At Wolf Ranch (8 page)

Chapter 9

G
abe didn’t turn on any music on the ride over to Travis’s place. Ella’s thoughts grew too noisy, so she focused on the scenery. Snow-dusted plains gave way to towering mountains. She loved the expanse of it, almost as much as the feel of Gabe’s hand holding hers. As before, he took it when she went quiet on him. She didn’t mean to close him out, it just happened when her mind drifted to her sister. She wondered what her uncle was doing right this minute, probably playacting for the cameras while plotting her demise.

The smell hit her first. The putrid scent of cows and manure. She held up her hand to cover her nose and mouth, but ended up with the back of Gabe’s hand to her face. “Oh. My. God.”

“It’s something, all right.” Gabe scrunched his nose.

“You have got to be kidding me.”

“Wait until we round the bend. You won’t believe your eyes.”

“How do you stand the stench?”

“I don’t run my ranch this way.” Gabe turned the corner and she understood.

Cows stood clustered together in large pens, barely enough room to move. Manure and urine soaked the ground. Hay and feed were piled in the corner of the pens, not in feed troughs to keep the animals from stepping on and soiling their food.

“This is inhumane.”

“Tell me about it. Travis has enough land to run the cattle, let them graze at will and feed them in the troughs out in the pastures, but he’s too lazy and greedy to do it right. He’s lost half his cowhands because of this crap. Some of the guys have worked this ranch for years, but after Travis’s father died a year ago, this place has gone to shit.”

“Literally,” Ella finished for him. “This place is depressing. Look at that.” Ella pointed out the window to one of the pens. “That cow is dead. Has been for a few days by the looks of it and no one has taken it out of there and buried it.”

“That’s not the worst of it. Don’t turn around. One of the babies in that pen behind you got trampled.”

Ella turned to look, but Gabe touched her face and turned it away.

“Just knowing is more than enough. You don’t need to see it, too.”

“Gabe, this isn’t right.”

“No. It’s not. These are some of the purest bred cattle in the country. Prime beef. Black Angus. Worth a lot of money. Travis treats them like they’re nothing.”

“The same way he treated me last night when he dumped me in the snow. He’s going to regret that.”

“Oh, he’ll pay,” Gabe said, pulling the truck into the drive behind Travis’s old truck. They got out and rounded the hood to meet in the middle.

Travis stepped out of the nearby barn with a shotgun in his hand pointed at the truck. “Why the fuck did you bring her ’round here?”

Gabe took her hand and held it tight. Travis took three quick, menacing steps closer. Gabe stepped in front and blocked her from Travis.

“Put that fucking gun down before you accidentally shoot yourself, pal.”

“I’ll pump you full of holes for trespassing. Now, I’ll ask you again, why did you bring that bitch here?”

Gabe turned and whispered over his shoulder, “He doesn’t know who you are?”

She shook her head. “No one can know. If it gets back to my uncle that I’m here, he’ll send someone after me.”

“This is a complicated mess, you know that?”

“Thanks for summing it up.”

Gabe frowned but turned back to face off with the gun-toting asshole.

“Travis, all I want is her suitcase. Give me her belongings, and we’ll be on our way.”

“Get off my land.”

Ella couldn’t see Travis while standing behind Gabe, so she stared off to the side at the sad cows, their black hides crusted with dirt. She raked her gaze over their lean bodies, looking for other signs of abuse and neglect. They were dirty and probably hungry, but she tried to tell herself it wasn’t as bad as it seemed. Still, something about the animals nagged at her. She pulled her hand free from Gabe’s and limped toward the fence line.

Gabe caught her by the arm. “Where are you going? The muck is calf-deep.”

“I need to see something.”

“Stop right there,” Travis shouted, swinging the gun at her.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you.” Gabe spoke with controlled calm, but something in his voice hinted at iron.

Travis hesitated a moment before lowering the shotgun with a snort.

Ella hiked her good foot on the rail and examined the cows more closely. The smell really couldn’t be described, though the longer she lingered in this god-awful place, the less the stench overwhelmed her.

“What are you looking for?” Gabe called, exasperation plain in his voice. “Come down from there before you hurt yourself more.”

