Chapter 15

Night fell. The girl shivered in the cold as she watched the men crowded around the campfire, enjoying the warmth it provided while she was huddled up under a tree like an animal. It was cold, too cold. The thin nightgown she was dressed in offered no protection at all from the elements and the slight breeze blowing was chilling her to the bone.

She looked at the group of men around the fire, drinking again. At least, if they were drunk it'd make it easier for her to escape- She tugged at her wrists again but the ropes didn't slacken. At least they'd tied her hands in front of her and not behind her back, it was slightly easier to get out of at least.

Glancing back at the men she knew she needed to get herself out of there. There was no way of getting her hands free or her feet the way it was tied, she needed to figure out a way to get out of the ropes. She thought for a moment and came up with a plan then put it into action. There was a tree behind her and carefully she rubbed her head up against it, slipping the rope of the gag over her head. She winced as she felt her lips start bleeding again but paid no head as she set to work gnawing at the ropes around her hands.

Steadily she worked, her heart in her mouth as she willed herself to get out of this faster. Come on, come on. She was working at the tight knots with her teeth, trying to get them loose but it was taking time. Come on! It started to give a little and she paused for a moment to wriggle her wrists then started again. Finally the knots came undone, the girl rubbing her wrists where the rope had cut her circulation. Her hands felt numb, really numb and she rubbed them together hard. Her feet were what required attention last, the knots taking less time to undo since she was able to use her hands and not her teeth. Finally, she was free.

Stealing a glance at the campfire she slowly rose to her feet. Her feet were numb too but after a moment her legs were able to withstand her weight and she quietly snuck away into the night. Slowly she crept along, carefully choosing where to step so she didn't make sound or leave a trace of her presence. Every fibre of her being screamed at her to run but she knew if she did she'd make noise and they'd find her.

'Missie, wait!'

She froze, terrified that someone had spied her and turned around. Blake was there behind her in the moonlight, walking towards her. 'Blake, what are you doing here?'

'I saw you get away and I followed you.' He replied softly. 'I brought you some food and water.'

She didn't know what to say as he passed her the canteen and a little bag of food. 'Thank you Blake.'

'You be careful, I hope you get back to your folks. You're a nice girl.'

'Thank you. You best get back before they realise you're gone.'

'Good luck.'

'Good luck to you too.' She watched as he slipped back into the shadows then started forward again, thankful for the food and water he'd brought her. She didn't have to worry about that at least, she could concern herself focusing on getting away and then finding her way back to the ranch.

She hurried on through the darkness, the thin sliver of moonlight illuminating her way a little. She kept glancing back over her shoulder every so often, her heart in her throat. Every second she was expecting someone to jump from the shadows and capture her but as she got further from the camp she started to feel a little more at ease. When she could no longer hear or see the camp she breathed a sigh of relief then ran.

Adam rode on into the night, his horse slowed to a walk but still following the trail of hoof prints he hoped belonged to Missie's kidnappers. The trail was easy enough to follow at least, they hadn't made much effort to hide their tracks or pulled any stunts to throw them off the trail far. Obviously they were relying on the fact they had a head start but that headstart was shortening with every stride Sport took.

He was angry, seethingly angry with the men that had taken Missie that was only worsening with each passing hour. He was angry too with himself, Missie had been kidnapped right under their noses when he'd promised her he'd look after her. He'd promised he'd keep her safe and yet they'd been able to come in and take her without them even noticing. He promised himself he wouldn't rest until they had found her kidnappers, doing everything in his power to find her.

The thought she might be already dead entered his mind but he refused to entertain it. Unless he saw her cold dead body he'd go on looking until he found her. It surprised him actually in a way how worried he was for her. It was almost to the extent of if it had been one of his brothers or his father taken. Then again, it wasn't really much of a surprise. He really liked that girl, he got along with her. She trusted him, he knew that. Over the time she'd been at the Ponderosa he'd found himself becoming extremely fond of the young girl. Missie had become almost like a sister.

A light up ahead caught his attention, a grim smile coming to his face. He'd found the camp. They'd been so careless as to light a fire that alerted anyone within a ten mile radius as to their presence. He had to thank them for their carelessness, it had made finding them a whole lot easier.

He halted Sport, not needing to ride any closer. He'd found them and for now it was best to sit back where they didn't see him. He dismounted, tying Sport to a tree and started to make camp for the night. What he really wanted to do was ride in there and get Missie out then and there but he knew enough to know that he was definitely outnumbered. Going down there with guns blazing was a death sentence and not just for him. He had her safety to think about too. He wanted nothing more than to go rescue her but he also knew it was necessary to wait for back up.

