The Gatekeeper's Sons

by Eva Pohler

  Chapter Seventeen: The Wildhorse Saloon

  Therese woke up sore Wednesday morning. She climbed out of bed, stiff and in pain. She replayed the events of the previous evening over in her head and shuddered. Maybe she should stay home. She picked up the phone and called Jen.

  “My mom warned me you would call,” Jen said on the phone. “But she says it’s really important that you come this morning. You’ll heal a lot faster if you do. Moping around all day will make it worse. My mom had to threaten Bobby for the same reason.”

  “But I’m in pain,” Therese objected. “I hadn’t gone riding in a year. And I fell down and hurt myself, remember?”

  “We can’t make you come,” Jen said, “but my mom will be very disappointed and really upset. It’s your choice. Don’t forget we still have the Wildhorse Saloon tonight. I’ve gotta go.”

  Therese groaned. She couldn’t have the entire Holt family angry with her, especially when she still felt guilty over what had happened. She kept thinking if only she had been in better control of Dumbo, things might have happened differently. Reluctantly, she threw on some clothes and sneakers and headed downstairs. She shared some breakfast with her aunt before they and Clifford climbed into Carol’s car. She kept her eyes out for Than as she absently made two braids in her hair, but didn’t see him along the dirt road. When they reached the tall grass across from the Holts’ house, she craned her neck to see if he might be swimming. His golden figure glided through the water. After she climbed from the car and thanked her aunt, she followed Clifford across the field to the lake where Than was swimming.

  “Come in,” he said when he saw her watching him from the bank where his clothes sat piled in a heap. “It feels great.” His eyes sparkled in the sunlight, and his wet hair and body glistened.

  Sometimes a weird feeling that he was merely a product of her imagination made her long to touch him to make sure he was real. “I didn’t wear a suit.” She was relieved he wasn’t mad about the way she had snapped at him yesterday. “But maybe another time.”

  He swam toward the shore and stood up where the water grew shallow. His skin glowed as the sun behind her sprayed its rays across his wet body. Therese turned away from his beauty. Sadness still hung over her.

  “You okay?” he asked.

  “I’m sorry I snapped at you yesterday.” Her voice cracked.

  “No apology necessary.”

  She waited for him while he climbed into his clothes. She tried not to steal glances at him, but she failed miserably. Clifford came up to Than for some affection.

  “Hi, Clifford.” Than patted the dog’s head. Then he turned to Therese. “Ready?”

  They walked across the tall grass and dirt road to the gravel drive leading to the Holt house. Than asked her a few more questions, like what was Clifford like as a puppy and she as a little girl. He laughed when she told him about the time she lost Jewels in the woods and had actually called 911 and the person on the phone thought Therese was talking about a younger sister.

  “I got in a lot of trouble for that,” she said. She looked over at him and took in his grin. It unnerved her, but she managed to ask, “Have you ever gotten into trouble?”

  “Never,” he said.

  “Never ever?”

  “Nope. I’ve always been good. My brother, on the other hand, well, that’s another story.”

  “You have a brother?”

  “A twin. But we’re not identical. I got the good looks, the sense of humor, and the charm. He got the more devilish qualities.”

  Although Than was laughing, like he was only joking, Therese froze in her tracks.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked.

  She’d heard something like that before. A chill moved down her back. “Um, nothing.” She shook her head, reminding herself that what she was about to suspect was entirely impossible, but as she looked at Than through the corner of her eye, she could have sworn he was laughing at her.

  Jen and Bobby were coming from the house at the same time Than and Therese approached the pen. Mrs. Holt was already in the pen working on the General.

  “Mornin’, Than. Mornin’, Therese,” Mrs. Holt said.

  “Mornin’, Mrs. Holt,” they replied.

  “Than, you go ahead and get started on Rambo. Therese, Sugar’s waiting for you.”

  Jen and Than entered the pen and shared their good mornings all around. Jen said she had just gotten off the phone with Ray who said he and Todd would definitely be joining them at the Wildhorse Saloon tonight to hear Pete’s performance. No one mentioned anything about what had happened the night before.

