by B. J Daniels
She heard Susie move deeper into the house, the sound of the vacuum almost comforting this far from civilization.
“Cal giving you a hard time?” she asked as Jake came through the door.
He shook his head. “Nothing he could say can rile me.”
She heard what he hadn’t said. “But he said something that’s going to rile me.”
“He’s quitting and taking the ranch hands with him.”
That didn’t come as a complete surprise. She knew he’d quit before he’d work for her. But she hadn’t expected it so soon. And, of course, he’d talk the ranch hands into leaving with him. She hated to think what he’d told them. Then again, people in these parts had been talking about her from as far back as she could remember.
“He suggested I learn about buffalo ranching, and quickly. Don’t worry, I can handle it. I’ve fed and watered my share of animals before. I have a friend taking care of my small spread while I’m here. I’ll see to the buffalo.”
She wasn’t worried. She knew that Jake could handle most anything. “I can help, too.” She met his gaze. “You can tell me what needs to be done.” Cal and the rest of them were trying to force her out. It only made her dig her heels in even more, although the last thing she wanted to do was raise buffalo. She watched a string of pickups drive past on their way out, stopping only to let a car come in. What now?
As the car came to a stop and a woman stepped out, Blaze swore under her breath. Tawny Brooks.
“That’s my clue to leave,” Jake said. “I’ll go see what shape they left the bunkhouse in. Unless you’d prefer I stay in the barn.”
She waved him away. “Take Cal’s cabin or stay in the bunkhouse,” she said as she watched her once-best friend head for the front door. “Sleep wherever you like.”
“If that were the case, I’d be sleeping with you.” He quickly ducked out before she could chuck the sculpture she’d picked up to throw at him. He tipped his hat to Tawny as her old friend stepped in the door and left. Blaze waited, already knowing why the woman was here. She knew what had been going on in Saddle Butte, thanks to the internet. She’d seen all the gossip—and the big news.
Tawny looked after Jake for a moment. The man couldn’t help being noticed. Then she seemed to remember why she’d driven out here and rushed to Blaze.
“I was so glad to hear you were back,” Tawny said as she threw her arms around her. “It’s been way too long.” As if feeling Blaze’s resistance—and not just to the hug—the woman let go of her and stepped back.
Blaze remembered how her friend had deserted her the night they’d accidentally set the fire in the old theater in town. Blaze had later been arrested out at the ranch. She’d never told anyone that Tawny was with her or that it was her once-best friend who’d started the fire. They’d both been trespassing.
But neither had Tawny come forward, letting Blaze take the blame. After that, Blaze had gotten into more trouble and Tawny had distanced herself from her.
“You must have heard,” Tawny said now. “Yes, LJ and I are engaged.” She said it as if thinking that was why she wasn’t getting the warm reception she’d hoped for.
Tawny held out her engagement ring, wiggling her fingers so the diamond caught the sunlight coming through the window.
“I heard. My sympathies.”
Tawny made a disapproving face and walked around the living room for a moment before plopping down in a chair as if planning to stay for a while. “Don’t tell me that you’re jealous. You broke up with him. That made him fair game.”
Blaze sighed, refusing to sit down since she had no desire to prolong this and just settled on the arm of a chair. “Is that why you drove all the way out here? To tell me about your engagement?” She hated to bust her bubble and tell her that she already knew.
“I came out to give you my condolences about your father.” Tawny shook her head and tsk-tsked. “Everyone says he’ll probably never see the outside of a prison cell again. That’s if they don’t execute him.”
“That’s assuming he’s guilty.”
Tawny laughed. “Of course he’s guilty.”
“How do you know that?” Blaze asked, more out of curiosity about where the woman got her facts than anything else. The same internet comments she herself had read.
“He was found standing over poor Frank’s body holding a smoking gun.”
That was pretty much what the judge had told her. “Is that what everyone is saying?”
“LJ heard it from the sheriff when they brought Monte in.” Of course the sheriff’s son had heard it straight from the horse’s mouth, so to speak. Tawny took a breath. “I suppose you’ve heard that your father is refusing to say anything. He’s even refusing a lawyer.”
That last part was new. “Since when?”
She shrugged. “He’ll have a public defender with him at the arraignment tomorrow. I thought you knew that.”
Blaze shook her head. The news just kept getting better and better. “How could I know that? The sheriff wouldn’t let me see him.”
Tawny pursed her lips. “Everyone is upset by all this. Murder?” She wrinkled her nose. “And we all know why he did it.”
“Do tell.”
The woman rolled her eyes. “Allie Anson, obviously.”
“Not buffalo?”
Tawny sat back and looked confused. “Why are you acting like this? You hate your father and always have. You know he ran your mother off. You used to say that you would never forgive him.”
She realized that was probably what she did say back then, back before she was arrested. Back before she met Judge Landusky and he turned her life around.
“People change.”
Tawny laughed again. “You? Or your father?”
