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This wasn’t the way I had planned, yet I lean on Your leading, Lord.
~ Seth
“Stay here with the horses.” Seth sent Rachel a meaningful look, and she nodded, wrapping her arm around her son’s shoulders. A possessive hold.
He used long strides to cover the ground to the cabin, and his brother waited for him by the closed door. Samuel’s mouth held a tight line as he watched Seth approach.
“Is he gone?” Seth studied his brother’s eyes for an answer.
“Dead. Looks like he had a knife we didn’t find.”
Dead? Seth blinked, trying to catch up with the unexpected turn. “If he had a knife, why wouldn’t he have just cut himself loose?”
Samuel shook his head. “I don’t know. Not sure if you wanna go in, but this is definitely not something the others should see.”
He followed his brother inside, and a single look at the man slumped over his bound arms, sitting in a pool of his own blood, was all Seth needed. He turned away, his heart aching. He’d wanted Hackney punished, but not like this. Not at his own hand, sitting in his blood, far from anyone who might care about him.
“I suppose we should bury him. And maybe see if there’s any correspondence that might tell us of family we should notify.” A glance around the room didn’t reveal much.
Darkness was falling in earnest by the time they’d dug a decent grave and piled rocks over the freshly churned ground. They stood in front of the plot, and Samuel prayed for God to have mercy on this man’s soul. It was all they could do.
A numbness had fallen over the group, but they all agreed they’d rather push on to their previous camp before stopping for the night. This place held too many memories—some that may turn into nightmares. Besides, they needed to see if Rachel and Andy’s horses were still in the area.
They found Hackney’s horse tied in the woods, then loaded the animal with food they’d garnered from the cabin. Finally, they were off again, winding their way through the trees. Rachel’s cheek rested on his shoulder for much of the way, and he could only be thankful for the trust she placed in him with that act.
By the time they reached the camp, her steady breathing in his ear proved she must have given in to her exhaustion. After the strain of the day before, then being up so long into the night, she had every right to be weary.
Samuel’s gelding raised a nicker as they reined in, and when a responding whinny sounded through the woods, Rachel lifted her head from his shoulder.
“Where are we?” Her voice held a sleepy scratch that tightened a longing inside him.
“We’re back at camp. I’ll slide off, then help you down.”
She straightened, pulling her warmth away from his back, a loss that went deeper than a mere layer of his skin.
He dismounted, then reached up for her. Part of him didn’t expect she’d allow him to help her down, but she rested her hands on his shoulders and let him lift her by the waist.
She must have been weak from sleep, for when her feet touched the ground, she kept sinking.
“Whoa, there.” He gripped her waist tighter, pulling her back up and toward him.
She sank against his chest, utterly spent. “I’m sorry, Seth.” Her soft voice, muffled in the cloth of his shirt, was almost too light to hear.
“Nothing to be sorry about.” He kept a sturdy arm around her, then used his other hand to stroke her back. “Nothing at all.”
Holding her here, soft and completely pliant, was like nothing he’d ever felt. Strength normally resonated from her, even in her moments of exhaustion. Yet now, the primary feeling he sensed in her was trust. And exhaustion.
The former caused a burn in his throat that he wouldn’t deny even if he wanted to. Only God could make him into the man she needed, and maybe the Father above was doing just that.
~ ~ ~
THE NEXT FEW DAYS ON the trail seemed rather dull after the turmoil of the kidnapping, but Seth would prefer boring and safe any day—at least, when it came to Rachel and her son. Andy had been quiet for the first day but was working back out of his shell much quicker than when they’d first met him, and Rachel seemed to have shed a few defensive layers, too. He couldn’t get enough of this new openness about her. This lightness.
She didn’t seem immune to his touch either, which was better news still. Maybe soon she would be ready for another kiss. But he’d committed himself not to rush it. Only when she was ready to trust him fully.
“I think we may be getting close.” Samuel studied the map as they paused for a quick midday meal during the fifth day back on the trail.
“Really? What should we be watching for?” Andy peered over his arm as he munched a bite of cold cheese and hamsteak. The supplies they’d brought from the kidnapper’s cabin were nothing short of delicious.
