by Tina Leonard
“I was never alone,” she told her children, “and now I know you babies never will be alone, either. Not for one step of the journeys each of you will take.”
And somehow that thought gave her the courage she’d been missing for some time. She missed her parents, and she knew her brothers did, too. Somewhere in the mists of her mind were shadowy memories she could barely recall, of softness and joy, and the comfort of loving embraces. She hadn’t been old enough to know them well when they’d had to leave. Maybe the memories she had were really mist and not real, just recollections of the fragmented pieces her brothers shared of their own memories. She wasn’t sure. But somewhere back in the pieces of happy times she’d held so carefully, she knew she’d been loved, always had been.
“You’ll always be loved,” she told the babies suddenly. “No one can ever take that away from you. Even if I’m no longer here, you’ll hold my spirit inside you.”
And that was her only gift to her children right now, all that she had to give. She was a warrior, she was called to serve, and though she hadn’t realized it until now, so were her unexpected and precious babies.
Fiona was right.
Everyone had their journey. The strong faced theirs and walked through the fire regardless of the sacrifices.
She no longer feared that journey. Her children had her gifts, as well as Xav’s commitment and strength. Whether she’d ever known it or not, she and Xav were two halves of the same person.
And she loved him even more for it.
She remembered her reluctance to try on the magic wedding dress. What was holding her back?
Even if her sisters-in-law swore that wonderful things happened because of the gown, Ash now knew those stories were tales of fancy from the lips of women who’d been head over heels in love. She smiled, thinking it had been silly to be afraid of marrying Xav. Why had she been so fearful?
The darkness inside her made her feel afraid. But Xav wasn’t afraid of her darkness—he said he was a tough guy and a fearless badass. He laughed away her fears.
Maybe she’d just go catch her a badass husband, then. It was time to put her fears away and experience the magic for herself.
Chapter Ten
“When are you going to tell her?” Xav asked Running Bear, when the chief appeared beside him atop the snow-covered mesa. The days were shorter, the nights darker and colder. Something sinister stirred inside Xav, a pressing warning he could feel sitting heavy between his shoulders. Ash appeared more content than she’d ever been, her time spent almost exclusively with the babies now. But he kept a secret from her, and it troubled him. He’d waited for Running Bear to visit the ranch, but he hadn’t yet been to see his great-grandchildren, a fact that puzzled Xav.
So he’d kept on ice the knowledge that had hit him one day, not about to share his realization, not even with Ash. In spirit, she seemed as though she was in waiting, hanging in some strange still place he’d never seen her inhabit before. She didn’t mention Wolf anymore or her desire to kill him. It was almost as if she’d wiped Wolf and the danger around them out of her mind.
It unsettled Xav. He loved that she wanted to be with her children every minute, but he also worried that a little of her light had gone out, as if she turned a blind eye to the danger.
“I will not tell her,” Running Bear said. “And though you know the truth, you will not tell Ash, either.”
“Or any of the Callahans, I presume.”
“It is not yet time.”
Xav blew out a heavy breath, not feeling good about this. “Not that I’m doubting you, but don’t you think it would be fairer to the Callahans if they knew about their parents?”
“If it was so easy to set the truth free, it would be done every day. We walk in the shadows when there is pain for other people by knowing the truth.”
“I guess I can appreciate that.” Still, Xav was troubled. “I’ll play it your way.”
“I know.” Running Bear looked across the canyons toward Loco Diablo. “My son Wolf is in a killing rage.”
A shaft of hatred sliced through Xav. “What do you want me to do about it? I assume you’ve shown up here for a reason.”
“I want you to go to Wolf.”
“Why?” Nothing could have shocked Xav more. “Trust me, you don’t want me to do that. I already tried to kill him once, and I’m pissed that I failed. Frankly, my second shot will be everything I’ve got and then some.”
Running Bear shook his head. “That is not your destiny.”
“I’m not really a big believer in destiny. In my family, we do action. Bending people to our will, negotiating, stuff like that. I’m pretty sure my old man wasn’t above greasing a palm or two to make his business successful internationally, and I’m sure I own those genes, too.”
“Tell my son,” Running Bear said, “that he is walking the wrong path. His destiny will soon be upon him if he does what he is planning.”
Running Bear whistled and a Diablo galloped at full stride to the mesa from seemingly thin air. He watched with astonishment as Running Bear leaped on the horse, his speed so swift it seemed that the cold air heated as they sped by. “Damn it,” Xav muttered, mounting his horse, glancing around. Running Bear was nowhere to be seen. Nothing but stringy clouds hung in the gray sky, a promise of more snow on the way. He didn’t even hear the thunder of hooves.
He assumed Running Bear meant the message needed to be delivered immediately. There was no need to tell Ash he was going; she’d just worry—or worse, insist on coming with him. He checked his gun and turned toward Loco Diablo, the surest place to find Ash’s renegade uncle.
* * *
ASH DECIDED THAT if there was ever a time to discover what she needed to know, it was now. The babies were napping, watched over by Burke and Fiona, in the best of hands for the time being. Xav was off riding fence or something, and her brothers were occupied with the thousand chores Rancho Diablo required.
