Unlawfully Yours
Chapter VI
Reggie and his acolytes had barely reached the destroyed camp before the storm hit. He still had time to see the devastation with his own eyes. This was at least a first step in quieting the little voice of doubt that had been whispering in the back of his mind… and brought him there in the first place. He still wondered how two grown men could have been surprised and killed so easily, and by such relatively shy animals… However, the signs were all there and eloquent… The storm quickly gathering strength forced them to take shelter, although they still moved away from the already smelly corpse of the mule. After they settled down, he and his men watched the sandstorm rage all that night. It ended up covering everything that had been visible only hours earlier. By the morning, they found that all trace of the camp lay buried under the sand. Reggie still ordered the men to survey the surrounding desert, even if he had very little hope to find anything. Not anymore…
When he finally decided to give up on the pointless search, they headed back toward their own camp, while wondering about the possible damage. Indeed, when they got there, the place had half disappeared, but the guard they'd left behind was already working at digging up their stuff. When he saw his companions coming however, he became very nervous.
Reggie felt this right away and he looked curiously around while dismounting. At first, he didn't see what was wrong, but when his man began talking, the truth struck him. This long before the embarrass guard had managed to voice it.
"You lost her?" Reggie exclaimed angrily.
The young man, who went by the nickname of Sly, couldn't look directly at his boss.
"I don't how why she did it. This is so stupid…in the middle of the storm… half-naked… and she did not even try to get to the horse. I…"
"Enough excuses," Reggie cut him sharply. "You weren't watching her!"
In less than two seconds, Reggie had pulled a nasty looking knife from his boot and was pressing it against Sly's throat.
"I should just gut you right now. You're no use to me…"
The young men's eyes darted about, going from Lenny to the other accomplice, as if he hoped that they could stop Reggie. However, he knew better and finally pleaded with the man himself.
"Please Reggie…I didn't mean for this to happen… besides, where's she gonna go? She's probably dead already…"
"And you'd know that how? You've got no idea how much of a survivor this bitch is…She won't let a sandstorm kill her."
Lenny decided to try intervening at this point.
"You know, maybe the sandstorm didn't get her… but, really how much of a survivor can she be? We're in the middle of the desert. Just like Sly said, she has no horse, no food and no water…no one is coming to look for her and she obviously can't come back to us…"
"I don't care," Reggie said then, although he relaxed the pressure on the knife slightly. "That slut could still find a way to cause me trouble…"
He surveyed the empty desert while thinking. None of the others spoke, but Sly swallowed hard, not making a move to get away. He knew too well that if he tried, Reggie wouldn't hesitate to finish him. Their leader was relatively fair, but he could not stand weakness. In addition, he wasn't called the Slick for nothing. Reggie tried and mostly succeeded in surrounding himself with the best. Because of this, no one had ever come close to catch him. However, all of them knew that were they to fail him, there wouldn't be a single place in this world where they could safely run because he was also relentless in his vengeance. They would have to watch their back for the rest of their life and sometimes, they wondered if even death was enough of a safe haven from his wrath. Therefore, Sly stood there, trembling but hiding it as best he could, until Reggie finally took the knife completely away. Even then, Sly didn't breathe easier, waiting for what might come next.
Reggie was in fact reflecting that Phoebe had almost done him in…He had let himself go soft because of a strange weakness for the girl. Because of this, she had come close to fool him and possibly deliver him to the bastards that had been following them. Of that, he was utterly convinced by then. Had they not arrived early at the shack, they might not have found out about her accomplices until it was too late. One of his men had even paid with his life in the process, although Carl didn't seem like such a big loss to him. In fact, he had been contemplating getting rid of him for a while already. The man had been unstable and a pain in his side for as long as he had known him. This didn't keep him from berating himself for not killing Phoebe the month before; this after he had figured out she was planning to betray him. This weakness, he had finally managed to put aside, particularly after seeing the repeated evidences of her deviousness. Besides, even if those men were dead, this didn't mean that was she to survive, she wouldn't try to come after him with someone else. Phoebe knew too much about his gang and had become a liability.
The only thing that was still a mystery to him was why she had run at all. He was certain that she had believed herself safe the night before. Nevertheless, it was now becoming obvious that she had fooled him again, which made him even angrier. He couldn't help the suspicions about her accomplices' demise to come back to him as well, which prompted his next words.
"We're going to look for her, and find her, dead or alive…And if she's alive, the bitch will wish that she died in that storm, you better believe it," he added angrily for no one in particular. "And while we're at it, let's put a little more effort in finding out what really happened to those guys… As for you," he told Sly, who recoiled under the irate expression, "I have better find her…"
Sly did not need him to finish the threat. He knew that his life hung in the balance. As he followed the others toward the horses, he found that he had wet his pants out of abject fear. He swore to himself that if he got to her first, he would take pleasure in torturing her for shaming him like this. Then, he would deliver whatever was left of her to Reggie.
Lenny was already on his horse, but when he turned to Reggie, he noticed him pulling his gun out of his holster, and then deliberately aiming it at Sly. Lenny wasn't much of a humanitarian, but Sly was a kid he had brought to the band. He figured that the boy deserved a second chance and put the horse between him and Reggie.
"Hey, we need all the manpower we've got if you want to find her," he said loud enough for only Reggie to hear.
This one frowned angrily, but didn't make any threatening move toward Lenny. Instead, he put the gun back in its holster, but still added:
"I'll let him live for now… but he better learn to take it like a man. I can't have a boy who pees himself in my band, Lenny. I need men beside me… And if I don't find her," he finished the threat he had started for Sly, only this time for his right arm's benefit, "then it won't matter, because he won't live long enough to become one…"
"If we don't find her, I'll shoot him myself, Reggie," Lenny replied sincerely. It still gave him an even stronger motivation to find the girl; and even more to make her pay for the trouble she caused.
