Lone Star 04

by Ellis, Wesley

  When he saw the place, he knew he was right. He’d left the horse in a hollow between the hills and bellied through the tall grass for the last quarter-mile. It looked like an old way station for a stage line, and very likely was. There was a burned-out stone building and the remains of a horse corral. Ki figured it had been there since before Roster was settled.

  He crawled up as close as he dared, within thirty yards of the place. After a few moments he knew she wasn’t there. The place was too small, too obvious. The only real cover was the shell of the building itself. He’d be foolish to ride into that. What she’d done was take cover in high grass, just as he’d done himself. She was waiting out there, past the abandoned station but somewhere in sight of it. A rider would come up on the place, see right off that it was a good place for an ambush, leave his horse, and come in on foot from behind. And that was when Lucy would get him. Walking, without any cover.

  Ki came to his haunches and moved swiftly through the grass at a crouch. He had a good idea where she was. It was the spot he’d pick himself—a clump of grass that appeared innocent enough, but commanded a slightly higher approach to the abandoned building. He stopped, took off his Stetson, and raised his head carefully out of the grass. He couldn’t see her, but knew she was there. He could almost sense her presence, see her in his mind’s eye. Crawling a few yards farther, he found a slight depression in the land and followed it toward Lucy’s position. He stopped again, listened. Nothing. Not even the dry chatter of insects, or the cry of a crow from the creek. For the first time, Ki began to seriously doubt himself. He knew she was there. She had to be. Still...

  It was an old trick, but certainly worth a try. Backing up along the depression, he came to a spot where a few sticks had been washed down the hill in seasons past. The branches were light, brittle, and bleached as white as bone. He found one three feet long with a stubby fork on the end. Digging in his jacket for a length of light string, he attached the cord three-quarters of the way up the stick and carried it quietly back the way he’d come. He laid the stick flat on the ground with the forked end toward him, and dug the fork slightly into the ground. Then he lifted the stick a few inches and placed his Stetson on the other end and backed off, carefully unwinding the cord behind him.

  Finally he was a good twenty feet from the hat and the stick. Listening again, he slowly pulled the string. The stick. came up at an angle, and the Stetson peeked over the grass.

  Nothing.

  Lucy wasn’t even tempted. Ki grinned and silently saluted her intelligence. Shooting at a raised hat was foolish. Ki lowered the hat and backed quickly down the depression. She knew where he was now, and would likely take the bait—circle around and wait for him to move. Which was exactly what he was doing, too. Of course, she might stay right where she was and just wait for him, but Ki didn’t think she’d risk it. He’d told her with his hat that he knew where she was. It took a great deal of nerve to sit still after that.

  Ki worked his way up the hill in silence, senses alert to every move, every sound that came his way. Lucy was playing his game now, whether she knew it or not. His samurai training had prepared him for the encounter in a hundred different ways. She could become as a stone, but he would know she was there. Breath whispered in and out of her lungs, and blood coursed through her veins to the beat of her heart. The wind brought him the sharp tang of her hair, and the subtle smell of her skin.

  He knew she had a pistol at least, and possibly another rifle by now. He wasn’t concerned about that, and didn’t feel threatened by the weapons. A weapon was useless unless you could use it. He would not give Lucy Jordan that chance.

  He saw her now with kime, the sense that feels an enemy’s churning life forces. She was close, just above the draw, no more than five yards away, looking just to his right. Ki picked up a small pebble and tossed it less than a foot behind her. He heard her suck in her breath and roll away, then come up fast on her elbows with the weapon thrust out before her. Ki raised an eyebrow and gave her a silent nod of admiration. The girl was good—no, excellent! Not one person in a thousand could have reacted so swiftly—known instantly that it was a pebble and not a person, and held back pressure on the trigger.

  Ki knew exactly where she was. He could have bounced a rock off her back. Still, he was learning more about her every minute, and had more respect for her than that. Lucy knew what he was up to and where the pebble had come from. This time she would squeeze off a shot, and in the proper direction, at that. She was good, and she could kill him.

