In the days that followed, several people visited. Some were bereaved parents praying for the hope Allie might be theirs. Some were bounty hunters paid by a family back East to find survivors.

Always Allie watched them, a tiny part of her hoping that she would see the family she’d lost. But the memory of her parents’ bodies piled high in a heap to be burned was still too real in her mind to let herself believe in a dream. She knew no matter how hard Nichole tried to help, no family would come.

Again and again, she moved close to Wes and slipped her hand in his, silently telling him that she would stay with him. And as always, he stood beside her, allowing no one close enough to touch her.

Each time, she left her fingers in his grip a moment longer. Each time, he silently accepted her gift.

NINE

WES FOLDED THE MAP HE’D SPENT AN HOUR STUDYing and leaned back in the kitchen chair. ‘‘I have to go,’’ he announced. ‘‘The Goliad treasure is real, I can feel it.’’

Both his brothers, across the table from him, frowned. Long past midnight, coffee and adrenaline had kept them anchored in the conversation.

‘‘It’s a wild goose chase.’’ Daniel folded his huge arms over his chest. ‘‘I’d never thought you’d fall for such a scheme. The map’s barely readable and obviously drawn with a hand shaking of age or drink. Texas is full of buried treasure stories, a lost Confederate gold shipment, Indian burial grounds, miners after ’49 who left their fortunes here until the war was over. How many others are you going to fall for after this one?’’

Wes gave him the look all big brothers give their younger siblings, the look that silently says, ‘‘I’ll always be older and wiser than you.’’ He’d expected them to be skeptical, cautious, logical. Even a little excited. But not blatantly disbelieving.

‘‘How much did you pay for this map?’’ Adam lifted the oilcloth as if weighing its worth and finding it light.

Wes grabbed it out of Adam’s hand, frustrated at them both. They had what they wanted out of life. Adam had Nichole, and Daniel had his daughters. Why couldn’t they allow him his dream? ‘‘I paid nothing. Vince gave this map to me for safekeeping a few nights before he died. He seemed skittish about someone trying to take it from him. He was always glancing over his shoulder as though a ghost followed him.

‘‘Since he died, I guess that makes the map mine. Vince told me once that his only relative was his grandfather, and the old man passed on soon after drawing the map.’’

Daniel shook his head. ‘‘There’s probably nothing there, or it was found twenty years ago.’’

Wes shrugged. ‘‘Maybe. But Vince said his grandfather rode with James Fannin at Goliad back in ’35 when the war with Texas and Mexico began. He said they left the mission with every man they could round up to go help the men fighting at the Alamo. Over five hundred strong, some say, a mixture of Texans and several volunteers from the southern states. Within a few miles, one of the wagons broke down, and they stopped to make repairs. Santa Anna’s army, still excited from their kill at the Alamo, caught up to Fannin and his men in an open field.

‘‘The grandfather told how they fought for hours, but it was hopeless. They were surrounded and outnumbered. Fannin, a West Point dropout, decided to surrender with the understanding that they’d be marched to the border and told to leave Texas forever. But Santa Anna marched them back to Goliad and held them inside the old Spanish mission. There were so many, only a third of the men could lie down and sleep at one time. As the days passed, the men knew their chances of dying grew. They started digging a tunnel, hoping to reach the river. By Palm Sunday of 1836, with the tunnel only a third finished, they knew their luck had run out. Santa Anna began ordering the men out to face the firing squad.

‘‘Frantically, the men pooled all their valuables and stuffed them into the tunnel. Then the last few to leave the mission collapsed the tunnel and placed stones across the opening so that no one would ever find it.’’

Daniel leaned forward with interest. ‘‘Then what happened?’’

‘‘They were all marched out and shot. Fannin was already wounded in the leg. He was carried from the mission in a chair, but insisted on standing for the execution. His last request was not to be shot in the head. The firing squad blindfolded him and twelve rifles were raised to his skull.’’

‘‘What about Vince’s grandfather?’’

‘‘Vince said he was with volunteers from South Carolina called the Rovers. They were told to march out as a unit, away from the others. At first they thought they might be taken to the border, but then they noticed the soldiers carried only rifles, not canteens.

‘‘About a mile from the mission, the Rovers were ordered to stop and kneel in the grass. Vince’s grandfather was toward the back of the company. He said the Rovers refused to kneel, and the army opened fire. In one round of blasting the first rows fell, screaming and crying in pain. Smoke from the old flintlock guns rose everywhere. Vince’s ancestor saw his chance. He ducked low and ran as fast as he could toward the river. He took a ball in the leg but didn’t stop.

