A Life Restored (23 page)

Chapter 24

“Boss,” Pedro said to Will in his heavy accent.
 
“Many cattle are gone.”

Ben lifted his coffee mug to his lips taking a sip.
 
Despite the seriousness of Pedro’s news, he wanted to be on his way to town as soon as possible.

“I noticed something’s off, too,” Cahill said.
 
“Didn’t do a head count, but something seemed outta place between the start of the day yesterday and the evening.”

“Rustlers?” Ben asked.

“Maybe,” Cahill said.

Will frowned.
 
“You think it could be some of the same men you ran into on the way to California?”

“Good chance,” Cahill replied.

Ben rubbed a hand across his beard.
 
Too many things were on his mind today.
 
Had he noticed anything unusual?
 
He thought about it for bit.
 
After the boys got back from the drive to California, he had been spending less time with the herd and more time taking Colter beef to their customers in town.

But, he did remember something odd.

“Might be nothin’,” he said.
 
“When the boys were gone, I noticed we had a few strays far off.
 
Saw a rider near ‘em and figured it to be one of our boys rounding ‘em up.
 
Can’t recall if I saw ‘em make it back to the herd.”

“Who was riding out in that area?” Will asked.

“Think it might have been Owens.”

After a long stretch of silence, Will said, “Don’t say anything to any of the cowboys.
 
Let’s keep our suspicions between the four of us.
 
Pedro, try to get the night crew to keep the herd a little closer to the ranch.
 
Cahill, keep an eye on Owens and Whitten during the day.
 
Make sure there’s nothing funny going on there.”

“Ya thinkin’ inside job?” Ben asked.

“Might be.
 
Best to be careful.
 
Owens, Whitten, and maybe Bates would be the ones I trust the least.
 
Ben, keep an ear open when you’re in town.
 
See if you hear any rumors about rustlers.”

Ben nodded as Will stood, ending the meeting.
 
He picked up the basket he set on the table and eagerly headed out the door.
 
Taking a deep breath, he let the concerns of rustlers fall to the back of his mind.
 
He had more important things to worry about.

He smiled as he dropped the basket and blanket into the wagon behind seat.
 
He was pretty pleased with himself for thinking up such a great surprise for Betty.
 
She never took time off from running that boardinghouse.
 
Well, today he would make sure she did.

She wouldn’t have a thing to worry about either.
 
After services on Sunday, Ben pulled Paul aside and shared his plan.
 
Paul reassured him that he would make sure everything was taken care of at the boardinghouse.
 
He’d get the Pengs to plan supper and he would stay in from his claim to help with whatever needed done.

Ben really liked Paul.
 
He seemed to be a great son, always watching out for his ma, in such a way she didn’t even realize it.
 
It was obvious Betty adored her son, too.
 
What grit she had in following him out here, not knowing how harsh the wilderness might be.

Lightness settled over his stomach.
 
He really cared for Betty.
 
He just had a few things to tell her before he could ask her to be his wife—that is if she wanted to after hearing what he had to say.
 
No, he wouldn’t ask her today.
 
Wouldn’t be fair.
 
She’d need some time to absorb the stories about the worst part of him.

He sighed as he climbed into the wagon.
 
Releasing the brake, he set the horse in motion up the hill with Owens riding next to him.

Owens.
 
That kid was starting to be more than a handful.
 
He bucked Ben’s orders whenever he could.
 
He stirred up a bunch of trouble with Adam before the wedding.
 
Thankfully, now that Adam moved into the house there was a little more peace.
 
But, it seemed Owens was looking for his next victim to antagonize and he was deciding between Jed and Hawk.
 
Might just be that he was involved in the missing cattle.

Then there was the alcohol.
 
Ben found more than one bottle of liquor hidden in his bunk.
 
Seemed no matter how many bottles he found and emptied, Owens always had more—stashed all over the property.
 
Course, it didn’t help that Whitten and Snake liked to partake often enough.
 
Ben was pretty sure they helped Owens hide it.

He was sure Owens was the culprit.
 
But, what he couldn’t figure out was where he got all the money for that much alcohol.
 
A bottle here and there, well that was normal for any cowboy.
 
But it was like Owens had cases of the stuff hidden.

Maybe he’d talk to Will about letting the boys off into town on Saturday nights.
 
Most of them would probably want to go, but he and the ones that stayed back should be enough to take care of the cattle.
 
That would mean he would be dead tired for Sunday services.
 
But, if it kept the liquor off the ranch, it might be worth it.

Ben wasn’t just dedicated to keeping out the liquor because of his loyalty for Will.
 
No, he had his own demons he was fighting and he was trying to keep the youngest cowboys from getting sucked into that trap.
 
Jed and Hawk were far too willing to please others.
 
