Her voice didn’t carry much cheerfulness.
Gabe and Tyler said their goodbyes, as did Daisy. Now that it was just Tabitha and Hunter, she asked, “How is Lan, Mr. Ling? Is she recovering?” As much as a child can from such a frightening experience.
“She exceedingly resilient,” Mr. Ling said softly. “She okay. Bao and I thankful to you for your help. Both you.”
Tabitha felt Hunter’s arm around her back. Thank God worse hadn’t happened.
Mr. Ling’s head tipped to the side. “Sheriff and deputy back in town. Say man who pay bounty hunter killed in riots.”
“If you can be glad over a killing, he’d be the one,” Hunter said. “You can be sure we’ll all be keeping a closer eye on your place. I’d like to say all danger is completely gone, but I can’t. But with the ringleader dead, that’s more than half the battle.”
Lan peeked her head out from the work area.
Tabitha waved. “Lan! I’d like to speak with you.”
Lan came out slowly, looked around, and when she saw it was just them, she ran into Tabitha’s arms. They stayed that way for several seconds.
Tabitha picked her up and rocked her to her chest. “I’m so happy to see you,” Tabitha said, stroking her hair and holding her tight. The warmth in Hunter’s gaze made Tabitha’s eyes sting with emotion.
Lan whispered something against her neck.
“What, honey? I didn’t catch what you said.” She looked down into the child’s sweet face.
“I will change the way people think.”
It took a moment for what she’d just heard to register, then she sucked in a deep breath at the child’s perception. This time she wasn’t able to hold in her tears. “Yes, Lan, I think you will. We all will.”
Lan squirmed to get down and ran off, Tabitha watching her go.
“Come on, wife. Let’s let Mr. Ling get back to business. He has other things to do besides watch you get emotional.”
Hunter’s soft tone belied his words, and his love wrapped around her heart. She may be twenty-nine, but after the peril they’d just lived through, she realized how young that really was. She had plenty of years to show Hunter just how much she loved him. And she wasn’t going to wait one more second before she set her hand to that course.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
With a grateful heart, I reach out to all the wonderful people who have helped make Whispers on the Wind a reality. First, to every single person on the Montlake team that has made this author’s journey so special—thank you. To Maria Gomez, my editor at Montlake, for her never-ending interest and support—what would I do without you? To Jessica Poore, Author Relations, you rock! Your humorous and witty e-mail responses and FB posts keep me smiling! To Caitlin Alexander, my developmental editor extraordinaire. Working on a book with you is painless and fun. You have taught me so much. I’m indebted! To my husband, Michael, and grown sons, Matthew and Adam, and their wife, girlfriend, and daughter, Misti, Rachel . . . and Evelyn, I cherish each and every one of you with all my heart. Your creative ideas keep me writing. To Shelly, Sherry, Jenny, Mary, and Lauren, my sisters—you know the inner workings of my soul. I love you. To my dear friend, author Kit Morgan, for your help brainstorming my hero on the ride back from the Women Writing the West Conference. If you read Mrs. Hollyhock and Hunter’s buffalo scene, you will see I took your words to heart. Thank you. To my dear readers who keep calling for more Logan Meadows and asking whose story is next. You have no idea how much your concern that each of my characters have their own HEA touches my heart. And, of course, to our magnificent God. His dreams are always better than anything we can think up on our own. Thank you for everything!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Photo © 2009 Family Gallery
USA Today bestselling author Caroline Fyffe was born in Waco, Texas, though her father’s career in the US Air Force took her all over. After earning a bachelor of arts in communications from California State University, Chico, she embarked on a twenty-year career as an equine photographer. During long days at the show arena, she began to write fiction, blending her love of horses and the Wild West to create the award-winning Prairie Hearts series. Where the Wind Blows, the first book in the series, won the prestigious Golden Heart Award from the Romance Writers of America. Fyffe and her husband have two grown sons. They currently live in the Pacific Northwest.
Whispers on the Wind (A Prairie Hearts Novel Book 5) Page 33