The New Rangers

Chapter Six

"All right, everyone pull up here. We need to stop and discuss our plan before we go charging up to the ferry." As Halt dismounted, the others followed suit.

"What is our plan, Dad?"

Halt walked back to the heavily burdened packhorse and removed a bundle from the horse's back, dropping it to the ground before them and unrolling it. He bent and sorted through it. "Here we go, Deva, this one is for you. Holly for you."

"This is a dress. I don't wear dresses." Deva held the piece of clothing out as if it were a snake about to bite her. "It also smells like fish. Eww! Where did you get this?"

"How are dresses going to help? Oh, wait ... are you guys dressing as girls too? I'd pay to see that." Holly jabbed a finger at Mitchell. "Especially him. No offense, Mitchell, but you would make on ugly woman."

"We most certainly are not dressing like women. We are going into the village undercover. Those are you disguises. Will is your father and I'm your grandfather. We're fishermen looking for work and we left our village and came here. Everyone got it?" Halt stared at all of them.

Deva raised her hand. "I have a question. How exactly do you plan on pulling off that lie? I mean okay, Holly and I sort of look alike. Give me a break here, Mitchell is huge he could never be my brother."

Holly chuckled. "Yeah, and what about Logan?" She reached out and ruffled his messy red hair. "He sticks out a tad."

Logan attempted to smooth his hair down. It wouldn't cooperate and he sent Holly a glare. "I do now that my hair is all sticking up."

Halt tried hard to contain his impatience. "They could get their looks from their mother's side of the family."

"That brings up another issue. Where is our mother?" Holly asked, her brows raised.

Halt glared at her. Why did the girls insist on picking his plan apart? "She died. Fell overboard while pulling in a net. Are we all happy now?"

"Why does everything have to do with fishing? Is that the only thing that happens in the village where we're from? Hey, are there only fishing related accidents there too?"

Halt glared at his daughter. "Fine, she died in a house fire. Is that better?"

"Was she cooking fish when it happened?"

Will resisted the urge to laugh when Halt threw his hands in the air and turned his back on his daughter. "Holly, stop teasing your father. You and Deva go get changed, we don't have time for this."

"That wasn't teasing, those were very serious questions. Oooh, maybe instead of a fire we can say she was eaten by a sea monster!" Holly suggested enthusiastically.

"Change now!" Halt snapped.

The girls grumbled unhappily and disappeared into the trees to change. Halt turned and handed the boys their clothing. Mitchell and Logan moved into the trees on the opposite side of the road from the girls to go change.

Halt turned and shouted into the trees where the girls had gone. "And no cloaks and weapons for the two of you! Just dresses!"

Seconds later they both stepped out of the trees. Deva stabbed a finger in Holly's direction. "Uncle Halt, Holly is still wearing her cloak and she has her pants and boots on under her dress!"

Holly threw her a glare.

"No pants and no cloak!" Halt commanded.

Holly stuck her tongue out at both of them before she stomped back into the trees to remove her pants from beneath her dress. She came back scowling, her pants and cloak hanging over her arm. "Happy?"