Montana Surrender

by Simmons, Trana Mae

  Storm climbed a few more feet up the slope and pulled at some dead branches on the hillside. When they fell away, he stepped back so Jessica could see past him into an excavation dug into the ground. He held his hand out, and Jessica allowed him to pull her up beside him.

  "Look in there, Jessica. You can see the sun falling on that streak in the rock. It's almost pure gold. No telling how far back into these hills it goes."

  Jessica pulled her hand free and moved a step away from Storm. "It's very pretty. Or at least, I guess it will be when it's turned into coins or jewelry. I assume we're still on Tobias's land?"

  When Storm remained silent, Jessica glanced at him to see him studying the hillside around them. A frown marred his face for a moment, then he walked a few paces inside the excavation. Striking a match, he held it over his head as he peered around and traced his hand along the dull, yellow vein in the wall of stone. The match burned down and he dropped it to the floor before he reemerged from the excavation.

  "If I'm right," he said when he rejoined Jessica, "that's Lazy B property on the other side of this hill. We'll have to study the map at the land office, though, to be sure."

  "Then you think the vein runs that way."

  "Hell, I'm no mining engineer, but I've been in a few gold mines in my life. I'd say it's a real possibility."

  As Storm turned sideways to scan the stratums of rock on the hillside, Jessica studied his profile. Images of her Uncle Pete swam in her mind and now she could see the resemblance Ned spoke of. She had seen Pete stand like that in the fall when he gazed westward toward his beloved wandering grounds. He always had the same proud tilt to his head and the beard on the old mountain man's face never covered his straight nose.

  Suddenly she had an image of Pete sitting by the fireplace one night when she had crept back downstairs after being awakened by a clap of thunder. He had sat in front of the fire with his hands on his knees, his head bent. When he heard her approach, she had caught an instant of the pain in his deep brown eyes before he managed to cover it up and hold his arms out to her. She had seen that look of pain before — in Storm's eyes. Storm's eyes — so much like Uncle Pete's.

  Jessica felt a wrench in her heart as she gazed around her. How close had Uncle Pete come to finding Storm in his wanderings? Cross county, instead of the circuitous route she had taken, it couldn't be more than an hour's ride to the Lazy B ranch house.

  "I guess I'll never know," Jessica mused.

  "No, you won't," Storm agreed, startling Jessica for a second. "You'll be safe and sound back on your ranch in Wyoming if this mine ever gets started. Safe and sound, with no ties to Montana."

  "Damn it, Storm," Jessica flared. "You're the one who kept telling me to go back to Wyoming all along! You've been trying to get rid of me since the first time we met. Well, don't worry. I won't hang around and complicate things for you!"

  "Complicate things for me?" Storm fired back at her. "How in hell could my life get more complicated? I've still got a rape charge hanging over my head, and even if I manage to get out of that, there's still the charge for escaping prison. That's against the law, too, even if I'm proven innocent on the other charge."

  "You'll be able to work it out, Storm," Jessica said as she tore her gaze away from his ravaged face. "Ned and I agreed to get Frederick to help you."

  "I don't need any help for your old lover!" Storm spat. "I'll handle things alone — like I always have!"

  Tears filled Jessica's eyes, blurring his image in front of her. She clasped her hands across her stomach and turned her back to him to hide her face. Alone? No, he wouldn't be alone. She would, though.

  Storm knotted his fists at his side to keep from reaching out to her. But when her small shoulders started to shake, he couldn't keep from stepping close to her.

  "I'm sorry I yelled," he said quietly. "I want you to be happy, Jessica. Wherever you are, I want you to know that I wish that for you."

  Jessica only shook her head and sniffed loudly, her tear-clogged throat making it impossible for her to answer him. She felt something flutter beside her cheek and unclasped one hand to reach for the bandanna Storm held over her shoulder. She wiped at her streaming eyes, then held it close to her nose for a moment, breathing in the scent of him.

  "Can...can I keep the bandanna, Storm?" she asked when she could control her sobs.

