By the time he pulled the wagon to a stop for the evening, she turned her energy to gathering firewood, glad for the distraction from her thoughts. Her eyes darted back and forth across the tall prairie grass, looking for signs of wood peeking through. The only thing that caught her attention was the round dark brown lumps resembling cow dung, only larger and less odiferous. Walking farther from the camp, her gaze continued searching, still finding no firewood. Perhaps she would have to forgo the hot meal and pull from their stock of dried beef instead. As she turned back toward camp she noticed a cluster of women gathered around a plump older woman. “Listen up, ladies,” the older woman shouted. “From here on out, it is doubtful we’ll find firewood.” Slumping shoulders, Hannah started to walk away from the crowd. Drew told her they would have fuel enough to cook hot meals daily. She had not planned to spend the bulk of the trip without fire. And what about staying warm at night? The temperature already dropped several degrees in the few minutes since they stopped traveling for the day.
