by Lois Greiman
She felt his hand grab her skirts, and she shrieked in rage and frustration as she tried to wrench free. But the movement foiled her balance, and she fell, still fighting as her back and buttocks hit the ground. Grappling wildly at branches and rocks above her head, she tried to lose her attacker, but he'd found her leg beneath the layers of petticoats and reeled her in.
It was bad enough being caught again, but now her garments were being pressed away as he worked his way up her increasingly bare legs. Charm shrieked and kicked at his face. He ducked, catching her foot and continuing to drag her downward, pushing up gown, petticoats, and drawers.
"Let me go!" she cried, forgetting her anger in her terror. But instead he gave her leg a final yank.
"Not until you tell me..." he said slowly, levering his way up her body, "what you did with..."
She heard his breath catch in his throat. Momentarily forgetting her battle for a weapon, she looked down to see what had startled him. Her leg was bare—except for the knife strapped to her thigh.
She tried to grab it, but he jerked as if drawn from a trance and snatched the knife from the sheath himself. They lay still, breathing hard with the sharp bowie between them. "Are you going to kill me?" she whispered.
He didn't answer, but stared at her, his expression inscrutable. "What else have you got hidden under your skirts?"
She caught her breath, suddenly remembering her worst fear. Frantically she tried to push the gown back over her knees, but before she could, he yanked her garments back into place. "I meant weapons," he explained dryly. "What else have you got?"
"Nothing."
"You lie," he said, and suddenly his hands were everywhere, patting around her person until he'd found and extracted the derringer from her pocket. "You're a deadly little thing. Any other weapons I should know about?"
"No."
"That's what you said last time. Tell me, my charming one, if I searched your bodice, what would I find? A small cannon, or just the usual?"
She cowered, but instead of attacking, he grabbed her wrist and jerked her to her feet.
"Are you ready to go, then, Joseph?" asked Clancy from atop his waiting horse.
"Quiet!" ordered Raven as he hurried her along. "And give me something to bind her hands."
Chapter 7
Charm sat immobile upon the rotting log. They'd made a meal from the supplies found in Clancy's saddlebags. She'd forced herself to eat, knowing she'd need the strength. But now her hands were tied with a strip of leather cut from the back of Bodine's saddle, and she was scared. Her heart thumped wildly in her chest, but she dared not let them see her fear. It had been dark for several hours. Had the men of New Eden given up looking for her? Would Jude come? Or was he too sick to follow? She shoved her fingers between her knees and tried not to worry about him. Surely she had enough troubles of her own.
Raven rose and strode toward her. He looked very large in the darkness, long-legged and lean, made of hard sheets of muscle that gave her little hope of defeating him in a test of strength. Or in a test of sheer nerve, she thought, but forced herself to look defiantly up at him.
"You thirsty?" His voice was low as he thrust a tin cup toward her.
She shook her head, watching his face.
"Listen, Charm," he said, pointing a blunt finger at her. "I haven't done any worse to you than you have to me. In fact, not nearly so bad, if you count the hayloft. So I'd appreciate it if you'd quit stabbing me with your eyes."
From some fifteen feet away, Clancy cleared his throat. "What's this 'bout a hayloft?"
"Don't you have somewhere else to be?" Raven asked, pivoting abruptly about to face the other man. "Isn't there anyone chasing you? A husband maybe? Or an irate father?"
"Now don't go sayin' such things around Miss Charm," chastised Clancy. "She'll think you're serious."
"Get lost, Bodine."
"Get lost," Clancy repeated, rising to his feet to join them by the log. "Don't hardly seem possible for him to be so ungrateful after what I done for him, does it?" he asked, looking at Charm. "Damn, you're pretty. Any idea why he's got you tied up?"
She shook her head, but Raven answered, not bothering to look at either one of them.
"She knew Chantilly Grady."
"Grady?" Clancy's tone lifted an octave as he stared at her in the darkness. "The Grady from the advertisement? So where is she?"
"She's dead," Raven said evenly.
"Dead? How do you know?"
"Even working with you I learned some about detective work, Bodine," Raven answered. "Suffice it to say I know."
