This Fierce Splendor (10 page)

“I see.”

“Nicholas was … everything. I thought if I could get away from him, I might have a chance of becoming—” He stopped again. “I heard a man has the opportunity to become whatever he likes out here.”

But Andre could never hope to become the man this Nicholas seemed to be, or what Dominic Delaney was, she thought sadly. How strange that in escaping from one overpowering presence, he would encounter yet another. Indeed, it appeared he had not only encountered but actually sought out a man as formidable as his cousin. How bewildered and unhappy he must be to be attracted to the very qualities in Dominic he had run halfway across the world to escape in Nicholas. “I hope you find what you’re seeking, Andre.”

“Oh, I will,” he assured her quickly. “In no time at all I will be perfectly acclimated. I practice with my pistol every day and listen and watch. I’m learning a great deal.”

“I’m sure you are.”

Why was she worrying about Andre when she had such monumental troubles enough herself? He was wealthy and fortunate enough to be a man, which placed him in a considerably better position than she was in. She had been so sure her venture into the Nugget would bring a positive response. Well, she had most certainly wrung a response from Dominic Delaney, but the nature of it had bewildered as well as frightened her.

The hotel was only a few yards away, and unconsciously her pace quickened. She would face the possible consequences of her actions tomorrow, but now she wanted to escape upstairs to her room and shut-out the fear gnawing away at her confidence.

There was someone in her room!

She could see nothing in the darkness, but as soon as she shut the door she was aware of the light sound of breathing and assailed by the unmistakable aura of
presence
. Her heart gave a leap and then started pounding wildly. She whirled, her hand searching wildly for the china knob of the door.

There was a low laugh from the rocking chair in the corner of the room. “You mustn’t run away now.” Dominic Delaney’s voice was mocking and slightly amused. “It wouldn’t be polite. I’m merely returning your call. I decided you must have wanted to see me very badly to ignore the warning I gave you at Rina’s.”

She froze with her hand on the knob. Dear heaven, she was frightened. She mustn’t let him terrify her like this. He was here and no longer ignoring her. She should boldly take advantage of the opportunity to speak to him, but she didn’t feel in the least bold. She felt small, nervous, and completely inadequate to meet this sudden challenge. “I did want to see you, Mr. Delaney.” She tried to keep the quaver from her voice. “You must know why I …” She trailed off. The darkness, the knowledge that he was sitting there looking at her, suddenly made it hard to breathe much less speak. “Perhaps we’d better light the candle.”

“I like the darkness. It creates a certain intimacy.” She heard the creak of the rocking chair as he rose to his feet. “Though candlelight has its advantages too. A woman’s skin always has a lovely soft luster in candlelight.” He moved so silently she wasn’t aware he was beside her until he spoke again. “I remember your skin as being very soft, Elspeth. I remember how smooth and warm your throat was beneath my hand
that morning. I remember how fast your heart was beating and I remember your eyes looking up at me. What do you remember?”

She could feel the heat emanating from his big body and caught the scent of whiskey and tobacco that surrounded him. She moistened her lips nervously. “Nothing. I don’t remember anything.”

“Then perhaps I’d better refresh your memory. I was naked, Elspeth, and you were fully clothed. You had me at a disadvantage, and I don’t like to be at a disadvantage.” His voice was only a level above a whisper, but every word was spoken with mocking clarity. “This time I think it’s only fair we’re on an even footing.”

“What do you mean?”

“I think you know what I mean. We’re merely going to conclude what you invited that day at Rina’s. Hold out your hands.”

“Why should I— What are you doing?” He hadn’t waited for her to obey but gathered her wrists with a lightning-swift motion, slipped a loop of rope over them, and drew the loop taut. The panic rose as she felt the loops tighten, rendering her helpless. “Let me go!”

“That wouldn’t be reasonable, and I’m usually a very reasonable man. It’s only when I’m pushed that I have a tendency to become impulsive.”

“I’ll scream.”

“I understand it’s the accepted thing to do, but I really wouldn’t if I were you. Then I’d have to knock you unconscious and I’ve been taught never to strike a woman.” His tone became silky with menace. “However, I might learn to enjoy violence in your case, Elspeth. You seem to arouse that emotion in me without the slightest effort. I could gladly have strangled you in the Nugget tonight.”

