As they unloaded the gear, Travis noticed Tobin wore high-topped moccasins strapped almost to his knees, but Teagen had on boots. Travis preferred boots, also, but knew Tobin would be far more sure-footed for the climb.
They lifted Travis out of the wagon and strapped him into the bunk, leaving his arms free. As Tobin pulled the ropes tight across his waist, Travis fought the pain.
Tobin didn't loosen the knot. "You know, if you're going to cuss at us every time we try to help, it'll get mighty boring listening to you all afternoon."
Travis grumbled to himself. He knew they were only trying to help.
"Yeah!" Teagen yelled from the other side of the wagon where he was coiling rope so that it would fit on his shoulder.
Travis wanted to suggest they forget the whole thing, but the fresh air and open sky had already lifted his spirits. "All right. No swearing unless you drop me."
His brothers moved to the bunk. "No promises," Teagen said as he lifted a supply bag on his back and tied the ends across his chest.
"I could hold that." Travis pointed at the bag.
Teagen shook his head. "No chance. If we drop you off a cliff, we'd hate to lose the supper Martha packed as well."
Travis leaned back, trying to relax as they shouldered the bunk and began to climb. The path might be too windy for a horse, but with the bunk braced on their powerful shoulders, they managed it. After an hour rocks made the climbing too steep to carry the bunk. Tobin took the lead and climbed to a spot big enough for the bunk, then he lowered ropes. This part of the climb went easier because Travis could help pull himself up as Teagen moved beside him.
Three hours into the journey they stopped to rest. Teagen took a long drink from one of the canteens and said, "I don't remember this being so steep when we were kids."
Travis laughed, remembering. "We were mountain goats then."
"Going down will be lots faster," Tobin suggested.
Travis nodded. "You two should make it in less then an hour without me."
Tobin frowned. "I just thought of something, Teagen. We've got to come back and get him tomorrow."
Travis had already been thinking it. "How about waiting until Tuesday? If I know Martha, she packed twice what I'll need to eat. I'm armed, and if you pile up enough wood, I could keep a fire going both nights."
It wasn't a question. Travis hadn't asked permission. He needed to be alone. He waited for their argument, daring them to try and make him less of an adult.
Teagen retied the canteen to the bed, showing no sign that he'd even heard the comment.
Tobin shook his head, then grinned. "Sage is going to have a cat. She's been mothering you for weeks."
"If I get in any trouble, I'll fire off a couple of rounds."
Teagen and Tobin lifted the bunk and moved over easy ground for the last bit of the journey to the summit. Travis leaned back and watched the sky, feeling more like a man than he'd felt since he'd been shot.
CHAPTER 9
Travis's brothers stayed with him until an hour before sunset. They piled up enough wood for a week and checked several times to make sure everything he needed lay nearby. The bunk was close enough to the fire for. warmth, and all Travis had to do to reach extra wood was to lean behind him.
For a while after they left, he listened to them moving down the mountain. Then all was silent as he watched the sun set. He stood by the fire for a while, but the uneven ground made it dangerous for him to move around. The muscles in his left leg were unsteady, holding his weight one moment and unable to do so the next.
He sat on the bunk and watched the fire as the sky darkened around him. Sleep was the last thing on his mind. He'd missed the outdoors as if it were his home. He'd forgotten how good a campfire smelled in the dusky air and how alive the growing darkness seemed around him.
Travis felt no fear. The only varmint who'd ever worried him had been human, and he'd see none of those here. The fire would keep any wild animals away unless they were mad, then they usually made plenty of noise, allowing him time to aim. He thought of how strange it was that man seemed the only creature who didn't show signs of madness before inflicting needless pain.
He tossed another log on the fire, enjoying the warm display of colors dancing in the flames. Even if he never dreamed, the trip had been well worth it. He felt his spirit healing.
When the stars came out, Travis lay back on the bunk and stretched his leg straight feeling the pain ease. He watched the shadowy smoke drift to heaven and thought of the green-eyed girl he'd danced with weeks ago.
"Where are you?" he mumbled aloud, knowing no one would hear him. "I said I'd find you, and I will."
He could almost feel her body pressed beside him. He couldn't remember what her kiss had tasted like, but the feel of it came back almost as strong as it had that first night. Her mouth had been soft and her bottom lip had trembled slightly.
Travis grumbled. He should have told her not to be afraid. He was so used to people fearing him, he hadn't even thought of saying something. She'd been such a slip of a girl, barely reaching his shoulder. She probably thought he'd snap her in two. In truth, he wasn't sure he'd know how to be gentle with her if she came into his arms. Maybe he would hold her too tightly if he saw her again?
"When," he corrected. When they embraced he'd remember to be careful. He'd touch her so lightly she'd think his hand no more than a breeze against her skin. He wanted to know every part of her. He'd take the time to memorize the feel of her.
Travis turned away from the fire. He needed to stop thinking about her. He was acting like a half-grown pup, mooning over a girl. He'd held plenty of girls in his arms… hundreds. Travis reconsidered. If honest, he'd held very few. A widow crying when he'd had to tell her that her husband died. A few saloon girls who wanted him to feel their wares. A handful of hugs from women who were happy to see a Ranger arrive. Add them all up and he couldn't think of a dozen.
That was it, he thought. How could he have gotten so old with so little time spent around women? Sage didn't count. Neither did Martha.
Maybe the only reason he was thinking about the woman with green eyes was that he had so few others to think about. In his life there had always been a crisis, a Ranger needed somewhere. His job left little time for anything else. Could he be thinking of her now simply because he had the time?
No, that couldn't be right. No woman had ever made him feel the way she did-made him consider things. He'd spent an hour watching the stars and thinking of what he'd say to the fairy woman when he saw her. He might not know much about women, but he knew one thing, she was different.
Since she appeared to be one of the few women in the world who hadn't been too afraid to talk to him, maybe he should go easy on the little horse thief.
Maybe she didn't have good sense. That would explain it.
No, he argued with himself, she had sense enough to steal a horse out from under his nose… twice.
He fell asleep without giving any thought to dreaming. The fresh air, the smell of the fire, the stars above made it seem like he was already dreaming. He could forget about his leg and everything he couldn't do and pretend it was just a normal night sleeping in his favorite place.
Open space would always be his home.
Travis slept soundly with no dream disturbing his rest. Finally, an hour before dawn, the cold woke him. The fire was almost out. He tossed logs on it and watched until a spark caught them, then he pulled the blankets around him and fell back asleep.
The dream settled over him silently almost like a forgotten memory drifts into thought. He was sitting by a fireplace burning bright into the shadows of a room lined with books. He'd propped his left leg up on a stool, and the smell of tea brewing spiced the air. He was aware of everything around him, but it was the book in his lap that fascinated him. He noticed light blinking through the curtains, first pale dawn, then full bright, but he didn't stop reading. An excitement pumped through his blood as if he were in the middle of an outlaw capture or about to find a vital clue to solve a mystery. He didn't look up from the book, not even to watch the sun rise.