“I seen it.” There was a hint of pride in Mick’s voice. “We’ll make something of that young pup, yet.”
Judd nodded then paused as he noticed Sharyah. “Well…” His eyes slipped over her from head to toe. “The teacher’s a looker, isn’t she?”
Mick laughed. “She sure is!”
Cade pushed down the terror clawing at his chest. The predatory expression on Judd’s face made him want to pull his gun and arrest the men right here and be done with it. The thought of what might happen to Sharyah in the fracas was the only thing that kept him from acting on the desire.
Sharyah swallowed and stepped closer to him.
Think. He had to play his cards right to keep her from molestation. He swiped one side of his face against his shoulder considering his options. There was only one way. The same thing he’d told Mick inside. “I’d have to concur,” he pinched her cheek and slid one hand down her arm, hating the look of shock that crossed her face. He forced a laugh. “Too bad none of us will be able to have any fun with her.”
Sharyah’s eyes widened and the sudden fearful realization drained her face of all color.
Cade hated that it was his fault she was here. He willed a message into the arch of his brows and the dip of his chin. Trust me.
A flash of understanding lit her countenance and eased the tense line of her shoulders. But the anger emanating from every square inch of her did not lessen.
Judd frowned. “What do you mean?”
Cade lifted one of Sharyah’s curls and wrapped it around his finger. “Well, just that, if this was my woman, I’d want her returned all in one piece, if you get my meaning. If we’re gonna use her as a bargaining chip, then we’d best keep the merchandise in good condition.”
“Merchan—” Sharyah gasped and stomped one foot. “Good condition or not, my brothers will kill you all!”
That’s my girl. He laughed as he resettled his hat. “Aw, but they’ll have to find us first, and by then we’ll have gotten all we need from you and be long gone, darlin’.”
Judd grunted and gave him a punch in the arm. “That’s some right smart thinking.” He stalked off in the direction where they’d left their horses. “Best we get back. The others are already headed out. The sheriff just escorted Billy and Seth to the edge of town and sent them on their way. So come on, saddle up.”
Relief washed through him even as he prodded Sharyah to follow Judd. Just a couple days. He’d get the information he needed as quickly as possible, convince Katrina to return home and then he’d get Sharyah out of here. He swallowed. Lord, keep her safe, please.
Sharyah shifted in the saddle, working her bound wrists and wishing Cade hadn’t wrapped them quite so tight. At least he’d tied them in front of her. Still, he hadn’t needed to tie her up at all! He’d done all of that for show. She clenched her teeth, wishing for the umpteenth time that she could catch even a glimmer of light through the blind-fold they’d put on her.
They were stopped again. Probably brushing out their trail. Papa had told stories on numerous occasions of the various ways criminals hid their tracks so they couldn’t be tailed. But a good tracker should still be able to follow the sign. Maybe Sam would hire someone and come to her rescue. These men were despicable!
And Cade was helping them. What was he doing with them? He was obviously working for Sam. But why would Sam need Cade to be involved with outlaws? And why had the outlaws knocked Sam out if they were all working together?
She shuddered at the memory of the way the two blond men had looked at her. Just wait until she got Cade Bennett alone! She planned to give him a piece of her mind up one side and down the other that would leave him begging for mercy. The man was a living breathing definition of the word impossible!
“We’re starting up again.” Cade leaned over and took her arm and she heard him cluck to the horses. He walked his along beside her. She’d never considered how hard it would be to maintain her balance on a moving creature with no saddle and blinded eyes. But after her horse had taken its first steps and she’d nearly fallen to the ground, Cade had taken the precaution to hold her steady each time. “The trail narrows just ahead and we’ll have to dismount and walk.”
Great. Just what she wanted to do. Her feet already ached like nobody’s business and all she wanted was wake up in her own little teacher’s cabin and take a nice long hot bath. She bit back a smart reply and forced the incoming tears away. She would not give him the satisfaction of seeing her cry! But the harder she tried to keep them at bay, the more intensely the tears pressed, until finally they squeezed out and soaked into the bandana blindfolding her.
