by Andrew Grey
“Not this year. My favorite horse, Annabelle, needed a year off, but come spring, she’ll mate, and next year we’ll have a new foal from her. I’m looking forward to that.” Ashton finally seemed to relax a little. “Have you ever ridden?”
Ben snorted. “I’d never seen a horse up close before until I ended up in your barn. In the dark it took me a second before I realized what they were.” It seemed kind of stupid now, but at the time he had been so frightened. Then again, he’d been terrified for the whole two weeks he’d been on the run. It had been a long and erratic route that had brought him here. “Maybe I can learn to ride sometime.”
“That would be good. Marcel can work with you. He’s been riding since he could walk.”
“What about you?” Ben asked. “Can’t you teach me? Then maybe we could ride together?” Now that would be great, getting to see Ashton’s ranch on horseback, riding off into the sunset like they did in the movies, just the two of them.
“I don’t ride anymore,” Ashton told him, his lips drawing into a straight line. Ben couldn’t help glancing down at Ashton’s leg and then up to his pain-filled eyes.
Ashton blinked but sat up straighter when the door opened and the sheriff came inside.
“I found where your shooter was hiding and where Lucy was standing when he was shot.” He met Ashton’s gaze. “There was no way he could have missed if he was after a kill shot. The shooter had built a berm out of snow and was maybe seventy-five feet away. If he was using a rifle, Lucy would have been impossible to miss if the shooter had any skills at all.”
“Shit, that close?”
“Yeah. We gathered what little evidence there was. I was able to find the bullet, since it left a trail of red. We’ll see what it can tell us.” Probably not much. Ben was aware that analysis took a while and wasn’t nearly as fast as it seemed to be on TV.
“Thank you,” Ashton told him, sounding tired. “I’ll call if we figure out anything here.” He yawned and covered his mouth with his hand. “Anything from Gary?”
“Oh, he’s cooperating. I reminded him that just because we let him go last night, that doesn’t mean that charges can’t still be filed.” The sheriff flashed a very fast smile and then left the room, letting the outside door bang closed behind him.
“Shouldn’t you go lie down?” Ben asked once the house was quiet. “You were up until midnight, and it’s still early.” He sat back a little. “Is this place always such a hive of intrigue?”
“Hell no. This was a great place to grow up. That’s why I came back here. I had a pony when I was a boy and a horse as I grew older. I used to spend hours riding. My first pony was named Randall. I had him for a long time. After I outgrew him, Papa wanted to sell him, but I convinced him to let him stay. Randall was here up until a few years ago when he passed away. I used to ride all over the ranch.” Ashton’s eyes seemed to grow heavy as he leaned back in the chair.
Ben stood quietly and got a blanket out of the bedroom, then spread it over him before sitting once again.
“There’s a spring on the property, and that feeds our water system. That’s part of the reason Henderson wants our land so badly. We have our own supply, but he has to rely on the creek from our spring. He only gets what we don’t use.” Ashton sighed.
“Isn’t there some sort of agreement about the water? Use rights and things like that?”
Ashton nodded and tugged the blanket around him. “Yeah. But basically it says that he gets what he gets. It’s enough to keep his place going, but Henderson wants to expand. I’m not a water hog and we don’t use any more than we need, but some years when things are really dry, the land soaks up most of the water before it reaches his place. It’s the nature of the west. People have fought for years over something as basic and vital as water.” Ashton turned toward him. “If Henderson was smart, he’d spend more time working on water retention and conservation measures. I did that. There are ponds on the property that funnel runoff and snowmelt so we can use that water for the cattle. Running this place is as much about managing water as it is about managing the livestock.” His eyes seemed to be growing heavier, and Ben didn’t want to move in case he disturbed him.
Some of the lines around Ashton’s eyes evened out, and his features relaxed as he dozed. Ben was quickly coming to enjoy these quiet moments. He hadn’t had many of them in the past two and a half years. His life had revolved around whatever Dallas wanted. It hadn’t taken Ben long to figure out he was never going to have a moment’s peace as long as he was under Dallas’s thumb.
