In Too Deep

by Mary Connealy

  With a shrug, Seth took his torch back from Ethan, turned, and headed up the tunnel with Maggie. Audra went next with Lily. Ethan brought up the rear.

  Seth carried Maggie, but when they reached the turn in the tunnel to go out, Audra snatched Maggie out of Seth’s hands so that now she carried both children.

  As Seth strolled toward the exit, he extinguished the torch by jamming it against the stone wall, then tossing the smoking wood onto the floor by the cave entrance. Handy for the next time he came in here.

  Ethan’s heart slowed once he saw daylight. He was almost completely calm by the time they got outside, not counting his shirt being soaked with nervous sweat.

  Audra stepped out into full daylight and stopped so suddenly that Ethan almost ran her down. Audra turned, both children in her arms. Ethan took Maggie to lessen the burdens this fragile woman carried.

  The second Maggie was out of her arms, Audra leaned close and whispered hoarsely, “What happened in that tunnel?”

  Seth went on ahead. From Audra’s quiet question, Ethan knew she didn’t want Seth to overhear.

  His shoulders square, his feelings tucked away, Ethan slipped past Audra, into the sunlight as if he went cave walking every day.

  “Nothing happened. Much.” Ethan wasn’t sure he could talk about it anyway, so why try?

  Audra examined Maggie, running her hands over the little girl, checking for injuries. Her eyes narrowed on Maggie’s waving arm. Grabbing the child’s hand, Audra asked, “What’s this?”

  Maggie’s upper arm was bright red and swollen. Ethan knew exactly what it was. It was where he’d grabbed her. Seeing that bruise was like taking a blow to the stomach.

  “I hurt her.” He swallowed hard and forced the words out. “I caught her there. I . . . I didn’t mean . . .”

  Audra looked away from Maggie’s arm. “What happened in that tunnel, Ethan?”

  Shaking his head slowly, Ethan wished himself far away from the guilt and fear. But he couldn’t look away from Audra. “It’s hard to say. It was pitch-dark, so I threw my torch away to get both hands free.”

  “Tell me.” Audra, for a fragile little woman, had a surprisingly determined tone.

  “There was a ledge. She ran away from me. I grabbed her dress just as she . . . she fell.”

  “Fell off a ledge? How high a ledge?”

  “I couldn’t see but . . .” Ethan heard those stones falling without hitting bottom. He saw his torch arc up, then fall and vanish from sight.

  Audra brought her hand up to cover her mouth, to stop the words. “Go on. How did her arm get hurt?”

  “I almost pulled her dress off. For a second I was afraid she’d slip out of it and fall, so I caught hold of her arm, but I was too rough.”

  Audra’s eyes fell shut as if she couldn’t bear to see what Ethan described. Dragging in a long, slow breath, she whispered, “You saved her.”

  “I hurt her.” Maggie’s injury wouldn’t leave a scar, but she had a reminder of that cave now, just like Seth and Rafe. Only Ethan had come away from that pit unscathed, and he was the one who couldn’t stand to go in anymore.

  “She’d have gone over a ledge. Fallen heaven knows how far. She’d have died. My baby would have died.” Audra’s shoulders heaved as if she was ready to cry, but though her lips wobbled, she kept it contained.

  They faced each other. Lily in Audra’s arms. Maggie in Ethan’s. Time stretched as all that had happened—the danger, the fact that they’d all survived it—filled the silence. Finally, Audra lifted Maggie’s arm and gave the red mark a whisper-soft kiss.

  Maggie giggled and tugged against Audra’s gentle hold and got her arm free. She was going to be fine. There would be a bruise, but Maggie’s arm was working fine.

  “What are we going to do, Ethan? My children aren’t safe.”

  Movement drew Ethan’s attention. Rafe and Julia rode up. Rafe looked overly relaxed. Rafe and Julia had taken way too long riding into Rawhide to mail off Julia’s first paper about the cavern. She’d written an article about a fish fossil she’d found that she thought was an ocean fish high up in the mountains. She was hoping to get it published in some scientific journal back East.

  Rafe’s eyes shifted from Ethan to the tunnel entrance and all his relaxation vanished. “You went in the cave?”

  Julia glared straight at Seth as she dismounted. “What is going on here?”

