Sagebrush Bride (46 page)

What
the hell was wrong with him?

He
shook his head, ridding himself of the black film that was slowly obscuring his
vision.

What
puzzled him most was the fact that Magnus wasn’t making any attempts to hide
his camp at all. It was as though he were using Elizabeth as bait. But why? He
turned again to Elias, his eyes narrowing, glinting in the dusky
light—the sun was going down fast. Maybe then he could make his move.
“You said Magnus had papers?”

Elias
nodded, shifting only the briefest glance toward Cutter, noticing that the
hands that only moments before had held the carbine steady were now wavering.
“That’s right.”

Cutter
shook his head again distractedly. And then his eyes focused once more. “What
sort of papers?”

Elias’
gaze narrowed, and he suppressed a cough. Instinct told him that Cutter wasn’t
about to admit weakness to anybody, not even himself. “A letter from General
Sully,” he said, clearing his throat. “Accusing you of desertion... offering
leniency in return for cooperation.”

“What
kind of cooperation?”

“Didn’t
say.”

“Bastard
was bluffing.”

Elias
shifted a glance toward Elizabeth and Katie. “Didn’t appear as though he was
bluffing to me.” Then back to Cutter. “That’s a mighty serious allegation,
McKenzie.”

Cutter
knew it wasn’t possible. He wasn’t U.S. military, just under contract, and his
contract hadn’t been renewed, at that. “The dispatch actually charged me with
desertion? To the letter?”

Elias
returned his scrutiny to his granddaughter, and then trained his carbine on
Lieutenant Magnus Sulzberger. “Well, no... not precisely. There were three
lines—read something like... in reference to absenteeism without leave...
will consider leniency in exchange for—” his glance returned briefly to
Cutter, and he cleared his throat “—assistance, I believe.”

Cutter
nodded, satisfied. “Like I said, the bastard was bluffing.”

“Don’t
make sense. Why would he do that?”

“Desperate
men do desperate things,” Cutter answered, shaking his head briskly, blinking
again to ward away the haze shutting down like a veil over his eyes. “Sully’s
career might hinge on his next campaign. Reckon he thought it’d make me mad
enough to come lookin’ for him. And he was right. I’m sure he figured getting
me there was half the battle, ‘cause then he could bend my ear, bribe me, whatever.
Y’ see, he needs something from me I won’t give up.”

“What’s
that?”

“My
nose.”

Elias
gave him a skeptical look, and then nodded, his voice rising slightly with the
question. “He wants you to scout? Seems a lot of trouble to go through just to
get you to scout. Why didn’t he just ask?”

“He
did,” Cutter replied coldly, focusing his sight over the barrel of his carbine.

“And?”

“I
told him to go hang himself.” His eyes narrowed. “Don’t ever aim to be a part
of another Sand Creek!” The ensuing silence was thick. “You wouldn’t happen to
know how Sully knew where to find me?” he asked suddenly.

The
silence thickened.

“I
do,” Elias answered at last.

Cutter
gave him a brief glance. “Yeah?”

Elias
drew his brows together. “I had every right to use my connections to check you
out, McKenzie, and that’s precisely what I did—as soon as I heard from
your sister that you and Elizabeth were on your way. You’da done the same
thing!’’

“Yeah,”
Cutter relented after a moment, giving Elias another quick glance. “Reckon so.”
He turned his attention back to the small group in the distance. With the
fading light, his targets were becoming too indistinct. And damn him, if he
didn’t feel like he was on fire.

He
couldn’t believe a small cut would take him down. Hell, he had scars from
bigger wounds that hadn’t bothered him half as much. Sweat beaded on his lip.
“What I can’t figure is what role Sulzberger has in all of this,” he mused
aloud. “Unless... ”

“Unless
what?”

“Unless
he’s got his own plans—’less he aims to use that letter of Sully’s to his
benefit.”

Elias’
brows rose. “How’s that?”

Cutter’s
eyes sought Elias’ again in the growing darkness. Red-rimmed, they glittered
like black glass with the last light of day. “To grease that bullet he’d like
to put in my back,” he replied without emotion. “That’s why.” There was silence
a moment, and then he added, “Elias... I want you to ride back into Fulton
City. Bring the law back with you.”

“What
in damnation are you talking about, McKenzie” he whispered furiously. “I’m an
old man, sure enough, but not so useless I can’t help out here! My
granddaughter needs me!”

“Yeah...
and that’s precisely why you’ll go,” Cutter replied coolly, giving him a firm
nod. “Because your granddaughter needs you.” The two faced each other in static
silence.

Elias’
eyes narrowed. “You trying to tell me something, McKenzie?”

It
stung Cutter to have to concede any weakness at all... but it was that... or
lose Elizabeth and Katie out of stubborn pride. He couldn’t do that. Wouldn’t.
And he was losing it fast. He nodded, wincing as he shifted his position
slightly. Pain fired through his left leg, and he grunted as it burst into his
hip. “Reckon I am,” he replied hoarsely. “If you go now, Elias, you can make it
back before daybreak. You have my word that I won’t go after ‘em alone unless I
have to.”

The
indecision was as clear in Elias’ blue eyes as the torment was in Cutter’s.

“My
word,” Cutter assured through his teeth. Sweat trickled down his temples. “And
if they pull out, I’ll leave you a trail a blind man could follow.” Still Elias
didn’t reply. “Whatever it takes, I won’t let them harm a hair on your
granddaughter’s head.”

