A few minutes later she lifted her head at the sound of a vehicle driving up the trail. Hmmm, Drake must have forgotten something.
But the car that pulled to a stop a few yards away from her sitting place was a fancy, late-model station wagon. And the person who got out was not Drake.
Kat rose in surprise as a statuesque, curvaceous young woman came toward her, head up, eyes imperious, majestic even in soft leather boots, jeans, and a ruffled white blouse. The woman’s dark eyes and ethnic features, her bronzed skin and long black hair convinced Kat she was about to meet a fellow Cherokee—and an extraordinary-looking one.
“Hi ya,” Kat said, cheerfully impressed by the stranger. This babe could make a mint if she ever wanted to wrestle.
The woman stopped less than two feet from Kat, tried to freeze her with a dignified glare, and said softly, “Tell me where he is, and then get out of my sight.”
CHAPTER 7
SHOCK MADE A raw and brassy taste in Kat’s mouth. She jammed her hands into the front pockets of her cutoffs and the soft denim bunched under her clenched fingers.
“If you were important, I’d have heard about you,” she told the woman.
Dark eyes gleamed fiercely. “Where is he?”
Kat shook her head. Please, this isn’t happening. Nathan couldn’t have another lover. She lifted her chin proudly. “I don’t know what you were to him, but it’s over now.”
“Oh? Just let me talk to him. Is he even here, or did he desert you the way he deserted me?”
A tone of despair rang through the visitor’s voice. Kat looked at her wretchedly. “He walked over to our, over there”—she pointed limply—”to get something from camp. He’ll be back.”
“Are you the one he bought the bra for?” The woman measured Kat’s chest size with a gaze that held anguish. “No, you’re too big.” Her shoulders slumped and she said in a small, stunned voice, “Oh lord. He’s got another one besides us.”
Weak-kneed, Kat hobbled to the log and sank down numbly. “I don’t believe it.”
“Believe it. I saw the bra. It had a pink bow tied on it.” Moving wearily, ramming her hands through hair even longer than Kat’s, the woman lowered herself to the ground and sighed in defeat. “How long have you known him?”
“A few weeks.” Kat tried to ignore the dread knotting her stomach. “How about you?”
“A few weeks. He left without saying good-bye-three weeks ago. I thought he’d come back, until I heard about you.”
They traded stricken looks. The visitor shook her head and struggled noticeably not to cry. “I’ve known other men who had a thing for Cherokee women, but I thought he was different. I thought he was sincere when he said he loved me.”
Kat wanted to die. Nathan had never said that to her. “I just cannot buy this story,” she said with renewed defensiveness.
“Me either,” the woman said with a catch in her voice. “He seemed so special. I’ve never met anyone like him before. I mean, it was like I’d known him all my life.”
Kat covered her face. “Oh no, it’s true.”
“I’m from the reservation up in North Carolina. Where are you from, around here?”
“Miami.”
The woman made a soft sound of misery. “He said that he traveled a lot.”
Kat got up and moved away, trembling. “I can’t talk about this anymore. I don’t want to be bawling my eyes out when he comes back.”
“No.” The visitor sniffed tearfully. “You’re right.”
“I guess we should introduce ourselves,” Kat said, her throat on fire. “My name’s Kat Gallatin.”
“I know. Erica’s cousin.” She held her head and looked at Kat with despair. “I’m Echo Tall Wolf.”
“Not from Grandpa Sam’s family!”
“Yes. That’s how I heard of you.”
“Oh no!” Kat hugged herself to keep from crying out loud and turned her back. “N-no more talk.”
“R-right.”
Kat limped farther from her and leaned rigidly against a dogwood tree. She and Echo Tall Wolf waited in silent, shared misery that seemed to last an eternity.
Finally Kat heard the rugged sound of a powerful engine and knew that Drake Lancaster was returning. She turned around and saw Nathan top the ridge, his knapsack hanging jauntily over one shoulder.
Great timing, harmonica man, she thought. Now Drake can be our audience.
