Miss Dev, where are you?” The tone sounded stronger than mere inquiry.
Develyn surveyed the rolling brown prairie and matching brown burro. “Riding west from Crazy Woman Creek.” Develyn thought of Quint’s tender gray-blue eyes.
“What in the world are you doin’ out there, darlin’?”
She glanced at Cree-Ryder, who slipped to the ground and yanked on her cinch. “Casey and I went for a ride. She said there’s a …”
“Sometimes I think you let her influence you too much,” he snapped, followed by a short pause. “I’m sorry, Miss Dev. I don’t mean to be harsh. I got to missin’ you real bad.”
“That’s sweet.”
“So that’s why I flew down here.” There was an echo in his voice, as if inside a phone booth or the cab of a pickup.
“Where are you?” Develyn pulled her feet out of the stirrups and laid them alongside My Maria’s neck as Casey tightened her cinch as well.
“At your cabin in Argenta.”
She eased her feet back down. “What are you doing there?”
“Looking for you, of course.”
“Quint, I didn’t know you were coming down. I think I told you that this was a riding day for Casey and me.”
“I surmised you would go out at daylight and be back by now.”
Develyn couldn’t hold back the chuckle. “What have I ever done to give you that idea?”
“Breakin’ daylight was always Miss Emily’s favorite time to ride.”
“Schoolteachers only learn about daybreak from textbooks. But it’s a nice day for a ride. The wind hasn’t been too bad.”
“Miss Dev, here’s what I was thinkin’. We could fly up to the ranch for the afternoon and then go on up to Powell tonight for supper. Why don’t you turn that wild horse mare around right now? I’ll fly into Casper and pick us up some Chinese for lunch and be back here about the time you get in. We can grab a bite to eat while you’re rubbing her down and then head up to the ranch.”
Develyn licked her chapped lips. “Quint, we haven’t reached our destination yet.”
“Miss Dev, which would you rather see … me or more Wyoming sage?”
“Quint, this is . . eh …”
“I know it’s crazy. I feel like a teenager at times. I haven’t been this much in love since me and Miss Emily were young. I can’t believe it myself sometimes. I always thought it was a gift of the Lord to have Miss Emily. And now to find another so identical in every way. I’m double blessed, honey. Listen, I’ll go to the Imperial Dynasty and get you some Thai asparagus pork on crisp Sri Lanka noodles. Do you think Cree-Ryder is staying for lunch, or does she have somewhere to go? A you-and-me lunch sounds mighty nice right now.”
“Thanks for all the suggestions, but today is trail ride day, and I want to finish …”
“Miss Dev, you worry too much.” His voice was choppy, impatient. “You have the rest of your life to ride through Wyoming. You don’t want to see everything in the first summer. I’ll fly you out that direction one of these days. Do you think you can make it back here in an hour and a half?”
“No.” The firm tone of her own voice surprised her.
There was a long pause.
“Sorry, Quint, that came out way too harsh.”
“When will you be back?”
“I’m not sure. I assume it will be after dark.”
“How will we make it to …”
“I appreciate the offer to go to Powell,” she interrupted. “And even the shopping with Linds in Cody. I do want to get up there someday and see the museum. But I have these riding plans today, so I’d better skip the trip this time.”
“If I hadn’t phoned, would you have left me hanging? When were you planning on telling me this?”
“I wasn’t sure how long this trip would last. Quint, I just need this ride to think some things through.”
“Honey, what’s wrong?”
“Nothing, Quint. You asked me if I’d like to go on the trip. I needed to think about it. It just doesn’t work out today. I’m sorry.”
“Something’s wrong,” he insisted. “What’s going on? If I did or said something inappropriate, you’ll have to let me know.”
“Quint, everything’s fine. You know how little I’ve gotten to ride over the years. It’s so nice to be out here. That’s why I came to Wyoming. I don’t need to shop in Cody. There’s nothing I want to buy.”
“Oh, don’t worry about the shopping. You can ride in Powell. I’ve got friends with a huge indoor arena. They could even give you some team penning lessons. You might enjoy that. You could ride all the time I’m at my meetings.”
“I would love to learn more, but we have indoor arenas in Indiana. What we don’t have is hundreds of miles of untamed prairie. It feels so good to be riding out here. Tell Lindsay I’m sorry. We’ll do the shopping thing another time.”
