Heart Of Texas (Historical Romance) (11 page)

Sam had ridden in around sundown, exhausted
but rambling excitedly about helping Gabe round
up cattle and drive them into a pen. After he had
eaten, he climbed to his loft and immediately fell
asleep.

Jenny, however, had been another matter.
Casey had read her an entire chapter in her favorite book before the child finally nodded off to
sleep. Casey herself was wide-awake.

She couldn't get the threats Mr. Slaughter had
made out of her mind.

She covered jenny and left the bedroom, walking outside into the fresh air. A cloud crept across
the moon, shrouding the landscape in shadows,
but it was still light enough for her to make her
way to the corral. Her shoulder was hurting so
badly she wanted to cry.

She leaned against the fence post and ran- her
hand down the chestnut's glossy neck.

"I heard you had a visitor today."

She whirled around to find Gabe right behind
her, and she wondered how long he had been
standing there watching her. She glanced back at
the gelding and patted his neck. "You moved so
silently I didn't hear you."

He came up to the fence and propped a booted
foot on one of the rungs. "I learned to move quietly when I was young."

She could not imagine him as a boy because he
had such a commanding presence as a man.

He turned his head away as he said, "Tell me
about your visitor today." He stared straight
ahead. "Kate told me about it, but I want to hear
it from you."

"There's not much to tell. Mr. Slaughter has
the mistaken idea that he can scare us off our
land."

"Did he make threats?"

"Veiled ones. Nothing I could accuse him of.
But he threatened me all the same."

"Cyrus is a hard man, Miss Hamilton, and a
dangerous one. He can and will use whatever
means it takes to get his hands on this ranch. Are
you willing to fight him, or do you want to sell to
him?"

"I won't let him have the Spanish Spur."

His tone hardened. "Think carefully before you
answer, because if you decide to stay, there will
be a war the likes of which you have never seen
before."

"I didn't come all this way to Texas to give up
at the first sign of trouble. And you are wrong: I
have seen a war, and nothing can be more frightening than Yankees burning my father's bank and
our home. My brother and sister have already lost
too much. I will not see them put out of another
home."

He was quiet for a moment. "Then it'll be a
fight."

"I'm not leaving."

He reached out and softly touched her cheek
with his knuckles. "I have seen grown men cringe
before Cyrus Slaughter, and yet you, a little slip
of a girl, are ready to take him on."

It took her a moment to speak because the look
in his eyes was so tender. She could not be mistaken about that. "You will have to tell me what
we must do, because I don't know."

"What you should do is leave."

She started to say something, and he held up
his hand. "I know, I know. You won't sell to him,
although it would be better for you if you did. If
it's a fight he wants, then it's a fight we'll give
him."

"Why would you do this for us?"

He couldn't tell her that when she was hurt, it
tore into him, dragging him down into the depths
of despair with her. He had never had such a protective instinct toward any other woman. The feeling was too new for him to know how to deal with
it, and he didn't want to examine it too closely.

"Someday I may just tell you, when I have reasoned it out myself. Right now I'm warning you
to be vigilant. Don't invite strangers into the
house, and keep jenny close to you at all times. I
don't want you to go anywhere alone."

"But surely we are not in any physical danger.
Mr. Slaughter wouldn't really hurt a woman or a
child, would he?"

"You don't understand." He gazed into the distance as if his mind were taking him to another
place and time. "Cyrus won't care who you are. If
you don't give in to his demands, he sees you only
as as an enemy."

"But I don't-"

"Let me tell you about Cyrus Slaughter so you
can judge him for yourself. It's not a pretty story."

"I'm listening."

"Cyrus had a daughter by his first wife, who was
a respectable woman. When she died, he took a
second wife, whom he did not find respectable
enough to bring to Casa Mesa. He set her up in
a house miles from nowhere and visited her only
when the notion struck him."

