Devils on Horseback: Nate

by Beth Williamson

  Without forethought, Nate brought his right hand to his mouth, the hand that had been pleasuring her, and sniffed. Her scent washed over him and damned if all the blood didn’t pool in his nether regions again. Just to torture himself, he licked his finger and her taste coated his tongue.

  “Shit, shit, shit.” He jumped into the one foot deep stream and rubbed himself raw with the sand from the bottom, washing away any trace of Elisa Taggert from his skin.

  Too bad he couldn’t erase her from his memory. She’d taken up residence and it didn’t seem likely she would leave anytime soon.

  After drying himself off with his shirt, he dressed in his remaining clothes and went back to the camp. Gideon eyed his bare chest with raised brows, but said nothing. Zeke gestured for him to sit. Lee and Jake were nowhere to be found.

  “Did the talking work?” Gideon asked.

  Nate shook his head. “No, not a whit.” Thank God Gideon didn’t know exactly what had worked.

  “I figured as much. I think we’ve got a plan.” Gideon gestured to Zeke. “Listen to what he has to say.”

  Nate turned to Zeke, his stomach clenching at the thought of facing Elisa again.

  “I’ve got Lee and Jake doing reconnaissance to verify my theory, but I think this will work.” He drew a circle in the dirt with a stick. “Here’s the Taggert ranch, approximately fifty acres. The cattle are here.” A smaller circle within the first. “The house is here.” A square within the larger circle. “The tree line is here.” A bunch of squiggles above the square.

  “That sounds correct from what I remember.”

  “Me too. Your Elisa surprised us from here.”

  As Zeke pointed at the squiggles with the stick, Nate’s stomach tightened so hard, he thought he’d be sick.

  Your Elisa.

  “There must be a path from behind the house to the trees. Something hidden and known only to the Taggerts. If we find that path, we can surprise them and take either the old man or the boy.” Zeke’s brown gaze met Nate’s. “Your Elisa then has no choice but to agree.”

  Your Elisa.

  “Stop calling her that. She’s not my Elisa, no matter what happened.”

  “What do you mean no matter what happened? I thought you said she only kissed you.”

  Damn Gideon and his perceptive mind. Nate searched for something intelligent to say.

  “What I mean is, she’s not, nor will ever be, my Elisa. Now let’s focus on successfully completing this mission and not on the girl.”

  “Agreed. Now the key is going to be timing. I believe they take twelve hour shifts watching the herd. I doubt the old man gets on a horse anymore.” Zeke squinted at the horizon. “If we surprise them halfway through a shift, one will be asleep and the other unsuspecting.”

  It sounded like a marvelous plan, one that was sure to work. So why did Nate feel like a snake in the grass? It was an honest job, one that had been verified on paper.

  “Your Elisa is going to be a tough opponent to beat.”

  That did it. Nate’s sleeping temper exploded.

  “She’s a stubborn, ill-tempered, illiterate girl without the sense God gave a goose. That combined with our purpose here and her personal hygiene habits are a sure bet that Elisa Taggert is not my kind of woman. I don’t like her, nor will I ever like her. She’s beneath me.” Nate didn’t mean a damn word of what he said but it all tumbled out of his mouth like a black cloud. “We’ll do well to finish this job as quickly as possible and be away from Grayton, Texas.”

  A rustling was the only warning before a redheaded snarling beast exploded from the bushes, her pistol cocked and aimed at his head.

  “You’re a lousy excuse for a human being, Nathaniel Marchand. At least your friends have the courtesy to give me credit for being smart. You have no idea who I am or what I am, but you pass judgment like some preacher.” Her eyes glittered dangerously. “I should put a hole in your head this second for what you said about me especially after your cock was just inside me not thirty minutes ago. You bastard.”

  She smacked him on the side of the head with the pistol and the ringing felt like his death knell. God knows he deserved it.

  “You will not capture any of us, and you ain’t gonna make us leave the land my grandfather owned. I am a part of this dirt under your feet and have more right to it than Samuel O’Shea ever will. He stole the land from my mother while my da was away at war. However he did it, she ended up dead by her own hand while he told everyone she wanted her children to be safe in his care.”

