Legacy Lost

by Jillian David

  Why did it feel like her father’s entire future rested in the hands of this medical professional?

  God, she hoped this nurse could help him recover.

  “Guys,” Shelby called.

  Both brothers joined her as they met the nurse at the front door.

  A statuesque, solidly built woman in khakis and a puffy winter jacket greeted them from the porch. Her dark auburn hair was pulled back in a severe bun, but behind the no-nonsense image she projected, her eyes glinted with cool amusement.

  Gold-flecked eyes.

  Shelby frowned. How odd. She hadn’t known anyone else besides her brothers who had little chips of gold in their irises. A flash of déjà vu nailed her between the temples then floated away, like a dream dissipating.

  Behind the woman’s shoulder stood a tall, well-muscled man in what looked like his late thirties. His wavy, dark brown hair with bits of gray was drawn rakishly over his forehead. Pure mischief glinted in his bottle green eyes. Based on the emotions coming off of him, he was madly in love with this woman. His eyes kept cutting back to the elegant nape of the woman’s neck, like he wanted to feast upon it. Like there was no one else around.

  As for the woman? Cool and collected. No emotions projected. She must have practice keeping a lid on her feelings. Shelby’s shoulders relaxed. Excellent. The less drama, the better.

  Garrison cleared his throat. “Are you—?”

  “Ruth Bl—Turcot, very nice to meet you.” She held out a hand to Garrison then Kerr and Shelby. “This is my husband, Odilon Turcot.”

  “Call me Odie, please.” The southern lilt in his voice sounded odd, way out here in Wyoming. He gave each of them a strong handshake. “Only one who called me Odilon was my mamam, and only when I was in trouble.” Not southern—his voice was Cajun-sounding. A grin emerged from within a trimmed dark beard and moustache.

  The stress level in the room dropped several notches.

  Garrison stood to the side. “Come in, please.”

  When he led them to the living room, Ruth paused, like she was taking cues from the Taggarts on where to sit. The woman had an air of knowledge about her, not regal, not world-weary, but wise. She watched everything around her with a deliberateness, like she had seen things Shelby couldn’t imagine. Yet Ruth looked to be only in her early thirties.

  “What brings you to take a job out in the hinterlands of Wyoming?” Garrison asked without preamble. There was her brother, cutting right to the chase.

  Ruth tilted her head. She hadn’t bothered to take off the coat, but she had folded her hands in a precise angle on her lap. “Career change, if you will.” Her eyes slid to Odie and they shared a brief secret smile. “We’ve decided to travel the country and see different areas. I do nursing assignments.”

  Shelby tried to read the woman and couldn’t. So much went unsaid.

  Garrison nodded. “What do you do, Odie?”

  Another casual smile and a glance to his wife then his gaze settled back on Garrison. Forthright. Friendly. “Computer work. But I’ve had some experience in . . . building restoration and construction, too.”

  “Really?” Kerr blurted out.

  Garrison held up a hand. “No. We’re not hiring Odie.”

  Odie rested his arm on the couch behind Ruth, brushing her shoulder with his long fingers. “If I did any work, it would simply be to keep me out of trouble. Right, chére?”

  While her unflappable expression didn’t change, Ruth’s cheeks pinkened like a schoolgirl.

  Garrison leaned back in his chair. “Well, you’ve got some good references. One from a doctor and a one from a professor of history at a college in Oregon.”

  Ruth paused, almost like she chose her words with deliberate care. “I have been fortunate to have met some fascinating and kind people over the . . . years.”

  “And it looks like you have experience with in-home care.”

  “Yes, I helped a dear friend for quite some time before he passed away last year.” Her regal neck shifted as she swallowed. But the cool, professional assessment in her gold and hazel eyes stayed the same. “I’ve also treated people who needed IV fluids and IV nutrition. And I have a background in rehabilitation of all sorts, including strokes and traumatic injuries.”

  While she didn’t look at Kerr, Shelby had a feeling that comment was directed at him.

  “Mon dieu, she’s a great nurse. You have no idea,” Odie blurted. Then he shot her a sheepish grin. So proud of his wife.

