Run to Texas

by Stephy Smith

  A shudder sank to her bones. The eyes watched Mattie while she was outdoors in the garden or doing laundry. They grew stronger with each passing day. It seemed there were more of them now, staring at her all the time. No matter what she was doing outside, she couldn’t get away from the hidden eyes.

  Something wasn’t right. She turned to the woods more often during the day. She stayed far away from the edge of the trees. Mattie’s heart picked up a pace. A bone-jarring shiver ran from the top of her head to her feet. Someone was out to harm her, more than likely kill her, and that placed an enormous amount of pressure on her. She was so tired of being afraid she wanted to scream, ‘Just come get me. Let’s get this over with.’ Somehow, she stilled her tongue.

  Day after day, she lingered in the garden longer. Patiently she waited, until it was time to return to the house with freshly cut roses.

  “Mr. Parker?” Mattie had finished the chores.

  “Yes.”

  “I want to sit on the porch for a while. Would you listen for Rose?”

  “Mattie, I don’t think that’s a good idea. The shooter is out there, and we don’t know who she is after.” James’s hand rested on her shoulder. The sweet sensation ran down her.

  Mattie boldly gazed into his beautiful brown eyes. Her arms wrapped around his neck. His full lips crushed down on hers. He warmed her blood with his gentle but powerful kiss. She drank in the taste of his exploring tongue.

  His hand cupped the back of her neck. She tingled with excitement. His lips trailed to the hollow below her ear, kissing the small indention behind it. She melted in his strong arms. Her fingers fumbled as she entwined them in his hair. His rigid chest pressed against her as he pulled her deeper into his embrace.

  Her breaths became fast and erratic. Kiss after kiss, she floated on a foreign plane. She was light as an angel in his strong arms. Mattie needed to feel the security of his presence. She gripped him tightly, refusing to let him pull away this time.

  James closed his eyes and moaned. His hands wrapped in her hair. She brought her mouth back to his, catching his bottom lip between her teeth. The burning inferno blazed out of control. Her heart begged for his love. But Mattie couldn’t tell him. His knuckles imprinted trails across her cheeks as he gazed at her. She gasped at the desire she saw in the dark brown depths of his eyes. Her heart beat feverishly as he slipped his hand around her waist.

  Her passion rose deep inside her. The feel of his gentle touch sent exquisite shivers over her skin. She relished each moment as if it could be the last.

  She whispered close to his ear, “I need—” she let the sentence fall off. How could she tell him she needed him to love her when she didn’t know what she wanted for herself?

  James moaned and continued kissing her lips. She hugged him to her, crushing his lips with heated desire. She urged him to continue. Her tongue tasted the mintiness of his mouth. Mattie drank in the passion burning in his eyes.

  No matter what the killers did to her now, they couldn’t take this one moment with James away from her. Mattie tried to still the giggle erupting in her throat.

  James pushed back from her. “What is so funny?”

  “I didn’t know I could float among the stars when I went to paradise,” Mattie said. James reached to hold her. She stopped his hand. “I want to go outside and see how bright the stars are tonight. I have never been so close to catching a falling star before.”

  “I don’t think you should, Mattie. I want to hold you.” James’s eyes exhibited mischief and desire.

  “It’s been a month since Bagwell was killed. I work outside every single day. If the killer wanted me, they could have done something by now, don’t you think?” She gazed at James a moment and turned for the window.

  “We don’t know how this killer thinks. Mattie; you need to be careful. They may be learning your routine. You need to change it up.”

  “Oh, James, quit being such a worrywart. Ed went through Bagwell’s things and took them to his office. Whatever the killer wanted should have been there.”

  “I don’t like the idea of you being alone outside after dark. It’s not safe.” His stern voice turned low and disturbing.

  Waving him off, she traipsed out the door. The moon was full, shining like a big globe in the sky. A soft breeze rustled the leaves of big oaks surrounding the house.

