Cowboy Doctor

by Rebecca Winters

  “I know. Roce’s home!” Her heart skipped a beat. The dog barked louder than usual. Tracey had never seen her so worked up. “Just a minute and I’ll let you out.” She washed her hands and hurried through the house to open the door so Daisy could run to greet him. Devoted wasn’t the word.

  The second she unlocked it, the dog shot outside. Tracey expected to see Roce’s truck, but he was nowhere in sight. Daisy kept running around her car. “What’s wrong?” She walked closer, knowing she kept it locked. Nothing looked disturbed inside. Maybe an animal had been creeping around. She hoped not a skunk.

  “Come here, Daisy.” She hunkered down and held out her hand. That’s when Tracey saw that her tires were flat. “What?” She got up and ran around to the other side of the car. The other two tires looked like pancakes. Four tires didn’t lose every bit of air at the same time without help.

  Angry heat crept into her face as she realized the culprit must have been outside the house five minutes ago. Daisy was a great little watchdog and had heard someone out here.

  Which one of Wes’s friends had been sent to vandalize her car? Or was it Wes himself? Had they done any other damage?

  Tracey ran out to the highway to see if she could see a familiar truck or car driving away. Several vehicles drove by in both directions, but whoever had done the deed had made a quick escape. She called Daisy to follow her and went back to the front porch.

  Grabbing her phone out of her pocket, she dialed Roce. He answered on the second ring. “Tracey? I promise I’m on my way home.”

  “Thank God.”

  “What’s the matter?”

  When she told him, he said, “I’m calling the sheriff. Either he or one of his patrols will be at the house shortly. Go inside and stay locked in. I’ll be home before you know it.” He clicked off so fast she couldn’t get in another word.

  Tracey went in and watched for him from the living room window. Daisy never left her side. Before long she saw Roce drive up. He leaped from the cab and started inspecting the tires of her car. She rushed over to open the door, and Daisy raced toward him. Roce looked up at her. His grim face said it all.

  “They’ve been slashed. At least no glass was broken to get inside your car. I called my brothers, who were at Mom’s for lunch. They’re on their way over. Once the police are through here, I’m phoning John so he can get in touch with the detective.”

  When Tracey walked up to him, he put his arm around her and hugged her close. “I’m sorry I wasn’t here when this happened.”

  “We know that’s why it was done. Someone has been watching the house and waiting until you were away.”

  After he’d given her a kiss that didn’t last long enough, a police car pulled into the parking area, followed by the sheriff’s car. Behind it came another truck.

  “Good. My brothers are here, too.” Roce let her go and put Daisy back in the house. She didn’t like having the door closed on her.

  The barrel-chested sheriff got out and walked up to them.

  “Sheriff Garson?”

  “That’s right. You’re Dr. Clayton?”

  “Yes. This is Tracey Marcroft, who was hired by John Hunter. These are my brothers, Eli and Wymon Clayton.”

  He nodded to them. “We’ve met at different times. I’ve had several talks with John, who’s just in agony over this ugly situation. Tell me what’s happened here.”

  While the officers went over her car and dusted for fingerprints, Tracey told him what had happened while she’d been in the kitchen. “I’m just worried that there might be other vandalism besides the car.”

  “I’ll ask the officers to check around the house’s exterior. They’ll dust for fingerprints at all the windows and doors, too.”

  “It’s obvious someone who knows Tracey’s car was watching when I left for the dude ranch,” Roce interjected. “That’s when they came around. After your men are finished and can give Tracey a report for the insurance, I’ll run into town and get new tires for her car. But from here on out we’ll keep it with the other cars outside my family’s ranch house when it’s not in use,” Roce asserted.

  “Good idea. I’m glad you’re all here. We need to talk. Will it be all right to go inside?”

  “Of course.” Roce ushered them into the house and asked everyone to sit down in the waiting room. Tracey had never met the Clayton brothers, who were both very attractive. As they took turns reporting what they knew, they exhibited the same authoritative demeanor as Roce.

