Sam cocked his head to one side. “Are you sure you want to do that?”
She nodded. “We might make it a short day if the judge arrives and the trial begins, but the children need the discipline and structure of daily studies.”
Cade held his silence for the moment, but he would have to talk to her about that. The last thing she needed to be doing right now was going back to teaching. She needed to give herself time to rest from the whole ordeal, but mostly from the terror of what had nearly happened to her this morning.
“Alright.” Sam stepped back. “Well if you are sure… I’ll drop by the school tomorrow afternoon then?”
Sharyah smiled. “Yes, that would be fine. I’ll look forward to it.”
A muscle in Cade’s jaw flinched. Maybe he didn’t stand a chance with her.
Sam helped her up into the saddle and it was a moment before he realized that he still stood on the ground and she was waiting for him to take her home. Mounting up he led the way back to town.
They were nearly there when he realized he had no idea where she lived. “Where’s your place?”
She gestured in the direction of the school. “There’s a little cabin not too far from the schoolhouse.”
He pulled to an abrupt stop. “Wait a minute. You live alone?” He’d pictured her living with a family, or at a boarding house. Somewhere with people around to protect her.
She nodded.
There was no chance he was leaving her alone tonight of all nights. If something went wrong and one of the gang escaped back at camp who knew what the man might do. He turned in the direction of town. “Come on, you can sleep in my room at the hotel. It’s paid up for two weeks.”
“Cade!” She kept her horse reined to a firm stand-still, exasperation coating her tone.
“Just… in my room. Where you’ll be safe. I won’t even be there.” His heart pounded a rhythm against the wall of his chest. What would he do if she said no? He wouldn’t be able to concentrate on anything with her out here all by herself.
“No, absolutely not!” She jerked her horse toward the school and kicked it into a trot.
He spurred his mount after her and reached out, taking her reins and pulling her to a stop. “Shar, please, I can’t have you staying someplace all alone tonight.”
“I have spent the last two days in the hills with a band of outlaws.” Her voice warbled on a tremor. She shuddered and wrapped her arms around herself. “The way he—he looked at me just—just—” Tears spilled down her cheeks and she turned her face away from him.
“Shar,” He dismounted and helped her down, pulling her into a comforting embrace and simply letting her cry. He cupped the back of her head, pressing the side of her face into his chest and stroking the curls away from her damp cheeks.
She buried herself against him, covered her face with her hands and heaved great shuddering sobs.
For a moment he closed his eyes and turned his face to the sky. God, forgive me. This is my fault. “It’s alright. I’m not going to let anything happen to you, now. I’m so sorry.” He threaded his fingers into her hair and rested his cheek atop her head. “He’s gone. He won’t ever be able to hurt you again, I promise.”
After a few torturous minutes, she drew in a long thready breath. “I was so scared.”
“I know.”
“But all I can think of is that you came to my rescue.”
He chuckled softly, attempting to lighten the mood. “I don’t know. You looked like you were doing alright for yourself when I got there.” He leaned away and lifted her face so he could look into her eyes. Big brown eyes in which a man could lose himself forever, eyes now magnified by terror and tears.
“And Missy Green didn’t have anyone to come to her rescue. That man… he… Oh Cade it must have been so awful for her.”
Okay, there was no lightening this mood. “I know, Shar. I’m so sorry.”
She leaned in again, tucking her head under his chin and clutching fistfuls of his shirt.
He rested his mouth against the top of her head swaying slightly in a comforting rhythm and simply letting her relax in safety. His eyes fell shut as thankfulness that she hadn’t been hurt more severely than she had washed over him. It could have been worse. Much worse.
He could stand here holding her forever, but time was running short and he needed to get back to the jail and meet up with the posse Sheriff Collier was putting together. He eased back slightly and rested one palm against her cheek, rubbing away the moisture with his thumb. “Come to town. I’ll drop you by the hotel. I can’t have you staying at your place all alone.”