Fiona’s words had given her enough comfort to want to try on the fabled Callahan wedding gown.
She went up the stairs into the attic, turned on the lamp and looked around the big room. It appeared just the same as it had the other day, almost suspended in time. Glancing at the closet, she remembered the spark she’d thought had popped out from between the door and doorjamb, but nothing like that happened now.
Reaching for the doorknob, she slowly turned it. The door wouldn’t open, so she twisted the knob again. No one had mentioned a stubborn doorknob, and Ash was a bit disappointed. She tugged at the door, but though there was no lock, it stayed tightly closed.
There was no hope for it but to ask Fiona, which she hadn’t wanted to do—she hadn’t wanted a soul to know what she was up to. “Open, please,” she murmured. “I really want to see what you look like, magic wedding dress.”
Nothing. She’d imagined the sparks of light.
“I know Xav is the man for me, I don’t need a gown to tell me that. I’ve always known it,” she murmured, and the door swung open with a deep creak. She stared into the recesses of the closet, looked for a light to turn on.
The closet came alive in a burst of white, like flash-bang grenades she’d seen in the military, so white she covered her face with a gasp. But there was no afterburn, no pain, so she cautiously opened her eyes.
A garment bag hung in the closet, shimmering with incandescence. A gentle melody filled the attic. It called to her, beckoning her to draw the zipper down and see her destiny at long last.
The zipper slid down without resistance, the lovely garment bag melting away.
And there, before her stunned gaze, was a gown of yellow and orange, almost on fire with heat and radiance.
“Wow,” Ash whispered, staring at the long train, the long sleeves, flames raging along the bodice and hem. She reached out to touch it,
drawing her hand back with a gasp. The gown was truly on fire, contained in the closet—and then, it filtered to the floor in a poof of dust and smoke.
“Oh, no!” She fell to her knees, reaching out to the blackened ashes disappearing even as she tried to grab them. Her first urgent thought was that Fiona would know what to do if she could get the ashes to her fast enough. She knew how much Fiona loved this gown, she’d treasured it for years—what was she going to tell her aunt?
Ash scrabbled at the pile but it was gone, leaving not a speck behind. She wanted to cry, but that wouldn’t do a bit of good—the magic wedding dress was magic no more.
Chapter Eleven
“Hello!” Xav yelled as he reached the land known as Loco Diablo. He figured Wolf or his men had spied him the moment he left Rancho Diablo and crossed the canyon, so there was no point in being subtle. “Wolf Chacon!”
A shot rang out, kicking the snowy ground up next to him. Xav grunted. If whoever fired the shot had wanted to hit him, they would have, so this was a warning. He moved his horse forward. “Wolf! Running Bear has a message for you!”
There was no one around today. Generally this land was a beehive with federal agents and local law enforcement trying to figure out how to beat back the desperadoes. Today the bone-chilling cold appeared to have kept them away. “If I didn’t have a family feud to powwow, I’d be out Christmas shopping for my girl,” he muttered. “Let’s make this quick!” he barked at the top of his lungs. “We’re burning daylight and I have better things to do!”
Something hit his back, sending him off his horse into the snow with a thud. He rolled over, a big body on top of his, and they bashed at each other with blows that were barely felt through thick sheepskin jackets. “Damn it! Are you just a complete jackass?” Xav demanded, getting on top of his assailant’s chest, sitting on him hard, his boot heels dug into his arms. “Have you ever heard don’t shoot the messenger?”
“You’re here to kill me,” Wolf said, “you already tried. I owe you for that,” he snarled.
“Well, today isn’t the day you pay me back.” Xav pondered whether he should go ahead and exterminate Wolf right now. It would make life so much easier for everyone.
Blast Running Bear and his peace-loving ways.
“Look. You’re a mess,” Xav said. “You look terrible, like you’re on your last gasp. You’re an outcast among your family. Do you ever think about the fact that you’ve thrown away your life?”
“Do I look like I need a lecture from a privileged rich boy?” Wolf demanded, sitting up when Xav finally released him. “You’ve had a silver spoon all your life. You know nothing about struggling, about deprivation.”
Xav frowned. “Are you trying to tell me that this whole blood feud between you and your family is just about money?”
“You make it sound unimportant. But I’m like the coyote, far from the comforts, living on what I can.”
“You haven’t done anything to endear yourself to your family. You’d sell them out to the cartel in a heartbeat.”
“True. Because all of this would be mine.”
“I don’t see how,” Xav said, staring at Wolf. “I’m sure Rancho Diablo and all its properties are wrapped up in some kind of airtight, nonpierceable estate. You wouldn’t get a thing.”
“So I must steal what I can, take over what I can.”
“Wouldn’t it be easier to kiss and make up with your father? Not that I really care.” Xav didn’t. He wanted to get home to Ash and the kids. It was time to dig out the Christmas carols and mugs of hot buttered rum. “I don’t care what you do.”
“So what’s the message? You came a long way for a man who doesn’t care.”
Xav shook his head. Ignoring Wolf’s glare, he glanced around at the cold, snow-crusted miles of ranch, cut off by the canyons from Rancho Diablo. He’d feel a bit sorry for the old fart except he’d tried to kidnap Ash. He reached out and socked Wolf a good one in the jaw, knocking him flat to the ground.
