< previous page page_192 next page >

Page 192
the icy feeling of self-loathing show in his voice, acting as though he directed it toward her. "If you wish to quit my employ, you must find another means to repay me."
"Of course." She, too, looked relieved, though she said, "But I want to sit down with you one day and determine how much you think I owe you."
"You owe me for your life, Miss Walker. And not just once. How much is that worth to you?"
"A lot," she said slowly. "But there are others' whose lives are worth more." Her forest-green eyes, magnified by their moistness, seemed to penetrate his very skin, yet he did not understand her intensity.
"Those settlers'? How did you really know, Miss Walker, that the soldiers would follow them so closely?" He finally had voiced the question that had haunted him since that morning.
She sighed, and her shoulders slumped. "Just another of those things that didn't quite work out the way I anticipated." She brightened then. "But all for the better. No one was hurtat least not this time."
He did not appreciate her riddles but knew she would not explain. He said in irritation, "I will go to Pittsborough tomorrow, Miss Walker. If you wish to accompany me, be ready at daybreak."
"Thank you," she murmured, with a fervency that surprised him. "Maybe I can make sure that another thing I anticipate" She seemed to catch herself, and turned bright scarlet. "I'm talking out of turn. But I'll be delighted to go with you bright and early."

 
< previous page page_192 next page >