by Jennie Leigh
He frowned. “Where are you going?”
“To look for her.”
“But she told us to stay here.”
“Right, and what if she’s found Jester? Suppose she was right about him and he’s been wandering around in circles out here since last night?”
He didn’t have to say anything more. He skirted the tree he’d tied his horse to and headed in the same direction he’d seen her take. Within minutes he’d lost sight of Skip and the horses. It seemed impossible to lose four huge animals so easily, but no matter how hard he looked, he couldn’t spot them through the trees. Five minutes later he was starting to think that maybe it hadn’t been such a good idea to go looking for Casey like this. He stopped and turned around, wondering if he ought to just go back. Then he decided to go just a little further. He moved around a particularly large tree then came to an abrupt halt as he caught sight of the large cat a few yards away. It sat on a rotting log and its feral gaze was locked on Jack. Its tail twitched and it emitted a low growl that sent a wave of chills up Jack’s spine. Where the hell had it come from? He was positive that it hadn’t been there a few seconds before. He put off wondering how it had appeared out of nowhere in favor of trying to figure out what to do now that it was there. Instinct told him that running would be a bad idea. Should he confront it and try to startle it away? While he was considering the validity of that option the mountain lion suddenly growled at him, then hissed. Jack realized that it was very angry and decided that he’d be better off safe than sorry. He’d drawn his gun the moment he set off in search of Casey. Now he slowly brought the barrel to bear on the cat. He’d barely taken aim when he heard a low whisper just behind him.
“Don’t move.”
He did as Casey instructed. He saw the barrel of her rifle easing up beside him. A moment later she spoke in the same low whisper.
“Back away very slowly.”
Jack hesitated. “But-“
She cut him off. “Do it!”
He didn’t argue further. Instead he took a tentative step backwards. The cat’s tail switched but it didn’t move otherwise. Jack took another step and then another. When he was a few feet behind Casey she took a slow step back. They kept moving like that for a few more steps before the big cat finally turned and disappeared into the woods. Jack breathed a long sigh of relief and lowered his gun finally. Casey didn’t move, though. She still stood there with her rifle raised. Jack reached out and touched her shoulder.
“It’s gone.”
She jumped as if she’d been bitten. Then she lowered the gun and whirled around to face him. “What the hell were you doing?”
Jack blinked at the fury in her face and voice. He shook his head. “I was looking for you.”
“You could have gotten yourself killed!”
She was so angry that she was shaking. Jack frowned down at her. She wasn’t just angry. She was as pale as a sheet and trembling so badly that he doubted she could hit the broad side of a barn with the rifle she held.
“I’m fine. That cat was as scared of me as I was of it.”
She shot him an incredulous look. “Oh, so now you’re an expert on animal behavior. Gee, why didn’t you mention that earlier?”
Jack choked back his temper. “Am I wrong? Aren’t most wild animals afraid of us?”
“The key word is most. That doesn’t apply to sick or wounded animals, or those defending their young. That cat has a den close by. One wrong move and she would have ripped you to shreds.”
Jack couldn’t argue with that, though he did feel she was overreacting. He nodded to the gun he still held. “I’m a hell of a shot, Ms. Nolan.”
She gave his gun a contemptuous sneer. “You’re an even bigger fool than I imagined if you honestly believe that thing would have done you any good. Oh, you might have hit her. You might even have managed to wound her fatally. But you wouldn’t have stopped her. She would have torn your throat out before she died. Believe me, I’ve seen it happen.”
Something dark and ugly flashed in her eyes then. Pain and regret and maybe even guilt. She turned away from him suddenly and took a long, shuddering breath. Jack was torn between wanting to try to comfort her somehow and an almost desperate need to know what terrible secret had put that look in her eyes. Before he could decide which way to go, she spun around and locked her gaze on him. The pain was gone, leaving only her anger.
“We agreed that I would be in charge out here. The next time I tell you to do something you do it. If you ever disobey my instructions again, I’ll turn around and take you straight out of here. Do I make myself clear?”