  Shelby wanted a relationship that came with such a connection, respect, and love.

  Ruth’s eyes met Shelby’s for a second then settled back on Garrison as he finished another question.

  “Yes, I can start immediately,” she said. “I can stay and provide in-home care ’round the clock or we can get a room in town, whatever works best.”

  “Why don’t you come meet Dad, and then we can discuss what arrangement will be needed?” Garrison pushed to his feet.

  Odie jumped up and helped Ruth to her feet, like she was a fragile princess.

  That solid woman could withstand a gale force wind. Sure, she held herself with grace and a refined carriage. But fragile? No.

  The interactions between those two people made Shelby smile. Especially how Odie kept his eyes firmly on his wife’s ample backside as they exited the living room.

  Kerr rubbed his leg. “What do you think?” He tapped his head. “Anything?”

  “Maybe a little guarded. But I don’t sense anything bad about either of them.” Shelby concentrated. “And I think she might be the person Dad needs in his life right now.”

  • • •

  Later that evening, Shelby couldn’t sit still. She paced in front of the living room window.

  Murmurs from the guest wing told her where Ruth and Odie were.

  Wow. Dad had responded to the nurse’s firm but kind encouragement. For the first time in a week, he went through a few of the physical therapy exercises prescribed when he left the hospital. Judging by the uneven smile on his face, he might have even liked the activity.

  Thank God. Maybe they could pay Ruth long enough to make some progress on Dad’s recovery. For the first time in a year, a bit of the weight on Shelby’s shoulders eased. A small ray of hope was better than none at all.

  Even better? Ruth had insisted on a trial period of a week, where she would work without pay. To “make sure she was a good fit.” Too good to be true.

  Which made Shelby nervous.

  But try as she might, she detected no malicious thoughts from either Ruth or Odie. They had some secrets, and who didn’t, but nothing felt . . . wrong about them.

  In fact, a lot felt familiar about Ruth. Could have to do with her similar eyes as the Taggarts. Maybe it was more. Maybe Shelby was just super tired. She took another few circuits around the living room.

  The best part of the day? When Ruth took over care of Dad. Shelby no longer had to check in on him every hour, which removed so much stress.

  The worst part of the day? The time to think. Far too much time. She needed to get away. Not so much from the emotions in the house but to be alone with her own thoughts.

  She should fill up the car and get some groceries for the next week. Once Kerr and Eric left, she or Garrison would need to stay at the ranch. Trapped here by obligations.

  Until then, she could take an evening off. Eyelids burning, she blinked several times, hard. Then she grabbed the keys and shrugged into her coat as she exited the house.

  A half hour later, she pulled her old Subaru into the parking lot of Smith’s Grocery Store. Only a few cars and trucks remained parked out front at this hour. Drawing her coat neck tight against the chilly wind, she dodged into the store. With the list in hand, she grabbed a cart and started in the produce section. The few people in the store nodded and smiled. One or two asked about her father and Zach. Small town and all.

  She bagged bell peppers and carrots then rolled through dairy, putting cheese and milk in the cart.


  She was heading for the meat department when another customer almost ran a cart into her. A mental wash of cooked asphalt hatred and lust knocked her back a few steps.

  Wyatt Brand.

  Damn it, his wild eyes were bloodshot, darting all over the place. That one eye of his still twitched. She peeked in his cart. Several cases of beer and packets of beef jerky. Going to be a good night at the Brand place tonight. She sniffed and cringed at the thick odor of stale alcohol. Ah yes. Someone had started the party early.

  That is, if he could get home in one piece. Damn, the guy swayed on his feet.

  “Excuse me.” She moved her cart to get around him, but he banged his into hers again, the impact screeching into the metal and jarring her wrists and elbows.

  “You know what, Taggart?” He belched. “I wasn’t done talking to you before your gorilla boyfriend interfered the other day.”

  This so wasn’t the time or place for such an inappropriate conversation. “Come on, Wyatt. It’s late. I need to get on my way.”

