The Black Invader

by Rebecca Stratton

  'He seems to have settled it to someone's satisfaction,' said Kirstie. 'At least no one has said anything more about it to me.'

  'Then what is wrong, child?' He reached and lightly patted her hand. 'Is it anything to do with your—relationship with Luis Montanes?'

  Kirstie had grown accustomed to that delicate pause, but she still frowned over it, for she knew that her grandfather put quite a different interpretation on that relationship than she did. 'It has nothing to do with Luis,' she assured him.

  'Ah, good!' His obvious satisfaction irritated her too, because no matter what she said to him, her grandfather would not yield an inch on the desirability of a match between her and Luis. 'You make a very handsome couple, my dear, and I'm glad to see you getting along so well.'

  'Luis and I are good friends, Abuelo, but that's all. We're neither of us thinking of marriage at the moment; in fact Luis was as indignant as I was about the idea when I told him what you had in mind for us.'

  'My dear child!' Don Jose looked shocked as Kirstie expected he would. 'How on earth could you bring

  yourself to discuss such a thing with him?'

  'Because it concerns Luis and me more than it does anyone else,' she told him with a defiance she rarely used to her grandfather. *And I told him before Miguel did. There was some kind of misunderstanding where Miguel was concerned,' she went on to explain. 'He said one day that he thought I should be married and naturally I thought you must have mentioned your idea to him; I know how you talk together. I didn't reahse it was sheer coincidence, but once he knew what you had in mind he immediately guessed you'd thought of Luis.'

  'It's all most unethical,' Don Jose declared, but for all that Kirstie could see he was interested in Miguel's reaction. 'Did he seem in favour of the idea?' he asked.

  Kirstie, who had long since despaired of guessing what was going on behind that dark enigma that was Miguel's face, shrugged uneasily. 'Who knows what goes on in Miguel's mind? Even his own brother accuses him of having a Machiavellian streak, and I have to agree; you never know just where you are with him.'

  She noticed a catch in her voice and realised that she was finding it increasingly hard lately to mention anything to do with Miguel without getting her emotions involved. And her grandfather, she realised, was shrewd enough to notice it if she wasn't very careful. 'Do you still dislike him so much?' he asked, as if he found it very hard to understand.

  'I mistrust him,' said Kirstie, and again noticed that her voice wavered slightly.

  'But surely after he went to so much trouble to persuade his cousin not to pursue that ridiculous allegation, you must realise how much he has your welfare at heart, child.'

  Her grandfather had heard only her first rosy-tinted view of Miguel's efforts, she had never mentioned Luis's alternative, or how much it had troubled her for nearly a week. It was a quite incomprehensible hurt that niggled away at the back of her mind, and she had vowed not to let it bother her so much, but no matter how she

  tried it still hurt because almost certainly he had not made his plea for her sake alone.

  'It—it's not at all certain that he settled it for my benefit, Abuelo,' she told him, and her grandfather frowned at her curiously, i thought at first that he had talked Senora Mantaiies out of calling the guardia because he was convinced of my innocence, but it seems more than likely I was wrong. Luis suggested a more practical possibility. He—he says Miguel was more likely to have been concerned with preventing a public scandal that involved members of his family.'

  Don Jose seemed to accept the possibility much more matter-of-factly. 'It's very possible,' he mused. 'Naturally he's concerned with the good name of his family, but that's not to say he isn't convinced of your innocence too, my dear.'

  Kirstie hadn't been able to accept it as coolly; she only knew that Miguel had disappointed her for the second time within a few days, and it rankled. Her hands were clenched tightly and she found it hard to believe that she was close to tears as she went on, 'He made me think—I—I thought he was telling me that he knew I couldn't have done it, but when Luis pointed out the more likely explanation I—I realised that he'd never actually said he believed me, I just assumed it.' She clasped her hands tightly over the sewing she had on her lap and laughed a little wildly. 'I should have known better than to take Miguel for granted, after all only a few days before that I learned that he'd had the bright idea of turning Casa de Rodriguez into a tourist attraction! It's so difficult to know what to make of him. One minute he seems so kind and—and caring, and the next ' She shrugged helplessly.

