06 Uncovering Hidden Treasure (17 page)

Samantha says, "Wow that is a lot, but
why?"

Rance says, "It's the only way I can sleep. I
lie in bed, toss and turn, and ache for you. So I have had to
resort to drinking myself into oblivion every night so I can
sleep."

Unbelieving Samantha asks, "You missed me
that much?"

Turning toward her, he says, "I missed you
that much." He lowers his head and lightly brushes his lips against
hers. Then he pulls her closer and says, "Open your mouth for me
Sam." When she opens for him, he plunges his tongue into her
sweetness and a moan rumbles up from deep within his chest. His
heart is pounding heavily. He is in heaven holding Sam in his arms
again and tasting her sweetness.

When Rance's lips touch hers, Samantha is
lost. She wraps her arms around his neck and pulls him closer. Once
again she feels as if she has come home and a moan of pleasure
escapes her lips.

When he moves from her lips, down her neck
and to her breasts, Sam inhales sharply at the first touch of his
lips to her sensitive nipple. She clasps his head to her breast and
begins moving restlessly beneath him. .Sharp streaks of electrical
energy are streaking from her breast to her core and she cries out
in ecstasy.

Rance is drowning in her sweetness. His heart
is pounding and his shaft is throbbing with need. He rises up on
his arms and gazes deeply into her eyes as he slides his throbbing
member into her hot, slick sheath. He knows deep in his soul that
this woman is his life mate. He lowers his lips to hers and drinks
deeply of her sweetness as he slowly begins moving in and out of
her warmth.

He says, "Oh God, Sam, I have missed you so
much!"

When Rance slides his shaft into her warmth
Samantha feels like she has died and gone to heaven. She runs her
hands over the thick mat of hair on his chest and begs, "Please
Rance, don't ever leave me. I am lost without you and now, like
this, I have come home." Her heart is pounding and she feels the
coiling of sexual tension in her abdomen. As he speeds the rhythm
of their joining Sam can feel his need for release growing and she
pulls him closer and whispers in his ear. "I love you Rance
Kincaid."

Rance is so shocked by her words he loses his
tenuous grip on his control and plunges over into oblivion shouting
his love for her, "I love you Samantha!" Samantha smiles a secret
smile. She is sure he won't remember saying the words, but she
knows. He said them once before, that day in the cave when he left
her behind. She didn't believe the words then, but now she does.
She loves making him lose control. It makes her feel very powerful
and loved.

When he drifts back to earth he says, "I'm so
sorry Sam."

Samantha says, "Don't be sorry, Rance, I love
watching you climax. I still find it hard to believe I am able to
give you so much pleasure."

Still buried deep in her warmth, Rance gazes
deeply in her eyes and asks, "Samantha, are you really carrying my
child?"

Samantha gazes back at him and sees the
wonder in his eyes. She nods and waits to see and hear his
reaction. A tender smile spreads across his face and he lowers his
lips to hers drinking deeply of her sweetness. Samantha feels his
shaft growing larger deep within and she pulls him closer
anticipating what is to come.

Before dawn the next morning Stump leaves Sam
with a tender kiss and heads to his quarters above the barn to
shower and dress for the upcoming debriefing of the previous
night's raid. He is grinning and his heart is soaring as he walks
across the ranch yard. He's going to be a Daddy! Wow! He still
can't believe it. Of course, he and Sam will get married. He's glad
the construction of his house is well underway. It will be finished
soon and he and Sam will have time to get settled and really get to
know each other before the baby comes. He is looking forward to
holding Sam every night and making love to her whenever he wants
to. That is going to be great and he can't wait.

The debriefing is being held in the great
room of the main ranch house and when Stump walks in he sees that
most everyone has already arrived. Sam is sitting on the end of the
sofa so he takes a seat on the arm next to her and they exchange a
warm smile.

Richard Dean, the FBI agent in charge of the
investigation addresses the group, "All right, let's get this over
with. Samantha, if you would start please. Tell us everything from
the time you were kidnapped at Glacier."

