Nate's Destiny

by Shirleen Davies

  Although they’d spent other long afternoons together, he’d never let it go as far as that one afternoon by the river. Geneen no longer wondered why. He simply hadn’t wanted her enough—the same reason he’d left Circle M.

  Geneen loved him with everything she had. It hadn’t been enough. Someday she’d find the courage to allow him to explain his actions, but not now. She’d go through each day doing her chores, ignoring the fact the man she loved slept only a few feet away. It might as well have been a hundred miles. They were as far away from each other as they could ever be.

  Chapter Six

  Geneen hadn’t bowed out of the hunting trip as Nate expected. By the time he entered the barn, she had Gypsy saddled.

  “Good morning.” He refused to ignore her, even though Nate suspected she’d prefer just that. Grabbing a halter, he walked to the back, opened the door, and whistled for Nomad. He stroked the gelding’s neck before slipping on the halter and bringing him inside, seeing Heather and Caleb talking to Geneen. They quieted at his approach.

  “How’d you sleep, Nate?” Caleb asked.

  “Real good. I haven’t slept in a regular bed in months.”

  Geneen looked at Caleb. She had no idea where Nate had been living, suspecting he’d taken a room at the boardinghouse she’d seen on the main street. He seemed in good spirits. Much better than she felt.

  “Where are we headed?” Nate glanced over his shoulder at Caleb as he saddled Nomad, replacing the harness with the bridle, then mounted.

  “About a half an hour north, past the Acorn Gold Mine. Archie says the deer are plentiful in the hills. There’s a big lake up there, too.” Caleb rolled up two oilskins, securing one behind his saddle, the other behind Nate’s.

  “Geneen and I packed food. We’ll be having our dinner by the lake, and with luck, venison for supper.”

  Geneen’s stomach clenched at Heather’s statement, remembering all the times she and Nate had shared dinner along the river running through Circle M. Those days seemed so long in the past.

  “Let’s get started.” Caleb reined Jupiter out of the barn, taking a trail behind the house that led them along the river. Heather followed behind him, then Geneen. Nate took up the rear, glancing around as they made their way north.

  The Feather River ran through Conviction, bringing steamships loaded with passengers and supplies from Sacramento, continuing north to Yubaville before reaching Settlers Valley. Marcus had told Nate some made a couple more stops upriver, then turned around, while the majority headed back toward Sacramento.

  His gaze moved to Geneen, who rode several feet ahead of him. She had a natural grace, sitting straight, yet relaxed in the saddle. Her movements were sparse as she guided Gypsy along the trail, staying a few yards behind Heather. Not once had she glanced back at him to make sure he still followed.

  Not that he had anywhere else to go. If in town, he might’ve gone to church, taken a meal at the only restaurant, then found a seat on one of the benches on the boardwalk to watch the people move past.

  Some Sundays, he rode south along the river, stopping once in a while to try his luck at catching a few fish. They were a welcome change from beans and the occasional batch of biscuits Esther would bring over. Although he never turned down any of the food she brought, his favorites were her fruit pies and cakes. The woman loved to cook, for which Nate was forever grateful. If staying at the ranch didn’t work out, it wouldn’t be at all hard to return to town and the tiny shack.

  As he watched Geneen sway in the saddle, he found himself wanting to close the distance between them, both physically and emotionally. He couldn’t stand the thought of their friendship dying because of his thoughtless and selfish actions.

  A few miles along the river, Caleb led the group east into the foothills. Nate had never been this far north. The land boasted rolling terrain, low valleys, and ample grasslands. Over eggs this morning, Archie explained how he and his late wife had once thought of buying additional land up north, but then she’d passed away and he’d lost the heart to continue the dream.

  From the little he’d seen, Nate saw nothing wrong with the spot Archie chose along the river for his ranch. Good grazing land, ample water, and a short ride to town, Nate thought it beautiful and the perfect place to raise a family.

  His heart twisted. He’d once thought he’d have a family and several children by now. The war had torn his dreams from him. The odd part about it was he’d never been brokenhearted when his fiancée broke their engagement. In many ways, it had been a relief.

