When Passion Calls

Sleep quickly claimed him again.

Shane's spine stiffened when he heard Melanie's voice from somewhere behind him. He drew the reins tautly and wheeled his horse around. Breath-

ing shallowly, he watched her riding hard toward him. He took her reins as she stopped alongside him, her hair tangled, her eyes wild.

"Shane, where are you going?" Melanie asked, breathless. She looked at Red Raven. Attired in only a brief loincloth and with black paint st

reaked across his face, he looked no less than threatening.

"Why are you leaving with him?" She implored Shane with tear-filled eyes. "Shane, please don't leave. You can't! Things will get better between you and your brother. Please give it a chance!"

"What I am doing has nothing to do with Josh," Shane said, his blue eyes filled with emotion. "Nothing at all."

"Then what?" Melanie persisted, reaching to touch his hand. "Why are you leaving so hastily? Where are you going?"

"My friend, Red Raven, has brought me troubling news," Shane explained quietly, casting Red Raven a glance as his friend edged his horse close to Shane's.

"What sort of news?" Melanie asked, looking guardedly at Red Raven.

"It is about Cedar Maid," Shane said.

Melanie was aware of the sudden pain in Shane's eyes at the mention of Cedar Maid. She could tell that the news about her could not be good. She was almost afraid to ask further about her, yet she had to know. Anything that had to do with Shane now, had to do with her!

"Shane, what about Cedar Maid?" she asked weakly. "What has happened?"

"She is no longer with the Chippewa," Shane said, anger suddenly flaring in his eyes. "A great bride price was paid for her. She now travels with a white man. This white man is the same man who stole from my mother's dead body! It is the man with the peculiar eyes! He has returned to steal from me again!"

Melanie grew cold inside at Shane's vehemence. "I'm sorry," she murmured. "That's terrible."

"He will not have Cedar Maid for long," Shane said, narrowing his eyes. "By nightfall she will be mine. She will make residence in my house. She will be safe with me, forever."

Jealousy stung Melanie's insides. Could Shane's strong feelings for Cedar Maid be more than that for a sister? She swallowed back a lump that was invading her throat. "Then you intend to go and take her from this man?" she asked, her voice drawn.

Shane nodded. "He cannot be allowed to molest someone as sweet and innocent as Cedar Maid," he said. He gave Red Raven a troubled glance, then peered intensely at Melanie. "Too much time is being wasted in talk," he said, reaching to touch her cheek gently. "I must go. Already Trapper Dan has the advantage. He has surely gone many miles since he took Cedar Maid away!"

"I want to go with you," Melanie said, grabbing his hand and holding on to it for dear life. She had the feeling that she was going to lose him and she had only had him for a short while. She could not bear the loss.

"It is not wise," Shane said, shaking his head. "Return home where you will be safe. I only wish to have one woman at a time to worry about."

Melanie flinched at those words, suspecting more meaning in them than he had intended. "I will not slow you down" she argued. "I ride a horse as skillfully as any man. And I can take care of myself! I will go with you, Shane. You can't expect me to return home as though nothing has happened."

She blinked back a tear. "Shane, I'm afraid for you," she said. "This man you are going after has proven to be nothing less than a fiend! He will not let you take Cedar Maid without a fight."

"It is my fight," Shane said flatly. "I will fight and I will win." He pointed toward the farm in the distance. "Go home, Melanie. I have no more time for arguing."

Stung by his actually giving her a command, Melanie gave him a hurt stare, then wheeled her horse around and rode hard away from him. Tears splashed from her eyes, fearing for more than just his safety. She feared that his past would always be there to interfere with his new life.

Hearing the thundering of hooves behind her, Melanie drew her reins taut and eased her horse around so that she could take a final look at Shane. Wiping tears from her cheeks, she watched him disappear into the forest.

"I can't let him go this easily!" she cried to herself. "I must follow. I must! He just won't know that I am there!"

Waiting just a moment longer, Melanie nudged her horse with her knees and urged it into a soft trot, keeping just far enough back from Shane so that she would not be noticed by him or his friend. When she reached the forest, she found cover behind the trees. She rode steadily, never letting Shane out of her sight.

Chapter Thirteen

Unaware of Melanie following them, Shane and Red Raven rode endlessly onward. The shadows of the forest loomed around them, yet the air was warm as the sun rose higher in the sky.

"Are you positive this is the way Trapper Dan traveled with Cedar Maid?" Shane shouted, casting a troubled glance at Red Raven.