by Connie Mason
Glancing down to locate the cause of her terrible pain, Sam gasped in mortification to find herself naked from the waist up except for a bandage covering her upper chest. Groping clumsily beneath the sheet, she discovered her entire body was likewise unclothed. A deep red traveled slowly up her neck to the roots of her hair. “What have you done to me? Where is Will?” She pulled the sheet up to rest beneath her chin.
“Who is Will?” Colt asked with deceptive calm.
“Will is…” Suddenly Sam’s eyes flew open and her mouth clamped shut.
“You may as well tell me, Sam, I’ll find out sooner or later.”
“Now I remember!” Sam cried, appalled by what her memory had dredged up. “Hellfire and damnation, you shot me! Who are you and what are you doing in my house?”
“I saved your life, Miss Samantha Howard, you should thank me.” His use of her full name made Sam aware that he knew more about her than she would have liked.
“Thank you? You could have killed me,” she spat.
“Where is your pardner?” Colt asked angrily. “Where did he take the gold?”
“Why should you care?”
“My name is Colt Andrews. I’m a Texas Ranger. Mayor Mohler of Karlsburg wired Cap’n Ford for help with the Crowder gang. Seems like they’re terrorizin’ the town and disruptin’ business. I was on my way there by stage when the holdup occurred. Are you and your pardner mixed up with Crowders?” Colt really didn’t believe that, but one never knew. Looks were often deceiving.
“N…no! They killed my father! How could you think such a thing?”
“Perhaps you’d like to explain.”
“Vamoose, Ranger, can’t you see I’m hurting? Haven’t you done me enough harm?”
An unaccustomed twinge of guilt contorted Colt’s rugged features. He had seen so much suffering during the war he had become immune to it. “Okay, Miss Howard, I’ll let you rest—for now. Sooner or later you’ll be well enough to pay for your crime.” He turned to leave.
“Wait!”
Colt halted but did not turn.
“Who took care of me? Sanchez lacks the ability to remove a bullet. Did he bring the doctor from town?”
“No time.” Colt smiled with lazy amusement, swiveling to face her. “I took care of it. As well as your…other needs.”
“You…you are a doctor?”
“Hardly.”
“You undressed me!” It was more an accusation than a question.
“I wasn’t aware you had a maid to perform those duties.”
“How dare you!”
“Would you rather I let you the?”
Closing her eyes, Sam swallowed convulsively, weakness and outrage driving her back to the edge of darkness. The thought that this ruthless man had seen her completely unclothed, indeed had actually undressed her, sent her spinning away into shock. She managed to hiss one word before blackness claimed her. “Bastard!”
The next time Sam awoke, Sanchez was sitting beside the bed holding a bowl of steaming broth. “You must try to eat something, Senorita Sam,” the old man urged. “You need to keep up your strength if you wish to get well.”
“Why?” Sam complained bitterly. “So that beanheaded lawman can put me behind bars?”
“You did a very foolish thing. You and Will could have gotten yourselves killed. You risked much, Senorita Sam. Where is your brother?”
“I…I was desperate, Sanchez,” Sam admitted, choking on a sob. “It would have worked if that Ranger hadn’t been riding the stage. Of all the rotten luck! But at least Will got away. Did you tell the Ranger about Will?”
“No, Senorita Sam, I wouldn’t do that. And if Will has any sense he’ll stay away. Senor Colt is one smart hombre.” He tried to spoon hot liquid into Sam’s mouth.
“I’m really not hungry, Sanchez,” she said listlessly.
“I’ll take over, Sanchez.” Colt’s deep, resonant tones had a quality that under other circumstances would have thrilled Sam.
The old man took note of the implacable look on Colt’s face, nodded somewhat reluctantly, and handed him the bowl and spoon. Then the old man shuffled from the room with a resigned sigh.
“How are you feelin’?” Colt asked, taking the chair Sanchez had vacated.
“Like hell,” Sam grumbled peevishly.
“You have a nasty mouth for a young woman. A simple answer would do. Even a ‘much obliged’ would be appreciated, considering I saved your life.”
“What are you going to do with me?” Sam asked between swallows of broth.