  Her grandfather was watching her closely and there was a gentleness in his eyes that would have been her undoing if Kirstie had looked at him. 'My dear child,' he said softly, 'is that what's making you so unhappy?'

  'Not unhappy,' Kirstie insisted hastily, 'just angry. I dpn't enjoy being made a fool of, and Miguel Montanes

  seems very adept at doing just that!' She put aside her sewing and got up, brushing her hands down her dress with anxious fluttering movements while she spoke. *Oh well, one day I suppose Til learn not to take him at face value! If you don't mind, Abuelo, I'd like to go for a ride and get rid of some of the cobwebs. I won't be gone very long.'

  'Are you going alone?' Don Jose asked, but Kirstie pretended not to hear him, and closed the door firmly behind her.

  Although on Saturdays Luis most often went with her there were occasions when he was unable to be there because he had been given something else to do. Usually by Miguel, who seemed never to have heard of the five-day week. It seemed this was one of the occasions, for she noticed that both the stallion and Luis's gelding were missing from their stalls, but she shrugged as she saddled the mare, for she was nothing loath to be alone in her present mood.

  In fact she hadn't ridden for a day or two because she simply hadn't had the time, and she thought it might have been as well in case she saw Rosa Montanes. They seldom met during working hours, but as they both rode there was always the possibility of them bumping into one another, and she knew the other woman was fully recovered because Luis had told her so. He had also bemoaned the fact that she seemed in no hurry to go home.

  It often intrigued Kirstie that of the two brothers Margarita seemed to favour Miguel, for it seemed a curious choice when Luis's more romantic image would seem to have more appeal for a young girl. Miguel for his part seemed to have a special affection for the girl, and it occurred to Kirstie that he might possibly be more attracted to his cousin's widow than he allowed anyone to know. Very possibly his affection for the girl grew naturally from his feeling for her mother. Tall, sophisticated and thirtyish, Rose Montanes possessed all the necessary attributes that Luis claimed were what his

  brother looked for in a woman.

  She rode at a leisurely pace through the orange groves and found the space and peace of the huerta as soothing as always, thoroughly content with her own company. A little whitewashed barraca squatted beside the track on her right, and as she approached it a woman appeared in the gateway, making it appear very much as if she had been lying in wait for her.

  She stood watching with small black eyes until she came up level, then she showed broken yellow teeth in what Kirstie presumed was meant as a smile. *Good afternoon, Senorita Rodriguez! A fine day for riding:'

  Kirstie smiled automatically. She had no idea who the woman was, for she had never had any dealings with the estate workers, but the woman obviously recognised her and courtesy was habitual in this country. *Good afternoon, sefiora.'

  No more was required of her, but a certain look in the woman's sharp black eyes made her uneasy and she would have urged the mare on if the woman hadn't spoken again. 'Are you well, senorital You and the senorT

  On the surface it sounded like common civility, and yet there was something more than that behind the enquiry, Kirstie was convinced. If she had not pulled up, the mare would have carried her by before she could answer, so she reluctantly reined the animal to a halt. 'We're both very w
ell, thank you, senora —and you?'

  A slight nod confirmed her own state of health. 'It's sad you're no longer at the house where you belong,' the woman remarked, and now, Kirstie thought, they were coming to the point. 'When Don Jose was master hfe was better for all of us!' Her jet black eyes were narrowed, judging the effect she was having on her listener. 'Don Jose wouldn't have put me out of my bar'

  raca, he left folk in peace, but this one ' The gesture

  she made suggested that she would have spat but for present company. 'Out by the end of this month, he says, and the month almost up! Blessed Holy Mother,

  m

  but he's a devil, that one; a devil, senorita, as you will know to your cost!'

  Kirstie had no doubt at all that she was referring to Miguel, but her own resentment of the opinion surprised her momentarily. She wasn't really prepared to lend an ear to a tale of injustice, but it was doubtful if she was going to be given the opportunity to avoid it, so she sighed inwardly and dismounted.