  He’d envisioned the same kind of future with Geneen. Riding away from her had been excruciating, albeit necessary. He’d made progress since leaving Conviction and Circle M. Moving to the ranch might be the next step in making things right. If she ever gave him the chance, he’d explain his decision to her.

  So lost in thought, Nate missed the others stopping along the trail, waiting for him.

  “We’ll split up here. Nate, you and Geneen take the trail to our right. Heather and I will take the left trail. The way the trails twist, Archie says we’ll never be more than a quarter mile apart. It’ll give us a better chance of finding deer.”

  “Wouldn’t it be better to stay together our first trip, Caleb?” Geneen looked at Heather, hoping for support. “I mean, none of us have been up this way before. It might be safer if we didn’t split up.”

  “Archie says it’s pretty safe up this way. The occasional coyote or bear. He tells me the Indians are harmless.”

  “Indians?” Geneen arched a brow.

  “There are several tribes up north. The ones we’re most likely to encounter are the Nisanon, Kinkow, or Maidu. Archie’s never had problems with any of them.” Caleb glanced up the two trails. “They merge at the lake. We’ll meet up again there.”

  “Wouldn’t it be better if I rode with Heather, Caleb?” Geneen couldn’t grasp the idea of spending a few hours hunting with Nate. She’d thought they’d all stay together, giving her the ability to keep her distance.

  Caleb shook his head. “I want a man with each woman.”

  “It’ll only be for a couple hours, Geneen. I’ll do my best to stay out of your way.”

  Her heart hammered at the sound of Nate’s voice a short distance away. She couldn’t refuse, not without seeming churlish.

  “You two ready?” Caleb moved his horse closer to Heather.

  “As ready as I’ll ever be.”

  Nate chuckled at Geneen’s mumbled response. “We’re ready. See you at the lake.” Moving up the trail, he stopped after several yards, shifting in the saddle to look at Geneen, who hadn’t moved. “Are you coming?”

  Geneen glanced at the retreating backs of Caleb and Heather, feeling trapped. Sucking in a frustrated breath, she guided Gypsy forward, not responding to Nate’s question. The logic of Caleb’s decision made sense. They came for deer and had a better chance of finding animals in two groups rather than one. Still, she didn’t have to like the arrangements.

  “We’ll do the same as when we hunted with Quinn and Emma. Never get out of my sight.”

  “I remember,” she hissed out, not wanting to listen.

  “You’ll need to stay close to me. Up here a ways, we’ll dismount and walk the side trails. We might have better luck without the horses.”

  Geneen cringed at the thought of walking the trail with Nate. “We can split up when we dismount.”

  Reining Nomad up, he waited for her, noticing she took her time getting to him. “We stay together whether we’re on or off the horses.” He kept his voice reasonable, not wanting to anger her further. Geneen didn’t have to come out and say how unhappy she was about riding with him. Nate could see it in her features, hear it in the tone of her voice.

  “I know this isn’t what you want, being forced to ride with me. We don’t need to talk unless we get a kill. Until then, we can use the same hand signals we did with Quinn and Emma. All right?”

  Pursing her lips, she looked away. “Fine.”<
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  He would’ve chuckled if he didn’t know how much Geneen didn’t want to be around him. He suspected she’d rather be anywhere else.

  “Good. Let’s go.” Nate didn’t wait for her response. They were losing time and he was determined to bring deer back to the ranch.

  They’d been riding for less than fifteen minutes when crunching noises to their right had each stopping. Nate studied one side of the trail, Geneen the other, waiting for movement or sounds. It didn’t take long for the rustling to begin again. Looking at each other, they slid from their horses, drawing rifles from their scabbards.

  Nate signaled for her to follow him to the left. She shook her head, certain the noise had come from their right. Shrugging, he indicated for her to lead.

  Ground tying Gypsy, Geneen moved off to the right. As they walked, the rustling continued, closer this time. Stopping, they stood still, careful to make no sound. A minute passed, then another as they looked around. Ahead of them, a large buck stepped into a clearing, followed a moment later by a second, smaller buck.

