by Sandy James
Using Drew’s advice from when they’d rehearsed on stage to look past the faces and focus on an object behind them, Cassie fixed her gaze on a window, letting the bright sunlight reflected off the snow blind her to everything else.
After a deep breath, she said what needed to be said. “Stephen Shay was my father, not my uncle.”
The immediate reaction was silence, followed closely by everyone talking—more like shouting—at once. The only one she was concerned with was Ty.
He didn’t say a word, settling his gaze on her. The surprise she saw there was quickly replaced with anger.
“I’m sorry, Ty,” she said, ignoring the myriad questions being fired at her. “I should have set you straight when we first met.”
A mask of calm settled on his features, one she knew well. Whenever his emotions were getting the better of him, Ty hid behind a face void of emotion. She knew better. He was furious. But he’d always reserved the stoic façade for others, showing her what he truly felt.
He was shutting her out.
“I am so very sorry.” Tears blurred her vision. She needed to get out of there. “I should go to Drew now.”
“I can’t believe you’d lie to us about something that important!” Matthew shook his head. “After everything your father did to Grace, how could you—”
“You were all so set against me!” Her temper was rising, and her heart was breaking. “I wanted you to accept me—I wanted to be with Ty. I know I should have said something, but Drew warned me not to and—”
“Drew?” Ty’s voice was a roar. “You told Drew and not me?”
With teeth tugging on her bottom lip, she gave him a curt nod.
“I cannot believe you’re his daughter.” Grace wrung her hands as she kept looking at Cassie and then at her husband. “He was so…evil. And you are such a sweet girl.”
Victoria’s kind eyes had hardened. “I cannot abide lies, especially about something so important. You shouldn’t have let us believe he was your uncle, Cassie.”
His face fixed in a scorching frown, Matthew stomped over to where Cassie sat.
She tried not to be intimated by his height and his strength, and she straightened her spine to try to show him so.
“Do you have any idea what your father put Grace through?” he bellowed. “He raped her! Then he hunted her like an animal for near to twenty years!”
Since she had no defense for her father’s reprehensible actions, she held her tongue.
“Matthew…” Grace’s voice was surprising calm considering how agitated she’d seemed. “Cassie isn’t to blame for her father’s sins.”
He whirled toward his sister. “The man tried to destroy you!”
“And he didn’t succeed,” she countered.
“I should go.” Cassie stood and took a few steps toward the kitchen. She would go to Drew. Perhaps together they could plan what she would do.
She’d donned her coat and the scarf Victoria had so thoughtfully made before anyone tried to stop her.
It was Adam who came to her, not Ty. “Someone should take you to town.”
Even her only ally was lost. She vowed not to cry. Not here. Not yet. “There is still plenty of daylight. I am going to Drew.” Then she could decide how to rebuild the life she’d just destroyed.
“There might be danger.”
“The men my uncle sent have not reported their failure to him yet. No one new will come until then.” She tugged on her gloves.
“Cassie…”
With a shake of her head, she reached for the doorknob. “I must go, Adam. I know it, and so do you. I thank you for the kindness you’ve shown me. I shall never forget you.”
“Ty will—”
She shook her head again. “You must make him understand. No matter how much…” She swallowed hard. “He mustn’t come after me. Please don’t let him come after me. Ever.”
Adam nodded. “God go with you.”
No one followed her when she left, no matter how many times she glanced over her shoulder as she rode away.
***
Drew pushed himself higher up on the pillows. “What’s wrong?”
Cassie tossed him a derisive snort. She’d ridden straight to him after leaving the Twin Springs, needing to know there was someone in the world who loved her. “Everything.” She took off her coat, scarf, and gloves and tossed them on the foot of the bed.
With a sympathetic smile, he patted the mattress next to him. “Well, then… Sit down and tell me what ‘everything’ is.”
Sitting was impossible. Instead, she threw herself into his open arms and let the tears fall that she’d valiantly kept at bay.