Blaze got to her feet. “Thanks for stopping by with your condolences, but until I know exactly what happened that day...”
The woman gave her a sympathetic look as she rose from her chair. “I’m sorry about...everything. We used to be best friends. I suppose you have to say nice thing since he’s your father. People are wondering what you’re going to do with the ranch once he’s convicted.” She seemed to catch herself. “If he’s convicted.”
So this was really what Tawny had driven all the way out here for, Blaze thought. “That’s the thing about people in these parts—they do love to wonder,” she said and smiled. “Let’s let them keep wondering.” She walked to the door and held it open.
“It was good to see you again,” Tawny said. “If there is anything I can do—”
“I’m afraid there isn’t. Thanks for the thought, though, and good luck with your...engagement.”
The woman studied her for a moment before she nodded. “I’ll tell LJ hi for you.”
Blaze laughed. “Please, don’t bother. He’s your problem now. Not mine.” She shut the door behind Tawny a little too hard and turned to find Jake standing at the edge of the kitchen. He’d obviously come in the back way. Because he was worried about her? Or just curious?
“How long have you been listening?” she asked, knowing from his expression that he’d probably heard it all.
“Long enough. You were kind of tough on her. Because she’s engaged to your old boyfriend?”
She laughed and shook her head.
“I know LJ let you down.”
“He wasn’t the only one. And now the two of them are getting married.” Blaze shook head again. “Tell me there isn’t any justice in the world.”
Jake moved to her, concern in his expression. “Looks like your past is coming out of the woodwork.”
“Lots of curious people,” she agreed.
“Have you thought about what you would do with the ranch if your father is convicted?”
Blaze gave him an impatient look. “Not you, too.”
He reached out, his warm fingerti
ps skimming her cheek before he cupped it. “Whatever you decide to do, I’ll back you all the way.”
She looked into those tempting green eyes. It would be so easy to let herself go. She felt herself being drawn in. How easy it would have been to step into his arms and let him keep her from thinking about any of this for a while. But even as she thought it, she knew it would only complicate things more for both of them.
“It’s too early to worry about what to do with the ranch,” she said, stepping away and breaking eye contact. Her blood thrummed just under her skin. Desire burned inside her. She could feel his gaze warming her back. “I need to find something for my father to wear to the hearing.” She glanced at her phone. “Then I’m going to take a hot bath and go to bed with a good book. The arraignment is fairly early in the morning. I need a good night’s sleep.”
She wondered if she was trying to convince herself—or him. She heard him chuckle as she walked him to the door.
“If you need me—”
“I won’t.”
“I’ll drive in the morning.” He seemed to be waiting for her to argue and looked surprised when she didn’t.
“See you in the morning, then,” she said as he stepped out.
“Sweet dreams,” he said as he met her gaze for a moment before he turned to walk away.
His words brought back the ache inside her in an instant. Damn the man. He knew too well the effect he had on her.
She closed and locked the door behind him before going to her room, where she again closed the door and locked it. She knew she was locking herself in—not locking Jake out. He wouldn’t come back—not unless she invited him.
For a moment, she leaned against the door, asking herself why she was fighting it. Jake could make all this better—at least for a little while. But that was the problem. If she climbed back into bed with him, she knew how hard it would be when they separated.
Her poor heart couldn’t take that. Not again.
She pushed him out of her thoughts as she walked toward her bath. Was it true that her father had refused a lawyer? Because he was guilty? If so, what was she doing here?
CHAPTER SIX
WHEN THEY BROUGHT her father into the courtroom the next morning, Blaze felt her heart drop. He’d aged. His hair was peppered with gray and curled at his neck, much longer than he used to wear it. There were deep-set lines around his eyes in a face weathered by the years and the sun and a life on the back of a horse.
He was still a large man with broad shoulders, a straight if not rigid back. When he looked up, she met his familiar blue eyes—eyes so much like her own—and felt a knot form in her chest. He was still handsome, still larger-than-life, still the implacable father she’d known.
He met her gaze for only a moment, but she saw surprise before he looked away. Her pulse leaped. Had WT not told him she was coming to Saddle Butte? Of course, her father would have known. He’d turned his power of attorney over to her. At least, according to the judge.
She felt off balance as if her normally firmly planted feet were on unstable ground. Her plan to soak in the tub, read one of the books she’d brought and go to sleep early hadn’t worked out. She hadn’t been able to keep her place in the book. Her mind kept wandering to the fact that Jake was only a stone’s throw from her bedroom. When she was able not to think about him, she found herself thinking about her father, remembering those years after her mother left.
Now Jake reached over and took her hand. She hated that he knew how vulnerable she was at this moment, but she didn’t pull away. Her cold hand disappeared into his large warm one. He squeezed gently without looking at her and she thought about what he’d said last night. Whatever she decided to do, he had her back.
“All rise,” the bailiff called, and she stumbled to her feet as Jake released her hand and they both watched Judge Elmer White take his seat.