Elias
cursed under his breath. “I know,” he relented, looking away briefly. There was
a long stretch of silence, and then he said, “I know about the two of you...
know you’re not married to her.”

“Sulzberger
tell you that, too?” Cutter snarled.

Elias
nodded, and Cutter scrutinized his features when he turned to face him finally,
but there was no contempt there. None at all. He nodded back, conceding the
fact.

“It
don’t matter none to me,” Elias revealed, glancing again toward Katie and
Elizabeth, and then back. “I can tell you love her. If you can give my
granddaughter half as much... she’ll be one lucky girl. It ain’t up to me to
judge ya, anyhow—not either of ya. You see... Miss Mimi and I...” He
averted his gaze suddenly. “I’m gettin’ up in years now... and, well...”

“You
don’t have to say it,” Cutter yielded. “I know.”

Elias
nodded. “Yes, I do. You see... I want this time with Mimi. I spent too little
time with my wife before she died. Too little time with my son. And I don’t aim
to make that mistake again. I’ve loved Mimi a lot of years now... put off
livin’ my life the way I saw fit to because... well, because I didn’t want to
offend my son. He was real close to his mother... but John’s gone now, and I
know you’ll make a real good father to Katie,” he continued, looking down at
the ground beneath them. “Anyhow, just wanted you to know before I go.” He
looked up abruptly, searching Cutter’s expression. “You do plan to marry the
girl, don’t you?” he asked.

Cutter’s
eyes narrowed slightly. He wanted to assure the old man that he would, if
Elizabeth would have him, but pride wouldn’t let him. “That’s between myself
and Elizabeth,” he said through clenched teeth. “Now... you’d best be going.”

Elias
nodded slowly and began to shimmy down the branch. “Reckon I better,” he agreed
with a weary sigh, “if I’m gonna get back before sunup... ”

Almost
from the moment Katie had opened her eyes, she’d begun to wail uncontrollably.
And despite the fact that her mouth was jammed full with cloth, she continued
to shriek, clinging frantically to Elizabeth’s neck in the darkness.

Biting
her lip until it throbbed, Elizabeth prayed that Magnus and Colyer wouldn’t
become angered again. On the other hand, she was certain Katie and her
shrieking was the only thing keeping Colyer from abusing her. She hadn’t
mistaken the look he’d given her before stalking off with Magnus.

Muttering
about whores and screaming brats, all three of them had moved away from her,
toward the warmth and light of the campfire, leaving herself and Katie only the
cold, empty darkness.

Giving
her fleeting looks of apology, O’Neill had bound her hands behind her back, and
then her feet, tightly, so that she couldn’t escape. To be certain they were
not actually cutting off her circulation, Magnus had inspected them afterward.
They were rubbing her raw now, and she gave a desperate little laugh at the
notion. Where had they expected her to flee? They were in the middle of
nowhere, for mercy’s sake!

Because
they’d been unable to pry Katie away from her, or even quiet her, they’d tied
the poor child’s hands around Elizabeth’s neck. Her little legs were stretched
around Elizabeth’s waist and bound as well, and then they’d shoved a dirty sock
into her mouth, containing it with a filthy gray neckerchief around her face.
It was so big that it covered most of Katie’s face, and Elizabeth had had to
jerk it down with her teeth so that Katie could see anything at all.

How
cruel could people be? Guilt gnawed at her as she acknowledged the fact that if
it hadn’t been for her own determination to raise the child as her own, Katie
wouldn’t be suffering at the moment.

Her
teeth chattered, though not from the chill night air, but from the stark raw
fear she felt for this innocent child. Tears pooled in her eyes, and she began
to tremble as she rocked Katie, trying to calm her stifled sobbing.

‘‘Cutter,”
she whispered, nuzzling her cheek against the velvety wetness of Katie’s tiny
face. ‘‘Where are you?” Did he know what had happened to them? Dear Lord, what
if he’d thought she’d left him deliberately?

No
matter what Elizabeth did, what she said, nothing seemed to soothe Katie, and
the muffled whimpers were beginning to shatter her own composure. God only
knew, she understood Katie’s fear, understood her hysteria—she actually
felt like screaming herself—but Katie’s panic made her feel a failure.
What would Katherine have done? she asked herself mournfully.

Rocking
back and forth, rubbing her cheek against Katie’s damp, silky curls, Elizabeth
held back her own tears, knowing her own hysteria wasn’t likely to help Katie
out of hers. “Katie,” she pleaded, her whisper broken. “Katie, sweetheart...”
In spite of herself, a sob escaped, but she bit her lip, holding back the rest.
“I won’t let them harm you, darling... I swear it—oh, Lord! What have I
done?” She swallowed another sob before it could manage to escape her throat.
“Katherine... oh, Katherine, I’m so sorry. Help me.”

Helpless
to do anything but bring Katie down with her, she lay back wearily upon the
grass, thinking of all the dreams she had begun to weave around the child
nestled against her. Every one of them included Cutter.

After
a moment longer, Katie’s tearful sobs finally turned into sleepy whimpers as
she went limp with exhaustion. Fighting back her own fatigue, Elizabeth closed
her eyes and drifted.

Her
thoughts filtered back to the day she’d met Cutter. Hard to believe it had been
such a short time ago; it seemed a lifetime had passed. So much had happened
since then. So much had happened to her. She was different, regenerated, like a
butterfly that had only just burst from its cocoon.