Heart of Texas Vol. 3

by Debbie Macomber

  “Ruth mentioned noticing a rag doll in your office a few months ago,” Nell said, getting immediately to the point of their visit.

  “Doll?” Jane frowned as if she’d forgotten, but then apparently remembered, because she smiled. “As a matter of fact, I did, but I…no longer have it.”

  “Would you mind telling us where you got it?” Travis asked.

  Jane studied them both. “Is there a particular reason for these questions?”

  Nell and Travis exchanged glances. “We found a doll very similar to the one Ruth saw here,” Nell explained.

  Jane reached for a pen and started making small circles. “Can I ask where you found this doll?”

  “Have you been to Bitter End, Dr. Patterson?” Travis asked abruptly. Then he remembered she had been. Jane was the one who’d found and treated Richard Weston.

  He felt Nell’s displeasure with him at the bluntness of his approach. But his curiosity was at a fever pitch. He was looking for answers, and the only way to get them was to ask the right questions. A growing sense of excitement filled him.

  The doctor surprised him by asking a question of her own. “Have you ever been to Bitter End?”

  Nell and Travis looked at each other.

  “We were there this morning,” Travis answered.

  “Did you find the doll there?”

  “Not exactly,” Travis said. “It was in an old chest in Nell’s attic.”

  “I see.” Jane folded her hands and leaned back in her chair. “I don’t suppose it would do any harm to tell you how I came to have that doll. Maggie Weston brought it to me.”

  “Maggie?” Nell sounded shocked.

  “This was months ago, before Caroline and Grady were married and he legally adopted Maggie. You might not be aware of this, but Maggie disappeared the same time Richard Weston did. As far as anyone can figure, Maggie must’ve been hiding in the pickup Richard stole from the Yellow Rose Ranch. For a whole night, Caroline and Grady didn’t know where she was. Sheriff Hennessey’s the one who put two and two together.”

  “It must have been hell for Caroline,” Nell said in sympathy.

  “I’m sure it was. The following morning Maggie reappeared as mysteriously as she’d vanished. She wouldn’t say where she’d been, but the sheriff thinks Richard brought her back.”

  “Thank God!”

  “He’d taken her to his hiding place, then—in the ghost town?” Travis asked. His jaw tightened at the thought of a five-year-old in Bitter End.

  “Apparently so,” Jane said. “No one knows exactly what Richard said to the child to convince her to keep his secret. But considering the type of person he is, it’s not too hard to guess.”

  “Prison’s too good for the likes of Richard Weston,” Nell muttered.

  The more Travis learned about him, the more inclined he was to agree.

  “While she was in Bitter End, Maggie found the doll and tucked it in her backpack. Later it worried her that she’d taken something that didn’t belong to her. She developed stomachaches, and that was when she brought the doll to me.”

  “And the reason you had it on your bookshelf,” Nell added.

  “Exactly! I didn’t know at the time that the doll was from the ghost town. I’d hoped the rightful owner would see it in my office so I could simply return it without mentioning Maggie’s name.”

  “Where’s the doll now?” Travis wanted to know.

  “Maggie has it. Once the truth came out, Grady and Caroline decided Maggie could keep it.”

  “The memory of how she got it doesn’t bother her?” Nell asked.

  “It doesn’t seem to. She believes she saved that doll. So her feelings about it have become quite positive.”

  “Good,” Nell said. “I’m glad such a horrible experience ended well for her.”

  Jane smiled, then her gaze swung to Travis. “You’re visiting Nell?”

  “Actually I’m doing research for a story.”

  “He’s my first guest,” Nell explained. “The dude ranch hasn’t officially opened, but he needed a room and Mary and Phil suggested my place.”

  Travis didn’t like the classification. A guest—a paying one at that. She’d said it as though there was nothing between them, as though their kisses meant nothing. Despite her tone, Travis couldn’t make himself believe it.

  “I see,” Jane said, sounding a little unsure.

  She wasn’t the only one. “Nell and I are finding out everything we can about Bitter End,” Travis explained. “It’s time the mystery of that town was solved.”