Jack nodded. “As crystal.”
“Good, because I don’t want to have to haul your dead body out of here slung over the back of your horse.”
She turned and scanned the trees where the cat had disappeared. Then she emitted a low whistle and the dog came trotting up. Jack had no idea where the animal had been hiding, though he should have known that it wouldn’t be far from her. She patted the dog’s head absently, then focused on Jack once more. “Come on. Let’s get back on Jester’s trail.”
Jack frowned at her. “His trail? Are we on his trail?”
She nodded. “We have been since we left Millie’s place.”
She walked away and Jack followed her in silence as he mulled over everything that had just happened. Frustration made his jaw clench, though he kept his mouth shut despite the questions whirling around inside his head. From the moment the sheriff had mentioned Casey’s name Jack had felt like something was being kept from him. He’d seen countless hints about it, enough to know that it centered around Casey. He couldn’t figure it out and it was driving him nuts. He hated being kept in the dark, especially when it came to facts that might pertain to his job. He locked his gaze on the back of Casey’s head as she led the way back to Skip and the horses. She’d had a right to dress him down about disobeying her instructions. He had agreed to do what she told him to and from now on he would. And he wasn’t arrogant enough to argue with her assessment of the risk the big cat had posed. If she said it had a den of cubs nearby then he had no reason to doubt her. But he was convinced that her reaction to the incident had been a bit over the top. He’d seen a number of things in her eyes during the exchange, only a few of which could be chalked up to the natural rush of adrenaline that would follow any such event. She’d been angry and anxious but more than that, she’d been afraid. Jack didn’t know what was going on, but he intended to find out. One way or another, he was going to get to the bottom of whatever secret Casey Nolan and all her friends were hiding.
When they reached Skip and the horses Jack half-expected Casey to give them both another speech about her being in charge. She surprised him though when she simply nodded to Skip and told them to get back on their horses. Jack had a great deal more difficulty getting into the saddle this time around. He was hurting so bad that moving at all was nearly impossible. He practically drug himself up onto the horse then watched as Skip finally managed to do the same after a couple of failed attempts. Jack turned to catch Casey frowning at Skip, though she didn’t say a word. She just turned her horse around and moved away.
They rode in silence for a long while. Jack glanced at his watch finally as he realized it was starting to get dark. He was surprised to see how early it was. He glanced up and credited the early twilight to the trees towering overhead. He brought his gaze back to Casey. He’d long since given up trying to maintain any sort of dignified image. He was hurting in ways he didn’t know was possible. He would have cried if he thought it would do any good. He’d heard Skip emitting low groans of pain for the past half hour or so, but Casey didn’t seem to notice. No doubt she felt perfectly fine. She glanced back over her shoulder at them, then reined in her horse. Jack was a bit surprised by the compassion he could see in her eyes and hear in her voice as she spoke.
“I know you two are hurting, but we need to go on just a bit more before we stop for the night. I don’t want to just c
amp out right on your fugitive’s trail. I’d feel a lot more secure if we could find a spot that afforded us a small measure of security. There’s a place nearby, about another fifteen minutes away.”
Jack nodded and tried not to moan in relief. They were stopping. His mind said they ought to go until they couldn’t go any more, but for once he let himself ignore the demanding urge of his need to find Jester. If he had to spend much more time on the back of the horse he wasn’t going to be able to move. Casey shot him a tight smile, then turned around and they were once again moving through the trees.
She was good to her word. She reined her horse to a stop fourteen minutes after she’d promised them they were almost ready to camp for the night. Jack looked around at the small clearing. He was surprised to see a small, rough built lean to right in the middle of the clearing. Casey swung down off her horse and Jack noticed her wince. He was ashamed of the small sense of gratitude that swept through him. So she wasn’t impervious to the pain after all. She turned to look up at him.
