Hank smiled and nodded. “Go on. What happened?”
Gwen relived it as if it were yesterday. “I told the woman I only had a nickel. She said she’d make an exception for me, because she felt certain I needed to hear my future. I gave in. I went into her tent and listened to her tell me I was cursed—that death had marked me to be his companion—that most everyone I loved would die, while I would live. Three weeks later my mother died, and I just knew it was my fault.”
“That’s nonsense. I don’t believe in curses,” Hank said firmly.
“There are plenty of examples of people who were cursed in the Bible,” Gwen countered defensively.
“Yes, but isn’t there also something about Jesus becoming a curse for us? Seems to me your faith in God would cancel out any gypsy curse.”
“There’s a verse like that? Are you sure? I mean, you aren’t . . . you don’t even . . .”
He laughed. “What? You think that just because I’m cynical about God that I don’t know anything about Him? Believe me, I’ve looked into it. I grew up with a mother whose faith was quite strong. And my grandfather completely put his trust in God.”
“But you couldn’t?”
Hank shrugged and touched her cheek once again. “I wanted to. I wanted to know a father’s love—the security that comes in belonging. I wish I could have your kind of faith, Gwen.”
Hearing him call her by her given name caused Gwen to tremble. He was too close—too gentle and kind. Realizing that he still held her, she pulled away.
“I’m sorry. I . . . ah. . . . I’m sorry.” She got to her feet and could see a faint hint of light at the edge of the mountains. It would soon be light. The air still held a taste of snow, but thankfully the ground was dry.
“I think we should wake Lacy and get going.” She went to where her sister slept and reached down to shake her. To Gwen’s horror, however, Lacy wasn’t there. There was nothing more than her bedroll fixed to look like a person was beneath.
“She’s not here!” Gwen looked around, anxious to see something that would ease her growing concern. “Her horse is gone.”
“Gone?” Hank was on his feet, looking to where his black stood alongside Gwen’s mount. “Where could she be?”
Lacy knew it was later than she’d planned as she hurried her horse back toward camp. Hank and Gwen would soon be waking, and it would do her little good to be found out.
Her investigation had proven fruitless. She hadn’t really expected that anyone would confess to her, but she had hoped someone would at least talk to her. While in Virginia City, she learned of a cattle drive. Some of the men from the Rocking K were moving cattle south. She knew that some of their men had been at Rafe’s the night her father had been killed. Learning approximately where they were, she had waited until Gwen and Hank were asleep before heading out to intercept the group.
Sneaking into camp had been easy. The night rider was asleep in the saddle, and the cattle were unconcerned with her presence. Once she was there, Lacy realized she hadn’t really come with a plan. She didn’t want to stampede the cattle by firing off her revolver, but she needed to get the men awake as quickly as possible if she was going to question them and get back to her own camp before dawn.
“Wake up, you bunch of no-goods,” she had called out.
One man had come quickly awake and was reaching for his rifle, even as Lacy anticipated his move. “There isn’t any call for weapons. I’m here peaceably.”
The man had looked at her a moment, then growled in anger. “What are you doing here?”
Lacy had explained her situation, but none of the men were very cooperative. She thought they might have dragged her from her horse to give her more trouble than she wanted, until she pointed her revolver at them and announced her intention to leave.
All she wanted was some answers, but they scoffed at her and taunted her. If only Dave Shepard would do his job, I wouldn’t have to risk my life.
She approached the camp where she’d left Gwen and Hank sound asleep. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the same state she found them in now. Gritting her teeth, she urged her mare toward the other horses.
“Where have you been?” Gwen demanded. She rushed to Lacy as she dismounted. “I was terrified when I found you gone.”
“I’m sorry. I just couldn’t sleep. I needed to ride and clear my head. I didn’t mean to worry you.” She looked at her sister with a smile. “But look—I’m fine.”
“You may be fine, but you’re also pretty thoughtless,” Hank threw in.
