Be My Guest (25 page)

Worry creased Will's brow. At ten minutes
past seven Aurora hadn't shown up. A knot balled up in his stomach.
She's not coming. You should have called. You should have let Kelly
call her. Instead he decided to give her time to think, and he
brooded all week.

Rose stopped beside Will, her brow furrowed
in a worried frown. "I can't imagine what could be keeping
Aurora."

The knot in his stomach grew and a ball
lodged in his throat. Busying himself with the meat, he said as
casually as he could. "I guess she's not coming."

Rose waved a hand at him in irritation. "Oh,
but of course she is, Will. I helped her get everything ready this
morning so she could change as quickly as possible at the store
before coming here. She had a new skirt and shirt to wear and she
took her clothes and jewelry with her this morning. Vivian and I
stopped by the store on our way out here. She was short-handed at
the store or she would have come with us. Aurora said she would be
here before time to serve the meal."

Hope seeped slowly through him. "Maybe she
changed her mind." As he acted devil's advocate to Rose, he prayed
he was wrong.

"Will, you know that's not true. No one who
spent as much time as she did choosing a gift for you would fail to
show up to give it to you. Besides, she had something very
important to tell you." Rose caught herself, surprised at her
lapse--even for her favorite relative. "Oh, but I mustn't speak for
her. I just can't imagine what could be taking her so long."

Relief showed on Will's face. "You're sure?"
The knot in his stomach began to unwind slowly.

"Yes, dear, I'm positive." Rose gave her
nephew's arm a squeeze and then gave his face a close scrutiny.
"You look like five miles of bad road, Will."

"Aw, we thought we'd gotten rid of all the
hay that got wet during that flood, but apparently we missed one
leak in the big barn. Some of our good hay got wet. The new
stablehand is used to cows and didn't know moldy hay makes horses
sick. Raul and I have nursed sick horses most of the past three
days. I haven't had more than a few hours sleep all week."

He ran his fingers through his hair. Doubt
shadowed his weary eyes. "You're certain Aurora's coming here
tonight after work?"

"You can count on it, Will. She was going to
change clothes at the store, make a night deposit at the bank, and
then come here."

A new worry sprang to bedevil him. He
checked his watch. "Then I wonder why she's not here? It's 7:15.
She should have been here at least half an hour ago."

Raul walked over to where Will stood. "Mi
amigo, I think I know of the two men who tried to harm your Aurora.
I suspect they are also the same two who are responsible for the
disappearance of this other woman and our cattle."

"What other woman?" In addition to the time
spent with the sick horses, Will had been in such a foul mood all
week, he had been oblivious to the rest of the world.

"Yesterday morning the car of a woman was
found abandoned on Highway 669. It was while we were working with
those sick horses, amigo, so perhaps you did not hear of it. This
woman has not been found. I think it must be that these same men
have kidnapped her as they tried to do with your Aurora."

Will's head came up and he almost barked at
his old fiend, "Who are they?"

Raul shook his head thoughtfully. "My cousin
Paulo knows of two such men who are muy malo, muy malo. Billy
Gunter and Lenny Williams have been paroled from prison, and
returned to this area only a few weeks ago--about the time Aurora
came here, so that fits with her first encounter with them. They
are real trouble makers."

Will became frantic. He practically shouted
at his old friend. "Does Paulo know where they live?"

"Ah, sí, and now so do I." Raul appeared
very pleased with himself.

A frenzied Lori Beth hurried toward her
brother as fast as possible for a very pregnant woman. "Will,
Eunice Foster from the feed store behind the card shop just called.
She and Milton were working in the back of the store before they
left for your party. She saw two men force Aurora into a red truck.
Eunice got the license number and Milton called the sheriff. The
sheriff found Aurora's handbag, the bank deposit, and a gift on the
seat of her Jeep. The Fosters figured Aurora was supposed to be
here this evening and phoned to tell you."

All color drained from Will's face. "Come
on, Raul. You know where they live. Let's go. I'll get my gun."
Will turned toward the house, but Raul grabbed his arm to stop
him.

"Wait, amigo, we must let the sheriff know
where these men live."