“No problem there. Lindsay can’t go. Some unexpected foreign dignitaries are flying into Cheyenne, and the governor wanted her to be part of the reception committee.”
“Lindsay isn’t going?”
“It can be some peaceful you-and-me time. Doesn’t it sound romantic? How about it, Miss Dev? The purdiest school teacher in Wyomin’ isn’t goin’ to turn down this lonesome cowboy, are you?”
“Oh, how I like that western drawl. You cowboys are ever so charming.”
“Then you’ll go with me?”
“No, but you are charming. Enjoy your meetings, honey. Call me when you get home.”
“Something is going on, and I want to know what it is. Look, I can fly out there and land this sucker on a roadway. Are you near a roadway?”
“Don’t fly out here. Let’s talk when you get back from Powell. The reception isn’t too good, and we’re about to drop down a draw.”
“Miss Dev, I’m sorry if I sound pushy. You are so much like Miss Emily that I assume things about you that I shouldn’t.”
“Don’t worry, Quint. There is nothing wrong … you are being you … and I’m being me. That’s what the Lord wants us to do, right? I’ll talk to you Monday. Bye.”
“OK, Miss Dev. You know I love you as much as I know how.”
“Yes, I know. Bye, Quint.”
Dev shoved the phone back into her pocket. Yes, he loves me as much as he knows how, with a heart that still belongs to Miss Emily.
“Wow!” Cree-Ryder exclaimed as she remounted Popcorn. “I can’t believe you shined him on like that.”
“I didn’t shine him on.”
Casey kicked the Appaloosa, and they trotted west. “Of course you did. Riding out to Sage Canyon is the Wyoming equivalent of ‘I have to stay home and wash my hair.’”
Develyn slapped the reins. My Maria bolted up next to Cree-Ryder. “He was pushing me.”
“Of course he was. You’re a beautiful lady, Develyn Worrell. You got a cowboy that’s anxious to be with you. You must be used to that.”
Develyn tugged the front of her straw cowboy hat down, then chuckled. “Casey, I haven’t been around an anxious male since my honeymoon. I’m not even sure Spencer was anxious then. Just nervous.”
“Oh, I’m often around anxious cowboys,” Casey hooted. “Of course, they’re always anxious for me to leave.”
They rode side-by-side for several moments. The wind made a soft hum through the sage, and the crunch of hooves on crusted dirt added to the rhythm.
“Devy-girl, why did you decide not to go with him?”
“Because of the Thai asparagus pork on crisp Sri Lanka noodles.”
Casey shoved her hat back. “What does that have to do with anything?”
“Quint was going to fly into Casper and pick up some Thai asparagus pork on crisp Sri Lanka noodles for lunch.”
“And you don’t like those?”
“I don’t have any idea if I like them or not, but neither does Quint. That’s the point. He assumed something, and didn’t bother to ask.”
“So, he was playing Barbie with you?”
“That’s what it felt like.”
“And Barbie rebelled?”
“Casey, you need to know that Quint is a very nice Christian man who is trying his best to get over a crushing grief. He just doesn’t know how, but that’s not his fault. He is kind and considerate and respectful. He’s built a lifelong pattern of doing things; it’s just not my pattern. At least, not yet. He really is a wonderful man.”
“But he’s not the right one for you?”
Develyn dropped the reins around the saddle horn and stretched her arms to the sky. She took a deep breath. “Not today. I may change my mind tomorrow. But today, I needed splashology more than grief therapy. I need to be right here with my best friend west of the Mississippi.”
A wide smile broke across Casey’s round, brown face. “I like that, Dev. But I hope you know what you are doing.”
“Sweetie, the last time I knew what I was doing was when I posted grades at the end of the term. From then on, I’ve been trapped inside a pinball machine bouncing off one flipper to another.”
“So what happened on the phone? I heard you tell him no to Powell. Was there something about Lindsay not going?”
“Yes, she had to be in Cheyenne. That would have made it more awkward. I needed this time away today to think about things, and he couldn’t even give me that.”
“You don’t seem all broken up over it. How are you feeling?”
“To tell you the truth, Dr. Cree-Ryder, if I had a tub of Gatorade I’d pour it over your head right now.”
Cree-Ryder twirled her long black braid. “To signify victory?”
