Authors: Lorraine Nelson
A Cowgirl's Pride (20 page)
“I’ll take you,” said Leah.
“Not with
“It’s best to call an ambulance anyway,” said
without your feet ever touching the ground.”
Leah tried the phone again. “The lines are still
down, or we would’ve called one already.”
“Oh, okay. Thanks for the help, Trent.”
“Glad I was brought here, even though it was at
gunpoint.”
They shared a laugh, and
broth until the cough subsided. “Guess I picked up a cold along with the
frostbite.”
“That’s not unusual. As long as it doesn’t
settle in your chest, you’ll be fine,”
An awkward silence followed in which
closed in on them again.
dinner. Holler if you need anything.”
“Will do.”
him. She hesitated then sat, keeping her distance, her hands folded primly in
her lap.
“Can you forgive me for the vile things I said
this afternoon?”
“There’s nothing to forgive. You spoke the
truth.”
“The truth? What do you mean?”
“I hadn’t leveled with you; hadn’t told you the
truth because I didn’t want to lose you. I’m going to tell you now. Some of
this you may already know, but, please, just listen. Okay?”
He nodded.
“My relationship with Roddy was great at first.
After he saw me dance, he took an interest in me, personally. He was attentive
and very charming. We went to the opera, the ballet, dinners, and
dancing—everything I’d always dreamed of. When he found out how his talent
scout had coerced me into signing the contract, he fired him but refused to
cancel it. I was bringing in hordes of new customers; he needed a dancer, so I
danced. Eventually, I moved in with him.”
“That doesn’t make you a whore,” he said, and saw
her flinch.
She continued. “One night when I was dancing his
best friend tucked a tip in my thong. He’d touched me. Roddy saw it, and he
murdered Alex that same night…made me watch as his wolfhounds ripped him
apart.”
“What?”
She touched a finger to his lips, effectively
silencing him. “After that, he said I was soiled goods. He began arranging
little dinner parties among his high-classed friends, male and female alike. I
provided the entertainment. He made me dance, lap dance, for each person in
turn. He took bids. The highest bidder purchased my services for the remainder
of the night. He pimped me out,
In effect, I
was
his whore.”
“I don’t see why you stayed and put up with that
bullshit to begin with,” he said, his hands fisted so hard, they hurt.
“I stayed because dancing and screwing were
preferable to dying.”
“He threatened you?”
“Yes, and what’s more, I’d seen firsthand how he
disposed of people he was displeased with. I was terrified.”
“Why didn’t you go to the police?”
“He appointed me a bodyguard. I couldn’t move
without him dogging my heels.”
“So, how did you get away?”
“Another dancer at the club helped me. Roddy
must have found out, because she’s dead, too. Her sister found her a couple of
days ago.”
murderer all that time and said nothing?”
She nodded.
“Because you were scared?”
“Yes.”
“And your child? Do you know who the father is?”
She lifted her head then and looked him in the
eyes. “Yes, for whatever reason, Roddy stopped the private parties a few months
ago and became attentive again.”
“Why in God’s name weren’t you on birth
control?”
“I was. I’d been on them since I was sixteen.”
She shrugged her shoulders. “They stopped working.”
“What made you finally decide to leave? The
baby?”
“Yes. I didn’t want my child to grow up with a
murderer.”
“Well, if you could leave now, you could’ve left
sooner.”
“No, I couldn’t. I had to finish my contract.”
“Contract be damned! There are lawyers for that.
No law in this land would’ve gone against you.”
“Maybe not here, but out there, it was
different. He had cops, lawyers, and judges in his pocket. I didn’t know who to
trust, where to go, but then I found out I was pregnant and knew I had to take
a chance.”
“Well, bully for you. At least you had some
decency left.”
She rose to her feet. “Now you see why it’s
impossible for us to have a future together.”
“Leah?”
She turned to leave, paused for a brief moment
then continued on.
“Leah, come back.”
She ignored him and just kept walking.
He sat and watched her walk away, saw the
dejected slump to her shoulders as she climbed the stairs, and he couldn’t do a
damned thing about it. For the first time since waking up, he wished he’d died
in that snow bank. Anything was preferable to the empty, aching hole where his
heart should’ve been.
****
There! She’d done it…effectively turned
find himself another filly. He definitely wouldn’t want her after she’d
revealed the whole sordid story. The truth of that was in his reaction. She sat
at the dressing table and began the evening ritual of brushing her hair one
hundred strokes. It always served to calm her frayed nerves so she could sleep.
She hoped it worked tonight.
By the time she reached twenty-five, her eyes
filled with tears. At fifty, they were running, unchecked down her face. She
hadn’t reached eighty when her hand shook so bad she set the brush down. If
only she had stayed on the ranch all those years ago.
She swiped a hand across her eyes and placed it
on her belly. At least something good came of all the loneliness, heartbreak,
and fear. Her baby deserved to grow up here on Thunder Creek—to know its
heritage. He, or she, would thrive with the love she had to give.
