Uncertain: Day 15

Word Count: 90,002

Year to Date: 90,002

Summary of Events:

After breakfast Hazel, Joseph, Ruby, Teddy, and Mr. Averill headed back to Santa Fe, where Mr. Andrews had reported Hazel missing and told the sheriff about Joseph's having served in the Confederate Army — something the sheriff wasn't pleased to hear, seeing as he'd been in the Union Army with Mr. Waller. Joseph had meant to leave before the rest of the search party from Cimarron did, but Hazel ended up telling Mr. Waller and Mr. Andrews when they'd be leaving so everyone departed at once and Joseph was verbally abused by the majority of the search party the whole trek. Back in Cimarron again Joseph was approached by the mayor, who recommended Joseph resign his position, which Joseph refused to do . . .

Excerpt of the Day:

Exactly five minutes after Mayor Vernon had left Lavern appeared in the doorway. It made Joseph wonder if Mayor Vernon’s strange head-shake had been a cue to Lavern that he’d refused to resign.

“I’m impressed,” Lavern said.

Joseph raised his eyebrows in mock intrigue.

“The tide of popular opinion regarding you has shifted completely,” Lavern said. “I can’t say you have a friend in town. You’re the enemy of everyone here.”

“At least I’ve always told the truth,” Joseph said. “That’s more’n you can say.”

“You’re the one who’s going to be run out of town,” Lavern said. “Although you’re the law now it’s not much longer you’re going to be.”

“And just what do you think you’re going to gain by running me out of town?” Joseph asked.

“I’m not running you out of town,” Lavern replied, the innocence he expressed palpably forged.

“You’re too natural at lying,” Joseph said. “You did all of this.”

“You didn’t tell them the truth,” Lavern said.

“I most certainly did,” Joseph replied. “I didn’t necessarily put it all into words, which I ought to have, but what you told them wasn’t the truth. You told them what suited you, not the truth, and there’s a difference.”

“You wish there was,” Lavern sneered.

“There is you two-bit liar,” Joseph spat, standing up. “I was the one that didn’t want to fight in that bloody war. You couldn’t get enough of it. You loved it. You are everything you described me as. And I am going to prove it to these people, not only to clear my own name, but to have served to you what’s some ten years overdue.”

“Are you still jealous that I managed to get promoted higher than you did in one fell swoop?” Lavern asked. “Oh grow up you overseer’s whelp.”

“Like I cared,” Joseph spat. “I didn’t want to be in that war anyways. But fear is an awful effective motivator.”

“You’d think it would motivate you to leave before you’re forced out,” Lavern quipped.

“I was here first,” Joseph replied. “And you ain’t making me go anywhere.”

“We’ll see about that,” Lavern replied.

Immediately he turned and strode away.

“We will,” Joseph said to the empty room, and Deputy, who was sleeping in his usual corner, tired out after all the walking he’d put in over the past week.

Based on Lavern’s comments Joseph was hopeful. He was hopeful that Lavern didn’t suspect he still had that proof after all these years, and that he meant to find a way to use it.

In fact, Joseph wondered if he shouldn’t bring it out from where he had it hidden and see what he could do to get some more proof, some reliable voices, to back up his own.

Next Post: February 2.

Uncertain: Day 14

Word Count: 84,060

Summary of Events:

Joseph, Hazel, and Mr. Averill arrived in the town where the trapper lived very late; so all they did was find a place to stay the night. The next morning they sought out the sheriff, who led them to the home of the trapper, where they found the children, who initially mistook Hazel for their mother before recoiling upon her informing them she was their aunt. As Joseph learned from the trapper, Ruby and Teddy had run away out of fear of Hazel after having met an aunt of their mother's pupils who had frightened them severely. After talking with the trapper Joseph discovered Hazel still not having success convincing the children to come to New Jersey with her, and so took Hazel aside to ask her why her husband couldn't come out to Cimarron to stay with her and the children until they were finished grieving before taking them to New Jersey, only to have Mrs. Chalmers inform him that her husband was dead . . .

Excerpt of the Day:

“Why you miserable prude,” Joseph spat.

Mrs. Chalmers looked startled.

“When we was at Yates Creek you went up one side’a me and down the other ‘cause I’d just assumed everyone in Cimarron would figure out I was a Confederate because I never denied their accusations of as much,” Joseph said, his voice trembling with barely-restrained rage. “Yet here you’ve been the whole time talking about yourself as Mrs. Chalmers and just assuming I’d figure out that you was widowed.”

