Eva Williams shook out the sheet and flipped it across the makeshift clothesline that was strung from the edge of an old scrub juniper to the edge of the barn. The clothesline came in handy too when a bad sand storm would whip up out of the West. They had a small spread here on the Arizona side of the line in Bethlehem Falls. Of course, the land they had claimed was on the far outskirts, They had a lovely little river going through and some grassland at the base of the mountains. The horses that Jeb had rounded up had them setting pretty. Not like the bluegrass and the Walkers they had had before the War, but a decent living<br/><br/>Eva had been pretty in a golden, laughing kind of way,back in Kentucky,when she had first met Jeb. He was strong and charming, not afraid of hard work. No one could fight as hard, break horses as kindly and match him work for work. She fell in love with his flashing blue eyes and black wavy hair when she was just a young girl. They grew up and married right before the War. After the War nothing was left but the love they had for each other, little Maddie and a determination to go West to start over.<br/><br/>Eva picked up the wicker basket that she had made from native plants and put her booted foot on the path. Back in Kentucky she would have gone barefoot, but here, the snakes and scorpions made her too nervous to do that now. She didn't want to be bitten. Jeb was gone for days sometimes, checking on the horses, adding wild ones to his herd, and sometimes panning for gold. She had to take care of the cows.She had two, and the small flock of chickens. They lived so far out that Maddie couldn't go to school in town so, she taught her. Eva was proud of her own education and didn't want her daughter to suffer a lack of one.<br/><br/>The house they lived in was an old adobe house that some Spaniard had built a long time ago. Eva loved the long winged house with the courtyard in the middle. The heavy wood door was the only way in and the rooms opened out into the courtyard where she had a few flowers growing in pots. Most of the rooms were still empty, but they had made enough money and friends here to outfit a couple of bedrooms and a sitting room. She didn't dwell on the fact that this was a mini fortress and would easily be defended if necessary. Two rifles on top could hold off an army. Life was fairly calm out here with the sand, the mountains and the blazing sunsets.<br/><br/>Jeb didn't talk to her much about business, His answer to everything was to  not worry her pretty head with men's affairs. Eva was an obedient wife. She did her duty by her husband and her child. She kept the house and the grounds. She was happy here. Jeb was happy. Maddie was happy. What more could she want?<br/><br/>She went to Jeb's desk to straighten up some papers. Not meaning to pry, she picked up the paper on top. The script was messy and bold.Eva peered at it,<br/><br/>Signed,Mr.Amsterdam.<br/><br/>Eva shook her head and the golden hair escaped the neat bun. It wasn't a wife's place to question her husband's associates.He knew best,of course,but in her heart, she hated that man.