“You and your rules,” he grumbled. She narrowed her eyes and waited for him to relent. He flicked his head, and she crawled past him.
Just beyond the marker, they came to the top of a steep bank. They slid down. Relief coursed through her now that they were no longer in the open. A shallow stream snaked through the narrow creek bed. They crept along some rocks and came to a bend where the bank had eroded and left a cave-like nook. A perfect hiding place. Aubrey crawled inside the nook first. Ben cozied up next to her, his head skimming the muddy ceiling while his body blocked most of the opening. Aubrey’s eyes pricked with exhaustion.
“If we wait just past noon after the race begins, then I’ll stake my claim fair and square. At the same time as everyone else.” She brushed off dirt from her skirt and rubbed her tired knees.
“Don’t you worry, sis. I’ll make sure you do.” Ben yawned.
If she could only believe that. Last night was proof that she needed to get away from the likes of Ed and Ben Huxley. Even yesterday, he was nowhere to be found when that customer had tried to take advantage of her just before Cort Stanton came to her rescue. The handsome cowboy’s gallant gesture shone bright amid the dark memories of all the times her father had proved he couldn’t care less. Mr. Stanton didn’t know her at all, and yet he’d tried to help her in a time of need. If she had made it to the land race this morning, would she have been tempted to find him on the line?
Aubrey pushed her back into the packed dirt and closed her eyes, shoving away any more thoughts about the handsome distraction. Ben’s breathing was slow and rhythmic, lulling her to a dreamy state. They hid out in this little nook that she’d soon own. Chills squirmed their way up her crouching spine. Miss Landowner. Mama would never believe it. Aubrey couldn’t contain her smile. She spied the other side of the creek bed through the crowded opening. Untouched soil, wild grasses and freedom.
She was in the same sleepless predicament as she had been back at camp. How could she manage to rest at a time like this?
But when her eyes grew heavy and her smile faded, there was only one thing to do before sleep invaded her. She forced a little prayer:
Wake me up when it’s time to stake my claim. Quarter past noon would be best.
* * *
He really shouldn’t do it. The intense glare of sunshine promised the day would be agonizing enough. During the morning of the race the only thing Cort should be doing was preparing for his venture on the prairie—finding his spot among the other settlers, waiting for the start and then racing to land of his own. Why did he choose to go find Miss Huxley instead?
He did run out of saddle soap. That was a good excuse. A fine reason to visit that shoddy corral and its beautiful owner once more. But, as he went against the flow of settlers, away from the starting line, he knew his notorious Stanton bloodline would be the death of him. He was just drawn to making wayward decisions, it seemed.
The Huxleys’ tents were all sealed up, but Mr. Huxley was outside, his feet propped up on a barrel as he snoozed in a rocking chair. Two old horses knocked around an empty pail with their dusty noses, and the gate of the corral swayed in the hot wind. Cort approached, closing the gate behind him. He pulled off his hat as he walked up to the old man.
“Excuse me, sir?” he said, but the man kept snoring. Cort spied the saddle soap on a table under a small canopy. He went up to the closed-off tent and cleared his throat. “Uh, Miss Huxley?”
He felt as ridiculous as a schoolboy trying to prove himself to be a man. He crammed his hat on his head. He could do without the saddle soap. As he turned, his boot crushed a piece of parchment.
It was crumpled up in the red Oklahoma dirt. He blew it off. It was a letter, not addressed to him, yet he couldn’t help but read the elegant handwriting:
Dear Pa,
By the time you read this, I’ll be riding in the race, praying that I have the chance to find some land of my own. Ever since Mama passed, I’ve wanted to honor her with a proper horse ranch of her dreams. I know you weren’t able to give that to her, but as her daughter, I must try.
Please don’t look for me. I am twenty-two years old and need to find my own way apart from you and Ben. I have left you the last of my savings from sewing, which should help with your expenses to get back home and even buy a couple decent horses for profit. That’s the last I can offer you, Father. I’ll send word once I am established. Take care of Ben. He needs you, and you need him. But right now, I just need to do this on my own.
Your daughter,
Aubrey.
Cort let out a long whistle. Mr. Huxley slept in his rocker even though his daughter had just bidden him farewell forever?
Cort and Aubrey had talked about their secrets last night. Aubrey’s was out in the open now. The hope Aubrey had kindled in him as they parted ways last night flooded him now. He wondered what it might feel like to have his secret out. Sure, it would clear his name. Give him a chance at freedom, but at what cost? If he told anyone the truth, he’d risk the chance of his brother being taken away from his young family forever. Cort would never forgive himself.
No. His innocence would never be found out. It would jeopardize his brother’s freedom and his nephew’s future.
He lifted his gaze from the letter to the distant horizon already shimmering in the heat.
She was somewhere along the start line, ready to build a ranch of her own. Now that Cort was a praying man, he said a prayer for Aubrey’s safety. And then, against his own reasoning, he prayed that one day they’d meet again. He couldn’t look for her today, but one day. And he hoped it would be a day he wasn’t ruled by the fear of the law catching up with him. Perhaps when he was certain of his freedom, he might even share his life with a woman like Aubrey Huxley by his side.
He shook his head. Dreaming was no pastime for a cowboy who’d run out of chances. He may be free now, thanks to his dear friend Sheriff Conway, who’d allowed him to escape that prison fire and run away. But now that the sheriff had died of typhoid, he didn’t stand a chance against the rest of the state of Texas. Cort Stanton could outrun his fellow land seekers, but he couldn’t outrun his past. If anything, he should pray that God would keep him far away from Miss Huxley.
Before he left the corral, he crumpled up the paper again and threw it down where Mr. Huxley had tossed it. He would only focus on the race now.
The swarm of settlers fled the camp, yanking their whole lives in wagons, carts and packs. Cort was blessed in that way. He had nothing but what was in his small pack. Once he untied his horse and led him to the start line, he swung himself on top of his saddle. The anticipation around him frenzied like a kicked beehive. It was a day of all days. The day where he would cling to living and leave everything else behind. Live in the moment and do what he did best. Work the land.
“Whoa, boy.” He tried to calm the horse as he kept his place in the bulging line. It was tough to expect much from the animal amid the chaos, but talking to him was at least calming Cort’s own nerves.
Was he really this close to possessing his own piece of land? His heart stuttered. Just two years ago he was content working someone else’s land clear up in Wyoming. But now?
He loosened the bandanna around his neck. Either the heat was getting to him, or his conscience was starting early. Usually, he did well to not think about it until the quiet of nightfall. Perhaps the quieting mass as they neared noon gave him too much room to ponder. Ironic to think of this as a thought-provoking place. He was packed in between thousands of horses, hundreds of carts and sweating settlers hungry for what a fourteen-dollar registration fee bought them—a slim chance at acreage. A baby’s cry pierced the aggravated silence. Regret niggled in Cort’s core while he tightened the grip on his reins, leaning forward as most everyone did around him. He’d yet to have a family to provide for. Would he ever? His costly mistakes before now may have jeopardized any chance for that.
Aubrey Huxley slipped across his mind