  The smell of moisture filled her lungs, just as it had the first night she stepped from the stage. She stood taking in the beauty of the moonlit garden. She grabbed another breath and stepped from the porch.

  She turned to James, who stood at the door and smiled. She hadn’t told him the hair stood on the back of her neck. Cold ran through her at the feel of unseen eyes hidden in the shadows. Maybe it was a wild animal instead of killers.

  She turned and blew him a kiss, then reached up and pulled the ribbon from her hair. Nothing could take away the love she felt. Her hair fell in a cascade down her back in curls. Her skirt flared as she raised her arms and twirled. She smiled at the moon. Silently she willed whoever was watching to come and get her.

  James peered through the window. She glanced at him and waved. Her heart skipped a beat as he stood with the back glow of the lamp burning behind him. His silhouette stood prominent in the window. She resisted the urge to run to his strong arms. Unwavering, she reveled in the vision and knelt, clipping a few roses.

  The cloth covered her mouth and nose. The last time she looked, she saw James watching her from the window. Why wasn’t he coming to her rescue? She tried to scream, but instead her eyes closed to darkness, and the roses fell from her hand.

  ****

  James tended to his mother’s needs. Worried about Mattie, he rushed to watch out the window. He stepped to the porch, and panic washed over him. His steps were quick; he made his way through the yard. He closed his eyes and hoped she had returned to her room.

  He grabbed two steps at a time until he reached her door. There was no answer when he knocked. He opened the door to gut-wrenching silence. He stared at the sight in front of him.

  Mattie’s room was a mess. Her belongings were spread across the floor. The mattress hung halfway off the bed. Her window stood open, and drawers were pulled from the dressing table.

  James’s heart plummeted, and his stomach twisted in a tight knot. Anger swarmed deep into his soul, and he knew he had to find his auburn haired beauty.

  He ran down the hall and pounded on Ed’s door. His words were rushed and panic filled. James pulled Ed to Mattie’s room. Trembling with his fear of losing Mattie, James went outside to search again. He called her name in the darkness until he came upon the roses lying scattered on the grass.

  Gloom settled over him in a deep, dark cloud. He raised his head to the moon and whispered, “Where was she taken?”

  James knelt on the ground and picked up a rose. He twirled it between his thumb and finger. He searched for signs of her disappearance. He searched in the grass for footprints to follow. His mind reeled so fast he was losing sight of the things he needed to focus on. He stood and pulled himself back to the porch. He slumped in a chair until he could collect his mind and place his personal feelings aside.

  He went over everything that happened prior to and after her disappearance. He questioned himself.

  Was there any sign of danger he might have overlooked? She looked at ease before he went to check on his mother. She was twirling around like one of those dancing women performing on a stage back east. Did he miss something written on her face?

  James tossed the rose aside. He rested his face in his hands, rubbing his eyes. Her eyes haunted him. They showed some kind of mysterious shine. Could she have been calling out to the killers? He played the scene repeatedly in his mind.

  “So that’s what you were doing. You deliberately wanted to bring them out,” James whispered. If only she would have told him, he could have played along with her. He could have had Ed watch over his mother while he hid in the darkness to watch for the people respons
ible.

  The darkness of the night seemed to be endless. James waited on the porch, closing his eyes without sleep. He waited for the sun to peek out so he could begin tracking. He swore at himself.

  James ached to hold her if only for a second. He needed to kiss her soft lips, to smell her fresh rose scented hair, and hear her laughter linger in the air. His feelings stirred in his mind like a fire blazing out of control. If he could only…

  Ed came to stand beside James at the edge of the woods. James pointed to the tracks where the kidnappers dragged Mattie’s body. Threads of material hung on bushes that caught on the clothes of her abductors. He followed the signs until they reached the road, and the footprints ended.

  There were many sets of wagon and horse tracks, both coming and going, in the soft dirt. James sank down on a large boulder; he swore and tossed a pebble he worried between his fingers. He couldn’t stop the sinking feeling in his chest, and for the first time since his dad died, he honestly had to fight the tears clouding his vision.

