"What are you talking about, woman? Now what are you doing?"
"I am experiencing back pain and am making a pot of willow tea. Do you have any honey?"
"No, I don't have honey!" The man's agitation was growing. "Drink your damn tea without honey."
"I cannot," Blair said stubbornly, hands on her hips. "Surely you are capable of harvesting a honeycomb. Even I can do such a deed."
"You are not getting any honey."
"Very well," Blair placed the kettle to the side of the fire. "I cannot drink the tea without honey. My back will begin to cause me more discomfort and you will have to listen to me moan and cry throughout the night. If you do not wish to sleep, then you have no one to blame but yourself if you are tired."
"I'll just gag you."
"Don't you think I can make noise even with a gag?"
Within three hours of her capture, Blair found herself once again gagged and bound. She had nagged incessantly about the group's lack of trail skills, her back pain, and not having honey. She understood that she was taking a chance with her safety, but nothing these alleged outlaws had done had alerted her to their ability to perform true violence. Not yet, anyway.
"Let's get out of here," one of the other men said. "This woman is annoying the hell out of me."
"Big Joe will be pissed if we leave her unattended. He wants her something awful."
"She's tied up. She ain't going nowhere. And he's out huntin', so it will be a while before he gets back. We need a break from that whinin'!" He gestured to Blair who continued to find a way to mumble loudly despite the gag. "I never knew a wench could talk so much. Damn city women don't know how to do much, except complain."
"Gimme a nice, quiet, plain-faced woman with some meat on her bones who can cook and likes to fuck, and I would be a happy man. Gals like this one are both stupid and useless. We'll be back soon. Don't you be trying to go nowhere," Blair was warned.
She frowned and shook her head, yelling something unintelligible through the gag. Blair waited several minutes, until she could no longer hear the sound of hoofbeats and carefully slid the little knife from her sleeve. She started sawing away the ropes that held her wrist, all the while listening for telltale signs of the men's return. Once her wrists were free, she removed the dirty gag, cut the ropes on her ankles, and then stood to survey her options.
"These men certainly lack the wits to be decent outlaws," she murmured, taking the full supply of ammo, a frying pan, the metal tin that held live coals, a long coil of rope, and two bottles of whiskey. Even with her lack of tracking skills, she was able to find her way back to the streambed and in the direction of the large, red rocks where she knew Sloan was camped. One hour into her escape, she heard the sound of horses coming towards her and slipped behind a tree. A buzzing insect circled her head incessantly, and she noticed that several others were flying in the same direction. Blair followed them off the trail and into the sparse woods to where an old mesquite tree housed a large nest of hornets. Blair grinned as she began to form her plan.
Cautiously, she wrapped the rope to the end of the branch holding the nest and slowly pulled it back to bow it. She tied the other end around another tree and slipped behind some rocks to survey her trap. Satisfied, she gathered wood and some green branches, saturated the sticks with some whiskey, placed a couple of bullets under the wood mound, and lit a handful of tinder with the coal. Pleased that the air was still, Blair lowered the kindling to the mound and raced to hide behind the largest rock.
She held her breath as she waited for the fire to catch. In a loud pop, the mound lit into flames and began to smoke wildly. The bullets exploded, making certain to give away her position to not just the kidnappers, but hopefully to Sloan as well.
Minutes passed before she caught a glimpse of the three men picking their way towards her, commenting on her stupidity and how easy it was to find their escaped prisoner. Focused on the fire, they did not see the hornet nest when she cut the rope and sent it flinging in their direction. Safe behind her smokescreen, Blair watched in fascination as the three were covered by the angry horde. They rolled on the ground, desperately trying to rid themselves of the agonizing stings before they finally fled towards the river. The horses raced away as well, snorting fearfully as the hornets threatened to attack.
