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Bab looked at little Storm. He would never know his mother and all because of the brute cursing on the ground. She hated Jak and always had. And always she had feared him, his temper and his overwhelming strength. But Brady had felled him with one well-placed kick.

Perhaps he could be beaten.

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“Maybe we should go,” Tam said. He stood between her and the other men. They were mostly younger than her and Tam, and they looked nearly as frightened as she was.

“Where would we go?” Bab looked toward where Brady and Cara had disappeared. She would never see the pretty man again. Though he promised to return one day, she would probably be dead. When Hop returned, he would kill her and Tam. Hopefully he wouldn’t hurt the precious babies. Infants were rare and important, but he might do it just to be cruel before he killed her.

Tam sighed and went to search under the trees. After the recent storm there were many branches lying about. He had no trouble finding one as thick as his wrist and longer than his arm.

“I’m sorry, Tam. I shouldn’t have asked you to help me.” Bab looked around the camp with dismay. Not so long ago, she and Rena had been filled with joyous plans of peace and freedom. How foolish they had been. They wouldn’t have survived the winter. Rena would have died during the storm before delivering her baby if not for Cara and Brady.

“What are you going to do, Tam?” one of the young men asked, more curious than belligerent.

“He’s going to die, him and his bitch both.” Jak’s voice was hoarse from his screaming.

Bab thought he might be right.

“Tough words from someone broken by a man with his hands tied behind his back,” Tam snapped back at him.

Jak’s face was white with pain, but now dark, red spots of rage bloomed on his cheeks.

He struggled to a sitting position with sweat dripping down his face and running in tiny rivers down his chest. With much grunting and panting, he pushed himself up to stand on his one good leg. His injured leg hung in an odd way as the knee had twisted. His foot pointed toward the other one instead of forward.

“I’m going to twist your head off your skinny neck, Tam.”

Perhaps because she and Tam had just bathed, Bab noticed Jak’s foul odor. The stench of his seldom washed skin wafted to them. How had she suffered this animal to crawl on top of her? And that was it. She’d suffered, and she was determined to never suffer it again.

“Are you going to crawl over here to get me?” Tam swung his club. “Maybe we’ll start to call you Hop. We’ll have two Hops.”

Some of the men snickered. Jak swung his harsh glare on them, smothering the laughter.

“When Hop gets back, we’re going to pull your stupid tongue from your loud mouth.

Maybe we won’t kill your bitch since she’s a proven baby maker. Hop likes her but we’ll have to do something about her over proud attitude. She’s led Rena into this stupid trouble.”

“But you’re the one who killed her.” Bab spat toward Jak’s foot.

“She did it to herself. She wouldn’t tell me why she ran away. But after I showed her how to respect me, she told me all about you and your plan.”

“I hear them,” Tam said. “They’re coming back.”

For a short, sweet moment, Bab thought he meant Brady and Cara, but then she heard the rumble of deep voices coming from the direction of the sea. Hop and the others. Hop was every bit as nasty as Jak, and he always went along with whatever the leader said. In turn, Hop got as many women as he wanted and mostly he wanted Bab.

Bab’s heart beat heavy in her chest. Angel and Storm slept so innocently on the bare ground. If she died, they would grow up to be as dirty and ignorant as Jak. But she couldn’t go back to the life she’d had before she fled the village. Meeting Brady and Cara had shown her life ONE GOOD WOMAN SUSAN KELLEY 103

could be more. The affection between them, the oneness they shared, she wanted that. She wanted that even if it couldn’t be with Brady.

Hop led his small band into the campsite. The big man’s expression was angry as usual.

“There are no signs of any other strangers, Jak.” Hop stopped in mid-stride, his mouth hanging open. “What happened to you?”

“That sky-eyed bastard tricked me, and then these two pieces of shit helped them escape.”

Hop looked at the cut ropes and then at Bab and Tam. His expression was confused more than angry. “How did that skinny stranger take you?”

“He didn’t take me,” Jak snarled back. “He tricked me with their help and busted my knee.”

