Page 9 of A Steadfast Heart
Her questions hadn’t gotten easier as the days passed. “Will she change her mind, Pa?”
“Maybe she came on today’s train, ya think, Pa?”
“Did she decide three kids was too many, Pa?”
He’d had a few words with Jo after that last question. She was the most likely to have planted the poisonous idea that it was Tillie’s fault Leona had backed out. Jo had denied it, complete with another slammed door.
Drew sighed. How did he tell his children that they’d been the subject of a rich girl’s joke?
He didn’t have an answer.
He guided Solomon out of the stand of aspens he’d searched and back into the sunlight. Where to next? He glanced at the sky to judge the time and stopped short.
Buzzards. His eyes squeezed closed.
Lord, please, don’t let it be Curly.
But he had a bad feeling.
He struggled to pull in his next breath. What was he going to tell David? At thirteen, David already knew about loss. But Curly was special.
Drew had been nine when he’d learned not to name all the creatures on the ranch. He shook his hand, trying to forget the feel of Calico’s fur beneath his fingers. That cat had followed him through his chores for the year, always glad when he sent a stream of milk her way.
Coyotes had gotten her.
You gave her a good life, his father had said.That’s all you can do, son.
Drew hadn’t liked the words then, and he didn’t like them now.
He just didn’t have any better.
Hoofbeats sounded from his right. That would be his brother, Ed. He didn’t even need to look. The second youngest McGraw had the knack for always being where he was needed most. He’d never left the ranch, unlike Nick, who’d had a brief stint in teaching school, and Isaac, who’d been with the US Marshals for several years before returning home last year.
No doubt he’d seen the buzzards too.
Drew nudged Solomon to a ground-eating canter. Maybe, just maybe, it wasn’t too late.
Ed guided his bay gelding, Lightning, beside them, matching the pace. He looked up at the birds circling their intended prey, then at his brother, his eyes somber.
A few moments passed before the terrain forced them to slow down.
Ed pushed his hat back on his head. “Mr. Cummins stopped by. Had some news from town. He said that Robbins sold out.”
Drew hadn’t heard. “When are they leaving? We’ll have to get over and get the logs they promised we could cut.”
“Cummins said they’re already gone. Pulled out last Monday.”
“What?” He guided Solomon around a bush. How were they supposed to prove up homesteads with no logs? Their pa had left the original family claim to Drew in his will, but Drew’s brothers needed to prove up their new claims, and he’d promised he’d help. But when? Bills had to be paid and supplies purchased, leaving precious little money for lumber. Aspens might be pretty, but they’d never make a cabin. “Did you hear who bought it?”
Ed shook his head.
It didn’t make sense for the Robbins family to pull out.
Quade. It had to be. Thousands of acres, yet the man still craved more. He’d been buying up so much land that surely his ranch took up a quarter of the county by now.
He wanted the McGraw spread and its water access and had made no secret of it.
Drew loosened his too-tight grip on the reins. Quade had made another offer on their property just last month. He’d said they’d be wise to take it, as everyone knew they’d never manage to prove up by the deadline. Had he known about their deal with Robbins?
