Savage Spring

by Constance O'Banyon

  “Tut, tut, do you want our guest to think we don’t hold each other in high regard?”

  Claudia turned her attention to Alexandria. The hatred she had once directed at Joanna had been transferred to the small, golden-eyed girl. She saw the red handprint on the girl’s white cheek where she had struck her, and she wished she could scratch her eyes out.

  “Why are you doing this, Claudia?” Alexandria asked, fearing that through her these two might find a way to harm Tag.

  “Melvin already told you—we are going to use you to lure Tag into a trap. How will you like being the cause of his death, Alexandria?”

  “I told you I don’t know anyone by the name of Tag. Why don’t you just admit you made a mistake, and let me go?”

  Claudia turned her gaze out the window of the coach, and Melvin chuckled to himself. Alexandria wondered how Claudia had found out about Tag. She struggled, trying to reach the door, but was pulled back, only to land hard against Melvin.

  “Do that again, Alexandria. I like to feel you in my arms,” Melvin said caressingly.

  Alexandria moved as far away as she could from the odious Melvin. She closed her eyes and prayed for Tag’s safety. She wouldn’t be able to live with herself if anything should happen to him because of her carelessness!

  They had been traveling for some time, and it was now almost sundown. Alexandria looked out the coach window and saw that they were at some kind of shipping yard. She assumed it would be the shipbuilding firm that belonged to Tag and the James family.

  When the coach came to a halt, Melvin opened the door and pulled Alexandria out of the coach. She saw the shipyard was deserted. It was late in the day; all the workers had gone home for the day. For the first time since she had been captured, Alexandria began to feel fear for herself. She was being led toward the water’s edge to a big ship that was riding high in the water. As she was led up the gangplank, she tried to pull back, but Melvin lifted her into his arms and carried her on board.

  He carried her down the companionway and into the deep hold of the ship. The only light they had was a lantern that Claudia carried to light their path. When they reached what Alexandria was sure was the very bowels of the ship, Melvin placed her on her feet.

  “Surely you aren’t going to leave me here,” she said in a shaky voice.

  “Alas, I fear we must, pretty lady, but have no fear—there is water to drink, and you will have this lantern until it runs out of fuel.”

  Claudia looked about the dank, dark hull and shivered. “Never fear, your husband will soon be joining you, Alexandria. This is the last sight you and Tag will ever see before you die.”

  Claudia set the lantern down, and then she and Melvin left, bolting the door behind them.

  Alexandria clamped her hand over her mouth to keep from crying out. Terror such as she had never known encased her mind. Her legs were shaking so badly she sank down to her knees. She was in a circle of light, and the rest of the big ship was in total darkness.

  “Dear God,” she prayed aloud, “don’t let me die like this.” She thought of Tag and how much she loved him. As much as she hated being here alone, she prayed that Tag wouldn’t suffer the same fate. “Oh, Tag, don’t do anything foolish!” she cried, and her voice echoed and reechoed throughout the darkened hull of the ship.

  Alexandria was overcome by a feeling of utter desertion. She knew that the next day was Sunday and the men who worked at the shipyard wouldn’t be coming to work. As the ship swayed up and down with the restless motion of the water, she reached over and turned down the wick of the lantern, wanting to conserve the fuel as long as possible. She had a horror of the lantern’s going out, of being left in total darkness. As the flame became smaller, so did the circle of light that surrounded her.

  Alexandria’s body trembled with pent-up emotion, and loud sobs broke from her lips.

  “Tag, Tag, my dearest love!” she cried, pounding against the unyielding door with her fists. “I don’t want you to be here with me, but I do wish I could see you just once more if I’m going to die!”

  Tag ran through the house, calling Alexandria’s name even though he knew she wouldn’t answer. Tom, the stableman, had told him that the gray Alexandria had been riding earlier had returned over two hours ago. Tom and two of the stableboys had searched for Alexandria until dark without finding any trace of her.