“You’re crippled, Jak.” Bab counted the men who had returned with Hop. Six, some of them older than their leader but none as big. Would they all join in killing her and Tam? “I don’t think you’ll ever walk again.”

“I will walk, stupid bitch. Be quiet or I’ll change my mind about letting you live.” Jak pointed at Tam. “Kill that one.”

Hop smiled, ugly emotions in his eyes. “Glad to. He always has taken more turns on Bab than he should have. She’s going to be all mine from now on.”

Tam held his ground as Hop skirted the embers of the fire. Hop’s big hands flexed into fists. Bab cursed herself for not getting a club herself. She couldn’t let Tam get killed. It would be her fault the same as Rena’s death.

Two of the older men followed Hop, and Jak hobbled along behind them. The younger men backed out of the way, a smart thing to do. The last fight for leadership of the tribe had been when Bab was a little girl. Jak had killed the old leader in a bloody, merciless fight.

Tam swung his club with both hands as soon as Hop was close enough. Despite his size, Hop was quick and agile. He ducked under the thick branch and brought his fist up into Tam’s belly.

Tam folded up like a piece of hide. His breath whooshed out of his mouth, and his face went white. How could it be over so soon? His agonized gaze turned up to her, and then he toppled over to land heavily on his side.

Hop laughed, the sound so different from the joyful amusement she and Tam had shared earlier.

“I’m going to kick your head in, Tam.”

Bab screamed and threw herself at Hop. She clawed at his nasty eyes and filthy mouth, but he shrugged her aside with little effort. She landed on her backside near Tam, tears blurring her sight. Next to Rena, Tam was her best friend, and she was going to lose them both.

A sudden crack of thunder came from right behind their heads. Hop stumbled back, a spurt of bright red erupting from his chest. He opened his mouth, and more red dribbled down his chin. Surprise spread over his vicious expression.

Jak shouted and struggled to Hop’s side. He pushed his friend out of the way. Hop offered no resistance, and after taking two unsteady steps, fell to his knees. His dark eyes lost focus, and then he toppled forward onto his face.

Jak ignored him and picked up the club Tam had dropped. He lifted it over his head.

“I’ll do it myself.”

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Bab dove on top of Tam, covering his head with her body. She braced herself for the crushing blow. But another crack of thunder, even though the sun was shining, burst from the trees near the river.

Jak made a funny sound. Bab peeked cautiously over her shoulder, wondering why she wasn’t dead yet. The campsite was quiet except for the babies fussing about their disturbed rest.

Bab sat up and helped Tam to rise. They stood up and backed away from Jak.

Jak swayed on his good leg. Blood leaked from a hole low on his chest. He dropped the club and tried to hold the blood in with his hands.

Bab had seen storms that broke trees and sometimes caught them of fire, but she’d never seen one of the yellow-white bolts strike a man and make him bleed. It was as if a spirit had watched out for them.

“What did you do, bitch?” One of the older men stepped toward her. He held one of the sharp stone knives they used to cut and clean hides. “You’re the cause of all this trouble.”

Tam pushed Bab behind him. “She did nothing, Mak.”

The thunder roared again but from a spot not far from Bab’s head. Mak spun away from them and clutched at his arm.

“Leave them alone, or you’ll join Jak and Hop on the ground.” Brady stepped into the open. He held the shiny tool in his hand he always took such care of.

Mak spun back toward him with a curse and took a step toward him. The tool in Brady’s hand spat lightning and thunder. Mak screamed and fell over backward. An odd burning smell and gray smoke hung in the clearing.

“Are you all right, Bab?” Cara appeared silently at Tam’s side. She held the long, shiny branch in her hand that she usually carried at her side. Though she spoke to Bab, she watched and pointed the stick at the other men.

“Why did you come back?” Bab asked, not quite able to believe she and Tam weren’t going to die.

“Because, that’s what friends do.” Cara glanced at her quickly and then looked back at the cowering men. “Friends help each other.”

