Chapter 21

Rock Creek, Nebraska

June 1872

He hadn't laid eyes on his daughter in a decade, maybe even longer. Losing count of the passing years, he had instantly recognized her when she appeared before him. It felt like encountering a ghost from his past, seeing her face. Her mother had possessed a captivating beauty that had enchanted him during their youth. Yet, upon closer inspection, he noted reflections of his own features in her.

While Marcela had demureness about her, with her tawny brown locks and delicate features, Lara's countenance was quite the opposite. Her fiery spirit was evident in her every movement, her stubbornness etched into the lines of her determined expression.

"Well, Laralie, you've grown into a beautiful young lady," Lucas remarked.

Lara, however, stood much taller, inheriting her height from him. Her long golden waves were another trait she shared with him. But it was her mother's piercing black eyes that Lara had inherited, a reminder of the past that haunted him still.

"Thank you." Lara uttered, her voice catching in her throat as the words left her lips.

"Are you here alone? Or is there a son-in-law I have yet to meet?" Lucas inquired, a hint of hope in his voice. A hope of his legacy being carried beyond his years.

"No, no, I'm not married," Lara responded, attempting to deflect the conversation away from the topic off of her.

"Lara, a woman of your age," Lucas began, his tone taking on a more serious note.

Lara's gaze darted across the street, searching for any sign of Buck. She needed to escape the interrogation. She wanted to curl up and hide underneath the boardwalk she stood on.

"I'm sorry, I have to go. I'm terribly late," she hurriedly exclaimed, hoping her lie would suffice to escape his presence.

"Once I can put this to rest, we can be a family again."

Lara forced a strained smile and managed a nod, desperately hoping he wouldn't see through her lies. With a quick turn, she hastened across the dirt road toward the jeweler's shop, seeking safety, seeking Buck.

"Dinner," he called out from where he stood as she hurried away, his voice carrying an authoritative tone that demanded obedience. "We will catch up this evening for dinner."

She hurried as fast as she could without raising suspicion. The jeweler glanced up at her in surprise as she burst through the door. Lara quickly scanned the small room, her heart pounding with panic. She had hoped to find solace, perhaps even peace, but Buck was nowhere to be seen. Perhaps he went to visit the Marshal. Lara didn't want to chance seeing her father again so she waited inside until she saw her him leave the town street and disappear into the saloon.

She raced along the boardwalk to where she and Buck had tied their horses. Worry gnawed at her as she noticed the empty space where his horse should have been, fueling her restlessness.

Joaquin's warnings echoed in her mind, a stark reminder of the danger they faced. With each passing moment, the threat loomed larger, and Lara prayed fervently that they could find David before her father did. Urgency drove her as she fled town.

Tossing the reins over the porch railing, not bothering to secure the horse, Lara burst into the house, calling out for Buck. Silence greeted her frantic cries. Undeterred, she dashed through the kitchen, the parlor, and then raced upstairs to the bedrooms.

"Buck?" Lara's voice trembled with urgency as she ran up behind him, wrapping her arms around him tightly. "Didn't you hear me calling you? What are you doing?" Her heart sank as she noticed him packing up her belongings.

"You are well." Buck stated flatly.

"I am feeling better," Lara replied slowly wondering what was happening.

"Good." He tossed her bag at her and walked out of the room without a second glance.

"Buck?" Lara's voice cracked with confusion and hurt.

"I want you to go, Lara," Buck's tone was cold, his back turned to her.

"What?" Tears welled up in Lara's eyes. "I don't understand."

"Get out of my house," Buck's words cut through the air.

Had he not been so disturbed at seeing the captain in town, he could have seen through Lara's deception. He would have seen the fear in her face, the anger in her eyes, but all Buck saw before him was a conniving and deceitful woman. He wanted to shake her, to ask her why the games? Her father was responsible for the scars that marked his back, as well as the internal scars that still bled.

He didn't seek an explanation. He didn't want to hear her out. He desired to inflict upon her the pain she caused him. He longed to banish her from his sight and memories.

"I thought, well I," Lara struggled to find her words amidst the whirlwind of emotions. "I don't understand. What about last night?"

"Payment for room and board," Buck's response was curt, devoid of warmth.

"No, no," Lara's heart felt like it was being torn apart. "You said you loved me."

"You wouldn't have given yourself to me otherwise," Buck's words pierced through Lara like shards of glass splintering through her heart.

"How could you?" In a surge of anguish, Lara slapped him hard across the face.

"Just go," Buck's voice was firm as he dragged her to the porch and shut the door behind her. "Before we both do things we regret."

The echoes of her sobs vibrated through the heavy wooden door. Normally, hearing her cry would have torn at his heart but right now he wanted her erased from his life.

Lara pounded at the door until her hands ached, sinking down onto the cold, hard ground as she wept. Eventually, her sobs softened into soft whimpering. Her world had been in disorder since that morning seeing her father, and now it felt as though everything was collapsing around her.

After what felt like an eternity, she gathered herself and rode back to town. Buck had become a painful realization that she couldn't trust her heart, a bitter reminder she wasn't enough.