Rocky Mountain Dreams & Family on the Range by Danica Favorite (summer beach reads txt) π
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- Author: Danica Favorite
Read book online Β«Rocky Mountain Dreams & Family on the Range by Danica Favorite (summer beach reads txt) πΒ». Author - Danica Favorite
βGood reading?β
He looked up. βMy paβs journal. Not all of it makes sense, but I was hoping it would offer some clues as to where he might have found the silver.β
Silver. Always silver. But maybe she could get him to see reason before it caught hold of him.
βThey always claim to have found silver, but...β Annabelle shrugged. βThere are a lot of charlatans out there who will seed an old mine with a few nuggets to trick people into thinking theyβve made it big.β
She gestured around the cabin. βThis is not the home of a man who found silver. Youβve seen the mansions in town. Thatβs where the ones who strike it big live.β
Joseph closed the book and looked up at her. βI know.β He sighed, then set the book down. βBut he sent money home. More money than our family had ever seen. Iβve gotten dozens of jobs, but nothing that brought in the kind of money he sent. It had to come from somewhere.β
Even in the dim light, she could see the lines drawn across his face. Was he thinking the very thought that had occurred to her? A person didnβt get the nickname βBad Billyβ for being an upstanding citizen.
βI donβt think it was silver,β she told him in the most gentle tone possible.
The look on his face made her wish she hadnβt been the bearer of bad news. But he was fortunate to face the truth now. She looked around the room and spied a bucket on one of the crates.
βIβm going to finish picking flowers with Nugget. I found some greens that will be good to take home to Maddie. Weβve only got a few minutes longer before we need to start heading back. Otherwise, itβll get too dark to find our way home.β
Annabelle grabbed the bucket, wishing that the truth wasnβt so harsh. But that was the trouble with dreams. Believing in tales, but not having the proof to back it up, meant that disappointment was inevitable.
At least Joseph was able to see the truth sooner rather than later.
Annabelle headed back outside. Once again the light nearly blinded her. But not so much that she didnβt recognize another horse. And a man talking to Nugget.
βHello!β Annabelle waved her hand and started in their direction. The man looked up but didnβt return the wave. Instead, he took Nugget by the hand.
Annabelle quickened her pace toward Nugget and the man. βNugget!β
The closer she got to them, the more her heart thudded. Nugget was tugging against the manβs grasp.
βLet go of her!β Annabelle ran in their direction. βJoseph!β
Hopefully if the man heard that there was another man present, he would leave poor Nugget alone.
βStop!β Annabelleβs throat hurt from screaming so loud, but it distracted the man enough that Nugget was able to tear away from his grasp and run in her direction.
Annabelle gathered Nugget in her arms and started toward the cabin. The man took a step in their direction, then stopped. A quick glance over her shoulder revealed Joseph running toward them.
βWhatβs going on?β His shout spurred her to turn and run to him, clutching Nugget tightly.
βThe man...he was trying to take Nugget.β
Nugget whimpered against her bodice. Josephβs face hardened.
βGet inside the cabin and bar the door. Iβll handle this.β
Annabelle didnβt need to be told twice. This kind of lawlessness ran rampant in the mining camps and surrounding areas. Even being in town could be dangerous, but at least there, no one dared accost an innocent child.
It wasnβt until they were safe inside the cabin, the door barred, that Annabelle dared breathe. Just one more reason to want to leave. These ruffians...
Nugget lifted her head, and Annabelle realized that the childβs tears had soaked her bodice through.
βOh, sweet girl...β She smoothed Nuggetβs hair and began humming a melody she remembered from her mother. Nugget rested her head back against Annabelle, and Annabelle continued humming and rocking the little girl as she tried peering out the cracks in the wall to see if the horrible man had left.
βDonβt let him take me,β Nugget whimpered. βHeβs a bad man.β
Annabelle lifted the little girlβs head and examined her face. βDo you know him?β
Nugget nodded, then peered around at the door as if to see whether the man was coming after them.
βWho is he?β For once, Annabelle wished she would see the miners as individuals, rather than just a whole group. Maybe she would have recognized him.
The child gave a shrug, those wide eyes still focused on the door. βDunno. But he shouted at Papa a lot.β
A man who shouted at the little girlβs father a lot who just happened to be at the cabin to try to take her. No, Josephβs father wasnβt a legitimate miner. He was something far worse and more scary. How had her own father been fooled into helping this man?
Someone pounded on the door. βAnnabelle, itβs me. Joseph. Itβs safe to come out now.β
Still clutching Nugget to her, Annabelle opened the door, and Joseph gathered them in his arms. Warmth rushed all around her. She closed her eyes and breathed in deeply of a strong, earthy scent. His hard chest felt so good against her cheek, and his warm body cradled Nugget between the two of them. Safe.
βAre you all right?β
βIβmββ Before Annabelle could finish telling him they were fine, heβd taken Nugget from her grasp and was cradling her like a baby. Of course it was Nugget he was worried about, and the reason heβd gathered them in his arms. Sheβd been foolish to get wrapped up in a moment of fancy.
Fancy was what got everyone here in trouble.
βIβm sure sheβs fine,β Annabelle told him, clearing her throat, and silently applauding herself for making it sound like sheβd known who he was interested in all along. βI didnβt see any injuries, so sheβs just a little scared, thatβs all.β
He ignored her, keeping his gaze focused on Nugget. βWhat happened out there?β
βI was picking
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