“No.” Dev galloped past her. “To get even with you for all that splashing.”
An hour later, Casey Cree-Ryder reined up near the crest of Sage Canyon. “This is where we tie off the horses.”
Develyn pointed to the west. “We can’t ride to the rim?”
“Not blindfolded.”
“Why would we want to be blindfolded?”
Casey slid to the ground. “Not we … just you. I told you I have a secret to show you.”
“I didn’t bring a blindfold.” Develyn jammed her left foot in the stirrup and swung her right leg over My Maria’s rump as she dismounted.
“I did. It’s a tea towel, but it will do,” Casey said.
“I can’t believe this.”
“Just wait, Devy-girl. I’ll show you something you can’t believe.”
Uncle Henry plopped down on his side in the shade of some sage, while Popcorn and My Maria stood tethered to a large granite boulder.
Develyn could see the ground drop away just past the rise and a distant rim on the western horizon. “Is it some kind of valley?”
“Turn around.” Casey tied the tea towel over Develyn’s eyes. “It’s Sage Canyon, remember?”
“But I don’t …”
Casey spun her to the west. “Faith, girl. Now’s the time to prove that you trust me.”
Develyn took a deep breath and let it out slow. Lord, I’ve known Casey for five weeks, and I’m letting her lead me blind to the edge of some remote canyon. It seems like I’m stumbling from one crazy stunt to another.
Develyn shuffled along. Cree-Ryder’s hands guided her shoulders. “This is freaky.”
“A few more steps, Devy-girl.” Casey’s hand felt warm and sweaty as she took Develyn’s arm. “Now, reach down there. What do you feel?”
“A big rock?”
“A petrified log. Sit down on it like it was a bench.”
The cold hard rock bench pressed into her damp jeans. “I don’t know why you have to …”
“Just wait, Devy-girl. I’m sorry the clouds have moved in and blocked the sunlight. When I pull the towel off, you’ll see a deep valley. That’s Sage Canyon. We’re up on the east side of it on the rim rock. It drops straight down … don’t get freaked … we’re safe. But look straight against the base of the rim on the other side of the canyon and describe what you see.”
“I hope it’s a Starbucks, because I could use a latte right now.”
“Are you ready?”
“Casey, why are you drawing this out?”
“It’s a surge of extreme power. I have you under my control.”
“Take off the tea towel, for Pete’s sake.”
Casey yanked at the towel. “Ta-dah!”
Develyn rubbed her eyes. “Are you kidding me?”
“Surprised, huh?”
“But … but … but …”
“Now, there’s a schoolteacher’s exhaustive vocabulary for you. You sound like an outboard motor.”
“What’s it doing out here?”
“Nothing for the last one hundred and eight years.”
Develyn shook her head. “It’s … it’s … it’s a castle!”
“They call it a mansion, but with the round stone turrets, it looks like a castle.”
Develyn stood, hands on hips. “Who put it here?”
“They say that Count Antoine Pierre LaSage built it for his French wife in 1892. But the locals just call it Sage Mansion, if they know about it at all. This is technically LaSage Canyon.”
It looks abandoned.” Develyn pulled her hat off and ran her fingers through her short blonde hair.
“I heard that the family moved out before 1900. The wife hated Wyoming, but they couldn’t go back to France. They were a part of the Mexican thing with Maximillian, and ended up without a country. Some say they moved to Montreal, and others claim Martinique. Anyway, ever since World War II, this has been oil company land and off-limits for anyone. Very few people know it’s back here.”
Develyn stared at the three-story Victorian house with white stone turrets and wrap-around veranda. “Even from way up here, it looks huge. So, it’s just a big, empty castle in the middle of the wilderness?”
“They say all the outbuildings … shop, barn, corrals and all … burned down years ago. That’s all that’s left.”
“What’s inside?”
Casey plopped down on the petrified log and shoved her hat back. “I don’t know anyone who’s gone down there. It’s inaccessible for most folks. Besides, it takes so long to get here to view it, it’s time to turn around.”
“I want to go see it,” Dev insisted.
“Yes, well, I’m sure you do, sweetie. But the oil company that owns this part of the state has blasted away the old roadway that was carved into this side of the canyon. So from up here you either hang glide off the rim … or rappel down a rope.”
“Are you telling me there is no way to ride a horse down there?”