“Why else would I have come out west unescorted?” Mrs. Chalmers asked.

“Eastern men is businessmen,” Joseph replied coldly. “They don’t necessarily have time to drop everything and come out west for a few days or weeks to track down their wives’ nieces and nephews. You said your husband worked for the police. Crime don’t take no vacation, so why should men in the business of stopping it?”

“Not every crime is a murder,” Mrs. Chalmers replied.

“I’ll give you that much,” Joseph snapped. “But I ain’t cutting you no slack for upbraiding me for assuming things about people when you done did the same thing back to me again. If’n you’re going to preach the sermon you’d better be doing what it says, after all, there’s a saying I’ve heard what says actions speak louder’n words.”

Mrs. Chalmers lowered her head contritely. Joseph relished in seeing the action, seeing how she’d been the one upbraiding him and tearing him down for most anything she could find for the most part since she’d arrived in town. 

In light of all the condemnations thrown at him thanks to Lavern’s efforts it actually felt extra good to know that someone regretted what they’d done to him and recognised that he was right on something.

“I’m sorry,” Mrs. Chalmers said quietly. “I’m sorry for assuming that you would know I was widowed by the fact that I was unescorted and not wearing a wedding band, and I am especially sorry to have upbraided you for having complacently assumed only to be proven false when I was, myself, complacently assuming, only to have now, in this moment, been proven false. Will you forgive me?”

Joseph startled. The last time he’d heard those four words they’d been wheedled out of Irene by Ma because Irene had followed him and Odelia off to their secret talking spot before proceeding to laugh at their conversation.

Now he was actually being asked to forgive someone who’d not had to be coerced to ask; someone who was really, truly, genuinely contrite, without Ma there giving him a look that told him she expected him to say yes just as much as she’d expected Irene to ask for his forgiveness — even though neither had really wanted to make things up to each other.

He didn’t know what to do. He’d never been genuinely asked by someone for forgiveness. Mrs. Chalmers’ green eyes gazed at him expectantly. Joseph felt on the verge of panicking, but it wasn’t like he could ask Ma for help anyways, she’d been dead eleven years now.

“I’ll think about it,” Joseph finally said.

Uncertain: Day 13

Word Count: 78,016

Summary of Events:

At the meeting the night before it'd been decided that Hazel wouldn't help with searching for the children, and so was sitting in her hotel room thinking; she decided that she was going to go search out Joseph after lunch. Joseph, however, arrived at the hotel and found Hazel was staying there under Mr. Andrews' name — which upset him — he took her to the sheriff's office and updated her on what he'd learned before they and the deputy of Santa Fe, Mr. Averill, headed for where Joseph had been told the children were. As they rode Mr. Averill asked Hazel a fair bit about Ruby, Teddy, and Felicity, seeing as he hadn't been too long in Santa Fe, and they got to speculating how the children wouldn't have caught tuberculosis from their mother . . .

Excerpt of the Day:

“Was your sister a charitable woman?” Mr. Averill asked Hazel. “As in, did she do a lot to help other people?”

“Oh yes,” Hazel replied. “That’s why she wanted to teach.”

“So is it possible your sister knew of someone with tuberculosis and was helping them, but knew she was at risk to catch the disease and had her children in the care of this other woman before she even came down with it?” Mr. Averill asked.

“It sounds perfectly logical to me,” Hazel replied. “Although I don’t see why she would have put herself in such risk, considering that she had children who were at risk of becoming orphans if she did. I don’t see it being worth the sacrifice.”

Mr. Averill nodded.

Hazel struggled to keep herself from falling apart. To think that Felicity would’ve knowingly exposed herself to a deadly disease when her children had no other family that they knew. It didn’t seem fair to the children.

“Especially so close,” Hazel said. “To so much more death.”

“I don’t follow Mrs. Chalmers,” Mr. Averill said quietly.

Hazel pulled out her handkerchief and dabbed at her eyes furiously, but the more she dried up tears the more they came, the more they flowed and blurred her vision.

“I’m sorry Mrs. Chalmers,” Mr. Averill said. “I shouldn’t have kept talking about it.”

Hazel shook her head. “It’s not your fault,” she mouthed more than spoke.

