Pale Moon Stalker (The Nymph Trilogy) (37 page)

"And now you're going to let your wogs kill me." Phillip finally spoke in a detached voice.

"I should allow my friends the pleasure for that filthy remark..." She shrugged.

"What do you intend?" Phillip snarled, now all pretense of civility stripped away.

"I am going to give you some options. None are particularly good, but they are what I will allow." Each word was precisely clipped off. "I propose that you and I have a duel right now. If you kill me, you can run for your life. I've instructed Jai and Javeen to let you go and wait until dawn before they begin to track you. They will take Lord and Lady Ruxton's horses and weapons and leave them three miles away when they depart."

"Then I'll have your hellhounds and the Limey both trailing me," Phillip said tightly. "Not much of a choice."

"No, it is not. But if the fabled Limey finds you first, he'll just shoot you. If Jai and Javeen do…I have instructed them to kill you...slowly." She peered into the darkness, as if giving a signal.

Sky shuddered when both Gurkhas reappeared and nodded stoically, replying in unison, "Yes, Lady."

"What if I do not choose to duel with you?" he asked warily, knowing the answer.

"Why then, Jai and Javeen will begin right now. You have just had a demonstration of their skill with the khukuri." She smiled. "It is time to make a decision, Phillip."

"A duel it is, Ronnie," he said, attempting a boldness he did not feel.

"Most wise, Phillip. You may draw your weapon whenever you wish. I will not attempt to aim my weapon until yours is out of the holster." She lowered her Webley and held the heavy piece loosely at her side.

The only sound in the camp was the crackling of the wood on the fire, which had caught quite well. The duelists faced each other, motionless as carved idols. Phillip radiated hatred and fear. Ronnie appeared icy calm and strangely assured.

With blurring speed Stanhope pulled the Enfield from its holster and almost had it leveled when the .455-caliber slug from Ronnie's revolver hurled him backward into darkness—both temporal and eternal. She put the revolver to her lips and blew the smoke from the barrel, then slipped it into the military-style holster on her left hip, snapping the flap closed. Without instruction, the two little men dragged the dead man into the brush where they had deposited his Shawnee trackers. After they did so, the small woman seemed to sag slightly.

"Javeen, would you please retrieve our mounts and pack animal? Jai, please make some coffee. I believe an explanation is owed Lord and Lady Ruxton, considering that I have made them my stalking horse to flush out Phillip."

As the two Gurkhas went about their business, Max rose from his bedroll and pulled the saddle he'd been using as a pillow closer to the fire. "Please, Lady Ronnie, sit down," he offered.

"We owe you our lives," Sky said as she moved closer to the diminutive blonde woman.

"You are both most kind. Thank you for your understanding, Lady Ruxton."

"Please call me Sky."

"And you must call me Ronnie," she said to both of them with a weary smile.

"You look familiar, but I can't place where or when I've met you. I thought I knew most of Edmund's friends," Max said.

"You look like brother and sister," Sky blurted out, then sat back embarrassed.

"Well, my dear Sky, we almost were." She turned to Max. "If Edmund had lived to marry me, I would have been your sister-in-law," she said with a pained look in her eyes. Then it vanished as she continued. "I am Andromeda Beaumont. My mother chose my given name but Papa detested it almost as much as I and shortened it to Ronnie. By the by, he is the Marquess of Cargrave."

"Yes, I remember now. Falconridge, one of your family estates, marches with Ruxton land," Max said. "Your mother, Cassiopeia Beaumont, was a dear friend of my aunt Lodicia."

"'Twas my mother who bestowed the blonde hair along with the traditional wretched naming of daughters after constellations." When Ronnie smiled, she looked like a beautiful elf. "The last time I saw you, Maxwell, you were a boy home from Eton, all arms and legs. Now, you look so much like Edmund...or as he would have looked, had he grown to be a man." Her expression turned melancholy once more as she stared into the flames.

To distract her from such sad thoughts, Sky asked, "How long did you remain in India with your aunt's family? It must have been a grand adventure."