  Jane nodded. “I couldn’t agree with you more. My fear is now that the word’s out, someone else is going to decide to hide there. If something isn’t done soon, there’s every likelihood people will get hurt again. Some of those buildings aren’t safe for people to explore. It’s a wonder they’ve stood all these years as it is.”

  “The entire town should be destroyed,” Nell said, her voice raised.

  Travis disagreed with a sharp shake of the head. “Bitter End is an important part of Texas history. Why would anyone want to destroy it?”

  Nell didn’t answer.

  CAL AND GLEN TOOK a long-overdue lunch break, letting their horses graze near Gully Creek while they ate their sandwiches. The morning had been spent vaccinating cattle. Cal felt they both deserved a respite while the crew, who’d lunched earlier, finished up.

  Although Cal saw his brother every day, they rarely had a chance to talk anymore. Especially now that they were both married. Glen was busy with his life in town; he and Ellie had bought a run-down Victorian that they were fixing up. Cal and Jane were still newlyweds, still learning about each other. A lot had happened in the two men’s lives in the past year, more than Cal could adequately take in.

  Glen finished his lunch first, then stretched out on the cool grass, shading his eyes with his Stetson.

  “Jane mentioned something interesting the other day,” Cal said, leaning back and resting his weight on his palms.

  “What?”

  “Nell Bishop was in to see her with that city-slicker guy from New York.”

  “I wouldn’t say that to his face,” Glen said, lifting the Stetson and grinning. “I think he wants to be a cowboy. Besides, the guy’s bigger than you.”

  “So what? Hey—I’m a Texan!”

  “He went to see Jane? What’s the matter,” Glen joked, “is he having trouble with the drinking water?”

  “No, he’s been to Bitter End.”

  If Cal hadn’t gotten his full attention earlier, he had it now. Glen sat up and looked at his brother. “Is that for real? How the hell did he find it?”

  “Grady and Savannah drew him a map.”

  “You’re kidding!”

  “Nope.”

  “What gives him the right?”

  Cal smiled, remembering that his initial reaction had been similar to that of his brother. “He thinks it’s time someone solved the mystery.”

  “Really?”

  “I tend to agree with him.”

  “Fine, but it should be one of us, then, someone from Promise. Don’t you think?”

  “Why?”

  “Because it’s our town. Our history. Personally I don’t like the idea of some city slicker poking around in affairs that aren’t any of his damn business. If he wants to uncover a few skeletons, I say let him open his own closet.”

  “You willing to do it or not?”

  “Dig up the dirt about Bitter End?” his brother clarified.

  “Yup.” Cal studied his brother. “You know—figure out what went wrong. And why.”

  Glen expelled a long breath. “I say let sleeping dogs lie. Frankly I don’t need to know.”

  “That’s the way I felt, too,” Cal told him. “Until recently.”

  Glen broke off a long blade of grass and stuck it between his teeth. “What changed your mind?”

  “Richard Weston.”

  “What about him?” Glen asked, sounding disgusted.
r />   Cal didn’t hold any more affection for Grady’s brother than Glen did; Richard had done nothing but embarrass the family and the community. It wasn’t common knowledge that he’d stolen from his family not once, but twice—and, as they’d since learned, he’d victimized a lot of vulnerable people in a really nasty scam back East. The news about his arrest and prison sentence had been the talk of the town for weeks. Some people had difficulty believing Richard was capable of committing such crimes. Cal had no such problem. Richard was a lowlife and deserved every day of the twenty-five-year sentence he’d received.

  “Richard being airlifted out of Bitter End brought up a lot of questions about the town. Quite a few folks had never heard of it. Others had and wanted to know more. I think it’s time we put an end to this speculation and settle the past once and for all.”

  “Grady agrees with you?”

  “He’d planned to personally take Travis Grant there, until his water pump broke. Even then, he had Savannah draw Travis a map. From what Jane told me, Nell’s involved in this, too.”

  Glen continued to chew on the stem of grass. His hands were tucked behind his head and he stared up at the blue sky. “Maybe you’re right.”