Drew rubbed her back. “Come now…it cannot be that terrible.”
“It is!” she wailed.
God, she sounded pitiful, but it couldn’t be helped. Her heart had shattered into a million pieces. Without Ty, it would never be whole again.
“Tell me what could possibly cause you this kind of anguish,” Drew said as he stroked her hair.
She tried to explain, although her words were hesitant and punctuated with sniffs and sobs. “Ty and I are…no more. We shall…never marry. It’s simply…not possible.”
“Now, now.” He gripped her shoulders and eased her back. “Dry those tears. We shall come up with a plan to win back your Romeo.”
While all she wanted to do was weep some more, Cassie mopped her tears with her sleeves. “I can never be with Ty, not after I told him the truth.”
“The truth?” His gaze searched hers until understanding dawned. “You told him about your father, didn’t you?”
A sob bubbled up as she nodded.
“Why?”
She sat back, swiping away the rest of her tears with the backs of her hands. “I had to tell him, Drew.”
“Why?” he asked again, his tone incredulous.
“He wanted to marry me, and I had agreed.”
He knit his brows. “I still don’t understand. Why would you marrying the man require you to explain your parentage? He knew you were a Shay. That should’ve sufficed.”
“Surely, you jest,” she scoffed before a small hiccough slipped out.
“Not at all. There was no reason for you to tell him—or anyone—about your past. All that should matter is your future together.”
With a sigh, she turned to lean back against the headboard next to him, stretching her legs out on top of the quilt. “A good marriage cannot be based on a lie.”
He took her hand. “My darling girl, you are a Shay, which means—if you’ll forgive me for saying so—you have never seen a good marriage.”
She was amazed she could even smile, but a grin tickled her lips. “Touché.” Reality quickly sobered her. “I couldn’t let him bind himself to me for life and not tell him who I really am. I might hate my father and all he’s done, but I am still his daughter. After the way Grace suffered at his hand…”
Drew squeezed her hand. “What happened was not your fault, angel.”
“I will not marry the man I love and base that union on a lie of omission,” she insisted.
“I gather their reaction wasn’t good.”
Dropping her chin, she stared at their joined hands. “I am as good as dead to all of them.”
“Even Ty?”
“Especially Ty. When I left, he made no move to follow me.”
“So no wedding?”
She shook her head.
The door opened, and Gideon strode into the room with Caleb on his heels. The brothers looked to where Cassie and Drew lounged against the headboard and frowned.
“Why is she here?” Gideon demanded.
When she tried to get out of the bed, Drew draped his arm over her shoulder and anchored her next to him. “Gideon, we have discussed this before. Cassie is dear to me, but she is no threat to what we share. You cannot forbid me to spend time with her or give the poor girl a hug when she requires one.”
Gideon’s expression softened. “I’m sorry�
��I just… To see you so close will always be…difficult.”
Caleb was less diplomatic. “That’s ’cause you can’t claim Drew in public. You don’t want his name tied to someone else.”
As if her soul wasn’t already in enough pain. Now she hurt for Drew and Gideon. They were obviously in love, but no one would ever accept them together.
Caleb marched over to the bed and set his hands against his hips. “You’ve been crying.”
Drew spoke before she could figure out how to explain why she was such a mess. “T’would seem our Cassie is now a free woman.”
Eyes wide, Caleb gaped at her. “What about Ty Bishop? I thought you two would marry soon.”
“You thought wrong,” Cassie snapped. She shrugged Drew’s arm off her shoulder and stood. “I believe I have come up with a solution to all my problems.” She heaved a sigh and explained the only choice she had remaining. “I shall get myself to Sacramento as quickly as possible. I cannot let my Uncle Derrick send more ruffians after the good people of this city.”
“Why Sacramento?” Caleb asked.
“Cass…” Drew’s voice was low and full of concern.
