by Ana Leigh
Jeff’s horse bolted into the nearby trees. He dismounted, and a hail of bullets kicked up a trail of dust at his feet as he scampered behind a nearby rock to get closer.
“Where are the shots coming from?” he shouted to Colt, who was returning the gunfire.
“From those rocks up the right of you.”
“Are you hit?”
“No, I’m okay. It must be a single shooter, or they’d have tried to take both of us out at the same time.”
Several bullets ricocheted off the rock that Jeff was concealed behind, and the two men returned the fire.
“Cover me,” Colt shouted and crawled over to the rock as Jeff sent a hail of shots toward the rifle flashes.
The rifle firing stopped as suddenly as it began. After a long pause, Colt said, “I think he’s pulled out.” The thud of retreating hoofbeats confirmed that belief. They cautiously waited a few more minutes, then Colt went over to Bullet and removed the saddle from the dead horse. “Sorry about Bullet. He was a good horse.”
“What are we going to do now? We’re so close to them, but if we ride double we’ll never catch up,” Jeff said.
“We’ll run if we have to.”
“Take my horse, Colt—you’re a better shot than I am. I’ll start walking back toward town. I’m sure to meet up with the posse.”
“How do you know if they stayed on our trail?”
“I figure Bob Callum will be leading them. He can sniff a trail better than a hound dog. They’re probably not more than half an hour behind us. Now get going before you lose sight of them. Good luck, Colt.”
Colt mounted the horse and rode away. He turned his head and looked back. Jeff raised a hand and waved.
It was funny how often the people you figured were the weakest could turn out to be the strongest.
“How’d you make out?” Pike asked when Keeler caught up with them.
“Just as we thought,” Keeler said. “There wuz two of ’em. The deputy and the sheriff’s kid.”
“Did you kill ’em?”
“I ain’t sure. Wounded the deputy maybe, but I shot the horse out from under him.”
Pike looked at him with contempt. “That’s real good, Keeler. At least now we don’t hav’ta worry about the horse attackin’ us.”
“If you think you could have done better, then why didn’t you try, Pike? Both of ’em were pumping lead at me. I wuz lucky to get out in one piece. At least losin’ a horse’ll slow ’em down if they hav’ta ride double,” Keeler said. “And if one of ’em’s wounded, they might even hav’ta wait for the posse to catch up with ’em.”
“Well, let’s get movin’. It’s turnin’ dark.”
Cassie’s body was stiff, and her fingers ached from trying to free her hands, but as long as they were on the move, she had a chance of remaining alive. Lord knows what would happen to her when they stopped.
Cassie continued to work at the knot on her wrists as they rode along. It was a slow and painful process, but she was making progress. The rope felt a little looser.
The sun had long set by the time Pike called a halt. He insisted on not lighting a fire in case they were still being followed, so they had a cold camp with only a few bites of deer jerky to eat. Cassie began shivering. Keeler gave her a blanket, but she was still cold.
“Keeler, take the first watch and wake me in a couple hours,” Pike ordered as he lay down to sleep. “Just make sure you stay awake.”
As soon as Cassie heard Pike snoring, she shifted over and whispered, “You know they’re going to catch up with us, Keeler. Let me go and I swear I’ll speak on your behalf.”
“Pike would kill me if I let you go.”
“He’s sleeping. Untie my hands, and we’ll get his gun and I’ll help you tie him up.”
“You make it sound easy. Pike ain’t stayed alive this long by bein’ stupid.”
“You know I’m right, Keeler, or you would have told Pike I’m the sheriff’s daughter. Use your head. Once that posse shows up, it’ll be too late for me to help you.”
Keeler glanced nervously at Pike, then back at her. “Okay, I’ll help you, but you—”
“You’re a fool, Keeler.” Pike rose to his feet with a drawn pistol pointed at the man.
Keeler backed away. “Don’t do it, Pike. I wuzn’t gonna listen to her. She’s been tryin’ to get me to let her go whenever she had the chance.”
“Tell the devil the last person to see you alive wuz Bill Pike.”
