The Endless Sky (Cheyenne Series) Read Free Page A

concluded with an exchange of money and an assurance by the Cockney assassin that he would sail with the morning tide on the Lady Jane .
           When a distinguished looking man dressed in expensive evening clothes walked past her hiding place, she was certain he could hear her heart pounding but his brisk stride never faltered. Then as he turned the corner the moonlight from a window struck him. Stephanie almost gasped aloud. She knew him! But surely she was mistaken. It must be a trick of the light.
           She moved cautiously from her hiding place, praying the wharf rat with the dagger was not waiting to pounce on her and slit her throat. She had to find Chase and warn him! She recalled that there were two doors to the library. Since the assassin had not come this way, he must be planning to sneak in by the servants' entrance, which would give her time since that was a very circuitous route—if she could remember herself just where Mr. Cabot's library was!
           Luck favored her. In a few moments she burst into the dark room, breathless and wide-eyed, frantically searching the moonlit interior for Chase. Before she could cry out his name a strong hand clamped over her mouth and she was slammed backward against a man's hard body. For an instant her blood froze with horror—was she too late?
           Then a low smooth voice purred, “If you plan any more mad, impetuous dashes, I'd recommend not lacing yourself so tightly.”
           Her spine stiffened in outrage in spite of the difficulty catching her breath.
           He chuckled, then added, “If you create a scene, I assure you that you'll be more embarrassed than I.” What the hell was Ray's prim little heiress up to?
           He eased his hand away from her mouth, but for some reason did not release his arm from around her tiny waist. The delicate scent of apple blossoms teased his nostrils as she struggled to twist around and face him.
           “Chase, you're in danger! A man's been hired to kill you—he'll be here any—”
           Her breathless whisper was cut short when Remington sensed the subtle air currents from another door opening across the room and once again muffled her mouth. “Quiet. I hear him.”
           His whisper was barely audible to Stephanie, but she froze in his arms as icy fingers of dread caressed her spine. They were both going to die! Chase was unarmed. Who knew what sort of an arsenal that awful sounding Britisher possessed! Chase set her behind him, then pulled something from inside his jacket. She caught a silvery gleam of metal as he melted silently into the shadows, moving toward the stealthy figure crouched somewhere in darkness.
           Stephanie bit down hard on her fist to keep from making any sound which would alert the killer. She could not see him now, but she could hear him moving cautiously across the room. There was no sign of Chase. Had he vanished in a puff of smoke, leaving her to die alone?
           Suddenly the dull whump of two bodies colliding broke the stillness. Curses and panting ensued for what seemed an eternity to the terrified girl, but could only have been a moment. Books came crashing from their shelves as the two men fought in the shadows. Then the struggling pair moved in front of the large bay window behind Mr. Cabot's desk. Dear God above, the assassin almost matched the half-breed's uncommon height!
           The men rolled across the desk, locked in an embrace of death. Moonlight shimmered on their wicked looking blades as each strained to free his knife hand from the other's grip. A lamp shattered against the wall, knocked from the desk along with a flurry of papers. The combatants fell behind the desk. A loud grunt was followed by a gasp, then one man rose over the other, silhouetted against the snowy landscape outside the window. A blade arced like silver fire and plunged. The death rattle which followed was