Then the front door swung open suddenly, revealing Josh. Melanie watched Josh step shakily out onto the porch, growing pale as he stared unblinkingly down at Shane. Except for the cut of his hair and their different attire, surely Josh felt as though he was looking into a mirror.
Shane met Josh's steady stare with stiff reserve as he slipped out of his saddle. Melanie hurried to
Shane's side and took his hand and began urging him up the steps to the porch. When they came face to face with Josh, Melanie swallowed hard, then urged Shane even closer.
"Shane, this is your brother, Josh," she said, her voice lilting. "Josh, this is your brother, Shane. As you can see, Josh, you've been wrong to think that Shane was no longer alive. He's very much alive and has come to see you and your father."
Josh was stunned speechless. Suddenly, he turned his back to Shane and Melanie, feeling as though he might retch at the shock. All these years that he had suppressed feelings for his twin brother, even knowing that he was alive, were now behind him. This was the present, and damn it all to hell, Shane had somehow found out where his true family lived.
And wasn't it all so well planned? The long-lost son arriving just in time to get a piece of the pie when his father died?
It was almost more than Josh could bear.
"Josh!" Melanie gasped, her cheeks flaming with embarrassment for Shane. "This is your brother. Can't you be glad that he's alive? God, Josh, he's not only your brother, he's your twin!"
Shane took Melanie's hand and drew her around to face him. "Melanie, it is not important," he said softly. "Did you not say that my father is all that matters? Take me to him. I am ready to see him now."
Angry with Josh, Melanie blinked back tears of rage. She looked up into Shane's blue eyes, marveling over how the hurt that his brother had
inflicted on him did not show. He was a strong, controlled man, who surely could win against all odds. He had proven that he could overcome this first obstacle in his new life.
"Come with me," Melanie said, giving Josh an angry glance over her shoulder as she led Shane around him and into the house.
Shane's footsteps faltered as he stepped into the fancy foyer. Sunshine was pouring into the windows of the parlor at his right side, crowning all of the plush furnishings with its golden light. Shane took it all in, the gilt-framed pictures that graced the walls, the velveteen-upholstered furniture and expensive oak tables that were positioned around the room.
He then became aware of a strong medicinal smell emanating from a room to his left. Melanie went to the door and opened it, then turned to Shane and nodded. "In here," she whispered. "Your father preferred to have his bed in his library, rather than upstairs away from the activity of the house."
Shane moved to Melanie's side and looked into a room dim with shadows; the draperies had not yet been opened for the day. A candle was flickering beside a bed that had rows and rows of books behind it in built-in bookshelves that lined the wall.
"I shall go in ahead of you," Melanie whispered, touching Shane gently on the cheek. "I shall try to prepare your father before he sees you. No matter how we handle it, though, it's going to be a shock."
Shane nodded, his heart thundering wildly in-
side him. He watched Melanie enter the room, then he looked at the bed. He could not make out the figure of a man. All that he saw was a layer of blankets stretched out over something that was not all that large. It surely wasn't his father. His father had been gigantic! He would have filled out the bed and more! But he was recalling Melanie's warnings. His father was now only the ghost of the man that Shane remembered.
His pulse racing, he watched Melanie lean over the bed. He could hardly make out what she was saying. It was the tone of her voice that made his love for her grow stronger. She was gentle. She was sweet.
Melanie leaned down over Jared. She placed a hand to his brow and smoothed a gray lock of hair back in place. "Jared?" she whispered, seeing how soundly he was sleeping. Though his breathing was shallow, wheezing sounds surfacing from deeply within his lungs, he seemed no weaker than the last time she had seen him. That was good. Perhaps he could withstand the shock that was only moments away.
Jared opened his eyes slowly, then smiled up at Melanie. "Well, hello there," he said, coughing slightly. "It's been some time since I've awakened in the morning to smiling, seductive eyes. What brings you here so early in the morning, Melanie? Don't tell me it's me you're interested in, not my son, Josh." He laughed throatily as Melanie slipped her hand into his.
