“Blast it!” He desperately needed to put his mind on something else.
The land deal. He had business he needed to ponder, decisions to make. He hoped someone from the fort had word for him from the consortium. Had they met as scheduled, or was there another meeting date set? He could hardly stand not knowing what was going on.
He wished he could go on to Red Rock Junction from the fort and find out if anyone knew anything about the meeting, but he couldn’t. He’d lost a number of cattle during the blizzard, and he and his ranch hands had had a huge job disposing of all the carcasses. Routine work on the ranch was lagging, and he needed to catch up on chores and duties at home.
As soon as he arrived at the fort he went to see the colonel. He was dying to know if Colonel Harrison had news from the consortium, but he didn’t rudely rush into a litany of questions. He made time instead to accept the colonel’s invitation to coffee and apple pie on the porch where they enjoyed the unseasonably warm early-December day. Once they’d covered the topics of the melted snow and the warm days over the past week and talked over the news from the fort, Jase moved straight on to the question burning in his gut. Had Colonel Harrison heard from anyone in the consortium?
He hadn’t.
Jase politely stayed another few minutes before he moved on to the other urgent need burning inside him.
He was starved for the sight of Marietta, and he couldn’t wait another minute to see her. He moved quickly to the Carson home. A thrill coursed through him when Marietta answered his knock on the door.
She wore the black woolen dress she’d worn the first night they were together at the Carsons’. It fit her better this time than it had the last. It had seemed a little large on her small frame before, but now it hugged her curves in a most provocative way. Her auburn hair flowed over her shoulders. The emerald-green eyes she cast up at him set his heart to beating wildly.
“Hello, Miss Randolf.”
“Mr. Kent, won’t you come in?” She opened the door wider, and he stepped inside.
“I hope I’m not intruding.”
“Not at all. We were expecting you today.” She waved her hand toward the sofa. “Won’t you sit down?”
He took off his hat and coat and hung them on a hook near the door. He turned to her and slipped his hand to the small of her back. Perhaps he shouldn’t have touched her as audaciously as he did, but he couldn’t help himself. And she hadn’t stepped away from him.
Now that he was with her again, he felt alive and satisfied. Once she sat down he made himself comfortable beside her.
“Any more fainting spells?” he asked.
She shook her head. “No, indeed. I’m fit and healthy. Amy has made sure I’ve had plenty of rest.”
“I’m glad to hear that.” He smiled at her. “Where is everyone?” he asked, looking around the room.
“Amy took Zack with her to pick up some supplies from the commissary. He didn’t want to go because he knew you were coming, but when she bribed him with the promise of a candy stick he couldn’t resist.”
“She had to bribe him to go to the commissary? But Zack loves to go there. Gus always gives him a cookie or a pickle.”
“Really?” Marietta raised her lovely brows. “Amy had to practically drag him out of the house until she promised him the candy stick.”
Jase frowned. “I don’t like the sound of this.”
A look of concern filled her verdant eyes. “Zack isn’t doing well at all, Mr. Kent,” she said in a most disheartened manner. “His reluctance to accompany Amy to the commissary is only one example of the dreadful behavior he displayed this week.” She wrung her hands. “The boy is nothing like he was when we were in the shack. Despite our difficult circumstances, he was happy there. Now, when his comfort far exceeds anything we had in our primitive cabin, all the life has gone out of him. I think it’s because of you, Mr. Kent.”
“But I’ve done nothing to harm the boy, Miss Randolf.”
“No, of course you haven’t. I think Zack is misbehaving because he’s heartsick over not being with you. He’s terribly fond of you, and he misses you something awful.”
Jase looked away. “I know how he feels. I’ve missed him fiercely this week.”
“This separation must be difficult for you too.”
“My house has never been so empty,” he said, looking at her again.
Marietta left the sofa and went to the window which looked out on the compound. He followed and stood behind her, inhaling her sweet scent, staring at the silky hair lying softly around her shoulders.