Samantha says, "Well, I was walking to my car
in the employee parking lot from my assignment at the main gate
when someone grabbed me from behind. He placed a cloth over my nose
and mouth. It had something on it, probably chloroform, that
knocked me out. When I woke up, my hands and feet were tied. I had
a rag stuffed in my mouth and I was lying in the back seat of an
extended cab pickup. The only other person in the truck was the
driver. I couldn't see his face or hear anything he said because he
was playing music really loud. We didn't stop at all from Glacier
all the way back to Yellowstone. When he stopped at the chateau, he
threw me over his shoulder, carried me inside, and deposited me on
a sofa. I recognized him when he got me out of the truck. It was
Terrence Wilbanks."

Richard Dean interrupts, "How do you know
Terrence Wilbanks?"

Sam explains, "I was in the Drake Security
office the day that Eric Calloway identified the man in the
security video from the construction site theft as Thomas Wilbanks.
I heard Eric explain that Thomas Wilbanks doesn't have tattoos. I
was the one who suggested that perhaps Thomas Wilbanks had an evil
twin. When they pulled Terrence Wilbanks rap sheet and picture, I
saw it too. The man that kidnapped me had tattoos on his very
muscular arms."

Richard Dean says, "All right, continue your
story."

"He carried me inside what appeared from the
outside to be a falling down building and deposited me on a sofa
where he untied my hands and feet then immediately left. Six armed
men were scattered around the room. As soon as Terrence Wilbanks
left, John came in. He spoke to me briefly then we had lunch. A
guard named James escorted me to my room where I was left alone
until the next morning. Then James escorted me to breakfast and
later to the basement where I spent the rest of the day identifying
and cataloguing artifacts. Then I was awakened by gunfire and
explosions. I hid in the closet until Rance came to get me. Mr.
Dean, a large number of very valuable artifacts are in the basement
of the house. I hope you will see they are protected and
preserved."

Richard Dean addresses the group, "Thank you
Samantha. We'll make sure those artifacts are protected. Scoot, if
you will tell us what Drake Security did to clear the chateau."

Scoot tells the group, "After making our way
to the edge of the clearing, we used a grenade launcher to send
three grenades to disable the generator and cut off the electricity
to the chateau. Our sniper took out the two cameras on the front
side of the building. Then we sent a tear gas canister into the
front room of the building. We made our way from room to room
taking out six armed guards. Pinky and Goose encountered John
Bracken in the kitchen trying to escape out the back door. They
were forced to kill him when he drew a gun on them. We searched the
house room to room until we found Samantha in one of the bedrooms
and removed her from the building."

Richard Dean addresses the group, "During
last night's raid we were forced to kill a total of ten men, the
six guards and John Bracken in the house and three more guards in
the mine. Most of them were wanted men with long rap sheets. We
arrested twenty-five others as they exited the mine. Those men were
the ones actually doing the digging and were determined to pose no
immediate threat. We know for sure that at least one escaped,
Terrence Wilbanks. We also raided the area near the cabin on the
other side of the park that Drake Security has been watching. We
arrested ten more men at that location who primarily worked at the
construction site. That mine shaft was an area where John Bracken
had excavated previously. He decided it was not the right location
to find the lost cave and they moved to the new location just
before Jeffrey Whitmore came to the park. They have been using the
old mine shaft for storage and several of the men were sleeping in
the shaft to save on expenses. They had it set up like a fancy camp
site. It has a state of the art ventilation system and they had a
refrigerator run off the power to the cabin and a butane camp
stove. They used the cabin for showers and toilets. We believe we
may find other areas around the park where they have started shafts
and then abandoned them when Bracken changed his mind. We believe
that with John Bracken's death this investigation is essentially
over because he was the money stream. We will, of course, continue
tying up loose ends and looking for Terrence Wilbanks for the
kidnapping offense. If you don't have any questions, we'll be on
our way."

Scoot asks, "Mr. Dean, did you determine who
in Jeffrey Whitmore's office was feeding information to John
Bracken?"

Richard Dean answers, "Yes, Mr. Whitmore's
secretary was arrested this morning. She was married to one of the
body guards that we killed at the chateau. She had worked in that
position at the park for nearly ten years and had complete access
to all of the files. Does anyone else have a question?"