  "Oh, pretty lady," Storm breathed. "Don't you know I'd give you the world if I could? I'm just sorry my love isn't enough, since it's all I have right now."

  Slowly Jessica turned as she felt his arms go around her. She tilted her head up to see his face drawing close to her own and pushed gently on his chest.

  "We...we can't, Storm."

  "Can't we?"

  He gently claimed her lips at first, then more fiercely when he felt her surrender to him. He pulled her close, holding her as though he could never let her go. And how could he? She was his world — his reason for living. She chased the darkness from his life and brought in light and hope again.

  Storm cupped the back of her head and tangled his fingers in her sable tresses to hold her face up to his when he wrenched his lips away. He was shaking so hard, he gritted his teeth and clenched his hand in the back of Jessica's blouse, willing his trembling to stop. When she reached up a tentative hand to his cheek, Storm buried his face in her neck.

  "I can't do it," he groaned. "I can't let you go. I love you so damned much. There has to be some way...."

  Jessica rubbed her cheek against his dark hair and sighed softly. "I'll always love you, Storm. I want you to know that."

  Storm jerked his head up and stared down at her, his brow creased in puzzlement. "Then why? For God's sake, why are you leaving before we can work this out? How can you just throw away what we could have? Listen, Jessica, I'll accept your Frederick's help, if that's what it takes to clear me. And I'll make you proud of me somehow."

  "Storm, you've got it all wrong. I could never be ashamed of loving you. But...but what about Prudence?"

  "Prudence? I don't see...."

  "Well, isn't this a tender scene? Are you two planning what all you can buy with that gold behind you?"

  Jessica stared wildly over Storm's shoulder, meeting David Baker's icy gaze. She felt Storm's fingers tighten reflexively in her hair for a moment before he gently loosened his hold and turned while pushing her behind him.

  "What the hell are you doing here, David?" he said in an ominous voice.

  David leveled the rifle at Storm's chest and worked the lever to pull a shell into the chamber. "Don't try it, Storm," he said when he saw Storm glance at the rifle he had propped against a rock. "I might just have to shoot your friend there if you lunge for that rifle."

  Chapter 24

  Storm ignored David's warning. Shoving Jessica at the excavation, he dove for his rifle.

  Storm's quick reaction worked, freezing David into uncertainty for a second as he wavered his rifle between the two scrambling figures. When David finally centered the rifle on Storm, his shot echoed a split second after Storm's. Only Storm's shell found its mark. David's bullet buried itself harmlessly in the ground beside Storm's shoulder after the rifle butt shattered in David's hand.

  "Damn you!" David shouted as he dropped the useless gun and stared down the barrel of Storm's rifle. "You'll pay for that!"

  Storm slowly rose to his feet, keeping his rifle trained on David. "Jessica," he called over his shoulder. "Are you all right?"

  Jessica scrambled out of the excavation, brushing dirt and dust from her clothing. "I'm fine," she assured Storm as she hurried to his side. "Just what the hell do you think you're doing, David? You've got no right out here!"

  "That's where you're wrong, Jessica," David replied calmly. "Any citizen has a right to capture an escaped convict." He carefully kept his hands away from the pistol on his hip while he spoke, but his eyes slid to the hillside just above where they stood. "Isn't that right, Harlin?" he said.

  Both Storm and Jessica heard th
e rifle cock above them, and Storm didn't need the confirmation of Harlin's voice to know David wasn't just trying to trick them. He pulled Jessica close to his side as Harlin spoke.

  "Drop that gun, Storm. You don't have a chance in hell of getting me before I can get off a shot. You know I'm a better shot than David. I always have been."

  Storm threw his rifle down. "Leave Jessica out of this, Harlin," he called after his gun hit the ground. "She's got nothing to do with what's between us."

  David quickly stepped forward and retrieved Storm's rifle. For a tense moment he pointed it at Storm's chest, keeping it trained on him even after Jessica twisted out of Storm's hold and stepped in front of him.

  "Hiding behind a woman, Storm?" he asked with a raised brow. "I'll bet Pa wouldn't be so proud of you if he could see you right now."

