I sit quietly, hands in my lap, gaze cast down so my eyes don’t give me away. It shouldn’t matter what he says, now that I’m running off, but his declaration makes me feel like a cat with fur being rubbed the wrong way. “The school in town is just fine. Everyone likes Mr. Anders.”

“It was a place to start,” he says around a mouthful of biscuit. “But it’s no place to finish. I suppose letters and sums will be useful to us, but you need to learn style and comportment.”

I’m not sure what he means by “useful to us,” but I nod and say, “If you think it’s best.”

“Which isn’t to say you won’t be busy here when you’re home. I’m sure there’s plenty of gold still to be found.”

He wipes his hands on a dishcloth, then puts them into the pockets of his vest. When he pulls them out, they’re both fisted. He reaches them toward me and says, “I have a gold half eagle in one hand. Which is it?” There’s a twinkle in his eye that reminds me so much of Daddy that my chest hurts.

The coin sings to me clear as spring runoff from his left fist. I point to the right.

He smiles. “You can’t keep secrets from me, Leah.”

I sigh and point to the left.

“That’s my girl.” He opens his fist, and there it is, shining yellow-bright. “Here. You can have it.”

I snatch the coin from his palm.

In the next instant, I almost give it back. Hiram just made me divine gold. He asked me to do it, and I did. Without question. But I can’t say no to five whole dollars right now, even if they come from the devil himself.

A horrid thought occurs to me. “You thinking of taking us west?” I ask. That’s the last thing I need—to go where he intended all along.

“Yes,” he says. “Though not for at least a year. Everyone else can help themselves to the surface and placer gold. I have bigger plans in mind for us, but we’ll need to put some polish on you first.”

I can’t imagine what that means. Maybe I’d rather never know. Unable to make nice a moment more, I rise from the table. “I have chores need doing.”

“And I have some errands to attend to today.” He pulls his silver watch from his breast pocket, flicks it open for a look, then closes it and shoves it back in. “My boy will be here with my things by the end of the week, and I’ll need room in the barn. I want you to sell two of the horses.”

I gape at him, marveling at my luck.