Summer Rose

by Bonnie K. Winn

  Shaking her head as though she could force such thoughts out of her mind, Cassie continued her rounds. The nip in the air reminded her that summer with its burning heat was now past. Autumn had arrived. The trees near the timber line were changing with each passing day. It seemed the seasons of her life were changing just as rapidly.

  Cassie neared the shearing shed and paused as she saw what seemed to be the outline of a dog. Hesitantly she moved forward. The white shape was so terribly still. Forcing down her fear, Cassie ran forward and dropped to her knees in front of the shed. The shape was definitely canine. Oh, God, it was Star!

  She gathered him in her arms. Tears ran unchecked down her cheeks as she pressed his still-warm body close. The memory of Shane bringing him home as a cuddly, wiggling puppy was painfully fresh. How could anyone kill a defenseless animal? Unaware of the keening sound she made, Cassie rocked him back and forth in her arms.

  The eerie noise brought Millicent on the run. Startled, she stopped when she saw Cassie holding the dog. She approached slowly and cocked her head.

  “Cassie.” Cassie ignored her. Millicent listened again and grasped her shoulder. “I think I hear him, Cass. Do hush now so we can listen.”

  She stared at Millicent in disbelief, but quieted. At first she didn’t hear anything, but then a low whine seemed to come from deep within Star’s throat.

  “Do you think…?” Cassie couldn’t complete the question.

  Millicent knelt down and ran her hands gently over the dog’s still body. Finally she muttered, “No wounds. Where are the bottles you used to feed that last lamb?”

  “Why?”

  “Just tell me, Cassie.”

  Cassie was torn but pointed toward the barn. “On the shelf over the shearing shed.”

  “I’ll be right back.” Millicent spoke quickly, already turning away.

  “What are you going to do?”

  “Just stay with him, Cass. I’ll be right back.”

  Millicent disappeared into the house, and Cassie continued to cradle his head in her lap. Watching her dog, every memory she’d shared with Shane played through her mind. The dances, the picnics, and inevitably the lovemaking.

  Suddenly she wondered how important being right had been. Shane had given her the puppy to make a new start. She’d started fresh, all right. She had started one fight over the water and one over the fences, just as Shane had accused her. And what had she won? She had infuriated Shane, alienated Millicent and Ringer, endangered Andrew, and now had probably killed an innocent dog.

  “You’ve got to make it. Star. You’re part of my bright and shining future.” The futility of her words rang in the stillness of the barnyard.

  Sniffing, Cassie lifted her head and saw Millicent scurrying—no—running toward her. The sight of prim Millicent running almost made her smile. But she didn’t have any more smiles left. Millicent reached them and knelt on the ground beside the inert dog.

  “This isn’t going to be pleasant,” Millicent warned.

  Cassie strained closer to see what Millicent had put in the bottle. As she drew nearer, the dreadful smell of the mixture made her draw back. “What in the world…”

  “You don’t want to know.”

  Cassie gasped in alarm, and Millicent held up a protesting hand. “Just keep his mouth open while I get this down.”

  Stilling her protests, Cassie gently eased Star’s mouth open. Millicent grasped the bottle with determination and started a slow trickle of the mixture into Star’s mouth. Cassie massaged the dog’s throat hoping to ease the vile concoction down. Star gasped and made a weak effort to keep the gruesome stuff out of his mouth, but Cassie and Millicent were determined. After almost half of the bottle was forced down his throat, Star heaved convulsively.

  “He’s throwing it all up!” Cassie cried.

  “That’s the idea,” Millicent replied grimly.

  An hour later, after forcing the remaining mixture into the dog and having it all come back up again, Star seemed to be resting easier.

  “Do you think he’ll make it, Milly?”

  “It’s hard to say. All of the poison should be out of his stomach. But I don’t know how much of it got into the rest of his system.”

  “Do you think it would hurt to move him?”

  “Probably not. Why don’t we put him in front of the hearth?”

  “I’ll get some blankets, and we can make a litter to carry him in.”

