by D'Ann Lindun
“You’re welcome.” He waited a minute. “What about your family, Briar Rose? Won’t they want to see little Arielle, too?”
Her happy expression turned sullen. “No.”
He pressed her. “But doesn’t she have grandparents? What about aunts and uncles? They might want to get the chance to know her.” His sister flashed through his mind. His family would give anything to see Nikki again. The drug abuse, the agony she’d put them through, it would all be forgotten if only they could see her one more time. He’d bet his last dollar Briar Rose’s family felt the same way.
“I don’t want them here.” She twisted the white sheets in her hands. “They’ll just try to take my baby away from me. They’ll say I’m crazy or that I can’t be responsible for her. But I can.” Her voice rose to a near shriek. “I can.”
“Okay,” he soothed. “I didn’t mean to upset you.”
“Martin and me are all she needs. The three of us are a family,” she said. “When he comes back he’ll be so excited . . . so proud.” Arielle made a mewing noise and waved her tiny hands. Briar Rose reached for her. “I need to feed her. If you don’t mind . . .”
“Of course.” He stood. “When will you be released?”
She hesitated. “Tomorrow.”
“We’ll come pick you up,” he offered.
“Around ten.” Her mind was obviously on the squirming infant.
“See you then.” He let himself out.
~*~
Because she was in a hurry to return to the ranch to meet the farrier on time, Castaña suggested they pick up a bucket of chicken. Jake agreed and they swung through a popular fast food joint. The heavenly smell made her mouth water and she realized she hadn’t eaten all day. Jake didn’t seem to be in a talkative mood, and that suited her fine. She was content to sit in his comfortable leather pickup seats and inhale greasy chicken fumes.
While Jake lugged in the boxed-up crib and her pile of packages, Castaña retrieved plates and silverware from the kitchen. “Would you like to eat out on the porch? It’s cooler out there.”
“Sounds good.”
Handing him the kitchenware, she carried the bag of food out to the front porch and placed everything on the small, glass topped wicker table. Castaña poured them each lemonade, added a slice of lemon, and placed the glasses at their places. Her cheeks heated when she thought about their night on the couch. The sun hung low in the western sky, the trees silhouetted against the orange sunset. They sat and dug into the food with little or no conversation. The radio sent soft county music floating over the evening air.
A wave of nostalgia washed over Castaña. Her mother had done everything in her power to make a nice home for her family. Once in a while Ramon and Martin had participated in family times, and those rare events had been etched into Castaña’s mind like acid on glass. More often, the male Castillos had been preoccupied with their wild horses.
The chicken suddenly didn’t taste as good and she pushed her plate away.
Jake looked at her with an odd expression. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.” She sipped her tart lemonade. “I’m just not as hungry as I thought I was.”
“Something’s bothering you, besides the obvious.”
She toyed with her silverware. “This is going to sound weird—”
“Try me.”
Her words came in a rush. “The baby doesn’t look like Martin at all.”
A cloud of dust alerted them someone was coming. The farrier. Right on time. Jake waved her away. “I’ll clean up.”
“Thanks.” She rose and walked to meet the blacksmith. He rolled down his window as she approached and she recognized a man she’d gone to high school with. Tom Sullivan.
“Castaña Castillo.” His friendly brown eyes crinkled at the corners. “Long time no see. Where’ve you been keeping yourself?” Before she could answer he threw open the door, jumped out and enveloped her in a bear hug. “I hoped it was you who called. I don’t know too many girls with your name so I figured it was.”
Surprised by the sight of an old friend, she couldn’t speak for a long minute. “Tom, I didn’t realize it was you I talked to on the phone.”
“It wasn’t,” he said. “I took over my dad’s business when he got too down in the back to shoe horses anymore, but he takes appointments for me when my mom has other things to attend to. You talked to him.”
“Oh,” was all she said. “I didn’t realize he had retired. He didn’t say anything.”
“Yeah, well. Too many horses wore down his back. Speaking of, where’s your shoeless beast?”
