Trail of Golden Dreams (13 page)

“Yes, I do!” she
cried, thinking of her skirt and petticoats. 

Grey lifted the
tiny lamb out of her arms, and she ran to Traveler. After digging the skirt out
of her saddlebags, she ripped off a piece from the hem, jogged back, and thrust
it into Garde’s hand. 

“Follow me to the
cabin,” he said.

What the man
called a cabin was really a primitive lean-to with three sides.  Inside
was a cot, a hard chair and a box on the floor, which contained some food and
the jar of milk he had spoken of.  He offered the chair to Grey, who was
still holding the lamb.  Then he wrapped Josie’s skirt material around
Grey’s big thumb and dipped it into the jar to soak for a minute.  “Now
push it into the lamb’s mouth,” he urged.

Josie watched with
anticipation as Grey gingerly stuck his thumb into the little fella’s mouth.
The lamb did not respond.  “It’s not working,” he said.

Garde leaned
forward and shook the animal hard.  When its eyelids fluttered open, he
pinched the lamb’s ear.  It squealed, and he grabbed Grey’s thumb again
and jammed it into the lamb’s mouth.  “Stroke its throat,” he told Josie,
as he stepped back and wiped his forehead with the back of his hand.  She
knelt and stroked the lamb’s neck and throat with her finger.  When its
eyes popped open, it suddenly began to suck on Grey’s thumb hungrily. They all
exchanged wide smiles.

“He has life in
him after all!” Garde exclaimed.

“Will he live?”
Josie asked.

Collapsing onto
the cot with exhaustion, Garde answered, “If you can nurse him through the
night, he should live.”

Josie petted the
small head.  “We’ll nurse him, won’t we, Grey?”

He grunted a
reply.  His gaze was locked with the little lamb’s soft, innocent
eyes.  It looked to her like he’d fallen in love.

Chapter Nine

That evening, Mr.
Garde made a campfire outside the lean-to after butchering one of the dead ewes
for supper.  Josie didn’t think she could eat it, and told him so, but her
empty stomach won out over sentimentality once the tantalizing smells wafted
into her nostrils.  He also cooked biscuits in a large Dutch oven. 
They pulled the cot up to the fire, as well as the wooden chair, and enjoyed
the soft bleating of the sheep as they savored the feast. The shepherd’s two
dogs received a special treat, too—the sheep’s entrails.

The only time Grey
put down the baby lamb was to inhale his plate of mutton, but he ate fast and
kept an eye on the little guy the whole time.  When he picked the lamb up
again and cradled it in his big hands, Josie was so moved that a lump formed in
her throat. 

From the moment
she first spied Grey in Dry Gulch on the day of her pa’s hanging, she was drawn
to the mysterious man in black and his noble white steed, for unknown reasons.
When the two of them met face-to-face in the cave and he forced her to give up
the map, she considered him a heartless man who only cared about himself. 
At the cemetery, her opinion of him began to change when he shared his blanket
and offered to make her his partner, which he didn’t have to do.  Today,
she’d nearly fallen over when he told her she was pretty.  And now he was
rocking and nursing a lamb like it was his own flesh and blood child.  The
man was as complicated as a puzzle. 

She stole a glance
at him, and felt her face grow warm when he caught her looking.  Her heart
began to patter when he winked.  Turning away quickly, she stared up at
the full moon. All of creation seemed so right at that moment.  A slight
breeze rustled the tops of the reed grass.  The sheep and working dogs rested
together.  The fire was warm, her stomach was full, and she’d experienced
the beautiful miracle of bringing life into the world. Josie felt safe, despite
Grey’s early morning premonition, and she’d made a new friend in Mr.
Garde.  Best of all, she was feeling closer to Grey, and the growing
attachment seemed mutual.  

She snuggled
against her saddle, wrapped in the striped blanket.  When her gaze drifted
to Grey once more, he was asleep.  She watched his head bob as he dozed
with the tiny snoring lamb sprawled in his arms.

Mr. Garde sat
hunched on the cot, shaving a blister off his foot with his knife.  Josie
whispered, so as not to wake Grey or the lamb.  “Thank you for sharing
your supper with us tonight, Mr. Garde.  And for letting us stay with you
here in your cabin.” 