Blair stayed hidden, certain that the attack had left the men disabled, if not dead. Carefully, Blair picked her way back down to the river's edge and began to follow it to where she and Sloan had set up camp the day before. That was where she found Sloan, patiently whittling a spear, with two of the men tied neatly to a tree. The outlaws' horses were neatly hobbled to a tree away from the agitated white stallion. Skinwalker, restrained only by a simple rope bridle attached to a flimsy tree branch, pawed the ground in front of the men with his ears back and occasionally baring his teeth. The men looked terrified and very uncomfortable.
"Are you all right?" Sloan asked casually, merely glancing up as she approached them.
"I am perfectly well, thank you." Blair responded crisply, taken aback that Sloan showed no concern regarding her absence or her situation.
"I hear you paid them a little visit."
"They escorted me quite roughly to their hideout. I assure you, it was not voluntary."
"Thank your lucky stars that this little gang here consists of nothing but wannabes. You could have been severely hurt, taking off like you did."
"I didn't exactly see you coming after me, either," Blair retorted. "How did you find them?"
"That gosh darn horse chewed through his reins about two hours after you took off. It was hard to keep up with him on foot when he went to sniff out your tracks. Found your scent better than any dog I've ever seen." Sloan sounded both pleased and irritated by the observation. "By the time I got to where you had been resting, you were gone. I followed the tracks up the trail and heard them as they were looking for you. Old Skinwalker was the smart one here and took flight when he heard those hornets and smelled smoke. Those idiots fell right into your clever little ambush. I simply waited by the stream for them to come to me. Well done, by the way. The bullets were a nice touch."
"Why, thank you!" Blair sounded genuinely surprised by his praise. She turned towards the men, "My, those stings look painful. Perhaps you will think twice before you doubt the intelligence of a city woman. Where is your friend?"
"You killed him, you whore! Next time, I swear …"
"Do not call my wife a whore." Sloan leveled his gun in the man's face.
"She ain't your wife, Ranger," Old Joe spat, "and if she was, I would take pity on you. The shrew doesn't stop naggin' for a minute. I have never heard anyone complain like she does. You can have her."
"They said Grandfather Malcolm is responsible for the problems going on in Manitou, Sloan," Blair said. She shared the story, watching his handsome face draw into a frown. "They say he is essentially bankrupt, due to gambling and drinking. What are we going to do?"
"We are not going to do anything. We are just about another week from town, and I will take care of things."
"You fool," the bound man said, "Malcolm owns the law in that town. You don't have a chance."
"How can he own the law if he's broke? Your stories aren't linin' up, mister. Either you are lying or someone is telling you a tall tale."
"Ain't no one lyin'!"
"So you are doing this for free? Just to have a woman? Why bring along your men, unless you plan on sharing her? There are much easier ways to obtain a gal. Ways that won't get you killed."
"You know nothing, Ranger. Old Joe is gonna sell her for ransom to her aunt," the other man said.
"My aunt threw me away without so much as a goodbye, you idiots. You have wasted your time in dreaming of wealth," Blair spat.
Sloan studied the two for a minute. "Blair? Do you think you can keep these men here while I get some help? I might be gone over a few days."
"Certainly. I can just throw some pouches of water on them if they mess t
hemselves," Blair said crudely, her arms crossed. "And it is easy enough to feed them from a stick."
Sloan nodded, finally approaching her. He grabbed her hair and pulled her head back to crush her lips to his. "When this is all done, I am going to blister your back end for taking off like that," he whispered, "and then I am going to make love to you until you beg me to stop. Don't you ever frighten me like this again."
"You shall not do either deed, Mr. Adkins."
He ignored her, engulfing her lips again. "And after, I am going to marry you. You are mine, Blair. I will not ever allow another man to taste you."
"I have not consented to wed you."
"I am not concerned about your consent right now. As soon as we get into town, I will have a Justice of the Peace marry us."
"I still have not consented to marry you," Blair whispered into his mouth as he bruised her lips again with another hungry kiss."
"You will. You have plenty of bullets," he handed her one of the kidnapper's revolvers, "Why don't you practice a bit while I have a nice talk with our friends here. It would be good to give them something to think about while I am gone."
