by Forsaken
“Don’t talk to me like I’m a pig,” Tony snapped. “I need more food than other people, okay?”
“You don’t need to tell us that,” Alex joked. Geoff remained quiet, looking distracted. Clete shot him a look and caught him grimacing in pain as he touched his leg.
He thought about saying something, at least asking if Geoff had seen a doctor when he’d reinjured it. He had reinjured it, no matter what he said. But maybe he didn’t want the others to know that was the case. Why else lie that it was an old football injury?
Clete just hoped the wound didn’t get infected. It would be hard enough to get these men to Yellowstone Park as it was without one of them getting too sick to ride.
“I’m going to assume the three of you have at least been on a horse before?” he asked, thinking he should have asked that before he’d saddled up.
Alex put his arm around Clete’s shoulders as he said, “Don’t worry about us. We’ll be fine.”
He sure hoped so as they mounted the horses and he led the way up the road to the trailhead. When he ventured a look back, the three were lagging behind. None of them looked happy. Nor were they looking around.
Clete thought about what Bethany had asked him. Why were they so determined to make this trip into the wilderness? The thought made him anxious.
* * *
THE DIVORCE PAPERS came in the mail late that afternoon. Nettie knew what they were the moment she saw the brown envelope, even before she saw the return address.
Bob was finally setting her free.
Frank had done the same thing last night at the hospital, but she tried not to think about that because it made her too sad. Too angry, as well. It wasn’t her imagination that he’d strung her along. Well, he’d cut her loose now, hadn’t he.
Her fingers trembled as she tore open the envelope. The legal document was fairly short and to the point. She got the house, the store and any belongings he’d left behind. She got everything including her freedom.
For a long time, she just stared at the papers. Bob’s attorney had been so efficient that he’d included a stamped, self-addressed envelope for her to return the papers after she’d signed them.
All divorces should be so easy, she thought as she picked up a pen and signed Lynette Ann Benton and filled in the date. Stuffing the papers into the envelope, she quickly sealed it.
The package wouldn’t go out for hours, but that didn’t matter to her. She locked up the store and put out the sign saying she’d stepped out for a while, before walking the envelope across the street to the post office to put it in the box.
The moment she let go of the envelope, her eyes teared up with a ridiculous mix of crazy emotions she couldn’t even name. Regret had to be at the top of the list, though. Not that she was divorcing Bob. That had been a long time coming. And how could she regret marrying him since she’d gotten the store?
The Beartooth General Store had been her anchor all these years. Her mother had at least been right about Bob giving her stability, and she felt she needed it now more than she ever had before.
Frank had broken her heart last night.
She supposed they were even finally. She’d broken his when she’d married Bob. Or at least that was what Frank had told her.
She’d done her best all day not to let her heartbreak show. As the day had worn on, she’d become sadder and finally furious at the way her life was turning out. She felt cheated!
Bob had been a lukewarm lover at best. She was on her way to sixty. It wasn’t too late, she told herself, and yet a part of her knew it was. Not that long ago she’d thought Sheriff Frank Curry would save her from her passionless life. As of last night, she had no hope of that.
While she was heading back across the street, she saw J.D. coming out of the Branding Iron Café. He was laughing, his eyes bright with merriment. When he saw her, he stopped to wait for her.
Nettie prided herself on keeping her emotions walled up from the outside world. But at that moment, she knew everything she’d been feeling was written all over her face.
As she drew nearer, he must have seen how close she was to tears. J.D. strode to her, his arms coming around her without even asking what was wrong. He held her like that for long enough that the entire county would be talking.
“You need a drink,” he said as he thumbed away a tear from her cheek.
“It isn’t what you think,” she said, drawing back to make a swipe at her face with her sleeve.
“Aw, honey, of course it is. If it doesn’t have something to do with a man then I’m buying the drinks. Otherwise, you’re at least buying the first one.”
She couldn’t help but smile. “I can’t. I have to get back to the store.”
“The store will be fine for a little while. Come on. Let’s go down to the Range Rider and you can tell me all about it. You buy and I’ll provide the strong shoulder. After that...” He grinned. “Well, let’s play it by ear, shall we?”
* * *
THE FOUR HORSEBACK riders stopped a little before two beside a small creek to have lunch. Clete had chosen the trail along Copper Creek. He hoped to reach a spot on Hellroaring Creek before nightfall.
He’d made sandwiches at the house last night to simplify the lunch meal. So far the trip had been uneventful, but slow. There had been a lot of stops along the way with one or another of the men needing to take a rest, stretch his legs or relieve himself.
Alex had become impatient with his traveling companions. “Enough screwing around,” he’d finally barked. “Let’s keep moving.”
An angry silence had fallen over the three of them that lasted through the hurried sandwich lunch, and then they were back in the saddle.
But not before Alex pulled out a map and asked where they were.
“Here,” Clete said, pointing to a spot along the trail.
“Oh.” He sounded disappointed. “How far do you think we’ll get today?”
Clete glanced up at the sun, an old habit, then checked his watch. “It gets dark early this time of year especially in the mountains.”