Keeler drew his pistol as Pike fired, but the gun slipped through his fingers when he clutched his stomach and slumped to the ground.
Pike walked over and kicked Keeler’s gun out of reach. “Nobody crosses me, Keeler. You oughta know that. It takes longer to die when you’re gut shot, so you’ve got plenty of time to remember that.”
Glaring malevolently, he turned to Cassie. “Get on your feet, bitch. We’re gettin’ out of here. At least now we won’t hav’ta ride double.” He turned away and headed for the horses.
Cassie desperately yanked her wrists apart with all her might. The bond cut into her flesh like a knife, but the knot finally snapped. She lunged for Keeler’s gun, but before she could reach it, Pike was on her. He smacked her in the jaw, sending her stumbling backward, and she slammed against a tree and fell to the ground.
Pike came over and yanked her to her feet. “I oughta kill you right now,” he snarled. He tied her bleeding wrists behind her back again then shoved her toward the horses.
“You ain’t gettin’ away, and by the time I finish with you, you’ll be beggin’ me to kill ya.”
“Let her go, Pike.”
Keeler had crawled over to his gun, but he was so weak from pain and the loss of blood that he could barely hold up the weapon.
Pike laughed in derision. “I wuz hopin’ it’d take you longer to die, Keeler.” He drew his gun and fired.
Smirking, he turned back to Cassie. “You didn’t think I heard you tell Keeler that you were the sheriff’s daughter, did you? Well, I did, and I wuz waitin’ to find out what he wuz gonna do about it. I figured if he wuz gonna help you, he’d try when he thought I wuz sleepin’. And I thought of somethin’ else, too: I don’t need you no more. Now that I’ve got two horses, I can outrun a posse.” He went over and got the lasso that was hanging from his saddle.
Cassie guessed his horrible intent when he formed one end into a noose and tossed the other over a high limb on a nearby tree. He adjusted the length of the rope to his satisfaction, then tied it in place and led his horse over to the tree.
“Your daddy’s mighty anxious to see me swingin’ from the end of a rope. Wish I cud see his face when he sees his daughter the same way.”
Cassie tried to run, but he caught her at once. She struggled to free herself as he carried her over to the horse and slammed her onto the saddle. Then he slipped the noose around her neck and tightened it. “Any last words you want me to pass on to your daddy?”
Cassie lifted her head. “Yes. When he’s slipping the noose around your neck, tell him I’ll be watching.”
With maniacal laughter, Pike slapped the horse’s flank.
Chapter 27
The soft plod of his horse was the only sound Colt heard as he slowly moved through the darkness. He dismounted and looked around with defeat and frustration. He dare not continue on in the dark, for fear of overshooting Cassie and her captors.
He had held onto the foolish hope that they might build a campfire, but he should have realized that Pike was too wily to make that kind of mistake. It would have been a beacon in the dark.
A gunshot suddenly shattered the stillness, flushing a bevy of quail from a nearby copse. Colt’s heart pounded in his chest. It had to be them—had the bastard just shot Cassie? Colt tethered his horse and moved quickly in the direction of the shot, then faster when another shot sounded.
Pausing again, Colt looked around hopelessly. In his anxiety he was forsaking caution for haste; if Cassie was still alive, he wouldn’t
do her much good by stumbling recklessly into the camp.
Then he heard voices. Drawing his pistol, he moved toward the sound.
Colt couldn’t believe his eyes when he saw Cassie on the horse with a noose around her neck. The son of a bitch was going to hang her! Just as Pike slapped the horse out from under her, Colt’s shot severed the rope.
When Cassie dropped to the ground, Colt fired at Pike, catching him in the shoulder just before the outlaw disappeared into the thick cover of trees.
Colt ran to Cassie’s aid. She was bruised and dazed, but alive. He drew the knife out of his boot and quickly freed her wrists, then took her in his arms. “Are you all right, honey?”
He felt the salty moisture of her silent tears against his cheek. “I knew you’d come. I knew you’d come,” she murmured over and over. Her voice was gruff, and he knew that the rope had done some damage. He wouldn’t need a rope when he caught up with Pike; he’d strangle him with his own hands.
