Tracie Peterson - [Heirs of Montana 04] Read Online Free Page B

be able to do it on her own, and up until this year there wasn’t much rebuilt at the Diamond V.”
    “Are they back at the ranch now?”
    “No. There are some workmen there and a few cowhands. I heard the Vandyke family would be back soon. That was a week or two ago, so they may well be there now. Otherwise, they’re in Virginia City. Mara still lives with the Selbys, and it causes Father no end of complaint.”
    “I’m sure,” Joshua said, sipping the steaming brew. It was really much too hot to drink coffee, but it seemed rude to reject his sister’s efforts.
    “If I can convince Father to let you go, will you come with me?”
    “Of course. Where will we go?” Elsa questioned.
    “Virginia City for starts. We need to find Mara.”
    “And how will we live?”
    “I’ll find work.”
    “There isn’t much available. The drought has been hard on everyone—not just the ranchers. The Selbys do own a freighting business. Maybe they’d take you on.”
    Joshua shook his head and put down the cup. “I have a profession. I’m a preacher.”
    “You’re a what!” his father bellowed from the doorway.
    Joshua wasn’t sure how much his father had overheard, but he steeled himself for an attack. “I’m a preacher. I share the Word of God with lost souls and saved.”
    Chester Lawrence strode across the room and threw his hat atop a small table. “You can’t be serious. That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve heard yet.”
    “I felt the Lord’s calling on my life, Father. It’s not ridiculous at all. I studied under some wonderful men and learned a great deal about the Bible. I have helped to preach at a small church in Philadelphia, and many people came to the Lord while I was there. I was hoping to share God’s plan with you, Father. I thought you might be ready to hear the truth about hell and eternity without Jesus.”
    “Get out!” his father yelled. He approached Joshua as if he would bodily throw him from the house.
    Joshua got to his feet. “I came here with another purpose as well. I’m sorry you don’t approve of my profession, but I would like you to hear me out.”
    “No. There’s nothing you could say that would interest me. You’re dead to me, boy.”
    “Father!” Elsa said, jumping to her feet.
    “You stay out of this, girl. You have no say in it.”
    “But Elsa is part of the reason I’m here. I promised to come back for her.”
    His father stepped back as if Joshua had slapped him. “Come back for her?”
    “She wants to leave the ranch, and I told her I would take her to live with me.”
    The older man looked from Joshua to Elsa and asked, “Is that right? Answer me.”
    She nodded, and Joshua could see the way she fairly cringed at their father’s demanding voice. “I want to leave.”
    “No. Now get out,” he said, turning to Joshua. “Your sister is staying here. I’ve got plans for her. She’s my responsibility—at least for the time being, and she will do as I say.”
    “But she isn’t happy here,” Joshua protested.
    “I don’t care if she is happy. She’s not going anywhere. But you are. Go!”
    Elsa began to cry in earnest, and Joshua knew he’d best leave rather than further upset their father. “I’ll leave for now, but I’ll be back. I think if we talk about this calmly and rationally, you’ll see that it’s a better life for her in the city than out here in the middle of nowhere.”
    “If you don’t leave now, I’ll throw you out of here,” his father barked, stepping forward in a menacing manner.
    “Go, Joshua. Go before there’s trouble,” Elsa sobbed.
    Joshua nodded. “I’ll be back. I promise, and you know I’m a man of my word.”

CHAPTER 3
    “H ERE, HAVE A CHEW AND JOIN ME FOR A TALK ,” M ARCUS Daly said as he came upon Zane Chadwick. He extended a plug of tobacco, but Zane shook his head and hoisted a wooden crate into the back of the wagon.
    This accomplished, he pulled out a handkerchief and wiped his forehead. The heat