“Take you to Karlsburg and turn you over to the sheriff as soon as you’re well enough,” Colt stated with cool indifference.
“Sheriff Bauer?”
“If that’s the sheriff’s name, then I reckon he’s the one.”
A shudder rippled over Sam’s flesh. “Enough,” she said, pushing the spoon away from her mouth. She couldn’t swallow another bite until a more pressing need was satisfied. Yet she was too embarrassed to ask this cynical stranger for the help she required. Instead, her face grew red and she began to squirm uncomfortably beneath the sheet.
Noting her discomfort, Colt knew intuitively what bothered her. Not one to mince words, he asked, “Would you like the chamberpot?”
“Oh, God,” Sam groaned, horrified by his blunt language. “Send in Sanchez.”
“Who do you think did this for you these last few days?” Colt asked, amusement coloring his words.
“Oh, God,” she groaned again, covering her flaming face with the sheet. “Just leave it beside the bed and get out of here.”
“Are you certain you’re strong enough to—”
“Yes! Yes!” Her voice quivered with barely concealed rage. What a thoroughly despicable, arrogant man. “Bastard,” she hissed, giving emphasis to her thoughts.
“Call me that one more time, Sam, and you’ll find what a bastard I can be. So far I’ve treated you with more respect than you deserve, considerin’ the serious nature of your crime. But you’re sorely tryin’ my patience.” He placed the chamberpot beside the bed with a resounding bang. “Are you certain you can manage?”
“Just vamoose,” came her muffled reply from beneath the sheet.
Later, Sam had to suffer Colt’s ministrations once again when he returned to change her bandage. Tears rolled down her pale cheeks when he callously pulled the sheet down, exposing her breasts. But he seemed not to notice her acute embarrassment as he swiftly and efficiently peeled off the blood-soaked bandage and replaced it with another. If Sam hadn’t kept her eyes tightly shut the whole time, she would have noticed that Colt wasn’t as unaffected as she supposed. His hands shook with the effort of controlling the urge to linger on the provocative rise of velvet skin. His breath shuddered unevenly through his body, keeping time with the erotic pounding in his chest.
“There, it’s done,” Colt sighed, turning away with an effort that taxed his steely control.
Sam said nothing, peeping through lowered lashes while he gathered up the soiled bandages. His next words sent her wits scattering. “Would you like a bath? You haven’t had one since the one I gave you after I removed the bullet.”
“You…” squeaked Sam, the words dying in her throat.
“I think you’re well enough to do it yourself this time,” Colt continued complacently. “I’ll have Sanchez bring in hot water. In the meantime, I’m ridin’ to Karlsburg. I should have reported in two days ago. Mayor Mohler will be expectin’ me. I reckon there’s no need to remind you not to leave this bed. I’ll find you no matter where you vamoose to. There’s no one to help you. It’s obvious your lover isn’t comin’ back. He has the money, that’s all a man like that wants.”
“My…my lover?” stuttered Sam, thoroughly confused.
“Perhaps I’m being presumptuous, but you never did explain your relationship to your accomplice.” Colt waited, dark brows raised inquiringly, but when Sam refused to acknowledge his taunt, he snorted derisively. “As I said before, you
r lover isn’t coming back for you.” He strode purposefully toward the door.
“Wait! What day is this?”
“If this is some trick—”
“No, please, just tell me the day and date.”
“Tuesday, May 5, 1858.”
“And the time?”
“Just past noon.”
“Then there’s still time.”
The words were spoken so low that Colt had to strain to hear them. He started to ask Sam to explain but thought better of it, deciding he hadn’t gotten a straight answer from her yet, so why expect one now? Shrugging, he left the room.
Colt had been gone about fifteen minutes and Sam had just finished an awkward bedbath and pulled on a voluminous white nightgown Sanchez removed from her bureau at her direction when the door to her bedroom burst open.
“Sam! Thank God! I thought that lop-eared jackass killed you. Who is he?”
“Will!” Sam cried, joy suffusing her drawn features. “Where have you been? Where is the gold?”
“It’s safe, Sis. But first tell me what happened. Are you hurt badly? I heard the shot but daren’t turn back.”