  She laughed, a choked, mournful sound that made the hairs on Nate’s arms stand up.

  “His care? The first thing he did was try to kidnap me. I’ve kept him off my land for more than a year. If you think you and your friends can succeed where he’s failed, go ahead and try. I guarantee you that someone will be dead before it’s over.”

  Elisa smacked him again, and he felt a trickle of blood by his ear. He took it like a man accepting punishment for his sins, without protest or denial. He dared not look at Gideon and see the condemnation in his eyes.

  “Now you’ve got two choices, leave now or stay and be ready to go to war with the Taggerts.” She stepped back toward the trees, her gun still rock solid in her hand and aimed at Nate’s head. “If you were any kind of men you’d take the first choice.”

  “I’m sorry.” He said it without thinking. His heart squeezed painfully around the vicious, cruel words he’d spouted about her.

  Nate finally met her eyes and recoiled from the hurt and fury he saw in their blue depths.

  “Too little, too late, Frenchie. I hate you.”

  She was gone without a whisper of sound. The far-off echo of hoofbeats was the only indication that she’d left entirely. Nate was afraid to move, to breathe, for fear the world would come crashing on his head.

  “I’m not going to ask you anything, Nate, but I’m hoping you’ll be kind enough to tell us what the hell just happened.” Gideon’s voice permeated Nate’s pain-filled stupor.

  Nate took a shallow breath and realized his entire body trembled. He held up two fingers, asking for a precious snippet of time to regain control of himself. He thought it would be a good job, a new start for the Devils. Instead he’d plunged himself into a hell of his own making.

  “She’s not like any other woman I’ve ever met.”

  “That’s obvious. I’ve only seen you lose control once before, and I never expected it over a woman.” Gideon knew him better than anyone.

  “She’s strong, aggressive, outspoken and…she makes me feel alive, for the first time in a long time.” Nate knew Zeke and Gideon would both keep his confidence and he needed to tell someone how he felt. “I don’t know what happened, but somehow I ended up with her in my arms and my head buried so far up my ass I couldn’t even tell what day it was.”

  Gideon touched him on the shoulder. “She’s a powerful woman to have that kind of affect on you. Are you committed to the Devils?”

  “Yes, absolutely.” There would never be a question of that.

  “What about this job? It’s not too late to tell O’Shea no.” Gideon forced Nate to meet his gaze. “You’re hurting, I can see that, but I need to know that you’re with us on this job or we’ll move on.”

  Nate couldn’t possibly live with that. Turning down enough money to feed them for two years because he thought with his dick instead of his brain? It wouldn’t, just couldn’t, happen.

  “We’re going to finish this job, no matter what. I’ll keep my distance from E-Elisa.” Although he wasn’t prone to affection, Nate gave Gideon a quick hug. “You are my family, and my loyalty is to the four of you. Always.”

  Gideon looked up at Zeke who nodded.

  “We won’t tell Jake and Lee about this, but we’ll have to rethink our plan, especially considering she heard every word of it.” Gideon shoo
k his head. “She’s going to give some husband a hell of a ride.”

  Nate swallowed hard. If circumstances had been different, he’d never have met Elisa Taggert. If circumstances had been better, he might be the one marrying her.

  Captain Nessman rode up to the general store with his grudge firmly stuck in his craw. Those damn rebel bastards. They’d been telling the truth about working for O’Shea, but he’d been evasive as to what exactly they were doing for him.

  Nessman dismounted from his Army issue horse and cursed the stupid nag. They paid for greenbroke wild horses and got the bottom of the barrel. Stupid thing constantly tried to bite him. Two ladies walking down the street eyed him with concern until he smiled and tipped his hat.

  “Good morning, ladies.”

  They nodded and moved off, apparently unwilling to speak to an Army officer. Texas had, after all, fought for the Confederacy and resentment ran high and wide. He didn’t give a shit though. His quarry was the Devils.