  He pushed harder on his cart, moving hers sideways with a scud of wheels. “No. I need to tell you something else.”

  “Are you drunk? Can I get the manager to help you or something?”

  He leaned across his cart and stopped about a foot from her face. Spittle formed at the corners of his mouth. “No. I’m not drunk. Isn’t that amazing?”

  Unlikely, but whatever. She wanted out of here.

  He continued, his eye twitching. “I feel great. New purpose, new direction.”

  “So, less kidnapping, more community service?”

  He scratched his head. “No. More destruction of Taggarts, more power.”

  “I don’t follow. Nor do I want to. Now if you’ll excuse me.”

  He blocked her with his cart. “This is your last warning. The tide of change is coming with the Great One’s arrival. You’d best get out of His way or you and the rest of your family will drown.”

  “O . . . K.” Delusional, much?

  His eyes glowed a brief, mad red color. “We’re on the edge of greatness, and nothing will stand in our way. You’ll be sorry.”

  She looked around. “You’re on the edge of something, that’s for sure. And who is ‘we’?”

  He laughed and licked his dry lips. “The Great One is rising to power. We are bringing forth the old master and righting the wrongs done to him.”

  “Still not following.”

  When he lurched forward, she scooted behind her cart, keeping it between the nut job and herself. Unfortunately, the move pinned her between the meat counter and her cart. She scanned the store for any help. Ghost town.

  “If you stick with me, we might spare you.”

  “One, when hell freezes over. And two, who’s ‘we’ again?” Irritation and a smidge of fear churned in her belly. Most folks had already headed toward the checkout, since the store was getting ready to close. No help back here, stuck between cuts of tenderloin and a lunatic.

  “I’m giving you one last chance to join us. We could be so wonderful together.” His nostrils flared as his tongue darted out again. Not enticing at all.

  She went for a talk-down-the-crazy-man tone, while her racing heart blasted hot adrenaline through her veins. “All right, then. Well, thank you for the kind offer, and I’ll take it under advisement. Now, I’m sure you need to be going.”

  “Huh?”

  “Good night, Wyatt.”

  “No, that’s not what I want.”

  He lurched for her, his beefy hand outstretched in a claw. Before he could make contact, Shelby leaned back against the meat counter, put her foot on the cart, and shoved it, nailing him in the groin with the handle. He crumpled to the floor like a sack of pissed-off potatoes.

  Groceries be damned. She dashed out of the store and to her car.

  Hands shaking, she got the key in the ignition and threw the car into reverse, backing out, just in time to see Wyatt burst out of the automatic doors, yelling and limping.

  Damn him. She’d had almost all of her shopping done. She spun gravel and snow as she peeled out of the parking lot. Heart still thudding in a frantic pattern, she kept driving.

  What the hell was he talking about, “edge of greatness” and “Great One”? Maybe he’d lost his mind. Could explain most, if not all, of his behavior. Was madness contagious or hereditary? That would explain Hank’s behavior, too, when he’d changed personalities and ended up hurting Sara and Zach.

  Poor Izzy Brand. If she carried the crazy gene, that would be such a shame. She seemed like a nice person.

  A mile or so out of town, Shelby pulled in to the Grab ‘n’ Go convenience store and selected a few items, paying premium, of course. Damn it. Money they couldn’t spare.

  Chapter 16

  A knock on the door jolted Eric out of his funk. Frowning, he checked his watch. Almost nine thirty. He set the glass down on the end table and opened the front door to his small house, situated a few miles out of town. Who would come way out here at this hour? His heart locked up.

  The haunted, beautiful image of Shelby emerged from the darkness. Her wide eyes darted glances behind her.

  “Are you okay?” he said, blinking hard to clear his brain. What the hell was she doing on the front stoop? Thank God he’d only made it one finger into his first glass of whiskey tonight. At least he could still focus.

  “Yes, for the most part. Mind if I come in?”

  “Hell, no, I don’t mind. Please.” He stood to the side and swept his arm in front of her.

  Sudden panic gripped him. Had he cleaned within the past decade? How about dirty laundry? Actually, he’d picked up last night, for all the good that had done. A quick glance told him he was in the clear.