Ronnie smiled once again. "Oh, it was that, indeed! My uncle Anthony was commandant of an outpost beneath the shadows of the Himalaya Mountains to the far north, bordering Nepal. Jai and Javeen scouted for his regiment. When I kept slipping away to ride and hunt in the dangerous countryside—a fit of rebellion for being shipped so far from home—my uncle assigned them to be my protectors. They have taught me much and we have become friends, traveling across India, Africa, indeed around the world. I have seen things few Englishwomen could ever imagine. One could say mine has been...a colorful life." She paused, considering whether or not she should volunteer more.

"But all the while, you were preparing to exact vengeance for Edmund," Sky said quietly.
What strange tricks the Powers can play
, she mused, feeling Max's gaze on her and knowing that he understood what the two women shared.

"Yes, my favorite aunt back in England kept me apprised of Phillip's life while I was abroad. When I was of age and came into an independent living, I hired an agent to watch your family, Maxwell. Phillip had said that day when Edmund thrashed him that he would 'have it all eventually'..."

"And you knew that he wouldn't stop after killing my brother. Cletus and I would have to die as well for him to inherit," Max said.

She nodded. "I must confess I followed your career with more than mild interest, from the Victoria Cross in Africa to becoming the Limey in America. But when I was informed that your uncle had died and you were heir, I knew it was time for me to take action. Once you reached London, my agents found out you had married. Then the possibility of an heir made it even more imperative that I stop Phillip before he not only had you murdered, but your wife as well."

"He certainly tried. Numerous times. We are greatly in your debt, Ronnie," Sky said.

Ronnie scoffed. "Scarcely anything to thank me for, considering I was using you as bait. But Phillip kept employing incompetents until those two shootists in the Nations. He did not come after you himself. But I deducted that if I foiled him enough times, I would force him to deal with the problem personally."

"You were right. And you dealt with him amazingly well. I would hate to go up against you, Ronnie," Max said, shaking his head.

Sky could not resist adding, "I would place my bet on Ronnie."

For the first time, they heard the Englishwoman laugh. It was a rich, musical sound, deep and hearty, matching her voice, belying her diminutive stature. "Considering everything, I think that unlikely, Sky."

Max shook his head. "All these years, I've clung to the notion Cletus had allowed Edmund to drown or deliberately killed him. Incredible."

"It is over now," Ronnie said with finality. "The two of you have your whole lives together ahead of you. Think of the future and be cheered." If she noted the uneasy exchange between husband and wife, she did not acknowledge it, but rather yawned daintily and said, "Would it be a great imposition for us to pitch a camp nearby so we can get some rest?" Then she looked at the bloodstains darkening the ground and added, "It might be best if you became my guests. Jai and Javeen can have everything prepared shortly, away from...this."

Sky nodded, remembering the ghastly executions of the Shawnee. "Yes, that would be very kind of you."

Max had a great deal to say to his wife, but it would have to wait until they were alone. He assisted the Gurkhas, picking up bedrolls and leading horses several hundred yards away. Sky and Ronnie efficiently packed their coffeepot, tinware and food supplies.

When Sky reached the brightly burning fire, she could see that her bedroll had been laid out beside Max's. Without protest, she lay down and fell instantly asleep, spooned against her husband.

* * * *

The next morning, they awakened to find the camp deserted. But a note lay beside their bed, weighted down with a small rock.

"Damn bloody Gurkhas move like ghosts," he muttered, picking up the missive.

"So does Lady Ronnie, apparently," Sky said, wiping sleep from her eyes. "What does it say?"

He read aloud, "My dear Maxwell and Sky. Please forgive our unannounced departure, but I so detest goodbyes. My companions and I have never seen your magnificent Southwest. I do believe such an environment would suit Jai and Javeen. Also me since I am certain life in England would prove far too confining. Wish us Godspeed as we do you. Your friend, R." Then he looked up, saying, "There's a postscript asking that I not send Phillip home to be buried in the Stanhope family plot. I would never contaminate hallowed ground by doing that. Let the buzzards and coyotes feed on him."

