"I think they're in this together. Luke means to kill me. Chet will marry you. Then they'll have both ranches." "Then why didn't Luke kill you when you were laid up?"

"It wasn't time yet. Chet wasn't sure of you."

Melody realized she couldn't reason with Blade. He was past that. "I don't know about any of that," she said, "but Chet is gone. We had an argument, and he left."

Blade glared at her. "I don't believe you. Why would he leave?"

"Because he didn't want a wife who thought he was a killer."

"But he is a killer."

"No. He'll use his gun if he thinks it's necessary, but he's not a killer."

"He shot me," Blade said.

Melody saw anger blaze in his eyes. She also saw something else, a kind of rage that wasn't quite sane.

"He thought you were going to hurt Sydney."

"The little fool thought he could outdraw me. Me!" he practically screamed. "I was going to make him draw on me. Then I was going to kill him."

"Where are my brothers?" she asked, suddenly fearful.

"I'm going to kill Chet, too," Blade said. "He shot me."

"Where are my brothers?" Melody repeated.

"I knew he'd come if anything happened to those boys," he said.

"Chet's gone, Blade. He won't know about anything that happens here."

"Now that I've got you, he's sure to come. Then I'll kill him."

Blade wasn't listening to her.

"I'll take you back to the camp, but I won't hide you," he said. "I want him to see you."

Melody could tell Blade was pleased with himself. He thought he had everything figured out. She didn't know what he was going to do when he finally realized Chet wasn't coming. She hoped she'd figure out a way to help her brothers escape before then.

Blade jerked her reins out of her hands and forced her to follow him. They traveled recklessly fast through the dangerous trails along the canyon floor, but Blade seemed to know every twist and turn. Melody wondered how long he'd been trespa.s.sing on her father's land. She wondered if he'd been rustling before her father's death. She wondered how she and her brothers were going to get away from Blade, how they could get to safety before he discovered they were missing and followed. She wondered if anyone except Chet would think to come so deep into the canyon.

She knew the answers to all of those questions. n.o.body except Chet would have any idea where they were. n.o.body but Chet would believe the depth of Blade's hatred, believe the extent of his madness, understand the danger she and her brothers were in.

But Chet was miles away by now. He wouldn't know anything of their danger. He probably wouldn't come if he did.

No, he would. He'd done it before, and he'd do it again. Only he wouldn't this time because he wouldn't know.

"Where are we going?" she asked Blade. Maybe if she had some idea, she could think of something to do.

"A place where I can be certain he'll see you."

He turned abruptly and started up the wall of the canyon. In the dark, Melody could hardly make out the trail. It seemed more like a rockslide than a trail. The horses struggled to keep their footing on the loose stones. Melody looked up. The rim was at least three hundred feet above them. This couldn't be the trail Chet said led to the upper rim.

A few minutes later Blade turned the horses to the right, and Melody found herself on a narrow ledge. She saw two men she didn't know sitting before a small fire. Looking around, she saw Neill huddled against a dark shape. Melody fell out of the saddle and raced to her brother. With a cry of recognition, Neill threw his arms out to his sister. He didn't come to her because his feet were bound. He broke into tears at once.

"He beat Sydney," he cried. "I tried to stop him, but they held me. I think he killed him."

Neill's gaze turned toward the dark shape lying on the ground. With a gasp of horror, Melody realized that it was Sydney.

"He shouldn't have tried to shoot me," Blade said. "I wouldn't have hurt him if he hadn't tried to shoot me."

Ignoring Blade, Melody rushed over to her brother. She turned him over. What she saw nearly caused her to be sick. Blood covered his face. His eyes were swollen shut. His lips were broken and bleeding. Cuts and bruises covered his skin. But he was breathing. She touched his side, and he groaned. He probably had several broken ribs. Blade had beaten his body as well. She got to her feet filled with such rage that she forgot to be afraid of Blade.

"If I were a man, I'd beat you within an inch of your life. He's a boy, Blade Royal. Are you such a coward that you take out your frustrations only on boys?" She slapped him as hard as she could. "If you ever touch him again, I'll kill you." She strode over to the fire and took the kettle of hot water off the stove. A cry from Neill caused her to turn. Blade was coming toward her, fist raised.

"Come a step closer and I'll throw this boiling water at you," she said. "You'd be blind. Your face would be so scarred, no one could stand to look at you."

They stood there, he afraid of the pot of boiling water, she afraid of what he'd do when she turned her back.

"Does your father know what you've done, Blade? Does he know you've stolen his cows, kidnapped a boy, and tried to kill him?"

Much to her relief, she had stumbled on something that had the power to frighten Blade.

"I hate him!" Blade shouted. "You were supposed to marry me, not him!"

Melody found it hard to believe he still thought he loved her. Still, maybe she could use this. She could see fear in his anger. Maybe she could use that, too.

"I'm not going to marry your father, Blade."

"He says you are."

"I've told him over and over again I'm not. He just can't believe anybody would turn him down."

"n.o.body ever has. Everybody does exactly what he says."

"I won't."

"I won't either." He paused and peered at her. "You really aren't going to marry him?"