Will Howard was a big, strapping lad for his fourteen years. With little education save for what Sam was able to instill, at times he seemed immature for his age. After his father’s death he seemed to depend on Sam to the point of surrendering his own independence. Though Sam could not see it, Sanchez did, and worried over the boy’s lack. Some boys were men at fourteen, but if Will did not have a strong male to guide him, his own masculinity would surely suffer.
“Thank the good Lord you didn’t turn back,” Sam replied, glad that Will showed sense enough to follow orders. She should never have involved him in this wild scheme in the first place. “If you did, we’d both be in a heap of trouble. It was damn rotten luck that a Texas Ranger was riding the stage that day.”
“Texas Ranger! You mean the man who shot you is a Texas Ranger? Where did he go? I watched the house until I saw him ride off.”
“His name is Colt Andrews. He went to Karlsburg to talk to Sheriff Bauer and Mayor Mohler. He intends to turn me in as soon as I’m well enough.”
“Sam, no, he can’t do that! I won’t let him.”
“There’s nothing you can do, Will.”
“I’ll give back the gold!”
“No! If you do that, everything we’ve done will have been for nothing. I’m a woman, Will, they’ll be lenient with me. But even if they put me in jail, you’ll have the means now to continue without me.”
“How badly are you hurt? I’ll take you with me and we’ll hide in the hills where no one can find us.”
Sam shook her head. “You don’t know Colt Andrews. He’d not rest till he found me. Besides, I’m far too weak to be traipsing through the country side. The bullet caught me in the chest. Colt removed it and I’m healing nicely, but it will be days before I’m able to leave this bed.”
“Tell me what to do, Sam,” Will said worriedly. “Today is the last day.”
Colt cursed the luck that made Thunder throw a shoe barely out of sight of the house. Now he’d have to walk him back and ride Sam’s mount into town. Perhaps Sanchez could put on a new shoe while he was in Karlsburg. Leading Thunder into the stable, Colt was surprised to see a strange horse in one of the stalls calmly munching hay. Upon closer inspection, Colt recognized the horse as belonging to the second bandit and cursed roundly. Evidently the bastard was just waiting for him to leave before coming for Sam. Then he chuckled. Thunder had done him a favor by throwing a shoe. He’d have both of them now.
Moving with the stealth of a cougar, Colt entered the house through the back door, pausing outside Sam’s bedroom. The door stood ajar and Colt could hear every word spoken by the couple he assumed to be lovers as well as partners in crime.
“Tell me what to do, Sam. Today is the last day.”
“Where is the gold, Will?” Colt smiled nastily. It was the second bandit, just as he suspected.
“It’s hidden beneath a loose board under the bed in that old line shack in the north pasture,” Will revealed, proud of his cunning. “That’s where I’ve been stayin’. Did I do all right, Sam?” It was obvious that Sam’s approval meant a lot to him, and she gave it unstintingly.
“You did just fine, Will,” Sam praised. “A sister couldn’t ask any more of her brother. Pop would be proud of you. It’s up to you now to carry on.”
“Not without you, Sam. I’ll think of somethin’. I won’t let that blasted lawman turn you in.”
His ear cocked toward the voices, Colt’s heart leaped in his chest. Brother! Sam’s partner was her kid brother. And if the unformed quality of his voice was any indication, younger by several years. But he didn’t wait around to hear any more. He had to retrieve the gold before Will returned to the line shack. He wouldn’t bother with the youngster now, for he knew exactly where to find him when he wanted him. Besides, he was just a lad. The full responsibility of the crime lay fully on Sam’s head. Leaving Thunder in the stable, he saddled Sam’s mount and kneed him forward.
The gold was exactly where Will described. Colt located the shack easily and pried up the loose board beneath the cot. There were ten bags, each containing about three hundred dollars in twenty-dollar gold pieces. Three thousand dollars in all. Colt placed them carefully in his saddlebags, then left after putting everything back in place. He was gone a full ten minutes before Will arrived.
Will was close to tears when he returned to the ranch. It nearly killed him to tell Sam the gold was gone. How could anyone know? How could he be so inept? He had failed his beloved sister and all was lost.
