Winter Bride (9780345546197) (12 page)

“You’re right about that.” As he saw the luminous eagerness begin to fade from her face, his expression softened. “I haven’t done anything yet,” he said gruffly. “We’ll have to see what Ramon has to say.”

“
Madre de Dios!
You brought me here for this?” Ramon’s dark eyes were dagger-hard in his plump face as he glared at Ysabel. “I’m not in the business of reclaiming family treasures, Jed.”

“Don’t get on your high horse, Ramon.” Ronnie grinned at him as she hoisted herself to sit on a table. “She needs your help and you know what a courtly gentleman you are beneath all those prickles.”

Ramon turned his glower on her. “I’m a patriot, not a gentleman. The two do not mix in this country.”

“So much for him liking you better,” Jed murmured. “I need this favor, Ramon.”

“Perhaps I’d better explain just what it is
I
need.” Ysabel took a step forward to face Ramon. “It’s possible he won’t have the courage to help me.”

Ramon’s tone dipped another ten degrees. “I don’t have to prove my courage to you, Señora.”

She took a deep breath. “You call yourself a patriot, but are you brave enough to tweak Marino’s nose and steal his most valuable possession?” She heard Ronnie’s swift intake of breath and sensed Jed’s sudden stillness but ignored them both, her gaze focused on Ramon. “Are you a patriot enough for that, Señor Damirez?”

Ramon’s expression was suddenly wary. “And what is that possession?”

“His son.”

Jed muttered an expletive. “What the devil are you talking about? Marino has no son.”

Ysabel had caught a flicker of expression on Ramon’s face. “I believe Señor Damirez knows better,” she said softly. “Don’t you, senor?”

“Ramon?” Jed asked.

“There are certain … rumors.”

“What rumors?”

“Of a boy being held at the
Castillo del Fuego
whom the General visits every month.” Ramon’s voice was cautious as he gazed at Ysabel. “How did you know of the boy?”

Ysabel hesitated and then said in a rush, “I’m his sister.”

“Holy Toledo.” Ronnie closed her mouth, which had dropped open, and began to chuckle. “And Jed said there was no story here.”

“The lady failed to confide in me,” Jed said coldly.

Ysabel gazed at him pleadingly. “Can’t you see I couldn’t tell you about Steven? What if you’d thought the danger was too great and not agreed to bring me? I’ve waited seven years to free him from that
castillo
.”

“They call him Manuel now,” Ramon said. “You’re truly Marino’s daughter?”

Her lips twisted bitterly. “I was born of his seed, but I am
not
that monster’s daughter.”

“You can’t have it both ways.”

“I can and I will.” Her hands clenched into fists at her sides. “I’m not here to discuss my parentage. I have a plan for his escape, but I need help to get him from the
castillo
back to the cruiser.”

“What plan?” Ramon asked.

“My late husband has had a guard at the
castillo
in his pay for the last seven years. After his death I took over the contact. The guard’s name is Pedro Ridelez. When I give him the word, he’ll tell Steven to be in the courtyard at eight in the morning the day after tomorrow, open the gate, and delay the guard manning the gate for twenty minutes. That’s all the time we’ll need.”

“And you intend to just walk out of there with him?”

“The
castillo
isn’t a high-security installation, and Steven hasn’t tried to escape for the past three years. We’ll have the element of surprise.”

“And what if he doesn’t want to escape? From what we can learn the boy’s not treated badly. He’s had tutors and good food and fine clothes. We weren’t even sure if he was a prisoner. No one can question Marino’s charisma when he wishes to exert it.”

“Don’t worry, he wants to escape.”

“How do you know, if you haven’t seen him for seven years?”

“My last letter from him was only six months ago.” She smiled without mirth. “And I’m sure he
hasn’t changed his mind about Marino. Marino shot my mother and foster father, John Belfort, to death before our eyes. It’s not a sight a boy would easily forget.”

“Or a girl,” Jed murmured.

“We’re not talking about me,” Ysabel said impatiently. “Señor Damirez, there’s a glade in the jungle a mile and a half from the
castillo
. All I ask is that Perez finds a way to get word to Ridelez and has a helicopter in the glade ready to take off at eight fifteen.”

“All? There will be great danger,” Ramon said slowly.