  It was Tag’s hope that she had been thrown and had made her way back to the house on foot, but there was no answer from Alexandria, and none of the servants had seen her.

  After riding out himself without finding any trace of her, Tag returned to the house, not knowing what to do next. His first thought had been that her stepmother was somehow involved in Alexandria’s disappearance. Before returning to the house, he had ridden by Annabelle Norris’s house, only to find that the place was boarded up. On inquiring about Barbara’s whereabouts from the neighbors, Tag had been told that she and her family had left several days earlier.

  Tag paced back and forth, waiting for any news of Alexandria. He felt helpless, not knowing where to look. He had visions of her lying injured somewhere, even though every inch of the surrounding countryside had been searched thoroughly.

  When a knock sounded on the front door, he rushed forward to answer it, hoping there would be some news of Alexandria. The small boy who stood outside handed Tag a letter and darted off into the night without saying a word.

  Tag rushed back inside, broke open the letter, and began to read:

  Tag, it is known who you are. That which you hold most dear is in my hands. If you want her back unharmed, you must come to the James shipyard on the stroke of midnight and we will talk over the terms of her release. You are being watched, so tell no one where you are going, and come alone if you want your wife back unharmed.

  The letter was unsigned, but Tag knew it would be from Melvin Garner. Since Claudia could neither read nor write, he knew Mr. Garner was in on Alexandria’s abduction with Claudia.

  Glancing at the clock on the wall, he saw it was now ten-thirty. He raced to the study to get his guns and made sure they were loaded before pushing them down into his belt.

  He bounded onto his horse and quickly galloped off into the night. He wished that Farley were with him. What he must do now, he would do alone. He would trust to his instincts and his Indian training to get Alexandria back.

  His mind was tortured about Alexandria’s safety. What if they had already harmed her? He knew what Claudia was capable of when she was crossed, and he could only imagine her anger now, since she obviously knew he had posed as Falcon Knight to get close to her.

  Even though Tag was anxious to reach the shipyard, he chose the longer route, which skirted the town. His Indian training alerted him to the fact that he was being followed. In the dim light of the crescent moon, Tag planned how he would outsmart whoever was closing in behind him.

  When he rounded a bend in the road, he grabbed onto a low-hanging branch, swinging himself skillfully up into the tree. His Indian pony, Navaron, had been trained well, and when Tag left the animal’s back, the horse didn’t even break his stride but kept racing down the road.

  In no time at all, a lone rider rounded the bend, and when the man passed beneath the tree, Tag leaped down upon him, knocking him off his horse. The two men rolled over and over down a steep embankment and ended up with Tag on top. With very little trouble, Tag subdued the man. Even in the pale moonlight, Tag could tell he had never seen the man before. Doubling up his fists, he struck him across the jaw and felt the man go limp beneath him.

  Tag quickly gained his feet and raced back up the embankment. He gave a loud whistle and was soon rewarded by the sound of Navaron’s thundering hooves coming toward him. He swung into the saddle and galloped away, heading for the shipyards.

  Claudia watched Melvin’s face as he blew out the lamp in the shack where the shipbuilding tools were kept. She was angry with him because he had just taken over without consulting her. She would much rat
her have lured Tag into a different kind of trap. Her pride still stung from the way he had trapped her into loving him, and she knew she wouldn’t be satisfied until she made him crawl.

  Melvin led Claudia out of the shed and steered her toward the ship where Alexandria was being held. “We’ll stand on the deck and wait for your man to come,” he said, helping her up the gangplank.

  She turned to him when they reached the deck of the ship. “Are the men in place?”

  “Yes, they are standing by at the gates. Don’t worry, Claudia, Taggart James will be surrounded the moment he comes into the shipyard.”

  “I wish there was a full moon tonight—I can’t see anything,” Claudia said, straining her eyes in the near darkness.

  Melvin laughed. “Before the night is over, you will have seen all that’s important to see. If things go as I planned, by this time tomorrow night you will be a very wealthy woman, and Tag and his lady will be carried out to sea where their bodies will become bait for the fish.”

