Rayner grabbed her face roughly. “Thought you could fool me, did you?” He squeezed her face harder. “No one fools me.”
Amelia cried despite her best attempts not to. The pain she was feeling was inconceivable. Never in her life had she felt such agony. It seemed the worse her father would do was nothing compared to what Rayner was capable of.
“Oliver’s father thought he could fool me,” Rayner stated coldly. “But he learned.” He smirked. “I’ve known Oliver all his life,” he continued. “I was right there when he was born. I heard his first cry.”
Amelia blinked rapidly as Rayner’s fingers dug into her face. He was there when Oliver was born? Her disbelief must have shown on her face because it took only a moment for Rayner to explain.
“I knew his entire family,” he continued as he peered down at her, face so close she could smell the tobacco on his breath. “I knew his mother. She was a beautiful woman. Probably the most beautiful thing I ever saw.” He scoffed. “She was the first thing in my life that I wanted and couldn’t have.”
“Oliver’s mother?” she whimpered.
“Yes. Glenore. She was a woman like no other. She had the sweetest voice and the longest, thickest hair. She liked to wear it in a braid, like rope, down her back. She was something,” he reminisced. “She was sassy. That woman could give as good as any man. She was a downright inspiration to everyone she met. She made you want more. She made you go get it.”
“But she didn’t want you?” Amelia dared to ask.
Rayner’s gaze, which lingered in some forgotten memory, returned to the present and focused on her. His fingers once again tried to press through her flesh venomously. “She was loyal,” he answered. “Loyal to that man she married. Guthrie. It was his foolish luck to enter the boardin’ house first that day. He met Glenore first and she was taken by him from the start. Her eyes refused to falter once they were set. I tried for long to sway her, but she refused everythin’ I did.” He laughed mockingly. “Then she went and married him.”
Amelia couldn’t believe her ears. Rayner had known both of Oliver’s parents long before he was born. What was more shocking, was that it seemed Rayner had an affection for Oliver’s mother, one that seemed to still linger with him.
He smirked. “Did Oliver tell you that his precious daddy was a no good, two-bit hustler?”
Amelia’s brow furrowed but she said nothing.
“He was. He and I used to ride together with another man, my brother, Vern. We got ourselves into a heap of trouble, but once Guthrie met Glenore, it was all over for him. He wanted to settle down and shoot straight. Like he could.”
“Why couldn’t he?” she whispered.
Rayner looked at her and then dropped her head back against the floor as if it were nothing. Her head thudded softly and Amelia groaned in discomfort.
“You can’t pretend to be somethin’ you’re not forever. Eventually, the truth catches up to you,” he stated. “Guthrie thought he could leave me and Vern and just start a new life. Well, he was wrong. Dead wrong.”
Amelia didn’t like what she was hearing, but Rayner was telling her the things Oliver refused to share. He was giving her the truth she desperately desired.
“When we found him and Glenore, she was pregnant with Oliver. So we came and decided to put up stakes here for a while, help out on the ranch. We were gonna work the ranch and share the profits. Then Guthrie made it clear that it was his ranch, we were just the help. Vern didn’t like the sound of that. Neither did I, but to be near Glenore, I made an exception…for a while.”
Rayner slid onto the floor beside her and leaned over her. Amelia didn’t move. She barely breathed as he hovered near her face.
“Glenore went into labor one night when Guthrie was in town. It was me who took her inside and got her settled when the pains started to hit. I comforted her. It was my hand she held when that baby started comin’. Then Guthrie came home. He put me outside the room to get water while he tended to Glenore himself. It was hours before that baby came. I heard her crying and pleading for it to come all that time. I could’ve helped her. I would’ve done a better job of it.”
“You loved her…”
Rayner stopped speaking. His lips closed tightly. “I don’t love anyone.”
“You did,” Amelia continued. “You loved Glenore, and she didn’t want you. She loved another man and you hated him for it. You hate his son, too.”
He smirked at her. “You think that’s it?”
“Isn’t it?”
He laughed coldly. “That’s hardly anythin’,” Rayner replied.
“Was it?” Amelia questioned. Curiosity was getting the better of her, and she thought it best to keep him talking. The longer he talked and the more distracted he was, the greater the chance of things ending well for her. She hoped.
“What he did was worse,” Rayner sneered.
Amelia’s frown deepened. “What did he do?”
Rayner turned away from her. He got to his feet and crossed the room. He poked at the fireplace with a stick that was propped against the stone hearth. Amelia feared their conversation was over and his focus was once again to be on ways to end her life and Oliver’s. Then, to her surprise, he continued talking.
“He let her die.”
Amelia’s heart faltered. “What?”
Rayner turned and looked at her coldly. “He let Glenore die,” he repeated. “Him and his foolish son.”
“What’re you…?”
“She got sick and they were too stupid to see it. I warned Guthrie that somethin’ was wrong, but he wouldn’t hear me. No, sir. He told me to mind my own business, so I did. I left the ranch and went back to doin’ what I do best. Vern came with me.”
