“What?” He was stunned.
“A scout returned with the news he read in a sign. My scouts at the fort recognized Sun Daughter immediately. How could they not?”
“Yes, how could they not?” Jack gritted under his breath. Why was she at the fort? She couldn’t … she wouldn’t.… “What happened?”
“The soldiers found her riding west. They do not let her go.”
“She is a prisoner?”
“I don’t know,” Cochise replied.
If they knew who she was, if they knew of her relationship to him … Jack’s heart was thundering.
“She has betrayed you, her husband,” Cochise said. “Will she betray me, and my people?”
“She knows nothing,” Jack said tersely.
Would she betray them? She had already betrayed him. Pain seared him. He should have known. How could he have trusted her? How could he have been fooled into thinking she could adapt to her abduction, especially with Datiye here? Had the entire past seven months been a masquerade, leading up to this—her betrayal?
No!
But he was sick with uncertainty. He swung into the saddle.
“You should let her go,” Cochise said. “No woman is worth betrayal.”
“I can’t,” he said.
CHAPTER EIGHTY-SEVEN
Candice knew he was lying.
She stared out of the window of the major’s quarters. The day had dragged endlessly. It was sometime past noon, and there was nothing for her to do in the fort except to take care of Christina and read the major’s books. He had joined her again for lunch, and as he had been the night before at supper, he was a perfect gentlemen, except when his eyes drifted downward to her bosom. Not once had he brought up Cochise, Jack, or the wars. In fact, they had talked of everything but those three topics, and Candice had the distinct impression he was luring her into a feeling of complacency before springing the jaws of a deadly trap. But why? Exactly what did he want? Did he really think she had information? Did he see through her façade? Did he know she loved Jack, not hated him?
She was sure he had lied when he told her there were no men available for a proper escort home. It was true that there did not seem to be very many men within the fort, but there were at least a dozen. Where were the others? Out on patrol? Maybe he meant that there were no trustworthy ones, or no officers available. She didn’t think so. She had a bad feeling, a feeling of dread. He was toying with her the way a cat does with a mouse. She wished he would ask her what he wanted to know and get it over with.
Had Jack returned to the Apache camp yet and found her gone?
Unconsciously she clapped a hand over her bosom as if to ease the ache there. A knock sounded on her door, and Candice went to open it. Corporal Tarnower smiled at her. “Missus Kincaid. The major has requested your presence, if you’re not too busy.”
She almost laughed, but instead smiled sweetly. “Certainly.” She picked up Christina, who had just been fed and put down. The baby whimpered in her sleep and then was still. Candice followed the corporal across the dry, dusty parade ground and to the adjutant’s office. She was glad the waiting was over.
The major smiled warmly, too warmly. “Please, Candice, do sit down.”
Candice sat, her daughter in her arms.
“Why don’t you let Corporal Tarnower look after the baby for a few moments? She seems quite soundly asleep.”
Reluctantly Candice agreed, handing Christina to a surprisingly eager Tarnower, who exited. She turned her full attention on Major Bradley.
“Tell me about your captivity, Candice,” the major said, sitting casually on the edge of his desk.
“What would you like to know?”
“How did you spend your days?”
Making love with Jack, she thought wickedly, but refrained from saying so. “I helped with the preparing of food. We were always drying all sorts of roots and stems and berries for storage. I would say preparing, cooking, and storing food takes up eighty percent of an Apache woman’s time.”
He started asking her specific questions about the items she had prepared, and Candice was sure he was not interested in Apache culture. However, she answered as best she could.