“If you say so,” Mr. Averill said.

“Would you like us to stop?” Mr. Sheldon asked.

Again Hazel shook her head. Rocky would follow them even if she wasn’t steering him. He’d be fine.

“Whoa,” Hazel heard Mr. Sheldon say softly, but it sounded to be on the other side of her than he’d been before. She felt Rocky stop underneath her.

There were sounds of dismounting, then hands lightly at her waist.

“Come here Mrs. Chalmers,” Mr. Sheldon said quietly.

His hands grasped her waist securely and he actually lifted her out of the saddle before embracing her gently against himself.

Hazel admittedly felt a measure of relief to not have to try and hold herself in the saddle and try to cry. She leaned against Mr. Sheldon and sobbed, inhaling breaths scented of horses, wood and tobacco smoke, sweat, and woods.

There was nothing said for a long time. Although Hazel sobbed, she put a concentrated effort into stopping that didn’t initially have much effect, but eventually she was able to stop crying and recover herself.

She pushed away from Mr. Sheldon and dabbed at her eyes to dry them.

Even though she could do it herself, she let Mr. Sheldon help her into the saddle before getting back into his own and going back to the other side of Mr. Averill.

“I’m terribly sorry,” Hazel said.

“Think nothing of it,” Mr. Averill said. “You’re grieving a profound loss. And I can’t speak for Mr. Sheldon, but I personally know it’s very hard to lose a sibling, especially one you’re close to. Cry all you want. I think crying does eventually actually help it feel better.”

Uncertain: Day 12

Word Count: 72,055

Summary of Events:

Hazel had dinner with Mr. Andrews, during which he talked so long he hardly ate, not to mention they lost track of the time and Hazel was the only one of them who was able to get to the meeting Mr. Waller had arranged to have, although she was grateful to be away from Mr. Andrews. The next morning a local widow came to the sheriff's office and told Joseph and the sheriff that a trapper who stayed in her rooming house had returned from checking his traps with two children; Joseph meant to find out if Hazel was in town and bring her to find the children. On his way, though, Joseph ran into his fiancée's father who was not impressed with Joseph and spewed a torrent of angry words at him . . .

Excerpt of the Day:

Joseph went into the livery and crept silently to Tempest’s stall. The gelding nickered to him. Joseph tried to smile, but he couldn’t really, nor could he bring himself to speak without being afraid he was going to burst into sobs.

He wrapped his arms around the horse’s neck and leaned his head against the soft coat. He let a few tears crest the edge of his eyelids and track down his cheeks. No one could ever claim that words didn’t hurt.

After a few minutes Joseph felt a little bit relieved and dried his eyes. He heard footsteps stop behind him and turned around calmly.

“Can I help you sir?” the liveryman asked.

Joseph opened his mouth, but then he closed it. He didn’t need to ask about how full the stables were. Eustace wouldn’t be here unless the rest of the search party was. He knew the answer to his question, but that didn’t mean he didn’t have a different one.

“If a person from England was to come down here to Santa Fe,” Joseph said. “No matter how unlikely it might seem to you that such a thing would happen, where do you think they’d choose to spend their night?”

“A person from England?” the liveryman asked. “Do you mean a rich one or a poor one?”

“A rich one,” Joseph replied.

“Well, every rich person in town stays at the Conquistador,” the liveryman replied.

“Conquistador,” Joseph repeated.

“It’s the finest hotel in town, built out of brick and everything,” the liveryman said.

Joseph nodded. “Thank you.”

The liveryman nodded back and turned away, but then stopped and turned around to look at Joseph again. “You wouldn’t happen to be looking for a lady from England, would you?”

“Why?” Joseph asked.

“There was a lady with a strange accent who came in here to board her horse,” the liveryman replied. “Had perfect English, but I’ve never heard her kind of accent before. I usually hear Spanish, or your accent.”

Joseph slipped out of the stall. “Where’s the horse?”

“Here,” the liveryman replied, indicating a stall.

Immediately Joseph strode over and looked inside. Looking back at him was a stocky-built grey horse he recognised immediately as Rocky, Denton’s only sidesaddle-trained horse. Mrs. Chalmers was here.

“Thank you very much,” Joseph said to the liveryman.

“You’re very welcome,” the liveryman replied.

