“Well, I know your dad always said Kurt or Kramer as everyone seems to call him nowadays, held grudges for way too long. Said it wasn’t healthy.”
“But why would he say that?” she asked.
“Yeah,” Trip spoke up. “He never said that to me. He just told me to keep a close watch on everything after we suspected him of hurting our horse.”
“For one, he used to compete with us in the rodeo and he wasn’t as good as us. But it seemed he could never best your dad. I think there was a woman he had a thing for too that wouldn’t give him the time of day because she was too busy chasing after your dad. But your dad didn’t reciprocate the infatuation and she still wouldn’t have anything to do with Kramer. Maybe that’s what Ray meant. When it came to talk about women Ray didn’t say much and I didn’t either.”
“He didn’t tolerate any disrespect toward women,” Trip said. “I know that for certain. So I can see why he’d keep his mouth closed even when he was being chased by one he didn’t want to pursue. So if Kramer has sour apples about that then the man puts blame where it doesn’t belong.”
“That’s for certain,” Marcus agreed.
Lori took a deep breath trying to digest everything. “So do you think all this could be from an old grudge about being rejected by a woman?”
Every man in the group looked at her and shrugged.
“Men have died for lesser reasons all through history,” Jesse said. “Right now, that’s all we’ve got…that and his financial problems. He’s looking for someone to blame.”
She couldn’t believe it could be that simple. It was ridiculous. But it was true that people did crazy things.
“Let’s call a meeting with everyone over at the stock pens,” Trip said. “I’m sure Cooper and Brice are wondering what’s going on.
“That’d be great,” Drake said, looking as unhappy as she was. “When are the cops going to get involved with this?”
“We’re waiting to see what Michael and the local sheriff’s department he’s working with in Oklahoma can come up with.”
“I see,” Drake said.
Jesse and Sean led the way out of the crowded chute area and she and Trip followed.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
“I’m mad,” she said. “And confused. It just doesn’t make sense.” She heard someone call her name and turned to see Kelly, a former rodeo friend from college. Her spirits lifted for a moment. “Hey, go on without me. I’ll be there as soon as I say hi to an old friend.”
He didn’t look happy. “I’ll stay with you. I don’t want you hanging out alone—”
“I’m fine, Trip. I’ll be right there. Truth is I need a break from all this and visiting with Kelly for a moment sounds perfect.”
He didn’t look happy as Kelly got closer through the throng of people. “Fine. But if you’re not back in fifteen minutes I’ll come looking.”
She frowned. “Stop worrying. I’ll be there when I get through but it won’t be long. I’m not going to keep everyone waiting.”
“Okay, but call if you need me.”
She laughed and shook her head. “Go. I’m fine.” As soon as he headed off she turned and met Kelly in a big hug. Talking to an old friend would help. She was fed up with the craziness going on around her.
Chapter Thirteen
Trip caught up with Jesse and the Presleys after leaving Lori to visit with her friend. He felt uncomfortable leaving her, he was on edge with the way the conversation had gone with Kramer. Something had happened between Kramer and Ray Calhoun. And it was reasonable that someone could hold a grudge for this long. People, as Jess had said, did terrible things for a whole lot less this than being jealous over a woman and being rejected.
Not only had Kramer had a woman reject him because she was crazy about Ray, it was a woman that Ray hadn’t wanted. That would be unsettling for a guy like Kramer. And then Kramer had gone into the rough stock business and so had Ray. And Ray was more successful.
Yeah, Trip got it. He could see where that would grate at a guy. Especially a guy who wasn’t dealing with a full deck it seemed.
But the fact that if he had taken her horses he hadn’t made his whole move until now, after Ray was gone fit. He was fairly certain that Kramer had poisoned that horse that time and he was sure Ray knew it too. For all Trip knew Ray hadn’t told a story on that, and Ray may have had a meeting of the mind with Kramer about that incident that Trip was not privy to. He could only imagine what a man like Ray said to a man like Kramer. As intimidating as Ray was with his larger than life personality and being so well liked versus the little twerp that Kramer was, Trip could see where Kramer would’ve probably been shaking in his boots. Until Ray died and his daughter took over. And his financial problems became so terrible and he became desperate. He figured he could pick on Trip and Lori. He could take their business to ruin and then he would get jobs. When Trip reached the others and they met up with Cooper and Brice he relayed what he thought. They all looked unfazed by his assessment.
