by Smith, Bobbi
Rick met his eyes coolly. “I have not seen the gold yet. When I do, maybe then I’ll feel the need for a little excitement.” His words expressed his disdain at the outlaws’ heavy drinking and amorous use of Chica.
Malo nodded and held the bottle out to him, but Rick shook his head.
“I’m guarding the old man in another hour, and I want to be in complete control. I don’t want to risk losing him, now.” He glanced over to where Juan sat, bound hand and foot.
“He’s not going anywhere tonight,” Malo said and shrugged.
“That’s right and I want to keep it that way. There’s too much at stake here.”
“I agree and I’m glad you’re the one guarding him tonight. I know I can trust you to make sure that nothing happens to him.”
Rick smiled to himself at the truth of Malo’s words. “I plan on taking real good care of him.”
“Have you seen any sign of Apache?” He didn’t want anything to go wrong, not when he was so close to his goal.
“No,” Rick answered curtly. “Nothing yet.”
“Good and let’s hope it stays that way.” Walking away, his gait was unsteady as he drank again from the bottle of liquor.
Returning to his bedroll, Rick unrolled his blanket and then sat down and made himself comfortable to await the beginning of his turn at guard. He had had no opportunity to speak with Juan today, but he was certain that his grandfather had heard of Jennie’s flight. No doubt Juan was wondering what was going on and why Rick had disappeared for so long this morning. Resigned to waiting until the time was right to tell him the whole story, he settled back and tried to relax.
But Rick found no ease as his thoughts turned to Jennie: Where was she? How was she? Was she safe in her father’s protective care, as he hoped? Or was she wandering around the wastelands of these mountains, alone and afraid?
Giving up the search for her this morning was one of the hardest things he ever had to do in his life, and had it not been for the very real danger that Juan faced, he would probably still be looking for her. Rick had been convinced, though, that she had been hiding from him, not that she’d been hurt or injured, and it was only that belief that allowed him some modicum of peace.
Looking up, Rick saw Lucia join Malo. He felt confident, for the moment, that she would not tell Malo of his conversation with Juan. Rick had dealt with women like Lucia before, and he knew exactly how to play her. He didn’t relish the thought that he might have to have sex with her just to keep her quiet but, if he wanted to maintain his element of surprise, he would do whatever he had to do.
No matter how physically satisfying it would be for him, Rick still found the idea of joining with Lucia unappealing. Having tasted of Jennie’s love, he knew he wanted no other. And, he decided firmly in that instant, as soon as he was away from here with Juan he would find Jennie and make his peace with her.
Focusing once again on Juan, he noted the time. Then with professional expertise, he checked his sidearm to make sure that it was fully loaded before heading over to relieve Ramon from his post as Juan’s guard.
Luis had been watching Lucia’s every move since they had made camp, and though she had not, as yet, made any attempt to speak with Cazador alone, he felt certain that they had set up a rendezvous for later. He could hardly wait for the moment when he would lead Malo to where his woman and his top gun were making it. A sly grin split his swarthy features as he imagined the reward Malo would give him for the information. It bothered him some that Jennie had run away, but he knew he’d be able to buy a bunch of women with the money he was going to make from Malo.
“Ray.”
His partner looked up drunkenly from where he sat with a bottle of whiskey. “What do you want?”
“Help me keep an eye on old Cazador tonight. He seems mighty restless since that woman of his took off.”
Ray grinned stupidly. “We shoulda taken her while we had the chance. She sure was a looker.”
“Well, I want money more than I want her. You can always get women if you got gold, but you can’t always get gold if you got women,” he said convincingly.
“You speakin’ from experience?” Ray laughed and took another swallow.
“I am.” Luis smiled. “And I never intend to be in that situation again.
Lucia sat at Malo’s side, trying to gauge how much longer it would be before he passed out from the tequila. Though outwardly she presented the picture of the attentive lover who was caring for his every need, inwardly, she could hardly wait for him to fall asleep so she could safely go to Cazador.