  Nate breathed a relieved sigh, knowing they were downwind of the animals. They watched as the bucks lowered their heads, grazing on early winter grass. Catching Geneen’s attention, he signaled for her to take the one on the left. He’d take the one on the right.

  Slowly, each lifted their rifle and sighted. Nate took a quick glance at Geneen.

  “Ready?” he whispered. When she made a slight nod, he sighted again. “Now.”

  Two shots rang out. Two bucks dropped to the ground. They had no time to celebrate. Running toward the fallen animals, they checked to see if they were just wounded. Both were clean kills.

  “Great shot, Geneen.”

  Sparing him a slight glance, she nodded. “Yours, too.”

  Turning around, he whistled for Nomad. Both horses trotted toward them, stopping several feet away, reluctant to come closer to the fallen bucks.

  “That didn’t take long.” Untying the oilskin, he rolled it out on the ground, then threw it across Nomad’s back to protect the saddle.

  Taking out a knife, he worked quickly to dress out each buck, then lifted them onto his horse, securing both with rope. He guessed them to be no more than seventy pounds apiece. Within twenty minutes, they were ready to leave.

  He walked toward her, stopping when he heard two more shots. Nate looked at Geneen and smiled. Amazingly, she returned a small one of her own.

  “We’ll both need to ride Gypsy.”

  Geneen nodded, knowing she had no other choice unless she wanted to walk. Mounting, she waited for Nate to swing up behind her. When she felt his arm slide around her waist, she sucked in a breath, shoving aside the warmth his touch created. Doing her best to ignore the man behind her, she clucked for Gypsy to move.

  “We need to talk about my reasons for leaving, Geneen.”

  Nate’s arm tightened around her waist, his warm breath against her skin causing her stomach to churn. Her body reacted to him in complete contradiction to what her mind told it to do. When she didn’t respond, he continued.

  “I had to go, and you need to know why.”

  She let Gypsy continue along the trail, closing her eyes for an instant to calm the raging desire his closeness created. Sitting straighter, she tried to create some distance between them. He’d have none of it. His arm tightened around her a little more.

  “I’m sorry for leaving without telling you. If I could do it over, I’d handle it in a different manner.”

  Letting out a breath, she shifted, looking over her shoulder. “It’s quite simple, Nate. If I’d meant enough to you, I doubt you would’ve considered leaving without explaining your reasons. You would’ve given me the courtesy of a goodbye.”

  “It wasn’t that simple, Geneen.”

  She shook her head, frustrated with his lack of understanding. “Perhaps not to you, but to me, it was. You took time to tell Brodie and quit your job. You met with Kyla and Ewan. I assume you explained your reasons to them.”

  He hesitated a moment before answering. “You’re right. I did explain. All three needed to know. Brodie because he was my boss, and Kyla and Ewan because they’d done so much to help me rid my body of opium.”

  “While I sat around day and night doing nothing, right?”

  He felt the blood rush to his face. “No, that’s not right. I’m handling this all wrong.”

  She glanced back at the trail before looking over her shoulder again. “Because there is no right explanation. If you cared about me as much as I did you, nothing could’ve stopped you from explaining why you had to go.” Her voice rose with each sentence, her heart hammering in her chest.

  “That…isn’t true.” He stumbled over the words, wondering if there might be a seed of truth in what she said. He’d been in love with her, hadn’t he?

  “Of course it is.” She saw the lake ahead, slowing their pace. “I believe you cared about me, but weren’t in love with me. While you rested in bed, you had a great deal of time to consider the two of us, and I think you came to realize I’m not the right woman for you. The easiest way to break it off was to leave. Ride out without telling me.”

  “You make it sound as if I planned to hurt you.”

  Reining to a stop next to the water, she felt her body begin to shake as anger took control. “No. I believe you were never in love with me, so explaining your reasons wasn’t important.” She let out a ragged breath, tired of going in circles with him. “Whatever I thought we had was a fantasy, a dream I harbored in my mind. You never had the same dream. I understand that now and beg you to leave it alone.”

