Diamond flicked her ears at the sound of gunfire, while Ella urged her faster, and toward the house instead of the shack.
The line shack seemed like a potential trap, but the trail to the house passed right by it, and the terrain around it didn't offer any other paths.
Suddenly, there were two horses and riders blocking the trail. With her mind racing, but her demeanor calm, Ella pulled up.
"Got wounded for you to tend, missy," said the dark one, with an expression that was probably supposed to be a friendly smile, but looked more like a threatening sneer.
"That's my job," Ella replied bravely, keeping her hands visibly on the reins, while two other riders came up from behind her. One took the pistol out of her crossdraw holster, then the other took the reins out of her hands.
The men formed up with two men ahead of her, one leading Diamond, and the other two following. Ella sat erectly on Diamond's back, watching for opportunities and weaknesses. The fact that they had left her untied was hopeful.
She tucked her left hand into a pocket, pulled out a shuttle and started tatting. As long as there were men following, dropping the shuttle and trailing its thread was too likely to be noticed. Besides, while the trail only went one way, there was no advantage to leaving sign.