He turned and ducked out.
Candice let out another long breath, falling onto her side and clamping her thighs together. She curled up and bit her knuckle. She relived every moment of what had just occurred, then every moment of their relationship since he had found her unconscious in the desert. And by the time she had reached the present, she was crying.
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
She imagined him coming home every night to Datiye, sharing a meal with her, sharing his day, a bed. But he hadn’t loved her. Oh, no. He had loved his first wife, Chilahe. He had loved her so much he couldn’t even talk about it. He must have been more than in love with her—he must have been crazy about her.
It was a long time before she fell asleep.
The next morning Candice awoke to the sounds of a crowd gathered close to thegohwah. When she had fidlen asleep last night, Jack had not returned, and her last waking thoughts had been that he had gone to Datiye. And now, noticing grimly that he was not with her in thegohwah, she was wondering again if he had spent the night with his former wife.
She hurriedly dressed and rebraided her hair, then stepped outside. The black stallion was prancing wildly, and Hayilkah was standing not far away, a rifle aimed and pointed at the stallion. Candice froze, unable to believe what was about to happen—that the Apache was going to kill one of the most magnificent animals she had ever seen. She heard a shrill, eerie war cry.
It was Jack.
He reached Hayilkah and grabbed the barrel of the rifle. They wrestled over it, straining against each other. Hayilkah was wearing only a breechcloth, and his huge, broad body, so unusual for an Apache, rippled with thick muscle. Jack, although powerful and a big man, was taller and not quite as broad. He was bare-chested, and his back rippled as he fought for the rifle. A sharp word from Shozkay made both men pause, still tensed against each other, both gripping the rifle. Shozkay pushed between them and grabbed the gun. Jack stepped back, panting, looking murderous. Hayilkah began yelling angrily.
“What’s he saying?” Candice demanded. Everyone was listening intently to the tirade.
“He says Niño Salvaje cheated him,” Luz told her. “Trading him a devil in a horse’s body. He tried to shoot the horse, but Niño Salvaje stopped him. Hayilkah wants you back.”
Candice let loose a sharp cry, causing Jack to flash a hot silver glance at her. “What will happen?” That thought was too terrifying to contemplate.
Shozkay was talking in authoritarian tones. Both Jack and Hayilkah were listening and exchanging angry, hostile glances. It was clear that they wanted to fight.
“Shozkay is chief. He will decide what is fair,” Luz interpreted softly. “He will decide by the time of White Painted Woman.”
“White Painted Woman?”
“When the moon comes.”
Shozkay turned his back on the two men and came over to them. Half the band had gathered, including Datiye, and the sight of her made Candice go rigid—especially when Datiye gave her a hate-filled glance. Shozkay was speaking kindly to her. “Don’t worry, Sister. I will decide fairly.”
Candice was barely listening. She had been too busy ignoring Datiye. She turned back to Jack and Hayilkah, who were staring at each other. She gasped as the two men stood tensed on the balls of their feet and began to slowly circle and approach each other.
“They’re going to fight!” she cried. “Shozkay, stop them!”
Shozkay was watching. “No, this will happen, if not today, another time. It is better that it be now.”
Candice was suddenly afraid—afraid that Hayilkah would kill Jack.
The two men were circling each other slowly, intensely. Candice couldn’t take her eyes off them, both so powerful and so intent. Suddenly Datiye hissed in her ear, “If he dies, it is your fault!”
“My fault?” She was incredulous.
Datiye turned rudely away, but Luz took Candice’s hand, speaking softly. “Salvaje is furious because of the way Hayilkah treated you. That is what they were arguing about just now. He is also angry because Hayilkah examined you, when it should have been his wife or his wife’s mother.”
As she absorbed that, Hayilkah lunged. Jack easily sidestepped, and Hayilkah quickly regained his balance, facing him again. Jack danced lightly just beyond Hayilkah’s reach. Hayilkah approached, but was waiting, and the crowd grew tense. Candice wiped sweat from her brow. Hayilkah suddenly kicked one foot out lethally, and had it caught Jack in his abdomen, it would have knocked him down easily. But Jack had anticipated it, deftly moving aside, and the brave’s kick swept empty air. Just as his foot landed, while he was still off balance, Jack suddenly took two hard, short steps, planting himself right in front of Hayilkah. He hit him with a powerful kick to the jaw, then landed lightly on his feet—while Hayilkah staggered backward, but didn’t fall.
Hayilkah was angry. He charged. Jack waited until the last moment, then stepped aside, one forearm coming out and strangling Hayilkah’s throat, seeking a headlock but unable to find one. The movement caused the brave to jerk back, and Jack hit him brutally in the kidneys twice, following with a left to his jaw. Then he jumped back. Hayilkah panted, but stayed on his feet.
The two men continued to circle. Candice couldn’t believe that Hayilkah hadn’t even gone down once under Jack’s two attacks, and it sickened her. Jack was covered with sweat, his chest and face gleaming, but he was barely breathing. She clenched her fists.
Jack darted in, jabbing with his left, following through with a right that would have broken through a pine wall. It connected with Hayilkah’s nose, and blood gushed from it. But as Jack danced back, Hayilkah struck with a kick that caught Jack in the stomach, and he fell onto his back. Candice screamed.
Hayilkah dove on top of him.
With one hand, he held Jack’s hair, with his other, he dealt a blow to Jack’s face while Jack lay gasping for breath. Jack tried to throw him off, his hands barely affecting Hayilkah. Hayilkah punched him again. Jack lifted his knees. He couldn’t get them up to kick Hayilkah off. Hayilkah raised his fist.
