Chapter 7

So far, so good, Audra thought. After the dancing lesson, Travis had turned in for the night. He had seemed pleased with the result of his time spent learning to step and sway to her singing. Well, she also was pleased. He had no excuse now for not going to the dance. All she needed to do between now and Saturday night was to work on her plan. Most of the people she’d talked to in Elk Grove had been women, and she believed she should share her problem with a man. A man, someone like her brothers, would be more able to help her, perhaps go to the Sheriff for her. She would have to look the gentlemen over at the dance and choose wisely.

Audra hoped she could make her escape from Travis either late Saturday night or early Sunday morning. Of course, she would have to accept the advice of the one who was willing to help her. If that person needed a few days to come up with a way to get her and the baby back to Stockton, then she would have to wait. The baby’s well being must not be put in jeopardy.

What would Travis do when he learned she was gone, when he learned his son was gone? He knew who she was, where she was from. He would come for his child, of that she was sure.

Well, Jarrod, Nick, and Heath would be there to help her then. They, she and her son, would be safe until Travis was dealt with.

Travis awoke with a start. The baby was crying and Bonnie evidently didn’t hear him. He got up and went to the crib. "Hey, little fella," he soothed. "Your Daddy’s right here." He then picked the baby up and carried him gingerly to the sitting room. He didn’t know much about babies, nothing, really, but he knew this was his son, his flesh and blood, his heir. Thinking that Bonnie always seemed to calm the child by rocking him, he sat down where she would normally do the calming.

Almost immediately, Travis Jr. stopped crying. "There, you see, you and me are gonna be great buddies. Maybe I don’t have your Uncle Jamie anymore, but he was no good. You’re gonna be a fine man, I’m gonna see to it. You and me and your Momma, we’re gonna be a fine family."

With the feel of his son in his arms, Travis almost forgot his anxiety over the possibility Bonnie might remember who she was. It all seemed so perfect, and, really, he hadn’t minded the dancing at all. If dancing would keep her contented, then he would dance. He would do any number of things to please her, but, one thing he would never do. He gazed at his son. "I’ll never give you up, Travis Jr., that’s one thing I’ll never do."

Camped for the night, Nick and Heath were attempting to get needed rest. Since Charger threw a shoe, their progress had been slow. They took turns riding Coco and leading Heath’s mount. For short periods of time, they rode double on Coco, but not long enough to risk injury to the horse who was Nick’s faithful companion.

Heath awoke just as dawn was breaking. His first thought was the long journey still ahead of them. "Nick! Wake up! Time to get movin’. We gotta get to Elk Grove."

"Yea, yea," Nick grumbled, coming out of his sleeping bag. "You got the coffee made?"

"You don’t see any, do ya?" Heath growled back at his brother. Nick stretched and rubbed his back. "You know, Heath, I’ve been thinkin’."

"Thinkin’ while you sleep! You’re smarter than I thought," Heath grinned.

"Very funny," Nick said.

"What is it you’re thinkin’?"

"I think we maybe should stop by the first ranch or farm we come to and see if we can borrow or buy a horse to ride to Elk Grove. I’m tired of walkin’."

"And I think you might have a good idea there," Heath said, rolling up his sleeping bag.

Travis had gone to the field, and Audra believed she could relax a bit. He did not know she was aware of the time he spent with the baby during the night. Not only was she aware of it, she’d witnessed it by peering out the bedroom door at him while he rocked their son. The sight had scared her, although he had certainly done nothing to harm the child.

Quite the contrary. She’d known before that Travis would not give up his namesake easily, and that knowledge had now been reconfirmed. She needed to choose someone reliable to help her. It was Friday morning. Tomorrow night, she would take the initial step back to her family. Not for the first time since regaining her memory, Audra wondered if her mother and brothers had searched for her, wondered if by chance they might still be searching for her. Surely, they must have looked, but it had evidently been a year. She supposed they thought she was dead. Well, she wasn’t. Not only wasn’t she dead, but she had another life besides her own to care for, to protect. If only she could get them both home safely----

The field he would be working in today put Travis close to his brother’s grave. During a mid morning break from the hot sun, he decided to wander over there. The time he had spent with the baby during the night had put him in an odd mood, odd for him at least.

He couldn’t explain it, even to himself, but it was sort of a meloncholy feeling. He was happy about having his son, yet, there was something missing in his life, and, of course, that something was a someone, was Jamie.

Standing over the grave, he spoke silently to the man he had shot, then buried here. Jamie had not been a good person. Am I a good person? Travis asked himself. The feeling was very strong that he could be, if only Bonnie would stay with him, and remain the woman he’d fell in love with, and, of course, that he could raise his son. Lost in thought, he did not hear the two men approach until they were very close to him.

Silas bustled about the dining room, while keeping a close eye on the woman who had been his employer for many years. Mrs. Barkley was not eating this morning, although he had put out a very substantial meal for her. The poor lady was distraught and Silas wished there was something he could do for her. It wasn’t his place to involve himself in family business and he never did unless he was asked to, but he hated to see her suffer so, without at least asking if there was anything he could do.

"Miz Barkley, will any of the others be coming back today?" he finally inquired.

Victoria raised her head. "I don’t think so, Silas."

"You should eat a little more," he took the liberty to suggest.

"I’m not hungry," she mumbled, then abruptly she glanced up to make eye contact with her companion. "Silas, would you see that a buckboard is made ready for me, please?"

"Yes, Ma’am," he said, "But where are you goin’, Miz Barkley?"

"I don’t know, Silas. Would you care to go with me?"

Silas smiled from ear to ear. "I’d be most happy to go with you, Ma’am."

Jarrod had spent the night in Galt. Up early to get in some traveling before he would need to seek shelter during the heat of the day, he walked down the stairs of the hotel to the restaurant on the first floor. Upon his arrival last evening, he’d asked a few people if they had noticed a young woman fitting Audra’s description a year or so ago or since. He suggested that she may have been with two men who resembled each other enough to be brothers. No one confessed to having seen the threesome or the girl alone. There was a different waitress this morning, giving him another person to pose the inquiry to. "I wonder if I might ask you a question?" he said to the woman. She appeared to be around twenty five or so and had beautiful long black hair.

"Sure can," she told him, winking and smiling real pretty at him.

"I am searching for a girl in her early twenties. She has blond hair, long the last time I saw her. She might be traveling with two men who----"

"Yea, yea, I know," the woman interrupted.

Jarrod was hopeful. "You know? You mean you’ve seen her?"

"No, I haven’t seen her, but there were two fellas in here yesterday lookin’ for the same woman. One of ‘em talked real loud and the other one was quiet as a church mouse."

He knew immediately who the two men had been. "I see. Was one of them very tall, with black hair, and the other a little shorter with light brown hair?"

"Yep, that’s them," said the woman. "This girl all of you are lookin’ for, she must be somethin’ else to have so many handsome men huntin’ her."

Jarrod sighed. "Yes, she is. Those were my brothers and the girl is our sister. She’s missing."

"Oh, I’m sorry. Well, I’ve only been here a few months myself. Those other two, uh, your brothers, they were wonderin’ if someone fittin’ her description might of had an accident or somethin’ a year or so ago around here."

"Yes, well, thank you," Jarrod said, not wanting to explain to this woman that Nick and Heath were searching for a dead person and he was very hopeful Audra was still alive.

He left the hotel, wondering what he should do. If his brothers were heading North, was there any reason why he should continue in that direction? Something told him yes. He mounted Jingo and rode on.

Heath had walked close to two miles already this morning, while Nick rode Coco alongside of him. He really didn’t mind walking, but thought Nick’s suggestion that they find somewhere to get another horse was a good one. The trouble was, they hadn’t seen a ranch or farm sign as yet, and they hadn’t seen a single soul, that is, until now.

"Hey, Heath, look over there," Nick said, reigning in and pointing off to the left.

Heath looked. "Looks like there’s a fella over there."

"Yep, that’s what it looks like," Nick agreed. "Let’s see if he’d mind partin’ with a horse for a while."

And so they left the main path and made their way to the man’s side. It was only when they reached him that they became aware he was standing next to what looked like a recently dug grave. Since they had tied Coco and Charger to trees several yards back, the man had not heard or seen them. When Nick offered a greeting, the man jumped as if he’d been shot.

"Howdy," said Nick, holding out his hand in an offer to shake.

The man did not accept the offer. Instead, he nodded and said, "You’re on my property."

Nick had met all kinds of people and so wasn’t particularly taken aback when the man refused to shake hands with him. It sounded like the fellow wasn’t a friendly sort and they probably wouldn’t get a horse here. "No harm meant," he said. "We just saw you from the road and decided to see if you could help us."

Heath stepped up. "My horse threw a shoe and we were hopin’ to find somebody who could loan us a horse for a spell, or, we’d even be willin’ to buy one, if the price was right."

