Chapter Eleven
Chase watched Louisa go and chose to ignore the fact that her helping him went against everything he knew about her. Louisa was selfish and self-serving. It wasn't in her nature to do anything risky just to help someone else. Now wasn't the time to dwell on that.
He had a knife now. He could cut his hands free and once he'd done that he knew he could get Leah away from Boss. Chase Caldwell was not a man who wasted a second chance. This time he would be successful.
"What did she want?" Leah asked once she was close enough to him. Chase tilted his head back.
"To give me this." he said and Leah's eyes widened when she saw the knife in his hand.
"What are you going to do?"
"Cut myself free and then wait."
"For what?"
"Tig is planning something. I don't know what, but something, and I'm going to be ready for it. You are not going to die today, Leah. I can promise you that."
"What can I do?" Leah asked, eager to help. Chase just shook his head.
"Nothing until I tell you. Just go back over there and wait." he replied and Leah nodded before scooting away from him. Chase kept his face blank but inside he was smiling as he began to cut away at the ropes binding his hands.
***
Boss and the group of men who had been helping him finished tossing the last of the bodies into the hole they had dug and then Boss wiped his hands on his pants and turned to look at Chase, Leah and Chance in turn.
"Let's not throw the dirt over those bodies just yet. We're gonna have a couple more." he said with a grin.
"Killing her would be an awful big waste, Boss. I'd like to have her for myself." Yancy spoke up. "I'd keep track of her better than the chief did and I'd share her if ya asked me to real polite like."
"Sure, Yancy. Sure you can have her." Boss stated with a shrug. "I can't think of a better thing for that savage to see before I kill him than his woman in another mans arms."
Leah's heart began to thunder in her ears as Yancy walked to her. He kept his back to Boss and the other men and offered her a smile as he crouched down and brought himself to her level. She spit in his face and tried to move away from him.
"Now, don't be like that." he scolded as he pulled his bandana from his pocket and wiped his face clean. He winked. "Wouldn't you rather be out of those ropes than in 'em? And it'll certainly makes things easier on the chief when he makes his move if'n he ain't gotta worry about cutting you free."
Leah raised her brow and looked at him with surprise which made Yancy chuckle.
"Don't seem so shocked, princess. I might be a low down, no good son of a bitch but Chase has saved my hide a time or two and I pay back a debt. Now you gonna let me untie you?"
"Yes."
"But don't act too happy about it and give me away." he warned.
"I'm not stupid." Leah countered.
"Never thought you were." Yancy untied the ropes binding her and then yanked her to her feet. Leah cried out in pain when it felt as if her side was being ripped apart. She could see an apology in Yancy's gray eyes but his face was hard.
"Quit your damn bitchin. I ain't like that damn injun and I won't tolerate a single bit of lip offa you."
"Don't take her to the tent just yet." Boss spoke up as Yancy headed for his tent. Yancy stopped and turned to look at the other man questioningly. "We want her to get to see what happens to her lover don't we? And her brother? We'll show her what will happen to any man she tries to wrap around her finger to help her escape."
"Let them go!" Leah exclaimed. "They've done nothing!"
"Shut her up." Boss stated and Yancy smacked Leah across the face. The blow hurt but not as bad as it would have if he hadn't cupped his hand. Leah still made an effort to look as if the hit had addled her. She dropped to her knees and cowered in front of Yancy.
"Keep your mouth shut, dammit!" Yancy growled and Leah could tell he meant it. She glanced at Chase and saw the muscles in his bare chest and arms flexing and jumping and she knew he was fighting a barely contained rage and the urge to jump to his feet and end Yancy's life. She wanted to wink at him, offer him some sign that she was okay and Yancy was helping but she knew she couldn't. Not with Boss watching.
"Keep your nasty hands off of my sister!" Chance yelled out. "If you want to hit someone come hit me!" Boss grinned and then closed the distance quickly and Leah screamed when he kicked her brother hard in the face. Chance went down hard in the dirt and as he pushed himself back up with his shoulder, Leah saw him spit blood.
