Alex rode ahead of her. Obviously he had a trail in mind. He'd probably been thinking about it all week. The trail they followed led around the base of a bluff. There was a shorter way up the side of the bluff. She had shown it to him years ago when they visited her parent's graves. He didn't want her to take that route, though, because it was too dangerous. They weren't in a race, though, and the longer route would give her guests more time to explore.
A few small stones clattered down the bluff and they glanced up in time to see a bighorn sheep. Two lambs followed their mother as the ewe leaped from one ledge to another. This was why their guests would enjoy the route. Alex knew the sheep liked this area. There were three of them … well, six now. Three lambs had been born this spring.
Alex glanced back at her and grinned. "Gerald should find this route rewarding." The smile faded. "If I can find a good way up to those ruins." He glanced around. "I thought the creek was close, but I don't hear it."
Carmen urged Princess up beside Ed and pointed. "It's over there. I suppose the rain this week has it flowing faster."
They paused at the creek while Ed and Princess drank. The water moved silently over moss and lichen covered slabs of rocks, forming small pools in the low spots. A sudden breeze whistled through the trees over them, startling the horses. Their heads jerked up, water dripping from their muzzles as they looked around, their ears perked forward searching for any sound that might indicate danger. Leather creaked as Alex shifted in the saddle. Honeysuckle blossoms sent a sweet invitation and a bee buzzed by them in answer. Ed snorted and returned to drinking. Princess nickered and stepped forward. She was ready to move on.
Alex urged Ed into a walk and they continued their mission. They found the ruins about a mile further where the creek followed a gorge between two high cliffs. Her father had discovered the rock cluster shortly after he bought the land. He thought it might be a shelter that Civil War soldiers had built. Large rocks had been stacked, forming an outside wall that made a room under an overhanging cliff. It was close to water but high enough to escape floods. How long had they lived there? Was it in the winter or summer? Her gaze lifted to the top of the cliff on her right.
High above them were the graves of her parents. She and her father had buried Mom's ashes there, and then after he died, Josh had helped her bury his ashes there too. She shivered. This place always gave her the creeps. It was different standing beside what was left of her parents and looking down. Down here it was as if the ghosts of soldiers wandered. Did they die here - from hunger?