“Everything keeps getting worse,” she whispered. “How bad must it get before things start to get better?”
He touched her shoulder and gently turned her to face him. “I don’t know.”
“I can’t bear to see Zack suffering. I feel horrible for the poor boy.”
“I know what you mean. You should have seen him when he walked in on his parents after they were-- ” He cut himself off.
“Zack saw Kathy and Clint after those savages... ” She started to weave, and he quickly took hold of her shoulders to steady her.
“No, Miss Randolf. He didn’t see them. He was with me when the attack happened. When I took him home, he ran into the house ahead of me, but he stopped in the doorway when he saw blood on the floor. I made him stay outside while I checked on Kathy and Clint. Once I knew it was too late for me to help them, I took him back to my ranch and left him with Mrs. Whipple while I went to report the crime and tend to the bodies.”
He took her back to the sofa. “Let’s sit down. We don’t need to talk about tragic things anymore.”
“My God in heaven, dear sweet Lord, how could anyone hurt them that way?”
“Please, Miss Randolf. Don’t think about Kathy and Clint. You’ll make yourself sick, and you need your strength to care for Zack.”
She nodded as she took a hanky from her pocket and wiped her eyes.
How he wanted to take her into his arms and comfort her!
“Mr. Kent, what am I going to do? Zack is so upset.”
Jase couldn’t say what he had to say and look her in the eyes at the same time. He needed some distance between them so he could speak as dispassionately as necessary to her. He stood and took four steps to the sideboard next to the wall. He leaned against it and folded his arms.
“The boy will adjust. He had a terrible time the first two weeks after his parents’ death, but he came around. Not that he’s completely gotten over what happened--he’ll never get over that--but he did come around enough to get on with his life. He’ll face this next challenge in his life just as bravely because he has to.” He hoped his words didn’t make him sound heartless, but life was hard, and even children had to learn to live with cruel blows.
“Do you really think he’ll be able to adjust to being with me instead of you?” She didn’t look anymore convinced than he felt.
“I do. Give him time.”
He unfolded his arms and pressed his hands into the sideboard behind him.
With her gaze firmly attached to his, she walked toward him.
He swallowed hard as she crossed the room to be near him. “He’ll be all right, Miss Randolf.”
She stood two feet in front of him, looking up at him with eyes as verdant as a spring meadow. More than anything in the world, he wanted to gather her into his arms. Instead, he blinked and looked away. “I’ll have another talk with him if you think it will help.”
The front door swung open, and Zack flew inside like a bird lighting away from a cat. “Jase!”
The cowboy bent and scooped him into his arms. Deep, abiding affection poured from his heart. He loved Zack as though he were his own son. He hugged him with as much might as he could use without breaking the boy into pieces.
“How are you, Zack?”
“I’m happy now, Jase. I missed you powerful much. Can you stay here for a week this time?”
Jase set him on the sideboard. “I’m a
fraid not, son. I have a great deal of work to do on my ranch.”
“Can I help? I’m good at ropin’--you said so yourself. And I can pitch hay or milk the cows or muck out the barn. I’ll do anything, Jase. You need me.”
Jase glanced at Marietta, certain Zack’s words were breaking her heart. She couldn’t help but feel rejected even though she’d not mentioned it. “I’ve got all the help I need, son.”
“But Spike and Lone Wolf and Miguel might need me to make up fresh bunks for them. That was my job, you know.”
“It was, but the boys are doing their own chores now.”
Jase had never seen dejection hit someone as hard as it hit Zack. The boy’s lower lip began to quiver. He looked down at his hands. “You truly don’t need me anymore? No one needs me anymore.” He slid off the sideboard and ran outside.
Jase looked at Marietta. “I’m sorry, Miss Randolf. It seems I’ve made matters worse.”
She put her hand on his shoulder. “Go to him, Mr. Kent. Find the right words and set the boy straight.”
