06 Uncovering Hidden Treasure (18 page)

Stump pulls up in front of the ranger station
just as Richard Dean is walking in. He yells, "Richard, where is
Samantha?" His heart is pounding with dread.

Richard Dean says, "I dropped her off in town
at a place called Mel's Bar and Grill."

Stump calls back, "Thanks!" He turns around
and speeds to Mel's. He slides to a stop in the parking lot across
from Mel's and bolts across the street. He takes a deep calming
breath, pulls open the door and walks inside. It's not yet noon but
the bar is already busy. He approaches the bar and hears his name
from across the room.

"Hey Rance, what are you doing back in town?
We heard you split with all of Susie's tip money," calls Jeb.

"Maybe we should try to get it back for her,"
adds Zeke.

Stump glances over at them, raises an arm in
acknowledgement not paying attention to their words. Then he turns
to Jim at the bar and asks, "Has Sam been in here this
morning?"

Jim says, "Yeah, she stopped by a little
while ago. I loaned her my truck. What's up?"

Stump asks, "Did she say where she was
going?"

Jim replies, "She said something about going
to find the lost cave. She's not in danger is she?"

Stump says, "I don't know, maybe. Thanks
Jim." He turns to leave and finds his path blocked by Zeke and Jeb.
Damn! He doesn't need this right now!

Jim says from behind him, "Now boys, I don't
want any trouble in here." He picks up the baseball bat he keeps
behind the bar for just such an occasion.

Zeke says, "Sure Jim, we just want to say
hello to our buddy here."

Stump says, "I have to go guys. Jim, give
them a beer on me." He starts to push his way past them and Zeke
grabs his arm.

Zeke says, "Now Rance, don't be in such a
hurry."

Stump looks at Zeke's hand on his arm and
says, "Turn loose of my arm, Zeke."

Zeke grins and says, "Maybe you should make
me."

Stump doesn't say a word but slams his fist
into Zeke's jaw knocking him unconscious. Then he grabs Jeb by the
shirt and asks, "Do you want to make trouble Jeb?"

Jeb shakes his head. Stump throws him against
the bar. He says to Jim Bradley, "Sorry Jim, send me a bill." He
turns and walks out of the building. He climbs back in his truck
and heads for the cabin where Jack Dempsey held Sam prisoner. He
knows from what the guys said that Sam believes the lost cave is in
the same area. He is hoping to be able to find some type of trail
to follow once he gets to the cabin. At least she is not in danger
from Zeke and Jeb.

When he pulls up to the cabin he is relieved
to see Jim Bradley's truck. That means Sam is in the area, now he
has to find her.

He tries the old mine shaft first. He is
shocked and frightened when he sees a dark extended cab pickup with
California plates parked just inside the entrance. He draws his
weapon and advances slowly into the dark cave. Damn! He wishes he
had his night vision glasses. The shaft is not very deep and he
determines fairly quickly that Samantha or Terrence Wilbanks are
not inside.

He rushes to check the cabin next. He can see
signs that someone has been inside but they are gone now. He checks
around the clearing and finds what appears to be a fresh trail
headed up the mountain. He stops by the truck and grabs his
backpack and then begins to climb as quickly as he can.

******

Samantha is furious. She should have known
better than to think Rance Kincaid had changed. He always has to
control everything. He is still the bull-headed, male chauvinist
pig she has always despised. Damn him! Why did he have to make her
fall in love with him? Her eyes cloud with tears. Why did he have
to bring up marriage to Barry? Now everyone is going to know she's
pregnant. Damn him! The tears slowly seep from her eyes.

She knows she shouldn't have run away from
the ranch. Terrence Wilbanks is still out here somewhere. No, if
he's smart he is a thousand miles away by now. She'll be all right.
Besides, she couldn't stand the thought of everybody at the ranch
feeling sorry for her again. Looking for the lost cave is just an
excuse for why she left.

She pulls up beside the cabin and sits in the
truck for a few minutes until she gets herself back under control.
Then she climbs down from the truck and glances over at the cabin
but doesn't approach it. She heads toward the back of the cabin
where she and Stump began their climb up the mountain in the rain.
Just as she reaches the edge of the woods, she hears him call to
her.

