Providence (18 page)

The tension within him eased, and
he started thinking over his actions that evening. He felt miserable over the
hurt he had inflicted on Jo, and yet Kate hadn’t seemed upset at all. In fact,
she had tried to come to his rescue and lighten the mood now that he looked
back on it. His heart tightened thinking of Kate. His growing feelings were
beginning to cloud his judgment.

His scalp prickled as he heard a
soft step from somewhere behind him, every sense immediately heightened. He
moved his hand instinctively toward his hip, but he had not carried a gun nor
any other weapon with him.

Straining his ears, he listened,
but there was no warning until the low thrumming snarl of a large cat pierced
his ears as it leapt from the brush behind him, muscles rippling beneath a
golden coat, amber eyes slitted intently upon the prey. Luke’s heart froze; his
instincts took over as he flung himself to the ground and rolled beneath the
fallen tree that had claimed his knee earlier. Shaking from fear he braced for
the blow, seeing the heavy body falling towards him. Landing with a thud, the
animal lay motionless only inches from his face.

 Luke stared at the cougar,
his mind racing, uncomprehending. After nearly a minute had passed, he rose
slowly from his position below the log and cautiously approached the still
form. Reaching out a tentative hand, he nudged the warm body. Nothing. With a
great effort he finally rolled it over to discover the shaft of an arrow buried
deep within the chest of the tawny cat.

Fear welled again, as he spun to
search the night in the direction from which the arrow must have come. He saw
nothing but the endlessly shifting shadows; he heard nothing but the night
sounds, suddenly stilled, beginning to stir again.

Luke took a tentative step in the
direction of the ranch, watchful and wary, knowing that at any moment the
unseen assailant would attack. Cursing himself for leaving without a weapon, he
cautiously made his way down the trail, every rustle in the undergrowth
demanding his full attention, every creaking branch a sure threat.

He reached the bunkhouse door,
his nerves raw, and his heart pounding. Glancing at the house, he could see
Kate dimly through the front window seated at her desk, her form silhouetted
against the glow from the dying embers in the fireplace. Relieved that all was
well within, he opened the door and stumbled into the dark room.

Fumbling for matches, he managed
to light the lantern and turn the wick up to illuminate the darkness. He turned
to peer out the window into the deep black of the night, straining to see any
movement within the bushes. Finally, exhausted, he turned haunted eyes toward
heaven,
God, are you out there? Are you listening? What would you have me do?
I should be dead now, but have You delivered me? Is there something I’m
supposed to see?

 Anguish filled his soul.
Why couldn’t he find God’s love and have His peace when so many others found
such comfort there? What was wrong with him? Even Kate -- who should have more
reason to hate God than he -- even she had a sense of peace about her.
How,
Lord, how do I find that peace?

Turning from the window, Luke
noticed the Bible laying open upon the floor where he had thrown it in anger.
He reached to pick it up and glanced at the yellowed page revealed before him.
His eyes instinctively began scanning the words:

For I know the thoughts that I
think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give
you an expected end. Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto
me, and I will hearken unto you. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye
shall search for me with all your heart. And I will be found of you, saith the
Lord: and I will turn away your captivity, and I will gather you from all the
nations, and from all the places whither I have driven you, saith the Lord; and
I will bring you again into the place whence I caused you to be carried away
captive.

As he read the words his heart
began to beat in a steady rhythm, while his mind struggled to comprehend the
meaning. Was this his answer?
Is it really that easy, God? Just ask?

Luke closed his eyes, not knowing
what it was he prayed for, nor why, he fell upon his knees and prayed.

The day dawned bright, the cloudless
blue expanse shimmering with a promise of the heat to come. Kate prayed again
for the weather to hold at least through the branding on Saturday as she walked
along the path to the barn.

 Luke already had the stalls
cleaned and the horses fed by the time Kate appeared.

“Gee, and I thought I was early
this morning!” Kate exclaimed.

“Didn’t sleep much last night.
Figured I might at least make myself useful.” Luke replied.

He looked tired, more so than Kate
had ever noticed before. “Something bothering you?” she asked.

“Kate, look, I’m really sorry for
what happened last night with Jo. I wouldn’t hurt her for the world,” Luke
offered apologetically.

“I know that.”

 Luke paused, watching the
new medicine hat mare canter the fence line through the open doors. Dust motes
danced in the golden shafts of sunlight. He looked back to Kate, “There’s
something else.”

“What is it?” she asked with a
furrowed brow.

“I have to show you. I’m not sure
I believe it myself.”

“Well?”

“Come on,” Luke said, picking up
a Winchester ‘73 propped near the tack room door.

They walked along a path leading
away from the barn that meandered up a small hillside until they were out of
sight of the main ranch buildings. Morning glories grew along here, beginning
to unfurl delicate purple tinged white blooms in all their splendor. Kate
watched as Luke scouted for signs along the low bushes lining the edges of the
faintly worn track. Spotting some broken branches he veered off the worn path
into the dense growth. Kate followed, wondering where he could be leading her.
Soon they came to a small clearing dominated by an outcropping of native stone
in shades of grey and red streaked here and there with tan striations.

Kate gasped at the sight of the
lifeless cougar still laying where it had fallen. The sun gleamed across the
tawny coat, and a light breeze ruffled the fur as though the large creature
might spring to life at any moment. Taking a step back in alarm, she turned
questioning eyes on Luke.

“What happened?” she whispered.

