River 0f Death: Cassandra Wilde Adult Western (Half Breed Haven Book 13)

by A. M. Van Dorn

  Why that bothered her so much, she kept to herself. Only Cassandra and Dutch knew the reason behind her dislike of the woman, and it puzzled the rest of the family to no end. To Wildes, Bright Feather was, for all practical purposes, one of them, and that was something Lijuan would never accept. Now, following an afternoon when Cassandra and David quarreled in her bedroom while they believed she was sound asleep recovering from a gunshot wound, the specter of Bright Feather loomed ever larger. Cassandra had warned David that Lijuan’s unhealthy attachment to him would eventually drive such a wedge between him and his Indian love that he would wind up losing her and hating Lijuan.

  Cassandra’s logical, practical approach to things had benefited Lijuan and her sister many times when she’d used it to get them out of scrapes. Now, however, she had applied it to the situation of the messy dynamics of the situation and had warned David that he had to begin to distance himself from Lijuan. Not in an unkind way, but it was the way it had to be or court disaster. She had wanted to be angry at her sister, but she couldn’t because deep down in her heart she knew Cassandra was correct. But the end of the special bond she’d shared with her half-brother her whole life was a challenging and painful turn of events, and she was doing her best to cope with it.

  On this morning, she had no desire to see Bright Feather because it would only be adding fuel to the fire of her dislike for the woman. Not wishing to put Catalina in an awkward position by dining with them when Lijuan and Bright Feather had no love for each other, she had chosen to take the high road and just keep to herself in the servants' dining room. Preferring not to eat alone, however, she had returned upstairs to roust Honor out of bed to join her, but she discovered her sister's room empty. She had smiled slyly, knowing why she had not returned. Honor had been talking quite a bit lately about the handsome telegraph man in Crabwell Junction from whom she was taking lessons. It appeared likely Honor was through just talking about him and had decided it was time to get down to business with the man. Accepting that she had to dine alone, she had returned to her meal, and now, here she sat with Mrs. Chow staring at her.

  When she didn't answer, the elderly woman shook her head. "She nice girl! Make peace with her. Eat you up inside. No good for you, Lijuan! Your smile pretty. Need to do it more often." With that, she turned and marched out of the kitchen. Mrs. Chow always told it like it was, and that was one of the things she loved about her. If only she could take her advice, but it would never happen, not when it came to Bright Feather.

  Using a good old-fashioned knife and fork, she attacked her bacon and eggs. As she ate, she heard the women laughing, and the clip-clop of horses' hooves as Cattie and Bright Feather rode past the window on their way to the Hala tribe. Her breakfast was nearly over, so she decided just to stay put instead of moving into the dining room. Lijuan had just finished downing the remainder of her orange juice when she was surprised to see Mrs. Chow returning to the kitchen. Following preparing breakfast, she usually took a couple of hours off before getting ready for the lunchtime, especially on a day like today when most of the family was away.

  “Man at door. Soldier.”

  ***

  Lijuan entered the Great Room of Cedar Ledge where the army officer had been asked to wait. His back was to her when she entered, but he heard her soft footfalls anyway and turned around, holding his hat under one arm. As both of their eyes met smiles took root on each of their faces.

  They had first met when she had reluctantly attended a medal ceremony for Bright Feather at Fort McCallister. She had only appeared out of her love and respect for her brothers David and Blue River who were bursting with pride over the woman they both loved, one as a man and the other as a sibling. Lijuan had been pleased to meet this man before her now, Captain Reginald Vellaneau, was a kindred spirit when it came to not being fond of Bright Feather. That had bonded the pair immediately during the brief time they had conversed at the fort. The truth was though that before she even had known about his disdain for Bright Feather, he had caught her eye.

  The man's brown hair had been neatly trimmed not only on his head but also with his mustache and beard that he sported. Vellaneau's blue eyes had the look of a glacial lake, and she had found them quite captivating. Finishing the man's allure, was his burly shoulders and his rich southern accent.

