by Sable Hunter
Clint’s chest swelled with regret. “Doesn’t he love us?”
“Oh, yes” she said with certainty. “In his own way. He did…he does.”
Even at nine, Clint understood some things. “He’d come home if he could. Wouldn’t he?”
“Oh, Clint…” Gillian didn’t know what else to say.
Disheartened, Clint stood up and gathered his things.
“What are you going to do?” Gillian asked. “Do you want me to write your teacher a note explaining the situation?”
“No.” He gathered his things. “I’m going to bed. Goodnight, Mama.”
“Just explain our situation to your teacher, tell her you have a family who loves you very much.”
“I’ll handle it, Mom.” He gave her a kiss and escaped to his room, finding Rowan and Kyd sound asleep. While the storm roared outside, Clint sat down at their small desk, turned on the lamp, and stared at the cartoonish tree with its blank lines that seemed to mock him. With his mouth pressed into a firm line, he picked up the pencil and began to fill in the blanks. After inserting his own name and his parents’ names, he filled up the rest of the branches with names of people who existed only in his imagination.
After taking care of business, he set a course to rejoin his brothers. As he moved through the crowd, he barely noticed the pirogue resting on an overhead beam or the stuffed giant marlin affixed to a plank wall. Along the way, he checked out the faces of the diners one more time. None of them were Jensen. He was beginning to think she’d never been in the restaurant at all. Had she left with someone?
Clint was taking one last look around when a shout from the front drew his attention.
He recognized that voice. Rowan. Without a moment’s hesitation, Clint took off. Something was wrong. A few steps closer and he could see several people standing around the table where he’d left his brothers. When he drew close enough to hear, it was obvious Rowan was in the midst of a confrontation with a tall, slender man who appeared to be afraid of the big cowboy whose eyes were burning a hole straight through him. Another guy with a nametag pinned to his checked shirt that read ‘Aubrey Wynn – MANAGER’ kept his slight form between his brother and the slender man. Kyd hovered behind Rowan, appearing to be ready to give assistance if the need arose.
“I’m afraid I’m going to have to ask all of you to leave the restaurant,” Aubrey said in a very reasonable tone.
“What seems to be the problem?” Clint asked as he rejoined them.
“This man jumped me for no reason.” The nervous man pointed accusingly at Rowan. “I just came to the hostess desk to pick-up some takeout and I get assaulted by this maniac!”
“Rowan only grabbed his arm.” Kyd interjected, his face a mask of worry. “I stopped him, or it could’ve been worse,” he continued in a whisper meant only for Clint’s ears.
“Yea, I only grabbed his arm. Now, ask Dempsey what he did.” Rowan’s voice was tight with emotion.
Without being told, Clint knew this was about one of the rescue horses. “You have the animal now, Ro. He can’t hurt it anymore.”
“I have one of them, Clint. The other one died. Starved to death. He let a horse starve to death because he was too chickenshit to take care of it.” Rowan bristled, stepping ahead about six inches.
Aubrey still held his position, but his attention was fully on Clint. “You’re…him. Clint…”
“Wilder. How are you, Mr. Wynn?” Clint offered his hand, for once grateful for his notoriety.
“Proud to serve you, sir.” He gave Clint a big smile.
“Well, this is my brother, Mr. Wynn. Rowan Wilder. He rescues horses.” Pointing at the other individual, he gave a quick explanation. “This…man abused a horse. There are pending charges against him for animal cruelty.” Knowing Rowan’s normal procedure, he glanced at him for confirmation, and his guess was backed up by a verifying nod.
This news caused the manager to think for a moment. He held up a finger and turned to Mr. Dempsey. “Your meal is on the house.” At Rowan’s huff of disbelief, Aubrey Wynn gave him a glance of understanding before turning his attention back to Dempsey. “But you’re not welcome in our establishment after tonight.” Turning to Clint and his brothers, he motioned toward their table. “If you’ll retake your seats, I’ll send over a bottle of wine.” He smiled at Rowan. “I had a horse growing up. I thought the world of him.”
