Clem must have seen something in his expression, because he whirled on Gabe.
“So as you know, hotshot, there’s plenty of us around here who care about that little gal. We’ve looked out for her all her life. We aren’t about to let anyone hurt her, including the likes of you.”
Gabe took another drag on his cigarette and squinted at the angry man. Giving him the benefit of the doubt, he saw the concern in his eyes at the mention of Ana’s name.
He nodded as though Clem had reached out to him instead of putting up a higher hurdle.
“Now we’re getting somewhere. I’m glad to know that you and others are looking out for Ana. But it’s clear you’ve made a decision about me without knowing me.”
He ignored Clem’s snort.
“You’ve been around long enough, Clem. You know you shouldn’t believe everything you hear. Even if it’s true. Let’s get one thing straight. ‘The likes of me’ is what is going to protect Ana and, for that matter, Kai and Chao Li. I can tell by your attitude that you have an idea that there’s some bad shit going on around here, and that all three of them are in danger.”
When Clem just jerked his head, his eyes narrowing further, Gabe stepped over next to the little man and glared down at him. If Clem was intimidated by the big man looming at least eight inches over him, he didn’t show it.
Gabe kept his voice calm, cool, but he was sure that Clem could feel the anger radiating off of him. “I’m gonna tell you something else, Clem. I suggest you listen up. I need everyone who cares about Ana and her brother and father on my team. Just so you know, Clem, I got a rule I live by. A man’s either with me or against me. Anyone not with me, I consider an enemy. You might want to ask around, Clem. My enemies don’t fare well.”
Gabe stepped back to give the wrangler some breathing space. His gut told him that concern for Ana and her father and brother was driving Clem’s hostility, but Gabe didn’t give a shit. The guy could either help him or get the hell out of his way.
Clem reached in his pocket and took out his makings. It took him a full minute to pack the tobacco and roll the cigarette. When he finished, Gabe held out a match, a silent peace offering. To his relief, Clem accepted the light.
“She left about an hour ago.”
“Where’d she go?”
“Where she always goes.”
When Gabe took a threatening step toward him, he amplified his response.
“To the canyons, the waterfall. Where she goes every day.”
“Who was with her?”
“No one. She always goes alone.”
Gabe didn’t try to hide his concern.
“Fuck, Clem, you know how worried her father is, and you let her go by herself up to some goddamned canyon and waterfall? Why don’t you drive a stake through my gut? Tell me next that she goes there to swim!”
“Not always. She mostly goes to be by herself and read.”
Gabe’s exasperation boiled over.
“And since this is something she apparently does every day, everybody and anybody would know her habits. Is that what you’re telling me?”
Clem had the decency to look abashed.
Gabe persisted. “And you didn’t stop her? Suggest she wait for her brother or maybe offer to ride with her?”
Clem guffawed. Scorn laced his words. “I’ll tell you somethin’ you don’t know, Mr. ‘know it all’ McKenna. Nobody tells Ana what to do. Her father gave up on that years ago. Her brother tries, but she frustrates him at every step. Those of us who care about her and, yeah, are worried as hell, try to go along with her, not rile her up. Guess we’re hopin’ that she just might occasionally listen to us.”
Gabe sighed. Arguing with this tight-assed gatekeeper who seemed to have Ana’s best interest at heart wasn’t going to solve anything.
“Where’s the canyon, Clem?”
He listened to Clem’s complicated directions, and was glad when he grabbed a stick and drew a map in the dirt. Looking over his shoulder, Gabe was surprised to see one of the stable boys come out of the barn leading Wild Card, his Arabian, saddled up and ready to ride.
He threw Clem a questioning frown. The weathered ranch hand shrugged, “I thought you might want to go after her. “
Gabe mounted his horse, then nodded at Clem.
“Thanks”
As he galloped toward the canyon, he took some small measure of pleasure knowing that he passed Clem’s qualifying test. Just hoped the bastard hadn’t endangered Ana further with his protective rituals.
~~~
Ten minutes into the canyons, Gabe understood why Ana made them her refuge. The rocky trail was challenging, but nothing a skilled rider couldn’t handle. And, hell, the view the further up he went was astonishing. The snowcapped peaks of the Sierra Madras gleamed in the distance. He swore every geological stratum stood between him and the mountains, from grassy mesas to scrub covered desert to towering pine trees. The riotous colors and heady fragrance of wildflowers swamped his senses. The variety, the miles of untouched land stretching across the horizon, was what he loved about California and all of the West. They were among the many reasons he’d left Boston and never looked back.
