Sweet Silken Bondage (51 page)

The week since he'd married Molly had been the
happiest Dev could ever remember. He had moved
in with the Magees, and it seemed that almost
overnight they had truly become a family in the
finest sense of the word. His life, once so unsettled,
now took on a firm, secure base. He belonged. He
was loved. He'd started his job with the sheriff, and
with the regular money coming in now, Molly took
great delight in quitting her job. When Dev wasn't
working with Macauley, he labored on the property,
trying to make the improvements he'd envisioned
before.

In spite of all his joy and contentment, though,
Dev still felt a nagging concern about Clay. His
friend had been gone a long time, and with each
passing day his worry grew. Finally, unable to deny
his disquiet any longer, he decided to have a talk
with Luis Alvarez. He hoped the rancher would
know what was happening with his friend.

Dev admired his surroundings as he rode up the
drive toward the sprawling, attractive main house. It
was easy to see that Rancho Alvarez was a very
successful operation. As he reined in and dismounted in front of the Alvarez home, the young boy, Carlos, appeared out of nowhere to take his
reins for him. Dev was impressed, and when he was
greeted by Consuelo, one of the maids, even before
he had time to knock on the door, he was even
more so.

"Welcome to Rancho Alvarez, sir. Can I help you
with something?" the middle-aged, slightly rotund
servant inquired.

"Yes, I'm here to see Luis Alvarez, please. The
name's O'Keefe... Devlin O'Keefe," he announced.

Seeing the deputy's badge on his shirt, Consuelo didn't hesitate to invite him inside and direct him
into the parlor. "Please wait in there and make
yourself comfortable. I'll tell Senor that you are
here."

"Thanks." Dev took off his hat as he entered the
house, and he went on into the room she'd indicated. He did not sit down, however, for the richly
decorated room left him feeling decidedly out of
place.

The news that O'Keefe had come to see him was
no surprise to Luis. He'd been expecting him to
show up asking questions about Cordell, ever since
he'd heard that he'd been cleared of the murder
charges against him and released from jail. He
hurried to join him in the study.

"Mr. O'Keefe..."

At the sound of Luis's voice behind him, Dev
turned to face the old Californio who had just
closed the door for privacy and moved easily into
the room. He had an aura of command and confidence about him. It was evident that he was a man
used to luxury, and he seemed very at home here in
the sumptuously appointed sitting room.

"Mr. Alvarez..."

"Yes, what can I do for you?" As he studied Dev,
he noticed his badge and said with some surprise, "Deputy, now, is it?"

"Yes, I've been hired on by the sheriff."

"Well, congratulations. That's quite a turnabout
in your situation, isn't it?"

"Yes, but that's not why I'm here."

"This isn't official business, then?"

"No," he assured him. "I just rode out here to
check with you about my partner, Clay Cordell. I
know that you hired him to do a job for you, and I
was just wondering if you know how soon he'll be
back?"

"No, I'm afraid I don't know where your cohort
is, Mr. O'Keefe. He left here weeks ago, and I
haven't heard from him since."

Dev frowned. He didn't like this, not at all.
"Well, do you have any idea where he might have
gone?"

"None whatsoever," he replied firmly, not wanting
to discuss Reina with this man.

His evasiveness irritated Dev, and his tone hardened. "Look, Mr. Alvarez, Clay is my friend as well
as my partner. I'm concerned about him. I want to
know where he is."

"As I told you..." He didn't get to finish as Dev
interrupted.

"I know he's searching for your daughter. Surely,
you gave him some suggestions about where she
might have gone."

Luis was angered to discover that he knew about
the search for Reina. "That is confidential information."

"That's what Clay told me, and I've respected
that. But after all this time, I think you should be
growing a litde concerned, don't you? I mean, he's
only tracking down a runaway girl. How difficult
could that be? He should have been back with her
long before now."

Stiffening at his words, he glared at Dev and
then said with imperial disdain and not just a little
touch of pride, "You obviously do not know my
daughter, Mr. O'Keefe. She is not just `a runaway.'
She is a very beautiful young woman, but she is
also resourceful, headstrong, and determined."