With that, Joseph strode off for the Conquistador Hotel. He could just take Mrs. Chalmers with him on the trip to where, according to Mrs. Lewis, Ruby and Teddy Dirk waited for them.

Uncertain: Day 11

Word Count: 66,015

Summary of Events:

Joseph and the sheriff of Santa Fe canvassed businesses in the town to see if they'd seen a trapper with two children accompanying him, but didn't get any leads. Hazel and the search party arrived in Santa Fe and everyone dispersed to find accommodation; to Hazel's dismay Mr. Andrews seemed intent to have her stay in the same hotel as he was, despite her efforts to separate from him . . .

Excerpt of the Day:

Hazel kept slightly back of Mr. Andrews and was disappointed to see that he was checking over his shoulder at her every few seconds. He meant to keep her close at hand whether she wanted to be close at hand or not.

Still, she managed to slow down until she was probably a good half-length behind him before he brought his horse around to ride alongside her.

“Your horse must be awful tired,” Mr. Andrews said. “He’s slowing down.”

Hazel nodded, not wanting to give the truth away. “He must be.”

After a few more minutes’ riding — in which Hazel ceased to make efforts to escape Mr. Andrews because she wasn’t going to be able to get away from him now — they arrived  outside a rather imposing edifice of a building, constructed out of stone in the latest architectural fashion.

Engraved words across the top of the building advertised it as the Conquistador Hotel. Mr. Andrews turned to face the rail in front of it and Hazel, unwillingly, joined him.

Mr. Andrews dismounted and tied his horse before holding Rocky’s head and waiting for Hazel to do the same thing before he tied Rocky to the rail and escorted her like a lady through the main doors of the hotel into one of the nicest-looking interiors Hazel had seen since crossing the Mississippi.

An austere-looking hotelier greeted Mr. Andrews, who stepped up to the desk.

“Do you have corner suites?” Mr. Andrews asked.

“We do,” the hotelier replied.

“Do any of them happen to be open?” Mr. Andrews asked.

“More than one,” the hotelier replied.

“Do any of them have an adjoining room available as well?” Mr. Andrews asked.

The hotelier glanced over at something hidden from view for a moment. “Yes.”

“Do you have a corner suite and an adjoining room that are both front-facing?” Mr. Andrews asked.

Another long glance off to the side by the hotelier ensued before an affirmative reply was again given.

“Good, I’ll take them,” Mr. Andrews said.

“For how long?” the hotelier asked.

“We’ll start with three nights,” Mr. Andrews replied.

“And your name is?” the hotelier asked.

“Lavern Andrews,” Mr. Andrews replied. “No e on the end of Lavern.”

Hazel waited patiently as the two men made the arrangements that needed to be made before the hotelier fetched the keys to the rooms for them. Hazel noted that she got the key to the adjoining room, while Mr. Andrews took the key to the corner suite.

Apparently, as much as he was paying for her accommodations, he was still taking the nicer room.

Uncertain: Day 10

Word Count: 60,036

Summary of Events:

The search party was split in half before entering the mountains, with half going by the main road to see if they could get to Santa Fe faster than the half Hazel went with through the mountains following tracks Hazel was sure Joseph had left behind. Arriving in Santa Fe, Joseph sought the help of the sheriff in town to inquire after whether anyone had seen a trapper and two little kids in town somewhere in the last two days. Camped in the mountains for the last night before they'd reach Santa Fe, Hazel waited for the others with her and Mr. Andrews around the fire to go to bed so that she could talk privately with Mr. Andrews . . .

Excerpt of the Day:

Hazel and Mr. Andrews bid goodnight to the Mortons and Hazel watched silently as Mr. Morton removed his boots and climbed into his bedroll underneath the wagon, while Mrs. Morton climbed up into the wagon.

She turned and looked at Mr. Andrews.

“Do you mean to bid good night as well?” Mr. Andrews asked.

“No,” Hazel replied. “I have another question for you that I hadn’t realised I’d neglected to ask of you until earlier today.”

“Oh,” Mr. Andrews said. “And what were you wanting to ask me?”

“I was wanting to ask you how exactly you would know that Mr. Sheldon would accuse you of serving in the Confederate Army with him if he was merely your pursuer until earlier this week,” Hazel replied.

“Well I am an excellent judge of character,” Mr. Andrews replied. “And I could tell by the evil glint in his eyes and the savagery with which he pursued me that Private Sheldon was the most nefarious and devious of all the Confederates.”

