Savage storm (16 page)

"I have guard duty again tonight. Come and meet me." Jason's lips caressed her ear as he whispered softly, praying she would agree, but before she could reply, he heard a feminine voice calling his name. "Damn, that's Iris. Wait here. I'll be right back."

Gabrielle tried to catch her breath as he left her, the man was impossible to control she realized. To him a kiss was an

invitation to so much more she'd not make the mistake she just had again. Thinking she owed him a reply to his invitation, however, she waited in the shadows while he spoke with Iris, but being curious, she crept up to the back of the tent where she could overhear their conversation.

"Why haven't you asked me to go riding with you again, Mr. Royal? You know how much I enjoy your company." Iris moved closer to him, whispering seductively since Clayton Home was nowhere in sight. ''Didn't you enjoy my company more than that of the others?" she purred as she placed her hands upon his broad chest and leaned against him.

Wanting only to be rid of the troublesome brunette as rapidly as possible Jason put his hands around her waist to push her away. "Miss Stewart, I enjoy the company of all you young ladies, but I'll be especially pleased to take you with me in the morning. Now good night. The hour is late." Jason waited impatiently until the flirtatious young woman started back to her wagon and then he ran back to the secluded spot where he'd left Gabrielle. But he found only the haunting trace of her perfume, nothing more.

^/u,/Ue^^JJ

As they began their ride the next morning Gabrielle pretended to be very interested in Barbara's reflections upon the scenery. Taking her place beside the talkative blonde, she did not even look in Jason's direction when he came for Iris. Yet she could feel his hostile glance raking over her. The sensation was as painful as if he'd struck her with the back of his hand. Had the man really expected her to meet him in the middle of the night when he'd already made a date to go riding with Iris at dawn? Did he think she had no pride at all? Last night she'd heard his music floating upon the breeze again, the same wistful tune which had drawn her to him before. She wondered if he thought he had to do no more than play his harmonica and she would come to him. He seemed to enjoy the company of pretty young women greatly. She turned to watch as Iris rode away by his side.

'*They deserve each other!" She whispered under her breath, bitter because he had so little sense of honor.

The thinly soiled plain which stretched before them supported no trees to provide wood for fires or shade for rest. They had been reduced to gathering buffalo chips for cooking fuel. Fortunately the beasts were plentiful and the trails the animals followed as they made their way to the river provided an abundant source of the useful waste. Iris regarded the task

as so far beneath her that she refused to venture out on such an expedition until Gabrielle asked if she'd like to eat only cold food while the rest of them dined on hot. When all the others agreed that that was only fair since she did no work, she had no choice but to agree with their demands although she complained bitterly the entire time they conducted their search for fuel.

"I'd like to wring her neck!" Erica vowed with an exasperated sigh. "It doesn't matter what has to be done she'll not help us do it!"

"We only have to put up with her tantrums until we reach Oregon City, but just think what a life she'll give the poor man who takes her for a wife," Gabrielle stated. She gave Erica a sympathetic smile.

"I think we should warn the poor soul. Perhaps we can save him from such a gruesome fate!" Erica admired Gabrielle's restraint. Her own dislike for the self-centered Iris was increasing each day.

"Somehow I think the men will see through her charm fairly quickly since it is so insincere."

"The way Mr. Royal does?" Erica asked skeptically.

"What do you mean?" Gabrielle responded sharply; then she coughed quickly as if the dust were bothering her to distract Erica. She realized her feelings had been all too evident in her voice.

"I just mean he truly seems to like her company, and he's had time enough to become wise to her tactics."

"He's not one of the bachelors though. Erica, so his opinion of her isn't going to matter. Now let's hurry back so Paul can begin to cook supper." Gabrielle hustled her friend back toward the wagon, distracting her with talk of food so she'd not mention Jason again. She could not bear to think he might have been fooled by Iris' wiles when he had so many of his own.

As if to reward their labors, Paul prepared prairie chickens spicev* with sage for supper. He'd showed them how to powder the dry leaves between their fingertips, giving the lesson as if

he were personally responsible for teaching them how to cook. Impressed by his tips, six of the girls watched closely. Only Iris, certain she'd find a husband who could afford to hire a cook, didn't bother to listen.