Lacy eyed him with contempt. “You stay out of it. You have nothing to say about my welfare or actions.”
“Stop it!” Gwen declared.
Lacy wasn’t used to her sister’s sharp tone of voice and instantly went silent. She looked at Gwen and shook her head. “I didn’t mean to worry anybody. I’m sorry. If you hadn’t awakened so early, you wouldn’t even have known I was gone.”
“That’s hardly the point,” Gwen said. “I trusted you to be here. If something would have happened to you out there in the dark, we wouldn’t have had any idea of it until it was too late.”
Gwen’s voice was laced with fear, and Lacy felt really bad for having scared her. “I won’t do it again. If I can’t sleep tomorrow night, I promise to wake you up and make you talk to me.” She smiled. “Please forgive me.”
“Of course I forgive you.” Gwen pulled Lacy into her arms and hugged her tight.
Being taller than her older sister, Lacy was able to look over her shoulder to where Hank Bishop stood shaking his head. He obviously wasn’t as easily convinced that nothing was wrong or that Lacy’s indiscretion should be overlooked.
“Let’s break camp,” Gwen said. “We can eat on the trail.”
“Sounds good,” Lacy agreed.
Gwen went to pack up her things while Lacy tethered her horse with the others. She hadn’t realized Hank Bishop had come up behind her until he spoke.
“She may buy into all of that, but I’m not so easily sold. Someone ought to turn you over their knee,” Hank said in a hush.
She whirled around and met his very serious expression. “And I suppose you think you’re just the man?”
He shook his head. “I wouldn’t even attempt the job, Miss Gallatin. But someday, someone will. And you’ll deserve it.”
By the time they headed out of Norris, Hank was thoroughly discouraged. Gwen felt sorry for him. The tiny mining area where they had lived offered nothing. Even the small house her father and Harvey had put together was gone—burned to the ground during a forest fire.
She wanted to say something to encourage him, but little came to mind. Finally Gwen settled on the only thing that seemed logical.
“Mr. Bishop, I am sorry that we weren’t able to locate any information about Harvey and the stock certificates. I have a thought, however. The First National Bank in Bozeman was where my father banked. It closed down last year, but the men who owned it are still in town, as far as I know. Why don’t you ride over there and ask if Harvey had an account at any time? He might have kept it from me, as he apparently did everything else.”
She tried not to sound bitter, but it was so hard. Even now, as the realization of who her husband had been and all of the pretense and lies he had allowed between them sank in, Gwen found her anger rising. How could Harvey have done that to her? Why would he have thought it necessary to lie?
And if he lied about all of that, had he also lied about loving her—about needing her?
“The idea does have merit, Miss Gallatin. I suppose that should be my next course of action.”
She smiled. “I thought perhaps you would start calling me Gwen, like everyone else.”
He looked at her a moment and nodded. “I’d like that. But only if you call me Hank.”
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
“Where’d your sisters go?”
Beth looked up to see Ellie watching her with great curiosity. Beth struggled to maneuver the water cart to the house
. She held a new appreciation for Lacy. Apparently she was much stronger. Beth had only hauled two loads and already she was exhausted. “They had to make a trip with Mr. Bishop to Virginia City.” She brought the cart to a halt and straightened with a smile.
Ellie’s eyes lit up. “I remember Virginia City. We stayed the night there when I first came here.”
“It’s a nice enough place,” Beth admitted. “I used to live there, and the people are really good to help each other. Where’d you come from before that?”
Ellie’s expression looked pained. “Cheyenne. And before that, Omaha. My husband and I grew up there.”
“I heard he died,” Beth said sympathetically. “I’m sure sorry.”
The petite blonde nodded. “He wanted to be a rancher, but he really knew nothing about such things. He was gored by a bull. It was pretty awful, and he suffered a couple of days before he finally succumbed.” Her face paled as she spoke.