She spared a glance up at Yancy and silently begged he and Tig to do whatever it was they were going to do. If she had to watch her brother be killed it would destroy her! She had already watched one man she cared about be shot and beaten to death. She couldn't watch it happen again!
"Tough man." Chase stated mockingly from where he sat calmly leaned again the post. Boss smiled at him.
"I liked you Chase. I had a lot of hopes for you. I thought maybe as you got older you would become more open to accepting authority."
"You have no authority over me." Chase replied. The sunlight caught his raven black hair and shimmered as he stuck out his bronze chest proudly. Leah was again swept off her feet by how handsome and proud he was. She only hoped he knew what he was doing.
"I'm going to be the man that kills you, Chase. I'd say that gives me authority enough." Boss replied as he walked closer to Chase. Leah wanted to protest when Yancy grabbed her and quickly moved her body behind his own and she probably would have if she hadn't seen the gun, her gun, tucked into the waistband of his pants. He turned his head just a bit and nodded at her.
"No white man can kill me." Chase stated and Boss laughed loudly.
"I killed your mama boy. Raped her good and proper and then put a bullet right between her eyes. Your pa didn't know of course, he just saw me as his good friend who offered him a place among my men when he was at his lowest after the love of his life was brutally murdered.
"I hate that our relationship had to come to this but Petey was like a son to me and I warned you again and again that I didn't put up with murder between my men."
Chase could have pointed out that Petey would have murdered Leah had Chase not intervened but it was clear that Boss didn't care about that. Knowing this mans deceit all these years, his false friendship, was enough to make Chase's blood boil.
Chase just had to get him close enough and he would make sure that the blade of the knife in his hands would end the bastards life for good. He would do it for his mother, his father and for Leah and the innocence the man had stolen from her when he'd killed Benjamin. Chase sneered at Boss and spit toward the mans boots.
"You are nothing. You are nothing to fear."
"Is that right?" Boss asked, his voice lowering as his temper snapped. He stepped close to Chase and crouched down to look him in the eyes.
"Do you know the real reason I hate you?" he whispered. "You are more than I ever was. People fear and respect you without a word from you. You demand attention without asking for it. My men look at you when they should look at me. This will teach them. I will rape your bitch just the same as I did your mother and I'll have her screaming my name before I'm done." Chase let out a roar of rage and several things happened at once.
Feminine screams filled the air as the tent the whores shared burst into flames and quickly became engulfed, thundering hooves tore through the camp, causing men to scatter as every horse that had been corralled stampeded over tents and chairs followed by Tig who was hooting and hollering from atop of his own horse and the third and final thing that happened was Chase revealed his own deceit and swung his hand forward, sinking his knife deeply into Boss's throat.
"As I said, you are nothing to fear." Chase growled as Boss's eyes widened. Chase jerked the knife sideways and Boss's blood spilled from his severed throat.
Chase quickly cut the ropes from his ankles and searched the chaotic camp for Leah. Whores and men were running all directions, fighting desperately to calm the horses and put out the fire that was quickly spreading to the other tents.
Gunshots rang out and Chase realized that a couple of Boss's right hand men had realized what Chase had done and were now shooting at him. He quickly crawled across the ground, using the running men and horses as cover and cut the binds holding Chance.
"Where is your sister?" he demanded and Chance pointed toward the woods.
"That man ran off with her that way." he replied. Chase hissed in pain when a bullet grazed his arm. He saw a gun lying next to Boss's body and quickly backtracked and picked up the revolver. He saw the men who were shooting at him and without hesitation he fired two shots, ending their assault. The other men were far too busy dealing with the chaos that Chase assumed Tig had caused. Though he had no idea how Tig had managed to start both the fire and the stampede.
"Find a gun and come on." Chase instructed Chance and then he hurried off into the forest, slipping away unnoticed.
***
"Let me go!" Leah exclaimed as Yancy led her further and further into the forest.
