A Shelter of Hope by Tracie Peterson Read Free Book Online Page A

Simone hurried to mount.
    Struggling against the cumbersome skirt and the heaviness of her coat, Simone finally righted herself atop the horse. The cold leather of the saddle pervaded the thin material of her pantalets, causing Simone to shift uncomfortably in the seat. It was only then that she noticed the gun belt slung over the horn of the saddle. Reaching down, Simone fingered the butt of the revolver and found the piece gave her added courage. With a gun, she could protect herself. She could also hunt for food.
    She suddenly realized by the fading light that night would soon be upon her. It wasn’t wise to travel the area after dark, but Simone felt desperation quickly overcoming her sensibility. A man lay dead in her cabin, and she certainly couldn’t stay the night with him. She had the gun and she had a horse; surely she could make it to safety somewhere. She thought of Naniko, then realized that would probably be the first place they’d look for her. She couldn’t risk it.
    Glancing again at the cabin, Simone felt a strange sense of separation. She knew no other home, and yet she held no great affection for this crude arrangement of logs and chinking. Still, this had been the home where her mother had lived and loved her. This place had seen her brother’s birth and the birth and death of other siblings she had never known. There had been happy times here, she allowed herself to acknowledge. But they were so long ago and so faded from her memory that Simone could not get a clear picture of the past. Bitterness had built a wall between her and the remembrances that might have warmed her icy heart.
    The skies to the west were turning rosy and orange in twilight, and the chilled air of evening blew down from the mountaintops and whipped at the edges of her coat. The elements seemed to beckon her to forget her nostalgic reflections and flee.
    Simone took one last look around her and knew that the time had come. As much as she feared what lay in the unknown before her, she feared her past even more. Her father had deserted her, her mother was dead, and she had killed the man who was meant to be her husband. Accident or not, they would surely hang her for her actions, and there would be no one left to mourn her passing.
    Taking a deep breath, she kicked at the sides of the horse and turned him toward the narrow, rocky path. She’d made her choice, and now she would have to find a way to live with it.

FIVE
    LOUIS DUMAS LIKED the weight of gold coins in his pocket. He also liked the feeling of freedom that had come in ridding himself of the responsibilities of the trapline and of Simone. The girl reminded him more and more of her mother, and that only served to remind him of things he’d just as soon forget.
    He’d never once gotten a thing in his life without taking it or forcing it. It just seemed to be his lot. He’d taken Winifred in her moment of weakness and desperation and shown her that her only hope was to become his wife. Then he’d thought by putting her away in the hills, away from folk and the pretty things she’d grown up with, that he could somehow make her forget that such things existed. But he hadn’t.
    He shook his head and spit. Women were more trouble than they were worth. They were sharp-tongued in an argument and then, without batting an eyelash, could turn on the sweetness and deception without warning. They were born to deceive men, as far as Louis was concerned, and there wasn’t a single example in his own life that had proved otherwise.
    After stocking up on a few things he’d need for his journey to Colorado, Dumas decided to have one last round of drinks at the Red Slipper. It seemed strange to consider leaving the area after having given so much of his life to the place. He’d come to this territory to escape the Civil War. That and the death sentence on his head for desertion during battle. Trapping was something he’d learned from his father, a Canadian who had married a