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Ely Stanton worked with the roundup At a noon break, he came over to stand

with Benteen, surveying the ather

“Mary and an “We started out the same time you and Lorna did All we had was about three hundred cows and you had … seven, eight tiot today is ‘bout four hundred An’ look what you’ve done for yourself”

“You’ll start increasing” Benteen knew the parity of groas due to a lack of aggression on Ely’s part

“No” Ely shook his head “A otta take a hard look at himself soot no head for the business side of ranchin’ I can be the best damned foreman that ever forked a saddle for so nickel for myself”

“Ely—” Benteen began on a deep breath of regret, because it was undeniably true

“Mary and me talked it over, and anta sell out our claim to you—if you’re interested,” Ely interrupted “You just buy up our claim like you’re doin’ with the rest of the boys An’ as for the cattle, you pay us for theood for it An’ if you need a good foreman, I’m available full-time”

“The job’s yours, Ely, but”—there was a vaguely incredulous frown tracking across Benteen’s forehead —”the ranch and livestock, you could sell to so to practically give it to me You shouldn’t do that”

“Like I said”—there was a rare gleaot no head for business ’tall” Then he extended his hand to shake on the deal

Mail was a rarity, but early suht a windfall of letters froo Lorna received two frorandson, Webb Matthew, and the second was a Christotten her letter yet, inforrandson’s entrance into the world and describing the fat-cheeked baby she’d named Arthur William after her father

Her friend Sue Ellen had written, too Lorna had laughed aloud at soes where Sue Ellen hinted that she knew Lorna was enduring untold horrors in that wild, primitive land She sounded certain Lorna had been at death’s door when she gave birth to Webb Included in the letter, Sue Ellen passed on some information from an article she’d read in a New York newspaper that soht her eye because of the letter Lorna had written about the English lady she had e City The article said that the Earl of Crawford had taken ill and died while in the city before leaving for England, and that his , Lady Crawford, would be sailing for England, where his remains would be laid to rest at the ancestral ho about the “tragedy”

Lorna recalled the brief chat she’d had with Lady Crawford, and the kindness she’d shohen she sent her maid to Lorna’s rooone now, but Lorna had kept the jar as a memento of the incident to show her children as proof that she had met and talked to a real “lady” once The story had a sad ending now According to the date in Sue Ellen’s letter, the Earl of Crawford had died nearly a year and a half ago

The mail also included a hastily scratched note from Jessie Trumbo He expected to leave Texas the last week of March with aup two herds of that number In addition, there were four other herds that he personally knew about heading for the Montana country

The open range was going to fill up fast

With the arrival of an Ranches needed supplies and cowboys needed a place to spend their wages Miles City began to take shape as a con