“You should relax too,” Ashton said.
“I should find something to do,” Ben said. “If I’m going to stay, I need to make myself useful.” Ashton smiled but kept his eyes closed. “How is your leg? Does it ache?”
“Un-huh. It does a lot of the time. I need to rest it more, but with a place like this, there is always work to be done.” He sighed. “I should get my butt out of this chair and check on the horses. With Lucy injured and Marcel taking care of him, someone has to see to them.”
“Marcel is looking after the horses. He just got back and went out to the barn. I can see him through the window. I’m going to clean up after breakfast and see what I can put together for lunch. You stay where you are and get some rest.” Ben was pretty sure they were all going to need to take advantage of whatever quiet time they had.
“THE GUYS are here,” Reg said as he came in the back door. Ben flashed him a look and tilted his head toward the living room, wordlessly telling him that Ashton was sleeping, as he finished up the dishes.
“Do you need his help, or have you guys already developed a plan?” Ben asked.
“I’ve got this,” Reg said. “But Ashton likes to be involved.”
Ben could understand that. “He’s resting.” He pulled his hands out of the water and wiped them on the cloth. “That leg of his… he has a lot of pain.”
Reg sighed. “I know. Ashton was one of those guys who could never sit still, you know. He used to go from sunup to sundown and had more energy than anyone I’ve ever met. Then everything changed. It takes a lot of energy to manage and live with that kind of pain.”
“It sure as hell does,” Ben agreed softly. And not just physical pain. “Do you want to go ahead and get started? I’ll let Ashton know that your guys are getting to work.” He stepped back and quietly peered into the living room, where Ashton was still asleep in the chair.
“You’re good for him,” Reg said softly from behind him, startling him a little. “He never slowed down or would have rested like that. He’s always worked himself too hard. Pain was something we ignored to get the job done.”
Ben turned around. “But wasn’t that what made you tough?”
Reg nodded. “And old before our time. He and I are only thirty-two, but sometimes we both feel almost ancient. If you can get him to take better care of himself, then I’d say you’re some sort of miracle worker.” He smiled and then turned to leave the kitchen. “We’re going to get started. I’ll check in later.” The back door closed quietly, and Ben went back to work.
Ben heard a chair shift. “Was that Reg?” Ashton asked from the other room.
Ben rinsed the sink and wiped down the counter. Ashton came in, leaning on his cane.
“He and the guys are moving forward with the installations,” Ben explained.
“I need to be out there with them.” He swore under his breath and nearly toppled over. Ben raced over and took his arm. “I hate this fucking leg.”
“Don’t,” Ben said gently. “It’s attached to you, so there’s nothing to hate.”
Ashton growled. “There are so many things I want to be able to do and can’t.” He pulled out one of the kitchen chairs and sat down. “You talked about wanting to learn to ride a horse, and my first inclination was to say that I could teach you. But I can’t. There’s no way I can ride anymore. I can’t mount a horse, and if I do manage to get on one, it puts too much strain on my leg to get off.”
>
Ben sat down in the chair next to him. “Have you tried physical therapy? Those guys can do miracles.”
“I did for a while, after I was first hurt. But driving to the clinic isn’t practical. I’ve tried to find a therapist around here, but there isn’t one. The nearest hospital is nearly an hour away as it is, and even there, the services are limited. It’s one of the issues with rural medical care. I love living out here, but… it’s pretty far from the city. It’s hard for most people to imagine that medical attention isn’t just minutes away. And the services that I need are even farther.” He stretched out, leaning his cane against the edge of the table. “My other option is to pop pills, but I don’t want to do that unless I have to.”
“Maybe there’s a third option. Have you seen a specialist?” Ben almost wished he’d kept his mouth shut. What Ashton had or hadn’t done was none of his business.
