“Can I ask you a question?” She faced the trail once again.
“Yes.”
Nerves assaulted his stomach as he waited for her to speak. What would she ask him? She’d not asked many questions since they’d been together. The first few days she’d been upset with how they’d come on this trip. Didn’t share much or talk a lot about her past. Closed off. That’s how he’d describe her at times.
“What is the thing you say each night before coming into bed?”
He’d hoped she’d not noticed. No such luck. The one thing his Ma taught him. Prayer. He might be mad at God, but he still said a few prayers now and then. Habits formed with his parents and he was afraid to break such a sacred tradition. He hadn’t realized she’d heard him. Maybe she did prayed as well and this is why she picked up on his words.
“Prayer.”
They came into the camp with the others before she spoke. It wasn’t like either needed to say a word about what he did or did not do. For someone like him who had been in and out of the trouble with the law to be talking to God would be going against what holy people expected. He wanted to be good. He wanted to be the righteous person his parents had tried to raise him to be but a darker side of him sometimes took over.
“I didn’t take you for a religious man.”
Esther sat down her bag, turning to face him. It became hard to see her clearly as the sun was now setting. They were getting into camp later than they usually did. It drew attention from the others. He lowered his belongings, grabbing the tent to get ready and put it up. Even his wife thought he wasn’t into religion, so why couldn’t his goody brother understand. Pushing him to forgive and to turn away from his outlaw ways. No. He’d protect their tribe and land from the white men who tried to come in to do harm or take what wasn’t theirs.
Chief wouldn’t have anyone turn their backs on the tribe or hand over everything they built. He was a strong, tough man who didn’t back down from a fight. Of course, they had some white men they were friends with or did business with, but it was very small number of them. His Pa was one of them. He’d been a loner and lived in the woods before they’d taken him in and before he fell in love with their Ma.
“I’m not, but a few prayers can’t hurt.”
“They don’t help.”
“What makes you say that?” Those weren’t words he ever thought he’d hear coming from her lips.
“There wouldn’t be a pain if there was a God. I don’t see the point.”
Obadiah wiped the sweat from his forehead as he hammered the last stake into the ground. His brother would have a big problem with what she said. He’d try and reason with her and tell her why she must believe. He wouldn’t do this to her because at times he felt the same way. Tried to walk away himself…he couldn’t though; something kept pulling him back in.
“If that’s how you feel.”
Chapter Eight
So her husband was religious. She wanted to fall into a hole and never be found again. Keep quiet. “Can we not talk about this?” If there was a God he’d never have let her or her parents be the way they were or them to abandoned her. She shoved the thoughts away as she didn’t want to dwell on them anymore.
“It is.”
Obadiah let a deep chuckle roll out from his lips. Turning around so she didn’t see him roll his eyes at her as she grabbed a skillet to start on dinner. His watching gaze made her question every move she made and made preparing the meal difficult. He was busy getting the fire started. Her stomach turned upside with the talk of religion. Her best friend Ruth loved God with her whole heart, and still, she couldn’t turn a blind eye to the bad. It wasn’t as if her friend hadn’t tried to change her mind. She had. They steered clear of the words, that is all.
Her heart ached to see Ruth again. They still had a way to go on this expedition and she longed to be back in the town to make sure her friend was okay. Was her husband as hard headed as hers with a temper besides? She hoped not, as Ruth wouldn’t be able to handle the man well.
“I’ll make sure to stand to the side when you meet my brother.”
Esther slapped the knife down to cut the head off the fish he’d caught for them on their way back. She placed the pieces into the frying pan after cleaning the fish and skinning them. In the other pot, she started some potatoes frying. She got busy making biscuits to throw on the less hot fire later. Lana gave her some flour yesterday and she’d not used all of it yet. They’d been pooling their resources together, so no one in the camp went without. Not like they would with just Obadiah. He preferred to go off before coming back at night to hunt or fish.
“Why?”
“He’s more religious. Gets on my nerves with it at times. I pray at night, but he’s all into living like the Good Book says.”
Esther smiled. Maybe she didn’t need to worry so much about Ruth. A man she prayed for to come into her life she’d say. “Ruth will be happy.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah, she’s big into the Good Book, too.”
“Good. I’m happy to hear that. Now maybe he’ll get off my case.”
She laughed, knowing how he felt. Esther let out a shaky breath and relaxed a little more
It didn’t matter