  Hours later, as the shadows turned afternoon into dusk, Cassie paced the confines of the keeping room. She had neglected all of her chores to sit by Star, but now she feared the vigil wasn’t doing much good. He was lying so still, too still.

  A loud knock disturbed Cassie’s grim thoughts, but she didn’t move toward the door until the firm knock penetrated the stillness of the room again. Cassie hesitated. She didn’t want to face anyone right now. Her mind whirled with confusing waves of anger, resentment, and despair—and she’d had little luck sorting out any of the feelings.

  The knock sounded louder this time. With a sigh of resignation, Cassie reluctantly opened the door. The sight of Shane standing at her doorway left her speechless.

  “Can I come in?”

  Wordlessly Cassie opened the door wider as Shane entered. Raising questioning eyes to Shane, her unspoken entreaty was eloquently voiced.

  “Millicent told me.” Uttering that brief explanation, Shane tossed his hat on the nearest chair and walked over to the hearth, kneeling by Star. Gently running his hands over the dog’s form, he paused near the abdomen.

  “No bloating—that’s a good sign.” Cassie heard this and released her indrawn breath. Shane didn’t turn around. “You could have told me, Cassie.”

  She blinked her eyes furiously at the sudden prickling of tears that threatened to fall. His unexpected sympathy might be more than she could bear. “I didn’t think you’d want to be bothered.”

  Shane whirled around. “Not bothered? How can you even think such a thing?”

  “It wasn’t too difficult.” Cassie’s eyes glistened, and her lips trembled with suppressed emotion. Her teeth tugged at her bottom lip in an unconscious gesture.

  Shane’s long strides closed the distance between them. In a none too gentle embrace, Shane pulled her close.

  “I don’t know which I want to do more—shake some sense into you or kiss you senseless.” Bending his lips close to hers, he made his choice.

  Cassie sank into his arms as though coming home from a long and weary journey. It felt so right being held by him. Just as she felt her body lifting heavenward, Shane jolted her back down to earth.

  “When are you going to stop trying to do everything for yourself and admit you need some help?”

  She felt the warmth of her cocoon evaporate in a cloudless puff. “I wouldn’t need help so often if I didn’t have to battle the entire countryside.”

  “I believe I already made that point yesterday, Cass.”

  So he had.

  “The funny part is”—Cassie’s voice cracked, and she forced the strength back into it—“I’d just about decided the fences were useless. I was ready to back down.”

  “But nobody gave you a chance to make your decision.” Shane ignored the part of him that told him to push his advantage while her defenses were down and instead gently stroked her back, brushing aside the hair that wisped around her face.

  “Oh, Shane, how could anyone do such a thing? It’s not as though Star was any threat to them.”

  “Star wasn’t the point. It was the fences.”

  “And by putting them up I’ve killed him.” Cassie lowered her head in defeat.

  “Not so fast. He’s not dead. He’s mighty weak, but you can’t give up on him.”

  “You really think he might have a chance?”

  “He’s got you to believe in him, doesn’t he?”

  Cassie nodded her head in mute agreement and Shane tipped her chin upward, seeming to search her fathomless eyes. “I can’t think of a
ny better reason for him to get well.”

  Cassie lowered her lashes to hide her thoughts, but not before she saw the hunger in Shane’s face. She wished water and fences had never come between them; but if they hadn’t she would probably still be in Boston instead of in the circle of his arms. And suddenly that didn’t bear thinking of.

  30

  The explosion shattered the stillness, sending rock and debris into the air and the swirling waters of the now flowing river. Cassie watched the dam, which they’d labored so hard to erect, fall in seconds. The sheriff couldn’t hide his gloating look of victory as he released the handle of the dynamite charger. Cassie still held the sheriff’s court order in her hand, the one Shane’s solicitor had sent to him.