He looked down on Chao Li’s ranch. From the distance, he could see the way the impressive compound blended into its surroundings. He wondered how Chao had stood up to Penelope over the years. Not let her put her stamp on the place. He could imagine the arguments between the two. Somehow Chao had managed to keep Penelope from “civilizing” his compound. There were no garish buildings, no unnatural colors, just carefully conceived structures that looked like they emerged from the landscape, through God’s hand, not one sophisticated Chinese man’s vision. Hell, he could have enjoyed the ride if the knot in his gut would loosen.
The trail flattened out and Gabe thought he smelled water. The distinctive sound of water cascading over the rocky outcroppings confirmed that he was nearing the waterfall promised by Clem’s scratches in the dirt. At the same time, he heard the water, he heard voices. Ana’s voice. And men’s voices.
Gabe swallowed hard, marveling at how tension dries up your spit. The itch on the back of his neck made his nerve endings shriek. The knot in his gut tightened. He hadn’t become the most feared poker player in the West by ignoring his intuition.
Ana was in danger.
Chapter 12
Ana sensed the conversation had changed. She’d managed to cover her surprise when Jake and Marty appeared from the brush. She was startled when she saw them, but more annoyed than afraid. Damn, what brought the ranch hands this far up in the canyons? Their claim that Clem sent them to seek out the mountain lions that were frightening the horses at night didn’t ring true. She didn’t contest their story. Maybe like everyone else, they needed a break from the dawn to dusk work on the second biggest spread in California. But why did they have to choose her haven, her refuge?
She barely knew the two men. She’d nodded to them, been polite as always. But unlike the hands who had been at the ranch since she was a child, these two were virtual strangers. They had the familiar markings of men who lived a hard life. Hours in the blazing sun had darkened their skin and etched deep lines around their eyes and mouths. Their hands were chapped, rough. Years of dirt and infrequent showers had blackened their nails beyond repair and left ground in dirt on the skin above their collars. Their clothes were stained, dust covered, their boots caked with mud. Even from a distance, Ana smelled the familiar odor of horses, grasslands, and mown hay. But it was the tangy stink of their sweat mixed with an odor she couldn’t place that caught her attention.
Not for the first time, Ana was grateful that Kai had taught her to shoot and throw a knife. She wasn’t afraid. Her daily sparring with Kai and the other Chinese fighters had strengthened her body and boosted her confidence. She knew she could handle these men. But she didn’t like the shifty looks they exchanged… or the way they seemed to be closing in on her.
Jake, the taller of the two, sidled over next to her. He took off his sweat-stained cowboy hat and ran his fingers through his lank stringy hair. Looking over the canyons into the distance, he whistled.
“Man, this is quite a place, girl. I swear to God you can see San Francisco from here. No wonder you come up here every day.”
Ana frowned at his knowledge of her habits, but didn’t respond. Instead she took a few steps back, avoiding Marty, who appeared on the other side of her.
Jake inquired. “How much of this land does your father own?”
Ana met his gaze and gave a noncommittal shrug. “Enough.”
A smirk twisted Jake’s lips. He turned to his friend as though she weren’t there.
“You ever wonder, Marty, how these Chinks managed to gobble up so much of the good land? Must be that they are just smarter than the rest of us. Or,” he mused, “maybe they’re sneakier, more devious.”
Marty made an ugly sound. “Or they bought off those Lilly-livered fuckers in Congress who care more about money than takin’ care of their own race.”
Ana had heard the arguments all her life. Sometimes, in the whispers of the house maids. Or in the overt drunken complaints at the saloon. The only difference was that she didn’t know these men. She didn’t know if it was the usual grumbles of disenchanted, overworked men or if they posed a real danger. She felt for the knife strapped to her thigh, and considered the one in her boot.
Jake glanced over at her and gave her what she presumed was a smile. Only it wasn’t friendly, it was sinister. It sent shivers down her spine.
“Hey, Ana, don’t look like that. We’re just joshin’ you. We’re good men and we like all kinds of peoples, even Chinks.”