  Shit, this was the closest Shelby had ever been to his bed. A wave of desire blinded him for a moment, until he tamped it down, hard. Wouldn’t do to freak her out. But she was here. A good place to start. Now, if he could remember how to talk.

  “Want something to drink?” he managed.

  “Yeah. That would be great.” She hung her jacket on the hook near the door then slouched down into the couch cushion, draping her arm over the side. Staring at the rug on the laminate floor she exclaimed, “Oh, damn it. I’m so sorry!”

  She scrambled back toward the front door, but not before dropping more clods of mud onto the carpeting.

  “Don’t worry about it. I do it all the time,” he murmured.

  While she untied her boots, he enjoyed the view of her lean thighs and derriere wiggling in the air. She had no idea how sexy she was. He wet his lips.

  No. Control the emotion so she doesn’t know, or she’ll think you’re going to maul her.

  In wool socks, she walked back over to the couch and slumped once more. When she propped her feet on the coffee table, in exactly the position as he’d been sitting a minute earlier, he smiled. At least she was comfortable here. This was how he’d want to see her on his couch.

  Actually, he had other ways he’d like to see her on his couch, and none of them involved clothing. But for now, her relaxing here would do fine.

  He handed her a glass of whiskey. “Hope you like whiskey with water, on the rocks. House rules and all.”

  “After the last few days, anything that burns the memories away will do.” She sighed and sipped, the ice clunking against the glass.

  “Did something happen tonight?” He settled next to her on the couch and dropped an arm along the back of the furniture.

  “It’s Wyatt Brand. He’s a moron.”

  “That’s not news.” He sat up straight. “Did he do something new?”

  “Cornered me in the grocery store and spouted weirdo stuff about ‘righting wrongs’ and ‘Great One rising’ and other bizarre stuff.”

  Eric scanned her face and frame. “Did he hurt you?” Because he would gladly put his fist through Wyatt’s face.

  “Dude.” She smirked and motioned to herself. “As if.”

  Eric chuckled at her attitu
de then got serious, fast. Wyatt was made of solid, nasty muscle. She might believe she could take him, but if that snarling man ever got his hands on Shelby, the guy would hurt her.

  Fighting to stay calm, he said, “How’d you get away from him?”

  “Castrated him with my shopping cart.” Her grin lit up her face.

  He choked on whiskey, and damn, it hurt like hell going down the wrong pipe. It took him a full minute to recover. “Seems to be a theme with you and Wyatt.”

  She lifted her tumbler in a mock toast and took a sip. “Yes, it is.”

  “Good job, by the way. Couldn’t happen to a nicer guy. Did you get your groceries?”

  “No. I bailed. Then I stopped at the Grab ‘n’ Go for a few items.”

  “Do you need to bring them in?” Like, did she want to stay for a prolonged period of time?

  She tilted the ice against the glass. “It’s just milk and eggs, and it’s cold in the car.”

  “I don’t like that he threatened you.” The fire in his belly had nothing to do with the whiskey and everything to do with the fact that Wyatt would try to intimidate Shelby or put her in danger.

  “Me neither, but the world contains jerks. It so happens Copper River has a higher per capita rate, thanks to the Brands.” She sighed. “At least we got that nurse in to help Dad.”

  “Hey, that’s great. Takes a load off. Is she nice?”

  “More, um, no-nonsense and professional. But, yes she seems like a kind person. I think she can help Dad.”

  “Good.”

  He put his glass down next to him and studied Shelby’s profile. The orange curls floated around her shoulders. Her hair, shorter now after that damned fire, took on a life of its own. And he loved that wildness about her.

  “What?” she asked, pinning him with those gold and brown eyes.

  His mouth went dry. “Why are you here, Shelby?”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “Why are you here? In this house and not your own? I presume you were heading back to the ranch.” He had no energy for games with her. Not anymore.

  “Tough questions. Okay.” Her shoulders rose and fell. “I’m here because I need someone to talk with and I didn’t want to burden Garrison or Kerr.”