  “What can we do to help?” Cal asked after a silence.

  “You and me?” Glen seemed surprised.

  “We’re among the few who’ve actually been to the town.”

  Glen closed his eyes. “Don’t remind me.”

  Glen had been there once, Cal twice—most recently with Jane, who’d insisted she wanted to find the town. He’d finally given in and agreed to accompany her, knowing that otherwise she’d search for it on her own.

  As it happened, their going into the ghost town precisely when they did had saved Richard Weston’s life. The events of that day had shaken Cal considerably. He was accustomed to being in charge, knowing what to do, but if it hadn’t been for Jane and her medical expertise, he could have done little but watch Richard Weston die.

  “I’m trying to remember what I know about Bitter End,” Glen said, cutting into his thoughts. “What do you think Nell and her friend might want to know?”

  Nell and her friend. Cal ignored the question and concentrated on the picture that formed in his mind. He’d seen Travis and Nell dancing at the rodeo not long ago. It had been a shock to see her in the arms of a man, especially since she’d always refused dates and invitations. Once the shock wore off, he’d felt pleased. She’d been completely absorbed in the guy, hadn’t even noticed him and Jane.

  The ribs he’d injured in the rodeo had been hurting like hell, but he’d managed to talk Jane into staying for the dance. The pain was worth it, seeing as Willie Nelson had unexpectedly shown up. Jane still talked about it; she’d been thrilled.

  “A penny for your thoughts,” Glen teased. “If they’re worth that much.”

  “I was just thinking about Nell and Travis Grant….”

  “What about them?”

  “There’s a romance brewing.”

  “So?” Glen said.

  “So, I think it’s a good idea. I liked Jake—he was one of my best friends—but I’d hate to see Nell grieve the rest of her life away. Jake wouldn’t have wanted that, either.”

  “Is she interested in this Travis character?”

  “Seems to be.” More than that, Travis Grant was obviously taken with her. Whatever was happening there, Cal hoped it would work out for Nell. She was in line for a bit of happiness.

  JEREMY LIKED TRAVIS GRANT—so much that it actually worried Nell. Her son was enthralled with him. Several times now she’d been forced to talk to Jeremy about giving Travis time to himself. Like this afternoon, for example. She knew Travis was writing, but the minute her son returned home from school, he’d raced out to see Travis. She didn’t know what they’d talked about, but Jeremy had been wearing a silly grin ever since. As if he knew something she didn’t.

  She’d chastised him soundly for not doing his chores, and he’d left the house in a temper. At dinnertime, when she couldn’t find him, she knew where he was likely to be. She hurried over to the bunkhouse and knocked at the door.

  “Yeah?” Travis called.

  Apparently this was how New Yorkers said, “Come in.”

  Nell opened the door and was surprised not to see her son there, making a pest of himself despite her scolding. “Have you seen Jeremy?” she asked.

  “Not lately.” Travis was sitting in front of his computer screen, his brow furrowed.

  “I hope I didn’t interrupt anything,” she said, feeling badly to have barged in on him, considering she’d admonished her twelve-year-old for doing the same thing.

  “No problem, Nell.” He seemed abstracted and barely glanced away from his work.

  She quietly closed the door. Jeremy sometimes liked to escape to the hayloft and read, especially if he was angry with her. She headed in that direction next, hoping to make peace with him.

  “Jeremy.” She stood in the middle of the barn, staring up at the loft.

  “Yeah.” Her son peeked over the ledge.

  Yeah. Just like Travis. She swallowed the urge to correct him and said, “Time to wash up for dinner.”

  “Already?” he groaned. He climbed down from the loft and followed Nell back to the house, dragging his feet. He didn’t mention the incident earlier that afternoon, and because he hadn’t, she didn’t, either.

  “What are you reading?” his grandmother asked him.

  “A book,” he said and set it on the kitchen counter. “When will Emma be back from Girl Scouts?”

