Honor and Desire (Gold Sky #3) - Rebel Carter Page 0,70

fathers. They had given her this gun belt when she was sixteen, her mother had been concerned but supportive. Her sisters over the moon to see her following in the footsteps of their fathers. Seylah closed her eyes, briefly, fingers splayed across the leather of the holster as memories of her family danced before her.

Her Daddy grinning at her as he showed her how to ride. Her Papa’s sky blue eyes while he showed her how to sight a target. The proud look in her mother’s eyes when she won the town’s annual sure shot competition. The encouragement of her sisters when she’d fallen from her horse during it’s breaking in period, but with them in her corner she hadn’t given up and now her dappled mare was one of the swiftest in the county.

Seylah opened her eyes and buckled the gun belt. She would not let her family down, even if she was going on a fool's errand and her fathers were safe, she had a duty to make sure of it. She hadn’t counted on August coming with her, but she supposed she should have. If the man meant to marry her as he declared, she didn’t think there was a power in existence that would keep him from accompanying her. She yanked on her leather gloves and pulled on the worn hat she hadn’t touched as of late.

She didn’t much think she looked the part of the simpering lady Mrs. Rosemary had hoped she would, but this was her. Seylah stepped out of the office, leather saddle bags thrown over her shoulders, guns on her hips and boots on her feet. No, she wasn’t the lady one would take to picnics, or make gallant overtures to, but that was all right. If the wide smile on her intended’s face at the sight of her was anything to go by, August wasn’t scared off from her less than fragile appearance.

He never had been.

The couple readied themselves to leave and it was only when they were astride that Seylah let herself think of what her mother and sisters must be feeling. She turned to August trying to gauge his expression but the man gave nothing away.

“What is it?” He asked as they set off for the outskirts of town. They would be traveling down the same avenue her fathers had the previous day albeit with less intensity and acknowledgement from the townsfolk, but that suited Seylah just fine. She didn’t want the entire town to know that she’d taken off after her fathers. Tom and Wallace would already have enough of a job on their hands keeping order in Gold Sky without everyone knowing the remaining deputies were woefully shorthanded.

“How was she?” She asked. “My mother, I mean.”

“Not happy, but she understands.” August shook his head and looked out ahead of them. They were now free from most of the bustle of Gold Sky and Seylah could see the empty horizon ahead of them. “This isn’t new to her. She’s been the wife of lawmen for over twenty years. She understands why you’re going even if she doesn't like it much.”

“And my sisters?”

“You know how they are,” August told her dryly and Seylah laughed.

“Yes, I do.” She much suspected Rose had taken to dramatics with Florence encouraging her and Delilah tired of it all while trying to keep her younger sisters in line.

“We’ll be home before you know it,” August told her, urging his horse to a trot now that town was behind them. “Keep an eye for tracks. We don’t have much light left but if we ride at this pace we’ll make it to Butte City before nightfall. We can make contact with the posse there and make a plan for the morning.”

“Understood.” Seylah nodded, her eyes already moving over the ground for anything out of the ordinary. She wasn’t the best tracker but she was decent. Thankfully between them pair of them they should be able to catch anything of use.

They set off at a decent pace and after an hour of straining her eyes for anything amiss, Seylah began to wonder if she had somehow missed an important detail related to her fathers’ journey. It was only when she was about to give in to her worry that a clue so large and obvious that even the blind would find it appeared in front of her like a heaven sent gift.

A gift that was simultaneously able to make her tremble with excitement and want to