  Mrs. Holt drove up in her Suburban at seven o’clock Wednesday evening. Therese climbed down the front wooden steps and entered on the passenger side. Bobby sat in the passenger seat wearing his cowboy hat and a short-sleeved Western shirt. He smelled like soap and had a huge grin on his freckled face as Therese climbed into the seat behind him. Jen laughed as soon as she saw what Therese was wearing because they wore almost the same thing: same dark blue shade of boot-cut jeans, same red Justin Roper boots, and nearly identical white blouses, except that Therese’s had a round neckline whereas Jen’s had a v. Both wore their long hair down, and although Jen’s was straight blonde and Therese’s was curly red, they fell to the same length, to the center of their backs.

  “We do this all the time,” Jen said.

  “It’s almost eerie.” Therese grinned.

  “Are you wearing Oscar De La Renta, too?” Jen asked.

  Therese shook her head. “No, it’s, um, it’s called Haiku. It’s what my mom wore. I’ve been wearing it a lot lately.”

  The two girls looked away from one another.

  “It smells nice,” Mrs. Holt offered.

  Therese’s heart skipped a beat when she referred to her mother, but now that they were pulling up the gravel drive to the Melner cabin, it sped up considerably, more than making up for the skipped beat.

  Jen explained, “Than and one of his sisters are riding with us. His other sister had plans.”

  Mrs. Holt’s reaction expressed Therese’s same sentiments when she said, “Lordy, Lordy, look at those two.”

  Than’s sister wore a tight black leather mini-skirt, black go-go boots, and a red silk blouse with spaghetti straps. Her blonde curls were wound together in a thick bun on her head, a few strands spilling out of the bun down to the nape of her neck in a wild cascade. Her lips matched the red in the blouse. The rest of her rather fierce face seemed void of makeup. Her skin glowed like her brother’s, but hers was fairer, almost white.

  Like the white witch from Narnia, Therese thought.

  Even in that conspicuous outfit, Than’s sister could not outshine her brother. His clean dark wavy hair gleamed with golden highlights in the evening sun and danced against his strong jaw line. His pale blue cotton polo seemed to match the crystal in his eyes, and together with his white trousers, emphasized the golden hues of his magnificent skin. His brown boots and matching belt were the same shade as his hair. Therese climbed out of her seat and into the back to make room for them.

  Before Jen could do the same, Than said, “Jen, why don’t you stay there with my sister. I’ll climb in back. I don’t mind at all.”

  Jen’s face looked like a mixture of giddiness and jealousy.

  Then Than said, “Everybody, this is my sister, Meg.”

  They took turns introducing themselves to Than’s sister, who was courteous if not friendly. “A pleasure,” she said.

  Therese could barely breathe in the third seat next to the golden boy. She almost thought, “Golden god,” but then her memory of the dreams and the fear of insanity made her shrug that word out of her mind. It made more sense to her that she had felt him coming, that she had had some kind of prophetic dream about a new crush, than that she could have been communicating with gods.

  He gave her a friendly smile, and this made Therese shiver with excitement.

  “You look and smell so nice,” he whispe
red.

  “So do you,” Therese replied, unable to think of anything original with her heart going a million miles an hour against her rib cage.

  Meg turned around in her seat and gave him a disapproving glare. Than looked away from Meg and from Therese to stare out of the window.

  Meg’s face looked vaguely familiar to Therese: Her pale skin and unruly blonde hair and dark red lips. “Oh my God!”

  Everyone turned to look at Therese.

  “Is something wrong?” Mrs. Holt glanced at her from the rearview mirror.

  “No. No, nothing’s wrong.” She bit the inside of her bottom lip, not wanting to utter her thoughts. Than’s sister looked uncannily similar to the strange looking woman in the forest who had called her name and frightened poor Clifford a few weeks ago. How embarrassing if she had simply been frightened by a guest at the Melner cabin. On the other hand, how would Meg have known Therese’s name?

  But hadn’t she also seen her reflection in the glass at the police department? No. Of course not.

  Than said, “The sun looks so beautiful when it drops behind those mountains across the lake. The pines seem to twinkle.”

