August 29, 1869
Balfour Ranch, near Walnut Springs, Montana Territory
Sweat trickled down Enoch’s neck as he led the defiant young mare to the larger corral so she could run with the other horses in training. Her ears flicked back in muted rebellion, even after he’d removed the saddle. She’d been the hardest of the three he rode today.
He patted the horse’s damp shoulder. “Good girl. That’s enough for today.” Then he opened the gate and released her to trot as far away from him as she could manage in the small pasture.
As he watched her go, he shook his head. She’d come around in time, but it would take patience and consistency. Two things in short supply these days.
He released a heavy sigh as he hung the rope on a post. Already three months had passed, yet still, every thought reminded him of Will.
The sun hung low over the western peaks, painting the sky in shades of fire that echoed the turmoil in his chest. He shouldhead inside, clean up for the evening meal. Mrs. Wang liked them all to be punctual.
Exhaustion pressed heavy as he turned to the house. The big log structure had been home for most of his life, ever since they fled England when he was six years old to escape the schemes of his father’s cousin, Reginald. That villain had proved he’d do anything to take over Father’s title as the Duke of Clarence.
Reginald had first tried to discredit them by attacking their mother’s Scottish heritage and Catholic loyalties, claiming they made her—and by extension, the boys—unfit heirs in the eyes of the Church of England. When that didn’t work, he’d had Will kidnapped. Held him for a day before Father’s men tracked the lad down and brought him home.
That ordeal had been the breaking point, driving Father to send their mother, him, and his brothers to Montana with the Wangs, far from Reginald’s reach. They’d had this home built as a temporary refuge, but after Mother’s death two years later, Father’s grief had kept him from sending for their return to England. By the time he finally raised the notion, Enoch and all four of his brothers loved this wild country far more than they’d ever appreciated the country of their birth.
Now, warm lamplight already spilled from the windows of the kitchen and dining room. He would miss this place. Would he ever get to return?
The weight pressed harder on his chest. What did he do so wrong that God would only strip away the people he loved? First his mother. Then Charlotte, the woman he’d been betrothed to marry. And her parents—parents who had felt more like his than the Duke of Clarence, who lived so far away. Then Mr. Wang, who’d been more like an uncle than a manservant to them all these years in the Montana.
And now William. On top of that, he would have to step into William’s role and leave these mountains that had become part of his soul.
He trudged up the porch steps with the last of his energy and wiped his boots on the braided rug before opening the door to step into the great room.
Aromas of onion, sage, and roasting meat wafted from the kitchen—rabbit stew, most like. Mrs. Wang had a knack for making even the humblest fare fit for a king.
As Enoch turned into the dining room, Robert looked up from setting a steaming pan of cornbread on the table. Whether managing the ranch’s records or helping Mrs. Wang with one of the many tasks around the ranch, he applied the same precision to every task.
His brother motioned toward the dining room. “James and Thomas aren’t back from town yet, but Mrs. Wang doesn’t want the food to get cold.”
Enoch nodded. No surprise there.
Their housekeeper would keep the rest warm for when his other brothers returned, ensuring each of them had a hot meal no matter how late they rode in. She always went out of her way to make them feel cared for.
“I’ll wash up.” He headed to the small closet where Mr. Wang had once installed a pump. The man had been talented enough to build anything, with a mind that understood the laws of physics as well as Galileo. These last four years had been hard without him, and not just because of his skill with constructing things.
As he scrubbed the dirt and sweat from his hands and face, the cool water brought a welcome respite from the lingering heat and the turmoil in his mind. He stared at his reflection in the small mirror above the basin. The man looking back at him appeared older, wearier than he should. Haggard even.
He dried his face and hands on the towel, then straightened his shoulders and walked back to the dining room. Robert had finished setting the table, and Mrs. Wang carried in a large tureen of steaming stew. The savory scent made his stomach rumble, the apple and cheese he’d eaten at midday long gone.
“Smells delicious.” He managed a smile for the woman who had been a constant, comforting presence in their lives for as long as he could remember.
She smiled back, the creases in her weathered face nearly covering her almond-shaped eyes. “You sit and eat now, Lord Enoch. You work too hard.”
She’d always insisted on using their titles, even as lads. She was the only one left in the area who even knew their connection to the peerage, and tucked away as they were, an hour and a half from the closest small town of Walnut Springs, he’d long since made peace with allowing her this freedom. In truth, anything Mrs. Wang wanted, he’d march through fire to get her.
He took his seat beside Robert, with Mrs. Wang at the end of the table nearest the kitchen. William’s seat at the head remained empty.
And it would stay that way. No one could fill his brother’s place.
Enoch might be considered the eldest now, but he would take none of the liberties the position granted. Only the duties he couldn’t avoid.
Robert cleared his throat. “Shall we pray?” At Enoch’s nod, he bowed his head. “Lord, we thank you for this bounty and for the hands that prepared it. We ask your blessings on our family, both here and far away. May you guide and protect us all. Amen.”
As Enoch echoed his own, “Amen,” the front door banged open, announcing the arrival of James and Thomas. His youngerbrothers’ boisterous voices filled the house as they stomped into the dining room.
