“IS THIS THE PLACE?”
Busy scouting the area, Dakota didn’t answer, but Darvi knew it had to be. He had taken them off the main road about 30 minutes back, and the trees were just as he had described. Darvi could also hear the rippling sound of water over rocks.
“Okay, Darvi,” Dakota spoke as he came back toward her on foot, “Come on this way around the trees. We’ll set up camp for the night and have some dinner.”
Darvi did as she was directed, knowing that hotel room or not, it was going to be good to get out of the saddle. Once again she was reminded of how her determination to see Merry had clouded all else. They had certainly ridden harder to Stillwater, but she didn’t remember feeling sore. Now as she dismounted, she barely stifled a groan.
“You weren’t sore on the way to Scotts,” Dakota commented from behind her.
Darvi turned to see him watching her.
“How did you know I was sore?”
A slow smile stretched across the Ranger’s face.
“I just watched you get off that horse.”
Darvi tried to look stern but ended up laughing a little. At least she could do that. What she couldn’t do was rub the parts of her anatomy that ached with stiffness and fatigue.
“Why don’t you walk down by the water? I’ll take care of your horse.”
Darvi looked as grateful as she felt before thanking Dakota and unfastening her satchel from Finley’s saddle.
“I think I’ll freshen up a bit.”
“All right. Keep your eyes open and stay within earshot.”
Thinking he sounded just like Uncle Marty, she went on her way, moving gingerly as sensation returned to her limbs. Pain or no pain, it wasn’t long before she noticed what a lovely setting it was. The day was still plenty warm, but just the sound and sight of the water seemed to cool her, and finding a large rock right at the edge was like an answer to prayer. Darvi sat on it, slipped off her boots and stockings, and placed her feet in the water. The action seemed to cool all of her. Had it been dark, she’d have gotten all the way in, but for the moment this did the trick.
Her satchel came next. She reached for the bag and brought out a large handkerchief, one she’d borrowed from her father. After soaking it, she bathed her face and neck. In very short order she felt like herself again.
“Are you all right?” she heard Dakota call.
“Yes, thank you, I am. Do you need some help?”
“No, I’m fine, thanks.”
“I have my feet in the water already.”
Darvi heard the laughter in Dakota’s voice when he called back, “Sounds great. I’ll probably join you in a minute.”
Darvi smiled in contentment, all misgivings about camping slowly dying away. She decided as she sat there that she wanted a fresh pair of stockings. Her hands were back in her bag when she heard the rattle. She stopped moving, even though she could feel the outline of her gun beneath some of her garments. Her eyes shifting frantically, she finally spotted it. A small rattlesnake was coiled on the ground about a foot away from the rock. As Darvi watched, it uncoiled a bit and started to move away from her, but Darvi still brought out her gun. She realized her mistake too late. Sensing her movement, the snake recoiled to face her, the rattles sounding off again.
“I don’t think I can do this,” she whispered even as she held the gun at arm’s length, her finger ready to pull the trigger. Her mind raced through the things she’d heard about snakes, such as their ability to jump the length of their bodies. She wanted to gauge the distance but was afraid to take her eyes from the reptile.
“Darvi, you all right?” Dakota chose that moment to check on her.
The snake still watched her, his tail now silent.
“Darvi?”
“Dakota,” she managed in a small voice. Then louder. “Dakota.”
“Darvi, are you—” Dakota was saying as he came into view, his brow lowering as he watched her hold something black out in front of her with both hands. He moved closer and saw that it was a stocking draped over a gun. Why it took him so long to see what had her frozen in place, he didn’t know, but moving in swiftly, his gun coming clean from his holster as he walked, he fired one shot before the snake jolted with the impact and lay still.
Her eyes still huge, Darvi kept her gun trained on the dead serpent even as she watched Dakota approach.
Dakota was compassionate when he saw the fear in her face, but he still smiled and plucked at the black stocking.
“Does the gun work without this?”
Darvi slowly lowered the weapon. “I was afraid to shoot. I thought I would miss such a small target.”