  James turned to Ed. “I’m going to find her, if it’s the last thing I do on this earth.” His voice carried conviction and gave James the courage to continue.

  James charged to the stables to saddle his horse. Vowing not to return empty-handed, he asked Ed to tell his mother not to worry. He would be back, and he would have Mattie with him when he returned.

  Stepping into the stirrup, he lifted himself into the saddle, shook Ed’s hand, and rode out of town.

  ****

  Biting pain stung her face. She blinked her eyes to find the underlying cause, a blur of images floated above. The sting burned deep across her skin once more. Mattie struggled to bring her eyes fully opened. Mattie focused on a large hand flying in the air to make a connection with her vulnerable face.

  Mattie tried to rub the sting. Someone had tied her hands behind her back. Mattie sat in a chair in a tiny room. Nothing around her looked familiar. “Where am I?”

  “Shut up!” A dark haired man landed another blow to the hypersensitive welts on her cheek.

  There were others in the room with them. By the sound of their fits of giggles, they were having a pleasant discussion at her expense. An instinct to turn and look landed another blow to her raw, stinging cheek. The man rubbed his hands over his face and paced in front of her. He roughly grabbed her face and steadied it straight ahead.

  “Don’t look anywhere,” he said through clenched teeth. He tightened his grip, pinching her cheeks together.

  The pain turned into anger. If her cheeks hadn’t been pinched shut, Mattie would have spit in the man’s eye. Mattie withheld her tears, and the man shoved her head backwards and released it. He turned and stumbled to a crudely constructed table and picked up a bottle of chloroform. Dowsing a cloth, he covered her mouth and nose. Mattie fought the best she could for fresh air until her eyes shut under the unyielding hand.

  When she woke, she took her time opening her eyes. They felt like rocks weighted them shut. She needed to know how many people were here in the shabby cabin with her and the brute. She let her thoughts form and remembered she was no longer in her safe bed at the boarding house. Mattie would have to be careful since she was lost.

  Her swollen cheek puffed up under the slit in her burning eye. There didn’t seem to be anyone in the room with her so she raised her head. She was lying on a bed, her hands and feet tied. She glanced around freely to confirm no one else was in the room. A sliver of sunlight shone through a single shuttered window of the tiny log room imprisoning her. The kerosene lantern burned softly on a tiny table.

  Her sharp ears picked up the mumbling and laughing from behind the closed door. She was aware of an evil presence among her captors. Her heart pounded. She wiggled, fighting the restraints until her wrist burned raw. Stop the panic, Mattie. You must think with a clear mind. Give your captors time; they will tell you when it’s time to make a move.

  Things were looking bleak. How would she ever get out of this predicament? She heard a shuffling near the door. She closed her eyes to feign sleep when someone entered. The more she could gather from peeping through lashes, the better her chances to escape.

  The wooden door creaked. “She’s still sleeping,” a male voice blasted into the room. “How much of that stuff did you give her?” The door slammed shut.

  She could still hear the mumbling but was unable to make out the words. For a while, she could hear her heart beat. She glanced around the room.

  A plain, wooden chair sat to the side of the door. She suspected someone guarded her all night in case she woke.

  She was concentrating on how to make her escape. She lay helpless in the bed and continued to fight the ropes. The warmth of the life-sustaining blood pooling on the bed behind her stopped her attempts.

  The door opened, and a woman with brown hair and a low-cut dress appeared with two cups. She smelled of lilacs doused in alcohol. Her eyes were half closed. She staggered one way and then the other, finally righting herself. The liquid in the cups spilled over the edge.

  “Drink this.” The woman forced her head up for the hot broth. The woman placed the other cup containing cool water to her lips. She drank greedily, until the woman tired of holding the cup and jerked it away to leave the room. She let her head fall roughly to the hard, thin mattress.