  Bobby chuckled and shook his head. “I’ve never heard that one. Twinkling pines, huh?”

  Jen snickered.

  Than glanced at Therese, and she gave him another smile. She didn’t like the way Bobby and Jen had laughed at him. “I know exactly what you mean,” she whispered. “I never get tired of sunsets here.”

  Meg, who spoke without turning, startled Therese with her loud condemning voice, “If you’ve seen one, you’ve seen them all. They never vary.”

  Jen glanced back at Therese to give her the “What’s with her?” look. Than caught it too and chuckled.

  The drive to the dance hall from Lemon Reservoir Dam took a little less than twenty minutes down winding country roads flanked by tall trees. Therese felt Than looking at her when he wasn’t watching the scenery through his window. She liked the attention and was beginning to allow herself to believe he really could like her. Normally, this would be enough to make her nervous, but compounded with that were her insane and persistent suspicions about his connection to her bizarre dreams.

  As they pulled into the parking lot, pretty bare since it was still early and a Wednesday night, Therese asked Jen, “Todd and Ray are still coming, aren’t they?”

  “Yeah, they said they were. Oh, look! They’re in Todd’s truck!”

  The bright yellow fifty-seven Chevy pickup towered over the other vehicles from its heightened position on a lift kit including giant mag tires with thirty-inch rims. Jen and Therese piled out of the suburban and rushed over to meet their friends.

  “Come on,” Therese called to the others. “You guys have got to see this!”

  “Hello, down there!” Todd shouted through his window as the truck bounded into a parking space. He rolled up his window when he came to a stop.

  “Oh my God!” Therese and Jen giggled, shaking their heads in disbelief.

  Bobby and Than came up behind with Mrs. Holt and Meg bringing up the rear.

  Therese laughed as she watched the long and lanky Todd jump more than a meter to the ground from the monster truck.

  “Of all the colors in the universe,” Ray said laughing. He came around the cab to join the group gathered on the driver’s side. “I kept expecting the truck to transform into a giant robot.”

  “It’s awesome!” Therese exclaimed. “I mean, wow, Todd!”

  “You don’t think it’s a little extravagant?” Jen asked. “It’s a bit big.”

  Therese gave Jen a warning look. Don’t hurt his feelings, her look said.

  “That’s kind of the idea,” Ray said. Then he added, “Think he’s compensating?”

  Todd slapped Ray on the back. “Thanks a lot, Ray. Don’t forget I’m your ride home.”

  Therese noticed the second and third looks Ray and Todd gave to the newest members of their group. Jen introduced them, and then they all went inside the saloon. Everyone but Mrs. Holt had to wear a special red bracelet made for minors. Therese was relieved to learn that Than wasn’t twenty-one. She wondered how old he was. She thought maybe eighteen. She thought she might get up the nerve to ask him tonight.

  Pete’s band was still setting up equipment on the stage, so the music that carried throughout the dance hall was a prerecorded mix of songs usually played over the radio. Just now, Lady GaGa’s voice had Jen jumping up and down.

  “I love this song! Let’s go dance!” Jen pinched Therese’s hand and pulled her toward the dance floor.

  Therese grabbed Ray’s hand and shouted, “Help! You guys have to come, too!”

  Ray and Todd made it to the edge of the dance floor but refused to go any further. Only a few others were dancing, as the place was pretty empty. Jen pulled Therese onto the floor, and Therese, not wanting to disappoint her friend, cheerfully made a fool out of herself as she bounced her hips and swayed her shoulders to the music. She stole a quick glance at Than to confirm he was watching. She could feel him laughing at her, but his eyes seemed pleased, like he was admiring her.

  Jen sang with the song, waving her arms in the air.

  Pete flashed them a smile when he noticed them on the floor. He gave Therese a thumb’s up, so she mimicked it back to him. As embarrassed as she was to be one of the few people dancing, she also, and unexpectedly, felt free. Just a few weeks ago, she wouldn’t have thought it possible to smile and have fun. She knew it was temporary—that tonight in the quiet of her bedroom—well, not complete quiet, for Puffy would be exercising in his wheel—she would not be able to avoid the flood of memories that would fill her with dread and bring that panicky feeling gripping at her chest. She wouldn’t think of that now!