Adam had been a great influence, but if the boys kept getting teased by the older ones, he didn’t think they’d stay clear of trouble much longer.
 
How would they fare if he moved out?

Even though he wanted his own place, he would wait until Betty agreed to marry him before asking Will.
 
He was pretty sure Will would let him build a cabin regardless.
 
He just wasn’t sure he was ready to hand over the boys to Warren Cahill quite yet.
 
It’s not that Cahill wasn’t a good man—he was.
 
It was just that he was much closer in age to the other boys, at least the older ones.
 
Ben wasn’t sure if they would listen to him.

He rubbed his stiff neck with one hand, keeping control of the horse and wagon with the other.
 
Seems the boys did alright with Cahill on the last drive.
 
Maybe he was just being silly.

Or afraid.

It had been a long time since he wasn’t living in a bunkhouse full of men.
 
If he was honest with himself, he was a bit scared at the idea of making such at major change in his life after all these years.

He loved Betty.
 
He knew it.
 
He even prayed about it.
 
Didn’t make it any less frightening to open his heart again.

Betty sighed.

“Aren’t you going out to your claim today?” She asked her son as he filled the wash tub with water and started shaving some soap into it.
 
When she tried to take it from his hands, he blocked her with a broad shoulder.

“I got it, Ma.
 
And no, I’m not going out today.
 
Thought I’d give you a hand here.
 
Maybe even tackle laundry without you.”

Now she was getting annoyed.
 
“You shouldn’t be doing this.”

“You shouldn’t be working yourself so hard seven days a week.
 
You need to take it easier.”

What was he up to?

She heard a wagon pull to a stop in front of the boardinghouse, though since they were in the back, she could not see who it was.

“I believe that’s for you.”

“What are you talking about Paul?”

“Ma, just go look,” he replied with an edge of irritation in his tone.

Slowly she turned, giving in to her son’s request.
 
As she rounded the corner to the front, she let out a little gasp.
 
“Ben!”

Her pace quickened, as did her pulse, and she rushed to greet him.

“Is my schedule off?
 
I didn’t think you were due to deliver more beef until next week.”

He leaned toward her and kissed her cheek.

“Naw, yer tracking it right.
 
Thought I’d surprise ya with a picnic lunch.”

Heat tickled the round flesh of her cheeks.
 
She smiled, getting excited about the idea of an afternoon off.
 
Paul must have been in on it.

“Can ya take some time away?”

“Absolutely.
 
Let me just go—”

“They’ll be fine.
 
I’m sure Paul has everything under control.”

He took her hand, not letting her argue, and he helped her up to the wagon.
 
Then he walked around to the other side and took a seat next to her.

“Thought it might be nice to sit down by the creek.
 
Brought an extra blanket in case yer cold.”

The fluttery sensation, she remembered from the early days of her romance with Henry, returned only this time it had everything to do with the man at her side.
 
For once she had nothing to say.

So, she reached over and patted his hand instead, truly moved that he arranged something so special for her.

“Don’t worry,” he said, “I didn’t make the grub.
 
Hannah took care of that fer me.”

Betty laughed.
 
“I wasn’t worried, Benjamin.”

In just a few minutes, he pulled the wagon up in a clearing near Granite Creek.
 
After helping her down, he reached into the wagon and retrieved two blankets and a basket.
 
He shook out one blanket and laid it on the ground.
 
Then he set the other blanket and the basket there.
 
He helped her sit down before awkwardly making his way to the ground next to her.

“Guess it’s getting harder to sit on the ground.”
 
He laughed the awkwardness off.

She knew what he was saying.
 
It seemed things just didn’t move as limberly as they once had.

Though it was early October, the air was not too cold yet, so she felt comfortable without the other blanket.

“Thought we might talk a bit before eatin’, less yer hungry now?”

“I’m fine.”

In the next seconds of silence, the creek gurgled cheerily by.
 
The sound of miners sifting the dirt upstream faintly floated on the air.
 
The crisp scent of juniper filled her lungs.
 
When was the last time she just sat?

“How are things at the boardinghouse?”

Betty giggled.
 
“Busy as always.
 
Paul has started some plans to build a house with rooms for boarders.
 
Now that the saw mill is churning out boards daily, he’s eager to see us in some nicer rooms.
 
Actually, I think he’s tired of getting booted out of our rooms every time I take in a woman boarder.
 
He says this way, any women needing a place will know they have it and it’s safe.
 
He plans to keep most of the men boarding in the bunkhouses.”

“Ya looking for a nicer place?”

“I’m content with what I have.
 
Like I said, I think it has more to do with Paul than me.”

The silence returned.
 
Instead of it being awkward, it was peaceful.
 
She really enjoyed just being with him and she never felt the need to fill all of their time together with conversation.
 
So she sat comfortably, content to let him lead the conversation.
 
She sensed he had something on his mind.