A few moments later, Cade pulled her horse to a stop and she could hear the men dismounting.
Her nose was runny and she had nothing to wipe it with, which only made the tears come faster. She held her breath lest a sob escape and give her away.
“This is the place.” Cade spoke from her side as his hands settled at her waist and he lifted her down. He stilled. “Hey.” His fingers touched the underside of her jaw.
She jerked away from the soft caress, lifting her chin. Her horse was still at her back and the jangle of a bit sounded from just behind Cade. Otherwise all remained silent. The others must have gone on ahead. A fresh surge of anger suddenly dried up all the tears.
“Sharyah.” His voice was soft. “I’m sorry.” He pressed a cloth into her hands.
She put it to good use but kept her silence with gritted teeth.
“Listen,” he stepped closer, “if this was at all avoidable, I’d never have brought you here. But I’m going to keep you safe. I need you to trust me.” One hand settled on her shoulder and his thumb stroked a path along her jaw.
She tipped her face away again.
He sighed and took her arm. “We need to get going or they will be suspicious. Just trust me.”
She ground her teeth but was unable to suppress a low mutter. She’d trust him about as far as she could throw him.
“What was that?” he stilled.
“I said, I’d trust you about as far as I could throw you.” Probably not far. But I’d sure like to give it a try.
“Oh, well, at least you’re speaking to me now.”
He led her forward, carefully guiding her around boulders and lifting her over rocks. Soon she could hear the others ahead of them. It wasn’t long until they topped out on a flat area. A breeze cooled her hot cheeks, and grass softened the ground and rustled beneath her feet.
“Well little lady…”
The voice of the man the others had been calling Judd stopped before her. She felt Cade tense slightly, but after only a moment he let go of her elbow and she heard him step away. Her heart thundered as she tilted her head straining to listen. Surely he wasn’t leaving her with this man!
Judd gave her blindfold a tug. She squinted and cringed. The sun hung low in the sky, painfully bright.
Sweeping a gesture around the meadow they stood in, Judd gave a little bow. “Welcome to our humble abode, miss.”
The others laughed, everyone except Cade, who she now noticed stood only two steps from her side.
Hands resting on his hips, he studied her intently, a question in his eyes.
She worked her lower lip with her teeth. He did seem worried about her. Maybe she shouldn’t be so hard on him.
A woman bustled up to them then. A beautiful woman with assessing green eyes. She shot Cade a withering glare then turned back and cupped Sharyah’s shoulders. “I told them to leave you be, hon. But I have no authority over what goes on around here. As soon as they get you untied, you come on and sit down and I’ll give you a nice hot bowl of rabbit stew.”
“Now, Kat…” Judd shooed the woman away and followed her back toward the fire leaving Cade to guard Sharyah.
Cade stepped over and worked at the rawhide around her wrists.
“Who’s that?”
“Sam’s sister.”
Sam has a sister? She glanced over at the woman a
nd felt a prick of irritation to find those alluring green eyes fastened on Cade. As the last knot released and fresh blood surged into her hands, prickles of pain zinged down her fingers with each beat of her heart. She hissed and shook her hands.
Cade reached for them, seemingly unaware of the woman watching him from across the camp. “You should have told me it was too tight.” He massaged her palms, and stroked her arms firmly, frowning and looking none too pleased.
She sniffed. He had tied her up and hauled her up into the mountains with a gang of outlaws, yet he was frustrated with her? And still the only thing she wanted to do was collapse against him and feel the safety of his arms around her. How pathetic was that? Refusing the impulse, she glowered at him, “Like you would have cared.”
He froze for just an instant and she saw a spark of anger ignite the blue of his eyes before he returned his attention to her wrists and rubbed at the indentations left there by the rawhide. “This is not the time or the place for me to deal with that comment.”
“I don’t suppose it would do any good to tell you I needed… well, that I needed—” her face heated as she bumbled to a lame stop.
