All he could do was shrug. “Can’t say for sure. We’ll have to look for signs that they’re not. I’d suggest we seek out that small Peigan camp again. Maybe watch them for a while and see if and what they’re hiding.”
Rosemary nodded, but her mouth still held a thin line. If she didn’t like that idea, she might be even less pleased with his next suggestion.
He did his best to keep his voice level. “Searching is going to take time. And it won’t be safe for white women. We’ll have to go much farther north into Blackfoot country. I know you were hoping to find her before the supply wagons went East. Why don’t you ladies travel back with the wagons? I’ll keep looking, and when I find her, I can give her whatever message you leave with me. Once I locate her, I’ll come East to you and tell you everything. I’ll even bring her to you if I can get her to come, though I don’t think that’s likely.”
All four women had stopped what they were doing to watch him as he spoke. But now a look moved between them. Clearly they’d already discussed something like this. Was there a chance they might actually return home and let him finish this mission on their behalf? They’d been so determined to be with him each step of the way, he’d not thought it possible they would hand over the entire project to him, though he’d had to ask. If he knew they were safe, he would gladly travel every square mile of this mountain wilderness to find the woman they sought.
Rosemary lifted her chin. “We spoke to Mr. Provost this morning and he said the wagons will start East the morningafter tomorrow. We discussed it among ourselves, and we don’t plan to travel with them. We’ll stay and find Steps Right as we set out to do.”
Her posture softened a little. “You’re wise, though, when you said it’s not a good idea for four women to travel through the Indian camps alone. You’ve been more than gracious to help us so far, and we appreciate everything. If you’re amenable to continuing the search, we’d like to hire you as a guide until we find her. Even once we find her, though, we understand it might not be advisable for the four of us to travel back East alone. We’ll pay you, or men you recommend, to escort us until we reach a place where we can procure safe passage.”
She’d been watching him with that shrewd gaze throughout her speech. “We realize this may take a while. Weeks, at least, to find Steps Right, then months to take us East and return here if you wish to. We’ve already taken much of your time, so we understand if you can’t continue with us. But we respect your opinion and hope you can direct us to men who would be willing to guide and protect us for compensation.”
There was that notion of payment again. His gut roiled with everything she’d said. There was no way he’d hand them off to another man, not when he was around to do the job himself.
But spending several more months with these women? Sharing meals and long rides and night after night of camping under the stars . . . He wasn’t sure he could keep himself detached through all that. Juniper’s charms would be far too strong to resist with so much time around her. Not that he would do anything untoward, but he had a feeling his heartmight not come out of this unscathed. He’d have to ponder what to do about that.
But for now, there was only one answer to Rosemary’s question. He gave a single decisive nod. “I’m willing. Let’s make a plan.”
Nineteen
Ican’t believe he would dare ask her.”
Juniper watched as Riley stalked from one bag of supplies to the other. Rosie had taken the younger girls to the river to catch up on washing before they set out in the morning for their journey northward, while she helped Riley pack the food they’d need.
These few minutes alone finally gave her the chance to tell him about what happened when she and Rosie found Dragoon and Lorelei talking. He seemed as upset about it as they’d been.
He jerked the leather tight on the bundle he’d just rolled, and she pressed her finger over the strap to hold it secure while he tied the knot. “He’d already mentioned to me the idea of asking Lorelei to ride, and I said absolutely not. That would put her in far too much danger, both from the horses and the men. I thought he agreed. I can’t believe he still asked her.”
She prepared to pull her finger away from the leather as he jerked the strap hard to secure the knot. They’d workedtogether like this on four other packs with no problem, but he’d not been nearly so riled with those.
“I’m sure Lorelei would do well in the race and could handle the horse with no problem, but Rosie and I both agree it’s not a good idea for her to be paraded in front of the men like that.” Did she dare say what had really bothered her about the situation?
This was Riley. If she could trust anyone, she could trust him. “I think what troubled me most about their talking—and why I wanted to tell you—is the way they looked and acted when we first came upon them. They’d been standing close together as they spoke, and when we called out, Lorelei acted flustered, like she’d been doing something wrong. Maybe it was just that she’d actually been considering riding in the race.”
Riley was watching her. “You think Dragoon might have other intentions toward your sister?” He didn’t say it as though he discounted the idea. Nor like he’d already thought of it. He sounded as if he respected her opinion and was thinking through this new possibility she raised.
She turned her focus to his question. “I’m not sure. I just ... thought you should know. To help watch them.”
He was still studying her, though he seemed mostly thoughtful now. “Do you think I should tell him not to come with us on the search? Would you be uncomfortable having him so near her every day?”
He would send his friend away just because she asked it? When they’d made plans for the journey north to search among the Blackfoot camps for Steps Right, they’d decided it wise to add a few more numbers to their group. So they’d invited Riley’s lodgemates to come along. Jeremiah hadalready made plans to head toward the Yellowstone River with a different trapping party, but Dragoon and Ol’ Henry agreed to come.
If they now asked Dragoon not to accompany them, would he be angry? Hurt, for sure. And he didn’t seem a bad sort in general. They would just have to watch him and Lorelei more closely. After all, the entire situation may have only been about racing the horse. Animals were certainly her sister’s weakness.
Juniper shook her head. “As long as you think he’s trustworthy, we’ll just keep an eye on him and Lorelei.”
Riley nodded, and his throat worked as his attention dipped to the next bundle he was rolling. He seemed to be considering something, maybe even battling over a decision. “Ithoughthe was trustworthy. I know him as well as I do anyone out here, and I don’t think he would do anything to intentionally bring harm. It’s hard to know anyone for certain.”
He looked up at her, his eyes so earnest. “Even when you think you know a person, sometimes they change.” There was a sadness in those green depths that made her chest ache. He seemed to be talking about someone else. Someone who’d hurt him badly. Was it a woman? Is that why he’d become a trapper in this remote wilderness, so far from civilization?
She shouldn’t pry, but every part of her longed to know more about him. Not just the facts of his life, but the deeper moments that made him who he was today. How he felt about each step in his journey. Maybe she could start with a question or two and let him answer as much as he wanted. She would be grateful for any morsel he offered.
She kept her voice gentle. “What made you come to these mountains? It’s so remote. So far away from people, and from what you’ve described, the work seems like it might be lonely.”
Something in his expression shifted. Maybe from surprise, or maybe he was simply thinking through his answer. She didn’t try to hide that she was watching him.
Whatever shutters had shielded his gaze before now slipped away. A sad smile touched his eyes. “The happiest time I can remember was back when I was a young boy and my father would take me out riding. Sometimes we’d hunt, and other times we’d just explore. He would talk to me, though, and teach me about the land. About how the animals acted and why. I was only five or six, so I’m sure he couldn’t have gone into very much detail, but I remember being fascinated on those rides. Each time, I would feel like I understood the animals and the frontier around us so much better. We didn’t have mountains in Illinois, but he would take me up to the tops of hills and we’d stare out at the country around us. He’d show me how to read the terrain by looking at the trees. I guess maybe that’s why I like to add markings and shading to my maps, to show what the land really looks like.”
