Greta braced herself for the shot and tried not to think about what would happen if he missed.

Before he could release a bullet, the mountain lion leapt to the ground.

“No!” The cry slipped out instinctively.

At the sound, Astrid straightened and turned in their direction. “Hi there, Greta.” The girl held up the pan, water pouring out the bottom holes. Her discarded boots and socks sat in a dry heap near the shore, but her skirt was soaked past her knees. “I’m searching for gold.”

“I can see that.” Greta worked at keeping her voice calm even though her pulse was about to pound out of her body.

“I think I found some.” Wading out of the river, she dug into her pocket and pulled out a handful of stones.

Greta pushed past Mr. McQuaid, heedless of his arm blocking her way. She had to direct the mountain lion’s attention away from Astrid to herself. That was the only thing left to do.

He fumbled after her, but she dodged away from his grasp.

The cat’s attention shifted from Astrid and onto Greta. She had to keep it that way until she positioned herself between Astrid and the creature.

“Who’s that?” Astrid stared past Greta, noticing Mr. McQuaid. “And why does he have a gun? Are we getting robbed again?”

Greta picked up her pace as the large cat crouched closer to the ground, preparing to leap. “No. He’s not robbing us. He’s a new friend, Mr. McQuaid, and he brought me out here so I could find you.” She was surprised at how natural her voice sounded when her insides were twisting with the ferocity of a funnel cloud.

She reached Astrid just as the mountain lion released a long, low growl. After grabbing Astrid’s arm, she jerked the girl behind her, putting her sister out of harm’s way.

Only then did Astrid see the danger. “What’s that, Greta? I’ve never seen a kitty so big.”

Before Greta could answer, the mountain lion bared its teeth and released a cry that sounded more like a scream, making the hair on Greta’s arms stand on end.

“Drop to the ground,” Mr. McQuaid ordered from behind her. “Now.”

All Greta wanted to do was pick up Astrid and run. But she dropped down and threw herself over Astrid, figuring Mr. McQuaid knew how to outsmart a mountain lion better than she did.

As the creature released another scream, a shot rang out. Greta hugged Astrid closer and watched the bullet ping against a boulder near the cat’s head, startling it and causing it to bolt. With silent, graceful strides, it bounded up the riverbank and disappeared.

Greta pushed up and ran her hands over Astrid’s frail body. “Are you alright?”

The little girl was shaking. Her eyes fixed upon Mr. McQuaid, who had his revolver still aimed at the riverbank.