One More Sunrise (38 page)

Dawn was painting the eastern horizon with a bright golden glow when Tharyn roused from sleep. Luxuriating for a few moments in her soft bed, a broad smile graced her face. She stretched, tossed the covers back, and sat up. Looking out the east window of her room, she saw the top rim of the sun mounting on the horizon.

She drew a short breath. “This is the day, Lord. There’s that sunrise I’ve been expecting. It’s the last one I’ll see as Miss Tharyn Tabor. Today I will marry my best and dearest friend. How can I ever thank You for making this all possible? A few short months ago, I thought I’d never see Dane again on this earth. Now in just a few hours, I will be his wife!”

A familiar Scripture came to mind as she relished the day that lay before her: “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the L
ORD
. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

With her eyes still on the glorious sunrise, she said, “Yes! Isaiah 55:8 and 9. I’m so glad, heavenly Father, that I surrendered my thoughts to Your lofty thoughts and my ways to Your loving ways. How beautifully You have made the seemingly impossible become possible! Please take this day and grant us Your special blessings and may our lives be ever centered on You. I love You, Lord Jesus. Thank You for making this day possible.”

Letting God’s peace wash over her and knowing that the rest of the household was still asleep, Tharyn left the bed, put on her robe, and sat in her chair by the east window. Drawing her feet up under her, she watched the sun mount until it lifted off the horizon. Her heart beat fast as she contemplated the day that lay before her.

At noon that day, knowing the wedding was set for two o’clock in the afternoon, Tag Moran, his two brothers, and Tony Chacone tied their horses in a thick stand of trees some thirty yards to the west side of the white frame church building, which was on the west edge of Denver.

“Now let’s go over the plan one more time,” said Tag, facing his three gang members. “As I’ve pointed out already, I’ve attended enough church weddings to know that the bride and her father will enter the auditorium from the vestibule once everyone is seated. We’ll have our horses ready at the front of the building, where Jason and Tony will be holding them.

“Bart and I will be on the porch, peeking through the windows beside the door. Just before the bride and her father leave the vestibule, we’ll burst through the door, grab her at gunpoint, tell her father we’re gonna kill her, then knock him cold with a gun barrel. I’ll put my hand over her mouth, pick her up, carry her to my horse, and we’ll all ride away in a hurry.”

The gang talked it over for a while; then at 1:15, they peered through the trees and saw a buggy pull up to a door on the west side of the church building near the front. Three women got out of the buggy. One of them was carrying a white wedding dress on a hanger.

They moved into the side room through its door, closed it, and immediately pulled down the shades of the room’s two windows.

“Well,” said Tag, “it’s obvious that those two women are going to help the bride get into her dress in that room.”

At the same moment, they saw more vehicles coming.

In the Sunday school room, Kitty and Breanna began helping Tharyn get out of the dress she was wearing and into the wedding dress. Once the wedding dress was on, they lifted the shades on the two windows.

They could hear people entering the building at the front door, and knew this group would include the organist and soloist, Pastor and Mrs. Blandford, David, John, Paul, Ginny, Leanne, Kenny, Melinda, Tim—and Dane.

In the stand of trees, the gang watched the small group enter the building through the front door, and shortly thereafter, the wedding guests began arriving. They stiffened a little when they saw that some of the male guests—though dressed nice for the wedding—wore badges on their suit coats and guns on their hips.

Tag said, “Boys, I’ve changed my mind about our tactics. With those lawmen among the guests, this could get dangerous. Instead of snatching Logan’s bride when she and her father are about to walk down the aisle, we’ll sneak up to the side of the building and take her from the room where she and the two women are right now. We’ll gag and bind the two women and tell them we’re gonna kill Logan’s bride.”

He pointed at the windows. “See? They’re still in there. We’ll go as soon as the coast is clear.”

Minutes later, everyone else who was standing at the front of the building filed inside. Soon even the stragglers had entered the building.

With Tag in the lead, the gang members led their horses to the rear of the building. They heard the organ begin playing in the auditorium and could hear a woman singing a solo.

They left their horses with Tony, and the Moran brothers ducked low as they hurried alongside the building to the door of the Sunday school room. Tag peeked through one of the windows and saw the bride in her wedding dress as the two women were adjusting her hair and the veil.

Tag burst through the door, his gun drawn, and hissed in a low voice as startled gasps flew from the mouths of all three
women, “One peep and we’ll kill all three of you!”

They stared in terror at the mean-looking trio.

While Kitty, Breanna, and Tharyn were being gagged and their wrists bound behind their backs, Tag said in a low voice, “I’m Tag Moran. I’m gonna kill Logan’s bride because he let my brother Darryl and my good friend Gib Tully die because they were outlaws. He could have saved them! You tell him what I said, won’t you?”

Wide-eyed and breathing hard, Kitty and Breanna were forced to lie down on the floor, and their ankles were tied together so it would be impossible for them to move quickly to the vestibule door.

Blood was pounding in Tharyn’s head. Her face was a chalky mask as she looked at her mother and Breanna, making a whining sound through her gag while Tag hurried out the door with her in his arms.

In the church auditorium, while the organ was playing a hymn, Pastor Nathan Blandford, John Brockman, and the groom came out of a side room beside the platform and took their places.

Meanwhile, back in the vestibule, David Tabor waited with Leanne and Kenny, Melinda and Tim, and Paul and Ginny. He expected Kitty, Breanna, and the bride to come out of the Sunday school room.

David ran his gaze over the faces of the others and said, “I wonder what’s keeping them. It’s almost time to start down the aisle.”

“They sure ought to be showing up here in a few seconds,” said Kenny, adjusting himself on his wooden leg.

“Maybe I’d better tap on the door,” said David, heading that way.

