Christie walked out to the stables to see if her father was there and the dogs had tagged along with him. But no signs of either. She looked out toward a large oak tree back behind the tool shed. It was set up with a wooden table and chairs, and she smiled as she remembered playing with other children, while the parents played dominos. Those were certainly simpler times. But her father wasn’t there, either. Nor were the dogs.
Now worried, Christie hurried back to the house. Had her father taken ill? She burst through the back door, the screen door slamming behind her. She looked in his bedroom, then the bathroom. Then, she saw the other room with the door ajar. Her father sat in a chair; his head cradled in his left hand. It was at that moment Christie saw how frail her father had become.
She knocked softly on the door and entered. Kneeling in front of him, she spoke soothingly. “Pop, are you okay?”
He wiped his face to show that it wasn’t tears that streaked his cheeks. He raked his hand across his grizzly beard, making a sound like sandpaper.
She gingerly grasped the hand in the sling as he smiled down at her. “Baby girl, I think it’s ‘bout time we got rid of some of mom’s stuff. But I just can’t throw it away.” He shook his head. “I can’t.”
“Of course not, Pop. I know that the Pass It On thrift store would be happy to receive some of this stuff. I think they help kids get scholarships.”
“You think they would?” He looked into her eyes to judge the sincerity.
“Yes.” She smiled. “I know they would.” She stood up and stretched. “I can help you with it, if you’d like.”
“That’d be great.” He sighed. “I’m worthless with this gimp arm.”
“No you’re not. Just think about how you showed Curtis’s boy.”
“Not one of Curtis’s boys. Never will be. Glad when they left to go live with their Pa.”
“On another subject, I can’t find Mutt and Jeffrey. I’ve looked out at the stables, under the oak, by the vehicles.”
“Hmm, did ya call’em?”
“I was surprised they didn’t come running when Kimberly came over, or you, for that matter.”
He shook his head and stood. “I couldn’t handle that woman today. I knew I was gonna say something that would’ve made your poor Ma ashamed of me, so I just came in here.” He walked through the kitchen, opened the back door, and whistled. No dogs.
“Nope. “He strode to the front and whistled again. The boys didn’t come running. “Some-thing ain’t right.”
“Where do you think they could have gone, Pop?”
“I reckon they been out further on the property. But they normally come a-running when I whistle. We need to go check on them.” He headed for his truck. “We’ll take the back track that runs through the meadow.”
Christie helped Pop settle and went over and climbed up into the cab. She started the truck, and they headed out past the stables. Heat from the sun beat down on them, but they kept the windows down as she called to the dogs along the way. Every once in a while, Pop would whistle, but no happy dogs came running.
“While we’re out here, we should stop by the broken fence area. I can show you what I was talking about.”
“Good idea.” He adjusted his old felt hat lower on his head.
They’d reached the field, when Christie heard a sound. Barking. She slammed on the brakes and turned off the vehicle. It was the boys. She slid down out of the cab and went around to open her dad’s side. He whistled, but the barking only intensified.
“We got to hurry. They’re trying to get us to come.” He moved quickly toward the yapping.
As Christie and Pop made their way along the overgrown dirt track, Mutt came bounding up to meet them. He licked their hands and danced around excitedly. But no Jeffrey.
“I hope he hasn’t got bitten by a rattler,” Pop said.
“Eek. I hope not, too.” Christie, who had come out in her flip flops, surveyed the ground in front of her as she walked.
“What the…” Pop upped his pace.
Christie saw Jeffrey. The chocolate lab lay next to what looked to be a pile of clothes. She quickly realized it was a person and broke into a jog. It was Curtis.
The man was unconscious but alive. She looked down at his feet. One was at an awkward angle. “Pop, it looks like he’s broken his ankle. Is there any signal out here?”
Curtis moaned. Christie reached down and felt his wrist. His skin felt cold and clammy. “Pop, do you have any water in the truck?”
“I do, but it’s warm.”
“That’s okay. Can you get it for me?”
While Pop went to gather the water, Christie assessed Curtis. His pulse was weak but steady. “Curtis, can you hear me?”
He moaned.
“It’s okay. We’re going to get you help.” She took the water Pop handed her, poured some on a clean handkerchief of her father’s, and used it to wipe his face and hairline where blood had collected. He must have hit his head when he stumbled into that hole; possibly a fox or rabbit den. Hopefully, he didn’t have a concussion too, but he had a nasty gash on his forehead and a big knot on his head.
“Pop, can you pull the blanket out from behind the cab? I’m going to put him in the back of the truck. You’ll need to drive.”
“Shouldn’t we get help?”