Clancy pulled a scowl. "Damn. I had me a plan to find the girl myself. Maybe marry her. Settle down. Make babies."
"And I had a plan to fly like a hawk," Raven said, his tone flat. "But it hasn't happened yet. Some folks think it never will."
"You scorn my sentiment," deduced Clancy, sounding offended. "But the truth is, I feel a..." He put his fist to his chest and narrowed his eyes as if searching for the perfect word. "I feel a cosmic sort of pull for the girl. An irresistible attraction."
"You've never met her," reminded Raven.
"Yeah," agreed Clancy, dropping his fist and becoming matter-of-fact, "but I know she's rich."
"Was," Raven corrected dryly. "She was rich. Now she's dead."
"Ain't that the way it goes?" Clancy said, shaking his head. "The good—they die young. My heart may never mend."
"You're demented," Raven declared.
"He's not the romantic sort," explained Clancy with a shake of his head. "I fear I found him too late to teach him the gentler sentiments. You'd be far better off as my prisoner." He faced Charm in the darkness. "Why are you a prisoner?"
"I don't know," she said, finally finding her voice. It was impossible to be sure just how dangerous Raven was. But she knew one thing: he was tenacious. Perhaps, though, she could turn these two men against each other and somehow escape while they quarreled. "I've never met anyone named Chantilly Grady. I swear I haven't," she said, managing to put a good deal of emotion into her honest denial before looking up through her lashes at Clancy. She knew she looked bedraggled and worn and hoped it would be to her advantage at this point.
Clancy stood close enough to look directly down into her eyes. He watched her in silence for a moment before seeming to snap himself from her gaze with an effort and a deep inhalation. "She says she doesn't know the girl, Joseph."
"She says a lot of things."
"Hmm. But why would she lie? She doesn't look capable of lying. Pretty little thing like her. She's got those eyes and all that..." He waved vaguely toward his own chest. "You know."
"You didn't learn a great deal from the girl in Nashville, I see."
"Ahh. Sweet Irene." Clancy sighed nostalgically. "You're just jealous because she liked me best."
"Ever recover any of the money?"
"Money is an insignificant thing in matters of the heart. I thought I'd taught you at least that much," said Clancy staunchly. "But you're skirting the issue. We were talking about her."
"Maybe she killed Grady," Raven said, turning away as if the topic bored him.
"Her? Don't be ridiculous. She wouldn't hurt a rabid skunk!"
"Then you should be safe enough," Raven said.
"You wound me deeply."
"Go away, Bodine."
"You, Joseph, are an ungrateful boy, and I think she's cold," Clancy said, wagging a finger before turning toward Charm. "You cold, honey?"
Tears were not hard for Charm to come by, for these two were driving her to distraction. Why didn't they just kill each other and get it over with? She'd hoped they were arch enemies, but now she feared they were just light-weight sparring partners, used to the pattern of jab and duck. "J—just... just my hands," she said, trying to increase the chasm of difference between the two. The quiver in her voice sounded good, she thought, and she lowered her eyes. Squeezing a few precious, salty drops from between her lids, she kept her muscles steeled for action a
nd her mind alert for any eventuality. Now was not the time to be caught napping. Not when she'd found someone to watch her cry.
"Well, damn, she's crying, Joseph. I'm surprised at you. Thought I'd taught you better. Come on, honey," Clancy said, pulling his oversized knife from the sheath on his belt. "I'll cut you free."
"It's been a long time since I've hit you, Bodine," Raven said, not stepping nearer or raising his voice.
Clancy turned. "Three days at least."
"A long time," repeated Raven.
Clancy grinned, the expression lopsided. "You always was one for a ruckus, wasn't you, Joseph? Still no guns allowed?"
"It's healthier that way."
"Knives?"
Raven shook his head. “Too messy."
"Ain't he somethin'," said Clancy. "He don't mind beatin' the tar outta a fellow, but he don't like gettin' his hands dirty. You sayin' you're lookin' to go a few rounds now, Joseph?"
