Sequel to Anna Doubles Down
When Kat’s Away
Kat Evans is on vacation with her best friend when they visit the ghost town of Hamilton, Nevada. When Anna disappears, Kat begins a frantic search.
Something draws her to the old saloon, and when she investigates, she’s pulled through a time portal back to 1899.
David Bennington-Martinson and Win Warrior own the Silver Rush Saloon, and have been secret lovers for years. They both yearn to find a woman they can share, someone that would round out their family.
When they discover Kat in their cellar, they know she’s the woman they’ve been waiting for. Unfortunately, someone else has figured out her secret, and they’ll do anything to travel back to the future.
Kat’s going to have to make a choice. Will she go back to her own time, or stay in the past with David and Win?
Genre: Ménage a Trois/Quatre, Time Travel, Western/Cowboys
Length: 51,420 words
WHEN KAT’S AWAY
Sequel to Anna Doubles Down
Missy Martine
MENAGE AMOUR
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
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IMPRINT: Ménage Amour
WHEN KAT’S AWAY
Copyright © 2012 by Missy Martine
E-book ISBN: 978-1-61926-961-3
First E-book Publication: August 2012
Cover design by Jinger Heaston
All cover art and logo copyright © 2012 by Siren Publishing, Inc.
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Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
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DEDICATION
This book is for all the Facebook fans who sent me daily encouragements while I was writing it. Your support kept me going and inspired me to go further.
And as always, my thanks to my loving husband, who made me believe there’s nothing I can’t accomplish if I only try.
WHEN KAT’S AWAY
Sequel to Anna Doubles Down
MISSY MARTINE
Copyright © 2012
Chapter 1
“Ahhh, get away from me.” Katarina Elizabeth Evans, otherwise known as Kat, swatted at the pesky insects buzzing around her head and wiped the sweat from her brow. “Damn, they’re eating me alive.”
She sighed and glanced down the dirt road toward the little ghost town of Hamilton, wondering for the hundredth time why she’d come on this trip. The heat was sweltering, the sun shining relentlessly.
“I should’ve taken Anna up on her offer for some sunscreen.”
During the past year, Kat had become interested in the writings of Martin Xander, a poet and little-known artist from the American West. In researching his life, she’d discovered he was originally from Hamilton, Nevada.
“I know it was stupid, but after reading about you, I just had to come out here and see this place.” She startled at the loud squawk of a bird and then laughed. “Okay, I’m talking myself. That can’t be a good sign. Where are you when I need you, Anna?”
She’d left her friend to explore what was left of Hamilton while she’d followed the signs down the road to the Belmont Mill.
It hadn’t been easy, talking her best friend, Anna Oakland, into taking the trip with her. Then, she’d found a picture in one of the books on Hamilton’s history. The woman in the picture could have been Anna’s identical twin. It was enough to persuade the reluctant woman to pack her bags.
“Now I’m wishing I was back in the classroom with my sixth graders.” Kat stopped and focused her digital camera to take several shots of a deteriorating building. “You don’t look so bad considering you’re over a hundred years old.” She pulled a book from her backpack and flipped through the pages. “Here it is. The Belmont Mill was founded in 1866 to process the silver from the Seligman and Silver Bell Mines.”
She looked up and studied the former mill. Most of the windows in the two-story building were broken out, and all the entrances on the ground floor were boarded over. She wrinkled her nose.
“I’ll bet all the floors inside have rotted through.”
She moved closer, picking her way carefully through the tall weeds, and peered through a broken window. A huge wooden staircase led to the second level, a thick layer of dust covering each step. The room was covered in bird droppings and had evidence of small rodents inhabiting the place. At one end of the room stood a large ore bucket attached to a cable that led off through the trees, straight up the mountain.
She pulled out her book again. “Okay, let’s see. Says here that cable leads to the Seligman Silver Mine. They used the cars to hoist the ore from the mine to the mill.” She walked to the side of the building to a small enclave that held a large box of rocks. A huge pulley cable attached to the box still kept the cable tight.
“Damn, it’s weird to think it’s been like this for a hundred years or more.”
