Page 46 of To Love a Beast

"Who are you?" Everett demanded.

"Wade Poindexter, sir. I-I work with my pa at the coaching inn. I-I think M-Miss Rosenfeld is in trouble."

Everett strode forward, his glare hot. "What do you know?"

Wade backed up a step but lifted his chin. "S-She told me you were a good man. That y-you weren't the b-beast everyone says you are. But maybe she was wrong."

Maybe she was. Everett sighed and relaxed his stance, then turned and handed the rifle off to Lightfoot who had come to stand beside him.

"Sorry, kid. We just found out she was missing, and . . . I'm a bit . . . on edge." More like completely over the cliff and plummeting. He needed a lifeline, and he might have just alienated the one person willing to throw him a rope. "You did right coming here. It was a brave thing to do, considering my reputation. I want to find Miss Rosenfeld and make sure she's safe. What makes you think she's in trouble?"

Wade leaned forward. "I'd just delivered a package to the Conroe place and was back on the road when I caught sight of a man riding through the trees to my left. Recognized his horse right away. Only one big palomino like that in the area, and Mr. Batton rented him the day after he arrived. I wouldn't've paid him much mind except there was something big draped across his lap. Something that moved. I only got a quick look, but I'm sure it was a woman's legs kicking through white petticoats. I know Miss Rosenfeld doesn't care for Mr. Batton or his advances. I heard her tell my ma that she wished he'd leave her alone. That peacock don't seem the type to take no for an answer, though. Makes me worry he might have decided to take what he wanted whether she was willing to give it or not."

God protect her!

Everett swallowed the quickly swelling lump in his throat. "Which way was he headed?"

The kid turned and pointed. "North. He rented Henderson's hunting cabin when he first came to town. Probably heading there."

"Will you show me the way?"

Wade hesitated for a heartbeat then gave a sharp nod. "I'll do it. For Miss Rosenfeld."

Thank you, God.

Everett glanced over his shoulder. "Timens, saddle a second mount for the boy. I'll ready Enbarr."

Timens hesitated. "Shouldn't we report the abduction to the sheriff?"

"No time. Every minute she's in Batton's grasp increases the chance that harm will come to her. I won't risk her well-being."

And he wouldn't stand around arguing, either. Everett claimed his rifle from Lightfoot then took off at a jog, surprised when Wade matched his steps.

"I know my way around horses, sir. I can saddle my own mount."

Everett nodded, appreciating the kid's speed.

Every second counted, and he didn't want to waste a single one.

Chapter 21

Batton's rough hands slung her down from his shoulder and deposited her on the floor. Blind and disoriented, Callista collapsed to her knees and scrabbled to free herself from her burlap prison. The slam of a door spurred her to desperate speed, but her panic made her clumsy. Her hands fumbled until Batton grasped the top of the sack and yanked it off her head, taking several tufts of her hair with it. She bit back a yelp and blinked away the tears pooling in her eyes. She'd not give him the satisfaction of seeing her cower. Pushing to her feet, she brushed a fallen lock of hair from her face and glared up at him.

"Welcome to my cottage, Miss Rosenfeld." He sketched a bow as if she'd just stepped from a fancy carriage and strolled into a ballroom. "Do you like it?" He swept his arm in an arc to encompass the room. "I use antlers in all of my decorating back home, so I immediately felt at ease here. Isn't it cozy? I even brought a few specimens from my personal collection. Always nice to have a sentimental item or two when traveling."

Callista scanned the room, hoping to find an escape option or available weapon, but the décor he bragged about practically jumped from the walls. Dead animals stared at her with glassy, unseeing eyes. The mounted heads of several bucks with large antler spreads encircled the room, interspersed with two boars with tusks and several birds with suspicious dark spots on their underbellies. A coyote with bared teeth breathed down her neck from the wall at her back. She scooted sideways, bumping into a table. A coiled snake with large fangs toppled her direction. She squealed and batted away the venomous creature as Batton's dark laughter echoed off the rafters.

He bent over and plucked the stiff coil from the floor and settled the taxidermic snake back on the table. "I see you found one of my pets. I killed this one with my bare hands." He stroked the scaled head. "It tried to sneak up on me a few years ago while I was stalking a moose. I spotted him, took him by the tail, and whipped him—boom—just like that." He waved his arm in her face and gave a vicious flick of his wrist. Callista flinched. "Snapped his neck instantly." Batton's prideful grin turned Callista's stomach. "He travels with me now. A trophy of sorts. I do like pretty trophies." He stroked her cheek with the backs of his fingers.

Callista jerked her face away from him. "I'm nobody's trophy."

He laughed, the sound hollow. "With that face and figure? Honey, you were made to be a man's trophy." Batton snatched her wrist and dragged her deeper into the room. "And the perfect bait."

She dragged her feet and struggled against his hold, but her efforts didn't slow Batton in the slightest. "Let me go!"

"I don't think so, sweeting."

He tossed her roughly into a hard wooden chair then wrenched her arms behind her. A cord of some sort coiled around her wrists and pulled tight. As soon as he stepped away, she tugged and squirmed, trying to pull a hand free, but the cord held fast.