Once they were reseated at the table, Clint took a sip of water. “Wow. I go to the bathroom and all hell breaks loose.” Catching his brother’s eye, he searched for a hint of his state of mind. “Are you all right, Rowan?”
“Yea, I’m fine. I won’t let that asshole ruin our night.” He chuckled and rubbed his face. “There are days I’m completely normal, you know.”
“Of course, don’t worry about it.” Clint’s mind went back to their childhood and he never figured he’d be the one comforting Rowan. “Do you remember what you used to tell me?”
“Yea. I do. Of course, I do. I always told you that no strong person ever had an easy past.” He let out a breath and pointed toward an approaching waiter. “Here comes our wine. Let’s have a drink.”
As the courtesy bottle of chardonnay was set before them, Clint poured everyone a glass and took an approving sip. “All right, it’s time. Tell us your big news.”
Rowan grinned and folded his arms over his chest. “All right. Here it is. About six weeks ago, a man contacted Mom and claimed to be a private eye working for her brother.”
Both Clint and Kyd looked stunned.
“Wow.” Clint sat back in his chair as his jaw went slack. “Who’s the brother? What’s his name?”
“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you,” Rowan shook his head, a smirk on his face.
“Try us,” Kyd encouraged with a smile. “Who is he? Somebody famous?” His expression suddenly turned serious. “Is he after Clint’s money?”
Without waiting for Rowan to answer his brother’s question, Clint asked one of his own. “Is there just one old guy or is there a family involved?” His heart was beating hard at the prospect of finally getting answers to some of his lifelong questions. “And what took so damn long?”
Rowan held up his hands for silence. “I think I can answer most of your questions with one word.” He paused for effect. “McCoy.”
Kyd frowned. “Like the Hatfield’s and McCoy’s?”
“No.” Rowan laughed. “This clan is located much closer to home. Although…there may eventually be a feud involved.”
“I don’t like riddles.” Kyd poured himself another glass of wine. “Do you know what he’s talking about?” He turned to look at Clint inquiringly.
“Maybe.” Clint snapped his finger at the waiter. “Keep the booze coming. I think we’re going to need it.” After holding Rowan’s gaze for a moment, he looked back at Kyd. “I think I know who the McCoys are and if I’m right, Rowan’s not just talking about finding our family. He’s saying we’re a part of a fuckin’ dynasty.”
…Jensen gathered her things as Scott pulled in behind her car. “I want to thank you again. This has been a wonderful evening and I’m thrilled to accept your offer.”
“It’s my pleasure to welcome you to the practice.” Scott met her eyes in the rearview mirror. “I think we’re going to do great things together.”
“What time is your surgery tomorrow?” Lia asked as she peered between the front seats.
“Two p.m. I’m spending the night at a nearby hotel and getting up early tomorrow to drive to Houston. At ten in the morning I report to M. D. Anderson.” Jensen shivered when she said the name of the famous cancer hospital.
“We’ll be there when you wake up in recovery,” Scott assured her.
“Oh, no. That’s not necessary.”
“Are you kidding?” Lia asked with a disbelieving look. “It’s absolutely necessary. You’re not about to go through this alone.”
Tears formed in Jensen’s eyes. “How kind of you. Thank you so much
.” She couldn’t deny that having someone with her would be comforting. “I appreciate you more than words can say.” A car horn sounding behind them forced Jensen to go ahead and say her final goodbyes. “Again, thank you both.”
“You’re welcome. Just as soon as you’re feeling up to it we’ll iron out the details about your move,” Scott told her.
“Great. If I can get through tomorrow, nothing’s going to get in my way.” With a final wave she jumped out, opened the umbrella, and quickly shut the door. Hurrying to the Audi, she climbed in and took a deep breath. For a moment, she stared through the rain spattered windshield toward the entrance to the Cajun restaurant. Was Clint inside? Deep down, she felt a yearning – as if the cells in her body were magnetized and being pulled in his direction. “Ridiculous,” she chided herself as she turned on the engine and shifted to reverse. “Wait until they give you a good dose of painkillers after surgery tomorrow – then you can start to imagine things.”
