Dorothy Garlock - [Tucker Family] (26 page)

“The only reason that I am here is Owen,” Charlotte told him, eager to provide another example of how utterly mistaken everyone
at the Grant Ranch was about Owen. “I was frozen in place. I wanted to move, but looking at those horses barreling toward
me, I just couldn’t will myself forward. Owen came to me. If it wasn’t for him…”

“Hale told me all ’bout it. Don’t think that it’s gonna go unrewarded.”

“He’s a good man.”

“Even more than I gave him credit for, it seems.”

Charlotte couldn’t help but read into what John was
telling her; he had such an easygoing nature, grandfatherly and warm, that he was nearly impossible to figure out. She knew
that she could go crazy trying to unravel all of the mysteries she had encountered in Oklahoma and, quite frankly, she was
too tired to try tonight.

“Been a long time since we had horses get so out of control,” John said. “Usually it’s only one or two that get out of sorts.
Today must’ve reminded you of the days you can’t control them kids at school.”

Charlotte struggled to fix a smile on her face. Ever since the stampede at the corral, all she’d been able to think about
was the shocking sight of the heavyset ranch hand violently swinging a board into the horse’s rump. It seemed so impossible
that she began to wonder if she’d imagined it or it was a misunderstanding. He’d been quite a ways away from her, down on
the far end of the procession of horses, but she’d been looking right at him. Surely, he couldn’t have done what she thought
he had?

From somewhere deep inside her, Charlotte thought it might be a huge mistake to tell John what she had seen. Likely, he would
think she was traumatized from nearly being trampled. If he
did
believe her, he’d want as many details as she could give him; maybe he would even walk her about the ranch, expecting her
to pick out the man she had accused. The worst would be if he thought she was lying. Her growing relationship with Owen would
cloud any claim she might make; after all, wouldn’t she
say anything to remove suspicion from the man she had become romantically involved with?

Before she did anything, she needed to talk to Owen. They needed to be united before any decision was made.

“Let’s just hope that there isn’t a next time,” she said weakly.

“Amen to that.”

As John walked away, Charlotte swore to herself that she would talk to Owen and they would get to the bottom of what was happening
on the ranch. From the fire, to the well, and now to the stampede of horses, it seemed as if the ranch was cursed. If someone
was behind all that had happened he needed to be stopped before something worse happened.

T
HE TRUCK’S HEADLIGHTS
cut through the thick darkness that blanketed the countryside outside of Sawyer. Owen, Charlotte, Hannah, and Hale drove
into town to the roller-skating rink. The chirp of crickets and cicadas pierced the night, a keening that rose and fell, sharp
to the ear. The moon hung just above the hilltops; only a few stars were bright enough to compete with its brilliant light.
The night was much cooler than the evenings that had preceded it, and a low hanging fog clung to the air above the creek that
ran parallel to the road.

“Aren’t you cold with the window open?” Charlotte asked Hannah, wedged between her and Owen in the truck’s cab.

“It’s not so bad,” she answered, her hair drifting in the breeze flowing from outside.

Charlotte shivered. “It’s cooler than it has been.”

“Must mean there may be a storm on the way,” Owen observed. “Since we’ve been in Oklahoma, it seems that once the temperature
drops, a day or two later there’s one heck of a storm.”

“I don’t like it.” Charlotte frowned as she rubbed her arms for warmth.

“I wonder if Hale is cold,” Hannah said worriedly.

Hale bounced around in the bed of the truck as it made its way down the dirt road. It was impossible for all four of them
to ride in the cab. With his hair slicked flat over his head, Hale was dressed in his finest clothes; Hannah whispered that
it was the outfit he always wore to church. Charlotte thought that Owen’s sister was flattered she rated so high. But then
they were all dressed up for the night out. Charlotte wished she had thought to bring a jacket.

“Are you doing all right back there?” Hannah shouted out the window.

“What?” Hale bellowed, tapping his ear.

“I said, are you doing—?”

“He can’t hear a word you’re saying,” Owen said.

Instead of continuing to holler, Hannah turned around and blew Hale a kiss. His face instantly flushed deep red.