"I don’t have no horses to spare," said the man. "I’d like you to move on now."

Heath and Nick exchanged glances. There was something about this fellow that neither of them liked. Nick spoke again. "You farm this ground?" "I do. It’s mine and I’m askin’ you to get off of it."

Ignoring the request, Heath then asked, "Looks like somebody’s been buried here recently. Family?"

"Aint none of your business who’s buried here."

"No, reckon it’s not at that," Heath nodded. "Maybe we best move on, Nick."

Nick stood glaring at the farmer, as if to mount an objection, but then said, "Yea, reckon we’d best do that. We’re real sorry to have bothered you, Mister."

Travis’ insides were churning. It was all he could do to stand still while the two strangers made their departure. He’d made a mistake. Actually, he’d made two mistakes. One could be rectified, but the other could not be. When he chose the spot where he buried Jamie, he gave no consideration to the fact it could possibly be seen from the road. He was certain no one could tell from the road it was a grave, but the two men who were now honoring his request to leave had seen him standing next to it. It just could be, it would happen again when he paid his brother a visit. Well, he would move Jamie. He could not have people wandering over here.

The second mistake, the one which might cause him the most trouble, was the manner in which he’d chosen to deal with the strangers. He should have been more friendly, should not have ordered them away, no matter how nervous they made him. If they were from around here close, they might talk, might ask around Elk Grove and find out who lived here, might make other folks curious about the Radfords, might cause someone else to come out and ask who it is that’s buried here. Maybe he shouldn’t move Jamie after all. If those strangers came back to snoop around and found the grave moved, then sent the law out here---- Folks in town had seen Jamie many times. What if they got nosy? What if someone figured out that Bonnie wasn’t Bonnie?

Travis put his hands to his head. The world was closing in on him. What should he do? One thing was for sure, he wasn’t, nor was Bonnie, going to that dance tomorrow night.

The day wore on. Bonnie nursed the baby, then began to prepare the evening meal. While she worked, she thought about her family back at the ranch. How had they dealt with her absence?

Had life gone on just the same? What did they think happened to her?

She still wished she could remember her final hours at home, remember what had caused her to lose her memory.

Consoling herself with the hope that she would be with them again soon, she went about her business. Out of the window, she saw Travis walking from the barn to the house. One more night of pretending, that’s all she had to endure.

The two Barkley brothers, Heath and Nick, moved on toward Elk Grove.

This time, Heath rode Coco and Nick walked, leading Charger. They had not spoken since leaving the unfriendly farmer behind. Finally, Nick offered an opinion to his brother. "You know, Heath, that fella back there was odd as the devil."

"No kiddin’," Heath mumbled. "What makes you say that?"

Nick grinned. "You know daggone well what makes me say it! Most of these small farmers are friendly, always helpin’ out their neighbors. That one was dang near hostile."

"We’re not his neighbors," Heath ventured.

"No, but he was still strange."

"I wonder if it had anything to do with who’s in that grave?" Heath went on.

"What’s goin’ through your head?" Nick asked, serious.

"Nick, we’re on this trip to search for Audra, to find anything of her we can, I mean---"

"You don’t think Audra’s buried in that grave, do ya?"

"No, I don’t, but I don’t think we can pass this one up."

"Speak English, Heath!" Nick said, loud.

"We got a fella actin’ strange about what or who is buried in a grave. We’re lookin’ for someone who’s been missin’ a year. Nick, I don’t like it any better than you, but I think we oughta investigate."

Nick nodded. "Yea, so do I, but we can’t just dig up a grave. For one thing we don’t have the tools to dig with."

Heath sighed. "No, we don’t, but reckon we can get some in Elk Grove and come back."

A deep scowl creased Nick’s brow. "Yea, I reckon. Let’s go."

The buckboard was ready. Hitched to it was one of the finer Barkley horses. Silas waited patiently for Mrs. Barkley. He didn’t know where they were going or how long they were going to be gone. He trusted Victoria Barkley with his life, and so he would be there to drive the buckboard, wait around for indefinite periods of time, protect her, or just for the sake of easing her loneliness.

Victoria finally appeared, dressed to travel. "Are you ready, Silas?"

"Yes, Ma’am. Are you ready to get in the buckboard, Miz Barkley?"

"I am."

And so he gave her a hand up. He took his place in the driver’s seat and took the reigns in hand.

"Which way should I head?" he asked.

"North, I believe. Yes, north."

And so they departed the ranch, Silas turning the horse to properly follow the lady’s instructions.

Chapter 8

The heat of the day had come and gone. Jarrod, somewhere between Galt and Elk Grove, closer, he believed, to the latter, had waited out the hottest hours under a tree. He wished he could have done the waiting in a town, but there was nothing to be done about it. It occurred to him he hadn’t seen many crops on this route, and, if memory served him at all, he believed there were several farms close to Elk Grove. There had not been water for his horse where he had waited. He spoke to the animal about it.

"Well, Jingo, if no one takes mercy on us with a cool drink and a porch for me to sit on, we’ll just have to make the best of it. It would be nice if I could find you a stream, though. You smell water, Boy? If you do, give me a sign."

The horse snorted a bit and Jarrod laughed. "I guess that was a yes? Let’s look around a bit, see if you’re telling the truth."

Walking and leading his mount, Jarrod left the beaten path and headed for one of the few trees he could see nearby. As he did so, he wondered who owned this land. His eyes fell on a stream. He praised Jingo. "It seems you were telling the truth. You can have a cool drink, I can sip from my canteen, we can tell each other-----"

He stopped talking. Something had caught his attention. If he wasn’t mistaken, others had recently taken this path. "Looks like someone else, maybe more than one, has left the road to pay a visit here not too long ago."

Jarrod could not help but wonder if the horse prints and shoe prints under his feet were made by his brothers and their mounts. Perhaps they had been searching for a drink at this point as well.

Of course, anyone, including the owner of the land might have made them.

One of the horses was minus a shoe. Jarrod hoped it wasn’t his brothers, for if it was, they had experienced trouble.

"Maybe we should look for a house, Jingo," he said. "If it is Nick and Heath, they might have looked for help around here somewhere, they might still be here. "

Audra put supper on the table soon after Travis came in. He had little to say, and she was glad of that. Her mind was somewhere else now, she was thinking constantly of getting to the dance, finding someone to help her, and somehow getting her child as well as herself safely home to the Barkley ranch. That’s why, when Travis did say something, it took her a while to fully comprehend the meaning of his words. "What?" she said as a way of asking him to repeat himself.

"I said," Travis began, "that workin’ alone, not havin’ Jamie to help me no more, is leavin’ me awful tired. I don’t think I’m gonna be up to goin’ to that dance tomorrow night."

She must be careful. More than anything, she wanted to put up an argument, maybe even cry to get her way. That wasn’t what Bonnie Radford would do. No. She must stay in character here and not let her panic show. "I know you’re tired, Travis, but, maybe you could come in early tomorrow, maybe even just work until noon. That way, you’d be rested for the dance."

"Bonnie, didn’t you hear me?" he said, raising his voice. "I said, I’m not going to that dance. And if I’m not going, neither are you. Now, just forget about it." She couldn’t do that, of course. She couldn’t forget about it. "Mrs. Hensley is planning to come and look after the baby," she said.

"I’ll get word to her somehow."

"Travis, I, uh, I mean, we have to go."

He raised his gaze from his plate to look at her. "I’ll say what we have to do, Bonnie. It’s a man’s place to do that."

She shouldn’t get angry, or, at least, she should not allow him to see that she was angry. Audra knew that very well, but her anxiety was about to overwhelm her. She could not stay here and pretend much longer. If he wouldn’t go to the dance, then she would have to plan some other way. But what? When? How much longer could she control herself? She had to think of the baby, had to put him first. It would be best to pretend to accept her fate, at least for a while. "All right, Travis. If you don’t want to go, then we won’t."

His relief was written all over his face. It made her even angrier to see it, but she set about clearing the table to keep her temper in check.

Travis believed he had the upper hand. Bonnie had given in to his wishes. He wondered, though, if he would ever feel safe again. He still needed to decide what to do about Jamie’s grave, and he still felt uneasy about those two strangers he’d talked to earlier.

Would it always be this way? Of course it would! There would be one thing right after another to keep him on edge as long as he was with Bonnie. He loved her, but as long as he had to worry about when she might remember who she really was, he couldn’t rest easy, couldn’t be happy. Maybe he should just take off. No. No, he couldn’t do that, not and leave Travis Jr. here. Could he take care of the child while he was so young? Bonnie was nursing him.

Could he be taken away from her so soon? A man alone with a baby would draw attention.

Bonnie, even if she didn’t remember she was Audra Barkley, might get the law to search for him, if he took off with the boy.

Nervous, Travis got up from the table and walked to the baby’s bed. He wished he knew which way to turn.

