Ice & Rapture

by Connie Mason

  Maggie could easily understand how the trail shattered the health and fortunes of hundreds of men, for scattered along the middle and far reaches were valuable goods abandoned by their owners No one would buy them or even take them as gifts After corning this

  far, Maggie knew why Chase had tried to discourage her from attempting this journey Though Chase had never been to the Klondike himself. Rusty had told him in detail what to expect and how to proceed His descriptions were so explicit that none of the appalling conditions shocked Chase as they did Maggie

  Adhering to Rusty's directions. Chase chose the bypass that emerged at Lake Bennet "Now the real trip begins, darlin'," Chase said as they stood gazing at the thirty-mile-long lake

  The hectic scene at the lake stunned Maggie It looked much like the beach at Skagway, with hundreds of tents dotting the shore Men of all sizes, shapes, and descriptions were engaged in one activity—building rafts or crude boats to transport themselves and their goods through a chain of lakes to the Yukon River and then downriver to Dawson City

  "What do we do now1?" Maggie asked, awed by the scene stretched out before her

  "We put up a tent and build a raft," Chase said

  "What about the pack horses?"

  "Sell them There'll be men comin' from Dawson every day eager to buy our animals Or mengoin' overland instead of downriver "

  As luck would have it. Chase chanced on a man whose partner had just died of an infection and who chose not to continue to Dawson on his own, a decision made by many men faced with the same dilemma The man and his partner had just completed building a raft when a hatchet cut led to the infection that brought about the partner's death Chase gladly traded two of the pack horses for the sturdily built raft

  The raft was flat-bottomed, flare-sided, twenty-five feet long by six feet wide, square and wide at the stem Typically it earned two or three tons of goods and was usually driven by a sail made of a large

  canvas attached to a stout mast and supplemented when necessary by awkward, heavy pine oars

  "There they are. Bandy " Zeke pointed out when he spotted Maggie and Chase standing by the shore loading their raft

  Bandy Johnson and Zeke Palmer were the two toughs Soapy was sending to Dawson to scout a site for a saloon They were also to be Maggie's escorts before she had decided to accompany Chase When Soapy learned that Maggie had already left Skagway with Chase McGarrett, he cursed himself for letting Chase walk away from that dark alley alive He had done it for Belle's sake, for all the good it did her Soapy was so angry at Maggie for having welched on their deal that he instructed Bandy and Zeke to take care of the cowboy in any way they saw fit and do what they pleased with Maggie

  "How in tarnation do ya reckon they built a raft so quick1?" Bandy asked, scratching his head "We weren't but a day behind them "

  Zeke was equally puzzled until they asked around and learned that rafts were for sale if one knew where to look and had the price Zeke and Bandy had plenly of money provided by Soapy

  Meanwhile, Chase and Maggie prepared to leave on the first leg of their water journey to Dawson When it came time to launch, everyone around lent a hand The wind was stiff enough to capsize carelessly handled crafts, but Chase was proficient enough to keep them afloat, joining in the flotilla headed for the Yukon It took most of the day to traverse Lake Bennet At its foot, called Caribou Crossing, they entered a sluggish stream whose four-mile-an-hour current earned them into Lake Nares, four miles long It was here Chase selected a site to spend the night, lying the raft in a secluded inlet along the shoreline He wouldn't have found the spot if

  Rusty hadn't told him exactly what to look for so it was more or less private Taking their bedrolls ashore, they slept beneath a stand of tall spruce trees, huddled together for warmth

  "Have you noticed how much colder it's getting. Chase1?" Maggie asked, fitting herself into the curve of his body "It's well into September, darlin' In less than six weeks the passes will be closed by snow and blizzards " "I'll be stuck in Dawson till spring," Maggie mused thoughtfully "What will you do1?"