Will jerked his arm free and called over his
shoulder, "We can use the phone in my truck. Round up some men
while I get my rifle."

Will became a madman. Those men had Aurora!
Why hadn't he talked with her, told her he'd come into town for
her? No, that wasn't practical. He should have had someone come by
for her, should have insisted that she come with his mother and
Rose. His mind whirled with recriminations and, at the same time,
planned his assault on the villains.

By the time Will emerged from the house with
two rifles and ammunition, Raul, Tommy, and Bob Hankins had rounded
up Raul's cousins and some of the other guests at the party. Paulo
Garcia rode with Will and Tommy in Will's truck. Raul followed with
his double cab truck filled with two more of his cousins and three
other men from the party. Bob Hankins and Greg followed with
another party guest in Bob's truck.

Will handed the phone to Tommy. "Call the
sheriff's office. While Paulo gives me directions, you relay them
to let the sheriff know where those men are probably headed."

Cautiously, Paulo said, "Never have I seen
you in this state. Will, I need to tell you these are very
dangerous men. They almost shot me because they thought I was
snooping on them when I checked my fences yesterday. Finally, they
called me a stupid greaser and went away." He said as if it were an
aside, "Do you know how long it's been since anyone called me a
greaser?"

He shook his head and reasoned with himself
aloud. "Better for them to think I am stupid because I am Hispanic.
I think they would have shot me right there on my own land if I had
been a gringo. You must move with much caution, Will."

Caution was not in Will's mind as he sped
through the evening.

* * *

Cotton lined Aurora's mouth and her heart
pounded like a drum in her breast, but her other reaction surprised
her. Frightened, her anger for these two men grew far greater than
her fear. Just when she had a chance at everything she wanted in
life, these two had the nerve to intervene.

What if she never got the opportunity to
tell Will how deeply she loved him and he thought she didn't care
enough to stay in Post? She thought of Will's gray eyes filled with
passion. What if she never got to make love to him again, to feel
his strong body mold to hers? The thought of the same act with
either of these men filled her with revulsion. Anger boiled up
inside her and her jaw clamped. I have to get away from these
creeps. I have to find a way.

She fought anger and fear to keep her wits
about her. These two were probably killers who had no intention of
letting her go free to identify them. If she appeared cowed and
ready to cooperate, perhaps she would have her chance. Just one
chance to get away, she prayed. Lord, give me just one good
chance.

The cab of the truck reeked of stale body
odors and alcohol from the men whose names she now knew to be Lenny
and Billy. As they drove, they took turns telling her of their
plans for her.

"Yep," Billy said as he pulled at his
scraggly beard. "We just 'bout used up that other gal. 'Sides, we
decided we needed two women so's we’d have us one a piece. Piece,
get it? " He chuckled to himself at his imagined cleverness.

Lenny guided the truck onto a rutted track
and up to a small, dilapidated house. The cattle trailer parked at
one side of the house struck a chord in Aurora's memory. These two
men must be responsible for the recent cattle rustling at the area
ranches.

Two barrels for burning trash were
overflowing, and trash too heavy to be blown away by the
ever-present wind lay scattered about the area. Left over car parts
also littered the yard. An old washing machine sat discarded beside
the porch of the house. A rusted-out car body stood further back
near the remains of a collapsed carport.

"Now don't you go gettin' any ideas, little
lady. You're mine now, and your fancy boyfriend can find hisself
another woman," Lenny sneered.

Billy opened the truck door and complained,
"Aw Lenny, it was me she kicked." Billy released her arm from
behind her back and stood sulking by the open door.

Pain once again shot through her when Lenny
tugged her by the same aching left arm and jerked her out of the
truck on the driver's side. "Now, Billy, you know we agreed this
one 'ud be mine. I seen her first. Anyways, you picked out the
other one."

Aurora searched the littered yard for
anything she might use as a weapon against these two. She pretended
to be even more frightened than she was and stumbled as if in
terror.

As she fell, her hand grasped a two-foot
length of galvanized pipe. Lenny jerked her up, then raised his
other arm to protect his head when he saw the pipe in her hand.
Instead of striking the man, Aurora used the pipe to poke his
flabby gut.