  Storm grasped Jessica firmly by the shoulders and pushed her to the side. When she struggled against his hold, he drew his eyes away from David and spoke curtly to her.

  "Stay away. I don't want you mixed up in this."

  "Storm...."

  "I mean it, Jessica."

  "Better listen to him," David said. He took a few steps forward, then his arm came up swiftly and he brought the rifle butt down on the side of Storm's head. A satisfied smile quirked his lips as Storm crumbled silently to the ground.

  "You bastard!" Jessica screamed.

  She launched herself at him, catching David off guard. They both tumbled to the ground, with Jessica frantically beating her fists against David's chest. When she landed on top of him, she arched her fingers and dug her nails into his face, barely missing his eyes.

  "You stupid bitch!"

  David brought his knotted fist up and hit Jessica full force on the side of her face. She crumbled against him and he shoved her inert body aside to rise over her. Wiping at the blood streaming down his face, he cocked the rifle and pointed it again, a mad light filling his eyes.

  "For God's sake, don't, David!"

  Harlin scrambled down the hillside. He stopped a few feet from his brother and spoke soothingly to him when he saw the familiar glint in David's eyes.

  "You can't shoot her, David. Remember what we found out about her. You sure as hell don't want that damned Wyoming attorney after us. He used to be one of the fastest gunslingers around and he'll have the whole state of Wyoming down on us if anything happens to her."

  "The damned bitch tried to blind me! And that gunslinger's an old man by now. He doesn't scare me!"

  Harlin quickly tried another tact with his brother. "Think for a minute, David. For once in your life, think before you act," Harlin pleaded. "What chance will we have of getting this gold if we have to explain a dead woman's body out here?"

  Harlin slowly breathed a sigh of relief as some of the insane light left his brother's eyes and David reluctantly lowered the rifle. He pulled a handkerchief from his coat pocket and handed it to David.

  "Here. Clean up your face and let's get on with what we planned. I want to have Storm back in town, waiting for that marshal when he arrives. That way, he won't hang around and start nosing into our business. He can just take his prisoner and leave."

  David gingerly wiped at his face and turned his flat stare on Storm's prone body, a few feet away. He noted the blood streaming from the gash on Storm's head, mixing with the raven hair, and an ugly smirk crossed his face.

  "I'm going to make sure that son of a bitch never gives us any more trouble," he said in a cold voice. "I want him dead this time. We should have had that damn judge order him hung the last time, instead of just sending him to prison."

  "That would have been going too far. Elias Gant was stirring up things against us in town even before the trial. He only shut up after he heard Storm escaped, but you can bet your ass he won't stand still for us showing up in town with Storm's dead body."

  Jessica fought the receding blackness in her mind, some instinct telling her she was in a dangerous situation. She stifled a moan of pain in her throat and rigidly fought the desire to move her neck from the painful arch it lay in after her fall. Tentatively she slit her eyelids, but a curtain of hair covered her face. The voice she heard speaking next told her the full measure of the danger she sensed.

  "We're going to have to get rid of all of them some way, Harlin. At least Gant and that damned half-sister of ours. I can handle Prudence. She'll sign her name on the deed giving us this ranch after I get done with her again."

  "Yeah, unless you go too far with her, like you did that waitress. You disgust me, David. A man shouldn't have to beat a woman to have satisfying sex with her. Why in hell didn't you keep your sex life out of Baker's Valley and in San Francisco, where it belonged? At least there you paid for the whores you used."

  "You don't understand, Brother," David said as he looked into Harlin's revolted eyes. "Do you know how many nights I listened outside that bitch's door while the old man screwed her?"

  "Oh, God, David." Harlin swallowed nausea as he realized the vacant look in David's eyes meant he didn't even see him. He watched a dribble of saliva crawl down David's chin and turned away to stare at the hillside behind him as David continued talking.

  "Every damned one of those women was her, Harlin," David mused in a soft, sickening voice. "Every drive I made into their bodies — every blow I landed on them — paid her back for what she did. She's the one who brought that bastard Storm into our house and gave Pa someone else to love. We should have had that love, Harlin. You and me."