  The sheriff spoke to Wymon. “Thanks to you, your friend at the criminal records division gave us our first real break in this case. I’m now free to reveal the details. The owner of the truck that Craig Simmonds has been driving is Gil Pilchovsky. He’s a member of the artist guild in Arlee, Montana, and had stored his truck in a warehouse. Only last week did he discover it had been stolen.

  “After that knowledge was fed to the detective working Wes Hunter’s case, Simmonds was finally arrested—the night before last.”

  “Thank goodness,” Tracey muttered.

  “Right now the detective is working on a plan to tie Craig Simmonds, Ramon Cruz and Grady Cox to the horse theft that led to Wes Hunter’s arrest. Thanks to both Wymon and Eli and their surveillance activities at the dude ranch, we now have new information that Mr. Cox was not behaving on the up-and-up.”

  Tracey eyed the sheriff. “Roce suspected something wasn’t right with him.”

  “You Claytons have all the right instincts. The detective did some more investigating and discovered that Cox had produced a false résumé to the Hunter family when he sought employment. It’s been learned that Mr. Cox is not a student at Montana State and was never registered.”

  Tracey gasped.

  “He’s lived on and off with a group of male friends in Conner and has tended bar at several locations in the past to earn money.”

  “They’ve all lied!” she cried. “Wes probably told him to make up that business about college to impress his grandfather.”

  “Afraid so. As soon as the detective went to John with the news, he fired Cox. Told him the police have been informed of what he did. Since they’re already thinking he might have been in on the horse theft, he’d better be careful.”

  Daisy climbed up on the sofa beside Tracey. She hugged her. “It’s unbelievable that Wes could allow his family and grandfather to be used like this, let alone abuse his grandfather’s horse.”

  Roce sat forward. “I’m thinking he planned to steal John’s best horse, Chief, in order to sell him and pay back the five thousand he owes his father, so he can get out from under his thumb. What he didn’t count on was Tracey noticing the limp and getting in the way of his plan.

  “If Sheldon hadn’t stepped in to pay that fine in the first place, Wes would have gone to jail. It’s where he should be. We found out through Fran Hunter that he’s doing his community service somewhere else now,” Roce added.

  The sheriff nodded. “His father found him work on the Skipper fruit farm, between Hamilton and Darby.”

  “Fran is happy he’s still close.”

  “Sheldon wanted it that way, to keep an eye on him. A father doesn’t want to give up on his son. I’m afraid this case is far from over. Mr. Hunter has hired bodyguards to keep him and his family safe, but he’s worried about you and Dr. Clayton. After the damage done to your car, you must take all the precautions you can in order to protect yourself.”

  “Don’t worry,” Roce stated, in the most forbidding voice she’d ever heard. “No one will hurt Tracey. I’ll see to it.”

  “We’ll all see to it,” his brothers echoed.

  “The forensics report on your car will be sent to the detective. Perhaps there’ll be a match that provides a link to the case. Ms. Marcroft? If you’ll come outside, we’ll see if the officers have finished thei
r business.”

  Tracey went with him and signed the report. They gave her a copy and the three men left. When she turned around, Roce was there to wrap his arms around her.

  “Simmonds is now in custody, and Grady has been put on notice. Knowing the police are watching him, he’s likely not anxious to get into any more trouble right now, I wouldn’t think. That leaves Wes and Ramon. One of those thugs could have slashed your tires. Let’s go in and plan a strategy with my brothers.”

  Once inside, Roce pulled Tracey down on the couch next to him. Eli had been holding Daisy, but let her go now that the door was closed. She nestled in beside Tracey again, warming her heart.

  Eli grinned. “My daughter would be so jealous.”

  “I hear she’s getting a new puppy on her birthday.”

  “That’s the plan. Since we haven’t been introduced, I’ll do the honors. I’m Eli. And this is our big brother, Wymon.”