  Since the solicitor’s first restraining order had come after she’d built the dam, they’d gotten a second order, this one commanding that the proper legal authority dismantle the dam. And the sheriff hadn’t let any grass grow beneath his feet. He’d been at her house early that morning, surrounded by a group of equally smug ranchers. Jacob Robertson headed the gloating pack, his face a sneer of triumph. She’d read and digested the contents of the order and asked, “When do you plan to carry this out. Sheriff?”

  “Now.” His answer conveyed the importance he felt at being able to humble her.

  “This order doesn’t say anything about allowing all these people on my land, does it?”

  The sheriff lifted his hat and scratched at the scraggly hair beneath its brim. “Well, now, I don’t guess—”

  “Then, as an officer of the law, I suggest you order them to leave before I charge them with trespassing.”

  Her neighbors’ gloating faces turned resentful when the sheriff reluctantly agreed with her. But now as she stood watching the dam wash away, she didn’t know if it mattered that her loss hadn’t been witnessed by half the countryside.

  She’d lost her bargaining card, and her family’s lives were still in danger. The barely healed wound in Andrew’s leg was a permanent reminder of the precariousness of their situation, and she had brought them into this mess. Her head filled with dreams of a new life, she had blindly led them into a deathtrap. That it wasn’t of her own making was little comfort.

  With a heavy heart, she turned and headed home, knowing that a worried Millicent would be waiting with hot tea and a thousand questions. As Cassie pulled into the yard and dismounted, she saw an unfamiliar horse tied to the hitching rail. Just what she needed, company. The last thing she wanted to do was face anyone.

  She sighed deeply, resigned to putting on a confident air. Cassie didn’t dare let her neighbors realize the defeat she felt. If they knew how close she was to giving up, they’d push that much harder.

  Opening the door, she was surprised to see Albert Fredericks seated on the settee, sipping tea with Millicent. He rose when she came in, instantly reminding her of the breeches she wore. One hand flew to her windblown hair, trying to smooth the unruly locks. His cool elegance made her feel ridiculously ill at ease in her own home.

  She took the tea Millicent offered and perched self-consciously on the chair opposite him.

  “Miss Millicent was kind enough to offer me some refreshment while I waited for you. I do hope I haven’t come at an inconvenient time.” Fredericks’s suave voice held the hint of a question combined with a knowing tone.

  She demurred, sipping her tea and wishing he’d come to the point. He didn’t disappoint her.

  “I heard about the unfortunate business this morning,” he began.

  “You and the rest of Texas.”

  Her irony wasn’t lost on him as he uttered a mirthless laugh. “Once again, my dear, the small-town mentality has struck. But I’ve come to assure you what happened this morning has no effect on my offer to you. I’d still like to purchase a parcel of your land. After what’s happened this morning, you can see the land will be of little worth to you.”

  Cassie couldn’t help feeling he was hiding something from her. “And why would you want to buy a worthless parcel of land, Mr. Fredericks?”

  “As I said before, I’d like to help with your cash position.” His eyes were lit with a familiar gleam of interest, and Cassie squirmed uncomfortably under the scrutiny. “I don’t believe your uncle was given a fair deal.” He shrugged his shoulders in a characteristically elegant gesture. “I wouldn’t want the same thing to happen to you.”

  His words about Uncle Luke gave her pause. Fredericks was the first person to suggest her uncle might not be the villain Shane and his friends had depicted.

  “Did you know my uncle very well?”

  “To my regret, I can’t say that I did. I wish now that I had. Perhaps…” Again he shrugged his shoulders.

  “Perhaps what, Mr. Fredericks?”

  “Nothing, my dear.” He sipped his tea.

  She felt almost certain if her uncle had sold out he’d still be alive.

  “I’ll double my offer, Cassie. As a gentleman, I couldn’t bear to think that you and Miss Millicent might come to harm because of a few dollars.”

  A few dollars! The amount he was talking about would insure winter feed and quite a surplus. But she sensed the land held the key to her uncle’s death.

  “Right now I don’t plan to sell.” Cassie saw the quick hardening of his features before he relaxed them into a smile. “But I’ll let you know if I do decide to sell.”