“That’s a message from me. Don’t ever think about bothering my wife or my kids again.” Xav rubbed his knuckles, watching Wolf hold his jaw as he lay sprawled in the snow. “The message from your old man is that you’re living wrong. All kinds of mess is coming your way if you don’t straighten up.”
Wolf wiped blood from his mouth, looked at the bright spots of crimson in the snow. “It’s too late. Nothing can be stopped, nor would I want to stop it.”
Xav felt cold steel pour through him. “You’re not in charge?”
“Haven’t been for a while.”
Xav glanced around. It was very still here, pressed in by the snowpack and the sky heavy with thick clouds. But even so, something was wrong. “Where’s your gang of thugs?”
Wolf sat up, slowly got to his feet. “You writing a book?”
“That’s a thigh-slapper.”
“You killed Rhein,” Wolf said, and Xav could see anger and hatred snapping in Wolf’s eyes.
“There were a couple of girls that made up your group, maybe a few others.” He looked around him, sighting the various mesas in the distance. Maybe they were all underground in the tunnels, hibernating like the weasels they were. But it was odd no one had taken a shot at him besides Wolf, and even that hadn’t been a very good one. He looked more closely at Wolf. “You’re on your own.”
“Yeah, I am.” Wolf shrugged. “What’s it to you?”
“I don’t understand. Did you go renegade, or did they abandon you? Has the cartel realized they’ll never win?”
Wolf laughed. “They’ll win.”
“But not with you on their team?” A lone wolf was a dangerous wolf.
“I’m in a regrouping phase.”
Xav got on his horse. “I’ve delivered my message. So unless you have a reply, I’m heading on.”
“How do you know I won’t shoot you dead and dump you in a canyon for Running Bear to find?”
“I don’t worry about things like that too much.” He looked into Wolf’s dark, barely human eyes. “I’m not family. I stand to gain nothing from Rancho Diablo. I’m no threat to you.”
“Killing you would upset my wild niece. Leave her children with no father. Put the game totally in my favor.”
“Not really.” Xav turned his horse to face the canyon—and home. “Sounds to me like you’ve got enough trouble on your hands without making more.”
He rode away.
* * *
“BABE, IT’S ALL RIGHT,” Xav said when Ash flew into his arms after he’d reported to Running Bear. The conversation with Wolf bothered him, but he couldn’t quite figure out exactly what was wrong.
Ash hugged him like she’d never hugged him before.
“I like this,” Xav said. “I’m going out for the afternoon more often.”
“No, you’re not. And I’m going to tell Grandfather you’re not to go over there anymore.” Ash scowled. “First of all, if it’s too dangerous for me, it’s too dangerous for you.”
“Ah, my fierce lady.” He hugged her to him, enjoying her warmth after the cold outside. “You missed me. It’s okay. You can tell me you missed me.”
“I’m in no mood to joke around. The chief shouldn’t have sent you.”
He kissed her. “Your grandfather knows I’m the safest one to send.”
“Not to me. Not to my children.” She took a deep breath. “Xav, something very weird happened while you were gone.”
“Weird sounds like fun.” He looked at Ash. “Are you going to tell me, or is this one of those secret Callahan things?”
“I went into the attic.”
He grinned. “Couldn’t resist, could you? That magic wedding dress really has you thinking about walking down the aisle.”
“This is important, and no laughing matter.”
“Sorry.” He arranged his face into something more serious. “Tell me.”
“I was going to take a peek, just a small one.”
“Which is the definition of a peek instead of a look, but go ahead.”
She glared. “It burned up.”
“What burned up, babe?”
“The magic wedding dress caught on fire, burned to a crisp and disappeared.”
That would indeed be serious. But impossible. He studied Ash’s frantic face, thinking that if the gown had caught on fire, wouldn’t the house have burned down? The attic was wood-floored, wood-framed, so there was more to the story. He pulled her to him. “It’s okay. I think.” All he knew was that he needed to comfort Ash. He was out of his depth when it came to wedding gowns, and if they were of the disappearing variety, he was even more lost. “I just know that you’ll be beautiful when I get you down the aisle.”
She shook her head. “I don’t think I’m meant to get married.”
“That’s quite a leap, gorgeous. Just because a dress goes up in flames doesn’t mean I’m not marrying you.”
“I’m the hunted one.”
“Yeah, by me.” Xav kissed her. “I’ve hunted you for years. So you can reassure yourself about that.”
“You didn’t hunt me. I hunted you.”
He laughed. “We just had different ways of going about it. But I have an offer for you that will put all your fears at rest.”
“I’m listening.”
“We drive tonight to Las Vegas and get married, like other members of your family did. You don’t need a magic wedding dress, because as far as I’m concerned, you’ll be magic no matter what you wear. And if whatever you happen to be wearing bursts into flame and disappears, I’ll be the happiest man on the planet.”
“With a nude bride.”
“I don’t have a problem with that.”
She shook her head. “That’s so typical of a man.”
“What have we got to lose? Sounds like a heck of an adventure to me.”
