how to properly mix a cake. He remembered the scent of baking bread, frying chicken, and bubbling peach cobbler. He remembered feeling at home and content in the small world that was all he knew.
And he remembered how it had exploded all around him. Turning his back on the scene, Tyler started for the front door, only to halt when it flew open with the entry of Carmen and the doctor on her heels. With a sigh, he caught Carmen as she tripped on one of the spools of thread rolling across the floor. Setting her straight, he grabbed Maria before she could go after the doctor and set about picking up the contents of the sewing basket while Carmen led the way to Daniel. He'd be damned if he'd ever have children of his own. They ought to be avoided like measles.
But Maria patted his cheek and kissed his ear and Tyler didn't put her down. He wandered over to halt the screaming argument between Carmen and Daniel so Evie wouldn't have to drop what she was doing to investigate. Even if Carmen's words were half in Spanish, her tirade wasn't very difficult to translate. Tyler dumped Maria into her sister's arms, turned Carmen around, and shoved her back through the bedroom door. Sometimes, men had to stick together.
Daniel gave him a grin of relief and finally submitted to the examination. "She's afraid I'm going to die, too," he explained shyly. "I guess 'cause she's lost her mother and father in this past year."
Tyler nodded his understanding. Daniel had a good head on his shoulders. He seemed to take the vagaries of the world with a calm that Tyler had worked for years to develop. There were times when he still wanted to rip things apart at the injustice of fate, but he wasn't letting this solemn adolescent know that. He watched as the doctor unwrapped the bandage.
"How's it knitting, Doc?" Tyler asked. He didn't want to care what happened to the boy, but he did. If Daniel never walked again, Evie would never forgive herself, and Tyler would have one more black mark to chalk up against a God who hated his creations.
"Satisfactorily, it seems to me." The doctor had Daniel move the leg around in different directions, checking the development of the disabled muscles. "I wouldn't want any pressure on it just yet, but with a crutch to keep the weight off, he might get around a little. The idea is to keep that leg moving just as if you were walking on it. The bone has to knit before you can use the leg, but you have to get those muscles working for you." These last remarks were addressed to Daniel, who nodded in understanding.
"How much can I be up? Can I go down to the newspaper office for a while each day?"
The doctor frowned. "That's a bit of a risk. You could stumble or be knocked down again."
The disappointment in Daniel's face was so apparent that Tyler couldn't hold his tongue. "What if someone were to walk with him, just in case something happened? Is there any reason he couldn't walk that far?"
The doctor shrugged, closed his bag, and got up from the bed. "None that I know of. It would be a good stretch for him."
Daniel didn't dare look excited until after the doctor had left, and then only a note in his voice gave him away. "Who can walk with me? Evie's teaching every day."
"I reckon Ben or I or somebody or another can show up most mornings. It's no hardship to walk those few blocks."
Evie was at the door, wiping her hands on a towel as Tyler said this. Her eyes widened, but she left the questions to Daniel.
"I don't want to put anyone out any," he replied cautiously.
"That's all right, looks like we're gonna be around anyway." Tyler held Evie's gaze with his own "They caught one of the thieves last night. It seem someone from outside helped them to escape."
The same someone who wanted a distraction for Evie's abduction is what his eyes said.
Chapter 28
"You're imagining things, Tyler. No one here wants to hurt me." Escaping the house and children who might listen, Evie tucked her hands under her elbows and walked away from him. The sun hadn't gone down yet, but it was throwing long shadows across the grass as she headed out of town.
"Damn it, Evie," Tyler said, following on her heels. "This isn't a dime novel where