Twelve days. She had been taken twelve days ago. He sat at the fire, waiting for dawn to break. They had to stop when darkness fell only to make sure they didn't lose the trail. He hated stopping. Every second took her further from him. He prayed she was still alive, and that somehow she had managed to hold her temper in. He loved her fierceness, but it bought her trouble from time to time. He had warned her often enough. "I love your temper, Becky, but the Shawnee might not understand it, so as a favor to me, see if you can't reign it in. I've grown kind of fond of ya." She had laughed at him her blue eyes sparkling.
He looked up into the sky at the shimmering stars spilled out across the darkness, wondering if she could see them too. He tried not to think too much about what was happening to her. Instead, he tried to remember the first time he'd seen her; the first time she had smiled at him; the first time he'd heard her laugh; the first time he had kissed her . . . He sighed.
"Here." Mingo said handing him some jerky. Daniel took it and ate it mechanically. They were well beyond Shawenee country and headed into territory unfamiliar to him. Mingo glanced at him concern etched on his fine features.
"You need sleep, Daniel."
"How do you expect me to manage that?" Daniel replied flatly.
Mingo sighed. A bachelor himself, his only ties were his family at Chota and this family, the Boones. Somehow, he'd become tangled up with them and he could no more turn from his ties to them, than deny his own blood. He'd often watched Rebecca and Daniel with envy and longing. Despite Daniel's love for exploration and adventure, his obvious love for Rebecca was far more powerful, and always led him home. They shared a constant, deep love. Two people well-matched; strong, resilient, devoted, and united. Mingo looked at his friend across the fire. He looked terrible. They had better find Rebecca soon.