Yellowstone Heart Song Page 16

  “I will follow their trail for a day and make sure they leave the area,” he said gruffly. He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. He studied her face for a moment. “I will not let any harm come to you,” he added as if to himself.

  “I know that, Daniel.”

  Aimee put her hand on his upper arm. It was an innocent gesture, but it hit him like a jolt of lightning, even through the fabric of his shirt, and his body reacted instantly. He swallowed hard and cleared his throat. Right now, his emotions were spiraling out of control.

  “Aw, hell!” In one fluid movement he pulled her to him, one hand at the back of her head, his other arm coiled around her waist. He tilted her head and claimed her mouth with the hunger born of weeks of pent-up desire for this woman.

  He didn’t know how long he kept this tight hold on her, kissing her like a starved man who’d finally been given a morsel of food. Her squirming and the pleading noises that came from her throat finally brought him back to his senses. Dear God! What was he doing! Had he completely lost his mind? Apparently so, where this woman was concerned. He was doing exactly what he wanted to protect her from. He hadn’t even been aware of Aimee struggling, trying to get him to stop, his blinding need overruled everything else. She was so small, she didn’t stand a chance against him. How easy it would be to just take her. The realization scared the hell out of him. Abruptly, he broke away from her. Disgusted with himself, he released a string of curses and quickly headed into the trees behind the cabin.

  *****

  Aimee gasped as she tried to get her breathing and racing heart under control. She wanted to call him back, to run after him, but her mouth and her legs wouldn’t obey. She just stood there, stunned by what had happened. She definitely hadn’t been prepared for his unexpected onslaught, and had just stood there stiffly, crushed against his hard body. The primal assault on her mouth had ignited a fire in her veins and her body began to melt.

  Aimee fervently wished this wasn’t simply Daniel trying to make a point. She realized he was trying to intimidate her, make her see that she was no match for a man’s assault. But God help her, the desire that had built in her as he slashed his lips across hers was more powerful than an impending eruption of Old Faithful.

  She’d wanted desperately to wrap her arms around him and respond to his kiss. Her arms had been trapped, however, against his chest, and the more she tried to squirm to free them, the tighter his hold on her had become. She had yearned for his touch for weeks. Her body was still liquid fire, but this was not how she had envisioned being kissed by him.

  She should be appalled at what he had done, her common sense told her. This was not a lover’s kiss, yet it hadn’t exactly been brutal, either. Her lips tingled from the assault. It left her wondering what could have been a kiss of passion. Her body was still a molten mass of goo at the sensations he evoked.

  As her breathing returned to normal, realization hit her that he had successfully made his point. She was completely helpless if a man would try to have his way with her here. No, she argued in her mind. Not any man, just this man.

  *****

  Daniel followed the Frenchmen’s tracks for part of the next day until he was satisfied that they were heading in the direction they had said. Disgusted with his own behavior, he had stayed away from his cabin the day before until he was sure Aimee had gone to bed. He had no words to tell her he was sorry for what he had done.

  He must have scared the hell out of her this time. Heck, he had scared the hell out of himself. Truthfully, he didn’t regret that he had kissed her, just the way in which he went about it. And that kiss only left him starving for more. The realization that he could lose control so easily around her renewed his conviction that he had to get her out of these mountains. He would kill any man who dared try to hurt her, and she was not safe from men like those French trappers. And apparently she wasn’t safe from him, either.

  He returned to the cabin in a foul mood late in the day. Aimee sat on a log in the yard in front of the cabin, writing in her journal, something he’d seen her do almost daily. She looked up and gave him a hesitant smile as he approached. As always, seeing her smile at him set his heart on fire.

  “Everything alright?” Aimee asked tentatively.

  “Fine,” he said. He strode over to the woodpile, and started chopping wood with a vengeance, completely ignoring her.

  “Did I do something wrong?” Aimee walked up to him.

  Daniel lowered his hatchet, and looked at her.