Marcus was the first to speak up. “I agree with you, I can see where Ray would’ve probably gone to him, he wouldn’t have tiptoed around the situation. If he thought Kramer had hurt his animal Ray would have confronted him. He might not have told you or me because that’s the kind of man Ray was. But I guarantee you that behind closed doors, man to man—Ray handled it.
And that’s why his animals didn’t get messed with again. But now, like you say, he’s desperate and he’s just the kind of man who would pick on a woman—not that you’re a woman but you know what I mean. Ray was Lori’s daddy and he’s gone and Lori is here. Lori own’s the ranch. It’s more about her. To be frank.”
Trip understood it. He knew Marcus didn’t mean any harm by what he said, it was the truth. No matter how hard he worked, no matter how much the success of the rough stock business would and could ultimately be because of his promotion and work, in the end it would always be that Ray Calhoun’s daughter owned the ranch and the business that Ray began. And Trip had just bought into it.
He loved Lori. But could he live with that? The truth of their situation was staring him in the face. But right now it didn’t matter. Right now it was about getting this business with Kramer settled, getting their horses back and moving forward.
Jesse’s phone rang. He pulled it from its holster. “It’s Michael.” He stepped away from everybody and they all watched as he listened. His expression was intense. Then furious. The call didn’t last long and he hung up and stalked to them, his expression grave.
“They found the horses. Michael was relentless and his informant worked hard to help him. It was time to go looking while Kramer and his goons weren’t around. It took a little while but they found them on some property Kramer leases way in the backcountry in a barn. They’ve been neglected all this time. No feed. They’re not in good shape but are being looked after now.”
Trip spun on his boot heel, fury swept through him. He was going for Kramer.
Marcus and Cooper stepped in front of him
“Hold on,” Cooper said.
“Yeah, son,” Marcus agreed. “You’re in no shape to go after Kramer. Take a deep breath.”
“You’d rip his head off.” Drake and Brice stepped up to help block him.
“The police are on their way,” Jesse told him. “They are probably on the premises as we speak. We need to tell Lori.”
The rodeo was ending and people were moving out of the stands. It was a rough time to be trying to find her. Trip suddenly got his senses back. “Yeah we need to find her. I don’t want Kramer getting near her. If he’s already been tipped off. Then who knows what he’ll do if he feels cornered.”
Lori was making her way through the rough stock pens when she spotted a group of police officers enter the building at the end of the corridor. One of them stood out in his cowboy hat, starched white shirt with the shining star pinned over his heart, even at a distance she was pretty sure he was a U.S. Marshal. Her gut told her
once more something wasn’t right.
She was, of all places, near Kramer’s stock pens when she spotted them. And they were coming this way. People were parting the way for them as they came down the corridor. She looked around just as she was grabbed around her neck and she was yanked hard against a soft body.
“They’re not going to pin this on me,” the distinctive voice of Kramer growled in her ear.
She yanked harder. “Let me go,” she demanded.
“Hold still,” he growled.
She was uncertain of what had happened but obviously something had. “Let me go,” she gasped as he tightened his arm around her neck. For a small man he had surprising strength in his short arms. She tried to kick him in the knee and then grunted. “They’re going to stop you.”
“Kramer,” Trip yelled from the distance. “Let her go, it’s over. The police are here. We know what you did our horses.”
“This is the police. Let her go and put your hands up.”
