Surrender to Love

by Julia Templeton

  After watching the half-breed to the count of five hundred, Jordan couldn't stand it anymore and put a finger to her lips warning silence, then motioned for Kari to follow her. Taking a peek out the teepee, she saw several women off in the distance, busy cooking over a small fire, but no one standing guard. She motioned for Kari to follow while her gaze was riveted on the women outside, hoping they kept busy enough that they wouldn't see she and Kari trying to escape. "Kari." Glancing over her shoulder, she moaned inwardly, seeing the Indian was fully awake and holding onto Kari's wrist.

  Letting the flap fall back into place, Jordan took a step toward their captor, who still held Kari. "We just need to relieve ourselves." Ignoring his look of disbelief, she let out a sigh. "Listen, we have to go...do natures calling. If you could release her, we'll go, then come right back."

  He released Kari abruptly and took a step toward Jordan. "For future reference, I'm always aware of what's going on around me--always." His cold glare froze her to the spot. "You'll do well to remember that."

  When she opened her mouth to speak, he held up a hand to stop her. "Don't say a word, I've heard enough from you."

  Jordan planted her hands on her hips mocking him. "Good, then let us go."

  Grabbing her by the arm, he pulled her out of the teepee.

  "Where are you taking me?" Jordan snapped, trying to pull free of his iron-like grip.

  "You said you needed to relieve yourself." He pushed her toward the brush. "Then do it."

  She stared at him as he scowled at her, then looked toward the shrubs that could hardly be called cover. "I will not." She crossed her arms over her chest. "You cannot expect me to go in front of everyone."

  His mouth quirked in annoyance. "Fine, then I'll take you."

  "Take me? You don't mean what I think you mean--do you?" But even as the words left Jordan's mouth, she saw the look in his eye, and knew he meant to take her himself. As he came toward her, she held up her hand. "All right! We'll be right back," Jordan said between clenched teeth.

  Grabbing Kari's arm, they marched past the shrubs toward the thicker brush. "I hate him so much, I could kill him with my bare hands."

  "He'll probably kill us first," Kari said, sounding as tired as Jordan felt.

  Jordan glanced over her shoulder to see the object of her hatred watching them. His gray eyes narrowed skeptically as though he knew she was talking about him. "No, he won't," she said, turning her attention back to the trail that headed into a forest of trees and brush. Her heart hammered as she kept going, ignoring twigs and limbs that pulled at her legs, arms and hair.

  "Jordan, where are you going?"

  "We're getting out of here."

  "Now?"

  "Can you think of a better time? I'm not about to become anyone's dinner. You've heard the stories."

  Kari nodded, her eyes wide with terror.

  "Start running," Jordan said without hesitation, as she broke into a run, Kari at her side. Darting through the trees, the voices from the village faded, and as they drew deeper into the woods, hope fueled her steps. They were escaping!

  Jordan hated to think where they would go from here. There was nothing but the vast plains all around them. Two women on foot with no supplies would definitely be vulnerable. The fact they had no money to bargain with made things even more dire. But it was better than the alternative.

  A clearing was ahead, the sunshine streaming through the trees was like a beacon to freedom. Jordan smiled triumphantly at Kari as they raced toward it.

  But her smile faded as the unmistakable sound of footsteps pounded behind them. Chancing a quick glance behind her, Jordan's eyes widened in alarm seeing the half-breed running toward them, his expression clearly determined. There was no way they could outrun him. He was like an animal, quick and powerful, but Jordan wasn't about to give up. "Run Kari!" she yelled, dropping her cousin's hand.

  Picking up a rock, Jordan hurled it at the half-breed's head. It missed him completely, and he was close enough for her to see the whites of his eyes. The fury she read in the gray depths gave her pause.

  "Jordan, stop! This won't work. We'll never get away," Kari said, coming up from behind her.

  The Indian stopped a few feet away, close enough to reach out and grab Jordan, but he didn't.

  "Let us go," Jordan begged, her voice cracking with the plea. "We've done nothing to you or your people."

