Chapter 16 - The Stand at Ward Ranch
A year passed.
Ward Ranch prospered.
So did Aayoka’s land.
They built a road connecting the properties.
People began calling it Ward-Aayoka Road.
Aayoka hated the name.
Elias secretly loved it.
One summer afternoon, a group of cattlemen arrived seeking access to the spring.
Years earlier, such negotiations would have happened without Aayoka.
Now she sat at the head of the table.
Elias remained silent unless asked.
One cattleman addressed him anyway.
“What do you think?”
Elias pointed toward Aayoka.
“Her land.”
The man looked embarrassed.
Aayoka hid a smile.
Later she asked, “You enjoyed that.”
“Very much.”
“You could have helped him.”
“I did.”
“How?”
“He’ll remember next time.”
The ranch had become known for something unusual.
People who worked there were treated fairly.
Women participated in decisions.
Workers were paid on time.
No one was trapped by debt.
Elias and Aayoka had taken everything Calder represented and built the opposite.
That became their victory.
Not his imprisonment.
May you like
Their lives.
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