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Bernadette’s gaze went to her brother. Of all of them, it seemed that Lucas was the one who’d always had faith in Zeke.

Zeke’s expression relaxed.

Bernadette wished she could have offered the comforting words.

She didn’t realize Zeke battled with feeling insecure.

She’d assumed he was oblivious to the way others viewed him.

She hadn’t helped matters by being critical of him.

He wanted so much to be worthy of his badge.

It was difficult to live up to that hope when others criticized him all the time.

“Are you two ready?” Zeke asked Blaze and Faye.

The two nodded, and Zeke went with them to the saloon.

Lucas, meanwhile, led her and Gail to the edge of the building.

“We’re not going to camp here for the night,” Gail told him. “There are too many men. We don’t feel safe staying here.”

Lucas blinked in surprise then took a good scan of the people around them. “I didn’t realize there weren’t any other women here.”

Bernadette didn’t want to look around them but ended up doing so anyway and caught several of the men staring at her and Gail. She shivered. They couldn’t get out of here soon enough. “Do you remember how many supplies Blaze said we needed to get?” she asked Lucas and Gail.

“I don’t think we need a lot,” Lucas said. “The main thing is water. Now that we’re in the desert, that’s been our biggest worry. It doesn’t sound like Quartzsite is anything like Flagstaff or Prescott.”

“No, it doesn’t,” Gail agreed. “The map indicates it’s as dry as the rest of the land around us. Granite Wash Pass attracts all of these miners because it has a reliable source of water.”

Lucas turned his gaze to her and smiled. “When we were in Pennsylvania, I never gave you enough credit for how smart you are.”

Gail’s face flushed with pleasure. “Back there, the most pressing thing I had to know was how to conduct myself in a formal setting. I didn’t need to read a map.”

“That might have been to my benefit. If you had started showing the bachelors you could read a map, someone else might have snatched you away from me.”

Gail giggled, and while Bernadette knew it was sweet that her brother was smitten with Gail, she was growing weary of this.

Perhaps if Zeke was tossing compliments her way the same way Lucas was doing with Gail, it might have been bearable.

When Bernadette was assured none of the miners were going to approach them, she turned her gaze to the doors of the saloon.

All was quiet in there. That had to mean Lee and Wilson weren’t in there.

With the way Faye kept bragging, Bernadette expected Faye to start shooting within a split-second of seeing them.

“You never had anything to worry about,” Bernadette caught Gail telling Lucas as she turned her attention back to them. “You were the only man I wanted.”

“I’m very relieved to hear that,” Lucas told Gail. “If I hadn’t married you, I would have missed the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”

Gail giggled again, and Bernadette turned away from them.

It was good these two ran off to a hotel as soon as they found one.

It was the only time she got a break from all of this.

She figured she was as romantic as the next woman, but enough was enough.

Her attention went back to the saloon doors.

What was taking Zeke, Blaze, and Faye so long?

A soiled dove twirled her curly blonde hair around her finger as she stood by the bar with Zeke, Blaze, and Faye. “Yep, I’m sure it was them. They fit the description of the men you’re searching for.”

Zeke gave an uneasy glance at Faye. Even though she insisted she knew all about her brother’s undesirable deeds, he wasn’t comfortable with her hearing all of this. “Maybe you should join the others outside,” he told Faye.

Faye shot him a pointed look. “Do you think this is the first prostitute my brother’s been with?”

“Maybe not, but you shouldn’t be aware of it,” Zeke replied.

“I’m not a child. I’m not even of marrying age,” came her matter-of-fact response.

“I’ll be thirty-five in two months, and I was thirteen when Wilson was born.

Ever since he was little, he wouldn’t mind.

You’d take him out to the woodshed, and he’d just laugh and laugh.

Nothing ever got through to him. I could tell you stories about him that’d make his night with this soiled dove seem like it was no big deal.

” Her head snapped toward the blonde, who was watching her with wide eyes as if she, too, couldn’t believe Faye’s nonchalance about the whole thing.

“So they were both with you last night?”

The blonde cleared her throat and nodded. “They wanted me to judge which one was the better of the two.”