Lucia had been caught totally by surprise when Chica had told her the news of Jennie’s escape. Delighted that the girl could be so stupid as to leave Cazador, she intended to take up where Jennie had left off. Tonight she would make him hers, and then tomorrow they would figure out a way to steal all the gold just for themselves. Lucia was sure that Cazador would like her idea, and she could hardly wait to tell him of her plan.
“What are you smiling about?” Malo demanded, his eyes sharp on her face in the darkness.
“I was only thinking about how rich we’re going to be tomorrow.” Lucia turned her full attention back to him before he grew more suspicious at her errant thoughts.
“That, I will.” He grinned.
Malo pulled her close for a sloppy possessive kiss and, though the thought of being with him almost made her sick, she submitted to his gropings without protest, knowing that soon she would be in the arms of the man she truly wanted.
Juan watched Rick’s approach, pleased that his grandson would again be his guard this night. The day had been a particularly troubled one for Juan, and he longed to speak with him and to be reassured that everything would indeed turn out all right.
Juan’s gaze went over Rick as he drew near, and he felt a swell of pride that he had turned out to be such a fine specimen of a man. Tall and lean, his gun worn low on his hip, his movements were confident and easy, reflecting the control he maintained over himself at all times.
Ramon saw Rick coming and was eager to join the other men in their celebration.
“It won’t be long now, will it?” Ramon greeted him with a greed-inspired smile.
“No,” Rick said, glancing down at his grandfather meaningfully. “It won’t be long, now.”
“Take good care of him, Cazador. He is priceless.” The desperado chuckled cynically at his own humor as he headed across the camp to where some of the others had gathered around Chica.
Rick waited until Ramon had joined them before speaking. “How are you?”
“Better, now that you are here,” Juan answered truthfully. “What happened this morning?”
“Jennie ran away sometime during the night,” he responded levelly, not allowing any emotion to reflect in his tone. “I went to look for her.”
“You didn’t find her?”
“Not a trace. Her tracks just stopped about a mile from the campsite.”
“You’re sure no one forced her to go?” Juan worried that one of the outlaws might have dragged her away against her will.
“No.” Rick frowned at the possibility. “She went of her own accord, and she took a canteen with her.”
“She is hoping that her father will find her?”
He nodded in response. “I’m sure she was deliberately hiding from me.”
“Maybe it is better this way.”
“Maybe,” he answered distantly, unable to rid himself of the haunting fear that somewhere, out in the oppressive darkness of the Arizona night, Jennie might be in trouble. “We will leave just before the end of my watch. I figure they’ll all be passed out by then, and I’ll only have to take the one lookout.”
Juan nodded in silent consideration, knowing how dangerous the next hours would be for them.
Midnight had long since come and gone when the revelry finally quieted. Most of the men had passed out, overcome by the amount of potent liquor they’d consumed, and even Chica had taken to the bottle
to ease the indignity of the outlaws’ constant degrading demands on her body. She lay now in a drunken stupor, thankfully anesthetized by the tequila’s heady spirits, while Pablo sought his release within the abused, bruised acceptance of her limp form.
As the hours of the night had slowly passed, Luis had watched the men as they had used Chica over and over again, and he had taken a perverted pleasure in the humiliating pain that had been inflicted on her. Unlike Malo, who on occasion showed some kindness toward women, Luis hated them all. He truly believed that they were all whores at heart and that they enjoyed the punishment that he dealt them.
Luis felt a stirring in his loins as he saw Pablo shudder in the throes of his climax, and he collapsed on top of Chica. Anger raced through him as he thought of how close he had come to having Jennie for his own. Once he had his share of the gold, he was going to go look for her and somehow find a way to get at her. Mac MaCaine or no Mac McCaine!
Luis watched with a shuddered expression as Pablo rolled wearily off Chica’s inert body and began to pull up his pants. As he staggered to his feet and lurched off into the darkness, Luis let his gaze fall upon Chica.
