Prologue

       The Territory of New Mexico

       1890

      ISABELLA MONTGOMERY trembled as she stood before her father. Feeling compelled to state her case she forced words from her throat, well aware that she risked, almost invited, her father’s anger. “I am fourteen years old, Father. I know that there are girls of my age already married, but I fear I’m not ready to become a wife.” Her voice broke as she considered the man her father intended for her and revulsion filled her mind. “Juan Garcia is as old as you are. How can you think of giving me to him as a bride?”

      And even as she spoke, she knew her plea would be in vain, for her words would not be heeded by her father.

      Charles Montgomery was a man of mixed heritage, who saw before him the means of his own upward climb into society, and his eyes were dark, dull orbs as he considered the female before him. Given his mother’s Spanish aristocratic background, he would have been of exalted heritage, had not that woman been seduced by an Irish immigrant and given birth to a child who looked like a throwback to the Spanish grandees, yet bore the name of an Irish potato farmer.

      Now he aimed higher, aware that wealth might also be his, even though it was at the price of his daughter’s future. A small thing to be sacrificed, for of what use was a daughter, anyway? But, for some reason, his child was worth more than he’d imagined, and this was an opportunity he would not allow to slip through his fingers.

      “You will marry the man chosen for you, Isabella.” His eyes were hard, seeming to be made of onyx, so harshly did they glitter in the lamplight. “I have educated you with the finest of tutors, readying you for your position in life. Be happy that I am willing to give you time to become a woman first. You are small, not fit yet for a wife’s duties, and your body has not shown signs of maturity. You may find that the convent will suit you. The sisters will guide you, teach you womanly ways, and in two years or so, you will be a fit wife for Juan Garcia.”

      “He is an old man.” Her words were harsh, scornful and without respect for the man who had set her destiny.

      With a blow she had expected, she was dashed against the thick wall of her father’s parlor, her cheek bleeding from the signet ring he wore. And yet, she could not have accepted his will for her life without protest.

      If nothing else, Isabella was destined to be a woman of great pride. That she would also be possessed of great beauty her father had long since decided was a given, for she wore the face of her mother, a woman lauded for her beauty and figure. A woman whose death had followed the birth of Charles Montgomery’s only child. That the child was a girl was a tragedy, but one he bore up under. For even a girl child could be made into an asset.

      At fourteen, she carried the promise of great beauty, and, catching the eye of a man who collected objects of distinction, an offer was made for her. It was more than Isabella’s greedy father could resist. Perhaps a period of time might bring about an even larger amount of cash from the man whose greedy eyes claimed the girl, whose avid lust seemed to know no bounds. For Isabella, as he might have predicted, was not agreeable to an early marriage.

      Juan Garcia had been persuaded to wait for her body to ripen, and the Sisters of Charity would see to it that Isabella did just that in a climate guaranteed to protect her from outside influences. Two years in the convent would make her fit for marriage, the sisters teaching her the duties of a woman. This marriage would bring honor to her father, the joining a link between two wealthy families, providing Charles Montgomery with grandchildren to inherit his holdings.

      With bitter tears and a sorrow too heavy to be borne by a child, Isabella was sent away from the only home she’d ever known, to live in almost silent seclusion with the Sisters of Charity. Their kindness was given to the poor of the community in which they lived, leaving the confused child whose presence provided their convent with funds for her keep a modicum of attention. For though they were not unkind, nothing could replace the mother’s love she so desperately needed.

      Her father died when she was sixteen and the lawyer provided funds for her to remain at the convent for two more years. At the time of her father’s death, she’d been told of his passing, of the sudden illness that had claimed his life. She’d mourned not for the man he’d been, but for what might have been had he honored her as his daughter, had he offered her the love of a father. And then, with barely a pause in her daily schedule of work and prayer and faithfulness to the nuns, who gave her what attention they could, she faced her future, a future that seemed insecure, living one day at a time, never looking beyond the sunset, but thankful for each morning’s dawning. Thankful for the day-to-day schedule that took her time and attention. For each day had seemed to solidify her position here at the convent.

      SHE’D RECENTLY LEARNED that Juan Garcia was growing angry with the wait for the claiming of his bride. He’d told her father’s lawyer that he would be coming to claim her. So for now, she existed in a vacuum, for she could not face her future.

      Stepping carefully, Isabella sought a path of least resistance, whispering prayers, attending chapel services, bowing her head in submission to the rules of the convent and, in all ways, seeking to be invisible. All to no avail.