by Sandy James
The figure rose, standing to full height, slight though it was.
A woman. Their savior had come in the form of a thin woman dressed in only wet undergarments that were plastered against her skin. A long, dripping braid hung over her shoulder, and her breath raised small puffs around her face.
She stepped carefully across the rocks and shells. “I’m coming. Hang on.” A colorful curse slipped out as she quickly jerked back her foot as if she’d stepped on something painful.
“Who is she?” Jake whispered.
“Don’t rightly give a damn,” Ty replied. “So long as she’s got a knife.”
“As a matter of fact, I have two,” her sweet voice replied as she struggled to wade across the water surrounding the large boulder Ty and Jake sat upon.
When Shay’s men had hoisted them there, the water reached their ankles. This woman found herself thigh-deep as she trudged closer.
Climbing the rocks with catlike dexterity, she knelt at Ty’s side. She unsheathed a knife strapped to one shapely thigh.
This was a dream. That was the only way to explain the beautiful and decidedly ethereal spirit that graced his presence. He sat quietly, studying her as she worked at sawing through the ropes, and he wondered why he’d be dreaming that some goddess had come to their aid.
A smattering of freckles over the bridge of her nose fascinated him. Her braid swayed against her chest and arms as she worked. The color appeared black in the dim light. Instead of wasting precious time pushing her hair back, she flipped her head, sending the heavy plait flying like a whip. Her skin was pale as milk, almost ghostly white against the grey of her wet and mud-smeared undergarments. A lithe body. Long, slender arms.
“Who are you?” he finally asked. Hoping to break the spell she’d woven around him, he put his mind away from the temptation kneeling at his side and focused on getting him and Jake out of the cave.
She didn’t reply, answering him instead with another curse he seldom heard from women, especially one so dainty and feminine.
“What happened?” he asked.
“Took a chunk out of my thumb.” She wiped that thumb against her soaked pantalets, leaving a trail of blood behind. The sea water seeping into that wound had to hurt like fire, but she never complained and returned to hacking and sawing at the ropes.
Jake squirmed against him, and just as Ty was about to see if it might be better to turn the knife over to him and let him have a go, a loud snap echoed through the cave. The rescuer grabbed a second knife sheathed to her other thigh and handed it to Jake, who fumbled with it for a moment before he set to working on his bound ankles.
His wrists free from Jake’s, Ty pulled and tugged to get the ropes loose so he could use his hands. Ice-cold fingers refused to obey his commands.
“Here, let me,” the woman said. She jerked at the ropes until his hands were free. Her small hands encased him, rubbing gently to return the circulation. “You’re so cold.”
Her skin felt like silk, and her touch, although cool, had turned his tongue so thick, he couldn’t even reply.
She released him and slid down the boulder where she turned to face him. The water lapped against her hips now. Carefully pushing the knife between his ankles, she worked to free him, not even whispering a complaint about the agonizing chill of the water.
About to offer his thanks, Ty glanced down at his savior and the words froze in his throat. The view was exquisite, causing a low growl to rumble from his chest. Her clothes molded to her body, revealing her tempting shape. Thin but muscled thighs. Rounded hips. A narrow waist. Her breasts strained against the thin cotton, the dark outline of her nipples making his body respond despite the entirely inappropriate circumstances. About to snatch the knife away to give him something to do besides ogle his rescuer, Ty breathed a sigh when the ropes separated. With a triumphant cry, she glanced up.
Large eyes held him captive. The color was masked by the darkness—but they were light, either blue or green. Framed by black lashes, those eyes dominated a round face. When she smiled up at him, dimples creased both cheeks.
She was exquisite. He would have been content to stare at her forever had the water not continued to rise.
The woman grabbed his hand and pulled. “We have to go. Now.”
Jake had waded over to stand next to her. “Who are you?”
She flipped her braid over her shoulder one more time. “Pray let me introduce myself. I am Cassandra Shay. I have come to rescue you.”
