Page 47 of Wagon Train Honor
Angela didn’t move, then exhaled loudly. “Fine. If that’s how you want it.” She swung down. “Just remember I offered.” And then she trotted away.
That is how I want it.Or rather, that’s how it must be. Yes, she’d grown fond of Robert, viewed him as a good friend, but their lives were headed in different directions. They’d both known it from the start. Angela was more than welcome to walk with Robert. After all, she was the homebody type.
Ruby squeezed her hands into knots. She wouldn’t look back to see if they walked together. But she was uncomfortable in her present position and slid to the side, which might have allowed her to glance back. The dust of the horses billowed out. Irene came into view.
No one else was visible. Not that Ruby cared, and she returned to midposition on the hard bench. She had better things to do than wonder what Robert was doing. Like…like…well, even if she couldn’t draw what she saw, she could make mental notes. There was the dry prairie grass known as prairie wool. She’d searched for the reason for that name and learned it wove into dense mats when dry. She had yet to find an example of that, but maybe tonight she would.
There were low bushes. Joe called them buckbrush. He said deer fed on the leaves and branches. Seemed unpalatable to her way of thinking, but as Joe pointed out, she wasn’t a deer.
They passed the spicy-smelling sagebrush. She smiled as she recalled Robert asking if she meant smell or color. A glance around revealed no one watching so she enjoyed the moment.
Half a dozen more times as they traveled, she adjusted her position to get more comfortable, telling herself that was the only reason, even if it did allow her to check over her shoulder for Robert. Not once did she see him. Was he purposely staying out of sight?
Not that it mattered. Of course, it didn’t.
Gabe called for them to stop in a thicket of trees with a slough nearby. The animals would drink there, but the travelers would have to be satisfied with the tepid water in the barrels. She drove the wagon into place, forming the customary triangle of wagons, providing the campsite they’d have with a modicum of shelter against the wind.
Angela hurried to help her unhitch the oxen.
“Did you enjoy the afternoon?” Ruby kept her attention on the animals as she questioned Angela.
“I did not spend it with Robert, if that’s why you’re asking.” She led the team toward the water.
Ruby stared after her. Of course that wasn’t why she asked. At least. she wanted to believe that. As she joined Ma in the center of their three-cornered enclosure, she looked around. Took note of where the men were, gathering burning material, making a rope enclosure to hold the horses, checking the oxen for sores. But?—
“Where’s Robert?”
Ma paused from bringing out food. “I don’t know.”
Hazel, busy with little Petey, barely glanced up. “Haven’t seen him since noon.”
Working together to build a fire, both Irene and Louise shrugged.
Young Dobie trotted up in time to hear Ruby’s question. “He’s scouting.”
Louise called her adopted son to her. “You can put out the log stools.”
Angela returned and set about mixing up biscuits.
Ruby twisted her hands together. Robert had gone scouting. Wasn’t that Joe’s job? Of course, the men helped.
Angela lifted her gaze from the dough in the bowl. “He’s a Mountie. I would think he often goes on forays into the woods or over the prairies. Maybe even into the mountains.”
Why did Angela feel the need to add that? Did she think Ruby was concerned over Robert’s safety? Well, of course she was, but no more than she would be for any of her fellow travelers. She went to Ma. “What needs to be done?”
“Why don’t you make dessert? We have canned peaches?—”
Ruby was going through the supplies before Ma finished. “Peach cobbler it is.”
She soon had the peaches in a Dutch oven, poured the batter on top, and set the pot over the coals to bake.
While they worked and the food cooked, Ruby continued to scan her surroundings. Just making sure everything was in place. Not looking for anything or anyone in particular. Or so she kept telling herself.
“Everything is ready,” Ma said.
“Supper,” Irene yelled, sending a jolt down Ruby’s spine.
The others gathered in. Bertie with his pets in tow, the men from tending the animals, Dobie following Cecil.
