Arizona Temptress

by Smith, Bobbi

  It suddenly occurred to him, as he stood there passively accepting Lucia’s exploring touch, that he was in love with Jennie. From the very beginning, Jennie had challenged, excited, and enthralled him as no other woman ever had. He thought of the first time they’d made love in the abandoned mine, and he realized that he had fallen in love with her then. The memory of Jennie’s virginal surrender that day sent a flow of sensual excitement through him, and Rick vowed that as soon as he could, he would go back to find her and make her his own.

  Lucia felt the response in Cazador’s taut body, and she smiled up at him as she ran a bold hand over his hardness. “So, you’re not as indifferent as you would like me to believe.”

  Rick wanted nothing more than to thrust Lucia away from him, but he knew his grandfather’s life depended on his seemingly willing cooperation with her during these next few minutes. He didn’t want to hurt Lucia, but he did need to subdue her. There could be no interference when they made their escape. Knowing that it was almost time for him to act, he took her in his arms and kissed her.

  Luis had observed Lucia’s secretive flight from Malo’s side and noted that Cazador had disappeard from his place near the old man. He felt a thrill of excitement, not unlike the sexual arousal he’d just achieved with Chica. Soon, he would be Malo’s most important ally for Cazador would be dead. A wide grin split his dark face and he waited long moments before going to rouse Malo. It would not do to find Lucia and Cazador too soon. When they did discover them, Luis wanted to be sure that they would be in the most revealing position possible.

  “Malo!” Luis hesitated touching the other outlaw while he slept for he knew of Malo’s tendency to shoot first and ask questions later.

  “What?” Malo grumbled, opening one bleary eye to glare at the fool who had dared to awaken him.

  “It’s important! There is something I must show you.”

  Sitting up quickly, aware of the urgency in the other man’s tone, he looked at Luis questioningly. “What is so important that you disturb my rest? Are there Indians?”

  “No, no Indians. Come with me, you have to see this,” Luis replied mysteriously, standing up to lead the way.

  “This had better be good, Luis, or I just might extract some payment from your hide!” he threatened menacingly as he followed him from the camp, furtively moving off into the night. As they stalked through the darkness, Luis drew his gun, just in case.

  Malo was totally unprepared for the sight that greeted him as they entered the small clearing. Cazdador and Lucia were sharing a heated embrace and, luckily for Rick, the tequila slowed Malo’s reaction time considerably.

  “Lucia?” Her name was wrenched from him as he started to draw his revolver.

  A chill of deadly intent curled up Rick’s spine, and in the time it took Malo to speak her name, Rick had whirled, pushed Lucia protectively behind him, and pulled his gun. The lightning speed of his draw amazed even Luis who got off only one poorly aimed shot before Rick’s blazing volley of return fire knocked the gun from his grasp. Firing with careful precision, Rick sent Malo and Luis scurrying for cover as he backed quickly away with Lucia.

  “Hurry. Get the old man, my saddlebags, and the rifles,” he ordered curtly over his shoulder, as his continued fusillade pinned the desperadoes behind some rocks.

  “Right.” Lucia was wide-eyed with terror and excitement as she raced to free Juan. She was surprised to see that he was already up and running toward them, carrying as many rifles and cartridge belts as he could manage.

  The sound of gunfire so close by their camp roused the other men, and they were looking around in drunken confusion as Lucia ran into their midst.

  “What’s going on?” they asked her as the men tried to strap on guns and get ready to fight the enemy, who, at this point, was unknown.

  “I don’t know, but they told me to get these.” Grabbing the saddlebags and other equipment, Lucia ran back to Cazador, proud of the presence of mind she had just displayed.

  Malo, realizing that his men were still drunk from their wild carousing, swore viciously under his breath.

  “Luis! We have to catch them before he can escape with Peralta! If they get away from us now, we’ll never find them again in these mountains!”

  “We’d better get back to guard the horses, then!”

  Manuevering their way back toward the encampment, Malo rallied the men and hurried to get more arms and ammunition.