As soon as he was back on his horse, Reggie instructed his men as to what he expected of them, causing them to smile cruelly. Then, he each assigned them a different direction. He and Zach, the other man in this outfit, would head separately toward the desert, while he sent Lenny and Sly toward the small mountain range that lay nearby…
Cole heard a faint scream… He opened his eyes with a start, and realized that he had fallen asleep with a pang of guilt. He looked out of the cave and was relieved to see that the sandstorm had died down. However seeing the sun up in the sky gave him a renewed remorse. He remembered the scream, but only assumed that it had been part of a dream. He had concerns that were more pressing. They had all been exhausted the night before, but sleeping on his watch was still unforgivable on his part. McKail was going to have a fit if the gangsters had lifted camp and left already. Speaking of the devil, Cole turned toward his companion to find him still asleep in the same position against the rocky wall. However, what almost gave him a heart attack was when he saw the ropes laying on the ground and then found no trace of Phoebe. In a panic, he went toward the back of the cave, hoping that she was still inside and only out of sight. However, he soon had to admit that she was nowhere to be found.
"She's gone," Cole uttered sharply for Paul before running back toward the entrance and out. Paul heard the exclamation in a daze, and it took him a few seconds to wake up completely. By the time he looked up, Cole was already rushing out, but only one glance at the ropes told him all there was to know.
"Son of a bitch," he exclaimed angrily, while turning toward where they had left the horses. Of course, Phoebe had taken one of those. He raged as much against her as against Cole for letting her go, and even more for stupidly running after her without thinking. Nevertheless now wasn't the time to dwell on this, as he headed toward the remaining horse. He tightened the saddle and climbed on it quickly.
"That bitch is really starting to get on my nerves," he grumbled while kicking the horse and directing it toward the entrance. Unlike Cole however, he was wary of a possible search party. Thus, once outside, he cautiously followed his partner's tracks. He didn't have far to go before finding both Phoebe and Cole, along with an uninvited guest.
Earlier, Phoebe had awakened to the sudden silence after the storm, or she imagined it was what raised her. She immediately noticed that Cole dozed off and decided that now was her chance. Contorting her body like one of the circus people that she used to enjoy watching, she managed to bring her bound wrists in front of her and she pulled hard on the rope with her teeth. She found that fortunately for her, McKail was not too good with knots because in less than a minute, she was undoing her ankles as well.
She then cautiously went to one of the horses, speaking softly to the animal to keep him quiet. Very slowly, she walked the horse out of the cave, and found that the sun was already up.
She was bare feet, but it was not the first time that she rode like this. She gave one last look toward the cave, longing for something, but unsure of what it was. Then, she shrugged the malaise away and quickly climbed on the horse. The cave resided deep into a gorge, and she surmised that Paul had chosen this not only to give them more protection from the storm, but also because he had surely reasoned that Reggie wouldn't believe her stupid enough to corner herself. On the contrary, this one would have assumed that she either went further up the mountain, trying to go across, or hit the desert as soon as the storm ended. She hoped that his gamble worked, as she began making her way out of there. Unlike what Paul surmised of her intentions, she wanted back in Reggie's good graces, yes, but not at the cost of Cole, or even Paul's life.
Phoebe did not make it very far, however. Only about three hundred feet from the cave's entrance and almost out of the gorge, she found herself face to face with Sly. She let out an involuntary scream of fright, while the man scowled at her before pulling his gun and aiming it straight at her head.
"Get off the horse," he uttered deliberately.
Phoebe looked around for somewhere to run, but by then, she was not quite in the open and, since Sly was blocking the path, her only option was to retreat the way she came. She knew that she would be riddled with bullets long before she had reached cover.
Shaking all over, she dismounted while trying to reason with the man.
"Come on, Sly. I was just coming back. You know how it is…I needed to get away for a while, nothing more…"
"Oh yeah right, you felt the need for a sand bath. Heck," he added with a vicious smile, as he dismounted cautiously in turn, "maybe you get your kicks out of getting hurt…Well, let me give you some more of that right now."
Phoebe's tremors intensified, as she thought desperately of the two men she left behind, who had no idea that she was in mortal danger. It also made her angry with them even if deep down, she knew that it was her damn fault.
"Reggie's gonna get mad at you if you hurt me, Sly. You know how he is when you touch something that belongs to him," she tried again.
"Reggie only asked us to bring him back a nipple and your head, as proof of your death. He said he'd keep the nipple as a souvenir…ain't that sweet," Sly sneered. He started deliberately walking toward her, still training the gun on her all the while.
"What he didn't say, but I assumed… was whether you had to be dead already, or if we could finish the job. I'm so glad the storm didn't get you, babe…" He pursued intensely.
By now, Phoebe knew that Cole and Paul had been right. Although, she still wondered if it was because Reggie thought she ran. Still, the time for recriminations had passed. She took a few steps back and stopped when the horse blocked her way. Thinking fast, she tried to get on it again, telling herself that come what may, it was better to die from a bullet than let Sly have his way with her. However, Sly saw her move and ran toward her. Grabbing her leg before she could get away, he pulled her hard toward the ground and Phoebe lied there in a daze. Soon, Sly had the gun stuck in her mouth while he looked curiously at her.
"Hey, you wouldn't be trying to take my fun away? I much prefer hearing your screams while I cut you into pieces." Suddenly, he seemed to realize something however,
"Where did you get the outfit… and the horse? I found your stuff buried under the sand…" He looked up somewhat anxiously, wondering now if she was truly alone. However, nobody seemed about and besides, he was already relishing the moments to come. "Ah, never mind," he dismissed, "Reggie said that you were resourceful… but trust me on this; you've hit the bottom of your bag of tricks…"
He pushed the gun even deeper inside her mouth then, making her gag. Her eyes were wide open with fear, and she couldn't even scream for help. Phoebe also knew that by the time Cole and Paul did hear her screams of pain, it might just be too late. Her only consolation was that they would most probably kill him, if only to protect themselves, if not because of her.
The crazy look on Sly's face told her that no amount of reasoning would change the outcome either. She reflected that Reggie must have been very harsh on him for losing her. Sly probably resented her even more because of this, as she could read pure hatred in his eyes.