Ysabel could tell he was tempted and pushed the advantage. “Yes, but look at the story you’d have for your newspaper, and Marino would be wiping egg off his face for a year.”

“True.” A sudden smile lit Ramon’s face. “A sight I’d love to see.”

“Then do it—free him.” Her voice vibrated with intensity. “Help me.”

“It’s too pat, too easy. You can’t be sure the situation at the
castillo
is the same as Ridelez described to you.”

“Ridelez sent me a map of the terrain and told me there’s a deserted shack where he used to live about five miles from the
castillo
. I need you to take me there. I can stay there while I look over the security and make sure it’s safe to make a move. I’ll need you to take me to the shack early tomorrow morning.”

“So now it’s not only Perez but I who am to become involved?”

“I’m asking you only to drive a car, not fight for me.”

“Even driving you may be a risk if we’re stopped by the
guardia
. The
castillo
is over a hundred miles from here.” Ramon hesitated. “We’ll see. I’ll contact Perez at his base in the hills and we’ll discuss it.”

“When will I know?”

He shrugged. “If we decide to help, I’ll be here tomorrow at dawn to take you to Ridelez’s shack. If I’m not here, I’d advise you to go back to your cruiser and leave San Miguel.”

She shook her head. “If you’re not here, I’ll get Steven out myself. I’m not leaving San Miguel without him.”

Grudging respect flickered over Ramon’s face. “Bold words. I almost believe you could do it.” He turned to Jed. “And what about you?”

“I made her a promise,” Jed said. “I’ll keep it.”

“It may be a very expensive promise.” Ramon nodded at the arched doorway across the room. “I took the precaution of bringing a few items of food for you. They’re on the counter in the kitchen.” His expression changed from sourness to sadness as his gaze traveled around the room, which had been stripped of every piece of furniture but a rickety table jammed against the wall. His glance lingered on the white outline of a cross on the wall where the priest’s precious crucifix must have been displayed. “Lord knows there’s nothing left in this village.” He strode toward the back door. “Perhaps I’ll see you in the morning.”

“Wait,” Ysabel called.

“I believe we’ve finished our discussion,” Ramon said.

“Tell Perez he owes it to Rosa.”

Ramon looked over his shoulder. “Rosa?”

“He’ll know. Just tell him.”

Ramon shrugged and swung the door closed behind him.

Ronnie jumped down from the table and moved swiftly toward the kitchen. “I’ll fix supper. You notice how tactful I’m being? As a reward I’ll expect to be filled in on all the juicy details later, Jed.” She disappeared through the arched doorway and a moment later they heard the opening of the cabinets.

“Ronnie, tactful?” Ysabel smiled. “Astounding.”

“She has her moments,” Jed said. “Well, do I get to hear the rest of it?”

“Yes, of course. I promised you I wouldn’t hold back anything once we reached San Miguel.” Now that the encounter with Ramon was over, tension was leaving her and her legs felt suddenly weak. She slid down the wall and linked her hands around her knees. “It was too important to chance—” She stopped as she saw his face. “I didn’t know you, Jed. Steven has been in that place for seven years. I didn’t have the right—”

“Okay, okay. I can see your reasoning. It doesn’t make me feel any better, but I can see it. Let’s go back seven years. How did my dear father come into this?”

“We’ll have to go back further than that. Twenty-four years.”

“Before you were born?”

She nodded jerkily. “Marino had just taken
power, but there was already a resistance movement against his regime headed by Perez. My mother was Rosa Camina, one of the rebels Marino’s troops captured and threw into the prison at Saltillo. Marino saw her one day when he was visiting the prison. She was very beautiful. You can guess the rest. I was born a year later.”

“In the prison?”

“Yes, my first six years were spent in the prison. It amused Marino to visit my mother on occasion. He enjoyed her struggles and the fact that she hated him to touch her.”

“He knew you were his daughter?”

“Oh yes, no one was allowed to touch my mother but him.” She laughed huskily. “You think he should have shown me some affection? I told you he was a monster. I was only important as proof of his virility. However, when Steven was born six years later, it was a different matter. Marino had the usual wish for a male heir. He was planning on taking him away from my mother as soon as she had given him a good healthy start in life. Suddenly our cell was cleaner, the food better, and we were permitted time out in the sunlight. How I loved that sunlight.”