  Audra didn’t answer.

  “Seth, what happened?” Julia focused on Seth. It was the honest truth that Julia wasn’t overly fond of Seth. Though she did like talking to him about the cavern. Seth probably knew the cavern better than any man alive.

  “I just wanted to show Maggie the cave. I didn’t mean to upset you none, Audra.” Seth came up and gave Maggie a worried look. The little one smiled and reached for him. After a quick glance at Audra—who hesitated, moved slightly to further block the cave entrance, then nodded—Ethan handed Maggie over. The five adults, two of them holding babies, formed a circle right in front of the cavern.

  “Well, you did upset me. I didn’t know where Maggie had gone. And that cave is dangerous.” Audra softened her words by moving closer to Seth.

  “No, it’s not.”

  With Lily in one arm, Audra hugged Seth with the other.

  Ethan saw her hands trembling, but she sounded so calm. Audra was always sweet. She liked peace.

  For some reason, seeing Audra’s arm wrapped around Seth irritated Ethan. When Seth’s hand crept up and wrapped around Audra’s slim waist, Ethan considered putting a stop to all the hugging.

  Audra pulled back before Ethan could step in. “If there is anyone in the world who Maggie would be safe with down there, it’s you.”

  Ethan remembered the grizzly tone from earlier and knew Audra was shoving her anger and fear down deep and not saying what she really meant.

  Instead, she said what she thought was kindest. “But it’s still dangerous. Too dangerous for a little one. Now promise me you won’t take her in there again.”

  “Okay.” Seth sounded like a child, being lovingly chastised by his mother. Except he didn’t look one speck like a child. He was a full-grown man and he still had his arm around Audra.

  The four of them—Seth, Audra, Maggie, and Lily—were a picture.

  Seth holding Maggie. Even with his hair trimmed and his beard shaved, Seth had a loco gleam in his wild blue eyes. Pretty, fragile Audra. Fair-haired, finely made. Both of them had a baby, and when they hugged they made a family.

  “Good.” She patted Seth gently on the shoulder. “And I need to know where Maggie is all the time. If I don’t know, then I’m going to be hunting for her and worrying about her. And I won’t quit hunting or worrying until I find her. It’s a terrible feeling to worry like that. You mustn’t make me feel that way.”

  “Is that what a ma does?” Seth sounded genuinely confused. “I don’t remember our ma doing much worrying.” Seth looked at Ethan, his brow furrowed. “You reckon it was worry about us that made her spend all her time sittin’ in her chair with her head down?”

  Ethan suspected Ma had forgotten she had children for the most part. She was busy full-time worrying about herself.

  “It was different for you, Seth.” Audra tilted her head up as if to prove she’d never hold it down. “You had your brothers to look after you when you were little.”

  And a great job we did of it.

  “Your mother knew you were with them. That’s why she didn’t check up on you.” Audra’s voice was so kind while she stood there lying about Ma. Where was the cranky woman who’d almost knocked Ethan aside when he’d told her to take Lily out of that cavern?

  “Ma mostly just cried.” Seth looked at Ethan. “She cried a lot, didn’t she?”

  “All the time. I think we were too much for her.” Ethan decided to break up the family and took Maggie. She grinned at him and squeaked.

  He smiled, not that there was much to smile about, but it came real natural to him to lau
gh everything off. Then his eyes fell to her bruised arm. His gut twisted as he remembered that moment when he thought he was going to lose her over the ledge. Something had to be done to make sure Maggie never went in there again.

  “Rafe, do something.” Julia’s voice cracked like a bullwhip.

  Rafe had married himself a nagging woman. And Ethan noticed Rafe didn’t seem to mind one bit. In fact, Rafe seemed to find reasons all the time to ride off with his bossy little spitfire of a wife and not come back one bit too soon.

  “You want me to do something?” Rafe looked at his brand-spankin’-new wife. His voice got deeper and he seemed to speak only to her. “Like what exactly, darlin’?”

  Something very personal flashed in Rafe’s eyes, and Julia seemed to forget Seth. In fact, the two of them seemed to forget the whole world.

  Rafe grinned.

  Julia blushed.

