Waited until the documents were loaded.
Then disappeared into the alley behind the freight office.
And before midnight, Elias Rusk received word that the mountain beast and the enormous baker had found Lydia Whitmore's records.
He sat in his private study, listening without expression.
Then slowly opened a drawer.
Inside lay a letter addressed to Gideon Hale.
It bore a northern postmark.
The handwriting belonged to Matthew.
And the date was four years old.
Rusk stared at the envelope.
For a moment, something like fear crossed his face.
Then he looked toward his clerk.
“Find the younger Hale.”
Voss swallowed.
“And if he won't come?”
Rusk's expression hardened.
“Then make sure the older one doesn't live long enough to ask him why.”
The next morning, Gideon woke to the smell of coffee and the sound of Elena singing.
For one confused moment, he thought he was dreaming.
The cabin had been quiet for so many years that hearing another human voice inside it seemed almost impossible.
Then he opened his eyes.
Elena stood near the stove, carefully turning biscuits in a heavy iron pan. Her enormous figure filled much of the kitchen space, but Gideon had arranged the worktable and equipment so that she could move comfortably between the stove and the broad bench.
Her thick chestnut hair was pinned loosely.
Her cheeks glowed in the firelight.
And she was singing a little song about a sailor who promised to return before winter.
Gideon watched.
His chest tightened.
For years, the cabin had been a place where he slept between difficult days.
Now it seemed to be becoming a home.
Elena noticed him.
She stopped singing.
“Oh.”
He smiled.
“Morning.”
Her cheeks reddened.
“How long have you been awake?”
“Long enough to know you've got a better voice than the fellows at the saloon.”
She laughed.
“That isn't much of a compliment.”
“Best I can offer before coffee.”
Elena shook her head.
Then brought him a cup.
He accepted it.
Their fingers brushed.
For a moment, neither moved.
Then Gideon looked toward her.
“About last night…”
Elena's expression changed.
He noticed.
And immediately regretted the words.
She looked down.
“If you regret kissing me—”
“No.”
His answer was so immediate that she stopped.
Gideon took a breath.
“I regret waiting so long.”
Elena slowly looked up.
He smiled.
“I wanted to kiss you the first afternoon you stood in this cabin.”
Her eyes widened.