“Yes. But by the time we get back to the house and call someone, we’ve wasted precious minutes. He’s already in a state of shock. We need to get him help quickly.”
She spoke softly to the man. “Curtis, I’m going to pick you up, and we’re going to put you in the truck. I’ll try to be as gentle as I can. Are you able to squeeze my hand?”
He answered with a weak squeeze.
“That’s good. Now if you feel pain, you squeeze my hand or arm, okay?”
She laid out the blanket in the bed of the truck. “Okay, Pop. Go ahead and get in the truck and back it over until I stop you. Then, I’ll get him in the back.”
“You ain’t gonna be able to lift him up in that bed.”
Christie smiled. “Pop, I’ve helped people who weigh more than two hundred pounds during my career. Taking a one-hundred-fifty-pound, soaking wet, old man less than a yard won’t be an issue.”
Pop got in the truck and backed it into the grass until Christie held up her hand.
“Now this is the hard part, Curtis. You ready?” She’d torn up part of her tee-shirt and made sure his leg was secure. Gingerly, she moved him until she was able to get his arm around her back and hers around his waist. “On three. One, two…” She hoisted him up in one quick motion. Christie grunted as she moved him toward the truck. Carefully, she laid him on the blanket and climbed in with him. Jeffrey hopped into the bed with her and licked her face.
She hugged the chocolate lab’s neck. “Yes, good boy.” She rubbed his head, his tongue lolling. Mutt barked and jumped up into the bed with them. “You, too.”
She hit the side of the truck and Pop eased the truck forward and back onto the main track.
As Christie held the man’s hand, she looked back at the scene. Yes, it could have been a hole she hadn’t seen the other day, but she would have definitely seen that pile of rocks as big as a cairn. Maybe Curtis was coming out to fix the fence. But she hadn’t seen tools or his truck. He could have brought the rocks out earlier, but they were in a weird place. And an awfully convenient one if someone tripped and fell. In fact, the large pile of rocks could have made a very convenient way to harm or even, murder someone and make it look like an accident. If she hadn’t have seen that there were no rocks there before, and Curtis had died, no one would be the wiser.
It turned out Curtis had a concussion and surgery would be needed to stabilize his ankle. He would be in the hospital for a while. He had also been severely dehydrated, and the doctor took Christie aside and told her that they had saved his life. After they saw Curtis in the hospital, they drove back home where a Webster truck idled in front of the house.
“Ugh. This people keep showing up like the plague.” Christie moaned, but as they pulled closer, a man got out of his truck.
Cole waited while Christie pulled their vehicle under the shade of the oaks and turned off the ignition. She didn’t know if she had the mental or emotional capacity to deal with Cole or anything to do with the Websters right now, but she steadied herself and stepped from the truck. After helping her father out, the old man walked over and shook Cole’s hand.
“How you are doing, son?”
“Doing well, sir. Sorry to hear about Curtis.”
Pop nodded his head and patted Cole on the shoulder. “I’m gonna go on inside. Christie will help you.”
He shuffled up the steps and into the house. Christie and Cole watched him until the door shut behind him.
“How’s your dad doing?” Cole asked.
“Let’s see.” She ticked off with her fingers. “One, you all keep trying to get him to sell the land we’ve had in our family for generations. Two, he was hurt badly— almost killed—again by one of you. Three, one of your people died on our property, and they’ve as much as accused us as being involved somehow. And finally, his friend almost died this morning and may have if we hadn’t found him.”
Cole held his hands up. “Whoa. I have nothing to do with any of those things.”
“Yes, but I bet you’re here on behalf of the Websters again.”
“Okay. I get that you’re upset. I would be, too, in your shoes. But don’t shoot the messenger.” He stuck one thumb in his jeans. “But I’m not here for that. I wanted to speak with you.”
“I’ve got to go check on the mare and her foal. If you want, you can walk with me.”
He nodded.
They walked in silence until they came to the stables. Christie topped off the water tank, and they watched as the foal emulated the mare by trotting around the corral.
“Christie”
“Cole.”
They broke out in unison.
“You go first.” He motioned.
Christie leaned back, her hands on the fence post. “You came here, so what do you want to talk to me about?”
“I wanted to apologize for how I behaved the other day. I was out of line. When I heard the news about Hector, it really upset me, and you were the first person I saw. That’s not an excuse. I just goofed.”
“Okay. Apology accepted.”
Certainly, better than Kimberly’s fake attempt.
She started walking toward the creek and the shade of the Cyprus trees. Once they were in the shade, she turned to Cole. “Are you involved with trying to get Curtis’s place?”
“I work for the Websters, so in that case, then, yeah.”