She lay spread-eagled and helpless on her blanket. The last thought sent a surge of desire through Luis, and his body demanded that he take her, knowing that she was powerless to resist anything he chose to do. He didn’t really want her. She was just a vessel to receive his wrath, and he rose from where he had been sitting with Ray, who was now asleep.
Stalking across to her bedroll, Luis stood over her, feeling at once excited and disgusted by the picture she made: her body glowing whitely in the night’s covering blackness. Bruises from the other men showed darkly on her breasts and thighs, and Luis was mesmerized as he knelt between her legs.
With hurtful hands, he reached out and pinched at her nipples, hoping to draw some response from her. When she moaned in drunken protest, he smiled wolfishly and lay fully upon her.
“Tell what you like, puta!” he rasped in her ear as his hands continued to torment her.
Chica stirred as the pain became unbearable. “No,” she groaned as his fingers dug into her tender flesh.
Twisting weakly, she tried to fight him off, but Luis was used to using force to get what he wanted. Grabbing her chin, he held her head still.
“Open your eyes, ramera!” he ordered, and his diabolical tone cut through her liquor-induced haze.
Chica stared up at him, terrified. She had never been with Luis before, but she had heard of his reputation. He was known for his cold, ruthless ways with women and more than one had died from his beastiality. The other men, while they did sometimes hurt her, never intentionally set out to cause injury; but Luis was different.
“No, Luis, please, no,” she pleaded, her eyes wide and glazed with horror.
“I like to hear you plead, Chica.” He laughed low, as he bit at her neck. “Beg me to stop. Maybe, I will.”
Biting her lip, she tried to lay unmoving beneath him, but his touch was so manipulative that her body began to respond to him.
Luis smiled to himself as he felt her begin to relax. It always pleased him to taunt women with sensual pleasure before he sought his own excitement in their pain. Though he was not tender with Chica, he did know exactly where to caress her to arouse her sufficiently, and he dipped his head to suck at her nipples, so sensitive now from his earlier cruel assault.
When her hips began to move invitingly against his, he drew away from her and, without speaking, slapped her twice, as hard as he could, rocking her head back and forth with the force of his blows.
“Puta! Whore!” he seethed as he positioned her legs to receive him. Letting his pants down, he plunged mercilessly within her.
She was barely conscious, and her groans of agony only aroused him all the more as he thrust rapidly against her. When he reached his peak of pleasure, Luis did not allow himself to collapse atop her; instead, he pulled back and quickly fastened his clothes. Taking one last look at her bruised and swollen face, he got up and walked calmly away, his only regret being that Chica had not been Jennie.
Rick stood his ground, barely in control. The viciousness of Luis’s attack on Chica had stunned him, and he was filled with the terrible need to kill the outlaw. After witnessing the way Luis treated women, Rick was relieved that he’d saved Jennie from him, for falling prey to Luis would certainly have been a fate worse than death.
Eager to be free of Malo and his men, Rick looked down at his grandfather who had also been aware of the assault.
“Men like Luis need to be killed,” Rick told him in low, determined tones.
Juan nodded. “A man does not mistreat women. Luis is little more than an animal.”
“They all are,” Rick acknowledged bitterly. “Vicious human animals, and they are far more dangerous than any of the creatures in the wild. Wild animals kill only to survive. Men like these kill and maim strictly for the enjoyment of it.”
They exchanged a knowing look as Rick moved a distance away to resume his position as guard.
Lucia glanced over to where Chica lay unmoving on her bed. Carefully extracting herself from Malo’s side, she took a canteen and hurried to her friend’s side.
“Chica.” Her words were hushed and filled with worry as she bathed her face with the cool water.
“Lucia,” Chica managed in a croaking whisper, “he hurt me.”
“I know, I know.” Lucia’s voice was hard as she gazed down at her.
Chica’s cheeks bore the imprint of Luis’s rage, and her lip had been split by the force of his blows. Vivid purple bruises covered her breasts, and there were bite marks on the side of her neck.