  “We can’t let them get any horses!” he snarled, snatching up his rifle and cartridge belts. “Ramon! Pablo! Stay with them!”

  “What’s happened?” Ramon demanded.

  “It’s Cazador! He’s double-crossed us! He’s trying to get away with Peralta so he can have the gold all to himself! We’ve got to stop him!” Malo seethed as he loaded a rifle. “If you see the bastard, shoot him!” He ordered coldly.

  As Malo was busy getting his men together, Rick, Juan, and Lucia fled into the night, seeking the highest ground possible so they would have the advantage when it came time to fight. Scrambling up the steep, sandy incline, pausing only to help one another, they struggled ever onward. Rick was surprised by his grandfather’s agility.

  “I have surprised you, Ricardo?” Juan chuckled in breathless victory as they topped the ridge. “You were afraid I was too old, eh?”

  “Nothing you do surprises me anymore, abuelo,” Rick answered with warm affection.

  “Abuelo? Ricardo? You are El Cazador, are you not?” Lucia demanded in confusion as they rushed on through the darkness.

  “I will explain it all to you later, Lucia. For now, let us just concentrate on getting as far away from Malo as we can.”

  They stopped for a moment and fell silent, listening nervously for some indication of how close behind them the outlaws were. But only a deadly quiet assailed them, leaving them at once thankful and apprehensive.

  “Ricardo, do you know exactly where we are?”

  “I can’t be positive in the dark, but at sunup I’ll be able to tell for sure. By rights, we should be traveling in the opposite direction of the mine, which is just what I wanted to do. I want to lead those fools away from it. If we elude them tomorrow, we can double-back and go out through Willow Canyon.” Rick did not want to think about the possibility of making the trek on foot. Though he knew the location of the water holes, there was no way he could guarantee that they would be able to last the distance between them, walking.

  Lucia was stunned by his words. Cazador knew where the gold mine was? How could that be? Was the old man really his abuelo–his grandfather? And if so, who was he, really? Peralta had called him Ricardo. Lucia suddenly remembered some talk among the outlaws that the old man had had a grandson and that he’d been killed in the shootout at the ranch the day they had taken Juan captive. It all fit: the infamous El Cazador was none other than Ricardo Peralta and, contrary to what Malo believed, he was very much alive.

  She was amazed at Cazador’s cunning at having been able to infiltrate Malo’s camp and then win his trust. No doubt Malo would be furious at being so duped, and he would not rest until he’d exacted a terrible revenge. Unless, of course, Cazador managed to stop him first. Lucia was very much pleased with that possibility, and she determined to do everything in her power to help him.

  Chica stood in the midst of the camp’s chaos trying to find out what had happened. She had figured out that the old man had escaped, evidently aided by Cazador, but she had not seen any trace of Lucia, and she wondered where the other woman had gone in all the excitement.

  “Ramon!” Chica approached where he stood nervously safeguaring the horses. “Where is Lucia? I have not seen her.”

  Ramon looked at her sneeringly. “You mean she did not tell you of her plans?”

  “Plans? What plans?”

  “She went with Cazador. They took the old man with them, and they’ve fought their way out of camp, up into the mountains.”

  “She ran away with Cazador?” Chica was totally astou
nded.

  “What do you think all the shooting was about?”

  “I didn’t know. No one said anything.”

  “Well, she’s gone with them for now, but don’t worry. Malo will get your friend back and when he does ...” Ramon laughed in prurient pleasure. “I can’t wait to see what he decides to do with her.”

  Chica shuddered as she realized that Ramon was right: If Malo ever did catch up with Lucia, she would be far better off—dead. Making her way back to her bedroll, Chica sat down to wait. There was nothing she could do except to wish her friend good luck in her flight and pray that Malo never had the chance to wreak his vengeance upon her.

  Luis and Malo stood in the small clearing, trying to make out in which direction Cazador had gone.

  “I think we would be wise to wait for daylight. It is only a matter of a few more hours and then we will know for sure exactly where they went,” Luis suggested.