“That still would have scared him away.”
“But then I would have wondered all night where he was.” Her eyes flickered toward the snake. “Now I’ll know.”
Dakota then saw that she trembled a little.
“You were very brave.”
“I don’t feel brave. I feel like calling for my mother.”
Dakota bent and put his arm around her shoulders and gave her a squeeze.
“Thanks, Dakota.”
“You’re welcome. I’ll stomp about some and make sure he has no family.” As Dakota started his search, he kept speaking. “Tell me something, Darvi, does trouble just naturally follow you around?”
“What does that mean?” she asked, working discretely to put her stockings on.
“Oh, first you follow a complete stranger down the streets of Austin, who just happens to be me, and then you have two men following you in Stillwater, and now you attract a snake. It just causes a man to wonder.”
Stockings and shoes in place, Darvi turned to set him straight. “I’ll have you know, Dakota Rawlings, I can take care of myself very nicely.”
Dakota didn’t even glance her way. “It’s beginning to make sense why Brace didn’t want you coming on your own.”
“You’re all the same,” she muttered, checking around the rock before climbing down. She gathered her things, gun still in hand, and moved back in the direction from which she had come. What she saw stopped her. Darvi didn’t know how Dakota had accomplished it so swiftly, but he had set up a very orderly camp. A glance to the right showed that he had tethered the horses near food and water and already had a fire coaxed along, with two bedrolls opposite each other. Darvi knew she was in good hands, but she hadn’t expected this. Dakota had told them he could cook. Darvi didn’t know why she hadn’t figured on the rest.
He lives his life on the trail. What did you expect?
“I think we’re reptile-free for the moment,” Dakota proclaimed as he joined her. “I hope you like your coffee strong. I don’t know any other way to make it.”
“I do like it strong, but believe me when I tell you that I’ll eat and drink whatever you give me.”
“Hungry, are you?”
“Well, not starved, but as usual, I’ve acted without thinking. It never occurred to me that we wouldn’t be in a town tonight. If I was on my own, I’d be going hungry.”
As though she’d just proved his point, Dakota smiled. Catching it, Darvi’s chin came up.
“I would have done fine on my own,” she told him firmly. “I would have come up with something to eat.”
Fearing he would only get himself in trouble, Dakota didn’t comment. Not fully understanding the female brain, however, he still found more than he bargained for.
“Do you doubt it?” Darvi demanded, not willing to let the matter drop.
Dakota looked at her.
“Actually, I don’t. Plucky as you are, you would probably do fine, but don’t ask me to condone your being out here on your own, Darvi. I won’t do that.”
Darvi wisely shut her mouth. She hadn’t expected as much as she got, and she determined to let it drop before she pushed Dakota into saying something she didn’t want to hear. She believed she could do fine, and that was all that really mattered to her.
The meal was very good. Merry had sent some baked goods with Dakota, and that man had a good supply of trail food. He turned dried meat into beef and gravy over rice, a biscuit on the side. They ate cookies with their last cups of coffee.
Darvi volunteered to wash dishes, and she was at the stream doing this when Dakota realized they had company. Two men approached on one horse, a small, hard-ridden beast. Their eyes watched him but were more interested in the horses nearby.
“Hello,” the man on the front called.
Dakota didn’t like his smile but still said, “Good evening.”
“Nice horses,” the second man spoke as they dismounted.
Dakota saw no reason to comment. He hoped they would move on without a confrontation, and almost at the same moment, he heard the clank of pots and knew that Darvi was returning.
“Not now, Darvi,” he said under his breath, but there was no way she heard. Indeed, completely unaware of the danger, she entered the campsite talking.
“I don’t know if I got this one pot clean. It was very stubborn. I hope you aren’t too—”
Dakota didn’t even look at her, which meant he saw every bit of interest on the visitors’ faces. He decided to confront the situation head on.
“The horses aren’t for sale.”
The men both snickered before the first one said, “We ain’t got no money anyhow.”
