Devil's Gambit

  Tiffany decided there was no better time for the truth than now. Before she became more hopelessly in love with him, she had to settle the past. She reached for her dress, but Zane restrained her. “I want answers, Tiffany.”

  “Not nearly as badly as I do.” She pulled away from him and grabbed her clothes. As she quickly dressed, she began to talk. “I told Dustin that you had been here and expressed interest in buying the farm.” The rain began in earnest, running down her face and neck in cold rivulets.

  Zane’s expression grew grim. “He wasn’t too pleased about it, I’d guess.”

  “That’s putting it mildly. He nearly fell through the floor.”

  “And what did he suggest?”

  “That I shouldn’t even consider selling to you. In fact, he seemed to think that I shouldn’t have anything to do with you.”

  “He’s afraid, Tiffany.”

  She began working on the buttons of her dress while Zane slipped on his jeans. “That’s what I thought, too. At one point I was certain that Dustin was going to confess about switching horses and admit that Devil’s Gambit is alive.”

  Zane was reaching for his shirt but stopped. “Did he?”

  “No.”

  He slipped his arms through the sleeves but didn’t bother with the buttons. His shirttails fluttered in the wind. “Then what, Tiffany? Just what the hell did he tell you that upset you so?”

  Tiffany wrapped her arms around her breasts and stared at Zane. The wind caught her hair and lifted it off her face which was glistening with raindrops. “Dustin said that not only did you lose most of your money to Ellery in an honest poker game—”

  “Honest my ass!”

  “—but that Ellery also ran off with your wife.”

  Zane gritted his teeth together and rose. “Damn!” he spit out as he stood and stared at the pond, legs spread apart, hands planted on his hips.

  Tiffany’s heart ached as she watched him. Deny it, Zane, she thought. Tell me Dustin lied...anything...tell me again that you love me.

  “He told you only part of the story,” Zane said. He walked over to the boulder and propped one foot on it as he stared across the small lake. “It’s true, Stasia ran off with Ellery, and at the time I felt like killing them both.”

  He still loves her, Tiffany realized, and fresh tears slid down her cheek to mingle with the drops of rain.

  “So did you come here looking for her?” she asked, her voice thick and raw.

  “No.”

  “Then why?”

  “I can’t lie to you, Tiffany.”

  “You already have.”

  “No—”

  “I asked you if you were married,” she whispered.

  “And I’m not.”

  “You just conveniently forgot that you had been?” She looked up at the cloudy sky. “You never even mentioned her.”

  “She’s not something I like to think about,” he confessed.

  “But your feelings were strong enough to bring you here. You can’t expect me to believe that you’re not looking for her.”

  He walked over to the grassy knoll on which she was sitting, knelt down and placed his fingers over her shoulders. She quivered betrayingly at his familiar touch. “I knew she wouldn’t be here, but yes, I need to find her.”

  Tiffany closed her eyes against the truth. “Why?”

  “Because she’s the only one who can clear up what happened to Devil’s Gambit...and Ellery.”

  “Ellery is dead,” Tiffany murmured, hugging her knees to her and setting her chin on them.

  “How do you know?”

  “I asked Dustin.”

  “He wouldn’t tell you the truth—”

  “Dustin cares about me, Zane. He admitted some pretty horrible things, such as conning other owners at the yearling sales in Europe. He said that Ellery would pose as another person, someone named Ethan Rivers.”

  “Did he explain about Devil’s Gambit?”

  “No.”

  “But?” he coaxed.

  “From his reaction, I’d have to guess that your assumption about Devil’s Gambit is correct. He wouldn’t admit that Devil’s Gambit was alive, but it was fairly obvious when I mentioned King’s Ransom and Devil’s Gambit in the same breath that something wasn’t right.”

  “You should be more careful around him,” Zane warned. “He’s dangerous, and he has a lot to lose if he’s uncovered.”

  “I’m not sure that he’s the man in charge.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I don’t know, just a feeling I got that there was someone else pulling his strings.”

  “I don’t know who it would be.”