His jaw bunched and he glanced over his shoulder toward the fire. “The lady needs to use the necessary.”
Judd waved his permission and Cade took her hand, pulling her after him down a slightly worn trail.
Something had obviously made him hotter than a pan full of sizzling bacon. He stormed ahead of her so fast she was hard-put to keep up, especially since she had to take three steps for every one of his. As they rushed over the rough terrain, she did her best to remain on her feet and hurried after him.
He rounded a corner in the trail where a huge boulder jutted out of the ground and a hillside climbed to their left.
She leapt over a log that Cade strode across without seeming to notice, landing hard on the other side. “If you think I’m going to use the… privy with you standing guard over me, you’ve gone out of your head, Cascade Bennett!”
He jolted to a sudden stop and spun toward her. She crashed into his chest with a squawk of surprise, clamoring to regain her balance.
Cade’s hands settled firmly around her waist, lifting her a quarter turn until her back was pressed against the large boulder by the side of the narrow trail. His gaze never left her face as he stepped closer.
Taking in the icy fire glimmering in his eyes, she swallowed and tried to step away, but the boulder wouldn’t budge. She had nowhere to go.
He scanned her face, one hand coming up to touch her cheek. “You’re determined to kill me, aren’t you?”
“What?” She frowned, trying to will away the rapid breathing that had nothing to do with the hurried walk they’d just taken. Summoning every ounce of self control to the fore, she refused the desire to lean her cheek into the secure warmth of his palm. Instead, gritting her teeth, she remained aloof, as though his gentle touch had no effect on her whatsoever.
“What are you doing in Beth Haven? You’re supposed to be in Madras.”
One shoulder lifted. “They gave the Madras position back to last year’s teacher. But Beth Haven was open and they were happy to have me.”
A short puff of breath flared his nostrils. “I bet they were. Tell me about you and Sam.”
Her throat worked. Sam who? Out loud she said, “Sam is a wonderful gentleman who cares for me very much.” Or at least might learn to with time.
“So you’re settling for a man who cares for you, instead of love, is that it?”
An angry little laugh escaped before she could stop it. “You wouldn’t know the first thing about love if it slapped you in the face!” Oh, that was a terrible analogy to use. Her eyes dropped closed for just a moment and when she opened them a hint of humor glimmered in his eyes.
“You can’t say that name.”
Confusion furrowed her brow. “What?”
“Bennett. Up here, I’m not that man, understand?” His hand lingered and his thumb caressed short strokes at the corner of her mouth, his perusal pausing on her lips.
She swallowed hard and nodded. “Sorry. I forgot. You just make me feel… so… angry.”
The corners of his eyes crinkled. He leaned closer and she could feel the brush of his breath feathering across her lips. “Only angry?”
He’s just toying with you! She planted her palms firmly against his chest, scrabbling for anything to put a little distance between them. “I really do need to…”
A lazy grin filled his face and slowly, after what seemed an eternity, he stepped back. “Fine, I’ll send Mick down here to stand guard.”
“No!” she grasped his arm before he could take another step.
His eyebrows arched. “Oh? So you do want me to stand as your protector then?”
She gave a very unladylike growl and glanced both ways before she whispered, “Just stay put and maybe I’ll keep your real name to myself!”
With a parting glare, she flounced into the bushes doing her best to ignore his laughter.
5
Cade lay in his bedroll, once again having a hard time falling asleep. Tonight, however, he wasn’t worrying about how to report that the teacher was going to be kidnapped, but about the fact that if he fell asleep, she would be at the mercy of the rest of the Rodale gang. Forget that Judd had warned all the men to stay away from her. Cade had seen the looks Mick kept giving her all evening.
She slept only a few feet away on a make-shift pallet Judd had forced Seth to put together. Cade had placed his bedroll between her and the rest of the men. Still, this was no way for a lady to spend even one evening.
Flipping onto his side, he snatched a blade of grass and methodically broke it into tiny pieces. What a mess this job had turned into.
