“I put him in the stables.”  He struggled with his long damp coat then went out and hung it over the porch railing.  Gratefully he took the towel she offered to dry his hair.  When he handed the towel back, for the first time his eyes rested fully on her and his face showed the shock.

“There are things I didn’t know about.”

“Yes.”

“Thanks be to God and everyone else that I didn’t bring him with me.”  Dinner had halted entirely.

“Who?” she said, completely alarmed.

“Your intended.”

“Good Lord.  Surely you weren’t thinking of doing that.”

“I was thinking of it very seriously.  I figured to maybe force the issue.”

“That would have forced it all right.  I apologize again to you for being in the awful place you’re in.”

Tobias let his gaze fall more carefully on the people at the table.  “I just don’t understand,” he said.  “Is one of you…?”

Ellis immediately held his open palms in the air, indicating that he wasn’t the responsible party, not for this part of it anyway.  Miller looked around panicked, thinking this man had to be talking to someone else besides himself.

“Well, then…” Tobias said.  His voice drifted off.  He shook his head, seeming totally bewildered.

Charlotte quickly spoke.  “You’ve already met the children.  This is Ellis Gray and Miller Dawson.”  They both reached out and shook hands, Ellis hoping Tobias was bad at remembering names.

“Tobias Duchesne is my uncle.  Tobias, seat yourself and I’ll get you a plate.  We even have brandy tonight as Miller needs some practice in drinking.  After all that rain and damp, a little brandy might take the chill off.”

Tobias could think of nothing better than a glass of brandy or maybe two.  It was Ellis Gray’s wagon train.  It was Ellis Gray who left and no one seemed to know why.  But now here he was and there she was with apparently no hard feelings, only this whole other situation to contend with.  He wondered why he hadn’t just said no to Samuel and stayed in the desert.

The dinner conversation picked up again, revolving strictly around safe topics.  Charlotte was grateful to Tobias for not mentioning her father, the Family, or anything about the wagon train.  And he’d drained the brandy.  When the plates were clean and Grace was yawning, Ellis and Miller stood up, ready to depart.

“There’s plenty of room in the barracks,” Ellis said.  “Stay with us.  And if you’re so inclined, I have no doubt that we could find a card game and maybe even some whiskey.”

What was Ellis doing? Charlotte thought.  He knew about the Family.  Pure and focused.  Brandy was bad enough.  Cards and whiskey would never even be considered.

“I wouldn’t mind,” Tobias said and Charlotte stared at him in disbelief.  He was one of the Elders.