First thing tomorrow, she needed to speak with
her father about building a house near the waterfall. Maybe a log cabin like
her uncle’s. No, that might not be such a great idea. It would remind her too
much of the time she’d spent there with Cal. Was it only this afternoon? It
seemed like a lifetime ago.
She stood and turned out the overhead light,
undressing in the dark on her way to bed, letting her clothes fall where they
would. Today had been too long. She craved the mindlessness of sleep and as she
slipped between the sheets, she prayed it would come.
It didn’t. She lay there, tossing and turning,
reliving the afternoon in
strong embrace. Feeling the love then hearing again the condemnation in his
voice. He was right. She should’ve found a way to return sooner. Desperate for
the well-being of her child, she’d finally escaped, but at what cost?
Roddy would stop at nothing to silence her. He’d
already proven that.
Suddenly her eyes snapped open. Michael! Had he
heard anything else? Maybe it was all over. She threw back the covers and
started to get up when she remembered the phones were out. He wouldn’t have
heard anything tonight, for sure. Her hopes died a swift death.
Fully awake again, she turned on the bedside
lamp, tugged on her robe, belted it snugly, stuck her feet in the matching
slippers, and went down the back stairs to the kitchen, hoping to avoid any
further conversations with
“Hi, Leah. I thought you’d gone to bed,” said
Zakia as she filled a plate with sandwiches and another of sweets.
“I did, but I’m hungry, so I came down to raid
the cookie jar.”
“I have tea set out in the living room. Want to
join us?”
“No thanks, just a quiet binge session and back
to bed for me. It’s been a hell of a day.”
“Don’t I know it. Poor
that we won’t allow him on his feet. Men! They hate to sit still.”
“Have the phones come back on?”
“No, they’re still out. The power flickered a
few times, but it’s stayed on so far. Thank goodness.”
“So,
“Yes, he’ll be here until we can call for an
ambulance. As soon as we finish our tea, I’ll make him a bed on the sofa.
Michael and Trent are going to take turns on guard duty tonight, so if
they’ll help him.”
“
lucky someone was at hand who knew how to treat frostbite.”
Zakia nodded. “
here.”
Leah giggled. “It’s a good thing he has a sense
of humor, too, after
the cookie jar and took it to the table with her, sitting down to her snack as
Zakia left to feed the masses. She certainly had a houseful. Including herself,
Zakia and Luke had six extra people to house and feed. She smiled ruefully and
shook her head. They seemed to take it all in stride. How did they do it?
“What has you shaking your head at this time of
the day?” asked
She smiled up at him. “Thinking of all the extra
houseguests. It doesn’t seem to bother Luke and Zakia at all, but it would
drive me nuts.”
“I hear ya,” he said, crossing the room to take a
seat at the table. “It can’t be easy. Where will they put everybody?”
“Dad, Winnie, and I have the two spare bedrooms.
stay in the living room. Michael chose to bunk down in the office. Luke put a
cot in there for him, so I suppose you’ll be taking turns with Michael or
sleeping on the single bed in the nursery.”
“As long as I can stretch out somewhere and catch
a few winks, I’m good to go. I offered to help guard, so Michael gave me the
second shift starting at two in the morning.”
“That doesn’t allow much time for sleep.”
“I’ve never needed much, but I can always crash
tomorrow if I need to.”
“True.” Leah filched a cookie and took a bite.
“Everyone thought you’d gone to bed.” he said.
“I did.” She held up the molasses cookie in
explanation then bit into it. “The baby got hungry.”
“Couldn’t sleep?”
“No, too much happening around here.”
“Are you worried about your friend?” he asked.
“I was, but he’s doing okay. Isn’t he?”
“Yes, but I’m worried about the frostbite on his
hands and feet.”
“His hands, too?”
He nodded. “Not as bad as his feet, but he’ll
need to be careful. I saw him cradling his mug in both hands to hold it steady,
and I checked them. They were pretty stiff and dry.”
“Poor
He must hate being immobile.”
“He’s not in the best frame of mind, for sure.”
She stood and crossed to the sink, rinsing her
glass before loading it in the dishwasher. “I’m going to hit the sack. Check
with Zakia about sleeping arrangements.”
“I will, thanks. Good night, Leah.”
“Nite, Trent.”
Leah felt his gaze on her retreating figure as
she headed for the back stairs. It was difficult going back to bed when her
heart insisted she check on
She hated being such a coward, but she’d endured all she could. Tomorrow was
another day. Would he still be here, or would they be able to call for an
ambulance during the night? Part of her, the aching part, hoped she’d be able
to see him in the morning. The other part, determined to back off and let go,
felt it best to avoid him. Besides, it would hurt too much to see the disgust
in his eyes when he looked her way.
She kicked off her slippers, threw her robe down
on the foot of the bed, and crawled beneath the covers, pulling them up to her
chin. This time, she counted sheep and was soon reliving the afternoon in her
dreams.
****
He’d always been a light sleeper, waking up at every strange noise. Maybe it
was because he was in a different bed. His head throbbed. So did his feet. He
sat and listened and, not hearing anything, lay back down. That’s when he heard
it—a scraping sound, coming from the basement.