She gestured toward the barn. “In there.”
“I’ll drive my truck over there.” Tom jumped in the pickup and drove it the few yards to the barn.
Following at a walk, Castaña tried to gain her bearings. She wouldn’t have recognized Tom in a lineup. In high school, he’d been short with a cherubic face, and in the last six years he hadn’t grown much except around the waist. A thick mustache now disguised his boyish features. She’d attended school since Miss Millie Clark’s third grade with him, been in virtually every homeroom with him, and gone to her Freshman Fling with him. When she’d made the appointment, she’d never thought about Tom Jr. taking over his dad’s business.
He followed her inside the cool, dim barn and when she led the dun gelding out of his stall Tom whistled. “Man. Nice piece of horseflesh.”
“Thanks. I’m proud of him.” Gato was worth several thousand dollars, but because she had spotted his potential as a weanling and spent hours upon hours training him herself, she hadn’t broken the bank to buy him. After she won some substantial prizes with Gato, she’d been able to purchase Rojo, a much more expensive horse. “Where do you want him?”
“How about right here?” Tom indicated the barn alley. “It’s cool in here.”
While he turned his truck around and backed it into the breezeway, she tied the gelding to the stall and flipped on the overhead lights. With a no nonsense manner Tom picked up the horse’s hoof and ran a rasp across it. “What brings you back to these parts? I haven’t seen you since your mother’s funeral.”
A lump immediately formed in her throat and it took a minute before she could answer. “I came to look for Martin. He’s missing.”
Tom looked at her with disbelief. “What do you mean?”
“No one’s seen him in close to two weeks.”
Tom grinned as if she were joking. “That’s all?”
“Yeah. He became a dad today. He has a little baby girl.”
The silly grin faded from Tom’s face. “No way.”
She nodded solemnly. “Way. I was there, but he wasn’t anywhere to be found. Story of Martin’s life, I guess. But he’s a father now and it should matter to him.”
Tom shook his head. “I can’t believe it. The last time I saw Nascha, hell that was only a month ago, she didn’t look pregnant to me.”
“Nascha? No, they broke up. His girlfriend’s name is Briar Rose.”
Tom burst out into laughter. When he saw she wasn’t laughing with him, he abruptly stopped. “Well, that beats all. I thought he and Nascha had a thing, you know?”
“Apparently, that’s what everyone, including Nascha, believed. But I came home and found this girl standing in my mother’s kitchen claiming to be carrying Martin’s baby. She gave birth to a little girl this morning. Honestly, I don’t know if she’s my brother’s daughter, but I don’t know why else Briar Rose would claim she is if she’s not.”
“Damn.” Tom picked out a horseshoe from a box in his truck and lifted Gato’s foot. He held the shoe to the hoof, shook his head and went back to retrieve another shoe. This one seemed to please him and he nodded as he held it to the gelding’s sole. Then he carried it to an anvil bolted to the bed of his truck and shaped it with a few loud bangs of a large, shaping hammer. Choosing a smaller hammer, he stuck several nails in his mouth and lifted Gato’s foot again. With efficient hits, he drove the nails
through the shoe and hoof.
Castaña waited for him to finish hammering before she asked, “Do you know anything about the murders that were committed a couple of weeks ago?”
He took a pair of hoof nippers from his back pocket. “Just what the newspaper said. Why?”
“Martin’s accused of it.” She let the words hang, waiting for his reaction.
“What?” He looked as if his stomach hurt and all the air had rushed out of his lungs.
“You heard me. The police and some FBI honcho think Martin killed those men.” She stroked Gato’s warm, slick neck for a minute. “The thing is Martin loves those horses so much he might have been driven right over the edge by this new change in the law that allows them to be sent to slaughter.”
Tom didn’t immediately disagree with her. “A lot of people are upset.”
“Yeah,” Castaña said.
Moving to his tools, Tom chose a rasp. For a long moment, he stood and looked at it. When he spoke, his voice filled with anguish. “There was almost a riot when the BLM announced a public contract on the horses. Martin had to take it hard.”
