by Linda Conrad
Geez, couldn’t he manage to string together more than four words at a time? Now he was making her curious.
“You said you had brothers. How many? And do they all still live there?”
He stayed quiet so long she had to sneak a glance to see if he’d fallen asleep. She’d never seen the man looking so pale. Even last night when he’d lost a lot of blood, he hadn’t seemed so shaky and white. Like he’d seen a ghost.
“My mother had five boys and one girl. She and my dad are both gone now.” The words were spoken quickly, as though he’d needed to expel them before they choked him.
“That’s not a good enough answer, Sam. I want names, ages and places of residence for siblings, please.” It was like pulling deep-rooted weeds to get this man talking.
“I’m the oldest. Just spoke to Travis, the next in line. He runs the ranch now. You’ll be meeting him when we get there. Gage and Colt are both probably living either on the ranch or nearby. My…” He drew a breath, continued. “Youngest brother, named Denton, was killed in a ranching accident when he was eleven. And Cami—”
“Your sister? What happened to her?”
Sam cleared his throat. “She was…um…kidnapped. Right after our mother died. Cami was four at the time and Mom’s sister said she’d better take her in for a while ’cause none of us boys would know what to do with a little girl. We all thought that sounded about right. We were teenage boys who were on our own, and she was supposedly our loving auntie.
“Trouble was…” he went on slowly. “My mother’s sister, Sally, was a junkie and we didn’t know it. She took Cami and disappeared.”
“Oh, my gosh. Didn’t the FBI look for her?”
Sam sat a little straighter. “Of course they did. The Bureau tracked my aunt all the way to L.A. Then they lost her. Next time my aunt Sally showed up was in a San Diego morgue five years later. Overdosed.”
Grace took a deep breath. “And they never found your little sister,” she said in a whisper. “I’m so sorry.”
Yes, she was sorry. Both for his family losses and his obvious misery. But she was also sorry she’d pushed him to tell the story.
“I’d heard that my brother Gage started a P.I. firm a few years back. I expect they’ve done everything they can to find her themselves. But it’s tough after all these years to get a lead on one little girl.”
The way he’d said that sounded to Grace as if he had done some looking himself. Without much luck. The poor man. Her heart twisted for Sam and his brothers.
Then her mind got stuck on something else he’d said. “What did you mean that you’d heard about the P.I. firm? Don’t you know for sure?”
“Haven’t talked to any of my brothers in the past ten years or so.”
Then he hadn’t left on good terms with his family? Now Grace was becoming more curious than ever. Every time he gave her one piece of information, it brought up more questions. This was a complicated man.
“But you have been keeping tabs on them. From a distance.” Otherwise how would he know about the P.I. firm?
“Some.” Sam pushed his hat back. “We’re coming up to the turnoff. Pull into a gas station and I’ll drive the rest of the way in.”
Grace was ready to stretch her legs and Mikey needed a diaper change. So she pulled in to the pumps at a truck stop. Twenty minutes later they were on their way again.
Sam drove down a country road as the sleet turned back into drizzle. After getting Mikey resettled in the car seat with a bottle, she glanced over to check on Sam. His mouth was set so hard the jawline looked as if it would cut diamonds.
She didn’t imagine she would get much more out of him for now. Relaxing back in her seat, she stared out the window at the passing scenery.
Still stuck in late winter cold, the famous Texas wildflowers were nowhere to be seen alongside the roads. But the dry, rocky country they’d just left around Fort Stockton had given way to miles and miles of flat fields, punctuated by a nice river and a couple of gullies here and there. Bare cottonwood trees grew in the gullies, alongside what she thought were mesquite and dark green juniper trees. Off in the distance tall mesas and cliffs loomed in the background. The whole vista looked a lot like a landscape painting.
“Seems like excellent grazing land.”
“Good guess. You ever been on a working ranch before?”
“No. Never. But I’ve seen them in movies.”