"Then shouldn't you be worried? What if there
was some kind of trouble? What if something's
happened to the both of them? Have you ever given
that a thought?" he challenged.

Luis's facade cracked for just a moment under his
prodding. "Of course, I've thought about it!" he
answered, his tone agonized. "I've thought of nothing else for weeks now!"

"Then tell me where they might be. I can help
look for them... for her," he offered.

"I'm sure she's left California. Had she been here,
your friend would have found her ages ago. The
only thing I can believe is that she went to New
Orleans. She has friends there, friends who would
help her if she was really that serious about staying
away."

"New Orleans..." Dev was startled. No wonder
Clay had been gone so long.

"If Cordell followed her there and managed to
catch up with her, they should be returning here at
any time now. If not-" He moved away from him
and went to stare out the window at the vastness of
his rancho. "If not, then I don't know what I am
going to do..."

The terrible thought that he might lose his beloved home tore at his heart, but that pain was
outweighed now by his fear for his daughter's safety.
Surely, Reina was all right, but if she was, why
hadn't she given up this folly and returned home.
Where was she?

"Do you know how he traveled to New Orleans?"

"No.

Dev became frustrated as he realized there was
absolutely nothing he could do but sit and wait.
"There's no point in my going to Louisiana looking
for them. But I want you to let me know the
minute you hear anything, all right?"

Luis faced him. "I will, Mr. O'Keefe. If there's
any word from Cordell, I'll notify you."

"I'd appreciate it."

The rancher walked him to the door and bid him
good-bye. He watched as Dev rode off and then was
about to turn around when a cold, savage voice
rang out in the empty foyer.

"So, Reina's run away, has she?" Nathan's words
were a vicious snarl.

"Nathan..." Luis said his name in despair and
humiliation as a cold, sickening feeling washed over
him and settled in the pit of his stomach. What
little serenity he'd had left in his soul was destroyed,
and he was left in shock.

"Yes, Nathan, "he said harshly.

"How did you get in here?"

"If you must know, your servant was kind enough
to let me wait in the study while you spoke with
your other guest. But what does that matter, and
why change the subject, Alvarez? Let's talk about
what's really going on here. Where's Reina? Where's
my precious fiancee?" he thundered.

Luis was cornered and unsure of what to do. He
didn't know just how much Nathan had heard.

"Don't try to lie your way out of this. I'm sick of
your lies. I want to know where she is," he demanded.

"I don't know," the Californio managed.

"What do you mean, you don't know?"

Luis's temper flared at being spoken to in such a
way. "If you eavesdropped on my entire conversa tion, then you know very well just what I mean.
She has run off, and I hired Clay Cordell, the
bounty hunter, to find her. I haven't heard anything
yet.

"How long ago did she leave?"

"Weeks," he admitted.

"Weeks," Nathan repeated angrily. "You mean
you've been lying to me this whole time?"

"Now, just relax, Nathan." He tried to calm him.
"As I was telling O'Keefe, my daughter is very
strong-willed, but she isn't stupid. She'll be back. I
assure you the wedding will go on as planned."

"Oh, I'm certain of that, Alvarez," the greedy
American told him. Just because the woman was
unwilling, didn't mean the marriage wouldn't take
place. It didn't matter to him what Reina wanted.
It only mattered to him what he wanted, and he
wanted Rancho Alvarez.

Luis brightened at this news. "Then you still want
to marry Reina?"

"Of course," Nathan answered sharply. "Do you
think I can afford for this to become public knowledge after the engagement celebration and wedding
announcement we had? No, I will still take your
lovely daughter as my bride, Luis. Mark my
words."

Luis knew he should have felt relieved that Nathan wanted to go through with the plans that had
been made. It meant that the rancho would be safe.
But even as he rejoiced inwardly at the good fortune, he couldn't help but feel there was something
far more sinister behind his determination.

"I am looking forward to it, just as I've always
been," Luis replied, trying to ignore the sense of
alarm that was growing within him.

