Page 36 of Reckoning with the Cowboy
He shook his head. “I don’t want to talk about it.” He quickly changed the subject. “I had a dream that Esther Mason was in my hospital room and was about to smother me with a pillow.”
Cordell didn’t know what to say. “That’s pretty weird.”
“One of the state police told me that she provided information about you and me, Josie and Goldie to Grimes.”
“Do you want me to take her out for you?”
“Don’t even joke about that,” Max said. “You got lucky with Grimes, same with Dave. You could have been killed or convicted of a crime.”
“But I wasn’t,” Cordell said, looking worried. “Are you sure you’re all right? The nurse told me not to upset you.”
“You killed two men and you’re acting like…”
“Like life goes on?” his brother demanded. “I almost lost my brother and Josie and my own life. You think I don’t know that I had to kill two men?” He waved a hand through the air. “Instead of curling up in a ball, I bought the old Dry Gulch Hotel. I’m going to reopen it.”
Max blinked. “That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.”
Cordell laughed. “We deal with what happens to us in different ways, bro. This is my way.”
“What does Josie think about this?” he had to ask.
“She thinks the same thing you do, that I’ll never make it happen. But that was the old Cordell Lander. I’m going to turn that hotel into a destination resort and pump some life back into this town.”
Max shook his head. “Go for it,” he said, seeing that there was no dissuading his brother. “Can’t wait to see what this new improved Cordell does.”
His brother grinned. “I just might surprise you.”
“You already have, brother.”
* * *
The first customerwho came through the door of the café sent Goldie’s heart hammering and stole her breath until she recognized the rancher. Yet her hands were shaking as she took him a menu and a glass of water.
“Glad to see you’re okay,” the rancher said. “None the worse for wear.”
She couldn’t say that, but she smiled and took his order. When she turned it in, she saw Maggie watching her with concern. “I’m fine,” she told her.
“Sure you are,” the woman said as if trying to sound like she meant it.
A few more people came in, all talking about Big Blue instead of the crazed criminal who had taken her hostage, and Goldie was glad of it.
“Wonder who took it to start with?” a local man said.
“You know it was those folks over in the Rosebud County. They’ve always been our rivals,” another man said.
“I’m wondering more why they brought it back. I heard Josie hired some local kids to scrub the horse down with soap and water. That’s the kind of pride I like to see in this town,” the woman with them said.
“It’s nice to have it back,” the men agreed. “I missed it.”
That the town could so easily go back to the way it was didn’t help with Goldie’s unsettled feeling. How could something that frightening and life-threatening happen to you and everything go back to normal so quickly?
She took the table’s orders, only screwing up one of them and breaking a couple of glasses and a plate, before Maggie’s daughter showed up. “I could really use the work,” Lindsey said.
Goldie shot a look into the kitchen, where Maggie was busy at the grill and didn’t look up as she did her best to pretend she was innocent. Goldie appreciated the thought. She’d told herself that work was what she needed, but she realized what Maggie had. She wasn’t up to this yet. She took off her apron and smiled at Lindsey. “It’s all yours. Thanks. And thank your mother.”
The teenager smiled and hurried to take care of the couple that came through the door. Goldie wished she was going to the place she had considered home, Max’s place. Instead, she headed for the extra bedroom at her cousin Clancy’s down the block. As she walked, she found herself looking up the road into town as if expecting something bad to roll down the main drag at any moment.
* * *