  He glanced down at her bruised wrists before meeting her gaze. For a moment she swore she saw remorse in his eyes, but it was gone a second later.

  "I can't," he said, having the audacity to sound sorry.

  Jordan took a step toward him and slapped him soundly across the cheek, her hand stinging from the contact. Annoyingly her captor hardly flinched. "You could if you wanted to," she said, before swinging again.

  He grabbed her wrist before she could strike again. The nerve in his jaw beat double-time as he stared at her through cold eyes. "I'm Gray Hawk, War Chief of my people. You'll be safe as long as you're with me. But I can't say the same if you were to belong to another. Accept your fate, for I will not warn you again. One more time, just once," he said lifting a single finger for emphasis. "And you will find that I can be ruthless if pushed. There are others here who would give anything to teach you a lesson in obedience. If you keep it up, I may just let them."

  Jordan kept her mouth shut, certain it would be a mistake to anger him further. But she did know one thing for sure--there was no way she would sit back and accept her fate as he called it. The Indians had changed her fate eleven years before when they'd killed her parents. They wouldn't ruin her life all over again. She and Kari were going to get out of the village alive and untouched.

  "Go," he said, motioning for them to precede him back to the camp as he followed behind in silence. Jordan dug her fingernails into her palms as she watched Kari wipe away tears. She glanced back at the half-breed--Gray Hawk. Maybe he would listen to reason. What could it hurt? She turned and he stopped, watching her with suspicious eyes.

  "What exactly do you intend to do with us?" she asked, lifting her chin a notch under his cool stare. "I have money if that's what you want. I'll give you anything."

  One black brow lifted, his gaze moved slowly down her body and up again. "Anything. Are you sure about that?"

  "Absolute--" The word died on her lips, suddenly realizing what he meant by anything. She bit her lip, sure that a response would only get her in more trouble.

  She turned and kept marching. By the time they reached the teepee, her anger was like a volcano boiling inside of her.

  He grabbed several bowls and handed them to her. "You will go with the other women and help prepare our meal."

  She stared at the bowls, refusing to take them. He wanted her to serve him? Her self-imposed silence exploded a second later and she replied coolly, "I will not be your slave."

  A nerve ticked in his jaw, and he pressed the bowls into her hands. "You will do as I say."

  Jordan took the bowls from him with a curse. She followed behind Kari, then stopped in mid-step. Without considering the foolishness of her actions, Jordan turned and threw the bowls at his head.

  He caught one in his hand, but a loud crack filled the air as the other hit its mark. Her eyes widened in alarm seeing the stream of blood run down the side of his face.

  "Jordan!" Kari gasped in disbelief.

  Jordan stood completely still, horrified at what she'd done, but was unable to do anything as Gray Hawk put a hand to his bleeding temple. His gaze moved from her to the bowl in his hand, then to the ones scattered at his feet before returning to her once again.

  Jordan swallowed hard, watching with a sense of doom as his gray eyes darkened like angry thunderclouds.

  Kari went to pick up the bowls, but Gray Hawk shook his head, giving her a silent order to leave them alone.

  Do not be afraid. Do not be afraid, Jordan told herself over and over, hoping she appeared less terrified than she felt. Lifting her chin, she put
her hands on her hips. "I told you I wasn't going to be your squaw."

  He took a step toward her. She took one back.

  "Pick up the bowl, Jordan."

  Hearing her name from his lips was unsettling. Maybe it was because he sounded like any other white man, instead of a savage. Well, it didn't matter who he was...she wouldn't serve him. After all, she hadn't escaped one man only to become a slave to another. Glancing at the dish at his feet, she shook her head. "No, I will not."

  "Yes, you will," he said through clenched teeth.

  Her pulse began to beat erratically at the threatening tone in his deep voice. His dark face set in a vicious expression, he grabbed a length of rawhide, obviously intent on binding her again.

  "Oh, all right," she hissed as she bent and picked up the bowls. "I'll cook your damn dinner!

