Eric offered a friendly expression. "I've heard he's the best guide around. I need to get back east. I just received word my father is dying and my family needs me there. I've plenty of respect for this land and would appreciate if Silas would consider being our guide—as far east as he'd like to go, or until we reach a stretch that would be safe for us to travel alone." He gave a deferential nod. "We'd be willing to pay whatever he felt the work was worth." Surely a guide's services, horses, and supplies wouldn't cost much more than the three hundred dollar steamer ride he'd planned for his return trip. He hadextra in case he needed it. And Harvey wouldn’t have come empty-handed.
Speaking of... He stepped to the side so Silas could see his cousin. "My cousin and I will be traveling. I'm Eric LaGrange, and this is Harvey Reynolds."
The man’s assessing gaze hadn't shifted while Eric spoke. Maybe he should have been short and to the point.Need a guide to go east.But he'd figured Silas wanted enough detail to decide if this was a project he wanted to take on.
At last, Silas gave a single dip of his chin. "I 'spose I can do it. When you headed out?"
Relief eased through Eric, but he tried not to show it. "Tomorrow morning would be good. Or as soon as you're ready."
The man still eyed him as though trying to read him. Was this simply his thinking expression? Or had Silas still not settled in his mind that he'd take the job?
It must be the former, for Silas's next words were, "I'll order supplies at McCracken's. Go by an' pay the tab afore we leave at daylight."
Eric nodded. "Sounds like a good plan." That would keep him from guessing at what they'd need.
Silas turned away, and Eric finally looked at Harvey. His cousin’s eyes were wide and a little twitchy.
He motioned for Harvey to follow him out. He could ease his cousin’s worries by sharing how fortunate they were to find a guide such as Silas. The wisdom of experience might well save their lives during one of these winter storms.
After that, he needed to send a telegram to his parents before that office closed, secure horses for them, and find Jonah to share their plans.
Jonah would have to be the one to tell Naomi why he'd gone. Would he use the opportunity to his advantage? It was hard to say. Eric had come to respect the man, but therehad certainly been that earlier rivalry. And Eric had not announced his and Naomi's engagement, so Jonah wouldn’t see her as off limits.
Eric should tell him tonight. But he hated to part with bad blood between them. They'd both been careful to keep from mentioning Naomi or Mary Ellen.
Besides, he trusted Naomi. She could reveal their engagement to the others if she chose, and he had no doubt she would save her heart for him.
The best thing would be to write her a letter for Jonah to deliver. Surely, he'd carry out that one request. He was an honorable man.
Eric would do everything he could to ensure Naomi would be at peace until he returned, then he'd have to leave the outcome in God's hands.
A niggle of unrest churned inside him. He'd done that before, a year and a half before. And look how things had turned out. But he didn’t have any other choice this time.
"And God blessed Noah and his sons, and said unto them, ‘Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth.’" Naomi shifted her finger to the next line of small type in the Bible.
At her feet, Anna had Mary Ellen occupied with the abacus, and on either side of her, Lillian and Sean worked on their usual projects to occupy their hands while she read. Sean was chipping away at his block of wood to form legs for a horse, and Lillian was stitching closed a hole on her uncle Gil's shirt. That man had a knack for snagging his clothing on branches or the sharp point of a cow's horn.
Naomi pressed on to the next chapter. "And the fear of you and the dread of you shall—" A squeal from the rug drew her attention from the page.
"Let me have it." Anna's voice held a playful yet firm tone as she reached for the bead necklace Mary Ellen held away from her. "That's mine. You play with your beads." Anna nudged the abacus back in front of the tot.
Naomi leaned forward to help. That necklace had been Anna's grandmother’s, and the girl treasured it. The beads were wooden, brightly painted with intricate designs. From the few pieces of clothing and accessories Gamma had with her, the woman seemed to have a penchant for color and fun patterns. She probably would have been a delight to know.
Before Naomi could grab her daughter's hand and ease the necklace from her, Mary Ellen dropped it and reached for the abacus.
"You're such a good baby." Anna patted her head with a satisfied smile.
Naomi couldn't help her own smile. Anna was so good with her daughter, almost like a little mother. She would make a wonderful big sister. And Mary Ellen adored her, often complying with something Anna asked, when she usually would have pitched a fit at being told no. Like just now with the necklace.
Naomi turned her gaze back to the Bible, but a memory swept through her—a moment from the dream she'd had the night before. Jonah had returned driving a fully-loaded wagon up the mountainside. And he'd been alone. She'd run to him, clutching the wagon’s side. Before she could ask about Eric, he shook his head sadly. He said Eric decided that, since he was so close to home, he would keep going all the way back to Washington D.C. Jonah said Eric told him he would be back for Naomi someday. But even as Jonah said those last words, a voice rose up in the distance, booming laughter. In her dream, she'd somehow known that laughter was Eric’s, laughing that she might believe he'd ever return.
She blinked hard to force the nightmarefrom her mind. Each dream seemed to get worse, and they came at least every other night. Was God trying to tell her something? He'd used dreams in the Bible sometimes to warn people.
These dreams didn't feel like Heavenly messages exactly. They felt melodramatic and hopeless. But still...
A weight pressed on her shoulders, wrapping around her chest. Should she be worried about Eric? He and Jonah had been gone a little over two weeks, so they should have arrived at Fort Benton by now, as long as the travel went well.
Lord, help them in their search. Help them learn of Anna's aunt. Give Eric wisdom. And bring him back to me. Both of them. Please, God, bring Eric back to me.The more she prayed, the more desperate her heart became. If Eric didn't come back...
