Cowboy Strong

by Stacy Finz

  She took the bandanna tied around her head and wiped the perspiration off her face.

  “Hey, what brings you by?”

  “Just to say hi.”

  “I’d give you a hug but I’m disgusting.”

  “What are you planning to do with that?” He pointed at the antique cabinet.

  “Right now, just clean it up, maybe give it a fresh coat of chalk paint. Why? You interested?” She smiled, teasingly.

  He cleared a tree stump that Charlie had been using as a table to hold her tools and took a seat. On the dead grass sat an upside-down clawfoot tub. He supposed it was next in the queue for some tender loving care. “How’s business?”

  “Good. A woman who’s opening a bed-and-breakfast near the American River dropped eight-thousand dollars here yesterday. She’s thinking of hiring Aubrey to do some design work.”

  “Nice.”

  They let the silence stretch while she went back to sanding and he finally said what he came for. “How’s Gina doing?”

  She stopped and wiped her face again. “I was wondering how long it would take you to get to that. Other than the fact that she’s being pulled in a thousand different directions, she seems okay. More tense than she was when she was here.”

  Tense is what he would expect from a woman who ran a multimillion-dollar business. “I’m glad everything worked out for her.” He rose. “Take it easy, Charlie. Stay out of the heat.”

  He started to walk away when she called him back. “It’s none of my business, but you two seemed good together.”

  Funny, he thought his and Gina’s short-lived fling had been fairly covert, even if his nosy cousins had been watching from the sidelines. Apparently their women were keeping tabs on his love life—or lack thereof—too.

  “Not that good,” he said and went home.

  * * * *

  Sawyer opened his front door the next morning to find Cash standing there.

  “You going somewhere?”

  “Thought I’d stroll over to the horse barn.” It wasn’t like he was getting anything done in the apartment. For the last hour he’d been attempting to make a pot of coffee. The first time, he’d forgotten to add beans and had had to start from scratch. On the second try, he forgot to refill the well with water. If he didn’t screw his head on straight he was liable to leave the house without his clothes on.

  Just to be sure, he looked down to see if he had buttoned his fly.

  “Can I come in?” Cash waited for Sawyer to move away from the entrance.

  “Yeah, sure.” Sawyer shook his head as if to clear it of its cobwebs and motioned for Cash to follow him upstairs. “What’s up?”

  Cash went to the kitchen and helped himself to a mug of Sawyer’s third-time’s-the-charm coffee. “Let’s sit in the front room.”

  At first, Sawyer assumed Cash had come to give him shit about Gina the same way he’d done when his cousin had dragged his feet with Aubrey. She’d almost moved to Las Vegas. But this was different. Gina was already gone, back to the world she’d come from.

  But Cash’s body language spoke volumes. His cousin’s lips were pressed in a grim line and his back was ramrod straight. It reminded Sawyer of Cash’s FBI days. He wasn’t here to talk about Sawyer’s relationship issues.

  Angie.

  For a second he froze, afraid to hear whatever Cash had come to say.

  The only explanation for his sister’s uncharacteristic radio silence all these years was that she was dead. At least it was the only explanation that made sense. On an intellectual level Sawyer had always known that. He just hadn’t wanted to believe it. Even the New Mexico lead seemed hinky, as if someone had made the whole thing up to throw him off course.

  He took a bracing breath. “Just say it.”

  “Sit.” Cash took the big leather chair, sipped his coffee, and put the cup down on the coffee table.

  Sawyer wanted to stand. He actually wanted to run, find a quiet place, and bury his head in the sand. He took the sofa, squeezing the armrest until his fingers went numb.

  “She’s alive.”

  Sawyer’s ears roared and he wasn’t sure he’d heard Cash right. “What?”

  “Angela’s alive, Sawyer. I don’t know where she is or even how long she’s been there, but she’s safe. At least for now.”

  “WITSEC?” When Cash nodded, Sawyer steadied himself. He was finding it difficult to breathe. Angie was alive. All these years and she was alive. He had so many questions swirling around in his head that he didn’t know where to start. “What is she involved in, Cash? Who—what—is she up against?”

