“When will we go?”Simon’s eyes were gleaming in anticipation of action.
“You don’t, Simon,” Rafe said.“The fewer, the better.Skinny, because I need his expertise, Ben, and myself.”
“Dammit,” Johnny Green said.“I didn’t come here to sit on my hands.”
“We may need you for an alibi for Skinny and Ben,” Rafe said.“Both you and Bill.Go into the saloon in Rushton, make it clear you’re meeting Skinny and Ben later.
Disappointment clouded Simon’s eyes, then they brightened.“I could stay with the girl.”
“The wolf guarding the lamb,” Ben said wryly, saving Rafe from saying it.They all laughed.
“I’ll check on her,” Clint offered.“She’s already seen me, anyway.”
“No one will miss you?”
“Hell, I’ll say I’m going up into the north pasture.There have been reports of a wolf pack there killing calves.That’s the excuse I’m using today.”
Rafe nodded.“If all goes well, we’ll be back at dawn.”He grinned at Simon’s crestfallen face.“She has a tongue that would slice you to pieces, Simon.“I thought you liked your women friendly and enthusiastic.”
“Yeah, Simon,” Ben said.“She’s not your type at all.She’s a lady.”
“Go to hell, Ben,” Simon said good-naturedly.
“What about the miner’s death, the one that’s being blamed on us?”Ben asked.
Rafe’s smile had a hard edge.“Ironically, the woman provides me with an alibi.”He looked over to Clint.“Try to keep an eye on McClary.Follow him if he leaves in the evening or at night.”
Clint nodded, and together they carefully planned their next move against Jack Randall.
Shea moved restlessly inside the cabin.She’d heard the sound of approaching horses, of muffled laughter.
She had been locked inside since breakfast without explanation.Of course, as a captive, she obviously wasn’t entitled to one, she thought rebelliously.
She found herself pacing, and again she wondered how Rafe Tyler had endured ten years of imprisonment when she couldn’t stand even a few hours.But he’d deserved it.He’d betrayed his country for money.And she … all she had done was try to find a father.
Shea tried sketching.She tried reading.She tried petting Abner—Rafe had left the mouse in the cabin with her.It might have been compassion, but she doubted it.He wouldn’t know what the word meant.She’d been a fool to think otherwise yesterday at the waterfall.He’d been cold and contemptuous since the return to the cabin and this morning had simply locked her in like some troublesome … mouse.
She would sell her soul to find out what was going on outside.Well, almost.She found the crumpled piece of paper she’d stuck in a pocket yesterday, the sketch of Tyler in which she’d softened some of the hard lines of his face.
With a few strokes she changed it, trying once more to find the real substance of the man but failing miserably.He showed too many outward contradictions, and he kept too much of himself well hidden.
She tried to occupy herself with plans to escape.She’d paid attention yesterday when he’d taken her to the waterfall.She’d noted their route, the position of the sun.But she wasn’t any wiser at which direction to take to get out of the valley.
Refusing to let that dishearten her, she squirreled away some crackers and jerky in her valise, to take if she ever did get a chance to escape.She looked longingly at the two clean dresses inside the valise, even the one she hadn’t had a chance to wash in Casey City.The shirt and trousers she still had on were becoming smelly and dirty.Yet changing to a dress seemed to be a kind of surrender, an acceptance of a condition that was unacceptable.
How long would she be locked in here?She looked at the pail of water and soap he’d brought her this morning and decided she would wash her shirt at least.It was something to do.
After changing into a tan skirt and matching blouse, she took a cup and filled it so she would have drinking water, then plunged the shirt into the pail.She started scrubbing, using the shirt as a substitute for Rafe Tyler.
It would probably be the cleanest garment she’d ever worn.If there was anything left when she finished.
Rafe watched the last of the men go, feeling a certain regret as he did so.
There would be little now to keep his mind off the woman.
Ben had brought a few more supplies, including a haunch of a deer and a sack of potatoes.Perhaps some stew tonight would break the monotony of the diet.A hot meal might make her more … more, what?
He reluctantly approached the cabin and unlocked the door.She was sitting on the bed, reading by the light of the candle.He noticed she was wearing something different, a blouse and tan skirt, and she looked extraordinarily pretty, her head bent over the book, her light brown hair caught in the glow of the candle as it fell over her shoulder.When she looked up, he found himself inwardly flinching from the silent accusation in her eyes.
