Moonlight Rebel (46 page)

Before he could finish reloading, Jason saw the lieutenant. It was him, he was sure of it. But where was Krystyna? What had he done with her? Outrage propelled Jason forward. Running, his lungs exploding, he dove forward and grabbed the officer by the knees, knocking him off his feet. They both went down.

Sin-Jin's weapon flew out of his hand. Damn this war, would it never let him be? He'd made up his mind to desert and lose himself in this wild country. Now here was someone from the Colonies, trying to stop him. Trying to kill him.

The two rolled in the dirt, each fighting the enemy for a different reason. Sin-Jin just wanted to be free of this maniac Colonist. Jason was driven by anger, jealousy, and concern. They were equally matched and became equally exhausted as blow was exchanged for blow. Around them, the musket fire abated, and the battle shifted away from Jason and Sin-Jin. They were oblivious to that.

Then Sin-Jin recognized Jason. He had gotten a look at him while McKinley was still imprisoned at Norfolk. Sin-Jin had wanted to see the man for whom Krystyna was willing to surrender her honor. Jason hadn't known who the lieutenant was, and Sin-Jin had kept it that way.

With a surge of strength, Jason knocked Sin-Jin to the ground and straddled him, grabbing him by the throat.

"Where is she?" he demanded.

Sin-Jin tried to pry the fingers from his throat. "In the fort!" he gasped, trying to fill his lungs. Jason was cutting off his air.

Jason rocked back on his heels. Still pinning his opponent with a knee on the chest, he pulled out his hunting knife. The blade replaced the hand at Sin-Jin's throat.

"Take me to her!" Jason jerked the other man to his feet.

Well, at least her man has courage, Sin-Jin thought. That accounts for something. "The tables are turned again, aren't they?" Sin-Jin's chief saving grace was that he could always see the humor in everything.

Jason looked at his prisoner coldly. "Then you are John'?"

Sin-Jin inclined his head slightly. "Sin-Jin to my friends." He looked around. The silence had suddenly become apparent to him. "They're gone."

What remained of the battle had left the fort and moved onto the ridge in the distance. Men in redcoats and homespun fought for King or country. On the ground lay only the dead who no longer cared about the outcome.

And at the moment, neither did Sin-Jin nor Jason. All either of them cared about was the welfare of one woman.

Jason motioned toward the fort with his knife. "Take me to her," he repeated.

Sin-Jin had no idea what Jason was capable of. He eyed the knife with healthy respect. "I'm not sure where she is."

He knew. Jason would bet his life on it. "I said, take me to her."

Sin-Jin understood what was going through Jason's mind. He would have thought the same in his place. "I'm afraid you're laboring under a misconception here. I'm not saving the lady for myself, although the thought did cross my mind more than once. It's you she wants, not me."

Jason hadn't expected an admission like this from the lieutenant. "She told you?" He pushed Sin-Jin toward the fort.

"Her eyes did," Sin-Jin remembered, "when she came to bargain for your life. She was willing to do anything to get you freed."

"And did she?" Jason had to know. Krystyna had denied it, but she couldn't very well have admitted something of this magnitude to him. Sin-Jin would.

Sin-Jin smiled. "No. Somewhere within me, my dear old mother did instill a small kernel of honor. I left her as I found her, more the pity for me. As it turned out, I couldn't help her anyway."

Jason still wasn't certain whether he could trust this man's word. "What have you done with Krys? I saw you carry her off before."

"You call her Krys?" Sin-Jin marveled. "A lovely creature like that?" Sin-Jin saw Jason's expression harden slightly, and he held up his hand. "No offense meant. I left her by the other side of the fort."

"Lead the way." Jason gestured forward with his knife.

"Gladly. But I have no idea where she went from there." He turned to look at Jason. "I want her safe as much as you do."

They studied one another for a moment, lover and would-be lover, each trying to see what Krystyna saw in the other.

There was something almost likable about the officer, something that, despite common sense, made Jason lower his guard
ever so slightly. He nodded grudgingly. "I believe you."

"Good." Sin-Jin let out the breath he was holding. "You had me worried for a moment. Now let's hurry and find her before your army or mine decides to come back and swallow us up in that damn battle."