"Good," he said coolly. "You'll keep me informed?"

"Yes."

Nathan started from the house. "I'll be expecting
to hear from you soon."

When he had ridden off, Luis remained standing
in the foyer, lost deep in thought. He was developing a great dislike for Nathan. There was something
about the man... something about his arrogance
and the way he pushed, that set his nerves on edge.
For a moment, he considered that possibly Reina
had been right in her judgment of him, but he
pushed that troublesome thought away.

Luis knew he should be pleased with the way
things turned out. The worst thing he had feared
could happen, had happened. Nathan had found
out that Reina had fled. Yet, despite the revelation,
the repercussions he'd expected from him after
learning the news, hadn't occurred. Nathan had
been angry, but not enough to call off their arrangement. Luis told himself that things were going
to work out fine, yet even as he tried to convince
himself, there was an edge of hesitancy to his conviction.

Nathan was filled with rage and a violent ugly
hatred for Reina as he rode for Monterey. Had he
been able to get his hands on her right then, he
might have strangled her. It infuriated him that she
would run away like this and risk damaging his
reputation. He could hardly wait for her to return
so he could show her just how he expressed his
displeasure with people who crossed him.

A cruel smile thinned his lips as he imagined the
punishment he would mete out on her sweet, young
body. He was a master at inflicting pain in ways
that never left any marks or scars. He was going to
enjoy every minute of her suffering. She deserved
that and more, but he had to be careful. Humili ated though he might be by her defection, he still
had a larger goal in mind. He wanted Rancho
Alvarez, and he intended to have it, even at the
cost of being forced to marry the recalcitrant Reina.

At least, Nathan reflected as he reached the outskirts of town, Alvarez had had sense enough to
keep quiet about her disappearance. No one else
besides the bounty hunters knew that she'd fled, and
no one else ever would. He would see to that.

Tense and aggravated, he changed his mind about
returning to work and urged his horse in the direction of Lilly's place instead. She somehow always
knew just what to say and do to ease his moods. As
angry as he was, he knew a relaxing visit with her
was just what he needed.

Clay's mood was as dark as his expression as he
strode the deck of the ship carrying them north to
Monterey. It would only be a matter of days until
they made port, and though he should have been
thrilled at the prospect of almost being done with
Alvarez, he was not. Nothing was right in his life
any more.

No matter how hard he'd tried since they'd made
love that last night in Panama City, Clay could not
deny that he cared about Reina and that he wanted
her with a nearly consuming passion. She was a fire
in his blood.. .an addiction from which he feared
he would never be free. Every time he was close to
her, he could barely stop himself from taking her.
Somehow, he had managed not to touch her since
they'd boarded, but it had taken a major effort of
will on his part, especially since they'd been forced
by circumstances to share a cabin again.

Clay knew that if he made love to Reina again,
he would never be able to let her go, and that was an impossibility. Dev's life hung in the balance. He
had to take her back. He had to.

That realization was upsetting enough for him,
but the change in Reina, herself, since they'd left
Panama, had affected him even more. No longer
was she his arch rival, fighting and sparring with
him as she constantly matched wits with him and
tried to get the upper hand. Now, Reina had finally
done what he'd told her to do. She'd accepted the
inevitable. She'd realized he'd won, and that it was
over. But in accepting the truth of her situation,
she'd become withdrawn, defeated. She avoided him
as much as possible and talked to him only when
necessary.

Clay knew he should be glad, for it took some of
the pressure off him, but instead it left him wracked
with guilt. Her spirit seemed to have been crushed.
She refused to argue with him. She quietly acquiesced to whatever he wanted, and it was driving
him crazy. He wanted her to be her usual vibrant
self, not this icy, reserved, distant woman, who was
eating little and sleeping even less. Several times
during the nights since they'd been at sea, he'd
awakened to find her out of bed, standing at the
cabin's window, staring expressionlessly out at the
sea. Her mood disturbed him. He wanted to help,
but knew he couldn't. He had a responsibility, a
duty. He had to save Dev.