"No. Now move. I've got to take care of Sydney."

He didn't move, but he didn't stop her when she walked around him. Sydney groaned when she started to clean his wounds. Every bruise, every cut, every contusion made her want to throw a basin of scaling water in Blade's face. He had beaten Sydney with methodical precision. Chet was right. He was sick.

"Will you marry me?" Blade asked suddenly.

"If you marry that son-of-a"

"Quiet," she whispered to Sydney. "No matter what happens, don't say a word." More loudly she said, "I'm not going to stay in Texas, Blade. I'm going back to Virginia as soon as I can." She couldn't tell him the truth, that she wanted to marry Chet. He'd probably kill all three of them.

"Pa won't let you go."

"I don't intend to ask him."

"He'll find out. He'll stop you."

She stopped long enough to look up at him. "You can help me, Blade. You can help me get away from your father."

A smile instantly wreathed his whole face, then disappeared. "Pa told Luke not to let me out of his sight."

"You got away from him this time, didn't you? You can do it again."

"He's crazy," Sydney hissed. "If you let him"

"I'm trying to save our lives," Melody said in a fierce whisper. "Shut up and pretend to be unconscious."

"Yeah, I can," Blade said. "Pa's real mad about Chet. He's been looking for him for days. Can't find him anywhere."

"Good. Then we can go while he's looking for Chet," she said, standing. "Let me get my horse. We can leave right now."

"No!" Blade's voice was as sharp as a whip. "Chet shot me. I'm going to kill him. You're my bait."

He grabbed her and dragged her over to the edge of the ledge. For a moment she feared he would push her to her death.

"I'm going to tie you up right here where he can see you. Then when he comes, I'm going to kill him."

For the first time, Melody prayed Chet had forgotten her, that he would make it to Santa Fe before the first snow fell on the mountains.

Chet had no difficulty following Melody's trail with the occasional aid of a lantern. She didn't know the first thing about covering her tracks or even riding a few feet off the main trail. For once he was thankful she was such a novice.

"We didn't expect to see you again," Speers said.

"I didn't expect to be back."

He hadn't been able to stay away. He'd camped ten miles out of town that first night. That was as far as he got. Every time he got ready to saddle up, his limbs wouldn't move. He couldn't make his hands grip the saddle. His entire body rebelled. So he sat there, arguing with himself, shouting at himself like a fool. If anybody but his horse had seen him, they'd have sworn he was loco. In the end he'd given up and come back to the Spring Water. He'd promised to stop the rustling, and he always kept his promises. After that he didn't know what he was going to do, but he knew he couldn't leave Melody.

He'd found the household in an uproar over her disappearance. Dan was in the midst of organizing the crew into small groups that would begin combing the ranch at dawn. Chet had left immediately. Speers had insisted upon coming along.

"Do you know where he's got the boys?" Speers asked Chet.

"No, but it's got to be someplace close by. The most logical place is one of the caves in the canyon."

"And you think Melody went there after him?"

"Yes."

"Why would she go by herself? Why wouldn't she at least wait for us?"

"I don't know."

Chet thought it probably came down to guilt. She would feel it was her fault that Lantz and Blade's fight over her had put her family in danger. Maybe for that reason she thought she might convince Blade to listen to her when he might not listen to anyone else. Whatever she had thought, Chet wished she hadn't gone alone. Blade might not be crazy, but he was extremely dangerous.

"What does Blade want with those boys?" Speers asked.

That question had been bothering Chet ever since he'd learned of the kidnapping. He was convinced Blade was crazy, but he was just as certain he didn't do anything without a reason.

"Maybe he wanted to get back at Sydney, and Neill just happened to be in the way," Chet said.

"Or he wanted to catch Melody and he was using the boys as bait," Speers suggested.

"No. He couldn't expect Melody to come on her own. Still, he had to know somebody would come."

"Maybe he thought you'd come. You did before." "I'd already left town."

"Did he know that?"

"I don't know."

There'd be no reason for anyone to tell Blade, no reason for anyone besides Melody and her family to know. The more he thought about it, the more Chet felt certain Speers had hit upon the real reason behind this kidnapping.

"Look," Speers said, pointing to a second set of hoofprints off the trail.

"Somebody's following her."

"Do you think it's Blade?"

Chet nodded. When the two trails joined, he was sure of it.

"He's got her, doesn't he?" Speers asked.

"Yes."

"What's he going to do with her?"

"Take her back to his camp. If I'm the one he really wants, this will insure that I show up."

"You come back because of her?"

"Yes."

"Then why did you leave in the first place?"

Now that he'd admitted he couldn't live without Melody, Chet wasn't sure himself. He guessed when you'd been telling yourself something for most of your lifesomething you didn't want to hear but something you were convinced you had to hear and believeit was hard to think differently. He was still certain he was doing the wrong thing. He just knew he couldn't do anything else.

"I don't think Bob Jordan's death was an accident. I think the rustling and everything else is tied together. I won't know how until I talk to Blade."

"You think he killed Jordan?" "I don't know, but I'm certain he knows what happened."

"But if he's waiting for you, he's not going to let you get close enough to talk."