Easy as jumping down a stair. Nothing to it.

Taking another breath, Eve walked forward.

A pebble turned under the ball of her foot, throwing her off balance. She turned as she fell, her arms wide, her fingers reaching for anything that would stop her fall. There was nothing to grab but air.

The force of the fall knocked the breath out of Eve and sent her rolling rapidly toward the black gap. There was no bottom, no top, nothing to cling to. She was flailing down a slide made of stone, hurtling toward an endless night.

«Reno!» Eve screamed.

First her feet, then her knees, bumped over the ledge, then her thighs. Somehow her hands found enough purchase on the rock to halt her tumbling. She lay with her cheek against the rock, her arms shaking, and her legs dangling over eternity. When she tried to pull herself up out of the abyss, she nearly lost what grip she had upon the stone.

An instant later Eve felt herself being torn free of the rock. She fought wildly before she realized that it was Reno lifting and turning her, pulling her back from the abyss. He braced his feet apart and held her against his body.

«Easy, gata. I’ve got you.»

Trembling in every limb, Eve sagged against Reno.

«Are you hurt?» he asked urgently.

Eve shook her head.

He looked at the pallor of her face, the trembling of her lips, and the shiny trails tears had left on her skin.

«Can you stand?» he asked.

She took a shuddering breath and put more of her weight on her own feet. He released her just enough to find out if she could stand. She could, but she was shaking.

«We can’t go back,» Reno said. «We have to go on.»

Though he tried to speak in gentle tones, the race of adrenaline in his system made his voice harsh.

Nodding to show she understood, Eve tried to take a step. Immediately she was betrayed by the shaking of her legs.

Reno caught her and brushed his mouth lightly over hers. The kiss was unlike any he had given her, for it asked nothing of her in return. He eased her down onto the stone and sat beside her, cradling her while she shook with a mixture of fatigue and exhaustion, fear and relief.

Reno took off the canteen he wore slung down his back. The rasp of a canteen stopper was followed by the silvery music of water trickling out as he dampened his bandanna. When the cool cloth touched Eve’s face, she flinched.

«Easy, little one,» Reno murmured. «It’s just water, like your tears.»

«I’m n-not crying. I’m…resting.»

He poured a bit more water on his dark bandanna and wiped Eve’s pale, tear-stained face. She let out a ragged breath and sat quietly while he removed the evidence of her tears.

«Drink,» he said.

Eve felt the metal rim of the canteen nudge her lips. She sipped lightly, then with more interest as the water slid over the parched tissues of her mouth.

A low sound of pleasure came from her as she swallowed. She hadn’t known anything could taste so clean, so perfect. Holding the canteen with both hands, she drank greedily, ignoring the tiny trickle that escaped at one corner of her mouth.

Reno blotted the extra water with his bandanna at first, then with his tongue. The warm caress so startled Eve that she dropped the canteen. He laughed and caught the canteen, stoppered it, and slung it across his back once more.

«Ready to go?» he asked softly.

«Do I have any choice?»

«Yes. You can take that gap with your eyes open and me right beside you, or you can take it unconscious over my shoulder.»

Eve’s eyes widened.

«I wouldn’t hurt you,» he added.

Gently his hands circled her throat. His thumbs found the points where blood flowed into her brain.

«A bit of pressure and you’ll faint,» Reno said calmly. «You’ll wake up within seconds, but you’ll be on the other side by then.»

«You can’t carry me over that,» she protested.

«You’re like a cat. Sleek and lithe. But for all their speed and grace, cats don’t weigh much.»

Reno stood, pulling Eve to her feet and then off them in a smooth, easy motion. He shifted his grip, holding her balanced against his hip with one arm. It all happened so quickly, she didn’t have time to draw a breath.

Eve’s eyes widened in shock as she realized how much of Reno’s strength he had kept in check when he touched her. She had always known he was stronger than she was. She just hadn’t known how much stronger. An odd, strangled sound escaped her lips.

Reno frowned.

«I didn’t mean to frighten you,» he said.

«It’s not that,» she said faintly.

He waited, watching her.

«It’s just…» Eve made a sound that was half laugh, half sob. «I’m used to being the strong one.»

There was a long silence while Reno held Eve and thought about what she had said. Slowly he nodded. It explained a lot, including why she hadn’t told him how close to the end of her rope she was. It simply hadn’t occurred to her. She was used to being with people who had less strength and stamina than she did, not more.