Cassie was shivering, and Colt wanted to find some blankets to wrap her in, but she clasped him around the neck and wouldn’t release him.
“It’s okay, baby. You’re safe now. I won’t let anything happen to you,” he whispered as he pressed gentle kisses to her forehead and cheeks.
It was too dark to see her face clearly, but he could tell it was swollen. She held on to him tightly.
“Just sit here, Cass, while I check Keeler.”
“He’s dead. Pike killed him.”
The quicker he got her away from the spot, the safer it would be. He picked up Keeler’s pistol and the blankets, then led Pike’s horse over to her.
He bundled her in the two blankets he’d found. “Look, honey, you’ll be better off away from here. Besides, I can smell rain moving in, and we should get you under cover where you can stay dry. My horse is tethered a short distance away. Do you think you’re up to moving?”
“Sure. I’m feeling a lot better now.”
He tipped up her chin and stared into her eyes. “You’re a great little soldier, Trooper Braden. I’d want you in my company anytime.”
“Captain Fraser, whatever would I be doing in the Rebel cavalry?”
He grinned. She’d taken a knockout blow, but she was climbing back onto her feet.
Distant streaks of lightning and the rumble of thunder indicated a rapidly approaching storm. He quickly saddled the horse, then lifted her gently onto it.
“Keeler said Jeff was with you. Is he—”
“He’s fine, Cass. Bullet was killed, though.”
“Bullet and Midnight were always stabled together; he’ll miss him, too. But where’s Jeff now?”
“We didn’t want to lose your trail, so he gave me his horse and said he’d head back to meet up with the posse.”
“On foot? Alone? Colt, he’s still a boy.”
“He’s a man, Cass. It’s time his family starts treating him like one. Now let’s get to my horse and find some decent cover. Then we can get a fire going.” He took the reins and started to lead the horse away.
The bullet that whizzed past his head missed by a mere inch. Colt yanked Cassie off the horse. “Stay down,” he warned. “That was a rifle shot.” He handed her Keeler’s pistol. “That bastard must have found Keeler’s horse, and now he’s between us and my horse. Or else he’s found that one, too. We’ll have to get back by a different route. Are you able to walk, Cass?”
“Yes, I’m okay.”
“Good. You’d be a sitting duck on the back of a horse.”
Colt pulled Pike’s rifle out of the saddle holster and slung the saddlebags over his shoulder. “I’m sure there’s something in these that will be useful to us later. Do you have any idea how much ammunition Keeler still had in his saddlebags?”
“I never heard it mentioned.”
“That’s our greatest danger, because come daylight, Pike can pick us off from a distance with a rifle. We can only hope the posse catches up with us before then. For now, we stay low and find some cover. He can’t see us any better than we can see him, so there’s no sense in trying to pick him off in the dark.”
“I’m surprised he didn’t take off,” Cassie whispered as they moved away cautiously.
“So am I. I know I winged him, so he most likely has a bullet in him.”
“He’s crazy, Colt. Mad with killing. I saw it in his eyes when he killed Keeler and tried to hang me.” She shuddered.
Colt was worried about Cassie. He could tell she was in pain, but he needed a fire to see the extent of her injuries. Since there were no further shots as they traveled, he figured Pike had either lost them in the dark or was waiting for daylight so he could get a clean shot. If Pike trailed them seeking revenge, the man would be as crazed and as dangerous as a wounded wild animal.
They hadn’t gone more than a mile when the sky exploded with a thunderbolt and rain poured down upon them.
Jagged lightning streaked across the sky, and deafening booms of thunder echoed through the mountains. Water streamed down the walls of granite buttes and dripped from the edges of overhanging cliffs, turning the earth into muddy quagmire or slippery rock too difficult to traverse.
Colt hugged Cassie to his side to shield her as much as possible, but he knew she was hurting and exhausted. He had to get her out of this storm.
A bolt of lightning struck a nearby tree, and the sheared top fell to the ground in flames. Colt peered through the darkness, and before the rain extinguished the fire, he was certain he saw an opening in the rocky wall.