  Ki changed his tactics. He threw several more stones high in the air, with very little angle, making a small circle around her, but never too close. It would unnerve her, keep her on edge, but provide nothing to give him away. Finally he tossed five pebbles at once. They settled in the grass only inches from Lucy’s head. The sudden assault was too much. Lucy fired three quick shots into the grass.

  Ki moved swiftly under cover of the noise, then went to ground again. Once more, Lucy Jordan did the unexpected. Instead of keeping her cover, she sprang up abruptly, legs bent in a crouch, sweeping the weapon before her in a deadly half-circle. Ki came up in a blur. As Lucy jerked around to catch him, he brought his knees up to his chin in midair, turned his body parallel to the ground, and lashed out stiffly with his left foot. The pistol exploded, spitting fire along the plane of his calf and thigh. Lucy’s head snapped back and she dropped like a sack.

  Ki found the pistol and stuck it in his belt, then lifted the girl’s limp form and carried her through the grass toward the abandoned station. She was surprisingly light in his arms. Her head fell loosely over the hollow of his shoulder, baring the creamy white flesh of her throat. Flame-red hair brushed his arm.

  “You do not look like an assassin now,” he said wondrously. “You look like a woman asleep in my arms.” Watching her, it saddened him greatly that she was not at all what she seemed . . .

  Chapter 13

  A razor-sharp line of shade angled across the dirt floor of the roofless building. Ki squatted on his heels against the wall and watched the girl. She moaned, frowned, and bit her lip, then finally opened her eyes.

  “Damn, mister—what’d you hit me with, anyway?” She dragged herself to a sitting position and gingerly touched her jaw. “I got a bruise there? Jesus! I think you broke something sure!”

  “Nothing is broken,” Ki assured her. “You have a small swelling, but it is not serious.”

  Lucy gave him a narrow look. “Not for you, friend.”

  “Lucy . . .” Ki let out a breath and folded his hands on his legs. “I know exactly how badly you are bruised, because I know how hard I hit you. A little harder and you’d have a fractured jaw. Harder than that and I would have snapped your neck. Then you would not be sitting there complaining.”

  Lucy closed one eye. “You mean that, don’t you?”

  “Yes, I most certainly do.”

  “You’re pretty good at that stuff, aren’t you? I’d sure like to learn some of those moves, whatever it is you call ‘em.”

  Ki looked pained. “You’re not going to need any more tricks, Lucy.”

  “Oh, yeah, I keep forgettin‘.” She stuck out her lower lip in a pout. “You’re going to take me back, right?”

  “Yes, of course I am.”

  “Or try, anyway.” She shot him a quick wink, blue eyes flashing with such a challenge Ki had to laugh in amazement.

  “That doesn’t mean a thing to you, does it? You’re not even twenty-five, and you’ll likely spend the rest of your life in prison, but—”

  “Shit, mister—” She thrust out her chin and gave him a bold, penetrating look. “Talkin’ about it and bein’ there are two different things. Right?”

  “No,” Ki said flatly. He came to his feet and jabbed a finger in her direction. “In this case they are the same, Lucy. And the sooner you understand that, the sooner we can talk.”

  “Jesus Christ—talk about what?”

  “Going to prison for life, o
r going for only a short time.” He paused and looked down at her. “Or possibly—not going at all. Though I don’t think that’s too likely.”

  “Oh!” Lucy threw back her head and laughed. “Here it comes at last. If I’m a real good girl, you’ll put in a word for me with Jessica Starbuck herself. She’ll pull some strings with the President or someone and I get off real easy.” Lucy’s eyes went hard. “Not on your goddamn life, mister.”

  “Not even on yours, Lucy? It really doesn’t matter?”

  “No, why should it?”

  Ki almost believed her, but the faint spot of white at the corner of her mouth, the tight cords in her throat told him a different story. Lucy Jordan lied well with her eyes, but the rest of her body gave her away. Ki walked a few steps and put his hands in his pockets. “It’s up to you, of course. I’m not sure Jessie will help, even if you give the right answers. She isn’t too pleased with you.”

  Lucy grinned at that and came to her feet, brushing the dirt off her denims. “Trouble is, friend, I don’t know anything, though I don’t reckon you an’ Miss Starbuck’d believe that, would you?”

  “You know who hired you.”

