by Ciana Stone
“Bailey, hi,” Naomie said. “I want to introduce you to someone.”
The woman, Bailey, cut her eyes at him then back at Naomie who gestured to Mace. “This is Mace Walker. He helps oversee the whole of the Heritage holdings and runs all of the operations in the south and western part of the state. Mace, this is Bailey Strong.”
“A pleasure,” Mace stuck out his hand to Bailey.
“Oh, believe me, the pleasure is mine,” she replied and gave him a smile that shot his body temperature up a couple of degrees. That increased a bit more when she put her hand in his. “Or do you fall into the off-limits category?” she asked.
“Off limits?” Mace hadn't a clue what she meant.
“No, he's fair game,” Naomie said and explained to Mace. “Bailey and I share a common rule. We don't get involved with people we work with. Or for. But since you run the South and Western regions of Heritage and she works here on the homestead, she doesn't technically work for or with you.”
“Lucky for me,” he replied, still holding onto Bailey's hand.
“You want to give that back, big guy?” Bailey asked. “How about you join us for a night out at the Honky Tonk, and I'll let you hold it again if you can dance.”
“Sounds like an offer too good to turn down,” Mace replied.
“Then I guess I'll see you later.” Bailey smiled at him and then looked at Naomie. “When you have time come check out the new blend I made.”
“Give me fifteen minutes, and I'll be there.”
“Cool.” Bailey looked at Mace. “I'll see you later, Mace.”
“Yes, ma'am,” he touched his hand to the rim of his hat and watched her walk away before turning his gaze to Naomie. “Holy shit.”
“Yep,” Naomie agreed. “She's hot. But then so are you. I had a feeling the two of you would hit it off.”
“You can forget that Godzilla comment.”
“Oh no,” she started for the door. “I'm gonna hang onto that. Just in case I need it for ammo one day. Pick us up at my place at six, Mace. It's a good fifty-minute drive and you know I'm a bear if I don't feed my belly before eight.”
“You got it. And thanks, Naomie.”
“What are friends for?” She walked away, raising a hand to wave.
Mace watched her leave, then grinned and headed for the house. He'd been dreading today like a trip to the dentist. Now, he still had to suffer through what could be an unpleasant family meeting, but at least he had this evening to look forward to.
And he was definitely looking forward to spending some time with Bailey Strong.
Chapter Six – February 24th, 2019
Naomie rolled her chair back and stared at the readout on the computer screen. Shit, shit, shit. She'd run the tests three times and each time netted the same results. There was poison in the horse's system, and since Heritage was organic, there shouldn't be. She stood and headed outside. The ranch foreman, Jordan Smithers was the man she needed to speak with, and she found him supervising the unloading of a feed truck.
“Jordan, hey, I need to talk to you,” she said. “Got a minute?”
“I can make a couple. What's up, Naomie?”
She appreciated his courtesy and knew it had as much to do with her friendship with his wife, Nancy as her ability. Nancy had a degree in botany, and when Naomie found out, she asked Russell to hire Nancy for something that Naomie felt would benefit not only Heritage but the entire county.
Heritage had several solar farms, producing electricity, along with windmill farms. Naomie wanted to plant wildflowers that attracted pollinators as an adjunct to what Russell was doing with Reese and Wiley in the apiaries he was having built.
Russell approved the idea, and Nancy had jumped at the chance to put her degree to work. She was overseeing the project, and from what she said the last time Naomie spoke with her, which was a couple of days ago, she was still thrilled with it.
Which made Jordan thrilled as well because Nancy was the love of his life and her being happy brightened his life and that of their kids, Johnny, age 12 and Melissa, age 10.
“I was performing standard exams on the new horses in the breeding program, and today one tested positive for 1,3-dichloropropene.”
“English, Naomie. English.”
“A soil fumigant. Pesticide.”
“Not possible.”
“That was my first thought, but I ran the tests three times. So, I need to know where the horse has been so I can get soil and water samples.”
“I can take you right now if you want.”
“I do.”
“Fine. We'll have to take the chopper.”
“Works for me. I need to get these tests done and report to Mr. Walker.”
“Then let's get a move on.” He then yelled out to one of the hands. “Jimmy? Take charge here. I'll be back directly.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Okay,” Jordan looked at Naomie. “Ready?”
“I'll need to stop at my lab to get my kit.”
“Not a problem. I'll call Danny and have him fire up the bird.”
Within minutes they were flying across the landscape. Naomie reminded herself that she needed to get out more, to take the time to appreciate the beauty of the land. Heritage was a magnificent place, and the care it was given was evident. It flourished. That was the word that best fit in her mind.
It took less than an hour to collect the samples and return to the main compound. “Thanks for your help, Jordan. Have a great weekend.”
“You're welcome and you too.”
Naomie hurried to her lab. Two hours later she was more troubled than when she'd started. She picked up her cell phone and called Jordan. “The tests were conclusive. That pasture has to be quarantined. It's toxic.”
“Damn. You better call the boss.”
“That's my next call.”
