Love's Rescue (13 page)

As they raced southeast, Jess kept her distance from the occasional settlement, but she was compromising speed in order to avoid being seen. Finally, she searched out a rough road that wended south, and she pressed the horse to her limit.

The sun was high overhead when she slowed the mare to a trot to give her a rest, wiping sweat from her own forehead as the sun poured out the warmth that it had long held back. She passed opposite the tent of a prospector, who was placer mining near the creek. Once he was out of sight, she rode to the creek’s edge, intending to water the horse.

Jess glanced back the way she had come…and froze. A huge black horse and rider were charging straight for her, closing the mile between them with unnerving speed. Recognizing the familiar bulk and brown hat of the rider, Jess spun the mare around and kicked her into a run.

With her horse already worn from the morning’s pace, Jess knew she wouldn’t be able to outrun Jake for long, but she had gained a fair distance—as well as an overwhelming need for vengeance—and devised a way to unhorse him.

A stand of oak trees appeared near a spur of the mountain. She rode straight toward it, scanning the ground ahead for a stick large enough to suit her purposes. There! She jerked the horse to a stop and swung to the ground. She hefted the branch that had fallen, swiftly regained her saddle, then forged ahead in a clatter of hooves.

***

For a moment, Jake lost sight of Jess. When he passed a grove of oaks, he caught a glimpse of her again—a flash of sun-gilded braid glinting through the dust. He maintained a steady pace, watching for a place to overtake her.

Jess rode the way he remembered, as bold and confident as the horse that carried her. He intentionally gave her a lead, watching her ride as any man observing a thing of beauty. She was not suited for household chores and domestic tasks alone, he realized. She was too much like he was—she needed the outdoors, wind, and freedom. As soon as he was able, he would find work for her alongside the men, even if it meant that she would have to be watched more closely. It was necessary for her to stay, and stay she would.

Jake was familiar with the scattered hills they were approaching. He would use the terrain to trap her and to put an end to the chase. As soon as she disappeared around a bend, he cut sharply to the opposite side of the hill and loosed the reins. The stallion bolted forward, sniffing intently for the scent of the mare.

Jake rounded the curve, then leaned abruptly on his reins. Jess was flying at him head-on, viciously swinging a branch at his midsection. The jagged end of the limb ripped his vest as it passed. He shouted his rage, more from surprise than from pain.

He whipped the stallion around, tore his lasso from the saddle, and shot after her.

Jess glanced back. When he was nearly alongside her, she flung the branch at him.

Jake knocked it aside. He let out a piercing whistle and smacked her horse’s rump with the rawhide.

Panicked, the mare thrashed and bucked to fight off her unknown attacker. Unable to keep her seat, Jess tumbled to the dry desert ground.

Instinctively, she rolled away from the hooves of the pitching horse, but Jake was already waving the frightened horse back. The mare’s eyes rolled white, and she bolted away riderless, thrusting warning kicks behind. The mare, he determined, wasn’t the only one who needed the sting of a rope applied to her backside.

Jake dismounted with rope in hand. Jess’s face flushed with anger as she scrambled to her feet. Jake braced himself as he approached, his hat pulled low, the lasso gripped threateningly in his hand.

Jess’s attention flicked to the gun on his hip, where her gaze lingered an instant too long.

“Forget it, Jess. I wouldn’t want either of us to take home a foot full of lead.”

“I usually hit what I aim for, Bennett, and I’ve never yet hit a polecat in the foot!” she seethed.

Jake ignored her threat. “Would you care to explain why you tried to break me in two with that branch?”

“Not in the least.” She glanced in the direction her horse had fled, and then, on second thought, eyed the stallion. “I’ve told you enough—I’m not staying.”

“Yes, you are.”

Her attention snapped to Jake. He began to uncoil the lasso, and for the first time she appeared uncertain.

“You think to tie me?”

“If I thought you’d ride back without trying to knock me from my skin, I wouldn’t have to tie you.”

She raised her chin, stepping back. “I am not riding with you.”

Instead of insisting, he studied her quietly. “What’s this all about, Jess? Carson City? A cramped store and men who attack you in the streets? That’s not why you were leaving.”

