The Rancher Next Door

by Darlene Mindrup

  After the third day, Delores came into the kitchen and climbed onto one of the stools pulled up to the stove island. She pulled a bowl of fruit toward her, taking out an apple.

  “You’re in love with my son, aren’t you?” she asked, taking a bite of the fruit.

  Jenny stared at her in alarm. If Delores could see that, could Mitch?

  “Well, aren’t you?” she insisted. “And don’t tell me it’s none of my business, either. I already got that from Mitch.”

  “You discussed this with Mitch?” she asked incredulously.

  Delores nodded her head.

  “What did he say?” Jenny asked curiously.

  “I just told you. He told me to mind my own business.”

  “Well, I agree,” Jenny told her, pulling the bowl of potatoes across the counter. Picking up the knife she started to peel one. Her fingers were shaking so badly she was afraid she would cut herself. Setting the knife back on the counter, she turned to Delores.

  “How about you and Mitch? Have you told him yet?”

  Delores smiled. “Changing the subject? That’s okay. I already know the answer. You and Mitch are in love with each other but something is keeping you apart. I would be willing to bet that something has to do with me.”

  Jenny was surprised by her insight.

  “Some,” Jenny told her truthfully.

  Delores pursed her lips. “Mitch is a rich man. He would be quite a catch.”

  Jenny turned on her, her eyes flashing fire. “I would love Mitch if he hadn’t a dime to his name!”

  Delores raised her eyebrows. “I figured as much, and thank you for answering my question.”

  Jenny blinked at her. How on earth had she managed to let the woman finagle that out of her?

  “Look, can we talk about something else?” she asked in frustration, once again picking up her knife.

  Getting up from the stool, Delores crossed to the counter. Pulling another knife from the drawer, she reached for a potato and started peeling it. Jenny stared at her in surprise.

  Delores’s lips quirked wryly. “Let me guess. Mitch told you I was helpless in the kitchen.”

  Jenny merely nodded.

  “That might have been true once, but I’ve learned a lot over the years.” She reached for another potato and deftly peeled it. “Mitch has no idea how I led my life after I left here. I suffered enough so that somewhere along the line, I decided that I didn’t want to suffer after this life as well. It took me a while, but I eventually found the Lord.”

  Jenny’s knife clattered to the floor. “Have you told Mitch this?”

  Delores stooped and picked up Jenny’s knife, handing it back to her. She smiled wryly.

  “We haven’t talked much. He kind of avoids me whenever possible.”

  “Mrs. Anderson, you have to tell him. You have to tell him everything.” Pushing the potatoes aside, Jenny asked, “How long have you known the Lord?”

  “Oh, about ten years now.”

  “Ten years! And you’re just now coming to Mitch?”

  “I figured he thought I was dead and that it would be better if I just left things that way.”

  Jenny shook her head sadly. “He was engaged a couple of years ago.”

  Delores stared at her intently. “And?”

  “She left. She couldn’t stand the isolation.”

  Leaning back against the counter, Delores let out a long breath. “Well, that explains a lot, doesn’t it?”

  Jenny looked away. Picking up the potatoes that were peeled, she headed for the sink.

  “I’m going to suggest something to you, Jenny, and I hope you won’t take it the wrong way.”

  Jenny turned, giving Delores her full attention. “Yes?”

  “I’d like you not to bother coming here anymore. Just for a while, mind you.”

  Jenny was speechless with surprise.

  “I can take over the cooking and cleaning while I’m here. And I intend to stay until Mitch can settle himself down and talk to me. I need some time alone with him. Some time to let him see how much I’ve changed. Can you understand?”

  “I can understand,” Jenny told her. “I think that’s a great idea and, frankly, I’m kind of relieved.”

  Delores smiled at her. “I didn’t say anything before because I wanted to get to know you. I could tell that something was brewing between you and Mitch.”

  Jenny flushed but didn’t say anything. If something was brewing, it was definitely more on her part than his.

  Working side by side, they finished supper together. As she was leaving, Jenny spontaneously hugged Delores.

  “I hope things work out for you,” she told her.

  Pressing her lips together in a smile Delores replied, “They will. The good Lord will work it out somehow.”

  As Jenny was driving down the road she fervently prayed for a new understanding between mother and son. Only three more days until Christmas. Surely this was a time for amazing things to happen.

  Chapter 12

  Christmas Day arrived and with it one of the coldest days of the year. Although it was rare, predictions of snow made Jenny hesitate to make the trip to Hattie’s. Low clouds hung over the horizon. Snow clouds. Normally they would bring rain, but the temperature precluded that. Either snow or ice would surely be falling within the next hour.

  The sky got progressively darker over the next half hour. Jenny watched the sky anxiously for any signs of snow. She hated driving in bad weather.

  She turned back to the room and smiled at the twins. David was busy playing with the computer game he had received for Christmas. Pings, pongs and squeaks echoed around the living room, mingled with the Christmas music drifting from Renee’s CD player. She had wanted to give them each something special and with the check she had received this month, she had been able to.

