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Chapter Twenty-One

O n their way to Desert Station, Bernadette was surprised to see that Zeke would slow his horse down from time to time.

She didn’t ask about it at first. She figured that he was probably being cautious.

She glanced around and didn’t see anyone, or anything, that posed a threat, but he was familiar with this terrain.

There might be something she was missing.

After he slowed down for the fifth time, she finally asked, “Is something wrong?”

His gaze went from the land around them to her. “Nothing’s wrong. I’m just looking for your wedding bouquet.”

Her ears perked up in interest. “Wedding bouquet?”

“Sure. Every bride needs a bouquet. I’m trying to find suitable flowers.

There are a couple that won’t do. Take those over there.

” He pointed to white flowers with a greenish tinge to them.

“My ma calls those ‘jumping cactus’. They have pointed spines on them that hurt when you touch them. I can’t have you holding those. ”

She grimaced. Yes, she wouldn’t want to hold those. She scanned the area around them. For the first time, she noted how many shrubs, cacti, and other forms of vegetation there were in the arid environment. She found a group of red flowers. “What about those? They look pretty.”

He led his horse over to the patch of flowers she gestured to then studied them.

After a few moments, he shook his head and returned to her.

“I hesitate to get those. While they won’t prick you, they can be lethal if you eat them.

I realize you’d only be holding them, but I don’t feel safe with something like that. ”

Well, she didn’t, either. She would never eat a flower. That notion never once crossed her mind. But it probably wasn’t good luck to bring poisonous flowers to one’s wedding.

“I’m sure we’ll find something before we get to town,” Zeke said then continued to guide her along the path.

As it turned out, he was able to find some yellow marigold flowers that grew from a single plant and a couple of bright pink flowers he referred to as ‘Indian Paintbrushes’.

“We’ll say the yellow is for your golden hair and the pink is for our love,” he explained as he used one of his clean bandanas to wrap around the stems. He tied the stems together in a neat bow before showing them to her. “Do you want to hold these now or wait until we find the preacher?”

“I’d like to hold them now.” They were so pretty that she couldn’t wait to have them in her possession.

She studied the way he had arranged the flowers so that the pink ones were between the yellow ones.

Who knew Zeke had an eye for art? The arrangement was perfectly balanced.

She believed the term for it was ‘symmetrical’, if she recalled her lessons correctly.

She glanced at Zeke as he hopped back on his horse. “These are lovely. Thank you.”

He smiled, letting her know that he appreciated her words. “You’re welcome. Now, we can go find that preacher.”

Her heart skipped a beat. The more she got used to thinking about being married to Zeke, the more excited she got. She wouldn’t have thought it when the Red Ghost was dragging her through the desert in the middle of the night, but that had been the best thing that had ever happened to her.

As much as she loved her brother, he and Gail were too much of a distraction, what with their continual talk about how much they loved each other.

Blaze and Faye were too focused on getting to Quartzsite as fast as possible that there was barely any time to talk.

This way, she had a chance to be with Zeke and see him for who he really was.

Zeke had a way of fading into the background around the others. She was glad she’d gotten this time alone with him. She had wondered if he might be suitable for her before. Now she had no doubt she was making the right decision by marrying him instead of Blaze.

After they married, they found a livery stable to take care of their horses for the night.

Then they went to the only hotel in town.

As the owner went to get their room key, Zeke found a copy of the newspaper on the front desk.

To his surprise, the headline read “Red Ghost Terrorizes Granite Wash Pass”.

There was an illustration of the beast. It was a large hairy beast. Horns were protruding from its head, and it was snarling so that one could make out its sharp teeth.

On its back, a human skeleton yielded a fiery sword.

He nudged Bernadette in the arm. She glanced up from the bouquet she was holding.

“Look at this,” Zeke said. “It’s about the Red Ghost.”

She gasped and peered down at the article. “We were there when that happened. How did word get here so fast?”

“The Red Ghost is famous. Everyone wants to know about it here.” He paused and studied the illustration. “Don’t you think this is a good representation of it?”

“I didn’t see much of it except its big nose and glowing eyes.” She leaned closer to the paper. “But now that I think about it, it did seem to have some kind of horns.” She shivered.

“You two saw that thing up close?” the owner asked as he set the key in front of Zeke.