‘‘He tripped and rolled in mud until he landed among the roots of the trees that grow along the Guadalupe. He lay there all day listening to the army hunting down the runners and shooting them. Finally, long after dark, he slipped into the water and floated downstream to freedom. He drew the map from memory, but the bullet he took crippled him too badly to let him reclaim the treasure.’’

‘‘But others escaped?’’ Daniel asked, suddenly allowing the boy to show through in the man not yet in his midtwenties.

‘‘I’m sure a few did. If they were healthy, they went on to fight with Sam Houston. But maybe they weren’t among the last to leave the mission and didn’t know where the treasure was buried. Or maybe they were like Vince’s grandfather and never could go back and claim it.’’

‘‘It’s a long shot.’’ Daniel shook his head. He’d never been a risk taker.

‘‘Yeah,’’ Wes agreed, ‘‘but it’s the only shot I’ve got left. That stampede at the Red River not only cost me the lives of most of my men, it took every dime I had. I’ve got a ranch with no cattle. When we first came here, after the war, I could have rounded up enough strays to start over, but not now. The treasure at Goliad-if it exists-will give me a fresh start.’’

Adam stood and moved to the stove to pour himself another cup of coffee. ‘‘It sounds too good to be true. All the valuables from hundreds of men just waiting to be found.’’

Wes laughed and held out his cup to be refilled. ‘‘That’s what I thought, too. There’s only one thing I forgot to mention. Vince gave me the map saying that his grandfather believed the treasure was cursed. I told him I didn’t believe in curses or ghosts. It seems every man who ever had the map or looked for the treasure died. First Vince’s grandfather, then his father and both his uncles, now Vince.’’

‘‘Oh, fine.’’ Daniel laughed. ‘‘We’re all sitting about looking at a map that’s killed everyone who ever got near it. Makes me want to go treasure hunting.’’

Wes shook his head. ‘‘No, I’ll go alone. I only wanted you to know where I was headed. Since the night of the stampede, something’s been bothering me. Two of the men on early watch reported seeing riders that night who asked about Vincent Edward. But no men came into camp, and Vince took his shift about an hour before the stampede.’’

‘‘You think they were planning to do Vince harm?’’ Adam voiced his thoughts.

‘‘Or take the map,’’ Wes answered. ‘‘If they confronted him while he was on watch, I’d stake my life that Vince wouldn’t tell them where the map was. But they may have guessed by now. Or, they may think the secret of the map died with Vince.’’

‘‘You think they might have killed him?’’

‘‘One shot would start a stampede,’’ Wes answered. ‘‘We never found Vince’s body to know one way or the other. Maybe they only meant to frighten him. Maybe they died along with him.’’

‘‘If they killed him for the map and lived, they’ll be after you if they think you might have it.’’

‘‘That’s why I need to get to Goliad as fast as possible. If the mission holds a treasure, I’ll find it before this blasted curse catches up to me. And I’ll telegraph back here every few days to keep in touch. If someone comes asking after me, they’ll start with one of you.’’

‘‘We’ll let you know if you’re followed,’’ Daniel promised. ‘‘But if you need help, send for us. Luckily, I still have Willow to look after the twins and every woman in the settlement thinks she’s the assistant. I can be ready to ride within the hour.’’

‘‘What about Allie?’’ Adam asked.

‘‘I was thinking, she’d be better off staying with you.’’ Wes set his jaw. ‘‘She gets along great with Nichole. Plus, I want her out of danger. I can’t very well take her with me.’’

‘‘What about your promise to her?’’

‘‘It can wait a few weeks. I’ll find her family, but first I have to find the treasure.’’

Daniel frowned. ‘‘She may think her family is more important than the gold.’’

Wes ignored his disapproval. Neither of his brothers seemed to understand that he was doing no good here. It might be weeks before a lead on her family came in. Time was running out on the treasure. He could feel it. The odds were against him already; every day lessened his chances.

Standing, he added, ‘‘I’ve made up my mind. I’ll leave at first light.’’

‘‘You’d better tell Allie,’’ Adam warned. ‘‘We’ll be glad to have her stay with us, but you can’t just leave her without telling her you’re leaving.’’

‘‘All right.’’ Wes didn’t think it would do any good. ‘‘I’ll tell her now. Not that she’ll understand or care.’’