  It had pleased her when David had not liked her speaking with him one bit. She knew it was wrong to take delight in it, but if he could be with a woman she didn't approve of, well, she could be with whoever she wanted to as well. Days later, she had asked more about him, and she could clearly see that David was annoyed talking about him, but he had answered her.

  If one were to set his looks aside, there should be nothing for her to like about him after David had given her the low-down on him. Vellaneau had been an upperclassman when Dutch was at West Point, and they had not gotten along. When the War Between the States had broken out, Vellaneau, hailing from a powerful Southern family had joined the Confederate Army. After the war was over, the man's father had used his connections to get Vellaneau reinstated in the Union Army, but David had said it angered the Southern officer that he had to take a reduction in rank making them both equals.

  David had warned her away from him, saying that he was a narrow-minded man who was no stranger to prejudice. The thing was, that had not been her experience that night with the man. He had admitted developing an admiration for the Chinese culture years earlier when David had saved him using the fighting methods that Lijuan had learned from Mr. Chow and had tried to teach him when they were younger. That had been the catalyst for the man to dive headlong into learning all he could about China, and the man had admitted having long had a desire to meet Lijuan herself, to see the woman that David had often spoken of.

  Despite all of that, and David's warnings and protests, the fact remained that when she encountered Vellaneau for the second time, he was one of the people that rode to her rescue when she lay in a Mexican gully, bleeding to death. Not only had he joined David and Blue River in her salvation, but he had also retrieved her hammer from where she had lost it in her delirium and presented it to her at Cedar Ledge weeks later. After returning her hammer, he had visited her several more times during her convalescence and had done little to disguise his attraction to her.

  At the same time, it seemed to be raining suitors because she had also caught the eye of a dashing attorney from town by the name of Killian Kincaid. The attention she had been receiving had been something of a balm for her as her heart ached at David’s gentle but gradual withdrawal from their close bond. He didn’t even use her Chinese name, beautiful and graceful one, any more like he had always done in the past and it hurt. She had been more than happy to wrap herself in the attention of the pair of suitors.

  Now Vellaneau was standing here in the living room. He approached her, and in the correct fashion of a Southern gentleman, bowed and kissed her hand. Lijuan found herself eating it up.

  “Miss Wilde, might I say what a pleasure it is to once again to be in your presence,” he said, his cultured Southern drawl as thick as honey.

  “The pleasure is mine as well, sir,” she said, the volcanic hellcat securely tucked away inside her now, replaced by the flirtatious Lijuan that she could become when it served her purpose.

  "I am most pleased to see you fully recovered from the attempt on your life by those bandits south of the border. You look radiant; I must say, dear lady. Truly you are a beautiful and graceful one."

  It was as if he was saying everything she wanted to hear, and it tickled her to her core.

  “Thank you. I’m very happy to put getting shot behind me. It won’t stop me from helping out my sister when she needs me, though.”

  He blinked for a moment and then smiled, “Yes, of course. I know you often help Cassandra. I heard how you not long ago helped her capture that San Francisco Mint robber.”

  She waved her hand. "All in a day's work. I just wanted to buy some fencing for the ranch, but when Cas
sie's your sister, it's pretty easy to get roped into life or death situations," she said with a smile. Her eyes surveyed him as she began to question his presence at Cedar Ledge. What was he doing here? Surely, he hadn't come out at this early morning hour to court her. But what if he had? That would surely not sit well with David or Cassandra, for that matter. She knew her older sister didn't care for the man almost as much as Catalina didn't like her other suitor, Killian Kincaid. Since none of them were present, it was easy to put such thoughts aside. It was time to find out what he was up to.

  "Reginald," she began as she pressed her right hand against the breast of his crisp uniform. The touch was part of an ancient dance between men and women, the subtle flirting, the telegraphing of interest. It was almost like a game, one of which she enjoyed most thoroughly. Suddenly, Lijuan realized it was an army officer's dress uniform. He had worn his finest to the ranch this morning. Had it been for her benefit?

