Untamed Fire (40 page)

“And she did. Didn’t she?” Gaby asked.

Eduardo nodded his head slowly. “I had
thought my secret safe. I fell in love and married. By that time
you both had already been placed with families for several years. I
thought it best I not disturb your lives. I wrote to Ramon Cabrillo
encouraging him to come to Los Angeles. I told him I was friend of
a friend, when actually I was the friend. You see the years had
changed me considerably, and I had changed my name. When they
arrived, Ramon didn’t even recognize me. The weather had tanned my
complexion and added years to my face. My weight had doubled and my
hair was thinning. He had no idea I was his old acquaintance Gaspar
de Portola. That is why I’ve stayed away from the Cabrillo hacienda
since the Galvezes have arrived. I was afraid they’d recognize me,
but it doesn’t matter now. Isabel found out about you two. How, I
don’t know, but you must be careful. You are both in great danger.
I sent Louisa away so she’d be safe. Now you both must hurry and
go. I could not stand losing either of you when I’ve just found
both of you.”

Gaby was speechless. She had never imagined
an illicit affair had produced the twins and was the reason their
lives had been in jeopardy.

Rosalita stood and walked over to Eduardo.
She bent down in front of him, covering his hands with hers. “I’m
so very glad to meet you, Father, and so grateful you loved me
enough to protect me. When this is all settled, we must talk. There
is much for us to learn and say to each other.”

Eduardo found tears blurring his vision.
“You have grown into a beauty, inside as well as out. I was
afraid—”

Rapid gunshots and screams pierced the air
in terrifying intensity.

“Get down!” Eduardo screamed.

The women hit the floor just as a fusillade
of bullets ripped through the open-shuttered windows. They crawled
toward each other and huddled together against a large wooden chest
for protection.

Eduardo managed to get to a chest of drawers
across the room and pulled a gun from it.

“Stay down,” he ordered as he crawled toward
them.

The shooting went on for what seemed like
hours, but it was only minutes. Silence followed, deadly calm
silence that was more frightening than the shooting itself.

Eduardo stood in front of Gaby and Rosalita
shielding them when a man entered the room. He was thin, his gaunt
face etched with deep lines and wrinkles. He was followed by two
more men, one short and heavy, the other tall and thick with
muscles. They all smiled.

“
Oh santo Dios!
” Eduardo whispered
and both girls knew this time he wouldn’t be able to save them.

None of the men spoke. They walked further
into the room. The thin one raised his gun at Eduardo.

“I love you both very much,” Eduardo
whispered and raised his gun.

Gaby, without thinking, stood and slipped in
front of him. “You came for us leave him be.”

The big man grinned. “She must be the dumb
one.”

“Shut up,” the thin man ordered harshly.

“And you must be even dumber taking orders
from the likes of him,” Gaby said with a laugh.

“I have no patience for her sharp tongue,”
the thin man said. “Take them!”

The short and large man obeyed immediately,
rushing forward and attempting to grab each of the girls. Gaby
clawed the big fellow, while Rosalita bit and kicked the other.

The thin man stepped forward and Eduardo
didn’t back down. A loud shot rang out, causing everyone to
still.

Rosalita gasped and covered her face with
her hand.

Gaby tried to break free of the hold the
large man had on her, but it was useless.

“Take them away,” the thin man ordered.

The last sight Rosalita had of her father
was of him lying on the floor in a pool of blood.

Gaby and Rosalita’s hands were tied to the
horn of each of the saddles they rode. Their reins were held by
other men who led the two women’s horses behind their own. They
left the Ortega hacienda half-burning and with the screams of the
women servants still echoing in their ears.

They were kept separated and they rode hard
and long. No stops were made. The men drank and ate in their saddle
without an offer of any food or drink to the two prisoners.

Finally they stopped near dusk and camped
near the edge of a river. All Gaby could think of was sitting in
the cool water to soothe her aching bottom. She had never ridden
that far or hard. But it was obvious Rosalita had, or else she was
accustomed to hiding her discomfort and did it well.

“Finally, I thought you’d never arrive.”

Gaby and Rosalita whirled around to see
Isabel and Ignacio standing not far from the campfire.