Shaking her head, she walked toward one of the smaller buildings. The squawk of birds and the leaves and trees rustling in the wind drew her attention to the nearby forest. The area was covered in fallen trees with thickets of berry bushes. Pine cones and needles carpeted the ground. Trees
were ripe with moss growing on one side, while shifting patterns of light illuminated bird nests perched in the swaying trees. Insects humming and the soughing of the wind took the place of the city sounds she was accustomed to.
“I can’t imagine living in a time when everything was so quiet.”
She inhaled deeply and grimaced. The smell of rotting wood was strong mixed with the overwhelming scent of pine. She could practically taste the earthy, sweet-smelling air ripe with wild onions and sweet wild berries. She walked from one building to the next, carefully avoiding the knobby roots underfoot. There were two other large buildings, both with multiple chimneys on the roof and all one level.
“I remember reading they had a type of barracks or dormitory for the workers.” She looked up the hill and sighed. “I’d like to go up and see the mine, but I bet Anna’s getting pissed by now.” There wasn’t much of Hamilton left, and Anna had only seemed interested in seeing the saloon. “Well, when Kat’s away, the masses are not supposed to play, so I guess I’d better get back and rescue her. I’m gonna owe her big time for getting her out here.”
Kat hurried down the road toward town. It didn’t take long for the crumbling buildings to come into view. When she got to the end of the main street she stopped.
“Anna!” She listened for a response. After a moment she moved farther down the street. “Anna, where are you?”
She slowly walked through the town, listening for any sounds of life in the few buildings that were still standing. When she reached the end of the street she turned around and peered out over the surrounding area. The grassy weeds were waist-high around the town, and she couldn’t see clearly in any direction.
She shook her head, her breath bursting in and out in shallow pants. “Where could she be? Could something have happened to her?” Walking another few feet she stopped, squeezed her eyes shut, and listened. “I don’t hear anything,” she whispered and headed for one of the buildings.
“Anna, where the hell are you?” Kat ran down the street, calling her friend’s name as loudly as she could. “Where could she be,” she sobbed. She’d been searching the buildings for almost an hour with no luck. “I’ve got to get some help.”
She pulled out her cell phone and dialed 9-1-1.
“9-1-1 operator, what’s your emergency?”
“My friend’s missing. I think something’s happened to her.”
“What’s your name please?”
“Katrina Elizabeth Evans.”
“What’s your location, Ms. Evans?”
“I’m at the Hamilton ghost town in White Pine, Nevada.”
“You say a friend is missing?”
“Yes, her name is Anna Oakland. We’re here on vacation and we were just wandering around. I went to look at the old mill while she stayed to wander around the town. Now I can’t find her.”
“How long has she been missing?”
“I don’t know exactly. I’ve been looking for over an hour. There’s nobody around but me. I haven’t seen any other cars.”
“All right, Ms. Evans. I’m sending some state troopers and park rangers your way. Where are you right now?”
“I’m with my car. It’s parked right beside the Hamilton sign as you drive into town.”
“All right, stay with your automobile so they can find you easily. Does Ms. Oakland have any medical conditions that might be a problem? Diabetes? Epilepsy? Mental disorders?”
“No, of course not.”
“Was she sick or depressed this morning?”
“No, why all the stupid questions?”
“I’m just trying to get all the facts to send to the police who respond to the call, Ms. Evans. Every bit of information they have before they get there will speed things up.”
“I’m sorry. I know you’re just trying to help. Do you need to know anything else?”
“No, that’ll be it. Would you like me to stay on the phone with you until they arrive?”
Kat shook her head. “No, that’s okay. I’m gonna look around some more.”
“Don’t wander away from your vehicle, Ms. Evans. The authorities tell me they’re about twenty minutes away.”
“Okay, thank you.”
“Good luck, honey.”
Kat hung up and stared down the quiet street. “Anna was fascinated about the saloon when we read the book.” She walked toward the remains of the town’s only saloon and felt a chill run over her body.
“Anna,” she called out.
Slowly she climbed the steps. She glanced inside and wrinkled her nose. The dank air took her breath away. “Man, this place is just nasty.”
Slowly she walked inside and gazed around the room. Nothing indicated Anna had ever been there. An open door toward the back caught her attention. It appeared to lead toward a basement. Taking a deep breath, she moved closer until she could see down the steps. It was pretty dark, but something shiny about halfway down caught her eye.
