Hard Ride to Dry Gulch

by Joanna Wayne

  “I keep my shotgun loaded.”

  R.J. hooted and slapped his hand against his knee. “That’ll keep out the riffraff.”

  “You know that Hugh was the love of my life, R.J. There’s not a man in Texas who can fill his shoes.”

  But Hugh was dead and Carolina was much too young to crawl into bed alone every night. “No need to fill Hugh’s shoes,” R.J. said. “Get a man who’s got his own boots.”

  “It would never be the same.”

  “No,” he agreed. “But that don’t mean it can’t be good. Growing old alone can get mighty lonely.”

  Carolina rose from the porch swing, walked over and laid one of her graceful hands over his ruddy, wrinkled one. “Don’t you worry about me, R.J. I’ll never be alone as long as I have my family and my memories. You’re not alone, either. And now you have another son on his way home.”

  “Yeah. Stay tuned. I’ll let you know how that goes.”

  “You do that.” She bent over and kissed him on his cheek.

  He resisted the urge to give her a harmless pinch on her shapely bottom. She was too much a lady for his antics. So he merely watched and appreciated the view as she walked down the front steps and to her car.

  He was courting the grim reaper, but he wasn’t dead yet.

  * * *

  “ARE YOU SURE this is necessary, Travis? I feel awkward staying in your father’s house with him suffering from a brain tumor, especially since he barely knows me.”

  “Too late to have second thoughts now. We’re less than five miles from the ranch and I already told him we were on our way.”

  Besides, Travis was having enough second thoughts for both of them. He’d fought to push his resentment toward R.J. aside years ago. You took what life handed you and you ran with it. It was called survival.

  But with every mile, the memories he’d stashed away became more vivid. He’d left the hell behind him, but the images would never disappear entirely.

  Faith tugged on the restraining band of her seat belt and turned toward him. “I thought you and R.J. barely spoke.”

  “Hopefully, that won’t change much in the next few days.”

  “I can see why you’d feel some residual bitterness,” she said. “I can’t imagine being farmed out to foster homes when your own father didn’t take you in after your mother’s death.”

  So his past was common knowledge. “Did Leif tell you that?”

  “Joni. She says relations between Leif and R.J. were so strained at first, she feared Leif would never feel any kind of connection with him. And now he and Joni are building a house on Dry Gulch land.”

  “I’m not Leif.”

  “I’ve noticed,” Faith said. “Cop versus attorney. Big difference, but you look like a man who’d be at home on a ranch. You have that natural cowboy swagger.”

  “Is that bad?”

  “You wear the attitude well.” She smiled in spite of the situation.

  Unfortunately, Faith didn’t leave it at that and let the subject of R.J. die.

  “Joni says R.J. has lots of regrets about the way he lived his life.”

  “Dying reprobates usually do, or so I’ve heard.”

  “Joni didn’t know the old R.J., but she really likes the man he is now. She’s thrilled that he and Leif are finally working things out between them.”

  Time to change the subject, Travis decided as he turned onto the narrow county road that led to the ranch.

  “Let’s go over again what I need you to do and not do while you’re staying at the ranch.”

  Faith rolled her eyes. “Isn’t that overkill? You drilled it into me before we ever left Dallas.”

  “I thought I’d drilled it into your head to stay away from Georgio, too, and look how that turned out.”

  “Point made. I’m not supposed to tell anyone that I’m staying at the Dry Gulch Ranch. But do you really think that whoever bugged my house is going to try to track me down?”

  “Yep. I do. Georgio is not one to be deterred by a small inconvenience like you not coming home after work.”

  “You really are convinced that he’s the one who had the house bugged, aren’t you?”

  “Unless you’ve got a stalker or jealous lover you’re keeping secret.”

  “No stalkers. No lovers, jealous or otherwise.”

  The no-lovers assurance was the only thing about this he liked. The one thing that shouldn’t matter to him at all.

  “Georgio feeds you a line of bull, says he’ll take over the search for Cornell and warns you not to talk to the cops. Then your house is bugged while he makes sure you’re not at home to get in the way. Doesn’t take a detective to figure that one out.”

  She shifted and stared out the window. “I don’t doubt you, but it’s still hard to digest all of this. Georgio seemed so sincere.”

  “He’s sincerely evil and manipulative and used to having things go his way. Take my word for that and don’t say anything to give him a clue where you are or that you’re with me.”

  “I’m sure he’ll never guess that I’m at your father’s ranch.”

  Travis found that hard to believe himself. The closer he got to the ranch, the stronger the temptation to turn around and find somewhere else to take Faith.

  But he couldn’t be with her every second, and she’d never be alone at the ranch. Adam, R.J., a wrangler named Corky and a couple of young wranglers from Canada Adam had hired on to work for the summer would all be there. They could handle trouble if it popped up, not that Travis expected it to. Georgio limited his witnesses.

  Adam’s wife and twin daughters would be on the Dry Gulch as well, so Faith would have female company to hopefully keep her spirits from bottoming out.

  He slowed and turned off the county road onto the ranch blacktop. The metal gate was closed. He stopped and shifted into Park.

