When Kat's Away [Sequel to Anna Doubles Down] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) (18 page)

“At least he’s getting the rest he needs,” she whispered.

Her head turned toward the door when she heard something outside. She moved closer to Win and glanced down, his face serene in the soft light.

“Kat.”

She heard her name called, almost a whisper. “David, is that you?” Getting to her feet, she gazed at the open door. There was only darkness outside the cabin. She listened carefully but heard nothing. “I must be imagining things.”

“Kat, I need you.”

She moved quietly, not wanting to wake Win. Taking a deep breath, she stuck her head outside and felt small drops of rain pelting her skin. She hadn’t realized it had begun to rain. “David, are you out here?”

Not hearing anything, she took one step outside and felt a sharp pain in the back of her head right before darkness enveloped her.

* * * *

David walked toward the cabin, his arms full of firewood. He’d piled it on as heavy as he could when the first drops of rain began to fall. He noticed the door open as he neared the cabin.

“Damn, I should have closed the door to keep out the cool air.” He moved closer. “Kat, I’m coming in.”

He frowned when she didn’t answer and walked into the cabin, glancing around. He didn’t see Kat, but Win was still on the blankets, snoring loudly.

“Where can she be?” He walked to the door and listened but didn’t hear anything unusual. “Maybe she needed some personal time. We’ve got no privy here so she’s probably off in the trees doing her business.” He walked out into the rain a little ways down the trail. “Kat, where are you?”

“David?”

He turned at the sound of Win’s voice and hurried back to the cabin. He found him struggling to get up. “Hey, wait a minute. You’re in no condition to be running around. What do you need?”

“Is Kat okay? I thought I heard her call out.”

David chuckled. “You wouldn’t have heard a train if it came through here. You were snoring loud enough to wake the dead when I brought the wood in.”

Win glanced around. “Where is she?”

David looked toward the door. “I think she went to relieve herself. She was gone when I brought in the wood. Damn, I need to get another load before it gets any wetter.” He put his hand on Win’s shoulder. “You stay here.”

“Help me sit in the chair. I’m not ready to lie down yet.”

David helped him up and then squeezed his shoulder. “I’ll be right back.” He ran down the path, scooped up a pile of logs, and headed back. When he reached the cabin, Win was squatting by the open door, looking at something on the ground.

“What is it?”

He looked up, his nostrils flaring, his pulse visibly beating in the veins of his neck. “It’s blood. Have you found Kat yet?”

David dropped the wood and rushed to Win’s side. His finger touched the dark stain on the ground, and he swore. “It’s still fresh so it can’t be yours. Your bleeding stopped before we got back to the cabin. She can’t be far.” He stood up and walked to the tree line. “Kat, where are you?” The only sound was the patter of raindrops through the leaves of the trees.

“Let’s fan out and search.” Win pointed toward the road they came in on. “You go that way, and I’ll circle around behind the cabin.”

“Are you sure you’re up to it?”

Win narrowed his eyes, his jaw clenched, and turned toward the back of the cabin.

David took off down the trail, calling Kat’s name over and over. He studied the ground carefully, but didn’t see anything. He was about to turn back when he heard Win calling his name. Rushing toward his voice, he found him standing beside the cabin. Win motioned for David to follow him.

“Did you find something?”

Win nodded. “Tracks. Someone else was here.”

David walked behind him on the trail. “Can you tell how long ago?”

“The tracks are as fresh as ours.” He led David about a quarter mile from the cabin. The trail was narrow, meandering through the trees haphazardly. He walked up to one of the larger trees and squatted down. When David looked over his shoulder, he pointed to the ground. “The trees have kept the trail from getting washed away.”

David looked at the hoof prints in the soft ground. “It’s not Indians. The horse is shoed.”

Win nodded and pointed west. “He came from that direction, but he rode out that way.” His finger pointed south. “Do you see how deep these prints are compared to the ones leading here?”

“Yeah, he was carrying a load when he left.” He looked at Win. “Someone took Kat off on a horse riding double.”

Win stood and looked out into the woods. “Not sure she was riding. With the blood at the cabin I’m guessing that she’s lying over the saddle, probably unconscious.”

David slapped his hand against the tree. “Who the hell would have taken her?”

“Maybe the men from Treasure City. The ones that don’t like the idea of a white woman with a Shoshone.”

“Should we ride for the sheriff?”

Win shook his head. “No time. The trail will eventually disappear in the rain.”

“Can you track them with your head all messed up?”

Win turned back toward the cabin. “No choice. We both know I’m a better tracker than you. Come on, you can ride White Socks, and I’ll take one of the others.”

David hurried along behind him. “Why don’t I ride one of the others?”

Win gave a brittle laugh. “Because the last time you rode bareback you fell and broke your arm. We only have one saddle with us, and the wagon will only slow us down.”

“Can’t argue with that. How much of a lead do they have?”

“No more than a half hour now. It’ll be an hour by the time we get supplies loaded and get moving.” He looked up at the sky. “The rain makes things harder. No moon to navigate by with these clouds. It’s gonna be slow travel.”

David moved past him. “I’ll get your saddlebags loaded and get a blanket for your horse.”

“Make sure you load the guns. We wanna be ready for anything.”

* * * *

Kat groaned and then flinched. It sounded loud, almost like an echo in the deadly quiet. She slowly opened her eyes and felt her pulse race, a fine layer of sweat breaking out over her body. It was dark, so pitch-black it seemed to close in around her. The back of her head hurt with a throbbing ache. She tried to reach up, only to find her hands bound together with some kind of rope. She could feel the rough fibers scratching against her skin. Struggling to sit up, she discovered her feet were bound as well.