It wasn't what Jason would have expected from a British officer. "Don't you care about the battle?" His knife was still in his hand, but he lowered it as he walked quickly beside Sin-Jin.

"Not a damn wit. Old George has enough to keep him both busy and wealthy even if he loses the Colonies. Wouldn't bother me in the slightest if he did."

"Then why are you here as an officer?" It made no sense to him.

Sin-Jin shrugged. He'd been asking himself that same question this last month. "A man has to do something with himself, and the task of being lord of the manor was already filled." An ironic smile twisted his lips. "I'm a second son," he explained. There were more bodies inside the fort. How long could the blood bath continue before both sides ran out of men? he wondered. "Second sons inherit kind feelings, possibly even kind words, and precious little else. There was little a man of my 'talents' could do. My father, before he died, got me a commission in the army, and unfortunately the army decided to come here." He thought it best not to admit that he was deserting when Jason caught him. "The sooner this war is over, the happier I'll be."

Jason liked the other man's honesty. "I felt the way you do once."

"Ah, but it's different for you. This is your homeland you're defending. In your place, I might feel differently. As it is, there's nothing for me to fight for here. Nothing personal, no attachments."

They had reached the far side of the fort by now. In the distance, Jason saw a wagon full of camp followers roll away.

"Your women?" Jason asked.

Sin-Jin shrugged. "Might be yours. Most of the followers look alike in the dark, and I hardly pay attention in the light."

The inside of the fort was vast, with barracks lining the perimeter. She could be anywhere. Or she could be gone.

"If we split up, we stand a better chance of finding her, although both of us might find something we're not looking for as well."

Jason knew what Sin-Jin meant. There might still be soldiers of either side in the area. And the victors in the battle might return at any time to reclaim the fort.

Jason shook his head. "Let's stay together. That way, if we run into an American soldier, I can tell him that you're my prisoner."

"Or if the man's British, we can tell him you're mine," Sin-Jin said wryly.

Jason nodded, a hint of a smile at the corners of his mouth.

Painstakingly, they searched each barrack until they came to the one where Krystyna had taken shelter. The two women she'd encountered had returned after Andrej had left. They were gathering their few belongings into scraps of cloth they had found. The younger of the two, Trisha, looked up in surprise when Sin-Jin and Jason entered. And then she smiled, running a hand through her straggly, chestnut hair.

"What can we do for you gentlemen?" She smiled at Sin-Jin invitingly, then shifted her gaze to Jason.

"Have you seen a woman about so tall?" Jason held a hand up to his shoulder. "With long black hair? She was wearing men's clothing."

The other woman, Sally, waved her hand at the mention of Krystyna and she moved toward the men. "Oh, that one. She can't give you as good a time as I can." She brushed her body up against Jason's, determined to get the men's minds off anyone else but her.

But Jason placed his hands on her shoulders, holding her back. "Then you've seen her. Where is she?"

Annoyed, Sally turned her attention to Sin-Jin. One was as good as another. She tossed her red hair and smiled. "How about you then, luv?" She leaned forward, exposing almost all of her breasts to his gaze.

"I'm afraid that I'm with him." Sin-Jin nodded toward Jason. Then his tone grew less friendly. "Where is she?"

Sally frowned, sullen. "I don't know."

Sin-Jin dug into his coat pocket and flipped them both a coin. "Does that jar your memory a bit?"

Trisha caught the coin and bit it. Satisfied that it was real, she dropped it inside her stained bodice.

"Sure to lose it there," the other woman mocked.

Ignoring her, Trisha turned to Jason and Sin-Jin. "Some man took her."

Jason took hold of her shoulders. "What man? Where did he take her?"

"Take it easy, guv'nor." She pulled away. "I'm not even sure it was her. He had someone in a sack slung over his lackey's shoulder. Funny bloke, talked with an accent. Made us get out of the room when he talked to her. I don't think she liked him." The camp follower flashed a grin. "We listened."

"She acted like she knew him," Sally chimed in, not to be left out.

Jason looked at Sin-Jin, worried. "Krystyna doesn't know anyone here. There're only British sympathizers."

Sin-Jin blew out a breath. "Well, some man with an accent got her. We'll have to find out who he is and where he took her." He turned toward the women. "Did you see which direction he went?" When there was only silence, he dug out another coin. Sally caught it first.