“And you can ascertain that all Confederates are nefarious and devious?” Hazel asked.

“Well why else would the war have happened?” Mr. Andrews asked.

“It isn’t always evil people who begin conflicts,” Hazel said. “I am sure it can be purely misguided individuals who do so.”

“But the worst of wars are started by the worst of people,” Mr. Andrews said. “And that war was the worst of wars.”

“Really?” Hazel asked.

“Any war that tears a nation in half is worse than a war between two nations that never were unified in the first place,” Mr. Andrews replied. “And as this is the first such war to do so since the creation of guns and cannons, it was the most devastating.”

“Do you necessarily think the Confederates wanted to tear the nation in half?” Hazel asked. “Don’t you think they were just afraid of what would happen to everything they’d ever known if they conceded to the demands that they pay their labourers a fair and living wage?”

“That’s what they want you to think,” Mr. Andrews said. “They want you to think it was fear and desperation, selfishness, greed . . .”

“And what was it really then?” Hazel asked.

“An evil plot,” Mr. Andrews replied. “An evil plot concocted by devious men like Joseph Sheldon meant to ruin lives, families, economies, and much more.”

“But the Confederacy lost,” Hazel said. “And they were ravaged and indebted and ill-prepared, weren’t they?”

“Yes,” Mr. Andrews replied.

“That proves the superiority of the Union, does it not?” Hazel asked.

“Yes,” Mr. Andrews replied.

“If that is the case then your comment comes across to suggest that it was the Union who concocted the evil plot to ruin the Confederacy,” Hazel said.

Mr. Andrews opened his mouth like he meant to speak, but then closed it and turned his gaze toward the fire, which was growing down to just glowing coals.

“I must be tired Mrs. Chalmers,” Mr. Andrews said. “Can’t even speak straight.”

Uncertain: Day 9

Word Count: 54,030

Summary of Events:

Joseph discovered a campsite with a fire, at which Deputy found the children's scents, which proved that the trapper who'd picked up the children had spent the night there with them. Hazel asked Mr. Andrews some of the questions that'd formed in her mind regarding the life story he'd told and was dissatisfied with the answers he gave. Joseph continued riding the next day, cold and wet thanks to an overnight rain, and thought about the search party he knew was behind him, although he wasn't sure was necessarily heading the same way he was . . .

Excerpt of the Day:

Joseph shifted his jaw as he thought. Mrs. Chalmers was a very logical person, and she was very close with Mrs. Dirk — they were sisters after all — so she would’ve known the Dirks had lived in Santa Fe too, so she probably would’ve concluded that Santa Fe’s direction was the one they ought to be heading in.

There was, however, the matter of whether she had been able to convince everyone else that it made much more sense for the children to have struck out for Santa Fe instead of any other direction.

Eustace was not exactly an easy man to convince of anything — but neither was Mrs. Chalmers a woman who could be put down easily — and because of his experience as a Union Lieutenant Joseph was willing to put money down to back up his opinion that Eustace had inserted himself as leader of the expedition.

He wasn’t going to lie, Eustace was pretty good at visual tracking — as Joseph himself was — but visual tracking wasn’t as good as dog tracking, thereby Joseph had the upper hand and would probably get to the right place first.

Eustace would probably lead the others wherever the freshest tracks led from wherever they started at, which wasn’t necessarily north to Yates Creek and west to Santa Fe.

If Mrs. Chalmers proved as forceful and persuasive as Joseph was certain she could be, they probably would’ve headed for the creek before looking for tracks, and maybe even have followed after his, but started out far enough behind him to have not succeeded in catching up to him — or hearing Deputy’s barks.

In fact, if they hadn’t loped to the creek, it was likely they were further behind him than they’d set out at.

Not that it really mattered how far behind him Mrs. Chalmers and her search party were, what mattered was ahead of him.

The best he could guess was that the benevolent trapper who’d picked Ruby and Teddy up and was carrying them west to Santa Fe faster than they could’ve ever hoped to get there on foot was a day ahead of him.

Because of the possibility of wildlife, the uneven terrain, and the lack of much for food for Tempest, seeing as grass was not inclined to grow well in spruce forest, Joseph didn’t want to jog or lope to try and catch up.

