Chapter 4 - Shadows at the Door
Daniel’s hand dropped instinctively toward the heavy hunting knife sheathed at his belt. He cast a swift, reassuring glance at Clara, who immediately ushered the four younger children toward the safety of the back pantry, moving with quiet, practiced urgency.
"Stay back," Daniel instructed Elena in a low, commanding tone.
He crossed the plank floor in three long strides, his boots heavy against the wood. The second set of knocks came louder this time, accompanied by the muffled jingle of harness leather and the snort of cold horses outside. Someone had cut through the drifts on horseback—a feat that required either desperate motivation or exceptional skill.
Daniel unlatched the heavy wooden crossbar and jerked the door open, his broad frame blocking the threshold.
A lone rider sat atop a lathered roan gelding, shrouded in a heavy oilskin duster crusted with ice. The stranger pulled back his wide-brimmed hat, revealing a scarred cheek and cold, calculating eyes that immediately scanned the interior of the cabin before locking onto Daniel.
"Mister," the rider said, his voice flat and devoid of warmth. "I'm looking for a stray. Black hair, wearing town clothes. Wandered off during the storm last night. She belongs down the valley."
Daniel didn't flinch. He kept his weight balanced on the balls of his feet, his shoulder blocking any view of the room behind him. "Nobody here by that description. Just me and my five girls."
The rider’s eyes narrowed, shifting slightly to the side as he tried to peer past Daniel's shoulder. A faint scent of cheap tobacco and cold iron drifted off the man. "That's a shame. Folks are worried about her condition. She's not in any shape to be traveling alone, and her employer wants her brought back safe."
"Employer," Daniel repeated, the word tasting like ash in his mouth. "She looked like she was running for her life when I found her in my barn."
"People prone to wandering often imagine things, mister," the rider replied smoothly, though his right hand drifted casually toward the grip of a revolver holstered at his hip. "Now, I suggest you let me step inside and check your property. It'll save us both a lot of trouble."
Daniel didn't move an inch. He could feel the tension radiating from the interior of the cabin, knowing Elena was listening to every word just out of sight. "You'll step off my porch right now without a warrant or an invitation, or you won't be riding back down this mountain."
May you like
The rider held Daniel’s gaze for a long, agonizing moment, testing the resolve of the frontier widower. Slowly, a thin, humorless smile touched the man's lips.
---