She skirted around Caleb so she could breathe. He’d moved close enough to make her feel crowded—a feeling she despised. “I shall go to my Uncle Simon and ask for sanctuary.”
“I thought you only had one uncle,” Drew said. “And are you not under the guardianship of your grandfather?”
“Uncle Simon is my mother’s brother. He isn’t a Shay. He’s a Randall. While he might not have the political connections of my grandfather and uncle, he is not without influence. If I go to him and beg for his protection, I might still be able to avoid having to marry Robert.”
When she reached for her scarf, Caleb grabbed her upper arm. “Wait. You can’t think to travel all the way to Sacramento by yourself—especially now that winter is here?”
“I have no choice,” she insisted. “I must leave this place before any more people come to drag me back to San Francisco.”
“I’ll take you,” he insisted. “All the way to Sacramento.”
Gideon joined in. “He’ll get you there quickly and safely. Never seen a man who can hide as well as Caleb and still move miles and miles in a day.”
After everything her family had put Ty and his family—and Drew—through, she was reluctant to accept help from anyone else. “If you escort me, I fear it will put you in danger. I cannot ask that of you, Caleb.”
“Wouldn’t be for nothing.” He took her hand. “I’d want something for my help.”
She quirked an eyebrow, although she had a pretty good idea what he would want.
“You have to marry me first.”
“Caleb!” Drew slapped the mattress. “You can’t ask that of her! She’s trying to escape an unhappy marriage, why would she—”
“Who says it would be unhappy?” Caleb asked. “I’ve been wantin’ to court her. I like her.” His gaze found hers. “I could make you a good husband.”
“I fear I cannot marry you, Caleb,” Cassie said, “for all the same reasons I must leave this town.”
His eyes narrowed. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“If we marry, where shall we live?” She didn’t give him time to reply. “You want to stay on the farm with your brother. Should we marry and live here, I would still be within my Uncle Derrick’s reach. I would be putting you and your brother in danger—just as I put Ty and his family in danger.”
Ty. Saying his name brought fresh tears to her eyes. She refused to let them fall.
Now that she had a plan, she wanted to implement it with all haste. “I will be fine. I shall dress as a boy and take a train to Sacramento. Then I will find my Uncle Simon.”
All three men started yelling, but they expressed a similar theme.
They all thought she was out of her mind.
Cassie held up a hand to silence them. “My mind is made up. I’m going to Sacramento. By myself.”
“I won’t let you go out on your own.” Drew tossed the cover aside and got out of bed. While he appeared to have more strength than he had the last time she’d seen him, he was clearly too weak to travel.
“She won’t be on her own,” Caleb said. “I’m goin’ with her.”
“I cannot allow that,” Cassie retorted. “I cannot marry you, Caleb.”
His lips thinned to a grim line.
“I will be fine on my own,” she insisted.
“Tell you what…” Caleb picked up her coat and held it out to her. “I’ll get you to Sacramento. By the time we get there, I’ll have convinced you to marry me.”
“But—”
“No, buts.” He helped her into her coat. “We’re going back to the farm, packin’ a few things, then we’re leavin’.”
She looked to Drew. After a few long moments, he nodded. “At least you won’t be alone.”
“Gideon?” Caleb asked. “Can you handle things on your own?”
“For a while,” his brother replied. “But you’ll be back?”
“Not sure.”
Stomping her foot, she tried again. “I cannot let you—”
Caleb pressed right on as though she hadn’t spoken a word. “Once Drew is stronger, he can help you.”
“How long will you be gone?” Gideon asked.
“Depends on whether Cassie marries me or not.”
“And if I don’t?” While she might be railroaded into letting him accompany her to Sacramento, she had absolutely no intention of marrying him. She might welcome his escort, but she wouldn’t ruin her friend’s life by becoming his bride.
Besides, there was only one man she loved—one man she could be with as a true wife.
“If you don’t…” Caleb shrugged. “I’ll come back here, I s’pose.”
