# Track 3 – *Smoke & Silver* **Theme:** Meeting him, romance, belonging, partnership — and the first crack in the dream **Tempo:** Mid-tempo, warm, dangerous, sweet; gradually darkening toward the final verse ### [Verse 1] I met him down by the silver creek Black hair falling and a smile so sweet He looked at me like he'd known me before Like he'd been waiting there beside that shore He said, “I've been looking for someone like you Someone who knows what the wild ones do Someone who knows the world ain't right And ain't afraid to walk into the night” He held out his hand, I took it slow Didn't know then where that road would go But the moon was high and the fire burned bright And for once in my life, everything felt right ### [Chorus] Oh, smoke and silver, whiskey and flame He whispered softly when he said my name Said, “You're my equal, you're no man's queen You're the wildest woman I've ever seen” Smoke and silver, stars overhead I found a place where I wasn't afraid I thought I'd finally found my home A heart of my own that I'd never known Oh, smoke and silver… How sweet it seemed Oh, smoke and silver… How I believed ### [Verse 2] We rode together beneath the moon Two restless hearts and a reckless tune We took from the rich who'd taken too much Shared what we had with the hands that had none We slept beneath branches, ate by the fire Laughed till the morning and never grew tired There was a gang and a name we wore And every road opened a little bit more He took the lead and I rode beside Never beneath him, never behind He'd look at me and he'd smile with pride And I'd swear to the world I'd found my tribe ### [Chorus] Oh, smoke and silver, whiskey and flame He whispered softly when he said my name Said, “You're my equal, you're no man's queen You're the wildest woman I've ever seen” Smoke and silver, stars overhead I found a place where I wasn't afraid I thought I'd finally found my home A heart of my own that I'd never known ### [Verse 3] Then the law came riding like thunder at night Lanterns through the trees and the dogs in flight We broke camp fast, threw the blankets aboard And every man reached for a weapon or sword He shouted, “Ride!” and I followed his cry Black horses running underneath the sky But something had changed in the look of his face The man beside me had vanished without a trace The dogs grew louder, the gunshots rang Smoke filled the air as the old camp sprang I reached for his hand as the horses ran But my fingers closed on empty land ### [Bridge – Quiet] He promised me forever He promised we'd never part But promises are easy When they're made beside a fire in the dark I thought I knew that man I thought I knew his soul But when the night came calling He left me in the cold ### [Final Chorus – Darker] Oh, smoke and silver, ashes and flame I whispered once, but he never came Said I was equal, said I was free But when the danger came, he left me Smoke and silver, stars turned black I watched the last of his shadow fade back I thought I'd finally found my love But the road had other plans for us Oh, smoke and silver… Gone like a dream Smoke and silver… Nothing's what it seemed ### [Outro – Sparse] The fire burned low… The horses were gone… I held his old silver ring Till the first light of dawn Smoke in my hair… Silver in my hand… And somewhere inside me I began to understand.