  Claudia shivered. She had never liked the sea, and as a child had often had nightmares about drowning. “I’ll be glad when it’s all over,” she said, more to herself than to Melvin.

  Melvin’s arm went about her waist. “We are going to be wealthy, Claudia. We can get married, and you can have all the things you ever wanted. How will you like that?”

  She felt his thick lips on her neck and had the urge to push him away. How dare he think he could run her life! For the time being, though, she needed his help. After this was all over she would rid herself of him for good!

  “Claudia, what if Taggart James doesn’t come?”

  Her eyes pierced the darkness. “He’ll come…oh, yes, he’ll come. Nothing can keep him away. I just hope we haven’t underestimated him.”

  Tag had seen the dozen or so men who were hiding near the front entrance of the shipping yard. He smiled to himself as he dismounted and slipped over the back fence to fade into the shadows. He knew the shipyards very well, since his father had often brought him here as a child. He had overheard the men talking and had gathered from their conversation that Alexandria was being held on board one of the two new ships that were at anchor in the water.

  Keeping well into the shadows, he made his way silently down to the water’s edge.

  Alexandria huddled against the wall of the ship, shivering. The lantern had gone out some time ago, and she was now in total darkness. She suppressed a sob and closed her eyes. She had never been in such total darkness before, and she felt as if she were in a tomb in the bottom of the ship. Having no way of knowing how much time had passed since she had been locked in, she didn’t know if it was day or night.

  Alexandria wished someone would come. Anyone! She longed to hear another human’s voice.

  She tried to think about the times she had ridden across the pastures at Meadowlake with the sun beaming down on her face. What she wouldn’t give to see the sun right now!

  Alexandria’s throat felt parched and dry, and she wished she knew where to find the water container to quench the burning in her throat. She didn’t dare move from the wall of the ship because it was too dark and she had the feeling she would wander around for eternity in this living hell.

  She tried to force herself to think of something pleasant, but her mind seemed always to center on Tag and the danger he might be in at this very moment. She knew he would come, because he was fearless and never seemed to stop and measure the danger of a situation. She remembered the night in the tavern when he had come to her rescue against the huge, burly sailor and knew he wouldn’t hesitate to come to the shipyard to face Claudia. Surely Tag would realize that Claudia and Melvin Garner had set a trap for him.

  Alexandria felt the cold dampness seep into her bones and knew the feeling of utter hopelessness. As frightened as she was, she knew she would rather die here alone in the darkness than have Tag share her fate.

  The shipyard, with its dark shadows and eerie silence, seemed like something out of a nightmare to Claudia. She stepped closer to Melvin, trying to draw comfort from his nearness. She thought of Alexandria in the bottom of the ship and found malicious pleasure in knowing the girl was now paying for what Claudia considered crimes against her. In punishing Alexandria, it was almost as if she were striking a blow against Joanna. Even with everything that was at stake here tonight, Claudia’s main thoughts were still of Joanna. Her hatred for her had grown and festered all these years, and her one regret tonight was that Joanna wouldn’t be here to witness her brother’s death. Claudia had always been a little in awe of the love the brother and sister had shown for each other. She would make sure that Joanna heard of her brother’s death; then perhaps Joanna herself would come to Philadelphia and Claudia could have her final victory!

  “Don’t turn around or cry out, either of you,” a menacing voice said from the shadows behind Claudia and Melvin.

  In spite of the warning, Claudia turned to see Tag step up beside her.

  “Take me to my wife,” he demanded in a voice that was cold and threatening. “If either one of you makes a wrong move, it will be your last,” he said, pointing the guns he held in his hands at Claudia and Melvin.

  Chapter Twenty-nine

  The sound of footsteps atop ship caught Alexandria’s attention over the shifting and groaning of the ship riding on the water. She listened carefully, hoping her ears weren’t playing tricks on her. She was sure of it now—someone was on board, and they were making their way down to her!

  Standing up, she found her legs stiff and cramped, so she had to hold on to the wall of the ship to keep her balance.

