Chapter Eight

Lucas rode between Gail and Zeke, and Gail was thankful for it. She didn't want to be anywhere near Zeke right now. A lot of gentlemen back in Pennsylvania were a lot like Zeke. They wanted ladies to be seen and not heard. That made ladies little better than children.

Thankfully, her father had raised her to think for herself. She realized it might not have been that way if she hadn't been an only child. If she'd had a brother, then he might have considered her inferior simply because she was a girl. But who knew? He might have still raised her the way he did.

What she did know was that Lucas wanted her to come along on this trip. That meant he believed she was capable of helping him and Zeke. It was nice to know that gentlemen like Lucas and her father existed. Gail had been glad to be Lucas' wife before, but she was even more so now.

She glanced at Lucas' profile. He was such a handsome gentleman. She'd heard his family came from Scotland two generations ago. They made their wealth in steel manufacturing after settling in Pennsylvania. They had been considered new money. That wasn't like her family, which had generations of trading lumber with Europe. Her great-great-grandfather started the business in North Carolina. Then they had expanded to Pennsylvania. While her grandfather saw to the running of things in North Carolina, her father saw to it in Pennsylvania. Her father thought a steel company might go well with lumber. Gail didn't care if her father could merge the two businesses or not. She only cared that Lucas loved her.

"We've been riding for an hour and a half," Zeke said. "We should give the horses time to rest. It's a good spot for it." He gestured to the stream not far from them. "Horses need lots of water." Zeke looked her way as he made the last statement.

Gail frowned. Was he directing that statement to her because he thought she was too stupid to know a horse needed water to drink? Or, perhaps, he didn't think she knew what a stream could be used for. She forced her lips shut so she wouldn't say anything. She had nothing to prove to him. Lucas knew she was intelligent. That was the thing that mattered. She wasn't going to jeopardize their quest to find Bernadette just because Zeke had insulted her pride.

In silence, Gail led her horse to the stream and slid off of it. She brought him to the water and let him drink. Still holding the reins, she took the hat off of her head and wiped the sweat from her brow. She could still see the town from where they were, but that view wouldn't last long. On the train ride to Flagstaff, she had been surprised to see mountains in the distance, but they weren't going in that direction. They were heading into flat territory. There were some trees scattered along the land, but it was nothing like the forests she was used to. And the soil was more like clay out here, which prohibited the grass from becoming full and lush like back home. Upon further inspection, she detected cracks in the soil. She doubted much of anything could grow out here.

Lucas brought his horse up to her. "I could have helped you down from your steed," he said as he let his horse drink from the stream.

Surprised, she asked, "Did you want to help me down from it?"

"Well, I would have helped you back East without thinking about it." He shrugged in a manner she thought was meant to convey indifference. "I didn't think I'd miss doing something so simple out here."

It could have been the way the morning sun struck his face that made it seem as if a pink color caressed his cheeks, but she wondered if he really was blushing. She tried to think of a time during their courtship when he'd displayed the same bashfulness he was now, but her mind came up blank. Her heartbeat picked up. It was flattering to see him this way.

"I didn't think of waiting for you to help me down from the horse," she admitted. "I guess I was just eager to get this horse to the stream." And to get away from Zeke, though she didn't add that. She cleared her throat. "I would love it if you assisted me when I need to get on, or off, the horse in the future."

Unfortunately, this wonderful moment she had alone with Lucas was interrupted by Zeke. He brought his horse up beside Lucas and asked her, "Did you bring a canteen with you?"

She glanced at the canteen she had strapped to her saddle. Why didn't he notice it? It wasn't like it was too small to notice.

"It's important we have plenty of water during this venture," Zeke continued. "We won't get very far without it. I didn't pack three canteens because I didn't know you were coming. I only packed one for me and one for Lucas. We can't be near a water source all the time in our search for your husband's sister. Some of the buttes and canyons around here have good hiding places. It's bound to be a long and terrible journey."