  Ethan didn’t exactly know why, but the look they shared made him restless and discontented. And it reminded him of how pretty Audra was. And how she shouldn’t have been hugging Seth.

  And Audra’s looks had nothing to do with Rafe and his wife, so it all added up to Ethan being stupid.

  “I think we’re going to have to make some changes,” Audra said quietly.

  Ethan turned to her and saw something he hadn’t noticed before. Under the kindness she was showing to Seth. Under the calm once the crisis was over.

  She had worry lines drawn in her face.

  “I’ll take Seth back to the ranch.” Ethan knew that had to happen. He had to go home sometime. Rafe had bought this mountain valley—Julia called it a caldera. It looked like a big scoop taken out of the top of a mountain. Julia said it was caused by a volcano in the far-distant past. Ethan had serious doubts that Julia knew what she was talking about, but he had no better theories, not to mention he wasn’t exactly sure what a volcano was.

  Rafe had given the old Kincaid homestead to Ethan, then with Seth’s and Ethan’s help had built a new cabin here in his caldera. But the work was mostly done now. Nothing Rafe couldn’t finish alone. Ethan had no excuse to stay. But truth to tell, he hated to leave. He’d left home as soon as he was old enough, and now that he was back, he liked being around his big brother. Losing him to marriage and this new ranch didn’t suit Ethan. And he didn’t like Seth’s strange behavior, mainly because Ethan blamed himself for Seth being so crazy. So he was losing his steady-as-a-rock big brother and taking on his runaway avalanche of a little brother.

  “No, it’s not Seth. Seth meant no harm.” Audra patted Seth again. He smiled back like a cheerful puppy. The kind that didn’t mean a lick of harm when he bit you in the backside.

  “It’s that tunnel.” Her hand clenched on Seth’s shoulder. “It’s all the caves in this place. This is a wonderful place for a cabin, but . . .”

  Seth flinched and gave his shoulder a nervous glance. Audra was a lot more upset than she was letting on.

  “It’s not safe.” Ethan looked around the mountain valley Rafe had chosen for his home. It was beautiful. Sheltered from the harsh winds by the mountain walls surrounding it. A flowing stream teeming with trout. Fertile soil and already a good-sized herd of cattle grazing in the belly-deep grass. Rafe had found a hidden valley no one had known existed. Well, honestly, Seth found it. But Rafe had tracked Seth in here and seen the value of the place and wanted it.

  “We can put up gates to block the tunnels.” Julia’s brow furrowed. “Maggie’s getting older now and we do need to be careful with her.”

  “I was being careful,” Audra snapped. She clamped her mouth shut and breathed in and out slowly. Then she spoke more calmly. “But the mountain walls are honeycombed with tunnels and caves. We haven’t begun to find them all, let alone explore them and know which ones are dangerous. No, it’s not a safe place to raise a child.”

  Audra turned to Julia. “Not yet. You and Rafe have time to explore and make it safe. But it will take time. Months, maybe years. You have years. I don’t.” Her slender shoulders squared. Her spine straightened. She didn’t mention Seth. Julia and Rafe had years to make sure he was all right, too. They intended to have children, and they intended to raise them right here.

  “I need to leave, Julia.”

  “No. Absolutely not.” Julia crossed her arms, stubborn and bossy as ever.

  “And you need to stay. I need help to get to town and the price of a ticket to take a stagecoach back East. I’ll find my f-father. The children and I will move in with him.”

  Her father, who had as good as sold her to Wendell Gilliland to settle a gambling debt.

  “You’re not going back to him.” Julia came over and relieved Audra of the baby. She probably didn’t mean it that way, but it looked for all the world like Julia was planning to hold the month-old baby captive so Audra couldn’t leave.

  “Yes, I am. This is no place for me. I’ve been a burden to you long enough.”

  “You’re not a burden, Audra. I love you. You’re my family. Maggie and Lily are my little sisters. No, you’re not going.”

  Ethan itched to join Julia in refusing to let Audra go. But Julia was doing fine by herself.

  “If you won’t help me, I’ll go alone. I don’t have a penny to my name. If you don’t want to help me with the ticket, I’ll get a job in town. Take in laundry and mending. See if there’s a diner in town that needs a cook. Or, come to think of it, didn’t Wendell own some small business in town, Rafe?”