“This is it, gentlemen. We’ll be camping here for the night. Y’all might as well get on down and get those saddles off your horses. The sooner we get the animals settled, the sooner we can get set up camp so we can get something to eat and catch a little sleep.”
Casey led her horse to the lean to and tied it up. Jack followed her, hobbling along like a penguin. He said nothing as Skip drug himself up and all three of them began to unsaddle their horses. It took what felt like forever to get the animals taken care of. Jack sighed with relief when he finished feeding his horse. All he wanted was to lie down on the ground and sleep. He didn’t care if he ate. He didn’t care if he even had a blanket. He was exhausted and he hurt too much to move. He heard Casey speak up behind him.
“Just a little more and you two can drop.”
He turned around to find her standing just behind him, holding a canvas bag. She gave him a sympathetic look, then turned and walked a few feet away from the horses. The bag turned out to hold a tent, a luxury Jack hadn’t anticipated. She showed them how to set it up, then went about getting a second tent ready. They were small, barely large enough to hold two people. Jack wasn’t complaining, though. He and Skip threw their bedrolls in their tent, then helped Casey gather some wood to make a fire. Jack watched as she set up some stones in a circle then piled the wood in the center. It didn’t take her long to get the fire going. Then she surprised him again by producing a couple of pans and a coffee pot. She set up some kind of folding grate over the fire then emptied a couple of cans into a pot and filled the coffee pot with water.
She pushed to her feet, then stumbled. Jack reached out and caught her before she could fall.
“Are you all right?”
She pulled away from him as if his touch scalded her. “I’m fine. I just tripped, that’s all.” Before he could say anything, she handed him a spoon.
“We can’t afford to waste any of our supplies so if it burns, we eat it anyway.”
She turned away and he called out, “Where are you going?”
She bent over and picked up her rifle, then took something out of her pack. She swung around to face Jack.
“Chance and I are going to take a look around, just to make sure there’s nothing close by that we might need to worry about.”
Jack opened his mouth to argue, then snapped it shut again when she shot him a warning glare. “Stay here. Don’t worry if I’m gone for a while. I’ll be back, I assure you.” She nodded to Skip, then tossed him whatever she’d taken from her pack.
“Rub this on everything that hurts. It stinks to high heaven, but it’ll make you feel better.” She swung her gaze to Jack. “You, too.”
With that she turned on her heel and walked away. Jack felt compelled to follow her, but he held his ground. If she’d wanted help she would have asked for it. But it flew in the face of every fiber of his being to just stand by and let her go alone. He shifted his gaze to the dog that walked at her side. Okay, so she wasn’t alone. She had a hundred and twenty pound monster at her side. It made him feel marginally better. He turned around as he heard Skip swear. He had the jar she’d tossed him open and his nose was wrinkled up.
“She wasn’t kidding.”
Jack shrugged. “At this point, do you really care what you smell like?”
Skip shook his head. “If it takes the pain away, I’ll roll in the stuff.”
Casey didn’t stop until she knew she was well out of sight of the two men. Night was falling fast now and the darkness was creeping through the trees like a living thing. She leaned against the trunk of a large tree and shifted all her weight off her left leg. It was throbbing with pain and she sucked in a sharp breath as she massaged her thigh. She’d thought she was as healthy as she’d ever been. She should have known better. Spending half a day on the back of a horse was hard on even the most fit person. And it would only be worse tomorrow. She sighed and leaned her head back against the trunk of the tree. Maybe John had been right. What if she was pushing herself too far? She shook her head. No, she needed to do this. The pain she could live with. She’d suffered worse. She’d just suck it up and go on. It wasn’t anything more than what she was asking the two federal agents to do. She felt a small smile touch her lips as she thought about the pain she’d seen Jack Hall trying so desperately to hide. His partner wasn’t nearly as macho. She knew they were both hurting. They were going to be so stiff in the morning that they’d think they couldn’t move at all. The liniment would help, but nothing would take the pain away completely. She felt Chance nudge her hand and she looked down at him.
