Richard hadn’t hesitated to make his admiration known. If only all men were as transparent.
She trained her focus on the hazy strip of Mexican shoreline, following it north to where it disappeared from sight. What was Daniel doing at this moment? Was he carving another piece of furniture like the ones in the set he’d described making for the Davidsons, or was he hammering a nail into the trim on another fancy house? Did he think of her as he worked, planning the future they would have together?
He’d described San Francisco as a contrast of hard, dirty labor and resplendent luxury. An image of the little house he’d been living in popped into her mind. In his letters, he’d detailed its strong construction and firm foundation but left the finer elements to her imagination. Undoubtedly, he’d adorned it with the same trim and decorative work he’d added to the Davidsons’ home. After all, the home of a skilled craftsman ought to be a showpiece, declaring to all the world the services he offered.
She imagined herself living in the small, one-room home he was so proud of. Her shoulders sank a little at the prospect of cooking, eating, sewing, and sleeping all in the same room. Hadn’t Daniel written that he often worked at home as well? The dirty, sawdust-covered floor of the Clarkes’ woodshop in Massachusetts came to mind. Surely, it wouldn’t be that bad. She tugged at her glove. What if it was? How would he react to her asking him not to work at home anymore? Where would they go when they were cross with one another?
She patted her curls. She was getting ahead of herself. They weren’t even married yet. Would the pastor of the church Daniel attended be available to marry them straight away?
She tried to picture the smile on Daniel’s face when he first saw her after all the years that had passed. The image was blurry. He would be happy to see her, wouldn’t he? For that matter, how would she feel when she saw him? Would her heart ache any less?
“Daniel!”
Why are they shooting at us? Eliza held her breath as Daniel spun and raced back to the her. Grabbing her arms, he tugged her behind him, placing himself between her and the cabin.
“Vete!” A female voice yelled from inside the cabin.
Was that Spanish?
“Are you all right?” Daniel whispered over his shoulder.
“Yes, I’m fine.” She peered around him. There was no sign of the weapon that had fired at them or of the person holding it.
Daniel faced the cabin. “I mean you no harm! I seek—”
A second shot fired into the dirt near the bush.
Eliza glimpsed the flash of a muzzle as it disappeared through a hole in the cabin wall.
This time the voice shouted in heavily accented English. “Go away!”
Daniel cupped his mouth. “Jim Brooks!”
Several seconds passed in silence.
He tried again. “I’m looking for Jim Brooks!”
As the silence grew, tension built in Eliza’s muscles. Who was in that cabin? Was Pa in there? Why weren’t they answering? “Pa!”
Daniel startled.
Still no answer came.
Daniel began backing them away. “I’m sorry, Eliza. I…”
He continued talking, but shuffling and scraping sounds from the cabin caught Eliza’s attention. She stepped around Daniel as the cabin door creaked open.
An older Indian woman poked her head out the door.
Daniel grabbed Eliza’s arm.
The woman’s dark eyes scanned the hillside before coming to rest on Eliza.
“Jim Brooks?” The woman pointed at Eliza. “Pa?”
Eliza stepped forward, but Daniel’s hold tightened. Casting him a pointed glance, she tugged free.
“Jim Brooks is my pa.” Eliza stopped at the edge of the clearing so as not to frighten the woman. “Please. Do you know where he is?”
The woman smiled and opened the door wider, inviting her inside. “You come. You come.”
Eliza sucked in a breath. Pa was inside? Why was he not at the door? Was he ill? Why had he not answered her? She started forward, but the woman stepped out and raised her rifle.
Eliza froze.
“No.” Scowling, the woman pointed the weapon past Eliza.
Eliza peeked back.
Daniel was following her.
“You no come.” The woman kept her weapon pointed at Daniel but smiled at Eliza again. “You come.” She stepped back and beckoned with a tilt of her head. “Come.”
Eliza took a step forward.
“Eliza, wait.” Daniel’s voice stopped her.