Too, it wasn’t like the trapper was doing anything wrong. He was getting Ruby and Teddy to safety. He hadn’t kidnapped them. Joseph was sure the man — once they hopefully met up in Santa Fe — would be more than willing to see the kids given to Mrs. Chalmers, seeing as she was their aunt.

Joseph didn’t really see the need to hurry now that he was sure the children were in good hands. He could casually make his way to Santa Fe, track the trapper down there, get the children back, and all would be well; in fact, the search party behind him might even be able to catch up to him that way so that he could present the children to Mrs. Chalmers personally before trekking all the way back to Santa Fe.

Uncertain: Day 8

Word Count: 48,154

Summary of Events:

At the creek Hazel was offered help to cross, but chose to cross on her own and while waiting for the rest to cross spied tracks in the dirt that told her Joseph had been there and headed west; without consulting her opinion, Mr. Waller elected to head east, presuming the children would seek out family in Kansas. Deputy lost the scent of the children and Joseph determined by way of some horse tracks that the children had been picked up by someone on horseback, whom he presumed to be a trapper, as there were quite a few trappers who lived in Cimarron who trapped game in the mountains. Hazel was starting to get unsettled that they were heading eastward and expressed her frustration to one of Mr. Waller's sons, who attempted to inform his father, to no avail . . .

Excerpt of the Day:

Hazel nodded and asked Rocky for a canter, which caught her up to Mr. Waller and Mr. Andrews quickly.

“Mr. Waller, please, it is a matter of some urgency,” she snapped.

“What is?” Mr. Waller asked, startled.

“You’re going the wrong way,” Hazel replied.

Mr. Waller didn’t stop his horse. “My dear Mrs. Chalmers, this is the way to Kansas.”

“But the children aren’t in Kansas,” Hazel replied.

“Well of course not,” Mr. Waller replied. “They’re children, I’m sure they haven’t reached the border of New Mexico Territory yet.”

“You don’t understand!” Hazel snapped, using the whip in her right hand that was normally for gently cueing her mount to strike Mr. Waller’s leg. “The children never headed for Kansas in the first place!”

“But they’ve got family in Kansas Mrs. Chalmers,” Mr. Andrews said. “You told us that yourself.”

“But they haven’t met them,” Hazel replied. “They haven’t met me either. Bert and Felicity Dirk were the only family those children knew. Logic prevails that any child would not set out on a trek to find family they’ve never met, but would go somewhere where they know people whom they can trust. And that location is Santa Fe because that is where Bert, Felicity, and the children lived until Felicity came into the employ of Mr. and Mrs. Yates.”

“You’re quite certain?” Mr. Waller asked, sounding rather chagrined and pained as he rubbed his leg where Hazel had struck him.

“Indeed I am,” Hazel replied. “And if you would’ve given me half a moment earlier this morning we would have been headed in that direction from the start instead of marching ourselves down the hills for lunch at your residence that I am certain had been organised beforehand.”

Mr. Waller looked at Hazel guardedly.

“That isn’t to say that I didn’t appreciate the sustenance,” Hazel said, calming her voice. “However, I am thoroughly affronted that you gave me the lead to the creek and then did not consult me for any insight on where I — who had already spent two days seeking the children in the area of Cimarron — believed it likely my niece and nephew had gone. I know I am not from the area, but I kept up a regular correspondence with Felicity, for we were close enough to each other in our age and relationship that some mistook us as twins, thus I know things about her that may not have been well known by anyone else in Cimarron.”

Without a word Mr. Waller brought his horse to a stop. Hazel and Mr. Andrews followed suit, and the others behind them progressively did the same.

“Then why did the children head north Mrs. Chalmers?” Mr. Waller asked.

“I cannot say,” Hazel replied. “But I assure you that they did not make for Kansas.”

Uncertain: Day 7

Word Count: 42,078

Summary of Events:

Joseph set out to find the Dirk children alone before sunrise and actually found footprints that were consistent with the size of small children's feet as well as a scent trail that led him westward, toward the mountains and Santa Fe. Hazel and the search party she'd rallied gathered and nearly 300 men were deemed ill-prepared by Mr. Waller and encouraged to remain behind while Hazel, Mr. Waller, his sons, and the 71 who were adequately prepared set out. Joseph was a ways into the mountains when Deputy discovered something of a campsite that appeared to have been used by the Dirk children, and he did some math to see if he could figure out about when they would've used it . . .

