Free Desperado by Sandra Hill

I’ve had some weird feelings, too.” His eyes met hers and held. “Let’s be honest here, Helen. Do you or do you not know these yahoos? Is this a military setup?”
    â€œOf course not,” she said indignantly. Then she asked, “As long as we’re being honest, do you swear these men aren’t friends of yours? Or someone you hired to play a prank?”
    â€œYou’re obviously not playing with a full deck if you could think that. Why would I hire someone to shoot at me, kick me, tie me up, and force me to ride a monster horse till I get a blister on my butt? I mean, do you really think I’m having fun here?” Rafe braced his fists on his hips and glowered at her with exasperation.
    â€œThen that must mean . . . Oh, Lord! Do you really think time travel is possible?”
    â€œMaybe it’s just a dream,” he suggested.
    â€œWould we both be having the same dream?”
    â€œHow the hell do I know? Nah, it’s not a dream. If it were a dream, I know exactly what I’d be doing, and who would be doing it with me.” He gave her a swift, smoldering once-over that needed no explanation.
    â€œYou are certifiable.”
    â€œBet you wish you had your clipboard, don’tcha, babe?” He favored her with one of his devastating grins.
    She inhaled to gather patience. “Could we concentrate on the subject here, Captain? Time travel, remember?”
    â€œAre we back to this military rank crap again?” When she refused to answer, he forced a somber expression on his face.“Okay, if it’s not a military maneuver, and it’s not a dream, we must be dead.”
    â€œAnd this is . . . ?”
    â€œHell. Definitely hell.”
    â€œShhh,” she cautioned, pointing to Pablo, who glanced up from where he was stirring something in a kettle over the cook fire. Sancho had his back to them, tending to the other picketed horses. Ignacio sat with his back against a tree, one pistol laid over his lap. Although his sombrero tilted forward over his face, almost covering his slitted eyes, Helen was sure he was watching them closely. “I don’t think they suspect anything about our coming from the future. But we’d better be careful.”
    â€œLet’s move over toward the creek,” Rafe suggested. “Maybe we’ll find an opportunity to escape.”
    â€œDo you have a plan?”
    He shook his head. “We have to keep our eyes open for the right opportunity. There’s no way I can take on all three of them, and we’ll never get away unless we take their guns and horses first.”
    â€œI agree. Timing is everything. The first rule of every good soldier.”
    He snorted rudely. “Rules be damned. We’ve got to make our own rules here.” Before she could respond, he yelled over to Ignacio, “Hey, buddy, do you mind if I take a bath?”
    Ignacio sat up straighter and Rafe heard the click of the safety being released on the revolver. “ Mierda! You don’t need no bath. Sit down where I can see you.”
    â€œTake it easy now. You can keep me in your gun sights. I just want to bathe. I have enough sweat on me to salt a ham.”
    â€œBut the blister I just bandaged—” Helen started to say.
    â€œYou can redo it,” he said impatiently. “C’mon.”
    Helen grabbed a small cake of soap from the kit, along with the ointment and gauze, following Rafe slowly toward the small stream. They both held their arms away from theirbodies and moved in a nonthreatening manner so Ignacio wouldn’t be tempted to shoot.
    The bandit leader slitted his eyes suspiciously and stood, watching them intently, his guns now aimed at both of them.
    â€œI’m just going to wash up a little, pal. No quick moves. No escaping. A bath, that’s all. Okay?”
    Ignacio nodded, sitting back down. Then he called out lewdly to Helen, “You want I should wash your tetas