Lonesome Bride (36 page)

Turning, Jed headed toward the door when something on the floor caught his eye. He went to the fireplace and knelt by it, pressing his fingertips to the smudge of ash on the floor. It was shaped just like a footprint. A small, dainty footprint—probably a woman's.

Frowning, Jed stood and saw the biscuits he had left on the table had disappeared. In their place was something he could not quite make out in the dim light. Confused, Jed traced the lines, bringing his finger up covered with dirt. Someone had written on this table with the end of a charred stick.

Suddenly, the scent of lilacs and the woman's footprint connected in Jed's mind. Caite had been here. He could not know how, but she must have come and gone while he was at the pond.

Roughly, Jed pulled the table into the yard, carelessly scraping it through the doorway. He had to see what she had written. As the words showed up clearly in the sunlight, he frowned. Help lonesome Caite? he thought. Had she missed him so much she had ridden out here to find him? If so, then why had she not stayed, instead of writing this note to tease him?

As he puzzled over the cryptic message, Jed's eye caught sight of something else he had not noticed in his earlier haste. The ground around the cabin was marked with several sets of footprints, as well as the marks of horses’ hooves. Two sets, in addition to those Zeus had made. There were human prints, too—one small and one large. The woman's prints, he was certain, would match the one he had found in the fireplace ashes. But the others? What man had come here with Caite, then gone away again?

Moving away from the cabin, Jed followed the hoofmarks some ways down the trail. Whoever it had been, had gone off toward Lonesome. At once, the words burned brightly in his mind.

Not help lonesome Caite. Help, Lonesome, and Caite had signed her name to the plea. Someone had taken Caite to Lonesome against her will.

"Hammond,” Jed growled, remembering what Caite had told him about her reasons for coming to Montana.

It was the man she had been running from. It had to be. Hammond had come for Caite, and found her. Now he must be taking her back to Pennsylvania to force her to be his bride.

"He'll take her over my dead body,” Jed vowed, cold fury filling him.

He could not be sure how much of a head start the villain had, but Jed knew it could not be much. He would get on Zeus and ride toward Lonesome to save his bride.

And woe to the man who had taken her.

They had been riding all through the night, stopping only once to let a numb-legged Caite stumble into the bushes to answer nature's call. True to his word, Hammond had kept riding while eating a meager supper of dry beef jerky washed down with stale water from his canteen. The dandy's perseverance amazed Caite; she had imagined him to be far less durable than he had proved.

Hammond, too, was impressed with his prisoner's fortitude. Caite had ridden, uncomplaining, the entire night. Hammond had mentioned he found her stolid acceptance invigorating, for it showed him just what sort of wife she would be.

"I simply cannot abide whining,” he had told her, though she made no reply. “I'm rather pleased to see you are no wilting, hothouse flower, sweetheart. I like a woman who can take whatever I give her."

Caite understood his double meaning all too well, but refused to acknowledge it. She was sore all over, and faint from fatigue and hunger. She had neither the strength nor the desire to engage in a verbal battle with her despised abductor.

If Hammond felt the waves of loathing radiating from her, he ignored them. Instead, the further they rode, the more animated he became. Beneath his prissy appearance, he must have an iron soul, Caite thought wearily, as Hammond chattered interminably about the things he would do once they were back in civilization.

"We shall stay a few days in Lonesome then?” Caitleen asked hopefully, the first words she had spoken in hours.

Hammond favored her with a condescending grin. “Don't get any ideas in that pretty head of yours, my sweet. I'll take no chances. We'll be in town only long enough to buy train tickets.” He tapped his chin thoughtfully. “The question is whether to marry you first, or after we've gotten some more distance between us and Heatherfield?"

"Scared?” Caite roused herself enough to ask archly.

"Of your lover following us?” Hammond scoffed. “How could he even know you're gone? Even if he does find out, we'll be long gone by then."

Hammond's scoffing so irritated Caite, she was sorely tempted to tell him about the truth about the cabin's occupant, and the note she had left. She refrained, however, not wishing to turn his mood ugly. Not only that, but she did not want to brag about a rescue she was not sure would happen. How could she be sure Jed had even found her note?

