Grant had never felt so weak in his life. He knew there was no point in even trying to stand; he’d only crash to the ground. Even the idea of opening his eyes seemed too much of an effort. He vaguely remembered the retching and other things equally revolting. His stomach no longer roiled and rolled. His heart lifted a little. He would live.
“Doc?”
He recognized Buddy’s voice and turned his head toward the sound, debating whether or not he wanted to attempt to open his eyes and face the pain a flash of light would bring.
“How long have I been sick?”
“Two days.” Buddy’s voice rose with relief. “Amanda said once you made it past the first twenty-four hours, you’d live.”
“Lucky me.” He truly was grateful, but the pain in his head…
“Doctors always make the worst patients, they say.”
Grant’s eyes flew open at the sound of Blake’s voice. He groaned as the light rammed into his eyes like heavy fists.
“How are you feeling?” Blake asked.
Grant offered a weak smile. “Sick.”
“Understandable.”
“Why are you watching me sleep?”
“Buddy said you’ve been stirring for the last hour. I needed to speak with you as soon as possible. I know it’s not the best time, but it’s necessary.”
“What is it?”
“Sunday a few soldiers arrived from Fort Boise. They heard we had cholera from their Indian scouts and warned us to stay away from the fort.”
“It’s a fearsome disease. I can’t say I blame them.”
“That may be, but we have to find someplace to hole up for the winter. We need the protection of the fort if we stay in these parts.”
“You’ve made up your mind, then?”
Blake gave a nod, his lips set in a grim line. “We’ll have some trouble out of a few of the men. I’m anticipating that. But it’s the smartest thing to do. According to the soldiers, the snow is heavy this year. With four hundred miles to go, it would be folly to even attempt to get over the Blue Mountains.”
“Most of the folks trust you to do what’s right. None of the setbacks have been your fault.”
Blake’s jaw twitched as he clamped down on his back teeth, something he did when trying to control his emotions. Grant figured he’d best change the subject for now.
“What did you want me to say to the soldiers?”
“You’ll need to speak to the captain and let him know there’s no danger of cholera anymore. Explain it to him in doctor talk so he knows you’re a real doctor.”
Lifting himself, Grant rested on his elbow. His head swam with the sudden movement, and he closed his eyes until the spell passed. “How many new cases have occurred since I took sick?”
“None,” Buddy said. “Everyone’s getting better. Kip went fishing with me yesterday.”
Grant smiled at the lad. “Catch anything?”
“Naw. Too cold. But we shot a couple of rabbits on the way back from the river.”
“Well, that’s something, isn’t it?”
“Yes sir. Mrs. Kane roasted them over the fire. They were right tasty.”
“Glad to hear it.” Now that he looked closer, he could see that Buddy’s face, though still thin, no longer had that sunken in appearance. He turned to Blake. “If I’ve been sick three days and I was the last one to come down with cholera, then it’s over.”
“You sure? You thought that before you got sick.”
“I’m sure.”
Relief washed across Blake’s face. “As soon as you’re strong enough to ride, we need to go to the fort so you can reassure the captain. They want to hear it from the doctor.”
“The word of a wagon master isn’t good enough for the captain?”
Blake gave a chuckle. “Maybe he’s known too many wagon masters that don’t tell the truth.”
Grant felt his strength winding down. He took a deep, shaky breath. “I should be strong enough in a couple of days.”
“That’s good. I’ll send Two Feathers on to let them know that we’ll be ready to rendezvous in a couple of days and the wagon train can move out again in three days’ time.”
“Sounds good.” He closed his eyes and lowered himself back to the pallet. “Ginger and Miss Sadie back yet?”
The hesitation in the tent spoke loudly, and Grant opened his eyes once more, staring at Blake. “Well?”
Blake shook his head. “Not yet.”
“Has anyone gone to check on them?”
A scowl marred Blake’s face. “We’re trying to recover from this illness. Too many men are just now regaining their strength. I didn’t want to risk any kind of relapse.”
“What about Web and Mr. Harrison?”
Blake shook his head.
“Blake, you know what Web is!” Grant felt the panic rising. “We have to go get them. We can’t just leave Miss Sadie and Ginger and Mr. Harrison to their mercy.”
“I already promised Fannie and Toni that we’d send a few men after them tomorrow, if they aren’t back by then.”
“Good.” With his energy spent, Grant could do little more than utter the word as he closed his eyes. He hated the feeling of helplessness. The weakness. What if Ginger needed him, and he wasn’t there to help her? Ginger…now he remembered the little girl who had been there the day his Sarah had died. His muddy memory took him back to that awful day, but his heart only saw a young girl’s tears for her brother and he knew he couldn’t blame her. Even now, he could only love her.
Ginger woke up with a filthy hand clasped over her mouth. “Get up, gal.”
“Web? What are you doing?”
“Time to leave.”
Disappointment squeezed at her. After two days she’d hoped Web had changed his mind. “Listen, Web, you don’t have to do this. Don’t take Mr. Harrison’s money. He trusted you. Do you know what an honor it was for a man like that to trust you with his children’s future?”
“Harrison’s an idiot. And you know what they say.”