“It’s my pleasure,
Miss Hart.  I owe you a debt of gratitude for all you did for my flock
today.  I don’t know how I would have managed without you and Mr.
Paladin.”  He shoved the knife into its holder, which was still fastened
around his waist, and stretched upon his side on the cot.

“Please call me
Josie, Mr. Garde.  Miss Hart sounds so formal.”

“Alright. 
Then I insist on you calling me Leandro.  After all, we are friends, are
we not?”  He folded his hands under his head to form a pillow.

“Yes, we’re
friends,” she agreed.  “I’ve been wondering about your accent,
Leandro.  Where are you from?”

“I was born in
Isaba, Spain.” 

“Spain? 
That’s real far away, isn’t it?”

“Yes.  It’s
another country, far across the ocean.”  When one of the dogs whimpered,
he patted the cot, giving the animal permission to join him.  After the
dog curled up at the shepherd’s feet, it sighed and began to snore. Leandro ran
his hand down its back.  “This one’s young.  He likes to sleep with
me.  I don’t mind.  He’s a good worker.”

Josie
grinned.  “I’m going to see the ocean,” she told him softly.  She
felt like a child spilling a secret, and she bit her lip to suppress a
giggle.  “One of these days soon, I’ll be traveling to San Francisco.”

“Ahhh,” he sighed. 
“The ocean is like the most magnificent lover.  She holds much power and
beauty, and once she has drawn you in, you will never want to leave her
embrace.”  He gazed past her into the dark. 

The faraway look
in his weary eyes made Josie think he was missing the ocean and his home in
Spain. Perhaps a woman, too.  She felt embarrassed by him mentioning the
word lover, but a sudden unexplainable yearning seeped into her bones.  It
was a yearning she’d never experienced before—that of wanting to be held, kissed,
and loved, the way a man loves a woman.  She snuck another peek at
Grey.   He held the lamb lovingly in his strong arms.  Would he
hold a woman with such care?  How would his lips feel pressed against
hers?  Would his kisses be rough and frenzied, or tender and soft? 
He’d put his arm around her waist earlier, for only a moment.  But she’d
never forget how it felt—strong and protective. When she closed her eyes and
dared to imagine how his body would feel touching hers, tremors coursed through
her veins.

“Are you riding
all the way to San Francisco together?” the old man asked after yawning. 
“You and Mr. Paladin?”

Josie snapped back
to reality.  “No.  We’re headed north of Santa Fe.  We have some
business to take care of, and then I’ll be striking out to California on my
own.”  There was no need to tell him more, especially not the part about
the posse that might or might not be following them.

She gazed at Grey
once more and knew any dreams about him would come to no good end.  He was
bound and determined to keep her from owning all of the gold nuggets, and she
wasn’t about to let that happen. Heartfelt emotions would not sway her from her
goal.  Until the time was right to inform him otherwise, she had to stick
to her plan and make him believe she’d be satisfied with the forty
percent.  Her entire future rested on the gold Pa hid.  Nothing would
deter her from making her dreams come true. 

“It’s a long way
to Santa Fe,” Leandro said.  “My nephew is coming from there.  He
should arrive any day now.  He will help me watch over the lambs until
they are stronger, and then we will drive the flock into the mountains.”

Josie nodded,
happy that the shepherd would soon have the assistance and company of his
family.  Before long, she heard him whistling through his nose.  The
second dog padded over and laid against her leg, allowing her to stroke his
head as he went back to sleep.  Tiny whimpers escaped through the dog’s
lips, and she wondered if he was dreaming about chasing sheep.

The myriad of
human and animal noises mixing together formed a symphony of sounds reminding
her of music.  For so long now, it had been just her and Traveler. 
She was used to quiet when she went to bed at night.  How would she get to
sleep with all this snoring and breathing and soft bleating?  She smiled
and thought, quite easily.

* * * *

When Josie woke in
the morning, Grey had already saddled Lightning and Traveler, and Leandro had
packed them some food to take on the trail.  The two men were drinking
coffee together.  Josie rubbed her eyes.

“Good morning,”
Leandro said cheerfully. 

“Morning.”

“It’s time to hit
the road,” Grey told her, gulping down the contents of his tin cup.

“Where’s the baby
lamb?” she asked, standing and stretching.  “Did he make it through the
night?”

“Yes, he made it.”
Leandro smiled and pointed to a box on the ground, where the lamb lay in a bed
of reed grass.  “Mr. Paladin was up early picking grass and fixing up this
bed.”