Jarrod made his way to the top of a small hill. The tree he had seen from the road and the stream close to it were only a few yards away now. Walking toward them, and still following the footprints he’d picked up earlier, he saw that the earth had been disturbed, that someone had dug a hole. It looked very much like a grave. Again, he spoke aloud. "Jingo, my good friend, it looks like some unfortunate soul has recently passed on."

An uneasiness gripped him. He could not shake the feeling the footprints had been left by his brothers and their horses. If it had been Heath and Nick, they would have seen this recently dug grave. Jarrod stopped and looked around. Off in the distance, he could see a house. He was more resolved than ever to make his way to it. The anxious feeling which had come over him did not abate as he led Jingo to the stream and allowed him to drink. Once the horse had his fill, Jarrod mounted and rode off toward the house.

Had his brothers found this grave and wondered if Audra was in it? Had they gone on to the house to find out? Had they run into trouble there? Jarrod forced himself to relax a bit. It could be, and probably was, all unrelated. He just needed to satisfy himself that Audra, or, for that matter, Nick and or Heath wasn’t in that hole back there on the hill.

Victoria rode along in the buckboard next to Silas. There were many things she liked about the dear man who had worked for her so many years now, but one of her favorite things to like about him was his ability to be companionable, to be right there at her side, and yet not intrude on her thoughts. That was what he was doing now, and had been doing since they departed the ranch some hours earlier. If she wanted to talk, then Silas would oblige, do his best to carry on a conversation. She decided that was needed at the moment.

"Silas, I suppose we’d better plan to spend the night in Galt."

"Yes, Ma’am," he said. "You can have yourself a nice comfortable room there in the hotel."

She went on, "Then, we’ll have to decide about tomorrow."

"Yes, Miz Barkley."

In Elk Grove at last, Nick and Heath took Charger to a blacksmith, and then found a tavern where they could get a beer and do some planning. Once they had their drinks in hand, they found a table where they could sit and talk and not be overheard as they might be if they stood at the bar.

"I’m beat," Heath opened the discussion. "I don’t think we should go back out there to that grave today."

Nick glared at his brother. "Heath, what would we do instead? Stay here all of tomorrow and wait for it to get dark again? We sure as heck can’t go diggin’ in the daylight."

Heath shrugged. "I guess you’re right. Maybe we best go on back out there tonight."

"It won’t seem so far once we both have a horse to ride," Nick said.

The younger man nodded and they drank their beers in silence, each lost in his own thoughts.

Finally, Nick spoke again. "I gotta real feelin’ about that place."

"Good or bad?"

"I’m not sure. That fella was so strange about that grave and all, I just can’t shake feelin’ like we need to check things out."

"Yea, I feel the same," said Heath. "So, let’s find someplace to buy some diggin’ tools."

The footprints Jarrod had been following stopped at the gravesite. He could not pick them up again. There was a recent print from a horse, but it didn’t have a missing shoe. It was late in the afternoon now. If he was to make it to Elk Grove by nightfall, he needed to pay his visit to the house in the distance, and then move on. Hopefully, he could move on with the satisfaction nothing was wrong here which concerned his family.

He rode on. As far as he could tell from a distance, there was no activity around the place. Perhaps, it was vacant. He decided he wouldn’t be very happy with himself if he had taken this detour for nothing. Still, there were those footprints and the grave.

He continued toward the house. Close enough now to see anyone should they be about, he still saw no one. Wait!

Someone, a man, was coming out of the house. Jarrod spurred Jingo to a gallop.

Pretending not to, Audra had closely observed Travis as he gazed down at the baby. It made her skin crawl. She admitted to herself that she hated this man whom, only days before, she would have sworn she loved. What could she do? More and more, he seemed to be concentrating on the child. If she stayed here much longer, she would never be able to get her son away. "Travis, we need more wood for the stove," she said.

He appeared to ignore her at first, but then finally looked up. "Yea, sure. I’ll go bring some in."

As soon as he went out the door, Audra grabbed the baby from his bed. It wasn’t time to feed him and he was perfectly quiet and content, but she wanted to hold him, wanted him in her arms so that Travis wouldn’t pick him up when he came back with the wood. She set down in the rocking chair. "My sweet baby," she said. "Momma will take care of you."

Jarrod rode at full speed for a time, then slowed his mount. It might not be wise to ride in there as if he was on a mission of some sort. It would be better to be more casual, to not raise suspicion. If that was needed, there would be time for it later. Closer and closer he came to the house. The man who had come out was gathering wood from a pile behind the barn. Just an ordinary thing for someone to be doing. Closer and closer he rode. He had not been noticed by the fellow as yet. Jarrod was glad. It gave him time to look the man over. Of course, his back was turned. His face was not visible, just the back of his-------

"Whoa!"

Jingo obeyed immediately.

Chapter 9

Victoria ate dinner alone in the Galt hotel dining room. It would have been fine with her to have had Silas for company, but she knew he would be uncomfortable. Not wishing to make him so, she had bid him good-bye when he carried her luggage to her room.

He would reappear in the morning when she needed him. Silas could be counted on. As she ate, she wondered where all of her children were tonight. Had any of the boys taken this same route? Had any of them found any sign of Audra? The feeling that her daughter was still alive remained strong. She also felt she was heading in the right direction. She would go to her room, get a good night’s rest, and then see what tomorrow had in store.

Entering the house with a stack of wood in his arms, Travis noticed immediately that Bonnie had picked up the baby. He’d planned to do that, once his chore was completed. He very much needed to feel that tiny life in his arms right now. "Bonnie, I’d like to hold him for a while. I mean, I been in the field all day, I need some time with him. It’s not feedin’ time, is it?"

She gave him a fleeting glance. As brief as it was, Travis read something there he hadn’t seen before. Hate. She hated him. Did that mean-------? "Bonnie, would you give me my son, please?"

She did not intend to honor his request. Audra held tight to her child.

She began to sing the lullaby she’d sung to him before, only now she knew where she had learned it, and who she had learned it from. Her mother sang it to her when she was a little girl.

She sang it through once, then twice, then three times. Travis Jr. closed his eyes and went to sleep. She could feel the man standing over, refusing to accept the fact she wasn’t going to hand him the baby.

Jarrod fidgeted in the saddle. He needed to come to a decision. Was he going to ride on to that house or wasn’t he? He had been so certain only moments ago, until, that is, he saw the back of a man’s head. And, as he’d told his brother Nick some days ago, he would recognize the back of that head if he ever saw it again as that of the man who had entered the stable behind Audra on that fateful day a year ago. And he did recognize it. It was the fellow who had just entered the house he planned to visit.

So, Jarrod thought, I’ve found the man. Is Audra here somewhere? The recently dug grave came to mind. No. No, he mustn’t think that. It wasn’t his sister in that grave. Was it? But what about Nick and Heath? Jarrod knew he must not go away without learning all he could. If Audra was here and did not wish to see him, then he wouldn’t bother her. Once, that is, he learned she was safe and no harm had come to his brothers here.

Giving Jingo the signal to proceed, the horse immediately began walking.

Jarrod was in no hurry now. He wanted to take it slow and easy. He wanted time to think. Slowly, he rode up to the barn, staying out of sight of the house. He dismounted and tied Jingo to a fence post. He then proceeded carefully around the barn to where he had a view of the house.

Heath and Nick purchased two shovels in Elk Grove. They felt conspicuous as they did so. They were strangers in town. They knew the local folks were wondering why they would be needing shovels. When they were ready to ride out, Nick commented on it.

"I feel like the entire town of Elk Grove is starin’ at us."

"It is," Heath said.

"You don’t reckon somebody will follow us to see what we’re up to, do ya?"

"Could be."

Nick sighed. "Heath, why are you so dang stingy with your words?"

"Huh?"

"You talk in such short sentences. Why?"

"Nick, we got better things to do than worry about such as that," Heath frowned.

"Yea, well, at least you used more than two words to answer me. What will we do if somebody follows us?"

"Don’t know," said Heath.

Nick groaned in exasperation. "Let’s go."

There was no good way out of this. That was Travis Radford’s thought as he stood over Bonnie and the baby. She wasn’t Bonnie, of course, and, if he didn’t miss his guess, she now realized she wasn’t Bonnie. She knew she was Audra Barkley and there was no turning back. He had to be careful, though, until he could think of some way to get his son away from her. He supposed he could just overpower her and take the child. Then what? "Bonnie, I’m not gonna hurt him. Just let me rock him for a spell."

His tone of voice had changed. Audra kept her eyes on the baby, but she felt certain Travis was suspicious that she’d recovered her memory. Would he kill her to keep the baby? Yes, she decided, he would if he felt cornered. Maybe she should hand him the child. It would ease the tension of the moment. She stood up. "All right, Travis, here he is. I’ll light the lamp. It’s getting dark."

