He Moved Into an Abandoned Farm — But 3 Gorgeous Women Were Already There

Chapter 4

“Well enough,” Clarabel answered. “Most folks have been decent to us over the years. But when it comes to going against the bank…” She trailed off with a shrug that said more than words could.

“The bank holds mortgages on half the businesses in town,” Ruby explained. “People are scared to cross them. And Sheriff Morrison owes his job to their backing in last year’s election.”

Wade felt the walls closing in around them. But something about this whole situation still bothered him. A splinter in his mind that he couldn’t quite work loose.

“Jed seemed awfully nervous when I showed him my deed,” Wade said slowly. “Like he wasn’t expecting me to be here.”

“What are you thinking?” Sadi asked.

“I’m thinking maybe we can use that nervousness against them.”

Wade untied his horse and swung into the saddle. “I’m riding to town to have a conversation with Mr. Harrison at the bank.”

Ruby grabbed his horse’s bridle. “That’s exactly what they want. Get you alone, away from witnesses. Men have disappeared for crossing Frontier Bank before.”

“Then come with me,” Wade said simply. “All of you. Let’s see how brave Mr. Harrison feels when he has to explain his paperwork in front of the whole town.”

The sisters exchanged glances. A silent conversation passed between them — years of shared history compressed into a heartbeat. Clarabel spoke first. “It’s risky.”

“Everything’s risky,” Ruby said slowly. “But doing nothing…”

“If we do nothing, you lose your home tonight anyway,” Wade finished for her. “At least this way, we go down fighting.”

Ruby released the bridle and stepped back. Something in her eyes had changed. A crack in the armor she had built around herself. “Give us five minutes to saddle up.”

While the women prepared their horses, Wade studied his deed more carefully. The ink still looked wrong. Too uniform. Too glossy. And the paper — he rubbed it between his fingers — felt stiff in a way that old paper never did. Like it had been baked or chemically treated to look aged.

Sadi emerged from the barn, leading a spirited chestnut mare. “You found something?”

“Maybe.” Wade held up the document to the light. “This ink’s barely dry. And look here at the signature.” He pointed to the bank manager’s name. “The ink’s a different shade than the rest of the document. They signed it separately, after everything else was already prepared.”

Clarabel mounted her horse gracefully, her eyes fixed on the deed. “They made your deed fresh but tried to make it look old.”

“Which means they’re not as organized as they want us to think,” Ruby added, settling into her saddle. “Mistakes like that suggest they’re working fast. Maybe too fast.”

Wade folded the deed carefully and tucked it back into his coat. “Or they’re getting desperate. Question is, why the rush?”

It was a question that would haunt him for the next hour. The four riders started toward town at a steady pace, but Wade couldn’t shake the feeling that they were riding into a carefully prepared trap. The morning had started with a simple plan — take possession of his new property, start his new life. Now he was riding toward a confrontation with a corrupt bank, three sisters who should be his enemies but had become his allies, and a truth he was afraid to face.

Because somewhere beneath the anger and the confusion, a darker suspicion was taking root in Wade’s mind. The bank hadn’t just made a mistake. They had chosen him. *Specifically* him. And he needed to understand why.

As they crested the hill overlooking the town, Wade pulled up short.

“Something’s wrong,” he said quietly.

Below them, the main street looked normal enough. But at least six horses stood tied outside Frontier Bank — far too many for regular business on a weekday afternoon. And these weren’t work horses or delivery wagons. These were riding horses, the kind men rode when they didn’t plan to stay long.

Ruby’s face had gone pale. “They were expecting us.”

Wade studied the scene below through narrowed eyes. Six horses meant six men. And men didn’t gather at a bank in the middle of the afternoon unless trouble was brewing.

“We should turn back,” Clarabel whispered, her voice tight with fear.

“No,” Ruby said firmly. “If we run now, they’ll hunt us down anyway. At least this way we choose the ground.”

Wade counted the horses again, memorizing their positions. “Those are riding horses, not town horses. Someone brought in hired guns.”

Sadi pointed toward the general store. “Look there. Mrs. Patterson’s closing up early. And see how empty the street is. Word’s gotten around that something’s about to happen.”

They were right. The main street, which should have been busy with afternoon trade, was nearly deserted. Shopkeepers had pulled their shutters closed. The few people visible were hurrying along with their heads down, avoiding eye contact. The town was holding its breath.

“They’re clearing the area,” Wade realized. “This isn’t just about collecting taxes. They want us gone permanently.”

As they watched, a familiar figure emerged from the bank. Sheriff Morrison, his badge glinting in the afternoon sun. But he wasn’t alone. Three men followed him out, their hands resting casually on their gun belts. They moved with the easy confidence of professional gunfighters — men who had done this before, in other towns, for other banks.

“The sheriff’s in their pocket,” Ruby said bitterly. “Just like we thought.”

One of the gunfighters looked up the hill toward their position. He said something to the sheriff, and all of them turned to stare directly at Wade and the sisters.

Wade cursed under his breath. They’d been spotted.

“Time to go,” he said, but Ruby grabbed his arm.

“Wait. Look who else is coming out.”