That brought the first smile to Sam’s face since she’d asked about his family. She loved seeing him smile. It brightened his whole demeanor.
Suddenly it occurred to her what she hadn’t seen. Not since they’d left the truck stop. Houses. Stores. Gas stations. In fact, there hadn’t been one indication of human life in the past hour.
As the afternoon shadows grew long, Grace began to feel more and more isolated. She checked on Mikey more than once. But the baby had fallen back to sleep and seemed oblivious to his mother’s worries.
Another half hour went by and still nothing but bleak country and cold rain. Not even as much as a road sign. The skin on her arms began to crawl.
She was about to tell Sam to turn around and go back, that they must’ve taken a wrong turn, when they rounded a curve and the first sign of civilization popped into view—in the form of an actual signpost. The sign read: Welcome to Chance—Population: 826.
“Chance? There’s a town named Chance?”
“Yep. Been here since my great-great-granddaddy arrived in 1886. Right after the railroad was finished and the army abandoned the nearest fort.”
“Your family founded the town?” Just think of that.
“Well, it wasn’t much back then. Still isn’t by the looks of things.”
Grace stared up at an old service station and across from that a big barn of a building with a sign that said it was the Feed and Seed Store. Driving on down what seemed to be the main street in town, she saw a café and a string of small businesses. Beauty and barber shops, a hardware store, and insurance agent and a medium-size bank.
Everything looked old but spotless. Well maintained.
“Well, this looks nice,” she mumbled. “How much farther to your home?”
“Only about a half hour now.”
“Another half hour? How is that possible?”
“Distances are long in Texas.”
“Yes, but this is the town of Chance. Surely your family’s ranch should be right around here someplace close.”
“Real close. We’ve been on my family’s ranch for about the past twenty miles or so. Most of the land around here belongs to the Bar-C. Except for the town proper, of course.”
Stunned, Grace sat back and stared out the window as they passed through the town and kept on driving. The miles rolled by in a blur of country road, driving rain and empty land. Good Lord, his family must be worth millions.
Just who was this man who’d come to save her?
Chapter 5
Sam prepared to turn at the ranch-to-market road that led to the main gate. The rain had turned to drizzle and he got his first real glimpse of the land where he’d grown up.
Memories tumbled from some deep arroyo in his mind. Of riding his horse across the field after a foot of snowfall—unusual for this part of Texas. And of chasing his junior high sweetheart into that stock pond one spectacular and starry spring night for his first kiss.
All good memories. He remembered the exhilaration of being young.
That was long before his mother died and his father was sent to prison. In fact, the only things to mar the sweet recollections of his budding adolescence were the memories of a too-stern father. The father that had made outrageous demands on his oldest son.
“You will take over the ranch someday,” his father had insisted. “You’ll run it with an iron fist, the same as your grandfather Samuel. You’re the oldest. Named for a great man. It’s your destiny.”
But Sam hadn’t wanted to run the ranch. Oh, he loved his family and liked the land and the animals well enough. But Sam had
wanted to travel. See the world. Besides, back then he’d been much better at taking orders than dishing them out. Why couldn’t his father ever see that?
Turning right toward the gate, Sam absently drove the pickup over the old cattle guard and the whole truck shook. He’d forgotten how loud a cattle guard could sound under the tires of a big vehicle.
“What the heck was that?” Grace sat straight up. Then she turned to check on Mikey, who’d been jolted awake by the noise and now was screaming at the top of his lungs.
“Sorry. It’s just…” At that moment he spied the Bar-C fence and gate. Twenty-foot-high metalwork loomed across the road about sixty feet ahead.
“Holy moly. Is this place for real?” Grace had spotted it, too. “Look at that. The gate is huge. And spectacular looking. I’d bet the scrollwork on that Bar-C at the top gleams like pure gold in the bright sunlight.”
“Hmm. Maybe. The gate’s new.” And they would have to stop and use the call box in order to enter. “When I was a kid, we’d climb out of the truck and open the gate ourselves. Things have changed.”