Zeke cringed, but Blaze and Faye seemed to have expected it.

“It’s not my place to judge what a customer wants,” the blonde told Zeke.

“I do the job I’m paid for. You three wanted to know if men who match Lee’s and Wilson’s descriptions have been here, and they have.

” Her gaze went to the badge on Zeke’s chest. “I did my part for the law. You remember that next time a sheriff comes by to clean up the town.” Her gaze went to Zeke’s eyes. “Alright?”

“No one will come after you,” Zeke assured her.

She relaxed then picked up a deck of cards. “If you three don’t mind, I like to play Solitaire when I have a moment to myself.”

As she headed for one of the rooms in the back, Faye gave a satisfied nod to Blaze and Zeke. “I told you my brother and his friend couldn’t resist visiting a prostitute. If there’s one thing they love more than drinking, it’s women.”

“I’m glad we’re not far behind them,” Blaze said as the three headed out of the saloon.

“Now we really have a chance of getting them before they do any more damage.” Once they reached Bernadette, Gail, and Lucas, Blaze told them, “Good news. Lee and Wilson were here last night. We won’t have any trouble catching up to them. ”

While Blaze and Faye were happy about this, Zeke noted the apprehension on the others’ faces.

He took the gun and reins of his horse back from Lucas then slipped his second gun back into his bedroll.

“You three don’t need to worry. We’ll make sure you’re out of harm’s way when the time comes to confront them. ”

“You can’t promise them something like that,” Faye admonished as Zeke swung the bedroll over his shoulder.

“Why not?” Zeke asked.

“Because we don’t know what to expect when we get to Quartzsite,” she replied. “Have you been there before?”

“No, but I’ve read a lot about it. The Red Ghost has been seen there a few times,” Zeke said. “A couple of articles detailed the places it barged through in its murderous rampages.”

Faye stared at Zeke for a long moment before she looked heavenward. “Don’t tell me you’re one of those people who think a stupid camel the government let loose through here is a monster.”

Zeke bristled. “No one knows what it is.” He swung the bedroll over his shoulder. “And it’s killed people. Innocent people. That makes it a monster.”

“We’re not having this argument again,” Blaze intervened. “We’re going to focus on what’s important, and what’s important is making sure Lee and Wilson aren’t allowed to go around harming and killing innocent people. Right, Zeke?”

Zeke blinked. “Why are you directing that to me? She started it by saying I was stupid.”

“I didn’t say you were stupid. I said the camel was stupid,” Faye shot back. “But the fact that you got so upset about it does make me wonder how a grown man—one who represents the law, no less—can buy into tall tales.”

“There’s no reason to treat him like that,” Bernadette inserted.

Surprised that she had interjected, Zeke and Faye both turned to her.

Bernadette’s cheeks went pink, but she told Faye, “Zeke has good reason to be concerned. Camel or not, the thing has killed people and destroyed property. It’s good to be cautious.”

Faye glanced from Bernadette to Zeke then shrugged. “I agree with Blaze. Our time is better spent tracking my idiot brother and his equally idiotic friend.” She gathered the reins of her horse then started heading down the path.

“Meet us at the store.” Blaze gestured to the makeshift building where a group of men were congregated.

Zeke’s gaze went back to Bernadette. He didn’t know why she had chosen to speak up on his behalf, but it was nice that she had.

Blaze had taken him under his wing, which was why he had allowed Faye to join them despite his misgivings about her.

Bernadette, on the other hand, had chosen to defend him when it would have been easier to keep silent.

There was no doubt Faye was a formidable opponent.

She not only spoke her mind but had the ability to physically assert herself as well.

Had they been at the schoolhouse, everyone would have been afraid of her, and they would have gone along with whatever she said.

Bernadette had taken a big risk in standing up for him.

He had been struggling to deny his feelings before, but now it was downright impossible.

It was a shame he couldn’t marry her. For the rest of his life, he was going to regret not being the one Lucas arranged for her to marry.

“We might as well join them,” Lucas said, interrupting his thoughts.

Lucas was right. Regardless of his feelings, they had a mission. Zeke pulled the reins of his horse and joined the others as they headed for the store.