“That must have been terrible for you. Do you not have other family?”
Ellie shook her head. “No. My folks are dead, and I haven’t any brothers or sisters. My Billy was the only one to love me and see to my needs. We married when I was just sixteen. I’m eighteen now. Been trying to stay alive on my own for the last eight months.”
Beth looked at the girl’s thin, barely dressed frame. She seemed so tiny—so young. I’m not that much older, Beth thought. It could have been me. She couldn’t keep from asking the question uppermost on her mind.
“How did you end up here—with Rafe?”
Ellie looked at the ground. “I was starving, and I tried to get a job. No one wanted to hire me because I was so young and inexperienced. I had few skills. I even went to the church for help, but so many folks were already on hard times for one reason or another, they couldn’t.”
“Surely someone could have fed you,” Beth protested. “You could have stayed with someone and helped with their children.”
“But I’d be another mouth to feed,” Ellie said, still not looking up. “Leastwise, that’s what I heard over and over. I’m ashamed to say, I started stealing food. I’d sneak into people’s gardens at night and take just a bit here and there. Once, I took a loaf of bread from a windowsill as it cooled.” She shook her head. “I’m not proud of what I did then. I’m not proud of what I’m doing now.”
Beth was deeply moved. “But you had to do something to survive.”
The girl looked up, grateful for Beth’s compassion. “That’s why I’m here. There didn’t seem any other way. I met up with a man who was traveling. He offered to take me west with him—said there were lots of opportunities for a gal like me. I didn’t know what he meant, but he offered me a steak dinner and that was all it took. I was already on the road with him when I found out what he had in mind. He wanted to take me from mining camp to mining camp and sell me out to entertain the men.”
“How awful. I’m so sorry.” Brutal images came to mind and Beth quickly tried to force them from her head. “Why didn’t you try to get away?”
“I did, but he always came after me. Always found me and beat me afterward. I guess I just gave up trying to get away after a while.”
“Rafe beats you too, doesn’t he?” Beth couldn’t help but remember the marks on the young woman’s back.
“Sometimes. He gets worked up about one thing or another,” Ellie admitted. “I try not to do anything to make him mad, but sometimes it takes just the smallest thing. Like talking to you out here.”
“Howdy, Beth.” Simon Lassiter said as he rounded the house. “Oh, morning, Ellie,” he said, smiling.
“You know each other?” Beth asked.
“I’ve seen her around,” Simon replied. “This is a tiny community, so it’s hard not to know folks.”
Ellie blushed and looked at the ground, causing Beth to wonder just how intimately Simon and Ellie knew each other. Surely Simon wasn’t frequenting the makeshift brothel.
“I thought I’d check to see if you needed some wood cut.” Simon looked to Beth and then to the woodpile. “Looks like it’s getting down a bit. I’ll chop you up some.” He went and took up the ax. Meanwhile, Ellie skittered away like a frightened mouse.
Beth couldn’t help herself. “How well do you know Ellie?”
Simon looked at her and grinned. “Why? Are you jealous? You know I’d marry you in a minute, Bethany Gallatin.”
She caught the twinkle in his dark brown eyes. He was taller than her by a head and had strong broad shoulders from hours of labor at the blacksmith forge. He wasn’t at all a bad-looking man, but Beth didn’t feel anything but a sisterly affection for him.
“I wouldn’t be right for you, Simon Lassiter, and you know it.” She picked up a bucket of water and poured it into the washtub.
Simon turned his attention to the wood but continued to speak. “When are the girls due back?”
“I expect them most anytime. I just hope Mr. Bishop was as honorable as he seemed. I don’t worry much about Lacy, but Gwen is so giving and kind, she could easily be hurt.”
“I think he’ll treat them right,” Simon said between swings. “Nick and I both promised to hunt him down if he didn’t.”
Beth laughed. “I’m glad you were looking out for us.”