“Cade please…” She trembled all over. “It will be a strange place. With strange men walking the hallways. We’re almost to my house.”
Her pleading was almost his undoing. Then a thought occurred. “Maybe you could stay out at Sam’s place? Katrina’s there.”
Her face turned crimson in an instant. “No! No I can’t stay out at Sam’s. Especially not… no, it wouldn’t be proper.”
Frustration welled up inside him and he knew it had to do with more than simply finding her a place to stay tonight. She’d told him in no uncertain terms out at Sam’s ranch to back off and now it was quite obvious she really did have feelings for the man. He studied the pink of her cheeks and took a deliberate step back, dropping his hands to his hips. If Sam was the man she wanted, far be it from him to stand in her way. “Fine, if not at Sam’s it will have to be the hotel.”
“Cade please can’t I just stay at home? I’ll lock the doors and won’t open them for anyone.” Her head tilted over to one side, a curl falling to rest against her shoulder.
His fingers itched to reach out and feel the softness of it. He swallowed. “I’m sorry.” He shoved his hands deep into his pockets where he could be sure they would behave themselves. “The only place I can be certain of your safety is somewhere close to other people. Your pa and brothers would have my hide nailed to the nearest wall if I let something happen to you.”
Sharyah sighed and wrapped her arms around herself, closing her eyes. She missed the feel of Cade’s arms already and wished he hadn’t backed away. And then immediately wished that she would stop wishing things about him.
No more tears. She couldn’t let this one incident turn her into a spring filly, shy and startling at the drop of a hat.
She lifted her chin. “Fine.”
The line of Cade’s shoulders eased perceptibly. “I know that was a hard decision to make, but it was the right one. I’m proud of you.”
There he was back to being her brother again. Oh! She wanted to slap that brotherly affection right off his face. The man could get under her skin faster than anyone she knew. She spun toward her horse and mounted up without waiting for him to help her. He seemed fine with that and, from his own mount, led the way toward the heart of town at an easy lope.
He reined up at the hitching rail in front of the hotel and just as they were headed through the door to the lobby, Sheriff Collier rounded the corner from the alley.
Cade hesitated.
The man seemed lost in thought his eyes fixed to the boardwalk at his feet, and he didn’t even notice them until he’d nearly bumped into Cade. He jolted to a stop and blinked slowly, as though returning from far away.
“You have a posse together, yet?”
“Oh, yes, yes. They are waiting for you down at the jail, as we speak.”
“They? You aren’t coming with us?”
Collier laughed. “Naw. The town will be much better served by my presence here.”
“I see.” Cade folded his arms, a thoughtful furrow creasing his brow. “I’ll be along in a moment. I’m just seeing Miss Jordan safely to a room in the hotel.”
“About that…” The sheriff glanced up at the hotel sign swaying over their head and then down at her, scratching under his chin. “I’m afraid I’ve just come from a hastily assembled meeting of the school board, Miss Jordan.”
Nausea rolled throu
gh her at that.
Cade planted his shoulder into the wall and rested the toe of one foot against the boardwalk. She recognized the action as something Cade did when he was holding off his anger. Eyes narrowed, he studied Collier. “That’s interesting, because we just left Sam Perry’s place only a bit ago. He’s the head of the school board, isn’t he? I know he couldn’t have had time to make it to the meeting.”
Collier tugged at the loose skin under his jaw. “Well, in this instance we didn’t feel like Perry would be the best one to give a… fair vote on the situation. He’s obviously developed an… interest in Miss Jordan, and the rest of us felt that might… mar his judgmental abilities.”
Sharyah forced herself to breathe slowly as she straightened her sleeves. “What was the meeting about, Sheriff?”
She knew what it was about. She’d spent the night up in the hills with a gang of outlaws. Her virtue had come into question. They were doing to her the same thing they’d done to poor Missy Green, only in this case nothing had actually happened.