  As soon as he stepped into the general store, he knew the owner was a man to be reasoned with. A mousy little man with beady eyes, he gave Nessman a toothy grin.

  “G’mornin’ to you, Captain.”

  “Same to you. Captain Elliot Nessman.” He held out his hand and was rewarded with a clammy, limp hand in return. Nessman extricated his hand from the other man’s grip quickly. “I was hoping you might be able to help me with something.”

  “Anything you need, sir. My name is Marvin Scofield and I own this establishment. I’d be happy to assist you.” The little man definitely knew how to butter his bread.

  Excellent news.

  “There’s a group of five men camped just outside town, apparently working for Mr. O’Shea.”

  “Oh, yes, I know one of them sir, a Mr. Marchand. I hung up his advertisement there.” Marvin pointed to the window. “Mr. O’Shea hired them right quick.”

  “Do you know what for?”

  “I think it was to get rid of the Taggerts.” Marvin shook his head. “Sad story actually.”

  “And who might the Taggerts be?” He was so close to catching the Devils, closer than he’d been in months. Nessman could almost taste victory.

  Elisa shook with rage and hurt. She’d never been on such a wild ride of emotions before. Damn Nate Marchand. Before he’d stepped into the store, her life had been hard, but bearable. Now it was on the verge of being hell on Earth.

  She rode like she was being chased, more than likely by her own conscience. Elisa had been the instigator, as usual, the one who found trouble no matter where it hid. She’d wanted to humiliate him, to make him regret ever agreeing to work for Samuel O’Shea.

  Instead, she’d fallen a little in love with him. He hadn’t given an inch of his pride, standing there buck naked. Truth was, he probably could have disarmed her easily but he hadn’t. She’d suspected he was a gentleman by the way he spoke and acted. However, the way he’d allowed her to hold her power had convinced her of that fact.

  Then she’d gone and done it again. Stepped from the frying pan into the fire…into his arms. And Lordy it was hot, hotter than the flames of Hades. She’d been scorched by it. Her body felt sore and still sizzled from the memory of the heat. For some strange reason, she’d wanted more, more of the magic she’d felt in Nate’s arms.

  Now she knew it had been a sham—a way for Nate to take control over her physically without actually putting her in chains. He’d thought her beneath him. Beneath! Just because she wasn’t book-learned or went to some fancy school didn’t mean she was beneath anyone.

  It hurt. It hurt bad. Enough to bring tears to her eyes, something she swore she wouldn’t ever do again after her mother died. Now here she was practically blubbering over a man who took her virginity. At least now she was spoiled goods and maybe no man would come sniffing after her. That’d suit her just fine. She didn’t need any man by her side.

  Elisa was strong. She’d stand alone and protect her family and land. Nate Marchand had no idea what he’d thrown away, but she’d show him. She’d show him good.

  The ride helped clear her head of the cobwebs of confusion that surrounded her. Nate and his friends were skilled, better than average, perhaps nearly unbeatable. Elisa would do her damnedest though. She rode out to Daniel, who looked about ready to fall asleep. It was no life for a fourteen-year-old boy, but he took the responsibility like a man.

  Elisa was proud of him, although if she dared said that to him, he’d probably blush and tell her to go to hell. He was Irish, after all.

  “What are you doing here?” he asked when she got closer.

  “I need to talk to you.” She reined up beside him and gazed over their precious herd. “Those five men O’Shea hired are plotting to kidnap you or Da to try to get me to give in. They already know a lot about us and what we’ve been doing so we need to change our ways for a bit.”

  He nodded. “I didn’t get a good look at them, but they seemed pretty big. Who are they?”

  “Ex-Johnny Rebs. I don’t know from where, but likely Alabama or maybe Georgia. I’m guessing they worked together in the war.”

  “That’d make them pretty fierce then, since they survived.” Daniel might be a boy but he was even smarter than Elisa.

  “You’re right. Since they survived together, they probably are very fierce. We’re just going to have to outwit them.” She reached over and grabbed his hand. “I need to know if you’re ready to try. We can take what we have and leave Grayton.”

