here now if you want it . . . Doc’s place. I made the
arrangements your father asked me to with the attor-
ney for its purchase. He wanted to make sure you and
the girls had a good home.”
She swallowed down her emotions.
“And of course, there’s a little money left over he
wants you to have. I took the liberty of putting it in
the bank in your name.”
She didn’t say anything for a moment.
“You don’t have to keep the house, of course, the
attorney said he’d help you re-sell it if you didn’t want
it . . .”
Then he touched her wrist and added, “But, I think
this is a good town and it could use a good school-
teacher.”
“And what about you, Mr. Horn? Will you be
staying, too?”
It was a good question, one he didn’t have an im-
mediate answer to.
“Well, at least for a time,” he said.
“For a time?” she said.
“There are lots of considerations I need to weigh,
Clara. It isn’t as easy for me as it might seem.”
“You’ve someone waiting for you somewhere?”
“Not in the way you think. No woman, nothing
like that.”
“Then I’ll give it consideration myself, about stay-
ing, I mean.”
“Good. I’d like it if you did decide to stay.”
“Would you?”
“Yes, I would.”
Sunlight stood along the west side of the town’s
buildings and threw their shadows long over the
streets. Farther out, the grasslands bent under the
wind giving it its due, yielding to greater forces, as all
things must, but maintaining its resilience when the
wind let go its grip the grass once more stood tall, a
ritual of nature that would repeat itself for all time.
And a man and a woman stood together, wordless,
waiting for something that was beyond their capacity
to understand.
And those who had died, had died forever.
And those still living, knew hope.
About the Author
BILL BROOKS
is the author of sixteen novels of historical and
frontier fiction. He lives in North Carolina.
Visit www.AuthorTracker.com for exclusive
information on your favorite HarperCollins author.
Dakota Lawman
Killing Mr. Sunday
Last Stand at Sweet Sorrow
Law for Hire
Saving Masterson
Defending Cody
Protecting Hickok