Jarrod left the protection of the barn and inched toward the house, staying behind a buckboard which sat in the barnyard and then over to a wagon. When he peered out from behind the wagon, he saw that he was very close to the house, close enough to see someone inside if they should stand or sit in front of the window. It would soon be dark. Surely, the man, or anyone else who happened to be in there, would put on a light soon. He waited. His wait was short. A lamp had been lit. Good. Now, if only-------My God!

"Audra!"

He’d said his sister’s name aloud. In a reflex action, Jarrod put his hand over his mouth. It was too late for that, of course. If she, or the man he could also see through the window, had heard him, it was too late to do anything about it. He watched closely. There was no reaction. They had not heard, and he was grateful.

It was Audra, though. Her hair was short and she wasn’t dressed fashionably, but it was Audra. He was nearly overwhelmed with relief. He’d found her! She was alive. The premonition he’d had that day had been accurate. She’d surely left willingly with the man she loved, and a year later she was still with him.

What should I do now? Jarrod wondered.

They each had a shovel tied behind them on their saddle. At sunset, Nick and Heath rode out of Elk Grove toward their intended destination. They retraced their tracks, heading back to the spot where they had spoken to the farmer at the gravesite. It would be completely dark when they reached the place where they planned to do some digging.

"There’s a full moon," Heath noted.

"Yea, plenty of light to see by, but hopefully not for someone to see us," Nick added.

They rode on.

After lighting the lamp, Audra thought she should busy herself with something, sewing or housework. An appearance of normalcy suddenly became very important. They had been very close to a confrontation a few moments ago, a confrontation that would lead them down the path of no return. She didn’t feel that she could allow that to occur. She needed time to think of another way to get safely out of Travis’ life, taking the child with her.

She picked up the sleeping gown she was making for the baby. As she did so, she turned toward the window. It was nearly dark, but she thought she saw something move.

She suppposed it was nothing, but it gave her an idea. "Travis, I believe I saw something outside. Maybe you should take a look."

"There’s nothin’ out there, Bonnie," he said, not taking his eyes from the boy.

"There might be," she countered. "Better not take a chance."

Travis sighed, but stood up. She laid down her sewing. He would surely hand her the baby before he went outside. If not, he would put the child in his bed. Either way, he would not hold him any longer, and that was suddenly very important to Audra.

Mesmerized by the sight of his sister, Jarrod could not seem to make a decision. Should he go to the door and make himself known? Should he leave? He could go home and tell his mother what he’d observed here. Going over in his mind the choices he had, he noticed that the man was standing up. Jarrod had only been able to see his head before. Yes, he was standing now and Audra was standing next to him and there was---------a baby in his arms.

Audra had a child! Was that why she left? From this distance, Jarrod couldn’t tell how old the baby was, but if his sister had been going to have a child, that might explain why she left home without a word. More confused than ever about whether to make himself known, he turned away from the sight at the window.

"I’ll go look then," Travis told the woman he still thought of as Bonnie, although he was almost certain now she knew that wasn’t her name. She didn’t want him to hold the baby, that much he did know for sure. This business of seeing something outside was just a ploy to get Travis Jr. out of his arms. Well, he would show her. He would go look but he would take the boy with him.

"I’ll take the rifle," he said. "Just in case."

She waited. He was going to take the gun with him, he said. He couldn’t carry a gun and the baby at the same time. He walked over and picked up the rifle and headed for the door. "Leave the baby here, Travis. There’s no need to take him with you."

"I like holdin’ him, Bonnie. There’s no problem. I’ll be right back."

Inside, she was screaming, but she dared not let it out. He was taunting her now and she must take it. There was nothing else she could do until she came up with a plan. She watched him go to the door. He opened it with the hand that held the gun, which frightened her. What if she’d sent him on this wild goose chase and it resulted in her son being injured? "I don’t really think there’s anything out there. I probably only saw the shadow of a bird."

"I’m goin’ out, Bonnie," he said, stubborn. "I’ll be right back."

Jarrod did not bother hiding behind the buckboard and the wagon on his return trip to the barn. He also didn’t bother looking back at the house. Although he hadn’t really decided to leave as yet, he suddenly very much wanted to get back to his horse, back to the transportation he would use if he did decide to leave without speaking to his sister. He was nearly there. Only a few more steps and he would be behind the barn.

"Who’s there! Halt, or I’ll shoot!"

He’d been seen. Jarrod froze in his tracks. His inability to make a decision before was nothing compared with the way he felt now. A man’s voice had ordered him to halt. Undoubtedly, it was the fellow Audra had left with. Should he make a run for it before his sister realized he was here? Would the man actually shoot? Was it worth taking the chance only to keep Audra from knowing she’d been found? He didn’t think so. He stood still, his back to the house. He could hear footsteps approaching.

"Turn around!" came another order. "And drop your gun on the ground!"

Jarrod obeyed. He turned and faced the other way. The man he’d seen in the house stood there rifle in hand----and a baby on his shoulder. Surprised to see how tiny the baby was, Jarrod said, "I don’t intend to harm anyone. I’m------"

As soon as Travis went out the door, Audra moved to the window to watch him. She wasn’t expecting him to find anything, and only wanted to assure herself the baby was safe while out there. But then she saw someone running and heard Travis yell. Without hesitation she ran out the door.

It was dark now, but as she drew closer to the scene where the two men, Travis and the person being held at gun point were standing, she recognized the visitor. Without thinking further, she yelled out the name of her eldest brother.

"Jarrod!"

Travis tried to deal with the situation he found himself in. Bonnie came running, yelling out a name. The intruder on their property held out his arms, despite the gun being pointed at him. "Audra," the man said and she ran into the fellow’s embrace. Was this someone from her family? Obviously, it was someone she knew well, someone who knew her as Audra and not Bonnie. "Step back away from her, Mister! Now!"

Audra came to herself and realized what was happening. She quickly pushed Jarrod away. "Do as he says. He’ll take the baby, if you don’t."

Jarrod, having experienced an emotional reunion with his long missing sister, tried to get his bearings. Evidently, things weren’t as he had supposed. But what was the situation here? Surely, Audra wasn’t happy with this man or she wouldn’t have suggested he would take the baby.

"Audra, tell me, what is going on?"

"Never mind that!" Travis exclaimed. "She can tell you all about it once I’m gone. Now, step in the barn there and saddle me a horse. Me and the boy are takin’ our leave."

"No, Travis! Please!" Audra cried. "Jarrod, don’t let him take my son!"

Jarrod’s blood ran cold in his veins.

Chapter 10

The baby began to cry. It made Travis nervous, but he did nothing to soothe the infant. He kept the rifle trained on the man Bonnie seemed to know and waited for him to do as he’d been told. He was a well dressed, nice looking man, a real dandy. Well, no doubt he was a Barkley. It didn’t matter, nothing mattered, not even Bonnie’s crying. Travis did not intend to back off. "Go saddle a horse! Now!"

Jarrod willed himself to remain calm so that he could make sense of the situation. If only he could learn more before he did as this man Audra called Travis demanded of him. He wasn’t afraid of being shot, although he undoubtedly should be. "Travis, why don’t we talk about it a bit? You and Audra are obviously upset, if----"

"She’s not Audra to me, Mister, she’s Bonnie. If she aint gonna be Bonnie no more, then I’m leavin’. Only I’m not leavin’ my son with her. He’s my heir. He’s Travis Radford Jr., not no Barkley."

There was more here than Jarrod could comprehend without explanation. Evidently, his sister had been known to this man by another name. Why? He supposed it didn’t matter much at the moment. There was one thing he wanted to be certain of. "Audra, did you give birth to this child?"

"Oh yes, Jarrod," she sobbed. "He’s only a a few days old. He can’t be taken away from me."

"And this man, uh, Travis, he’s your husband? The father of the child?"

"We were married when I thought I was Bonnie. I thought I was married, Jarrod, I thought I loved him, but I----"

"Never mind all of that, I said!" Travis interrupted. "Get in the barn, Mister! You know how to saddle a horse, don’t you?"

"Travis, please give me the baby," Audra continued to beg. "He’ll die if you take him away from me. You didn’t want him in the first place. You only wanted Barkley money."

Her statement gave Jarrod hope. If this man would take money----"Travis, if you’d like, we can talk about that."

"About what?" Travis demanded to know. "About, well, I don’t know all that has taken place, but if you would accept a settlement in exchange for leaving the baby with my sister, then I would be happy to negotiate."

Audra watched Travis carefully. This had been what he and James had been disagreeing about when the older Radford brother had been killed in the house. Travis had not wanted to do it then. Would he change his mind?

So, this was her brother. And he was offering money. It gave Travis pause. What if he accepted? He could have anything he wanted then, he could be rich. That was the original plan. He got Bonnie, or Audra, or whatever her name was, with child, so that he and Jamie would have a bargaining tool. This man, this Jarrod, was willing to bargain now. Should he accept?

