One Heart to Win Read Online Free PDF Page A

later that afternoon, they returned to their seats, where they found Thomas Gibbons, their well-armed escort.
    The retired US marshal was on the back end of middle-age and not very friendly. The little that Rose had said about him before he joined them in Chicago was that he’d been recommended by the Pinkerton Agency, which she’d contacted. He worked for them occasionally if a job led anywhere near the Rocky Mountains, where he used to be stationed. He ate only twice a day, breakfast and dinner, so he hadn’t joined them for lunch. While he took his job seriously, he let them walk around the train on their own. Anytime they left the train, though, at watering holes or depots, he was right beside them, his hand never far from the gun he wore on his hip.
    They were a long way between towns, weren’t due to reach the next one until evening, and Tiffany hadn’t heard yet if they would even be stopping there. The farmers were supposed to disembark tomorrow morning, which would give her and Anna some peace and quiet for the last few hours of their trip.
    “We should have waited until the line for the dining car was gone,” Anna said, getting in one more complaint as Mr. Gibbons stood up and stepped into the aisle to allow Tiffany and Anna to reach their seats closer to the window.
    He had gallantly taken the aisle seat, where he had to put up with a good deal of jostling as people walked down theaisle unsteadily while the train was moving. Since their car was pretty much in the middle of a long line of cars, many people walked through it on their way to and from the dining car.
    “And risk their running out of food again?” Tiffany replied as she waited for Anna to take the seat closest to the window. “I didn’t mind sharing the table.”
    Watching the countryside pass by was the highlight of the trip for both young women, so they were taking turns in the window seat. The view from the middle seat wasn’t obstructed, but the window seat provided a more panoramic view.
    The train had cut through the southern part of Wisconsin where wheat fields abounded, but Tiffany had heard the farmers talking about how the land there was becoming less fertile, which was why so many of them were excited about starting fresh in Montana. Well, the men were. She’d caught some of the wives crying over having to leave homes that had been in their families for generations.
    The terrain in Minnesota had been more interesting, with many pretty lakes and prairies, though it, too, had its fair share of farms. The Dakota Territory, in comparison, was sparsely settled and was still mostly wilderness and open plains. She’d seen a few settlers near their small sod houses. She’d seen her first buffalo! But what she’d seen that morning when she’d had her turn at the window had been a little unnerving: two men, sitting on horses with no saddles on a bluff, just staring at the train as it passed. The men were bare-chested and wore their long, black hair in braids. She’d craned her neck to continue watching them until they were out of sight.
    Anna had been napping at the time, her head resting on Tiffany’s shoulder. Tiffany hadn’t woken her to show her the Indians and had decided not to mention it to her, either. Rosehad assured her the Indian wars were over in Montana, the last major battle having occurred six years ago. The cavalry had lost, but a year later the soldiers had chased down the tribes and forced them to move to reservations outside the territory.
    As Tiffany settled into her middle seat, the train lurched to a stop and Mr. Gibbons was almost thrown off his feet before he could resume his. Tiffany was confused by his worried expression as he sat down slowly.
    Anna didn’t notice and was saying in exasperation, “ Now what? I’ll warrant the train has broken down due to all this extra weight.”
    “Nonsense,” Tiffany said. “It’s probably just something on . . . the . . . track.”
    It was neither.