Sam took the news stoically. Only one person could be behind this. That damn Ranger. The Mexicans were right. Texas Rangers were half-man, half devil. Then a terrible thought assailed her. If Colt Andrews knew where to find the gold, he also knew about Will. She had to protect her brother no matter what the consequences.
“He knows, Will. Colt knows about you. Quickly, get Sanchez.” Will scurried to obey.
“You wanted me, Senorita Sam?” Sanchez asked when he stood before the bed, a frown worrying his wrinkled brow.
“I know I can trust you, Sanchez,” Sam began, searching for words. “Colt knows about Will. That heartless bastard will think nothing of sending a mere boy to prison. I want you to take Will away from here. You have relatives in Laredo, don’t you?”
“Si, Senorita, a daughter and six grandchildren.”
“Take Will to Laredo, Sanchez. Now, today, this minute! I have some money in the house. Enough to buy supplies for the trip. Just steer clear of Karlsburg.”
To Will’s credit, he resisted violendy. “No, Sam, I won’t go. I won’t leave you to face the law alone when we both were responsible for what happened.”
“It was my plan, Will, my idea. You merely lent your help to my dimwitted scheme. If I remember correctly, you were against it from the beginning. If you don’t want to spend years in prison, you’ll do as I say.”
“How long do I have to stay away?” Will asked, resigned to his exile when threatened with imprisonment.
“Until the Ranger is gone. Make a new life for yourself in Laredo,” Sam advised. “Forget the ranch, we’ve already lost it. I…I should have married Vern Logan, then the land would still be yours.”
“It would be Vern Logan’s,” spat Will contemptuously. “We both know you wouldn’t be happy with him. Come with us, Sam. Somehow we’ll make it. We’ll take it easy and—”
Sam shook her head regretfully. “No, Will, I’d only be a burden to you. You know I wouldn’t last a day in this heat. Besides, Colt won’t be so anxious to trail you if I remained behind. Now give me a hug and get out of here.” Her violet eyes grew misty with unshed tears.
“I’ll be back, Sam,” Will promised, his young face contorted in agony. “When all this blows over, I’ll be back. No matter where you are I’ll find you.” His words hung in the air long after he was gone.
Chapter Th
ree
The settlement of Karlsburg lay in the green depths of a valley in the heart of the Texas hill country. Rugged granite outcroppings showed on the bare crests of hills, glowing dull red in the face of cliffs above the timber growth of the valley floor. Colt followed a deep stream along the valley into town, amazed at the sight of farmhouses constructed of stone with loopholes built to permit rifle fire against Indians.
Founded in the 1840s by German immigrants, Karlsburg was a clannish, thoroughly German town. The granite and limestone outcroppings in the encircling hills suggested a permanency reflected in the thick-walled limestone houses, mellowed to amber by the sun. Colt knew little of this German community except that the people were a tenacious lot who continued on even after the Comanche reduced their numbers considerably in 1846. In 1847 an epidemic took 150 of their remaining 600 settlers. In that year their leader negotiated a tenuous peace with the Comanche. And now they were threatened by the Crowder gang.
When Fort Martin Scott was established on Baron’s Creek, it furnished not only protection but a ready cash market for their produce. A general store was opened and the colony prospered. The surrounding area was rich in fish and game, the valleys fertile, and the heavily wooded hills provided ample wood and building stone.
Riding down the wide main street with buildings crowded close to the road, Colt easily located the jail and sheriff’s office. Several sour-faced townspeople followed his progress, some with fear in their eyes until they realized he meant them no harm. Then they went about their business.
Colt reined in before the jail, dismounted, wrapped the reins around the railing, and aimed his steps toward the boardwalk that lined both sides of the dirt street. Suddenly the door swung open and out stepped a sturdy, square-built man sporting a deputy’s badge on his broad chest. He eyed Colt suspiciously before growling in thickly accented German, “Karlsburg don’t like strangers, mister. State your business.”
“My business is with the sheriff,” Colt stated in a lazy drawl that set apart a native-born Texan from all the others.