  “You can’t stay here any longer,” he said roughly. “It’s not safe for you here.”

  “What the hell happened now?” Aimee asked in exasperation. “Is it because of those two trappers from yesterday?” She paused. “Or the point you tried to make after they left? I got the message, so don’t worry. I’m a helpless woman at the mercy of every man in the wilderness.”

  He clenched his jaw and cursed silently. His hand gripped the axe handle until his knuckles turned white.

  “If you want to send me away, fine.” Aimee threw her hands in the air. “But I don’t have anywhere to go. I wish you’d stop telling me what’s best for me. I can make my own decisions, damn it!”

  “I will leave my father a message, and take you to St. Louis. I should have done this when I first found you.” He ignored her tirade. “We can prepare to leave in a couple of days.”

  “I don’t want to go to St. Louis,” Aimee argued.

  “You belong in the city,” Daniel growled angrily. “I’m growing weary of having to look out for your safety. You have kept me from getting my work done. I have to prepare for winter, and with you here, I can’t get anything done.” He stared at her coldly. The shocked look on her face, the pain in her eyes, almost crumbled his resolve.

  “Well in that case, don’t let me keep you from your work any longer,” Aimee yelled.

  She wheeled around and stormed into the cabin, slamming the door. Daniel stared after her, telling himself it was best that she be angry with him. Tomorrow he would go hunting so they had meat for traveling. To hell with what she said. He had made up his mind. He was taking her back to the city, even if he had to tie her up and carry her all the way there.

  *****

  Daniel had misjudged the Frenchmen. Françoise had noticed Daniel’s evasiveness and tension regarding his wife, and he wondered at the reason. The Crow warrior who had told him about Daniel’s wife had mentioned her beauty and unusual light hair coloring. Just the description the warrior had given him set his loins afire. His sexual need had gotten so great he gave the warrior two beaver pelts to find him a woman to relieve his need. But it hadn’t been enough. He wanted to see this white woman for himself, and perhaps he could steal her away from Daniel. The more he thought about it, the more he realized that Daniel was keeping her hidden for good reason.

  A slow smile spread across his lips. Oui, that was it. Daniel knew exactly that he needed to hide his woman away from leering eyes.

  “Pierre,” Françoise turned in the saddle to face his companion, “I think we should be more neighborly and introduce ourselves to Daniel’s new bride.”

  “What are you saying?” the other man asked.

  “If there is a white woman in these hills, I would wish to meet her,” he gave his companion a meaningful look. “When is the last time you had a white woman, my friend?”

  “Two months ago in St Louis,” Pierre frowned. “But if there is one available close by….” He grinned malevolently at his partner, and spit out some tobacco juice.

  “I grow tired of dark-haired, dark-skinned Indian girls. Even the whores in St. Louis were dark-haired.”

  “Let us ride east from here and circle back. We can be back to Daniel’s cabin by nightfall. We will watch, and if he leaves in the morning, we can make our introductions.” He sniggered.

  “What if he doesn’t leave her by herself?” Pierre asked.

  “Then we may have to kill our young friend,” Françoise sneered. “But I w
ould much rather have the opportunity to steal his woman away. I have always liked Daniel and his father. It would be a shame to have to kill him.”

  “What are we going to do when we have her?” Pierre asked eagerly.

  “We will ride hard for a day and put distance between us and the cabin. No doubt he will try and search for her, but we will cover our tracks.” Françoise ground his groin against his saddle in anticipation. “My friend, in a few days’ time, we won’t need to seek out the Absaroka women anymore.”

  *****

  Tears of frustration flowed unabashed down Aimee’s face as she sat on her bed. Why did I have to fall in love with him? Why did everything have to be so complicated? She had no doubt in her mind that, had she met someone like Daniel in her own time, she would have let him know how interested she was. Here, in this time, she couldn’t do it. It would be hard enough to leave when the time came.

  Let go of your stupid fantasies, she chided. He’s proven over and over again that he doesn’t want you here. If he removed her from this valley, how would Zach find her? She had to stay right here or else she wouldn’t be going home.