  “Now, as delighted as I am to see you again, this is where I must ask what brings you here all the way from the fort?”

  He was now holding his hat out in front of him by its brim, bringing it close to his chest as his head lowered and his eyes became serious.

  “I am here on a matter involving your brother.”

  All thoughts of flirting with this man flew away, dislodged by the alarm that rocketed through her body. Had something happened to David? Was that why he was here? She was under no illusion at what a dangerous job men like David and Vellaneau had, especially with adversaries like the renegade Black Hawk and his Omegas. David had gone west on special assignment to battle elements of that fearsome band, but the last word they had received from him was that the fighting had ended days ago.

  She drew closer to Vellaneau and looked up at him, her eyes taking on a pleading look to them, desperate to hear the news that David was as all right. Her half-brother had been her lifeline as a little girl when her other sibling, Cassandra, had kept her at arm's length due to her immature jealousy and disbelief that the exotic looking infant Whip had returned with was really a Wilde. Her sister, as an adult, could never forgive herself for the way she had treated her then even though Lijuan had herself forgiven her long ago. In those days, though, David had made her childhood tolerable. He doted on her, relishing being the big brother for a change, and from those early days to the present, their bond had been special but had been slowly chipped away by his preoccupation with Bright Feather, and now he was keeping her politely at an arm’s length. How she missed him.

  Lijuan shook her head. This was no time to be fussing over Bright Feather when David was all that mattered. “Is he okay? Has something happened to my brother? You must tell me!” she demanded even as she laid a hand on his arm.

  “My deepest apologies, ma’am, if I have caused you concern. No, Captain Wilde is fine. I am here on his behalf.”

  A sigh of relief escaped her lips; she didn't know what she would ever do if something happened to him. She was happy that she no longer had to dwell on that now; instead, she wanted to know precisely why the courtly Southern officer had appeared at their ranch.

  “He sent you? Why?”

  The man paused for a moment, and she could tell he didn't want to say the words, especially since she saw how his hands involuntarily closed tighter around the brim of his hat before he spoke.

  "Your brother sent word to the fort. There is an urgent translation that we need to be accomplished, and there is only … there is only one person who can do that."

  Now she understood his reluctance. The army needed Bright Feather, David needed Bright Feather, of course, she thought bitterly. Putting it together, she realized David must have thought she was still at the fort. Only yesterday afternoon, with no current duties to carry out at McCallister, being free to come and go as she pleased when there weren’t any, Bright Feather had decided to make an impromptu visit to see her dear friend Cattie, much to Lijuan’s dismay when she had shown up.

  "Colonel Caine ordered me to ride here as quickly as possible to get Bright Feather. It's a rather lengthy telegram, and the letters spell out words in a language none over at their fort can decipher. It makes no sense to anyone."

  “Where did this come from?”

  "A prisoner of war, ma'am. That is all I can say. It's urgent that I speak with Bright Feather. Wilde felt, I'm sorry, your brother felt there was some grave importance in whatever is on these pages." He let go of the hat with one hand and pulled out a pair of pages written on stationery from a telegraph office.

  "Give me a minute to saddle up. She's gone, and you're going to need me to help you find which way they went!"

  At the stables she hardly needed help to mount Kong, but as she put her foot into a stirrup she hesitated, and as if on cue she found his hands on her hips, his strong arms helping boost her up into her saddle. She looked down at him with a grin, and he returned her smile, his interest shining brightly in his eyes.

  As they galloped away into the sprawling ranch that was the Wilde family's pride and joy, she knew she really didn't have to come along on this ride. The man was a cavalry officer, and she could have given him the instructions on which route Cattie and the annoying Bright Feather would have taken, but in truth, she welcomed the chance to spend time with the handsome man.

  Soon enough, she would find out that she was very glad to have come along on this ride. What they would discover was no mere piece of intel on the Omegas but something of which the dire personal ramifications for the Wilde family could not be overstated.

  CHAPTER 11

  Catalina Wilde almost missed it.

