perfect. The few flaws he had were more than outweighed by his good qualities. A woman couldn’t ask for a more kind and considerate father to her children. And he always did his best for us.”
“I’m glad you were happy.”
“I was, Skye. Really and truly. Oh, we didn’t have much, but we had one another, and that counted more to me than anything.”
Jayce said, “I loved my pa.”
“Me, too,” Nelly threw in.
Fargo let it drop. It wasn’t any of his business, anyhow. He finished eating, pushed back his plate, and patted his belly. “That was about one of the best meals I ever ate.”
Mary was pleased. “I have another surprise for you, but it doesn’t have to do with food.” She went to a closet and came back holding something behind her. “You mentioned that you lost your rifle when you lost your horse. Maybe this will do until you can find them.” She held out a Sharps rifle. “This was in Tull’s saddle scabbard.”
Fargo grinned in delight. He’d used a Sharps for a spell once, and liked it a lot. They held only one shot, but the heavier-caliber models were powerful enough to drop a buffalo or a grizzly.
“And you’ll need these.”
In a leather bag was enough ammunition to hold off a war party. Fargo loaded the Sharps and leaned it against his chair. “I’ll go hunting in the morning.” They had done so much for him, the least he could do was put meat on their table.
Mary sat back down. “I’ve been thinking,” she said hesitantly. “Tull’s horse is tied out back.”
“So?”
“You could be long gone when Cud Sten and his men get here.”
Fargo looked at her. She was asking him to run out on them. “That’s a hell of a thing to say to me.”
Mary averted her gaze. “It’s just that they’re likely to kill you if you stay. Cud has had his sights set on me for some time. He’ll be jealous, you staying under our roof. Then there’s Tull. No one ever kills one of Cud Sten’s men and lives. He brags about that.”
The way Fargo saw it, he could do one of three things. He could hide nearby and wait for Sten’s bunch to leave. He could stay put and give a good account of himself. Or he could play cat and mouse. “Has he ever laid a hand on you?”
Mary flushed. “Not yet, but not through lack of interest. The reason he keeps coming back is that he wants me to be his woman. He told me so to my face. He even hinted that if I don’t give in, he might take me by force.”
“I figured as much.”
“I told him that if he ever tried, I would get hold of a knife and cut off parts of him he’s partial to. So far, the threat has kept his hands off me.”
Fargo was blunt with her. “It won’t do so forever.”
“No,” Mary agreed. “Why is why I’ve been praying for a miracle.” She added in a low voice, “And here you are.”
Fargo figured she was joking until he saw the look on her face. “I doubt the Almighty brought me here.”
“I take it you’re not a religious man? Well, I can’t claim to be all that God-fearing myself. But I
Fargo wasn’t one of those people who saw omens in everyday occurrences. Some Indian tribes did. An owl would fly over their village, and they would take that as a sign of good fortune. To him, it was just an owl that happened to fly past at that moment. Some whites were the same way. A man dying of thirst in the desert might stumble on a tank in the rocks and call it divine deliverance. To Fargo, it was coincidence or a lot of luck.
“Be that as it may,” Mary was saying, “I don’t want you hurt on my account. Sorry, on
Nelly broke in with, “I don’t want you hurt, either.”
“Me, either,” Jayce evidently felt obliged to add.
Fargo swallowed some coffee and put his cup on the saucer. “There’s just one thing I need to know. Do you want to get out of here or not?”
Mary sighed. “Have we had enough of mountain life? Of barely scraping by? Of going days without food? Of not having decent clothes? Of having to haul water from the stream? Are we tired of the scorching heat of summer and the freezing cold of winter? Of having to chop down a forest of wood to make it through until spring?” She paused. “What do you think?”
“I want out of here so much, I cry myself to sleep at night,” Nelly said softly.
“I sort of like it,” Jayce said. “except for the bears and the mountain lions and the wolves. Oh, and the rattlesnakes. Oh, and the hostiles, too.”
Fargo nodded. “I’ll get you out, but you have to abide by what I say. We do things my way and only my way.” Otherwise they were likely to get themselves killed.
Mary looked at her children. “He’s saying it will be dangerous. He’s saying we could die.”
“Whatever you need, Mr. Fargo,” Nelly said.
“I’ll do whatever Ma says to do,” was Jayce’s response.
Fargo pushed back his chair. Thanks to the sleep and the food, he truly felt like a new man. His wounds hurt but he had always been good at bearing pain. “I’m going for a ride,” he announced. “I want to look the valley over.”
Mary quickly said, “I can go with you to show you around if you’d like. That is, if you don’t mind riding double.”
“I reckon I could put up with you,” Fargo said with a grin. “But the kids aren’t to step out that door until we get back.”
“You heard him,” Mary said.
“Yes, Ma.”
“What if I have to. . . . you know?”
“Then you use the outhouse. But you scoot right back inside and you keep the door barred.”
Tull’s horse was a sorrel. It was in a corral made of trimmed limbs at the back of the cabin. The saddle and saddle blanket had been hung over the top rail. Fargo went up to the horse and patted it, taking its measure. Some horses spooked easy or were biters or would as soon stomp a man to death as let him ride them. The sorrel seemed to have a good disposition. It didn’t fight the bridle, and it stood still as he threw the saddle blanket on.
“Let me,” Mary said, coming up beside him. She had a red shawl over her shoulders and an old blue bonnet on her head. What with her golden hair and her green eyes, she compared favorably to other beauties Fargo had known.
“I’m not helpless.”
“Oh, I forgot. You’re male.”
Grinning, Fargo swung the saddle on top of the saddle blanket. He raised the stirrup and did the cinch.
“We can take as long as you want looking around,” Mary said. “I told Nelly and Jayce we might be awhile.”
“Did you?” Fargo asked, and was rewarded with another blush.
“I didn’t know what you have in mind. I mean, how far you want to go. Or how much you want to see.”
“I want to go all the way.” Fargo locked eyes with her. “I want to see all there is to see.”
“I’m at your disposal.” Mary’s blush deepened.
Before climbing on, Fargo shoved the Sharps into the scabbard. He gritted his teeth, gripped the saddle horn, and forked leather, expecting the pain to be a lot worse than it turned out to be. Leaning down, he offered his hand.
“Are you sure? I can do it myself. I don’t want to hurt you.”
Fargo hoisted her up. A tap of his spurs and they were out of the corral. She looped her arms around his waist.
“I haven’t had time to myself in a coon’s age,” Mary mentioned. “This will be a treat. If only it wasn’t so bitterly cold.”