  Cash scrubbed his hand down his face. For the first time since he’d arrived, Sawyer noted how tired his cousin looked. He’d been sitting on this for a while, probably gathering enough information to give Sawyer a comprehensive picture. Or at least as comprehensive as he could.

  “Everything is still pretty sketchy, Sawyer. I’m lucky to have gotten what I did.”

  Luck had nothing to do with it. Before Cash had been terminated, he’d been on the FBI’s fast track. He’d not only been a terrific agent; he’d had lots of friends. Friends in high places. Sawyer suspected one of those friends had helped Cash put some of the pieces of Angie’s disappearance together.

  “All I know is that she got caught up with the wrong people. People, who on the face of it appeared to be do-gooders, but were anything but. Arms dealers is what I’ve been able to glean, though there’s been no official confirmation.”

  “The commune in Taos?”

  Cash leaned forward and put his hands on his knees. “Yeah, that’s part of it.”

  “Why didn’t she call?” Sawyer stood up and began pacing. “You were a fed. You could’ve helped her.”

  “Best I can come up with is that she got in over her head and didn’t want to get us involved. Didn’t want us to face any danger.”

  Sawyer’s head snapped back. “She wasn’t working with these people, was she?”

  “No, I don’t think so. According to my source, she legitimately thought these yahoos were trying to feed the world and stumbled across something she shouldn’t have. That’s where things get hazy. No one will tell me who these people are or what Angie found. But somehow she went to the ATF or they came to her and she’s been an informant ever since. I’m speculating here, but I’m betting this commune…farm…was the group’s headquarters and Angie went to spy. Someone must’ve made her and that’s when she had to go underground.”

  Sawyer tried to absorb what Cash was telling him. Arms dealers. Informant. Underground. He had more questions than answers.

  “Why didn’t she contact us, Cash? All these years and she couldn’t pick up the goddamn phone? We could’ve kept her safe.”

  Cash leaned his head against the chair and squeezed the bridge of his nose. “I don’t have the answer to that. But keep her safe? Sawyer, we don’t have a clue what she was up against. For all intents and purposes she was an undercover agent for the federal government, infiltrating a dangerous organization. You ever think that perhaps she was trying to keep us safe?”

  Angie would’ve gone to the ends of the earth to protect her family…her friends. There was no question of that.

  Sawyer’s emotions were all over the map. Relief, fear, even anger. He wanted his sister back. He wanted his family to be whole again.

  “When can we see her?”

  Cash rubbed his eyes with the heels of his hands. The room was so quiet, Sawyer could hear the pounding of his own pulse. He sat again, knowing the answer before Cash even muttered the words, “Maybe never.”

  Those were the rules of WITSEC. No contact with former associates. Sawyer had covered stories about the program, which for the most part was shrouded in secrecy. All anyone really knew was that a witness was moved to an undisclosed location, given a new identity and history, and
was forbidden from staying in touch with or revisiting anyone or anything from his or her prior life.

  “Is that what your people told you?”

  “They didn’t tell me much, Sawyer. As far as they’re concerned, Angela Dalton no longer exists.”

  It was a tactful way of saying that although Angie was alive, she may as well be dead to her family.

  “I assume at some point she’ll have to testify.” Sawyer crossed his legs and then uncrossed them. He was having trouble sitting still. “If there’s a conviction, will she be able to resurface?”

  “I don’t know. It’ll depend on what kind of crime organization this is. Is it a situation where if you chop off the head of the snake, you kill the heart? Or are we looking at something with long-reaching tentacles? I wish I had the answers, Sawyer. Believe me, I tried to get them. I called in every favor owed to me. This was the best I could do.”

  Sawyer sank deeper into the couch. “What you did…what you got…she’s alive, Cash. Angie is alive.”

  “She’s alive. And if she follows the rules she’ll stay safe. Let’s not mess that up.”

  He wouldn’t. Sawyer loved his sister too much to risk her security…her life. “But I have to tell my folks. I have to let them know that she’s all right.”