She rammed with all her strength and gasped
when the pipe sank into Lenny's flesh. Lenny released her arm and
clutched at his stomach and the pipe. Aurora darted away before
Billy came around the truck.

"Ow-w-w, man, my stomach." Lenny called,
"Get me my gun. I'm gonna get that bitch. She'll pay for this."

Aurora didn't look back. In a flash, she ran
into the brush and down a ravine. Her stiff new boots made her
awkward and she wished for her little canvas shoes. The tops of the
boots rubbed her calves raw as she ran, but she raced onward. With
luck, she thought, Lenny and Billy are only renting this place and
are unfamiliar with the terrain. If one of them had grown up here,
she hadn't a chance of eluding them for long.

Soon darkness would help Aurora evade the
two men. If she could last a few more minutes, she would have a
chance. Lenny and Billy shouted to one another. A shot rang out and
sand sprayed Aurora as the bullet pinged near her on the ravine’s
soft, sandy floor. Her chest heaved with each gasp of breath, but
she ran blindly forward down the twisting ravine.

When Aurora could no longer hear the two
men, she slowed down to get her bearings. Blood pounded in her head
so loud she wondered if the men would hear it. She crouched low and
crept up out of the ravine behind a scrawny bush. In the fading
light she saw Billy's blond head bobbing as he walked down the
ravine. Lenny called to him in a hoarse whisper from directly
across the ravine. Both men had guns.

Aurora froze. Fear gripped her throat and
made it impossible to get her breath. If she moved, Lenny would see
her. For what seemed an eternity, Aurora watched as Lenny and Billy
passed by. Crouched so low she almost crawled, she scurried away
from the ravine. When she reached a large clump of cedar, she crept
behind it and stood up. She rubbed her aching left arm. It's always
this poor left arm that gets hurt, she thought.

The peaceful scene away from the men belied
the danger of her position. The pungent smell of salt cedar
surrounded her and a bird called to its mate. The sun sank below
the Caprock horizon and only the faint rosy glow remained above the
bluffs. She prayed Lenny and Billy would not find her before
dark.

Aurora's attention was drawn to the right
where a procession of trucks turned into the path leading to the
little ramshackled house. Could that be Will's truck in front that
screeched to a halt behind Lenny's truck? Far in the distance she
could see flashing lights on the top of several patrol cars. Relief
flooded through her. If she could hold out a few more minutes she
would be safe.

Lenny and Billy turned as they also saw the
procession. Both men cursed and started for the same clump of cedar
that sheltered her. Fear renewed itself as Aurora edged toward the
next clump, trying to keep the bushy tree between her and the two
men. She reached the next clump just as Lenny sighted her.

At the same time, she heard Will calling to
her. No voice had ever sounded so wonderful!

"Aurora, are you okay? Aurora, can you hear
me?"

Lenny gave an evil laugh and raised his gun
to aim it at Will.

She yelled as loud as she could. "Will, get
back! They've got guns."

Aurora picked up rock and threw it at Lenny.
The rock struck Lenny on the side of the head and distracted him so
that his shot missed Will. She ran back to the ravine and pitched
into it. Lenny turned and fired at her. Her arm stung as another
bullet whizzed into the ravine near her, spraying gravel. She
ignored a warm, wet trickle on her arm as she raced toward
help.

The increasing twilight made the ravine more
difficult to navigate than even the few minutes before. Her hands
pushed at roots and rocks protruding from the arroyo sides as she
moved toward the house. Voices floated in front of her. Lenny's and
Billy's cursing grew louder as they pursued her. Every sound seemed
magnified. Otherworldly. She saw the whole scene from somewhere
outside and above herself.

Onward she ran, but her breathing grew
ragged and her steps slowed. The boots seemed like lead weights
meant to slow her legs. Surely Lenny and Billy were having as much
trouble. Only a few more yards and she would be safe. Only a few
more yards. She left the ravine and raced toward Will.

Just as Aurora thought she was safe, her
stiff boots stumbled on the uneven terrain and she fell forward.
The hard fall knocked the wind from her. She struggled to her
knees, only to see Lenny beside her.