  The price Annie had put on the quilted wall hanging that she had named “Silent Night” had astounded Jenny. That she had received it had boggled her mind even more. With the sale of that one item alone she had been able to buy David his computer game and several game cartridges.

  The Christmas tree sat forlornly in the corner, already a has-been. Fudge, though, still thought it deserved some attention. Grabbing the popcorn string that had fallen too close to the bottom, he gave a mighty tug. The tree started to sway ever so gently and Jenny lunged at the same time Renee noticed and dived after Fudge.

  Settling the tree back into its upright position, Jenny laughed as Renee scolded Fudge.

  “Bad dog. That’s a no-no.”

  Fudge’s little tail curled between his legs as his ears pinned themselves close to his head. Jenny knew what the outcome would be before it even happened. Sure enough, Renee scooped the pup into her arms and was hugging him tightly.

  “Be a good boy, okay?” she pleaded.

  Jenny glanced at her new watch. The twins had gone in together to buy it for her, and she was proudly pleased to display it. She hadn’t known that Renee had been tutoring during her study halls to make a little money. Along with the money David earned from Mitch, they had decided to purchase Jenny something extra special. Jenny couldn’t have been more pleased if it had been diamond-encrusted with a pure gold band.

  “It’s about time we left.”

  Watching the gathering storm clouds she again felt a twinge of unease. By the time they were on the road, snow had started to fall in earnest. Huge, fluffy flakes bounced against her windshield. It was amazing how something so beautiful could be so dangerous.

  When they arrived at Hattie’s, the snow was already sticking to the ground. It had been fairly decent driving until she had hit the pavement, whereupon it had taken all her driving skill to stay on the icy road.

  “It shouldn’t last,” Hattie told he
r, watching the sky. “Probably be over by the time you guys start for home.”

  Jenny certainly hoped she was right.

  Celebrating with the Ameses turned out to be an enjoyable time and Jenny was glad now that they had come.

  Placing dishes on the table for the evening meal, Hattie asked, “Have you heard anything from Mitch or Delores?”

  “No. Have you?”

  Hattie shook her head. “I invited them for Christmas, but they declined.”

  “Do you know what they planned for Christmas?” Jenny asked.

  “No. I just hope...” She stopped and sighed. Jenny understood. From what she had seen, Mitch had done nothing toward making the holiday festive at his house.

  Further discussion was delayed when April brought in the turkey resting in all its golden glory upon the traditional Christmas platter.

  The remaining hours gave Jenny a glimpse of what it was like to be part of a loving family again. It was at times such as these that she felt the loss of her parents most intensely. It brought with it a longing for Mitch so deep it was like a physical pain. The presents, the games, the laughter, everything would have been perfect if Mitch could have been here to share in it with her.

  As Jenny was preparing to leave later that evening, Hattie confronted her.

  “Maybe you should stay, Jenny. The snow hasn’t let up and it’s unusually deep.”

  Jenny hesitated. She sure didn’t want to endanger the twins’ lives.

  Renee tugged at her sleeve. “Fudge hasn’t been fed. I don’t want to leave him alone all night.”

  When Jenny checked outside, the snow was still swirling fast and furious. She hesitated, unsure whether to go or to stay. Jacob added his voice to Hattie’s dissenting one. Still, Jenny hesitated. For some reason she had an overwhelming desire to spend the final hours of Christmas in her own home. When she decided to go ahead and leave, Hattie made her promise to call as soon as they made it home.

  After rounds of thank-yous and hugs, the three started on their way. Jenny hadn’t gone very far before she realized she had made a big mistake.

  * * *

  Mitch reached for the telephone with an almost overwhelming premonition of trouble. His heart dropped to his stomach when he heard Hattie’s urgent voice at the other end.

  “Slow down, Hattie,” he soothed. “I can’t understand what you’re saying.”

  He heard her take a deep breath. “Maybe it’s nothing. I’m sure it is, but Jenny and the twins left here hours ago and she hasn’t called to let me know they arrived safely.”

  Mitch was thankful that he was sitting, because all the muscles in his body seemed to suddenly be made of jelly.

  “Did you try calling her?”

  “Of course I did,” she answered impatiently. Taking another breath she told him, “I’m sorry, Mitch. Yes, I’ve tried calling her several times but her phone goes straight to voice mail.”

  “The snow might be interfering with transmission from the cell tower. What on earth was she driving around in this stuff for, anyway?” Mitch stared out his living room window at the swirling mass of white. Of all the times to have record-breaking amounts of snow....

  Hattie answered his question, although he hadn’t really expected her to.

  “They came to spend Christmas with us. I tried to get them to stay, but for some reason Jenny was adamant.”

  Mitch snorted, irritated and concerned at the same time. “That sounds like Jenny. She can be as stubborn as a little jenny donkey. They named her well.”

  His mother entered the room. “What is it, Mitch?”

  Mitch glanced across the room at her. They had been having quite a talk. Something he would like to resume, as soon as he found out what had happened to Jenny.

  He briefly related the situation while Hattie waited patiently at the other end.