“It takes time to kill people, senora,” the
thin man said in a dangerously slow drawl.

“I pay you handsomely for work you enjoy,
Miguel, and when I give an order I expect it obeyed, like it or
not.”

Gaby spoke foolishly at times, but never as
foolishly as Isabel Galvez was now speaking to this man Miguel. He
was dangerous, very dangerous. All one had to do was look at him to
see it. Isabel had to be insane to speak to him in such a
condescending tone.

“Bring them over here. I’m tired of this
dallying; I want this at an end and now,” Isabel demanded.

Gaby and Rosalita’s hands had been untied
and they were shoved from behind, toward the woman Gaby was glad
wasn’t her mother.

“So now you know why it was impossible that
you live,” she said, a smile of pure joy on her face.

“One thing,” Gaby asked. “How did you find
us after all these years?”

Isabel laughed. A laugh that betrayed the
aging wrinkles in her face. “A stupid mistake. I would have never
found you if a friend of Felipe’s hadn’t written to him swearing he
had seen Gaspar de Portola in Los Angeles. I hired someone here
through a friend to search Gaspar out. I knew once I found him, I
would find my daughters.”

“But why after all these years?” Rosalita
queried.

“Money, of course, and this time I want it
all. I found myself a young, ardent lover, and I wish to live my
remaining years free to enjoy as
I
please, not how a husband
pleases.”

“Ignacio.” Gaby asked.

“Smart and quick with your mouth. It’s a
shame you aren’t my daughter, I could teach you so much. You know
then that Ignacio is no relation.”

“I thought as much,” Gaby answered while
wondering if her life and that of her child’s would end here.

“Tell me,” Isabel said, looking at Gaby.
“Did you enjoy the little tricks I had Miguel play on you?”

“Tricks?”

“The accidents you had, although Miguel did
get carried away when he shot so close at that tomato you were
about to pick,” Isabel said, sending the thin man a scathing look.
“He was told to only toy with you.”

Gaby found her fear turning to anger. “You
are hateful.”

“What a pity that you care so much. It’s a
waste of your intelligence... enough of this chatter,” Isabel said
with a dismissive wave of her hand. “I will make certain you both
die this time. I will stand here and watch as you both take your
last breaths.”

“What of Felipe?” Rosalita asked, sticking
close to Gaby’s side.

“An accident on the return trip home should
handle that problem nicely” she informed her and stroked Ignacio’s
face in anticipation of their freedom.

“As soon as we set sail,” Ignacio
agreed.

“Enough,” Isabel said impatiently. “We had
our little reunion, now kill them, Miguel.”

Miguel placed his hand on his holster.

“Hurry, I want this done now. Right now!”
Isabel demanded.

“All will be taken care of, senora,” he said
slowly.

“It will be taken care of now. You will obey
me, Miguel. I am the one that pays you,” Isabel yelled.

Gaby wondered how the woman could be so
stupid. Perhaps the years of being dictated to had taken their
toll. Regardless, she had chosen the wrong man to order about. Gaby
took a step back, taking Rosalita with her.

The thin man smiled at Gaby and she
shivered. They both understood what he was about to do.

“You are smart. You will bring many pesos,”
Miguel said, shaking his finger at Gaby.

“Are you stupid?” Isabel cried. “I want them
dead, now!”

Ignacio gripped her arm. “I think we should
be on our way. Miguel knows what he’s doing.”

“No,” Isabel snapped, pulling her arm away.
“He will kill them now. I want to make certain they are dead this
time.”

“Leave it to him,” Ignacio insisted. “He
knows what he’s doing.”

“She thinks I’m stupid.” Miguel laughed and
shook his head, looking at each of his men as he did.

Isabel opened her mouth, ready to tell him
exactly how stupid he was, when a shot rang out.

The men laughed when they saw the bullet had
entered Isabel’s mouth and ripped through the back of her head. She
lay dead in the dirt with Ignacio staring wide-eyed down at
her.

“Senor,” Miguel said, and Ignacio looked up.
“A pity your woman did not listen to you.” Another shot rang out
and Ignacio fell across Isabel.