Realizing she was fidgeting, she folded her arms in despair. She’d wanted so badly for this job to work out, for Mama and Papa to be proud of her. What would it do to them if she was sent home on suspicion of having her virtue stolen? How would Sky and Rocky and their families feel? She suppressed a moan. Forget what it would do to her family. What would it do to her?
“Well… uh… last night, you see… with you up…” Collier rolled his hand in the general direction of the hills surrounding Beth Haven and stumbled to a stop. He shuffled his feet, smoothed his vest and then took hold of the support post by the stairs with both hands. Still not looking her way, he continued, “Well, some of the parents have expressed a concern about you teaching their children, now.”
Cade stood erect and Sharyah stepped closer to him, afraid that he might take a swing at the older man. “I’ll stand as a witness that nothing happened, Sheriff. I made sure she was safe the whole time she was there.”
Collier cleared his throat. “I’m afraid Mick Rodale is telling another story.” The sheriff looked at her, then. “Did he compromise you, ma’am?”
Sharyah’s eyes dropped shut and a shudder coursed through her.
Cade muttered something low and menacing. “She was out of my sight for five minutes. The man approached her, but he never… no.”
“I see.” Collier’s feet shuffled. “Well, I’d be inclined to believe you, but… for now the board has asked that classes not resume until a final decision can be made. I’ll take her mount on over to the livery for you.”
Neither one of them commented as the man ambled down the steps and led her horse away.
Stunned and numb, Sharyah couldn’t seem to make her feet move. She simply stood and stared across the street at the way the paint peeled from the walls of The Golden Pearl saloon.
This might be the end of her teaching career. This story would follow her wherever she went looking for a position. Not that she wanted to be a teacher for the rest of her life. Some day she’d like to be a wife and mother. But even that… What man would want her now? What would this do to her chances at a relationship with Sam? Her eyes narrowed. This was all so unfair!
Cade touched her elbow. “Sharyah, I’m sorry. Let’s go inside, shall we?”
She jerked her arm from his grasp. “I suppose, if we must.”
His brow arched in surprise and he stepped to the side, folding his arms and keeping his silence.
With a huff she hoisted her hem and stepped into the lobby ahead of him.
He removed a key from his pocket as they climbed the stairs and opened the third door on the right down the hall, holding it open for her to precede him.
He hadn’t said a word since she’d snapped at him out on the boardwalk. He started to turn down the hall and she laid a hand on his arm, stopping him. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have—”
His finger rested across her lips, and she stilled.
“I’m the one who should be sorry.” Dark chips of anger glimmered sapphire in his gaze. “If I could have figured a way to keep you safe and leave you out of it….” He massaged the muscles along his neck. “For what it’s worth, I only wanted to protect you.”
Sharyah glanced at her fingers. He had been ready to leave Sam on his own until Mick had busted in with his gun. “You did the best you could. I know that.”
A grim smile flattened his lips. “Sometimes that’s not good enough. Get some sleep.” Defeat inflated his tone and exhaustion weighted the plains of his face.
He started away again and once more she stopped him.
“Sometimes it’s not until we come to the end of ourselves that God can take over and work out what He wants to accomplish. And I want to say thank you.” She meant it as thank you for everything, for taking care of her, for protecting her from Mick, for caring enough to make sure she rested in safety tonight, for understanding when she snapped at him. The two little words didn’t sound like enough to convey what was in her heart.
But when he nodded again and walked away, this time she let him go. She shut and locked the door and sank down on the bed, pulling the blanket up over her, skirt and all.
Exhaustion begged her to release the day, yet sleep evaded her and she tossed and turned. After several minutes she heard a noise at the door. Flipping around, she glanced at the portal. It remained closed, but a paper lay on the floor just inside the door.
She frowned and threw off the covers, crossing the room to pick it up.
The note held no address. Just a sloping scrawl that pricked Sharyah with curiosity. If you care anything for Cade Bennett you won’t mention the letter about the diamonds, or this note, to him. It would be a shame if he was killed.