Chapter Two
Cassandra Shay.
Ty was absolutely speechless.
Jake, on the other hand, waded over until he towered over Cassandra. Hands on his hips, he glared down at her with hard, angry eyes. Their rescuer never flinched, nor did she take a telling step back.
Damn, but she looked so small, so fragile. Yet her spine was obviously forged of steel.
“Cassandra Shay?” Jake’s shout echoed through the cave.
“Actually, I prefer Cassie, if you’d be so kind.”
Jake’s scowl grew darker. “You’re a Shay? Why in the hell are you helping us?”
Ty watched a mask of calm settle over Cassie’s beautiful face and wondered why having a man a good foot taller bellowing at her would receive such a strange response. For some odd reason, her courage pleased him.
She met Jake’s glare with wide eyes, but nothing else about her revealed any fear, except perhaps the way she clenched her hands together.
“I discovered what Derrick and Robert were planning,” she replied. “I…I couldn’t simply…leave you.” Crossing her arms over her chest, she rubbed her upper arms as if trying to gain some warmth.
“You’re a Shay!”
Watching Jake take out all his anger and frustration on Cassie didn’t sit well. Ty’s own anger rose in response. While he normally preferred to sit back and watch events unfold rather than jump in feet first, this time he couldn’t take that tack. The need to protect her reached deep down inside him, finding a place both primitive and possessive. The cave was freezing, she was trembling—either from the chilly air or Jake’s anger—and he couldn’t tolerate her discomfort.
“I don’t rightly care who she is. I want to get the hell outta this cave.” Ty squeezed his body between Jake and Cassie, his chest moving Jake back while Cassie’s hands fisted in the back of his damp flannel shirt. “She ain’t the one who tied us up and left us here to die.”
Jake’s open mouth attested to his surprise.
“We must go.” The soft voice behind him was accompanied by a few tugs on his shirt. “The tide is coming in. We must go now.”
“Then let’s go,” Ty replied. He reached behind him to grasp one of Cassie’s hands. It had changed from cool to icy-cold so quickly, he feared for her safety. “We need to get you outta here before you freeze to death.”
“I may be small, but I am sturdier than I look.” Her chin rose defiantly. “I found you, did I not?”
Ty found himself fascinated with her fancy speech, wondering if all rich young women spoke in such a fashion. He’d never known a woman like Cassie Shay.
“What I’d like to know is why,” Jake growled. “You’re in cahoots with Derrick, ain’t you?” She wasn’t even given time to reply. “This is just some game to you, ain’t it?”
Since she didn’t respond, Ty figured she found the questions either insulting or unworthy of a reply. Instead, she gently pulled her hand from his grasp and headed back to the pool of water. Wading in, she waved for them to follow. Without even waiting to see if they complied, she swam her way across.
What choice did they have but to trail after her?
The water’s icy chill hit Ty hard, making him hiss for breath and setting his teeth to chattering. But he swam across, glancing back over his shoulder to be sure Jake was behind him and ignoring the drag of his heavy, wet clothes. By the time they all reached the opposite side, Cassie had already started to climb the tall rock and shell pile.
“Where you
goin’?” Jake asked, his tone no less harsh.
Her head whipped around, sending her braid flying. “I intend to hie myself away from this wretched cave before I drown or freeze to death. You’re quite welcome to follow.” A dainty shrug. “You may, however, suit yourselves.”
The friends exchanged worried frowns.
“Out of the fryin’ pan?” Ty whispered.
“Right into the fire,” Jake replied.
“Better to burn than drown.”
A curt nod from Jake and the men hurried to follow Cassie, who now stood on the top of the large hill, arms folded over her chest as she shivered and obviously waited for them despite her threat.
Scrambling up the shifting wall of sand, shells, and rocks wasn’t an easy task, and both men were out of breath by the time they reached the summit.
A bewitching smile crossed her blue lips as she watched them. “Not so easy as it appears, is it?”
