Sweet Savage Heart (67 page)

“It’s time we had some fun around here, Jack, then moved on. That money’s gone, so we can’t get much from Caldwell. When he gits back home, we’ll take what he has, kill the son of a bitch, then ride out. While we’re waiting, I thought we could have us some fun with his whore of a daughter. She’s in there now humping Silas.”

“You ain’t joshing, Wes?” the man asked excitedly.

“Nope. Fact is, old friend, you can have her first and last. Unless this stick gets hard and hot, I’ll pleasure myself watching you hurt her real good,” Wes Monroe told him, rubbing his taut groin.

“Let’s go git her,” Jackson Hayes urged in rising anticipation.

“Be real quiet. We don’t want to give them no warning. Yessiree, Jack, you’re gonna enjoy yourself today,” Wes told him, grinning malevolently.

“Say that again, Rachel,” Travis coaxed in disbelief.

“Some awful man came to the door and gave Mister Crandall a letter from Harrison Caldwell. He read it, got his gun, and left. I heard some of what the man said,” she began, then repeated Wes’s words. “I went to check on my stew, and he was gone before I could speak to him.”

Travis and Rana hurried to the corral to claim their
horses, which had just been unsaddled and rubbed down. They mounted bareback and raced toward Harrison’s house. Anticipating trouble and danger, they dismounted a distance from the house and moved toward it stealthily. Peering through the parlor window, they saw the obviously dead body of Silas Stern on the floor and Clarissa being tortured and raped brutally by Jackson Hayes while Wes Monroe watched and laughed. Before Travis and Rana could come to her aid, Jackson Hayes began stabbing her repeatedly as he climaxed.

Rana screamed uncontrollably as she witnessed the horrifying murder. Travis grabbed her arm and yanked her away from the window, knowing it was too late to save Clarissa’s life and fearing that the noise had alerted the outlaws to their presence. Travis used Indian sign language to communicate silently with her. She nodded her understanding and hurried to obey, ashamed that she had committed such a terrible error in crying aloud.

When Wes and Jackson bounded from the house, Travis pounced on them. They struggled fiercely. To the cutthroats, Travis seemed to be nowhere and everywhere at the same time. “Where’s Nathan Crandall?” he demanded as he struck one and whirled to deflect a blow from the other. “I’ll kill you dirty bastards if you’ve harmed him!” He tripped Jackson and kicked Wes in the abdomen.

As the two men circled Travis, Wes taunted, “You’ll never reach him in time. He’s dead by now. Harrison lured him to our cabin to kill him. Come on, tough man, show me how you can whip me and Jack.” Wes was too cocky and arrogant to draw his pistol. He assumed he could beat this man, especially when it was two-on-one.

“Then why don’t you tell me where your cabin is?” Travis mocked. “I’ll lick you both and be gone in a flash.”

Wes tauntingly revealed its location as he drew his
knife and began to wave it threateningly in Travis’s face. Travis grinned sardonically. He ventured, “I bet you don’t remember where you got that knife and pistol.” When Wes glanced at both, then back at the man between him and Jackson, Travis replied, “You took them off me seven years ago near St. Louis, when you were working for Elizabeth Lowry’s father. Right before you raped and murdered an Indian girl, then tried to beat me to death. Then you went back and murdered Lowry and his daughter. You must make it a practice to kill your bosses and their families. The initials on the handle stand for White Eagle; that’s me.”

Wes hesitated as he listened to this incredible tale. That instant gave Travis the edge, and he delivered a stunning blow to Wes’s gut and jaw. As Wes staggered backward, Jackson attacked Travis. Rana appeared with the horses, knowing they would have to hurry to save her father. As Travis spun to miss Wes’s next blow, Rana lifted her gun and fired at Jackson, striking him in the chest and killing him. Within moments, Wes was dead and Travis had recovered his pistol and knife. He flung himself on Apache’s back and they rode toward the cabin.

For awhile, Nathan remained hidden and observed Harrison as the man paced and fretted. Nathan wanted to make certain his foe was alone. He had never seen Harrison look so edgy or insecure. When he was certain no one else was around, he left his hiding place and joined him.

“You wanted to see me, Harry?” he asked as he walked to him.

Harrison turned and slowly eyed Nathan. “It’s over, Nate. I finally win everything, your ranch and Rana.”

“How do you see that, Harry?” Nathan argued insolently.