“I’m telling you there is no way that I know of.”
“Ah, hah! We’ll just have to find one. I can’t believe there is some place in Wyoming where we can’t ride a horse.”
“Dev, even if we did get down there it would be so late in the day, we couldn’t make it back to the truck before dark.”
Develyn paced in front of the seated Cree-Ryder. “We could stay all night in Sage Canyon.”
“We didn’t bring any gear, and with those clouds circling above we aren’t goin’ to sleep out on the prairie.”
Develyn pointed her finger at the building. “I’m not leaving without seeing that castle.”
Casey frowned. “I can’t believe Ms. Conservative Indiana Schoolteacher is saying this.”
Develyn raised her already upturned nose. “And I can’t believe that Ms. Hang-Loose Bronze Bombshell is afraid to ride down there and check it out.”
“I’m not afraid.”
Develyn grabbed her arm and tugged her to her feet. “Then come on.”
Casey raised one thick black eyebrow. “Did you call me a bronze bombshell?”
“Yes.” Dev wrinkled her nose.
“No one has ever called me a bombshell before.”
“Sweet Casey, someday you’ll realize how cute and alluring you are. If you ever stop carrying guns and knives, maybe the men won’t be scared spitless of you. Now, are you coming with me, or do you want to wait in the truck until I return?”
“Wait for you? I’d be arrested for second-degree murder if I left a city girl like you out here. Indiana schoolteacher abandonment is a crime in Wyoming. But what is your great plan for reaching the castle? You goin’ to teach that paint horse of yours to fly?”
Develyn waved her arm to the left. “Does that stream flow south?”
“Yes.”
“Then we’ll ride south.” Develyn shoved her hands in the damp back pockets of her jeans. “Then we can swing around until we come to the stream. All we have to do is follow it north until we reach the castle.”
“There are two problems with your theory. First, this is a long canyon. It would be noon tomorrow, at best, before we got there.”
“You got any plans for tomorrow?”
“And even if we had a tent, sleeping bags, and food for us and the horses, it wouldn’t work. Down at the base of this canyon is a natural gas pumping station. It’s huge, with a chain-link fence, attack dogs, razor wire, and everything. It blocks off the mouth of the canyon. Ever since 9/ll, they’ve tightened security down there. This is one of those places a terrorist would love to blow up. I’m afraid there is no way down to the mansion.” Casey poked her thumb toward the horses. “It’s time we got back to the truck.”
“What is this with you? You always complain that I never want to go anywhere. You sit around the cabin and whine that I never take you anyplace. So, now I propose some exciting adventure, and you just whimper around about wanting to stay home and watch reality TV or something.”
Casey laughed and threw up her hands. “Oh, so this is your idea of a big date?”
“You told me yourself that you have never been to LaSage Mansion. Perhaps bronze bombshells don’t have the courage of us plain mousy types.”
“There’s nothing mousy about your blonde hair.”
“Nor real, either. The point is, you are all talk and no show.”
“Oh, it’s a dare, is it? Now you are casting aspersions on my racial mixture … my cowboy girl bravado … my hard-nosed attitude.”
Develyn folded her arms across her mud-splattered, lavender T-shirt. “I’m merely stating that I’m surprised at your reluctance. Perhaps you should have stayed at the store and watched the soaps with Mrs. Tagley. I don’t want you to ever complain again about your life being boring. Now run along, honey, and wait in the truck. My Maria, Uncle Henry, and I will go down there and have a grand adventure without you. Lock the doors and take yourself a nap. You can read it all in my best-selling autobiography or see it in the Hallmark movie.”
Casey laughed so hard that she clutched her sides.
“Dev, you are terrific. You do know how to be loose and tease. This is a whole side of you I’ve never seen. I love it, girl. Wow.”
“I always get a little spacey after I finally make a big decision. There is something so wonderful and freeing about it.”
Casey put her arm around Develyn’s shoulder. “All of this silliness because you decided not to go with Quint to Powell?”
“It’s a little bigger decision than that.” Develyn slipped her arm around Casey’s waist.
“You mean?”
“Yeah, that’s what I mean.”
“Poor Quint … he had his heart set on Miss Dev.”
“No, Casey, his heart was still on Miss Emily. It was the rest of his body that wanted Miss Dev.”
