Free Heart Of Texas (Historical Romance) by Constance O'Banyon Page B

She just
wanted to get jenny safely away from Cyrus
Slaughter. "If you will excuse me," she said, hearing the tremor in her own voice, "I have work to
do."
    He leaned against the corral and stared at her,
long and hard. "Where's your pa or ma? You're
too young to be the mother of that little gal."
    "We don't have parents, Mr. Slaughter." She
didn't want to explain that her mother and father
were dead in front of jenny. "Now if you will excuse me."
    He moved so quickly that he was in front of her
before she could react. "Who else is here with
you?"
    The man's eyes were so frightening that Casey
shivered. She had never seen eyes so devoid of
feeling. Kate was right about this man. He would
brush aside anyone who stood in the way of what
he wanted-and she had the feeling she was in
his way.
    "Kate is somewhere about," she said hurriedly,
not wanting him to think they were alone. "And my brother and our hired hand will be riding in
at any moment."

    He smiled because he knew he had frightened
her. He was - accustomed to people fearing him,
and that gave him power over them. "I don't
know what you've heard about me, and I don't
care. The only interest I have in you is your signature on a document that will make me the new
owner of the Spanish Spur."
    Casey could feel her face flush as anger flamed
inside her. She quickly pushed her fear to the
back of her mind. "We have no plans to sell the
Spanish Spur to you or anyone else. So if you want
to buy land, you might want to look elsewhere."
    She watched his fists ball at his sides.
    She didn't know what would have happened
next if Kate hadn't come out of her house and
seen Slaughter there. Kate came rushing toward
them with her eyes flashing.
    "Cyrus, you leave her alone. She's just getting
settled in, and she don't need you here stirring
up trouble."
    He swung around to face the little woman. "Oh,
I'll be stirring up trouble, all right, Kate. You can
bet on that. Before long you'll be looking for a
new home, because I'll be tearing your shack
down." His glance went to the young woman. "I
don't see anyone around here willing to help you
except Kate, and she knows what happens to people who get in my way, don't you, Kate?" He ad justed his hat to an angle that satisfied him and
dipped his head.

    "Ladies. Until the next time."
    "I'm not scared of you, Cyrus," Kate called after
him as he walked toward his horse. She had
planted her small body protectively in front of
Casey and Jenny. "You may be able to bluff some
people, but not me. Don't ever come back here."
    Cyrus made no other comment as he mounted
his horse.
    "I'm afraid of him," Casey admitted as she
watched him ride out of sight. "I have never met
anyone like him before. He threatened us with
such hatred, I could almost feel it in my heart. He
is an evil man."
    Kate caught Casey's trembling hand in hers.
"He's as bad as they come. I didn't reckon on him
riding in big as you please. He usually has someone else do his calling for him. He must have
been real set on meeting your family."
    "If today was the worst it gets, I can manage
him. We had men like him in Virginia-we called
them carpetbaggers. We dealt with them just
fine."
    "But you had your pa with you then, didn't
you?"
    Her heart sank. "Yes."
    "Honey, what you witnessed here today was just
Slaughter's way of leaving his calling card. He'll
be back meaner and stronger than ever; you can be sure of that. And he aims to run you off this
ranch."

    "I don't understand why people let him get
away with his meanness."
    Kate watched Cyrus disappear over the rise.
"Not everyone will. Gabe won't."

     

Sam had ridden in around sundown, exhausted
but rambling excitedly about helping Gabe round
up cattle and drive them into a pen. After he had
eaten, he climbed to his loft and immediately fell
asleep.
    Jenny, however, had been another matter.
Casey had read her an entire chapter in her favorite book before the child