“But we’re on horses, so it doesn’t matter. We can travel at night.”
“No. The terrain is too rough. I’m not chancing it with the horses,” he said before Alex could argue. “Also, Geoff and Tony are struggling enough. By the time we make camp, they will have had enough hours in the saddle.”
Alex clamped his lips shut, but it was clear he wasn’t happy about this news.
“Enjoy the country,” Clete said. “Isn’t that why you’re up here?”
“Yeah. I just want to get into the high country above tree line. I’m sick of seeing nothing but pine trees.” He laughed as if it was a joke.
“Yeah, you must see a lot of pine trees back home,” Clete said sarcastically. “Didn’t you say you’ve been living in San Diego?”
Alex laughed. “Did I say that? Phoenix. You must have misunderstood.”
“I must have,” he said and wondered why Alex would bother to lie about where he’d been living. Clete was sure he’d originally said San Diego.
* * *
IN THE DIM BAR, Nettie studied J.D. He could pass for a man at least a decade younger. He had that kind of face, still boyish. The face of an angel, his mother used to say.
And the soul of the devil, Frank would add.
Looking back, Nettie could understand why the two had never gotten along. Frank had sown his share of wild oats, but he’d never gotten caught.
J.D. was a whole other story. No matter what trouble he got into, he always got caught.
But, while that had contributed to the trouble between the two men, it was Nettie who’d driven the wedge between them. A bunch of them used to hang out on a spot on the Yellowstone River. There was a huge old cottonwood, with a sturdy limb that stretched over the water.
Frank had climbed up there and tied a rope from the limb. They spent many hours swinging from the bank to sail out over the river and drop into the warm, clear water.
It was the same day that W. T. Grant had saved Frank from drowning. They’d all been just kids, the boys jumping into the freezing water of the creek that early spring to show how tough they were.
J.D. had been one of the first ones to jump in. He’d always had more courage than good sense. Frank was the only one who hadn’t popped right back up after jumping in. That was when W.T. had gone in to rescue him.
After all the excitement, J.D. had kissed her. Nettie had pushed him away at once, but it had been too late. The two young men had ended up in a fistfight. J.D., though three years younger, had held his own. Finally, the others had broken up the fight.
J.D. had left not long after high school, and while he came back once when Rylan was a baby, Nettie hadn’t seen him since.
“All these years,” Nettie said. “It’s so sad. I just assumed you and your family would patch things up and you would come back.”
“It’s my fault. All of it. You know that.” He grinned and covered her hand with his own. “It’s like when I used to try to get a rise out of Frank. Maybe he was right about the devil being in me.”
Nettie shook her head as he squeezed her hand and let go. “There’s devilment in you, but that is part of your charm. You should have come back sooner.”
He laughed and took a sip of his beer. “I thought about it, but there was nothing for me in Beartooth. I’m no rancher. Taylor’s the one who took to the land. Me, I’m a wanderer. I’m always looking over that next hill, checking out that green grass on the other side.”
“You never wanted roots?” Her mother had been right about one thing. Nettie liked stability. She liked waking up to see the rocky crag of what was called the bear’s tooth from her window in the morning. She liked staying in Beartooth.
“I figured you and Frank would be married, have a passel of kids...” He looked over at her. “What really happened?”
She shrugged. “I told you. I married Bob Benton.”
“I guess that would do it,” he said with a laugh. “Frank would have a terrible time forgiving you.”
It surprised her that he would know that about Frank. “I just mailed my divorce papers right before I saw you.”
“I wondered.”
“I don’t know why I got upset. It’s what I wanted and yet... It’s just all water under the bridge now.” She turned as the back door of the bar opened and an older rancher came in. “I really should get back to the store.”
“You’re worried about Frank catching you with me.”
She laughed at that. “He’s sheriff now, you know, and he’s worried about why you’re back in town.”
J.D. shook his head and picked up his beer again. “I’m glad I can still worry Frank Curry.” He shot her a look. “Hell, maybe I can even make him jealous. He needs to put a ring on your finger, don’t you think?”
“That ship has sailed,” she said as she slid off the barstool. “We’re too old and too much has hap—”
“Bull,” J.D. snapped. “You’re not too old until you’re dead. Yep, maybe the best thing that could happen is for Frank to see us together.” He grinned. “Tonight. Dinner and dancing. How long do you think it will take before he hears about us through the Beartooth grapevine?”
Nettie glanced around the bar and saw a couple of older ranchers watching them. “Oh, I think it’s already too late to stop it.”
“Good,” J.D. said with a laugh. “Then I’ll see you later.”
Nettie agreed. Why not have dinner and go dancing with J.D.? Frank had made it clear that he didn’t want her around him. So why not have some fun with a man who made her feel good about herself?
Unfortunately, Frank had also planted a seed of worry in her. Why was J.D. home?
Her biggest fear, though, was that Frank wouldn’t react at all to her seeing J. D. West. She couldn’t bear the thought that Frank really didn’t care. Or worse, hadn’t for years.
