by S. E. Smith
“Sure thing, boss,” Carl replied.
Jonathan watched as Carl climbed back up on his horse and rode off. He turned as the door to the house opened. Jacob was coming out, talking to Wally. He met them at the bottom of the stairs.
“Jacob, we have a problem. Some wolves scared the horses out in the Eastern paddock. Twenty-five Mustangs got loose. Carl has some men tracking them and I told him to see if he can track the wolves. I think we should bring the ones that are left closer to the house and the others too once they are rounded up,” he explained.
“Damn, I should have expected something like this,” Jacob said in disgust slamming his hat on his head in irritation.
“Wally, can you let Indy know we might not be back tonight?” Jonathan asked just as the front door opened.
“Do you need any help? I can be ready to go in just a couple of minutes,” Indy said as she stepped out onto the front porch.
Jonathan's eyes darkened at how beautiful she looked this morning. Hell, she looked beautiful all the time. The thought of her being around a bunch of rough cowpunchers who hadn't been with a woman in God knew how long had him adamantly shaking his head.
“No, we can handle it. I think it would be better if you stayed close to the ranch house. Jake will be here if you need anything,” Jonathan responded.
“Wally too,” Wally said with a grin. “Wally help protect Mrs. Indy.”
Indy laughed and wrapped her arm around the Chinaman who had become a dear friend since she came to live in the big ranch house. He had patiently shown her how to use the huge cook stove and dutch oven, as well as shared many of his recipes with her. She gave him a kiss on the cheek, drawing a huge grin from Wally and a low growl of disapproval from Jonathan.
“I'll be fine,” Indy assured her overprotective husband. “I can continue working with the horses here and I may take a ride out to the Western pasture. Midnight and Kahlua could use the exercise. I've been so focused on training the new horses I haven't spent much time with them lately.”
Jonathan frowned at the thought of her traveling so far from the ranch house without him. “I would prefer it if you stayed closer to the ranch,” he said.
“Oh come on. Jake can go with me.” Indy smiled persuasively with a small pout. “I haven't been out to see Cal since I've come in. I'd like to see how he is doing.”
She knew she would go with or without his permission but it was fun seeing if he fell for the pout. Her grandpa and Sam never could resist it. She had gotten her way or out of trouble more than once with a flutter of her eyelashes and that tiny pout. She figured a girl had to use whatever weapons she had when it came to keeping the peace.
“Alright,” Jonathan agreed reluctantly. “Just make sure you take Jake with you. I don't want you riding alone.”
He didn’t have the heart to turn her down, especially with the way her bottom lip slid out so seductively begging him to nibble on it. Damned if he could tell her no even as everything inside him wanted to. It was an effort to pull his eyes away from the temptation and focus on the situation at hand.
“I promise,” she said, skipping down the stairs so she could brush a kiss across his lips. “You just be careful. I'm going to miss you tonight,” she whispered in his ear.
Jonathan wrapped his arms around her slender form, holding her tight and breathing in her fresh scent. “I'll miss you as well,” he said tenderly. “We shouldn’t be more than a day, two at the most.”
Indy nodded. “You need to remember I was raised on a working ranch,” she reminded him gently. “I understand when things like this happen. I’ll see you when you get back.”
“Jonathan,” Jacob began uncomfortably. “You could stay. The boys and I can handle this.”
Jonathan took a reluctant step back, releasing Indy. He shook his head. He had left enough to his brother over the last few weeks. He knew Jacob was doing it so he could spend more time with Indy and appreciated it but as Indy said, she had been raised on a working ranch and understood the responsibilities involved.
“No, I’m riding with you,” he said firmly.
*.*.*
Several hours later, Indy sighed with joy at the feel of Midnight’s huge body under her. They moved as one as they galloped across the uneven terrain. Chester and Tweed loped off to the sides and Kahlua kicked up her heels every once in a while as she followed.
“You have quite the animals, Indy,” Jake laughed as he watched the two dogs racing around each other with an overabundance of energy. “Do they ever get tired?”