… Clint and Kyd sat mesmerized as Rowan went over what he’d learned for the second time, new details emerging as he recalled what he knew. “Christian McCoy, Mother’s brother, hired a team of private detectives to find her.”
“Why after all this time?” Clint asked, draining his glass. his eyes moving to note how hard it was raining outside. He wasn’t surprised. Like he’d observed before, every big moment in his life seemed to have a storm as a background track.
“Years earlier, Sebastian McCoy, found some newspaper articles in an old trunk he’d found stored in their attic. Some were tucked in a family Bible.”
“Wait. Who’s Sebastian?” Kyd interrupted his brother.
“Mother had two brothers. Christian and Sebastian. Anyway, when Sebastian first found the article, he was shocked. Until that moment, he’d always thought he was an only child.”
“This Sebastian, he’s the Tebow McCoy from Kerrville?” Clint’s head was swimming, trying to keep it all straight.
“Right.” Rowan nodded. “He was the father of Aron, Jacob, Joseph, Isaac, Noah, and Nathan. Six brothers.”
“Was?” Kyd asked. “He’s dead?”
“He and his wife were swept away in a flash flood some years back.”
“Wow.” Kyd poured himself another glass of wine. “What a rush. The plot thickens.”
Clint bopped Kyd on the back of the head. “Show some respect.”
Rowan just ignored their banter. “Christian is the father of Heath, Tennessee, Philip, Jaxson, Ryder, and Pepper. Four boys and two girls.”
“I’ve heard of some of them.” Clint rubbed his eyes, trying to process everything. “I can’t believe we’re related to these folks. Aron’s a well-known sculptor. Jacob’s in the oil business. Heath is some green energy mogul. Hell, I remember watching Joseph play football when I was in Junior High.”
“I know. Anyway, at the time, Sebastian didn’t say anything to his sons about what he found, but he did hire someone to check out the information,” Rowan continued the explanation. “I don’t think it was hard for him to find Christian. Their lives had run somewhat parallel. Both were successful ranchers. But when Sebastian found his brother, he found him incapacitated with a stroke.”
“But…this is the same guy, Christian, who contacted Mother?” Kyd asked, still trying to keep things straight.
“Right. He’d become ill after losing his wife and home in Hurricane Katrina. The family moved to Texas to escape the memories and basically started over. Over time, with rehab, his health has improved.”
“So…Christian is the patriarch of the Highland McCoys,” Clint mused aloud.
“Yes. From up around Burnet, near Lake Buchanan. Heath, the oldest, owns a resort up there, Canyon of the Eagles.”
“Seems like our relatives did well for themselves,” Clint mused dryly.
“Well, things didn’t start out too well. Obviously. Something happened that destroyed their family.” Rowan unwrapped an after-dinner praline as he spoke.
“Yea, they lost a baby. Our mother.” Kyd shook his head, imagining how awful the parents felt. “How did it happen?”
“Isaac and Sara McCoy were the parents of triplets. Two boys and a girl. Apparently, they were very happy. One day, they took the children to a nearby park. Both thought the other was watching the children carefully, but from one second to the next, their little girl disappeared. Stolen. Right from under their noses.” His voice dropped as he recounted the unbelievable details. “Sara and Isaac blamed one another. They never recovered. When months passed with no word about their daughter, they called it quits. Neither could forgive their spouse. Sara took one son and Isaac took the other. Both agreed they would never see or communicate with the other again.” He laughed, a sad sound. “And they didn’t. They remarried, but neither could bear to bring another child into the world.”
“And they never told the boys the truth.” Clint couldn’t imagine such a thing. “Not a word. Sebastian didn’t know about Christian and Christian didn’t know about Sebastian.”
“And neither knew about our mom.” Kyd picked up a napkin, but he didn’t wipe the hint of moisture from his eyes.
“Nope. The brothers had plans to reunite their families. Unfortunately, Sebastian was killed before their dream could be realized. The shock of his newly found brother’s death brought on another stroke for Christian and it was sometime later before a family friend, a lawyer, accidentally discovered the family ties.” Rowan blew out a long breath. “There’s a lot more detail, but I’m sure we’ll be talking about this for years to come. What’s important was that when Christian recovered, he persisted until he located Mother.”