Something occurred to him. If part of the bargain could be that Bonnie would stay with him and they could get enough money to live well, then he might consider allowing her to keep her child. It would never be the same, though. She hated him now. "No deal, Barkley. Saddle me a horse!"

It was all Jarrod could do to keep from attacking this evil man. Although he didn’t know all of the details, it was clear to him now that Audra had not gone willingly with Radford. Jarrod felt guilty. He’d been wrong. He should have gone to the stable to check on her that day. There was nothing to be done about that now. The problem at hand was saving the baby from this man.

"Travis, the child is so young, he needs his mother. Maybe we could work something out whereby you could visit----"

Travis’ patience ran out. He switched his aim from Jarrod to Audra. "I’ll shoot her, Barkley. I swear I will, if you don’t get my horse saddled."

Audra began to weep hysterically. Jarrod believed she would as soon be shot as to have her baby taken from her. But, he didn’t feel so strongly about it. He hoped his sister would forgive him someday, hoped they could rescue the child soon, but he’d already made one serious mistake concerning Audra’s well being and he wasn’t about to make another. "All right, Travis. I’ll do as you ask."

"No, Jarrod! Don’t do it!" Audra wailed, down on her knees now. "Audra, it’s the only thing we can do right now," The eldest Barkley son said. She didn’t answer, but instead continued to cry. Jarrod left her there and began walking toward the barn. Travis again pointed the gun at him. "Make it quick," he said.

Too distraught to see why her brother wouldn’t help her, Audra considered jumping on Travis as he walked. The baby would be knocked free, but he might possibly be injured. No, she wouldn’t do that. She watched helplessly as the two men entered the barn. What could she do?

Travis Jr. was crying loudly now, but his father ignored him. He didn’t believe he could spare one second to the child. This fellow, This brother of Bonnie’s, would be watching for any opportunity to gain the upper hand. He was saddling the horse and doing it properly as far as Travis Sr. could tell. Soon, very soon, he and the baby would make their escape. And then what? Where could he go? They would put the word out just as soon as they could reach Elk Grove. He wouldn’t ride in that direction.

Jarrod worked with his mind split in two. Part of it was concentrating on the task of saddling the horse. The other part was desperately seeking a way to delay this fellow from riding off.

Audra had not entered the barn. Travis did not seem to be concerning himself that she might try something ontoward. Would she? At one time, Jarrod would have believed her capable of foiling an attempt like Travis was going to make, she would think of something, but now it just could be this man she’d spent the last months with knew her better than he did.

The horse was saddled. Now what? He would not hand the reins to this man as if giving him permission to hurt Audra in the worst way a woman could be hurt, so Jarrod, once finished, stepped aside. "I wish you would reconsider, Travis. Go on alone, if you must, but leave the child. You can’t take care of him. You’ll be doing him more harm than good."

Audra could think of nothing she could do to stop Travis without putting the baby in harm’s way. She did stop crying, though, and she found that made it easier for her to think. Without considering what she would do when she got there, she raised herself to her feet and began walking toward the barn. She heard Jarrod’s voice then, heard him presenting another argument to Travis. It would do no good. He was set on leaving, set on taking the tiny one she loved more than life, certainly more than herself.

She reached the barn just as Travis was preparing to mount the horse. "I’ll take care of my son," he said to Jarrod. He did not notice her there, but Jarrod did. Her brother said, "You had better, because if I or anyone in my family ever find out you have failed to do so, we will go hard on you."

It was a threat. A threat made because of Barkley money. Travis willed himself to ignore it and began riding the horse slowly out of the barn, the baby still across his shoulder. And then he saw her. Bonnie stood in the doorway, blocking his way. "Move out of the way, Bonnie. I don’t want to hurt you."

"You’ll have to run over me, Travis. I don’t care if I die if I can’t have my child."

Jarrod watched and wondered what he should do. Should he force Audra to move aside so that she wouldn’t get hurt? Should he allow her to stand her ground, hoping Travis wouldn’t have the nerve to run her down and there would still be a chance to rescue the baby?

"Bonnie, I said move!" Travis yelled. Damn woman! The horse could trample her if he put the spurs to it now.

"No, Travis, I won’t move."

Jarrod waited. He wanted to give Audra’s try at delaying the man a chance to work. It wouldn’t work for long, of course. They couldn’t stop him, unless violence was used and then the result might be the baby being badly injured. His sister remained in the doorway. The horse was prancing around now, nervous due to the yelling and the woman who would not move from in front of it.

He did not want to hurt her. He’d loved her----but he loved the baby more. "Bonnie, this is your last warning, MOVE!"

She did not move, but stood still as a statue. Then, she saw Travis spur the horse. The animal reared in front of her, no more wanting to step on her than she wanted it to, but it was being asked to go forward. Finally, it did so.

Jarrod rushed in. "Audra!" he yelled, reaching her and pushing her out of the way. She wasn’t injured but he lost his balance and fell. The horse stepped hard on his left leg just above the knee.

Travis rode on, Travis Jr. crying on his shoulder. The sound of it echoed in Audra’s ears.

Nick and Heath reached the spot where they had left the main path earlier in the day. They both recognized it and stopped their horses. "This is it," Nick said.

"Yea. I guess we start diggin’. Get this over with," Heath responded.

"Yep," Nick agreed and dismounted as his brother did the same. They led their mounts to the gravesite. The moon was still bright and clear above. There were no clouds.

"Well, here’s hopin’ we don’t find anybody we know," Heath said, when he had untied the shovel from Charger’s saddle.

"Yea, here’s hopin’." And they went to work throwing aside the dirt which had so recently been filled in over the remains of James Radford. They dug in silence, each saying silent prayers that they weren’t about to discover the remains of their beloved sister. As it happened, the box holding the body of James had not been buried very deep. With both men working fast, they soon reached it.

"Here it is," Heath said.

"Looks home made," Nick observed.

"That means whoever it is probably didn’t spend any time in an undertaker’s parlor," Heath commented.

"Yep, that’s what it means," Nick agreed. "Let’s see if we can open it."

Heath did the honors while Nick watched. The younger man pulled open the lid of the box.

"Not her," he said simply.

"Thank God," Nick acknowledged, letting out his breath slowly.

Able to think more rationally now that they had assured themselves it wasn’t their sister buried in the grave, they studied the face of the man who was. "From the way it looks to me," Nick began, "He resembles that fellow we met here today."

"Could be a brother," Heath said. "No wonder the man was upset."

"Yea. Let’s close it up, fill in the dirt and get out of here." And then they heard the noise.

"What’s that?" Nick wondered.

"Sounds like a horse poundin’ his hooves on the ground, if you ask me," Heath replied. "Yea, but there’s somethin’ else there, too. Listen, Heath."

"I hear it. Sounds like a baby cryin’. Can’t be, don’t reckon."

"Wouldn’t think so out here this time of night. Sure sounds like it, though."

The baby would not stop crying. Travis, desperate to get as far away from the farm as possible, was frustrated beyond measure that the child wouldn’t be quiet. Would he cry for hours? Surely not. He would wear himself out and go to sleep. Surely, he would. But he must be hungry, and there was nothing to feed him. "What have I done?" Travis asked himself aloud. "And what am I gonna do now?"

Without giving it much thought, Travis signaled his horse to halt. The animal obeyed. The child continued to cry. It was getting on Travis’ nerves now in the worst way. He shifted the baby down in his arms. "Now listen to your Daddy. I’ll get milk for you soon. Stop cryin’ now. Do you hear me, stop cryin’!"

When they could no longer hear horse hooves coming their way, but the sound of a man’s voice, coupled with what they knew for certain now was the cry of a baby, Nick and Heath had grabbed the reins of their horses and moved quickly to hide in nearby shrub. "What the hell?" Nick whispered.

"Beats me," Heath responded. "I know I don’t like the sound of it."

"I think it’s that same fellow we talked to out here this mornin’," Nick said.

Heath nodded. "Me, too. He’ll see the grave’s been disturbed. We’d best get out of here."

"Let’s wait, see what he does," Nick suggested.

"Nick, if he comes to the grave and one of our horses snorts or somethin’, he’s gonna go on the alert."

"Listen, he’s movin’ again."

The baby had calmed some when Travis changed his position. He was still whimpering, but not crying like he had been. It was time to move on. He said to the child. "I want to say good-bye to your Uncle Jamie. I might never get back this way."

And so he rode on to the gravesite, cradling Travis Jr. in one arm.

Nick and Heath peered out from behind the shrub. They could see the fellow now, and, they could see the baby he held. They observed as he came close enough to see the disturbed grave.

And then they heard the explosion of angry words which came out of his mouth. "Somebody’s been here and messed with Jamie’s grave! Damn! I’ll just bet it was those two I caught here earlier! Who the hell are they?"

