Gold object found by female in desert (7)
I believe the answer is:
forsake
'desert' is the definition.
(I know that desert can be written as forsake)
'gold object found by female' is the wordplay.
'gold' becomes 'or' ('or' is the heraldic name for gold).
'object' becomes 'sake' (sake is a kind of object).
'found by' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'female' becomes 'f' (abbreviation).
'or'+'sake'='orsake'
'orsake' after 'f' is 'FORSAKE'.
'in' is the link.
(Other definitions for forsake that I've seen before include "Leave in the lurch" , "Abondon or renounce" , "'Abandon, desert (7)'" , "Give up" .)