Jess didn’t answer. She radiated stubbornness.

“Perhaps you’ll tell me when you’re ready. I’d best get you back.”

“I said, I’m not going!” Her yell must have carried halfway back to the ranch.

“You know I can’t let you just walk away.”

Jess spun and stalked off in the direction of Carson City.

Jake wasn’t a man to let things go. In two steps, he’d caught up with her, and he clamped a warning hand on her arm.

In the next instant, Jess lunged at him, shoulder first, attempting to knock him off balance, no doubt so she could make a grab for the horse.

Using her momentum, Jake spun around and took her down like a yearling calf.

Pinned facedown in the dust, Jess kicked furiously, trying to wriggle away. Jake grasped her wrists behind her and bound them in a heartbeat, his knee planted firmly yet gently across her back to hold her in place.

Jess screamed. Jake ignored her. He flipped her onto her back and roped her arms to her sides. In the next moment, he snared her feet together and whipped a double coil around her ankles. She was secured. He hefted her in his arms and made for his horse.

Jess pulled at the ropes in desperation but was unable to budge them. Her green eyes blazed as they bore into his.

Feeling unusually lighthearted, Jake set her in the saddle, then mounted up behind her. Jess turned her face away, refusing to acknowledge him. She didn’t see the way he smiled behind her and shook his head slowly, amazed by this fearless spitfire who had stepped into his life.

They rode back to the ranch at an easy pace—Jake had run the stallion at top speed to catch up with Jess, and now he was burdening it with the weight of an extra body. He kept his silence, knowing that anything he said would only fuel Jess’s anger. He also figured she still needed time to sort things out in her mind. He used the ride to do the same.

He wasn’t entirely sure what to do with Jess over the coming months, but she certainly wouldn’t be safe in Carson City. If the murderers didn’t succeed a second time, anyone who had believed her to be dead would grow suspicious. When the war ended, perhaps she’d want to go home to Kentucky. If so, he would see she got there safe.

That thought didn’t sit well with him. Isaac had once said that everyone the Hales knew there was gone. A beautiful woman by herself was easy prey. No, he wouldn’t allow Jess to come to harm, not in the States and not in the West. But in forcing her to stay, he was inviting a battle of a whole other kind.

Lowering his gaze, he took in the smooth line of her jaw, the shine in her chestnut hair as a cool breeze ruffled it. It smelled of flowers, and she was soft and warm against him.

His gut clenched at his own betrayal. Recalling the beauty of the one he loved, he put his admiration for Jess from his mind. He was honor-bound to protect Jess, but he belonged to another, and he wouldn’t betray his lady’s love.

***

Having calmed down as they rode, Jess suffered regret, of all things, that she was responsible for the loss of one of Jake’s horses. The mare had been affectionate and had a lot of heart, and there was little chance that whoever would find her would treat her as well as Jake’s men had. She had run off toward the northeast, away from the nearest water source. Jess ached with the need to apologize, but she doubted she could manage civility if she tried. So, she asked about another matter instead. “Have you received word about the search for the men who set the fire?”

“Not yet. If I don’t hear from the sheriff or Tom Rawlins in another week, I’ll send a man to find out what they’ve learned.”

Another week! Six weeks had already passed since the fire. Soon, the sheriff would give up the hunt and move on to other duties, if he hadn’t already done so. It made no difference. Jess would keep watch for those responsible for the rest of her life. When they surfaced, she’d see justice done. On that thought, she asked another question.

“Did you see anyone the night of the fire, Bennett?”

“See anyone?”

“Yes. You and your men were in front of the house, and the servants must have escaped out the back. Did any of you see the arsonists run from the house?”

“No one saw anyone unusual that night, not even the neighbors. I asked around.”

“Don’t you think it odd? After all, nine men attacked me in the street.”

“Nine attacked you, but likely only one or two started the fire. A group of men couldn’t have slipped away unnoticed.”

“I suppose.”

It was late afternoon before she recognized the terrain, and only then did she realize how far she had gone. The air grew cooler, though it seemed unlikely night would bring the bitter cold of months gone by. She wondered what the land would look like come spring, then mentally reproached herself for thinking of any future here.