“I guess.” The smile in Grace’s voice, the first in a long while, didn’t do much to soothe his irritation at the changes to his old homestead.
But then, what did he expect? He’d changed a lot in the past fifteen years since he had left home. Why shouldn’t the ranch change, as well?
He tried to keep an open mind as he punched the call button and gained entry. The gate swung open as if all by itself and Sam gritted his teeth while driving through.
In a few moments he drove past enormous barnlike structures and spotted animal pens in the distance packed with cattle being sheltered and fed while they waited for the spring market. The whole scene looked prosperous and modern.
Way to go, Travis. His brother had done a terrific job of running the ranch. And once Sam had that thought, he relaxed and began cataloging all the new things he should congratulate his brother for accomplishing.
Looked like the right person had inherited the boss’s job after all.
Within a half mile they passed what looked like an indoor horse ring. A single-story structure in front of the ring held a sign that said: Bar-C Executive Offices.
“This is amazing,” Grace said as they drove on by. “I bet not all ranches look like this one.”
Not even close. In another moment Sam spotted a two-story mansion that looked like something from one of those old eighties TV dramas set in Texas. This house was where the family lived now?
Sam drove up the wide circular drive and stopped in front of the huge double-door entry. “Well, I guess this is my brother’s house.”
“I’ll get Mikey out of his car seat if you’ll grab his diaper bag.”
“Sure.” Popping the seat belt, Sam turned to step out of the truck’s cab.
Before he could step down, though, the double doors opened and his brother strode down the steps, heading in his direction. “Sam.”
Coming around the hood, Sam stuck out his hand to Travis. But his brother apparently had other ideas, pulling him into a bear hug.
Enveloped in the warmth of his brother’s embrace, Sam felt both guilt and a deep sadness running up his spine. Those feelings and a twinge in his shoulder disturbed him enough to step back.
“Are you injured?” Travis nodded his head toward Sam’s arm
“Naw. It’s only a scratch.”
Travis’s smile was as melancholy as Sam felt. “It’s been too long, damn it, bubba.”
Sam had to smile at his brother’s use of his childhood nickname. And he was surprised by how strong and genuine his emotions ran.
“This is some place you’ve built, Trav. Good work.”
His brother’s lips tipped up in a half-smile and he opened his mouth to make another remark. But right then something happened that Sam had never counted on. And the tiny voice made even Travis fall silent and turn.
“Daddy? Who’s out here?”
* * *
Grace looked up at the sound of a little girl coming down the front stoop of the enormous house. The child appeared to be about eight or nine, blond with long pigtails and dressed in jeans and cowboy boots.
Sam hadn’t mentioned his brother having children. But this child must certainly belong to his younger brother. Even if the girl hadn’t called him daddy, and except for their hair coloring, the resemblance was unmistakable.
Right down to the air of confidence and the everyone-must-do-as-I-say attitude.
“Jenna. Where’s your coat? Stay inside. We’ll be there in a minute.”
Travis’s voice could’ve been heard at least a half mile away but the girl acted as if she’d never heard a word. Coming down the steps, she stood toe-to-toe with Sam.
The tiny person craned her neck to look him up and down, then after a moment she said, “You must be my uncle Sam. The one that ran away.”
Sam’s expression quickly turned from surprise to something like sorrow. Grace would’ve loved to have taken him in her arms and begged him to tell her the whole story. Why he’d left this magical place and stayed away for so long. As much as she was beginning to trust him with her and Mikey’s safety, there was something going on inside this man and she wanted to know what.
He managed to hide his emotions when he said, “Yes, ma’am. That would be me. And how old are you, niece Jenna?”
Instead of answering the question, which apparently bored her, Jenna turned to stare at the other strangers getting out of the truck. “A baby! Oh, Daddy, you didn’t tell me a baby was coming to the Bar-C.”
She flew over to where Grace was standing by the pickup. “Is it a boy or a girl?”