Sky nodded, understanding. "I'll rekindle the fire and make coffee. We should reach Pueblo in two more days if we ride hard."

When she arose and began picking up kindling, he walked over and placed one hand on her arm. "First, we must reach an understanding, Sky. I suspect Ronnie left us alone because she could sense we required privacy."

She tossed the kindling into the fire pit and looked up at him, afraid of what he was going to say.
Are you afraid he'll say he loves you...or that he doesn't need you any longer now that Cletus is dead?
"What understanding, Max?" she managed to get out.

Max knew he was treading on very thin ice. He dropped his hand from her arm and walked away, combing his fingers through his hair, pacing restlessly as he gathered his thoughts.
Say precisely the correct thing, old boy, or she'll walk away...

Sky watched him and icicles began to form around her heart. Now he was probably worried that she might be carrying his child when he no longer needed a wife. He was too honorable a man to simply leave her behind. No, not Maxwell Stanhope. He'd stand by her. But she could not bear that. Her courses were not due to begin for another two weeks. She would not be able to set his mind at ease until then.

Moistening her dry lips, she said quietly, "You need say nothing now, Max. I understand that you don't require a wi—"

He spun around and scowled at her fiercely, stopping her. "Bloody hell, Sky, I'm trying to think of the right words and you break in to tell me what I do and don't 'require'!" He let loose a volley of curses and stalked over to her until they stood with only inches between them, glaring at each other, wide blue eyes and hard green ones revealing the same desperation.

"You're too dutiful to leave me, I know, but if—"

"Will you stop interrupting me, woman! Have the common decency to allow me to tell you that I love you and I won't give you up." His fists were balled at his sides and he towered over her.

Sky refused to back away. She sighed and placed one hand on his arm, startled to find he was trembling. "You do need me...at least for now. Save for True Dreamer's herbal sleeping potion, I am the only one who can hold your nightmares at. bay"

"That is an insult," he snapped. "First you accused me of wanting you as my wife only to thwart Cletus. Well, bloody hell, the bastard's dead! I don't need you for that—and I don't want you as a damnable sleeping potion either. I—"

"You want to take care of me because I may be pregnant," she blurted out.

Now he was so angry his eyes glittered like green glass, just as they had that first day they met in Bismarck. "At least you have a high enough opinion of me not to think I'd leave you alone to fend for yourself and our child. I suppose I should be honored," he sneered. This was not going any better than he had feared it would. In fact, it was going far worse.

"We'll know in about two weeks whether or not we must test your honor, m'lord," she said coldly. "In the meanwhile, let's try to be civil on the arduous trip to Denver while we return the horses to the Lorings and retrieve our possessions."

Max sighed and nodded. There was nothing left to say...at least until he knew whether or not fatherhood was impending. Damn that old Cheyenne and his meddling! He had not even considered that his wife would think carrying his child was yet another reason to believe he did not truly love her. But once they knew for certain, either way, he would keep Sky Eyes of the Ehanktonwon as his wife!

They fell back into the routine they had established when they left Fort Worth, quiet civility, shared camp chores, sleeping separately. Although they had no reason to fear an ambush now that Phillip was dead, Max remained cautious. When Sky caught him studying the horizon of the looming Sangre de Cristo Mountains with a spyglass, he explained.

"McKerrish has a far reach in Colorado. I doubt he'll find us before we leave the state, but it's best to be watchful."

"I thought you wired Steve Loring to investigate McKerrish," she replied, scraping dried beans from a plate as she cleaned the last of their breakfast utensils.

"I did. As far as he's been able to find out, the old man's holed up on his ranch southeast of Denver. Nursing an infection of the gums. No sign that he's plotting any retaliation."

"I hope his whole mouth rots," she said, clapping two tin plates together and stuffing them in the cook bag on the packhorse.