Dreamwalker's Bride - Chapter 245

Chapter 245: Across the river
Ford stared down at the raging torrent which lapped eagerly at the next canyon’s walls. If they’d been camped out down there, they would have been swept away and drowned in barely a heartbeat.

“I sure hope the cave’s on this side,” He said aloud. There would be no way they could cross now without traveling miles upstream to the ferry he’d once taken across, and he had no money to pay the man now.

Mia didn’t comment, but gasped and pulled on the reins of her horse. The animal moved behind a rock formation quickly, and Ford’s horse followed without hesitation.

Across the river, Ford could see a small grouping of horses and men.

Mia’s family.

One caught sight of him just before he turned out of view, and yelled something indistinct across the gorge and river separating them. Even if he could have made out the words, he probably didn’t want to, Ford decided.

That made at least part of this journey easier. Hopefully it was miles up or downstream before they could find a place to cross, maybe further. It gave them a real head start on getting to a place they couldn’t be found.

“That was… I’m sorry, for them,” Mia said over her shoulder as her horse plodded onward. “But we can avoid them better now.”

“How much further, do you think?” He asked, desperately hoping that they wouldn’t have to cross the river to find the blasted cave. He’d pictured this outing going rather differently in his mind.

He hadn’t factored in storms and rivers that changed course, and had underestimated her angry relatives. He should have known better on that last part, but there was nothing he could change at this point about his actions.

Mia shrugged, and nudged her horse into a faster clop. Ford’s leg was feeling a little better, but still rather sore. He hoped it would hold up to whatever would come next.

Most of the day was spent in silence, as they listened for signs that they were being followed.

While Ford didn’t think it particularly likely that the men had found a way across so soon, he was still on edge.

The pair stopped briefly for a meal when they encountered another puddle left behind by the river, and breathed quietly in the silence of the canyon.

“Are you all right?” Mia looked him up and down. Getting on and off the horse was becoming easier with practice, though Ford still required more help than he wanted.

“You can stop asking,” He eyed her. “I’m always fine until I say I’m not.”

“I don’t believe you,” She tilted her chin up with a light smile to take the sting out of accusing him of lying. He glared in response.

Sometimes he was reminded of why he hated her. He tried to cling to that when it happened, but he could no longer find her smiles as irritating as he did at first.

“You should,” He said irritably, and her smile faded.

“Ford…” She hesitated, “What’s in the cave?”

“What?” Had she already forgotten?

“You said there was treasure, but Uncle Trace said you were lying to me,” Mia bit her lip and looked down with the admission, as if embarrassed that a relative of hers would say such a thing.

“Why would I lie about that?” Ford shook his head. “Why, what does he say is in there?”

Mia hesitated, and Ford’s eyebrows rose.

“Mia… what does he say is in the cave? Would he lie to you to get you to come home?” Ford wondered what lengths Mia’s family would go to in order to have her safely back with them.

He didn’t really want to accuse them of anything terrible, but clearly Trace did know for sure what was hidden in the cave, or he wouldn’t have burned the map to it. The question was, would he reveal the truth to Mia, or a lie to make her turn around and come home regardless?

“He’s never lied to me before,” Mia bit her lip thoughtfully. “I don’t think he would.”

“Then what’s there? What’s in the cave?” Ford leaned towards her.

“He says there’s no money there. If you want wealth, you won’t get it from inside the cave,” She told him sadly. “I’ve been thinking about it since I woke up, but I didn’t know whether to tell you or wait until we know for sure, ourselves…”

Ford swallowed and took a deep breath. He wanted the truth out of her, but his impulse was to shake her until she told him, and he had a feeling that wouldn’t be the most effective way of drawing out the information.

“So you do think he’s lying, or you don’t?” He asked slowly. She seemed to be equivocating on the point.

“I don’t think he’s lying, but he hasn’t been in there, that I know of, for a decade or so. It might be different,” She sounded fairly uncertain of what she was saying, but he didn’t know why.

“Mia,” He tried again. “Why don’t you just tell me everything he said, and then we can both think about it together? Aren’t two heads better than one? Surely we can figure it out… unless you have some other reason for keeping the information from me.”

He laid the other part out frankly to see her reaction. She seemed conflicted as she stared back at him, and he wondered why.

“I want to go to the cave no matter what’s there,” Mia said after a moment. “I want you to come with me so that I’m not alone when I do it. I’m afraid if I tell you the truth, you’ll either abandon me, or want to use me, and I don’t like either option.”

Ford stood up straighter. Her frank assessment of the risks caught him a little off guard. He had wanted to use her before, and hadn’t thought much of abandoning her previously.

“Please tell me, what’s in the cave?”