“I don’t care.” She threw her arms open wide. “The point is, my heart isn’t for sale. And there are better ways to get land than saddling yourself with a wife who wants nothing to do with you, so I’m begging you to leave me off at a street corner before we get out of town.”
“Hmmm.” He pursed his lips and stared at her.
She scooted to the cushioned corner. Streetlights flickeredby. Her stomach tumbled. The passing of the minutes pulsed in her head.Dear Lord, what am I to do?
She could bolt out of the carriage as soon as it stopped and take a gamble his men wouldn’t shoot, but how far could she get on foot? She needed a horse and a key. The jailer didn’t have the key to the leg irons. Maybe a strong man could bust the chain with a sledgehammer, but how wassheto do that? The jail would be the first place Nick would look. She needed to get to Alleyton and contact the Germans. But would they have the men and the will to attack the transport before it was too late?
“I can see the gears of your mind working at full steam.” His voice broke the silence.
She cinched her cloak tighter. She should have gotten her hands on a knife.
Darkness filled the windows now. She squinted at the outlines of a fence or field, an occasional far-off light from a barn or house. An outcropping of trees came up on the left.
Nick rapped on the ceiling. “Here.”
The carriage pulled over.
She steeled herself for what was to come.
He tugged his gloves off and tossed them aside. “You’ll never be able to save Reynolds on your own.”
It was as if he’d stolen the thought from her head. She gaped at him.
His gaze bored into her. “You think there’s nothing to me? That money’s all I care about.”
“I’m sure you love success and power, as well, and an occasional visit to a brothel.”
“I’m a man who knows what he wants and finds a way to get it. I don’t accept defeat, especially at the hands of a worm like Reynolds.”
“Too late.”
The edge of his mouth quirked upward in a smirk. “Do you know what I’ve been sitting here thinking?”
“I have no idea.” She crossed her arms.
“Death isn’t good enough for Reynolds.”
She shivered. “What is that supposed to mean?”
Nick’s expression hardened. “He has smeared my name and reputation. The news of his attack will spread across civilized Texas and the western division of the Confederacy.”
“You stopped him. Saved most of the cotton.”
“Not good enough. I should have figured him out weeks ago. At least, I’m not like that buffoon of a quartermaster who would have let the entire town burn down. However, the smear is still there, and will spread far and wide.” He narrowed his eyes. “Furthermore, Reynolds stole the affection of the woman I want.”
She pressed her lips together. He didn’t steal it. He won it.
“Death isn’t good enough because when he dies, it’s over. He’s paid his debt. No more suffering or consequences for him. How does that benefit me?”
She froze. What if she was the payment he was looking for? “You come near me, you’ll live to regret it.”
“I told you once before, I don't force myself upon women.”
“In that case, I'm sure you’ll die a lonely old bachelor. You might as well turn around, take me back to town.”
“Tell me, Morning Fawn, what are you willing to do in order to save Devon Reynolds?"
Her heart clunked.
