She could still see his dark eyes glistening as he’d begged her, his hand gripping hers.“You’re my courageous one, Faithie. You haveto make sure this happens.”
Her sisters had been busy with other tasks in the room—Rosie talking with the doctor, Juniper at the basin pouringwater for him to drink, and Lorelei pulling an extra blanket from the trunk.
Faith alone had stayed at his side. She’d feared those might be his final moments, though it seemed impossible to believe. But maybe God had kept her there, ensuring she was present for his final plea.
“You’re my courageous one ... make sure this happens.”
And she would do what Papa asked. No matter the obstacles. No matter if her sisters moved on and forgot their important assignment.
When Faith and her sisters had first arrived in this wild territory, they’d searched quite a bit. They’d even found a cave where she’d stayed as well as a clue she’d left for White Horse that told him she was headed to a waterfall.
But since then, one unexpected obstacle after another had arisen. Then winter came with its massive snows that kept them mostly locked away in this valley, except for regular visits through the pass to see Tanner and Lorelei at the trading post. With spring came foaling season, which tied them to the ranch day and night as nearly a hundred mares gave birth. Rosemary had promised they’d begin searching again for Steps Right in the summer. Now it was nearly the end of July, and they still hadn’t set out.
Bertie reached out for her aunt Rosie, and Faith handed the child over, then followed them into the cabin.
“Do you want to play with your blocks now?” Rosemary set the girl on the rug, and Bertie grabbed two wooden blocks with shapes painted on their sides. “We have to be quiet so your mama can sleep.”
Rosie turned back to the kitchen area that took up one end of the cabin’s main room, and Faith moved toward herso they could talk in soft tones. She forced a smile into her voice. “When can we go out and search the waterfalls?”
Rosie glanced her way with a frown, but Faith met it with a pleasant, expectant look. “I don’t know. With Lorelei and Juniper both in the family way, now’s not a good time for us to leave.”
Frustration needled deeper, like a sharp bur under a heavy saddle, but she did her best not to let it show. “You said we could go in the summer. This is July. Definitely summer.”
Rosie turned to load bread slices into a basket. “I saidmaybesummer. We can’t go if we’re needed here. Besides, White Horse said his mother’s cluemightmean she was taking refuge near a waterfall. We don’t know for sure. He’s always said she’ll find a way to reach him if she needs anything.”
Faith spun away from her vexing sister to wash her hands in the basin. “He might be wrong. What if Steps Right needs help and she doesn’t have a way to send him a message? We have to find her. And waterfalls are the only clue we have. We won’t be certain until we search them.”
“And we will. As soon as we have time.”
But would her sisters ever make time for their mission now that they’d settled in here on the ranch? The resolve inside Faith turned to steel. She had to be the strong one and carry out the commission Papa had given.
“And when will that time come? Next year? Ten years? This was the one thing Papa asked of us, Rosie. Hisdying wish. Find Steps Right and return the beads to her.” She gripped the hand towel tighter, lest she say something she regretted. “Aren’t you worried about her? White Horse saw those two braves from his old village leaving the tradingpost. He told me he thinks they might be searching for Steps Right. He looked worried too. What if they’ve already found her?” Panic welled in her chest like it did every time she thought of Steps Right’s situation.
The elderly Peigan woman who possessed such a caring heart, who’d devoted her life to healing the sick and injured, unjustly sent away from her home and all she knew. She’d been hiding in these treacherous mountains for three years. What would those warriors do to her if they found her? Take her back to the village and make her endure some kind of trial or punishment?
A shiver slid through her, and she glared at Rosie. “I’m beginning to think you don’t care. But I do.” The burn of tears swept in fast. She was going to lose control if she didn’t stop talking. She dropped her voice for the last bit. “Ido care. I care about a helpless woman out there alone in the mountains. And I care about Papa. Iwillaccomplish what he asked of us.”
Rosie studied her, brows knit as though she didn’t understand why Faith was so upset. She reached out and touched Faith’s arm, and it took everything within her not to jerk away.
“Icare, Faithie. We all do. It’s just that we also have to take care of those still with us on this earth. Those who are expecting—” She waved a hand around. “Our family. The ranch. We have responsibilities. Papa would understand that responsibility better than anyone. He would want us to wait for the right time.” Her face softened as her eyes turned distant. “I remember how he used to stay with the horses when they colicked, walking them for hours to help them recover from a twisted gut. He did whatever he had to.”
Pain pressed in Faith’s belly, a twisting that would steal her breath if she let it linger. She had no memory of Papa walking the horses when they colicked. It seemed all the good times had taken place when Faith was too young to remember. She was the baby of the family, so to her Papa had always seemed old—never young and vibrant—as far back as she could recall. The stories of his younger days sounded so thrilling.
Rosemary might be right about Papa understanding responsibility, but that only proved Faith’s point all the more. They had aresponsibilityto find Steps Right and return those beads to her. The necklace had once been an heirloom within her own family, passed down through the generations.
Steps Right had been wearing the string when she discovered their father on the plains, nearly dead. While her sister had gone back to their village to get help, she’d stayed with Papa and nursed him through the night, keeping him alive and awake in the cold by having him tell stories of his wife and daughters. A story for every bead on the necklace.
She’d continued to care for him at her village, then when he recovered enough to rejoin his trapping companion, Steps Right had sent the strand of beads with him as a gift.
And as her papa lay dying, he’d tasked his four daughters—and her specifically, in that moment between the two of them—with returning the beads to her so they could be reunited with the Peigan family that had treasured them for generations.
Faith would fulfill that responsibility. Even if she had to do it alone.
Rosemary picked up the basket and turned with a smile. “We’ll find her, Faith. I promise. As soon as we can.” Thenshe started for the door. “I think Elise and Goes Ahead have arrived. I hear the children outside.”
The family planned to set out tomorrow morning for a short trip to visit nearby villages they’d worked with in the past. Similar to the missionary journeys the apostle Paul had embarked on during Bible days.
How exciting it must be to travel so much. To see more of this vast, breathtaking land and meet its inhabitants. They’d probably seen a host of waterfalls throughout the mountains. They could have even been to the place where Steps Right lived right now.
