by Aimée Thurlo
“I think Fuzz is right,” Lucas added in a gentle, persuasive voice. “If you had boarders right now, it would be different, but it’s not safe for you to be here alone.”
“I’m not afraid, and I’m not about to allow anyone to run me out of my house.”
Lucas expelled his breath in a rush. “Let me tell you something I learned while I was in the military. Young soldiers want to handle everything with a head-on assault The ones with experience learn the value of an aggressive defense. They wait for their enemies to expose weaknesses, then they strike. That’s how they live to keep fighting.”
“I can’t ask anyone to put me up. If someone is after me, I’d be endangering my host. That’s not right.”
“Then I’ll stay here with you,” Lucas said.
The thought sent a spiraling warmth all through her, but somehow she found the strength to say no. “I appreciate the offer, but I can stand on my own. I’ll get out my shot-gun and keep it handy. I’m perfectly capable of defending myself if it comes to that.”
Lucas started to protest, but stopped when he saw the determined look on her face. Marlee knew he hadn’t given up. He was just trying to find another suggestion she wouldn’t object to.
Marlee walked them to the door, keeping her hands in her pockets so the men wouldn’t see them shaking.. “I appreciate your concern and your help, but I’ll be just fine.”
After saying goodbye, Marlee shut the door, and looked around the empty room. Though she’d put on a brave front for the benefit of the Blackhorse brothers, the fact was she was scared. She had no way of knowing for sure if her enemy was part of her past or her present. But one thing was clear. Whoever it was wanted to destroy her, body and soul.
LUCAS FELL INTO STEP beside his brother as they walked to their vehicles.
“There’s more to this than she’s saying,” Gabriel said.
“So she’s got secrets. That’s no surprise in Four Winds, and you know it.”
“Yeah, but there’s something way out of the ordinary going on here, Shadow. That’s why you’ve been hovering over her since yesterday morning. You want to tell me what’s really going on?”
Lucas said nothing for a few moments, then finally broke the silence. “Follow me to my clinic. We’ll talk there.”
When they arrived, Gabriel settled into the chair across from his brother’s desk, and put his feet up on the blotter. “So tell me, Shadow, what the hell is this all about?”
Lucas pushed Gabriel’s feet off his desk, then leaned against the front of it, regarding his brother thoughtfully. “I’ve got some news you’re really going to hate. The peddler paid another visit to Four Winds.” He filled his brother in on the details of the events at Marlee’s, then added, “He was genuinely sick when I saw him, but he recovered too quickly, and that bothers me. I wonder if it could have been a trick.” Lucas shook his head. “No, never mind. I’m just being paranoid. That fever was real—I know my job.”
“I’ll keep an eye out for him,” Gabriel said. “Maybe this time I’ll get to catch up to the son of a gun before he disappears.”
“I wish you luck,” Lucas muttered.
“Meaning you don’t think I’ll catch him?”
“No one ever has. I think a new series of events is about to unfold, like before, and there’s not one damn thing you, me or anyone else can do to stop it.”
IT WAS MIDAFTERNOON. Marlee stood waiting for Earl Lar-rabee, the bank teller, to bring her the safe-deposit box. She’d intended to put the peddler’s gift in the bank earlier that day, but she’d never quite managed it
“Will you be long, or shall I wait?” Earl asked.
“This will just take me a moment.” Marlee smiled at him.
Earl was always willing to help. He was also one of the best sources of information around. She’d heard from Sally and several other local women how much Earl loved gossiping with the ladies.
“Did you enjoy the Harvest Festival? The rain almost ruined it for everyone this year,” Marlee prompted, hoping to get him started.
“Rain or not, it was sure exciting. That incident with Bradford was totally unexpected. Of course, right now everyone’s more worried about the flu bug that’s going around.”
“Flu bug?”
“Haven’t you heard? People have been coming down with it all day. Mrs. Torres and several of the high-school kids ended up having to go home. The feed store is short-staffed, and only Clyde is still at the post office.”