The Barkley brothers watched as the man dismounted and knelt, baby in arms, by the grave.Then they heard him utter something very bizarre. "I can’t take it, little boy. I can’t take anymore. I’m goin’ on alone. I’ll leave you here with Uncle Jamie."

The Barkleys looked at each other. They both believed they had heard a man say he intended to bury a baby. They neither one knew if he meant to kill the child first or bury it alive, but they knew they couldn’t waste a second in case he intended to kill it. They jumped out from behind the shrub. "Hold it right there!" Nick yelled.

Travis Radford was startled out of the shocked state he’d been about to slip into. Confusion, weariness and anger had mixed to nearly cause him to do something very foolish. At the sound of Nick’s voice, he came to himself. He grabbed the baby, quickly mounted his horse and rode off in the moonlit night.

Heath grabbed Nick’s arm. "Don’t shoot! You might hit the little one!"

Chapter 11

Pain like he could not recall the likes of shot through Jarrod’s leg. In fact, his entire body ached as if in sympathy with the injured portion. Several minutes after the dramatic departure of Travis and the baby, he still lay where he had fallen. His sister had not come to his side. Instead, she remained where she had fallen when he pushed her out of harm’s way.

"Audra," he managed to say. "Are you hurt?"

"No, but my baby is gone," she muttered, barely loud enough for him to hear. He felt a bit panicky. He could not function on his own, he was sure of it, could not walk to get help for himself. From the sound of her voice and the looks of her, Audra was badly dazed. He had to get through to her.

"Audra, would you mind helping me get up? Perhaps you could help me to get inside your house. My leg is injured."

"You didn’t help me, Jarrod. He looks just like you, and you didn’t help me."

The panicky feeling intensified. And so did the guilt he had felt since the day this lovely young woman disappeared. On top of everything he already blamed himself for, Audra now blamed him for allowing her baby to be taken away from her. Perhaps the physical pain he now suffered was a just punishment. "I’m sorry, Audra. There was too much danger to the baby. Anything I might have tried would have possibly resulted in his being injured. Or you."

"It doesn’t matter about me!" She exclaimed, getting up at last and walking over to him. "Don’t you understand?"

"I understand that time is wasting. We need to notify the authorities about what has happened. And I need a doctor. Only you, Audra, can do those things. My leg is broken, I’m almost certain."

This was her brother. This was Jarrod, someone she’d always loved dearly. Audra got to her feet and walked over and knelt beside him. "Jarrod, I’m sorry. All right, I’ll help you. Can you stand?"

He tried to smile. "Not without a sturdy shoulder to lean on."

Her face was streaked with tears. She nodded. "I’m stronger than I was the last time you saw me, Jarrod. I’ve worked in the fields."

Jarrod winced and not from the pain in his leg. Evidently his sister had led a hard life since he’d last seen her. "Audra, what happened? Why were you called Bonnie by that man?"

"He said that was my name, said we’d been married a while, said we’d left Arizona to come to California. He said I was raised in an orphanage, Jarrod. He lied to me! Didn’t tell me who I really was!"

She began to sob. And as much as Jarrod wanted to get his leg attended to, wanted to get up off of the hard, cold ground, he cradled her as best he could and allowed her to cry.

Nick stood as if ready to shoot for quite some time, long after the man with the baby rode away. Heath also stared after the man. Finally, the younger of the Barkley brothers spoke. "Nick, you might as well put the gun away. He’s gone."

"I’m wonderin’ if we should ride after him," Nick said. "None of our business what he’s up to."

"Hearin’ a fella say he was thinkin’ about buryin’ a baby kinda makes it our business, don’t you think?"

"No, I don’t," Heath replied. "Besides, if we follow the man and he sees us, it might cause him to do harm to the baby he wouldn’t otherwise. Now, let’s finish fillin’ in this grave and ride back to Elk Grove for the night."

Nick grumbled in agreement and they went to work shoveling the dirt back in to cover the box in the grave. Neither man said anything until they were finished. At that point, Heath said, "Well, that’s it. Let’s ride. I don’t care if I never see this place again."

"Yea, I know what you mean, but Heath-----"

"Yea?"

"I keep thinkin’ about that little one. Don’t you?"

Heath scowled, then sighed. "Nick, it’s none of your business. Sure, I’m thinkin’ about the child, but we’ve done enough damage around here already."

"I don’t like to think of it as damage," Nick said. "If we can’t help Audra, maybe we can help somebody else."

"The man’s long gone, Nick!"

"Yea, but where did he come from? He must live around here someplace. Let’s look for a house."

"Do you know what time it is, Nick?"

"Oh, pretty late, maybe eleven or so."

"And do you think somebody would be wantin’ visitors at this hour?"

"If they’re missin’ a baby, they might," Nick said.

"Missin’ a baby?"

"Look, Heath, that man was in no shape to be takin’ care of a baby. He might have run off with it. Did ya ever think of that?"

Heath hesitated. "As a matter of fact, I did."

"Then let’s find the nearest house."

The sight of Jamie’s disturbed grave stayed in Travis’ mind as he rode through the night. He wanted to go back and take on those two men in the worst way, but of course he couldn’t do that. No, he could never return to the farm. It made him want to bawl, and, it made him want to vomit. He was suddenly sick of life. Never had things gone right for him, and now he was in the worst mess of all.

There was one good thing. Travis Jr. had stopped crying. In fact, he was so quiet, his Daddy grew concerned about him. Feeling fairly confident now that no one was following him, he stopped to take a good look at his son. Gently taking the tiny bundle from his shoulder, he laid him down in his arms. He then pulled the cover which was around the infant away. Sleeping. Yes, at last, the child was sleeping soundly. This worked as encouragement to Travis and, placing the child on his shoulder as before, he rode on.

It felt good to cry in a loved one’s arms. Audra did so for several minutes before she pushed back from Jarrod. "I’m so sorry, Jarrod. I should be getting you help. I’ll ride to Elk Grove."

"I wish you didn’t have to, Honey, but I don’t see any other way," her brother said. "But if you’d rather wait until daylight, I think I’ll be all right. If you have some whisky----"

"No, I don’t. That was one vice Travis and Jamie didn’t have. They didn’t drink."

"Jamie?"

"Travis’ brother. He, uh, died recently."

"Would that happen to be his grave out there on the hillside?"

"Yes."

"I see. Well, Audra, help me inside, then we’ll decide what to do next."

"I’ll go to town," she said forcefully. "I need to get you help so that we can look for my baby as soon as possible."

Jarrod struggled against the pain to stand up, Audra supporting him. He’d learned enough about her life since her disappearance to understand some things, but there was still something unclear to him. He asked as he hopped along on one leg toward the house.

"Audra, you said Travis didn’t tell you who you were. Does that mean you had amnesia?"

"Yes, but I don’t know what happened, really. They said I was kicked by a horse on the way out from Arizona. My memory only goes back a year."

"Yes, well it’s been just a year since you disappeared. I’ll bet you were kicked by a horse, Audra, but it happened in the stable in Stockton that day. You went to town with me. We never saw you again."

She shook her head. "I just don’t remember, Jarrod. I can’t think of anything but my baby."

"And we’ll find him. We’ll find him."

"I don’t know why I let you talk me into these things," Heath grumbled, as he and his brother rode across the terrain, searching for a house by moonlight.

"Because you know, this time, at least, that it’s the right thing to do," Nick said. "I just hope we can find where that man came from."

"And then do what, Nick?"

"Just assure ourselves that baby will be safe."

"I don’t see as how---" Heath began, then stopped speaking. "Nick, look! There’s a house in the distance."

Nick peered in the direction his brother pointed. "I see it. Looks as though they still have a light. Let’s get there!"

They spurred their horses to a gallop and made haste to reach the house. As they drew closer to it, Nick held up his hand to indicate he wanted to slow up a bit. "No need ridin’ in like a posse," he said. "Don’t want to scare anybody.’ Heath only nodded, as he slowed Charger to match Coco’s gait. Soon, they were close enough to see the barn, and shortly after that, they were close enough to see a horse tied behind it. They rode up to the animal without speaking.

"My God, Heath, this is Jingo!" Nick said, dismounting quickly."Jarrod has to be close here somewhere."

"Maybe in the house," Heath speculated. "I wonder if he met up with that crazy man?"

"Let’s find out," said Nick. They tied their horses next to Jingo and began walking toward the small house which had become the center of activity. They hadn’t quite reached the porch when the door opened and they could see a woman framed there.

"Heath," Nick began, "Is that-----?

"It is, it’s Audra!" Heath exclaimed. And then she saw them.

Jarrod, who had been assisted into the house by his sister and led to a bed on which to lie down, heard Audra yell. His first inclination was that Travis had returned. He didn’t know if that was good or bad. Had the man done something to the child? Returned without him? But then other voices could be heard. When Jarrod realized he recognized them, he added his own voice to the mix. "Nick! Heath! Is that you?"