  She didn’t recognize the dark haired woman who brought her the water. Although she suspected it was the Frazier woman. She had only heard of the Fraziers in Georgia. She had never done anything to the woman, and she couldn’t remember ever seeing her anywhere. She did match the description of Jane Howard’s friend.

  Whoever the woman was didn’t matter now, she reminded herself. An escape plan was the main priority. She really didn’t have time to think of who and why until she was free and safe in James’s arms again.

  James must be very upset.

  She scanned the room for anything to help her out of this situation. Unfortunately, there were no rough or sharp edges to help free her bonds. Her well thought out plan was thwarted. She tried working the ropes and failed to help relieve the tension on her wrist.

  The dark haired woman entered the room. Once again, she carried the two cups. “I need to relieve myself,” she whispered.

  The woman disappeared and returned with a bedpan. She placed it beneath Mattie’s body. “Do your business and be quick about it.” The woman scowled.

  The bitter taste of the broth collected on her tongue. She wanted to spit, but the woman would call the man in to slap her around again.

  The woman left little doubt on who shot Rose. She couldn’t wait for her to disappear from her sight. Once she was gone, Mattie let the tears roll from her eyes.

  Maybe if she could submit to her captors, she would gain enough trust to have the rope removed from her hands and feet. Doubt outweighed her reasoning. They wouldn’t even talk to her or tell her what they wanted and why they were doing this.

  She knew more than two people stayed in the outer room. They were involved in her abduction, Jonathan’s murder, and attempted murder. She only saw the dark haired man and woman. As Mattie listened, two other voices echoed through the walls. They were familiar and she knew belonged to the Howards.

  Her faith in James waned back and forth. One moment, she was sure he was looking for her, the next she wasn’t sure he was. Did he even know she was missing? Why didn’t he stop the people who seized her? He insisted on keeping his eye on her.

  Her anger flared. These thoughts kept chewing and twisting her mind until she couldn’t take any more. If she were free, she was sure she could hurt someone. Some protector James turned out to be.

  His touch was so tender, his kisses so passionate. His lovemaking, she gave freely to him. He earned her trust long enough to feed her to the wolves. That’s it; James was in on her kidnapping.

  Her heart plummeted to depths she was unaware of. She poured her heart out to him, and he didn’t care. How unfair could her life possibly get?

  She vowed nev
er to trust again if she ever escaped this mess. She plotted her next move to freedom. Her anger fueled her determination to free herself and let Mr. James Parker know what she thought of him.

  Her husband’s words crept slowly into her mind. She focused on a sliver of sun growing dimmer. “Mattie,” he would say, “never expect anyone to help you. You can only depend on yourself.” She shook her head to clear his face from her mind, believing what he told her.

  Hopelessness settled in cold, dark clouds of winter inside her mind. Fear took the place of anger. She reflected on the predicament. Especially, how it played on her way of thinking.

  Tears burned her eyes. Sobs fought to escape from her enclosed throat. The harder she fought her bonds, the faster her hope of rescue faded.

  Her endless need to scream permeated her mind with an invading force strong enough to choke a horse. The thunder and heaviness in her chest seemed akin to a storm brewing. All the while, she lay on the bed helpless to save herself. She wanted to accept James would come for her. What other hope did she have?

  Her lids grew heavy, and she closed them for a few minutes. The door creaked, and the dark haired woman entered with the two cups. The broth had turned cold and the water warm. Neither one was appealing.

  She refused to drink. The angry woman threw the contents in her face and stomped from the room. With renewed anger, she knew she would escape.

  “You won’t eat now,” boomed the voice of a man. She kept her eyes closed until the man pulled her head roughly. Instant hate filled her body with the force of a violent struggle. Her eyes flew open to release pent up fury running rampant in her anger-filled core. He pulled his hand from her hair, and she noticed the bandage where a finger was missing.

  The man stepped back, laughed, and exited the room. She heard him say, “The witch has awakened.”

  Confusion because of the statement slipped into her mind. If they think I am a witch — she mused, a smile crept onto her face.