“We did,” Zeke replied. “We got lucky. We survived.”

“Zeke was really brave,” Bernadette inserted as she slipped her arm around his. “The Red Ghost grabbed my bedroll while I was still in it. Zeke ran after it and fought it until it had no choice but to let go of the bedroll. I wouldn’t be alive today if he hadn’t come to my rescue.”

The owner’s eyes grew wide. “You saved her from that monster?”

Zeke’s face warmed. He wasn’t used to people looking at him like he was a hero. It was both humbling and thrilling at the same time. “I love her. I had no choice but to go after her.”

“Oh, it was more than that, Zeke,” she said. “You also did it because you believe in helping people who need it.” Her gaze went back to the owner. “Just like he volunteered to help my brother find me when Bower and his men kidnapped me and held me for ransom.”

“You were the woman Bower, Big Mike, and Squiggy took from the train heading for Flagstaff?” the owner asked.

“I am,” she replied. “Zeke gave no thought to himself when he found me tied up in their hideout.” Zeke was ready to remind her that Blaze had been there as well, but then she added, “There was another man who helped, too. However, it was Zeke who took it upon himself to reunite me with my brother. Had it not been for Zeke, I don’t know if I would have seen Lucas again. ”

Zeke was sure that Blaze would have made sure Bernadette saw Lucas, but it was nice of her to give him so much credit for the rescue.

“Now we’re on our way to find Lee and Wilson,” she continued, “and when Zeke finds them, he’ll make sure they no longer pose a threat to anyone ever again.” Her voice was laced with so much pride that Zeke almost believed he could single-handedly do it if he had to.

“You don’t say.” The owner’s gaze went to Zeke before he leaned forward and lowered his voice. “I heard some mumblings that those two were seen just south of here last night.”

Zeke’s ears perked up. Lee and Wilson hadn’t made it to Quartzsite yet? That was good news. He and Bernadette hadn’t lost any time in tracking them down after all.

“Sounds like Lee and Wilson scared off the bounty hunter who was on their trail,” the owner added then shook his head. “Every young man thinks he has what it takes to capture vermin like Lee and Wilson until he comes face to face with them.”

“Does a bounty hunter have training like a deputy does?” Bernadette asked.

“Usually, none have any training,” the owner said.

“Oh, well, Zeke has been trained.”

Again, she was using that confident tone which made Zeke feel like he could tackle ten Lee and Wilsons.

The owner took a look at the ledger. “If you two are dealing with outlaws, when did you have time to marry?”

“Oh, we did that as soon as we came into town. Preacher Moore married us.” Since the owner looked skeptical, Zeke pulled the marriage certificate from the breast pocket of his shirt and showed it to him. “We just left their place. They were good enough to give us some dinner.”

The owner relaxed and handed the certificate back to Zeke.

“I know Preacher Moore. He’s a romantic at heart.

Of all the things he does, he enjoys performing weddings the most.” He gave Zeke the room key then winked.

“I don’t blame you for rushing to marry her.

You don’t want a pretty one like that to get away. ”

“No, sir, I don’t,” Zeke admitted and tucked the certificate back into his breast pocket. “I’m lucky she chose to be with me.”

Bernadette beamed at him, and so much joy filled him that he thought he might burst. Imagine someone like him getting someone like her. The men back home were going to get jealous of him for sure.

“You two ought to give your report to the newspaper editor,” the owner suggested. “It’s not often we get someone who’s seen this thing and lived to tell about it.”

Zeke hadn’t thought that he—of all people—might be asked to give a rendition of the Red Ghost. All this time, he had only read what others had to say about it. His gaze met Bernadette’s, and he silently asked her if she wanted to do that.

“People should be warned about how terrible this thing is,” Bernadette told him.

Well, that settled it. They owed it to the people of Arizona to warn them. “Where is the building where the paper is printed?” Zeke asked.

“Down one block that way.” The owner gestured to the right. “It’ll be on the left side of the street. It’ll only be open for another half hour. I recommend you go there now if you want to stop by there today.”

“Alright,” Zeke replied. “How much is it for the paper?”

“Guests get one copy for free,” the owner said. “The same is true for a bath, but you both only get one. If you want another, it’s going to be five cents.”