She walked over to Echo, who got up hurriedly, brushing leaves from her jeans and looking from the approaching Jeep to Nathan. “I guess we’re going to have an audience,” she said grimly.
“Yeah. A friend of his.”
“Well, it couldn’t be any worse than it is already.”
They stood side by side, waiting.
After he studied Echo Tall Wolf for a second, Nathan looked at Kat quizzically. His stride casual, he never faltered. Kat couldn’t take her eyes off his lean, tanned body covered only by shorts and hiking boots, the body he’d shared with Echo Tall Wolf only a few weeks ago. She was dimly aware of the Jeep door slamming as Drake Lancaster got out.
“He’s always so damned calm,” Echo murmured hoarsely.
“Yeah.” Kat gritted her teeth. Nathan didn’t look more than a tiny bit intrigued to see two of his lovers waiting where only one had been before.
Drake strode toward them, frowning, one enormous hand clenched lightly over the front of the T-shirt he’d donned for the trip to town. He and Nathan reached them about the same time and stopped.
“Who’d you give the bra to?” Kat asked coldly. “You know, the bra with the pink bow on it?”
“Bra?” Nathan asked.
“What kind of work do you really do?” Echo interjected.
Kat touched her arm and their eyes met. “He’s a geologist.”
Echo gasped. “He told me that he was a biologist studying pollution for the forestry service.”
“What are you talking about?” Nathan demanded.
Drake gestured for attention. “The bra was for Tess Gallatin.”
Kat and Echo wailed at approximately the same time.
“Thanks for telling me the truth,” Kat muttered. “Somebody needs to.” She sighed heavily. “My cousin Tess. My own cousin. Poor Tess probably didn’t know there were other women, either.”
“I’m sure your cousin Erica would have told me if she’d known,” Echo said. “But even Erica thought I should have faith.”
Kat trembled. How did Drake know about the bra? Oh no! Holding out her hands in supplication, she asked Nathan. “Do you guys discuss everything about your women?”
“No, wait, I’m—” Nathan began.
“How could you say that you weren’t involved with anyone but me,” Echo demanded, “when all the time you and Tess Gallatin were meeting in some cave in the woods? How could you do that to me? How could you do that to Kat?”
“Hold on,” Drake said. “I—”
“Please be quiet,” Kat told him. The man had no business butting in. “Echo?”
She looked at Echo, who explained raggedly, “In the morning he’d say that he had work to do, then he’d ride a horse off into the mountains and come back late in the afternoon. He and Tess were sharing a cave, a cave.”
Kat looked at Nathan tearfully. “Do you get your jollies livin’ with Cherokee women in the woods?”
Nathan dropped his knapsack. Gazing at her open mouthed, he held up both hands in defense. “I am totally confused.”
“Please tell me this isn’t true.”
“Tell us both, “ Echo added fiercely.
“Dammit,” Drake said loudly, “I don’t know what’s going on here, but there’s no other woman!”
“How do you know?” Kat demanded.
“I’d remember if there was more than one who could cause this much trouble!”
“I would, too,” Nathan said blankly. “Especially if I knew what the hell we were talking about.”
Kat pressed a fist to her lips. Sorrow nearly str
angled her. “I wish you’d tell the plain truth. I only want to hear, ‘Yes, right before I met you I was involved with Echo Tall Wolf,’ Or ‘No, I wasn’t.’ ”
Drake suddenly seemed a foot taller. “What?” he asked softly, with a lethal tightening of his body.
“Yes,” Echo agreed with fierce control, “Just Say it—did you leave me for Kat?”
Nathan’s eyes turned the color of dark storm clouds. He gazed at Drake very, very intensely, as if waiting for answers. Drake returned the look in kind.
Kat was so upset that a stab of confusion was forgotten right after she noticed it. “Drake,” she said as calmly as she could, “this is sort of private. Could you leave us alone with Nathan?”
“No, we’re talking to Drake. You mean Drake,” Echo interjected.
“No, I mean”—Kat turned to stare up at her—”I mean Nathan.”
“Drake,” Echo said softly, her dark eyes wide.
Kat shook her head slowly. Her heart was denting the inside of her chest. “Nathan.”