Harrison freely revealed his scheme to rid himself of Nathan. “I’ll bet my ranch nobody knows you’re here. So when I claim you came looking for me and tried to kill me, who’s to prove me wrong?”

“Why didn’t you hire one of your gunslingers to handle this?”

“Because I wanted the pleasure of killing you myself.”

“Mind telling me why?” Nathan asked, stalling for an opening.

“Because you let Marissa marry that mean bastard and leave home. You’re to blame for her suffering and death. You were too weak to control her and too damn stubborn to protect her. I was in love with her and I wanted to marry her, but that fancy gambler stole her while I was gone. You should have stopped them, Nate. She would be alive now if you had had the gumption to stand up to her or kill Michaels. You knew she was terrified of that bastard. Every time she came home, you saw she was in trouble, but you did nothing.”

“You and Marissa?” Nathan murmured in disbelief.

“That’s right, you fool. She should have been mine. Since she’s lost forever, I plan to take Rana in her place.”

“Like hell you will!” Nathan shouted in alarm, drawing his pistol and firing as Harrison simultaneously did the same.

Travis and Rana slipped from their horses and ran toward the fallen body of Nathan Crandall. He opened his eyes and smiled weakly at them. “I let him trap me,” he confessed with remorse.

“Do not speak, Grandfather,” Rana entreated with misty eyes and in a choked voice. “You must rest so your wound may heal.”

“It’s too late, girl,” he murmured, then coughed as blood filled his lungs. As his strength and life began to
ebb, he coaxed faintly, “Marry and be happy, like me and my Ruthie. I’ll see her soon.”

“Do not speak so, Grandfather,” she scolded him in panic.

“Travis knows I can’t make it, girl. He’ll take care of you. Harry said he wanted you like he wanted Marissa,” Nathan told them. With lagging strength, he repeated what Harrison had said.

“He lied, Grandfather. He wished to hurt you before he killed you. Mother did not know… my father was bad when she married him. Afterward, she was too proud to confess her mistake. She caused her own suffering, Grandfather, but she was going to change things. That last trip home, she had decided to leave… my father and return to you. She knew you would love us and protect us. It was not to be. Do not blame yourself. You are innocent. This I swear.”

Nathan smiled at her. “You’re a good girl, Rana. I love you.

“As I love you, Grandfather. Do not worry. We will save you.”

Nathan grasped Travis’s hand. “You’ve been a real son to me, Travis. These past years would have been empty without you. Take care of Rana. I know you love her and want her. The ranch belongs to you two.” He coughed again and grew paler.

Travis looked beyond Nathan and saw that Harrison Caldwell was dead, and in that moment he understood that there was no hope for Nathan Crandall to survive. He held the dying man’s hand tightly and vowed, “Don’t worry about her, my father. You saved us all from Caldwell’s evil. We’ll be married under the white man’s law very soon. We’ll name our first son after you, Nate. You changed my life, and I won’t ever forget that. I love you.

Nathan smiled again. “I love you, son. It’s all over
now, and you two can be free and happy. Don’t mourn for me. I had a good life, a full one. You two made my last days happy. I can die in peace.”

Nathan began to fade rapidly. His eyes fluttered and he called out, “Marissa, where are you, girl? Forgive me,” he pleaded.

Rana glanced at Travis through tear-filled eyes and their gazes spoke. He nodded understanding, and she replied, “I am here, Father. I love you. I have come home to you.”

“To stay?” he entreated, his mind dulled by imminent death.

“Yes, Father, to stay forever.” Her heart thudded painfully.

“Will you forgive me for not helping you?” he pleaded.

“I forgive you, Father, if you will forgive me for hurting you.”

“I love you, Missy,” he murmured, using his pet name for Marissa.

“I love you too, Papa,” she whispered in his ear and kissed his cheek. “Rest easy, Papa; I am home to stay.”

Nathan smiled one last time, then relaxed in her arms, dying without every learning of the tragic misconception that had tormented Marissa Crandall Michaels and had driven her from her home and love. “I love you, Father,” she whispered one final time, knowing that the tragic secret would be buried with him and the Caldwells. The dark past was ending, and a bright future for Rana Michaels and Travis Kincade was beginning.

“I’m sorry,
micante,”
Travis told her as he knelt beside the man who had saved his life long ago and had changed it so drastically. “He was like a real father to me. I know how you must be hurting.”