"He'll find me,” she whispered under her breath, so Hammond could not overhear. “He must."

"I loathe mumbling even more than whining,” Hammond barked, turning in the saddle to look at her fiercely.

Caite shrugged. “Sorry."

Hammond snorted, urging the tired horses into a trot. “We'll be to town in an hour or so. Try not to annoy me too much until we get there."

Hammond must not think anyone would be chasing him, Jed thought grimly as he dismounted Zeus to take a closer look at the tracks. He certainly wasn't riding fast. Jed must be only a short while behind him, at the most.

"I'm coming for you, Caitey,” he called to the sky, though he knew she could not hear him.

A few hours, maybe less if Hammond had stopped.
And he'd have to stop, wouldn't he? To eat, sleep and visit the bushes.
Surely the man was not cruel enough to force Caite or the horses so relentlessly.

Jed rethought that as he remounted Zeus. From what Caite had told him, Hammond could very well be that cruel.

"If he's not stopping, neither am I,” muttered Jed, clucking to Zeus.

The big animal took off again, eating up the distance between Jed and Caite like it was nothing.

"Here we are,” Hammond noted, finally reining in the exhausted animals.

They had reached the outskirts of Lonesome. A few shanty houses, a blacksmith, and a dilapidated mercantile. The town grew in the distance, a bustling, veritable metropolis of people.

Caite glanced behind them, knowing she would see nothing but the trail they had followed, but unable to keep from looking just the same.

"Hoping to see your lover?” Hammond asked cruelly, dismounting and pulling Caite down from the nearly broken Daisy. “Don't waste your time, my dear. He isn't coming. No one is."

Caite said nothing, just stretched her aching body. Her legs shook, and she massaged them wearily. Hammond removed his small pack from Dandy's saddle, and motioned to Caite.

"I'm going to take these horses over there and see what I can get for them,” he told her. “You're coming with me. Remember this is the city, my sweet, and no one here is interested in helping anyone, not even such a pretty one as you. If you try to scream or run away, I can still catch you. Not one man in this whole town will believe you're anything more than a reluctant bride, Caitleen. Don't test me on this."

She was not even about to try, so tired and sick did she feel. She felt certain only the emptiness of her stomach held her nausea at bay. For a moment, she worried about the harm the rough ride might have caused the baby, but she quickly forced the thought from her mind.

The baby will be fine, she thought fiercely. It must, or before God, she would kill Drake Hammond with her own two hands.

Hammond obviously could not sense or was unmoved by her murderous intentions. He left her to stand in the doorway of the smithy while he bargained with the man. The blacksmith seemed impressed with the quality of the horseflesh Hammond was trying to sell, but concerned about the condition of the animals.

"You been using these horses pretty hard,” the tall, muscular man remarked from around the stump of his pipe. “How do I know they won't just keel over on me?"

Hammond smiled charmingly. “You have my word as a gentleman, sir. However, since the horses have been well-ridden recently, it would be my utmost pleasure to offer them to you at an extremely discounted fee."

The burly blacksmith's brow furrowed. “Why you in such a hurry to get rid of them, if they're so great?"

Hammond sighed, drawing Caite close to his side. “My blushing bride and I are eager to return to our home, you see. We have found these territories too ... harsh for her tender sensibilities. We don't need to take animals with us."

Hammond's answer seemed to satisfy the blacksmith, or perhaps the dandy's silver-tongued charm had boggled him. In either event, he gave Hammond a fair price for the animals, which Hammond pocketed with a flourish.

"Shall we be off then, my dear?” he asked Caite, pulling her from the smithy.

Caite cast one last, appealing glance at the man in the building, but he was too busy checking Dandy's and Daisy's feet to notice her silent plea. Hammond shoved her before him down the dusty street. He gripped her arm firmly, so she could not stumble.

"Keep your feet, sweetheart,” he warned. “We'll be walking the rest of the way."

Zeus had begun to breathe hard at the steady gallop, and Jed had been forced to allow the animal to slow down.
Curse Hammond!
He must know a lot about horses, to have been able to keep them at just the right pace for so long. Not fast enough to break them down, but not so slow Jed had been able to catch up to them.

