And somewhere closer, six men were sleeping soundly because they trusted her. She touched the key hanging on a nail beside her door, the key they'd given her, the key that locked the world out and kept her safe inside. For 3 years, she'd believed that surviving meant staying untethered, that the only way to avoid pain was to never let anyone matter. But standing there in her room, with the sound of Levi's harmonica drifting up through the floorboards, and the memory of Holden's hand on her shoulder still warm, Evelyn understood something she'd been too afraid to admit. She'd been wrong.
Surviving wasn't about staying untethered. It was about finding people worth holding on to, even when holding on was the scariest thing in the world. And she'd found them. She'd found home. The water kept flowing for 3 days before anyone from town came asking questions.
Evelyn was in the garden, what passed for a garden in late winter, trying to coax some early greens out of the frozen ground, when she saw the riders approaching. Five of them, riding slow and deliberate, like men who'd rehearsed what they were going to say. She recognized the one in front, the shopkeeper from the general store, the man who'd looked through her like she was invisible that day she'd gone to town with Jonah. Behind him rode three men she didn't know, and one she did, Garrett, the rancher who'd come looking for a fight weeks ago. Her stomach dropped.
She stood up slowly, brushing dirt from her hands, and walked toward the house. By the time she reached the porch, Holden was already outside with Jonah and Cain flanking him. The other brothers appeared within seconds, forming a loose semicircle between the riders and the house, between the riders and Evelyn. The shopkeeper reined in his horse about 10 ft away. Holden Vail.
Morrison. Holden's voice was flat, giving nothing away. What brings you out here? Morrison shifted in his saddle, looking uncomfortable. Town's got water again.
I heard. Came back 3 days ago. Just started flowing into the well like nothing had ever been wrong. That's good news. Yeah, it is.
Morrison paused. Thing is, nobody knows where it came from. The well just refilled, and some folks have been asking questions. What kind of questions? Garrett spoke up, his voice hard.
The kind about who had the means and the motive to fix something the whole town couldn't. Holden didn't blink. And you think that's us? I think you Vails always had more resources than sense. And I think it's mighty convenient that water shows up right after we all thought we were going to die of thirst.
Convenient, Cain repeated, his voice dripping with sarcasm. Yeah, that's exactly the word I'd use for breaking our backs in a frozen wasteland to keep you people alive. Cain, Holden said quietly. A warning. Cain shut his mouth, but his jaw was tight.
Morrison cleared his throat. Look, we're not here to fight. We're here because well, we want to know the truth. Did you do this? The silence stretched out.