After her initial disgust, Gabrielle found the sight of the meandering river fascinating. She was drawn to it as a child is captivated by the very thing his parents forbid him to touch. Slipping away from her friends after lunch, she rode alone along the riverbank, so lost in dreams of the past she failed to notice the water seeping through the sandy soil at the river's edge. Sunny tossed his head, displaying his dislike for the slippery footing, but she gave his neck a comforting pat to reassure him and rode on. When suddenly his hooves sank too deeply for him to pull them free, it was too late for Gabrielle to recognize the danger he'd felt. The magnificent stallion was caught fast and his terrified shrieks came too late for her to take any action to direct him to safer ground. She swung her leg over the saddle and jumped down from his back, leaping for what she thought was solid soil but it was quicksand too. It caught her tiny feet and sent her sprawling forward on her hands and knees. The wagons were passing no more than fifty yards in the distance, but she feared the noise the wooden vehicles made as they creaked along and the cloud of dust their passage created would prevent anyone from hearing her desperate calls or seeing her waves for help.

She knew nothing about quicksand except what she'd just discovered, but she realized it had to have a bottom somewhere. If only Sunny would stop struggling so violently he might find a firm footing and be able to rest until help arrived, but there was no way to reason with the hysterical horse. With each lunge he made, he sank deeper into the mire. She held onto the reins as she tried to dig herself free, the coarse grains of sand tore her fingertips to bloody shreds but she knew she was fighting for her life as well as his and a little pain was of no consequence. At last she got one foot to dry ground and then the other. Pulling with all her might, she tried

to guide Sunny toward the shore, but her efforts were too feeble to turn him and he sank even further into the shme, clear to his chest while she tried frantically to think of some way to save him. She called to him in as soothing a voice as she could manage, realizing that his efforts to pull free were causing him to sink deeper. However, he was too badly frightened to respond with anything more than a renewed burst of strength which succeeded only in sinking him another few inches into the seemingly bottomless pit of quicksand.

Jason had been riding on the far side of the wagons when Duke suddenly grew so agitated he could scarcely control him. Such behavior was so unlike the usually pleasant nature of the horse, he turned away in a wide arc thinking perhaps his mount had been frightened by a snake, but there was no sign of a serpent upon the ground. Something was obviously wrong. He trusted the horse to sense what he could not. Fearing that whatever danger was present might lie near the river, he raced between a break in the line of wagons and headed toward the water. He heard Sunny's screams himself then, and the last desperate cries of a dying beast. He gave Duke his head, knowing the horse would lead him to the creature in trouble. When he got close enough to see that it was Sunrise who had strayed into the quicksand, he dug his heels into Duke's sides to send him forward at an even greater speed. Reaching the riverbank, he grabbed the rope he carried on his saddle, made a flying loop, threw it over Sunny's head, and then secured his end to the saddle horn. As he leaped from Duke's back, he gave him the command to pull.

Gabrielle's tears blurred her vision, but she continued to pull on Sunny's reins, attempting to give Jason and Duke all the help she could. Although the buckskin horse was strong. Sunrise was his equal in size and he remained stuck fast.

Jason looked back toward the wagon train hoping someone else had taken note of their predicament, but there was no sign of additional help on the way. He dared not leave Gabrielle alone while he ran back to summon assistance, and he knew

she'd not leave Sunny to go on such an errand herself so he did not even suggest it. Firing his rifle would hring no help either. People would mistake the shots for those of a hunter and ignore them. No. If anything could be done to save the horse, he knew they'd have to do it themselves. Sunrise was fast becoming exhausted and Jason knew unless they thought of something quickly the stallion would be lost. He needed no more than one glance at Gabrielle's terror-filled expression to know that was something he dared not allow.

"Stop tugging on his reins for a moment," Jason ordered as he ran to Duke's side to lead the horse forward to create some slack in the rope.

"What are you doing?" Gabrielle screamed, terrified to think Jason had abandoned the effort to rescue her horse.