“Why are you doing this?” She wished she could see his face. Perhaps he was only trying to frighten her. If so, he was certainly succeeding. She was trembling and she couldn’t think of anything but how helpless
she felt bound and sightless in the darkness. “Please, untie me.”

“Presently.” He moved away for a brief moment, and when he returned he had her cloak. He draped it around her shoulders and fumbled in the darkness for the button that fastened it at the collar. His fingers brushed her throat and she inhaled sharply. He heard. She could sense him grow still. He paused for a moment, his knuckles pressed against the soft flesh of her neck, letting her feel the hard warmth of his fingers. “I think you lied to me, Elspeth. I think you remember a great deal about that morning.” Then, just when the touch of his fingers was beginning to cause an odd hot sensation, his hands fell away. “This will be a little warm, but it will hide the rope if anyone should see us riding out of town.” He drew the hood up over her head. “You’re taking this very calmly. Are you accustomed to being abducted, Elspeth?”

“No.” She could barely force the word through the tightness of her throat. “I’m not calm. I’m not a very brave person, and I’m frightened.”

For an instant there was a silence, a hesitance. “Was that supposed to disarm me? You gave me your answer at the Nugget tonight. Are you asking for another chance?”

“It would be the same answer,” she said haltingly. “There is no choice. I cannot leave here without you, and I must find Kantalan.”

“I think you’ll decide differently by the end of the week. I’ve left a note on your pillow supposedly signed by you saying that you’ve decided to run away with me. Since you’ve been trailing after me for the better part of a week, I don’t think anyone will have trouble believing you find me irresistible.” His tone was mocking. “And those that have any doubts will think twice about calling me a liar. When we come back to Hell’s Bluff, you won’t find your stay in this town quite so comfortable. You’ll either have to go to Rina’s or accept the hospitality of one of the men you saw in the bar tonight. This hotel accepts only respectable women.”

“Come back? You’re taking me away from Hell’s Bluff?”

“I can hardly take you to Rina’s, as she might object,” he drawled. “And what I have in mind for you can’t be accomplished with the little privacy this room affords. I’m taking you deeper in the mountains to a cabin owned by a friend. He’s off prospecting at the moment, so we should have no one to interfere with—” He broke off and turned away impatiently. “Why am I making explanations? You’ll find out soon enough. Let’s get the hell out of here. I have the horses tied to the hitching rail out back.” His hand was on her elbow, propelling her across the room toward the open window. “I believe we’ll avoid the main stairs. If we happened to run into someone you know, you might be tempted to scream, and I’m not in the mood to shoot anyone this evening.”

The words were said calmly, almost casually, but they sent a shiver to the base of Elspeth’s spine. The idea of violence was anathema to her, and the knowledge that blood might be spilled for her sake made her feel ill. “I wouldn’t scream. Not if I knew it would mean a man’s death.”

“That’s very accommodating of you, but I don’t think we’ll take the chance. This is between the two of us.”

“Yes.” She wished she could stop shaking. He was right, this was between them and no one else. He was terribly angry with her and meant to punish her in some way; nothing could be clearer. Well, she had known that taunting him would be dangerous and she had done it anyway. She mustn’t be a coward now that he temporarily had the upper hand. What could he do to her that would be so terrible? He obviously didn’t want to hurt her physically. Perhaps he was only trying to intimidate her into giving up and leaving Hell’s Bluff. Perhaps being alone with Dominic could be to her advantage. She would be able to talk to him without having to pursue him and—

His big hands were on her waist, lifting her through the window onto the landing of the second floor
balcony. The arguments she had been giving herself flew away from her like birds in autumn. His hands were terribly strong as they spanned her slight waist, and his features in the moonlight appeared flint-hard. She was once again acutely conscious of both the helplessness of her position and her femininity. Her breath caught in her throat as she met his gaze.

His pale eyes were searching her face. “You
are
frightened.” His lips curved in a smile of savage satisfaction. “Good. I want you to be frightened of me. I want your knees to shake and I want your eyes to look at me as if you’re afraid I’m going to eat you. I want to touch you and feel you tremble.”