“Well, that only leaves you one option, gentlemen,” Dakota went on amiably, “and it’s only fair to warn you that I’ll shoot you before I let you take our horses.”
They seemed to weigh this up for a time, looking at each other and then back to Dakota, who partially blocked their view of Darvi.
“She your wife?” number two asked.
“The lady is not your business,” he said flatly, his hand not moving to his gun, but his whole body shifting in a no-nonsense way. “And since we’re camped here for the night, I think it might be best if you head on your way.”
Hesitating only for a moment, the men climbed back onto the weary animal and continued down the road. Both Darvi and Dakota watched them for some time. Darvi’s imagination had them doubling back, so she kept her eyes on them for as long as she could. When she finally glanced up at Dakota, it was to find him watching her.
“I suppose you’re going to say that was all my fault?” she asked calmly.
“No, I wasn’t going to say that, but it would help if you didn’t look so good.”
Knowing she was not at her best, Darvi nearly laughed. “What do you suggest?”
Seeing the amusement in her eyes, Dakota barely kept from smiling. “Well, you could blacken a few teeth and maybe dye your hair a mud brown.”
“I’ll think on it,” Darvi assured him before adding, “it’s your size and color, by the way.”
Dakota blinked.
“What’s my size and color?”
“The reason the twins stare at you, and also the reason those men in Stillwater and the men today left without an argument. Depending on who they are, people either find you a great comfort or completely intimidating.” This said, she turned to put the pots down and then to sit down on her bedroll, reaching for her satchel as soon as she was settled.
For a moment it was on Dakota’s mind to ask which way Darvi found him, but he thought he knew the answer. She’d half-hidden behind him while he talked with the men. Somehow he didn’t think she was intimidated by him in the least.
Dakota did not get into his bedroll when darkness fell and Darvi climbed into hers. There was still a small flicker of fire left, and he wanted to go back to Calder’s letter, which was filled with Scriptures. He started to read the letter again, thankful that Calder had written out some of the verses.
Dear Dakota,
I want to start by thanking you for asking me about this subject. It’s easy to do things by habit and not conviction. It was very good for me to be reminded why prayer is so important.
Colossians 4:12 says: “Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ, salutes you, always laboring fervently for you in prayers, that ye may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God.” Epaphras is devoted to prayer.
Colossians 1:9 says: “For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding.” This is Paul speaking here. Note the way he says he didn’t cease; he was another person devoted to prayer. James 5 says that Elijah was such a warrior in prayer that God held the rain back for more than three years.
And then to my favorite, Jesus Himself—God’s own Son— was willing to give up sleep to meet His Father to pray. Mark 1:35: “In the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed.” I don’t know about you, Dakota, but I don’t think Christ would give this kind of example to us if His Father wasn’t listening.
As Dakota finished reading the letter, he saw that Calder had included many other verses for him to look up, as well as telling him that he would pray for understanding in the matter. He closed with God’s blessing and an invitation to visit anytime.
Dakota sat for a while longer and thought about his own faith. It had been so clear to him that he was lost and that God had found him, but somewhere in the mix he’d gotten the impression that his first-time faith was all he would need.
I’ve got to trust You all day, every day. I see that now. Not just to save me, but that You’re listening and that You care. That was never clear to me before now, but this is what Desmond was talking about when he said to match my feelings against Your Word. If they don’t hold up, then I can’t hold on to them.
Thank You for saving me, Lord God. I’m still amazed at this second chance, and even this second chance to understand how You work.
His heart still prayerful, Dakota went back to his Bible to look up the other verses from Calder, asking God to help him understand the truths. The flickering light made it a challenge at times, but Dakota read until he could see no more. With the last dying flames behind him, he checked on the horses, which he had moved closer to camp, and finally settled in for the night. Darvi had stopped moving around, and Dakota assumed she had fallen asleep. He knew she would be sore in the morning and that riding Finley all day was not going to help, but he saw no help for it. Dakota found himself praying for her, and somewhere along the line he dropped off to sleep. It didn’t last long, though, as Darvi suddenly gasped and woke.
“Dakota?”