She still tried to fight him, again preferring to die quickly rather than endure the torture he promised…but instead, he slapped her hard, dazing her again. As she came to, she found that to keep her under control, he had brought her arms along her sides and then pinned her down between his legs, while leaving the gun in her mouth. Next, he used his other hand to pull a knife from his belt. Without wait, he slipped the knife under the first button of her shirt and tore it off quickly. Before he could get to the next one however, a shadow crossed over them and Sly realized that someone was standing beside them. He looked up in surprise, although he mostly expected it to be Lenny. Before he had time to understand his mistake, a strong fist connected with his jaw, sending him flying backward. In doing so, he lost his grip on the gun. Phoebe stared at Cole, who gave her a short glance before going after Sly with a vengeance. In his eyes, she had seen rage and fear at the same time, and she couldn't help thinking that he had feared for her even as she pulled the gun out of her mouth and tried aiming it at her attacker. By then however, Cole had picked him up and stood between her and Sly. What's more, she knew that a gunshot would be heard from a great distance. Even if she wanted to help him, she realized that it would only bring more enemies toward them. Therefore, she watched the battle unfold anxiously, still ready to intervene if it took a turn for the worst.
Cole managed to hit Sly a few times, before this one remembered about the knife still in his hand. He thrust it forward and the knife cut a deep gash on Cole's side, eliciting a scream of pain from him. Cole didn't let it deter him however, as he clutched the man's wrist and twisted it, while pummelling him with his other fist, soon forcing Sly to let go of the knife. Sly, seeing that he was losing the battle kicked Cole hard in the kneecap. Cole lost his balance from the hit, but he fell on the man as they went on struggling on the ground, rolling back and forth while hitting each other repeatedly.
Phoebe could only watch helplessly, worried about the outcome. Suddenly, Sly's hand found the knife again, and he brought it back quickly toward Cole. Phoebe held her breath, as Cole barely managed to stop him by grabbing his arm; and then the knife halted mere inches from his throat. They struggled some more with the knife, and in a last ditch effort, Cole managed to turn it toward Sly. The weapon entered the man's chest deeply. Sly opened wide eyes in apparent shock at this. Blood soon began oozing from his mouth, while he became limp in Cole's grasp. This one watched the man falling back in horror, only then realizing that he had just killed a man. He let go at once of the man and the knife, and then looked at his bloodied hands, as if wondering whether they actually belonged to him.
Behind Phoebe, Paul dismounted, and then put down the gun he had aimed at the combatants until now. Then, without giving her a chance to react, he grabbed the gun that Phoebe was still holding before he walked slowly toward Cole and Sly's inanimate form. He stood back for a moment, somehow understanding what Cole was going through. Nevertheless, time was of the essence and he knew it.
"Are you ok, man? Can you get up?"
Cole barely acknowledged him, still looking from his hands to the dead man in consternation. After a moment though, he nodded weakly and slowly stood up.
Paul saw the gash on his side with a hint of worry.
"Hey, you're hurt. Want me to get a look at it?"
Cole made a dismissive gesture, barely feeling the pain at this point. He turned around, and walked away very stiffly. When he passed Phoebe, she tried:
"Thanks…" However, she stopped at the devastated look on his face.
"Save it," he growled, while continuing toward one of the horses. There, he picked up the flask and tried to drink some of the water. However, his throat was constricted and he almost choked on it.
Paul knew that the next part would be even harder on him considering, but if they wanted to survive, he had to shake him out of this. He walked quickly toward Cole while calling to him.
"Hey, if you can walk, that means you can help me. We gotta erase all trace of what happened here."
Cole turned to him reluctantly, and then without answering, he glanced at the body again, with nausea washing over him. He swallowed hard before looking back at Paul.
"Why? He's dead, isn't he?" Cole finally said.
"Before long, they'll come looking for him. We gotta hurry because we don't know how long we've got…"
During all this time, and at the exception of the harsh comment Cole served her, neither men paid any attention to Phoebe. It was as if she didn't exist all of a sudden. Yet, she was certain that Paul would have kept her from leaving, had she fancied to... However, at this point she also understood that there was no going back. At first, she simply stood there, watching them burying the body deep in the sand. Then, she began to help them masking all but the tracks of one horse coming in and going back out of the small gorge, including all traces of blood. When they were done, Phoebe followed them out of there and into the open, as Paul signalled that no one was about. All the while, she still felt ignored, even while helping them. A strange hurt invaded her, even though she didn't know exactly why…
After going further down the rocky formation, while still taking care of leaving only Sly horse's tracks visible, Paul found a way up the range and turned to Cole and Phoebe.
"You go up this trail; I'll be along soon."
Cole gave him a puzzled look.
"Where the hell do you think you're going?"
"I have to make sure they'll follow a different route. I'm not convinced that we fooled them yet. Watch your backs," he added before turning the horse and riding away.
Cole watched him uncertainly for a moment, and then, after shaking his head, he got off his own horse and began pulling it up the narrow path. Phoebe took a moment longer, even more unsure about Paul's intentions. However, his argument seemed reasonable, so she followed Cole without making any comments.
Lenny was slowly coming back, having been as far as he thought possible for someone on foot to reach. In fact, he didn't really believe that she had taken this route at all. This part of the range was composed of sheer cliffs with no possible way up, which would have seemed the most logical move was she to try escaping across the mountains. He had noticed a few accessible spots the way Sly had gone, and was now hoping that the boy had more luck as he neared the first gorge. Indeed, he could see that a horse had gone inside the gorge. He also noticed that the rider had come back out and gone on further. Giving one last look down the gorge, he turned to follow the tracks.
Phoebe and Cole climbed for over an hour before finding themselves on relatively flat terrain. Cole halted his advance there.
"We'll wait here…"
"That's not what he said…" Phoebe protested.
Cole turned an irritated look at her.
He didn't say either way…and besides, since when do you care anything what any of us say?"
"You got a point there," Phoebe replied while still sitting on a boulder nearby and looking out toward the desert. "Well, let's just say I choose to do it now…" she pursued without a glance his way.
"How convenient… Should I say thank you?"
Phoebe sneered but didn't answer. She sensed more than saw him shrugging before he went to sit by the trail, obviously watching for Paul.