Excerpt of the Day:

It’d been about seven when he reached the creek. That was three hours at a walk, and a horse could travel about four miles in an hour at a walk, which made twelve miles, plus a good eight miles from town was twenty miles.

“That is a long way for two bitty kids,” Joseph said aloud. “Twenty miles? How long would that take two kids hardly past my hips to walk?”

Horses, naturally, because of their longer body, extra legs, and longer stride, could walk faster than people. In fact, Joseph had been told horses could walk twice as fast as people could do the same — both at a casual amble.

So then if a horse could walk four miles in an hour people could walk two. It would, thus, have taken a person about ten hours to walk twenty miles. Because Joseph had loped Tempest to the creek he’d gotten eight miles done in about a half an hour.

But when someone said horses could walk twice as fast as people they were thinking full-grown adults, not little kids. A little kid had half the stride of an adult at best. They had to only be able to walk a mile an hour — especially Teddy, as he was the younger one.

Joseph pulled out the photo again and looked for a date. He found it in handwriting on the back, along with some added, beneficial information: Felicity Alberta Dirk, aged 23; Ruby Bertha Dirk, aged 3; Thornton Edgar Dirk, aged 1; photographed September 1874.

Teddy was three years old. There was no way he was capable of walking at two miles an hour, and Ruby, being just five, wasn’t going to be likely to have the ability to carry him.

Unless they walked about ten miles — which would get them about to the edge of the mountains — in the night, rested a bit, and then walked the remaining ten during the day and then camped here their first night after leaving?

That made sense. What didn’t make sense, though, was how a boy named Thornton got the nickname Teddy. He’d thought the boy’s name was Edward or Theodore until he’d seen the writing on the back of the photograph.

He looked over the name, and then he noticed something: the capital letters of Thornton’s full name were TED. Ted. Thus Teddy. Definitely not the most usual way of coming up with a nickname.

Joseph shrugged and pocketed the picture again before getting back into the saddle and looking around. Where had Deputy gone?

“Deputy!” he shouted, then whistled.

In moments Deputy appeared out of the bush a ways away. He appeared to be eating something.

“What is–” Joseph started to ask, then he realised what it was. “That is downright disgusting dog!”

Although he wasn’t going to deny it was physical evidence that two little children had stopped here for the night after having trekked twenty miles away from home.

Uncertain: Day 6

Word Count: 36,048

Summary of Events:

Hazel met Mr. Waller, a former Union Lieutenant, who offered to lead the search party for her, to which she agreed; he then addressed all the volunteers before everyone went to get supplies. Joseph spent much of the afternoon having to deal with people — particularly women, it seemed — who wanted confirmation that what Lavern alleged was true, to which he couldn't lie, even if he couldn't convince anyone Lavern was lying, and it was bothering him as he worked to prepare for undertaking a solo search effort . . .

Excerpt of the Day:

Joseph snapped his head up suddenly — inadvertently hitting the door behind him — what had Mrs. Robbins said about Lavern?

Immediately the words popped to his mind: “That’s what he said you’d say.”

So, Lavern was going even further yet than he’d heard last night.

Joseph surged to his feet and stalked out of his office. He stormed northward, where he saw a lineup of men waiting to have their chance to shop for supplies for their part in the search party he meant to show up.

Reaching Main Street, Joseph looked west and saw Lavern carrying an armload of supplies, including a shovel, an axe, and a sack of flour.

Immediately Joseph set off down the south side of Main Street, his long and brisk stride setting him up to gain on Lavern easily — especially seeing how Lavern was weighted down with all kinds of supplies for being part of the trek.

As he got closer to Lavern Joseph stepped off the boardwalk and stormed across the street before reaching around front of Lavern and seizing a fistful of shirt and tie by which he whipped Lavern around to face him before slamming him against the side of the building alongside which Lavern had been walking.

“What in blazes is your business in this town?” Joseph demanded. “Because I’ll have you know that no matter how much money you might have, I have the right to run you out of town if necessary.”

Lavern’s expression changed from wide-eyed and fearful to an expression of derision and he laughed aloud, which only added fuel to the fire of Joseph’s rage.

“I’d like to see you try,” Lavern chuckled. “Seeing how the public opinion is overwhelmingly against you.”