“Right here,” came his deep voice comfortingly through the darkness.
“Did they come and take the horses?” She sounded panicked.
“No. I checked on them right before I settled in.”
He heard her sigh.
“I thought my dream was real,” she admitted. “I’m sorry I woke you.”
“It’s all right.”
It was silent for a moment.
“You don’t sound as though you were asleep.”
“I don’t sleep very soundly when I’m on the trail.”
Again silence covered them, and again Darvi was the one to break it.
“Dakota?”
“Yeah?”
“I don’t want to intrude, but will you tell me how it happened for you?”
“My salvation?”
“Yes. I mean, if you want to.”
“It’s not a very long story. You knew I’d been shot and I told you it was bad, but I don’t know if I told you that while I was in that gunfight, I thought I might die. When I realized I hadn’t, I knew it was time to face what my brothers had been telling me.”
“How many brothers do you have?”
“Two.”
“And they both believe?”
“Yes. I thought that preachers used hell as a scare tactic to get people to church, but when I was faced with dying, I realized I wasn’t ready. If hell was a real place, I was in trouble. If Slater and Cash had been telling me the truth, I knew I was lost.
“After I got hurt, I stayed with another Ranger. My brothers came to see me there, and I asked them to help me understand salvation. That’s about the size of it.”
“Had you been searching for a long time?”
“Running was more like it. I just didn’t want to accept the fact that I sin. I’m around a lot of very desperate people, and somehow I thought I was better. I didn’t like being lumped into the sinner category.”
“Thank you for telling me,” Darvi said softly. Dakota thought he heard tears in her voice.
“Are you all right?”
“Yes,” she said, but it was on a sniff.
“How did it happen for you?”
“I won’t be able to tell you without crying. It’s all I’ve done lately.”
“Well, don’t let tears stop you.”
“It’s a long story,” she replied, tears even thicker in her voice.
“I’m not going anywhere.”
Dakota heard her blow her nose and cough a little. He wanted to tell her they didn’t have to talk, but thinking she might fall back to sleep, he kept silent. A few minutes passed and she began.
“I don’t know if you know this, Dakota, but I’m from St. Louis. And not just any part of St. Louis. I grew up in one of the nicer homes in one of the better sections of town. My family has always lived in style. In fact, I can’t remember not having just about anything I wanted. We were very self-sufficient, my whole family, and because of that, I just never gave God a thought. We didn’t pray at meals or go to church; we just took care of ourselves.
“But there was a woman in town, a pastor’s wife, and she and my mother got to know each other through the St. Louis Ladies’ Guild. I was just a little girl when I heard my mother tell Mrs. Beacher—that was her name—that she didn’t believe anyone lived for eternity, not in heaven or hell. My mother believes that our life on earth is the end. You live and then you die. When Mrs. Beacher pressed her, my mother said that we live on through our descendants, and almost to prove that point, my mother has pictures of our ancestors all over the house. The hallways are lined with their paintings and photographs. So is the library and the large parlor.”
Darvi fell silent for a moment.
“I grew up so smug and sure, Dakota. I didn’t have a care in the world—at least not until I visited Austin in the summers and played with Merry Scott, who was then Merry Voight. She had the audacity to tell me she knew there was a heaven, and to top it off, she said she was going there.”
Dakota smiled as he listened.
“I could have strangled her. I thought it was the most foolish thing, but she wasn’t teasing me or acting proud. She had a deep joy about this fact, a joy I had never experienced over anything. Most of the summer I would play my heart out with her, not letting myself think too deeply, but when I went home I was miserable. Not only did I want to be back running free in a way I never could at home, but then I had time to think about what she said, and every summer I knew tremendous fear that she might be right.”
She sighed a little and continued quietly.
“This went on for more years than I care to think about. I eventually stopped visiting in the summer. My interests changed, and boys were noticing me. I even became engaged to be married, and then the unthinkable happened. It was just this spring. The house was abuzz with plans for a June wedding. My mother was showing the caterer through the house, and he asked about the largest portrait in the hall. Later I tried to tell myself that she was busy and distracted, but I couldn’t quite convince my heart. My mother, who was going to live on through her children and grandchildren, couldn’t remember Great Uncle Jenkins’ name. She looked very forlorn for a moment but then passed it off with a laugh.
