Love's Sweet Surrender (34 page)

“Mother and I were coming back from town when these men jumped us.

They tied me to the tree and gagged me. One of them hit her and threw her over his saddle, and then they rode out.” Johnny feverishly worked on the ropes at his feet now that his hands were free.

“Mother?” Jarod asked, looking at his brother.

“Yeah, you know, Lily. We were riding back from seeing Pop, when we were ambushed.”

“You saw Pop?” The color drained from his face.

“Yeah, we saw him at the doctor’s place. Why?”

“I just didn’t think you would want to see him like that.” His knees gave way, and he sank to the ground.

“Like what? He looked fine to me. He was kind of tired and pale, but he talked to me.”

“He talked to you?”

“Yeah, Jarod, what’s going on? What are you doing out here in the middle of nowhere? Why aren’t you at home with Carmen?” Johnny asked rapidly, crouching next to his brother and looking him in the eye.

“I… uh… I have to help Lily. We have to help Lily.”

“I know, Jarod. We have to find her, but I’m not sure where they took her.” The boys headed toward town on foot. They needed to get help, and town was the first place they needed to look.

“I know.”

“You know? What do you mean you know?”

“I’m sorry, Johnny. I helped those men kidnap her,” Jarod cried, looking into his brother’s eyes, which now raged in anger.

“You did what? You helped them? How could you help them after everything Lily has done for us? Look how happy she has made Pop,”

Johnny yelled at his brother. “He loves her, you know.”

“I know that now, Johnny, and I’m sorry. I didn’t want her taking Momma’s place. I told Lily I was sorry before I left to find help,” Jarod whimpered in the face of his brother’s wrath.

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Anger was so bright in Johnny’s eyes that Jarod took a step back, afraid his brother would knock him to the ground.

“We need to get help right now. Come on,” Johnny said, grabbing his brother’s arm in a rough grasp and pulling him along.

They approached the doctor’s house, and Jarod pulled back before he asked, “Where are we going?”

“To see Pop, so we can tell him what’s going on.” He knocked loudly since it was still very early.

The sleepy doctor opened the door a crack, but when he saw the boys, he opened the door wide. “Boys, what can I do for you so early this morning?”

“We need to see Pop. We have to tell him something that’s happened,”

Johnny said, walking inside with Jarod following reluctantly behind him.

Jarod wasn’t quite sure how they were going to tell their father that Lily had been kidnapped and what exactly he would be able to do about it. Jarod followed his brother up the stairs to a door at the end of the hall. When Johnny slowly opened the door, Jarod stood back, shaking, when he saw his father for the first time.

Johnny approached the bed quietly and whispered, “Pop?”

* * * *

Seth groaned as he tried to awaken from the drug-induced sleep.

“Poppa?” He heard Jarod say a little above a whisper. Seth slowly opened his eyes to find his two sons standing next to his bed.

“Johnny? Jarod? What are you two doing here? Where am I? What happened?”

The doctor approached the bed, gently reminding him of what had happened the day before. He reminded him that Lily had been there with him but had to leave for Seth to recuperate.

“Where is she now? Johnny, what’s going on?” Seth asked, struggling to sit up on the side of the bed. He listened closely when Johnny recounted the events of the ambush on the road.

“I’m sorry, Pop. I tried to stop them, but one of them grabbed her. She struggled and almost got away, but the leader caught her and hit her. She Ebook piracy is stealing. It is a federal offense.

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must have been out, because he threw her over his saddle and rode away.

They tied me up, so I couldn’t go for help.”

Seth could tell his son must have been hurt because he didn’t help Lily, but he also knew it wasn’t his fault. “Johnny, it’s not your fault, son. There were probably several men there, I imagine. You couldn’t have done anything. I’m proud of you.” Seth reassuringly put his hand on his son’s shoulder.

“Poppa?”

“Jarod, what are you doing in town? You should be at the house,” he said to his younger son, trying to put the pieces together, but his head was still pounding.

“Poppa, it’s all my fault. I helped them. The men who took Lily, I helped them.”

“Jarod, what do you mean you helped them?”

“I saw Johnny and Lily leave for town yesterday. He told me to tell him if I ever saw her alone. When I saw them leave, I rode over and told him. He swore he wouldn’t hurt her, but then he did.” Seth heard Jarod’s words as they rambled on, and tears streamed down the little boys cheeks.

Struggling to understand what his son was telling him, Seth said, “Who did you tell that Lily was going to town?”

“Mr. Roberts,” Jarod whispered, wincing when he saw the rage flare in his father’s eyes.

“Daniel,” Seth growled as his fists clenched at his sides. “I’ll kill him.”

“I’ll take you to him, Poppa. I have to help save her. It’s my fault she’s there.” Jarod squared his shoulders, fully prepared to take the consequences of his actions.

“Do you know the way?” Seth tried to control the rage he felt.

“Yes. I can show you.”

Seth stood up but had to grip the side of the bed while his head swam.

The doctor interrupted, “You can’t go anywhere, Seth. You’ve been badly wounded.”

“I have to get my wife. I’ll not let him hurt her, and he's not taking her from me, like he did Victoria.” Seth opened his eyes again, now that his head had righted itself, and then he walked a little unsteadily toward the door.

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Not quite sure what he meant by that, the two boys and the doctor stood silently by while Seth made his way out the door of the bedroom and down the stairs. The trio followed close behind, and when Seth reached the front door, he murmured, “I need a horse.”

“I’ll go to the livery, Pop, and get three. I’m going with you. I know how to shoot, so I can help.”

“You can’t do this alone, Seth.”

“What do you propose I do, doc? We don’t have a sheriff anymore,”

Seth said while he waited for his son to return.

“I realize that, but if we tell some of the others in town what’s going on, we can get a posse together and go after them.”