“I have. They could try surgery, but the prognosis isn’t good. My doctor recommended that we not do it because the chance of improvement was slight and it could make things worse. So basically… I need to learn to live with it. But as you can probably guess, I’m having a hard time with that.” He sighed. “You know, it sucks when you have to watch other people having the fun while you sit on the sidelines.”
“That’s a bunch of bullshit, and you know it. I can’t ride a horse, but I can do other stuff. So what if you can’t do all the stuff you could before? You keep this place going, and you built a family here.”
“Small ranches are families—that’s how we survive from year to year. I couldn’t run this place without Marcel and Lucy, and I know it.” Ashton lowered his gaze to the tabletop. “I hate it, though. I should be able to run my own ranch and not have to ask people to do shit I can’t do. My father did until six months before he died, and I know that not being able to do what he used to was part of the reason he passed away. Once he realized he couldn’t live the way he had, he packed it in. Dad survived the loss of my mother by turning to this land, to this ranch.”
Ben swallowed hard. “Is that why you came back here instead of continuing with the security business? Because you couldn’t bear to see your dad’s work disappear?”
“Maybe a little. This ranch was my home… it is my home. I left and spent years away in the Army, and I didn’t understand, even while I was gone, just how important this place was for me. Then when I heard that Dad was thinking of selling, I hurried home just in time to stop him.”
Ben stood and poured Ashton a mug of the coffee from the pot that never seemed to go empty. “What did your dad think?”
Ashton took a sip and set down his blue mug with a riding cowboy on it. “I don’t think I have ever seen my dad smile so brightly or look at me with such pride as he did the day I returned. He didn’t say a word, but the look in his eyes was all I ever needed to see.” His voice broke slightly, and he sipped some more coffee, probably to cover his emotions. “What about your dad?”
“Both my parents were gone by the time I was twelve. My last foster father was… is a real asshole. When he found out I was gay… well, that was the end of that. It was like he was afraid being gay was contagious. And my foster mother cried and all, but she didn’t stop him from kicking me out. I was seventeen. One of my friends’ mothers took me in, and she saw to it that I made it through school. She was kind and really cared, but there was only so much she could do, so after I graduated, I got a job, then thanked her and left so she wouldn’t have to worry about me anymore.” Ben drummed his fingers on the table. “Somehow I managed to survive for a few years on my wits and a whole lot of luck, even managing to go to college. Then things got tough and I lost the job I’d managed to get. I was desperate, so I started dancing. I know that made me easy prey for someone like Dallas. He had everything and offered me all the things I thought I needed.” He paused his drumming, clenching his fingers. “I was so stupid. But no one loved me, and Dallas told me he did. He took care of me, and I suddenly had a wonderful, safe place to live. If I asked for something, he got it for me. I still worked and was even able to buy myself a car. But Dallas took one look at it, bought it from me, then gave me a bigger, nicer one.” He really didn’t care about the BMW he’d left behind. He would have liked to have kept the Honda he’d actually worked for, but at the time, Ben had thought Dallas had meant well. In the end, he’d realized it was just another tactic Dallas had used to keep Ben tethered to him.
“But you got away and had the guts to try it not once but twice. And you’re here now. He can rant and rave all he wants, but he isn’t going to get to you here.”
“He nearly did,” Ben said, realizing just how lucky he was to have taken refuge in Ashton’s barn rather than someplace else. Maybe the fates were finally looking out for him.
Ashton leaned forward, his hands around his cup. “Is there anyone Dallas could use against you? What options does he have to try to lure you back?” He took a sip, and Ben sighed.
“Not any I can think of. It wasn’t as if Dallas let me have a bunch of friends. He kept me pretty isolated. The only people I saw were Dallas and his associates.” Ben smiled ruefully. “That’s what he called them, associates, like they all worked together in a Walmart or something.” He shook his head.
“Do you think Dallas could have sent someone to scare you by shooting at Lucy today?” Ashton asked.