"Nope, I gotta get you away from all of that." he replied yanking her along. Leah thought about using the gun in her free hand to shoot him with but figured that wouldn't be the proper thing to do to a man who was trying to help you.
"I have to go back for Chase and my brother!" she exclaimed, wincing when her side bumped up against the rough bark of a tree.
"Chase can take care of himself and your brother'll be fine if he sticks close to him." Yancy promised. "Tig said he'd have some horses and supplies stashed away and we gotta get to them."
Leah knew Yancy was right and yet a part of her was still scared to death that either her brother or Chase wouldn't make it out of camp. She needed to see their faces to know they were okay. And Boss's confession? Chase must be devastated.
"Come on, woman, stop walking so slow!" Yancy scolded.
"I'm sorry that my gunshot wound is holding you up." she snapped and Yancy slowed down immediately.
"I forgot." he replied sheepishly. He wrapped his arm around her gently and then froze when a bronze skinned arm was suddenly wrapped around his neck and a bloodstained knife was pressed against his bobbing throat.
"Unhand her now."
"Chase!" Leah exclaimed, relief flooding over her.
"Don't kill me chief. I was working with Tig to keep you and the squaw safe."
"He really was! Don't kill him!" Leah added. The knife was pulled away and Chase shoved Yancy out of his way and took Leah into his arms. She noticed that he held her tightly yet was careful not to put any pressure on her wound.
"Where is Chance?" she asked softly after both of them had breathed the other in and reassured themselves they were okay.
"I'm here." Chance replied, looking sheepish as he stood off to the side. Leah released her hold on Chase and went to her brother. She wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him tight.
"Thank God you're okay." she said as she kissed the welted cheek that Boss's boot had fallen against.
"Chase, I need you to hit me real good and hard, make it look believable. I don't need nobody accusing me of helping cause all of that." Yancy stated and Chase raised a brow before swinging his fist and catching Yancy hard in the jaw. The man stumbled backward several steps and then smiled with his split lip.
"That should do it." he said. "The horses are somewhere up through there. Tig tied 'em up. Good luck, Chase. You found you a good woman there. You should make an honest one out of her."
"He's going to." Leah assured Yancy as she moved back into Chase's arms. Chase kissed her hair, no longer worried about hiding his affection. Leah noticed Chance nearly speak but then he frowned and turned his head away. She assumed he was still upset because Chase was an Indian but she was happy that he had made the choice to keep his opinion to himself.
"Well gotta go folks." Yancy said with a tip of his head.
"Tell Tig I said thank you." Leah called out as he walked away and he threw his hand up in acknowledgement.
"Louisa had a hand in it too." he replied. "Seems she wanted to make sure Chase wouldn't kill her for sending you to that river and she set the fire to the tent to help create more of a distraction."
"Louisa sent you to Petey?" Chase asked as temper flashed in his black eyes. Leah put her hand on his tense jaw and smiled.
"It doesn't matter anymore. Let's just get out of here." Chase nodded and began to lead her and Chance away through the woods. Instantly he noticed Leah wincing as she moved and he wasted no time in lifting her into his arms, cradling her against his chest.
"You're going to hurt yourself! I'm too heavy!" Leah exclaimed and Chase simply shook his head and continued to carry her.
Chance heard his sister sigh with contentment as she wrapped her arms around Chase's neck. Chance knew he should tell her about Benjamin. Tell her that she couldn't be engaged to Chase because her first fiance was still very much alive and very much in love with her.
He should tell her that Benjamin would need her and mother and father were finally ready to accept her marriage to the man. They would NEVER accept Chase. Not in a million years and surely Leah knew that. These were all things that Chance knew he should tell Leah but his sister had been through a lot and she looked so damn.... Happy. She looked happy in Chase's arms.
Chance had never seen her eyes look that way at Benjamin. She had been a child when she had run away with him and now only a few short weeks later, Leah was a woman and she was Chase's woman. Chance knew that the danger was over but the worst was yet to come. He should warn his sister and Chase but he wasn't going to. He just couldn't bring himself to do it.