Jake

ranch. The large area of ground that cattle and horses avoided was also his sanctuary from his father’s wrath. For the eighteen years he’d spent on the Elk, no one else had ever bothered to visit the place but Jake was sure that all of the ranch hands knew that he used it to avoid his father. Even if they’d told their boss, his father never seemed to care. His father was probably just as pleased that he was out of the house as Jake was. When you’re a boy, you don’t worry about such things. Whatever the reason, he had always considered it his domain after his first exploratory visit. Maybe it was because none of the ranch hands set foot among the big rocks and pines that so many wild critters called it home.

He soon pulled up near his usual spot and dismounted. He tied off Vulcan on one of the pines and pulled his Winchester free. He cocked the hammer and pointed it to the empty ground to the south. He then watched the gelding as he squeezed the trigger.

The Winchester barked and Vulcan’s head bobbed before he turned to look at Jake, seemingly asking him, “Why did you waste that bullet?”

Jake grinned and said, “Sorry to surprise you, Vulcan. But I had to see just how excited you’d get if a gun was fired nearby.”

He returned the Winchester to its scabbard then headed into his sanctuary. He was wearing his Colt but wasn’t about to shoot any of the untamed animals that called it home. His father may have owned the land, but he considered himself a visitor in their domain. Whenever he enjoyed its solitude, it was rare when he didn’t see more than one of the variety of species that lived among the trees. Usually it was whitetail deer, rabbits, skunks or racoons. Sometimes, the predators would appear looking for all of them except the skunks. Even the most ferocious avoided the black and white menace. He’d seen coyotes, a pack of gray wolves and a female cougar in his haven. He was sure that there were bears in the forest on the northern end, too. None had bothered him, so he assumed that they must have met other, more hostile humans outside of the refuge.

Jake continued walking around the boulders and trees but had to climb over a couple of the lower rocks. He soon reached his favorite spot and began to climb the cluster of boulders. When he reached the highest point, he sat down and draped his legs across the southern side. From here, he had could see the Elk’s buildings about four miles away. When he was eight years old and first climbed the pile of rocks and boulders, he realized that from this spot, he would be able to see if his father was looking for him. He didn’t spend all of his private time on the hard perch but made a point of taking at least one look back before he explored more of his private kingdom.

He slid back down after five minutes then walked deeper into the wild ground. He froze when he saw a flash of movement and identified it as a wolf before it disappeared into the shadows. He knew the wolf wasn’t alone, and although he felt reasonably safe, Jake decided that he couldn’t risk injury. Not now. He had to find his father.

Then he smiled as he turned and said, “And then return to court Sara.”

His walk back to Vulcan was much quicker. He soon emerged from the trees and rocks, untied the black gelding and mounted.

_____

An hour later, he was back in the kitchen having a cup of coffee that he’d carried with him from the chow house. He was pleased with the short break and Vulcan’s performance. He suspected that even now, the young black gelding would be bragging about his display of speed to his older brother. Mars wouldn’t be offended as he was older and wiser. He’d just congratulate him before casually reminding him of who would be wearing the pack saddle.

As he sipped on his bitter, strong coffee, he tried to visualize the road he’d be taking to Fort Shaw. He hadn’t ridden more than ten miles in that direction, so he had never seen the terrain. Regardless of his ignorance, he was sure that it wouldn’t be monotonous. There would be mountains, valleys, large creeks and small rivers as well as plateaus and plains. But he’d study the map of the territory that his father kept in the bottom right-hand drawer of his desk before he left. It had topographical features, so at least he’d know what to expect.

The landscape wasn’t the only thing that was unpredictable. The weather could be overbearingly hot during the summer day and plunge to near freezing at night. He’d pack a bedroll and slicker, but he’d bring his heavy coat along as well. If his search lasted into the autumn months, he’d have to add even more warm clothing. It was one reason why he wanted to find his father as soon as possible.

But now he had a second, and equally important reason. He wanted to spend as much time with Sara as he could. What surprised him was that he hadn’t once thought of her as a substitute for Kay. She had immediately told him that she wasn’t Kay, but it wasn’t necessary. Even when he was visiting her older sister, Jake had seen the obvious differences between them beyond the physical.

When he’d talked to Sara when he was visiting her older sister, it was even difficult to imagine that she and Kay shared the same parents. Now that he had spent just those thirty minutes talking to her about much more personal things, he found the differences between the sisters to be even greater. He just hoped that Sara wouldn’t see herself as her sister’s