Angry beyond words, Ella forgot about her sprained ankle and jumped down. She yelped in pain, took two steps, and found herself grabbed by the arms, hauled up and over the worst of the muck, and landed inches from Gabe. How did he move so fast? The flash of intensity in his honey brown eyes only increased her dizziness. She swallowed hard and refocused on the dirtbag three yards away.

“Get off my land,” Travis bellowed.

“Shut the hell up,” she snapped. She rose on her good foot on tiptoe and leaned in close to Gabe’s ear. He held her hips to steady her. She braced herself against him with her hands on his wide shoulders, without considering how natural it was to hold him and be held by him. Good God, he smelled good, like leather and soap and something earthy and uniquely Gabe. “Those cows have the Wolf Ranch logo.”

“It’s your brand. One that commands a high price,” he whispered back.

“It did, but if these animals aren’t treated better, the reputation will be ruined.”

Gabe held her away and frowned, glaring at her and then resting his gaze on the sad animals.

“My first and last priority is their care and well-being. I needed to be sure they’re mine, so I can do something about it.”

“Travis’s father ran this ranch, and ran it well, up until his death. The animals were treated right, and your family made a lot of money off these animals.”

“Enough said. Thank you.” She tried to pull away, but he held her close. Her gaze locked with his. They stared at each other, that strange awareness they both didn’t acknowledge existed pulling at her and him. “What?”

“How much pain are you in?”

“Not enough to stop me from putting ol’ Travis in his place.”

“You two need to get a room,” Travis called, still pacing erratically. His impatience making him even more cranky. “What the hell do you want with me?”

“I’m fine,” she said to Gabe, stepping out of his embrace and ignoring the look that said,
Yeah, right
.

She pivoted around, set her hands on her hips, and stared Travis down. “I want you to use that shriveled, beer-soaked brain of yours for something other than directing your hand to scratch your hairy ass.”

Gabe let out a full belly laugh, which made it impossible to hide her own smile.

“No one disrespects me on my own land.”

“You’re doing a fine job of that all on your own. This ranch is a disgrace.”

Travis made a sound like an angry bull. “I’ll wrap my hand around your scrawny neck and choke the life out of you.”

“You’re not the only one who wants me dead, so get in line. In fact,” she walked right up to him and yanked the shotgun out of his hands, “put that down before you hurt someone. I swear to God, five-year-olds have more common sense than you.”

“Hey, give that back.”

She expertly emptied the spent rounds from the chambers, slammed the gun back together, turned, and shoved the gun stock into Travis’s nuts. Travis dropped to his knees, both hands on his crotch.

“You didn’t even reload after you shot the thing last. Idiot.”

“Hey, city girl, give me that.” Gabe took the gun from her, but she continued to stare down Travis. “Where’d you learn to do that?”

“Dad taught us how to handle guns on the ranch. He had a beautiful Winchester.”

“It’s in the inventory.”

“A girl out on the town in the big city needs to be able to protect herself. They teach all kinds of martial arts and kickboxing classes at the gym. Guys jump at the chance to roll around on the mats with a girl.” She narrowed her gaze on Travis. “They call me Ballbuster.”

Gabe’s hand clamped onto her shoulders and he gave her a friendly squeeze. “You’re more than meets the eye, city girl.”

“You ain’t seen nothing yet.”

“I’m curious about the rest.”

That was a definite innuendo. In other circumstances, she wouldn’t mind getting an up-close look at the tall, well-built rancher. She appreciated his good-natured attitude and the way he defused a situation. Those broad shoulders and contoured biceps sweetened the deal. Something to think about later. Well, she couldn’t stop thinking about him, but now was not the time, and she refocused.

Travis kicked a rock across the yard, looking more nervous than pissed.

He thought her some low lackey like him, working for the company, here to check on Wolf Ranch for the family. He’d been nervous when they met that she’d come to look into something more. He didn’t want anyone to see this place and the sorry state of this ranch and the cattle. He wouldn’t report her to anyone in the company. He couldn’t. Not without alerting them to a problem here, so she went with her gut and tried to set things right for now, until she could implement a permanent solution.