They stayed in these positions silently for a long time, to the point where Phoebe became annoyed at this situation. It was pretty obvious to her that Cole was pissed, and even if she did not think that she owed him an apology, she had had enough of the silent treatment. Until now, all she could find in the desert was the sand as far as her eyes could see, and she was also getting tired of this fruitless occupation. However, she didn't have the first clue as to what to say that would put him in a more receptive mood. In the end, she even resolved to try apologizing anyway, if it could stop this shunning.
She glanced back toward Cole, and then made her move. Phoebe stood from her observing post and headed for the nearest horse. Opening the saddlebag, she found what she was looking for as she pulled an old shirt that she proceeded to tear into bands of cloth. Cole cast an annoyed look her way and then soon resumed his watch. This told Phoebe that cracking him wouldn't be so easy. Without letting it discourage her, Phoebe picked up a flask of water hanging from the saddle and headed toward him.
Cole had noticed her activities, and even more her coming toward him, but he made no move to acknowledge her, not even when she sat by his side.
"Hey, cowboy, want me to look at this thing," Phoebe asked then, while indicating the large bloodstain that soiled his torn shirt.
"Leave it alone," Cole answered gruffly after a moment.
Phoebe frowned unhappily, but instead of leaving, she said impatiently:
"Hey, I don't care one way or the other; but if you get a fever because of it, I won't help carrying you… and I wouldn't count on McKail to help you either…"
Cole shrugged and glanced at her irritably, but he still let her lift his shirt and get a look at the wound.
As she began cleaning the ugly gash on his side, she tried to talk to him.
"I huh… I wanted to thank you for saving me…"
Cole grunted, and then replied without facing her.
"Don't flatter yourself, babe. I was only thinking of McKail's warning about you."
Phoebe's mouth twitched irritably as she rubbed the wound harder.
"Hey, watch it," Cole said, as he sprung back slightly from the sting.
"Gotta make sure it's clean," Phoebe replied without flinching, as she continued her work with hardly a pause.
Cole bit his lips as much from irritation as to refrain from exclaiming again.
"Well, anyway," Phoebe pursued, "no matter why, you still saved me…so… thanks…"
Cole stayed silent, bracing himself as she began bandaging the wound. The touch of her hands on his skin was troubling him more than he cared to admit. He was afraid that she would see it in his face if he looked at her. Her attitude confused him. Why did she seem to care now? Was there something interested in her actions? The stirring that her touch had caused him until then slowly died away as the doubts invaded him again.
Phoebe had sensed the obvious constriction of his muscles, but she couldn't be certain whether he was reacting to her or the discomfort. At any rate, she understood that he wouldn't tell her, even if she questioned him about it.
His sudden question startled her.
"Why did you do it? Why did you run?"
Phoebe sensed anger and suspicion in his voice.
"You know why…"
Cole exhaled deeply, and then finally turned to her.
"I don't understand…how could you put money before people's lives? Or even your own, for that matter?"
"I didn't…" Phoebe began but she stopped herself…
"Believe what you want, after all. It's not like I care what you think all that much anyway!"
Cole thought that he detected some hurt, but in the whole, she was hiding it well. He still asked. "Don't you?"
Phoebe shrugged while turning her eyes toward the trail, avoiding his now.
"It's you who don't understand…"
"I'd sure like to… Why couldn't you trust us?"
"I never trusted anyone and I'm not gonna start now. I lead my life as I please and that's that."
Cole frowned while watching her intensely. He only wished he could read her mind right now. Maybe then, some things would start making sense.
"I still don't get it. No amount of money can be worth losing your life over."
"It's not about the money," Phoebe let out almost without thinking.
"Then what," Cole asked impatiently… When she didn't answer, an unpleasant thought crossed his mind.
"Was that him? Were you running back to him?"
Without a word, Phoebe grabbed the unused bandages and stood up abruptly. She was already on her way, when he called back to her.
"Why won't you answer me? Is that it?"
Phoebe stopped, took a deep breath and turned to him with irritation in her eyes.
"Yeah, I enjoy so much being humiliated and hurt by my lovers…"
"From where I stood, it looked like you enjoyed it!"
Cole couldn't believe he had said that. However, instead of the hurt look he expected, Phoebe turned a wicked smile toward him before moving away. Only then did he realize what it had sounded like with a sinking feeling. He most certainly had not intended to give her power over him…He mentally slapped himself for his stupidity, but most of all he wondered if this truly meant that he was jealous. He so believed that he had resolved the issue the night before… and even more so now that she had betrayed them. "Or had she," he couldn't help questioning at this point.
However, what had happened made it difficult for him to give her excuses. Even though, he knew that her leaving had been his fault as well, he still couldn't risk putting his trust in her… Not with in mind the terrible memory of what she had caused him to do. The sight of his victim's eyes glassing over as he watched was still haunting him. It didn't really matter at this point that the man had been a monster. It was enough for Cole that he had been the one who robbed him of his life with his own hands. He had tried to wipe these, but even if no trace of the blood remained, he believed that he would never be cleansed. Trying to distract himself from the unpleasant thoughts, he resumed his watch for Paul's return. This brought another sort of musing to him. Cole wondered how Paul did it, as he was convinced that this man had killed, and more than once. Not that he wanted to repeat the experience ever. On the contrary… However, he only wished that he knew how to live with himself from now on and he wasn't certain that he would ever. The only positive effect of this musing was that it put his blunder with Phoebe in perspective, allowing him to brush it aside, or so he thought until he turned to find her back at her observation spot. Phoebe seemed to be ignoring him, and it annoyed him more than if she had been mocking him, he realized. Even as he watched, she suddenly bent further toward the edge, as if she saw something. Curious, he stood up to go to her but stopped short at the sound of pebbles rolling down the rocky slope.