His pal chipped in. “But honey, you ain’t all Chink, are you? Nah, you look like your daddy branched out a little. Who was your ma, Ana? One of them chamber maids?”
Ana drew herself up and turned on the two men.
“I want you to leave. Clem will be angry that you are here. There’s plenty of work for you to do at the ranch. And even though my father is a “Chink,” he is a generous one and pays you well to do your work. He will be displeased to learn that you are shirking your duties. Please go.”
The overt threats only seemed to encourage the two men.
Jake sidled up close enough to her that she could see the blackened stumps of teeth in his mouth and smell the fetid odor of his breath.
“Now, now. Ana. Don’t you go gettin’ your dander up. Marty here and me, we wus thinkin’ how nice a swim in that waterfall would be.”
He leered at her. “Do you ever swim in that nice cool water, Ana? I’m bettin’ you do.”
He grinned at Marty. “What do you think, Marty? You think you and me and Ana here should go for a little swim? Hell, we could get out of these filthy duds of ours and get clean all over.”
Marty gave a lewd chuckle and reached for Ana. “Hell, Jake I can only think of a couple of things that would be better than a nice cold swim with this pretty young thing. Damn, Eli and Slade were braggin’ you is quite a little poker player. I’m bettin’ you got all kinds of skills nobody knows about.”
Ana’s stomach clenched. She managed to stifle the rush of fear that made her knees shake. She concentrated on the man threatening her, and planned her next move. Like Kai taught her, she twisted to the side, then drove her knee into Marty’s groin. The unexpected move caught Marty off guard and he sprawled to the ground with a surprised grunt. Ana took off in a dash, not looking back. Her horse was tied to the tree. If she could make it over to him, she could escape.
Marty yelled out when he landed on a sharp rock, and leapt to his hands and knees. Ana ran as fast as she could, adrenalin driving her forward. She heard Jake’s shout and felt his breath as he closed in on her. In her haste, she tripped over a tree root and stumbled. A sharp pain tore through her ankle. Blessedly, fear deadened the pain. She beat off Jake’s grasp and made a last desperate effort to reach her horse.
A gunshot rang though the crisp air, echoed by Jake’s scream. A volley of shots mixed with men’s shouts and her high piercing screams, echoed through the canyons.
Ana remained on the ground where she fell. In the confusion, she didn’t know if one of the shots hit her. Her ankle was screaming with pain. She looked up to see both Jake and Marty writhing on the ground. Jake was clutching his bloody elbow. Marty rocked back and forth, cradling his knee, blood seeping through his fingers. Both men were white with shock. She followed the path of their eyes terrified to see who was trying to kill them.
Her relief when she saw Gabe was so intense, she almost fainted.
~~~
Gabe had crouched in the brush, watching as the men advanced on her. Although her words were calm and her voice strong, he saw the fear in her eyes. Years of training kicked in. His breathing slowed, his gaze narrowed. Calm settled over him like a protective cloak. Killing was never easy, but it got less problematic with practice. He’d had lots of practice. As much as he wanted to, as much as every muscle fiber in his body cried out to kill these cowardly bastards, squeeze the life out of them with his bare hands — Gabe resisted. These animals were too stupid to have engineered the plot against Chao and his family. But whoever sent them was not. Gabe needed these stooges alive. He needed to send a message to the men who hired them, that it was only a matter of time before they felt his wrath.
Advancing on the two men cowering on the ground, a pistol in each hand, Gabe shot one round after another. Dirt spit up, showering the screaming men with dust and shattered rocks. Each shot came perilously close to one vulnerable body part or another.
Finally, Jake threw up his hand, begging him to stop.
“Jesus Christ, Angel! Can’t you see we’re down? What the fuck are you trying to do?”
“What am I trying to do, Jake? Hmm, a little target practice. I like to see how close I can get to a man’s nuts without shooting them off. Haven’t been practicing as much as I should. Hope I don’t miss.”
He aimed a round at the narrow space between Jake’s legs and shot. The rock bounced up, smacking against the crease in Jake’s pants. The only sound more horrific than Jake’s scream was Marty’s.
Marty was blubbering now. “You, you don’t understand, Angel. We… we works for her Pa. And for Clem. We was just joshin’ her. Havin’ a little fun. We never would hurt her, would we Jake?”