Casey dropped her arm to her side. “I can’t believe you said that. I mean, that’s the kind of thing I’d blurt out, but not you.”
“We seem to have a role reversal. Come along, my brown wimpina, we are visiting the LaSages tonight. They are expecting us for tea at 4:00 p.m., and you know how testy they are if we’re late.”
Casey Cree-Ryder drew her braid across her upper lip like a mustache. “I don’t have anything to wear.”
“Don’t wear the black scoop-necked formal. It’s much too revealing. The countess will be livid.”
Casey stared down at her clothes. “I was thinking of perhaps wearing the basic navy blue sleeveless T-shirt.”
Develyn raised her eyebrows. “The mud-splattered one?”
“Yes.”
“You’ll be the hit of the party.”
“Oh, good.” Casey led Develyn back to the horses. “Do you think the LaSages will serve slugs and salmon eggs?”
“Yes, of course.”
Casey untied the horses. “I won’t eat them.”
Develyn pulled herself up into the saddle. “Then you’ll just go hungry, young lady.”
They rode to the north, a few feet parallel from the canyon rim. Uncle Henry scuffed along, fifteen feet behind.
“Dev, look … setting aside all the laughing and teasing, there really isn’t any way to get down there.”
“What about that old adage that horses have four feet for balance and can go where humans can’t?”
“Yes, but even with twelve feet, there are some inclines you can’t go down.”
“Where is the old roadway?”
“Follow me.”
Within minutes they sat horseback staring down at an avalanche of boulders that dropped off the rim for a thousand feet.
“What is that?” Develyn asked.
“That’s the old roadway.”
“Road? The ruins of Pompeii look better than that.”
Casey nodded to the east. “Now, can we go back?”
Develyn stood in the stirrups. My Maria shifted a little to the right. “Are you sure there isn’t some other way?”
“The only thing I’m sure of is that there is no way down except through the oil company gate.”
Uncle Henry trotted up between the horses, then leaned against Develyn’s leg.
“Why don’t we circle the entire canyon?”
“Dev, it would take too long. We would be stuck out here in a thunderstorm at night.”
“I just can’t give up on the idea.”
“Let’s turn back.”
“Casey, I don’t want to go back.”
“You mean, you don’t want to take a chance that Quint is waiting for his Miss Dev?”
“That’s not what I said.”
Casey tugged on the collar of her T-shirt. “Why don’t we ride back to the truck, trailer up, then go into Lander or Riverton? There’s a good pizza place in Lander. We can hang out there until it’s safe to go home.”
“You make it sound like I’m trying to avoid Quint. I really want to see the mansion, that’s all.”
“You can prove that it has nothing to do with Quint.”
“How?”
“Let’s go home.”
“Go home?” Develyn moaned.
At the sound of her words, Uncle Henry plodded forward, stepped around each boulder, as he plunged off the side of the cliff. “Honey, I didn’t mean go down there,” Develyn called out. The burro continued to meander forward. “Uncle Henry, you get back up here right now!” Dev shouted.
Casey rode over next to her. “He’s not minding you, mama.”
“If we turn around, he’ll have to follow.”
“Or maybe that’s his home down there,” Casey said. “The mansion?”
“The canyon. Rumor has it that the count just packed up some of their clothes and deserted the place … furniture, live stock, and everything.”
“Where did Uncle Henry go?” Dev asked.
“He’s behind those boulders, see?” Develyn prodded My Maria to the edge of the canyon.
Instead of stopping, the horse eased down the side of the cliff. “What is she doing?” Develyn called out. “She’s following Uncle Henry. Whenever she gets scared, she follows Uncle Henry.” Develyn clutched the saddle horn and leaned back. “Can My Maria make it down this grade?”
“I hope so, Devy-girl, because she can’t turn around, that’s for sure.”
“What are we going to do?” Develyn hollered back up the cliff.
“We?” Casey yelled. “I think I’ll just go back to the truck. This is too scary to watch.”
“Casey!”
“OK … OK … I’ll follow until we find a place big enough to turn around.”
My Maria’s horseshoe slipped on the granite rock.
“Oh, no!” Develyn cried out.
The horse regained her footing.
“Hang on, Dev, you’re doin’ fine,” Casey called out from somewhere behind.
“Fine? Any moment now I expect to plunge to my death. This is a lot steeper than I thought. What am I doing here? I’m just an Indiana schoolteacher.”