  Roce clasped her hand. “Sorry, Tracey. I lost my manners. I’m afraid my mind has been somewhere else.”

  “So has mine. It’s wonderful to meet both of you. I’m very grateful for all you’ve done to help us.”

  Wymon sat back in his chair with a smile. “Didn’t Roce tell you we’re the Four Musketeers? ‘All for one, one for all,’ that sort of thing. Toly’s here in spirit.”

  Tracey chuckled, liking his family so much already. The three of them had no right to be so handsome, along with everything else.

  “Who do you think slashed the tires, Roce?”

  He shook his head at Eli. “I don’t know. It could be one of Wes’s toadies that we have no idea about.”

  “That’s what I’m thinking,” Wymon murmured. “An unknown who could show up outside your house with no one the wiser.”

  Eli tried to get the dog to go to him, with no luck. “You have to assume the detective has run a check of everyone associated with the ranch. What about Wes’s wife? It’s amazing how loyal some spouses can be to a man with a criminal background.”

  “I can’t see Fran doing something so terrible.” Tracey looked at Roce. “She was so friendly and kind to me when I first arrived. Remember the day she ran out to the barn with the gift left by the Briscoe family, and we talked?”

  Roce nodded. “She seemed nervous that day, right?”

  “She did. She’s probably trying to hang on to her marriage. Given Wes’s temper and drinking problem, she likely feels she has to be careful not to make a misstep.”

  Wymon got to his feet. “Tracey? If it’s all right with you, Eli and I will buy you a new set of tires in town and be back to put them on.”

  “I can’t let you do that. It’s too much trouble for you.”

  “We want to do it,” Eli declared.

  “Then let me give you a check.”

  “Let them do it,” Roce whispered. “Go on, guys. When you get back you can enjoy our picnic with us. If I know Tracey, she’s made enough food for a dozen people.”

  “That sounds about right, since she has to keep you fed.”

  Eli laughed at Wymon’s joke and they left the house.

  Tracey kissed Roce’s jaw. “They’re wonderful.”

  “That’s what they think about you.”

  “You don’t know that.”

  “I could tell by the way they were looking at you. It’s something you can’t hide. I know I can’t.” He pushed her back gently on the couch and started kissing her.

  The taste and feel of him set her on fire. For a little while she was able to forget the ugliness of what had happened earlier, and gave in to her hunger for him. But their euphoria didn’t last long. The telephone had a way of interfering at crucial moments. It was driving her crazy.

  Roce let out a groan before sitting up to answer it. After a short conversation, she heard him thank Eli before he hung up.

  “Only a few tire stores were open and none of them have your size. We’ll have to check with one of them tomorrow. That means you’re stuck and we’ll have to get along with my truck. I told my brothers to go home to their families.”

  “I’m glad you did. They’ve done more than enough and put their own lives at risk. Roce, I’m worried. You can’t tell me Wes and his cronies don’t have weapons.”

  “I’m sure they do. That’s why we’re going to pack you up and take you to the ranch house until this over.”

  “No, Roce. Moving me there threatens the safety of your whole family. I won’t do it. Either I stay with you, or I’m going home as soon as I can get new tires on the car. Hopefully, I’ll be able to leave some time tomorrow.”

  He stood up. “Be reasonable, Tracey. Our foreman, Luis, will help me organize some of the hands to take turns supplying extra security.”

  “But who will protect you in this house?” she demanded, and got to her feet.

  “I’m going to hire a private detective to do surveillance.”

  “That’s too expensive.”

  “Not really. Let me worry about it.”

  “You don’t need to hire anyone. I can handle a rifle and a pistol. Our family has done a lot of hunting. If Wes or one of his thugs tries to break in to your house, I’ll be ready for him. All you have to do is lend me one of your guns, maybe?”

  * * *

  THOUGH IT THRILLED Roce that she was fighting to stay here with him, his fear that he could lose her was playing havoc with his judgment.