“Help me dress,” she whispered through swollen lips as she tried to sit up. A violent pain tore through her midsection, and she fell back in agony as Lucia noticed for the first time the blood that seeped ominously from between her thighs.
“Chica! You’re bleeding.” Lucia was frightened.
“I’ll be all right. Just give me my blouse. I want to get dressed.”
With Lucia’s help, she managed to pull on the loose-fitting garment.
“Is there any tequila left in that bottle?” Chica pointed to a discarded bottle.
Hurrying to get it for her, she found it was almost half full, and she handed it to her.
“Thanks.” Chica maneuvered herself upright with Lucia’s help and then drank quickly of the tequila, almost draining the bottle completely. “Give me my skirt,” she said as she managed to stay sitting up by herself. “Someday ...”
“Someday, what?” Lucia asked worriedly.
“Someday I will see that man in hell” She spoke the words so calmly and with such effect that a chill ran down Lucia’s spine.
“It is where he belongs,” she said.
There was a silence between them as Chica slowly got to her feet. “I’ll be back.”
Knowing that Chica wanted and needed to be alone, Lucia watched her painful progress from the camp. When her friend had disappeared from sight, she returned to Malo’s side and tried to rest, but a strange sense of danger seemed to hang over the encampment. Lucia tried to dismiss the feeling as just her own nervous reaction to Luis’s brutality and the excitement of the reaching the gold mine tomorrow, but somehow her instincts told her it was more than that. Determined to use even greater caution when she approached Cazador tonight, she settled back on her blanket to wait for the safest moment to search him out.
Chapter Eighteen
It was over an hour later when Lucia finally felt it was safe enough to pursue Cazador. She had seen Chica return to her bed and fall quickly into an exhausted slumber and Luis, too, appeared to be sleeping soundly. Stealthily, she rose and tiptoed quietly from the camp, unaware of the evil, slitted eyes that watched her go.
Rick had hoped he and Juan could make their escape without having to deal with Lucia, but when he saw her creep away from Malo’s side, he knew it would be impossible to avoid the upcoming confrontation with
her. Pondering the situation, he tried to decide the best way to handle her.
There was no doubt in his mind that she fully intended for him to make love to her, and Rick found the prospect profoundly disturbing. Not that he considered Lucia unattractive for he actually thought her quite pretty in an earthy sort of way; it was just that Jennie was the only woman he really desired. He frowned as he contemplated the thought.
Juan saw Rick frown and wondered at the cause.
“What is wrong?” he questioned softly.
“Nothing,” Rick denied hurriedly, not quite ready to discuss his feelings. Kneeling before Juan, he untied his bonds and took one of the lengths of rope. “Don’t move. We want to make it look like you’re still tied up. I’ll be back in just a few minutes.”
Stuffing the rope into his back pocket, he stood up and disappeared into the darkness in search of Lucia. She was waiting for him only a short distance away, and Rick had no trouble finding her.
“I had hoped that you would see me leave,” she purred. “And come to me willingly.”
Lucia was afire with her desire for him; Malo’s lovemaking had, as always, left her unfulfilled, and she was burning with the need to be taken by a real man—by Cazador.
Her eyes went over him hungrily, taking in the breadth of his wide shoulders and the narrowness of his hips. She found him so magnificent that she could hardly wait to see him naked again. Gazing up at him, she searched his face for some sign of emotion, but his expression was inscrutable, his eyes almost cold as they regarded her.
Lucia’s heart sank as she realize that he was not feeling the same excitement she was, but the knowledge did not dim her passion. Reaching out to him, she slid her hands up his chest to toy with the top button on his shirt.
“I have been thinking about this moment since last night,” she told him huskily as she began to unbutton it.
Rick stood rigidly before Lucia, waiting for the right time to make his move. Though her caresses and words were erotic enough, they left him unaroused. He wanted no woman but Jennie. He needed no woman but Jennie.