Outside, Audra could not believe the sight that had greeted her. Two men were approaching the house when she stepped out of the door. To her shock, she heard them calling her name, and then it dawned on her the callers were her brothers, Nick and Heath. She ran to them. Nick caught her up in his arms and then turned her over to Heath. "Audra, where have you been?" Heath asked.

"It’s, uh, a long story, Heath."

Nick made an assumption. "Audra, that’s Jarrod’s horse out back of the barn. I guess he found you, too."

"Yes, but he’s hurt, Nick. I was just going for the doctor. And----"

"Hurt!" Nick exclaimed. "How?"

"Audra, what were you going to say?" Heath pressed.

"My baby," she began to cry. Nick and Heath glanced at each other over their sister’s head. "Baby?" the older of them said.

"What about a baby, Audra?"

And then they heard Jarrod calling to them.

Quickly, the three of them went inside. Audra led Nick and Heath to Jarrod. "Pappy, what the hell happened here?" Nick roared. "Your leg-----"

"It’s broken, Nick," Jarrod began an explanation. "I need a doctor. And Audra needs help."

"Somethin’ about a baby?" Heath asked, believing he knew where the child was.

"My baby was taken by, well, it’s a long story," Audra sobbed.

"We saw him leave," Heath told her. "I’ll go after him."

"Wait, Heath!" Jarrod spoke up. "He’s, uh, armed, and it’s his baby, too. He won’t give the child up easily. I couldn’t keep him from taking him, that’s how I got hurt."

"Jarrod got hurt protecting me," Audra said softly.

"Never mind all that," Nick said. "Audra, where, I mean---"

"Nick, go get a doctor!" Heath interrupted. "I’ll go after the man. I know which way he went."

"Yea, I’ll come later," Nick said.

Heath started out the door, turned back and said to his sister. "Sis, I don’t know what happened to you all this time, but I’ll get your baby. Don’t worry."

"Be careful, Heath," she said. "And thank you."

Travis Radford was weary. He didn’t believe he could stay in the saddle much longer. He had very much wanted to reach Galt by daybreak, but now he didn’t think it was a good idea to make the effort. He reigned in his horse and dismounted, jostling his son as little as possible. The baby remained quiet, and Travis didn’t want to set him to crying again.

How long could such a tiny baby live without nourishment, he wondered, as he lowered himself next to a tree. It had been a mistake to leave without at least bringing a blanket to keep the child warm. Would he never learn to do anything right? When he reached Galt, he would have to get milk for the child, get diapers, get------It was overwhelming. But he couldn’t turn back. He would find a way. No one was going to take this baby away from him.

After Heath’s departure, Nick lingered a bit. "Jarrod, is there anything I can do for you before I ride to Elk Grove? Audra’s seems-------"

"Yes, she does," Jarrod interrupted. Their sister was standing at the front door watching after Heath. She could not hear what was being said in the bedroom. "She’s been through hell, I’m afraid. She’s had amnesia."

"Amnesia!" Nick said in a loud whisper.

"Yes. This man, Travis, told her they were married. He called her Bonnie. The child is only a few days old."

"My God," Nick said.

"Nick, get going. When you get the doctor on his way here, then ride after Heath. Which way did Travis go?"

"South."

"Then ride South. Heath might need your help."

Nick nodded, patted Jarrod on the shoulder and headed for the door.

Audra did not seem to notice her tall, handsome brother, a brother she’d turned to for comfort and help many times in her life. Nick spoke to her. "I’m going for the doctor, Audra. Then I’ll ride to catch up with Heath, help him-----well, help him if he needs it."

"Bring my baby home, Nick," she murmered. "Bring him home, but------"

"But what, Honey?"

"Just be careful."

"I will," he said, then bent down to kiss the girl who, deep down in his heart, he’d felt certain was dead.

Heath attempted to get his bearings as he rode South away from the Radford farm. It wasn’t that he didn’t know which direction he was going. He did. So much had happened in the last few hours, however, so much had changed and was still changing. Audra was alive! that was the important thing. But she was quite distraught. Her baby had been taken from her. And Jarrod was injured, but thank heavens the injury wasn’t life threatening.

What if Nick and I hadn’t stopped to talk to that man today? Heath thought. What if we hadn’t returned to see who was in that grave? Jarrod and Audra wouldn’t have been located, and the man might have gotten a much greater head start on anyone who might have eventually followed him. "He has a head start on me," Heath said aloud. "But he won’t get away. He has Audra’s baby and I intend to get him back for her."

Nick pushed Coco as hard as he dared. He hoped he could find a doctor who would attend to Jarrod tonight. There were advantages to having a recognizable name. Surely, there were those in Elk Grove who’d heard of the Barkleys from Stockton. He planned to take advantage of the recognition. And then he would make haste to locate Heath before----before what? Nick wished he knew more about the man they were pursuing. He couldn’t be much of a man if he would ride off with an infant, take it away from its mother. "Take care, Heath. Take care of yourself until I can join you."

Travis held his son, his heir, close to him to keep him warm. He set his gun against the tree on which he, too, leaned. A little sleep would do wonders for him. He glanced at the child again. He was not asleep, but was very quiet. Unnaturally quiet, Travis thought, but was too tired to worry about it. He dropped off.

Heath began to experience difficulty staying alert. He was bone weary. Thinking about it, he realized he’d had quite a time since last getting any sleep. Charger had thrown a shoe and there had been the long walk. Then, they had ridden back to the farm where they had encountered the man he now knew had Audra’s baby. There had been the grave digging, the ride to the house, the discovery of Audra and an injured Jarrod, and now this ride long after he should be in bed.

It would certainly be better if he wasn’t alone, and Heath wished Nick could have come with him. Jarrod needed help, though, and it was best for one of them to go for a doctor. Would the man he was searching for continue riding through the night with a baby in his arms? Did he have somewhere to stop, some plan in mind? There wasn’t much between here and Galt, and that was some ten miles ahead yet. What if the fellow was already stopped for the night? In that case, Heath realized, he might just pass the man by and not know it.

"Charger, ole boy," Heath suddenly said to his mount. "Let’s you and me stop and think this over. I think it would be better to wait until dawn to ride on."

After he had dismounted and thought it over more, Heath decided he would make his stop permanent until morning. His chances of running across the fellow in the dark were slim. He would be rested then, and more able to think things through. He pulled his sleeping bag from his saddle, tied Charger to a tree and settled down. He fell asleep immediately.

The doctor had arrived just as Jarrod believed he could stand the pain no longer. It was the middle of the night now. He had hoped to engage Audra in conversation to help pass the time and take his mind off of the persistant pain in his leg, but his sister was unresponsive to most all of his questions. She stood by the window, peering out. Despite his own discomfort, Jarrod felt terribly sorry for her.

"Well, young fellow, I wish I could do this in my office, but I brought along what I need to do it here. I’m gonna put you out of your misery for a bit while I operate. When you come around, you’ll be fixed up in a cast."

Jarrod wished he didn’t have to go through this just now, felt like he was leaving Audra alone, but there was nothing to be done about it. "Very well, Doctor. I’m ready when you are."

Victoria awoke rested and ready to move on. Just as she knew he would, Silas appeared when she was ready to depart. "Silas, were you able to get a good night’s rest?"

"Yes, Miz Barkley, and everything is ready to go when you are."

"Then, let’s be on our way."

Audra’s dream was a sweet one. Her son was reaching out his arms to her from his bed. There was a smile on his tiny face. But then, she woke up and realized the baby wasn’t with her. She had fallen asleep in the chair next to Jarrod’s bed. Quickly, she glanced at her brother and found him sleeping peacefully. The doctor had repaired the break and put a cast on Jarrod’s leg. Just before dropping off, her eldest sibling told her he wasn’t in much pain.

"I am, Jarrod. I am in pain. It’s a different kind than yours, but pain."

Earlier, Jarrod had asked her to go out and take care of Jingo. He wanted her to stable and feed his beloved horse. She had done so while the doctor operated. On the way out, she had found her brother’s gun on the ground where he had thrown it at the request of Travis. She picked it up and brought it inside with her. It was laying, loaded, on the table next to the bed. What if? No, she couldn’t do that, couldn’t leave Jarrod alone. There was nothing she could do but wait. But how much longer could she stand to wait? If she took the gun, saddled a well rested Jingo------No. No, she couldn’t and shouldn’t do that.

The quiet of his son brought Travis out of a deep sleep. At least, that was his first thought when he opened his eyes. This child should be crying from hunger now, shouldn’t he? He should be very angry that his mother wasn’t feeding him, should be protesting loudly. He surely was uncomfortable, perhaps cold, although Travis had tried to keep him warm. Why wasn’t the boy crying?

Afraid of what he might find, Travis slowly pulled the cover back from the baby’s face. He was alive. Of course he was alive! This baby was a survivor, was Travis Radford Jr. Yes, he was alive, but he was so quiet. His eyes were open but they didn’t move much, showed no expression. Travis felt panicky. Obviously, his son was suffering. He wasn’t crying because he didn’t have the strength to cry.