Echo pointed a trembling finger. “You and Nathan?”
Kat nodded. “You and Drake?”
Echo nodded. “I came down here because Grandpa said Drake was in Gold Ridge with you.”
“He works with Nathan. Nathan asked him to come here.”
Echo clasped both hands to her heart and stared at Drake Lancaster, a desperate expression on her face. “Colanneh, I’m sorry I doubted you.”
Kat made a strangled sound and didn’t know whether she felt like laughing or hiding in embarrassment. Nathan’s angry gaze told her laughter was not an option.
Echo continued to stare at Drake, who surveyed her with a troubled gaze. “What was I supposed to think after you disappeared without saying good-bye?” she asked softly.
“I left word that I’d be back. I said you had nothing to worry about. Why didn’t you believe me?”
Echo shook her head. “Too many mysteries.”
Drake stuck out a hand. “Come with me.” To Nathan he said, “We’ll be back after I explain a few things.”
“Fine.” Nathan’s voice was flint-hard, and he spoke without taking his accusing gaze off Kat’s repentant one.
“It wasn’t Kat’s fault,” Echo called as Drake led her to the Jeep. “It was all so confusing.”
Nathan didn’t speak again until after Drake and Echo drove away. Then, his eyes full of reproach, he said, “I don’t know how this mess started, but I do know that you don’t trust me worth a damn.”
“Aw, Nathan, I do. It was a misunderstanding—a strange woman comes here looking for the man who deserted her, and she never mentions a name, and how was I supposed to know that she’d known Drake up in North Carolina?”
“But the first thing you thought was ‘Nathan lied to me.’ ”
Kat lifted her chin and eyed him proudly. “No, not that. I’ve never asked you for any promises and you’ve never said I was the only woman in your life. I know better than to expect too much.”
“Then why’d you make a fool out of yourself—like I belonged to you?”
Kat realized that she’d talked herself into a comer, and in doing so she’d provoked the truth from Nathan. He didn’t want her to be possessive, or he wouldn’t have asked his question so fiercely.
“For as long as you’re part of this”—she gestured weakly at the land—”I feel like you belong to me.”
He searched her face, his gaze shuttered. “Sounds like you only care about the land.”
Words caught inside Kat’s throat. “No, I care about, you a lot, but I know the land will always be here, and you won’t.”
“You watch out for yourself first,” he said between clenched teeth. “That’s a smart way to live. That’s the way I like to live, too.”
Later, she would replay those words and die a thousand small deaths. But right now she had to salvage as much time with him as she could. “You’re welcome to stay here as long as you want,” Kat assured him. “I love … your company.”
“Good. Real good,” he said, breathing harshly, with something tormented and urgent rising in his eyes. “I’ll be around here a lot—probably a hell of a lot more than you will be, for the next, oh, twenty years.”
Kat shook her head, feeling dazed. “What are you talking about?”
He swept a hand at the magnificent woods, at the Blue Song homesite, at the valley and stream. “I own all the mining rights. I’ve waited a long time to dig the gold out of this land.”
As she backed away, her hands pressed to her mouth, he added hoarsely, “And believe me, you won’t want to live here then.”
“You can’t own the mining rights.”
“Holt Gallatin signed them over to my greatgrandfather in 1910.” His voice was harsh, but sorrow clouded his eyes. “A ninety-nine year lease. All mineral rights. The Gallatin family doesn’t even get a percentage of the profits.”
“No!”
He held out his hands to her. “Kat, I didn’t mean to tell you like this. Dammit, I wanted to wait until you—”
“Were so crazy about you that I’d be on your side! Everything you’ve done—buying me things, acting like every word I said was important, doing all those things to please me in bed—it was only to get me on your side!”
“Dammit, no.”
“Just like ol’ Justis must have done to my great-great-grandmother! What a joke that must have been to you!”
Full of tension, he stepped forward swiftly and grabbed her arms. “I wanted you on my side, sure, because I didn’t want to hurt you this way. I care about you too much to watch you lose everything you’ve dreamed about.”
“But that won’t stop you from taking it!”