  “Neither do I.”

  “That’s why I have to find Stasia,” Zane said. “She might be able to help us.”

  “I doubt it.”

  Zane lifted his head and his sharp eyes bored into Tiffany. “You knew her?” he guessed incredulously.

  Tiffany nodded, remembering Stasia’s long, dark hair, even features and seductive dark eyes. Stasia’s sultry beauty was enough to capture any man, including Zane. “She was here on the farm with Ellery when I was in college. Later, once I had returned, my father died and Ellery asked me to marry him.”

  “What happened to Stasia?”

  “I don’t know. Ellery wouldn’t talk about it. The day after he asked me to marry him, she moved out. I never saw her again, but I’m sure that she despises me.”

  “Probably,” he said with a snort. “Stasia knows how to carry a grudge.” He saw the unasked questions in Tiffany’s wide eyes and began to explain about a time in his life he would rather have forgotten.

  “When I met Stasia, she was barely eighteen. She was beautiful and anxious to get out of a bad home situation. I thought at the time that I was in love with her, and we got married. I was just starting then, trying to set up a successful farm of my own. Fortunately, I had a few decent breaks. I was lucky and after a few years, I...we, Stasia and I, owned a small farm about thirty miles from Dublin. It was a beautiful place,” he said, smiling slightly at the fond memories, “thick green grass, stone fences twined with bracken, the rolling Irish countryside...a perfect place for breeding Thoroughbreds. That’s when I started breeding successfully. And how I met Ethan Rivers.”

  “Ellery,” Tiffany whispered.

  Zane’s smile had left his face and his rugged features pulled into a dark scowl. “One and the same. It happened about six years ago. Ethan was looking for some yearlings and came out to the farm. Later that night we began drinking and playing poker with another man from America who was supposedly interested in some of my horses.”

  “Dustin,” Tiffany guessed, not daring to breathe.

  “Right again. Anyway, on that night, Dustin folded early, claimed the stakes were too high for him. But I kept on drinking and playing, urged on by my lovely wife.”

  “Oh, no—”

  “That’s right. Stasia was already involved with Ethan Rivers, and when I lost it cost me two hundred thousand dollars. I had to sell the farm to pay Rivers off.”

  “But if you thought the game was crooked—”

  “I didn’t. Not then. Only much later, when I went back to that pub and got to talking to one of the regulars, I learned that the old man, who was named O’Brien, had watched the game and thought it might be rigged. A few days later, he’d overheard Dustin and his brother talking—about the game and Stasia.”

  “Why didn’t he talk to you sooner?” she asked. “There must have been plenty of time before you sold the farm.”

  “O’Brien was caught eavesdropping by Ellery. Ellery was furious that he might be found out, and he threatened the old man with his life. O’Brien didn’t doubt for a minute that Ellery would make good his threats to kill both him and his wife. By the time his conscience got the better of him and he found me, I’d managed to sell the farm.”

  “Who would buy it so quickly?”

  Zane’s jaw became rigid and his eyes turned dea
dly. “A corporation.”

  Tiffany finally understood, and her throat went dry with dread. “Emerald Enterprises.”

  “That’s right. The farm I used to own now belongs to Dustin and Ellery, if he’s still alive.”

  “Oh, God, Zane,” she murmured, covering her face with her hands. Had she been so young and foolish that she had never seen Ellery for what he really was? She lifted her eyes and felt her hands curl into fists of frustration. “I don’t understand. Knowing how you must feel about him, why would Dustin allow you to breed any of your mares to King’s Ransom?”

  “First of all, I didn’t know that Emerald Enterprises was Dustin Rhodes. The original sale of the farm was handled through a broker, and neither Dustin’s name nor Ellery’s ever appeared on any of the documents. As for Dustin, either he’s just gotten cocky and doesn’t think he’ll be discovered, or maybe he thinks I’ve buried the hatchet. After all, I have been able to put myself back on my feet. It took several years, mind you, but I was able to start again. I didn’t lose everything when I sold the farm, and I managed to keep two good mares and a stallion.”