  “I’ll get it,” Faith said, opening her door and jumping out before he could beat her to the task. She was graceful as a doe, her dark hair dancing about her slender shoulders, her hips swaying as she walked to the gate and then unlatched it.

  Travis’s mind battled with his libido. There was no doubt which was winning as she swung open the gate and waited for him on the other side.

  Worst part of it all was that his infatuation with her went far deeper than just physical attraction. It was her vulnerability, her toughness when she looked as soft as spring hay, her commitment to her son. Hell, it was everything about her.

  Five minutes later they arrived at the old ranch house. The structure looked years older in the glaring sun than it had in the glittering lights that had illuminated the area on Leif’s wedding night. The shutters needed replacing. The paint was fading.

  Yet somehow the pots of blooming flowers, the worn rockers and the colorful pillows tossed onto the wooden porch swing gave the place a homey feel.

  But it wasn’t Travis’s home.

  Hadn’t been since he was much too young to remember it, and would never be again. Leif, Adam and the others could do as they chose, but Travis wasn’t about to grovel for a share of the inheritance that should have come automatically to him.

  Even if it had, he wasn’t sure he’d have accepted it. R.J. hadn’t been there when Travis was all alone and desperately needed a father. As far as he was concerned, R.J. was no kin to him.

  Travis got out of the truck and rounded the front of it on his way to open Faith’s door. The sound of horse hooves slapping against the dry earth caught his attention. He turned and watched R.J approach on a beautiful filly.

  Atop the magnificent animal, R.J. looked much more virile than the frail, confused man Travis had helped into the house after the reception Saturday night. Leif had said he had his good days and his bad days. Apparently, this was the former.

 
Faith got out of the car and walked over to where he was dismounting.

  “Sorry I wasn’t here when you arrived,” R.J. said. “Be a shame to waste a day like this inside, so I took Miss Dazzler for a ride. Left the door unlocked, though. Always do.”

  “No problem,” Faith said. “We just arrived.”

  “I’ll hitch Miss Dazzler to the porch railing and then call Corky to come ride her to the barn and get her unsaddled.”

  “I can do that for you,” Travis offered. Might as well make an attempt at friendliness, since they were going to be sharing a roof for a few days.

  “Appreciate the offer,” R.J. said. “But Corky can handle Miss Dazzler while you two fill me in on what brought you here. Not that you’re not welcome, whatever it is. Lord knows I got the room. Place is so empty and lonesome at night, even ghosts avoid it.”

  Faith took R.J.’s arm as they climbed the steps. Travis lingered behind for a few seconds, attempting to come to grips with the fact that no matter why he was here, he was about to reopen a cask full of old wounds.

  His cell phone vibrated before he reached the top step. John Patterson. An old friend who had worked for the DPD before taking a position with Border Patrol.

  Travis took the call. “What’s up, John?”

  “You know that missing son of a friend you asked me to check out? Cornell Ashburn?”

  “Yeah. Did you locate him?”

  “Yes and no.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “He’s in the area, but he managed to get away from my agents. It’s a long story, and I’d rather not go into it on the phone. But I can tell you this. Cornell Ashburn is not just some innocent runaway. There will be a warrant out for his arrest by morning.”

  Chapter Eleven

  Travis swallowed the curses that flew to his throat. The news from John Patterson hadn’t shocked him, but it meant he’d have to destroy Faith’s trust in her son—the only thing getting her through this.

  “I’ll try to be there before that happens,” Travis said.

  There was a short period of silence. “Don’t come to the office. Just give me a call,” John said. “I’ll meet you someplace where we can talk—off the record. Officially, you and I haven’t spoken.”

  “Got it.”

  When Travis broke the connection, he realized that both R.J. and Faith were staring at him expectantly.

  Faith’s expression was grim and her smooth hands were knotted into tight fists, the strain mirrored in her dark, expressive eyes. “Was that phone call about Cornell?”

  Travis hesitated, determining how to handle this. If he lied to her, she’d find out eventually, anyway. The lie would break their fragile bonds of trust. It might even backfire completely and send her running back to Georgio for help.

  “It was, wasn’t it?” she repeated.

  Travis nodded, dreading the questions that would follow.

  “Has someone located him?” Her voice trembled.

  “No, but there appears to be a credible lead.”

  She exhaled slowly. “Finally. Is he in Texas?”

  “Laredo, or at least that’s where I have to go to meet my source and follow up on the lead.”

  “Sounds vague,” R.J. interjected. “Who is this source of yours, anyway? Is he in law enforcement?”

  Travis stopped himself from blurting out that this was none of R.J.’s business. In a way it was his business now. Bringing Faith here for protection had changed the rules.

  “He’s a friend,” Travis said, not giving anything else away.

  “I don’t care who he is,” Faith said, “as long as he can help me find my son.”

  “Nothing’s guaranteed,” Travis reminded her, knowing that if John was right, finding Cornell would dump a whole new set of worries and heartbreak on Faith.

  “How far is it to Laredo?” she asked.

  “Somewhere around five hundred miles, give or take a detour or two,” R.J. answered.

