Rebellion in the Valley

by Robyn Leatherman

  “And now I owe you a double squeezin’ once I get cleaned up; thank you,” he told her.

  “You’re most welcome. You don’t think I’d come into town and not say hello, do you? I came by earlier but you were busy over there,” she pointed.

  Gus explained he just got a big order in from the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad Company last week.

  “That’s great! What are you making for them?” Hailee asked.

  “Well, they want me to make up a whole mess of parts for the dynamometer. Should keep me busy for some time to come, because after I’m done with that job, they have more waitin’ for me,” he told her with an air of pride.

  Hailee couldn't have been happier for Gus; jobs for a blacksmith in the area had given out a bit the last time she and her father were in town and Gus had even given thought to moving more northwest.

  “So you won’t have to move, will you?”

  “No, I’m afraid you’ll be stuck with me for a long while now,” he grinned with a hand stuck in the bag of jellybeans. “You haven’t told me how long you’re in town for-or where your Pa’s been hiding, for that matter.”

  Hailee explained that the group would be heading back the following day when an idea struck.

  “Gus, why don’t you meet us for dinner tonight? Richard and Tobias will be there, and you can all get caught up!”

  From the look on his chubby face, she could see her old pal thought it was a dandy invitation; Gus agreed to meet up later with the group of his friends-if a slice of Ethel’s apple pie slipped into the deal somewhere along the way.

  P

  Richard laughed harder than he had in a long time; Gus had a way of telling stories that made a fella burst at the seams!

  “Stop!” Richard told him as tears streamed down his face. “My jaws are achin’ and my sides can’t take any more!” He laughed rather loudly, even though he strained to keep his voice down some.

  Bruce drained his coffee cup and agreed. “It has been too long since we did this, Gus. Why don’t you ever come up into the hills and spend time with us?”

  “I sure would like to do that someday, but it’s gonna have to be awhile now, what with my big contract goin’ with the railroad,” he reminded.

  Their food server set the check down near Bruce’s mug of beer, cleared the table of two plates and nudged Hailee with her elbow when nobody else was looking.

  Hailee glanced up to find the woman winking at her; the puzzled look on her face caused the server to nod toward Tobias and grin.

  Hailee blushed and turned her head away, pretending to fasten her bootstrap so nobody would know she required a moment to regain her composure.

  “Well, we have us an early morning ahead, so I reckon we best tie this visit up,” Richard moaned. “Much as I hate to admit it, this old rooster is too tired to cluck.”

  While the group found their way outside, Gus stayed behind with Bruce as he payed the bill.

  “They make a real nice couple, Bruce; you must be mighty proud to have a fella with such a good character comin’ into the family tree,” Gus ribbed him.

  Bruce shook his head. “What do you mean?”

  Gus chuckled.

  “Aw, come on, Bruce! You don’t mean to stand there and tell me you don’t know!” Gus blurt out.

  Again, Bruce shook his head. “What are you talkin’ about?”

  Gus turned around and nodded to the group standing outside on the wooden sidewalk.

  “Tobias. He’s sweet on your Hailee. And you’re double blind if you can’t see the way she looks back at him…yeah, sometimes I wish I had me a whole flock of children,” Gus trailed off in his own thoughts.

  Whatever Gus said after that point faded into the night air, with Bruce giving a nod every then and again when his old friend said something and laughed.

  Sweet on Hailee? Tobias? No - he was the ranch help and an old family friend, that’s all. Gus was just reading too much into it, that’s all.

  Sometimes people who live and work together-the way Bruce and his daughter did up on the ranch – form good friendships with the help. They become real close friends, that was all. There wasn’t anything else to it.

  At least, that’s what Bruce Johnson tried to convince himself of as he snuggled down under the handmade motel quilt and leaned over to snuff out the oil lantern.

  Chapter 5

  While Hailee chattered on about the general store being sold out of that burgundy yarn and not having any idea about where she could even begin to look for more in that exact same color, her voice drifted in and out of the minds of both Bruce and Tobias.