“When did this all start?”
“Beginning this morning. It’s hitting people hard and fast.”
As they left the vault and stepped out into the lobby, Marlee saw the elderly Mrs. Murray standing by the teller’s window. She seemed agitated and abnormally pale. Before Marlee could figure out what was going on, Mrs. Murray suddenly sagged against the counter, then crumpled to the floor.
Marlee rushed to her side immediately. The woman’s breathing was strong, but she was clearly feverish. Flu among the elderly wasn’t something to fool with. “She’s fainted. She’ll need to be taken to the clinic now,” she said quickly.
“Let me,” Earl said. He tossed his safe-deposit key ring to the bank manager, then picked up Mrs. Murray as if she weighed no more than a child. “I’ll take her over there in my car.”
“I better ride with you and hold on to her,” Marlee said. “If she regains consciousness, she may be frightened and need some reassurance.”
As they drove over to Lucas’s, Marlee’s thoughts began to race. These symptoms were similar to those she’d seen affecting the peddler. Although his recovery had been fast, she doubted Mrs. Murray would be quite as lucky. The woman was in her eighties, and at her age, any illness carried a potentially high price.
“Looks like Lucas already has his hands full here,” Earl said as he pulled up.
Several cars and pickups were in the small parking area. When they entered, half the people were milling around nervously, and more slumped in chairs waiting to be called. Just then, Lucas came out to call his next patient.
Seeing Mrs. Murray cradled in Earl’s arms, Lucas threw open the door to the examining room. “Hurry. Bring her in,” he urged, giving Marlee a concerned glance as he held open the door.
Earl stepped through the doorway, carrying Mrs. Murray. A moment later, the door swung closed behind them.
Marlee studied the people around her in the waiting room. The younger ones didn’t look quite as ill as Mrs. Murray, but their flu symptoms were pronounced. Half were coughing, and all were pale as ghosts. Worry and exhaustion marred the expressions of the parents who had brought in their children for treatment.
Marlee took in the room at a glance, assessing the situation and suspecting that the worst was yet to come. Epidemics like these seemed relentless at first because of the explosive nature of an outbreak, and influenza was particularly contagious.
There was only one sure thing she could really count on now. She’d pay a high price if the news ever got out that she’d housed the peddler when he’d come into town sick with similar symptoms.
Deciding to make herself useful instead of worrying about things she couldn’t change, Marlee helped the patients in the reception area as much as she could. Though an illness like whatever was striking down these people wasn’t in her area of expertise, she knew she could at least help the moms by keeping their kids distracted.
She played with some toddlers, finding herself wishing that her life gave her more time with children. As she sat on the floor with a fussy two-year-old, entertaining him by playing with a hand puppet from the clinic’s toy chest, she realized just how much she missed the life she’d left behind. But those days were gone. They were part of the price she’d paid to restore peace to her troubled soul.
THE HOURS PASSED QUICKLY. Mrs. Murray was transported to a hospital in Santa Fe by private ambulance service. The other patients were eventually attended to, and sent home with instructions. As stillness finally descended over the clinic,
and a sense of hard-earned peace filled the rooms, Marlee stood by Lucas’s office window watching the first snow of the year. It was late October, but still a bit early for snow. Tiny flakes fell silently, dancing in the beams of the front-porch lights.
“We’re supposed to get several inches tonight, and the temperature is expected to keep falling,” Lucas commented, looking outside and rubbing the back of his neck wearily. “That’ll be a blessing. School will probably close, people will stay indoors and maybe that’ll help slow down this flu outbreak.”
Compassion filled her as she studied his expression. A network of lines radiated from his eyes, and Marlee felt an uncontrollable urge to touch and smooth them. But aware of the temptation their slightest contact evoked, she remained still.
“I appreciated your help here today,” Lucas added. “I can’t thank you enough for sticking around.”