  She and Bright Feather were engaged in a free-spirited charge across the grassland that made up the east range. They weren't quite racing each other, but they were neck and neck on their mounts, both laughing as they enjoyed the feel of the warm morning air sweeping past their faces as their hair trailed out behind them. Bright Feather was as true a friend as she could ever hope to have, and together they so enjoyed each other’s company as they were during this ride. At just the right moment, Catalina had happened to sweep her head to the left when she saw it.

  “Whoa now!!!”

  Pulling back on the bit between Pretty Feet’s teeth, the palomino came to a stop as Bright Feather mirrored Catalina’s actions with her own mount, leaving the pair at a standstill.

  "Catalina, what is it? What's wrong?" Bright Feather had been around her half-brother's family long enough now that she reacted just as they would as her hand slipped down to touch the butt of her rifle snugly tucked away in its holder. Her gaze followed Catalina's hand as it pointed towards one of the family's corrals located near the prime grazing land, the east pasture afforded.

  “Part of that there corral is down! C’mon. I wanna check it out.”

  Moments later, the two women once again halted their horses, but this time they slid off them to have a closer look. Down on her haunches now, Catalina lifted the wires that extended out from one of the fence posts now lying on the ground and scrutinized them.

  “A clean break, no question in my mind about the cause of it, Bright Feather. The durn thing has been cut.”

  Bright Feather squatted down now as well and picked up the other ends from the next post and looked at them. It was as Catalina said, only a tool could have cut them as cleanly as it had, no bit of fraying presented itself to her deep brown eyes. Just one word came to mind.

  “Rustlers?”

  "Si," Catalina said, her voice lacking the cheerfulness that was one of the hallmarks of the young half-Mexican woman. Rising, she passed through the gap in the fence and studied the impressions in the soft grasslands. She turned around, her oblong face frowning and her nearly black eyes seemed to turn blacker still.

  “These tracks tell me that the jaspers likely made off with nearly twenty head of cattle. These hombres must not be from around here if they think they can get away with rustlin’ my cattle!”

  Indeed, they were her cattle, as her entire life had been geared
towards the day that she had assumed responsibility for the physical operation of the Cedar Ledge cattle ranch. Lijuan could have her books and ledgers, that was her calling, but Catalina had been a natural when it came to cattle. In a way, she was living out the life her late mother had never gotten to have. Cedar Ledge had been Mercedes Corderro's dream when she married Whip and left her family's Mexican vineyards behind her. Catalina was quite happy to live that dream for her. Being a cowpuncher was what she was born to do, and she wouldn't have it any other way.

  She ran both of her hands through her wavy, dark hair and looked at her friend, a twinkle returning to her eyes. "What say you and I go get them back?" She, of course, knew her friend's answer. The pair were looking forward to visiting with the Yavapai. Bright Feather had stopped in Alamieda on her way to Cedar Ledge to pick up some special gifts for the children of the tribe, and the two would enjoy handing them out. They would still do that, just later after they put some rustlers out of business.

  The tracks led in the direction of a desolate part of the ranch where few were likely to travel. It was rough terrain marked by numerous hollows and a few canyons amidst the scrub brush. Soon the pair of women saw that the tracks were heading towards the opening of a hollow in the distance. Catalina knew it would be wise to veer off now since they couldn't exactly go riding right into the little canyon where the rustlers had appeared to have gone. Instead, they swerved away and skirted up a boulder-strewn incline, intent on achieving the high ground and sneaking a look into the hollow.

  After picketing their horses using a mesquite tree, the duo bent low and made their way towards a curtain of brush that rimmed the hollow. Dropping entirely to the ground now, they snaked their way on their bellies through the brush. It was definitely not easy going for someone with the well-endowed breasts that adorned Catalina's chest. Long ago she was pleased how handy they were as a boon when she wished to land her latest bedmate and the appeal of such a comely figure also extended to the women of the West as well that Catalina often took delight in seducing. This morning for Catalina, however, they were getting in the way; still, she pushed forward pulling herself along on her elbows until she reached the edge. Bright Feather came to a stop beside her.