  “Right. And so do you. It was Torgler. Now what the hell’s that worth?”

  “Nothing. Not by itself. But you’ve been around the man, heard him talk about his operation, the people he works for.”

  “Torgler? Are you serious?” Lucy made a face. “That man’s slick as a snake. He don’t tell anybody more’n they need to know.”

  “You know about the wolves, Lucy. How does he work that? Who’s in on it with him?”

  “Hey, hold it now!” Lucy’s eyes got wide and she shook her head firmly. “I don’t know nothin’ about that stuff, and I don’t want to, either.”

  Ki’s eyes bored into her. “You expect me to believe that?”

  “Believe whatever you want!” she said hotly, clenching her fists at her sides. “I was hired to get rid of Jessica Starbuck. Hell, there’s no use lyin’ about that. They want her out of the way, and they want her real bad. Torgler’s got orders from someone a lot higher up on the ladder than he is, I know that much.”

  “But you don’t know who?”

  “No, of course not.”

  “You’re sure?”

  “Yes, I’m sure!” Lucy stopped and ran a hand over her face. “Look, you know more about this setup than I do. It’s big—real big. I’m hired help and that’s all. High-priced help, maybe, but so what? All that does is get you a bigger wad of bills. It sure don’t entitle you to know who’s on the other end of it. In my business, that’s not real healthy information to have.”

  “Is that what you call it?” Ki asked evenly. “A business?”

  Lucy gave him a nasty grin. “We going to talk ‘bout that now? How’d a sweet little thing like me get in the killin’ trade?” She waved him off and handed him a sigh. “You mind tossin’ me that canteen? I could sure use a drink, but I expect all you got there’s water.”

  “Yes, that’s all.”

  “Hell, I’ll take what I can get.”

  Ki picked up the canteen and tossed it to her by the strap. Lucy grabbed for it and missed, bent quickly to retrieve it, whirled about on her knees, and scooped a handful of dirt in Ki’s face. Ki saw it coming, threw an arm in front of his eyes, and twisted aside as the canteen came at him from Lucy’s other hand. She held it by the strap and whipped it at his head like a missile. Ki knocked it aside, grabbed Lucy’s waist, and twisted her off her feet. Lucy yelled, clawed empty air, and hit the ground hard. Ki came down on top of her and slammed her wrists into the dirt. The girl squirmed to get her legs free and kick him, but Ki’s whole weight was upon her.

  “God damn you!” Lucy glared at him from under a tangled veil of hair. “I shoulda killed you back in Roster. I’d be long gone from this place if I had!”

  “It’s not because you didn’t try,” sighed Ki. “Are you finished now? Can we stop this?”

  “Just can’t stand it, huh?”

  “What do you mean?”

  Her lips curled in a sneer. “Bein’ on top of a girl bother you all that much?”

  Ki stared at her and laughed. “The town’s way back there, Lucy. Yelling rape won’t work this time.”

  “Oh? An’ who’s callin’ for help?” Her eyes flashed with mischief and she bit her lip in a grin. “Maybe if I just—struggled a little harder I could—mmmmm, yeah!” She looked right at him and ground her hips against him in a slow, undulating circle. “Am I—gettin’ any closer to escaping? Feels like I might be making some progress ...”

  Ki had to smile at her teasing. “I don’t think you’re escaping, Lucy, But you are making some progress.”

  “Oh? Well, that’s nice . . .”

  It was nice, Ki had to admit. She knew just what to do and where to do it. The hard press of her pelvis searched him out, and his member grew steadily under her touch.

  “Say, now . . .” Lucy’s eyes sparkled with pleasure. “Do have some feelings, don’t you? Kinda wondered about you...”

  “Oh? And why was that?”

  “I don’t know, I just—oh, yes!” Ki thrust himself against her and she opened her eyes wide. “Can’t . . . really remember at the moment... not when you do things like that . . .” Her mouth opened and her face flushed with color. Ki watched a vein throb in the long column of her neck. Her breath came in rapid little bursts, and her breasts stretched the worn fabric of her shirt.

  Lucy caught his glance and mocked him with her eyes. “If you like that, why don’t you unbutton my shirt and get a better look?”

  “I was just thinking the very same thing.”