Jase took her hand from his shoulder and wrapped it inside his fingers. He stared down at her intently, doubting he could do anything but hurt Zack even further. “I’m not sure I know the right words.”
“You love the boy. You’ll find the right words. I know you will.”
He touched her hair with one hand as he squeezed her gentle fingers with his other. He gazed into two lovely emeralds set in perfect symmetry above her exquisitely shaped nose. “I hope your confidence in me is well placed.” He withdrew his fingers from her hair.
“I’m sure it is,” she replied, gifting him with a warm smile.
He let go of her hand and turned toward the door. Before he reached it, Amy came inside.
“Jase, what’s going on?” she asked. “Zack ran toward the house like a bee was chasing him when he caught sight of your horse, and now he just took off lickety split toward the barn.”
“We had some rough words, Amy. I’d better go after him. Miss Randolf can tell you what happened.” He grabbed his hat and coat from the hook by the front door and turned to Marietta. “I’ll see you later, Miss Randolf.”
“Of course, Mr. Kent.”
“You’re staying for dinner, aren’t you, Jase?” Amy asked.
“I am now.” He grinned at her and tipped his hat as he went out the door.
A few minutes into his search he found Zack in the barn petting the filly born during the blizzard.
“She’s going away,” Zack said sadly.
“Who?”
“The filly. I finally thought up a name for her, and now she’s going away. We learned at the commissary the man who owns the mare came to the fort today. He’s taking the mare and filly home with him. The mare ran away during the storm.”
“Oh.” Jase acknowledged another of Zack’s losses. “Well, it’s a good thing the little foal has a home to go to with her mother. They must have felt lost being away from home.”
Zack looked up at him. “I know how that feels.”
Jase squatted next to him. “Suppose I talk to the man who owns the horses and ask if the filly can stay here. He could take the mare home, and you could keep the filly with you. How would that be?”
Zack furrowed his brows. “You mean take the baby away from her mother? But they’re a family.”
Jase shrugged. “So? The filly likes you too, doesn’t she? Maybe she’d rather be with you. You want her to stay with you, don’t you?”
“Yes, but she needs her mother.”
“More than she needs you?”
“Well, sure.”
“But why? You both love the filly, don’t you?”
“I guess, but the mare is the filly’s family.”
Jase nodded his head slowly. “Oh, I see. So, even though you love the little horse and you need her, you’re willing to let her go so she can be with her family?”
“I have to. I wouldn’t want the filly to be away from her family.”
Jase picked up Zack and walked over to the mare. The two of them stroked the horse’s hide for a minute or two before they moved on to the baby. They gave her the same attention they’d given the mother. When they left the barn, Jase set the boy on the post of a hitching rail.
“I’m sorry I made you feel bad a little while ago, Zack. I do need you, son, and I love you very much. You know that. Ever since you were a baby, we’ve been real close friends, haven’t we?”
Zack nodded. “But, if you need me and love me, Jase, why can’t I stay with you?”
“For the same reasons you wouldn’t let that filly in there stay here without her mother. Just as the baby horse needs to be with her family, you need to be with your aunt. It’s what your mother and father wanted, Zack. They wrote it down on a piece of paper I found when I cleaned out their house. Your folks left word that if anything ever happened to them they wanted your Aunt Marietta to take care of you. She’s your family.”
Zack rubbed his eye and looked up at Jase. “Is it hard for you to let me go with Aunt Marietta like it’s hard for me to let go of the filly?”
He cupped the boy’s cheek with his palm. “It’s the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do in all my life, but it’s the right thing, Zack. You belong with your aunt.”
Zack threw his arms around him. “I love you, Jase. No matter how far away I am from you, I’ll always love you. I’ll try to be happy staying with Aunt Marietta. I do like her, but I don’t want to leave you.”
The boy might as well have gone into the barn, picked up a pitch fork, and run it through Jase’s heart. He’d found the right words to say to Zack, but Zack had some pretty powerful words of his own, words which could be as lethal as any deadly weapon. “We’ve each got our own lives, Zack. Yours is with Miss Randolf, and mine is here.”