Ty thought about grabbing her and kissing that sassy grin right off her face. He tried to catch his lost wind and ignore the cold seeping into his bones. Slender Cassie had to be suffering greatly from the cold, yet she never complained.
“Where now?” he asked between long sucks of cold air that made his chest ache.
She turned and pointed to a small opening in the wall that appeared narrow, dark, and utterly terrifying. “That tunnel leads to the surface.”
“Tunnel?” The world suddenly started to close in on him, pressing closer and closer. His returning breath rushed out and refused to be replaced.
“More like a carved out cave.” Cool fingers closed around his hand. “Are you unwell?”
The concerned tone of her voice broke through his terror, but he still couldn’t catch his breath. How could he possibly force himself into that dark entrance? “I…I don’t like to be…to be…in small places.”
She nodded. “I understand. My momma feared small places as well. I wish I didn’t have to take you through there, but… I fear no other way out of here exists. Except perhaps there.” Another nod, this time toward the entrance their captors had used to leave. “We would find ourselves slammed against sharp rocks if we choose that route. I doubt any of us would survive.”
He closed his eyes, clenched her hand, and tried to bring his panic under control. The fact that she spoke of them as if their fates were now entwined seemed a great comfort.
Jake slapped him hard on the shoulder. “He’ll be fine.”
Easy for you to say. He wasn’t the one with nightmares of being buried alive almost every night.
That hole looked mighty small. Big enough for someone as slight as Cassie—but someone Ty’s size? His shoulders would surely get stuck. Years from now they’d find his rotting corpse still wedged between stone walls. A shudder ripped through him.
Cassie gave Ty’s hand a squeeze. “I shall take the lead. You may hold my ankle until we reach the surface.” She looked to Jake. “You may bring up the rear.”
A deep, shuddering breath did little to help Ty find his courage. “I…can’t. Won’t fit.”
Her eyes narrowed, and the squeeze on his hand became the grip of challenge. “You can. And you will most assuredly fit. Trust my judgment. Your name is Ty Bishop. Correct, sir?”
She had to have learned that when she’d discovered Derrick Shay’s plans, so he tossed her a brusque nod.
“Please look at me, Mr. Bishop.”
That was about all he could do. “And?”
Her smile was downright cocky. “And, if a little bit of a girl such as me can do this, then a burly cowboy such as yourself can surely make his way out of this wretched dungeon.”
Pride. How clever of her. The one thing that could get any man to face even his worst fear. Threaten to injure his precious pride.
“Fine,” he snapped.
Her smile seemed as bright as a lighthouse beacon. “Think of it this way, sir. I got in here through that cave, so surely we can all make our way out the same route.”
Hell, it would be better if he didn’t think at all.
Without waiting for a response, Cassie jumped, grabbed the edge of the tunnel, and hauled herself up until she could enter.
Ty had never seen that kind of strength in a woman. Fragile creatures, he’d always thought—although Jake’s mother, Grace, and his wife, Emily, certainly weren’t fragile.
The hole was small enough Cassie could barely wiggle back around to stare down at Ty and Jake with her large, doe eyes. “I shall start climbing. Mr. Bishop, you may grab my ankle and follow.” She quirked a brow at Jake. “Could you please make sure he keeps following?”
“What if he tries to turn around and go back?” Jake asked. “Ty don’t like tight, dark spaces much. Tends to go a little loco.”
Her smile grew until the only word to describe it was mischievous. “I assure you that will not be a problem.”
“Why?” God help him, Ty couldn’t keep from asking.
“Because you will find that you have insufficient room to turn around.” On that chilly pronouncement, she began her assent, stopping when all that was still visible were her slender, white ankles and mud-covered feet. “Are you coming, sir?” Her muffled shout drifted down, the impatience in her voice plain.
With a grunt, Ty hoisted himself into what he prayed wasn’t his tomb.
Cassie sighed, feeling guilty for the ordeal she’d have to put Ty Bishop through. The poor man was terrified.