“It felt good to be useful. If you ever need an extra pair of hands here, I hope you’ll call me. I enjoyed it.”
“You may regret that offer, but I’ll remember it,” he said with a weary smile. “By the way, you came here with Earl and he’s long gone. Are you ready for me to take you home, or can I talk you into helping me bring in supplies from my storage building first? I’ve depleted almost everything I keep in here, and I’ll need to have things accessible in case of a crisis later tonight or tomorrow.”
“No problem. I’ll be glad to help you restock. Let’s get to it.” There was nothing waiting for her at the boarding-house anyway, except the howling loneliness of a stormy night.
They worked hard for the next hour. As they brought in the last of the boxes, Marlee stood by the door for a mo-ment, kicking the snow off her boots. The wind raged like an angry god whose fury had just been awakened. Flecks of icy snow hit her face, numbing her cheeks.
“Looks like the heater’s going to be working overtime tonight,” Lucas said.
As she closed the door, a blast of warm air from the furnace enveloped her. The heat felt good. Though the first-aid station, a clinic only in the strictest of terms, was almost Spartan, there was a homeyness to it, particularly when viewed against the blizzard outside.
She moved back to the window. The world outside looked like those paperweights one shook to produce a beautiful, self-contained snowstorm.
“Will you consider staying here tonight?” Lucas asked. “I’d rather not drive in that snow if I can help it.”
The offer to stay was tempting, but she needed to justify it to herself. “Do you think you might have more patients? If you’ll need my help…”
“I never know what’s going to happen here. It can be peaceful one second, and chaotic the next. I like my work, don’t get me wrong, but the best way for me to do my job is to take things as they come and never plan too far ahead.”
“I can understand that.” It had been that way in her work, too, she mused silently. “Four Winds is really lucky to have you. You’re a wonderful medic. You’ve got an intuition for medical matters that’s amazing. When you’re with a patient, you see the whole person, not just the illness or the injury.”
“That’s part of Navajo teachings, as well as what I was taught as a medic. Being observant becomes second nature.”
“It’s more than that. It’s a gift, a very useful one.”
“It doesn’t always guarantee answers, though,” he murmured.
The way he was looking at her made her feel vibrant and wanted. She shivered, fighting the onslaught of feelings that swept over her. An excitement she didn’t dare define, yet as wild as the wind howling outside, filled her.
“You have your own gifts,” Lucas added gently. “The way you helped the kids and their moms here today was really something.”
She smiled, pleased by his praise. It wasn’t empty flattery. He wasn’t a man to dole compliments out easily, and she knew it.
“I really would like you to stay at the clinic tonight. You’ll be safest here, you know. Look at the storm as a quirk of fate. Sometimes you just have to trust destiny.” His voice was a husky murmur.
Her heart and her mind warred with each other, each struggling for supremacy. Do you know how tempting you are? I want to stay, I want to lie with you, to feel your touch and your tenderness. I need you. She heard the words in her mind, framing emotions she’d never before allowed herself to dwell on, hoping that by the simple act of denying them, they would disappear.
Lucas touched her face gently, caressing her cheek. “This is the best place for you tonight. I’ll see to it that you’re okay. Nothing will disturb you here.”
Could he be that innocent, thinking that the physical attraction between them could be tamed by sheer will? Or was he that strong? His touch sent ribbons of warmth winding through her.
“I’ll stay,” Marlee whispered. “Let the storm rage outside. We have all we need in this station. If anybody in Four Winds needs help, this is where they’ll call.”
As another gust of wind shook the rafters, she shuddered. “I can’t remember the last time the wind was this strong.”
“It’s this building. It’s right at the mouth of the canyon, and the wind always sounds worse than it is.”
A branch hit the window hard, and Marlee jumped. “It is bad out there.”
He smiled teasingly. “Don’t tell me that I’ve finally found something that scares you!”