  Malo nodded, frustrated and angry. “You are right. We will follow them at first light.”

  At the thought of their traveling on foot in these mountains, Luis smiled. “Besides, on foot, they will be no match for us. They will be begging for us to rescue them in a day or so, especially if the weather stays hot.”

  “We must be careful when we fire not to hit the old man. If he dies, we lose everything,” Malo said. “We can take no chances with his life, but once we find the gold, then I will take great pleasure in seeing him torn limb from limb.”

  “I have learned many very effective tortures from the Apache,” the other man offered excitedly. “Some I have not yet had the opportunity to try.”

  “He will be all yours. Luis. And, maybe if we take Cazador alive, I will let you have him, too.”

  Sharing the love of the bloodlust, they smiled at each other in understanding before leading the men back to the encampment to plan their strategy.

  The brightening of the eastern sky was a thing of joy to Jennie. The darkness had seemed an unending nightmare for her, and she needed the reassuring bright warmth of the sun to hearten her.

  Throughout the sleepless hours of the night, she could have sworn that she’d heard gunfire, but the sound had been so faint and the winds had swirled it around her in such confusion that she had not been able to tell from which direction it had come. Whether it had been Malo and Cazador or, hopefully, the posse, that was coming after her, she had no way of knowing, but it left her determined to start trying to walk out of the mountains this morning. No longer could she afford to just sit and wait in the naive hope that her father would come. Her water supply was limited, and she had to move while she still had some left.

  Getting up from her rocky mattress, Jennie slung her canteen over her shoulder and started back down the hillside to the narrow, winding trail that they had followed on their way in.

  The talk among the posse was excited and expectant as the men hurried to break camp.

  “Did you hear that gunfire last night?”

  “Where did it come from?”

  “Got any idea of the direction?”

  Carrie listened to their conversations halfheartedly as she mechanically tightened the cinch on her saddle. She thought they were crazy to get so excited over the sound of a few echoing shots. Lord knows, they could have been made by anybody, not necessarily Jennie’s kidnappers.

  “Are you about ready to ride?” Todd’s deep tones fell upon her frazzled nerves like a soothing balm as he joined her, leading his own mount.

  “Yes, I’m all set.” She gave him a forced, artficially bright smile. “How’s your shoulder this morning?”

  “It’s doing just fine.” He flexed his rugged muscles for her.

  “What do you think about those shots we heard last night?”

  “I don’t know what to think. In these mountains it’s hard telling where they came from.”

  “I thought the same thing. But I guess it does give us something to go on.”

  Carrie hated making stupid small talk with Todd. She thought it was totally ridiculous that she had to stand there and try to think of impersonal, polite things to say, when all she really wanted to do was to throw herself into his arms and tell him how much she loved him. Determined not to betray her inner feelings when he obviously didn’t care deeply about her, she swung lightly up into the saddle.

  “I guess I’d better ride up and join Jake and Pa.” Putting her heels to her mount, she rode off toward where her father and brother stood talking with Steve.

  Todd watched her go, his eyes glued to the perfection of her slender body in those tight-fitting pants. He felt the beginnings of passion swell within him, and he fought it down with an effort. What was the matter with him? All night he’d lain awake, torn apart by his unceasing desire for Carrie. Why had she become such an obsession to him? He longed for her to be in his arms, naked against him. Startled by the direction of his thoughts, even now in broad daylight, he swore silently to himself as he brought his errant desire under control.

  Mounting his horse, Todd followed behind her, unwilling to let her completely out of his sight—and, he added to himself, his protection.

  Jennie was startled as the riders suddenly appeared at the top of the distant ridge and, instinctively, without waiting to see who it was, she dove for cover behind a clump of creosote bushes. Praying that it was her father, she shifted her position and stared in their direction. After taking a longer look, Jennie knew that they weren’t Indians and with that knowledge she breathed a heavy sigh of relief. Watching as they topped the rise and started down into the canyon heading in her direction, she suddenly recognized her father’s horse and with a spurt of joyous energy, she darted from her hiding place.