Blaze listened as her father and who appeared to be a public defender rose to their feet as the judge informed her father of the charges. Deliberate homicide.
As the judge notified Monte of his right to a criminal defense attorney, her father said he didn’t need one and that he didn’t need the public defender, either.
The judge peered at him over the top of his reading glasses. “Are you saying you’re waiving your right to an attorney?”
“I am.”
The public defender made the argument that Mr. McClintock owned a large ranch south of town with a few hundred head of buffalo that needed to be tended to and asked that the judge grant bail.
“Bail denied,” the judge said and slammed down his gavel. “At this point, would the defendant like to enter a plea?”
“Not guilty,” the public defender said and tried to quiet her father, who was attempting to talk over him.
But Monte wasn’t having it. “I’m guilty.”
The judge studied him from over his reading glasses again. “Mr. McClintock, do you have any idea what you’re doing?”
“I do.”
Shaking his head, the judge said, “I would like to accept that your plea is being entered knowingly, but I can’t until you have an opportunity for access to a...criminal attorney who can explain the situation to you and we can assess if you are mentally capable of making such a plea, given the severity of the charge.”
Her father started to argue, but the judge slammed down his gavel and the hearing was over almost as quickly as it had begun. Monte had been remanded over to the county jail until further notice.
Blaze rose on wobbly legs. No lawyer? He’d pled guilty? “I have to see him.”
“Let’s make it happen,” Jake said. He took her arm as if he knew how shaken she was by what she’d just witnessed. As they were leaving the courtroom, she saw Shane Garrison and some of the other ranchers. LJ was with them. He gave her a smirk as if to say he expected as much from both her father and her. She noticed that of the ranchers who’d been at the hospital yesterday, only LJ hung back with Shane. She saw the two whispering to each other until they saw her watching them and stepped apart.
* * *
BLAZE CAUGHT UP with the prosecutor, a man she’d gone to high school with named Dave Graber. “I need to see my father.”
“I hope to talk some sense into him myself.” Dave stopped walking to look at her. He frowned. “You haven’t been able to visit him yet?”
“No, the sheriff wouldn’t let me.”
Dave cursed under his breath. “Come on, I’ll see that you get in. I know this judge. He isn’t going to let your father plead guilty until Monte first talks to a criminal lawyer. Your father needs to know what’s at stake here.”
“I want to see the evidence against him,” she said as they hurried down the hallway toward the attached county jail.
“I’m sure you’ve heard that he was found standing over Frank Anson holding a gun.”
“You already have the ballistics back on the gun?”
“No, but—”
“So you don’t know it’s the gun that killed Frank.” She couldn’t help sounding surprised.
“Your father pretty much admitted it when a ranch hand came riding up.”
She stopped walking. “Pretty much?” Dave stopped, as well. He raked a hand through his hair. “Until I see that ballistics report...”
He looked at his shoes for a moment as if fighting for patience. “The last thing you want to do is drag your father and this community through a long, expensive trial.”
“Would you say that if it was your father?” she snapped. “A decent lawyer would ask that the venue be moved so Monte can get a fair trial.”
“A change of venue isn’t going to help. This is Montana. If you could get it moved maybe to Wyoming...”
“So what you’re saying is that this is about buffalo and my father has already been convicted.”
The prosecutor sighed. �
��Blaze—”
“I have my father’s power of attorney and I will do whatever it takes to see that he isn’t railroaded over some damned buffalo.” With that, she stormed down the hall, leaving both Dave and Jake in her wake.
* * *
JAKE WATCHED HER go as he joined the prosecutor.
“You’re a friend of hers?” the man asked.
“Something like that.” Their relationship was a little hard to nail down at this moment. He didn’t even know what he was doing here. He certainly hadn’t been much to help her.
“Try to talk some sense into her,” the prosecutor said.
Jake laughed. “If you know Blaze at all, then you know she makes up her own mind about most things.”
“She’s making a mistake. Her father doesn’t want to go through a long trial any more than the rest of this county does. Truthfully, I’m not sure he’s up to it. I’ve seen what it does to men like him who’ve lived life outdoors in wide-open places. Going through the scrutiny a trial demands... Any secrets he has, they’ll come out.” He met Jake’s gaze and exchanged a warning look.
“What kind of secrets are we talking about here?” Jake asked.
The man looked embarrassed. “Just that according to scuttlebutt, this might not be Monte’s first murder. His wife... Well, there were rumors that she never left that ranch. Not alive anyway. In sixteen years, no one has seen or heard from her. If she’s buried out there...”
“What are you saying?” Jake demanded.
“My father was prosecutor back then. He might have backed off the case because he knew Bethany. He’d dated her before Monte and he knew that she’d always wanted to leave here, make something of herself, and he liked Monte.”
They’d reached the county jail. Blaze had already burst in and was arguing with the sheriff when they stepped inside the door.
“Bud, let her see her father,” Dave said impatiently.