"Got a whiskey bottle?" Blair asked, accepting the gun with a sardonic smile. "I can pretend that scrawny bottle neck is one of these filthy cocks that I was threatened with."
Sloan's eyes narrowed. "If any of them touched you, say the word and they are dead."
"They never had the opportunity, as I explained. But there certainly were several suggestive comments and explicit descriptions being shared among them as to what should be done with my body."
"She lies, Ranger! We never said nothin'!"
"Before I go," Sloan squatted before the two, his revolver aimed straight for the leader's crotch, "I want to know everything you can tell me about Blue Sky Ranch and old Malcom Farbor's activities. Don't leave anything out, boys. I am not in the mood to play right now."
The bound men cringed as Blair pulled the trigger and the tip of the whiskey bottle blew clean off.
"She is becoming quite a shot, isn't she?" Sloan said, with pride. "I would hate to see what she would do to your balls if you make her angry. Particularly in her frame of mind right now."
The men began to spill the information quickly after Blair's bullet hit the base of the bottle's neck. Content, Sloan stood up and pulled Blair to him once again.
"Be careful, love. And do not let them talk you into releasing them, got it?"
"Return quickly. And be safe," Blair requested, gazing at him with a hint of demureness.
"I will. I'll take one of their horses. Release Skinwalker from his bridle."
"Won't he run away?"
"I doubt it. He watches you carefully. But if he does, allow him his freedom. He has earned it."
Blair nodded and fought back tears as Sloan trotted away on one the outlaw's horses. She approached Skinwalker, aware of the hate-filled eyes following her every move.
"Please, stay close to me," she whispered into his ear, and she slipped the bridle from his head. She repeated a phrase that Sloan had taught her about the Cherokee's beliefs in the afterlife. "Thank you for protecting me. The curse is broken and no debt is owed. Your spirit is clean of guilt now and may rest with your ancestors. Be free, my friend."
The horse whinnied, shaking his head and stomping the ground. He trotted out of the campsite before Blair had a moment to say her goodbye.
One man spit on the ground." Guess your little pony didn't like you anymore than we do."
"Just because you can't see him does not mean he is gone. The Cherokee believe him to be a skinwalker. That means he is able to take on any form, including that of a rattlesnake."
The men turned to the sound of shallow, hollow clatters coming from a large diamondback just three feet from where they were tied.
"Shoot it! For God's sake, shoot it!" the men begged as the snake slithered closer to them.
Blair leaned back against the rocks, unbothered. "If that is the skinwalker, why would I want to kill it? Maybe he is still protecting me after all."
Tears ran from the men's eyes as the snake crawled across their boots, seeking warmth in the slowly departing day. Movement in the corner of her eye caught Blair's attention, and her heart leapt with joy. Skinwalker!
"I will take pity on you," she said, calmly lifting a long, dry branch and using it to hook the snake's body and lift it away from her captives. She dispatched the rattler after putting it down in a clearing. "I am only doing this because I don't care to have a reptile in my bedroll. I hope you're hungry. We are having snake for dinner."
Chapter 9
Sloan stood, satisfied, as the two men were hauled away, hands tied behind their backs. He turned to Blair. "I am sorry I was gone so long. Did they give you any trouble?"
"Not a bit. Skinwalker always managed to show up when they started becoming particularly nasty. Where did you find the sheriff?"
"I was heading down towards some outcrops when I saw the posse coming. The sheriff and I go back to when I was in Texas."
"You don't sound surprised. Is that unusual to know another lawman?"
"Not really. Bounty hunters move around quite a bit in these parts. Money is better when you are on the trail for criminals. They had been looking for those three for about a week. Apparently, they robbed the general store and left the proprietor tied up in the back while they liquored up. You were lucky, Miss Farbor. Very lucky. They could have easily harmed you, but for some reason, they were hesitant to take advantage."