  Chapter 4

  JORDAN GLARED at the brave whose duty it was to watch her and Kari while Gray Hawk was off hunting, or doing whatever it was he and all those other warriors did all day. It seemed to her that the women did all the work, while the men played.

  "I hate this!" she shouted in frustration, scrubbing Gray Hawk's breeches with a vengeance. How she detested doing laundry, and having to do Gray Hawk's made her despise it that much more.

  Although it was only the sixth day of their captivity, Jordan felt as though she and Kari had been in the village forever. Since coming to the camp, a good night's sleep had eluded her, and her mood was suffering because of it.

  Things had been relatively easy for them the first few days when Gray Hawk had left to retrieve the bodies of his aunt and her friend. But upon his return, he worked them to the point of exhaustion.

  "Things could be worse."

  Jordan turned to Kari, her brow furrowed into a frown, wondering if she heard her correctly. "How in the world could it be any worse?"

  "Well, he could have tortured us, raped us, or killed us by now. Plus, we've been here for almost a week, and you have to admit, he's treated us better than expected."

  Kari did have a point, but the fact remained they were captives, slaving for a man they didn't know, and quite frankly, Jordan couldn't stand. It didn't matter that she found him strangely attractive. She hated his arrogance and the way his gray stare followed her wherever she went, as though she were his possession.

  "If being tied to the ass-end of a horse isn't torture, I don't know what is," Jordan muttered, beating the leather against a rock. "Look at my wrists...I'm scarred for life!"

  "Jordan, you'll destroy those pants if you keep doing that."

  "Good," she replied with a satisfied smile, giving them another hard slap.

  The brave watched her, his stone-cold expression still in place, his eyes narrowed in warning. He wasn't much older than her, and Jordan had considered using her feminine charms on him, but knew it was probably useless since he was loyal to Gray Hawk. The boy followed the older warrior around like a puppy.

  "And you must admit that Gray Hawk seems like a well-respected member of the tribe," Kari said with something akin to pride in her voice. "From what Tawanka says, he is the bravest of all their warriors."

  Jordan rolled her eyes. Obviously their captor had charmed Kari into believing he was something other than what he was. "Don't forget that my parents were killed by savages just like him. If you expect me to defend him, I won't. I want to get as far away from him as I possibly can."

  Kari opened her mouth, but hesitated a moment before saying, "Tawanka says he took us to replace the loss of his aunt and her friend. Apparently the last white captive who was taken by the tribe was Gray Hawk's mother. She was just about our age, traveling with her husband when he died along the trail. Gray Hawk's father found her, brought her to the village, and in time they fell in love. He married her and they seemed happy. Yet after she had Gray Hawk, she missed the life she once led so much that one night she escaped. His father was completely devastated. I guess she didn't say goodbye to anyone, not even Gray Hawk."

  "You'd think they would have found her?" Jordan said, fighting off the momentary sympathy she felt for her captor.

  "I guess he didn't even go after her."

  Although Jordan felt bad for the boy who had lost his mother, she could certainly understand why his mother had left. Being away from civilization all those years would be horrible. Jordan shivered at the thought. Days in captivity was bad enough, but years away was too much to even comprehend.

  Surely Gray Hawk didn't intend to keep them here forever. But what did she really know about him? Their captor always kept her guessing. He was so mysterious, and if there was one thing that truly irritated her, it was his behavior toward Kari, versus his behavior with her. With Kari he smiled easily and seemed relaxed. But when it came to Jordan, she realized he hated her because he never smiled, and when he did talk to her, his voice was gruff and clipped as though he was constantly irritated with her.

  She refused to think that the feeling consuming her might be jealousy, yet every time Gray Hawk flashed Kari one of his rare smiles, Jordan felt compelled to slap him. And even more frustrating was the fact that more and more she found herself looking for him, and then there was the way her heart raced and she felt all flushed when he was around. It was disconcerting to say the least--particularly since she'd never felt that way for anyone else, most of all, an Indian.

  A splash of cold water hit Jordan in the face, bringing her out of her musings. "Come on, don't be so serious all the time."

