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Page 220
Mariah watched Holly glance from her to Thorn to René, whose face was nearly as impassive as Thorn's at his most frustrating. ''Not this time," Holly said. Mariah almost laughed at the big grin that washed over René's face and disappeared as quickly as a camera flash. Not that she'd seen one for ages.
The settlers stayed long enough only to wolf down the hurriedly prepared meal. Ambrose was still there, and his deep voice boomed jocularly as he traded tales with the others. Then they all were finished and in the courtyard again.
"So long, Mariah," Francis called. "Tell the soldiers, if they come, that we've gone by water, would you? That will give us more time if they do arrive." Soon they all were gone, though Ambrose had headed in a different direction on his peltladen roan horse.
Mariah wondered if that was the last she'd hear of the settlers. She wished them the best. Imagine, heading somewhere to start a new life without having any idea where, having to start from scratch to build a place out of what nature provided.
Amazing. Courageous.
Just what the screenplay had portrayed. And then its tictional soldiers had routed the settlers.
But here the soldiers had dealt with the settlers more than a week earlier. That incident had played out differently, as usual, from the script.
The matter was closed.

But Mariah remembered, several days later, that she could be sure of nothing here, even if something seemed covered by the script. Events had been plotted, however erroneously, by Pierce.
A troop of soldiers arrived from Fort Pitt led by Ainsley, Maitland among them.
Were they after the settlers? And this time, could Mariah prevent the homesteaders from being hurt?
When the soldiers arrived, Mariah stood just outside the palisade wall, which now extended three quarters of the way around the compound, working with Holly on plans to ex-

 
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