Expecting Paul to appear around the bend in the trail, he didn't bother to pull his revolver out of the holster and started back. Then, he practically jumped out of his skin at hearing a single gunshot echoing throughout the mountains…
Around the bend, Lenny halted and observed the bend in the trail curiously, while pulling his gun and letting go of the horses' reins. He was about to move forward when the loud sound of a gunshot had him looking up in surprise. Then, he seemed to hesitate between going further up the trail and investigating this new disturbance…
Chapter VI
Reggie and his acolytes had barely reached the destroyed camp before the storm hit. He still had time to see the devastation with his own eyes. This was at least a first step in quieting the little voice of doubt that had been whispering in the back of his mind… and brought him there in the first place. He still wondered how two grown men could have been surprised and killed so easily, and by such relatively shy animals… However, the signs were all there and eloquent… The storm quickly gathering strength forced them to take shelter, although they still moved away from the already smelly corpse of the mule. After they settled down, he and his men watched the sandstorm rage all that night. It ended up covering everything that had been visible only hours earlier. By the morning, they found that all trace of the camp lay buried under the sand. Reggie still ordered the men to survey the surrounding desert, even if he had very little hope to find anything. Not anymore…
When he finally decided to give up on the pointless search, they headed back toward their own camp, while wondering about the possible damage. Indeed, when they got there, the place had half disappeared, but the guard they'd left behind was already working at digging up their stuff. When he saw his companions coming however, he became very nervous.
Reggie felt this right away and he looked curiously around while dismounting. At first, he didn't see what was wrong, but when his man began talking, the truth struck him. This long before the embarrass guard had managed to voice it.
"You lost her?" Reggie exclaimed angrily.
The young man, who went by the nickname of Sly, couldn't look directly at his boss.
"I don't how why she did it. This is so stupid…in the middle of the storm… half-naked… and she did not even try to get to the horse. I…"
"Enough excuses," Reggie cut him sharply. "You weren't watching her!"
In less than two seconds, Reggie had pulled a nasty looking knife from his boot and was pressing it against Sly's throat.
"I should just gut you right now. You're no use to me…"
The young men's eyes darted about, going from Lenny to the other accomplice, as if he hoped that they could stop Reggie. However, he knew better and finally pleaded with the man himself.
"Please Reggie…I didn't mean for this to happen… besides, where's she gonna go? She's probably dead already…"
"And you'd know that how? You've got no idea how much of a survivor this bitch is…She won't let a sandstorm kill her."
Lenny decided to try intervening at this point.
"You know, maybe the sandstorm didn't get her… but, really how much of a survivor can she be? We're in the middle of the desert. Just like Sly said, she has no horse, no food and no water…no one is coming to look for her and she obviously can't come back to us…"
"I don't care," Reggie said then, although he relaxed the pressure on the knife slightly. "That slut could still find a way to cause me trouble…"
He surveyed the empty desert while thinking. None of the others spoke, but Sly swallowed hard, not making a move to get away. He knew too well that if he tried, Reggie wouldn't hesitate to finish him. Their leader was relatively fair, but he could not stand weakness. In addition, he wasn't called the Slick for nothing. Reggie tried and mostly succeeded in surrounding himself with the best. Because of this, no one had ever come close to catch him. However, all of them knew that were they to fail him, there wouldn't be a single place in this world where they could safely run because he was also relentless in his vengeance. They would have to watch their back for the rest of their life and sometimes, they wondered if even death was enough of a safe haven from his wrath. Therefore, Sly stood there, trembling but hiding it as best he could, until Reggie finally took the knife completely away. Even then, Sly didn't breathe easier, waiting for what might come next.
Reggie was in fact reflecting that Phoebe had almost done him in…He had let himself go soft because of a strange weakness for the girl. Because of this, she had come close to fool him and possibly deliver him to the bastards that had been following them. Of that, he was utterly convinced by then. Had they not arrived early at the shack, they might not have found out about her accomplices until it was too late. One of his men had even paid with his life in the process, although Carl didn't seem like such a big loss to him. In fact, he had been contemplating getting rid of him for a while already. The man had been unstable and a pain in his side for as long as he had known him. This didn't keep him from berating himself for not killing Phoebe the month before; this after he had figured out she was planning to betray him. This weakness, he had finally managed to put aside, particularly after seeing the repeated evidences of her deviousness. Besides, even if those men were dead, this didn't mean that was she to survive, she wouldn't try to come after him with someone else. Phoebe knew too much about his gang and had become a liability.
The only thing that was still a mystery to him was why she had run at all. He was certain that she had believed herself safe the night before. Nevertheless, it was now becoming obvious that she had fooled him again, which made him even angrier. He couldn't help the suspicions about her accomplices' demise to come back to him as well, which prompted his next words.
"We're going to look for her, and find her, dead or alive…And if she's alive, the bitch will wish that she died in that storm, you better believe it," he added angrily for no one in particular. "And while we're at it, let's put a little more effort in finding out what really happened to those guys… As for you," he told Sly, who recoiled under the irate expression, "I have better find her…"
Sly did not need him to finish the threat. He knew that his life hung in the balance. As he followed the others toward the horses, he found that he had wet his pants out of abject fear. He swore to himself that if he got to her first, he would take pleasure in torturing her for shaming him like this. Then, he would deliver whatever was left of her to Reggie.
Lenny was already on his horse, but when he turned to Reggie, he noticed him pulling his gun out of his holster, and then deliberately aiming it at Sly. Lenny wasn't much of a humanitarian, but Sly was a kid he had brought to the band. He figured that the boy deserved a second chance and put the horse between him and Reggie.
"Hey, we need all the manpower we've got if you want to find her," he said loud enough for only Reggie to hear.
This one frowned angrily, but didn't make any threatening move toward Lenny. Instead, he put the gun back in its holster, but still added:
"I'll let him live for now… but he better learn to take it like a man. I can't have a boy who pees himself in my band, Lenny. I need men beside me… And if I don't find her," he finished the threat he had started for Sly, only this time for his right arm's benefit, "then it won't matter, because he won't live long enough to become one…"
"If we don't find her, I'll shoot him myself, Reggie," Lenny replied sincerely. It still gave him an even stronger motivation to find the girl; and even more to make her pay for the trouble she caused.