  “P-p-p-poker face!” she cried. She could do this. She could go on pretending that everything was fine and she was free.

  Therese stayed out on the dance floor with Jen for one more song, and then the two of them joined the others at the bar where they all got pops. Therese was relieved for the sake of Pete and his band by the arrival of more and more patrons as the hour grew later. By eight o’clock, there was a decent crowd, and swirls of cigarette smoke began to fill the air, Mrs. Holt contributing her fair share of it. The sheer number of bodies on the dance floor brought the place alive.

  Therese was glad when Pete’s smooth voice penetrated the dance hall from the sound system in perfect harmony with his background singers. She watched with delight as he plucked the strings of his guitar without missing a note, looking handsome in his white cowboy hat and starched denim shirt and jeans. The microphone was perched on a stand, and Pete swayed behind it, strumming the guitar. He winked at her, which made her smile. He had always been the big brother she never had, and she wanted everything to be just right for him tonight. His voice rang out to an old Mac Davis song her father used to sing, “Oh Lord It’s Hard To Be Humble.”

  Therese pushed down the memories of her father to think instead of Than. The song described him to a tee. He was perfect in every way.

  Her thoughts were interrupted when Todd was at her side asking to dance.

  “Sure,” she said and took his hand as she followed him to the dance floor.

  Waltzes were the easiest dance to follow, in Therese’s opinion, and Todd was a strong lead. He twirled her around the dance floor, giving her that fake feeling of freedom again. She smiled when she saw Bobby and Jen join them and the other couples moving across the floor with the smoke and the laughter and Pete’s smooth voice. She glanced back at Than, and a thrill moved through her entire body when she saw he was looking back at her.

  When the song ended, Todd asked for another dance—a polka to “The Yellow Rose of Texas”—and Therese loved to polka, so she gratefully accepted. Round and round they went, flying across the floor. Todd was good at this too. As he turned her once again, she noticed Carol and Richard standing next to Mrs. Holt. Carol had tears in her eyes and a huge smile, obviously relieved to s
ee Therese could still have fun in a world where her parents no longer existed. Carol’s tears sobered Therese, though she knew her aunt would be utterly grieved by that knowledge, so she bravely smiled and gave a quick wave before Todd pulled her around again. When the song ended, Todd ushered her off the dance floor to join their friends.

  “Thanks, Todd. Come here so I can introduce you to my aunt and her boyfriend.”

  Therese introduced Carol and Richard to the group, though they had met the Holts briefly last Christmas, and Carol had met them one other time years ago, before Jen’s father had left. Richard stood a foot taller than her aunt, about six-four, the same height as Than, and his chocolate complexion and dark brown eyes shimmered in the sparkling light thrown off by the disco globe above them.

  “An investigative journalist?” Mrs. Holt asked as she shook Richard’s hand. “How interesting. Political or criminal?”

  “Mostly political, but a bit of both.”

  After the introductions and Richard’s attempt to field Mrs. Holt’s barrage of questions about the war and the president and Homeland Security, Richard pulled Carol out onto the wooden floor to dance the Texas Two-Step to a George Strait song, Pete’s voice easily matching the inflections of the original.

  “Jen, ready?” Todd asked.

  “Let’s go,” Jen beamed.

  Therese was aware of Than when he stepped beside her to watch the band and the dancers.

  “Can you teach me to do that?” he asked.

  “What? Dance?” her mouth dropped open. Was this god—no, not god—was this really hot guy asking her to teach him to dance?

  “Yes.”

  She could feel the blood rush to her face as a nervous giggle popped from her throat. “Um, I don’t know. I guess so. Have you ever Country-Western danced before?”

  “Never. I’ve never danced, period.” He bent his brows and looked troubled. “These past few days I’ve come to realize how much I’ve missed out on while living down, down in the south.”

  She scrutinized his lovely face. She knew people danced in Texas, but she didn’t mention it. He looked like an angel flung down from Heaven. His soft frown moved her. “Sure. I can teach you, but maybe we should go outside and practice before we try it on the dance floor. We wouldn’t want to get run over out in the crowd.”

