One Hundred Horses by Elle Marlow

Author:Elle Marlow [Marlow, Elle]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Literature & Fiction, United States, Native American, Romance, Western, Westerns
ISBN: 9781625260529
Google: C_JGoAEACAAJ
Amazon: B00K01MQZG
Publisher: Summer Solstice
Published: 2014-04-27T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter Five

Broken Horn didn’t have to barter too hard for the big Sorrel gelding. If they wanted the girl, they’d have to provide the horse. It had been many moons since he had had a horse of his own. Knowing that, soon he would be off riding across the open plains on this swift animal excited him. It almost masked the anger that always lurked just under the surface of his skin. The first place Broken Horn would look was along the Brazos River. There were still several renegade bands left there, along with his home band, the Otter Clan. The thought of being that close to his people again left him with bitter taste in his mouth. Instinctively he rubbed a finger along his cheek, where a deep scar had formed. Someday he would find the warrior who had maimed him for the stealing of a few lousy mares. Had the warrior not had a special magic with the horses, Broken Horn would have never been caught.

Broken Horn dug his heels into the gelding’s side hard as the horse carried him through the terrain, which changed slightly the further west he rode. His mind traveled back to his youth, when he was captured by the Blue Coats for stealing supplies. They told him if he would bring the military fresh horses, they would in exchange grant his freedom and give him some land.

He had had no idea then that the horses he stole belonged to Grey Fox. The brave had followed him and the herd straight back to the Fort. Then he waited until everyone was asleep, and simply called the herd out with a strange kind of whistle. When the soldiers discovered an empty corral, they decided Broken Horn had tricked them and threw him in their white man’s prison. Whereupon Grey Fox made sure that the other prisoners maimed his face and forever marked him as a traitor.

***

Deidre sat at the table as she listened to Tom. She clutched at the table cloth filling with both hope and anxiety. Giving up half the ranch to a stranger was next to impossible since the bank still held the deed. Plus, without that precious grazing resource, they would have to sell off most of the herd.

Teary-eyed, Deidre reached up to rub the cowboy’s face. Tom looked worn out, and he was still dusty from the trail. She stood up then and kissed him on his forehead. Tom had been a wonderful friend to her. If things were different, Deidre could imagine herself married to him.

“I will talk to the bank. Will you escort me to town tomorrow?” she asked quietly. Tom nodded.

“I’m sorry, Dee.”

“Sarah is all that is important now. Maybe if we sell some of our herd, we can earn enough to pay off the debt.”

***

She woke up before the sun. Sarah pulled her hair back into a knot and prepared to leave Crazy Goose’s tipi.

“Don’t worry. I do not wish to escape,” she said, for which she was rewarded with an innocent, disinterested shrug.

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