Unending Devotion (Michigan Brides #1)(91)

The only thing she wanted was to get her hands around Tierney’s neck and squeeze until he confessed Daisy’s whereabouts. He would know. Daisy would turn to him first.

When Lily stepped off the street onto the snow-covered plank walkway that led to Tierney’s home, fingers suddenly gripped her forearm and the tip of a knife poked through her coat and the layers of her clothes into her back.

She gasped.

“Don’t say nothin’. Don’t scream” came a hard voice from behind her. “And maybe you’ll live.”

Lily froze.

“Walk nice and slow to that carriage there.” The point of the knife was painfully close to piercing her skin, and the strong grip propelled her toward a carriage parked along the side of the road. A team of horses snorted as if waiting for her.

Fear pulsed through her. “Who are you? What do you want?” She tried to yank her arm free and twist around to identify the man. But he pushed the knife deeper, this time cutting into her skin.

She cried out at the sudden burning.

“I said not to say nothin’.” The man pushed her faster toward the open carriage door.

The driver was perched, reins in hand, ready to go. “That ain’t Bella,” he growled.

“I couldn’t find her,” said her captor, shoving her upward, giving her little choice but to climb into the carriage. “Figured this one could help us.”

She couldn’t think fast enough or move quickly enough, and before she knew it, the man had tossed her against the hard, cold seat. She struggled to untangle herself from her skirts and sit up.

But he shoved his way into the cramped space after her, pushing her down and towering over her. He yanked the door closed with a finality that sent chills over her.

The odor of dust and decaying leather lingered in the cracked seat. And as he lowered his face to hers, the strong scent of onions and tobacco on his hot breath choked her.

He gave a short laugh. “I’ve been waiting to get a taste of you.”

Through the dark shadows of the boxy interior, she caught a glimpse of his face and the black gaps in his grin. “Jimmy Neil from Harrison.”

“That’s me.” His hand crept over her bodice, sending new horror through her.

The worst was happening. He was going to defile her.

“Get off me.” She struggled against him, scrambling to get out from underneath his heavy weight. She kneed him and scratched his face, and fought with all the desperation welling inside her.

The jerk of the carriage as it started forward sent him crashing against the rear-facing seat.

She used the brief respite to pull herself onto the bench and move as far away from him as possible. She cowered in the corner, trying to still the trembling in her limbs, knowing she couldn’t put enough distance between them, and he could easily overpower her if he chose to have his way with her.

But that didn’t mean she wouldn’t fight him. She’d rather die fighting than let him violate her.

He cupped his hand, cursed at the edge of the seat, then yelled at the driver.

She balled her fists, ready to swing should Jimmy come at her again.

But he lifted his hand and blood gushed from a deep tear in the flesh of his palm.

“What have you done with Daisy?” she asked. Maybe he’d already captured Daisy and was planning to make her return to the Stockade.

“That’s funny.” He reached for a rag next to him on the seat. “I was about to ask you the same.”

“Did you kidnap her too?”

He bit down on the edge of the rag, and despite the bumping and jostling of the vehicle, he used his teeth to tear a long strip. “I figured when I couldn’t find her that you took her and hid her someplace new.”

Lily glanced out the carriage window as best she could through the smudged and frosted pane. They were moving fast.

Jimmy wrapped the strip around his wounded hand. “Tell me where Bella is.”

“I don’t know.” Her fingers moved toward the door lever. “And even if I did know, I wouldn’t tell you. Not even if you stuck your knife into me and cut out my heart.”

Jimmy snorted. “Oh, believe me, you’d tell me if I stuck my knife into you. I’d make sure of that.”

Lily shuddered and inched her hand higher. She needed to get away from him and find Daisy before he did.

“My boss told me to bring Bella back to him or he’d kill me.”

“You’d best tell your boss you won’t be bringing Bella back to him. Ever. I won’t let it happen.”

“Then I guess you’re gonna have to take her place.” He finished tying the bandage around his wound, but a dark spot of blood was already seeping through the material. “Because I’m not going back empty-handed.”

Her fingers made contact with the metal handle. Her heart whirred in a frenzy. She couldn’t let him drag her back to Harrison. She’d jump to her death before she let him take her to the Stockade.

She flipped the latch and the door swung open. She lunged for the opening. The swirling snow and cold air hit her face. She glanced down. The crunching of the wheels in the ice and mud made her hesitate for just a moment.

But it was a moment too long. Jimmy grabbed onto the fancy bouffant skirt and yanked her backward with the strength of a man who wrestled logs for a living.