  “I don’t doubt you know how to shoot a gun, but under the circumstances, I can’t let you stay here alone during the times I’m gone. Since you won’t go to the ranch house, I might as well drive you to Polson now. When your car is ready, I’ll get one of my brothers to follow me to your parents’ home so I can return it.”

  A hurt look crossed over her beautiful face. “Why do I get the feeling you’re glad this has happened?”

  “What in the name of heaven are you talking about?”

  “Even though we’ve both admitted we’ve fallen in love, maybe too much togetherness has gotten to you. I was afraid this would happen. You haven’t been a bachelor all these years for nothing.”

  He shook his head. “I haven’t lived like one since I met you. I’ve never asked a woman to live with me. Doesn’t that tell you anything?”

  She bowed her head. “I don’t know what it means, except that I was too eager to move in with you and now you’re anxious for me to leave. Since you haven’t tried to make love to me, it makes it much easier to—”

  “You know why I haven’t,” he interrupted.

  “I do, actually. You’re a man who’s been taught to honor a woman.”

  “Would you rather I didn’t?”

  “No, Roce.” She half moaned the words. “I mean—that’s not what I meant.”

  “Then help me understand.”

  “I don’t think I can.” Her voice faltered.

  “Try.”

  “All I’m saying is that we both got carried away with our emotions. I made a mistake by moving in here so fast after only knowing you for a week. I’m horrified to think that my being here has provided Wes with a double target. But since we’ve been living together these last seven days with no strings, it’s the perfect time for me to leave. Surely you have to know that I’m indebted to you for everything you’ve done.”

  “It’s gratifying that you feel that way, but I’m not hearing anything close to the truth.”

  He could hear her shallow breathing. “I need to put the sandwiches in the fridge before we leave.” She started for the kitchen.

  “Since you’ve made them, I’m ready for a late lunch.” With Daisy at his heels, he followed her and walked over to the counter to unwrap one. He ate it in a few bites and reached for another sandwich. “These are delicious. What’s that flavor?”

  “An avocado dressing with
minced lemongrass.”

  “Fantastic.”

  “Please don’t say I could open up my own deli.”

  “I wouldn’t dream of it. For your information I have a much better job in mind.”

  “I’d rather not hear it.”

  “Then I’ll let this speak for me.”

  He pulled out the ring that had burned a hole in his pocket since she’d agreed to live with him. Reaching for her left hand, he slid it home on her ring finger.

  Roce leaned against the counter while he waited for a reaction. It took a long time to come. She moved her finger this way and that so the dazzling gemstone would catch the light.

  The sapphire shop his mother owned and ran farther up the mountain was a Clayton family legacy. He’d been up there to see his mom the week before and had asked her to show him the violet sapphires mined on their property.

  Her smile had said it all. She’d worried about him for so long. Now his secret was out. After giving him a huge hug, she’d poured some gemstones from one of her many pouches onto the velvet runner. The second he’d spied the two-carat sapphire, he could see Tracey’s eyes in its color and had asked his mother to set it in a medium-width white-gold band.

  Except for the thud of his heart and Daisy’s begging sounds, quiet reigned in the kitchen. He fed the dog part of a sandwich to keep her quiet.

  “How long have you had this?” Tracey’s tremulous voice revealed the depth of her shock.

  “I bought it from my mother last week while I was checking on one of the calves.”

  Tracey turned to look at him, clearly confused and mystified. “Your mother?”

  “It’s obvious you don’t know the story about the Sapphire Mountains. They’ve yielded around one hundred and eighty million carats of sapphire over the last hundred plus years. Some of the fractured stones used for industry ended up in Switzerland for watch bearings.

  “Right after World War II, people starting digging for them. Our family brought sapphire gravel out of the mine on our property and opened the Clayton gem shop. Some people still try to find an uncut gem on their own, but most prefer to visit the shop my mother owns and see the sapphires on display.”