Page 69 of Meant for Her

“Ah…I…don’t remember, exactly. Some place on your property.”

No one forgot where they dug a six-foot deep hole. Their father died in the summer, so digging a grave wouldn’t have been that hard. “Pete, you know every inch of that property. Probably better than we do. I can’t believe you forgot.”

“I mean it was somewhere near the apple orchard, not far from the river. It was one of your dad’s favorite spots to sit when he was feeding the cows.”

Luke stood. “Thanks for your help. Where are you moving to?”

“Not far from here. The owner wants to tear this place down and build something better. I say good riddance.”

Luke held out his hand. “Thanks. If you ever need anything, give us a call.”

“Will do. And I hope you find the sons of bitches who stole your cows.”

“I hope so too.”

Once they said goodbye, they left. The two men were nowhere in sight. Some help they turned out to be.

As soon as Luke pulled out of the drive, he slammed the heel of his hand into the wheel. “Something doesn’t add up.”

Ryan thought something was off too. “What are you thinking?”

“How could he not remember where he buried Dad?”

“It’s a big piece of property.”

Luke shook his head. “I don’t buy it. The snow has mostly melted. I bet if we look around those trees we’ll see some kind of mound. I know where Dad liked to sit.”

“Me too, but the ground will be too hard to dig up.”

“I’ll drive the back hoe out there if I have to,” Luke said.

When Luke was determined to do something, Ryan knew it wouldn’t do any good to stop him. “Anything else seem strange? Besides those two fellows?”

“I didn’t recognize them, if that’s what you’re asking.”

“Do you think Pete paid them to help?”

“What if he did?”

Ryan wasn’t sure why he asked, other than they were about forty years younger than Pete. “I wouldn’t think he’d have the money to hire a mover.”

“I imagine he has a job,” Luke said.

Ryan hoped that maybe Malia’s cousin could do a bit more digging on what Pete had been up to. “Probably.”

“I’m getting the sense you think there’s more to Pete than meets the eye,” Luke said.

“Maybe. Pete seemed friendly enough when we drove up. It’s been almost three years since he’s seen us. I guess I would have thought that he would have asked how we were doing, or more importantly, how the ranch was doing. After all, he spent thirty years there.”

“I told him we were strapped for cash. What more did he need to know?” Luke asked.

“You’re right. He might have moved on from that part of his life,” Ryan said.

For the rest of the trip, they talked about everything other than Pete. “What about Sherman Hicks? I don’t recall Dad talking about him, but do you think he might have decided it was time to collect on some debts?”

“I couldn’t say. Suppose he is behind this mess. I doubt he’d admit to anything if we spoke to him,” Luke said.

“Then where does that leave us?”