  “Really? I never would’ve known.”

  Ki released her wrists and she clasped them tightly around his shoulders. He ran his fingers quickly along the buttons of her shirt, baring the firm swell of her breasts. He slid the cloth aside and brushed his fingers gently across her nipples. Lucy groaned with pleasure at his touch. He stroked the silken nubs and felt them tighten under his fingers, saw them turn from dusty pink to the flush of scarlet.

  “Ahhhh!” Lucy trembled and wet her lips. “Kiss them—please!” she begged him. “Now! Now!”

  “Would you like that?”

  “Oh, yes!”

  “They are very lovely.”

  “Are they?”

  “Yes. Hard and soft at the same time.”

  Lucy shut her eyes. “Raise up a little. All right?”

  “What?”

  “No, don’t stop doing what you’re doing to me. Just—move a little so I can peel out of these damn trousers. Don’t think I’m gonna need ‘em much longer.”

  Ki grinned and obliged gladly, and Lucy’s hand snaked down over her belly to struggle with her belt. He watched the delicious peaks of her breasts, marveling at the way her pert little nipples continued to grow. He bent to take the sweet nubs of pleasure in his mouth; the musky taste of her womanhood tingled on his lips and assailed his senses. The sharp, exotic flavor of her flesh heightened his excitement and sent a raw surge of heat coursing through his veins.

  Lucy squirmed and arched her back, forcing her breasts into his mouth. Her hand worked frantically at her waist, tearing at the tight-fitting denims.

  “Are they—good?” she whispered.

  “Yes!”

  “Nice little tits?”

  “Yes, Lucy!”

  “Are—mine as nice as hers?” she said breathlessly. “When you put Jessica Starbuck’s nipples in your mouth, do they—”

  “No!” The words shook him, tore at his gut like a blade. He jerked up on his arms and stared. “That’s not true,” he blurted. “I never—” Ki caught himself and stopped.

  “Oh, my . . .” The surprise in Lucy’s eyes narrowed to understanding. She held his gaze until Ki pushed her roughly away. He quickly got to his feet and turned from her, grinding his teeth to control his anger.

  “It’s that way, is it?” she said behind him. “You want to, but you have
n’t. Damn—you can’t even think about it, can you? I see, now . . .”

  “Damn it, Lucy!” He turned on her, eyes blazing with a fury that set her aback. “You see nothing!”

  Lucy raised a brow and shrugged. “Sure. Whatever you say, friend.”

  “Where is your horse?”

  “Huh?”

  “I said, where is your horse!”

  Lucy stuck out her chin in a pout. “You want it, go find it!”

  “Fine,” muttered Ki, I’ll just do that.“ He prowled across the dirt floor like a cat, searching the ruins with his gaze.

  “What you lookin’ for?”

  “My jacket.”

  “Why?”

  Ki stopped and turned on her. She stood against the far wall, hands on her hips. The stance threw the curve of one thigh into a sharp, provocative angle. She’d made no effort to buckle the denims. They still hung loosely over her hips, baring a patch of creamy flesh across the flat of her belly. The swell of her breasts pushed the open blouse aside, and a tumble of red hair veiled her face.

  She looked at him and laughed. “Well, what’re you starin’ at? Go find the goddamn horse.”

  “I will,” he said tightly. He picked up his jacket where he’d left it on the far side of the room and searched through the pockets. His own Colt, and the one he’d taken from her, were laid neatly in the fold. “Soon as I find some cord to tie you up.”

  “To what?” Lucy blew hair out of her eyes and grinned uneasily. “Look, you don’t have to do that. I’m not goin’ anywhere.”

  “Now why don’t I believe that?”

  Lucy opened her mouth to protest, then let out a breath and squinted at the open sky. “The horse is tied down by the creek,” she said wearily.

  “Thought it might be.”

  “And you don’t have to tie me up. I can’t stand bein’ tied. I promise. Please? I’ll stay right here.”

  It was Ki’s turn to laugh. “Don’t be ridiculous, Lucy.” He found a length of cord and started toward her.

  “Wait!” She stood up straight and held out a hand. “If I give you all my clothes, I can’t go running naked around the countryside, now can I?”