  “And from those three horses, you started again?”

  “Yes. Fortunately I’d already established myself as a breeder. The three good horses and my reputation gave me a decent start.”

  “And...and your wife?”

  “She left me immediately. I suspected that she’d followed Ethan—who I later found out was Ellery—to America. When Stasia filed for divorce, I didn’t fight her.

  “I spent the next several years working to reestablish myself.”

  “And you never forgot taking your revenge on Ellery,” Tiffany whispered as thunder rumbled in the distant hills.

  “No. That’s the reason I came here. When I heard that Ellery had married, I assumed that it was to Stasia.” Zane walked back to the lake and stared across the black water, watching as the raindrops beat a staccato rhythm on the clear surface. “Of course later I learned that he had married a woman by the name of Tiffany Chappel.”

  “And you wondered what had become of your ex-wife.” Tiffany felt a sudden chill as she finally understood Zane’s motives. He had come looking for Stasia....

  “Yeah, I wondered, but I found that I really didn’t give a damn.” He shrugged his broad shoulders. “The next thing I heard about Ellery Rhodes was that he, along with his famous horse, had been killed. My fever for revenge had cooled, and I decided to put the past behind me.”

  “Until you found the horse you think is Devil’s Gambit.”

  “The horse I know is Devil’s Gambit.”

  Zane hazarded a glance at the threatening sky before looking back at Tiffany and noticing that she was shivering.

  “Come on,” he suggested softly. “We’d better get inside before we’re both soaked to the skin.”

  Tiffany refused to be deterred when she was so close to the truth. Her emotions were as raw as the wind blowing over the mountains. Everything Zane was suggesting was too far-fetched, and yet parts of his story were true. Even Dustin had backed him up. She ran shaky fingers through her hair and watched his silhouetted form as he advanced on her and stared down at her with bold gray eyes.

  “When I figured out the scam that Ellery and his brother had pulled, I knew he had to be stopped. Using one stud in place of another, and falsifying the death of Devil’s Gambit is a scandal of international proportions.”

  “Then you think that Ellery is still alive?” she murmured, feeling lost and alone.

  “That, I’m not sure of.”

  “Dear God,” she whispered, sagging against him. Had she just made love to a man while still married to another? Guilt and fear darkened her heart. “I don’t think he’s alive,” she murmured.

  “Because Dustin says so?” he asked cynically.

  “Yes. And because I don’t believe that Dustin or Ellery would have let another man die in that trailer.” The image of the truck carrying Devil’s Gambit, as well as Ellery, charred and twisted beyond recognition, filled her mind and she shuddered.

  Zane placed comforting arms over her shoulders and kissed her rain-sodden hair before urging her forward, toward the path that led to the house. “You have to face the fact that your husband might still be alive,” he whispered.

  “I...I don’t—”

  “Shh!” Zane whispered, cutting off her thought. He cocked his head to one side and listened.

  “What?” Tiffany heard the faint sound rumbling in the distance, barely audible over the rising wind. With a sickening feeling, she recognized the noise. “Oh, no!” The sound became louder and more clear. Thundering hooves pounded the wet earth, charging through the pastures with lightning speed. “One of the horses is loose,” she said, turning toward the direction of the sound and trying to break free of Zane’s arms.

  “Wait.” Zane restrained her just as the black horse broke through the trees and bolted toward the lake. He raced to the edge of the pond with his ebony tail hoisted and his long legs stretching with boundless energy.

  “Moon Shadow,” Tiffany whispered, her heart pounding with dread as she watched the magnificent creature rear and whirl on his hind legs when he reached the water’s edge.

  Tiffany started toward him, all her thoughts centered on the horse and how he could injure himself by slipping on the wet grass. Zane’s fingers tightened over her arm. “I’ll go after the horse, you call the police.”

  “The police?” Tiffany’s mind was racing with the stallion.

  “If he gets out and onto the road, it could get dangerous. Not only for him, but for motorists as well.”

