Behind His Blue Eyes (32 page)

It didn't matter. She was alive and he would find her. “I'm going back.” He started to turn Renny.

Ash grabbed his reins. “I know this is hard, lad. If something had happened to my Maddie—”

“There is something else,” Thomas cut in. “I thought it was another foolish thing that white people did. Now I am not so sure.” Turning to Ethan, he asked, “When is the only time Weems was out of our sight?”

Ethan curbed his impatience. “When he was at the latrine or in his tent.” But then a sudden image flashed through his mind—Weems pissing into the bushes by his tent. Why hadn't he gone up to the boulders like before? The buzzing started again, almost drowning out Thomas's voice.

“And would a man—even a white man—put his latrine above the source of his water?”

“No.” Jerking the reins free, Ethan spun Renny around.

“Bollocks.”

“Rafe, take the mule on to the livery,” Brodie ordered. “Tell the ladies . . .”

There was more, but Ethan already was racing back up the trail to the camp.

Thirty-three

A
voice called her name. She lurched up, not knowing if she was awake or dreaming. It was so dark she couldn't even tell if her eyes were open. Holding a hand before her face, she blinked and felt her lashes brush against her fingers. Awake. Or dreaming she was awake.

The voice came again. Distorted. Hollow-sounding. Like an echo.

She scrambled to her feet and looked in the direction where she knew the opening to be. Was it growing lighter? Was someone coming? Weems?

Or maybe help had come at last. The thought made her heart pound so hard it made her dizzy.

Please God.

She stared into the darkness.

Again. Closer now. “Audra!”

Ethan?
“Ethan! I'm here!”

Footsteps. Voices. Not Weems.

“In here!” she cried.

Light burst through the opening, blinding her.

“Oh, Jesus—Audra!”

An arm closed around her, pulled her hard against a solid chest. His whole body shook with his ragged breathing. “God . . . you're alive . . .”

“Ethan . . .” She clung to him, her legs trembling beneath her. “You found me, you came . . .”

“Are you all right?”

She couldn't answer, couldn't stop crying, didn't want to let him go. Other voices rose around her, but she was weeping so hard she couldn't make out the words. “Weems said—”

“He's dead. He'll never hurt you again. Let me look at you.” He drew back, then stiffened when he saw the collar around her neck. “Somebody get this off of her,” he said hoarsely, his voice unsteady. “Now!”

Thomas appeared beside her. She saw the knife in his hand and shrank away.

“Do not fear me,
katse'e
—little one. I will not hurt you. You know this.”

Ethan turned her face into his chest. “Let him, sweetheart. It will only take a moment.”

She felt the blade slip between the collar and her neck, but Ethan's heart drummed so loudly beneath her ear she couldn't hear the sawing of the knife on the thick leather. A moment later, she was free.

Free. Alive. Whole.

If Ethan hadn't been holding her, she might have fallen. “T-Take me out of here.”

He bent to peer into her face. “Can you walk?”

She gave a choked laugh. “I can run. Hurry. I want to see the sun.”

They seemed to weave forever through the rocky passageways. It was a miracle they'd found her with all the twists and turns. The uphill slant left her winded and unsteady in the knees, but when she saw the sunlit opening ahead of Declan, who held the lantern, she wanted to push him aside and run the rest of the way. Yet, at the last moment, she had to slow, blinded by the brightness after so many hours in the dark. She stumbled forward, one hand shading her eyes, then felt Ethan's hand on her shoulder.

“Keep going,” he said at her back. “I've got you.”

Tears streaming from beneath her closed lids, she let him guide her out of the mine shaft. Once everyone came through the entrance behind her, she stopped and waited for her eyes to adjust.

She felt the heat of the sun on her face—smelled juniper and pine as a gentle breeze swept away the dank mustiness of her prison—heard the distant cry of a hawk circling on updrafts rising off of the sun-warmed earth.

Life.

A hand gently brushed the tangled curls off her face. “Now let me see how badly you're hurt.”

Blinking fast in the glare, she squinted at the slits in Ethan's jacket. “Why are you bleeding?”

“It's nothing. A couple of cuts. Ash put on a field dressing until I can see Doc. What about you? That bump on your head looks nasty, and your face is bruised, and I can see you're favoring your arm. How bad?”

She forced a smile. “Not bad. Just sore.”

“And those cuts on your hands?”

“I found a piece of metal and tried to use it to loosen the bolt on the chain, but it broke. They're only scrapes.”