  Nell glanced at her watch. “Any minute. Kathy’s mom is dropping her off. Would you kindly tell Travis dinner will be ready in ten minutes?” She didn’t need to make the suggestion twice; Jeremy was out the door as fast as a cartoon character racing across the screen.

  “He seems to like Travis,” Ruth commented.

  “I noticed.”

  “That worries you?”

  It did, Nell thought. Once Travis left—and he would leave—her son might well feel abandoned. Initially she hadn’t been concerned, but Jeremy’s liking for Travis had recently grown into full-scale adulation.

  And what about her own feelings? Travis had shaken up her emotions, made her feel all kinds of things she’d shut herself off from. Like attraction. And…desire.

  “Yes,” she answered her mother-in-law. “I’m worried he likes Travis too much.”

  “You seem to like him yourself,” Ruth added slyly.

  Nell bit her lip, unable to explain or confide.

  “Something happen you want to talk about?” The older woman studied her closely.

  Nell just shook her head. Fortunately Ruth left it at that, giving her a hug before pitching in to set the table.

  Dinner consisted of meat loaf, scalloped potatoes, homemade bread, corn, green salad and fresh rhubarb pie. Emma ran in the back door, shucking off her jacket, just as they were about to sit down.

  As usual, dinner conversation settled around the children and school. This evening Nell was more than grateful to let her two youngsters do the talking. Particularly since her adventures with Travis in Bitter End wouldn’t have been an appropriate subject. Nor did she want to discuss their trip into town and the chat with Dr. Jane.

  “What’s that book you were reading earlier?” Ruth asked when there was a lull in the conversation.

  “Prairie Gold, by T.R. Grant,” Jeremy said. His gaze briefly flew to Travis before he helped himself to a second slice of bread. “He’s a great writer.”

  “You’ve read enough of his books,” Nell said in a conversational tone as she passed the butter to her son.

  “You heard of him?” Emma asked Travis.

  Jeremy burst into giggles and Nell quelled him with a look.

  “You could say we’re friends.” Travis smiled at Emma, and Nell wondered if he was teasing her daughter. She certainly wouldn’t appreciate it if he was.

  “I’ve read all his books,” Jeremy stated proudly
.

  “Every one of them,” Nell testified.

  “Do you really know him?” Emma asked, returning to Travis’s earlier statement.

  “Travis is a writer,” Nell said. “He probably knows lots of other writers.” She didn’t want to put him on the spot.

  Once more Jeremy burst into giggles.

  “What’s going on here?” Nell demanded.

  “Mom, have you ever wondered what the T.R. in T.R. Grant stands for?”

  “No,” she said. She hadn’t given the matter a moment’s thought.

  “Travis Randolf,” Travis supplied slowly, holding her gaze and refusing to let go.

  Nell dropped her fork with a clatter.

  “Nell?” Ruth said, her eyes showing concern.

  “You’re T.R. Grant?” Nell whispered, finding it hard to speak and breathe at the same time.

  Travis grinned. “At your service.”

  CHAPTER 9

  “I TOLD YOU I WAS A WRITER,” Travis explained as though the logic should have been obvious.

  “I figured it out this afternoon!” Jeremy exclaimed excitedly.

  “But you didn’t say what you wrote,” Ruth said, frowning.

  It just so happened that one of the most popular children’s authors in the entire country was sitting at this very table, was sleeping in their bunkhouse. Was kissing her senseless every chance he got.

  “Nell?” Travis’s gaze continued to hold hers. “Maybe you and I should talk about this privately after dinner.”

  The idea of being alone with him for even a minute was too much. She shook her head vigorously. “That won’t be necessary.”

  Before Travis could comment, Jeremy and Emma immediately bombarded him with questions. At any other time Nell would have cautioned them to mind their manners. But not tonight.

  After dinner Ruth went into her bedroom to watch Jeopardy on her television set. Protesting loudly, Jeremy and Emma were sent upstairs to do their homework, while Nell cleaned the kitchen.

  She scrubbed the dishes, rinsed them, dried them. She didn’t turn around, but she knew Travis was still in the kitchen long before he spoke.

  “You might have said something,” she told him in a deceptively mild voice.