Lori heard the anger in Trip’s voice and suddenly she wasn’t just mad, she was worried. She brought her hands up to grasp the arm wrapped around her neck. It was hard to stand leaning back since she was a little taller than Kramer he had her yanked hard to him but leaning back…it was awkward and made his grip on her throat that much more painful. She coughed which only caused him to hold tighter as he started backing them up. “Where,” she gasped. “are you going. Give up. You’re done.” She coughed again, her gaze finding Trip in the now cleared out corridor. People had scrambled out of there as fast as they could getting to safety. Trip stood out in the wide open glaring Kramer down. She couldn’t find the lawmen in her vision but they were to the left while Trip and the Presleys and the Knights were to the right. She could see them, her posse standing behind Trip.
She felt the hard bite of a pistol dig into her back.
“I’ve got a pistol and I’ll use it on your girlfriend.”
“Don’t make this worse on yourself,” the lawman called. Let the lady go and you won’t get hurt.”
“I’m walking out of here with her,” he yelled, loosening his grip on her momentarily.
Lori sucked in a breath. “Why are you doing this?”
“Your daddy ruined me. If it hadn’t been for him always getting the luck—”
Lori was dealing with a madman. He had lost all reasoning where her daddy was concerned and blamed everything wrong in his life of her dad.
“Your bad judgment is what cost you, Kramer. And you’re making more bad choices right now. Let Lori go. Do the right thing.” Trip was moving cautiously toward them. On the other side the law had pulled their weapons. Lori suddenly realized someone might not come out of this alive.
Her knees were weak. “Trip, stop,” she called. Fear for him was overwhelming. “Get out of the way.”
As if in answer Kramer pulled his pistol from her ribs and pointed it at Trip.
Trip’s heart hammered as he watched the woman he loved being choked and held captive by Kramer. He stared at the gun pointing at him and looked past the madman to see the lawmen fanning out. One was over inside the stock pen and moving toward Kramer using cattle as his shield.
“I’m walking out of here so move out of the way. All of you. Get in that crosswalk and let me pass or I’ll shoot her.”
“Don’t do that,” the U.S. Marshal warned. “Put your weapon down, there’s no way out of this.”
“Kramer stop this while you can,” Lori urged, feeling the man’s desperation and feeling her own as she watched Trip hover between holding back or charging her captor. Fear for him held her in its icy grip. She couldn’t bear to lose him. Their eyes locked and panic seized her as she saw his gaze flinch, saw him step forward. “No,” she shouted, struggling to stop him from stepping toward the gun leveled at him.
As if in slow motion she saw him move, felt Kramer panic, his arm jerked and on instinct she stomped hard on his boot while elbowing him in the gut and twisting hard—as the sound of the gun fired…
In that same instant Kramer’s arm loosened and she was free, she stumbled to the ground as two more shots were fired and Kramer fell in the dirt beside her. Her gaze was locked on Trip.
He dropped to his knees as a bloodstain spread across his shoulder and then he fell face first in the dirt.
Chapter Fourteen
“Don’t you dare leave me, Trip Jensen…”
Trip struggled to roll over, his shoulder hurt like he’d been kicked by a rampaging, two-thousand-pound bucking bull but all he was focused on was Lori’s sweet voice. She was okay.
“I’m not going anywhere,” he managed as she helped him onto his back. “I’m staying right here with you, darlin’” He drawled, trying hard not to slur his words, fighting to stay conscious. “You’re a beautiful sight.”
“Oh, Trip, I thought…” she cried. “I thought I’d lost you.”
“Let me in here,” Sean Knight said, pushing through the throng of friends hovering over Trip and Lori.
Trip winced when Sean immediately applied hard pressure to his wound.
“It’s your shoulder. You’ll have a scar but you’ll live. Thanks to Lori fighting like a wildcat to knock that fools aim off.”
Trip gave her a grin. “Seems I owe you my life,” he said, wiping the tears from her face with his free hand.
“And I owe you mine,” she said through her tears. Heard a smile try to sound in her words. “You shouldn’t have done that.”
“Done what? Try to save the woman I love?”
She laughed and her smile sent joy raging through him. “I love you too. But still, thank God and the Marshal’s good aim we’re going to live to enjoy that love.”
He felt his head spinning. “Exactly what I was aiming for,” he said and then everything went black.