  “Yep. Agreed. I called them already. My folks too. Yours are flying in. My parents will pick them up at Sacramento International. They’ll be here in a few hours.” Cash’s eyes wandered to the clock on the wall. “I figure it’ll be easier to break the news of Angie while we’re all under the same roof.”

  “What about Jace?”

  “I called him. He’s on his way too.”

  Sawyer nodded. It was a lot to parse. He stared out the window off into the distance, thinking about Angie. Did she live in a big city or a rural town? Did she have a job? Friends? A man?

  “You okay?” Cash rose and Sawyer got to his feet as well.

  “Yeah. Just need a little time for it to sink in.”

  “I’ve got to put in some time on the job before everyone gets here. You want to do this here?”

  Sawyer absently nodded.

  After Cash left, Sawyer walked around the apartment in a fog. He remained that way until his entire family descended.

  The kids stayed at Jace’s house, but everyone else gathered in Sawyer’s living room. Aubrey and Charlie put drinks and snacks out.

  “Don’t hold us in suspense,” Jed announced.

  Shifting in his seat, Dan leaned closer to his brother and tilted his head to the side. “I assume we’re here about the ranch. I also assume it’s an emergency, otherwise this wouldn’t have been so last-minute.”

  “It’s not about the ranch, Dad, it’s about Angela.”

  A hush fell over the room and Sawyer saw his parents visibly flinch. Wendy clutched Dan’s hand while her other hand gripped the sofa armrest.

  Sawyer cut a look to Cash, giving him a silent go-ahead to relay his information.

  “She’s alive.”

  Wendy made a noise deep in her throat and covered her mouth. Dan started shaking. Someone said something, but Sawyer was too consumed with watching his parents to distinguish who or even what they’d said. Maybe it had been “Thank God.”

  Cash let the story unfold in his no-frills, just-the-facts way. When he finished, the room exploded in questions.

  “When can we see her?” Tears streamed down Wendy’s face.

  Jed closed his eyes. Being a former cop, he knew, of course.

  “Maybe never, I’m afraid.” Cash explained the rules and workings of WITSEC.

  “We’ll hire around-the-clock security,” Sawyer’s dad argued. “I want my daughter home and whoever these thugs are to be brought to justice.”

  “Dad, we have no idea what the backstory is on this or even how deep Angie’s in…what she’s up against.” Sawyer took a deep breath. “But for the first time in five years we have proof that she’s alive and safe, which is more than we had yesterday.”

  “And for that I’m very thankful, son. But this is—”

  “Torture,” Wendy finished. “It’s pure torture knowing that she’s out there somewhere and we can’t see or talk to her.”

  Sawyer pulled Wendy in for a hug. “I know, Mom. But this is good news. You know Angie. Wherever she is, whatever she’s doing, she’s happy. Remember how you used to call her Sunny.”

  “My sunny delight.” Wendy sniffled.

  “That’s right. Because no one was ever more optimistic than Ange. She was saving the world one cause at a time.” A laugh caught in his throat.

  “There’s nothing to say that she’ll be in WITSEC forever,” Jace offered.

  “These things are always fluid,” Cash seconded. “In the meantime, I’ve been assured that she’s fine…secure. I don’t know about you, but for me that’s a giant weight off.”

  There was a chorus of agreement.

  After the shock wore off, a calm spread through the room and then a sort of jubilation. For all the consternation over Angie’s WITSEC situation, they’d finally solved the mystery. Just knowing that she’d survived these past five years was something to celebrate.

  For dinner there was an impromptu cookout at Jace’s. Many steaks, burgers, beer, and wine were consumed over more conversation about Angie as they speculated about her situation. When they’d worn out every possible scenario, they skipped to talking about the ranch’s new venture.

  “I love the idea of the butcher shop.” Wendy topped off her glass of Cabernet. “Your grandfather would’ve adored it.”

  “It’ll take some time for us to get there, but it’s definitely in the hopper for the future.” Jace got up from the table. “Anyone want seconds before I shut down the grill?”