“Later, when I was alone, I walked through and looked at all the portraits in the house. I couldn’t tell you the names of half of them. I asked myself how, if I didn’t know these people and my mother was already forgetting their names, could they still be living?
“The fact that they were all very dead and always would be was like a blow to me. I walked around in a painful cloud the rest of the day, and the next morning I canceled a date with my fiancée and went to see Mrs. Beacher.” Darvi sighed again, this time sounding very tired. “I understood now all the things that Merry had said to me during those hot summers in Austin, and as soon as Mrs. Beacher explained, I knew in an instant that my sin had put Christ on the cross and that I was lost without Him. I’d never known such peace, but it only lasted until I arrived home. I can’t begin to tell you the mess I made of things.
“The weeks that followed were like something out of a nightmare. My parents were deeply hurt over what I was telling them. Then Mrs. Beacher, who was meeting with me each week for Bible study, asked me if my intended was a believer. I had to tell her no.”
Tears were coming now, and Darvi didn’t try to stop them.
“I can’t tell you what it did to all of us to have me break off my engagement with Brandon. He was so hurt, and I was feeling lost and confused. My mother said it was just a stage and that I would get over it. She went right on with the wedding plans until I left for a few days to get her attention. I didn’t know what else to do. And all the time Brandon was coming around, telling me he’d love me anyway, but I knew it wasn’t right. I finally wrote Uncle Marty and asked if I could come. He wired me right away and said yes. I was so exhausted by the time I arrived that I ended up ill. I know my mother must have written to him, but he never said a word to me.
“In all the hoopla, I’d completely forgotten about Merry. After spending days in bed, I woke up one morning and knew I had to see her. But we had never kept in touch by mail, and I didn’t know she’d moved. That’s why I followed you down the street, and that’s why you’re stuck with me right now.”
“I don’t feel I’m stuck with you, Darvi, and I don’t want to hear you say that again.”
“All right.” She sounded very contrite, and Dakota wished he could see her. He had written his parents about his conversion and received a rather surprised letter from his mother, but it was nothing like what Darvi had experienced. In fact, although admitting that she didn’t understand, his mother told him that she and his father would support him in whatever he wanted to do. It had always been that way with his parents, and Dakota was just now seeing how good he’d had it. His parents’ lack of faith in Christ still concerned him, but there was no anxiety as he prayed for them every day and tried to prepare his heart for the next time he saw them.
A sniff broke into Dakota’s thoughts.
“Thank you for telling me, Darvi. I’ll pray for you.”
“Thank you. Please pray that I’ll figure a way to get out of this mess I’ve landed myself in.”
“I can’t pray that, Darvi, because I don’t see it that way.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, you can’t marry a man who doesn’t share your faith and commitment to Christ. I’m sorry that your family has taken it so hard, but they’re going to have to get used to your decision.”
Darvi was so shocked she was speechless. This worried Dakota.
“Am I out of line, Darvi?”
“No, I’m just surprised that I haven’t seen that before. I’ve got to let my mother work this out. I can’t worry about her response to Christ or my decision.”
“I agree with you. My parents do not share my faith in Christ, and I’m thankful they don’t give me a hard time. Nevertheless, I can be tempted to worry about their eternity and choices when God says worry is a sin.”
Again Darvi sighed, but not because she was overwhelmed. She knew worry was a sin, but she hadn’t seen that this was what she was doing.
“Thank you, Dakota,” Darvi said for the last time. “You’ve helped me a lot.”
“You’re welcome,” Dakota responded, feeling very inadequate. There was so much he didn’t know, and for a moment he had doubted his own words to her. He finally fell back to sleep—they both did—each one praying for greater understanding and wisdom in this new life, a life they wouldn’t trade for anything, but one so foreign they might have been living in another world.