Rourke stared at Elias for several seconds. Then he spat into the dirt.
"This isn't finished."
He motioned for his men to withdraw.
Collins climbed onto his horse, clutching his injured shoulder. The others followed.
Before leaving, Rourke pointed toward Elias.
"You've made yourself an enemy today."
Elias watched until the men disappeared behind the hills.
Only then did he lower his rifle.
The three women remained motionless.
The injured woman was conscious, but her breathing was shallow. The youngest of the three, a slim woman with long black hair tied behind her neck, stepped forward.
She held her knife in front of her.
"Stay there," she said in English.
Elias nodded.
"All right."
He placed his rifle on the ground and stepped away from it.
"My name is Elias Mercer. I live on a ranch north of here."
The woman studied him.
"Why did you help us?"
Elias glanced toward the distant trail where Rourke had disappeared.
"Because five armed men were chasing three women who were trying to protect an injured friend."
The woman said nothing.
Then the oldest of the three approached. She was perhaps forty, with dark eyes and silver beginning to show in her braided hair. A strip of cloth was tied around her upper arm, where blood had soaked through.
She spoke in Apache to the younger woman.
The younger woman lowered her knife slightly.
"Our friend needs help," she said.
Elias looked at the injured rider.
"Then let's get her out of this sun."
He walked toward his horse.
Behind him, the youngest woman spoke again.
"If you betray us, we will remember."
Elias paused.
He turned and met her eyes.
"I expect you would."
For the first time, something resembling surprise crossed her face.
Then she followed him.
The injured woman was named Nita.
The older woman was her aunt, Chenoa, and the youngest was her cousin, Aiyana.
Elias learned their names while helping them mount his spare horse and leading the exhausted animals toward his ranch.
They traveled without speaking much. The women watched the surrounding hills constantly, and Elias understood enough not to ask questions they were not ready to answer.
By sunset, they reached his property.
The ranch house stood beneath a towering cottonwood tree. Smoke drifted from the chimney, and a pair of cattle dogs barked as Elias opened the gate.
He helped Nita inside and laid her on the bed in the small spare room.
Chenoa immediately began examining the wound on her arm.
"Bullet," she said.
Elias fetched his medical supplies.
"How long ago?"
"An hour."
"Can you remove it?"
Chenoa looked at him.
"I have done it before."
"Then I'll boil water."
Aiyana stood in the doorway, watching every movement.
Elias cleaned the table, placed the medical instruments within Chenoa's reach, and stepped aside. He had no intention of interfering with a woman who clearly knew what she was doing.
For the next hour, the house was filled with the smell of boiled water, alcohol, and blood.
Nita endured the procedure without screaming. Once, when the pain became too much, she gripped the edge of the mattress so tightly that her knuckles turned white.
Aiyana stood beside her, speaking softly in Apache.
When the bullet finally came free, Chenoa held it up between two fingers.
"She will live."
Elias exhaled.
"Good."
He prepared a simple meal of beans, bread, and beef stew. The women ate slowly, and he noticed that Aiyana kept glancing toward the windows.
"You expect Rourke to come back?" he asked.
Chenoa answered.
"Men like him do not forget."
Elias leaned back in his chair.
"Then we'll make sure we're ready."
Aiyana looked at him sharply.
"You would fight him again?"
"If he comes here looking for trouble."
"Why?"
Elias was quiet for a moment.
Then he said, "Because I don't like bullies."
It was not the whole truth.
The truth was that the sight of those women standing over their wounded friend had reminded him of everything he had lost and everything he had failed to protect.
But he was not ready to tell them that.
That night, Elias gave the women his bedroom and slept in the barn.
He woke before dawn to the sound of footsteps outside.
When he opened the barn door, Aiyana stood in the pale morning light, holding two tin cups.
She offered him one.
"Coffee," she said.
He accepted it.
"Thank you."
For several minutes, they stood in silence, watching the sun rise over the mountains.
Then Aiyana spoke.
"My mother used to say that a person's heart is revealed by what he does when no one is watching."
Elias looked at her.
"Your mother sounds like a wise woman."
"She was."
Aiyana turned toward the house.
"We should leave today."
Elias nodded.
"If that's what you want."
She seemed surprised that he did not argue.
"We do not want to bring danger to your ranch."
"Rourke already knows where I live."
"That is why you should not help us further."
Elias finished his coffee.
"Let me at least make sure Nita is strong enough to ride."
Aiyana studied him for a long moment.
Then she nodded.
"One more day."
By noon, Nita could walk across the room.
Chenoa announced that they would leave the following morning.
Elias did not try to persuade them otherwise.
He spent the afternoon repairing a broken fence while the women rested. Later, he noticed Aiyana sitting beneath the cottonwood tree, examining a small leather pouch.
He approached slowly.