Naomie took a moment to calm the rage that was quickly building. Someone had poisoned that pasture and could potentially ruin her program. She wanted to hurt them. Hunt them down and pound the living hell out of them and then have them locked up.
Instead, she called Russell. He answered the call on the second ring. “Hello, Naomie.”
“Mr. Walker, we need to talk. Now.”
To his credit, he didn't ask why. “Do you want to come to the house?”
“No, sir. It's best if you come to my lab.”
“I'll be there in ten minutes.”
That gave her ten minutes to compose herself, go over the data and formulate how to present the information to him. When the tap sounded on her door, she called out. “It's open.”
Russell walked in and damn her weakness, the sight of him roused the feelings she worked so hard to quell. Was she always going to be victim to this attraction?
“What's wrong?” he asked.
“We have a problem.” She gestured for him to join her and then called up the results of the tests on two screens on her desk. “This,” she indicated the screen on the left,” are the results from one of the horses in our breeding program. He'd been displaying a bit of behavioral issues, so I had him separated from the others for a week. We brought him back in yesterday, and I examined him this morning.”
“What am I looking at?”
“His blood and urine show evidence of a soil fumigant. 1,3 dichloropropene.”
“That's not possible.”
“It shouldn't be. I went over your pesticide protocols thoroughly and while you're within the guidelines to use spinosad, the one synthetic pesticide approved for organic farming, you have yet to employ it in your protocol. To date, you've continued with natural-based substances such as neem oil, diatomaceous earth, and pepper, all of which are allowed in organic farming.”
“Then where did the soil fumigant come from?”
“Good question.” She pointed to the other screen. “As you can see, the soil doesn’t test positive for the toxin. But the stream that runs in from the west does and Jordan told me that the font of the stream
is not on Heritage land.”
“Correct.”
“Then it could be run-off, I guess.”
“You guess? Since when do you guess?”
“Fine. I think the water has been poisoned. It's not enough to kill livestock, but it's damn sure enough to show up and blow your organic status all to hell.”
Russell's head snapped around in her direction. “You better be sure before you make an accusation like that.”
“I'm not making an accusation, I'm simply stating the facts. The water contains a chemical that had to have been put there – by accident or intent, but it was put there, and the only reason I can think anyone would do it would be to screw with you.”
“Son of a bitch.” Had it been anyone else, Russell would have questioned the validity of the tests, but he knew Naomie would have checked and double checked. The sound of a helicopter passing overhead added another layer of annoyance. That had to be Cici arriving, which meant he needed to go deal with his family.
“I have a meeting with the family, but I'll be back when it's over.”
“I won't be here.”
“Why?”
“I'm heading into Cotton Creek with Bailey, Mace, and Riggs.”
“Mace?”
“Yes, your son, you know the tall, good-looking guy with those killer blue eyes? The one without the child?”
“Smart ass. You're dating Mace?”
“Of course not!”
Russell wouldn't have admitted it for a new helicopter, but he liked the way she answered so quickly and so stridently.
“Then he's dating Ms. Strong?”
“No, he just met Bailey, but I think they hit it off so who knows. We're all going in to have dinner, some brews and dance a little at the Honky Tonk.”
“Mace and Bailey? The woman you made me hire?”
“Made you?” She didn't even try to suppress a chuckle.
“Fine, encouraged. Strongly.”
“Then yes, that's the one.”
“I'm not sure I approve of that.”
“Well, I'm pretty sure Mace doesn't need your approval. He is a grown man, after all.”
“And one who should not be fraternizing with the hired help.”
“Oh, you mean like you and me?” She seemed as shocked by the outburst as he and stammered. “That isn't what I meant. She doesn't work for him, so it's not the same at all and besides–”
“She's an employee of Heritage and Mace is management, so it's inappropriate.”
“What the hell, Russell? You won't let yourself be happy so you just can't stand the idea of someone else finding it?”
“Pardon?”
“Jesus.” She raised both hands, dismayed by her own outburst and the way she'd slipped and used his first name. “I'm sorry. I—you know I don't think you feel that way about your kids. I'm just mad about this poison showing up and what it implies and I just—I just shot off my mouth, and I apologize.”
Russell knew that she didn't intend to hurt or insult him, but also knew that Naomie rarely said anything she didn't mean. And he just might be guilty of some of what she accused him of. He'd vowed to never allow himself to become victim to desire, to never allow his want of a woman to overpower his reason.
As much as he wanted to toss that vow aside and claim Naomie as his, he couldn't. Not because he feared she'd turn him away, but because he feared she wouldn't, and then he'd be a goner. He'd lose himself to her in the length of time it took his heart to beat once.
She'd have the power to annihilate him, and he couldn't allow that. He was the guardian of Heritage, the one destined to safeguard it and the family who called it home. That had to be his focus. No matter how much he wanted it to be otherwise.
Naomie knew that, and for the most part, accepted it. There were times, however, when her frustration spilled over, and he knew it made it difficult to stick to her resolve. She'd vowed to be a loyal partner with him in the breeding program, a friend who always had his back and someone who'd always be honest with him.