  “Pa! Pa!” She ran toward them, waving her arms excitedly.

  Mac saw her first and, spurring his horse to action, he raced toward her. “Jennie! Jennie, darling!”

  To Jennie it seemed an eternity before he reached her side, but when he did, he vaulted from the saddle and clasped her to his chest.

  “Thank God, you’re all right!” he sobbed as he cradled her close, hugging her tightly, and Jennie returned his embrace, feeling protected in the warm, familiarity of his arms.

  “I’m fine. And I’m so glad you’re here. I was so worried.” She was smiling and crying at the same time.

  Suddenly stern, Mac held her away from him. “You’re fine?”

  “I wasn’t injured,” Jennie hurried to explain, wiping childishly at her tears.

  “What happened? We don’t know much except what little Todd was able to tell us.”

  “Todd? Is he really all right? Did he come with you?” She looked back expectantly toward the posse, and she thrilled to see Jake and Todd riding at top speed in their direction.

  “He’s doing just fine,” Mac confirmed, still holding her tightly by the shoulders, not quite ready to release her yet. Frowning, he pressed once more. “But what about you? You’re really sure you’re all right?”

  With a gentle, reassuring hand she reached up to touch his cheek. “I’m really sure. In fact, now that you’re here, I couldn’t be better!” She hugged him tightly again.

  “Sweetheart, how’d you manage to get away?”

  “I escaped from their camp the night before last.”

  “And you’ve been hiding out ever since?”

  “I was sure that you’d come.”

  Mac gazed down into her upturned face, tracing the features he loved so dearly. God, but he was grateful to find her in one piece, and she said she was all right. But still—

  “Jennie, darling, are you sure you weren’t—injured?” Mac stammered.

  “No, Pa, really,” She quietly assured him just as Jake and Todd joined them.

  “Jennie!” They exclaimed in excited unison as they jumped down from their mounts and ran to embrace her.

  Jake got to her first, sweeping her from Mac’s arms and whirling her around. He didn’t speak until he’d set her back on her feet. “You’re all right?”

>   “Yes.” She laughed breathlessly as she turned to face Todd.

  Todd was standing silently by her side, his face taut with tension. Without speaking, Jennie left her brother and went to slip her arms around him.

  “I thought you were dead,” she choked out as she leaned against his massive chest, finding comfort there. “I thought they’d killed you.”

  Todd was finding it difficult to speak. The guilt he felt over her fate was enormous. He had been utterly useless to her when she’d needed him the most.

  “Jennie, I-”

  Jennie sensed that something was desperately wrong, and she stepped back to gaze up at him. “Todd, what’s the matter?”

  “I’m just thankful that you weren’t injured.” Suddenly, he held her close, his relief at having found her alive and in good health leaving him momentarily stunned. “I’m sorry, so sorry.”

  “What do you have to be sorry about?” she questioned, frowning as she looked up into his ruggedly endearing features.

  “It was all my fault. I wasn’t able to help you.”

  “That’s ridiculous!” Jennie protested quickly. “How could you have helped? You’d been so badly injured that I thought you were dead.”

  “I know but—” he tried to continue, to explain his feeling of uselessness, but Jennie hushed him.

  “There was nothing you could have done, Todd. There were three of them and they were well armed and very dangerous.”

  With deep, abiding tenderness, she pulled his head down for a gentle kiss and at the touch of her lips, his arms came around her, drawing her closely to him. Jennie relaxed in his supportive embrace, hoping to find in Todd’s touch that same spark of passion that Cazador had so easily ignited with just a caress. But, Todd’s kiss was not anything like Cazador’s; Todd’s was calm and warm and nice, just like he was. The feeling left her oddly unsettled. Could she be happy for the rest of her life with calm and warm and nice? The question haunted her for a moment until she pushed it from her mind. Of course she could, she told herself sternly. She had vowed to marry Todd and she would do it!