There it was again. Zeke was treating her as if she was stupid. She was ready to tell him she knew this was dangerous and that she had enough sense to bring things like a canteen when Lucas said, "If this journey is going to be so terrible, why were you so excited to do it?"

"I told you," Zeke began, directing his attention to her husband. "This is my chance to prove to everyone I'm fit to be a deputy. They all assume I only have this job because Sheriff Walter is my ma's brother."

"Would you be a deputy if you weren't related to the sheriff?" Lucas asked.

Zeke blinked, as if not expecting Lucas to pose such a direct question. "I have this job because I'm capable of doing it."

Gail didn't believe him. She suspected he only got the job because his mother happened to be Sheriff Walter's sister. She felt somewhat better knowing this. Zeke could imply she was stupid all he wanted. His opinion didn't matter since he wasn't qualified to do his job. He had needed his mother to pester the sheriff in order for him to get it.

Lucas sighed. "I hope you're as good as you think you are."

Zeke had the nerve to look offended. "I am good. Why, anyone can drop a gun by mistake."

Gail's eyes grew wide. He had done what?

"You dropped a gun?" Lucas asked before she could.

"Those rumors aren't fair," Zeke replied, his tone adamant. "Rex likes to sneak up on people and scare them. I'm not the only person he's done that to. He's done it to many people." He gave an emphatic look at them. "He even frightens little children."

Undeterred by Zeke's argument, Lucas pressed, "What happened when you dropped the gun?"

"Nothing bad. No one was hurt. Sure, the bullet went close to Gus' ear, but the doctor said he was fine. And it won't happen again. Uncle got me a gun with a safety on it." He pulled the gun from his holster and showed it to them. He pointed to the safety. "See? It's on. I'm not going to shoot my foot like people say."

Gail couldn't believe what she was hearing. People said Zeke was likely to shoot his own foot? Shouldn't his mother have pushed for him to do something a lot safer?

As if reading her mind, Lucas asked, "Wasn't there a job you could have taken that didn't involve the use of a gun?"

"Well, there were a couple," Zeke admitted, "but I don't want to work on a ranch, and I don't want to cut down pine trees. I want to protect the weak and the innocent. It's my lifelong dream. Ma knows that, and she supports it."

Gail waited for him to add that his uncle supported it, too, but he didn't. Gail glanced at Lucas who glanced back at her in shock. It was a shame they couldn't do anything about this. Who knew what harm was befalling Bernadette? Every day they wasted was one more day she was in danger. They didn't have time to find someone else to help them. They were stuck with Zeke.

"Do any of you need to do your business?" Zeke asked. "Now's a good time to go."

Lucas shook his head. "I'm fine." He glanced at Gail.

"No, I can wait," she replied as she scanned the terrain. There were some trees, but she doubted they would offer sufficient privacy. Of all the things she had considered, taking care of personal matters while in the wilderness hadn't been one of them. When the time came, she would have to tell the men to turn their backs to her.

Zeke held the reins out to Lucas. "Hold these for me while I go."

Lucas took the reins, and Zeke hurried off to a nearby tree.

With a grimace, Gail turned so she didn't have to watch him. Yes, he went behind the tree, but she didn't want to see any part of him while he did his business.

"People are certainly different out here," Lucas said. "I never appreciated how civilized things are in Pennsylvania."

"I didn't appreciate it, either." She slipped the hat back on her head and pinned it in place, though she wondered if using the pins was necessary. There wasn't even the hint of a breeze in the air.

"My guess is that Sheriff Walter was so desperate for help that he hired his nephew."

"You don't think it was because his sister pushed him to do it? It wouldn't be unusual for that to happen. People back home gave jobs to relatives all the time, even if they weren't qualified for them. My father used to lament how hard it was to find a good employee at Hankman's Investing and Thomas she seemed different, too. Love was such a peculiar emotion. She'd thought love would feel the same way all the time, but she was beginning to realize there were many layers to it.