As soon as he was back on his horse, Reggie instructed his men as to what he expected of them, causing them to smile cruelly. Then, he each assigned them a different direction. He and Zach, the other man in this outfit, would head separately toward the desert, while he sent Lenny and Sly toward the small mountain range that lay nearby…
Cole heard a faint scream… He opened his eyes with a start, and realized that he had fallen asleep with a pang of guilt. He looked out of the cave and was relieved to see that the sandstorm had died down. However seeing the sun up in the sky gave him a renewed remorse. He remembered the scream, but only assumed that it had been part of a dream. He had concerns that were more pressing. They had all been exhausted the night before, but sleeping on his watch was still unforgivable on his part. McKail was going to have a fit if the gangsters had lifted camp and left already. Speaking of the devil, Cole turned toward his companion to find him still asleep in the same position against the rocky wall. However, what almost gave him a heart attack was when he saw the ropes laying on the ground and then found no trace of Phoebe. In a panic, he went toward the back of the cave, hoping that she was still inside and only out of sight. However, he soon had to admit that she was nowhere to be found.
"She's gone," Cole uttered sharply for Paul before running back toward the entrance and out. Paul heard the exclamation in a daze, and it took him a few seconds to wake up completely. By the time he looked up, Cole was already rushing out, but only one glance at the ropes told him all there was to know.
"Son of a bitch," he exclaimed angrily, while turning toward where they had left the horses. Of course, Phoebe had taken one of those. He raged as much against her as against Cole for letting her go, and even more for stupidly running after her without thinking. Nevertheless now wasn't the time to dwell on this, as he headed toward the remaining horse. He tightened the saddle and climbed on it quickly.
"That bitch is really starting to get on my nerves," he grumbled while kicking the horse and directing it toward the entrance. Unlike Cole however, he was wary of a possible search party. Thus, once outside, he cautiously followed his partner's tracks. He didn't have far to go before finding both Phoebe and Cole, along with an uninvited guest.
Earlier, Phoebe had awakened to the sudden silence after the storm, or she imagined it was what raised her. She immediately noticed that Cole dozed off and decided that now was her chance. Contorting her body like one of the circus people that she used to enjoy watching, she managed to bring her bound wrists in front of her and she pulled hard on the rope with her teeth. She found that fortunately for her, McKail was not too good with knots because in less than a minute, she was undoing her ankles as well.
She then cautiously went to one of the horses, speaking softly to the animal to keep him quiet. Very slowly, she walked the horse out of the cave, and found that the sun was already up.
She was bare feet, but it was not the first time that she rode like this. She gave one last look toward the cave, longing for something, but unsure of what it was. Then, she shrugged the malaise away and quickly climbed on the horse. The cave resided deep into a gorge, and she surmised that Paul had chosen this not only to give them more protection from the storm, but also because he had surely reasoned that Reggie wouldn't believe her stupid enough to corner herself. On the contrary, this one would have assumed that she either went further up the mountain, trying to go across, or hit the desert as soon as the storm ended. She hoped that his gamble worked, as she began making her way out of there. Unlike what Paul surmised of her intentions, she wanted back in Reggie's good graces, yes, but not at the cost of Cole, or even Paul's life.
Phoebe did not make it very far, however. Only about three hundred feet from the cave's entrance and almost out of the gorge, she found herself face to face with Sly. She let out an involuntary scream of fright, while the man scowled at her before pulling his gun and aiming it straight at her head.
"Get off the horse," he uttered deliberately.
Phoebe looked around for somewhere to run, but by then, she was not quite in the open and, since Sly was blocking the path, her only option was to retreat the way she came. She knew that she would be riddled with bullets long before she had reached cover.
Shaking all over, she dismounted while trying to reason with the man.
"Come on, Sly. I was just coming back. You know how it is…I needed to get away for a while, nothing more…"
"Oh yeah right, you felt the need for a sand bath. Heck," he added with a vicious smile, as he dismounted cautiously in turn, "maybe you get your kicks out of getting hurt…Well, let me give you some more of that right now."
Phoebe's tremors intensified, as she thought desperately of the two men she left behind, who had no idea that she was in mortal danger. It also made her angry with them even if deep down, she knew that it was her damn fault.
"Reggie's gonna get mad at you if you hurt me, Sly. You know how he is when you touch something that belongs to him," she tried again.
"Reggie only asked us to bring him back a nipple and your head, as proof of your death. He said he'd keep the nipple as a souvenir…ain't that sweet," Sly sneered. He started deliberately walking toward her, still training the gun on her all the while.
"What he didn't say, but I assumed… was whether you had to be dead already, or if we could finish the job. I'm so glad the storm didn't get you, babe…" He pursued intensely.
By now, Phoebe knew that Cole and Paul had been right. Although, she still wondered if it was because Reggie thought she ran. Still, the time for recriminations had passed. She took a few steps back and stopped when the horse blocked her way. Thinking fast, she tried to get on it again, telling herself that come what may, it was better to die from a bullet than let Sly have his way with her. However, Sly saw her move and ran toward her. Grabbing her leg before she could get away, he pulled her hard toward the ground and Phoebe lied there in a daze. Soon, Sly had the gun stuck in her mouth while he looked curiously at her.
"Hey, you wouldn't be trying to take my fun away? I much prefer hearing your screams while I cut you into pieces." Suddenly, he seemed to realize something however,
"Where did you get the outfit… and the horse? I found your stuff buried under the sand…" He looked up somewhat anxiously, wondering now if she was truly alone. However, nobody seemed about and besides, he was already relishing the moments to come. "Ah, never mind," he dismissed, "Reggie said that you were resourceful… but trust me on this; you've hit the bottom of your bag of tricks…"
He pushed the gun even deeper inside her mouth then, making her gag. Her eyes were wide open with fear, and she couldn't even scream for help. Phoebe also knew that by the time Cole and Paul did hear her screams of pain, it might just be too late. Her only consolation was that they would most probably kill him, if only to protect themselves, if not because of her.
The crazy look on Sly's face told her that no amount of reasoning would change the outcome either. She reflected that Reggie must have been very harsh on him for losing her. Sly probably resented her even more because of this, as she could read pure hatred in his eyes.