A cold chill sluiced down Sharyah’s back. She crushed the note in her palm and jerked the door open to look both ways down the hall. Not a soul in sight.
Stepping back into the room she bolted the door once more and stared at the wall next to the window. She’d forgotten to tell Cade about the letter she’d seen at the chuck wagon. The crumpled paper trembled in her hand. A death threat? Who would have written it? The only person who had seen her reading the letter was Katrina Perry. Well, Maybe Mick had noticed, too. But Mick was in jail and Katrina was out at her ranch with her brother… so who would have slipped this note under her door? And how would they have known she’d seen the letter from the mining company in Africa?
She slipped the note into the pocket of her skirt then sank onto the edge of the bed and massaged circles at her temples. What should she do? If someone didn’t want her talking about it, the letter was obviously something important.
With a groan she slumped over onto her side and pulled the covers over herself once more. “I just want to go home,” she mumbled as her eyes slipped shut and exhaustion overtook her. Perhaps she would be able to think more clearly once she’d gotten some rest.
7
Sam allowed Katrina to eat her dinner in peace, but as soon as he’d finished his after-meal coffee, he stalked through the house and barged into the parlor where she sat writing on a piece of parchment.
She jumped, glancing up from her place at the desk. “Sam! You nearly startled me to death!”
“What aren’t you telling me, Katrina, dear?”
Blinking large round doe eyes, she picked up her peacock feather fan and set it into action. “Why, I simply have no idea what you are talking about.”
“I saw you send Millicent’s boy off on an errand before you’d been home five minutes. Where did you send him?”
“Really, Sam. A woman has to have some privacy.” The fan swished so fast that a stack of papers flitted off her desk and fluttered to the floor. She bent quickly, gathering them back into a neat little pile before her.
He crossed the room and leaned one hand on the papers, stilling her movements. Bending down he glowered in her face. “You haven’t given up on your little scheme, have you? I told you, I won’t help you!”
“Sam, y
our part will be easy. Judd and I are making all the preparations. No one will know you are even involved.”
“I’m not involved!” He slammed his palm down, rattling the desk and everything on it, before he turned and stalked over to the window. Clasping his hands behind his back, he rocked on his heels. “Judd’s been rustling our cattle and horses, Kat. I have the proof I need, now. I don’t want you seeing him anymore, understand?”
“So that’s what you were doing. I nearly dropped my jaw when Cade Bennett rode into camp posing as an outlaw.” She leaned into the slats of her chair and crossed her legs. “You could have sent me a message. I would have checked into the situation.”
He faced her. “Katrina, honestly, I’m not sure if I can trust you anymore.”
“Sam dear, everything I’ve ever done, I’ve done for us. For this ranch.” She cursed. “You’d think I’d get a little gratitude! Do you think I enjoy being with that man?” Her eyes sparked and she pointed a finger outside. “Do you think I’m with Judd Rodale because he means so much to me?” With a disgusted snort, she leaned back in her chair and rubbed one hand over her face. “You really are a croaker, Sam. I’m doing all of that for us. And what do I get when I ask you to pitch in and help a little? Nothing but whine, whine, whine.”
“That’s all well and good, Kat. But in trying to help us, you are throwing in your lot with a man who is robbing us blind! Sanderson says we’ve lost fifty head over the last two weeks alone.”
Kat jutted her jaw forward, working her lower teeth over her upper lip. Her eyes narrowed. “Are you sure it’s him?”
He threw his hands up. “Who else would it be?” Swinging one arm toward the door he finished, “And Cade brought the proof with him. You saw that.”
She tapped out a rhythm on the desk with her fingernails. “Fine. We can use that. We just have to get past this situation with Missy, and then we’ll turn Judd and the gang in with the evidence we have on them. That will mean more for us.”
Cold terror washed through him. “You had Judd kidnap Sharyah, didn’t you?”
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