  Daniel again didn’t come in for their customary evening supper together, and she didn’t bother looking for him. She went to bed still angry. The next morning, he was already gone when she woke, and the sun had barely come up yet. He had left her usual cup of coffee on the table.

  Out of spite, she decided to go for a swim, even in the chill of early morning. She had followed Daniel’s advice and not gone in the river again when she was alone, only washing off at the banks. The water levels had gone down again just as quickly as they had risen the last few weeks, and the waters were once more flowing calmly. Out of sheer rebellion, she grabbed a blanket, and her soap and shampoo, and headed across the meadow. To hell with him. I dumped one guy because he’s overbearing, I’m not about to let another one tell me what I can and can’t do.

  She had just reached the banks of the river, when movement in the tree line to the east caught her attention. She looked up. Two riders approached. They were white men, dressed in buckskins and fur hats. A jolt of adrenaline shot through her. She looked from the riders to the cabin, judging the distance. Would she make it? Not stopping to think, she dropped the blanket and the spare clothes she carried, and made a dash for the cabin. The men on horseback saw her move and urged their horses into a gallop. There was no way she was going to outrun them, but she was sure as hell going to try.

  One of the riders rode up to the cabin and stopped his horse in front of the door, effectively blocking her way. In a split second’s decision she ran to the left to try and head into the trees behind the cabin. She heard the two men laughing and whistling behind her.

  “Son of a bitch,” she muttered between gritted teeth. Her self-defense class back home hadn’t prepared her for being chased on horseback. She hadn’t even reached the trees when she knew her pursuers must be right behind her. Heavy hooves clomped behind her and a horse’s hot breath blew against her neck. A hand grabbed for her arm. She stumbled and fell face forward to the ground. The man was on top of her in an instant.

  “Now, cherie, don’t run away from Françoise,” she heard the man say close to her ear, his foul breath making her nauseous. “We didn’t get a chance to meet the other day.” He hauled her to her feet. Aimee started kicking and thrashing, and she screamed Daniel’s name.

  “Mon Dieu, you are a wild one!” Françoise panted. He clamped his hand over her mouth. The other man had arrived and helped Françoise wrestle Aimee into submission.

  “Tie her hands and put something in her mouth,” Françoise ordered. Then he leered at Aimee, exposing rotting teeth. “I see now why Daniel hid you away from us, cherie. You are more beautiful than I could have imagined.” He stroked the side of her face with a dirty hand. She jerked her head away.

  Mentally, she was calling him every foul name she could think of. The other man had tied a piece of leather over her mouth to keep her from screaming again.

  “She is something to look at,” Pierre’s eyes raked boldly over Aimee’s body. He reached out a hand and groped at her breasts. “So young and ripe,” he said in French. “Are you sure we can’t sample her here right now?” he asked his companion. “I am as hard as a rock just looking at her.”

  “No. Help me get her on my horse. We must be away from here quickly. There will be plenty of time to enjoy her soon.” Françoise waved his hand impatiently. He swung himself into the saddle, and reached for her arm.

  Aimee tried to struggle again, and twisted and turned in Pierre’s grip as he hoisted her onto the front of Françoise’s saddle. Françoise’s hand dug painfully into her skin as he held her wrist. Adrenaline flooded her system. She managed to twist away from the horse, and kicked out at Pierre. He backhanded her across the face, then grabbed her around the waist and threw her up into the saddle.

  Aimee’s heart hammered in her chest. She refused to believe this was happening to her. Françoise tugged her in front of him, and roughly pulled her up against his chest. Her eyes filled with tears of frustration.

  Her four years of high school French was coming in mighty handy now. For the most part, she understood what they were saying. Daniel had been right again. She swore never to doubt him about anything ever again, if she got the chance. How could this be happening? She never imagined she would have to worry about the possibility of being gang-raped here in the wilds of Yellowstone!