Noticing that the other four men were clustered around her, faces grim, she gave them a tremulous smile. “Thank you . . . all of you . . . for finding me. I-I . . .” Her voice cracked.

A moment of awkward silence as she struggled with tears, then Maddie's husband said, “When Weems told us you were dead, lass, we almost lost hope. But the lad wouldna give up. Thank him.”

“Will you be able to make it down the hill?” Sheriff Brodie asked. “Or would you like one of us to carry you?”

She glanced at Ethan's bloody sleeve, and decided if he couldn't carry her, she would make it on her own. “I'll walk.” But when the others headed down toward the slope, Ethan held her back.

“Are you all right?”

She saw the pain and worry in his beautiful blue eyes, and some of the fear that had locked her in its grip began to crack. “You mean did Weems force me?” She shivered as the memory of that humiliating moment in the cave swept through her. “No. He never touched me . . . not that way.”

“Thank God.” His arm came around her again, so tight she could hardly breathe.

And suddenly she was crying again. “I love you . . . I love you . . .”

He held her for several minutes, his body trembling, his breath harsh in her ear. “Audra, I'm so sorry you got caught up in this,” he said in a broken voice. “I should have protected you better. I should have—”

“You couldn't have foreseen this any more than I.” When he started to protest, she pulled back and pressed trembling fingers over his lips. “You didn't give up. You found me. That's what's important.” Taking her hand away, she gave him a hard, fast kiss then stepped back. “Now please . . . take me home.”

“After we go to Doc's.”

* * *

Even though Ethan's arm was barely functional, and his neck and shoulders were so sore he could hardly turn his head, he insisted on having Audra ride back with him rather than with one of the other men. He didn't want her out of his sight or his reach for a single moment. Even so, Thomas stayed close by, as if expecting him to let her slide off or something.

When they reached town, Brodie reined in. “I'll stop by your house, Audra, and tell the Abrahams you're safe and will be home after Doc checks you over.”

Tait offered to ride ahead to the hotel. “The ladies have been very worried.”

“Why don't you go there after you see Doc,” Ethan suggested to her. “It'll be awhile before he's finished with me, and you could take a long bath in the hotel washroom. I'm sure Lucinda will lend you clean clothing. I'll come take you home as soon as I finish at the clinic.”

Tait read her hesitation as assent. “I'll tell them to start heating the water.”

When the other three men rode ahead, Thomas stayed behind. “I will go with you to your healer. And take her to the hotel when she is ready.”

They arrived at the clinic a few minutes later. Thomas hung back when Ethan and Audra went up the walk.

Doc Boyce took one look at the two of them and started shaking his head. “If you two aren't the most pitiful pair I've ever seen. What have you done to yourselves this time?”

Ethan explained about Weems as he followed Doc and Audra down the hallway. But when he tried to go with them into the examination room with them, Doc put out a hand. “You're still not married, son. Best wait out here.”

Too weary to argue, Ethan did as he was told. As soon as the door closed behind them, weakness overcame him. Sliding down the wall, he sat on the floor, arms braced across his bent knees. He couldn't stop shaking. Couldn't seem to catch his breath. Couldn't clear the fear from his mind.

I didn't lose her,
he told himself over and over.
She's safe. She's going to be all right.

Emotion constricted his throat. Dropping his head onto his folded arms, he gave into shuddering relief as tears he never thought to shed again mingled with the blood on his sleeve.

By the time Audra came out, he had himself in hand again. Rising, he looked her over—ointment on her forehead, her hands, a cut on her neck, and who knows where else. She looked like a battered and dirty china doll. “How is she, Doc?”

“Bruises, abrasions, a bump on the head, and plumb worn out. She told me what happened. Glad you killed the bastard, Hardesty, so I wouldn't have to go against my oath. Don't forget this, Miss Pearsall.” He held out gauze, sticking plaster, and a small brown jar. “After your bath, put more ointment on your cuts, then cover them with gauze. They should heal quickly. Your turn, Hardesty.”

Thomas stepped out of the shadows at the end of the hallway, startling them. How long had he been standing there? “I will take her to the hotel now,” he told Ethan. “And will guard her until you come.”

Ethan's visit took a lot longer . . . and required fifteen stitches. Luckily, he had been wearing his thick shearling jacket, or the blade would have cut to the bone. As it was, he would be sore for a while, but unless infection set in, he should heal without a problem. More of that stinking salve, horse liniment for his neck and shoulders, a thick linen wrapping and a sling for his arm, and firm instructions to stay the hell out of trouble for a while, then Doc sent him on his way.