"I'm saying if you set her free, I won't be responsible for the burial fees when she sticks that blade through your heart."
"He's not romantic, but he's very dramatic at times," Clancy commented to no one in particular. "If you're not going to set her free, what are you planning to do with her?"
"Just pry out a few honest answers."
"You need to tie her up for that?"
"I need a crowbar and a good solid string of threats for that," corrected Raven.
"If you know the Grady girl's dead, what's the point of keeping Miss Charm here trussed up?" asked Clancy.
Raven remained silent for a moment before answering. "Say it's for my own peace of mind."
It took a moment before Clancy laughed. "You're plannin' to collect bounty just fer information, ain't you?"
"It's none of your affair, Bodine."
"Huh! That's my boy, Joseph. All them years I thought you wasn't learning nothin'. But it looks like something soaked into that hard head of yours after all. Money! There ain't nothin' like it to make a man feel like a man. Except a woman. In which case money is"—he waved vaguely, quoting his former statement with less enthusiasm—"an insignificant thing." He looked at Charm and shook his head once. "Damn, she's pretty. Well, go ahead. Shoot off them questions."
"Not tonight." Raven said, seating himself on a nearby log.
Clancy turned to face him. "That's the thing about you, Joseph. You always was a patient one. The first time I saw you I said, now there's a patient boy. He'll make a fine detective. It'll be a hard task, but I'll teach him all I know."
"The first time you saw me you said, now there's a sucker. I'll work his ass off and feed him to the crows."
Clancy threw back his head and laughed. "Ahhh, Joseph, such bitterness. And after you bein' just like a son to me."
"You're only five years my senior, Bodine. Even with your morals, paternity would be a hard thing to believe."
"Well, you was just like a brother, then," Clancy said impatiently. "Hey, I'm just tryin' to help you out."
"Was that what you were doing in Georgia?"
"No. In Georgia I was trying to make a bundle of money by turning in thieving white trash. Same as you."
"We're white trash, Bodine."
"See. I'm impartial. It's a great quality for a detective."
"The fact that I had decided to go off on my own didn't cause you to set me up?" asked Raven. "Teach me a lesson?"
"Don't be ridiculous."
"And the fact that they thought I was aiding the boy's escape instead of turning him in?"
"I had nothin' t'do with it."
"You know, you've always been a supreme liar, Bodine. Not as good as her," Raven said, nodding toward Charm. "But supreme, nevertheless."
"Oh, come now," Clancy said, looking offended. "I must be better. She's so young. Hardly had any time to refine it," he added before changing the subject. "I didn't know they was plannin' t'kill the boy just fer kissin' Miss Annabell Fancypants what's her name."
"Supreme," Raven repeated.
"It's true," said Clancy then laughed. "Had I known I'd have insisted on more money. And to get you killed... That would have cost them a fortune. Did you get the kid to safety?"
"Feeling guilty after all these years, Bodine?"
"Don't be ridiculous. It's always been obvious who's the honorable one. You know, I think my old man did me a favor. Didn't leave me any illusions. But yours... left too damn soon for you to find out what a bastard he really was. Made you think you might be one of the good guys. Should be a law against it."
"Shut up," said Raven evenly.
"All right. I know how sensitive you are. It's time to discuss the really important things anyhow. Like, how do we get out of here with only one horse? What about food? Who does the girl sleep with?"
Charm's breath caught in surprise.
"Back off, Bodine," he said.
"But she don't like you," Clancy said, seeming to address the issue he felt most important. "And who could blame her... the way you've acted. I'm older. A father figure. She'll feel safe with me."
Charm shifted her gaze nervously from one man to the other. Raven frightened her, but Clancy frightened her more. Maybe simply because she had some history with Raven. Lots of running, pouncing, and tortured breathing. But better than what might happen with Clancy. She'd been reading men's faces for as long as she could recall, and although she usually had the uncertain protection of Jude and a card table between herself and them, a few facts remained constant. You couldn't trust men, and you certainly couldn't trust a man who would tie you up. And she couldn't read Raven's face, unlike Clancy's. So perhaps Clancy was a safer bet.
