then the Feared Mountain Man Stood and Claimed It

Chapter 2

The wind carried Billy’s next words up the slope long before his horse reached the clearing.

“Send her out, Montgomery, and we’ll forget you ever touched her!”

Eight riders fanned into a loose arc below the treeline. Steam plumed from their horses’ nostrils. Every one of them carried a rifle across his saddle, and Abigail recognized the faces — ranch hands from Bitter Creek, men who had once doffed their hats to her on Sunday mornings.

Now they looked at her as though she were a sickness.