“They will be by the time we get home tonight,” Indy grinned back at her old friend. “They are enjoying getting out as much as I am.”
They slowed to a slow trot to give the dogs a chance to rest and to make it easier to talk. They rode in silence for several minutes before Jake spoke up again. He cleared his throat loudly before he spit to the side.
“I’m glad you came, Indy,” Jake started out gruffly. “Not only did you save me and Cal that day, you’ve been good for the boss. I don’t remember him looking so happy and content,” he added in his deep, gruff voice.
Indy leaned over and patted Midnight’s neck when he jumped a little when the dogs got a little too close. She thought about everything that had happened since she left Sam’s ranch over four months ago. It was hard to believe her life could change so much in such a short time, especially through an unusual glitch caused by some strange natural phenomenon.
“He’s not the only one who is happy,” she admitted with a blush. “I love him something fierce, Jake.”
Jake chuckled and nodded. “I can tell,” he responded in a teasing voice. “You start glowing the minute he walks up. And I swear, he has been walking around with his head in the clouds ever since he met you.”
Indy ducked her head to hide the pleased smile Jake’s words brought to her face. Jonathan had only said he loved her the one time, after the time they made love in his office. Her face warmed as she remembered it. She had thought he had said it in a moment of passion. She had been afraid to open herself up by telling him how she felt. She and her grandpa had loved each other but her grandpa had been a gruff old rancher like Jake and didn’t express his feelings in words. He always told her actions spoke louder than words. He said some of the best examples were the people who said they cared about you while stealing you blind. Her brothers were a perfect example of that. She had never spent much time around them and really didn’t know them except by what they did by selling the ranch without consulting her about it.
No, she thought sadly, the only ones who ever showed they really cared about me besides grandpa was Sam, Claire, and their kids. Indy made up her mind she was going to tell Jonathan just how much she loved him when he got back tomorrow, before she lost her nerve.
“Looks like Cal has left some coffee brewing for us,” Jake said with a relieved groan as he shifted in his saddle. “I sure could use a cup.”
Indy grinned as she saw the young cowpuncher riding slowly around the outside of the herd of grazing cattle. “I’ll join you in a little bit. Come on, boys. Let’s go say hello to Cal,” she said before she let out a loud whistle and motioned with her hand for the boys to head for the cattle.
Both dogs took off like bullets. Indy kicked her heels into Midnight and leaned low over his neck. Kahlua took off beside them, whinnying and nipping at Midnight who kicked up his back legs briefly. Indy laughed in joy at the playfulness of her creature friends. They needed this time out.
Cal waved in greeting as she rode up, a big smile plastered on his face. “Hey Indy!” He called out.
“Hi Cal,” Indy said as she brought Midnight up to a stop near him and turned him so she could watch the herd. “You haven’t been out here all this time have you? I thought Jonathan and Jacob only let you guys stay out a few weeks at a time?”
Cal grinned and nodded his head. “They do. My ma and pa have a small place in town. I go there and help out when I’m not here,” he said. “One day I wa
nt to have a spread like this. We came out here when I was little, about the time the war started. My pa is a peaceful man and didn’t believe in fighting so he moved ma and me out here. He opened the trading post and they run it. My pa wants me to follow after him but I like being out in the open.”
“Well, I think you are doing a great job,” she assured him. “So, you haven’t had any more problems with those rustlers, have you?”
“No ma’am,” he said. “The one I shot showed up at Doc’s in town. Turned out he was wanted for deserting the Army and they came and got him. The other two with him took off. No one has seen them. Pa heard the men from the fort say they think the other two may have been deserters too. The Army has sent a couple of scouts out looking for them but it looks like they headed back East.”
Indy sat and chatted with Cal until his watch was over. They rode back over to where Jake was chatting with another cowpuncher Indy hadn’t met yet. She nodded to the man as he stared at her with undisguised interest, his eyes roaming over her figure. She raised an eyebrow and stared back with a tight, grim expression on her face.
