Page 50 of Wagon Train Hope
Irene had carried him for the last half hour. Now, a great urgency to move ahead filled her, and she handed the baby to Ma. “I need to help Walt,” she murmured. What if he encountered a problem? Or his horse got caught in the sucking ground? Who would know? Who would help?
At the protest on her mother’s face, she hurried away before it found words. She mounted her horse. Walt would be wanting to mark more trail, and she had no intention of letting him do it on his own.
As she approached, he studied her, no doubt taking in her reddened eyes.
She didn’t wait for a comment, nor a protest. “I’m quite the sight, and I know it.” She brushed the infernal dust from her cheeks.
A slow smile curled his lips and took up residence in his red-rimmed eyes. “You look fine to me.”
His murmured words kissed her soul. Heat rushed up her neck. Good thing the dust would hide it. “I brought some stakes.” She’d tied a bundle secure behind her saddle.
“Then let’s do this.” With a tilt of his head, he signaled his intention to ride forward.
Again, they rode several yards apart. They made slow and careful progress as they tested the ground. She marked her side of the trail while he marked his.
Her lips stung. Her mouth held a nasty taste. She looked longingly to the west. “The minute we get across this terrible valley, I am going to find a river and immerse myself in it for an hour.”
“Me too, and I’m not going to take off my clothes.” He brushed at the white dust caking his leg. “That is if I don’t drink the river dry first.”
She laughed. “I hope this is the worst part of the trail.” When he didn’t answer, she studied him. “Is there something you aren’t telling me?”
“No, but we have a long way to go yet, and all sorts of things can go wrong.” He shook his head. “Like?—”
“No. Stop.” She raised a hand. “There is no point in borrowing trouble. Besides, didn’t we agree we’d trust God to guide and protect?”
“Indeed, we did.” He patted his breast pocket, which bulged with the evidence of his tiny Bible. “It would seem like a good time to read a few verses, but we need to keep moving.”
They rode in silence without encountering any dangerous ground.
“Are we through the worst of it?” She squinted ahead but saw no white patches.
“It’s too early to be counting on it.” He bit his bottom lip but grimaced.
She had tasted the bitter salt on her lips. Slipping to the ground, she grabbed a stake and took three steps to the side, intending to drive it in. The ground sucked at her feet. “Walt!” Already she’d sunk six inches. She forced herself not to struggle. It would only suck her down faster. Glancing behind her to where the ground appeared solid, she tried to think if she could throw herself hard enough to escape the pull on her feet.
“Don’t move.” Walt took a step toward her.
“Stop before you get caught, too. I’m going to lean back and?—”
“No. Don’t. That won’t work.”
She didn’t understand why it wouldn’t, but he’d know what to do. Stillness filled her thoughts as she waited for him to reveal his plan. Her back to him, keeping as motionless as possible, she breathed slowly.
His footsteps thudded, shaking the ground as he approached.
What if they both got trapped? “Please be careful.”
“I always am.”
Yes, he was, and at the moment, she was grateful.
“I’m going to toss my rope to you. Secure it around your waist.” The loop landed over her head, and she eased it down. “I’m going to pull. It will get tight. Ready?”
“Ready.” The tension along the rope between them was reassuring. Her boots resisted her efforts to get free, but the pull of the rope overcame the tug of the alkali. She backed up. Three steps, and the ground was solid beneath her feet. She loosened the rope as she faced him. “Thank you.”
“I shouldn’t have let you come.” His voice grated. Was it from regret or only dryness?
“Do you think you could stop me?” Would he ever quit treating her like she was a danger to him, herself, and the others? “Do you think I’d let you be here on your own? Yes, you rescued me, but if it was you who stepped into this, I would have rescued you.” The words huffed from her, driven by disappointment.
