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After stuffing her grooming supplies back into the saddlebags, she hesitantly stepped from
behind the rocks. A long-eared donkey and a short man wearing a large straw hat were outlined
against the firelight. Hawk seemed to be welcoming him to their camp. Why would he do that?
Victoria slowly walked toward them.
Hawk gestured to her and said something in Spanish. The little man turned, looked at her, and
nodded his head.
Victoria nodded back.
"Curly, this is Senor Varga. I've asked him to join us for supper. Take his donkey down to the
pool for a drink."
The Silver Heiress Sarah Winn 75
Was Hawk talking to her? Scowling at her, he pointed emphatically toward the donkey.
Victoria took several steps toward the donkey. The little man gave her a near toothless smile and
passed her the lead rope. She gave the rope a little tug. Nothing happened. She yanked. The
donkey must have been thirsty, for he suddenly darted forward, almost knocking Victoria down
before he led her to the pool.
Feeling foolish, she stood, held the rope, and wondered how much a donkey was supposed to
drink. One of the horses whinnied. The donkey lifted his head and brayed so loudly that Victoria
almost dropped the rope.
"Curly, take the donkey over and tie him near the horses," Hawk called.
He was calling her "Curly!" She turned to glare at him, but the donkey took off toward the
horses and pulled her along.
After she tied the beast, Victoria slunk over to the campfire. "Does our guest speak English?"
she asked and smiled at the old man.
Hawk smiled back at her. "Not a word."
"Why are you calling me that ridiculous name?" she asked, finding it difficult to keep smiling.
"That's your new name. Don't you like it?" Hawk grinned wickedly.
The Silver Heiress Sarah Winn 76
"I certainly do not." She stopped smiling.
Hawk spoke to the Mexican and the old man laughed. Then he replied to Hawk, lifted his hand
toward his head, and twirled a finger.
"What did he say," Victoria demanded.
"I told him you didn't like your nickname, and he said it suits you."
"Huh!" Stalking over to her blanket, she sat down. He seemed to delight in finding ways to
irritate her.
Hawk continued to chat with the old man in what seemed casual conversation, but from time to
time he raised his voice in a question, and the man would point in one direction or another as he
answered. Victoria surmised Hawk was getting directions of some kind.
They had hot food that night--only beans and bits of stewed, dried beef, but it seemed a great
luxury to Victoria. She let her hardtack soak in bean juice until she could cut it with a fork. Jack
even opened a small tin of sugar to put in their coffee. A few days of traveling through the desert
had made her appreciate life's simplest pleasures.
After they'd eaten, they sat around the fire for a while. Hawk and the Mexican did most of the
talking, but whenever Jack or Hawk had anything to say to her, they used that cursed nickname
The Silver Heiress Sarah Winn 77
freely. Knowing they enjoyed her discomfort over the silly name, she tried to pretend it didn't bother
her.
Finally the old man nodded all around, said, "Buenas noches," and went to bed down near his
donkey.
"Your first night as a boy came off pretty well, Curly," Hawk said as Victoria stretched out on
her bedroll.
"That is the most unoriginal name you could possibly have come up with," Victoria couldn't
resist saying.
"Just try not to flounce around so much when we use it," Hawk said with a sneaky grin.
"What do you mean by 'flounce around'?" Victoria asked, genuinely puzzled.
"It's a way you have of twisting your body when you get mad. Doesn't look very manly," Hawk
replied.
"I do not. Do I?" Victoria looked at Jack for confirmation.
He covered his mouth with his hand and dipped his head.
Without saying good-night, she rolled onto her side and pulled the blanket to her chin.
The Silver Heiress Sarah Winn 78
The next morning, the old man finished his coffee, thanked them profusely, and rode out of the
ravine on a small donkey. As soon as he was out of sight, they broke camp and got underway
themselves.
As Hawk led them out of the hills, Jack called out, "Ain't that town the other way?"
"I want to hit the road well south of there," Hawk said. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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