Two days later
“Okay, open that trailer,” Lori instructed. Michael Knight had warned her that the horses had lost weight but were doing good. Sean had driven to Oklahoma straight from the rodeo after the ambulance had gotten there for Trip. He’d wanted to check them out and monitor their wellbeing and transport back to the ranch. He and Michael had gone out of their way to take care of them. Jesse Knight had remained in Fort Worth helping handle any legal issues as all that Kurt Kramer had done came to light. She would always be grateful to the Knight Investigation Agency for what they’d done.
But as she glanced around the group waiting with her and Trip, her heart was full. The handsome Presleys were all gathered and Marcus had assured her that if there was anything she needed while Trip recovered all she had to do was ask and they’d take care of it. But then, no one had estimated Trip’s determination to be here today. His shoulder had needed extensive surgery and he’d lost a lot of blood but he’d gotten his release papers this morning and was standing beside her. His good arm was draped over her shoulders and Lori felt love and security within his shadow. God had been good and he was still here with her.
Kramer wasn’t. He’d died instantly, when he’d fired that second shot the U. S. Marshal had fired at him and his bullet hadn’t missed. Lori still couldn’t believe that he’d blamed all of his bad choices and subsequent bad luck on her daddy. And that he’d felt it was his right to try and ruin what Ray Calhoun had worked so hard to build.
But that was all behind them. Her horses would be ready for the finals. They’d been given a reprieve from the next rodeo and Sean had said they’d be ready for the next rodeo on the circuit and qualify to participate in the big show, the National Finals in Vegas.
Harvey sat on a horse in the arena waiting on the roughstock horses to be released. He had come to her immediately when she arrived home and apologized for acting so negative since losing the horses and said he’d been defensive when he should have been helpful. He’d also asked if her could help care for the horses so they could be ready for the finals. She’d agreed and felt relief that they could start over since her daddy had liked Harvey and valued his contribution to ranch.
“Here they come,” Trip said, close to her ear. “Don’t be too upset. Remember Sean said their doing good.”
She nodded as Michael pulled the trailer gate open and the horses ran out of the trailer and into the holding pen. She gasped. “Oh how could anyone do that to horses?” Her horses were thin from just two weeks without feed, not as bad as some of the wild Mustangs the Presleys and their rescue program took in. But still, they were in a state of neglect. “Thankfully we got to them,” she said. “If Kramer wasn’t already dead I’d probably be heading to the jailhouse to give him a piece of my mind. How could he?”
“He was a messed up man sometimes nothing explains it.”
“Yeah. I guess so.” She turned to him. “I’m so glad you’re home. Do you need to sit down?”
He smiled and hugged her to him. “I’m fine. We need to talk,” he said and then led her away from the arena.
“Hey,” Cooper called from where he and Vance were standing with their arms on the arena rungs studying the horses. “Where are you two lovebirds heading?”
Trip chuckled. “None of your business Presley, this is between me and my lady.”
“Oh, your lady,” his friend teased. “Well, y’all go on then and I hope you come back in a few minutes and give us some good news.”
“Yeah,” Vance added with a wink. “Good news. I think its time for us to have a party around here. If you know what I mean.”
Trip laughed and Lori shook her head and chuckled. “I kind of like the idea of a party too,” she said and then hugging him tight they walked into the barn.
Trip stopped outside his office and turned to pull her close with his good arm. “I love you, Lori. And I’ve struggled with objection after objection as to why I can’t ask you to be my wife. I don’t have what you have and it might take me my whole life to ever have enough to equal what you have and that rankles on a man. But, your ranch aside, I can build something with you with the rough stock business that we can share together. I like that. But most of all I like the idea of building a life with you. I’m tired of putting it off. Of not telling you how much I love you. It’s eating away at me and the other night when Kramer had you all I could think about was all the time we’d wasted. I don’t want to spend another hour without you in my life. I can take anything but that. Will you marry me?”
Her Cowboy Hero: Rodeo Knights, A Western Romance Novel (Cowboys of Ransom Creek) Page 8