She looked back at him.
“I don’t like this. We have no idea who’s in there.”
He had a point. She had no idea what or who waited for her inside that cabin. She searched the yard for any sign that Pa had been there.
Nothing. This cabin could belong to anyone.
She studied the Indian woman, who still waited. Eliza searched her eyes. There was fear and determination in their depths. But no deception. Her expression asked Eliza to trust her.
Just as Daniel had asked her to trust him so many times.
Lord, please give me wisdom. I know I can trust Daniel and that he is only asking me to wait for my own protection. But something is telling me to go with this Indian woman. Is it You, Lord? Please show me what to do.
Walking unprotected into a stranger’s cabin in the middle of nowhere had never been part of her plan, but following this Indian woman felt right. Perhaps it was God’s way of asking her to trust—not this Indian woman or Daniel—but to trust Him. She took a deep breath. It was time to stop trying to control her fate and, for once, trust in God’s control.
She checked over her shoulder. Daniel held his hand out for her. The concern in his gaze tugged at her heart. “I’m sorry, Daniel. I have to do this.” Without waiting for his reply, she strode to the armed woman, who ushered her inside and shut the door.
Daniel took a step forward as the door closed. He clenched and released his fists, taking deep breaths to calm himself. Why had she gone in there? Should he follow her? Somehow force his way into the cabin? No. Eliza could get shot should the Indian woman start shooting.
He waited.
And listened.
Rifle or no rifle, if he heard the slightest indication that Eliza was in distress, he was charging in there. He slipped his knife from its sheath.
The smell of hot, unfamiliar food tickled Eliza’s nose as she waited for her vision to adjust to the dim interior. When she could see, she surveyed the single-room cabin.
They were alone.
Her shoulders slumped. Where are you, Pa?
The woman motioned for Eliza to sit in a chair near a small table pushed against the wall.
“Pa? Jim?” Eliza asked the questions as she sank onto the rustic chair.
The woman nodded. “He come.”
He come. Energy surged through her with the woman’s words. Pa was coming? Did he live here? Who was this woman?
Eliza inspected the cabin. It was small. The floor was compact dirt, and the few rough furnishings were handmade, but there was a hominess to it that appealed to her. The unfamiliar scent drifted from a simmering pot set over a fire in the large stone fireplace. Plants she didn’t recognize hung from the beams, woven baskets were scattered throughout, and colorful rugs decorated the walls. Again she searched for signs of Pa and came up empty.
Nothing in here looked like something Pa would make.
As the woman stirred the contents of the pot, Eliza shifted in her chair. Was the woman lying?
Daniel paced the clearing outside the house. A branch snapped behind him. He spun around.
A deep voice came from Daniel’s left. “Don’t move!”
Daniel searched the forest. A man stood in the shadow of a clump of trees. Eliza’s pa?
His rifle was aimed at Daniel.
Daniel slowly sheathed his knife and lifted his hands to show he meant no harm.
The man’s weapon didn’t budge. “Who are you? What are you doing on my
land?”
It was doubtful the man held any legal claim to the land, but seeing as he had a rifle, Daniel wasn’t about to argue the point. “We mean you no harm. We’re seeking Jim Brooks. We were told he may have come out this way.”
The man stepped forward, his red hair catching the sunlight shining between the branches. “Who’s we? What do you want with Jim?”
Daniel hesitated. With the man’s red hair and his height about the same as Daniel’s, this man didn’t fit Eliza’s description of her pa. He hadn’t wanted her seen by anyone until they’d found Jim, but there was no way to hide Eliza’s presence with her already inside the cabin. They were at the mercy of this man and the Indian woman. He sent up a silent prayer for protection. “I’ve brought—”
The door behind Daniel creaked open. He chanced a peek over his shoulder.
“Daniel?” Eliza stepped outside.
The stranger’s rifle turned on her.