  “He did, but it wouldn’t be worth much.”

  “I don’t need much. I’ll sell that and use the money to go back East. Or I’ll live in it while I work. I told Wendell I was leaving the night he collapsed.”

  “But the main thing you needed to get away from was my father.” Julia’s voice rose. “He’s gone. You’re staying.”

  “This isn’t a decision you can make for me.” Audra reached over to fold down the corner of Lily’s blanket. The baby was still sleeping, having slept through the whole trauma of losing Maggie.

  Ethan sort of wished he could have slept through it, too.

  “It will be easiest to travel right now. The weather is good. Lily still sleeps a lot. That will leave me free to watch over Maggie.”

  “Who never sits still for two minutes,” Julia reminded her. “Let alone days and maybe weeks in a cramped, uncomfortable stagecoach and in a rough train car filled with strangers.”

  “Maggie running off is what started this whole thing.” Ethan wished he hadn’t spoken when Audra’s eyes shot flaming arrows at him before looking back at Julia.

  “You’ve got a new life now, Julia. And I’m happy for you. But we’re part of your old life. I’m tired of being a burden.”

  “You’re not a burden.” Julia stepped away from Audra, swinging her body a bit to block her from Lily. “Rafe, say something.”

  “There’s some sense in what she says, Julia.”

  “Rafe!” Julia clenched her fists.

  Ethan hoped she didn’t clench her whole body and squash the baby. Then he noticed he had a pretty tight hold on Maggie, too. He didn’t want the little one to grow up back East. Still, that was no reason to strangle her. He forced his arms to relax.

  Rafe slid one arm around Julia’s shoulders. “We’ll have lived here a while by the time our children get old enough to wander around. We’ll know the caves well by then and can block off the dangerous ones. But right now, with Maggie so young and speedy, and Seth so drawn to the caves . . . Audra’s right. It’s dangerous.”

  “So I’ll get packed up then, and you’ll take me to town, Rafe?” Audra sounded determined.

  “He will not!” Julia took another step back.

  Ethan wanted to help Julia escape with the baby. Thinking of Audra leaving didn’t sit right. She had no place to go. They could put her on a train back to her father, but who was to say the man would take her in? Or maybe he’d take her in and marry her off to the next varmint who had some kind of hold on him.

  “No, I won’t tak
e you to town, but I think you should move to the Kincaid Ranch.” After Rafe spoke, the only sound was the buffeting of the mountain breeze.

  Julia thawed first. “What? She can’t do that.”

  “I have no place at the Kincaid Ranch, for heaven’s sake.” Audra’s mouth started working next.

  “What would she do there?” Ethan went from worrying about Audra to being scared to death of her.

  “That’d be great.” Seth reached for Maggie.

  “I’ll keep her for now.” Ethan dodged Seth’s hands.

  “Audra can be the housekeeper.” Rafe nodded as if everything was settled.

  “Audra can’t live in a house with two men,” Julia snapped.

  “I most certainly can’t.” Audra moved to Julia’s side. “It wouldn’t be right at all.”

  “She can if she’s married to one of ’em.” Rafe had eyes like a gray mountain fog when he was determined, and Ethan saw that color right now. Not a hint of blue anywhere.

  “I’ll marry you, Audra.” Seth grinned like a pig in slop.

  “Not you.” Rafe turned to Ethan as if picking a wife was just another order Rafe could give. “Ethan.”

  Chapter

  2

  Julia had married a lunatic.

  “That sounds great, as long as she’s at our house.” Seth was even crazier than Rafe.

  Audra waited for Ethan to say something equally crazy so she could peg the whole family as madmen.

  “I’m not marrying Audra.” Well, at least one of them had some sense. And for once he didn’t have a smile on his face.

  “What’s wrong with Audra?” Rafe asked.

  Audra kind of wanted to know the answer to that, too.

  “I’m not marrying Ethan. I’m not marrying anybody. Rafe Kincaid, you can’t just pick a husband out for someone because it makes life tidier.”

  “Sure I can.” Rafe gave her a look that seemed to be . . . pity. Like he pitied her for being alone? Or did he just pity anyone who didn’t immediately see that he was the one who should organize the whole world?