Still, Jed was comforted by knowing he would reach Lonesome in a few short hours. He knew that's where Hammond was still headed, for the trail he had left behind was as clear as letters in a schoolbook. The man had made no attempt to cover his tracks.

"Pompous bastard,” Jed cursed, gritting his teeth. When he found the man who had stolen Caite, the villain would be lucky to stay alive long enough to hang.

The further they got into town, the more crowded the streets became. With each person who jostled them or merely crossed their path, Caite's heart sank further. How would Jed be able to find her among all these people?

"Keep it moving, Caitleen,” Hammond told her. He smiled and nodded at everyone they passed, as if he were merely on a pleasant stroll with his bride.

Caite was tempted to scream aloud and try to break free from him, but she did not. She had no doubt Hammond could convince even the most sympathetic of listeners that any story she might tell was a lie. Indeed, she would not be surprised if Hammond could have anyone who might come to her aid quickly believing Caite was a madwoman, such was his skill with words.

"I think we shall visit the preacher first after all,” Hammond decided, stopping her abruptly.

Caite's heart sank further. Then she had an idea so brilliant she was almost afraid to speak, lest she burst into laughter. She would not wish to make Hammond suspicious.

"All right, Drake,” she agreed softly, pressing her hand against his. “You do know best, after all."

Hammond stared at her, eyes narrowed. “Indeed?"

Caite sighed as winsomely as she could, then fluttered her eyelashes. “I see you were right. Jed is not coming for me.” She sent a prayer for Jed's forgiveness at what she would say next. “He does not love me, Drake. He went away when he found out about the child, and told me he wasn't coming back. I was too ashamed to tell you the truth."

Hammond grunted, but her soft touch and deferent tone were working on his pride. “Understandable."

Caite smiled shyly. “Yet you, Drake, have offered to make me your bride even knowing I carry another man's child. How could I resist such chivalry? I have found myself most taken with the idea of marrying you during these last few hours."

Careful, she told herself upon seeing Hammond's raised eyebrows.
Do not overdo it.

"Have you now?"

"Oh, yes,” she simpered. “You've shown yourself to be so forceful and manly, Drake. I never knew you could be so ... powerful."

Hammond preened at her words. “I am, Caitleen. I certainly am."

"So, I will marry you, Drake,” Caite cooed. “I just have one request."

She held her breath, uncertain as to how Hammond would react. Apparently, her stroking of his masculinity had softened him. He smiled at her. “Yes, my dear?"

Caite frowned prettily down at her dusty gingham dress. “I should like to have a pretty dress to marry you in. I would not want you to be ashamed of your bride."

"An excellent idea!” Hammond cried. “We both should have new outfits. It would not do for us to wed looking like ragamuffins, would it?"

"Oh, Drake,” Caite flattered coyly, patting his arm. “You could never look like a ragamuffin."

Hammond fleshy lips parted in a grin at her compliment. “I knew there was more to you than just a pretty face, Caitleen."

Caite smiled and shrugged. “I merely speak my mind, Drake."

Hammond laughed. “Come, my sweet, to the haberdashery, the clothier and shoe shop! We're going to outfit ourselves in grand fashion!"

Caite had bought herself some time.

Jed kicked Zeus back into a gallop. The big stallion complied without protest, though Jed knew the animal had been significantly tested these past few miles. They were so close now, Jed could no longer suppress his impatience. He had to get to Lonesome before Hammond married Caite, or left with her on the train.

The first few shanties came into his view, and Jed reined the grateful Zeus down to a walk. Ahead was the smithy run by Gordy Greenspan. Jed would ask the brawny blacksmith if he'd seen anything peculiar.

Jed didn't have to ask Gordy anything to know Hammond and Caite had been there, however. As soon as he entered the smith's building, he saw the pretty chestnut mare Daisy in the back stall. Daisy had been his mother's favorite mount, and Jed would have recognized her anywhere.

It took only a few minutes of questioning for Jed to learn Hammond and Caite had been there no more than an hour ago. They had headed off into town, Gordy mentioned, pointing.