It was the honesty part that was at play right now, and he suspected that neither of them wanted to acknowledge it, so he did what was easiest and avoided it entirely. “I have to go, but I need to talk to you more about this, so I'm going to ask if you'd consider letting Mace and Ms. Strong go without you.”
She stared at him for a few seconds then shook her head. “No.”
“No?”
“That's what I said. I'll speak with you in the morning, but this is my night off, and I'm going to go enjoy myself.”
He honestly hadn't considered that she would refuse and it irritated him that she had. Or maybe the truth was that it annoyed him she'd rather go out with his son and the new hired gal than go over this again with him.
“Fine. Why don't we meet in the morning? Ten work for you?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Good. See you then.” Russell left and headed for the main house, considering what he'd learned, what he wanted to do about it and how to cool the anger that was burning in his gut over having Naomie choose someone over him to spend the evening with.
Chapter Seven– February 24th, 2019
Russell was pleased to see his family gathered around the table when he entered the dining room. Nash had accused him of calling another meeting just to push Cici’s buttons. That wasn’t Russell’s intent, so he didn’t address Nash’s comment.
Two seconds after he walked into the dining room, Cici spoke up. “For someone so fired up for yet another meeting, you sure took your sweet time getting here.”
Sure as shit, there was going to be an argument before the day was done, but for now, he'd shut it down and get on to business. “You're going to want to remember who you're talking to.” His reply had more than just her sitting a bit straighter. Russell wasn't given to reprimanding his grown children, and when he did, it got their attention.
“I just meant—never mind.”
He took a seat and looked around. “Okay, let's get started. I'll call this meeting to order. We’re going to dispense with the reading of the minutes from the last meeting and the CEO’s report and get right to it.
“First, Cici, thank you for sending the revised contracts. Everything appears to be in order, but I'd like for you to have Naomie read over them and get her input before we sign.”
“I thought you were going to do that?”
“I had your brothers go over them. You can show them to Naomie.”
“Fine.”
“Second, your uncle couldn't be here, but gave me his proxy.” He'd halfway expected Cici to make a snarky comment about that. The fact that she stayed silent was more of a concern than if she'd shot off her mouth.
“We have a problem.” He continued. “A horse we purchased for the quarter horse breeding program was separated from the others due to behavioral issues and pastured near the western border for a few days. After he was brought back, Naomie examined him and found a toxin in his system. 1,3-dichloropropene.”
“A pesticide?” Mace asked.
“Soil fumigant,” Nash added.
“Yes,” Russell answered.
“How is that possible?” Robert asked.
“According to the soil and water tests Naomie conducted, it's in the water supply. There's a stream that runs through that area the stock drinks from.”
“So you're saying the poison was deliberately put there?” Cici asked.
“Yes. Naomie tested the water on Heritage property and across the line, and it's in both locations.”
“Which meant it's either runoff from someone using it on the land,” Nash looked around. “Or…”
“Deliberate,” Mace finished the sentence.
“But why?” Cici asked. “We don't have any land disputes with anyone who owns a neighboring property.”
“That we know of,” Mace said. “But, I've learned that the property in question recently changed hands.”
“So?” Cici asked.
“So, the way we hear
it,” Russell took up the narrative, “Someone has bought up over fifty thousand acres to the northwest of Heritage.”
“That's—what eighty square miles?” Nash asked.
“Almost the size of Abilene,” Mace added.
Russell looked at Cici. “The way I hear it, Kalvin Burton is the new owner.”
“And?” Cici asked.
“The way I hear it, he wants to develop it into one of his resort cities. He's lobbying to have the gambling laws changed so he can build a casino.”
“And you want me to stop it.”
“I want you to find out if he's responsible for poisoning the water supply and if it was him, figure out how we stop it and him. I won't let someone destroy our organic status. Especially for a damn resort city for lazy rich people.”
“I'm on it, but I think I'll refrain from using those words if you don't mind. After all, we're what some might consider rich people.”
“But not lazy,” Russell pointed out. “We care about this land. Every inch of dirt, drop of water, every plant, and animal that lives on Heritage land depends on us to make sure it's protected, and that's what we'll do. So, if it means shutting down Kal's plan for this city, then find a way to shut it down.”
“I'm on it.”
“And while you're at it, I want that bill to fail. We don't need gambling.”
“We'll need to grease some palms for that, Dad. A lot of people are for it.”
“Do what you need to do. Richard is working on it from his side.”
“Fine. Anything else?”
“No, that's it. You can go. Thank you all for coming.”
As everyone stood, Cici spoke up. “I need to speak with you in private.”
“Fine.”
Once they were alone, Russell gestured for Cici to sit beside him. “Want a drink?”
“No, I'm fine, and I have to be going soon.”
“You're not spending the night?”
“No. With this new development, I want to get back and get started. And in the spirit of transparency, I want you to know that I dated Kal.”
“Dated, as in past tense and done with?”
“That’s yet to be decided.”