He was from a poor southern family. Chances were good he had a very sensible, and possibly life-preserving, reason for leaving, for he didn't seem to be particularly law-abiding. From conversation she knew that he was a detective of sorts, but unlike his former partner, he was interested but not particularly obsessed with the idea of finding this woman called Chantilly. It was a characteristic she suddenly found most appealing. And, too, he trusted her. Or at least he trusted her more than Raven did. Perhaps he was even sane, and certainly he would be easier to escape from than Raven had proven to be. So despite her gnawing fear...
"I'll go with him," she said, nodding breathlessly at Clancy while holding her gaze on Raven.
The woods were absolutely silent before Raven spoke.
"No." His tone was perfectly even and cool. "You won't."
"You heard her," said Clancy, sounding delighted, though Charm dared not look toward him. "She's made her choice."
"The choice is not hers to make," Raven said, holding her gaze.
"Are you angry, Joseph?" Clancy asked hopefully. "Jealous?"
But Raven eyed him levelly, showing no emotion whatsoever. "You willing to find out?"
"Damned if it wouldn't be worth it. After all these years to see you not just fightin', but fightin' mad. Might be worth a busted nose."
"You've made your decision, then?" asked Raven, watching him.
"Well, if I wasn't so pretty I'd..." Suddenly Clancy's words broke off, and his fist slammed forward.
Everything happened in a heartbeat. Raven ducked, smoothly avoiding Clancy's fist before planting his own in the other's middle. Charm, jarred from her seat on the log, launched into action.
She managed to make it a full fifteen feet before he tackled her. Then she fell in pretty much the same position as all the other times. It wasn't comfortable, but at least it was predictable. Still, she tried to scream.
"I just need one thing." His voice was a whisper. His palm covered her mouth. "Lie," he said, and moved his hand away.
Despite everything, Charm didn't scream. The man was certifiably insane. "What?" Her own voice was no more than a breathy murmur.
"We've only got a few seconds before Clancy gets his wind, so listen. I'm giving you tonight to think up a first-class lie about Grady's death. Say you found her, took her Bible, then lost it."
"I did lose it, you blackhea
rted devil," she said. "In the livery."
"Good. Tell him that. But stick to your story. No matter what. You hear me?"
"You're crazy." Her words came out in a windy gasp.
"Could be. I'm giving you one chance and one chance only. Got it? Tell your story. Stick to it. Make it good, and I'll set you free."
"What—"
"Damn it, Joseph," Clancy said, limping up to them in a bent position. "You didn't have to wait for me to jump you."
Raven rose slowly from Charm's aching body before pulling her up alongside by her bound wrists.
"It was more fun this way, Bodine."
"Well, hell," said Clancy, bending over slightly and wincing at the pain in his stomach, "far be it from me to spoil yer fun."
"Good," Raven said, turning back toward the logs they had just abandoned. "She sleeps with me."
Charm didn't mean to stop, but her knees locked up, freezing her feet to the earth on which she stood. Despite all her efforts to look heroic and brave, she couldn't budge them. "I won't," she said softly.
"You will," he countered, and jerked her toward him, but still her knees wouldn't bend, causing her to fall toward him like a toppled pine.
"Couldn't wait to be in my arms?" he asked, catching her against his chest with a grunt.
"I'll send you to hell first!" Even to her own ears, the words sounded melodramatic, but his devilish dark face was only two inches away, prompting melodramatics and much more.
"You already put me through hell, killer woman," he said and yanked her after him.
"And now you'll make me pay," she said through her teeth as she stumbled along behind.
"Oh, for Christ's sake. And Bodine thought I was dramatic. Listen, you," he said, pulling her into what might loosely be called their camp. Scowling, he thrust her down onto the log again. "I haven't had a woman in... hell... I haven't had a woman in half a lifetime. But you couldn't pay me enough to take you. I promise you that much. Even I," he began, but suddenly he stopped talking and toppled her over the log with a firm thrust to her shoulder. She was on her back with him on top, hand over her mouth, as usual, and legs tangled in her skirt.