When Passion Calls

Shane's shoulder muscles tightened. "That isn't any concern of yours or anyone's," he said. "It is between me and my brother." He leaned closer to

the blacksmith's face. "Smith, do you or don't you want my coins? I can go somewhere else. It does not matter to me who I make richer."

The blacksmith cupped his hands over the coins possessively. "By sunup tomorrow you'll have yourself enough cowhands," he said, smiling crookedly up at Shane. "By sunup tomorrow."

Shane nodded. "I appreciate it," he said, turning and leaving.

When he was out on the street again, he looked toward the saloons, then at the building where his brother made residence. He had thought that Josh was going to come home after their last confrontation. Apparently he had been wrong.

He went to his horse and swung himself up into his saddle. He was too lost in thought to notice a horse and buggy speeding into town, stirring up dust behind it. He mingled with the other men on horseback along the busy thoroughfare and made his way in the opposite direction, to the edge of town. He had one chore behind him and one more to go. He had a score to settle. With Trapper Dan. But he must first go and try to speak to the Indian woman, to see if he could persuade her to leave the trapper, so that she would not come to any harm when Shane finally got his revenge.

Melanie elbowed her way along the crowded sidewalk, unsure of which saloon she would enter first. Even the thought of mingling with the sorts of people who frequented those sinful places made her cringe, but to help Shane, she was ready to face

any sort of uncomfortable situation. For Shane, she would do anything!

Before she shoved the first swinging door aside, Melanie stopped and took a deep breath.

Then, mustering up the courage required for the task at hand, she stepped into the establishment. Choking on the thick smoke that was spiraling like heavy fog through the air, she covered her mouth with one hand. With her free hand, she waved the smoke aside and walked toward the sound of coins clinking and men laughing. She remembered the other time she had been in this saloon and she heard the sound of cards shuffling. She became unnerved when she stepped up to a table and found herself staring down, face to face with Josh as he turned and looked up at her as she approached the table.

"Melanie?" Josh said in a drunken drawl, blinking his eyes to be sure that he was not seeing things. "Melanie, is that you?"

Melanie stared at Josh, scarcely believing what she was seeing. His face was covered with thick, golden stubble. There were dark hollows beneath his bloodshot eyes; his face was gaunt. She looked slowly up at his hair. It was greasy and uncombed. His expensive white silk shirt was stained from food and drink. The collar was grimy, and a strong stench of perspiration rose from his armpits, proving that he had been without a bath for some time.

"Josh, I could safely ask if that is you," Melanie said, shaking her head with disgust. "Never did I

think that you could let yourself look like this. Youyou have always been so immaculate."

Josh laughed drunkenly as he rose to his feet, clumsily knocking the chair to the floor behind him. He reached for Melanie, then fell awkwardly forward when she stepped out of the way. "My little Melanie," he said, grabbing for her again and missing again. "Do I sense that you care just a little bit about me?"

Melanie cringed as he took another step toward her. "Josh, I didn't come into this hellhole for anyone but Shane," she snapped angrily. "He needs you, Josh, and by damn you're going to forget this life of gambling and drinking and behave as a brother should behave."

She grabbed his arm and gave a hard yank. "You're going home, Josh," she said, forcefully moving him along through the gawking crowd. "You're going to have a bath and drink a gallon of coffee to sober you up, and then you are going to go and find Shane and give him a helping hand."

Josh frowned. "Give him a helping hand?" he said in a drunken drawl. "Who says?"

"I do," Melanie said, giving him another hard yank. "Now come along. You don't have any choice this time. You're going to do something for someone besides yourself. Your selfish days are over as far as I'm concerned."

The men at the table that Josh was leaving began to laugh and poke fun at him. Josh hesitated and looked over his shoulder. His gaze settled on the half-emptied whiskey bottle and the stack of coins

that were his. He started pulling back from Melanie.

''I'm not finished with my whiskey," he whined. "I'm not through playing poker." He reached a hand back over his shoulder. "Give me my money! Give me my whiskey!"

The men ignored him now and resumed playing cards.

Melanie tugged and pulled with all her might until she had Josh out on the sidewalk. "There's my horse and buggy," she said flatly. "Come on, Josh. Walk on your own. Don't force us both to make fools of ourselves. I felt fool enough just having to enter that terrible place. I don't want to set the whole city of St. Paul's tongues to wagging about both our families any more than they are already."

Josh staggered. He grabbed for Melanie. He squinted down at her. "I've got one helluva headache," he confessed. "Damn it, Melanie, I need to go someplace and lie down." He looked up at the stairs that led to his room. "Come on, Melanie. Let me go to my room and get a few winks of sleep before riding on that rickety buggy. I just might puke."

Melanie shook her head. "If you think I'm going to let you sidetrack me into going to your hotel room, you're crazy," she said, shoving him toward her buggy. "Get in the buggy. And Josh, if you dare get sick in my buggy, I'll kick you out onto the road and make you walk home. Do you understand?"

Josh pulled himself up into the buggy and held his face in his hands. "You're a hard-hearted woman," he said, groaning as she climbed in beside him and slapped the reins against the horse's rump. "Please go slow, Melanie. Please . . ."

Melanie smiled wickedly at him and sent her horse into a hard gallop over the dusty road. When the buggy hit a pothole, she laughed to herself when Josh's eyes widened and he covered his mouth with a hand. She could see his throat constricting and knew that he was terribly ill. It would do him good to have to suffer like everyone else!

But she stopped to let him be sick in a clump of bushes alongside the road. After that, Josh climbed to the back of the buggy and stretched out and fell into a restless sleep. Melanie drove on, more slowly.

Stealing stealthily across the stretch of land that led from the depths of the forest to Trapper Dan's cabin, Shane tensed when he heard the trapper laughing. He went to the window and peered inside. The trapper was straddling the naked Indian woman, rutting her vigorously. Shane looked at the woman's face to see if she was enjoying it. His insides grew cold when he saw that she was passive, her eyes fixed on the roof rather than the man who held her.