She understood—closed spaces weren’t what frightened her, but she truly understood fear. Her mother had explained why it bothered her, how she always felt as if the walls were slowly closing in until she couldn’t draw a breath.
Oh, yes, she understood—the same terror assaulted Cassie whenever she thought about being forced to marry Robert Putnam.
If she hadn’t stumbled across the plan to kill the two men she’d just rescued, she would already be miles away from San Francisco. Even now, her horse waited with Old Tim—the stablemaster she’d known her whole life. Now that she was so late, she prayed the man would still be waiting when she finally got to him. The plans had been so carefully made, surely he would know a couple of hours didn’t make much difference. Her mare, Duchess, should be saddled, packed, and ready to make an escape.
If only her grandfather had listened to her. Or even her uncle. Neither gave much notice to women and their opinions. When they thought matches could bring them something, they didn’t hesitate to marry the women in the Shay family off as though they were nothing more than chips in a high-stakes poker game.
Cassie had been lucky, making it to the ripe age of twenty-one without having been forced to take someone as a husband.
She didn’t want to marry at all—especially not Robert Putnam. He was far too old for her. He had a mean streak a mile wide that she’d been unfortunate enough to experience firsthand. And he had a liking for any maid who came within arm’s reach.
Married to Robert?
Not for all the Shay money.
Not for all the money in the world.
Once her grandfather announced the engagement, Cassie had secreted away as much money as she could while forming plans on where she could hide from the enormous reach of her relatives. A few destinations seemed promising, but before she could make up her mind, her uncle had moved up the wedding date. If she didn’t flee now, she’d be forever bound to a man who would beat her and cheat on her. She couldn’t abide him, and a marriage would mean she would never be able to bolt from the family whose actions disgusted her.
Preparing to leave, she’d almost been caught searching for maps in her grandfather’s study. Hiding in a small cupboard, she’d overheard the threats being made against the two men who’d come from Montana—one of them claiming to be Stephen Shay’s son. Not only had that news been a shock, but to also find out her uncle and Robert were planning to murder the men? In her heart, Cassie knew she couldn’t live with herself if she didn’t try to save them.
Now, she found herself climbing throu
gh the narrow cave she’d discovered years ago as she boldly explored the Shays’ San Francisco holdings, helping two men she didn’t even know. She almost grumbled to herself when she felt Ty’s cool fingers that had held tight to her ankle slip away. The walls on either side were too close for her to turn to check, not that she could see anything anyway. The tunnel was pitch-black.
“Don’t let go, sir,” she demanded.
“Get me out of here!”
“Hold on to me. We’ve almost reached the end. I promise.” Cassie extended her leg until her bare toes brushed against what felt like his arm. “Please, sir. Hold onto me. Please. Let me lead us out of here to safety, just as I promised.”
“I hate it! I want outta here! Now!”
The panic in his voice reached her heart. Something about the man had called to her from the moment she saw him. “Calm yourself. I will get you out,” she crooned as if talking to Duchess when she’d spooked. “I promise. Trust me. Please. We’re almost there. Just hang on to me, and I shall make haste.”
Fingers brushed against her leg, sliding up to her knee before digging painfully into the flesh of her thigh. The man was terrified, so she didn’t scold him. A bruise or two and some improper familiarity wouldn’t kill her. His breaths were loud, frantic, so she moved her leg, silently urging him to follow. Thank the Lord, he did.
The first rays of light dotted her vision, and she smiled. “See the light? We’ve almost reached the end.”
The hand on her leg tightened, but Ty didn’t reply.
Cassie hauled herself up and out of the entrance to the tunnel, a difficult task considering the death grip the man held on her leg.
He followed her up and out, collapsing on the rocks.
“Careful, Mr. Bishop,” she said. “We are quite close to a cliff.”
Blue eyes stared back at her—far too handsome blue eyes. His light brown hair was still wet and mussed, a bit longer than she normally preferred. His face was hard with sculpted lines that reminded her of the marble busts she’d seen in museums.