  "Get on up to the claim first and see how Sam is doin' There's a cabin up there that will provide adequate shelter for the winter Don't 'spose I'll get much prospectin' done, but I'll do what I can "

  "Won't you be spending any time in Dawson1?" Maggie asked wistfully

  "No, Maggie girl, don't reckon I will" He wanted to say he'd miss her, but he didn't dare They'd shared so much these past weeks, yet he could promise her nothing

  Chase had made a commitment when he began this venture, and he meant to honor it There was still time to earn enough to pay the loan on his ranch, and committing himself to a woman at this time was not in his plans Maggie wasn't the type of clinging woman who was lost without a man to sustain her She was a modem, independent woman fully capable of conducting her life without him She had a career and was astute enough to realize that life couldn't always be the way one wanted it to be

  Chase had to admit, though, that all other women paled in comparison to Maggie, and that if it were possible for him to fall in love now, it would be Maggie he chose She was passionate, brave, foolish, tender, obstinate, and too damn headstrong for her

  own good Yet there was no woman Chase would rather make love to than Maggie Afton

  "Do you think well ever meet again after we get to Dawson1?" Maggie asked, an odd little catch in her voice

  "It's—hard to say," Chase replied truthfully, unwilling to give hope where none existed "Do you care so much1?"

  "I—of course Ulrniss you. Cowboy We've been more than friends these past weeks A woman doesn't forget her first lover " And likely the last, she wanted to add How could she let another man touch her after Chase1? The answer was simple—she couldn't

  "Maggie, darlin', if there was any way—"

  "No, Chase, no promises I asked for nothing when I let you love me I wanted it—I wanted you Whatever happens, let there be no guilt on either side Our loving is something that happened, something we both enjoyed, and if it must necessarily end at Dawson—well, I'll always remember these nights Now love me. Cowboy, love me till I'm mindless with rapture "

  "I'll always want to love you, darlin' Let's forget tomorrow and concentrate on tonight"

  Chase longed to tell Maggie that if he were free now to love completely, she'd be the woman he'd want to spend his life with Someday, maybe, if she was still free The thought died when Maggie pulled down his head and he felt the soft imprint of her lips on his

  "There's the raft. Bandy," Zeke whispered as they pulled their own craft into place against the shore "I knew I saw them tie up here someplace " "Pipe down, Zeke, they're probably sleepin' But just in case, I don't want them he arm' us Do ya see them anywhere1?"

  "Naw, they musta crawled under them trees yonder Got the hatchet1?" "Yep, right here"

  Bandy handed Zeke the hatchet Immediately Zeke bent and began prying a board loose just below the waterline where it wouldn't be too conspicuoi. By their reckoning, the heavily laden raft should start sinking about the time it reached the middle of the lake—hopefully with the occupants aboard

  "DoneI" Zeke crowed, pleased with his sabotage "Let's get the hell outtahere "

  Silent as wraiths they slipped off, tying up farther down the shore where they could watch and wait

  Chapter Eight

  "Get up, sleepyhead " Chase grinned wolfishly as he swatted Maggie playfully on the bottom "If I recollect, you were the one who woke up at dawn all warm and willin' and damn eager "

  "You were as eager as I was. Chase McGarrett," Maggie grunted, burrowing deeper into the blanket "Dam right, sugar," Chase agreed "But it's time to rise and shine You have a wash while I fix us some grub "

  Chase must have already had his wash, for despite the chill his hair reflected tiny droplets of water sparkling like tiny diamonds in the meager sunlight Maggie admired the way he moved, his lean lithe grace, the seductive way his hips rolled with each step He was all man, hard as nails and
tough as a two-bit steak—but oh so tender, too, with hands so gentle they drew forth a response with their merest touch Would their remaining days and nights

  together be enough to get him out of her system1? Maggie wondered bleakly, knowing that even a lifetime with Chase wouldn't cure her of wanting him

  "There's water in the bottom of the boat," Chase called out as Maggie packed their camping gear Though it wasn't a great deal of water, it was enough to alert a cautious man like Chase