"Just do it!" Jason shouted, having little time to deal with her fear when the situation was so desperate. Coming back to her side he explained quickly. "An Indian once told me that it is possible to swim in quicksand. It must be rather like trying to swim through thick porridge but he swore it could be done. Now just call to Sunny and when he begins to make some progress toward us I'll have Duke try again to pull him free."

Since there was no time to argue, Gabrielle turned back to her stallion, praying the unnamed Indian had been right. In a soft enticing tone, she encouraged Sunny, coaxing him to come toward her. For long agonizing' minutes he moved no closer to the shore, although he did seem to regain some of his composure. He was noticeably more calm. Then, afraid to believe what her eyes told her, Gabrielle turned to Jason, her face full with hope.

"He is turning this way, isn't he? If only slightly, he is moving?"

"Yes, that's it, keep calling to him, it's working." Jason was as amazed as Gabrielle, but once the horse stopped struggling against the heavy, damp sand and began to move with a slow, easy swimming motion, he began to make some headway although it was minimal.

Encouraged by the voice of his mistress, as well as by that of the tall man by her side, Sunrise kept trying to move and although his pace was heartbreakingly slow when he was nearly a foot closer to them, Jason began to shout to Duke to back away. Drawing the rope tight again, this time with Jason adding his considerable strength to the effort, they at last drew Sunny onto solid ground where his front hooves held fast. With a mighty lurch the roan pulled his hind legs free. He shook himself then, like a wet dog, flinging mud all over Jason and Gabrielle, but they fell into each other's arms. They were so overcome with joy at having saved the horse's life they cared little that he'd gotten them so dirty.

Jason hugged Gabrielle tightly, lifting her feet clear off the ground as he began to kiss her with a passion she thought quite natural after the fright they'd just suffered. She wrapped her arms around his neck and hung on, the depth of her gratitude impossible to express in any other way than by the ready acceptance of his affection. She adored him in that instant, and her kiss drove him to the brink of madness before he had the sense to draw away.

Looking down at her, Jason took a moment to catch his breath; then he released her with a rude shove. 'There, how do you Hke being left begging for more! If only half the emotion in your kiss were sincere, you would have met me the other night!"

Anger was the last thing Gabrielle had expected from him after the triumph they'd just shared. She knew every bit of the feeling in her kiss had been most sincere. He was the one who was the tease, not her. "Did you really expect me to meet you when you'd already made a date with Iris for the next morning? When you are as fickle as that, do you truly expect me to come to you as though I were your slave?"

"What?" Jason stepped back, astonished by her accusation. "How else was I supposed to get rid of that woman quickly? You didn't think I really wanted to have her ride with me, did

you?'

"Don't pretend that you didn't or you wouldn't have asked her!" Gabrielle responded in a fit of fury.

She was a mess. There was no other way to describe her appearance. Her Hght cotton dress was caked with mud, as was her long hair. Not an inch of her wasn't filthy, but that didn't diminish her appeal in the slightest. Jason thought her beauty as beguiling as always, and with a wicked grin he demanded she pay him for saving her horse in the only way he wanted to be repaid.

"When I have been so quick to come to your aid today, I have every right to expect you to come to mine just as rapidly."

"Isn't this all part of your job, Mr. Royal, no more than taking the risks for which you are being paid?" Gabrielle answered defiantly.

"No. This I did for you alone and I think you know exactly how I expect you to show your gratitude. Tonight we will camp near a spring which flows into the river; tomorrow we'll simply rest. It's a good place to do laundry, and the men can hunt. Tomorrow night everyone will be in a relaxed and friendly mood, and when I tell you to meet me, you will do it."

"I will not!" Gabrielle insisted firmly.

"Oh, yes you will." Jason stepped close. "You will meet me, or I will make your life so difficult you will come begging for me to make love to you simply to end your torment."

"You'll never live so long!" Gabrielle answered proudly, certain his threats were empty ones.

"I'm serious, Gabrielle. For starters I'm taking Sunny. You are obviously so careless with the animal you nearly lost him today and had I not come to his rescue you surely would have. I will take him for safekeeping and should you ever prove to be a responsible owner, which I sincerely doubt, you may have him back again."