“Let me see your hands.” Christie gestured.
Cole held out his hands. The simple gold band on his left hand stood out. “What?”
“I just wanted to see how dirty they are.”
“Oh, funny. Ha. Ha.” He stuffed his hands into his pockets. “Look, people may not like developers and real estate people, but they don’t complain when they’re visiting their new favorite restaurant, shopping at a trendy store, or enjoying the view from their new patio.”
Christie huffed. “I understand that. But how about focusing on in-fill. Quit trying to buy up unspoiled land from people who don’t want to sell.”
“Can we change the subject?”
“Okay. What do you want to talk about?”
He kicked a clod of dirt with his cowboy boot. “I’m really thinking about Hector’s death. Something seems off.”
She faced him. “In what way?”
“Hector was closing in on a pretty big deal. He told me it would allow him to start his own company. Now they won’t have to pay him the commission.” He bent down and picked up some rocks.
“But what about his estate? He has to have family somewhere.”
Cole tossed a rock into the creek. It sunk and ripples shown on the surface of the water. “I’m sure. But it’s not like they’re going to spend time, effort, or—”
“Money,” Christie finished his sentence.
“Yes, money on finding them.” He picked up another rock.
Christie crossed her arms. “So, they’ll keep it until someone comes looking for it.”
“Which, they never will.” He skipped a rock across the surface of the water.
Christie made a face. “And yet, you work for these people, who pretty much took everything and gave it away before he was even cold in the ground.”
“It’s a long story.”
“I’ll bet.”
He shifted and looked at her. “You never told me what you wanted to say.”
Christie turned toward the creek and watched as the water gurgled over tree roots and rocks. “I just wanted to let you know that, even though I held a grudge for a long time, I’m over that now. I hope we can be on better terms from this moment on.” She faced him. “Friends again.”
His brow tightened, and he frowned. “If anyone should hold a grudge from back then, it should be me.”
“Whatever for?”
“You never showing up!”
“What do you mean? I’m the one who waited for you!”
Kimberly.
For all these years, she’d thought Cole had rejected her, and he thought she’d rejected him.
“Oh, geez. She played us like a violin.” Christie walked over and sat on a large trunk.
Cole followed.
He reached over and took Christie’s hand. “I never would have hurt you. You should know that.”
She pulled her hand away as a noise caught her attention. “Did you hear that?”
“No. I didn’t hear anything. Christie, I’m sorry. If I would have known—”
“But you still ended up marrying her. Why, Cole? What do…did…you see in her?”
“It’s complicated. When I thought you’d dumped me, Kimberly came in and worked her charm on me. By the time I realized what kind of manipulator she was, she already had her hooks in me. You know that snake in Jungle Book with the mesmerizing eyes?” He rolled his eyes and made a goofy face, causing Christie to break out in laughter.
“You’re such a goof,” she chuckled. “Continue.”
“It wasn’t too long after that, she announced our engagement. I hadn’t even asked her, but I just got swept up in it. Her daddy was going to help pay for my schooling and help me get started in my business. My parents were over the moon with Kimberly. She could do no wrong in their eyes. So we got married. Everything was fine for a while, but I wasn’t making good money, and she was always going to her dad for more money. More wants, more pressure to do more, be more. She’s all about how things look to the outside world.” He stopped for a moment. “I take that back. How she looks to the outside world.”
“Cole, why are you telling me this? She’s your wife, and I have to say, you’re not speaking very highly of her.”
He took his cap off and put it on his knee. “You’re right. I shouldn’t. But I need to talk to someone. For so many years, you were that someone. You never judged me. Just listened. Our friendship was…is…something I treasure.” He brushed his eyebrows with his fingers and placed his cap back on his head. “Truth is, I would leave now if I could. I know if I even think about it, bad things happen.”
“What do you mean?”
“Not long after we were married, I said I’d had enough, I was leaving. But she found out she was pregnant with twins. I said I’d work on our marriage and we went to counseling in San Antonio, where no one would know us. During that time, she made out as this totally different person. She manipulated the counselor like she’d done with me. Waste of time. Then, she went to her daddy and asked him to foot the bill for a house she wanted built. He’d finally had enough. He put his foot down.” Cole stroked the stubble on his chin. “You know that old saying, ‘hell hath no fury?’ That’s Kimberly when she doesn’t get what she wants.”
“So, she had to accept she wasn’t going to get the house of her dreams?”
He launched back and roared with laughter. “You don’t know her. What Kimberly wants; Kimberly gets. It was winter, and everyone got sick, but her dad got really sick. Ended up in the hospital. A few days after they released him, he died.”