Unexpectedly, Jake reined in the horse and dismounted, leaving Jess to balance herself. He began untying the ropes.

“What are you doing?”

“I tied you because I had to, but we’re almost back. I don’t want to show you disgrace, especially in front of the men.”

She stared at him blankly. What was she to make of that? When her wrists were free, she rubbed them, then realized there was no need. He had secured her soundly but not harshly, and the ropes had barely chafed the skin.

“But I’ll tell you right now that I plan to give orders to my men to hog-tie you if you ever try to run again.”

Jess closed her mouth against the gratitude she had nearly conveyed. Too bad they hadn’t stopped by the creek. She’d have lifted her boot and kicked him straight into it.

With a few quick movements, he coiled and secured the rope, then swung up into the saddle behind her and pulled her securely to him. But before he could stir the horse, Jess stopped him with a hand on his arm, then turned her head to face him. “It’s my fault she left, Jake.”

He drew back, shaken. “What?”

“The mare,” Jess said, her cheeks warming. “It’s my fault she ran off. I’m sorry she’s gone.”

Jake let out his breath and passed his dark eyes over the hills. “She knows her way home. I’d like to think she’s there already.” This he said with a tone of added significance, and for the rest of their journey, Jess wondered what else he had
been thinking.

When they reached the compound, Jake stiffly handed her down, then rode off without a word. She watched him go—not into the stable but behind it. After several moments, he reappeared, then galloped away, heading west. Jess stood puzzling over a new curiosity—she thought she had spied two slender cuttings in his hand. Around her, a few of the ranchmen silently exchanged glances. She entered the house to change, all the while mulling over what all this had meant.

What part of the ranch do you live on, Red Deer?” Jess knew that Lone Wolf and Red Deer lived nearby with their clan, but she hadn’t seen their dwellings. She lightly slapped the lines to the hindquarters of the gentle palomino mare—the mare had returned, as Jake had predicted—and the two of them rocked about in the wagon seat as they made their way to the creek. Behind them in the wagon bed were two huge barrels and a dozen buckets with rope handles. She and Red Deer needed to draw water to soak and launder everyone’s clothes. Red Deer had no trouble convincing her that gathering water from the creek would be more refreshing than straining at the pump handle.

“Our village is on the eastern part of the ranch. Our wigwams are near the creek. When there are no rabbits or antelope for our men to hunt, they catch fish.” She glanced at Jess. “There has been no game for a very long time, but since the Paiute men work at the ranch, we have meat to eat.” Red Deer smiled demurely. “But my husband and I will fast from all meat for one month in late summer, for then I will have a son.”

Jess gasped in surprise, sharing the other woman’s happiness. “How wonderful, Red Deer!”

“Yes, my husband will have a son to teach and to ride with, and I will be glad to bring him such happiness. Fasting from meat is one way we show we will be responsible parents who will go without food, if necessary, to see that our child is
cared for.”

Jess stopped the wagon near the creek. “You’re certain the child will be a boy?”

“In my heart, I know it.” Red Deer beamed at the churning ripples, at the land, at the sky. “So I work hard, that my son will be born strong, like his father.” She stepped down carefully from the wagon and went around to the back to lift out several wooden buckets. Jess tied off the reins and joined her, and together they carried them to the water’s edge.

Jess kicked off the new hide moccasins Red Deer had given her. She tucked the back hem of her gown up into the front of her belt and waded into the creek.

“You have skin like a white lily flower,” Red Deer said from the shore.

Dipping a bucket into the water, Jess smiled at the comparison. She handed the heavy vessel to Red Deer. “This is the first my legs have seen daylight since I waded in rivers as a child.” She filled another bucket. “White mothers teach their daughters not to expose any part of their legs, not even their ankles, especially to men.”

Red Deer carried the brimming buckets to the wagon and set them down on the ground. “Yes, I once had a white woman friend who told me this also.”

“Oh? And who was this white friend?” Jess passed another bucket to her, looking up inquiringly when Red Deer didn’t take it from her. “Red Deer?”

“I am sorry, Jessica. I cannot speak of her.” Red Deer took the bucket. After a long moment, her cheerfulness resurfaced. “The Great Spirit Father has given me another white woman friend, and this makes me happy.”