"I believe you'll be much happier for the true reason I'm here," Melanie said, giggling. "Jared,
do you recall talking about surprises only last night?"
"Yes, seems that I do," Jared said, squinting his eyes up at her. "Now, Melanie, just what sort of surprise have you brought me this morning?"
Melanie swallowed back a lump that was fast growing in her throat. She glanced over her shoulder at Shane, who stood too much in the shadows for Jared to see.
Then she looked back down at Jared. "Jared, I've brought you the best of all surprises," she said, her voice breaking. "Oh, Jared, I've . . . I've brought you Shane."
Jared jerked his hand away. His eyes were wild as he looked past Melanie just as Shane stepped into full view. His head began to spin and his eyes became blinded with tears as he leaned shakily up on one elbow. "Shane?" he said in a low gasp. "Is . . . it . . . really you?"
Shane's knees grew weak as the candle cast its glow onto his Father's thin, drawn face. He had to stifle a wail, the sort that Indians cried when discovering something too hard to bear. This man who had spoken his namethis man who was looking at Shane with sunken eyes on a face with skin drawn tautly over bonebore no resemblance whatsoever to the man Shane remembered.
Though Melanie had tried to warn Shane, the shock was no less. This man, his father, had suffered a lifetime, it seemed. It showed in the haunted depths of his eyes, in the haunted features of his face. Had all this suffering been the result of that one tragic day so long ago? Had he relived it
over and over again in his mind's eye, as Shane had? Could they bear to live it over again with one another now?
Melanie went to Shane and locked an arm through his. She walked with him to Jared's bed. Tears streamed from her eyes as Jared stared openly up at Shane, his whole body trembling from the shock.
"Father, it is I," Shane finally said. He eased away from Melanie and leaned down over his father, enfolding him in a gentle hug. "Father," he cried, his voice quaking. "It is I, Shane. I have come home."
Jared flung his arms around Shane. Tears flooded from his eyes as he wept, clinging to Shane with all his might. "Shane," he cried. "I knew you were alive. Oh, Lord, I knew you were alive!"
Melanie turned her back to the emotional scene. She hung her head and wept into her hands, then lifted her eyes slowly when she felt another presence in the room. She looked across the room and saw Josh standing there, gaping openly at the reunion of father and son.
She could not help but see the hate in his eyes.
She pitied him for it.
Chapter Eight
Josh came on into the room and inched up next to Melanie. "Let's talk," he whispered. "Go with me to the parlor. We've got to talk this thing over about Shane."
Not liking his implication, as though Shane were something to be bartered over, Melanie glared at Josh. "There's nothing to talk over," she whispered harshly. "Shane has come home. He's going to stay." She shook her head. "Josh, he's your brother. Your twin. Can't you show some compassion for him?"
"It's true that Shane is my brother," Josh whispered, staring at Shane and then at his father. They were talking as though they had never been apart. "But only by blood. Nothing more. Shane's been gone too long for me to have any other sorts of feelings about him.''
Melanie looked at Shane and his father, seeing how happy they were to be with each other again. It touched her deeply, this warmth flooding from father to son. She glared at
Josh again. "The years of separation haven't lessened the love your father has for Shane, or the love Shane feels for your father," she said, her voice breaking. "Nor should it affect the way you feel about your brother. Josh, how can you be so cold? So heartless?"
A warning grabbed Josh at his gut as he realized just how he looked in Melanie's eyes. It could cause her to despise him more than she already did. The chances of ever marrying her were getting dimmer by the minute. "I don't mean to sound crass," he said, nervously raking his fingers through his golden hair. "It's just thatthat this is all so sudden."
He started to reach for Melanie's hand, to try to smooth the waters between them, but a familiar voice surfacing from the foyer made him turn with a start. Terrance had arrived, and by the sound of his voice he was disturbed by something. Melanie heard it, too.
"I don't need this," she said, sighing heavily. She looked up at Josh, anger flaring in her eyes. "First you, and now my brother? This should be a happy day for everyone. Shane has come home. Shane isn't dead! What is wrong with everyone?"