She still tried to fight him, again preferring to die quickly rather than endure the torture he promised…but instead, he slapped her hard, dazing her again. As she came to, she found that to keep her under control, he had brought her arms along her sides and then pinned her down between his legs, while leaving the gun in her mouth. Next, he used his other hand to pull a knife from his belt. Without wait, he slipped the knife under the first button of her shirt and tore it off quickly. Before he could get to the next one however, a shadow crossed over them and Sly realized that someone was standing beside them. He looked up in surprise, although he mostly expected it to be Lenny. Before he had time to understand his mistake, a strong fist connected with his jaw, sending him flying backward. In doing so, he lost his grip on the gun. Phoebe stared at Cole, who gave her a short glance before going after Sly with a vengeance. In his eyes, she had seen rage and fear at the same time, and she couldn't help thinking that he had feared for her even as she pulled the gun out of her mouth and tried aiming it at her attacker. By then however, Cole had picked him up and stood between her and Sly. What's more, she knew that a gunshot would be heard from a great distance. Even if she wanted to help him, she realized that it would only bring more enemies toward them. Therefore, she watched the battle unfold anxiously, still ready to intervene if it took a turn for the worst.
Cole managed to hit Sly a few times, before this one remembered about the knife still in his hand. He thrust it forward and the knife cut a deep gash on Cole's side, eliciting a scream of pain from him. Cole didn't let it deter him however, as he clutched the man's wrist and twisted it, while pummelling him with his other fist, soon forcing Sly to let go of the knife. Sly, seeing that he was losing the battle kicked Cole hard in the kneecap. Cole lost his balance from the hit, but he fell on the man as they went on struggling on the ground, rolling back and forth while hitting each other repeatedly.
Phoebe could only watch helplessly, worried about the outcome. Suddenly, Sly's hand found the knife again, and he brought it back quickly toward Cole. Phoebe held her breath, as Cole barely managed to stop him by grabbing his arm; and then the knife halted mere inches from his throat. They struggled some more with the knife, and in a last ditch effort, Cole managed to turn it toward Sly. The weapon entered the man's chest deeply. Sly opened wide eyes in apparent shock at this. Blood soon began oozing from his mouth, while he became limp in Cole's grasp. This one watched the man falling back in horror, only then realizing that he had just killed a man. He let go at once of the man and the knife, and then looked at his bloodied hands, as if wondering whether they actually belonged to him.
Behind Phoebe, Paul dismounted, and then put down the gun he had aimed at the combatants until now. Then, without giving her a chance to react, he grabbed the gun that Phoebe was still holding before he walked slowly toward Cole and Sly's inanimate form. He stood back for a moment, somehow understanding what Cole was going through. Nevertheless, time was of the essence and he knew it.
"Are you ok, man? Can you get up?"
Cole barely acknowledged him, still looking from his hands to the dead man in consternation. After a moment though, he nodded weakly and slowly stood up.
Paul saw the gash on his side with a hint of worry.
"Hey, you're hurt. Want me to get a look at it?"
Cole made a dismissive gesture, barely feeling the pain at this point. He turned around, and walked away very stiffly. When he passed Phoebe, she tried:
"Thanks…" However, she stopped at the devastated look on his face.
"Save it," he growled, while continuing toward one of the horses. There, he picked up the flask and tried to drink some of the water. However, his throat was constricted and he almost choked on it.
Paul knew that the next part would be even harder on him considering, but if they wanted to survive, he had to shake him out of this. He walked quickly toward Cole while calling to him.
"Hey, if you can walk, that means you can help me. We gotta erase all trace of what happened here."
Cole turned to him reluctantly, and then without answering, he glanced at the body again, with nausea washing over him. He swallowed hard before looking back at Paul.
"Why? He's dead, isn't he?" Cole finally said.
"Before long, they'll come looking for him. We gotta hurry because we don't know how long we've got…"
During all this time, and at the exception of the harsh comment Cole served her, neither men paid any attention to Phoebe. It was as if she didn't exist all of a sudden. Yet, she was certain that Paul would have kept her from leaving, had she fancied to... However, at this point she also understood that there was no going back. At first, she simply stood there, watching them burying the body deep in the sand. Then, she began to help them masking all but the tracks of one horse coming in and going back out of the small gorge, including all traces of blood. When they were done, Phoebe followed them out of there and into the open, as Paul signalled that no one was about. All the while, she still felt ignored, even while helping them. A strange hurt invaded her, even though she didn't know exactly why…
After going further down the rocky formation, while still taking care of leaving only Sly horse's tracks visible, Paul found a way up the range and turned to Cole and Phoebe.
"You go up this trail; I'll be along soon."
Cole gave him a puzzled look.
"Where the hell do you think you're going?"
"I have to make sure they'll follow a different route. I'm not convinced that we fooled them yet. Watch your backs," he added before turning the horse and riding away.
Cole watched him uncertainly for a moment, and then, after shaking his head, he got off his own horse and began pulling it up the narrow path. Phoebe took a moment longer, even more unsure about Paul's intentions. However, his argument seemed reasonable, so she followed Cole without making any comments.
Lenny was slowly coming back, having been as far as he thought possible for someone on foot to reach. In fact, he didn't really believe that she had taken this route at all. This part of the range was composed of sheer cliffs with no possible way up, which would have seemed the most logical move was she to try escaping across the mountains. He had noticed a few accessible spots the way Sly had gone, and was now hoping that the boy had more luck as he neared the first gorge. Indeed, he could see that a horse had gone inside the gorge. He also noticed that the rider had come back out and gone on further. Giving one last look down the gorge, he turned to follow the tracks.
Phoebe and Cole climbed for over an hour before finding themselves on relatively flat terrain. Cole halted his advance there.
"We'll wait here…"
"That's not what he said…" Phoebe protested.
Cole turned an irritated look at her.
He didn't say either way…and besides, since when do you care anything what any of us say?"
"You got a point there," Phoebe replied while still sitting on a boulder nearby and looking out toward the desert. "Well, let's just say I choose to do it now…" she pursued without a glance his way.
"How convenient… Should I say thank you?"
Phoebe sneered but didn't answer. She sensed more than saw him shrugging before he went to sit by the trail, obviously watching for Paul.