He shook her lightly. His voice was agonized. “I promised my grandpa. I promised myself for my father’s sake. It’s something I’ve gotta do.”
Shock and disappointment whirled in her head until she could barely think. “I trusted you. I trusted you in ways I’ve never trusted a man before.”
“You still can.”
She pulled away from him and pressed her hands to her temples. “I don’t understand how you got our mineral rights. And what’s your grandpa got to do with it? How’d my family hurt him?”
Nathan reached for her hand. “Let’s sit down.”
“I can’t sit down.” She stepped back. “Don’t touch me.
He stood there looking as miserable as she felt. “You gonna listen? Listen good, so maybe you can understand that I’m not a greedy bastard looking for excuses to tear up this land.”
“I’ll give it a try,” she shot back. “Talk.”
“Holt Gallatin—Blue Fox—took up a one-man war against my family,” Nathan told her. “After he killed my great-great-grandpa Nathaniel, the one who fought against Justis Gallatin in the Civil War, Holt went on the lam. Had to, since he was wanted for murder.
“The Indian Territory wasn’t much more than a lot of empty land with plenty of places to hide, and there weren’t enough U.S. marshals to track down a smart man who had help from the Keetowahs.”
“The Cherokee society that hated white people?”
“Yeah. So Holt was able to ride over into Arkansas, strike at my family, and then go back to the Cherokee Nation and hide with hardly any chance of getting caught. He and a gang of Keetowahs robbed and murdered all over western Arkansas for almost twenty years. And the Chathams were their prime targets.”
“You mean Holt killed other Chathams besides Nathaniel?”
“No, but he wounded a few and crippled one. And he tried to ruin any business a Chatham touched. He stole cattle, burned down stores, robbed a bank managed by a Chatham—in short, he was a curse that plagued my family for two decades.”
“Then what?” she asked wearily, hugging herself.
“U.S. marshals chased him out of the Territory. Whites were moving in; there was talk about statehood—”
“The government was stealing land from the Cherokees again.”.
Nat
han nodded slowly. “Yeah. I’m afraid that’s right.”
“So the thieves chased a thief off.”
“A murderer,” Nathan corrected, but without victory. “Holt was a bad man, one of the worst, Cherokee or white.”
Kat slowly walked to an old tree and leaned against its gnarled trunk. Her eyes burning, she stared up into the thick foliage as if seeing something besides Nathan’s grim face when he told her he intended to mine her land. “What happened after Holt left the Territory?”
“He disappeared for the next twenty years. I guess everyone in my family thought he was dead.”
Nathan kicked at a broken limb on the ground. “But then Holt showed up again. He was getting old, he wanted to settle down on some land Justis and Katherine left him, and he had a young wife and two children—your grandpa Joshua, and Dove.” Nathan looked disgusted. “Holt had wrangled some sort of amnesty from the U.S. government. I don’t know how he did it, other than that his brother had some influence in Washington.”
Kat nodded. “Silas Gallatin. He was Tess’s greatgrandfather. I think he became a pretty important man out in California.”
“Holt didn’t think his family would be safe in Oklahoma with a whole bunch of angry Chathams just across the Arkansas border. He wanted to bribe my family into forgiving and forgetting.”
Kat groaned in frustration. “So he bargained with Eli Chatham, your Great-Grandpa—for peace.”
“Right. Holt gave him the mining rights to Katlanicha’s land in Georgia. This land.”
“But you said that Holt killed Eli.”
Nathan laughed grimly. “He did, about ten years later. Those two old men never stopped hating each other. Holt came to Arkansas and called Eli out. They had a gunfight—one of the last bona fide, Main-Street-at-dawn-duels in the state of Arkansas. 1921. It made the local newspapers.”
Nathan paused, and she looked at his brooding expression carefully. “And what happened to my great-grandpa then?”
“Nothing. He was shot, too. He died a few days after the fight.”
Kat sagged inwardly and sat down oh ah exposed root at the base of the tree. “So your grandpa wanted revenge for his daddy, Eli’s death. Why didn’t he mine our land himself?”