She paused a moment remembering those moments of golden warmth after the darkness of the prison. “Two months later the rebels helped us escape from Saltillo, but Perez wouldn’t accept Marino’s children into his band. My mother refused to abandon us and fled into the jungle and hid us for over a year, dodging Marino’s patrols and living off the land. Marino was enraged and sent patrol after patrol searching for us.”

“How does your foster father come into this?”

“John Belfort was a Protestant clergyman who had founded a mission on the southern tip of San Miguel. My mother was growing desperate and knew Marino would find us eventually if she couldn’t find a place to hide us. She had heard of the mission and considered it her last hope. She persuaded John to take in Steven and me and raise us as his own.”

“And your mother?”

“It was too dangerous for us to have her nearby. Children’s looks change over the years, but she would have been recognized instantly. She joined the rebel forces in the hills but came to visit us as often as she could.”

“Were you happy at the mission?”

She nodded. “It doesn’t take much to make a child happy, and John treated us very well and even found a way to put through formal adoption papers. Yes, Steven and I were both happy.” She smiled gently, remembering. “He was more like my child than my brother. After my mother left, he was all mine.” She straightened her shoulders. “But you’re not interested in that, are you? You asked about your father.”

“He seems a compatible figure in that hellish landscape.”

“Marino found out who we were—an informer at the village the mission served.” She spoke quickly, eager to get it over with. “He staked out the mission and when my mother came to visit us, his troops killed her and my foster father and burned the mission.”

“Good God.”

“He took me and Steven back to the capital. Your father was a guest at his palazzo. At the time he was thinking of investing in several of Marino’s pet industries.”

“And he saw you and found his Winter Bride,” he said grimly.

She nodded. “He helped me escape and told me Steven would meet us at the helicopter. It was a lie. He considered rescuing Steven too dangerous and without benefit to him. I tried to get out of the helicopter, but he held me down until we were airborne and then he began to talk. He convinced me I’d be no good to Steven in San Miguel and if I were free, I could help him.”

“So he offered you a deal you couldn’t refuse.”

“Yes, he’d provide the money and influence to get Steven out of San Miguel if I’d do as he asked.” She closed her eyes. “It seemed so simple. I didn’t understand …”

“How could you understand? You weren’t much more than a child.”

“No, I was never a child. I couldn’t afford that indulgence.” Her eyes opened and she shrugged wearily. “I couldn’t leave Steven in prison when I was free.”

“Free?”

“Well, it was a prison of my own making.”

“And my father’s design. I notice he never managed to get Steven out of San Miguel.”

“The carrot. As you said, he was very good at that. He did set up contact with Ridelez, who smuggled letters in and out of the
castillo
. I lived for those letters.” She smiled bitterly. “He put Betty in charge of rationing them out to me. If I was
meek and obedient, I received my reward. Once when I was particularly defiant, she burned one of his letters in front of my eyes. I never made that mistake again.”

“Didn’t you realize what my father was doing to you?”

“Not at first. He handled it all so cleverly. Every few months I’d have a glowing report on all the plans they were making to free Steven. About four years after I arrived at Winter Island he could see I was becoming restless and discouraged, and actually initiated an escape plan. It failed. I didn’t realize it at the time, but now I believe he meant it to fail. As long as Steven was in the
castillo
I would do anything to free him. After the escape attempt I became more cynical, but he always managed to instill a tiny bit of hope in me. Hope can be a trap too.” She met his gaze. “Will you forgive me?”

“Don’t be absurd,” he said gruffly. “I don’t have anything to forgive.”

“Yes, you do. I wasn’t completely honest with you.”

“It’s a wonder you trusted me as far as you did. Your past experiences couldn’t have fostered any great faith in mankind.”

She said unsteadily, “I want you to know I meant what I said. I have no intention of endangering you any further than I have already. Your part in this is over. If you’ll wait here until I come back, I’ll—”

“No way,” Jed said flatly. “I’m going with you.”

She shook her head. “This is my battle. Marino already has a grudge against you and I won’t put you in that kind of danger.”

“You’re not putting me anywhere. My choice.”
He grinned. “I refuse to be used and then thrown away.”