Ben shrugged. “Do you think it could have been Henderson?” he questioned right back. “It seems we’re caught in the crosshairs of two people who mean us harm, and it’s hard to attribute anything to either of them at this point. It was a couple of shots and then it was over. It could have been Dallas, I just don’t know. That would mean that one of his associates is in town. But somehow that doesn’t seem like his style. Maybe if I give the sheriff a list of Dallas’s people, he can check online to find out if any of them have been seen in the area.” He shrugged again. “Then again, he could just hire it out.”
Ashton nodded and took a sip from his mug, then picked up his phone and called the sheriff. He relayed the information Ben had told him, and ended the call quickly. “The sheriff is already doing that. He said he hasn’t had any luck so far. But he’ll keep looking. The last thing he wants is that kind of trouble moving into town. He keeps his job by making sure trouble stays away from his town and his county. Any kind of crime makes him look bad. He likes his job and wants to keep it for as long as he possibly can.” Ashton grinned. Ben figured Ashton used that against the sheriff whenever he could.
Ashton finished his coffee and got up from his chair.
“Going to check on the guys?” Ben asked.
“Yeah. I want to see what they’re doing, and with the sun out, it isn’t going to be as cold.” He flashed Ben a look. “You stay here. I promise not to overdo it.”
“Okay. If you’re good, I’ll massage your leg later. And maybe, if you’re really, really good….” He left the insinuation hanging in the air as Ashton walked a little stiffly toward the mud room to put on his cold weather gear.
DALLAS SAT on the sofa in his office, ice tinkling slightly in his glass of scotch. Patience wasn’t one of the things he was very good at, but he forced himself… for now. He liked to think of himself as a man of action, someone who got things done and made things happen by his sheer force of will. Of course, he had power at his disposal and all he had to do was crook a finger. Fear was a beautiful tool, and he loved it. Just the scent of it in the air was enough to make him smile.
“Boss,” Jake said from the doorway.
Dallas turned his head slowly, motioning for him to enter the room. “Do you have some good news for me?” He leaned forward, narrowing his gaze.
Jake swallowed hard. “There’s a problem in Phoenix that you might want to take a look at.” Jake offered him a folder.
Dallas snatched it out of his hand. “Again. Can’t they get anything right?” He looked over the details and tossed the folder toward his desk, the papers fluttering to the floor. “Get the plane ready. It
seems I need to pay these idiots a visit and see if I can’t make a permanent impression about the cost of failure.” He downed the rest of his drink, wishing he still had his little stress reliever around to take care of things. Jake didn’t leave the room, and Dallas scowled at him. “What else?”
“About Ben…,” Jake began, taking a step back. “I found an in. All it took was a little pressure and a few dollars. Reeled the guy in hook, line, and sinker.”
Dallas nodded. “That is good news. And we’re sure Ben hasn’t moved?”
“Nope. He’s still there. Our friend is watching. He took some unauthorized action, but thankfully Ben stayed put. I told him to wait for instructions.” Jake cracked his knuckles, and Dallas wondered for a second what Jake had threatened. Not that he cared. Minions needed to be kept in line. “What do you want me to do?”
Dallas thought for a second and shrugged. “It seems our little rabbit is tired of running for the time being. Let him think he’s gotten away… for now. When the time is right, we know where to find him.”
BEN HAD just finished making lunch when the guys came in. It wasn’t fancy, but they seemed to like his sandwiches. Then he spent a lot of the afternoon cleaning up in the house and reading with a pile of puppies around him. Finally he let the dogs outside to potty and ended up putting on his gear and joining them, throwing snowballs for them to chase.
“I heard about you,” a man said as he stepped around the side of the house.
“Who the hell are you?” Ben demanded as the dogs hurried over, growling as they formed a phalanx in front of him.
“Josiah Henderson, Ashton’s neighbor. I heard he had some little… twink kid staying with him.” His small eyes seemed to bore into Ben, and it sent a chill through Ben that had nothing to do with the cold.
Ben put his hands on his hips. “And you know about twinks… how? Maybe you have a thing for young men. Though somehow I doubt they’d be interested in you.”