  “I’m stuffed.” Jed also got up, hooked his arm around Jace’s neck, and helped him with cleanup.

  “Anyone talk to Randy?” Dan asked.

  “Yeah.” Jace tossed a couple of empty beer bottles into the trash bin. “He got an offer from a Sacramento developer. Apparently, Mitch is trying to raise funds so he could beat the other guy’s offer. Randy was straight with me…says he’s going to go with the highest bidder. If Mitch doesn’t come through in the next couple of days, Randy says he’ll seal the deal with the folks from Sacramento.”

  Dan grabbed another beer from the mini-fridge. “How much are they offering?”

  “Don’t know, but I’m guessing it’s close to asking. Randy wants what we want. Someone who’ll use the ranch for agriculture. But no one with cattle was interested and at the end of the day it’s business.”

  “On our way out tomorrow, I plan to stop by and say hello,” Dan said. “I know this is killing him. All Randy ever wanted to do was ranch. Even when we were kids. Poor son of a gun.”

  The conversation turned to Charlie’s store and Aubrey’s design firm and ultimately Jace’s upcoming wedding. Afterward, Sawyer’s mom asked him to take a walk.

  He intentionally avoided the direction of Gina’s old cabin and they followed the creek to the horse barn.

  “Big day, huh?”

  “The only thing that would’ve made it better is to have shared it with Angie.” Wendy took Sawyer’s hand. “But tonight I will sleep. Do you know how long it’s been? I haven’t made it through a night since the day Angie disappeared.” She made a fist with both their hands and put it against her heart. “Oh, Sawyer, it’s a miracle. And you, Cash, and Jace worked so hard to find her. I’m so proud of you.”

  She stopped and reached up to stroke his face. “Now tell me what’s wrong. You look tired…worn out. I don’t think that has anything to do with your sister. You’ve been moping around all night…looking blue.”

  “No, I haven’t.”

  “Sawyer.” She put her hands on her hips and cocked her head to one side. “I’m your mother and a mother al
ways knows.”

  Precisely. That’s why he didn’t want to have this conversation with her.

  “I’m fine, Mom.”

  “Is that why you call me every couple of days to ask about Gina? Is that why she calls me, pretends to act like it’s business and then proceeds to interrogate me about you? It’s ridiculous, Sawyer. It’s so obvious that the two of you care about each other. If we’ve learned anything from Angela it’s that time is too short to waste. If I could take back all the silly lectures, the criticisms, the yelling matches to spend even one more day with your sister, like I am with you now, I’d do it in a heartbeat.”

  She paused and wrapped her arms around herself. “I’m going to let you in on a little secret. Despite Gina’s facade, she not as self-assured as she likes people to think. For all her tough talk, she’s not as strong as you.”

  “She’s stronger than you think, Mom.” Most people would’ve folded under the pressure Gina had been under. No matter how many times circumstances knocked her down, she’d gotten up again. Hell, the woman was Tyson Fury.

  “Not like you, my beautiful boy.” Wendy reached up on tiptoes, pulled his head down, and kissed him on the forehead. “If you want her, Sawyer, you’ve got to fight for her. Otherwise, she’ll let fear rule her and bury herself in the Gina DeRose persona she’s created for herself. Don’t let your fear do the same. You might miss out on something really special.”

  They walked back to his loft, the sun setting low in a paint-streaked sky. No more words about Gina passed between them, just small talk. Sawyer’s dad met them at the loft and they spent the rest of the evening watching a movie together.

  Afterward, Sawyer gave them his bedroom and took the couch. In the morning, they ate breakfast together. Cash’s parents came up just long enough to say good-bye before loading Wendy and Dan’s overnight bags in the car.

  “We’ll stop by Randy’s on the way to the airport and wish him our best,” Dan said.

  Sawyer went outside with them and waved good-bye from the driveway, then came upstairs and lingered over a second cup of coffee.

  For lack of nothing else to do, he shuffled through the Esquire contract on his desk, picked up a pen, then put it back down. For the rest of the morning, he paced and checked his phone over and over again.