was no longer at the head of the column, but had ridden back and was
watching her. And at night, when. one of the men would bring her coffee
or food, he would stare across the distance of the camp fire. And by
night she heard footsteps, and she wondered if he wasn't walking by to
determine if she was sleeping. If she was safe.
Or did he walk by to discover if she might still be awake?
He infuriated her, but she was also glad, and she realized that she felt
safe. Not because she was surrounded by thirty or so cavalry men, but
because he was walking by, because he was near.
But now they had come to the fort. He would turn her over to his
commander and disappear from her life.
Someone would be assigned to see her to Wiltshire, and she need never
see him again. Never feel his eyes again, the touch of smoke gray and
insinuation that warmed everything within her and seemed to caress her
as if he saw her again as he had by the brook.
They were in front of the command post. Tess pulled hard on the reins,
dropped them and started to leap from the driver's seat. She smiled, for
Jon Red Feather was there to help her.
She had grown to like the man very much: his striking, sturdy
appearance, his silence and his carefully chosen words. And she sensed
that he believed her when others might not.
He set her upon the ground. She thanked him then looked at all the
confusion around her. Wives, children and perhaps lovers had spilled
from the various buildings in the compound to greet the returning men.
Monahah had called out an order dismissing them all, and the band was
quickly breaking up.
Lieutenant Slater was striding up the steps to the broad porch that
encircled the command post, saluting the tall, gray-haired man who
awaited him. Jon indicated the steps.
'Miss. Stuart, I believe the colonel will want a statement from you as
soon as possible. I'll see to your accommodations for the evening and
return shortly.'
He walked her to the porch. Apparently Slater had already explained
something about her, for the colonel was quick to offer her a hand and
guide her up the steps.
'Miss. Stuart, our most sincere condolences on the loss of your uncle,
but may I say that we are heartily glad that you have survived to be
here today,' 'Thank you,' Tess said. It was strange. It already seemed
like the whole thing had happened in the distant past. Days on the
plains could do that, she decided. And yet, when the colonel spoke so
solicitously of Uncle Joe, all the pain and the loneliness rushed back.
She tried to swallow them down. She needed to impress this man with
intelligence and determination, not a fit of tears. She didn't want to
be patted on the back. She wanted to be believed.
'Miss. Stuart, if you would be so good as to join us inside, the colonel
would like to speak with you,' Slater said.
There was a startling light in his eyes as they touched her. Not
amusement, but something else. Almost a challenge. He wanted to see if
she would back down, she thought. Well, she wouldn't.
She walked past both men and into a large office with file cabinets and