His gelding sighed with relief as he lifted the saddle off, placing it down on the ground to use as his pillow for the night. Rolling out his bedroll he laid down in it, clothes and all. It was cold, freezing cold but he couldn't risk building a fire that would alter them to his presence. He was exhausted, unable to keep his eyes open a moment longer. The last thought he had though as he drifted off to sleep was for Missie, a prayer for her safety.

She ran as fast as she could, leaping over rocks and branches and always running on the ground that would leave no trace of her being on it. Elizabeth 'White Bird' Crandall hadn't given her the Indian name of Swift Deer for no reason. She could run and she could run fast. Elizabeth had taught her how to run like an Indian, how to move so she made no sound and she was never more thankful for that teaching then she was at that moment.

Leaving no trail would make it harder for people who wanted to find her, like her father and his men but at the same time she knew it'd be harder too on the Cartwrights if they came looking for her. She couldn't risk leaving a trail though, there was no way she was going to let her father catch her a third time. She was lucky the worst she'd gotten was that guy putting his hand up her skirt, in that equation the whipping and beating she'd had didn't count. Her Ma had been thorough in warning her about men who tried to take advantage of girls and she could still hear her warnings in her mind as she ran.

Her legs ached, her ribs were burning and she could feel her back bleeding again but she ran on. She didn't know where she was going or where she was headed, only that she needed to get as far away as possible. As she ran on, her breath coming in strangled gasps she started to become numb to the pain. All she could think to do was run, run as fast and as far as her legs would carry her.

The forest turned into a grassy plain, the girl swiftly making her way over it. She didn't want to be out in the open, she needed to have cover to hide but there was none. She couldn't go back either, she had to go forward and get as much distance between herself and them before they realised she'd gotten away. Her lungs felt like they were nigh to bursting but she ignored the burning with each breath she took. The fear of being caught again was ingrained into her mind, making her forget the pain she was in. She could worry about that later when she was safe. All she needed right now was to get to safety, that was it.

She had to slow after sometime, unable to keep up the pace she'd been running at any longer. The moon was rising higher in the sky but she paid it no head. She had to run, she had to keep running. She couldn't stop, she wouldn't stop. With a glance up at the sky every so often she checked she was running in the right direction by the North Star. She was on course, running due North as fast as her legs could carry her.

'S-she's gone Mike.'

The laughter around the campfire was abruptly cut off as their leader stood up, striding over to the man who'd spoken. 'What do you mean she's gone?'

'She's not there. I went to go have some funnin at her and she wasn't there.'

'Wasn't there? How couldn't she be there? I deliberately beat her so she wouldn't have the strength to run.' He roared. 'You better not be playing games with me.'

'I-I'm not. Go, go see for yourself.'

Mike pushed the man aside, angrily walking over to where they'd left the girl tied up. As he got closer he could see the man was right. The girl was gone. In her place laid the ropes he'd bound her with, one set looking suspiciously frayed like it had been cut or bitten by something. He roared something not worth repeating, clenching his fists. It'd been the second time the girl had escaped, she'd made a fool out of him. It won't happen again. He promised himself then turned back to the men. 'We start searching at first light. If we find her, we kill her.'

The night slipped by, the girl slowing to a walk but still refusing to stop. She didn't know how long she'd been running or how far she'd gone but still her mind screamed at her to run. She couldn't get far enough or fast enough away from those horrible men. She could still feel that man's hand up her skirt, the thought sending more shivers down her spine. She was so thankful that was all he'd done, she was very lucky it hadn't gone further and she knew it. She also knew if she'd stayed it wouldn't have turned out well at all. She'd seen the way the men had looked at her, she knew what those looks meant and what was on their minds with it. She'd never seen it with the Cartwrights, they'd always treated her with respect and kept her dignity. By now she guessed they'd be out looking for her and hoped that they found her instead of her father.

The grassy plain gave way to dry and rocky mountainous terrain, the landscape looking more and more like a desert canyon the further she went along. In the horizon beyond she could see the first orange rays of sunshine coming up, a panic seizing her. She'd been running all night but now she was running out of time. She had to find a place for her to hide and quickly.

Scurrying over rocks she looked frantically for a place to hide. There were no trees, no shelter for her to take cover in, only rocks, rocks and more rocks. It was rough country, the rocks making short work of the soles of her feet and as the sun rose she could see she was leaving a trail of blood behind on the rocks. There was nothing she could do about it though, she had nothing to cover her feet and had no way of getting any. All she could do was hope that she hadn't left any clues behind at the camp that would lead the men to her.

A rocky overhang came into view ahead of her and she changed her direction so she'd come to it. It wasn't much of a shelter but it had to do. There was no more. The sun was up now, bathing the landscape in its golden hues as she finally reached the overhang and wearily collapsed onto the hard ground. She was exhausted, so exhausted-