  “That’s all I can ask.” Fredericks’s voice was controlled, but Cassie detected a trace of the anger he tried to conceal.

  The women watched as he rode away.

  “I don’t know about that one,” Millicent observed. “Seems more like someone we’d have met back in Boston instead of out here. Funny.”

  Yes, funny, Cassie repeated silently. Very funny.

  31

  Cassie’s stomach churned in agitation as she approached the barn; she knew that what she was about to do would affect a great many lives. And one of those people might never forgive her.

  When the idea had sprung to mind, she’d dismissed it as outrageous, impossible—but now it seemed to be her only option. Cassie told herself why she couldn’t do this, why it wouldn’t work. That the hate she’d stir up would only counterbalance what she hoped to gain. But still, as her mind turned over the limited options at hand, Cassie knew she had no choice.

  She wiped sweaty hands against her trousers, knowing she was about to place all of her eggs in one basket. If Evan refused to help and then told Shane about her plan, all would be lost before it began.

  Evan’s face was just as confused as Cassie had imagined it might be as she outlined her idea. Having stayed up all night thinking, she knew there was only one person to turn to. Her funds were too depleted to hire a lawyer back East, and Evan was the only solicitor—or near solicitor—she knew.

  “A stay countermanding their order?” Evan questioned, hunkering down near the horse as he examined the swollen tendon of the mare.

  “I don’t know if that’s what it’s called, but I want a legal document saying they didn’t have the right to blow up the dam and that I have the right to do what I want with my water.”

  “I don’t know whether it can be done,” Evan answered, stalling as he picked up the mare’s hoof and examined it.

  “Of course it can. Otherwise, how did my uncle manage to dam up the water before?”

  He glanced up in surprise. “You know about that?”

  “Not all the details,” she admitted, “but I know what he did caused a lot of people to lose their stock.”

  Evan rolled his eyes heavenward as though seeking help. “That’s not the tip of what happened. Cassie, don’t you see what you’re asking me to do? Turn my back on my friends and family—sell them out.”

  “I don’t have any choice. Without the law on my side, I’m defenseless. They’ve tried to ambush my entire family, Evan,” she implored, kneeling gracefully beside him.

  Evan saw the vulnerability in her face and was lost. He’d been lost the first
time he’d gazed into those violet eyes, but only now he realized he wanted to capture them for his own. Years of trust and loyalty Evan had built with Shane rushed out to confront him. It was a hell of a way to repay that trust. His gut wrenched in two as he started to protest.

  Cassie swallowed her guilt and reached out a hand to touch his cheek. “You’re the only one who can help me, Evan,” she said, promises implicit in her eyes.

  He stood up slowly, judging his options. Could he betray a lifetime of trust to help her? He thought of the years of unqualified love and devotion Shane had shown him. He paused, gazing into Cassie’s eyes as she turned them toward him, beseeching, promising…He swallowed, wondering if he could live with his choice.

  “If I agree…”

  “Oh, Evan, thank you.”

  Evan turned back to the horse, trying to recover his composure, wondering how he’d live with the consequences of what he planned to do. He could envision his friends’ anger and, more importantly, Shane’s disappointment. He turned back to her, to tell her he’d changed his mind.

  “But, Cassie…”

  As though sensing his withdrawal, she placed her small hand in his, sending tingling bursts of fire through him.

  “Evan, I knew I could count on you.” She halted, then swallowed. “I know you’re worried about what Shane will think, but this won’t affect the Lazy H. It won’t affect anyone if they leave me alone. I won’t cut them off unless they try to hurt us. But I need that leverage.” She smiled at him seductively. “And I need you, Evan.” Her voice softened. “Thank you so much.”

  He didn’t hear her thanks; only the words “I need you” reverberated through his consciousness.

  “How long do you think this should take, Evan?”

  “I can get the briefs ready and ride to the telegraph station. I’ll wire my professor and get his help. Shouldn’t take too long.”