Molly flinched at her father's abrupt departure. He had warned her about the saloon on their first day in town. She thought he'd relaxed a bit about it, especially since she only went there when she knew Lily was there. There was something in his tone of voice that she'd never heard before from him. He was never harsh with her. She wondered if it had to do with the storm. She was recovering well. The bruises that had covered her body were almost faded. The one on her head was now an ugly light green. She had hardly left the house since the day she'd been allowed to leave Mr. Jackson's clinic. She suddenly didn't have the heart to finish the letter she'd been working on to Emily.

She stood up and walked to the small closet in her room and opened the door. In the back of the closet, wrapped in paper was her best dress. She took it out, laid it carefully on the bed and unwrapped it. It was a dress of peach organdy and had once belonged to her mother. When she was 16 her mother made some alterations to it so Molly could wear it to her first formal ball. There was a dance to be held the evening of the day of the box lunch. Her father had told her that she would be allowed to make a lunch that would be bid on by any single man in town, but she would be chaperoned. He had said nothing about attending the dance and she hoped he would need too much convincing to allow her to go. Her only wish was that someone would ask her to attend it with him.

She felt a blush creep into her cheeks as JD Dunn's face came into her mind. She would ask her father about it over dinner. She re-wrapped the dress and put it back into the closet. Walking out of the room she saw her father at the kitchen table, several ledgers, no doubt from the bank, in front of him. He looked up at her and for a brief few seconds she saw just how tired he looked. As fast as she noticed it, it was replaced by a smile.

"So tell me," he said, placing his pencil down and folding his hands in front of him. "What will you be making for your box lunch?"

"I'm not sure yet," she said, walking into the room and sitting at the table across from him. "I suppose I should worry more about this evening's meal." He gave her another tired smile.

"Do you know what I'd believe I'd like to do?" he asked her. She looked at him and shook her head. "I'd like to go for a walk after dinner. Do you remember when we used to do that? We'd go walking through Charlottetown, you and me and your mother?" She smiled at the memory.

"We'd go by the ocean and you'd tell all those stories about the fairies and the leprechauns. Sometimes we'd sing." She paused for a moment. "There's no ocean here."

"I know, love, I know," he said to her. "I'll still tell you about the fairies," he said smiling at her. She smiled and nodded then went about to make dinner. Her father continued to work on his books. She took two plates out of the cabinet and walked to the table with them. An envelope was on the table in the spot she'd sat at minutes before. In scrolling writing 'Miss Molly Gallagher' was written. Her father looked up knowingly has she set the plates down and picked the envelope up.

"What's this?" she asked.

"Open it," her father said to her. She slid her finger under the flap and took out a document from the envelope. She read it twice not truly believing what she was seeing.

"I don't understand," she said.

"Mrs. Travis brought it over early this morning. Her father-in-law is the judge that signed that letter. I wanted to suprise you with it. What will you tell him?" he asked her.

"I'm not sure. I feel as though someone's just handed me the moon and I'm not exactly sure what I'm supposed to do with it." Her father laughed and Molly realized it was a sound she missed. The letter was from a Judge Oren Travis, the judge that had hired the seven men to protect the growing town was now offering to Molly the position of the town's teacher. Since the town hadn't had a school, she would have to create the school and it's curriculum entirely on her own. It was not a task she felt that she could fairly take, her own education not completed. 'Things were certainly different here than in Canada,' she thought. Judge Travis said he would like to make an announcement the evening of the dance if she took the position.

"What do you think I should do?" she asked him.

"What do you want to do?" he said to her. He knew that her taking this position would mean the realization of a dream she'd had for a long time. The only difference was she would much rather have been setting up a school in Charlottetown rather than here in a place he knew she only tolerated because of him. "Mollybon, this is something you've wanted for a long time. This town would be lucky to have a teacher like you. Why don't you sleep on it? Make your decision in the morning." She nodded and finished setting the table.

"Da, if I did decide to take the position, an announcement would be made at the dance so I'm wondering if?"

"If you could go to the dance," he finished for her. She nodded sheepishly. Bryan let out a breath. Truthfully he wanted her as far from that social and dance as he could keep her. "Molly?" he started then stopped as he looked up at her. She never asked him for anything really. If Colum and him were there with her she would be fine. He smiled at her. "Will you wear your peach dress?" he asked her. She giggled. Lord, that was a sound he missed.

They finished eating dinner and cleaned up before walking outside into the evening. They walked toward the outskirts of town, Bryan wanting to avoid the town proper in case Lily Patterson was about. He didn't want his daughter associating with a woman of her status. He knew enough to know that even idle gossip had its roots somewhere and the things he'd heard about Lily had to have been based on some sort of fact. Molly was on his arm her hair blowing in the prairie wind. They walked past the church when Molly stopped suddenly.

"What's the matter?" he asked her looking in the direction she was. He saw the woman that was frequently with Josiah Sanchez and another man he knew only as Gabe. He was in the clinic with Molly when she'd been injured. They were getting ready to ride out. Molly had a worried look on her face as she watched the pair. Cheyenne mounted her horse.

"Cheyenne," Molly said out loud. Then she called to her. "Cheyenne." The woman either didn't hear her or chose to ignore her. Molly pulled her arm from her father's and walked toward the pair.

"Molly, what are you doing?" Bryan called after his daughter.

"Cheyenne, wait," Molly called out to her. The woman turned her horse as if she was going to ride at Molly. Molly stopped her father right behind her. Instead, Cheyenne and Gabe turned and rode out of town.

"What was that about?" Bryan asked her. Molly couldn't put her feelings into words. She just felt as though something were wrong and for some reason she couldn't quite understand, she felt drawn toward this woman and the promise of a friendship with her that so many people told her was futile. Molly answered him by leaning against her father's frame.

"Tell me a story, Da," was all she said.