“Ma’am,” the cowpuncher finally murmured before he tossed the remaining coffee in his cup into the fire where it hissed. “Nice talking with you, Jake,” the man said standing up and tipping his hat again to Indy before he walked away.
“Who was that?” Indy asked watching the man suspiciously. There was something about him that made her uneasy.
Jake shrugged. “We get men heading west passing through all the time. Some stop and work for a while, others just keep on going. This one came around a few days ago. He needed a job and we were down a couple men who decided to move on without telling us first,” he explained. He nodded his head toward the pot of coffee. “He makes a mean pot of coffee. Just made a pot if you want some.”
Cal rubbed his hands together. “I sure could use some,” he said with a grin. “Indy, do you want any?”
Indy was still watching the man as he rode out toward the cattle. She shook her head, frowning. There was something off about him. The hair on the back of her neck was practically standing on end.
“No, I think I’ll pass,” she murmured.
“Is it true, Indy? I heard you married Jonathan Tucker,” Cal said as he blew on his coffee before taking a deep drink of it. “The talk in town is he had you tied up tighter than a calf at branding and made the preacher marry you right on the spot.”
“Shut up, boy,” Jake growled out as he watched Indy sink down on the log across the fire from them in shock.
“Really?” Indy whispered before she began giggling. “I bet that gave the old ladies in town something to entertain them for a while! So, our marriage is the talk of the town, is it?”
Cal had the decency to look embarrassed and drank the rest of his coffee in a couple of quick gulps. “We don’t get much excitement out here,” he muttered shifting uncomfortably. “If it helps, there were more than a few tears from some of the women in town, their ma’s, and more than one widow,” he said with a small smile.
Indy raised her eyebrow in inquiry. “More than one widow?” She asked in interest.
Jake elbowed Cal and gave him a stern look before a huge yawn broke across his grizzled face. “Damn, didn’t realize how tired I was,” he said with a frown.
Cal yawned at the same time. “You aren’t the only one, Jake. I sure feel funny all the sudden,” Cal said in a slurred voice. “I thought coffee was supposed to help me keep alert.”
Indy looked at both men as they slid down off the log they were sitting on onto the ground, the empty cups in their hands falling to the ground as they fell back unconscious. She jerked up startled, looking at both of them laying propped up against each other with their mouths open.
“Jake, Cal?” Indy called out to both of them in concern. “Come on, guys. This isn’t funny,” she said, getting nervous as she moved around the fire to them.
Indy checked Cal’s pulse. It was strong and steady. She opened his eyelids and saw they were slightly dilated. She did the same thing to Jake. She looked around suspiciously trying to see what could have caused both of them to pass out. Her eyes fell on the coffee cups lying on the ground beside them. She picked one of them up and looked inside the cup. There were a few black coffee grounds but mixed in with it was a white residue. Indy ran her finger along the bottom, holding it up so she could see it better in the late afternoon light. Rubbing the mixture between her fingers, she sniffed it before touching it with her tongue. A bitter taste, different from the coffee, washed over her taste buds. She dropped the cup in horror as she realized the coffee had been drugged.
She looked around frantically trying to think who would have the resources and a reason to try to drug them. She turned when a movement from behind a small group of trees to her left answered her question as the man who had been sitting by the fire stepped out from behind the trees. She stumbled back when two more men came out, one stood next to him while the other stayed in the shadows.
“Who are you?” She asked straightening her shoulders and flexing her fingers to alert Chester and Tweed that there was danger.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you, Ms. Wild,” a tall, lean man wearing a dark leather jacket said.
Indy signaled for the dogs to lie down. She gasped when the man standing toward the back stepped closer so she could see him. She recognized him immediately from back home.
“Billy, what are you doing here? How did you….?” She asked frightened.
“I’m sorry, Indy. I needed the money. Rosalie is expecting again and I got laid off down at the plant,” Billy Cloudrunner said. “She’s been real sick with this one and we couldn’t afford the medicine she needed,” he added looking at the two men carefully. “I was only asked to guide them through the mountains. I didn’t know they were after you until it was too late. I wouldn’t have helped otherwise.”