She brushed past Josh and hurried to the corridor. She stopped and placed her hands on her hips and looked arrows up at her brother as he returned just as angry a stare.
"Terrance, what are you doing here?" she asked, trying not to cause any more disturbance than her brother already had. Her gaze swept over his unshaven face, then stopped at his eyes. They were bloodshot and swollen from his frenzied drinking of the night before. "Or need I ask? You're angry because I managed to get Shane here to see his father before you had a chance to intervene, aren't you?"
Terrance clasped his fingers to her shoulders. "I'm angry because you don't listen to a damn thing I say anymore," he growled. "Melanie, when Pop died, it became my duty to look after you. Damn it, you're making that impossible. Do you know that when I woke up and found you gone this morning it scared the hell outta me? You're taking chances riding off without someone escorting you, even if it was to go to Shane Brennan."
"I don't need a bodyguard," Melanie said, jerking free from his grip. "And you know that you aren't as mad at me for having gone to Shane again as you are for my having brought him here to see his father." She looked at Josh, then back at Terrance. "You and Josh should have been born brothers instead of Josh and Shane. You both have identical hearts of stone."
"Melanie, now that's a terrible thing to say," Josh said, intervening. "I explained how all of this has caught me offguard. I just need time to get used to the idea of having a brother again. That's all."
"That shouldn't be so hard to do," Melanie said, turning to look toward the bedroom. "It's nothing less than a miracle that Shane is here. I'm so happy for your father and Shane, Josh. So happy."
Terrance turned cold inside, hearing how fondly Melanie talked of Shane, and recalling how Shane had kissed her, and how she had allowed it. If he didn't know better, he would think that Melanie was in love with Shane, and he with her. Terrance saw Shane as perhaps more of a threat to his security and his future than Melanie having received half the family inheritance.
Damn, if she married Shane, that Indian-lover would eventually manage to get everything! It wasn't the same as with Josh. If Melanie married Josh, Terrance knew Josh's weaknesses and how to prey on them.
He knew nothing about Shane except that he had been raised by Indians, and Indians were known for their cunning, shrewd ways.
Melanie turned to Josh and placed a hand on his arm. "Josh, please and try to be as happy as your father is over Shane's return," she pleaded softly. "It would mean so much to your father. And it would help Shane adjust to his new way of life. You do realize how hard all of this must be for him. He has never known anything but living in the wilderness. Now he will have everything, but I'm not so sure he can handle it. Will you help?"
Feeling trapped, not wanting to do anything to further stir Melanie's contempt, Josh nodded. "I'll try my damndest," he promised.
Melanie eased into his arms and hugged him. "That would make me so very happy, Josh," she murmured. "So very happy."
Josh viewed Terrance over Melanie's shoulder. Terrance was looking at him with fire in his eyes and it was not hard to understand why. Shane had interfered in his life, too; he was a brother whose sister was captivated by a man who was hardly more than a savage. Josh's insides rippled strangely when he realized that he had just found himself an ally in his plans to get rid of Shane. Terrance. Perhaps he was the solution.
Josh shrugged at Terrance and smiled awkwardly, then stepped away from Melanie as she eased from his arms.
"Come on, Josh," Melanie said, taking his hand, tugging on it. "It's time you joined your brother and father." She smiled warmly up at him. "Just imagine, Josh, a family is reunited after all those years. Isn't it just too wonderful?"
"Yes, wonderful," Josh said in a low rumble. He cast Terrance a glance over his shoulder as he walked alongside Melanie into the bedroom. His insides knotted as she led him to Shane's side and he looked down at his father, whose face was pink with color, whose eyes were bright with happiness. No one but Shane had been able to do this.
Jealousy raged through Josh, yet he had to pretend differentlyfor Melanie. At least for the moment, he had to behave as though he were happy to see his brother again.
Jared looked up at Josh and lifted a trembling
hand toward him. "Son, what do you think?" he said, wheezing. "Your brother is home." He looked from Shane to Josh and smiled. "By God, it's just like it was the day you were born. Hardly a thing about you is different. When you look at one another it's surely like lookin' into a mirror."