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Cara wondered how effective her sword would be in holding back the Savages. They apparently had no knowledge of metals and might not think twice about charging her.

But they crowded away from her, or maybe from Brady. The scent of burning powder hung in the air despite the breeze. Hop looked dead already, but Jak whimpered pathetically and curled on his side. The other one sprawled on his back, an ugly hole in his torso and a rattle in his breathing.

“You came back to help me.” Bab looked at Brady with shining adoration in her dark eyes.

Brady nodded toward Cara. “Cara’s idea.”

Bab frowned at Cara. “But you hate me for trying to take your man.”

“I knew you couldn’t take my man from me.” Cara didn’t want to explain it to this …

woman, but Bab needed an answer. “I know what it’s like to live in fear and terror of those stronger than you. You were very brave when you made your plan to run away. I wanted you to be free.”

Tam put his arm on Bab’s shoulders. “I don’t want you to go anywhere, Bab. I want you to stay with me.”

“Come here and help me.” Jak’s vicious tone was unchanged but there was little power in his words. “I’ll rip you to pieces if you don’t help me now.”

“You’ll be dead in a few hours.” Brady walked over to stand beside Cara and faced the other Savages. He reloaded his pistol with the smooth coordination of practice and pointed it at the males. “I think Bab should be your new leader.”

“She’s a woman!” one of males said. A few others mumbled under their breath.

Brady swung his pistol in a threatening arch that covered all of them. “Women are natural leaders. They’re smart, they don’t fight as much as men and they plan ahead.”

“And she will have me to back her up.” Tam pulled Bab tight to his side.

Bab looked at Brady with longing and then turned to Tam. She laid her head on his bare chest. “Tam is going to be my only mate. We’ll be your leaders together and learn this trade thing.”

Cara looked at Brady. Hadn’t he made up the story about trading? But he nodded his approval. “My tribe will gladly trade with you if Bab and Tam are your leaders. We can learn things from each other.”

“No!” shouted Jak. Bloody spittle flew from his mouth. “Kill them! Kill all of them including these two traitors to our kind.”

But none of the males made any aggressive moves. Cara wondered if Brady’s gun held them in place or the possibilities of having new leaders.

Jak cursed and spit at Bab and Tam. Then a new sly look came into his eyes despite the pain there. “Look at these bites taken out of me. These strangers are evil spirits that kill with magic. Look what they did to poor Hop and Mak. You should destroy them before they strike you all down.”

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Uncertainty and fear grew on the faces of the males. Even Tam pulled Bab away a few steps. But Cara understood the superstitious fear of Savages and knew simply denying magic wouldn’t work.

“He’s right, or course, about the magic. Brady is my guardian and has the power of lightning and storm. He carries them in that magic stick in his hand. Some of our tribes possess even more powerful weapons. If you had actually harmed us, the lightning would have blasted holes in all of you. And not like it did to Hop. His dying was easy. It would strike you as it did Jak. See how he suffers. He’s going to be a long time dying.”

Jak glared at her, his face the color of a bleached seashell. Bloody drool leaked from the corners of his mouth. His hands trembled where they clutched his chest. But even so close to dying he was dangerous. She would have liked to kick him in the face for what he did to Rena, but she wouldn’t take the risk.

“I’ll follow Bab,” one of the young males said. “I know she won’t hit me for not finding enough fruit.”

“You shouldn’t have killed Rena,” another one said. “She made a good baby, and she would have had more.”

Jak gasped and flopped over to his back. “Help me, bitch.”

Cara studied the males. They ignored Jak and most of them looked confused. The oldest one who’d threatened Bab and Tam alongside Hop looked angry but not brave enough to challenge Brady. As a group, they edged from the dead and the dying.

Angel’s quiet fussing burst into a wail, and Storm joined her with his own protest. Bab and Tam hurried to them.

Cara wondered what they should do next. In coming back for Bab, Cara felt she’d taken on some responsibility for the woman. “Bab, Brady and I are going back to the river crossing.