They stayed in these positions silently for a long time, to the point where Phoebe became annoyed at this situation. It was pretty obvious to her that Cole was pissed, and even if she did not think that she owed him an apology, she had had enough of the silent treatment. Until now, all she could find in the desert was the sand as far as her eyes could see, and she was also getting tired of this fruitless occupation. However, she didn't have the first clue as to what to say that would put him in a more receptive mood. In the end, she even resolved to try apologizing anyway, if it could stop this shunning.
She glanced back toward Cole, and then made her move. Phoebe stood from her observing post and headed for the nearest horse. Opening the saddlebag, she found what she was looking for as she pulled an old shirt that she proceeded to tear into bands of cloth. Cole cast an annoyed look her way and then soon resumed his watch. This told Phoebe that cracking him wouldn't be so easy. Without letting it discourage her, Phoebe picked up a flask of water hanging from the saddle and headed toward him.
Cole had noticed her activities, and even more her coming toward him, but he made no move to acknowledge her, not even when she sat by his side.
"Hey, cowboy, want me to look at this thing," Phoebe asked then, while indicating the large bloodstain that soiled his torn shirt.
"Leave it alone," Cole answered gruffly after a moment.
Phoebe frowned unhappily, but instead of leaving, she said impatiently:
"Hey, I don't care one way or the other; but if you get a fever because of it, I won't help carrying you… and I wouldn't count on McKail to help you either…"
Cole shrugged and glanced at her irritably, but he still let her lift his shirt and get a look at the wound.
As she began cleaning the ugly gash on his side, she tried to talk to him.
"I huh… I wanted to thank you for saving me…"
Cole grunted, and then replied without facing her.
"Don't flatter yourself, babe. I was only thinking of McKail's warning about you."
Phoebe's mouth twitched irritably as she rubbed the wound harder.
"Hey, watch it," Cole said, as he sprung back slightly from the sting.
"Gotta make sure it's clean," Phoebe replied without flinching, as she continued her work with hardly a pause.
Cole bit his lips as much from irritation as to refrain from exclaiming again.
"Well, anyway," Phoebe pursued, "no matter why, you still saved me…so… thanks…"
Cole stayed silent, bracing himself as she began bandaging the wound. The touch of her hands on his skin was troubling him more than he cared to admit. He was afraid that she would see it in his face if he looked at her. Her attitude confused him. Why did she seem to care now? Was there something interested in her actions? The stirring that her touch had caused him until then slowly died away as the doubts invaded him again.
Phoebe had sensed the obvious constriction of his muscles, but she couldn't be certain whether he was reacting to her or the discomfort. At any rate, she understood that he wouldn't tell her, even if she questioned him about it.
His sudden question startled her.
"Why did you do it? Why did you run?"
Phoebe sensed anger and suspicion in his voice.
"You know why…"
Cole exhaled deeply, and then finally turned to her.
"I don't understand…how could you put money before people's lives? Or even your own, for that matter?"
"I didn't…" Phoebe began but she stopped herself…
"Believe what you want, after all. It's not like I care what you think all that much anyway!"
Cole thought that he detected some hurt, but in the whole, she was hiding it well. He still asked. "Don't you?"
Phoebe shrugged while turning her eyes toward the trail, avoiding his now.
"It's you who don't understand…"
"I'd sure like to… Why couldn't you trust us?"
"I never trusted anyone and I'm not gonna start now. I lead my life as I please and that's that."
Cole frowned while watching her intensely. He only wished he could read her mind right now. Maybe then, some things would start making sense.
"I still don't get it. No amount of money can be worth losing your life over."
"It's not about the money," Phoebe let out almost without thinking.
"Then what," Cole asked impatiently… When she didn't answer, an unpleasant thought crossed his mind.
"Was that him? Were you running back to him?"
Without a word, Phoebe grabbed the unused bandages and stood up abruptly. She was already on her way, when he called back to her.
"Why won't you answer me? Is that it?"
Phoebe stopped, took a deep breath and turned to him with irritation in her eyes.
"Yeah, I enjoy so much being humiliated and hurt by my lovers…"
"From where I stood, it looked like you enjoyed it!"
Cole couldn't believe he had said that. However, instead of the hurt look he expected, Phoebe turned a wicked smile toward him before moving away. Only then did he realize what it had sounded like with a sinking feeling. He most certainly had not intended to give her power over him…He mentally slapped himself for his stupidity, but most of all he wondered if this truly meant that he was jealous. He so believed that he had resolved the issue the night before… and even more so now that she had betrayed them. "Or had she," he couldn't help questioning at this point.
However, what had happened made it difficult for him to give her excuses. Even though, he knew that her leaving had been his fault as well, he still couldn't risk putting his trust in her… Not with in mind the terrible memory of what she had caused him to do. The sight of his victim's eyes glassing over as he watched was still haunting him. It didn't really matter at this point that the man had been a monster. It was enough for Cole that he had been the one who robbed him of his life with his own hands. He had tried to wipe these, but even if no trace of the blood remained, he believed that he would never be cleansed. Trying to distract himself from the unpleasant thoughts, he resumed his watch for Paul's return. This brought another sort of musing to him. Cole wondered how Paul did it, as he was convinced that this man had killed, and more than once. Not that he wanted to repeat the experience ever. On the contrary… However, he only wished that he knew how to live with himself from now on and he wasn't certain that he would ever. The only positive effect of this musing was that it put his blunder with Phoebe in perspective, allowing him to brush it aside, or so he thought until he turned to find her back at her observation spot. Phoebe seemed to be ignoring him, and it annoyed him more than if she had been mocking him, he realized. Even as he watched, she suddenly bent further toward the edge, as if she saw something. Curious, he stood up to go to her but stopped short at the sound of pebbles rolling down the rocky slope.
Expecting Paul to appear around the bend in the trail, he didn't bother to pull his revolver out of the holster and started back. Then, he practically jumped out of his skin at hearing a single gunshot echoing throughout the mountains…
Around the bend, Lenny halted and observed the bend in the trail curiously, while pulling his gun and letting go of the horses' reins. He was about to move forward when the loud sound of a gunshot had him looking up in surprise. Then, he seemed to hesitate between going further up the trail and investigating this new disturbance…