"Him and his friend took the wagon and drove away from the fightin'." Sally's dark eyes were stripping the clothes from Sin-Jin's body.

Sin-Jin grinned, aware of what she was thinking. "Have you ever seen the man before?"

Both women shook their heads, then Trisha suddenly remembered something. "Well, I think I seen him lurking about the general's office once in Norfolk. Wallace sent me away when his soldier boy came in to tell him Count Andy Somebody-or-other was waitin' to see him. Sent me out right quick, too. I think the man that took her was sneakin' around behind the building."

A dark suspicion was taking hold of Jason. The man who was his contact, the one whose accent had reminded him of Krystyna's, was a Count by the name of Andrej. And he had known where Jason would be. If he was at Norfolk, then he was with the British. The Count had betrayed him, and now he had Krystyna.

Sin-Jin noticed Jason's odd expression. "Something wrong?"

"I don't know. Let's see if we can catch up to the wagon."

"Ain't you gonna stay for a little while?" The buxomy woman laced her arms about Jason's neck.

Gently, he disengaged himself. "I'd really like to, but some other time."

Sin-Jin was already out the door, laughing at Jason's dilemma. "I'd say you had woman trouble."

"I'd say you talk too much." They hurried to find their horses.

In the background, the women cursed them roundly, then returned to packing up their belongings.

Chapter Forty

The trail was not difficult to follow. The Count, assuming no one would follow them, had done nothing to hide it. It was the anticipation of what might lie ahead if they didn't reach Krystyna in time that made the ride hard.

It could already be too late? Jason pushed the nagging thought from his mind. It would do no good to brood on it. He'd find her. No matter where she was.

"I don't understand why they kidnapped her," Sin-Jin said aloud, taking care to keep his own emotions banked and out of his voice. "There're all those available women around the camp. Most of them can be had for a song. Or less."

"But not one of them looks like Krystyna," Jason muttered as he kept a sharp eye on the path. The ground had grown hard, and the trail was becoming difficult to follow. He looked for wagon-wheel tracks, signs of freshly broken twigs, any marks that would indicate a wagon had passed recently.

Sin-Jin glanced at him. "Really have it bad for her, don't you?" He saw the slanted look that Jason gave him before turning away. "Don't get defensive with me. I can understand perfectly. She's beautiful, and I envy you. She reminds me a bit of my brother's wife." A fond look came into his eyes as he remembered the first time he had made love to Vanessa. "My first love."

"You make a habit of loving other men's women?"

Sin-Jin kept his face expressionless, but his tone had shifted, sobered. "She was mine before she was his."

"Sorry."

Sin-Jin shrugged. "She liked money better than either one of us. He had it, I didn't. So you see," Sin-Jin continued philosophically, "I'm used to losing out. A second son is born and bred to accept second best. Krystyna's all yours. I shall have to console myself with your sister." He sneaked a side glance to see how Jason received that information.

"Krys mentioned that Savannah was interested in you." He looked at Sin-Jin, certain that he could read the truth in the man's eyes. "Is it true?"

Sin-Jin smiled. "At the risk of sounding immodest, I believe it is. She's really a lovely girl. That lout she was engaged to was totally unworthy of her."

Jason raised his hand, signaling for Sin-Jin to stop. He debated which way to go. The road split before them. Dismounting, he carefully examined the ground, then made his choice, hoping it was the right one.

"Was?" he prompted, remounting his horse. It seemed that much had happened in the short time he'd been absent. Aaron had finally found his backbone, and Savannah had thrown over Winthrop. He wondered what else had occurred.

"He tried to rape your sister." Jason's face turned dark with fury. "I was fortunate enough to be there and stop him," Sin-Jin said quickly. "She's fine." More than fine, he added silently, but it wouldn't do to say that to her brother.

"I'll kill him," Jason swore. Whatever else Savannah might be, she was his sister and there was her honor to think of.

"That wouldn't be a very good idea, tempting though it might be. His father is in the thick of this thing, and he's on our side.
 
On the
 
British
 
Army's side," Sin-Jin amended. It was going to be difficult separating himself from that, at least for a while. "Any American sympathizer who harmed his son would be dealt with very harshly."