Tomorrow... Tomorrow he would get the evidence he needed, get Kat and Sharyah and make an escape with them. He’d seen several horses that would do. He only needed to bring back one and that would be enough to hang the entire gang.
He just had to find a way to talk to Kat without arousing the others’ suspicions. Maybe she would try and talk to him again. A man could hope. It would certainly be nice if something went right on this job. She had come to Judd of her own free will, but unless he missed his guess, she wasn’t remaining because of it.
Who knew that the teacher he didn’t want to kidnap in the first place would end up being none other than the woman he’d spent the better part of the last few months trying to forget?
He released a long breath. Sky and Rocky were going to kill him. To say nothing of Mr. Jordan.
As morning light kissed the snowy caps of the Three Sisters, Sharyah seated herself on a log just down from Cade.
Foot propped up on a rock, arms folded over his knee, and his black Stetson pushed far back on his head, he stared into the flames, lost in thought. He barely acknowledged her with a dip of his head when she sat down. He looked grumpy and disheveled.
And more tired than he had before he went to sleep last night. Like maybe he hadn’t slept at all.
When Katrina sashayed his way with a steaming cup of coffee and pressed it into his hands with a coy lift of her brow, he perked up, though. He lifted the cup in a small salute and downed a gulp.
The woman’s pendulum gait carried her back to the chuck wagon.
Sharyah blew a little gust of air through her nose and turned to study the dance of the flames. She might have known. Could she ever remember a time that Cade didn’t have another woman in his life? She should be used to it by now. But still the pain of it stabbed deeply.
Well, she was moving on. She had Sam now. He would be here with the law for her any minute.
She glanced toward the horizon, searching for any little puff of dust that might indicate someone was riding this way. Nothing.
Cade took a slow sip of his coffee. Then turned to look at her, his mouth flattening into a wry grin. “He won’t come for you.”
She lifted her chin. It didn’t look like Katrina was going to bother b
ringing her a cup of coffee, so she stood, strode over to Cade and took his. “Don’t worry. She’ll bring you another one just as soon as she notices this one’s gone, I’m sure.” And with that, she walked away from him, out into the meadow to where she could enjoy the sunrise over the Three Sisters. She cupped the mug in both hands, taking in the heady aroma with a long appreciative inhale.
Off to her left, the horses cropped grass. The horse she’d ridden yesterday lifted its head with a quiet nicker and she stepped over to it and patted the side of its neck. The horse whuffed her coffee and then shook its head and backed up a step.
Sharyah chuckled. “What? Not your idea of a tasty breakfast, huh?”
She returned her attention to the mountains then, drawn further into the field by the sheer beauty of the magenta sky streaked with peach and yellow hues. Her feet moved of their own accord as in breathless awe she studied the arc of the vast creator-painted canvas stretched before her. Each snow-capped Sister loomed a color-kissed blue-gray shadow against the vivid sky.
Sharyah took a sip of coffee then tipped her head back and closed her eyes. If such beauty existed here, what must heaven be like?
The grass to her right rustled as someone stepped up beside her.
“Go away, Cade.”
A man chuckled. “Well ain’t you a testy little thing. Pretty though. Right pretty.”
Cade had just started after Sharyah, when Judd walked up to the fire and called for all the men to join him. Cade hesitated, torn. He didn’t want to leave Sharyah alone. But if he went after her he might miss out on an important piece of information. His fists clenched and he glanced over his shoulder. The men would all need to be at Judd’s little meeting. And based on the fact that Judd was throwing his saddle on his mount, this shouldn’t take long.
She’ll be fine.
Reluctantly, he decided he’d best find out what Judd was up to.
Judd stepped over to the fire, rubbed his hands and warmed them, then glanced up as Katrina handed Cade a second cup. Even though she didn’t have the same saucy air as she’d had when she placed the first cup into his hands, Judd frowned thoughtfully as he watched Katrina resume her place by the chuck wagon.
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