Two weeks later, they found him in the hoft of the new barn they were raising. He was a boy, no more than 14. He was curled up in a corner, shivering under a horse blanket. His skin was dark, his hair black and straight, likely mixed heritage, part crow or sue, part white in this part of the country. That mix often meant he belonged nowhere.
Eli found him when he went to toss down feed. The boy scrambled back, eyes wide with terror, expecting a beating. "Easy," Eli said, raising his hands. "I am not going to hurt you," the boy scrambled for the latter. "I was just sleeping.
I did not steal nothing. I believe you, Eli said. It is cold outside. You hungry? The boy stopped.
Hunger wared with fear in his face. Eli brought him to the house. Clara did not ask questions. She saw the fear in the boy's eyes, the same fear she had seen in the mirror for years. She set a plate of eggs and biscuits on the table.
"Sit," Clara said. "Eat. " The boy ate like a starving wolf. When he was done, he looked at them, waiting for the price. "What is your name? " Eli asked. "Leo," the boy mumbled.
"Folks in town ran me off. Said they did not want no half breeds hanging around. " "We need a hand," Eli said, pouring himself coffee. "We are rebuilding the barn. It is hard work. Pay is $5 a month in a room in the bunk house once it is built.
Until then, you can sleep in the loft, but we will give you blankets that aren't full of mites. Leo stared at him. You hiring me? If you work, Eli said, I do not care about your blood, Leo. I care about your back and your word.
Leo looked at Clara. She smiled. And it was a genuine warm thing. We have plenty of food, she said. And we could use the help.
Leo stayed. And in taking him in. The love that Eli and Clara had built between them stopped being a fortress and became a shelter, but trauma did not vanish just because the sun was shining. One evening in April, the wind kicked up, rattling the shutters. Clara was asleep, but the noise dragged her into a nightmare.
She was back in the saloon. Pike was there. The rope was around her neck. She woke up screaming, thrashing in the sheets, her heart hammering against her ribs like a trapped bird. Clara, Clara.
Eli was there instantly. He did not shake her. He did not shout. He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her back against his chest, anchoring her body with his own heaviness. I am here, he rumbled into her ear.