Shucking his Colt, he swung around the corner at the back of the jail, hoping against hope to see them still trying to extract Mick and Red from the rubble.
Too late.
He sagged against one wall and sucked in air.
The alley was empty. Empty except for the mound of bricks and mortar-dust where the wall of the jail had once stood. With no more need to hurry, he gave himself a moment more to catch his breath. He tipped his head back. Stars winked from the night sky as though all were right with the world. A disgusted growl escaped. Holstering the gun, he jammed his hands onto his hips and strode toward the disaster, kicking scattered bricks aside.
Bending down, he peered through the gaping hole into the jail. They had placed the dynamite in the exact right place to break through the walls in both men’s cells. The inner bars that separated the middle two cells where the men had been held were mangled into an odd braid, but the outer two cells seemed to be unscathed.
The man Collier had hired to stand guard groaned from under the upturned desk in the front. The woman who ran the millinery shop, was trying to lift it off of him.
“I’m coming!” Cade leapt over the pile of bricks at his feet and rushed through the front of the building to lift the desk off the man’s torso. Blood pulsed from a gash on his upper arm. Cade pressed the heel of his hand against the flow. “Get the doc. Quickly.”
The woman lifted her skirts and ran from the building, screeching at the top of her lungs for the doctor.
The rancher groaned and Cade realized he didn’t even know the man’s name. “You’re going to be alright. The doctor is on his way. Did you see what happened?”
The man only moaned, apparently too concussed to be able to respond.
Collier stumbled into the room. “Holy—” He turned in a full circle assessing the damage to his domain. “Sweet mother, they did it. They really did it.” He rubbed one hand over his belly. “I’ll put a posse together. We’ll head after them right away.”
“Going out after them at night would be suicide. They have all the advantage in the dark and besides that you’ll only obliterate any trail there is to follow if you head out now.” He motioned the man his way. “I need you to come here for a minute.”
Collier did.
“Bend down and put your hand right here.” He traded his hand for Collier’s. “Keep the pressure on. He’ll bleed out if you don’t.”
Cade headed for the door. There was nothing more to do here.
“Did that little teacher really die in the fire?”
Cade hesitated. How should he respond to that? He wanted to be honest. He rubbed his thumb at a rough spot on the door. “That’s what they’re saying, I guess.” With that he turned his back on the man and hurried down the street.
“Wait! Where are you going?”
He paused.
Collier still wore a look of dazed befuddlement.
“I have to be gone for a day or two but I’ll be back. Put your posse together in the morning, with your best tracker out front.”
Likely they’d never find them, but one could always hope. Right now his priority was to get Sharyah as far away from danger as possible. And if he had to shake it out of her he would find out what had been bothering her.
Something rustled in the brush to Sharyah’s right. Cade had said not to let any people see her. He hadn’t said what to do if a wild animal snuck up on her. She scrabbled her fingers across the ground, searching for something to use as a weapon. When her fingers closed around a stout stick she breathed a little easier. Thank you, Lord. She strained to see into the thick darkness, listening intently.
The sound came again, a little closer this time.
She pulled her feet under her and stood slowly, keeping her back to the tree and gripping her stick with both hands like a baseball bat. She’d played the game often with the boys on the playground and she didn’t have a bad swing, even if she did say so herself. She took in a fortifying breath and pressed her head back against the bark. Whatever prowling creature ambled her way would soon wish it had chosen another path for its little midnight foray. She swallowed hard and replayed Papa’s advice. Just remember animals are more scared of you than you are of them. Please let it be true.
“Sharyah?”
With a squeak of surprise she swung the makeshift bat toward the sound with all her might.
Someone grunted. “Ow! Give me that!” he whispered, wrenching the weapon from her hands.
“Cade?” The tremor in her voice said more than she’d intended.
“Who else did you think would know you were hiding out here by this exact tree?” Irritation mixed with humor traced the edges of his whisper.
“I’m sorry. I heard a noise over there,” she motioned behind her, “and then you startled me. Are you hurt?” She reached out to touch the side of his face in the darkness. From the sound of the whack, she had a feeling she’d connected with his skull.
He brushed her hand away and captured her fingers. “I’m fine.” Without letting her hand go, he turned to look at the last smoking embers of what had been her cabin only a short hour ago. A few people still lingered to make sure the fire didn’t spread. But most had gone home now.
“They think I’m dead.” She’d heard them talking about it. A tremor coursed through her at the thought of how close she’d actually come to that being true.
Cade shifted and studied her for a long moment. His fingers tightened around hers and he glanced down. “If I had lost you...” His words emerged tattered and thready.
She fidgeted. “You didn’t though. I’m right here.” She should pull away this minute. Being near him when she felt this vulnerable was dangerous.
But when he slowly pulled her to him, his gaze roving over her face and one hand sliding back into her damp hair as his thumb skimmed across her cheek, she could no more have moved than a stone.
He drew in a ragged breath and released it on her name as he leaned down toward her.
The moonlight behind his head left his face in shadow, but she could feel a quaver in his arms that made her knees weak. She closed her eyes, tipped her face up, and leaned against the strength of him.