“It is best he did not learn the truth. I will think of him as my grandfather, as it should have been. He is at peace
now, as is my mother. The dangers have passed, and we must begin a new life.”

By Friday, Nathan Crandall and the others had been buried. The sheriff had collected the evidence against Harrison Caldwell and notified the past owners or heirs of the Lazy
J
, Flying
M,
and Box
K
ranches to return and lay claim to them. Since Harrison Caldwell had left a will naming Rana Michaels as his only heir, Travis and Rana discovered they owned a large, connecting spread that would one day belong to the child Rana was now certain she was carrying. With the other ranches being returned to their rightful owners, the area could be at peace once more.

Travis held Rana securely and tenderly within the circle of his arms as they stood before the mantel, staring up at Marissa’s portrait. “She almost appears to be smiling at us,” Travis remarked softly, nuzzling the side of her head.

Rana gazed into her mother’s blue eyes, which did appear to be smiling down on them. “She has found peace,
mihigna.
The past is over. We are home, and we must begin our life together.”

“I asked the preacher to come out Sunday after church to marry us. Cody and Mace are trying to keep it a secret, but they’re planning a big party for us. We all know this is what Nate would have wanted us to do. Do you think we should tell everyone we’re already married under Indian law?” he inquired, patting her stomach.

“You have found peace here. I do not wish others to learn of your Indian blood and torment you. They can say no words to harm me while I stand in your shadow,” she declared decisively.

“It doesn’t matter anymore, my love. I’m not ashamed to be half-blooded. My friends won’t turn against me and
others don’t matter to me. I think we’ve all found peace,
micante.
You’re not going to tell Todd anything, are you?” he ventured with mild curiosity.

“No, it is too late for such words to be a kindness.”

“You sure you want to be doubly bound to me?” he teased, returning to a happier topic as he bent forward to nibble on her ear.

She quivered and warmed and leaned against him. “We are two people in each body; we must join two times.”

“Good,” he murmured as he turned her to face him. “That should make us twice as happy. White Eagle gets Wild Wind, and Travis Kincade gets Rana Michaels.”

She looked into his eyes and smiled. “No, my love. I have you, and you have me. See, I have learned much English,” she teased, then hugged him tightly. “Come, let us speak in a different way,” she entreated, grasping his hand and leading him toward her room.

Saturday morning, Travis approached the family graveyard, which had been placed a mile from the house and beneath a lovely tree, whose sprawling limbs seemed to spread out protectively over those it guarded in their eternal sleep. The fence-enclosed space was a tranquil spot, and Travis had felt the need to visit it today to say a private farewell to Nathan Crandall.

Travis found Todd Raines standing over Marissa’s grave, and he speculated that her funeral must have been a heartrending experience for Todd. Now there were three graves: Nathan’s, Ruth’s, and Marissa’s. It had taken death to reunite them.

“I suppose I shouldn’t be here,” Todd murmured sadly. “It’s the first time in years that I’ve allowed myself to visit her. It’s hard to accept that they’re both gone forever, Travis; they were such a big part of my life. I
think the reason I could never get over her was because she left so suddenly; she left everything open and unsettled. I know a part of me will always love her and miss her, but I have a good wife who loves and and needs me more than Marissa ever did or could. If I just knew why she deserted me, then I would be free of the past.”

“I know what it’s like to be chained to a dark past, Todd, and I wish I could help you. It’s something only you can resolve.”

Todd laughed. “When you rode up, I was thinking about Nate and all he did for me. He was practically a father to me too. He taught me most of what I know, or made sure I learned it. Not long before Marissa realized I was alive and set her sights on me, I had never been with a woman. You might say I was the shy, serious type. Nate said I needed to become a whole man, so he sent me to this house outside town in his place. He told me the girl wouldn’t know any difference because he always insisted on darkness and no talking so he could pretend she was Ruthie for awhile. He told me he wasn’t ever going to visit that whore again, so he sent me in his place to be educated. I never knew who she was, but I could tell she wanted to be any place but in bed with me. I couldn’t blame her. Lordy, I was so clumsy and scared, and she didn’t help relax me or teach me anything. I never went back there either, but I’ve never forgotten that night. In less than a month, I was seeing Marissa, and she was the only woman I wanted. She nearly destroyed me, but I think the pain would cease if I only knew why she rejected me for that no-good gambler.”