“When we passed back a few months later, Glenore was in the ground. That beautiful woman was cold and in the dirt,” Rayner said as he glared at her. “She died because he wouldn’t listen to me. He thought he was too smart. Smarter than the rest of us.”
Amelia’s heart broke. That’s what happened to Oliver’s mother.
“Without Glenore, it wasn’t long before Guthrie got back to his old ways. He was forcing himself to stay straight, but I always knew who he truly was underneath. Glenore was who kept him on the straight-and-narrow. Once she was gone, he was back ridin’ with Vern and me. He’d leave Oliver with Melvin.” He laughed. “He used to tell him some stupid story so the boy wouldn’t know what his daddy was really doin’.”
Melvin? Did he know all about this too?
“You know, Melvin was never too bright,” Rayner laughed.
Amelia’s neck stiffened. How dare he insult Melvin? Melvin was more of a man than Rayner could ever be.
“What kinda fool devotes himself to another man? After Glenore died, and Guthrie started ridin’ with us again, he started treating that boy like he was his own.”
“He cared for him,” Amelia stated.
“A fool…like I said,” Rayner replied. “That boy never cared for him. He was foolin’ himself thinkin’ that Oliver would ever love him like a father. That boy worshiped the ground his daddy walked on, that’s why Guthrie tried so hard to prevent him from knowing the truth and followin’ in his dirty footsteps.”
“You’re lying,” Amelia replied. It just dawned on her that all of this might be some terrible lie to make her sympathize with him.
Rayner sneered. “Maybe. Maybe not.”
“No, you’re lying. Oliver’s father couldn’t be anything like you,” she insisted. “Oliver…he would’ve told me.”
“Would he now?” Rayner challenged. He strode toward her confidently. “Or would he have kept it a secret so you wouldn’t know that all that he has, was gained from the backs of others and not from his so-called hard work?”
Amelia shook her head. “No. That isn’t true. I know Oliver. He’s a good man. He would never be involved in anything like that.”
“Do you know him?” Rayner questioned. “What has it been? A few months? Not even a yea
r since you came out here. How can you be sure what or who you know?”
He was trying to make her doubt Oliver. That was it. It was another part of his twisted game. She wasn’t going to play. “I know Oliver,” she insisted.
Rayner laughed openly. “Little Lady, you didn’t even know what happened to his momma. How do you think you could ever possibly know him? He hasn’t told you the whole truth a day since you got here. He’s been playin’ you,” Rayner contended. “Makin’ you believe he’s such a wonderful man, with a wonderful past, but he’s been lyin’. He knows the truth, and when he gets here, you can ask him. In fact,” he chuckled. “I think it would make it all the better to see him admit the truth to you. Tell you himself that he’s been lyin’ to you from the start.”
Amelia’s lips parted but no words came out. What he was saying made sense, despite her wish that it didn’t. She had long believed Oliver was keeping things from her. Him and Melvin. Rayner had provided that truth if she were to believe him.
Who do I believe?
Believe Oliver. You know Oliver. Rayner is evil, he said so himself.
Still, there were things that Rayner told her that Oliver didn’t. Things that rang true despite his character. Oliver cared for Glenore, Amelia was sure of that.
Just because Rayner cared for Oliver’s mother doesn’t make what he’s saying the truth. He could be using one truth to hide a lie. You can’t believe him. He kidnapped you, for crying out loud. He plans to murder you and Oliver. That kind of man can do more than just lie.
Amelia stared at Rayner as her conflicted mind warred with itself. Who was telling her the truth and who was lying?
What if they both are?
The question posed new possibilities and more quandaries. If they were each telling the truth and each lying, then which part was which? Amelia felt as if her head would explode.
“Nothin’ in this world is certain unless you make it that way,” Rayner commented. His gaze was on her. There was a ferocity in his stare. “You think you know things, but you don’t. You don’t know nothin’ unless you test it.” He grinned. “You think you know Oliver? Have you tested him? Tried him? Seen that what he’s been tellin’ you is the truth?” He chuckled. “Of course not. You’re just a sweet little naïve one, aren’t you? You believe just about anythin’ anyone tells you.”
“I don’t believe you,” Amelia retorted.
Rayner laughed again. “Now I am the one person you should believe. I’m the only one you’ve met who told you the absolute truth. I’ve known Oliver his entire life. I knew his father even longer. I’m a crook and proud of it. I do what everyone else calls evil and I don’t care. I’m successful because I’m cutthroat. I have things no one else does because I will do the things that others won’t.”
He stepped toward her menacingly and instantly Amelia wanted to roll away.
“I told you that I’d kill you,” he said calmly. “I’m goin’ to. I’m gonna kill Oliver, too, and that’s somethin’ I also told you.” He smiled. “See, I’m honest. More honest than the people you live with.”
