Salvation's Secrets (The Loflin Legacy Prequel) by Catherine Wolffe

Author:Catherine Wolffe
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: romance, love, civil war, historical romance, indians, western, cowboys, frontier, cowboys and indians, american frontier

Excerpt from Comanche Haven:

(The Loflin Legacy #1)

by Catherine Wolffe

Chapter 1 – The Road Home

Texas 1858

Celia glanced out at the children running alongside the stagecoach as it slowed. Their tiny feet evoked a cloud of dust as they followed the newest visitor to their part of Texas.

“Have you been to Tyler before?” the young blonde woman seated next to Celia inquired politely. Her name was Claudette Harding. She had the most perfect golden curls Celia had ever seen.

“Yes, but it’s been a long time.” Celia glanced back at the children, before examining the wooden buildings dotting the street. Nothing had changed. Some were new and some no longer stood. They’d been replaced in the name of progress. Noting the result, she dropped the leather flap over the small window, before swallowing a twinge of regret. A sharp realization that nothing would ever be the same again moved through her.

From the top of the stage, the Wells Fargo Whip called out the name of the stop, “Tyyyler!”

“I’m expecting my gentleman-friend to pick me up.” Claudette glanced sideways at Celia as she gathered her parasol along with her reticule. “Do you have someone picking you up?” Tiny ringlets of gold bobbed about the woman’s creamy, oval face. Celia smiled to herself as Claudette continued to prattle on. The woman could talk. Claudette had boarded the stage in Shreveport. Since she’d sat down, the three other passengers listened to all manner of comments, stories and questions.

“Yes, my cousin.” Celia peeked out of the window again. Dust swirled around the opening, threatening to engulf them all. The two men seated in front of the women waved at the dust as if it threatened their lives. The one in a stylish stovepipe hat started coughing. Reluctantly, Celia dropped the flap, waiting instead for the stage to come to a complete stop.

The wooden door of the stage opened. A calloused hand reached in.

Claudette took the hand, before winking at Celia. “Enjoyed riding with you. Good luck.” Bending low in the confines of the stage’s interior, Claudette exited through small opening.

Celia considered the young blonde woman’s words. Luck wasn’t going to help her. She would need fortitude. Digging deeper, she found her determination once more. Trouble had driven her out of Texas. Now she was returning for the same reason. The letter she’d received stated her father, the chief, had fallen “gravely ill”. So she’d packed up the belongings she would need, sold the rest, and bought a one-way ticket back to Texas. Her place as daughter of the great chief demanded she come. Her love for her only living parent compelled her to make the journey.

“Ma’am?” The hand was back.

Celia accepted the offer of assistance from the porter, as she stooped to clear the small exit. The brilliant sun, glared down unrelentingly. A thick humidity hung heavy in the air. While most of Texas boasted hot, dry conditions, Tyler was different. Situated close to the north Louisiana boarder, the small stagecoach stop’s climate resembled the bayou state’s more often than not.

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