He paused for a moment, then went on. "Eventually Cyrus had a son by the second wife, and for
years he saw the boy only on rare occasions. When
the second wife died, she left a boy of thirteen-
Sam's age. It seemed to give Cyrus some kind of
sick pleasure to bring the boy to his home. You
see, his son was wild, a little savage, and he knew
nothing of the niceties of society. Cyrus set his boy down at the table with his daughter, Nora, who
was seven years older. Folks who knew about it
thought Cyrus was trying to humiliate his daughter."

He was quiet for a long time, and she waited
for him to continue.

"As time passed Cyrus began to criticize everything Nora did, making her life very hard. She
loved Frank Yates, a poor farmer her father didn't
approve of. He wanted Nora to marry the man he
had chosen for her-a man who was wealthy and
would have added more land to Casa Mesa."

Casey frowned. "What happened?"

"The boy was rebellious because he hadn't
wanted to come to the ranch, and it didn't take
him long to realize his father had been using him
to embarrass his half sister."

"Was she embarrassed?"

"No. Her father's actions had the opposite effect on Nora. I think you would have liked her;
in some ways you remind me of her. She was sweet
and soft-spoken, and everyone loved her. From
the moment her half brother arrived, she treated
him like her real brother. They would take long
rides together, and she was responsible for any
manners the boy had. She even taught him to
read and write. They spent many hours reading
to each other."

"I would like very much to meet her."

His eyes were almost colorless as he stared into
the night. "The closeness of the brother and sister angered Cyrus. Everything came to a head the day
the son came to the evening meal and displayed
some semblance of civilized manners. Cyrus must
have realized that his plan to humiliate Nora had
failed. She told her father that night that nothing
he could do would stop her from marrying Frank
Yates. He became enraged, making all kinds of
threats. At the time no one could have guessed
the tragedy that would result from Cyrus's fury."

"Please don't tell me he did anything bad to
the boy."

Gabe's eyes took on a sad expression. "Cyrus
did something so deplorable, many of his neighbors still will not speak to him. His rage fell on
Frank, the only person he could use to punish his
daughter."

Gabe looked away as if it were difficult to go
on. Casey held her breath, afraid to hear the rest
of his story and yet needing to know.

"What did he do?"

"Nora and Frank had planned their wedding
for the next week. Frank loved her and wanted to
get her away from her father. No one had anticipated that Cyrus's retribution would be so swift
and hard. He claimed that Frank had rustled
Slaughter cattle. Of course, everyone knew that
Frank was an honest man, so no one believed the
accusations."

"Surely there was a trial, and Frank was cleared
of the charges?"

Gabe threw his head back, and she saw the mus Iles throbbing in his throat. "Cyrus thought he
was above the law. He rounded up all his hands,
and they dragged Frank out of his house in the
middle of the night. They hanged him from a tree
in his front yard."

Casey gasped, feeling so sick she had to clamp
her hand over her mouth. "Was he allowed to do
such a thing? Did no one demand justice for...?"

The hardness in his gaze stopped her. "No one
would speak out against Cyrus. That very day Cyrus took Nora over to Frank's place and made her
look at the man she loved hanging from a tree.
She collapsed in a dead faint and had to be taken
home. That same afternoon, she took her own
life." He gripped the fence and lowered his head.
"She shot herself."

Tears gathered in Casey's eyes, and she touched
his sleeve. "You loved her, didn't you?"

He took a deep breath and let it out slowly.
"Everyone loved Nora."

"What happened to the boy?"

"He was seventeen at that time. He joined the
Confederate Army and went off to war, because
he knew if he stayed in Texas, he'd kill Cyrus."

"Where is he now?"

"Some would say he died the day his sister
killed herself; others believe he was killed in the
war. Personally, I believe he is trying to forget the
sight of his sister's body lying in a pool of blood
on her bedroom floor."

Casey again covered her hand with her mouth.
"Oh. How can that be?"

"It happened just the way I told you."

"I would like to think that the boy has found
peace."

"Would you?"

