The next morning Zed and Ali had saddled their horses and were ready to ride out before the sunrise appeared in the horizon.

Mina stood looking up at Zed. "Tell my father not to worry too much. I will be safe. And don't let him go out all alone looking for the Hongs or Mr. Lee. You know how he is."

Zed switched a hunk of tobacco from one side of his jaw to the other, looking doubtful. "Now, Miss Mina, you know your father well, one's he decided on something, he never listen and no one can't stop him. Except maybe your mother."

Mina nodded. Her mother was the only one who could tame her father's impulsive spirit.

"The problem is, mother is in Japan right now, and father is probably in a temper. Ali, please try to talk some sense into him. Pursue him to tell to the authorities what has happened. Don't let him act impulsively."

"I will try, Señorita Mina. It could be that he will want to see you first to make sure you didn't suffered in the hands of the Hongs."

"I know. And you must convince him that I have to come to no harm." She laid her hand to Ali's. "Tell him where I am. He can come and see for himself if he wants to."

Ali nodded at Mina. The Son's Ranch is known to me--I will tell him you are staying there." Then Ali's gaze went to Chaeyoung. "Please keep her safe." It sounded like a warning. "I don't want any harm happen to her. Her father would not like it if something happen to her, and neither would I."

Chaeyoung gave a quick nod. "We are all thinking the same thing."

Mina stepped back and watched Ali and Zed ride away. Lost in thought, she didn't heard the girl when she came up beside her.

"We'd better go, Miss Myoui."

Mina nodded. She was so worried for her father. "Perhaps I should have gone with them."

"I don't think so." She steered her toward the horse. "We are only a day's ride from my place. We have to stick into the plans, before the storm comes."

Mina knew that the girl is right. "I am so worried for my father's impulsive nature."

"It must run in the family." Chaeyoung observed.

"It does. That's why I'm worried. I am very like my father in that way. You can see why I'm concerned. I know what he will going to do." She mounted and turned to watch Zed and Ali ride over faster till they are out of sight. "If you knew my father, you would realize that he's a force to be reckoned with."

"That's as it should be. Let him handle this in his own way. A father has the right to defend her daughter."

"He might get himself killed."

"Of all the things I have heard about your father, I have never heard him called a fool. He will want to know why Lee Hyeong Gyun had you kidnapped in the first place. I would expect no less of him. And until we can find out that reason, you will never be completely safe."

"You are right, of course."

Chaeyoung mounted and pulled the lass up behind her. The brown, muscled horse galloped down the mesa with ease. They rode silently and steadily all morning. But Mina could not removed the dark uneasiness that clouded her mind.

                                     *****************

The last dying rays of the sun fell softly, bathing the countryside in its golden light. Chaeyoung made camp in a grove of oak and sycamore trees that helped protect them from continuous wind.

Mina shaded her eyes and gazed out on the land, which seemed almost magical in the dying light. She had never been in this part of Korea and had not known it was so wooded.

Chaeyoung came up beside her, reading her thoughts. "You should see it in spring and summer. It's green and lush with cottonwood and hickory trees in foliage. There are bramble bushes and dense thickets for as far as the eye can see."

The lass gaze followed the brown water that s and circled between the trees to be lost beyond the cliffs.

"I love it here now. I can only imagine what it would look like in the spring," she said softly. "It's breathtaking."

Chaeyoung stood beside her, and for a long moment they both stared at the countryside, sharing the beautiful sunset. "We are on my land, Mina. I'm glad you like it."

She turned to the girl, pleased that she had called her by her first name. "I thought you only had a small spread?"

"I did. I just bought this land two months ago." Of course, the girl didn't need to tell her that she'd saved every single penny she could get to buy the land, and that it left her very little to live on.

Chaeyoung turned away. "I'll set up camp. There's firewood and fresh water aplenty here."

"How far is it to your ranch house?"

"We will be there before noon tomorrow. I wish I could have gotten you out of the weather today, but the horse is just too tired to go any farther."

"Will this storm be as bad as the one two nights ago?" She glanced at the dark clouds in the distance. "They don't look too threatening."

"One can never tell. It will hit later this evening."

Chaeyoung looked worried, and Mina knew her concern was for her. Wanting to reaasure the girl, she touched her hand. "I have the second blanket Ali gave me."

She looked at her for a moment and then said. "Let's eat."

Later, they sat around the campfire, having eaten and tended the horse. The