  Nate loosened his hold, refusing to drop his arms. “You’re wrong about so many things. If you’d give me some time, I can explain all of it.”

  Looking around, she saw Caleb and Heather riding toward them. “Not now. Not this week, and maybe never. I don’t want to waste my time listening to you rationalize something that can’t be undone. You’ve moved on, and so have I.”

  Ignoring the approaching riders, he tightened his arm around her, pulling her close. Leaning down, he placed a kiss on her neck, feeling her shiver.

  “Have you moved on, Geneen? Your reaction to me says otherwise.” Nate gave her a moment to think about his words, then slid to the ground, watching her chest heave. She was still angry and hurt, but not indifferent to him, as she wanted him to believe. She couldn’t push him away forever. It would take time. Thank goodness he had plenty of it to spare.

  “We’ll be riding to the ranch with four deer.” Heather’s excited voice broke through his thoughts, returning to the reason for them being at the lake.

  “We’ll need to hang them in the trees while we eat.” Caleb began to loosen the ropes around the deer secured on Jupiter’s back while Nate did the same to the ones on Nomad’s. “They aren’t very big animals, but they’ll provide us with enough venison to give us a change from beef, pork, and chicken.”

  After hanging the deer from branches, Nate walked over to where Geneen placed the food on a blanket. Leaning down, he lowered his voice so no one else heard. “This discussion is far from over. Don’t think I’m giving up on us.”

  Her breath caught. She had no more to say to Nate. If he wanted to believe otherwise, so be it. She’d made her decision. She meant to push him from her heart and move on.

  After eating with haste, they packed up, mounted their horses, and were about to leave when the sound of men’s voices stopped them. Hands resting on their guns, the four waited.

  An instant later, an Indian boy, perhaps twelve years old, crashed through the bushes, coming to a stop several feet away when he spotted them. Eyes wide with panic, he shifted from one foot to the other, searching for a means of escape. When the men’s shouts grew closer, his body tensed as he turned toward the voices, the knife in his hand rising into the air.

  Nate and Caleb slid from their horses, holding up their hands as they walked toward the boy. Neither made a move to pull their guns, doing their best to
show him they meant no harm.

  “There he is.” The high-pitched screech had Caleb and Nate moving in front of the boy at the same time a group of men appeared from out of the bushes. The one in the lead pointed to the boy. “You there. Grab him.”

  They made no move to detain him.

  “Move aside.”

  Nate took a step forward. “What do you want with him?”

  “He killed a man at the mine. We’re taking him back to hang.”

  His gaze narrowing on the man who appeared to be their leader, Nate’s hand moved to rest on the butt of his gun. “You saw him kill the man?”

  “Don’t matter. We all know he’s the one that done it.” The men began to raise their rifles.

  “I wouldn’t do that, gentlemen.” Nate looked toward Geneen and Heather, seeing each of them holding rifles, aiming at the group of men. “See those women over there?”

  Several of the men glanced toward them.

  “They’re both good shots. Hardly miss. And from this range, well…all I can say is I wouldn’t do anything to make them pull the trigger.” By the time his words were out, Nate had slid his six-shooter from the holster, the same as Caleb.

  The leader’s face reddened. “You can’t protect that boy. He’s a murderer.”

  “So you say. Last I heard, he should be arrested and put on trial in Settlers Valley. We’re headed back that way now and will be glad to deliver him to the sheriff.” Nate held the gun steady at his side, hoping they didn’t push him to use it.

  “Sheriff Polk don’t give a whit about an Indian. He’ll do whatever Mr. Nettles says, and I’m letting you know, the boss is going to order him to hang the Indian.”

  Nate’s jaw tightened. He believed the sheriff incompetent, but wouldn’t have guessed him to be beholding to Leland Nettles.

  “Nevertheless, the boy goes with us. I’d suggest you all go back to the mine and let your boss know what happened.”

  A feral grin appeared on the man’s face, his teeth crooked and yellowed. “You’ve no idea the trouble you’re bringing on yourself.”