  It seemed to be taken for granted that she would follow the woman through the gateway and into a wretchedly overgrown little patio, but she did so very reluctantly. *rm afraid I know nothing about estate business, senora,' she said, making her position clear from the start. *I—we have nothing to do with it now.'

  'That's as maybe,' the woman allowed, and tapped a finger against her prominent nose, leering in a way that brought colour to Kirstie's cheeks. 'But you ride with one of them often, I've seen you. And with him too a couple of times, though you didn't look as if you were enjoying it very much—who would? The other one now, the young one, he makes you smile.'

  The last thing Kirstie wanted was a discussion about her relationship with Luis, and she was shaking her head, making ready to leave again. 'I don't know what it is you want to say to me, senora,' she said in an attempt to move from more personal subjects, 'but I haven't much time.'

  'Just spare me a moment,' the woman insisted, and her black eyes watched her closely. There was something distinctly unpleasant about her and she made Kirstie restless and anxious to be off. 'It's easy to see you have the ear of one of them at least, senorita, and if you was to say the word to the young one I might not have to go at the end of the month.' She regarded her slyly, showing another glimpse of broken teeth. 'You couldn't refuse to help me could you, senorita, knowing how it feels to be put out of your house?'

  The allusion to the loss of Kirstie's own home brought a flush of resentment, but it also caught her sympathy, for she could remember only too well how it felt. 'I—I don't know,' she demurred, shaking her head. 'I don't think anything I say would have much effect, senora'

  'But you could tryV

  Kirstie shook her head slowly, weighing up the chances of success. 'I really don't think I could do anything, senora' she said. 'Although I do sympathise, and I know exactly how you must be feeling.'

  'But it might not do your own chances any good, eh?' Kirstie frowned at her confusedly and the woman jeered. 'Oh, you've seen the best way to get your own house back, and don't think I blame you, even if you won't help me. Either of those two fine caballeros would take you for his wife, you're pretty and you're young, and don't say it hasn't occurred to you! I dare say even that heartless devil who's throwing me out of my house could fancy a pretty piece like you, and he's older and got more say I dare say. But me—hah! What chance do I have of marrying a rich man to get my house back?'

  Kirstie turned swiftly and walked in a daze back through the open gateway, and only then did the woman realise how she had over-played her hand. Short thick fingers grasped her arm anxiously and the voice had a placatory whine as she hurried along after her. 'Senorita, for the love of Holy Mary!'

  She did know how it felt, and despite her anger Kirstie found herself unable to refuse the plea. It would have to be Enrique she approached, for she refused to ask anything of Miguel, and Luis did not have the necessary authority. Taking the mare's rein, ready to mount, she turned and looked at the woman over her shoulder.

  'I can't promise anything,' she said in as firm a voice as she could muster, 'but I'll have a word with Senor Montaiies, the senior partner. If you tell me your name '

  'Josefa Medina,' the woman supplied hastily, and Kirstie nodded as she swung herself up into the saddle.

  Til see what I can do,' she promised.

  'Heaven bless you, Senorita Rodriguez!' The sharp black eyes glowed in triumph. 'And heaven send a soft heart to that devil so that he marries you and gives you your home back!' Her cackling laughter followed Kirstie as she jabbed her heels hard into Scheherazade's flanks, and brought fresh colour to her cheeks.

  She could not even guess what Enrique was likely to say when she approached him and she was already re-getting her promise. There was probably a very good reason why the wretched woman had been given notice to quit, and if he did anything at all he would consult with Miguel about it first; for the estate workers came^ under Miguel's jurisdiction.

  She was getting close to home when she spotted two other riders coming along the track at right angles to her and closing fast. At first glance she assumed it to be Luis and Miguel, but it didn't take long to realise that it wasn't Luis riding the gelding but Rosa Montanes. Obviously being thrown by the animal had not deterred her from taking it out again, and Kirstie had to admire her courage if nothing else.

