Erin's Rebel (24 page)

“When did this happen?” Doc asked while he applied a compress to her eye.

“Late last night,” she whispered. Her husband nodded.

“I was out on picket,” the sergeant said. “She was in the tent alone.”

“I couldn’t sleep,” she went on, “I heard a scream and went to check.”

“Who was screaming?” Will asked.

“It must’ve been Miss Erin, sir. I went to her tent, and Sergeant Wagner pulled me inside. He’d done something to her. She may have been dead.”

Will caught Doc’s worried glance. What if Wagner had killed her? And he’d allowed it to happen.

“Go on, ma’am,” Doc prodded after she hesitated.

“The brute pushed me onto the floor and choked me. When I came to me senses, it was just before dawn, and they were both gone. I got meself up and went in search of me husband.”

Malone nodded. “I didn’t find her when I returned from picket and thought she was already up and about. She’d thought me to be still on duty, and it took awhile for us to find each other. When she told me what happened, I thought you should know right away, sir.”

Doc glanced at Will. “Then if Erin is alive, she couldn’t have left under her own power.”

Brigid shook her head, then burst into tears. Her husband rushed forward to comfort her.

Doc moved close to Will. “If Erin
is
still alive,” he said softly, “I reckon Wagner took her.”

Will’s heart sank. If anything happened to Erin, it was his fault.

****

Will saddled his horse, then rechecked the contents of his pack.

Doc paced beside him. “I know you have to do this, but if you leave without permission, you’ll be charged with desertion.”

“I know that.”

“What about your family?”

Will grimaced. He didn’t want to hurt and humiliate his family, but he had no choice. “If I don’t find her, he’ll kill her.”

Doc nodded, saying no more.

Will hadn’t really thought Doc would try to talk him out of it. Will had felt powerless when Anne and then Sam had died. He couldn’t help but feel responsible for Erin’s situation. By rejecting her, he’d allowed Wagner the opportunity to take her.

He’d also made sure the sergeant had made it back after the battle at Cedar Creek. He could have left him behind in the field for the Yankees. But Wagner had saved his life, even though he did it for revenge of his wound and for the death of his friend. Will couldn’t have left any of his men behind.

But...he hadn’t protected Erin.

If Wagner hurt or killed her, he’d never be able to forgive himself.

Chapter Twenty-six

Emerging from a haze, Erin slowly focused on her surroundings. At first, only the pain registered. Her jaw and head throbbed. Tasting cotton, she realized she was gagged. She tried to spit out the rag, but it was too tightly laced.

Rolling over, she found herself in a barn lying on a pile of straw with light filtering through the wall. Her wrists were bound, as well as her ankles, the leather cord cutting into her skin.

Every time she’d awake on that hellish ride that seemed to last an eternity, dizziness and pain caused her to black out. During one of her moments of consciousness, she managed to tear off a square of her quilt and conceal it in her clenched hand. She then pleaded with Jake to allow her to care for her personal needs. He untied her and let her partially conceal herself behind shrubs. As she climbed back into the wagon, he momentarily turned his back to retrieve the cords he’d used to bind her. She glanced around for any kind of weapon, but seeing nothing she could use, she dropped the square by the side of the road. Though she didn’t believe anyone would come after her, anyway.

Jake had told her he’d taken her to get him through the Yankee lines. Little did he know she’d be useless to him. If she told him where she’d really come from, he wouldn’t believe her any more than Will had. An image of Will’s face as he made love to her and later, when she’d told him she’d come from the twenty-first century, flashed through her mind.

She couldn’t expect him to come to her rescue this time. Even if he could find her, he probably figured she and Jake deserved each other.

But if Jake found out she wasn’t who he thought she was and couldn’t help him, he’d probably kill her as he had that poor woman, Rachel.

Where was he, anyway? She glanced around the interior of the barn. She didn’t see him or any of his gear. The bastard hadn’t left her anything to eat or drink, she was sure. Maybe he’d left her here to die.

She pulled up her legs to examine the bonds on her ankles. He’d used the same leather cord that bound her wrists. If she could get her legs free, it would be easier to find something she could use to cut the cord binding her hands.

Her fingers were numb and her head threatened to explode, but she had to focus on freeing herself if she wanted to live.

****

Will had ridden all day not daring to stop for fear the trail he followed would grow cold. After Brigid’s statement, he’d investigated and found a mare had been stolen, along with a supply wagon and other gear. He followed the north-bound trail all day and hoped they’d stopped somewhere along the way to rest.

He couldn’t keep his thoughts from Erin. The night they’d made love, she’d looked so beautiful with her red-gold tresses hanging loosely around her ivory shoulders. She’d gazed lovingly at him with her beautiful sapphire eyes.