They hurried over and ducked just inside the entrance. They dared not go any deeper in case a bear or other wild animal might have had the same thought, but it was a relief just to be out of the storm. Another lightning bolt cast enough light for a quick glimpse of the interior of the cave. It appeared to be empty, but Colt remained cautious. After several more flashes of light, he discerned a woodpile in one of the corners.
“You got that gun I gave you?”
“In my pocket,” she said.
“Now’s a good time to get it out. And stay here.”
“Where are you going?” she asked, alarmed.
“To check out that woodpile, in case a snake’s crawled into it…or a skunk,” he added, trying to lighten the mood.
“Colt, be careful,” she warned as he moved away.
Using the lightning flashes to see, he poked at the pile with the end of the rifle until he was satisfied it was safe. Then he returned to the entrance and riffled through one of Pike’s saddlebags.
“He must have a flint in here.”
After some additional groping he victoriously held up a flint. He shaved some dried bark off a log, then struck some sparks with his knife and flint. The sparks ignited the shavings, and within minutes he had built it into a fire.
Cassie was shivering so badly that her teeth were chattering, and she hurried over to the fire.
Let’s get out of those wet clothes,” Colt said. “I’ll see if there’s some in the saddlebags.”
“I’d rather freeze than put on anything Pike wore,” she declared.
He pulled off her boots and stockings, and she stripped down to her underclothes while Colt dug out another blanket he’d stuffed into the saddlebags. He wrapped it around her, then he knelt down and rubbed her legs and feet vigorously to restore the circulation, until the color returned to her cheeks.
Her face was bruised and swollen from where Pike must have struck her. Her neck bore an ugly red rope burn from the noose, and her wrists were bloody.
Colt slit his bandanna in half and bandaged her wrists. “I wish I had something to ease your pain, honey.”
“My back hurts the worst,” she said. “When he hit me, I slammed against a tree.”
“Let me take a look at it.” He removed the blanket and gently turned her over on her stomach. He pushed up her camisole and lowered the top of her drawers, then gently felt her back. It had started to bruise, but there appeared to be no other injury.
“Honey
, I’m no doctor, but my guess is that you won’t want to do much riding for a while.”
He slipped his hand under the camisole and lightly massaged her shoulders and neck. “We need to loosen these muscles or you’ll be so sore by morning, you won’t be able to move.”
She closed her eyes and sighed. “Oh, that feels so good, Colt.”
He continued until he felt her muscles relax, then he helped her sit up. She leaned back against the wall.
“That bastard did a real job on you, honey. Maybe there’s something in the saddlebags to soothe the rope burns.”
“They don’t hurt that much. I’m just glad to be out of that storm.”
“Looks like we won’t have to go hungry. There’s coffee and jerky here,” Colt said as he searched the one side of the saddlebags. “And here’s a coffeepot, a tin cup, a couple cans of beans, and even a plate and fork.” He filled the pot with rainwater, then put the coffee on to brew. “We can dine royally tonight.”
Colt opened the other saddle bag and pulled out a few items of clothing, then let out a long whistle.
“No wonder Pike didn’t take off. He wants this.” He held up a money bag from the Arena Roja bank and dumped it on the ground. “There’s hundreds of dollars here.”
Colt took off his boots and stockings, then shucked his gunbelt, shirt, and jeans.
“How can you put on that man’s clothing?” Cassie asked when he pulled on a pair of jeans and a shirt he’d found in the saddlebags.
“They’re clean and dry. I stop at underwear and stockings, though.”
“Pike will trail us to get the money back.” Fear had replaced her previous relief.
“Cass honey, he’s not going to hurt you again. He’s wounded, he’s out in that storm, most likely with nothing to eat. We’ll be dry, rested, and well fed. If he catches up with us, we’ll be ready for him. We’ve got a rifle, my gunbelt, and Keeler’s pistol.” He held up a box of shells he’d dug out of the saddlebags. “And ammunition. A lot of ammunition.”
He pried open a can of beans with his knife and set it near the fire to warm while he wrung out their clothes and spread them around the fire to dry.