  "A leak?" Maggie suggested

  "It was tight enough yesterday Maybe I oughta have a look "

  "It's probably nothing," Maggie discounted lightly

  "You could be right, but I think I'll have a look anyway "

  Rolling up his sleeves. Chase first checked the exposed hull and bottom, finding nothing amiss Then he plunged his arm into the cold water and began a minute inspection of the hull below the waterline Because the boat was flat, it wasn't difficult

  "Damnation!" Chase had found the place where Zeke had pried loose aboard

  "What is it?" Maggie asked, joining him in the boat

  "If I didn't know better, I'd say we've been sabotaged "

  "What? How?"

  "Damned if I know This loose board wasn't here yesterday I went over the raft with a fine-toothed comb before she was launched "

  "Could someone have done it while we were sleeping?"

  "Asleep or makin' love "

  Maggie blushed "Who would do such a thing?"

  "Beats me, darlin' All I know is that it's a damn good thing I saw the water and decided to check "

  "What can you do?"

  "Repair it There's pitch and spare boards I

  brought along just for that purpose Best I get started "

  It was nearly noon before Chase raised the sail and the boat, now watertight and as seaworthy as Chase could make it, slid, into the lake to join the flotilla

  Lake Nares was an easy trip as they floated lazily into Lake Tagish, which Maggie thought was a series of lakes instead of the single lake it really was Halfway down, the Mounties had established the Tagish Post, where each boat was required to register and show a customs receipt for its cargo It was the only way the authorities had of tracing missing men and it worked surprisingly well Chase and Maggie tied up for the night beside the post

  Following close behind. Bandy and Zeke waited with bated breath for Chase's raft to sink, and when it did not, they began arguing between themselves as to whose fault it was But to their chagrin, their devious plans were necessarily put on hold, for they could do nothing that night with the Mounties looking on

  The next day Chase and Maggie entered Lake Marsh through a slow river Lake Marsh was long, narrow, and almost twenty miles long Beyond lay Miles Canyon, one hundred feet wide and more than fifty feet deep, through which the Lewes River raced

  "There's a dangerous whirlpool about halfway down," Chase warned "After that there's Squaw Rapids, then Whitehorse Rapids Rusty advised me to pick up a pilot before negotiatin' that treacherous stretch of water Most of the navigators are Indians, but I understand a few white men have joined their ranks We can pick one up at their small outpost before we enter Miles Canyon "

  Not all the boats in the flotilla bothered with a pilot, especially if they were experienced boatmen or

  familiar with the waterways of the Yukon Because Chase was neither, he bowed to prudence and Rusty's advice "Twenty dollars," the young man replied when asked what he charged to pilot the raft through the rapids

  Chase looked to Maggie, and when she nodded agreement, shook the man's hand "I'm Chase McGarrett, and this is Maggie Afton from the Seattle Post-Intelligencer "

  "A newspaper reporter I" the man exclaimed, regarding Maggie with interest "I'm Jack London I do some writing myself" "What are you doing piloting boats, Mr London1?" Maggie asked curiously

  "Earning money and learning about life " Jack grinned with boyish enthusiasm "I'll be going up to Dawson before the lakes freeze this winter Perhaps I'll see you there. Miss Afton Is Mr McGarrett your guide1?" he asked pointedly

  "Yeah, you could say that," Chase answered before Maggie could form an appropriate reply "Shouldn't we get goin', Mr London1?"

