9Clay was thankful Sophia had returned to the wagon. Now they could talk freely without scaring her more than she already was. “There’s no need for you to be defensive, Bryan. No one is accusing you of anything.” Clay leaned toward the younger man. “The closer we get to the Territory, the less I trust Todd. He’s going to try something before then, and we will need to be prepared.”
“I’m doing everything I can!” Bryan said, exasperation behind every word.
Clay felt Martin’s heavy hand cover his knee. “Bryan will do right by our Sophia. He’s taken good care of us since this dreadful journey began, and being this close to the end won’t change that.”
In the night’s blackness, he heard Bryan’s shaky intake of air, but Clay couldn’t stop the building sense of urgency and reached out, grabbing
