The title and assayers office was in the center of town. Netty strode confidently along the boardwalk. It had been easy to set Clint to the task of selling the horses and wagon, he was already her large faithful dog.
Their conversation on the half day journey had centered on his ranch and its holdings. She had managed to keep him from asking her too many personal questions. As far as he was concerned she was a woman on her own, vulnerable. She smiled to herself, favoring her sore face, she liked the feeling of this power. She knew women had an aura, a mystique that men could not resist, but she hadn’t until now put it to any specific use. It was intoxicating to think of the possibilities.
The small man behind the counter started a bit when she pulled off her bonnet. Her face must be a