  “Then just a short flight,” she declared, excitement building in her voice. “Planes fly out of Dallas every few minutes. Surely there’s one to Laredo tonight. All we have to do is call and see which ones have seats available.”

  “Seats?”

  “I’m going with you,” she said. “I’d go crazy just sitting around here waiting.”

  How the devil had he bungled this up so bad? “Not a good idea,” Travis said.

  “Why not?” Faith demanded.

  Because she wouldn’t like what she’d learn. Because they might find her son behind bars.

  “All I have is a lead, Faith. It may take days to track it fully. You’ll be a lot more comfortable waiting here.”

  “I’m going with you,” she said firmly.

  R.J. scratched his chin. “Might wind up no more than chasing a hawk’s shadow, Faith. If I were you, I’d let Travis do the legwork. He’s used to it.”

  At least this time R.J. was interfering in Travis’s favor.

  Faith shook her head. “It’s been ten months. Ten months of tears and heartbreak and fear that never lets go. If there’s even a chance this will lead to finding Cornell, I deserve to be there.”

  Travis gave up the argument, but he still had no intention of taking her with him.

  “I’ll check with the airlines,” he said.

  “If we can’t get a flight, we can drive,” Faith urged.

  “Take you half the night to get there in a car,” R.J. stated.

  “But we’d be there. I’d rather be driving than just waiting,” Faith insisted. “You said yourself the clue is credible, Travis. We shouldn’t waste time. We can take turns driving while the other sleeps. We’d be in Laredo by morning.”

  “You’d be plumb tuckered out,” R.J. said, still doing the arguing for Travis. Not that there was any way he’d wait until morning.

  Travis moved to the front door. “Let’s talk inside.”

  “Good idea,” R.J. agreed. “Matilda was making a fresh pot of coffee when I left for my short ride. She does that every afternoon. Has her a cup and then heads home. Once you get settled, that just might hit the spot.” He opened the door and led the way.

  “I hope I’m not putting you out too much,” Faith said. “If we’d had any idea we’d be catching a plane tonight, we wouldn’t have had to bother you at all.”

  “Never a bother having a pretty woman around. And God knows I’ve got the room, what with Adam and Hadley and the girls in their own place, and Leif and Joni off honeymooning. This house is as lonely as a church pew on Saturday night.”

  He should have thought of that before running off on all his wives. Travis stopped behind Faith as R.J. flung open a door off the hallway.

  “Plenty more guest rooms upstairs,” R.J. said, “but this is the best of the bunch. Bought a new mattress for the old four-poster. Joni and my other daughter-in-law, Hadley, did the rest of the sprucing up.”

  Faith stepped inside. “It’s lovely,” she said, though it was obvious her thoughts were still on getting to Laredo and the prospect of finding her son.

  Their only hope was that John Patterson had the wrong man. John never did.

  Faith turned to R.J. “Do you have a computer we can use to check flights?”

  “There’s a laptop on the desk in the family room. We’ve even got wireless in the house now. Adam’s bringing the Dry Gulch up to snuff with all that tech stuff. I swear he can tell you how many bulls got lucky last night with just a couple of double clicks.”

  Travis seriously doubted that and didn’t want to even think about getting lucky, since he was certain he wouldn’t be.

  “I have my laptop with me,” he said. “I’ll check for flights.”

  “Good idea,” R.J. said. “Password is NOTLAD, all caps. That’s
Dalton spelled backward. Had to find something I can remember. My memory being what it is these days, I can’t always recall something as simple as that.”

  Travis turned on the computer and began to scan for available flights. As he suspected, the last direct flight out tonight left in forty-five minutes. No way could he make that. There were a few later flights, but they went around the moon to get there and didn’t make it until tomorrow morning, anyway.

  Faith was hanging over his shoulder, so he didn’t have to explain the situation to her. What he needed was to get her out of the room while he made a call and booked a charter flight. One that would cost him a small fortune and get him to Laredo as quickly as possible.

  He pushed back from the antique mahogany desk where he’d been working. “We need to talk, Faith.”

  * * *

  TRAVIS LOOKED EVERY bit the classic hero, from the rugged planes of his face to the piercing stare that seemed to see right through her. But tonight there was no smile to add that mischievous flair to his lips. No swagger to his step once he’d taken that phone call on the porch.

  Yet even with tension so thick it seemed to squeeze the air from the room, she was drawn to him in a way she’d never been drawn to any man. More than sensual. Far more than physical. A mysterious bond that made her ache to trust him.

  In spite of that, she knew he was holding back, keeping things from her. Protecting—or manipulating? Either way, she wouldn’t be humored and kept in the dark.

  She walked over and sat on the edge of the bed, the new mattress barely giving beneath her weight. “We do need to talk, Travis, but honestly. I admit I’m naive, especially where Cornell is concerned. But I’m not stupid.”

  “I never thought for a second that you were.”

  “But you’re treating me like I am.”

  He stood and began to pace the room, avoiding eye contact. “How do you mean?”

  “You said there was a credible lead, but I didn’t hear any relief in your voice—not when you were talking to the caller or to me and R.J. Your words say one thing, your body language something completely opposite.”