  The two men kicked their horses into a fast run, heading north. The man, Françoise, held her tightly to him as they rode, and she could smell tobacco, whiskey, and the foul, sour odor of someone in desperate need of a bath. She swallowed back the bile that rose to her throat. Her mind raced with possible ways of getting away from these men. She realized she was helpless to do anything at the moment.

  Where the hell had Daniel gone? Irrationally, she directed her anger at him for leaving her this morning. How long would it be before he returned to the cabin and found her missing? Then she remembered that he had told her he wouldn’t look for her if she went off on her own again.

  She dismissed that thought. Surely he would realize she hadn’t wandered off. There were too many tracks left behind. She calmed herself, knowing without a doubt that he would search for her. The only question was, would he find her in time before these men raped her.

  Chapter 15

  Daniel had followed a familiar deer trail in search of game since dawn. He needed to be alone to clear his head. He was taking Aimee back to civilization. It would be for the best. He obviously couldn’t trust himself around her. In time, he was sure he could stop thinking about her, and his life would return to the way it had been before, the way he always liked it. He and his father would trap beaver in the fall and spring, and sit around their warm fire in winter and tell stories late into the night. In summer, he would go hunting for bighorn sheep with Elk Runner. As he thought about it, it sounded lonely to him now.

  He had just come across some fresh deer tracks, when these mingled with track that gave him cause for alarm; hoof prints. He knelt down to examine them more closely. Two horses had come through here very recently.

  He immediately thought of Francoise and Pierre. Could they have circled back around and were in the vicinity? He didn’t want to think so. He followed the tracks for several miles. An uneasy feeling crept up his spine, and he realized they were headed for his cabin.

  Daniel broke into a run. He abandoned the deer trail, and cut through the forest, dodging branches and leaping over downed logs, and ran in a straight line for his cabin. A wave of cold dread came over him at the thought of what he might find there. He cursed himself. He shouldn’t have left Aimee alone. He should have known those bastards couldn’t be trusted.

  “Aimee!” he yelled, long before his cabin came into view through the trees. From a distance, a pile of clothing and a blanket lay strewn along the banks of the river. He kicked open the cabin door. One glance told him nothing had been disturbed.
The interior was neat and tidy as always since Aimee’s appearance. Her backpack sat at the foot of her bed where she always kept it. He ran back outside and called her name repeatedly.

  Taking a deep breath to calm himself, he read the signs on the ground. Hoof prints were everywhere in the yard. He followed them to the tree line behind his cabin, where an obvious struggle had taken place. These men had been in a hurry, and they took Aimee with them. There was still a chance he could catch up to them, before . . .

  “Dammit!”

  He didn’t even want to think about what they were doing to her, perhaps at this very moment. His mind conjured up all kinds of images of the things he would be doing to them once he found them.

  A deadly calm came over him. Purposefully, he hurried inside the cabin, removed his powder horn and bullet pouch from across his shoulder, and tossed his long rifle on his bed. He reached for his most prized possession hanging on the wall above his bunk - his hunting bow made from the horns of the bighorn sheep. He only carried this weapon to hunt large game such as bighorn sheep and buffalo, for it was more powerful than the rifle, and deadly accurate. He slung a quiver full of obsidian-tipped arrows over his shoulder, readjusted the tomahawk at his belt, unsheathed his knife, and checked it for sharpness. Emerging from the cabin, he took off at a dead run, following the horse tracks into the forest.

  *****

  Aimee’s face felt hot, and pulsed from when Pierre had slapped her earlier. The jolting wild ride didn’t help matters. She wasn’t sure how long the Frenchmen kept up the grueling pace, but they slowed down as they headed up a mountain pass. She tried hard to concentrate on her surroundings. She knew they traveled in a northeasterly direction, pretty much the same way she had come over a month ago now. They skirted around a small geyser and hot spring area at one point, and Aimee vaguely recognized the area. If they stayed on their present course, eventually they would reach the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. Another sight she longed to see, but definitely under different circumstance.