Amelia remained silent.
“Didn’t you ever wonder why I seemed to dislike Oliver so? You can answer. I’d like to hear what you have to say.”
Amelia took a deep breath. “I did.”
“And what did Oliver tell you? I’m curious,” he continued.
“It doesn’t matter what he said. It’s what you’ve done. That’s why I trust him and not you,” she replied.
Though she spoke the words, Amelia was beginning to doubt whether they were true. Did she trust Oliver implicitly? Was it wise to? Rayner had called into question everything she thought she knew about the people she lived with—the people she loved.
How can you love them and doubt them?
How could they lie to you and say they love you?
She didn’t want to talk anymore. Her head was throbbing again. She hadn’t even realized when it stopped. Now, she felt the distinct pounding deep in her temples. She attempted to roll over, but Rayner stopped her.
“Not yet,” he said with a grin. “We were just havin’ a good time. It’d be a shame to have it end so soon, don’t you agree?”
Amelia swallowed the growing lump in her throat. What did he mean by that?
“Now why don’t we continue our conversation?” he insisted. “I’ve told you some of the story. Now I want to hear some of yours. What brought you to Rattleridge? And don’t tell me that you’re Melvin’s niece, I know that’s a roll of hogwash. I’ve known Melvin for years. He has no kin. They all died of influenza when he was young.” He stroked her cheek gently. “So there’s no way that a pretty little thing like you could be related to him. So, why don’t you tell me where you’re from? We do have all this time before Oliver arrives. I think we can use it to get to know one another.”
“I don’t want to know you,” Amelia replied. It was true. She didn’t want to know the story of a man who could do the things that Rayner could. A man without remorse.
“That’s all right. I promise not to tell you. However, I do want to know you. So it’s only fair that you tell me…seeing as I’m the interested one and you have no place to go.”
His hand slid down her cheek and closed around her chin. Amelia felt sick as fear began to build inside her.
“I’m from Thinvale,” she replied.
“Thinvale? Can’t say I’ve heard of it. Go on,” Rayner encouraged.
Amelia stared at him. Was he really going to make her tell him her life’s story when he knew he was planning to kill her?
Maybe it will buy you time? Maybe, he’ll take pity on you?
It was unlikely but Amelia had to try. She had to do something. She couldn’t just lay there and wait to be murdered. She took a deep breath and began to tell him everything about herself.
Oliver…come quickly.
No! Stay away.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Finding the ranch was easy. Oliver had been there countless times in his life. Abandoned from when he was a boy, the ranch became a place to play for those willing to brave the trip. Oliver often went there when his father was away and Melvin was too busy working the land to notice when he’d run off for a while—or at least he pretended to. Oliver was sure the older man always knew where he was, but he understood his need to step out on his own. He wanted to be as brave and as bold as his father had been. He had yet to learn the truth.
Oliver looked at the ranch from the distance. His heart was loud in his ears as he did so. He hoped Amelia was in there somewhere, but Oliver knew it was just as likely that Rayner had taken her somewhere else while he laid a trap for him there.
Melvin tried to persuade him not to go, even as he turned his horse from Glenore and raced away. Oliver could still hear him calling after him, his voice urgent and pleading, yet not loud enough for him to obey. Whatever happened, whatever the outcome, Oliver would face it if it meant that Amelia would be safe.
He wasn’t foolish. He left his horse miles away and trudged the distance to the house. It was a risk, but the noise of a horse was riskier. Oliver couldn’t afford it, not if he wanted to get Amelia back.
I’m here Amelia. I’m coming.
The sun was hovering low over the horizon. Dusk was there and soon the night. It was what Oliver was waiting for. He crouched low behind a small row of shrubs and kept watch on the front door. The house, which had once been home to a family of three, had been boarded up long ago after wife and child had passed away from influenza. The owner, a man named Nicholls, left town soon after and was never seen again. No one ever troubled themselves with the place. It remained abandoned, a sad monument to the two lives that were no more, until the children in the nearby towns found it an intriguing place to exercise their independence.
There was no way of telling what was happening inside. However, the horse tied to a tree nearby was evidence enough of someone’s presence. Ponderosa pines dotted the landscape in all directions. The land ha
d reclaimed itself after the homesteaders were gone.
“Rayner,” Oliver whispered as he stared at the door. He was willing the man out. He wanted him to show himself, confirm his presence so that Oliver could act. If he saw him, then it meant he was away from Amelia.
The sun disappeared and still, Rayner remained elusive.
There has to be some way of drawing him out.
Oliver scanned the area, the pale light of the moon the only illumination he had. The horse snorted.
There we go.
Oliver smiled as a plan began to form in his mind. On the way to the ranch, he’d seen a mountain lion, an enemy of every four-legged animal in the area. They were ferocious and stealthy. It was something that would scare any horse.
For the Love of a Wounded Cowboy: A Historical Western Romance Book Page 25