“Answer me you filthy liar!” Joseph shouted. “What is your business in Cimarron?”

“Well, I thought I’d try my hand at this sheep ranching business,” Lavern replied.

“Hm,” Joseph said, straightening and relaxing — but not releasing his hold. “From one textile business into another.”

“I’ll be as successful in this one as I was in the last,” Lavern replied confidently.

“Really?” Joseph queried. “You have no slaves to work for free so you can make the profits you did in cotton.”

“No wonder you’re out west,” Lavern spat. “Your father doesn’t have any work and no inheritance to give you.”

Instantly Joseph hauled Lavern’s face up to his own and glared into the dark brown eyes. “My Pa is the same place I’m sure yours is: the grave.”

Throwing Lavern away, Joseph stormed back whence he’d come, crossing the street earlier than Centre Avenue to avoid the throngs still at the General Store, and slammed both the main door into the sheriff’s office and the inner door into his apartment.

So Lavern intended to stay here. He intended to be a thorn in Joseph’s side or — worse yet — find a way to run Joseph out of town altogether.

Uncertain: Day 5

Word Count: 30,121

Summary of Events:

After a generally sleepless night Joseph got up before dawn and went to the Dirk house to find some clothing that belonged to the children for Deputy to get a scent off of to track. Hazel found him there and determined she wasn't going to let him track the children alone; so she rented the only sidesaddle-trained horse in the town upon which to accompany him. Joseph and Hazel tracked the children all the way to Yates Creek, where Hazel was forced to accept they'd run off, not been kidnapped, before Joseph informed her that coyotes, wolves, bears, and cougars were among the predatory wildlife that might find the children a tasty meal . . .

Excerpt of the Day:

“How quickly might the children be noticed by these animals?” Mrs. Chalmers asked, fear even more evident in her voice than it’d been before.

“To be honest Mrs. Chalmers,” Joseph replied. “I don’t know, but it is that time of year when everything’s giving birth, so mamas is on high alert to protect their young from any real or perceived threats, which would suggest to me that we just start looking for bodies.”

Joseph drew out his cigarette case and removed a cylinder that he proceeded to light before taking a deep breath and releasing a cloud of blue-grey smoke with it.

“How insolent of you,” Mrs. Chalmers snapped. “Do you really need to behave so immaturely all because someone from your past has shown up and revealed your secret?”

She did believe Lavern. Joseph snapped his head to look at her.

“I thought everyone around here was smart enough to figure two and two equals four,” he spat.

“I would presume not arithmetically,” Mrs. Chalmers replied.

“I have the accent to be from the area, I’m thirty two years old, obviously there’s the possibility I could’ve — and very likely would’ve — served in the Confederate Army,” Joseph ranted. “Furthermore, although I do not appreciate it, I do not object to anyone’s calling me a Confederate. You’d think they would’ve figured it out!”

“Obviously they didn’t,” Mrs. Chalmers said, sounding haughty.

“The worse thing is the fact that Lavern’s in town,” Joseph complained. “If they hadn’t figured out I’d served in the Confederate Army by this point they didn’t need to know.”

“If you intend to uphold the law, and be the sole representative thereof, you ought to be honest and forthright in all things so as to prevent the citizenry from questioning your authority in matters of the law,” Mrs. Chalmers said primly. “You have failed to do this and are now suffering the consequences.”

Joseph exhaled smoke-laced breath indignantly. “Everyone ought to just be smarter so they could figure out someone not objecting to being called a Confederate probably was one,” he muttered.

“Well apparently the people of Cimarron are simple-minded,” Mrs. Chalmers said.

Turning away, Joseph glared at Yates Creek.

“Of course that shouldn’t come as a surprise,” Mrs. Chalmers said. “They are out here in the West. It’s mostly just your fault for not realising their lack of intelligence, and I guess that suggests you lack intelligence yourself.”

Rage exploded inside of Joseph like a thunderclap and if he wouldn’t have turned to look at Mrs. Chalmers he would’ve seized her shoulder and ploughed his left hand — smouldering cigarette and all — into her face.

Ma, however, had taught him that ladies weren’t to be punched or hit, so he just tapped his spur into Tempest’s side a little more roughly than the gelding deserved and turned the gelding away from Mrs. Chalmers and back toward Cimarron, nestled down below and looking rather quaint-sized from this moderately elevated vantage.