  Thinking it might be Claudia and Melvin Garner returning, she felt around in the darkness until she found the lantern. Flattening herself against the wall, she lifted it up over her head so she could use it as a weapon against them in hopes of making her escape.

  Hearing a grating sound just outside, Alexandria waited for the door to open. When it swung wide, she had to close her eyes against the blinding light from the lantern. When she opened her eyes again, she saw it was indeed Claudia and Melvin. By now, she realized she had lost her advantage, for they were blocking the doorway.

  Alexandria’s eyes still hadn’t become accustomed to the light, and she hadn’t seen the man who stood just behind Claudia and Melvin.

  “Alexandria!” The voice she loved so well, called out her name with obvious concern. Tag’s voice seemed to echo around the empty hull of the ship, gladdening Alexandria’s heart. “Are you unharmed?”

  “Tag!” she cried, standing as if rooted to the spot. “You came!”

  Tag shoved Claudia and Melvin through the entrance and moved to Alexandria’s side while keeping the guns trained on the other two. “Are you all right?” he asked again. “Have they hurt you in any way?” He allowed his eyes to roam fleetingly across her face, just long enough to see that she was all right.

  “I am unhurt,” she said, moving closer to him. “I was frightened,” she admitted.

  Tag’s eyes went to the woman who was responsible for abducting his wife, and Claudia could feel the chill of those eyes even in the half-light.

  “You have a lot to answer for, Claudia,” he said in a cold voice that sent shivers down her spine.

  “It wasn’t my idea to take Alexandria, Tag. Melvin was the instigator. Please believe me!” she pleaded, feeling the hand of death closing in all around her.

  Tag stared at Claudia’s companion with contempt. “Melvin Garner is nothing but your pawn, Claudia. He is someone you keep around to do your dirty work. I could easily crush him like a bug.”

  Melvin took a step forward, but the look Tag gave him made him reconsider.

  “Tag, listen to me,” Claudia pleaded, holding her hands out to him. “I didn’t intend for your Indian wife to be killed. I only wanted to…”

  “Shut up, Claudia,” Melvin broke in. “He can’t prove a thing against either one of us.”

  Tag motioned for Claudia and Melvin to move away f
rom the door, and he pushed Alexandria toward the exit. “I think the two of you will find it quite comfortable down here…at least, as comfortable as Alexandria found it.”

  “No, Tag, don’t do this!” Claudia screamed. “I can’t stand to be in darkness!”

  “I doubt that it was all that much fun for my wife either, Claudia. You had no thought of Alexandria when you locked her down here.”

  “For God’s sake, at least leave us a lantern,” Melvin said, adding his plea to Claudia’s.

  “I don’t think so. You see, it has always been my contention that one can think better in the darkness. You both have a lot to think about, do you not?”

  Alexandria tugged at his sleeve, and he glanced down at her dear little face. “Tag, couldn’t we leave the lantern with them?”

  His eyes shifted back to Claudia. “You see how it is? My wife has a kind heart and, unlike you, doesn’t like to see anyone suffer unduly. Because it is her wish, and for no other reason, I will leave you the lantern.”

  Tag pushed Alexandria out the door and turned to keep his guns trained on Claudia and Melvin. He didn’t see the man who came up from behind him and clamped his hand around Alexandria’s mouth, muffling her cry—nor did he hear the man who brought the heavy object down upon the back of his head, rendering him unconscious.

  Again Alexandria was locked in the darkness of the ship’s hull, but this time, Tag suffered her same fate. She was sitting on the floor with his head resting on her lap. As her hand moved over his face, she could feel his steady breathing and was hopeful that he was merely unconscious.

  Evidently some of Claudia’s men had grown suspicious of the long delay and had come to investigate, thus catching Tag and her unawares. If only Tag would wake up, she thought, cradling his head against her breast and kissing his mouth. “Tag, I love you so much—wake up,” she pleaded. She could feel his warm breath fan her cheek and knew he was still alive.