"I was uncertain of their intentions when they first captured me. They had been watching our, uh, activities from downwind, using a spyglass. That was why Skinwalker never reacted to them; he never heard or smelled them. As for taking advantage of me, it was not difficult to discourage them."
Sloan rolled his eyes, "Outlaw voyeurs? What is this world coming to? Enlighten me, girl. Beside your endless chattering and annoying habits of nagging, what kept them from violating you?"
"I informed them that I was experiencing my monthlies."
Sloan's eyes lit up. "You are? Then we can …"
"I would say not!" Blair shuddered. "That is even more distasteful than the thought of you penetrating my bum. Are all men so disgusting?"
"There is nothing disgusting here. It is part of life. I will defer your punishment, however, until you are completed."
"You have no right to punish me. You provoked me to leave your sight, and you certainly were not concerned enough to come after me."
"I have every right to protect you as I see fit."
"You did not protect me. You ignored me. I am very angry with you," Blair declared. "Why did you not come after me?"
"Because I am a stubborn fool. I love you, Blair Lorraine Farbor. I want you to be my wife." Sloan announced. He pulled a ring out of his vest and kneeled before her. "I got this in the last town we went through, in hopes that this moment would come. I know it has been a rocky trail for us, but I want you as mine. Forever. Please do me the honor of marrying me."
Blair trembled as he slid the tiny silver band upon her finger and kissed her knuckles.
"It isn't much but I don't make a lot of money in my work. I promise that I will …" Sloan began.
"It is beautiful! Thank you, and yes. I give my consent for you to marry me," Blair interrupted, flinging her arms around his neck.
Sloan placed his finger on her lips to silence her. "I will make you happy, Blair. I promise to provide for you as best as I know how. I promise to be a better listener and find cause to praise you, rather than be quick to reprimand. I also promise to redden your backside each and every time you deserve it, and even sometimes for fun," he grinned.
"I do enjoy the fun times," Blair blushed prettily. "May I ask a favor of you?"
"Anything."
"Clean up that horrendous stench before we bed down for the night," she held her nose and waved in the direction of where the two men had been bound. "I am going to go clean up in the river."
"Take the horse with you. And don't wander off!"
Blair giggled. "Or what?"
Sloan winked. "Don't worry, darling. I won't forget these little moments of mischief. They will give me something to look forward to very shortly."
"Blair? Come look at this," Sloan called out, four days later. "Manitou Springs."
Blair stared at the tiny town from on top of a rock edge. The sun had started to sink into the horizon, and on the moonless night, the distant gas lights looked like they were nothing more than fireflies flickering in the far distance.
"How much longer?" she asked, wrapping her arm around his.
"We will be there by nightfall tomorrow. I am hoping the word got around about your grandfather's operation. I sent a wire to the Rangers station in Texas and warned them of the possible deception. They should notify the local officers."
"But those men said Grandfather Malcolm owned the law here. Everyone will know and make their escape!"
"Not if my boys step in. I have a strong feeling that those cowards just exposed the hide-out that we have been looking for."
"Sloan? Could we stay out here for just one more day before going into town?" Blair asked, stroking his arm while leaning against him. "There is a lovely little waterfall and a swimming hole around the bend that calls out to be enjoyed. It is only a few yards from the campsite and the path is clear of any rocks or thorns. We could camp there."
"Miss Blair," Sloan looked down at her and lifted her knuckles to his lips, "that sounds like a wonderful idea."
The fire crackled happily, throwing light against the red wall of the overhang that housed the pair. The buckskin Sloan had 'appropriated' from the outlaw was tethered to drink and graze quietly while Skinwalker roamed freely around the camp. He wandered to Blair, shoving her gently with his muzzle.
"There is something significantly wrong about that horse," Sloan commented, turning the spit of sizzling meat over the flames. "He refuses to leave you."
"He loves me," Blair cooed, rubbing the velvety hide. She kissed the bridge of the horse's nose, "He knows a good thing when he finds it."
Over the Barrel Page 10