“I fed it more
milk this morning,” Grey said.  “Leandro promises he’ll feed the little
guy until he gets stronger.”

Josie grinned at
them both, pleased.

“Are you hungry?”
the shepherd asked.

“I’m
famished.  What’s for breakfast?”

“Whatever you can
get down your throat in a hurry,” Grey answered, curtly.  “We’ve gotta get
going if we’re to ride twenty miles today, or more.”

She frowned. 
“Did you get up on the wrong side of the bed this morning, grumpy?” He didn’t
reply, just ignored her and strutted over to Lightning and the mule.  She
shook her head and accepted the cold biscuit and slice of meat Leandro handed
her, as well as a cup of strong coffee.

“I think he’s
going to miss the lamb,” Leandro whispered behind his hand.  Josie reached
into the box and petted the tiny thing.

“So will I.” 
When the lamb opened his eyes, she said, “I hope you grow big and strong,
little man.”  Before she had a chance to drain the coffee, Grey waded
through the flock leading Lightning and Traveler.  “We have to go,” he
said, thrusting the reins in her hand.

“Can’t I even
finish my coffee?” she asked, wondering why he was in such a hurry.

His eyes narrowed,
and she followed his pointed gaze across the flats over the hills to the
south.  “What’s wrong, Grey?”

“It’s time to get
on your mule, Josie. For once, don’t argue with me.  Just do as I
say.”  His tone was brusque.  He shook hands with Leandro and then
jammed his foot in the stirrup.

It hit her in a
flash.  This had to do with the bad feeling he’d had yesterday. 
She’d barely thought about Marshal Kendall and the posse since they’d seen no
sign of them after the shootout in the canyon.  She’d figured she and Grey
had thrown them off, or the men had given up their pursuit.  The
expression on his face now indicated she’d been naïve.  He must have
spotted riders in the distance and that’s why he was so anxious to move out.

“Good luck to you
both,” Leandro said.

Josie hugged
him.  “I’ll never forget our time with you.  Good luck to you, too.”
She climbed into her saddle and held Traveler to a walk behind Lightning until
they cleared the flock.

The old man waved
as they rode off.

“What did you
see?” she hollered to Grey, once they’d urged heir mounts into a lope.

“A reflection in
the hills.”

“What kind of
reflection?”

“Like the glare of
binoculars.”

“Do you think it’s
the marshal?” 

“I’d say it’s
highly likely, wouldn’t you?” Grey’s dark eyes glared at her from over his
shoulder.

She didn’t answer,
just prodded Traveler’s ribs harder in order to keep up with the flying white
stallion.

* * * *

It was early evening
when they stopped beside a creek, which was running high in the spring
runoff.  A clump of trees nearby was where they’d make camp for the
night.  Grey had not wanted to take any chances that the posse would catch
up to them, so he’d pushed the animals, and Josie, hard all day long. 
He’d not even allowed them to break for lunch.   During the highest
point in the day, they’d run across a tiny stream where the animals had
quenched their thirst and rested a bit.  Then they were back on the
trail.   Josie had nibbled on hard tack as they rode.

This creek was a
welcome relief from the blistering sun they’d endured all day. Grey had hoped
to make it this far, and was glad they had, since he’d been this way in the
past and remembered the creek.  He guessed Josie would appreciate the
chance to wash up, as there hadn’t been an opportunity to do so in days. 
He knew women were particular about those things.  He was particular about
cleanliness himself. There was a little piece of lavender soap in his saddlebags
that a nice lady in a boarding house had given him the last time he slept in a
real bed.  That had been a long time ago, but he’d been carrying that bit
of soap with him ever since.  He liked the way it smelled, and the scent
reminded him of his ma.

Grey led the mule
and his horse to the edge of the creek and let them paw at the water. 
They drank in noisy gulps that seemed never to stop. When he fastened his gaze
on Josie, a twinge of guilt twisted his gut.  Her cowboy hat was off,
sitting on the grass beside her.  Her long braid was pulling apart, and
her face was sweaty.  She reclined on a big rock rubbing her thighs. 
She probably had blisters, but hadn’t made one complaint.  The girl was a
tough nut for being so young, he thought.  Since he always kept a tin of
axel grease with him, he made a mental note to offer her some for the blisters.