“We don’t have time. He could kill her before we get there if we wait.”

“I know Seth. God I know, but we have to be practical about this. Let me go see the mayor. Wait here until I get back.” The doctor strode off down the boardwalk to the mayor’s office.

After a few minutes Johnny returned with three horses, fully saddled and ready to ride. Seth knew they couldn’t wait for the mayor and doctor to help. When Johnny returned with the horses, he was ready to ride.

“Should we wait?”

“No, we can’t wait. We don’t have time.” Seth struggled to mount, his head throbbing in his ears.

The boys mounted their horses, and they all rode out in the direction Jarod pointed.

They continued in that direction while Jarod told his father about the hideout, where it was, and how many men Daniel had with him. He also reluctantly told him about how he had been warning Daniel concerning Seth’s movements on the trains.

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“We’ll talk about this after we get Lily,” he told Jarod while he struggled to focus. With his head so terribly foggy from the drugs the doctor had given him and from the pounding headache, concentration proved a difficult task.

A short while later, just as the sun climbed high in the sky, they reached the mouth of the canyon where the cabin lay hidden.

Seth groaned when he climbed down from the horse, and the boys followed closely behind. They found a spot where they could tie the horses without them being seen and then crept around boulders and brush, trying to get close to the hideout. He didn’t see much activity around the cabin while he surveyed the layout. He only saw two men, one posted at the cabin door, and Daniel. He had to rein in his feelings as the rage threatened to consume him.

Seth saw Daniel laugh with the man at the door, then walk inside and shut it behind him. He would have to take out the man at the door without making any noise if he was to succeed in getting to Daniel and Lily. He continued to watch the surrounding area, waiting to see if there were more men nearby. Jarod had said there were several men who rode with the gang, and Seth wanted to know where they were, should he be caught trying to rescue Lily.

After a while, he didn’t see any movement from anyone. Even the man at the door had taken a seat and now leaned, apparently sleeping, against the cabin. Seth was concerned about how much time had gone by since Daniel had gone into the cabin, and he sent up a silent prayer that his wife was all right.

“We’ll have to be very quiet, boys. We can’t alert anyone to our presence before we can get to the cabin. You should stay here.”

“No, Poppa. I’m coming with you. I can help. I took a gun from the livery when I was there, see,” Johnny said, holding up a pistol that Seth didn’t recognize.

“You shouldn’t have done that, Johnny.”

“I know, Pop, but we needed the extra gun. Yours was the only one we had against how many?”

“All right, son. You come with me, but Jarod, you stay here, out of sight. All right?” Seth told his youngest boy, and he watched him nod his head in agreement.

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Seth and Johnny slowly approached from the side of the cabin. They needed to reach the man leaning against the wall before he awoke and alerted the others. Seth got within a couple of feet of the man before he stirred, snorted, and then settled back against the wall again. Father and son took a big sigh of relief.

There was a large rock near his feet, so Seth picked it up and slid a little closer to the man. When he was close enough, Seth crashed the rock down heavily on top of the man's and knocked him completely unconscious. The man slumped in the chair but stayed upright. Seth and Johnny silently crept onto the porch of the cabin and stopped, listening at the door for any noise.

* * * *

Lily sat up in the bed trying to get her bearings. She knew there was no one in the cabin with her right now, but Daniel would return. Of that, she had no doubt.

As the sun rose in the sky, telling her it was getting close to noon, she heard boots on the porch and male laughter, and then the door swung open to reveal Daniel.

“Ah, I see you’re awake. Good, I could use some entertainment,” he said with a malicious smile as he started in her direction.

“What is it you want from me?”

“I just want you. You see, Seth has always taken everything away from me: Victoria, you and my sons,” he said, slowly advancing on her. Her eyes widened when she realized what he had said.

“Your sons?” She continued to back away, not wanting him to know she was aware of the boys' parentage.

“Don’t tell me you didn’t know, Lily. It’s very clear that his two boys are mine. Victoria told me herself.” He continued to stalk her around the room.

“I… uh…” she stammered. “I don’t know what to say.”

“There isn’t anything you need to say. Just know that you’ll be mine, one way or the other.” He reached her, grabbed the hands that she’d put up to keep him away and pulled her to him.

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He held onto her while she struggled against him. He wrapped his other hand in her hair to hold her head still as his lips came down on hers, brutally, cutting her lips with his teeth.

* * * *

The door burst open and Seth launched himself at Daniel, knocking all of them to the floor. The two men rolled away from Lily as she struggled to rise. Johnny rushed in to help her. Seth had pulled his pistol, but it lay trapped between the two men as they continued to roll on the floor, each attempting to get the upper hand.

Lily had never been so glad to see Seth before in her life. When the horrifying sound had ripped from his throat and he had lunged at the crazy man holding her captive, she was terrified he would be hurt.

Lily and Johnny moved toward the door, in the event things went terribly wrong. The two men broke apart a moment later, and the gun went flying, wedging itself against the wall. Fists began to fly while each took out his hatred of the other with well-planted fists. Lily knew the wound on Seth’s head had finally gotten the better of him when he landed on the floor, unable to rise. She choked back a strangled cry as she watched Daniel slowly walk to where the gun was and pick it up. He panted with exertion and wiped the blood from his mouth with the back of his hand before he grinned at Seth.

“Now, my friend, I’ll have what you’ve taken from me for years. I’m going to enjoy your pretty new wife just like I enjoyed your last one. I enjoyed her so much, I fathered your two sons. Yes, I know they are mine, the two boys you have thought all this time were yours.” Daniel taunted.

Lily saw the color drain from Johnny’s face when he heard the words.

“You are a bastard, Daniel. I’ve never hated you like I hate you now.

Those boys are mine, no matter whether you fathered them or not,” Seth growled, struggling from the floor.