half were already up and grazing. Behind them, the prairie was still empty.
I hope the family isn’t in trouble.
With a final mental shake, he rejected the worrisome thought. He wasn’t their hired hand. He’d done his Christian duty, and now they were on their own. Emma was on her own.
As he shook out his bedroll, Luke surveyed the camp. Griff, Charlie, and Jesse were the only ones still buried in their blankets. Everybody else was out of sight, probably milling around the breakfast fire or getting their gear stowed for the day.
“Morning, boss.” Willie rounded the chuck wagon with a tin mug of coffee in each hand. “Thanks for taking the extra watch last night. I slept great.”
Luke took the mug he offered as he brushed off the thanks. “No problem. You’ll burn some added energy today. I intend to push this herd halfway to Hays before nightfall.”
He took a swig of coffee and nudged Jesse’s slumbering form with his foot. “Up and at ’em, cowboy. We have a lot of ground to cover today.”
Jesse stirred but didn’t sit up. “It’s early yet. Sun’s not even up.”
Laughing, Luke kicked the hat off his friend’s face. “Now it is. Come on, sluggard. Last one out of the sack gets to ride drag today.”
The threat got him moving. Groaning, Jesse sat and squinted upward, his eyes unfocused and bleary. “There. You happy?”
Luke didn’t have time to answer. A gunshot cracked nearby, answered by another from a short distance away. The shouts of men filled the air—wild, high-pitched cries from unknown voices, and answering cries of dismay from his own men.
Jesse lunged to his feet. “What in tarnation—”
Luke didn’t bother answering. A sick certainty settled in his stomach as the shouts continued and more shots disrupted the peaceful morning. Startled cattle answered with distressed bawls and danced on nervous hooves. He leaped for the pile of gear near the head of his pallet and the rifle secured on the side of his saddle, while around him men scrambled to their feet. Griff’s harsh growl answered Jesse’s question.
“Rustlers.”
The word sent a bolt of hot, sticky fear straight into Luke’s gut.
FOURTEEN
Papa seemed in no more hurry this morning than he had yesterday, but Emma didn’t mind so much now. During much of the night she had begged the Lord to make her more compliant, more obedient, more willing to accept the life He had planned for her. Long after midnight she finally fell into the peaceful sleep of one submitted to the will of the Father, who knew her heart’s desire.
She awoke to the sun rising into a clear blue sky over the wide Kansas plain. A persistent wind had blown all night and swept away much of the stench of the cattle herd. Instead, the sweet smell of prairie grass and the fresh scent of water filled the air.
After breakfast Emma and Rebecca collected the dishes—plain metal ones purchased back in Gorham—and took them to a nearby stream to scrub them clean. Sunlight danced on the moving surface of the narrow creek that had carved a deep swath through the land. When their chore was complete, Emma took the opportunity to wash the dust from her neck and face, while Rebecca wandered upstream.
“Emma, look here. I found a school of tiny fish. How colorful they are, like bits of rainbows playing about the rocks.”
Emma glanced at her little sister, who was bent over the stream’s edge and staring intently into the water. Delight made the girl’s tone light, and Emma couldn’t help a smile in response. Not so many years had passed since Rebecca was a child, tromping off to school swinging a book strap in one hand and her lunch pail in the other. How proud Mama would have been had she lived to see what a lively young woman her baby had become.
A movement in the distance drew her attention. Something was heading their way from the north and kicking up a lot of dust as it came. She caught a glimpse of brown hides. Alarm pricked her nerves to attention. Horses, maybe? Had the thieves returned?
“Papa!”
When he looked up from his inspection of the oxen’s legs, she pointed. His head turned as he followed the direction of her hand. Staring at the quickly approaching objects, Emma noticed that these animals were riderless. As they drew near, she also realized they were not horses but cattle.
They slowed on their approach, and the dust began to settle. Perhaps the wagon with the towering