She drew a deep, quivering breath. “Then you’re certainly getting what you want, aren’t you? But there’s something you should know.”

His lips twisted in a sardonic smile. “I suppose you’re going to tell me you have four fierce brothers who will ride in pursuit and avenge this shocking infamy I’m heaping on their little sister?”

“No, I have no one to defend me.”

Something flickered in the hardness of Dominic’s face and then was gone. “How fortunate for me. Then may I ask what you think I should know?”

“I cannot ride a horse.”

The cabin before which Dominic had finally stopped was located on a plateau that bordered the steep incline of a rockstrewn gorge. It was a good ten miles from Hell’s Bluff, and by the time it had come into view Elspeth had doubted she had an unbruised bone in her body and was positive there was not an inch of her flesh left unscathed. “You didn’t have to make the horse run,” she said tartly as Dominic reined in his black stallion in front of the cabin. “I know you’re a wee bit angry with me but—”

“I’m more than a ‘wee’ bit angry.” Dominic slipped from his saddle and came around to lift her down from the chestnut mare on which she was mounted. “And if I’d wanted the horse to punish you instead of
reserving that pleasure for myself, I would have had her trot, not gallop. Its far more painful.”

“It couldn’t be.”

“It is.” He was swiftly untying her wrists and he paused to smile down at her, his blue-gray eyes glittering coldly in the moonlight. “I’ll make sure your next ride is more comfortable … even entertaining.”

His hand encircled her left wrist and he pulled her toward the small log structure that looked to be more of a shack than a cabin. When she drew closer she could see the crude structure had obviously been hurriedly built of logs that were still green and mismatched.

Dominic threw open the door and drew her into the darkness of the cabin before releasing her wrist. “Stay here.” She heard the click of the heels of his boots on the wooden floor as he crossed the room.

As Dominic lit the oil lamp on the table across the room, Elspeth saw the inside of the cabin was just as unattractive as its exterior and consisted of rough pine flooring with a multitude of unfilled knotholes and a flat roof fitted so poorly she could see the glitter of stars through slender spaces between the mismatched logs. The small room contained little furniture. A horsehair mat in the far corner which presumably served as a bed and the pine table beside which Dominic was standing had one leg shorter than the others and sloped drunkenly toward an equally clumsily built companion chair. Instead of glass in the one window beside the door, newspapers, yellowed and made brittle by exposure to the elements, were nailed across the opening.

“Someone
lives
in this place?” Elspeth asked incredulously.

“Jim isn’t here much. He’s away for weeks at a time prospecting in the hills. It serves his purpose.” Dominic’s white teeth gleamed in the lamplight as he smiled mirthlessly at her from across the small room. “As it will serve ours. Soon you won’t even notice your surroundings.” He turned away from the table and
headed for the door. “I’m going to unsaddle and water the horses. I wouldn’t try to run away if I were you. There’s no possible help within five miles of this place and the hills are full of snakes and scorpions. If you don’t fall off the mountain, you’ll have them to contend with.” He paused at the door to look back at her. “And I’d find you anyway. I’ve gone to a hell of a lot of trouble to bring you here, and I have no intention of letting you get away.”

Snakes. Elspeth tried to repress the familiar panic the thought sent streaking through her. She smiled shakily as she pushed her spectacles up to the bridge of her small nose. “I’m not going to try to escape. It would be foolish. I know nothing about mountains and snakes and …” She waved a hand. “I forgot what else you said.”

“Scorpions,” he repeated. He stood there a moment, glowering at her. “Why the hell are you being so meek? Why aren’t you fighting me?”

“Would it help me if I fought you? Would it make you change your mind?”

“No.”

“I didn’t think so.” She crossed the room and sat down on the wooden chair. Her spine was very straight as she laced her fingers together on her lap. “You’re a determined man, but I don’t believe you’re a cruel one. I’ll wait for you here and we’ll discuss this turn of events when you return.”

He gazed at her, a variety of emotions flitting across his face. Then he muttered something violent beneath his breath that expressed both his frustration and exasperation, turned on his heel, and strode out of the cabin.