Strangers To Love Ch. 10

When Leanna came up out of the blackness, she stayed very still. She could here the man cussing under his breath. He was to her left. She knew from the floor and the smell that she was in the main barn. She could hear the cows in the distance to her right, so figured the doors were in that direction. Straining her ears, she tried to determine how far away he was and how close she was to the door. Then she heard him. He was moving towards her. She tried to get away by scooting backwards but he caught her by the hair and yanked her back.

'Bitch! That kick hurt but it won't stop me. I have a feeling you're gonna be mighty tasty and as long as we've got the place to ourselves, I plan on taking my time. Whether you enjoy it or not will be up to you.' Buddy leaned over her and tore her cotton chemise from the neck to her waist and grabbed her breasts with both hands, hard. She tried to twist away from him, but he dug his nails into her tender flesh, effectively stopping her. Tears began to escape from under the blindfold and ran down her face. 'I told you to be still.' Then Buddy leaned over and bit her nipple. Leanna cried out in pain.

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James saw the horse tied to the tree and stopped the wagon. There was no sign of the rider.

'Billy, stay here, I'm going to walk up to the house and see if I can find Leanna. If I find her, I'll whistle and then you can bring the wagon. Do you understand? I want you to stay here.'

'Yea, James. I'll stay 'ere but shouldn't I 'elp find 'Anna? What about 'da bad man?', Billy asked, the fear in his voice reflected on his face. He was counting on James to find Leanna and protect her.

'I'll take care of the bad man. You stay here until I whistle. Then you come and take care of Leanna. OK?'

'OK.'

James got down from the wagon and using the trees for cover, made his way to the house. His gun was in his saddle bag, in the barn. His boot knife was the only weapon he had, and he had it in his hand. He made it to the porch without seeing anyone - no Leanna, no Buddy Wilkes, or Grays, or whatever the hell his name was. Something in the garden caught his eye and stopped his heart. Leanna's basket was overturned and the ground looked torn up as if a struggle had taken place.

Moving to the front door, he listened but heard nothing. He slowly opened the door and looked into the front parlor. Empty. The house had that deserted feel to it. He was positive no one was in the house. Moving quickly, he went through the dining area to the kitchen.

Once in the kitchen, he carefully looked out the windows towards the dairy barn. Even the cows were gone - in the pasture. The two horses in the corral looked calm. He opened the kitchen door and cautiously moved onto the porch. And then he heard a muffled scream.

James took off running towards the barn, knife in hand and murder in his heart. Skidding to a halt just outside the doors, he could here a man's voice and a woman's whimpers.

'See? Told you it would hurt if you didn't cooperate. Now, time to see the rest of the goodies!'

James ran into the barn, knife raised, and saw Thomas Grays standing over Leanna. Her breasts were exposed and her pants were undone. Grays was starting to bend over to remove them when he heard James. Startled, he stood up and reached to his hip bringing up a knife even more wicked looking than the one James had.

Grays laughed softly. 'Well if it isn't the whelp that tried to steal my Isabelle! Thought you were dead! I guess I'll have to rectify that, now won't I? Can't let you interfere again. Oh, no, those ghosts are gonna stay buried this time.'

Grays lunged at James. James managed to dodge away, but was tripped up by a piece of equipment sticking out from the wall. He fell hard to his side, his knife knocked out of his hand in the process. Grays spun around and saw James on the floor and dove at him. They rolled over each other on the floor, James trying desperately to keep the sharp knife away from his chest as Grays tried just as desperately to plunge it in.

James was 15 years younger, 40 pounds lighter and in much better shape. Grays could feel himself being pushed back, so did what any coward would do: he bit James hard on the forearm. The pain was excruciating and caused James to loosen his grip. A lucky move to the left prevented the knife from entering his chest, but cut his right arm. He cried out in pain. Grays grunted in triumph and made another attempt.

And then everything stopped. Grays eyes rolled back and as he slumped down onto him, James pushed him off to the right, freeing himself from the weight of Grays' now inert body. James looked up and saw Billy. Billy was holding the shovel over his head and ready to take aim at Grays head for a second time.

'Billy! NO! You'll kill him and he's not worth it. Get some rope and hog tie him.' James then turned towards Leanna. She flinched when he touched her, so he began to murmur softly to her while he untied the blindfold and the ropes at her wrists. Taking off his shirt, he covered her as she clung to him, tears running down her face. Picking her up, he carried her into the house and laid her on the bed in her room.

Billy had done a good job of tying up Grays and had followed them into the house. 'She alright? Is 'Anna hurt?'

Leanna answered, as calmly as a normal day, 'I'm fine Billy. You and James saved my life today. I am so proud of you both. But I need to get cleaned up and you need to run and get the sheriff. Take a horse, Billy. And hurry.'

Billy took off like a flash with a big grin on his face at the praise from his 'Anna. James had told him what a good job he'd done, even though he hadn't done what James had told him. 'But James! I knew I couldn't hear you whistle from there so I just thought I'd stay closer, so I could hear you.' James had laughed and told him that he was very smart. Smart! Wait till he told mama!

James then told Leanna who the man was: Her father as well as the man who had killed Isabelle. This was the man for whom he had been searching for three years. They managed to connect all the dots to form a picture of a man who was a user, a gambler, a killer and would be rapist. Leanna felt so dirty that she wondered how James could still love her. But love her he did and nothing would ever change that. Later that night he proved to her with actions louder than words just how much he loved her and she believed.

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The Sheriff arrived and took Grays, Grayson, Wilkes away that day. Two months later he was convicted of attempted rape and attempted murder. Because of the testimony of James, he was also convicted of Isabelle's murder and sentenced to be hanged.

The week following the verdict, Buddy Wilkes was hanged by the neck until dead and buried in an unmarked grave. Not one single person mourned.

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Epilogue: One Year Later.

The wedding had been beautiful and Leanna even more so. The last of the family and friends who attended the party afterwards were leaving and soon James would take his wife to the bedroom that had once been her Grandfather's. They had remodeled the entire house, deciding to stay here and raise a family. A family that already included Rose, their daughter. Unconventional yes, but it suited them. The baby would be staying with Mrs. P tonight and Billy was thrilled. Not only had he been Best Man at the wedding, but was referred to as Uncle Billy now and couldn't be more proud.

James and Leanna decided to leave the party clutter till morning and when they arrived in the bedroom found that the bed had been turned down, fresh flowers were in the vases and the room smelled of Leanna's perfume. The low light from the fire place was all they needed as each undressed the other and they fell onto the bed with giggles and kisses and caressing hands.

'I think Rose needs a sibling,' Leanna said.

'Well, let's work on that, shall we?', James replied.

The End

Dear Reader, I truly hope you enjoyed this tale and I thank you for reading. Sincerely, Lady Ilsa