  Occupied deep in their own thoughts, both men concentrated on the pretty thing sitting between them. The one thing which brought them together and yet separated them about as far apart as they could get. And those thoughts had nothing to do with yarn of any color.

  Reminding himself of the biggest mess he had ever backed into, he scolded himself, thinking of Hailee’s heart and how it was not some game to be toyed with. how he should have remembered they would all be returning back to the ranch. Flirting with her in town and confessing himself to the girl was probably the dumbest thing he had ever done.

  Maybe his life would have been miserable without Hailee, sure, but if he was to get kicked off the ranch and hurt that girl, it would be something he would never be able to live with.

  Bruce sat firmly in place on the buckboard seat, eyes on the team of horses in front of the wagon, unable to shake the words of Gus out of his head. He could hardly up and ask either his ranch hand, who also happened to be a good personal friend, or his daughter, for that matter - if the words Gus spoke happened to be true.

  Bruce wanted - no, needed - to find out if Tobias honestly had grown sweet on his daughter, but risking the dignity of such a valued worker wouldn't be worth it. How, exactly, does a man just come right out and ask a fella if he’d been thinking romantic thoughts about his daughter? It just wasn’t done, and especially not between old friends.

  How would either one of them handle the situation if Tobias found no attraction at all to Hailee or the thought even repelled him? Would Bruce be able to look him in the eye ever again? Moreover, if Hailee ever discovered her father invaded her privacy with such questions ...

  ‘No,’ Bruce told himself. ‘Some things are better left alone. Time will tell.’

  A dizzy feeling at the back of his eye sockets tugged off to the side when he felt Hailee yanking on his shirtsleeve with some persistence.

  “Daddy, are you okay? You didn’t answer me.”

  He smiled at his daughter as if nothing was on his mind at all.

  “No, I don’t suppose I did at that. Just paying mind to the team, Honey; I believe they might be on the brink of quitting on us if we don’t give them a little break. Soon as we get up Hardscrabble, just a bit beyond the pass, we’ll pull over.”

  He cracked the whips and the horses hurried the pace, almost as if they understood what he’d decided..

  “Now, Darlin’ what were you saying?” he asked as he turned his attention back to her.

  “I was asking you about the trip. Did you have a nice time while we were in town? You were so busy making sure the rest of us filled our lists, I was wondering if you were able to tend to your own.”

  “Sure enough,” her father nodded. “I was fortunate enough to find most of it, anyway. Some of the larger items will have to be delivered when the next train pulls into Canon City with more supplies. Most of the shop owners think it should be within another week or so; they’ll start deliveries shortly after that. And of course, I’ll have a wait on my fruit trees. They won’t be delivered for a few more months.”

  She thought for a moment before giving one more report concerning the elusive burgundy yarn. “Do you think my crochet supplies will be in the next train delivery, Daddy?”

  Bruce turned to his daughter.

  “Darlin’, how important is that yarn to you, anyhow? Seems like you’ve been goin�
� on about it for some time now.”

  “Oh, Daddy,” she groaned with mock disgust. “Guess I should have bought all I needed when I first started my project, but I didn’t think it would be this hard to get more. People in Westcliffe or Rosita should sell threads and yarns in all my favorite weights and colors; it sure would help me out, that’s all I know.”

  The crochet mistress snapped her fingers, jerking Tobias’ head toward her to see what the hub-bub was all about.

  “Maybe we could get that lady down the road to teach me how to spin my own yarn; I heard she uses the wool from their sheep.” The sun-blonde girl thought for a couple of seconds before asking, more to herself than anyone else, “What’s her name again?”

  Tobias interjected. “Are you talkin’ about the Hoods?”

  She snapped her fingers and smiled.

  “That’s it! She made a winter scarf and hat set, mittens and all, for Preacher McDermott last year. And she got the yarn from her own sheep!”