“This map doesn’t give landmarks for where we turn, but the letter from our brother says we’ll come to a cabin tucked in a little valley surrounded by mountains on three sides. That cabin belongs to his wife’s brother.”
“Does your brother live near there?”
“A few hours’ away in a big valley. Simeon’s cabin sits on one corner, and my sister, Noelle, and her family live near them. There’re some other people nearby, too. The aunt and uncle of Simeon’s wife, I think.”
“Are they close to town?” Rachel’s question might have sounded innocent to anyone else, but he didn’t even have to glance at her to know she was worried. How would she ever live near a fort as she planned, with all manner of men coming and going?
Hopefully she’d find Simeon’s little valley more to her liking, but if she didn’t, he’d go where she wanted to. He’d not completely made up his mind to live permanently where his brother and sister had settled anyway. But it’d be nice to stay a while and get reacquainted.
Samuel straightened and folded the map. “You folks ready to mount up? I think our path will level out for a while.”
Back on the trail, travel was much easier than the rocky path around the mountain they’d ridden that morning. A peak rose up on their right, so steep and rocky it looked almost like a wall had grown up in the midst of the flatland they traveled.
“Aren’t you glad we don’t have to climb that?” He sent Rachel a grin.
She raised her gaze to the top of the precipice. “Quite.” Then she brought her focus back to him. “I’m getting better at heights, though.”
“Ho, there.” Samuel threw out a hand to stop them as he jerked his reins tight. “Move back.”
Seth jerked his focus to see what had alerted his brother even as he reined his horse backward to get out of Samuel’s way.
A cabin.
When they’d all backed out of view of the structure, Seth looked to his brother. “Do you think that’s the one Simeon wrote about? His brother-in-law’s place?”
Samuel glanced up at the cliff wall as if he could see the cabin beyond. “It could be. One of us should check to make sure before we all make our presence known.”
“I’ll go see.” Seth nudged his horse toward the path they’d been traveling.
“Wait, Seth.” Rachel’s voice held enough fear, he reined in his gelding.
Turning to meet her troubled gaze, he let her see his earnestness. “I’ll be careful, Rachel. If this isn’t the man we’re looking for, I’ll come back straightaway, and we’ll move on.”
Her lower lip slid between her teeth for a moment. Finally, she nodded. “Be careful.”
A noise drifted through the air, calling his attention back toward the cabin. It sounded like the steady thwak of an ax on wood. He guided his gelding forward, watching for the first glimpse of activity ahead.
The man came into view first, lean and sinewy with his shirt sleeves rolled up as he heaved an ax into a log. The cabin appeared next, a sturdy structure, bigger than Burke’s had been. At least two rooms by his guess.
Another movement snagged Seth’s gaze. A small figure shifted near the cabin’s door. A child? The dark head lifted, revealing...yes, a child. But older than he’d thought. Maybe ten or eleven.
The man saw him then and spun to face him. Seth rode forward, keeping his posture relaxed to show he was no threat. About twenty strides away from the building, he reined in.
“Howdy.” The man wiped his brow on his sleeve and settled an arm around the shoulder of the girl who’d come to stand by him. “We don’t get much company. Are you headed toward one of the forts?” He looked about Seth’s age, maybe a couple years older. Just right for the man they sought. And his expression seemed pleasant enough.
Seth offered a friendly smile. “Actually, I’m looking for my brother who lives in this area. Do you know Simeon Grant?”
The man’s look changed in an instant, splitting in a wide grin. “I do. Are you Seth or Samuel?”
Relief washed through Seth’s chest like a river breaking through a dam. They’d made it. “Seth. Does that mean you’re Joseph Malcom?”
“Sure am.” The man tucked the girl against him with an affectionate squeeze. “And this is Amelie, our oldest.” His gaze moved past Seth. “Where’s your brother?” Worry creased his brow.
Seth sent a glance over his shoulder. “Coming behind me. I rode in first to see if we’d found the right place.”
Malcom started for the cabin door. “Bring him on. My wife will be eager to feed you both.”