“Now they are together,” Miguel said with a
smile. He then ordered their bodies taken away.

Rosalita and Gaby clung tightly to each
other. This man was dangerous. He not only killed for money, but
for pleasure.

He walked over to the girls and reached out,
running his thin finger along Gaby’s face. She remained still,
fearing she would only antagonize him if she demonstrated her
distaste for him.

“You are worth more to me alive than dead. I
will get much for you in Mexico... or perhaps I will keep you for
myself. We shall see.”

Gaby shivered with relief when he walked
away.

“Will Rafael come?” Rosalita whispered.

“Yes, he will come,” Gaby assured her, but
didn’t add that it might not be soon enough.

“She
what?
” Rafael yelled at the
trembling man.

“I sent two vaqueros with her for
protection,” Carlos said. “She insisted. I could not change her
mind.”

Rafael calmed himself as best he could.
“Tell the men to ready themselves. We ride to the Ortega ranch
immediately.”

When Rafael walked to the stable where his
men waited, mounted and ready, they stared. He looked like one of
them, only more powerful, more dangerous. He wore heavy leather
leggings over his pants and soft leather shoes with low heels. The
enormous rowels on his spurs jangled as he walked. The points were
filed down so the animal would not be injured by them, but they
were blunt enough to let the animal know he meant business. A short
jacket covered a light linen shirt and his hat rode low on his
forehead.

The men stiffened in their saddles as they
watched him mount his mare with ease.

He slipped on his black leather gloves,
checked his rifle snug in his saddle, and made certain his knife
was tucked securely in his boot.

“We ride!” he yelled, and led his men out of
the hacienda.

Rafael’s first thought when he spied the
smoke was that time somehow was repeating itself. His stomach
tightened in fear and he urged Bella on. Once he reached the
hacienda he slipped off his saddle as soon as he brought his mare
to a halt and ran past the chaos around him and inside.

He found Eduardo barely clinging to
life.

“Took the girls,” he choked, trying to get
the words out.

“Who?” Rafael asked while attempting to
discover the extent of his wound.

“Men... Isabel.” Eduardo shook his head,
finding speech too difficult.

“Isabel is responsible for all this, isn’t
she?”

Eduardo nodded.

Rafael called to his men for help, then
ripped the blood-soaked shirt open. “I still don’t understand
why.”

“Father,” Eduardo got out and patted his
chest.

Rafael stared, the white linen cloth he had
grabbed from a nearby table hung from his hand. “You’re the twins’
father?”

Eduardo closed his eyes and nodded.

“No wonder she wants the girls dead.”

“Evil man,” Eduardo said with
difficulty.

“Renegades?”

Eduardo nodded again.

“Isabel had no idea what she’s gotten
herself into,” Rafael said more to himself than the injured man.
“How much time do they have on me?”

“Thirty, forty minutes,” Eduardo managed to
say.

“I’ve sent one of my men back for help. I’ll
leave a few more here to look after those who have survived. You
will be all right, my friend?”

“Daughters—bring home,” he sighed with tears
in his eyes.

“I promise,” he said, squeezing the older
man’s hand.

Rafael then left him in the care of one of
his vaqueros.

He mounted his horse, as did the men who
were accompanying him.

“We ride hard. I want the men who did this
and I want them this day,” he announced calmly, too calmly.

The men knew he was beyond anger and that’s
when a man became dangerous. None had any doubt that by evening
they would have the men and Rafael would personally see to their
punishment.

~~~

“He has not taken his eyes off you,”
Rosalita whispered to Gaby as they sat huddled together not far
from the fire. Each of their wrists were crossed and tied in front
of them.

“I noticed,” she murmured, fearing the
outcome of his obvious interest.

“It is dark.”

Gaby spoke the words Rosalita was too afraid
to. “Too dark for Rafael to find us tonight.”

“He must find us,” Rosalita insisted. “That
man means you harm.”

“Then we must think of a way to escape.”

Rosalita opened her mouth to protest the
impossibility of such an idea, but Gaby silenced her with a harsh
whisper. “We have no choice. We must protect ourselves. There is no
one here to do it for us.”