“Yes, but she’s the one who agreed that I could keep the children even when I wasn’t entirely honest with her.”

“How weren’t you honest?”

“I told her I sold my hair for money and the federal marshal was my uncle.”

“Not much different than poker.”

“Thank you for seeing it that way.”

Her expression was gentle as she let her gaze rest on him.

“Really,” she said, “is this strange to you?”

“No stranger than anything else.  And it’s better this way than my people’s way, where I’d have to pay your father that same twenty horses, and I don’t have them.  I’d have to take you and carry you off, then defend our position when he came after us.”

“You’d do it though, wouldn’t you?”

“Not even a question.  It’d just be a lot of work, that’s all.”

“The white people’s way is easier then.”

“Much,” he said.

“That’s something anyway.”

Charlotte put on her coat.  Forgive me, my sad, lovely father, but I found the right one, the good one, and I’m making this decision on my own.

None of the soldier cooks had appeared yet.  She moved in between his knees.  “I’m going to cause you trouble again,” she said.  “Kiss me just once.”  She closed her eyes as he took her face in his hands and spent time kissing her more than once.

<>

“You must think I never leave this office,” Lenore said.

“I know that loud sergeant does something,” Charlotte said, “but you’re right, I believe you’re running the fort and that suits everyone just fine.”

“It wouldn’t suit the government just fine.  I’d have to write them a letter on your stationery explaining myself, and also exactly where the Colonel had got to.”

“Hire Brewster.  He’ll write the letter for you.”

“I don’t know why I wouldn’t.  I depend on all of you for everything.  You know you can’t leave until at least spring or the whole place would fall apart.”

“There’s nowhere to even go till spring.  But I did want to mention about the all-of-us part.”

“Yes?” Lenore said.  “I’m suddenly very interested.  There are more of you?  Possibly someone who arrived on Sunday and made his presence known to the Colonel?”

“Possibly.”

“This is him then.  The one we had the conversation about.”

“It is.”

“And everything in that conversation still stands?”

“Very much so.”

“Of course it all left me stunned.  I had no idea.  Apparently the Colonel thinks highly of him even though it seems they’ve sometimes been adversaries.  But apart from all of that, I need to ask and have you answer with your head, not your heart.  Are you sure about this?”