«And I’m used to traveling alone,» Reno said. «I’ve pushed you too hard. I’m sorry.»

Carefully he set Eve on her feet again.

«Can you walk?» he asked.

Eve sighed and nodded.

One of Reno’s arms slid around her waist.

«Tired littlegata. Put you arm around me and lean. It’s not far.»

«I can —»

Abruptly Reno’s hand came down over Eve’s mouth, shutting off her words.

«Quiet,» he whispered against her ear. «Someone is coming.»

Eve froze and strained to hear beyond the wild beating of her heart.

Reno was right. The lazy breeze was carrying the sound of someone cursing savagely.

«Damnation,» hissed Reno. «Get down!»

Eve had no choice about it. He had her pressed on her stomach against the rock before she could blink.

«Keep your head down,» he said in a very soft voice. «They won’t be able to see you until they’re at the top of the slope above us.»

Reno took off his hat, handed Eve the canteen, and drew his gun. She watched as he began crawling on his stomach up the ten-foot slickrock incline.

On the other side were three Comancheros leading wiry mustangs. They were headed straight for Reno. Crooked Bear was in the lead. He spotted Reno immediately. When the Comanchero shouted, bullets started whining and ricocheting off the pale stone, sending sharp chips of rock flying.

Instantly Reno returned the fire, picking targets with care, for the range was better suited to a rifle than to a six-gun. There wasn’t much cover, but the Comancheros made good use of every irregularity. They flattened themselves in the shallow basins, dove behind hardy pinon, or threw their bodies into one of the many cracks on the seamed surface of the slickrock.

Unfortunately, all except Crooked Bear were beyond the range of Reno’s six-gun. The Comanchero took a bullet in his arm, but the wound wasn’t bad. The most it would do was slow the big Indian down a bit.

Reno slithered back down the slope to Eve and pulled her to her feet.

«They’ll stay put, but not for long,» he said. «Get ready to run.»

Eve wanted to object that she couldn’t run, but a look at Reno’s jade green eyes made her change her mind. His fingers wrapped around her right arm just below the shoulder.

«Three steps, then jump,» he said.

There was no time for Eve to waver or worry. Reno was thrusting her forward. She took three running steps and jumped like a doe. He was right beside her, flying over the black channel, landing, holding her upright when her foot slipped. Seconds later they were running flat out over the slick-rock.

Eve had never moved so fast before in her life. Reno’s powerful hand was clamped around her arm, lifting her, hurtling her forward, then lifting her again the instant her feet touched the ground.

They were almost to the horses when rifle bullets began crashing and whining around them, screaming off the slickrock. Reno made no attempt to take cover. He simply tightened his grip on Eve and ran faster toward the ravine ahead. He knew their best chance of survival lay in reaching the ravine where the horses were hidden before Slater’s Comancheros reloaded their single-shot rifles.

Breath tore in and out of Eve’s lungs as she sprinted beside Reno, captive to the iron grip on her arm. Just when she thought she could run no farther, a bullet ricocheted nearby. She ran faster than before, trusting Reno to catch her if she stumbled.

Suddenly the rock sloped away beneath their feet. Together Eve and Reno skidded down the steep incline. The mustangs snorted and shied with alarm as he threw her into her saddle, vaulted onto his own horse, and headed up the ravine at a gallop.

All too soon the way began to narrow and climb steeply toward yet another slickrock terrace. Reno kept the horses pointed uphill, not stopping even when the way became so narrow that stirrups scraped against stone. Scrambling and clawing like cats, the agile mustangs climbed through stony debris.

Abruptly they were in the clear. A wide mesa opened up before them. Reno didn’t stop to congratulate himself on their good luck at not finding themselves smack up against a slickrock cliff. He spun the blue roan around and raced back to the Shaggy that carried the small barrels. He jerked one barrel free, grabbed a leather sack from the back saddle, and turned to Eve.

«I’m going to try to close the trail,» he said curtly. «Take the horses about a hundred yards up the draw and hobble them.»

She grabbed Darlin’s reins, kicked the dun, and took off up the shallow, grassy ravine that drained the plateau. The two Shaggies followed. A scant one hundred yards later, Eve threw herself off the dun, hobbled her, and ran back to Darlin’. The mustang snorted in alarm but was too tired to bite when strange hands slapped hobbles around her forelegs. The two Shaggies were already cropping grass eagerly. They were hobbled before they knew what had happened.