Cautiously she tested the first step and found it to be fairly sturdy. She moved down a few more and froze in surprise when she glimpsed the small camera lying on the step. “Who the hell would drop a camera and just leave it?” She bent and picked it up but couldn’t say for sure it belonged to Anna. “Where the hell are you, Anna?”
Swallowing hard, she continued down the stairs. At the bottom she looked around. “Shit, what a mess.”
There were stacks of rotten-looking boxes stacked all over the room. She turned to go back upstairs and blinked. Something was glowing against the wall. As she watched, a red circle appeared, growing larger and larger in diameter.
“Hell, I need to get out of here. This can’t be real.” Kat turned and started toward the stairs. She tried to keep as far away from the wall as she could when she passed the pulsating, red spot. She let out the breath she’d been holding when her foot touched the first step.
Suddenly, she couldn’t breathe. The air around her seemed to whoosh away, leaving her in a strange vacuum. Her body began to gravitate toward the wall despite her struggles.
Oh, God, what’s happening?
Her eyes closed when she hit the wall and then opened in shock when she felt herself falling. Everything around her was black, a void with a feeling of no life. She closed her eyes again in fear. All of a sudden the vacuum opened and a huge rush of air flowed over her body. She catapulted into a room, stumbling into a pile of boxes before she could stop herself, the top one crashing to the floor with the sound of breaking glass.
Before she could even begin to wonder what had happened, the sound of footsteps pounded overhead. The click of a door opening had her turning toward the sound. Light poured through a door high up, and to her shock a man came walking down. The most beautiful man she’d ever seen. Obviously of Native American descent, his long black hair flowed smoothly far past his shoulders. A broad, muscled chest topped a thin, tapered waist. Thick muscular thighs framed a—
Holy shit!
The man was totally naked. Her eyes widened when the appendage hanging between his thighs began to grow.
The sound of his chuckle had her gaze returning to the wicked grin on his face. “Son of a bitch.” He called up the stairs. “David, get your ass down here.” He returned his gaze to her. “You have to be Kat!”
She did the only thing she could think of. She opened her mouth and screamed.
“Wait, please. We won’t hurt you.” The naked man walked down two more steps.
“Who are you?” Kat asked.
Before he could answer, another man came hurrying down the steps. “What’s all the commotion, Win?”
The second man was also handsome, even taller than the first. What had the other man called him? David? David had a brown, collar-length mane of hair. He looked over at Kat and raised his brow. “What’s going on?”
“I think I just found Anna’s friend Kat.”
“You know my friend Anna? Where is she?”
“She’s safe.” He turned to David. “Go get Anna and get her back
here quick.”
“Holy shit!” David turned and raced back up the stairs.
Kat swallowed hard and tried not to look at the naked man. “Who are you?”
She tried not to stare, but she couldn’t help but study his cock. It was standing at attention and had to be at least nine inches long. When she forced her gaze back to his face, he grinned.
“My name’s Win. Why don’t you come upstairs while David fetches Anna?”
She shook her head. “No, thanks. I’ll just wait here. But don’t let me stop you. Go ahead and put some clothes on.”
He nodded and turned, took one step, and looked back. “Are you okay? I know Anna had some injuries when she came through. Hell, she wasn’t even conscious. But you look like you survived it pretty well.”
Kat pursed her lips, her hands clenching and unclenching. “I’m fine.” She hoped he’d leave quickly so she could find a way out of the basement.
Win nodded. “Okay, I’ll be right back.” He ran up the stairs and disappeared, her eyes following his lean, taut rear end.
She moved quickly toward the light filtering down from the open door at the top of the stairs. Slowly she climbed, peeking around the frame when she reached the top. A feeling of dizziness washed over her as her fingers splayed out in a fan against her breastbone. A sudden coldness hit at her chest as her heartbeat sped up.
Several tables with mismatched chairs were scattered around the room, making her think of a restaurant. Along one wall stood a tall, wooden bar. The wood had been polished to a rich shine. A large mirror adorned the wall behind it, flanked by shelves lined with bottles of liquor. Several old-fashioned wick lamps hung from hooks on the wall in several places.
When Kat's Away [Sequel to Anna Doubles Down] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) Page 1
