butt kicked back into her hand, jarring the mirror and ruining her view of the target. But this time the Captain threw his hat in the air, he was so excited.
I think we made the shot, she thought wryly. With another bow she handed the mirror back to the Indian, who took it with the faintest of smiles.
The Captain all but snatched the carbine out of her hands, and once again, seized her by the wrist. This time he dragged her back to the big tent, intercepting a man who was clearly on his way somewhere else just before they reached it.
The Captain dropped her hand, and went into a rapid-fire speech, gesticulating wildly. The other man listened closely, his brows creased with concentration. Finally he made a placating gesture with his hands and got the Captain to calm down and stop talking. He turned to Giselle and, to her relief, he spoke in perfectly understandable tones, even if his accent was not one she was used to.
“If I understand my good compatriot, the Captain, you, fraulein, are something of an extraordinary shot with a rifle?” he asked. That was when she recognized his voice; this was the man who had provided all the announcements during the show.
She sensed that this was no time to be modest. “Yes,” she said, drawing herself up as tall as she could, and setting her chin. “I am.”
“Forgive me for asking this, because it is, after all, a rather personal question, but—do you live in this town? Is your family here?” He looked extremely uncomfortable at this point, and indeed, this was not something that a stranger should be asking a young woman whose name he didn’t even know.
“Tell him everything! Tell him!” The sylphs had followed along, and now they were fluttering overhead, dancing in midair with excitement. Giselle didn’t look up at them, of course, but it was clear that this was something other than idle interest.
“I come from a small village quite some distance away,” she said, ignoring the complete impropriety, and with growing excitement. Could it possibly be—no, she wouldn’t dare hope. But . . . I’m a girl. What if they want me to disguise myself as a young man? Would those who were looking for Gunther possibly seek him in the middle of a Wild West Show? No, she would not dare hope. Maybe they wanted her to teach one of the others. “My only relative was my Mother, who died a year ago. I was going to seek employment with some family friends when I came upon your show—” she shrugged a little “—I am a great admirer of Karl May’s books, you see—and I could not resist.”
“Ah! Karl May! Of course!” He nodded wisely. “I haven’t read any myself, but I am not much of a reader of fiction. Well! In that case . . . I shall come straight to the point. Captain Cody wishes to offer you employment here, with our show. Provided, of course, you have no objection to taking on the guise of a frontierswoman.”
“As a—” She felt stunned, and couldn’t finish the sentence.
“A young lady trick-shooter is considered to be a necessity to a Wild West Show,” the announcer hurried on, perhaps fearing she would object. “Buffalo Bill has Fraulein Annie Oakley. Pawnee Bill has Fraulein May Lillie. The 101 Ranch Show has Princess Winona. But Captain Cody—well, you saw.” He made a helpless little gesture. “Some audience members in our previous two towns have expressed disappointment that we do not have such a star attraction. We can offer you a wagon of your own for traveling and living, already furnished, or a tent, if you prefer. We can supply the wardrobe and the arms. You will have all meals that you care to take with the Company. And we can offer you a salary.” And when he named the price it was all she could do not to show her shock and delight and jump up and accept right there. Because it was fully as much as she had expected, in her wildest and most optimistic estimates, to make from every shooting contest she entered put together. And that was just for a single month! This would be a similar income, every month!
“How long do you expect to tour?” she asked, pretending only mild interest.
“At least until November, and the rest is a long and complicated story, that I must, in all honesty, tell you before you accept.” Captain Cody