  Hailee sank back into the buckboard seat and scrunched up her nose like she was thinking about things.

  Bruce chuckled and gave a nod at Tobias.

  “Uh-oh. We’re in for it now. I know that look, and it’s gonna cost me more money!” Bruce told him over his daughter’s head.

  Tobias shook his own head and grinned in agreement.

  “Like that girl needs another project,” he commented. “She’s got herself knee-deep in training Epoenah to walk backwards and the dogs to sit up straight. She needs another seven critters to take care of, don’t she, Boss?”

  He had to laugh when she looked up at him, stuck her tongue out, and slugged him in the arm.

  “You don’t think Epoenah will ever do it, do ya?” she asked with her head cocked to the side.

  Bruce called the team to a halt.

  “Here’s what I think: it’s time for a break; my back is killin’ me right about now.”

  P

  Several hours after the sun had gone to rest over the Red Bone Ranch, four of the most exhausted horses once again found comfort in their own pens for a good feeding and watering.

  Hailee rubbed a hand up and down the back of her horse and cuddled her neck.

  “I love you,” she cooed into the horse’s fur.

  Tobias was about to hand Hailee a bucket of feed when he overheard her.

  “Aw, cut it out, Hailee. You’re gonna spoil her even more than you already have,” he teased.

  She shook her head and tightened her hold.

  “Nope. I ain’t ever gonna cut it out with this girl. She’s the best horse I ever owned, Tobias. And besides…are you jealous?” she teased back.

  The truth was, maybe he was just a bit jealous. Tobias had imagined Hailee whispering those words to him on a chilly winter’s evening as the couple snuggled up in front of a popping fire, but he wouldn’t dare let her know about that now.

  His eyes grew as almost large as Epoenah’s when he realized she’d said those words aloud; his head whipped around the barn real quick to spy out who else was in there with them.

  “Hailee! You can’t be talkin’ like that! What if someone hears you-like that man over there?” he asked with a tug of his thumb.

  She glanced. He meant her father.

  “He’s bound to figure it out. And besides, whose business is it, anyhow?”

  Duffy walked into the barn with a burlap bag to hang up before heading to his bunk house and eyeballed the pair standing there in the darkened barn with the horse; he had obviously walked in on a private conversation and knew it. The man almost paused before deciding to go ahead and enter, but his eyes didn’t leave the couple as he made his way to his tack room. A smirk made its way to the corners of his mouth, and he looked satisfied in that smirk.

  Tobias shook his head in an attempt to cover what he was afraid Duffy was bound to figure out-both him and Bruce.

  Knowing he had to think of something real fast, the man whipped out his rough tone of voice to use with the pretty girl.

  “No, Hailee,” Tobias pretended to scold her, turning his back on Duffy. “It’s not a good idea to do that. Epoenah’s dog-tired. You best let her alone for a couple of days.”

  His eyes were bugged out and he had a look on his face as if he were telling her to roll with it.

  “But I’m not a bit tired and I want to ride just a little while more. I won’t be long.”

  It’s all she could come up with at nearly two in the morning.

  Now it was Tobias’ turn to roll his eyes.

  Hailee shrugged her shoulders and mouthed an ‘I’m sorry’.

  Duffy poked his head out of the tack room, obvious his ears had been glued to the tack room wall so their conversation could be overheard.

  “Ain’t none of my business, but I’m with Tobias on this one.”

  Tossing her locks over a shoulder in frustration that her conversation had been cut short, denying her the courtesy of giving the man a proper goodnight on her own terms, Hailee huffed her way past Duffy and out the barn doors. On her way out, she made sure that her gaze hit the tack room in hopes that he saw her disgust in him.

  He saw – and smirked once again.

  Stomping a new trail toward the house, the girl noticed her father leaning over the pigpen. He wasn’t really doing much else, just standing there.

  “Daddy, it’s late. What are you doing?”

  The man didn’t look up.