They all watched as David tapped on the door. When there was no response, David looked back at them and frowned. He turned the knob, opened the door, and was surprised to see Kitty and Breanna on the floor, bound and gagged.

As the others dashed into the room, David untied Kitty’s gag first. While he was working on Breanna’s gag, Kitty told him with a quivering voice what happened, who it was, and of Tag Moran’s words about killing Tharyn and why.

David turned to the others. “Get those ropes off them. I’ll go tell Pastor, Dane, and the others what’s happened!”

David ran down the aisle and told Dane, the pastor, and John what had happened, and of Tag Moran’s words about killing Tharyn because Dr. Dane Logan let his brother and friend die when he could have saved them.

Standing at the foot of the platform with his best man beside him, Dane looked at David in stunned disbelief as the words came off his tongue.
This can’t be happening!
his numb mind repeated over and over.

When David had finished, Dane turned to John. “Tag Moran is already a killer! He’ll have no qualms about killing again! After all, he can only hang once, no matter how many people he kills. We’ve got to trail those heartless outlaws and catch them before they kill Tharyn.”

John looked toward his deputies who sat in the pews and told them he was forming a posse to go after the gang right now.

Some of the deputies had to borrow saddled horses from among the guests, rather than using their own wagons that were in the lot.

John checked on Breanna and Kitty to make sure they were all right, and in less than five minutes, the posse rode away from the church, heading westward. The chief U.S. marshal figured the outlaws would head into the mountains.

Among the deputies was a determined Dr. Dane Logan.

F
ear clutched Dr. Dane Logan’s heart. They had found the gang’s trail leading into the mountains, but soon came to a stream, where the hoofprints of the gang’s horses led to its south bank. Brockman had two of the deputies cross the stream and ride the north bank, while he, the other two deputies, and Dr. Dane rode the south bank in hopes of finding evidence where they had emerged from the stream.

Dane knew right then that prayer was his only avenue of hope. Bouncing in the saddle, he whispered, “Oh, Lord, You know how long I prayed that You would let me see Tharyn again. And in Your loving kindness, You answered those prayers and brought us together. I beg of You, please don’t let her be taken from me again. Lead this posse in the right direction. Tag Moran has said he would kill her. Only You can prevent that from happening, Lord. Let us catch up to them and find Tharyn unharmed.”

As the posse continued on, Dane prayed over and over.

The hours passed, and the search became more complicated when the stream merged with a wide river. The chief sent the same two deputies across the river to ride the far bank while he and the others rode the bank before them.

This went on until darkness was falling and the posse had found no further trace of the gang. Brockman signaled for the deputies on the other side of the river to cross back. He turned to
Dr. Dane. “I’m sorry, Doc. We’ve lost their trail. We’d better head back to town.”

“But we
will
take up the search in the morning, won’t we?”

“Of course. We need to go back to town and get ourselves some food and rest since we didn’t come prepared to camp. We’ll start out at dawn tomorrow. I don’t want to discourage you, but we have to be realistic. These mountains have so many streams and rivers the gang can ride and leave no trail. Besides, this gang has eluded the law for years. They know all the tricks.”

“Yes, but we can’t give up.”

“We’re not giving up yet. Tomorrow, we’ll have our bedrolls and food enough to last several days. Maybe those outlaws will slip up or get careless. Let’s take a few minutes here and pray together.”

“I’d really appreciate that, Chief.”

John gathered the deputies around and led in prayer, asking God to keep His mighty hand of protection on Tharyn and to spare her life. He also prayed that the Lord would deliver the gang into the hands of the posse.

As they started down the mountain toward Denver, Dane said, “First thing in the morning, I’ll go to the Western Union office and wire Dr. Fraser, so he will know what’s happened.”

The Tag Moran gang—knowing there would be a posse after them—rode many a stream, working extremely hard to make sure they left no trail. They rode all night and arrived at the hideout at sunup the next morning. They had blindfolded Tharyn late in the afternoon the day before and removed the blindfold when they dismounted in front of the cabin.

Lucinda and Kathryn were in the kitchen preparing their breakfast when the gang came in with Dr. Dane Logan’s bride, whose features were drawn, and her wedding dress was wrinkled and a bit soiled. Tag told them her name was Tharyn.

Bart folded Lucinda in his arms and kissed her.

While more places were being set at the table, Lucinda spoke gruffly to Tharyn, telling her she would be staying in Kathryn’s room with her.

Tag looked at Kathryn and said levelly, “You keep a watch on her at all times. Don’t let her out of your sight.”

Kathryn nodded.

When they were sitting down to breakfast, Kathryn spoke to Tharyn kindly and sat beside her.

While picking at her food, a frightened and heartsick Tharyn prayed,
Lord, help me not to question why You have allowed this to happen to me, but to trust in You. There has been no more said about killing me. Help me to stay calm
.

Tharyn was fully aware of her heavenly Father’s hand on her and felt a measure of peace.

When breakfast was over, Lucinda said, “Kathryn you go ahead and take Tharyn up to your room. Since both of you are about the same size, you can let her get out of that wedding dress and into one of your dresses, can’t you?”

“Yes. I was planning to do that.” Kathryn looked at Tharyn. “I’m sure you would like to put a brush to your hair too.”

Tharyn managed a smile. “I would, thank you.”

As Kathryn and Tharyn rose to their feet, Tag looked up at his captive. “No funny business, Tharyn. You try to escape, you’ll be caught, and you’ll be sorry. Got that?”

Tharyn nodded.

The others watched as Kathryn led the weary bride out of the kitchen.

As they climbed the stairs, Kathryn took hold of Tharyn’s hand. “I have several dresses for you to choose from. You can take your pick.”