  If Daniel said he didn’t want to fight, it would hurt, but Elisa would accept it. She didn’t want to fight alone, and without her family, it wasn’t worth the fight anyway.

  “I don’t want to give in to that bastard. Let’s fight, Lissy.”

  He looked so grown up at that moment, Elisa’s breath caught. She’d always thought of him as a boy, but she realized now that their life had turned him into a man early. Just as she’d grown into a woman too soon. Their childhoods had both been cut short.

  If she had anything to say about it, their lives wouldn’t be.

  The Devils finally agreed that a multi-pronged attack would work best. Since they outnumbered the Taggerts five to three, it would be easy to overwhelm them if the Devils each attacked from a different angle.

  Attacked seemed like a strong word to Nate, but since it was a battle of wills, it was appropriate.

  “What time will we do this?” Jake seemed so serious, so unlike himself. He must have sensed how grave the situation had become, even if he didn’t know the details.

  “Don’t we want darkness to cover us?” Lee appeared calm, for once.

  “No, not the dark,” Nate offered. “We don’t know our way around there well enough. The Taggerts grew up learning every nook and cranny of the land. We need to catch them by surprise.”

  “I agree.” Gideon rolled a cigarette as he stared into the fire. “What about at dawn?”

  “That’s what I would do.” Zeke snatched the cigarette from Gideon, then lit it with a burning stick from the flames. “They won’t be expecting it so soon either.”

  “You mean tomorrow?” Nate shouldn’t be surprised. They always acted quickly and decisively.

  “Yes, tomorrow.” Gideon put the stamp of approval on the plan, which meant it was now set in stone. “Ready to ride?”

  Those three words had been said and responded to so many dark times during the war. It was a splash of cold water on a warm night, a shock to Nate’s system.

  One by one, they all responded, as they always had.

  “Ready.”

  The rest of the night passed with everyone completing their preparatory tasks in silence. Nate had to stop himself more than once from telling Gideon that they shouldn’t proceed with the job. Things hadn’t gone too far yet, no blood had been shed.

  Except Elisa’s virginal blood. That was the reason he stopp
ed himself from speaking out. His reasons had everything to do with his feelings about Elisa, and nothing to do with whether they could or should succeed. War wasn’t about feelings, it was about victory.

  An hour before sunrise, they rode together until two miles from the Taggert land, then split up as intended. Nate easily found his way through the half-light to the trees behind the house. He was to be the bait for Elisa while the others focused on Daniel and Sean. Guilt gnawed at him, feeding on the conscience that had reared its ugly head.

  Patches of fog hung near the ground like a shroud. The humid air bathed his face, foretelling the heat of the day to come. A woodpecker tapped out a rhythm while the drone of a beehive buzzed in the distance. The sunrise couldn’t be far off.

  A mourning dove’s coo—Gideon’s signal to move—rang out in the early morning and Nate started toward his target. Bonne Chance picked his way across the forest floor, avoiding the stumps and fallen logs. There didn’t appear to be any bogs or water, which was lucky. He constantly scanned all movement around him, waiting, expecting Elisa.

  A rebel yell made Nate almost jump out of his saddle. Lee’s voice carried for at least half a mile, and he wouldn’t have let it loose unless he needed help. Nate kicked his horse into action and burst from the forest at a dead run. He released the snap on his holster, ready to pull his weapon if need be.

  As he rounded the corner by the house, he saw shadows grappling in the field next to the barn. He headed straight for them, hoping he’d arrived in time. As Bonne Chance came to a halt, Nate jumped off the horse and threw himself forward, anxious to help Lee.

  “No, you idiot! It’s a trap,” Lee snapped.

  Too late. Nate stepped right into it and it closed up tight behind him. Three of them, Lee, Nate and Jake were tangled in rope netting covered with some kind of sticky substance. His feet and arms felt heavy, weighted down by whatever that stubborn little cuss had put on the ropes.

  “What the hell did she do to us?” Lee punched out, clipping Nate on the jaw.

  “Don’t punch me, you idiot.” Nate tried to fight back, but got tangled even further.