Jase lifted him from the hitching post and carried him out into an open area of the compound where he set him on his feet. “How about a foot race?”
Zack looked up at him. “You can stay and play for a while?”
“We have the whole afternoon,” Jase said, smiling.
He let out a cheer. “Then let’s go riding. I miss Beaumont almost as much as I miss you, Jase.”
“All right.” He inclined his head toward Zack. “I’ll race you to Beaumont. The first one there gets to sit up front.”
~ * ~
Two days after Jase visited the fort, a stranger stopped by the Carson home. The man introduced himself as James Richards. Marietta was in the middle of baking a large batch of sweet rolls when he came to their door. She had little time to talk to him, but when he said he was looking for Jase and needed to speak to him on a business matter, she invited him inside.
She gave him a cup of coffee and explained he needed to see Lt. Carson or Col. Harrison to get directions to Jase’s ranch.
When she returned to the kitchen after Mr. Richards left, Marietta found Zack stuffing his fingers into the sweet roll dough and pulling out handfuls of the mixture which he promptly placed into his mouth.
“Zack! Don’t eat the dough like that. It’s much better after it’s baked.”
“I like it this way,” he said, wiping his wrist over his mouth.
Marietta smiled and leaned over to kiss his cheek. The boy had spent most of his time moping since Jase had left, but he seemed to enjoy being in the kitchen while she baked rolls. Understandable, considering how he loved eating them before and after they were baked.
“What did the man who came to the door want?” Zack asked.
“Mr. Richards needs to see Mr. Kent on business.”
“He’s going to see Jase?”
“Yes. He went to find Lt. Carson or Col. Harrison in order to get directions to Mr. Kent’s ranch.”
“I could’ve given him directions. It’s easy. You just ride a ways that way,” he said, pointing west, “until you come to this big tree which fell over long before I was born. Then you turn toward the butte and go until you see a patch of wild roses. After
that, you turn toward the Indian burial mound. Once you get to the burial mound, you can see Jase’s place. See? Easy.” He took another piece of raw dough, put it in his mouth and wiped his hands on his pants. “I’m going to find Gus to see if he wants to arm wrestle.”
“Okay.” Marietta’s heart felt ten pounds lighter now that Zack’s mood seemed happier. She was glad she’d let him help her with the rolls. “Button up your coat, and don’t forget your hat.”
“I will, Aunt Marietta.”
Zack slammed the door on his way out, and Marietta hoped his noisy exit hadn’t disturbed Amy. She’d lain down because she had a sick headache.
Roll baking was a time-consuming task, and, before Marietta knew it, twilight had descended on the fragrant kitchen. Hours had passed, and Zack hadn’t returned.
Where could the child be?
Marietta went to Amy’s room and asked her to watch the last pan of rolls baking in the oven while she went to find Zack. Once Amy agreed, she put on her coat and hat and went out to search the compound. She began to panic when she couldn’t find her little boy anywhere. She located Col. Harrison and asked him if some of his men could assist with her search for Zack. He promptly granted her request.
Three hours later, Zack was still missing. The boy had simply vanished.
Chapter Six
Jase hadn’t had a visit from a stranger for quite some time. He finished brushing down his horse while the approaching buckboard covered the last mile to his ranch. The open countryside in the Nebraska territory made it easy to see approaching visitors from a long distance away.
Jase was inside washing up when his guest arrived. Mrs. Whipple greeted the caller and asked him to wait on the porch while she went to get Jase.
“He says he has business with you,” Mrs. Whipple said in her warm, grandmotherly voice. “His name is James Richards, and he has news from the Red Rock Junction meeting.”
Jase could have picked up the white-haired, sixty-something-year-old woman and spun her around the room.
“Invite him in, Mabel! Seat him in the library and give him coffee or pie or whatever he wants. I’ll be with him shortly.”