“Like I said, I’d be happy to look out for you all the time, Beth.” He turned and glanced at her.
Beth noticed, however, that his gaze quickly went beyond her to the petite Ellie, who was hanging up a few pieces of laundry on the line. She realized Simon was watching the young woman quite intently.
“I feel really sorry for her,” Beth said in a low tone. She didn’t want Ellie to overhear. “She’s a good girl who fell into bad circumstances. Maybe you should marry her, Simon.”
He looked at Beth oddly and started to swing the hammer again. “Maybe I should.”
Gwen looked at the skies overhead and frowned. The temperatures were brisk and the clouds heavy. The risk of snow seemed lessened by the fact that they were out of the mountains and now crossed a broad, grassy valley near the Madison River. Still, Gwen figured they would be in for a rain and that could be just as dangerous and miserable.
“The wind’s coming up,” Lacy said, pulling her horse up alongside Gwen. “I don’t like the looks of it. I don’t think we can make it home before the storm hits.”
“What do you suggest?” Hank asked.
Gwen was surprised that he was willing to seek their advice. “We should definitely take cover. We aren’t that far from the Shepard ranch. Why don’t we just head over there? I know Patience will probably be back home by now, as we didn’t have a stage due to the house for a couple of days. She’d welcome us with open arms.”
Lacy frowned. “I suppose you’re right. I just hope Dave is elsewhere. I’m in no mood to hear how I ought to be wearing a dress.”
Gwen noted her sister’s form-fitting pants. She’d said nothing about them because of their travels, but she’d fervently hoped Lacy would change back into her split skirt before they returned home. “We’d best be at it, then. There’s at least another five miles, and those clouds are rolling right in.” Gwen maneuvered her horse back onto the trail and urged him to pick up the pace.
“Road seems decent enough,” Hank said, making small talk.
“We’ll cut away from it once we get past the river. It’ll be quicker that way.” She noted that Lacy was looking for the best place to cross. The horses wouldn’t like it; they were already quite nervous.
“How did your father get enough money to buy the stage stop?” Hank asked out of the blue.
“This looks good,” Lacy called back and started her horse into the Madison River.
“Come on,” Gwen hurried to catch up.
The water was deep enough at one point that the horses had to swim for it, but they quickly managed the river and were up on the other side before things could turn bad. Gwen noted that the current was pretty fierce. No doubt the spring melt was causing the river to rise higher than u
sual.
She thought of Hank’s question and realized he would want an answer. She hesitated—not because she had anything to hide, but because she wasn’t sure he’d believe her.
Gwen tightened her grip as her horse spooked at the wind. “As for the Gallatin House purchase, my father met with some luck in Norris. As I told you, he bought a claim from an old timer. Actually traded him food, clothes, and a little money for it. The man had found some color, but not a lot. Pa was hopeful they would strike it rich. He and Harvey started working it—Lacy panned and Beth and I did odd jobs around the area—mostly mending and laundry, some cooking, too. We put our money together no matter what, however. It was our way of helping contribute.
“Anyway, it was only a few days after the man left that Pa and Harvey found several large pieces of gold. They figured it was a fluke, but within days they’d amassed a tidy amount. They hid it away and continued to work, but the gold thinned out, and soon they were back to finding only bits here and there. By this time, Pa had made friends with many of the stage and freight drivers from his time in Norris and Virginia City. He found out about Gallatin House, which wasn’t much more than a scrawny cabin. We decided to put all our money into it and build a regular stage house where folks could sleep and get meals.”
“So he sold the claim in Norris?”
“Yes. There were plenty of others who wanted to try their hand at making their fortune.” Gwen laughed. “It’s kind of funny the way folks think they’ll somehow find what everyone else has missed.”
Lacy joined in at this point. “If you’re honest, Gwen, you’ll have to admit Pa was one of those folks.”
Her sister was absolutely right. “Pa was always sure his pot of gold was under the next rainbow.”
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