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“I gave it some thought,” Smoke admitted.

“You needn’t have worried,” Sally said. “Nicole came to visit me. She told me that everything was going to be all right.”

“What do you mean Nicole came to visit you?”

“She was here tonight. I was talking to her, just before you woke me up. Oh.” Sally chuckled. “I guess what I meant to say was I dreamed about her tonight. You loved her very much, didn’t you?”

“Yes, but ...”

Sally held up her hand. “You don’t need any buts. She was your wife. Don’t you know that your capacity to love is one of the things I love most about you?”

Smoke picked up Sally’s hand and kissed it.

She giggled. “There you go again, kissing my hand like I’m some grand dame in the queen’s court. You can do better than that.”

Smoke leaned down and kissed her full on the mouth.

A telegram brought Pearlie over from Big Rock. Doctor Gunther had given Sally permission to go home, provided she not be jostled about too much. When Pearlie arrived he was driving a grand carriage.

“Hello, Miss Sally.” Pearlie smiled down at her from the driver’s seat of the carriage.

“Hello, Pearlie.” Sally took in the carriage with a sweep of her hand. “My, what an elegant carriage! Wherever did you get such a thing?”

“Ain’t she a beaut, though? The seats inside is all red velvet, and if you get cold, well all you got to do is close the windows. This belongs to the governor.”

“The governor?”

“Yes, ma’am,” Pearlie said proudly. “The governor had the carriage brought to Big Rock, ’cause he wanted Elmer Baker to touch up the gold trim for him.” Pearlie pointed to the side of the coach. “He done a real good job, too, didn’t he? Look at how that gold is shinin’.”

At that moment, one of the doors opened, and Dr. Colton—the doctor from Big Rock—stepped down.

“Dr. Colton!” Sally said in surprise. “What are you doing here?”

“I got a telegram from Smoke,” Dr. Colton replied. “He told me you were coming home today, and asked if I didn’t think it would be a pretty good idea if I came along to ride back with you.”

Sally looked at her husband. “Smoke, you know I’m fine. Why did you bother him like that?”

“Believe me, Sally, it is no bother,” Dr. Colton replied. “I consider it an honor. In fact, Louis Longmont thought about closing his saloon and coming over with me.”

“Oh, well I’m glad he didn’t do that. Otherwise, I would have every beer drinker in Big Rock angry with me.”

Dr. Colton laughed. “I see you still have your sense of humor about you. That’s a good sign. That’s a very good sign.” He helped Sally into the carriage, then sat across from her.

Smoke tied Seven on behind the carriage, then climbed into it to sit beside Sally. As Pearlie drove down the main street, people stared in amazement at the fine coach, wondering what it was doing there. Smoke waved at them with the back of his hand.

“Smoke, what on earth are you doing?” Sally asked.

“I am waving at the little people from this fine carriage.”

She laughed hard, then winced with pain and put her hand over her wound.

“Sally, are you all right?” Smoke asked in concern.

“I’m fine,” Sally replied. “Just quit making me laugh out loud like that. It hurts.” She paused and tilted her head. “On the other hand, make me laugh out loud all you want. I need the laughter, and I don’t care whether it hurts or not.”

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Sugarloaf Ranch

Sally was sitting in a rocking chair on the front porch of the house. Smoke, Pearlie, and Cal were hovering around her, offering to bring coffee or tea, whichever she might want, a shawl, a footstool, something to read, something to eat.

“For crying out loud,” Sally finally said with a laugh. “Don’t any of you have something else to do? What about the spring roundup? We do have a ranch to run, you know.”

“Yes ma’am. Right now seems like most of the work is findin’ cows and calves that’s got themselves bogged down in mud holes here and there,” Cal said.

“But we’ve brung in some hands for that,” Pearlie said.

“And we’ve got calves to brand,” Cal added.

“You’re turning all that over to temporary help?” Sally asked.

“No ma’am, we’re goin’ to be out there. Someone needs to be ram roddin’ it.”

“By someone, you mean you?”

“Yes, ma’am, I reckon so,” Pearlie answered. “That is, me and Cal.”

“Let me ask you this. Do you plan to actually participate in the roundup? Or is it your intention to spend all the time here, on the porch?”

“Oh, no ma’am, we ain’t goin’ to be spendin’ all our time here on the porch. Fact is, we’re goin’ right now,” Pearlie said. “We was just wantin’ to make sure that if there was some thin’ we could do for you, why we would be here to do it, is all.”

“Going to work would be doing something for me,” Sally said.

“Yes, ma’am.” Pearlie glanced over at Cal. “What are you standin’ around for? We got work to do. We can’t spend the whole day up here, just hangin’ around on the porch.”

“I’m goin’, I’m goin’,” Cal said, hurrying down the porch steps. “What I’m wonderin’ is when you are goin’ to get to work.”

The two young cowboys continued their arguing all the way out to the barn.

“You were a little hard on them, weren’t you, Sally?” Smoke asked with a chuckle, after Pearlie and Cal left.

“Well come on, Smoke, you saw them. Tiptoeing around me, trying to wait on me, like I was an invalid or something.”

“You are an invalid.”

“I’m not an invalid. I’m recovering from a gunshot wound,” Sally said. “You’ve had to recover from a few, I recall.”

“Yes, I have.”

“That’s a temporary thing. Besides, they need to keep themselves busy doing something on the ranch, so they won’t be worrying so much about me. Especially Cal, bless his heart. He feels personally responsible for what happened.”

“Cal feels responsible?”

“Yes.”

“Now what could possibly make him feel responsible ?”

“You know how he is, Smoke. He thinks he let me down because he wasn’t in the bank with me when it happened.”

“That’s foolish. No one expected him to spend every moment with you.”

“Of course it is foolish. But try telling him that.”

Smoke walked over to the edge of the porch and stood, looking out. It was still early morning and the rising sun had painted the clouds in brilliant crimson, sending its rays to turn to gold the sheer walls of the cliffs that protected Sugarloaf from the most severe winter blasts. The creek that watered his stock was glistening silver, the trees, vividly green, and in the clefts, rays of sunlight burned away the blue shadows.

“Are you enjoying the view?” Sally asked. “It is a beautiful view, I admit. But I have a feeling you are trying to come up with a way to tell me.”

“Tell you what?” Smoke replied.

“Tell me that you are going after them.”

Smoke turned toward her. “I have to do it, Sally. You know I have to do it.”

“If you remember, Smoke, that’s how I met you. You were coming after the men who had killed Nicole. I know you have to do it. And I know it would be useless for me to try and stop you.”

Smoke smiled, then walked over and leaned down to kiss his wife. “The only thing is, I’m concerned about leaving you here.”

“Don’t be concerned. I’m going to be fine. Besides, I have Pearlie and Cal here to watch over me. What more could you ask for?”

“I’m going into town. I need to visit with Sheriff Carson for a bit. I’ll come back here before I leave.”