Castaña staggered back. “What? When?”
“A couple weeks ago, the government put out a public contract on the horses. It was a live auction where anyone could bid. Highest bidder could do what they wished with the horses after they were rounded up. The consensus was that they would all go to slaughter. Stallions, mares, and even the littlest foals.” He reached for the gelding’s hoof. “There was a huge deal about it. People took sides and everyone had an opinion. Things got real ugly for a while. Every horseman between here and New York City had something to say about it. Even some big TV people came out here and reported the whole thing.”
“What happened when Martin heard this?” Castaña felt like she might be sick. Her dinner rushed up her throat and she fought to hold it all down. A white-hot rage filled her at the thought of any horse going to their end that way. She didn’t think the horses were worth giving up one’s entire life for, but she didn’t want them to be rounded up and killed for European and Japanese people’s Sunday dinner either. Martin would have been violent. The possibility of him killing to stop the carnage suddenly seemed very real.
Tom filed the hoof, shaping the toe. “He bid, of course. But someone outbid him, which upset Martin a lot.”
“When did this happen?”
“About two weeks ago I guess.” Tom looked up. “When did you say Martin went missing?”
“About two weeks ago,” she repeated bleakly. “I wonder why the ranger didn’t tell me about this.”
“Maybe he didn’t know. The BLM and fire rangers aren’t the same branch of the government.” Tom ran his hand over the horse’s smooth hoof. “Looks good. That ought to do him for a while.”
Barely able to focus, Castaña forced herself to look at the workmanship. “Great. Thanks, Tom. I wonder why Patty didn’t tell me about this auction.”
Tom began gathering his tools. “Patty who?”
“Patty McRae. Know her? She came with the S&R team.”
He froze. “Redhead?” He held his hand a little above his own head. “About this tall?”
“Yeah, that’s right. She’s ridden with me every day.”
He snorted. “Unbelievable.”
Castaña’s heart sped up. “Why? Who is she?”
“She’s the person who bought the contract on the mustangs.”
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
“That’s not possible.” There had to be some mistake. Castaña gave her head a small shake. Why would Patty lie to her? Why would she pretend to be helping in the search? Was she involved in Martin’s disappearance?
“What’s not possible?” Jake filled the doorway. He turned to the other man and held out his hand. “Jake Brown.”
“Tom Sullivan. Good to meet you.” Although Tom didn’t ask, his expression showed his curiosity about Jake.
“Tom’s an old friend.” Castaña didn’t feel like filling in Tom right now about Jake’s role in her life. She repeated what Tom had told her. “Patty isn’t here to help. I don’t know what she’s doing.”
Jake didn’t say much, just listened with an intent look. “Man, that’s off the charts.”
“She’s got a few questions to answer when I see her.” Castaña untied Gato and led him into his stall, and giving his neck a quick pat, took off his halter. She faced Tom. “What do I owe you?” He named his price and she said, “My checkbook’s in the truck.”
The three of them walked to her pickup where she retrieved her checkbook from the glove box, wrote the check and handed it to Tom. He took it, folded it and placed it in his shirt pocket. “I’d better be getting on down the road. I have early morning appointments.” Giving Castaña a hug, he said, “Come by and give a shout to Mom and Dad. They’d love to see you. And let me know what happens with Martin.”
Her eyes filled with unexpected tears. “I will.”
“I’ll hold you to it.” He nodded at Jake. “Nice meeting you.”
Jake held up a hand. “You, too.”
With one last wave, Tom wheeled his truck around and drove away.
“Nice guy,” Jake commented.
She could’ve sworn she heard a hint of jealously in his tone. Was he envious of Tom? He had no reason to be. Tom was nothing more than an old friend. “Yes, he is.”
They walked up the porch steps and sat at the table where Jake poured them each a glass of lemonade. “So you didn’t know Patty when you lived here?”
“No. The day she showed up with the S&R team was the first time I’ve ever seen her. She’s insisted every day since that she has nothing better to do than look for Martin.” She sipped the cold drink without tasting it.