"Well, well, if it's not the one and only,
Samantha Wells," sneers Terrence Wilbanks.

Samantha's heart stops then begins beating at
a furious pace. Oh God! What is she going to do? She turns and runs
into the woods as quickly as she can. She has a little bit of a
head start but he is going to catch her if she doesn't do something
fast. She hides behind a big tree and pulls her two shot derringer
out of her ankle holster. Thank God she thought to put it on this
morning. Gun in hand, she starts running up the mountain again as
fast as she can. She can hear him gaining on her. She stops, aims,
and fires hitting him in the chest.

He stops when the bullet hits him but then
continues pursuing her. He hollers after her, "That little pea
shooter isn't going to save you bitch. This operation was a gold
mine and you are the reason it fell apart so now you are going to
pay!"

******

Stump's heart is pounding with fear. He found
two sets of prints headed up the mountain. Sam is being followed by
Terrence Wilbanks. He has to get to her before he does. He starts
up the mountain at a quick pace. Then he hears the gun shot. It
sounded like a small caliber weapon but his heart stopped before
resuming at a rapid pounding rhythm. He is running now as fast as
he can toward the sound. Dear God, please keep her safe!

******

Samantha is terrified. The bullet she fired
didn't even slow him down! What is she going to do now? She has to
get away! She keeps running as fast as she can higher and higher.
But then she trips over a fallen tree branch and falls to the
ground. She rolls over and he is right on top of her. She screams
as he places his hands around her throat and squeezes. Oh God,
please help me! She can't breathe. Oh Rance, I love you! The gun is
still in her hand so she puts it next to his temple and pulls the
trigger.

She sees his eyes round in surprise then
pressure on her throat releases and she can breathe again but he
collapses on top of her. She lies on the ground beneath Wilbanks'
heavy weight gulping in air and thanking God she is alive. His big
muscular body is lying on top of her and she tries to push it away
but doesn't have the energy or strength to move the dead weight.
Tears are streaming down her face and she can't see for them. Blood
is running all over her from Terrence Wilbanks' wounds.

Then all of a sudden she is free. Wilbanks'
body is gone. She stares up trying to see through her tears but
everything is blurry. Then she hears his voice.

******

Stump hears her scream and then he hears
another gunshot from the small caliber weapon. His heart is
pounding with fear. He is getting closer. Please God, keep her
safe! Then he sees them. Wilbanks is lying on top of Samantha,
unmoving. He runs to her side as fast as he can. He sees a bullet
wound to Wilbanks' temple and he quickly checks of a pulse. He
doesn't find one so he picks him up and throws him to the side.
Samantha is not moving and she is covered in blood. He sees the
dark bruising around her neck.

"Samantha ... please God," He collapses to
the ground beside her and enfolds her in his arms pulling her
against his chest, tears streaming down his face, sobs wracking his
body. "No, please God, no!" She is covered in blood and he is so
distraught he doesn't realize she is safe.

Samantha is so relieved to be out from under
Wilbanks' huge bulk. She lies on the ground just breathing and
thanking God she is safe. Then Rance picks her up and pulls her
close against his chest sobbing. It takes Samantha a moment to
realize that Rance thinks she is dead. She wraps her arms around
his neck as sobs wrack her body.

When he feels Samantha's arms wrap around his
neck, relief flows through him and he says, "Oh thank you Lord.
Samantha, are you all right Sweetheart? Please tell me you are all
right!"

Samantha is too distraught to speak so she
nods her head. After a few minutes of just holding her close
thanking God for her safety, Stump pulls his cell phone off his
belt and calls Scoot.

"Scoot, Samantha and I need some assistance
please. We are in the woods above the cabin where Dempsey held her
captive. Terrence Wilbanks is dead and his body is here too. Can
you send the authorities? I'll turn on my GPS," requests Stump.

"Sure Stump, what happened?" asks Scoot,
relieved they are both safe.

"Samantha borrowed Jim Bradley's truck and
came up here to find the lost cave. Terrence Wilbanks was hiding in
the cabin and he saw her when she drove up. He was chasing her up
the mountain when I got here. I was following them as fast as I
could. He caught Samantha and was choking her but she was able to
shoot him in the head with her derringer. If she hadn't, I might
not have gotten to her in time." Stump explains, his voice cracking
with emotion at the end of his statement.