Chapter 30
“Oh!” Eliza’s breath left her. Standing before Daniel was a stranger, who stared at her with wide and wild eyes.
And aimed a rifle at her.
She gasped as he stormed across the clearing.
A fierce growl emitted from his throat. “Maria!”
Eliza backed against the open door behind her, a scream in her throat. Did he intend to shoot her? Why was he shouting?
Daniel raced after the man, but he was several steps behind and the stranger was fast.
Her fingers clawed into the rough wood at her back. Please, Lord. She closed her eyes, bracing for whatever was about to happen.
“Sí!” The Indian woman’s voice rose from inside. “Sí! Estoy bien! Estoy bien!”
Eliza popped one eye open as the woman exited the cabin. A rapid stream of words flowed between her and the man who skidded to a stop two steps before plowing into Eliza.
Daniel stood at Eliza’s side, panting. His brows furrowed as his gaze swiveled between the couple.
Eliza’s heart rate began to slow. When she’d heard voices outside the cabin, she hoped Pa had returned. She hadn’t been prepared for this red-headed mountain man. Who was he?
Most of what the couple said seemed to be in Spanish, though Eliza caught a few English words here and there. Despite having no idea what they were saying, she could guess the gist of their conversation from the multiple glances they cast between her and Daniel.
Did the red-haired man say the name, Ysabel? Who was Ysabel?
A moment later, they mentioned Pa.
The Indian woman kept glancing uphill, then at Daniel, and repeating something that made the red-haired man shake his head and point north as he spoke. Were they discussing where Pa was? Did they know where he had gone?
They both paused to study her for a moment, then resumed speaking.
Were they arguing about whether or not to tell her?
“Please.” She took a deep breath and stepped forward. “If you know where Pa is, please tell me.”
The Indian woman faced the red-haired man, spouted off a few more heated words, cast a glare at Daniel, then stormed back into the cabin and slammed the door.
Eliza flinched.
The red-haired man leaned his rifle against the cabin. “Sorry about that. My wife is very protective of Ysabel.”
Daniel cocked his head. “Who’s Ysabel?”
The man crossed his arms. “Why don’t we begin with who you are?”
Eliza stepped forward. “I am Eliza Brooks, and this is Mr. Daniel Clarke. We’re looking for my pa, Jim Brooks. If you know where he is, you need to tell me.”
The man guffawed. “I’d ask how you got here, but you father warned me you’re as headstrong as you are beautiful.”
Pa’s alive! She stepped forward. “Then you know him. Is he well? Where is he?” She was beginning to feel like Mrs. Prichard’s parrot, repeating the same question over and over again.
“I’ll tell you.” He retrieved his rifle. “But I think, first, I’d better explain a few things.” He opened the door and held it for them.
Her fists tightened as she stepped back inside with Daniel on her heels. What’s to explain? Just tell me where Pa is and I’ll be on my way. She pressed her lips against the impatient words.
At their host’s insistence, Eliza sat beside Daniel at the small table. The red-haired man hung his rifle over the door, then took a seat opposite Daniel and motioned for the Indian woman to sit opposite Eliza.
The stranger placed an arm around the Indian woman. “Forgive me for not introducing myself sooner, but we’ve learned to be careful in these parts. I’m Andrew Cooper, a friend of your father’s. This is my wife, Maria.” He exchanged an affectionate look with the woman beside him.
Eliza relaxed a little, their loving connection warming her. “A pleasure to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Cooper.”
Daniel shook Andrew’s hand. He nodded to Maria. “Pleased to meet you both.”
The woman’s smile stiffened when Daniel spoke. She said something in Spanish to her husband before standing and walking outside.
Andrew grinned as he rubbed his beard. “My wife wants me to invite you both to stay for dinner.”
“Thank you, that’s most kind, but…” Eliza glanced at Daniel, then back at Andrew. “If you’ll tell me where Pa is, I’d like to get going. I’m anxious to find him.”
“Why?”