  Jack London proved a capable guide By keeping to the crest of the waves they avoided the whirlpool Others were not so lucky, and more than one craft was drawn into the swirling eddy and capsized Fortunately, the men swam ashore unharmed, and eventually their equipment floated ashore also

  Squaw Rapids proved to be less harrowing, but Whitehorse Rapids boiled and seethed a quarter of a mile through a narrow cut thirty feet high Maggie hung on for dear life, certain they'd be smashed into smithereens against one of the rocks jutting out from the water Jack London, young as he was, performed his job remarkably well, carefully negotiating the treacherous waters with amazing skill until they drifted into the serene Lewes River where

  they bade him good-bye At that point, the pilots picked up a horse and rode back to the starting place A good pilot could make as many as ten trips downstream a day Maggie was relieved to know that no more obstacles stood in the way of their journey to Dawson

  The river widened into Lake Labarge, which Maggie found the most beautifully breathtaking of all with its high ridges, thirty-mile length and two-mile width A strong wind blew that day, so strong that Chase decided to wait at a place called Windy Arms until weather conditions moderated The stiff breeze was so cold it pierced through their layers of clothing, forcing them to don their sheepskin jackets, gloves, and mufflers When the wind showed no signs of abating, they erected their tent close to the shore and crawled inside

  A few yards away. Bandy and Zeke had safely shot the rapids and beached their raft From a distance, they watched as Chase and Maggie disappeared inside their tent "Tonight," Bandy said, smiling maliciously "We'll get nd of the cowboy and have some fun with the woman She's a ripe piece She oughta share her favors instead of givin' it all away to that cowboy I'm sick of them wom-out whores in Skagway "

  "Wonder why their raft didn't sink1?" Zeke whined

  "Who knows1? We'll do it right this time Once I finish with the woman, ya can have her We won't kill her 'til we tire of her "

  "Just talkin' about her has me so homy I'm hard as a rock," Zeke complained, scratching his crotch

  "Soon, Zeke, soon "

  The wind died down during the night, and before he fell asleep Chase decided they'd be able to continue their trip the next day But for a few more nights, he had Maggie in his arms to love For a short time she was his to hold, to treasure, to memo-

  nze to his heart's content, until circumstances parted them, perhaps forever

  "Are you tired, darlin?" he asked, his voice made husky with desire "If you are I'll—"

  "No, Chase," Maggie assured him "I'm never too tired for you I only wish "

  "No wishes, sugar, I'd hate to see you disappointed You have to know I care for you, and I believe you care for me Leave it at that for the time bein'

  "You're right. Chase I've no right to wish for something that neither of us wants You have a claim to work and I've a job to do Both of us are too involved in our own lives to give up any part of it We're both independent and strong willed," Maggie argued, more to convince herself than Chase, "and I'll always care about you " This was a gross understatement, but she didn't want his pity

  "You talk too much," Chase murmured huskily as his fingers struggled with the buttons of her shirt

  "And you're much too slow," Maggie retorted tartly as she helped him divest her of her clothing

  They made love gloriously, with marvelous abandon, as they always did, and always would no matter how often they came together like this

  When Chase finally thrust into her, he took her with a fierce passion that left her exhausted and magnificently violated, sated for a time, until he touched her again

  Chase awoke with a start, alert even in sleep What had disturbed him1? Then he heard it again, a faint rustling sound Was someone
out there stealing their supplies'? Rusty told him to keep a sharp eye out for pilfering local Indians who often resorted to thievery Glancing over at Maggie, Chase saw that she was sleeping peacefully Because of the cold, they had donned their clothes after making love and lay fully dressed down to their sheepskin jackets He smiled

  when he saw that Maggie had even slipped on her heavy stockings and boots and slid the knife he had given her into place beneath the high-laced top

  There it was again, that noise, and Chase could no longer ignore it Slipping into his own stockings and boots, and strapping on his holster, he crawled from the tent He started to rise, his hand on his gun, when a solid blow to the back of his head sent him plummeting to the ground, and he knew no more

  "Finish him off, Zeke, while I get the girl," Bandy hissed

  An uncomfortable pressure jerked Maggie from a sound sleep Why was Chase lying atop her, pressing her into the hard ground so she couldn't move or breath? "Chase, what—"

  Her words were abruptly cut off when someone stuffed a rag into her mouth Maggie gagged, trying desperately to spit out the offending obstruction Her eyes leaped open, stunned to find a strange men leering at her through the darkness Where was Chase?