“Now, listen here, Travis. Maybe I didn’t make myself clear last night. I work for Wolf Enterprises. Those are Wolf cattle. You will remove your head from your ass and move those cattle out of those damn pens and transfer them to the pastureland for them to graze and roam. You will feed and water them the proper way and dispose of the dead carcasses immediately.”

She turned to Gabe. “Am I missing anything?” Before he answered, she turned back to Travis. “Oh, quarantine any sick animals away from the herd. Call the vet to check on them and get them well. I think that’s all. You know your job. Do it.”

“You’re not the boss of me. You can’t come in here and order me around like this.”

“You will do as I say or face the consequences a hell of a lot sooner than what’s coming down the road. You got it?”

“Who the hell are you?”

“The woman you dumped on her ass in the snow in the middle of nowhere. The biggest mistake you ever made in your miserable good-for-nothing life.”

“I’ll call the company and get you fired. No one likes a pushy bitch.”

“Call Jim Harrison. I dare you.”

“How did you know . . .”

“I know a hell of a lot more than you. You underestimate women at your own peril. Let’s go, Gabe, I’m done here.”

She limped over to Travis’s truck.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing now?” The words came out whiny, like a kid who didn’t get his way.

“Getting my bag. Lord knows, you’re too lazy to have even taken it out of your truck.”

Sure enough, her sister’s bag sat on the floor of the passenger side. She grabbed the bag and hauled it out. Travis lunged, grasped her shoulder, and spun her around. She twisted her ankle and yelped out in pain, collapsing against the truck door.

Gabe grabbed Travis by the back of his jacket. Travis turned and caught a right hook in the jaw and fell backward and landed on his ass in the dirt.

“Bowden, this is none of your concern,” Travis yelled, holding the side of his face.

Gabe loomed over Travis, hands fisted at his sides and fury in his eyes. “You made it my concern when you dumped her on that road, asshole. You left her out there to die. What is wrong with you?”

“She deserved it.”

“Why? Because she’s got better taste than to find anything appealing about you. Seems to me, her instincts were dead-on.”

“You want her, keep her.” Travis spat, climbing to his feet. “She’s not worth the trouble.”

“She’s not yours to give away, you idiot. But thanks, I will keep her.” Gabe scooped her right off her feet and carried her to his truck. She pulled the door open and he set her inside the cab. “Stay put.”

Gabe took her bag and carried it to the truck, setting it in the bed and opening the driver’s door. He didn’t get in, but stared at Travis. “Don’t make things worse for yourself. Do what she asked. Take care of these animals, or I’m coming back to take care of you.”

Gabe slid behind the wheel, started the truck, and turned them around. He sped down the dirt road and took the right onto the main road back to his place.

“How’d you know Travis’s contact at Wolf?”

“Jim is the head of Western Operations. It was a good guess he’d oversee anyone responsible for the cattle business. I’ll look into it, and Travis will get what’s coming to him.”

“The company isn’t exactly known for cattle.”

She stretched out her leg and tried to adjust her foot to take the pressure off her ankle. “No. Not really. Which is why I don’t remember seeing anything about the cattle.”

“Not exactly up your alley, city girl.”

“No. It’s not. Small appliances make up the major portion of the company. Dad dabbled in other ventures. Farm equipment. Manufacturing machines. He pretty much had his hand in a lot of mechanical things. He liked to tinker.”

“Like the puzzle sculpture.”

“Exactly. Mechanics was his kind of fun. Lela and I recently diversified the business and added a botanical cosmetics line.”

“I don’t know anything about makeup.” Gabe shook his head. “I do know you guys make a killer combine and rototiller.”

“Do you own one of ours?”

“I wish. I guess I won’t need either, or the field topper for that matter. My small tractor is enough for my property. I don’t have the Wolf land.”

“Yes, I guess it would take a great deal of equipment to run cattle on the ranch again.”

Gabe nodded and got this far-off look on his face, thinking about all he’d lost. All the dreams her uncle made him believe in.

“I’m sorry, Gabe. I’ll make it right.”

He took her hand the way he seemed to do so easily and squeezed her fingers. “Not your fault, city girl. I should have seen the lie. No deal that good can be true.”

“I was thinking the same thing about you.”

“What?”