  “Thinking about your ma. She would have enjoyed the trip into town. And she would have made sure that you got that yarn, by golly.” His voice began to crack, so he cleared his throat.

  Lacing an arm around her daddy’s, she snuggled up against him and rested her head against him.

  “You miss her a lot, don’t you, Daddy?”

  “More than you know,” he nodded.

  “I wish she was here, too…there’s things a girl wants to talk to her mom about.”

  Hailee was thinking about her situation with Tobias but couldn’t say that to her father. Not tonight.

  Bruce nodded, patted her hand.

  “I know. And there are just some things I could only talk to Cammi about,” he grinned. “I remember when the doctor gave us the news about you,” Bruce continued. “You know, she started to crochet that afghan on your bed the very next day? Spent every waking moment on it. She told me her little baby would be sleeping in it for years to come and it had to be perfect,” her father reflected.

  Turning to Hailee, Bruce allowed his eyes to rest on her face. How she resembled her mother, even standing outside in the glow of an oil lantern.

  He would never forget what a pretty woman she was, that wife of his, and he would always remember the first time Camilla saw him.

  She had been making a quick sweep of all the attendees there at the community barn dance, making mental notes of who she might consider dancing with and who would be on the avoiding list forming in the back of her mind.

  When Bruce first took note of Camilla, she tried not to even acknowledge him and instead glanced away as if she hadn’t noticed him at all. But it was too late; he had seen the grin emerging across her lips as he tried to dig for one more sign that she might be interested in meeting him.

  Her uncle caught the looks the kids were trying to conceal from each other and gave his niece a playful nudge with his shoulder. In return, Camilla gave her uncle one of those looks that warned him not to embarrass her that evening. Bruce remembered how he caught their eye conversation and chuckled.

  “Hailee, you’ve made me one heck of a proud father,” he sliced through the early morning air. “I couldn’t have asked for any better than you. No matter what the situation in life may be, you do know you can always come to me, don’t you?”

  He silently hoped there was not a situation brewing between her and Tobias that she felt compelled to actually speak to him about, but could not tell her so.

  She nodded, fighting the tears. The sleepy father and daughter leaned against one another, staring at the
pigs and nothing at all, all at the same time.

  Chapter 6

  Richard scraped his two brand-new knives together, producing the familiar sound he liked so well and grinned. What a thin cut of meat he was gonna shave off for tonight’s roast beef dinner!

  “Hey, Bruce! I sure do appreciate these,” he said yet again as he held them up, allowing the sunlight to sparkle against the shiny edges. “Ain’t nothin’ like new kitchen tools-just feast your eyes on that shine,” he added.

  The Boss just shook his head and grabbed a cup of coffee.

  “You might be using them to ready us some travelin’ vittles. That dang cat was back again last night, just before we got home; Duffy found the tracks headin’ both in and out of the hen house.”

  Richard peeked over his shoulder and walked a few steps around the door frame to make sure they were alone.

  “Ain’t gonna say it to Hailee, but that calico kitty of hers ain’t been around for a week or so now; I fed it leftover breakfast meat every morning since it came on the place, and then all a sudden, it disappeared.”

  Bruce shook his head again.

  “Yeah, I know it. I haven’t said anything to her, either,” Bruce said, trailing off in thought before adding, “Do me a favor, will ya? Keep an extra eye on her for a while.”

  Richard grinned.

  “Worried about her since you’re heading off on that cat hunt?” He shrugged his shoulders before adding, “You know, that girl of ours is turning out to be quite the young lady.”

  Out of the corner of his eye, the old cook saw his friend glance out the window.

  “I’ll ask her to lend me some extra help in the kitchen, if you’re worried about her bein’ around them boys out in the barn for too much time outta the day.”

  Bruce knew the only one he was worried about would be with him on that cat hunt...or was he the only one?

  The thought sent shivers up his spine and his hands instinctively went straight to the sides of his head; he squeezed both it and his eyes in an effort to ward off an incoming headache.