  “Okay, Hattie,” he told her. “She has to be somewhere between your place and home. Maybe she pulled off the road when it got too bad. I’ll go see if I can find her. It’ll take me a little bit to get chains on my tires. I’ll call you before I start out. If you hear from Jenny before then, give me a call on my cell.”

  He hung up the phone, staring off into space. It took a huge effort to get his feelings under control. It wouldn’t help if he went out of here half-cocked. But the thought of Jenny out there in the snow with the twins spurred him into action.

  As he put on his coat, his mother followed him into the entryway.

  “Is there anything I can do?” she asked quietly.

  He answered just as quietly before he opened the door that led into the garage. “Pray,” he told her.

  “I will.”

  Mitch stared at her a moment. She had just told him about making the Lord a part of her life and he had been so surprised he hadn’t known what to say. Nothing short of an emergency would have induced him to interrupt their conversation.

  “We’ll finish our talk when I get home,” he told her, hating to leave but knowing he must.

  After years of practice, the tire chains went on with ease. The door to the garage opened and he stood staring in amazement at the sheet of white raining down from the sky. It was going to be difficult finding anything out in this. He took a deep breath, throwing up a prayer for Jenny and the twins. He checked to make certain Hattie hadn’t tried to reach him, made sure all his emergency gear was in the Jeep, then, jumping in, he threw it into gear and took off in the direction of Jenny’s ranch.

  Mitch kept a firm rein on his thoughts as he slowly traversed the distance between Jenny’s ranch and his. Fear, the likes of which he had never known before, threatened to overwhelm him if he allowed it access to his thoughts.

  Jenny. His little Jenny. He realized that that was exactly how he considered her. If something happened to Jenny, he didn’t know what he would do.

  He had no words to express his chaotic thoughts so he settled for a heartfelt, Father, please...

  The darkness made seeing difficult. Thankfully the snow began to lessen, improving his visibility. He had decided it would be easier to spot something if he drove in the middle of the road. Fortunately, traffic on this road was rare. As he crept along, his eyes strained to find anything out of the ordinary.

  He drove with the windows down so he could see the sides of the road better, making the inside of the Jeep freezing cold. His sheepskin jacket and leather fur-lined gloves helped lessen the effect of the freezing temperatures and his heater was pushing air full blast, but the chill temperatures still hit him with ferocious intensity.

  He was about four miles from the turnoff to Jenny’s ranch and still had spotted nothing. The house had been empty when he finally arrived, causing his panic to surface a little more. They had to be somewhere between here and Hattie’s.

  Out of the corner of his eye he caught something off to his immediate left and he stopped the Jeep, got out and ran to investigate. What he saw made his heart catch, before resuming its rate at ten times its normal speed.

  Jenny’s little white Toyota had been hard to spot since it blended so well with the full, white landscape. It had slid off the road and managed to flip itself over onto the passenger side in a small culvert. Only a huge drift of snow had kept it from turning onto its roof.

  Sliding down the bank, he realized the car was almost buried by snow. No movement came from within. No sound penetrated the still air around him.

  “Jenny!” His voice sounded harsh to his own ears. “David! Renee!” He brushed frantically to remove the snow from the vehicle’s doors.

  “Mitch? Is that you?” David’s voice seemed muffled and hesitant.

  “Yes, it’s me.” Thank You, Lord! He deliberately made his voice louder. “Are you all right? Are Renee and Jenny with you?”

  David’s voice came back to him, almost franti
c. “Renee’s okay, but we can’t get Jenny to wake up! Her head’s bleeding.”

  Pushing down the panic that was threatening to take over, Mitch tugged open the driver’s door. He could see Jenny hanging in her seat belt at an awkward angle. Looking past her he found David pushed against the passenger door. Renee was crying softly, curled into the back corner of the vehicle.

  “Are you okay?” he asked them as his hands gently worked their way across Jenny’s body. As far as he could tell, the wound on her head was her only injury. But then, he was no expert.

  “Just a little bruised,” David answered. “But what about Jenny?”

  “I don’t know. I’m afraid to move her, but if I don’t, she will freeze.”

  Pulling out his phone, he tried to get a signal but there was none. It was possible that a 9-1-1 call would ping off a satellite and get through, but how long would it take an emergency vehicle to get through to this isolated spot? He hesitated, momentarily unsure of what to do. If he moved her, he could possibly cause her more injury, perhaps irreparable damage. Renee’s chattering teeth made his decision.

  “David. Can you climb over the seat and come out the back door? I’ll hold it open for you. Can you and Renee both do that?”

  David slowly unwound his body, sucking in a painful breath. Gritting his teeth, he climbed slowly, clumsily, onto the backseat. Renee tried to help him.

  Mitch slowly closed the driver’s door. Grasping the back door, he jerked it open and held it with his shoulder. Reaching in with both hands, he helped Renee climb over David and out of the car. David was slower to follow. Mitch could see he was in pain. He helped him as much as he could, but his position was somewhat precarious.

  When David was standing beside Renee, Mitch allowed the door to close. Glancing quickly at David, and noting the extreme pallor of his face, he determined that he would get little help from that quarter.

  “Renee, I’m going to need your help.”