Page 55 of One in a Million
“Not really. I just need to see a friendly face. How’s Baby doing? Will she be ready to show next weekend?”
“She’s ready now. So far, the only challenge will be to keep her at this level until the shootout.” He gazed down at Lila, fighting the urge to cup her face in his hands and gaze into her eyes. The last time they’d parted, she’d been angry when he appeared to question her innocence in Frank’s death. Now he found himself wondering how he could have doubted her.
“You look like you could use a rest,” he said. “Are you taking care of yourself?”
“I’ll be fine. But it’s been a hellish day.”
“I heard about the ruckus over at Charlie’s place and the dead calf,” Roper said. “I thought it was Darrin’s job to take care of the cattle.”
“It is. At least it’s supposed to be. After we found the calf, I called and turned the whole mess over to him. He did show up, but I can’t count on him to follow through. He passed out guns to the cowboys and assigned them to their guard stations, and then he went home. Some excuse about his wife not feeling well.”
“So he dumped the responsibility back on you.” Roper made no secret of his contempt for Darrin. “Maybe you should give the job to his mother.”
“Don’t even mention Madeleine to me. I got into it with her over lunch. Maybe I should be relieved that the gloves are off and the pretending is over. But it was brutal. The woman is out for blood. And she won’t let up until I’m gone and the ranch is hers again.”
The groom, a young man called Cruiser, had come out of the stable to take Million Dollar Baby. One of the prettier girls, looking flushed and rumpled, waited for him inside the stable entrance. Roper could guess why the boy hadn’t been right there to take the mare after her workout. He’d warned Cruiser once that these shenanigans wouldn’t be tolerated. Should he warn him again or just fire him in the morning?
He would sleep on it, Roper decided. Right now, Lila was here, and he didn’t want to break away from her to dress down his employee.
“So, what do I do now?” she asked. “Should I ride out and check on the cowboys myself, or can I trust them to do their jobs? Some of them are just kids—barely eighteen or nineteen. There’s a deadly animal out there, and nobody’s in charge. Darrin should be out there with them, or at least close enough to be in touch.”
“Do you want me to stay?” Roper asked. “It wouldn’t be any trouble.”
She hesitated, maybe thinking of the rumor her enemies might start if he were to spend the night at the ranch. “No, it’s not your job. Just make sure the stable is secure when you leave. That creature, whatever it is, had plenty to eat this morning. We can only hope it won’t need to hunt again soon.”
“Have the cowboys got walkie-talkies?”
She nodded. “They were Frank’s idea. He insisted that they take them and know how to use them. I’ll have one at the house, too, if the signal will reach that far.”
“Good idea. If they stay in touch, they should be all right. I’ll say this for Frank—he knew how to run a ranch. But then, he had you to help him.” Roper added the last thought lest she think he was belittling her own invaluable work. “You and Frank made a good team.”
“Yes, in some ways, we did. I need to go.”
“You’ve got my phone number,” he said. “If there’s trouble, or if you need anything, call me. I can be here in fifteen minutes.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.” She was already on her way out of the arena. Roper watched her go. Then he went back into the stable to check on the horses and to make sure the outside doors, which were never locked in case of fire, were latched. The roar of a motorcycle from the employee lot told him that Cruiser and the girl were leaving. He couldn’t count on a couple of hormone-crazed kids to close up. But they’d done it right. All the horses had hay and water, the brood mares and their foals were in their stalls, and the doors were closed as they should be. Maybe he would let the boy off with a lecture this time.
He knew that he was too softhearted. Frank would have fired the young Romeo on the spot. But tonight he was too tired to argue with himself.
As he walked back along the row of stalls, One in a Million thrust his regal head over the gate, nickering for attention. Roper paused long enough to stroke the stallion’s neck and talk to him for a moment. “What’s this, old boy? Are you feeling neglected? We’ll see what we can do about that tomorrow. I promise you a good workout with lots of petting.”
Leaving the horse, Roper exited through the arena, closing the stable doors behind him.
* * *
From beyond the border of the McKenna Ranch, the wail of a prowling coyote echoed on the night wind. Stirring from sleep on the front porch, the dog barked a warning, then settled back into dreams.
Turning over in bed, Roper raised himself on one elbow to check his bedside clock. It was 3:00A.M., too early to start the day. But after a night of lying awake, staring into the darkness, and worrying, he’d given up on sleep. Maybe getting dressed and moving around would settle his nerves.
After pulling on sweatpants and a tee, he picked up his cell phone and dropped it into his shirt pocket. It probably wouldn’t ring, but he’d promised Lila that he would be there for her if she called. Roper was a man who believed in keeping promises.
Barefoot, he padded across the living room, opened the front door, and stepped out onto the porch. The night breeze was cool on his damp face. He inhaled the fragrances of sage and dust. The dog raised its head and thumped its tail. He reached down and rubbed its ears.
Only then did he notice a dark shape huddled on the top step. Moving closer, he recognized Cheyenne, wrapped in a thin cotton blanket.
“Hey,” he murmured, not wanting to startle her. “Are you all right?”
“Fine,” she said in a flat voice. “I know I should try to sleep. We’ll be leaving for El Paso tomorrow. The boys will be doing most of the driving, but I’ll be the relief driver. I owe it to them to be alert.”