 Luke took a deep breath,
letting it out slowly as he tried to form an answer that he wasn’t sure of
himself. “I came out last night, walked for a while. I was angry at myself, or
at God, I’m not even sure now.” He paused a moment, studying the dead animal as
though trying to convince himself that it was real. “I sat down, over there. I
heard it before
-
before it attacked. I barely had
time to think, and when I realized that it was going to leap, I somehow ended
up over there, under that log.”

Kate looked at the spot he
indicated, and could see the imprint of his hands and knees still visible in
the damp ground. “But...” her voice trailed off, fear and confusion marring her
delicate features.

 “Instead of landing on me
in a death grip, it fell dead at my feet.”

“How?”

Luke rolled the big cat over with
his boot. Kate’s eyes widened, fixing on the arrow shaft embedded deeply in the
cat’s chest.

“Tochoway.” it was a mere
whisper.

“What?” Luke asked sharply.

“Tochoway,” she repeated,
shifting her gaze to Luke’s ashen face.

“You know who did this?”

 She nodded mutely, finding
a seat on the outcrop as her legs threatened to collapse beneath her.

***

She related the story of the
Comanche boy who had been shot, and the man who now seemed to be protecting her
at every turn. Luke felt a growing sense of amazement turning gradually to
anger tinged with jealousy.

“Why haven’t you told me about
this before?” he demanded.

“Why should I?” Kate asked
defensively.

“Don’t you think I have a right
to know who may be coming and going from here?”

“Excuse me, but you said
yourself, you’re just the hired help! Who may or may not come on this property
is
my
business.” Kate’s eyes flashed angrily.

Gazing into the amber depths of
her eyes, he could see the golden sparks flash as she glared at him,
challenging his right to protect this family. Closing his eyes he fought to
regain control of his own raging emotions. He longed to reach out, take her in
his arms, erase the anger and the fear written so clearly in her eyes.
No!
He told himself,
don’t even think that. She’s your employer; she has no
interest in you, and you have no right to her!

Opening his eyes again, he
searched her face, “I’m sorry, you’re right,” he said, offering his hand to
help her to her feet.

 As Kate reached up, a shot
rang out, the bullet ricocheting from the rocks behind her. An involuntary
scream escaped her lips as Luke pushed her roughly to the ground. Covering her
with his body, he groped for the Winchester laying a short distance away.

“Stay here, keep low and don’t
move.” Luke spoke quietly, hardly glancing at Kate as she lay against the base
of the rock outcrop.

“Where are you going?” she
hissed.

“I just want to see if I can get
a look where that shot came from.” He rose cautiously, leveling his rifle
before him. Another shot rang out, this time going far to the west of their
location. Luke made his way to the trees along the perimeter of the clearing,
staying as low to the ground as he could. Peering through the leaves and dense
growth, he could just make out a roan horse standing ground tied some distance
away.

A movement just beyond the horse
caught his eye in time to see the sun glinting off the barrel of a rifle
leveled in his direction. He dodged and rolled to the right just as the third
shot rang out. Recovering quickly, he levered the Winchester into action. With
little time to think or aim, he fired off a shot off in the general direction
of the attacker. The report loud in his ears, he saw a puff of dust as the
bullet landed below the horse’s rear hooves, sending it into a frenzied buck.

 Luke could just make out a
small figure in a dark coat. Taking closer aim this time, he levered the gun
and carefully squeezed off another round. The distant man jumped back in agony,
dropping his gun and grabbing his left shoulder.

He found cover within a stand of
trees, just out of sight of Luke’s searching eyes. The large roan horse had
finally come to a rest nearly fifty yards away from the injured man. At a low
whistle, the nervous animal pricked its ears and trotted toward its master.
Retrieving his gun, the wounded man maneuvered himself into the saddle, and
kicked the horse into a run. Luke tried a final parting shot that went wide of
the fleeing man.

Seeing no others join him, Luke
assumed that the man had been acting alone. Still he searched for signs of an
accomplice. After several moments of silence, he rose cautiously and returned
to where Kate lay trembling.

Kneeling, he helped her to sit. She
trembled violently, taking deep ragged breaths. He held her hands for a moment,
finally he put his arms around her and cradled her head against his shoulder,
rocking her gently, whispering calming endearments against her ear. He could
feel her heart beating rapidly against his chest, and smell the warm rich scent
of her hair. His senses, already on edge, were nearly overwhelmed by her
nearness.

Little by little her heartbeat
slowed, the trembling stopped, and with a weary sigh, she pushed away from him
as she regained her composure.

“Are you hurt?” Luke asked
finally.

 Shaking her head slowly,
she looked at him with frightened eyes, “You?”

“No, but I think our ‘friend’ may
be a little worse for the wear.”

“You hit him?”

“Not sure how bad, but I at least
winged him.”

“Rustlers?”

“No, at least I don’t think so.
They don’t usually work alone, and any experience I’ve had with them, they’d
rather run than fight. That felt a whole lot more like an intentional ambush.”

Kate gasped. “Ambush? Why? Luke
what’s going on?”

“I was about to ask you the same
question.” Luke replied scathingly. “Any chance this is Johnson’s work?”

Kate dropped her eyes, “I don’t
know.” It was no more than a whisper.

“We’d better get back to the
ranch.” He offered his hand again, and lifted her easily to her feet.

***

Kate’s mind raced as they made
their way to the ranch. Could Johnson be that vindictive? Was he so serious
about acquiring her land that he would kill her to get it? Stealing a glance at
the tall man beside her, she began to wonder
-
who
was he really? She knew almost nothing of him. Was there something in
his
past catching up to him? Fear began to snake its icy tendrils throughout her
body. Who was Luke Josey?