alone would keep him alive.
In the next few seconds grief overtook Rebecca's good sense. What if Travis didn't take care of her? What if Travis decided to send her away and keep the ranch for himself? Rebecca had spent the previous evening in a happy cloud, sure that nothing could touch her secure world, but now she was alone—more so than when she had been halfway between Pennsylvania and Colorado Territory with no choice but to push on. Panic clawed at her throat, but it didn't last. Moments later, she was angry. Hannah Ellenbolt had done this. Hannah had kept her from her father, and now he was dead.
With movements that were almost vicious, Rebecca found paper and quill. The day was cloudy, so she lit a lantern, set it on her writing table, and began with a vengeance.
My eyes were so blinded, Hannah, but no longer. I can see now what you really
are. The lies I believed about my father now make me sick to my stomach. He's gone, and you're to blame! I'll never forgive you. I married a stranger! I was forced to marry my father's foreman, and all because you're a selfish, sick old woman! It's all your fault that I'm alone.
She went on for paragraphs, not meaning half of it, the words scathing and mean, but the end was near. Rebecca's mind moved to the love she always saw in her father's eyes, and with that she broke down. She crumpled the paper and threw it aside, sobbing into her folded arms.
Travis stood like a statue at the graveside of Andrew Wagner, not feeling the cold or seeing the blinding sunlight. The service had been over for an hour and still he stood, seeing his mother's grave as clearly as the one before him. Lavena had said that Rebecca's lips were turning blue and had taken her back to the house, but Travis could not make himself move. He had a beautiful wife, and he now owned a ranch, but Andrew Wagner was dead and Travis found no joy in his position. It niggled at the back of his mind that Rebecca needed him; they all needed him. He was the owner of the Double Star and they needed his stability, but right now he felt worthless.
How could You do this? he asked God for what must have been the hundredth time, but no answer came. He was going to have to go on by himself. He was going to have to be strong for everyone else, even if he was dying inside.
Another hour passed before he began the walk back. Lavena had some food ready, but he wasn't hungry. He didn't ask after Rebecca, assuming she'd gone to her room. With measured tread he moved toward Andrew's study. Like no other in the house, this room was the man himself. His presence pervaded every nook and cranny. Travis wandered the floor, not touching anything, but looking and letting his eyes caress the huge desk, fine leather chair, and simple furnishings. Another hour passed before he sat very carefully in the desk chair. His eyes slid shut with pain, and fatigue overcame him.
His wife's pain at the moment was no less than his own, but added to the hurt was fear—fear that she would be sent away and left all alone in the world. It did nothing but cause more hurt and fear when she came down an hour later and found Travis asleep in her father's chair.
Lavena thought she would scream if she had to go another day with the silence in the house. Travis and Rebecca went through the day-to-day motions, but it was as if they'd died with Andrew. Her own grief knew no bounds, but she forced herself to keep on. Three days. Could it be only three days since they'd laid him in the ground? It was amazing that they'd been able to dig the frozen earth. It looked like spring would come early, but no one took notice.
It also crossed Lavena's mind that Travis and Rebecca had been married for one week. But as they were in such obvious pain, it gave her no joy. She knew deep in her heart that they could make a go of it. The love she'd seen in their eyes for each other had given that secret away. And even though the circumstances surrounding their marriage had been
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