“Shar.”
She felt the brush of the word against her cheek, just before he dropped a kiss there. He pulled her in tighter and pressed another just below her earlobe, and then eased back to study her, his trembling hands cupping both sides of her face.
“Cade.” How long had she wanted this? Dreamed of the day Cade Bennett would finally kiss her?
She thought of Sam, and swallowed. She didn’t dare let Cade kiss her, or all her resolve to be happy and satisfied with Sam, or another man if Sam worked things out with Missy, would vanish like so much smoke.
He tilted his head toward her.
She spoke quickly before she lost her resolve. “Cade, wait.”
A low sound escaped him and his breathing sounded frayed, but he did pause. His gaze bored into hers. “What?”
She forced herself to take a step backwards and folded her arms in a shield of protection. “You were right earlier today. I do have something I should tell you.”
Cade stepped after her, tucking his chin into his chest and resting his forehead against hers he rubbed her arms from shoulder to elbow and back. “Please tell me it isn’t something worth killing you over.”
She shivered. “M-maybe….” The catch in her voice said more than a thousand words ever could.
Frustration swelled through him. How was he to protect her if she didn’t confide in him?
Swift on the heels of frustration came thankfulness that he hadn’t lost her. This wasn’t just any woman he was with, here. When he’d woken and seen the flames engulfing the house, he’d thought his heart would stop on the spot. Pure terror had carried him through the blaze already engulfing her porch to crash down the door.
Behind them, two of the men decided they should call it a night and, buckets clanking, headed back toward town.
&
nbsp; He pulled away just a fraction, allowing his eyes to take in every detail of her face. The wisps of damp hair that clung to her forehead, begging to be brushed back. The smattering of moonlight-kissed freckles across the bridge of her nose. The shadows that undercut each cheekbone, angling down to full trembling lips. She smelled like smoke and… something floral that he couldn’t place. Grandma Jordan grew whatever it was in her garden back in Shiloh and the scent lured him like a siren.
“Shar…” he leaned toward her.
She stiffened. “Cade… please.”
He stilled once more, but did give in to the temptation to finger the curl fluttering at her temple. “Please kiss you?” he whispered with a quick wink.
Humor softened the corners of her eyes, but she made no response.
With resolve, he lifted her by her waist and set her at arm’s length. He supposed he deserved that. He’d waited too long. Right now she was going through enough emotional upheaval. But so help him, he wasn’t about to let her get away from him without at least letting her know he realized what a mistake it had been to let her walk away. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have...” He backed up a step. “I’m glad you’re okay.” Rubbing the knuckles of his hand across his lips, he steadied his breathing and studied the darkness, stepping further from temptation. “What was it?”
Her feet shuffled. “What was…?”
He studied her, shoving his hands deep into his pockets to ensure their obedience. “What did you see that you should have told me about?”
Her hands shook as she focused on them. “A letter. Addressed to Judge Green from a mining company in South Africa. Something about diamonds. I didn’t have time to read the whole thing.”
He clenched his fists and looked at the ash-heap that had been her home only moments ago. “I was thinking this had to be revenge for Mick. But you’re right. If you saw something about diamonds, that could very well be the reason for the fire. Whose diamonds?”
Lower lip trembling, she shrugged. “I’m not sure. I just caught a glimpse of the letter.” Stark fear etched her features. “They would really want to burn me alive?”
It took all his willpower not to step forward and pull her into an embrace. Instead, he shrugged. “I fell asleep, so I didn’t see what happened, but they had a plank propped to hold the front door shut and had jammed the window. Someone was definitely trying to kill you.”
“Why try with a fire I might escape? Why not just sh-shoot me at his convenience?”
“As a diversion while they broke Mick and Red out of the jail.”
She made a short little gesture and huffed her frustration. “I’m so glad my death could be their little distraction!”
“Hey.” His hands moved without permission and he brushed the tangle of curls back from her face, his fingers lingering on the softness of her cheek. “He didn’t succeed. That’s all that matters. And we know to be on the lookout now.” He tilted his head and made sure she focused on him before he continued, “And from now on you’re going to tell me about anything suspicious, so I can keep you safe, right?”
Her eyes were luminous and large in the moonlight. She looked at him silently, her lips pressed into a firm little line. Rapid puffs from her nostrils fogged the chilly night air around them with little clouds. But after a long moment, she gave a quick nod of her head and stepped back.
Somewhere in the bushes something rustled and he jolted to attention scanning the brush for intruders. He took her arm, lowering his voice and drawing her further into the shadows. “Listen, I told you to hide because I think it would be good if whoever set this fire thinks that it… killed you.”
“You want me to play dead?”
He nodded. “Just for a few days. Especially after what you just told me.”
Leaves rustled again.
He grunted. “I have to get you out of here.”
“I don’t have anywhere to go, Cade.”
“I know exactly where to take you. Your cousin Jason lives not too far from here, but far enough that it will be a safe place.”