* * *
IT WAS ALMOST dark when Jamison picked up the tracks. He looked out across the mountains in the direction the horseshoe tracks were headed. He was far from the camp—farther than Maddie had sworn her sheepherder would have ever gone.
But Branch’s horse had.
Losing light fast, he knew he would have to follow the tracks at first light in the morning. He hated not continuing on the trail now, but it was getting dark. He had no choice but to turn back.
As he rode toward camp, the sunset was still burned orange at the edge of the mountains to the west. It made him think about the sunsets he and Lana used to see from their New York City apartment.
Funny, but he’d missed those sunsets more than he missed her. He’d been unhappy with their life together. They’d gone such different ways. She was involved in every charity and fundraiser under the sun. He’d quit her father’s law firm to become a cop. He wanted to shed his old lifestyle, not realizing that would also mean losing Lana.
“I’m sick of black tie,” he’d confessed as he’d watched her dress one night. She’d actually laughed, thinking he was joking. “I mean it, Lana,” he’d said, taking hold of her arms and forcing her to look into his eyes. “I don’t want to do this anymore. Remember when we used to joke about our parents and all their social obligations and how that would never be us?”
She’d frozen, an iciness moving through her until it settled in her gaze. “First you had to become a cop.”
“I’m a detective.” One of the youngest to ever achieve that rank so quickly. But it was just as well he hadn’t said that.
“A detective,” she’d mocked.
He hadn’t realized until that moment how much she looked down on him. And it wasn’t something new. That was the real revelation that night. It wasn’t changing his job. She’d always looked down on him. All those years he’d worked for her father, she’d held him in contempt. He’d thought she’d wanted him working for her father, but he’d been wrong about that, too. She’d expected more out of him. How could she brag to her friends?
When had she changed and become not only her own mother, but also his, as well? “I’m sorry I disappoint you,” he’d said.
She’d looked away, not even able to lie. They both knew that her disappointment had been growing and festering their whole marriage.
But she rebounded quickly. “Don’t be difficult, Bentley.” She’d softened her words, rubbing his shoulder for a moment and giving him one of her smiles.
Had he really been that easily placated all the years of their marriage by a smile, a kind word, a gentle touch? Apparently, because that night she had turned it off quickly enough and had finished dressing.
Was that the night everything changed for him?
No, it had taken him months of pretending nothing had changed before one day after a hard day at work he’d refused to accompany her to one of her “events.”
There’d been no coddling that night.
“I’m sick to death of your attitude,” she’d snapped. “I don’t have to put up with this.”
No, she didn’t. Her father would see that she didn’t go hungry. Like Jamison, she’d come from money. More money than even his family. Unlike him, she’d never worked a day in her life. Nor would she ever.
“You are so righteous about your ‘job,’” she’d said before she’d finally walked out. “I have helped more people than you ever will.”
“Lana,” he’d said, pulling the trigger on their marriage, “did you ever ask yourself why you belong to so many charitable organizations? I think I’ve figured it out since you don’t have a clue why you’re always raising money. It’s not guilt over your ultra-privileged life. I think you just like getting dressed up, hanging out with your own kind and feeling important and good about yourself because you can afford five-thousand-dollar-a-plate meals. And me?
I was just the guy in the black tie sitting next to you. Any guy in a black tie would do as long as he made you look good.”
She’d slapped him hard enough to jar his teeth. But he’d deserved it. He’d managed to end the marriage and the years she’d pretended he mattered to her. It had hurt like hell when she’d walked out because he’d seen the relief on her face. That was the heartbreaker. She’d been wanting to go for a long time. She’d never needed him. If anything, he’d held her back.
* * *
MADDIE LOOKED TOWARD the dark, empty ridge, willing Jamison to appear. She and Lucy had moved the flock to a nearby wide meadow and bedded the sheep down for the night.
Then she’d grown anxious as she’d watched the ridge, expecting the deputy to come riding in at any moment. But he hadn’t.
“I’m going to have to go find him,” she told the dog, adding a curse that made Lucy’s ears prick up.
She’d thought Jamison could find his way back—at least in daylight. She’d told herself that even being a greenhorn, he could take care of himself. But if that was true, then he should have known to return before it got any darker.
Her greatest fear wasn’t even that he’d gotten lost.
It was what he’d found out there.
“Stay here,” she said to the dog and swung up into her saddle just as Jamison appeared on the ridge. A huge well of relief washed over her. She sat on her horse, wanting to ride out and meet him and yet putting off what she now feared was the inevitable.
He worked his way down the ridge as the sky turned a deep dark cobalt-blue behind him.
“I was beginning to think you’d gotten lost,” she said as the deputy rode up. It surprised her how happy she was to see him even fearing he was bringing bad news. She could admit it now. She’d been more than a little worried about him. The man had grown on her.
“I told you I could find my way back,” he said, shoving his Stetson from his forehead to look out across the band. The sheep had quieted. Only the occasional clang of the bell and bleats drifted on the growing night.
Until that moment, Maddie hadn’t realized that the air had cooled. She shivered as she waited to hear what Jamison had found.