Bear asks, "What will happen to the mine and
artifacts now?"

Richard Dean responds, "That will be up to
the park service. I feel sure it will all be protected and
preserved. Are there any other questions?"

As the meeting breaks up, Stump takes
Samantha's hand and speaks to Barry, "Hey Barry, can I ask you
something privately?" The three of them step into the study.

"Sure, Stump, what do you need?" asks
Barry.

Grinning, Stump says, "I wanted to ask you if
Samantha and I can get married here at the ranch?"

Samantha gasps and says, "Rance, what are you
talking about? We're not getting married!"

Stump confused, looks at Samantha and says,
"Of course we're getting married, you're carrying my child!"

Samantha jerks her hand out of Stump's and
screams, "I will not marry a man that does not love me! Barry,
there will be no wedding!" She turns and runs to her room and slams
the door.

Stump is shocked at Samantha's reaction and
he stands and stares after her as she leaves the study. He doesn't
understand why she doesn't want to get married. He looks at Barry
questioningly.

Barry says, "Hey man, don't look at me.
That's something the two of you need to work out. But for the
record, you know you can have the wedding here whenever you decide
to have one. Congratulations on the baby, Stump, you'll make a
great father."

Bear steps in the study and asks, "What's
wrong with Samantha?"

Stump shakes his head and says, "Well, I
evidently messed up again, I'm just not sure what I did this
time."

Barry says, "I'll leave you two alone and let
you talk this out."

Bear closes the door after Barry leaves and
says, "Well, what did you do?"

Stump says, "All I did was ask Barry if we
could get married here at the ranch. Samantha got mad and said she
would not marry me, and ran to her room."

Bear asks, "So you asked Samantha to marry
you?"

Suddenly Stump realizes what happened and he
says, "That's it! I didn't actually ask her first! She's mad
because I just assumed we would get married after she told me she's
pregnant."

Bear shakes his head and says, "Son, if you
haven't asked her to marry you, you have a lot to learn yet about
women. Have you even told her you love her yet?"

A stunned look crosses Stump's face and he
says, "No. Do I have to tell her that too?"

Bear says, "Okay, let's start at the
beginning. Do you love Samantha?"

Nodding Stump says, "I think so, I know she
is the woman I want to spend my life with, to be my life mate. She
is the only woman that has ever completely satisfied me physically.
I think about her all the time. I can't get enough of her sexually.
It scared me to death when I found out she had been kidnapped
again. She infuriates me sometimes though."

Bear asks, "Like now?"

Stump says, "Yeah, I guess. How can I make
this right? What do I need to do?"

Bear answers, "I imagine the first hurdle you
are going to have to cross is getting her to agree to talk to you.
Don't give up on her son, she loves you too."

When he hears Bear's words, the memory of
their lovemaking flows through Stump's mind and he remembers the
words Samantha whispered in his ear just before he lost it the
first time they made love last night. He mumbles, "Yeah, she does."
A huge smile crosses his face. "Thanks, Dad." He leaves the study
and hurries to Samantha's room.

He knocks on the door but doesn't get an
answer. He tries the door and it opens easily. Glancing inside he
doesn't see her. He runs to the bathroom and doesn't find her there
either. Damn! Where did she go? He returns to the great room where
Pinky and Goose are talking to Barry.

He asks panicking, "Did you guys see Samantha
leave?"

Pinky says, "I saw her getting in the car
with Richard Dean. What's up Stump?"

Stump says, "Damn! Where was she going? Do
you have any idea?"

Pinky says, "Richard Dean has a meeting with
Jeffrey Whitmore so I imagine they are headed to the park."

Stump says, "Damn! Thanks Pinky!" He turns
and runs out the front door, jumps into his pickup and heads for
the park. What is she thinking? Didn't she hear them say that
Terrence Wilbanks is still running around loose somewhere? Oh God,
Zeke and Jeb are hanging around the park too. What if they get to
Sam? This is entirely his fault, why can't he think things through
before he acts, especially where Sam is concerned? Damn! Damn!
Damn!