“A crazy schoolteacher.”
“Crazy, but not brave like a bronze bombshell I know.”
“Devy, this bronze bombshell is scared to death. I don’t mind going to heaven, but being mangled on the rocks while the buzzards pluck out my eyeballs is not my idea of dying with dignity.”
“This is not funny!” Develyn hollered. “What are we going to do?”
“Hang on and pray that Uncle Henry knows what he’s doing.”
“Casey, don’t let the buzzards pick at my bones.”
“Look at him go. Uncle Henry seems to know every place to put his foot. All we have to do is have the horses step where he’s stepping.”
“Look at him? I’m not going to open my eyes.” With reins laced around her fingers, Develyn clutched the cold, leather-covered saddle horn with both hands. She slid forward in the saddle until her thighs pinched tight against the fork of the saddle. Her wet jeans rubbed her raw. She tried to lean back on the cantle and keep the toes of her tennies jammed into the stirrups.
Lord, I don’t know how to have an adventure. I spend my entire life doing the safe thing. Then I lose all sense of reason and do something like this. Why can’t I just have little … mostly sane … adventures? Why did I have to jump head over heels …
Develyn flipped open one eye and spied Uncle Henry’s rump a few feet in front of her.
Bad choice of words, Lord. Maybe Mother is right. Maybe I don’t have a lick of sense … whatever that means. There has to be something between a safe life and a terrifying one.
I’m not sure if I’m talking about my life or my relationship with men.
“Are you doing OK, Devy-girl?” Casey called out.
My Maria slipped. Develyn gasped. Then the paint horse regained her footing. “I’m just … talking to the Lord …”
“Yeah, I’m praying too. I haven’t prayed this much since riding in a yellow cab in New York.”
“You’ve been to New York?”
“I go there every year for the opera season.”
“What?”
“Sure, last year it was Candide, Orlando, and The Pearlfishers. This year it will be Carmen and Madame Butterfly. But my favorite is Puccini’s The Girl of the Golden West.”
“You don’t really go to New York for the opera, do you?”
“No, but it took your mind off dying for a minute, didn’t it? I went to a horse show once in Madison Square Garden. How many times have you been to the Garden?”
Develyn blinked open an eye, gasped, then slammed it shut. “I really … don’t … think … this … is … a … good … time … to … talk.”
“Yes, it is. Close your eyes and hold on to the saddle horn. My Maria will make it down on her own, or she won’t. But either way she has no intention of listening to you. So let’s talk about cities. Do you like Chicago?”
“I like the north side and the lake front … but I’ve gone to Chicago all my life. There and Indy.”
“How about L.A.? Ever been there?”
“No, have you?”
“Nah, but I’ve been to Dallas and Houston. I like Dallas best.”
“I like Houston. Have you ever been to Miami?”
“No, but I’ve been to Orlando.”
“I don’t like Miami too much, but I like the Keys.”
“I’d like to go to Seattle some time.”
Develyn felt more relaxed even as My Maria stumbled step by step. “So would I. Ever since I saw …”
“Sleepless in Seattle?”
“Yes. I love that movie.”
“The kid is annoying, but I love the movie anyway,” Casey said.
“I like the scene …”
“Where Meg Ryan …”
“Is standing in the …”
“Roadway …”
“Staring at Tom Hanks …”
“And the traffic is whizzing …”
“By, and their …”
“Eyes meet and then …”
“She takes off …”
“But they know.”
“Yeah,” Develyn sighed. “They know …”
“Look at …”
“At the hearts on the Empire State Building?”
“No!” Casey shouted. “Open your eyes, Dev!”
“Oh … no!” Develyn hollered. “Uncle Henry … wait.”
Loose gravel littered the last half of the descent. Uncle Henry tucked his rear legs under him as he began to slide.
“Can he do that?” Develyn said. “Can we do that?”
“I hope so, because we can’t go back up unless Uncle Henry leads the way.”
My Maria stopped. Dev’s feet, still in the stirrups, were shoved up by the horse’s neck. “I don’t know what to do.”
“Spur her forward.”
“I’m not putting my feet to her flanks. I’d tumble over her head.”
“Then slap her backside.”
“And turn loose of the horn?”
“You can’t stay there. Uncle Henry slid on down the hill.”