“Jenna! Inside right now!” Travis’s voice had taken a much sterner tone.
Still Jenna continued to ignore her father.
She raised her arms and gave Grace a pleading smile. “Can I hold the baby?”
Out of the corner of her eye Grace could see Travis heading their way, and he did not look happy. She suddenly took pity on the little girl.
“This is Mikey,” she told Jenna. “And he’s probably too heavy for you to hold. But you can show us inside the house so he doesn’t catch cold out here.”
Grace knew her son was bundled up and in no danger of being cold. But she hoped what she’d said would move the little girl inside before her father had time to reach them.
“Oh, sure. Come on in.” Jenna spun and marched straight for the front door, totally ignoring the other adults who were now standing like statues, staring silently at the oblivious little girl.
Grace couldn’t help smiling at the sight of those blond pigtails bouncing up the steps. She supposed she’d been a lot like Jenna at that age. Except not blond, of course. But so sure of herself. So sure that everyone in her world loved her unconditionally. Grace remembered thinking she could get away with anything. Do whatever she pleased and still be loved.
Too bad reality always intrudes on life.
Glancing over at Travis and Sam, Grace said, “It’s okay for us to go inside, isn’t it?”
Travis looked chagrined. “Of course. Sorry…Mrs… .”
Sam stepped between his brother and Grace. “Trav, this is Grace Baker and her son, Mikey. We can make proper introductions later if that’s okay with you.”
Grabbing Mikey’s diaper bag out of the pickup and then slamming the doors, Sam stepped it up so he could reach for her elbow and helped her negotiate the slippery steps while carrying the baby. Jenna held the front door wide-open and practically grabbed hold of Grace’s coattails as she passed by. The little girl shadowed her as they entered the wide foyer.
“This is my house,” Jenna said, beaming up at Mikey. “It’s nice and warm in here.”
Once again Grace thought of herself at that age. So sure. So sure.
At that moment three huge dogs came sliding around a corner on the hardwood floors. Two black long-haired breeds and one reddish-colored, short-haired dog, they were all over a hundred pounds apiece, pant
ing hard and racing toward Jenna. Grace backed up to lean against Sam, fearful of the dogs jumping up and knocking into the baby.
Travis’s commanding voice came from right behind her. “Jenna, take the dogs outside. Now.”
As if coming out of a dream, Jenna’s expression said she’d suddenly realized a huge catastrophe could happen at any moment. She began moving toward the dogs. Using a commanding voice of her own, she stopped them in their tracks. In moments all four of them, three dogs and one tough little girl, disappeared around the same corner where the animals had first entered the room.
“Sorry about that. That child will be the death of her old man yet.” Travis moved into the lead. “Let’s go where we can talk. Maybe have some coffee?”
Grace started to follow Sam and Travis but just then Mikey began to fuss. She knew immediately what was wrong.
“Uh. Is there someplace where I can change Mikey first?”
“Sure.” Travis turned and hollered, “Jenna!”
Before he could even shut his mouth again, his daughter was right beside him. “Yes, Daddy?”
“Take Ms. Baker and the baby upstairs and show them the blue guest room. She needs to change his diaper. Stay with them and then bring her back downstairs to the great room when they’re finished.”
Grace turned to Jenna. “Can you carry Mikey’s bag?”
“Sure I can.” Jenna took the diaper bag from Sam and trundled toward the stairs. “Can I help change the baby?”
“We’ll see.” Hmm. This was turning into an interesting and unique experience for all of them.
* * *
Sam watched Grace negotiate the stairs, following his niece. His niece. Why hadn’t he known about Jenna? And where was Travis’s wife? Had he been living his isolated life for so long, sheltering one witness after another, that he’d totally lost track of his family?
His growing family.
Following his brother into a room that looked more like a hunting lodge than a Dallas mansion, Sam’s shoulders began to relax. A big fire roared in the oversize stone fireplace and the leather sofas and gleaming wood tables actually made a fairly comfortable place for a family get-together.