  She realised she had been seen and recognised in turn when Miguel raised a casual hand in greeting, and from the way he turned his head it could have been that he suggested putting on some speed to join her. Already ruing the bad luck that had brought Rosa across her path again, Kirstie took quick action to avoid an actual meeting.

  There was a chance that if she could goad a turn of speed out of the mare she had a chance of beating them back to the stable and being unsaddled and gone before they put in an appearance. It was worth a try, she decided, and put her heels sharply to the surprised mare, who took off like the wind. Had Miguel been alone it was quite possible he would have given chase as he had

  done on one occasion, but the presence of Rosa Mon-tanes would put paid to any chance of that happening in this instance.

  She had in fact got the mare unsaddled and finished rubbing her down before she heard the other two horses come into the yard, and the deep, husky sound of Rosa's laughter brought a tightness to her mouth that was completely involuntary. She heard the scrape of booted feet on the stone sets in the yard and then the flinty clop of hooves coming across to the stable, and she turned the comer into the doorway, only to be brought up sharply by the tall figure of Miguel blocking her way.

  He was leading both horses, and between one raised arm and a horse's shoulder she saw Rosa Montanes swinging jauntily across to the patio gateway. Kirstie stepped back quickly, her heart hammering wildly and her head seeming so light suddenly she couldn't think clearly. Miguel smelled of horses and leather and that very special masculine scent that always hung about him, and it was very hard indeed to remember that she had told her grandfather how untrustworthy he was.

  Also there was a look in his eyes that ran little shivers up and down her spine as he regarded her steadily. 'Are you still running away?' he asked, and Kirstie blinked at him in bewilderment, forgetting that that was exactly what she had done by making the effort to get back first and avoid a meeting with his companion. 'You were very obviously running away when you saw us just now,' he stated confidently. 'Rosa realised it and it gave her a great deal of satisfaction.'

  'Did you really expect me to wait for you?' Kirstie asked in small voice. 'I thought it was more discreet if I avoided a meeting in view of her opinion of me. I would have thought even you understood that!'

  He took note of the inference with a raised brow, but made no other comment for the moment. Instead he led the two animals into the building and put each

  into its own stall, leaving the stallion while he attended to the more restless gelding, and it was automatic for Kirstie to linger in the doorway and watch him.

&nbs
p; She always took so much more detailed notice of Miguel than she did Luis and nothing escaped her watching eyes as she studied him. A cream shirt stretched tautly across his broad back when he bent to undo the girth and showed the shadow of dark skin through its texture, and the deftness of his big hands reminded her of how gentle they could be at times, and at others so thrillingly and excitingly sensual. She knew it was dangerous, thinking about Miguel like that, but somehow she couldn't help herself. Whatever he did, however he behaved towards her, Miguel fascinated her in a way no other man did.

  'Didn't I see you leaving one of the barracasT he asked, so suddenly that it took her a moment or two to bring herself back to earth.

  Apart from anything else, he was the last person she wanted to discuss their vengeful tenant with, and neither was she happy about his questioning her visit. 'I did call on someone briefly,' she allowed, but he still didn't turn his head and look at her.

  'Any reason why you chose that particular woman to visit?' he wanted to know, and she frowned.

  'I hadn't much choice, as it happened,' she told him, 'she seemed to be lying in wait for me. But I didn't realise I needed permission to visit one of the tenants, Don Miguel; I'm sorry if I broke one of your rules!'

  He turned briefly and looked at her over one shoulder as he lifted off the gelding's saddle, and it was much more difficult to meet his eyes than she would have believed. 'Don't be clever with me, Kirstie.' He spoke quietly, but there was a dark gleam in his eyes that resented her sarcasm. 'I'm rather surprised you have anything in common with a woman like Josefa Medina, that's all.'

  'I have one thing at least,' she told him. 'We both know what it's like to lose our homes!' She stared at the

  broad, unresponsive back and quite forgot that she had decided to speak to his uncle rather than say anything to him. 'She says you've given her notice to leave her cottage, poor woman. I didn't hke her much, but it seems very hard to be put out of her home.'