"If what you say is true, he is the tragic figure
in all this. His sister is beyond caring, and Mr.
Slaughter probably felt no remorse for destroying
his own son and daughter. The son, if he is alive,
must be devastated by what happened."

He moved some distance from her. "The reason I told you about this was so you would know
what you are up against. Cyrus is dangerous when
anyone defies him."

"I admit I am afraid of him, even more so since
you told me about his son and daughter. But you
have to understand this about me-I will not
cower in a corner just because everyone else is
afraid to defy him."

He took a step toward her. "You don't understand-the lives of your brother and sister will
mean nothing to him." He stopped so near her
she could feel the heat of his body. "I don't want
to see anything happen to the three of you."

He was so tall she had to tilt her head to look
up at him. "I will not give in to him," she repeated
decisively.

Gabe wondered what circumstances had honed
Casey into the woman she had become. It was
clear she had been raised in a genteel manner, but she was a scrapper who didn't run when life
got hard. And lately her life had been very hard.
He admired her more than he had ever admired
anyone. He also couldn't be near her without
wanting to take her in his arms. "Are you the one
who put the wildflowers in the bunkhouse?"

"I thought they would brighten the place up."
She stared into his eyes. "What I don't understand," she said, taking the conversation back to
him, "is why you help us when you know of the
danger involved."

"I have several reasons."

"What are they?"

He smiled as he tilted her chin up so he could
see her face better. "Maybe it's because no one
has ever given me flowers before." His voice deepened. "Maybe it's the little touches you add to
everyone's life, the love and care you give your
brother and sister. Shouldn't that inspire devotion in those around you?"

She was aware that his chest expanded when he
took a breath. "I'm glad you see me that way." She
lowered her lashes. "But I often stumble through
life not knowing what I'm doing."

He reached across the fence and rubbed his
hand against the horse's flanks. "You should be
sleeping. You work hard and need your rest."

He was dismissing her, and she knew it. "I have
to go into town tomorrow to see my uncle's attorney. Can you spare Sam to go with me?"

He turned to her, his gaze skimming her face.

He hadn't meant to, but he drew her slowly into
his arms. He halfway expected her to resist, but
she came to him, her eyes wide with uncertainty.
He cradled her head against him, wishing she was
his to hold forever, but knowing she would never
belong to him. He dipped his head, breathing in
her sweetness. His lips brushed her hair, and his
hand moved up her ribs just inches away from the
tempting swell of her breasts.

Realizing what he was doing, Gabe released her
so quickly she almost stumbled until he steadied
her.

He had left so much unsaid between them, but
it was the only way. "You need to get an early start
for town in the morning. Take Sam and Kate with
you. She's a good shot, and not many people want
to get in her way when she's riled."

Casey nodded, trying to hide her disappointment. She had wanted him to kiss her. How brazen she had become since meeting Gabe. "I will."

When he walked toward the bunkhouse, she
was reluctant to have him leave, so she called out
to him, "Could you tell me where I could purchase a milk cow?" It appeared she would try anything to keep him near her.

He paused and turned back to her. "A what?"

"Sam and Jenny need milk. We were able to buy
milk from the Fromes on the wagon train, but the
children have been without milk ever since we
started out on our own."

He was quiet for a long moment, as if he were pondering her words. At last he said, "I'll see what
I can do."

She raised her gaze to his, looking embarrassed. "I... Can you tell me how much a cow will
cost?"

"Not nearly so much as beef cattle. I can probably get you one for four or five dollars."

He saw the relief on her face. Someone needed
to take care of her, but it wouldn't be him. Someday a nice young man from her own class would
make her his wife. For all he knew she might have
someone back in Virginia whom she loved. Besides, he had no time for settling down, and even
if he did, he was not the kind of man she needed.

She was innocent and... "Night, Miss Hamilton."

With a heavy sigh, she walked toward the house.
Tomorrow Sam and she would have to hear what
the attorney had to say. She had little doubt that
there would be debts to pay, and she didn't know
where they would get the money.