Jake voiced Castaña’s thoughts. “I wonder if she has something to hide?”
“I don’t know, but I intend to find out.” A wave of frustration washed over her. No one seemed to be who they said they were—Briar Rose, Nascha, Patty. All of them had secrets that circled around Martin. Why wouldn’t everyone just tell the truth? What were they all hiding? Starting in the morning she was going to get to the bottom of all of it. Or die trying.
Jake broke into her thoughts. “Where do you want the crib?”
She’d forgotten all about it. “I don’t know. In Briar Rose’s room, I guess. Or we could clean out the room I’m in since it’s across from hers. Yeah, that makes more sense. There’s not enough room in Mama’s old room for her big old bed and a crib, too. If Briar Rose wants Arielle close by we can move the crib in there tomorrow.”
“I’ll take the sofa,” Jake said. An undercurrent of desire swirled around them and it would be all too easy to suggest they sleep in the same bed. He hefted the box. “Let’s do it.”
Together, they took apart the bed Castaña had been sleeping in, and stored it in the attic. Jake carried in the boxed crib, took it out and began assembling the pieces while she unwrapped the tiny sheets and toys. They worked in comfortable silence and had a nursery pulled together within a couple of hours.
With a happy sigh, Castaña stood and took in all they had accomplished. The new crib, complete with pink pony sheets stood along the wall. Plush animals lined up across the dresser, along with diapers and various baby lotions. The farm animal mobile swung in a happy dance above the crib. Mama’s rocker sat next to the crib. All the room needed was little Arielle.
“Like it?” Jake’s breath was warm on her ear.
“Very much.” She turned and slipped her arms around his waist intending to hug him in thanks. But when his lips grazed her hair she tipped her head back and his mouth came down and locked over hers. A quick thank you very quickly turned into something very different as his tongue teased her mouth open. Their tongues touched, retreated. A little spark low in her belly raged into a full-blown flame in a matter of seconds. If she didn’t halt this now, there wouldn’t be any turning back. With a low cry of regret, she twisted out of his arms. “We have to stop.”
“Yeah.” He took a step back. “That’s probably smart.”
She didn’t answer. Hadn’t he come back here to see where their burgeoning relationship would go? He’d seemed almost relieved to break off their kiss. The man was a mystery. One she couldn’t deal with right now. She blew out a breath. “Not bad for the last minute. Briar Rose ought to love this room.”
“She will.”
Taking one last look at the converted nursery, Castaña turned off the light then walked down the hall. “I’m going to bed. I have a lot to do tomorrow.”
It took all her willpower to not slam the door behind her. Jake was giving off the most confusing signals she’d ever witnessed. One time she’d swear he was completely into her, the next he pulled back like he had no interest whatsoever. Whatever his game was she didn’t want to play. She had too many troubles on her mind to try and figure him out.
Jake had moved his things out of the bedroom and he headed toward the couch. But halfway there he turned into Briar Rose’s bedroom instead. Someone had stripped the bed and he wondered briefly where the sheets were kept, then decided he didn’t care. He sometimes slept with no covers when the evening air was warm. Flopping across the bed, he waited until he heard the shower come on then he dialed Kelso. His partner grunted a hello.
“I need some information on a woman named Patty McRae,” Jake said. “The BLM guys put out a contract for bid on mustang removal from the forest. She won the bid. If Martin had a beef with someone it would be her.”
“Yeah, but she’s not dead,” Kelso pointed out.
“I know.” Jake heaved a sigh. “Nothing fits in this puzzle.”
“You any closer?” Kelso sounded tired and for once, didn’t sound like he had a mouth full of something fattening. Only eight o’clock at night and he sounded like he’d been sleeping.
“You okay?” Jake countered. Overweight and overworked, Kelso was a doctor’s worst nightmare. More than once he’d complained of chest pains.
“Fine, fine.” Kelso tried to interject a note of joviality into his voice, but Jake knew him too well. Something was bothering him and it was probably work related.