Corey closed the book she had been reading and sighed. She had hoped that by coming to California she would finally solve the mystery of who she was and who her family was, but once again she was left with the same thing. Nothing. Not even the smallest hint as to who she was and why she was deserted as a child. The only thing that came out of her little "road trip" was a broken ankle � which happened last week when she fell off of her horse trying to outrun a couple of drunken men who seemed to mistake her for their "night�s entertainment." Luckily after she fell, she managed to roll under a brush and held her breath until the men gave up on their search and went back to the bar to drink some more.

"I give up," Corey said out loud to no one in particular. She hopped over to the mirror above the dressing table and stared at herself. She ran her fingers through her shaggy blonde hair, which now hung down past her neck, almost to her shoulders. "I�m a mess," she told herself wearily.

How she longed to be back home in Dreamville. It was funny, but in the short time that she had lived and worked there as a rider for the Pony Express, she had come to think of it as more of a home than any other place she had lived in. She had made some wonderful friends at the express, including Lee, as well as her very best friend, Meg, who wasn�t a rider, but the town doctor�s daughter. She missed Meg more than anyone. Meg saw right through her "boy disguise" the minute she rode into Dreamville, and it was with Meg that she was able to share all of her "girly" moments. They talked for hours about Corey�s crush on Buck, the young Kiowa Express Rider who had caught Corey�s eye the second she saw him.

Corey laughed out loud as she remembered the fun times she and Meg had together. "Oh Meg, if you could only see me now!" Corey�s reverie was interrupted by a knock on her hotel room door.

"Miss Nelson?" The Clerk called.

"Yes, Robby?" Corey answered as she painfully stood up, balanced herself on her crutches and hobbled over to unlock her door. When she opened it, Robby, the hotel�s front desk clerk, stood before her holding an envelope.

"This just came for you today. It was marked urgent, so I figured I should bring it up to you right away." Robby�s face was a mask of excitement. "Maybe it�s something about your parents or who you really are?"

Corey had spent many lonely nights sitting downstairs in the hotel�s lounge with Robby telling him her life�s story. Robby was a sweet young man, also an orphan, who understood more than anyone what Corey was going through. He was the only friend she had made since leaving Dreamville and had helped her through many disappointments as Corey hit dead end after dead end. As she eagerly grabbed the envelope from Robby�s hands she became very confused.

"Daniel Thompson?" Corey said out loud as she read the return address. Why in the world would he be writing to me? She thought to herself. Why would Meg�s father write to me and not Meg herself? Oh my God! Unless something�s happened to Meg!

"Who�s that?" Robby asked.

"He�s Meg�s father. I can�t understand why he would be writing to me though unless something was wrong!" Corey exclaimed as she tore open the letter.

Robby watched as her face turned from a mask of confusion to one of understanding, then finally joy. "Well? Are you going to tell me what it says or what?"

Corey hugged the letter to her chest and squealed with happiness. "Oh Robby, this is fantastic news! Meg is getting married to Luke Saunders! Daniel is throwing a surprise engagement party for the two of them and he wants me to come! He said that Meg was going to write to me personally, but he wanted to get to me before she could so that I could surprise her."

"How great!" Robby smiled with happiness. He always loved happy stories! "Are you going to go?"

Corey thought quickly and made the most impulsive decision she had ever made. "Yes, I�m going back. For good."

Robby�s face fell. "For good? But what about your search?"