“One more rule,” he added.
Elizabeth stood up and faced him. “What is that?”
“While we’re traveling together, we lead others to believe we’re husband and wife. If and when we come across people who knew us here in Skagway, we tell them we got married.”
Elizabeth felt a flutter in her stomach. “Why?”
“Because you’ll be safer if others think you’re married. I shouldn’t have to explain the reason why.”
“But…if we sleep in separate tents—”
“We won’t. Between lonely men and wild animals, I’m not letting you away from my protection. Besides, two tents mean extra gear to carry. A lot of the time we’ll sleep out in the open anyway.”
“But…I…”
“You’re supposed to trust me. Besides, God sent me to help you, remember? He must mean for you to trust me.”
Elizabeth thought about what a big, strong man he was, a man who carried a gun at that. Still, he was right. She’d said herself that God meant for them to travel together. Maybe she’d stuck her foot in her mouth, but what was done was done, and if she wanted to reach Peter safely, she didn’t have much choice. Clint Brady was her best bet.
She nodded. “All right. From here on we are husband and wife. And you should start calling me Liz. That’s what everyone close to me calls me. It will make us more believable.”
“Good enough.” He stood aside. “Good night…Liz. Be ready tomorrow morning at eight o’clock to go shopping with me. We need supplies and you need a wedding band. I’ll have to go get my horses from where they are boarded and we’ll start packing what we’ll need.”
“Do you know the way?”
“I have good maps, and besides, the trail is pretty well worn by now. We’re bound to run into others the whole way.”
Elizabeth walked through the door and looked back at him. “Thank you, Clint.”
He nodded. “You’re welcome. Use the rest of today and tomorrow to rest up. I’ll be doing the same.”
He closed the door and Elizabeth stared at it for a moment before turning to go to her room. “Lord, what in the world are You doing?” she muttered. This was going to be one interesting trip. Not only was Clint Brady a bounty hunter and a Godless man who needed her help in finding his faith…but he’d become more. She’d never thought her trip to Dawson would include a battle with her own heart.
Chapter Twenty
…Oh, my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless, not as I will, but as Thou wilt.
—St. Matthew 26:39
“I’m glad I already have my own tinware,” Clint told Elizabeth, who was watching him yank leather straps and tie ropes and hoist more supplies onto his three sturdy horses. “You can’t find a tin plate or cup at any supply store. They’re bought out. One man told me that last year you could pick up practically everything you needed for free as you went over the pass, so many supplies were abandoned by men who just gave up.”
They stood behind Morgan’s Supply Store, loading all the things Clint had purchased for their journey. Elizabeth felt so indebted. He’d not asked her for a dime.
Clint took a moment to glance at the surrounding mountains, and Elizabeth knew he was worried. Every peak showed snow, and the owner of the store where they’d purchased most of their grub, extra blankets, a tent and numerous other necessities, had told them that men who worked for him making deliveries had returned just the day before, giving up an effort to get over the pass to take valuable supplies on to Dawson. A sudden snowstorm had forced them back to Skagway.
“Could very likely be sunny and melting now,” the store owner had suggested. “That’s how it is here, a storm one minute, springlike weather the next. And if it does warm up, watch out for a sudden flood. A little mountain waterfall can turn into a raging torrent in five minutes flat.”
The news was not inviting.
“Clint, are you sure you’re up to this? You’re still coughing, and I can tell you’ve lost weight.”
“I’m all right,” he insisted as he continued packing flour, pork, beans, coffee, sugar, tea, lard, potatoes, a shovel, two bags of oats for the horses, the tent, blankets and two rifles.
“I should have taught you how to use a gun,” he told her as he shoved the rifles into their sheaths. “Could come in handy if a grizzly decides to have us for lunch. Most should be going