Then she heard Jamie respond from beyond the window, his voice harsh and

firm as he met the threat.

"It's the sheriff, I think!" Shannon said, peeking around a broken

window.

Tess joined her beside the window, and nodded. "She's under arrest for

what?" Jamie demanded.

"Slander and murder."

"Murder!"

"She killed two of Mr. von Heusen's men. She tricked them out into the

open fields. I've witnesses to that effect.

Then she shot them down cold."

Jamie let loose with a flaming oath. Then he was striding out to meet

the sheriff face to face. Tess gripped the window frame.

"This is bull, and you know it. Von Heusen set you up to this. You're

just a hired gun, like any other of his thugs."

"You shut your mouth, Slater. You're under arrest, too."

"For what?"

"Conspiracy to commit murder."

"Well, I'll tell you what, Sheriff, you just try to take me in ." ' Tess

was never quite sure what propelled her, but before anyone could stop

her, she was racing out to the street, streaking toward Jamie. She

caught his arm and faced the sheriff, furious.

"Don't you even think it! Don't you even try to drag him down into the

mud and mire that you've created with von Heusen! Arrest me if you want

to so damn badly" -- "Tess, damn you!" Jamie swore, swinging her around

behind him.

"What the hell are you doing out here? I told you" -- "Slater, shut up,"

came a new voice.

It was von Heusen. He came striding out from the saloon, his pale eyes

shimmering with hatred, his white hair touched by the breeze.

"Miss. Stuart," he said, addressing Tess, "you are ever valiant. But I

can't wait to hang this Reb. I just can't wait."

"You aren't ever going to hang me, yon Heusen," Jamie said.

"And you aren't ever going to have that property for the railroad."

Von Heusen's brows shot up.

"So you know. You're quite a detective."

"I travel in good company," Jamie said with a shrug.

"It doesn't matter. The sheriff is my man. Aren't you, Harvey?"

"Von Heusen, don't say that," the sheriff began uneasily.

"Why? Who is going to stop us now?" yon Heusen said. "I own the sheriff,

and I own the magistrate, and I can damned well bet you I'm going to own

the executioner. You're dead, Slater. As dead as a doornail."

"No. You may own the sheriff, but I've got a few guns around the place,

too, yon Heusen."

"Yeah, your brothea's and that half-breed friend of yours. It's not

enough.

I've got guns all over this town."

As if to prove it, and obviously uncaring that he was about to commit

murder in broad daylight, yon Heusen raised his pistol and aimed

straight at Jamie's heart. But he didn't have a chance to fire. A gun

cracked, and yon Heusen grabbed his hand, screaming. And the streets

came alive.

There was a fearsome pounding of hooves, and war cries tore the air.

Jamie, astonished, bent low and whirled around. "Jesus!" he breathed.

The cavalry. The cavalry was coming, Sergeant Monahan in the lead.

Nor were they alone. They were traveling, curiously enough, with a small

band of Indians. Apache.

"Jamie!"

Tess screamed his name and he swung around again even as the horses came

tearing down the street.

Von Heusen had Tess. His right hand might be crippled and bleeding, but

he held his pistol in his left hand, and the muzzle was pressed against

her temple. He was backing toward the saloon.

"One more step and I blow her to kingdom come!" yon Heusen warned Jamie.

Gunfire was spitting all around him. From behind a water barrel by the

Wiltshire Sun office Cole was picking off yon Heusen's men from the

rooftops areund them. Malachi and Jon were positioned behind the wagon,

which they had overturned.

And the cavalry and the Apache wee rushing in to the fantastic sound of

a bugle call. It was quickly obvious that von Heusen's men would not be

enough.

Except that yon Heusen had Tess.

He disappeared through the swinging doors of the saloon. Jamie caught

his breath, hearing ~-. ss's screams as the man dragged her upstairs.

"The roof, Jamie! The roof!" Cole called to him. He looked up. He made a

leap toward the railing and swung himself up to the roof. A shot nearly

made him trip and fall.

He heard someone groan and saw a man fall to the ground. He looked

across the street.

Cole smiled, blowing the smoke froaa his gun.