  She told Mrs. Holt what they were doing before leading Than outside, but not before noticing the glare Meg cast them as they left.

  “I don’t think your sister likes me,” Therese said once they stepped from the smoke-filled dance hall and out into the cool night air. Stars twinkled down on them from the clear sky, and the full moon illuminated the otherwise dark parking lot. The gravel crunched beneath their boots. Somewhere, far off in the distance, a dog was barking.

  “It’s not you,” he said.

  She studied his face. “Then what?”

  “She’s worried about me forming attachments. We can’t stay long.”

  Therese cleared her throat as she looked for a spot on the edge of the parking lot. “When do you leave?”

  “My father gave us forty days. He was quite firm about that.”

  It was approaching the end of July. “So how long do you have left?”

  “We’ve got about two weeks.”

  She had only two more weeks to spend with him? “Are you going to school in the fall?” she asked.

  “Back to work.”

  “Down south?”

  “Yes.”

  “What do you do for your father’s business?”

  He sighed. “It’s complicated.”

  Therese stopped in the open space at the end of the lot and squared herself in front of Than. He was so tall. He towered over her. She felt a little shaky. She decided not to pry.

  The dog’s barking seemed to grow louder, and the two of them looked in the direction of its barking and giggled.

  “He sounds scarier than Cerberus,” Than said.

  The hair stood up on the back of Therese’s neck and she froze. “What did you just say?”

  “I said teach me to dance already. We’ve been out here for ages.”

  She knew that wasn’t what he had said, but she decided to dismiss it. Maybe he was a fan of Greek mythology.

  “I’m going to teach you the waltz first because it’s the easiest. You can basically march in place, one foot and then the other, and not miss a step. You don’t have to spin around until you get the hang of it. Here, put your hand on my waist.” His warm hand on her body made her tingle with pleasure. She put one hand on his shoulder and took his free hand with the other. “If a girl is a good follower, she will put her fingers against the backside of your shoulder like this and her thumb against the front side of your shoulder like this.” His shoulder was thick with muscle. She couldn’t prevent her fingers from trembling slightly. “That way she can feel if you’re going to lead her backward or forward. She can also tell what you’re going to do by the pressure you put on her other hand with your hand, and here, too, at her waist. You have to use your hands, along with your body, to talk to her, to tell her what to do.”

  “So I’m supposed to tell you what to do with my body, and you’re supposed to follow?” he asked with a wry smile.

  She broke into a grin. “Are we still talking about dancing?”

  He lifted his chin and laughed. Then he looked at her. “I like you so much.”

  She bit her lip and looked down. He’d just told her he was leaving. Why let her heart get broken in two? “Okay, so the steps are in counts of threes, but like I said, it’s like marching: one two three, one two three.”

  He tried it out and she followed, but he paused when he should have kept going, causing her to crash into his chest.

  She righted herself. “Sorry.”

  “My fault.” He swallowed hard. “Let’s try that again.”

  “Ow!” She pulled her foot out from underneath his boot. “It’s okay.”

  “Are you hurt?” His face was full of concern.

  She couldn’t feel anything with his face so close to hers. He could have chopped off her leg, and she wouldn’t have known it standing here looking into his crystal blue eyes, his mouth so close to hers. “I’m okay. But I forgot to explain that the guy should always start with his left foot.”

  After a smoother start, he seemed a natural leader: firm, but sensitive to her movements. He moved her across the parking lot effortlessly now, the gravel crunching beneath them and that dog in the distance incessantly barking.

  “You’re very good,” she said. “The best leaders don’t try to master their partners. It’s like a cooperation of wills.”

  “I like that,” he said. “A cooperation of wills. I like that a lot.”

  He picked up on the movement quickly and after a few minutes tried to mimic what he had seen Todd doing with her on the dance floor earlier.

  “Wow, you’re a fast learner.”

  “You’re a good teacher.” He twirled her around.

  “What are you doing in Colorado, besides working with horses? I mean, why’d you come?”