"Do you need an ambulance?" Scoot asks.

"No, Sam's not hurt, just frightened and
Wilbanks is dead. We'll be back at the ranch after the FBI finishes
with us." He disconnects then pulls far enough away from Sam to
remove his back pack. He hands her a towel and then takes a wet
wipe and begins cleaning the blood from her face.

After he has cleaned most of the blood away,
he lowers his head and tenderly brushes his lips against hers then
he says, "Samantha, I obviously have neglected to tell you how much
I love you. Please forgive me."

Sam gazes deeply into his eyes, and asks,
"You do? You really love me?"

Smiling, Stump replies, "More than my own
life ... more than I ever dreamed it was possible to love someone.
Please don't ever leave me again. I know that I do stupid things
sometimes. I know that I say things without thinking. I know that I
assume things that I shouldn't but this is all new to me and I have
a lot to learn. I have never had to consider anyone else's feelings
before. Please be patient with me and I promise to do my very best
to be the man you need for me to be."

Samantha whispers, "Oh Rance, I love you
too."

Stump heart swells with love at her words and
he asks, "I know this is not very romantic, but will you marry
me?"

Samantha stiffens and then questions, "Would
you be asking me to marry you if I weren't pregnant?"

Stump takes a deep breath and tamps down his
urge to snap back at her and responds, "Samantha, I want to spend
the rest of my life with you. I want to sleep with you and hold you
in my arms all night, every night. I want make love to you and make
babies with you. I want us to raise our children together right on
Rock Springs Ranch. That doesn't mean we won't have disagreements
because we will. It means that I am committing to you to work
through our differences, to stand beside you through thick and
thin, sickness and health, till death do us part."

Sam looks into his chocolate brown eyes where
she sees his sincerity but asks again, "But would you be asking me
to marry you now if I weren't pregnant?"

Stump reaches into his backpack and pulls out
a small sack. Out of the sack he pulls a ring box which he opens to
display a beautiful diamond solitaire engagement ring and wedding
band. He says, "See this ... I bought it on my way back from
Washington DC. I knew then that I wanted you to marry me. The
receipt is in the sack if you want to look at it. Whether or not I
would have asked you today, or tomorrow, I can't really say. The
important thing is that I was going to ask you to marry me before
you told me you are pregnant."

They can hear the sirens coming up the road
toward the cabin and he asks her again, "Well, Samantha, will you
marry me?"

Smiling now she says, "Yes!" He places the
ring on her finger and kisses her tenderly just as the FBI pulls up
next to the cabin.

Several hours later after cleaning up as best
they can in the little cabin, Samantha and Rance return Jim
Bradley's truck to him at the bar. Stump is relieved to see that
Zeke and Jeb are no longer at Mel's.

When they walk in, Jim's face breaks into a
relieved smile and he says, "Boy I am sure glad to see you two. I
saw all those Feds headed up the mountain and I was worried that
something had happened to you."

Stump says, "Well, something did happen but
we are all right."

Walking to the side of the bar where Sam and
Stump are standing he whistles at the blood all over both of their
clothes. "Wow, it must have been something. You're both covered in
blood."

Samantha says nonchalantly, "Oh, you know how
it is, head wounds bleed really badly."

Jim looks curiously at both of them and asks,
"Whose head wound?"

Stump replies, "Terence Wilbanks, he tried to
choke Sam and she shot him in the head."

Jim looks at Sam's throat and sees the dark
bruises, "Ahhhhh, I guess that means this is truly over then,"
replies Jim.

Stump says, "We certainly hope so. Oh, by the
way, Sam and I are getting married and we'll be sending you an
invitation."

Jim grins and says, "I'm glad to hear that.
You two make a perfect couple." Then he teases, "Do you want me to
bring Zeke and Jeb with me to the wedding?"

Stump shakes his head, "Don't you dare!"

Jim laughs and says, "You might like to know
that you broke his jaw. He wasn't happy but I doubt they are going
to give you any more trouble. I expect them to give you a wide
berth from now on."