  "Stop it, David!"

  "There's only one way to stop it, Harlin. They have to all be dead. Do you know how many times I tried to wipe it out of my mind in San Francisco? Do you have any idea?"

  Harlin whirled, glaring at David. "I know you let the Lazy B go to hell while you chased your own brand of sex out there!" he yelled. "Then when I wouldn't give you any more money from the bank, you brought it back here to Baker's Valley!"

  "We can end it right now," David pleaded. "Let's get rid of all of them. Then I'll be free. Can't you see that? Just knowing Storm and Idalee are walking around on earth — that's what keeps driving me. Help me, Harlin."

  "I've helped you all your life, David," Harlin said through gritted teeth. "And you're forgetting that marshal on the way. How in hell will we explain a bunch of dead bodies to him and the governor of the state? I keep telling you that you've gone too far, David."

  "No, Brother," David denied. "Not nearly far enough."

  "Forget it, David. If that marshal leaves without giving us any trouble, we'll be all right. If not, we can take the money that's left in the bank and ride out of here. Go to Mexico and start over."

  "I'm not going anywhere as long as Storm is alive!" David screamed. Clasping a hand to the side of his head, he pulled frantically on his hair. "He's got to die!"

  David wrenched a handful of hair from his head and lowered his arm to stare at it for a second before he turned his maddened gaze on Harlin.

  "He's still in my head, Harlin. You see? I can't get him out of my head as long as he's alive."

  When David turned with a wrench and pointed the rifle again at Storm, Harlin leaped forward. He knocked the rifle aside, but not before David managed to pull the trigger. The sound of the shot echoed along with Jessica's scream as she lurched to her feet and ran toward Storm.

  Harlin caught Jessica's arm before she could kneel by Storm and jerked her around to face him. "You stupid bitch. How long have you been awake?" he demanded as he grabbed her other arm and shook her wildly.

  "Let me go! Storm. Oh, Storm!"

  "Shut up!" Harlin gripped her arms bruisingly and held her still. "He's not dead, but he will be before morning. You've made sure of that, laying there, listening to us. You've left me no choice now. And after it's done, you're going to listen to me describe to David every twitch he made at the end of the hangman's noose!"

  "What do you mean, Harlin?" David asked, licking his lips as he stared at Jessica's stark white face and horrified expression.

>   "Take your bandanna off and tie this little wildcat up, David," Harlin demanded. "Then you're going to listen to what I've got to say. Thank God one of us keeps his wits about him."

  David removed his bandanna and quickly bound Jessica's hands behind her. When David shoved her away from him, Jessica landed in the dirt at Harlin's feet. Harlin stood over her, his fists knotted at his side.

  "If you try to move, I swear I'll let David have you," he growled.

  "Please," Jessica pleaded. "Storm needs help. He's bleeding."

  "That's just too damned bad," Harlin snarled. He remained standing over Jessica, taking no chance she would disobey his order not to move, while he spoke again to David. His words increased the horror spreading through Jessica's mind.

  "Listen, David," Harlin said. "I've got a better idea now. I'll take Storm back to town and parade him down the main street before I have the sheriff lock him up. It won't take much to get the men in town fired up about lynching a rapist. Then when the marshal arrives, we'll have a whole town full of witnesses as to what happened."

  Harlin watched his brother closely as David took a deep, steadying breath while he stared down at Storm. "Think about it, David," he continued in a comforting voice — the only voice he had ever been able to use to get through to his brother over the years. "Think how he'll look kicking at the end of a rope."

  "Yes," David breathed out in a sibilant sigh. "Remember how men look when they hang, Harlin? How black their faces get and how their tongues stick out? Remember how they smell when....?"

  Jessica sobbed and pulled her legs under her to try to stand, but David quickly whirled toward her. The look in his flat, pale eyes pinned her effectively to the ground.

  "What about her?" The hoarseness in David's voice sent a new chill down Jessica's spine. "She knows now."

  "We'll have to take her with us, David. She'll be our safe passage out of the territory."

  "But all this gold!" David said with a whine.