“Are you saying our mom was abducted. And sold?” Clint reiterated the shocking truth. All of this was so hard to digest.
“Yes. This crooked lawyer had a racket going. He paid for stolen babies, then he resold them to wealthy families who paid a big price. The people who ended up with mother couldn’t handle the guilt. Regrettably, they surrendered her to foster care instead of trying to find her real parents or bring the shyster lawyer to justice.”
“Wow. All these years, she could’ve been living in the lap of luxury.” Kyd spoke in a hushed tone. “We could’ve been living in the lap of luxury.”
Clint cursed. “Hell, this all sounds pretty farfetched to me. Are you sure there’s not a catch? Are you sure they don’t want something from us?”
Kyd spread his hands in disbelief. “What could they want from us?”
“I don’t know.” Clint exhaled loudly and drained his third glass of alcohol. “I’m just not sure I trust this whole thing. I don’t want Mama to be hurt.”
“None of us do,” Rowan agreed. “Although…I think it’s important for you to know she hasn’t told the PI or her brother everything about us.”
“What do you mean?” Clint asked as he motioned for the check.
“She didn’t tell them about her experiences in foster care or that our dad abandoned us.”
“Why not?” Kyd asked.
Rowan shook his head. “I’m not sure. I guess she didn’t want her new family feeling sorry for us. The main thing to remember is that Mother believes this is her family and she’s agreed for us to meet them.”
“When?” Clint wanted to know, his gut clenching at the thought.
“Christmas. We’re invited to Tebow Ranch. The whole crew will be there.” Rowan raised his glass for a final salute. “Here’s to a family reunion that’s been a long time coming!”
Clint joined in the toast. By all reason, he should be happy. This was something he’d been searching for all of his life. Why he felt reservations, he wasn’t sure.
After taking care of the bill, they made their way to the parking lot. The rain was finally easing up, only a drizzle remained.
“Hey, we’ve all had too much to drink. Why don’t we get a room?” Rowan pointed to the motel next door.
“Sounds good to me,” Kyd agreed. “What do you think, Clint?”
“Yea. Fine. I
’ll meet you over there. I need to do something first.” Clint left the other two where they were standing to move to the spot where the Audi had been parked. It was gone. Cursing under his breath, he set a path to the Stingray. He’d let himself become distracted by the news of his mother’s family and he’d missed his opportunity to reconnect with Jensen.
Maybe.
Clint dry-scrubbed the drops of rain from his face. Who knows? Maybe she’d never been here to start with. The woman could’ve just resembled Jensen. Lifting his head, he gave himself a mental shake attempting to dispel the sense of loss. He needed to let the dream of finding Jensen go. After all, he’d given her a way to contact him and she’d never used it. Hell, he’d kept the same number and the same phone all of these years – just in case.
When he arrived at the hotel, he could see Rowan and Kyd at the registration desk. After opening his trunk, he took out a small duffle he kept packed with essentials. As he walked through the electric doors, he called out to his brothers. “Get a suite with a sleeper. I don’t intend to share a bed with either one of you.” The clerk, who recognized Clint, was happy to have housekeeping make ready their best room. They’d have to wait a few minutes, but no one minded.
“I think I’ll take a walk and find something cold to drink.” The other two waved Clint on, so he ventured out of the lobby and down the adjoining hall. He figured if he could locate the little room that housed the ice machine, he’d find a vending machine as well. After checking in one spot that turned out to be the janitor’s closet, he spotted a sign that read ICE. “Bingo.”
Finding the door standing ajar, he pushed it open, stepped in – and walked straight into someone else’s path. They collided, an ice bucket was dropped, and crushed ice went everywhere. “Oh, hell. Excuse me.” Glancing up from the mess on the floor, Clint finally looked at the person he’d run into. When he did, his heart soared. “Jensen.”
“Clint.” To say she was shocked was an understatement. Even though she’d entertained the wild notion that their paths would cross again, she’d never expected it to happen in a million years. “What are you doing here?”
