Caleb gripped the arms of his chair, leaning forward. "How do you know my name? Who are you?" "My people name me Nalin," she said, her breathing shallow.
"But the missionaries called me Cora. I ran from them a long time ago. But I am not running from them now." "I don't care about the missionaries, Cora," Caleb said, his voice tightening with barely suppressed emotion.
He held up the watch, the silver glinting. "I want to know about the man who owned this." "My brother, Elias." Cora's dark eyes softened, and a profound, heavy sorrow washed over her features.
She looked away from Caleb, staring into the bright orange flames visible through the grating of the stove. "He was a good man," Cora whispered, "a rare thing in this world." "Was?" Caleb felt the floor drop out from beneath him.
He had known, deep down, that Elias was gone. But hearing it spoken aloud felt like taking a bullet to the chest. "He's dead?" "He died a warrior," Cora said, turning her fierce gaze back to Caleb.
"He died protecting my family, protecting me." Caleb stood up abruptly, knocking the heavy wooden chair backward. He paced the length of the small room, running his hands over his face, trying to process the flood of grief and anger. "How?
Where?" "Three winters ago," Cora began, her voice steadying as she gathered her strength. "Elias came to our camp in the southern canyons. He traded with us.
He did not cheat us like the other white men. He stayed. He learned our ways. He became my husband under the eyes of my people."
Caleb stopped pacing and stared at her. "Elias was married to you?" Cora nodded, reaching out a hand. Caleb slowly approached and handed her the watch.
She held it with a tenderness that made Caleb's chest ache. "We were happy," she continued, her voice dropping to a harsh whisper. "Until Josiah Trent." Caleb's blood ran cold at the name.
Josiah Trent was a ruthless, wealthy cattle baron whose influence stretched across the territory like a black rot. He owned judges, sheriffs, and a private army of hired guns. Trent was known for clearing out any homesteader or Native who stood in the way of his expanding empire. "Trent wanted the water rights in the canyon," Cora explained, her eyes flashing with a dangerous fire.