Seth turned and nudged his gelding into a jog back toward the others. Hopefully Rachel would be glad for female company.
Within minutes, he led the entire weary party toward the cabin. It was almost too much to fathom that they’d reached the end of their journey. Simeon and Noelle both lived less than half a day’s ride from here. They could possibly be there tonight.
Thank you, Lord. Only God could be credited for bringing them through the harrowing journey unscathed.
The door flung wide, and Joseph stood in the frame, a young boy in his arms. “We’ll put your horses in the corral. I can tie mine outside if you think they’ll be a bother.” He set the boy on the floor and stepped outside.
They dismounted and followed him around the side of the house, and the man continued talking. “Your brother and sister live a few hours away, so we’d be glad to offer shelter for the night.” He turned to them with a grin. “I’m sure we’ll have time later to get acquainted, but my wife would love the company as long as you’ll stay.”
Seth glanced at Rachel to see if she was uneasy at the thought of sleeping here. She met his gaze with a tiny shrug. Did that mean she trusted Joseph Malcom? Or maybe she was placing her trust in Seth’s decision. A weighty charge.
He looked to his brother, who gave a faint nod. All right then.
He turned back to Joseph. “We appreciate the offer. We’ll happily sleep on the floor if you have the space. Otherwise, we can camp on the trail.”
They reached the corral and Joseph stepped to the gate. “We’ve one extra bed and plenty of open floor. My wife happens to be the best cook in the Canadian territory, so I hope you’re hungry.”
The words tightened the empty places in Seth’s belly. A real dinner and a sleep under a real roof. It sounded like heaven for his weary bones.
~ ~ ~
IT HAD BEEN SO LONG since Rachel had spoken with a woman, it appeared she’d completely lost the ability. Each time Mrs. Malcom sent her a smile or asked a question in her lovely French accent, Rachel’s tongue tied itself in knots, stumbling over answers so much she ended up cutting her responses short.
Monti—as she insisted on being called—was graceful about Rachel’s lack, but it didn’t make the episodes less embarrassing. The couple’s daughter turned out to be only a year younger than Andy, and the two watched each other with curious gazes as they all lingered over the meal Monti had laid out within minutes of their arrival.
As quiet as the girl was, their three-year-old son was vivacious. He babbled on through the meal and while they lingered around the table, keeping Samuel on one side and his father on the other occupied during every spare second.
In short, the meal was lively. Not something she could remember experiencing since she was a girl visiting her friend Emily’s home. The conversation and easy laughter flowed so freely, they almost made her want to join in. But for now, she was content to watch the others.
Seth was beside her, and as he finished his meal and sat back in his chair to answer a question about the length of their journey, his hand found hers under the table. Warm and strong, his fingers wove between hers, infusing her with a sturdiness that grounded her.
If he minded her silence, he didn’t let on, just glanced at her with a smile every so often. Once or twice he pulled her into the conversation, but he must have sensed her chaotic emotions. And she was more grateful than she could say that he didn’t push.
She’d get there in time.
After the meal, Monti led her to the bed chamber she and Andy would share. “I hope this will be comfortable for you.” She pushed open the door, revealing a lovely room. The quilt across the bed brightened the chamber with spring colors arranged in the form of flowers.
“This is beautiful.” Rachel stepped closer for a better look, although she didn’t dare touch. Such fine stitching, although not without the occasional variation, made it clear the crafter had labored over the detail. “Did you sew it?” She looked back at Monti.
Her delicate features pinkened, and she dipped a nod. “Oui. It was my project during the cold days last winter.”
“I’ve stitched one quilt, but it was nothing so nice as this one.” The blanket had covered their bed after she was married, but Richard wretched on it so often during his drunken stupors, she’d eventually burned the thing. It hadn’t seemed worth the effort to make another, so she settled for a store-bought woolen blanket.
“The time will come again when you will want to work with your hands, you think?” Monti rested a gentle hand on her shoulder, her eyes offering encouragement.
Rachel inhaled a breath. “I hope so.”
The farther she traveled into this new life, the more buried dreams seemed to be resurrecting themselves. If only she could dare to follow them.