Those words only firmed her resolve. He would help her escape to the only sanctuary left to her. Then she’d be sure to send him back to his life here in Montana.
Drew gave her a hug. “This is for the best, Cass. Let Caleb help you since I cannot.”
She rubbed her cheek against his shoulder. “We shall meet again?”
After squeezing her tight, he kissed the top of her head before turning her loose. “Absolutely. I love you.”
“And I love you.” She rose on tiptoes and kissed his cheek. “Farewell my knight in shining armor.”
With the future she had planned—as well as the future that waited for him with Gideon—Drew was wrong. Not only would she never see him again, when she left Montana behind, it would be for good.
Ty will come for me.
No. There would be no rescue this time. There wasn’t any reason for him to seek her out. While she loved him—with every ounce of her being—he would never forgive her. Although she knew that was for the best, her heart simply didn’t understand.
I love him.
If only he’d loved her in return. Then there would be a reason to struggle for a future together.
Her future—bleak though it was—now rested in the hands of Caleb Young and her Uncle Simon.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Silence reigned after Cassie left. Ty didn’t trust himself to speak, afraid in his rage he’d lash out at the people he’d always considered his true family.
Letting her go had been difficult, but he wouldn’t have to chase her down this time. She was going to Drew, and she’d be safe there until Ty could get to her and soothe her.
Right now, he needed to straighten everyone out about what his future held. He’d let Cassie leave solely to prevent her from hearing anymore hurtful things when he clued Adam, Grace, Matthew, and Victoria in on his plans. He’d be sure to straighten out Jake and his wife when he fetched Cassie from town.
They were sure to rebel when he told them that she was his future—whether they approved or not. He’d made his choice. No matter how much he loved them, this woman had become his everything. He refused to live his life without Cassie in it.
“What did we just
do?” Grace asked, her tone full of regret.
“What you did,” Ty replied, “was punish an innocent girl—one who’s never done none of you wrong—just ’cause she’s the daughter of a cruel bastard.” He let his accusing glare settle on each person—even Adam, though he was less to blame than the others. “She can’t help who her pa was, and she ain’t nothing like him.”
“We know that,” Victoria said. “It’s only…after what happened to Grace—”
“I know all about what he did to Grace,” Ty snapped. “But what the hell does that have to do with Cassie? She’s a victim of that family too.”
Adam nodded. “He’s right. We should all be ashamed of ourselves.”
Crossing his arms over his chest, Matthew didn’t appear the least bit contrite. “It’s not just about the girl, Ty. This is about the danger that goes with her. She’s nice enough, but she’s still a Shay. Where she goes, her uncle will follow, exactly like his brother did—hunting anyone who gets in his way ’til he gets her back. You know that, you just won’t accept it.”
“He can send as many men as he wants, and I’ll fight to the last one.” Ty snatched up his coat.
“You’re going after her, aren’t you?” Grace asked. “Are you sure that’s what’s best?”
“I don’t give a damn if it’s what’s best,” Ty replied. Then he let his anger swell until it ruled his words. “I care for that woman, and if she’ll have me, I’m gonna marry her. If you can’t accept that, then know this—where she goes, I go. You ain’t gonna welcome her into our family? Then you ain’t never gonna see me again. I’ll drag her up to the huntin’ cabin and stay buried in the snow for the next three months. Then we’ll be on the next stage outta town and take the danger with us.”
Adam sat down and wrapped an arm around his wife’s shoulder. “There’s no need for you to leave, Ty. Marry your Cassie. We’ll all help protect her.”
After giving Adam a grateful nod, Ty stared at Matthew—his biggest obstacle and the friend he’d counted on to help guard Cassie.
Ty had underestimated how much Matthew hated Stephen Shay. He’d always assumed Grace had suffered, but he hadn’t realized exactly how much the nightmare of Stephen’s dogged pursuit had affected Matthew.