She squeezed the bridge of her nose. “Okay. But don’t you think we should go see Judge Green before we leave town? To tell him?”
Cade frowned. It would be best if no one knew she was alive, however the Greens needed to know if someone was planning a robbery of some sort. He hadn’t heard anything about the Judge being invested in diamonds, but that would be something the man would keep to himself. Still, Sharyah’s safety needed to come first. “I think my plan would work best if only you and I know what’s going on.”
“Please, they would have no reason to hurt me, or tell anyone that I’m alive. It will only take a few minutes. And they’ve been through enough recently. What we know could spare them another tragedy.”
He gritted his teeth and scanned the darkness above their heads. She was right that if any family around these parts was safe to trust, it would be the Greens. “Alright. We can do that on our way out of town, but we need to be quick about it.”
She sighed. “Thank you.”
“You have a horse here, right?”
She nodded. “I board it at the livery.”
“Good. Mine’s there, too. Follow me.” He turned and started through the darkness and tripped over a soft warm body. He stumbled forward, crashing into the underbrush. “Sharyah get down!” He flipped onto his back and leveled his gun at the person. “Don’t move or it will be the last thing you do.”
“I ain’t moving!” A young voice squeaked. “And I swear I won’t tell no one that Miss Jordan is alive.”
Cade grunted, rolled to his feet and lifted Brandon McBride up by the nape of his shirt. “That’s right you won’t, because you are coming with us!”
The reality that someone had just tried to kill her, slammed through Sharyah like a full speed locomotive. She folded her arms and rubbed at her shoulders, tossing one last look at the smoldering vestiges of her home only a clearing away before following Cade through the trees.
What if someone was watching and decided to shoot her to finish the job? Fear crawled along her spine but she pressed it down, refusing to give it headway. She would think of something else.
Like Cade Bennett.
The man was an enigma. She’d been shocked to sense his desire for her a moment ago. She’d felt it palpably. As palpably as she’d ever felt anything in her life. And as tempting.
She shuddered at the memory of how tempting.
Yet hadn’t she finally come to grips with the fact that God must not want her with this man? For years she had pined for him, dreamed of him, and held every other man at arm’s length because of him. And then last summer he’d told her that he didn’t feel enough for her for there to be more to their relationship. But just now…
Confusion, thy name is Cade Bennett!
Well, if the man had changed his mind he was going to have to prove it to her in a big way. Because she never again planned to wallow in the humility of making her feelings known, only to be rejected by him.
With Brandon trudging along behind him, Cade led their way to the Greens through the woods around the perimeter of the town. The concealing thicket of forest reached out clawed fingers to snatch at her skirts and tickle the back of her neck.
She couldn’t help a check over her shoulder. But only darkness and eerie shifting shadows greeted her.
A shuffle and a grunt returned her focus to the front in time to see Brandon, who had apparently tripped on a root, sprawl flat directly in her path. With a soft gasp she stepped to one side to avoid treading on him. Something sticky and cloying coated her face and neck.
A spider web! She knew the moment the shriek escaped that Cade would not be happy about it. But at the thought of a spider crawling across her face, or maybe tangled in her hair, she jigged a circle, slapping and snatching and flinging and doing her best to keep the screeching to a low whimper.
His firm hand clapped over her mouth and his broad chest pressed up behind her. “Do you want t
o bring the whole town down on us?” he hissed in her ear.
She shook her head, heaving great draughts of air in through her nostrils. Her legs trembled to the point of uselessness and she sagged against him. And then just as suddenly, she realized she was doing it again, and stiffened.
She didn’t need Cade Bennett. She didn’t.
“Whoa! That was bully!” Brandon whispered from where he still lay prone on the forest floor.
Cade ignored the boy and spun her to face him, a goodly portion of irritation jutting his jaw to one side. He assessed her from head to toe, but didn’t let go of her arms. After a moment his hands rubbed up and down from shoulder to elbow, soothing her trembling. “Can you stand on your own?”
Sharyah flicked remnants of web from her fingers and dusted at her shoulders, calling on every ounce of resolve not to step forward and beg him to wrap his arms around her. “It was a spider web.”
His hands settled on his hips. “I gathered that from the number of times you screamed ‘spider.’” A hint of humor ticked up one corner of his mouth. “Do you think you will be alright, now?”
“I wasn’t screaming. I was actually quite calm.” She couldn’t suppress a shudder. “Do you think it’s still on me?”
His soft chuckle escaped. “Somehow I think that spider is still running for its life.”
A sheepish smile curved her mouth even as another shiver shook her. “Sorry. I’m not very good with spiders.”
Brandon stood and dusted off the seat of his pants. “Is that why you never ate your lunch the day we put that spider in your pail?”
She pinned him with a narrow-eyed glare. “So that was you, was it?”
“Ah,” his jaw dropped, “well… let’s just say I know’d who done it.”
“You knew who did it.” Sharyah fell into line behind Cade once more. “And yes, that’s why I didn’t eat my lunch that day. And,” she turned back to nail him with a glance, “when we get back to school, I better never find a spider in my pail again.”
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