She was lying on damp ground. She couldn’t feel any grass around her head, and the smell of wet earth was heavy. Fear so strong she could taste it threatened to overwhelm her senses.

What happened?

The last thing she remembered was watching over Win in the cabin.

What if they hurt him when they took me?

She strained to hear something that could tell her where she was. The only sounds were the wind blowing as if through a tunnel and the quiet dripping of some kind of liquid. The sound of her own harsh breathing drowned out everything else. She could taste the stale, moist air that hung heavy all around her.

Her breath caught when she heard footsteps, loose rocks scattering with each step. Someone came near, their breathing even and relaxed. She swallowed hard and tried to free her hands.

“Who’s there?” She heard a husky male laugh and then the sound of something scratching. A flame burst forth a few feet away, and then a small lantern illuminated the room. She focused on the man holding the light and swore softly.

Timothy Canders chuckled. “Now, now, Miss Evans. Is that any way for a lady to talk?”

“Fuck you, asshole. Why did you bring me here?”

“What makes you think it was me? Maybe all I did was find you, and I’m in the process of rescuing you.”

She snorted and looked away. “Then why don’t you untie me? If it’s money you’re after, then you’re out of luck. I don’t have any, and there’s nobody that would pay any kind of ransom to get me back.”

Timothy moved closer and peered down at her. “If you’ll promise not to cause me any trouble, I’ll untie your legs and let you sit up. The cut on your head wasn’t deep, but I brought back some salve to help it heal faster.”

“What about my hands?”

“Not yet. I’d prefer your hands to be out of commission for a while. I will say that if you run, you’re only going to put yourself in danger. You have no idea where we are, and the woods around these parts wouldn’t be safe to wander around in after dark without a gun.”

Kat nodded and then groaned when her head throbbed even worse. “Okay, I’ll stay put if you’ll untie my legs.” She tried to sound meek and broken, hoping he’d begin to trust her.

Timothy pulled out a pocketknife and knelt by her side. He sliced through the ropes around her ankles and pulled her into a sitting position. “There, isn’t that better?”

She reached up with her bound hands and gingerly touched a tender place on the side of her head. “What happened to me?”

He blanched and walked over and picked up his canteen. “I’m truly sorry. I didn’t mean to hit you hard enough to cause any permanent damage. I just wanted to knock you out long enough to get you away from the cabin.” He glanced back at Kat. “I don’t think you’re hurt too bad, leastways nothing that won’t heal.” He walked over and squatted down beside her, a kerchief in his hand. “I’m going to clean up the dried blood around the cut so I can put the salve on it. I don’t want you to get any kind of infection.”

She sat still while he dabbed at her head with the dampened cloth. Wincing, she pulled away when he rubbed a little too vigorously.

“I’m sorry, but this might sting a little.” He pulled a small jar from his pocket and used the corner of the kerchief to scoop out some of the contents. Peering at her closely, he rubbed it lightly over her head.”

“Shit. Stop that.” She tried to lean away from the burn.

Timothy pulled her back and continued to treat the wound. Finally he stopped. “There, it should be all better in a day or two.”

She glared at him. “Does that mean we’re still gonna be together in a day or two?”

He ignored her question and held the canteen up to her lips. “Do you want some water?”

She leaned her head back and let the warm water trickle down her throat. When she’d had enough, she pulled away, the water dribbling down onto her shirt.

Timothy scooted back and sighed. “I’m sorry about our accommodations, but I assure you it’s only temporary.”

She looked around. The room was almost oval shaped, with only one small open door space leading out. When she looked closer, the walls appeared to be made of rock. She glanced to her left and saw something seeping from the wall, dripping into a small pool of standing water. Her gaze returned to Timothy.

“What is this place?”

“It’s a cave, but it’s perfectly safe. I made sure nothing alive was using it as a home base before I brought you here.”

“Why the hell did you bring me to a cave? Are you insane?”

He narrowed his eyes and threw the canteen on the ground. “No, I’m not insane. In fact, I think you’re going to discover that I’m quite intelligent and resourceful. We’re in a cave because I don’t even think Win could track us here in this weather. The rain is washing away our tracks even as we speak. There’s nothing out in this direction so they’ll have no reason to search out here, especially if there’s nothing leading them this way.”

Kat rubbed her tied hands against her forehead. “I wish I had a Lortab,” she muttered.

“What’s that?”

She sighed and dropped her hands. “It doesn’t matter. It’ll be about forty more years before I can fulfill that wish.”

“And that’s exactly why you’re here.”

“What are you talking about?”

“You’re going to tell me everything you know about the future.”

“The trail stops here.” Win looked up at David and frowned. “It just disappears here. At this point there were still two on the horse.”

David moved closer. “Which way do you think they went?”

He stared at the ground and then off through the trees. “It makes no sense. There’s nothing out there but open country.”

David raked his fingers through his wet hair and closed his eyes. “Okay, then they must’ve headed back toward Hamilton, or maybe the mine.”

Win stood and closed his eyes.

“What’re you doing? We need to get going.”

He stayed still, opening up his senses. From the first moment David had shown him Anna’s picture of her best friend, he’d felt a spiritual connection to her. He’d never examined it before because he’d always thought she was out of his reach, living her life in the future. Now that she was here, he wanted to see if their souls could communicate. He turned around slowly in a circle and then stopped. Something straight ahead was generating warmth. He could feel it. He opened his eyes and peered into the darkness. Nothing, not even the stars were lighting the way.

David touched his cheek. “What is it?”

Win turned to look at his lover and friend. “I can’t explain it, David, but I think we need to travel in this direction, away from Hamilton.”