He considered for a moment.  “I didn’t want to intrude.  But I believe I would, thank you.  And I have fresh-caught fish if you want them.”

“Fresh-caught fish?  I can’t think of anything better.”  Fish immediately brought back the creek, the trout, the rain.

While she made dinner, Charlotte watched Tobias out of the corner of her eye.  He spent some time examining the writing papers on the wall while Brewster read out loud.  He helped Ada set the table.   He seemed comfortable in his own skin, Charlotte decided, on good terms with the world.

“You used to do that,” he said, nodding at the wall.

“And Samuel was stern.  Exacting, you might say.”  He nodded.

“Is it all right if I ask you something?” Brewster said.  Charlotte wondered what obtuse person could have ever thought these children ill-mannered.

“Please do.”

“Where did you come from?”

“The desert.”

“Do you mind if I have other questions?”  Tobias smiled and Brewster continued.  “How do you live in the desert?  What do you do for food?”

“The truth is, people’ve been living in the desert for thousands of years, so there are all kinds of ways.  Helps to have folk who know what they’re doing, though.  There’s some game, mule deer, jackrabbits, things like that.  There’re also hidden springs and once you’ve found them you can irrigate and grow a goodly number of crops.  You just have to like it dry and sometimes very hot.”

“And do you?”

“I got used to it.  It’s not so bad.  If you build right, it stays cooler inside and that’s something.”

“I don’t know,” Brewster said.  “I think I’m glad Pa wasn’t headed to the desert.”

Tobias glanced at Charlotte and she hoped he understood.

“Where was your Pa headed?”

“If he’d lived, he was set on all of us going to Oregon Territory.”

After dinner, outside with Tobias, Charlotte closed the door behind her.

“Are you leaving tonight?” she said.

“No.  I’ll camp by the river and leave in the morning.”

“I’ll get up early and bake bread.  Can you stay till then and I’ll give you some?  These days, it’s about what I have to make my way with.”

“I’ll stay then.”  He turned to her.  In the fading light, he was the ghost of her father.  She shivered.  “So they lost both parents?”

“Just a short time ago.”

“That’s hard.  It’s why you’re here?”

“I’m all they have and Tobias, I’m not leaving them for anything.”

“But where were you?  Samuel set you on a path and now everything’s got all turned around from where it was.  I have to be able to tell him something.”