  Jordan wiped the water from her eyes and turned to Kari, who was grinning at her. "How can you be so content? I don't understand it?"

  Kari shrugged. "What good does it do to be miserable?"

  Her cousin was faring far better than she was. The people took to Kari's easy nature quickly, and conversed with her through the help of Gray Hawk, or Tawanka, the medicine woman. Not so with Jordan. As if she carried some deadly disease, they avoided her at all cost. Not that she cared. She didn't want anything from them since they were the source of all her despair.

  "Oh no, here comes Running Deer."

  Jordan glanced up to find Gray Hawk's woman, the one who attacked her, and two of her friends coming toward them, their expressions devious. Running Deer stopped to talk to the brave, flirting, giggling, her fingers toying with his braid before letting it go. A moment later the young man left.

  "I don't like this," Kari said under her breath.

  "It's all right," Jordan replied, hoping she sounded more confident than she felt. After all, Running Deer's friends were big women, and Kari would be useless when it came to fighting.

  Running Deer approached Kari first, a sly smile on her lips. Jordan tensed as Running Deer touched Kari's hair, then suddenly the smile disappeared and she yanked so hard, she pulled Kari to the ground.

  Jordan saw red.

  With a lunge, she was on the woman, sending her crashing to the ground. Straddling Running Deer's hips, Jordan jerked her hair with one hand, while trying to hold off her claws with the other.

  Running Deer's horrific cry pierced the air, making the hair on the back of Jordan's neck stand on end. Realizing too late the woman's intentions, Jordan couldn't duck away from the clasped fists that connected with her jaw in a bone-jarring crack.

  Shaking her head to clear the fog and dizziness, Jordan swung at the woman, her fist slamming hard into the side of the Indian's face. She was elated with the stunning blow, but Running Deer was already swinging back in retaliation. Jordan turned just in time, avoiding the punch.

  Jordan's eyes widened seeing Running Deer had a wicked looking knife. Screaming at the top of her lungs, Kari knocked the knife from her hand, giving Jordan the edge she needed. Her fingers enclosed around the woman's neck. As she pressed tighter, her anger controlled any and all reasoning. It seemed it was a stranger's hands and not her own strangling the woman. She could hear Kari's pleas for her to stop and as Running Deer's dark skin began to turn purple and her eyes began rolling back in her head, Jordan's fingers relaxed
slightly. Suddenly, just beyond the mass of Running Deer's black hair, there appeared a pair of large feet. She knew before glancing up who they belonged to.

  GRAY HAWK let out an exasperated breath as Jordan glanced up at him with wild eyes. Why was it she was constantly finding trouble?

  He reached out and lifted her abruptly to her feet. Instantly she lifted her chin and met his gaze without so much as blinking. Strangely he was impressed by her stubbornness, even though she was taking it to the extreme.

  Running Deer came quickly to her feet, holding her jaw.

  He knew the woman was jealous of Jordan and Kari. She had been from the moment he'd returned to the village, though she really had no reason to be. They had been lovers for a short while, but that's all they would ever be. When he went on long hunts, he knew she kept her body warm with another, and that thought never bothered him. But her behavior toward his captives did.

  Jordan glanced over at Running Deer, her eyes narrowed, looking as though she'd love to take up where she'd left off.

  When she took a step in that direction, Gray Hawk picked her up and threw her over his shoulder. With a curse, she jabbed her knee into his stomach. He caught his breath and landed a stiff hand to her rump. A smile came to his mouth when she didn't flinch, or even dare move after that.

  "I hate you," she said through clenched teeth.

  "The feeling's mutual."

  "Put me down you bastard!"

  He abruptly dropped her to her feet, and lifted her chin with his hand until she was forced to look directly into his eyes. "You have caused nothing but trouble since the day you came here. Do you want to belong to another? If that's what you want, it can be done. You have embarrassed and humiliated me more times than I can count. By acting this way, you are condemning yourself to a more agonizing fate than being my captive."

  "I did nothing...she...that." She pointed in Running Deer's direction. "Forget it, I don't know why I even waste my breath. You never listen!"