She straightened her shoulders. “Because he needs me.”
“What makes you say that?”
“He hasn’t written in months, and I…” She cleared her throat and lifted her chin, schooling her expression into her best impression of Cecilia. “I fail to see how that is any concern of yours.”
“I understand his silence may have caused you concern, but…” Andrew narrowed one eye. “Seems to me, the care of a man belongs to God first and his wife second. You’re his daughter.”
“He’s a widower.”
“I understand your mother passed on when you were a girl, and I am sorry for your loss, but that still leaves God to care for your father. Do you not trust Him?”
His words echoed Daniel’s. Conviction cinched her gut. Hadn’t she just decided to trust in God’s control? Then what was she to do with this powerful urge to find Pa and assure herself of his well-being? Did God expect her to blindly trust Him to take care of Pa? Putting her own life in His hands by entering this cabin alone was one thing. Trusting Him with Pa’s life was infinitely more difficult. What about all those deaths she’d read about in the papers? Was God not in control of those lives as well?
She lifted her chin. “God let my Mama die and I have no reason to believe He’ll keep Pa from harm. Sometimes it’s up to the people He puts in our lives to watch out for us.”
“It’s true that God does not promise us a life without grief, or even that we’ll live to see tomorrow. But His Word does tell us that He loves us and He promises to be with us through each of the trials we face. It also promises that all things work together for good to them that love God.” He leaned forward. “It’s true that God often guides His children to accomplish His purposes, but can you honestly say God has sent you in search of your father, or is it fear that drives you? The Bible teaches us that God has not given us a spirit of fear but of power, love, and self-control.”
She glared at him. How dare he lecture her? She could quote Scripture as well. “Was He not speaking to us when He instructed, ‘Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour’?”
“You are forgetting the words that come before that”—His voice was gentle yet firm as he leaned back—“reminding us to humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God and to cast our cares on Him because He cares for us.”
She relaxed her fingers, smoothing her palms over her skirt. She didn’t come here for a lecture on trusting God. “Are you going to tell me where Pa is, or not?”
Again, he fell into aggravating silence, one eye squinting at her, his lips pu
rsed to one side.
She squeezed the folds of her skirt beneath the table.
Another minute passed in silence.
Enough! Pa was here somewhere. She’d just have to find him herself. She stood to go.
“Jim’s remarried.”
She plopped back into her chair. All the air whooshed from her lungs. Pa remarried? When...? How…? Why…? Her mouth hung open.
Daniel placed a steadying hand on her shoulder and squeezed.
Andrew’s expression softened. “You have his eyes, you know.”
Oh! This man was going to drive her loony! “Will you please just tell me where I can find him?”
“He’s gone and not expected back for several days, possibly a week or more.”
She sagged.
Daniel leaned forward. “What about his wife?”
Andrew’s focus drifted to the closed door, then back to them. “What do you think of Maria?”
Eliza blinked. “She seems…passionate.”
Andrew guffawed. “She is that.” Sobering, his gaze probed hers as though discerning her soul. “She is also mestizo.”
So she was part Mexican and part Indian. That explained her tawny complexion and wavy, dark brown hair. So what? Eliza cocked her head, waiting for him to get to the point. Instead of continuing, he shifted his attention to Daniel.
Daniel crossed his arms, regarding Andrew with a hard expression. “Are you truly married?”
Andrew’s nostrils flared. “Of course. One of the missionaries who worked with the Indians married us.”
“And you intend to honor those vows as you would be expected to do with any other woman?”
A spark lit Andrew’s gaze as his lips tipped up. “I do.”
Daniel uncrossed his arms. “Then we have no problem here.” He quirked a brow, then glanced at Eliza before continuing. “Am I correct in guessing that Jim’s new wife is also mestizo?”
Eliza’s mouth fell open. Was that what this was about? Andrew was afraid they’d reject Pa’s new wife because she was mestizo?
Waltz in the Wilderness Page 20