He didn’t want to think about what he’d do if he found her dead or didn’t find her at all. He couldn’t allow himself to think about that possibility. He’d deserted his post—a position he’d sworn to honor—to find her. He couldn’t live with himself if he didn’t at least try. But if he failed, he had nothing. He’d be charged as a deserter, arrested and likely shot. His family would be disgraced, and Amanda would grow up hating him.

He followed the trail through wooded country roads and something red at the base of a barren oak caught his eye. He stopped, alighting from his gelding, and crouched to retrieve the object. He lifted a square of material, a piece of a patchwork quilt. Jenny had told him Erin’s quilt had been missing when she’d returned to the tent. If this were a piece of her quilt, they’d passed this way. Tucking the square into the pocket of his coat, he mounted his horse and continued.

****

Hours later, Will topped a rise in the trail, and a farm came into view. If it were a working farm, the fields would already have been harvested. But when he neared the house, no smoke rose from the chimneys. He saw no sign of life. He drew closer and saw the charred interior of the house along with a gaping hole in the roof. The Yankees had likely torched the structure when they’d passed through.

Guiding his mount into a canter, he rode along the side of the house to the back and found a barn. The red and gray building didn’t seem to have been burned as the house had, but again, he saw no signs of life.

He patted his gelding. “Maybe we can find you a drink.” The horse nodded as if in agreement. He dismounted, grasped the reins, and led the horse around the side of the barn in search of a water trough.

The walls of the barn badly needed a fresh coat of paint. Quite a few planks were so worn he could see into the interior. He froze when he sighted a wagon a few feet away from the barn door. A torn quilt lay in the bed.

He drew his revolver. Quickly he tied his horse alongside the wagon. He approached the barn door, his pulse racing.

****

Once Erin had loosened the knot in the cord tying her feet, she searched the barn and used the sharp edge of a shovel to slice through her bonds. She threw away the cotton gag and looked around for anything useful she could take with her. She didn’t plan to be here if and when he returned. Since her arms and legs cramped from being bound so long, she stretched to work out the kinks.

What if he hadn’t left but was right outside?

A pack half-buried in the hay caught her attention. Rifling through it, she found one of her dresses, a petticoat, a pair of stockings and her shoes. When Jake had taken her, she’d only been wearing her chemise. Apparently, he’d thought to bring her something to wear. She pulled the dress over her head, then headed for the door. Pressing one ear against the wood, she listened for any sound, while deciding what to do.

If he were right outside, she had to find a weapon. Searching the barn, she found exactly what she needed—a sharp-tonged pitchfork. This would do the trick. If Jake were anywhere around, she’d surprise him and run him through.

When she again approached the door, this time with weapon in hand, a horse neighed. If the horse were here, he must be, too.

Pointing the pitchfork at the door, she braced herself as it cracked open.

****

Will approached the barn door, revolver drawn. Pressing his ear against the peeling painted surface, he strained to hear any sound. Scuffling noises assured him that, indeed, someone was inside. He couldn’t call out. That would give him away if Wagner were in there. Taking a breath, he pulled on the door handle.

The sharp tines of a pitchfork flew toward him, followed by a gasp.

“I almost speared you!” Erin cried.

“I almost shot
you
,” he replied, his pulse racing.

She lowered the pitchfork, but he kept his revolver leveled. “Where’s Wagner?”

“I don’t know. I think he left.” Her eyes were wide.

What had that bastard done to her?

After holstering his gun, he gently removed the pitchfork from her and propped it against the wall. “You really planned to stab him with this?”

She nodded.

Relieved she was alive, he wrapped her in his arms. Her heart beat reassuringly against his chest. He should have protected her from Wagner while they were still in camp. “Did he hurt you, darlin’?”

Sagging against him, she sighed. “He hit me. I blacked out.” She raised her gaze to his. An ugly greenish bruise ran the length of her jaw on the left side of her face.

He traced a finger over the spot, and she flinched.

“He did this?”

She nodded.

“I’ll kill him.”

“Not if I don’t first. When I came to, I was bound and gagged in the back of a wagon. He brought me here, then just left. I don’t know if he’ll be back. That’s why, when I heard you outside—”

“You tried to spear me,” he finished. Positioning his hand to hold the back of her head, he pressed her face into his coat. As she reached around and clung to his waist, her warmth and scent enveloped him. He’d never loved another woman as much and had feared he’d never see her again. Or worse, he’d find her as he had Anne, already beyond his reach.

“He didn’t do anything else, did he?” If Wagner had violated her, he swore he’d kill him.

“No,” she answered. “I think he just took me because he thought I’d get him through the Yankee lines, but I can’t.”

“You told him this?”

She shook her head. “Told him that I’ve traveled through time? I couldn’t. He’d never believe me anyway. You didn’t.”

Will stiffened. “I’ve done some thinking on that.”

“And?” She raised her chin.