Indy swallowed over the lump in her throat. She knew how fragile Rosalie was and how much Billy loved his little wife and kids. The current economy had hit many of them hard in the area, especially out on the reservation. Her eyes slid to the other two men. They were the ones she had to worry about.
“What do you want with me?” She asked coldly, raising her chin up defiantly.
“You have a choice,” the lean man said as he stepped forward. “You can come peacefully or you can come fighting but I promise you, we will be taking you back to your brother. He has paid a substantial amount for your return and really doesn’t care how we get you back,” the man smiled before he nodded toward the two dogs who were laying slightly behind Indy growling menacingly. “If they so much as twitch, Rodgers will put a bullet in both of their heads. He is an ex-ranger and won’t miss.”
Indy trembled with rage and took a step forward. “I’ll cut your balls off and feed them to the wolves if you harm one hair on my dogs,” she snarled out in a low voice. She motioned with her hand and both dogs reluctantly rose. “Go find Jonathan,” she ordered before giving the dogs the ‘go find’ signal she had taught them recently.
Alex cursed as his face darkened in anger. “Kill them,” he ordered sharply.
Rodgers quickly raised his arm to fire at the retreating dogs. Indy and Billy both moved at the same time. Alex grabbed Indy as she flew in front of Rodgers’ raised arm at the same time that Billy gripped Rodgers’ arm, pulling it upward. The gun fired harmlessly into the air. Rodgers reacted violently, turning and jamming his elbow into Billy’s face, knocking him out.
“Let me go,” Indy screamed in anger and terror. “You have no right to do this! Hayden has no control over me. I’m an adult and have the right to make my own decisions,” she cried out in frustration when Alex’s arms tightened until she could barely breath.
“Knock her out,” Alex order Rodgers coldly. “We are already behind schedule. I want to get out of this western nightmare. I’m sick of sleeping outside.” He squeezed Indy tighter as she fought to get free.
Rodgers nodded as he pul
led a small vial and a needle out of his coat pocket. He pulled the cover off the needle with his teeth and spit it out on the ground. Filling the syringe, he stepped closer to Indy’s struggling body.
“You are a feisty little thing, aren’t you?” Rodgers murmured as he pressed the needle into her arm. “A very beautiful one.”
Indy immediately felt the drug coursing through her body. It didn’t matter how much she fought against it. Her legs sagged, no longer capable of supporting her. Her head rolled back and she fought to keep her eyes opened.
“You bastards,” she whispered in a slurred voice. “I hope you rot in hell,” she choked out before everything turned dark.
“What about him?” Rodgers asked nodding toward Billy even as he lifted Indy’s slight figure in his arms. “Want me to kill him?”
“No, leave him,” Alex said, pulling his gloves on. “We’ll be long gone by the time he comes to. We’ve got what we came for, let’s get out of here.”
Rodgers looked down at the pale face of the girl in his arms. He felt a twinge of regret that she was nothing more than a pawn in a very complicated game of chess. He wouldn’t have minded spending time with her otherwise. He looked up at Gent and nodded. He carried Indy over to his horse. Holding her partially over his shoulder, he mounted. Once he was settled, he slid her down and positioned her until she was straddling the horse in front of him and pressed back against his broad chest.
Yes, he thought with regret, smelling the clean scent of her hair. If only we had met under different circumstances.
He kicked his heels into the dark brown gelding enjoying the power of the beast under him. He couldn’t help but think he should have been born two hundred years before. He would have fit in better in the old west than he ever would in present day America.
Chapter 13
Jonathan rubbed his knuckles from the blow he had delivered to the man lying in the dirt at his feet. He had returned early that the next morning in a panic. In the middle of the night, Chester and Tweed had shown up at his camp. Both dogs were exhausted, stumbling as they walked up to lay next to him panting and whining. What startled him even more was when Wally had come stumbling in behind them. It had taken a while to get the Chinaman calmed down enough to understand what he was trying to say.