“Hill? This is like jumping out of a fifty-story building.”
“More like a hundred-story building, but who’s counting? Give me a second, and I’ll ride down and slap My Maria.”
“No!” Develyn hollered. “I’ll do it. If I’m going to die, it will be my own responsibility. I don’t want you to live with that guilt.”
“Guilt? I’ll be just as dead, sweetie.”
Develyn laid back until the Cheyenne roll of the cantle mashed into her lower back. She stared straight up at the clouds that now blocked the Wyoming sky. “Now would be a very good time for the Lord’s return.”
“Are you going to wait for him?”
“No. But I don’t want to rush things anyway.”
“Did you ever go to Disney World?” Casey asked.
“I went to Six Flags, instead.”
“Did you ever sit at the top of one of those rides, and just before it drops off into certain death, you said ‘what am I doing here?’ and yet you did it, and you lived through it all and everything?”
“No.”
“You never went on a scary amusement park ride?”
“Never. What’s your point?” Develyn said.
“Forget it. Kick her neck with the heels of your shoes and shout ‘giddyup.’ I’ll see you at the bottom.”
“Are we goin’ to die, Casey?”
“Nope. Look at Uncle Henry. If you had been riding him, you’d almost be there by now.”
Develyn reached up and tugged her hat down in the front, then grabbed the saddle horn again. “Bye, Casey …”
“Bye, Devy!”
“Giddyup!” Develyn slammed the heels of her tennis shoes into the paint horse’s neck.
My Maria lurched forward as wind and dirt blasted her face. Develyn fought to stay in the saddle. The paint horse slid, then tried to stand, then stumbled, then slid some more. Develyn thought she might be screaming something, but she couldn’t hear anything. A roar like an imploded building crashing to the ground. The dust was so thick she could not see My Maria’s head, so Develyn clamped her eyes and mouth shut.
When she could hold her breath no longer, My Maria stopped. Develyn slid forward, her belt buckle caught on the saddle horn. The paint horse snorted and staggered forward.
“Devy!”
“Casey? Where are you?”
“Do you see any angels?”
“No.”
“Do you see any of those other guys?”
“No.”
“Then I think we’re alive. We’re on level ground, at least level rock. Climb down and lead My Maria straight ahead.”
Develyn tugged the horse only a few feet as the dust started to drift to the east, and she spotted a dirt-covered Casey Cree-Ryder. Popcorn now looked like a solid brown horse. Only Casey’s tongue and eyeballs looked clean.
“We did it, girl!”
“Yes!” Develyn yelled. “We lived through it!”
“Look up there.”
“Oh, my word,” Develyn gasped. “What … what happened to the old roadway?”
“It sloughed off. We rode an avalanche down the mountain.”
“How did we do that?”
“You mean you don’t do that back in Crawfordsville?”
“I don’t even ride the whip at the Montgomery County Fair, let alone an avalanche. The old roadway is gone.”
“Only halfway down.”
“How will we get out of here?”
“Oh, now you ask that?”
Develyn searched the narrow valley. “Maybe we could slap Uncle Henry in the rear and tell him to go home.”
“We told him to go home, and this is where we ended up.”
“Am I as dirty as you?” Develyn asked.
“You look very good all brown. It beats that pathetic white skin of yours.”
“What are we going to do now?”
“We’re going to call on the LaSages, remember?”
“Like this?”
Casey smeared her cheeks. “We’ll ask to use the ladies’ room to freshen up a tad.”
Develyn pointed across the canyon floor. “Uncle Henry’s over by those green trees. Shall we ride?”
“My Maria and Popcorn need a break … let’s walk … or stagger. There must be a spring that feeds those trees. Maybe we can wash off there.”
“Let’s go look at the mansion before it gets dark.”
“Sure, and what do we do after dark?”
“I’ve got no idea.”
“Dev, are you sure this beats going to Powell with Quint Burdett?”
“I don’t know how I will clean up, where I will spend the night, or how I will get out of here. I don’t know when I’ll get my next meal or whom I will talk to next on the cell phone. There are a million things I am not sure of, but there is one thing I do know. I’d rather be right here, bruised and filthy, than flying off to Powell tonight.” She pulled off her cowboy hat and felt a handful of dirt tumble down the back of her shirt. “However, I do hope the LaSages don’t mind if company drops in.”