She looked out the window again and nodded, half-ashamed because she knew it wasn’t really the storm. It was her feelings for Lucas as they stood here alone, isolated by the storm, that frightened her.
He gathered her into his arms, enfolding her in a tender embrace that left her weak at the knees. She should have protested, but the temptation to enjoy their closeness while it lasted was too strong to resist.
“Don’t ever be afraid when you’re with me,” Lucas whispered fiercely. He wrapped his hand around her hair, tugging gently so she tilted her head to meet his gaze.
The hunger and passion in his eyes stole her breath away. In a heartbeat, his tongue invaded her mouth, commanding, persuading. It was more than a kiss. It was a possession, a touching of souls that nothing in her previous experience had prepared her for.
When he finally eased his hold, she blinked slowly, like someone waking from a wonderful dream. Everything seemed wrapped in a smoky, warm haze that softened the colors and rounded all the edges in the room.
Lucas tore his gaze from hers and moved quickly to the window, looking out. Suddenly he urged her toward the front door. “We’re in trouble,” he said quickly.
Marlee started to take a deep breath, hoping to clear her thoughts, but immediately began coughing. “What’s hap-pening?” she managed.
“Keep your breathing shallow,” he warned. “This building’s on fire. Considering all the accidents lately, I think someone may be trying to kill us.”
Chapter Six
The frigid air cut right through Marlee’s clothing. She tugged the folds of her navy wool coat tighter against her as she stood outside the rudimentary clinic. The old pumper truck had showed up remarkably fast, considering the weather, but most of the fire-department volunteers had been in bed, either sick, sound asleep or both. Aided by the falling snow and two fire extinguishers, she and Lucas had been able to put out most of the fire by the time help had arrived, but extra hands had been welcome.
Her fingers ached from the cold. Making fists and jamming both hands into her pockets, she watched Gabriel and Lucas walking around, searching the hot spots for clues.
The possibility that the arsonist had come here because of her preyed on her mind. Confused, miserable and frightened, she stared at the charred outside wall of the clinic. The town needed this facility, particularly now, with the flu outbreak. She studied Gabriel’s expression, hoping against hope that he’d be able to tell her that it had been an accident, faulty wiring or something like that. Yet in her heart, she knew not to expect that.
Gabriel came toward her as Lucas went inside the building with two of th
e firemen.
“You never saw or heard anything?” Gabriel asked without preamble.
She shook her head, not trusting her voice.
“You seem to be at the center of a lot of mishaps lately,” he continued, his eyes boring holes into her. “I need your help to get to the bottom of things, and I have a feeling you’re holding out on me.”
“I honestly don’t know anything. Was what happened here tonight really arson?”
“My guess is that someone poured charcoal-barbecue starter fluid against the side of the building, then put a match to it It’s a good thing the snow slowed the spread of the flames. You’re both very lucky to have escaped injury.”
She stared at the clinic, blinking back tears. The exterior was blackened by smoke and charred wood, and the door was burned half-away. Smoke and flames had penetrated to the front rooms, also, as if an evil wind had propelled the heat down the path where it could do the most damage. Water rested an inch or so deep in the waiting room.
The right exterior wall of the clinic looked slightly better, but not by much. It resembled a skull, with empty eye sockets where the windows had been broken.
As Lucas approached, she saw that worry and exhaustion lined his face. Her heart twisted inside her.
“The damage wasn’t as bad as it might have been,” Lucas said, trying to put a positive spin on things, as usual.
“I suppose,” she answered, trying not to sound gloomy and failing miserably.
“How much help will you need to get this place up and running again, Shadow?” Gabriel asked.
“The medical equipment is mostly in the back and it wasn’t damaged, but the front rooms are unusable at the moment. It’ll be impossible for me to see patients here until we have the structure checked out completely. If it’s safe, then we’ll have to resurface the exterior and interior walls, put in new windows and a door and reshingle part of the roof. The wiring in this section of the building will need to be replaced, too.”