  “I’m waiting for you to recognize me.”

  Her mouth dropped open and a shudder worked its way down her spine. She stopped dancing, pulling herself away from him. She took several steps back. “But we just met two days ago.”

  He frowned and looked at the ground. “Have you really already forgotten? Don’t you remember putting your arms around me and,” his voice faltered, but he swallowed and found it again, “giving me my first kiss?”

  She stopped breathing.

  “I haven’t forgotten,” he added, looking into her eyes. “I will remember it for all eternity.”

  She shook her head and took several steps backward. “Do you have me confused with someone else? Or are you making stuff up? I’m sure I would have remembered that. I haven’t even had my first kiss.”

  “If we had more time, I’d take things slowly. I don’t have you confused with anyone, and I’m not making stuff
up. You kissed me in your dream that night I took your parents’ souls.”

  She staggered back against a parked car, nearly falling. Her entire body trembled with fear. The hair on her neck stood on end. She found it difficult to speak. “And now you’ve come to take me, too?” She swallowed hard. “Good. I want to go.”

  He took a step closer. “I’ve come to help you avenge their murder.”

  “But, but the lieutenant has already…”

  He stood only inches away from her. “He wasn’t the master mind. The real villain is still out there.”

  She pushed herself up with the help of the parked car. She knew that. But how did he? Her knees were weak, and she could barely stand. “I don’t care about the real villain. I want to be with my parents. Take me, too.” She stumbled forward and into Than’s arms. “Take me to them,” she said again.

  He kissed the top of her hair. “I told you, you wouldn’t be the same if I did.”

  “I don’t care,” she whispered breathlessly.

  “That’s not why I’m here.”

  “Therese?” It was Jen calling for her through the dark parking lot. “Therese? Than? Are you guys out here?”

  Than steadied Therese onto her feet. “Are you okay?”

  She gave a near-hysterical laugh. “No! I’m not okay. I’m losing my mind.”

  “Therese?” Jen’s voice was closer now. “Oh, there you are. Sorry. I didn’t mean to interrupt. Pete’s about to play his last song of the night.”

  Therese turned to her friend and tried to hide her misery. “Already?”

  “Yeah. It’s almost ten. The place shuts down early on weeknights.”

  Therese nodded. “Of course I want to hear it. That’s why we came.” She took a step forward, but her knees buckled, and she fell on the ground.

  “Geez, are you alright?” Jen asked.

  “Um, yeah. Just tired,”’ she replied as Than helped her to her feet. “Still a little sore from yesterday.”

  He kept his hand around her waist as he led her back to the Wildhorse Saloon. Once inside, their group gave them suspicious looks as she and Than joined them on the side of the dance floor, but no look was more scrutinizing than Meg’s.

  Pete’s smooth voice soothed Therese as it carried through the building.

  “It’s a waltz,” Than whispered in her ear. “Can we try it? Please?”

  At first she shook her head. She could barely walk. How could he expect her to dance? But when she looked up into his pleading eyes, she couldn’t resist him. “Okay.”

  Therese could feel the stares of everyone in their group as Than took her in his steady arms and practically carried her across the dance floor to Anne Murray’s beautiful song, a wedding song, she thought. It was called, “Can I Have this Dance for the rest of My Life?”

  He was leaving in two weeks, but just as she had in the ride over here, she felt herself falling for this sensitive, beautiful guy who claimed to be a god. She was crazy, or maybe he was, or maybe both of them shared an insane delusion between them.

  By the end of the song, though, she felt better and could actually return Than’s smile. She clapped along with the others to congratulate Pete, but then, before leaving the floor and rejoining the others, she whispered to Than, “This can’t be real, can it?”

  He whispered back, his breath hot but somehow managing to send chills down her scalp and neck, “Give yourself time to process it. I’ll see you in the morning.”

  He walked her over to her aunt and the rest of the group to say their goodbyes. Therese rode in the backseat of her aunt’s red Toyota Corolla and stared out the window at the darkness around her. She tried to push off into the sky to turn somersaults, but she remained planted beneath the seatbelt. It hadn’t been a dream. It hadn’t been a dream at all.