Shane turned slowly and faced Josh. He was quite aware of how his brother felt about his return and he understood. Shane was a sudden unwelcome intruder in his brother's life, just as Shane had been an intruder in Gray Falcon's life.
Was it never going to be different for him? Was he destined to always be the one that was not wanted? Would he have been better off that day if he had just been murdered alongside his beloved mother?
Melanie slipped a hand into Shane's and squeezed it affectionately. He looked down at her, moved by her gesture of sweetness, reminding him of what they had shared together. How could he ever again think that he was not wanted? It was in Melanie's eyes just how deeply she felt about him. It had been their destiny to meet. He had surely been directed back to his father to say a final goodbye and to meet the woman of his midnight dreams.
"Shane, tell Josh where you've been these past years," Jared said, his eyes growing haunted at the thought of Shane living with Indians. "Tell Josh about the chief who always knew where we lived but chose not to tell you."
Shane looked at Josh. He knew his brother did not care, but to please his father, he began the tale all over again, while Melanie looked up at him, devotion in her eyes.
A strange, sudden weakness, more overpowering than before, overcame Jared. He closed his eyes and gasped for breath, then coughed.
Panic rising inside Shane, he stopped talking and kneeled down on a knee beside his father's bed. "Father, what is it?" he asked, his voice trembling. He took his father's hand and held it, feeling the utter coldness of his skin. "Have I overtired you? Has this been too taxing for you?"
Jared forced his eyes open, yet found it hard to focus. He blinked his eyes nervously, then was able to make out Shane's face again. He smiled wanly. "I guess I am a mite tired," he said weakly. "Perhaps it would be best if you let me rest a spell. Come back and talk some more later. I love you, Shane. God, it's so good to have you home with me. Please don't ever leave again. Stay. Stay."
Shane slipped his father's hand beneath the warmth of the covers. "I love you, father," he said, finding the words strange as they breathed across his lips. He had never thought that he would have the opportunity to see his father again, much less to tell him that he loved him.
But in a sense, it was not his father he was telling this to. His father had wasted away, and was almost a total stranger to him. The feelings of love flowing
from him were the same, though. Shane recalled quite vividly the love he had shared with his father all those years ago. That sort of love could never die.
"Shane isn't going anywhere," Melanie said, looking adoringly down at Shane. "Jared, you go on to sleep. Shane will be here when you wake up."
"Shane," Jared said, reaching his hand from beneath the blankets again. He touched Shane's cheek softly. "You're staying on, not only for now, but for always. You're entitled to. What is mine and Josh's, is also yours."
Jared looked past Shane, up at Josh. "Josh, you show Shane to a room," he said, wheezing. "You show him the ropes of running a cattle farm. Son, he's going to take my place at your side. Together, you're going to keep this farm going. Do you hear?"
Josh stiffened, yet forced a smile. "Yes, sir," he murmured. "Whatever you say, sir."
Jared patted Shane on the shoulder, looking at his buckskin attire. "And, Josh, take your brother into St. Paul and get him fitted with new clothes," he said flatly. "Get him the finest duds St. Paul has to offer. We're goin' to make a new man outta him, from his head to his toe."
Nodding toward a drawer in a table beside his bed, Jared looked up at Shane. "In that drawer, in my wallet, you'll find enough money to buy you several fancy outfits," he said, his voice growing weaker. He looked up at Josh. "Son, take Shane today. It's time for him to look like a Brennan again."
Melanie saw the look of utter contempt in Josh's eyes, knowing that he dreaded the chore of taking Shane into town to have him fitted with clothes.
He dreaded the chore of teaching Shane the cattle business. Well, she would show him! She would take over all of these chores and do them herself. Nothing would please her more than to be able to be with Shane while he learned to live his new life. She would make sure that all barriers were torn down for him.
"Jared, I need some things of my own in town," she said suddenly. "Shane could go with me. There's no need to trouble Josh. He's got things to do. All of the cattle that were purchased yesterday have to be branded. I know how Josh likes to oversee the branding, so that it is done properly." She turned to Shane. "Would that be all right? Would you mind going with me instead of Josh?"
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