“Okay, we’ll make the rounds and get back. I’m hungry, too.”
Jack could barely stand the smell of himself, but he had to admit he did feel better. The pain was at least tolerable now. The chili Casey had dumped into the pot had long since gotten hot. Skip had poured instant coffee into the hot water and they’d both finally given in to the loud roaring of their stomachs and eaten. Jack didn’t know what Skip was thinking but he was desperately trying not to let the worry he was feeling show. Casey had been gone for more than an hour. A number of less than pleasant scenarios had been playing out in his head from the moment she’d disappeared into the woods. Anything could have happened to her. He was trying to figure out just how long “a while” was when a sound somewhere to his right caught his attention. His hand went automatically to his gun as he spun around. Casey was less than five feet away. She had a sardonic look on her face as she strode toward him.
“Good thing I’m not a threat.”
Jack was too relieved to see her to be riled by the barb. He took his hand off his gun as he spoke. “Find anything?”
She shook her head. “Nothing close enough to be a danger.” She laid the rifle against her pack, then headed toward the fire. Jack had left the pot of chili sitting close enough to keep it warm without burning it to a charred crisp. She ate right out of the pot and somehow managed to look classy doing it. Jack couldn’t believe what an amazing wealth of conundrums she was comprised of. Beautiful and graceful while being deceptively strong and tough. She could make him so angry he could barely see straight and still leave him feeling a need to protect her. He was swiftly starting to suspect that she didn’t need his protection, though. She was independent and intelligent and apparently completely at home in the woods. Beneath all the strength was a touch of vulnerability that he couldn’t seem to avoid noticing. That’s the part of her he wanted to protect. That was the part that held the pain he’d only caught glimpses of.
Casey finished the chili, then cleaned the pot. She skipped the coffee, knowing she was wound up enough already without adding any caffeine to her system. The two federal agents were so exhausted that they would no doubt sink right into deep sleep the moment they closed their eyes. She, on the other hand, knew she’d have trouble finding sleep. She returned the pot to the bag it had come from, then forced herself to face Jack. His partner was doing his best to keep his eyes open, but it was e
vident that he was half asleep already. Jack was far more alert. And he’d been watching her pretty much since she’d returned to camp. She didn’t know what unsettled her more, the feeling of having his eyes on her or the fact that she could feel his gaze so strongly. She cleared her throat, hoping it didn’t sound as uncertain as she felt.
“You two might as well get to sleep. We’ll start out again as soon as it’s light and believe me, it’ll get here a lot sooner than you’ll want it to.”
Skip didn’t need to be told twice. He mumbled something that sounded vaguely like “goodnight” and crawled into the tent. Jack figured he’d be snoring in seconds. He wasn’t in such a hurry, though. He looked at Casey as she went about throwing some extra wood on the fire. She leaned over to lift a few pieces of wood, then sank to the ground as her left leg gave out beneath her. Jack was on his feet instantly. He knelt by her side and reached out to touch her shoulder.
“Are you all right?”
She nodded. “I’m fine.” She started to push herself back onto her feet and he took hold of her arm to help her up. He caught the grimace of pain that flashed across her face as she started to step away from him. He shook his head.
“You’re not fine. You’re hurt. What’s wrong?”
Casey wished that he’d just let her go and forget it. She shook her head. “It’s nothing. I’ll be okay.”
“You can’t put any weight on your leg without flinching. I’d say that’s more than ‘nothing’. Did you fall down and turn your ankle or something?”
Casey knew he wasn’t going to let it go unless she gave him some kind of answer. “I haven’t fallen. My left leg is just a little weak, that’s all.”
Jack frowned. “Weak? Why?”
“It doesn’t matter.”
“It does if it’s going to hinder you.”
He knew he’d said the wrong thing the moment he caught the flash in her eyes. She jerked her arm out of his grasp and set her chin at a defiant angle. “Don’t worry, Agent Hall. I’m not going to turn into a swooning female just because of a little pain. I can take a lot more than this.”