Benjamin Read Online Free PDF Page B

posses come through here every couple weeks. One just this morning, and they sure as hell weren’t just passing through.”
    Her hair had come loose from the tight braid and clumps of it bounced as she glared at him, shaking her head. “That didn’t give you the right to throw me to the ground and hold me against my will.”
    Ben refused to get pulled into a ridiculous argument with her, especially one done through whispers. He turned his back and walked to Paladin, gut churning and body throbbing with the aftermath of the last five minutes. The horse greeted him with a toss of its mane.
    She was right and he knew it. That didn’t mean he had to like it. His sisters, sisters-in-law, and Eva would be properly horrified by his behavior with Grace. The ache to see his family hit him, sharp and unwelcome.
    He didn’t need to be distracted by thoughts of home. It was Grace’s fault. She had brought with her memories and stirred the hornet’s nest in his heart. Damn her.
    What was he going to do?
    *
    After a nearly sleepless and cold night, Grace ribbed at her gritty eyes and stifled a yawn. Coffee would be nice. Too bad the despot she traveled with refused to allow them a fire. She washed down a breakfast of jerky with water and saddled her horse.
    Ben stood by with Paladin’s reins in his hand. His jaw appeared tight enough to crack rocks.
    “Which way are we headed?”
    “North. Gonna need to cross the Sabine River.” He threw himself up into the saddle with speed and grace. The man seemed to be born to ride a horse. He looked too good sitting on top of that beautiful gelding. She knew it to be his sister’s horse, one she’d sacrificed to Ben to help him escape. The Grahams had some fine horseflesh.
    “How long you figure it will take us to get there?” She pulled herself up onto her gelding.
    “You ever gonna name that horse?”
    She stared at him for a moment, nonplussed by the change in topic. He seemed intent on her naming the damn gelding. This was the second time he’d mentioned it. “What?”
    “You’ve been riding that horse for what, a year?” Ben pulled his horse around and leveled a narrow eyed gaze on her. “Name the damn thing.”
    He rode into the woods, leaving her to wonder what in the world had just happened. She spurred her mount into motion and followed him. Ben set a moderate pace, which she was able to follow by paying close attention to the forest. She was unfamiliar with the terrain but the horse was surefooted. The sunrise slipped across the sky to their right. The pinks and purples gave way to the bright sun as the morning matured.
    Grace’s thoughts turned toward the men they hid from the night before. Although they hadn’t returned, tension had kept her awake with only snatches of sleep. She was exhausted but she wasn’t about to complain.
    “Who do you think those men were?” she asked him.
    He didn’t answer.
    “Is there a reason we should be worried? And why we’re hiding in the woods?”
    “I have four sisters.”
    She scowled at his back. “Felicitations. What does that have to do with my questions?”
    “They have tougher methods than you to try to get me to talk.”
    She wanted to punch him. A lot.
    “If I’m in danger from them, I need to know.”
    He lifted one shoulder in a casual shrug. “Life is dangerous. You forced me to help you, so you’ll have to deal with the consequences.”
    “I didn’t—” She stopped herself before she was pulled into an argument she couldn’t win. The harsh truth was, she had forced him. There would be consequences and she would have to accept them. Her annoyance was compounded by lack of sleep but she swallowed the pride that was her nemesis.
    An hour passed in painful silence. She wanted to ask him about the compound, about what he’d seen, any details he could remember, but she had a feeling he wouldn’t tell her very much. He’d been a child, a little older than Henry. Alone and scared. Grace wasn’t sure she