“Yes,” she said dully. “A fool and his money are soon parted.”
“That’s right.”
“Mr. Harrison isn’t a fool, Web. He’s just a good man who never would have guessed that the man he’s befriended would rob him. Especially when no one else in the wagon train would give you the time of day once they found out Buddy brought cholera and you’re his pa.”
“That was his mistake.”
There was obviously no talking him out of it. “Where are we going?”
“California. Where do you figure?”
Ginger’s heart rose with a thought. “Web, why do you need to take Mr. Harrison’s money when you have all that man’s gold waiting for you?”
“What’s wrong with taking both?”
The question almost made her laugh with its utter ridiculousness. What, indeed, could be wrong with taking Mr. Harrison’s money and then moving on to that poor man in California—the one that didn’t actually exist?
Elijah had left camp the day after telling her about Clem, so once again she was on her own. But she had no intention of sitting back while Web took Mr. Harrison’s money. Nor would she go to California and risk missing out on Clem when he got out of prison.
“I’m not helping you take Mr. Harrison’s money.”
“We already got it.” He yanked hard and lifted her to her feet, then he grunted as though the effort caused him pain.
“Web. Don’t you want to take it easy? Why live out the rest of your days the same way you always lived?”
“What are you sayin’ to me?”
“You can be better than this. You have goodness in you, Web. I know that. I’ve seen how you’ve taken care of Yuley all these years. You could make a whole new start. The folks in the wagon train…they don’t know any better. They don’t know what you’ve been in the past. You can have a second chance. Just forget about Mr. Harrison’s money and join the wagon train. You can live in Oregon with Buddy and Yuley and me.” She stopped herself short of saying, “And Clem.”
“What are you talking about?” Web scowled, staring at her as though she’d suddenly gone soft in the head. “We been plannin’ this Harrison robbery for months. Why would we give it up now? There’s thousands of dollars in that locked box. Shoot, gal, we can buy us a whole new life with that.”
Her heart nearly stopped. Thousands? She’d never seen more than fifty dollars at one time in her whole life. No wonder Mr. Harrison was so concerned that his children end up with it. He’d pulled through—was getting stronger. He’d most likely be ready to go back to the wagon train today.
Yuley adored him and the feeling seemed to be mutual, as they’d spent the last couple of days reading the Bible and discussing things that confused Yuley—which was practically everything. Ginger couldn’t help but suspect Mr. Harrison’s attachment to the slow-minded young man had a lot to do with his missing Alfie.
Ginger glanced over at Miss Sadie, sleeping peacefully on the other side of their tent. Why hadn’t the old dowager awakened? For a split second, fear gripped her. Surely Web hadn’t killed her in her sleep?
Ginger was about to call out when the woman’s chest rose and fell in sleep. Relief filled her. She realized how close she’d almost come to causing Miss Sadie’s death. If she woke up, Web would have no choice but to silence her. Still, it seemed odd that Miss Sadie could have slept through their conversation.
Perhaps the older woman was just exhausted from the days and days of nursing and cooking. But she’d always been a light sleeper. The slightest noise in the tent next door had pulled her from sleep and sent her rushing over to make sure one of the men didn’t need her help. Ginger fought to keep from smiling to herself. Only one explanation made any sense. Miss Sadie was faking it.
Web grabbed her moccasins and held them out to her. “You can put these on after you get outside. Let’s go.”
The horses were saddled and ready to go by the time they got outside and Ginger slipped on her calf-high moccasins.
“It’s about time,” Lane hissed.
“Shut up, Lane,” Ginger shot back. “Don’t wake up Miss Sadie and Mr. Harrison.”
Taking one of the torches that lit the camp, he rode back to Mr. Harrison’s wagon and tossed it into the back.
“What do you think you’re doing, you big idiot?” Reacting on instinct, Ginger sprinted to the wagon and jumped into the wagon bed. She tossed the torch into the dirt. Then she stamped out the small flames. Thankfully there was minimal damage. She glared toward Web. “Are you going to leave them stranded? Miss Sadie saved the your lives. Is this how you thank her?”
At least Ames and Greely had the good grace to avert their gazes and look ashamed. “Leave it alone,” Ames said. “Ginger’s right. We can’t leave them without a way to get back to their own camp.”
“But what about Buddy?” Ginger asked.
“You said yourself he wants to go to Oregon. We don’t need him for this job. We finish up here, and by this time next year, the two of you should be in Oregon together.”
And Clem. Her heart jumped at the thought of seeing her brother again.
And Yuley. Where was he?
Web seemed to read her mind as her gaze sifted through the riders trying to find him. “He’s sleeping in the tent with Charles,” Web said. “Didn’t see no need to wake him up when he don’t want to ride with us anymore. Get mounted up and let’s go.”
Ginger mounted an unfamiliar horse, wishing for her own mare. They rode out of camp, and Ginger’s heart sank as reality hit her with as much force as the icy air.
Where had Elijah gone? She’d thought at least she’d have someone to help her. Now she had only two chances to get out of this: her own wits and God. Her own wits had never served her all that well, so she was glad that this time, God was on her side.