He rode slowly back to the hotel, drained in body and spirit, feeling like he'd been gone for weeks, rather than a night and a day.

Audra was still in the washroom with the ladies, so he went through the lobby and around into the door of the Red Eye where he found the men seated in their usual corner. A bottle of the earl's fine Scotch whiskey sat in the middle of the table. When Ash saw him, he motioned the barkeep to bring another glass. Ethan pulled up a chair between Thomas, who was sipping ginger beer, and Rafe Jessup, who was scratching Ash's wolfhound behind the ear.

Brodie nodded toward Ethan's sling. “Serious damage?”

“Just a few stitches.” Ethan glanced around the table at the men who had become like brothers to him. That knot of emotion clogged his throat again, and it was a moment before he trusted his voice enough to speak. “Thank you. For going back and helping me find her. For saving my life. I owe you.”

“Aye, you do,” Ash said, and they all laughed in that embarrassed way men have when things are on the verge of getting too emotional. “And I'll take my debt in construction help.”

“I'd like your expertise on the depot plans,” Tait added.

So much for avoiding architecture. “Rafe?” Ethan asked.

Giving Tricks a final pat, he looked up with a half smile. “I'll keep the mule. Poor animal's had a rough life.”

Ethan turned to Brodie. “And you, Sheriff?”

“I'm thinking on it.”

“Thomas?”

“You will build me a school.”

They all looked at him in surprise. “What do you want with a school?” Brodie asked.

“When Prudence Lincoln comes back, she will want to teach. She must have a school to do that.”

Ethan wondered if the others were thinking what he was: that Prudence Lincoln might never come back.

“An excellent idea, Redstone,” Tait said. “Heartbreak Creek needs a real school. I'll talk to Mayor Gebbers about funding it. And now that Bonet is gone, we need a publisher for the
Herald
, too.
Do you think Audra would be interested, Ethan?”

Maybe if they moved the paper to another building. After seeing her employer butchered beside her desk, Ethan doubted she would ever want to go into the
Herald
office again. “I'll ask her.” Figuring she would be finished with her bath by now, and probably hungry after going so long without food, he rose. “Dining room still open?”

“Mrs. Abraham is waiting dinner.” Brodie tossed back the last of his drink, then stood. “Thomas, if you'll take Ed and the children home, I need to return a widow-lady's watch and a Chinaman's pigtail, then fill out all sorts of troublesome paperwork for the judge.”

After the group broke up, Ethan walked with Tait and Ash back to the hotel, where they found the ladies having tea in Lucinda's office. Audra looked exhausted, huddled on the couch in a thick woolen robe, shearling slippers, and a patchwork of plaster bandages. At least the dirt was gone and the tangles had been brushed from her damp hair—but the warm water had brought out the color in her bruises. She was so weary she looked like she was about to nod off.

“We better go,” Ethan told her. “Winnie's waiting supper.”

“How's your arm?” she asked when he helped her to her feet.

“A few stitches, that's all.” Remembering, he reached into his pocket and pulled out her father's medallion. “We found this among the prospector's things,” he said and handed it to her.

Tears filled her eyes, even though she was smiling. “I thought it was lost forever. He said he'd found it in the ashes of the cabin, but I wasn't sure I believed him.”

He didn't tell her what Weems had said about finding it at the Arlan house in her dresser drawer. She didn't need to know a killer had been going through her things.

They said their good-byes, then Tait came out to help her up on Renny and wave them on their way. Several people stopped on the boardwalk to watch them, calling, “Glad you're back,” and “Welcome home, Audra,” as they rode by, but Ethan didn't stop to chat.

Winnie and Curtis came out onto the porch when they rode up, Mr. Pearsall in tow. When Curtis saw Ethan's sling, he stepped up to help Audra down, gave her a bear hug, then offered to take Renny to the paddock out back.

Winnie couldn't stop crying. Mr. Pearsall just looked bewildered.

They had a late family dinner at the worn dining table, and even though Audra could hardly keep her eyes open, she managed to eat a fair amount. When Curtis took her father up to bed, she trailed behind them with Winnie, almost stumbling, she was so tired. After the Abrahams tucked the two of them in bed, they came back downstairs and sat at the table while Ethan told them about Audra's ordeal.