"Dammit, Jamie, go get the girl!"

Jamie grinned and gave his brother a thumbs-up sign. Then he felt his

blood run cold again. He was. going to have to kill von Heusen if he

wanted to live hxnself.

"You, Miss. Stuart, have been a bloody thorn in my side since the

beginning.

You should have died in that raid on the wagon train, and if you'd had

any damned sense, you would have stayed with that bleeding Apache." :

Tess winced. Von Heusen's hold on her arm was vicious, and she could

feel the cold steel presseft hard against her temple. She swallowed. If

he killed her now, she was still the winner. She had to keep telling

herself that, so she could keep fighting him.

"That bleeding Apache, as you call aim, is here to kill you, von Heusen.

The Apache and the cavalry are riding together. Just to kill you."

They had come to the top of the stairs. Von Heusen burst open the door

to one of the rooms and threw her inside. Tess 279 staggered across the

room as yon Heusen closed and bolted the door, putting a chair across

it.

"What now, yon Heusen?" Tess demanded.

He cast her an evil glar~ with his near colorless eyes, and she felt

fear creep along her spine. He strode across the room to her, wrenching

her by the hair.

"You foolish, foolish little girl. You could have lived as that Indian's

squaw, but now I promise you that you're going to pay dearly. One wrong

move, and I'll scalp you myself. What a beautiful trophy that hair would

be, eh, Miss. Stuart?"

She spat at him. He pulled on her hair so hard that she was certain half

of it left her head and, despite her efforts to choke back the sound,

she cried out. She saw him smile at her pain, and it sickened her, and

she realized that he liked hurting people, that killing gave him

pleasure. "What now?

Now we wait. We wait for your ever gallant young cavalry hero to come

running up those stairs. Then I shoot him dead. Then I use you to escape

this town, and then maybe later I'll let you go, but more likely, I'll

kill you.

I'll kill you slow. I'll have you first, and I'll humiliate you every

way I know how, and then I'll kill you bit by bit." She managed to jerk

away from him, backing toward the window, staring at him.

"You bastard! Why don't you just kill me now?

I'll make your life a living hell. I'll never take a single step with

you.

Unless."

"Unless?" He drew out his knife, a wickedly sharp and long bowie knife

that glinted in the fraction of sunlight that entered the room.

"You leave Jamie alone. We'll go out by the roof right now and I'll come

along without a protest" -- "How touching."

"If you kill him, I won't make a move."

"Oh, but I can make you," yon Heusen told her softly. And maybe he

could. He was walking toward her, his knife before him, twisting in his

hands.

"I'll just make you bleed a little now, but you'll feel it," he promised

her.

She was going to scream or faint. She wanted desperately to fight, to be

brave, but all she could see was the glinting steel. He was coming

closer and closer, and she didn't know how brave she could be once that

steel touched her.

"I'll make you bleed!" yon Heusen promised again. He was almost on top

of her. She could see the razor sharpness of the blade, aimed toward her

face.

The window shattered behind her, and a man came bursting through. Booted

feet connected with von Heusen's chest and he was sent flying into the

room.

He landed hard and turned, ready to throw his knife straight at Tess's

heart.

Jamie fired his Colt without hesitating, without a flicker of fear or

remorse.

And yon Heusen stared at him, startled. Then his colorless eyes closed

for the last time, and he slumped to the floor.

Jamie strode over to Tess.

"Are you all right?" he demanded.

She nodded, her throat dry, her heart pounding. "Dammit, Tess, I told

you that this had to be my way."

"I--I was trying to do it your way!" she said. But then she looked at

von Heusen again, and back to Jamie. And she passed out cold.

With a tender smile, Jamie lifted her into his arms and held her very

close.

He didn't look at yon Heusen. He car tied her into the light of day.

Chapter Fourteen.

It was really amazing when one looked around, Tess thought.

She was having a barbecue. Well, the ranch was hosting a barbecue.

Huge sides of beef were being roasted all around the property, the wine

and beer and whiskey were flowing freely and all manner of entertainment

was going on.

She was having a party--and the cavalry and the Apache and the

townspeople and even the whores from the saloon were in attendance.