"Hang on, boy! I’m going to get you something to eat!"

Angry with himself, Nick rushed to get under way again. It had been very late by the time he found a doctor in Elk Grove and got the fellow on his way to Jarrod at the farm. Extremely weary by then, he nevertheless rode south for quite a distance. He just could not stay awake, however, and decided to take a nap and also rest his horse. Now, here he was waking up and it was almost daylight.

"You should have nudged me, Coco. Now we gotta get goin’ or we’ll never catch up to Heath."

Heath came awake as quickly as he went to sleep. At first, he failed to recognize his surroundings, so soundly had he slept. When he did recall where he was and why he leaped to his feet, rolled up his sleeping bag, spoke soothingly to Charger, and mounted the horse. He needed a cup of coffee in the worst way, but it would have to wait. There was Audra’s baby to find.

Heading south again, Heath rode slowly. Something told him the fellow with the infant wasn’t far away, that he, too, had spent the night close by.

The first thing Jarrod noticed was that his leg felt heavy. Oh yes, it had a cast on it. And then the events of the evening before came back in a rush. His leg was broken and he was left here to wait and wonder and worry. He began to do so immediately. He wondered where Nick was, where Heath was, wondered if either of them had encountered Travis Radford and the baby yet.

Thinking of the baby caused him to wonder where Audra was. Surely, she was only in the other room of the house. He called her name. There was no answer. And then he began to worry in earnest.

Victoria and Silas rode north in silence. The Barkley matriarch’s feeling that her daughter was going to be found alive had intensified this morning. Why? Was Audra close by? The feeling was so strong, she almost asked Silas to stop so that she could get out and search on foot. Of course, that would be foolish. Wouldn’t it? Silas spoke, "Mis Barkley, I think I heard somethin’ ahead of us. Could be a rider comin’."

She listened. "Yes, I hear it, Silas."

"Hope they’re friendly," Silas ventured.

Victoria held the same hope as her servant, but she kept her counsel. The sound of a horse’s hooves came closer. And then the animal with a man on his back was upon them. Victoria noticed immediately the man had something which, at first glance, looked very much like a baby on his shoulder. He also appeared not to want to greet her. As soon as he saw the buckboard, he veered his horse off to the side of the road.

"Good morning," Victoria said. She did not ask Silas to stop and so he did not do so. The man nodded ever so slightly, and appeared to be about to ride on. But then, when he was almost past the buckboard, he seemed to change his mind. "Good morning," he said, stopping his horse. "I wonder if I might ask you something?"

Surprised to be addressed by the man after his initial reluctance to even speak, Victoria signalled Silas to stop the buckboard. "Yes, of course," she replied to his request. She believed the fellow was anxious or nervous about something. Up close, the bundle on his shoulder definitely appeared to be a baby. Was something amiss here?

"I was wonderin’ if you knew of anyplace where I could get some milk for my son," said the man.

Definitely something wrong here, Victoria thought. She did not let on to the man. "Well, I do not know this territory very well, Mr. uh-----"

"Look, Ma’am, my baby is hungry. I can’t find milk for him. I think he’s sick, I----"

"Silas, hand me down, would you, please?" Victoria said to the driver of the buckboard.

"Yes, Ma’am," Silas said, and quickly laid down the reins and jumped to the ground.

Once Victoria placed her feet on the ground, she walked over to the stranger. "Would you like for me to take a look at him?" The fellow had not told her his name. That could mean nothing, orit could mean he was hiding something. The baby was quiet, not a whimper was coming from him.

Travis did not want to give up the baby even to have this lady look at him. And yet he knew the woman was undoubtedly more capable of judging Travis Jr.’s health than he was. "Well, all right, but I think he just needs milk."

She was reaching up for the baby. He gently took the child from his shoulder and handed him down to her. Not a sound was made by the child.

Victoria took the baby. She pulled the blanket back and gazed at him. He-----My God! Struggling for control, she raised her eyes to look at the man. "You say this is your child?"

"Yes, he’s my son."

"And his mother? Where is she?"

Panicked, Travis said, "He don’t have a mother, uh, I mean, she died when he was born. Maybe you should give him back to me now."

"He’s very lethargic," Victoria said calmly. "His body temperature is low. He needs a doctor. Perhaps it would be best if I took him in the buckboard with me back to Galt."

"NO!" Travis yelled. "Give him to me! I’ll do it!"

She would not, if at all possible, hand this baby back to the man. This baby looked exactly as Jarrod had when he was born, and very much like Audra had as an infant. This baby----Was she only imagining it? Could this be Audra’s child? But the man said the mother was dead. Was this why she’d had such strong feelings lately that about her daugher? She must remain calm. "I can give him a much smoother ride, and, we have extra blankets. Silas, would you please get one of them from the back there, please?"

"Yes, Mis Barkley!"

The name Barkley registered in Travis’ mind. He moved rapidly toward the woman. She must be some of Bonnie’s kin. "Give me my son, I say!"

Victoria held on tightly to the child. This was her grandchild. She was sure of it. She didn’t know what had happened, or if the fellow was being truthful, but she wasn’t about to hand over a Barkley heir until she learned more about it. And then she saw movement in the shrubs behind the stranger.

Heath had heard voices ahead of him. Rather than ride any further, he had dismounted and proceeded on foot. Peering out now from behind the shrubs, he took in the scene. There was Mother, holding the baby, refusing to give him back to the man who had taken him from Audra.

He watched and listened for a while. He wouldn’t make himself known until need be. If Mother could keep the little one in her control until they got to Galt, he could deal with the fellow then.

Gun in hand, he remained hidden and quiet. But then the man moved in to take the baby back.

"Heath!" Victoria yelled.

Travis reeled around to see one of the men he’d talked to at Jamie’s grave yesterday. He reached for his rifle.

"Leave it there or I’ll shoot!" Heath shouted.

"Go ahead and shoot!" Travis yelled back. "I don’t care anymore. But if you shoot me, I’ll shoot the baby. If I can’t have him, no Barkley’s gonna have him!"

Victoria now knew all she needed to. This was Audra’s child! "Mister, this is evidently my grandson. He’s sick. He must be tended to. Now, if you’ve lost Audra, then you don’t want to lose your son, he-----"

"Audra’s fine, Mother," Heath said. "He took the baby from her last night. I’ve been following him ever since."

Audra was fine! Victoria could hardly believe it. But the baby was sick and in danger of being taken back by this maniac. She looked at Heath. "Put down your gun, Heath. Then, this fellow will put his away, and we can all talk rationally."

"I’m warnin’ you, Lady! I’m gonna take that baby."

Heath attempted to keep his wits about him. Mother was a tough lady and wouldn’t give up easily, but he couldn’t allow her to be hurt. "Mother, maybe-----"

"Heath!" Victoria implored. "Put down your gun!"

"If he puts the rifle down first, I will," Heath said.

"Fair enough," she agreed. "Will you do that, Mister?"

The world was tumbling in on Travis. He didn’t really know which way to turn. His son was likely to die no matter which way he decided to go now. These people, Bonnie’s people, were the cause of his pain, the way he saw it. "No, I won’t put it down. Not until I’ve finished the job."

Raising the rifle, he had every intention of trying to get a shot off at the fellow the woman called Heath, even if he got shot, and he surely would, in return. He would be out of his misery then, but, hopefully, he could cause the Barkleys enough pain to make it worth it. "I’m putting it down," he said as a decoy, but then quickly moved the gun into position to fire.

Heath saw what was happening, but did not get off a shot. The rifle fired. But not until Travis Radford was knocked to the ground by a bullet in the back from the gun of an oncoming Nick.

"Is everybody all right?" the new arrival asked.

"Yes, Dear," Victoria said. "But we must get this child help quickly. He needs nourishment."

Heath stared at the scene. Evidently, Nick had also been listening from some hidden vantage point. "Well, Nick, it’s nice to see ya."

"Nice to see you, too," Nick grinned. "And, Mother, all we need to do is take that little one back to his Momma."

"Audra?"

"Yes, Audra’s alive. Jarrod’s with her on a farm near Elk Grove."

"Then, let’s hurry," Victoria said calmly, but inside she was anything but calm.

Audra had saddled Jingo and left the farm behind. With her she carried Jarrod’s loaded pistol.

She rode swiftly, not allowing herself to think what she would do if and when she encountered Travis. She had been riding an hour or so when she heard the sound of horses approaching.

There were more than one so she assumed it was not Travis. She rode on. And then she saw them. Her family. Her brothers, her family’s servant, her mother, and-----the Barkley heir, Travis Radford Jr, the first grandchild of Tom and Victoria Barkley. She spurred Jingo and rushed to be with him, to protect him until he was old enough to protect himself.