  “Oh, God. I don’t think he can get out,” she said, trying to convince herself. Shielding her eyes against the rain, she squinted into the darkness, searching the black night, trying to recall the boundaries of the farm. The horse splashed in the water and started off at a dead run to the opposite side of the pond.

  “What’s on the other side of the lake?” Zane pointed in the direction in which Moon Shadow disappeared.

  “Nothing...some trees, it’s all fenced.”

  “No gate?” He started to follow the stallion, his long legs accelerating with each of his strides.

  “Yes, but it should be closed.”

  “Good. With any luck, I’ll be able to catch him.” Zane chased after the horse while Tiffany turned toward the buildings near the house.

  Her heart was pounding as she ran through the open field, stumbling twice when her heels caught in the mud. Once, when she fell, she heard her dress rip, but didn’t bother to see how bad the damage was. All her thoughts centered on Moon Shadow. Who had let him out? Was it carelessness on the part of the stable boy or...what? At the sinister turn of her thoughts, she raced more quickly. No one would let the prized stallion out on purpose!

  Once she made it to the stallion barn, her heart hammering, her lungs burning for air, she noticed that the door to Moon Shadow’s stall was swinging outward. It caught in the wind and banged loudly against the building. Other stallions within the building stamped nervously and snorted at the strange sounds.

  Tiffany hurried inside and with numb fingers, flipped on the lights, flooding the building with illumination. The horses moved restlessly in their stalls.

  As quickly as her trembling fingers could punch out the number, she called Mac. Rain peppered the roof of the barn as she counted the rings...three, four, five...“Come on,” she urged. Finally the trainer answered.

  “’Lo,” Mac called into the phone.

  “Moon Shadow’s out,” Tiffany explained breathlessly to the trainer. “His stall was unlatched and he bolted.”

  Mac swore loudly. “Where is he?”

  “I don’t know,” she replied, trying to remain calm. Her chest was heaving, her words broken, her heart thudding with fear. “He took off past the old barn and the pond.”

  “God in heaven,” Mac whispered. “We’ve been workin’ on that fence on the other edge of the lake.”

  Tiffany swallowe
d hard against the dread creeping up her throat. “Is it down?” she whispered, her fingers clenched around the receiver.

  “I don’t think so....” He didn’t sound too sure.

  “What about the gate?”

  “It should be closed.”

  “But you’re not certain?”

  Mac swore roundly and then sighed. “I’ll be right over. Is anyone else around?”

  “Just Zane. Everyone went home for the night.”

  “I’ll call John and a few of the other stable hands that live close. We’ll be at the house in ten minutes.”

  “I’ll meet you there.”

  She hung up and then dialed the number of the local police. Within minutes she was explaining her situation to the officer on the other end of the line.

  When she had finished with the phone call, Tiffany hurried outside and listened to the sounds of the night. The rain was beginning to sheet and run on the pavement. It gurgled in the gutters and downspouts. In the distance, faint to her ears, she heard the sound of running hoofbeats...on asphalt.

  “Oh God,” she swore in desperation. Moon Shadow was on the road!

  Tiffany began running down the long driveway toward the county road that bordered the farm. She heard the truck before she saw it, the loud engine reverberating through the night.

  “No,” she cried, spurred even faster. Her legs were numb, her lungs burning. Headlights flashed between the trees bordering the farm, and the roar of the truck’s engine filled the night.

  She heard the squeal of locked brakes, and the sound of the truck’s dull horn as it slid out of control on the wet pavement.

  “Moon Shadow!” Tiffany shrieked over the deafening noise.

  A stallion squealed, the truck tore through the trees, crashing against the solid wood until finally there was nothing but silence and the sound of the pouring rain.

  “Oh, God, no,” Tiffany whispered as she raced to the end of the drive. Tears blurred her vision and her voice seemed distant when she screamed. “Zane...”

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  TIFFANY RACED DOWN the slick pavement of the county road, mindless of the rain running down her back. The smell of burning rubber filled the night and the truck’s headlights angled awkwardly up through the broken branches of the giant oaks, like a pair of macabre searchlights, announcing the place of the accident.