Katie clungto Elizabeth’s neck, shrieking as Magnus tried to pry them apart. The carnal look in his eyes panicked her, but she didn’t intend to be a willing victim. Vowing to make his violation of her person the most difficult conquest he’d ever attempted, Elizabeth twisted her arm out of his grip. And he wasn’t going to touch her in front of Katie! That, she swore. “Let go of me, you swine!”
He smiled maliciously. “See you found your tongue finally, huh?”
“Haven’t you any conscience at all?” Elizabeth spat, ignoring his taunt. “No heart? You’re frightening her!”
Magnus merely laughed. “Don’t flatter yourself, bitch. I don’t aim to touch a hair on that head of yours. Pretty as it is... turns my gut.” He made a motion with his chin, grinning through his beard. “Now, Colyer over there might feel differently. Fact is, he might even like to even the score a bit.”
Elizabeth followed his gaze to where Colyer stood, his back against a tree. She couldn’t see his face at all, just his obscure silhouette. Still, there was an aura about him that sent a quiver of apprehension down her spine.
Tamping down her hysteria, she turned again to Magnus, her tone as calm as she could manage, for Katie’s sake. “If it’s his battle, then let him fight it for himself. Please... let us go...”
She gave Colyer a scathing glance, then, feeling herself failing in that tactic, she turned to plead with O’Neill, who was standing faithfully at Magnus’ side. “How can you bear to hurt an innocent child? How can you involve us? Have mercy!” She tried to capture his eyes, to communicate with him, but he steadfastly avoided her. “Coward!” she spat. Feeling defeated, she turned again to Magnus, her voice breaking yet full of contempt. “And what do you have to gain in all this?” she spat. “Surely something.”
“Dead men don’t carry tales,” he said cryptically, slanting a glance toward O’Neill. O’Neill flinched visibly.
“My God, what cowards you are—all of you! Are you so afraid to face Cutter McKenzie alone that you would have to use a child for your shield?”
Lunging forward, his face red with fury, Magnus gripped her again by the arm and shoved her down to the ground. Hard. “Bitch! Shut the hell up before you earn yourself and that noisy kid an early grave!”
Clutching a screaming Katie before her with one hand, Elizabeth tried to break their fall to the ground with the other. Her lips trembled as they formed the beginning of the question that had haunted her all day. So many times she’d stifled it, afraid to ask it with Katie in earshot. “Just tell me... w-what do you plan to do with us?”
Magnus arched a brow at her. “Well, now, why don’t we just wait and see,” he taunted.
Elizabeth shook her head slowly, swallowing the lump that rose in her throat. Her eyes pricked with tears, but she lifted her chin bravely. She had absolute faith Cutter would come for them, but she loathed the man for using Katie as his decoy. “You’re nothing but a coward, Mr. Sulzberger.”
“I said shut up, ya breed-lovin’ bitch! O’Neill, tie her hands and feet! Behind her back. Now!”
Katie’s shrieks intensified at his command, and she clutched wildly at Elizabeth. Elizabeth’s heart twisted painfully.
“And you,” Magnus barked, pointing a finger at Elizabeth, “get that sniveling brat to shut the hell up!”
From his perch in the treetop, Cutter could see almost everything. He kept his carbine trained on Colyer, knowing that until he determined Magnus’ motive, Colyer, of the three, had the biggest ax to grind.
It had taken every ounce of his will not to squeeze down on the trigger when Magnus had shoved Elizabeth to the ground. Gutless bastard that he was. He liked using that muscle of his with women and babies. Cutter shook his head suddenly, the image of Sulzberger sweeping down on a small group of Cheyenne children, running his bayonet through the smallest of the band, coming back to his mind with sickening clarity.
The barrel swiveled suddenly to Magnus.
Sweat streamed from Cutter’s temples and down the sides of his face as he fought the command of his soul to squeeze. The aftermath of Sand Creek was so vivid in that moment that he tasted the metallic tang of his own blood as he battled his way through the images.
Women. Children. Mutilated. Magnus and his boys coming across a small child, not much older than Katie, buried in the sand. They pulled out their pistols and shot her, then dragged her out and shot her again, leaving her for dead. Christ, he’d never wanted to kill more than he had in that instant... as he did now.
The only thing keeping him from it was the knowledge that once he pulled the trigger, there would be hell to pay. Wasn’t a breed on American soil who could spill full-white blood and not end up in the skookum-house. If they were lucky they might get an unlawful trial before the string-up. If not—hell! He hadn’t lived as long as he had by being careless!
His gaze shifted abruptly from his target to Elias Bass, who was perched in a branch slightly above him. If there was business to settle, then the last thing he needed was witnesses. He’d known good men, half-breed men, who were hired by John Law to do their dirty work, and then the minute the deed was done, Johnny washed his hands.
Only this time, it didn’t appear as though he was going to have much choice. Again the barrel shifted... to Colyer, his vision blurring. Squeezing his eyes shut against the pain in his foot, Cutter blinked hard, turning his head to regard Elias, who was staring a hole through him. Damn, what was wrong with him?
“McKenzie? You all right?”
“Fine,” Cutter snarled, his gaze shifting abruptly back to Colyer. Muttering an oath, he watched in silence as all three men picked up their gear and walked away, leaving Elizabeth and Katie alone.
Elias observed Cutter a moment longer, and then, without another word, turned to watch as Magnus and his men set up camp about forty feet away from where Elizabeth remained on the downward slope. The area where she sat was devoid of trees, carpeted only with tall grass, while at Magnus’ back there was another thicket, just like the one in which Cutter was concealed.
In spite of the fact that Elizabeth was sandwiched between them, Cutter still had a clear shot at Magnus... if only it weren’t getting so damned dark... if only his eyes weren’t playing tricks on him.
What the hell was wrong with him?
He shook his head, ridding himself of the black film that was slowly obscuring his vision.