“I still don’t think it was such a good idea that you came along,” Charlotte said to Owen. “A good night’s sleep is what you
need.”

“There’s nothing wrong with me.”

“Oh, really,” Charlotte said as she lightly brushed her fingers against his ribs.

“Ouch!” Owen winced, the truck weaving enough for Hale to rap his huge hand against the window out of concern. “Knock it off!”

“That’s what I thought.”

“You’d flinch, too, if I pushed that hard against your ribs!”

“I barely touched you!”

“It didn’t feel like it.”

“It’s too bad that he didn’t get hit in the head.” Hannah smiled, leaning across Charlotte to give her brother a sly, mischievous
grin. “With all the rocks he keeps in it, he wouldn’t have felt a thing.”

“Very funny,” Owen said sarcastically.

“I’m starting to feel sorry for him,” Charlotte added, getting in on the act.

“Why’s that?”

“Do you remember what you said the first time we saw them putting up the roller-skating rink tent? You said that you’ve never
been on skates before.”

“So what?” He frowned. “Why?”

“Skating is a lot harder than it looks. There are a lot of people who aren’t particularly graceful on their own feet, so you
can imagine what it’s like when they strap four wheels beneath each foot. It takes a while to get used to skates. Most people
who have never been on them before tend to fall down a lot. Now, imagine what it would be like for a person already hurt.
Falling over and over onto the wooden floor doesn’t sound like a fun evening to me.”

Owen said nothing, staring silently forward, his jaw set firm.

“You better watch it.” Hannah laughed. “If you keep that up, he might turn the truck around and take us back to the ranch!”

Only the two women in the cab laughed.

Sawyer soon came into view; only a few lights shone from the houses on the town’s outskirts, more faintly than the street
lamps that lined Main Street. For a Saturday night, the town was quiet, although there seemed to be more activity at the tavern
farther up the road. A few cars and trucks were parked near the entrance to the roller-skating rink tent. Colored flags lolled
lazily at the tops of the tent poles, stirred by the scant breeze. When Owen parked, organ music floated through the truck’s
open window.

“This is going to be great!” Hannah declared. Whipping open the door, she jumped outside, spreading her arms in the fresh
night air. “C’mon, Hale!”

“Okay.”

“No point in wasting time!” she shouted, not waiting. Hale leaped out of the truck bed and hurried along behind, following
her like a loyal puppy.

Owen smiled. “It looks like fun.”

“Are you sure that you can do this?” Charlotte asked in earnest. “I was teasing you earlier, but you probably will fall down
quite a bit. We can always come back some other night and skate.”

“I’ll be fine, but if you’re so worried about me, then I guess you’re gonna have to stay close to me to make sure I stay on
my feet.”

Charlotte stared at Owen suspiciously. “If I didn’t know better, I’d swear that was your intention all along.”

“I like being close to you, Charlie, but even I’m not dumb enough to let a horse run me over just so I can get your attention!”

After Owen paid the man at the entrance, they passed through a wooden gate and stepped out onto the floor of the roller-skating
rink. Three tent poles rose up from the floor, high into the air, supporting an enormous blue canvas tent. The floor was larger
than she had expected, shining brightly under the glare of the lights that had been strung down the middle of the tent and
around the edges. Waltz music played on a record, broadcast over a loudspeaker hung in the corner, the needle occasionally
skipping a beat. People of all ages skated around and around in circles, the well dressed and shabby alike, both old and young,
some as couples and others with friends, all laughing and smiling as they rolled past, some of them struggling to keep their
balance. Others stopped to rest on benches that had been set out along the edges of the floor. Charlotte caught sight of Paige
Spratt as she skated past, arm in arm with her husband; he was as rail thin and awkward looking as his wife. Charlotte’s fellow
teacher gave her a dismissive look, her nose raised high in disdain. Charlotte stifled a
laugh; tonight, of all nights, she wouldn’t let anything mar her time with Owen.

“Oh, that looks like such fun!” Charlotte exclaimed.

“Sure does,” Owen agreed, though his hand went to favor his bruised ribs.

Over in the corner just inside the entrance, an older man stood behind a tall counter. They gave him their shoe sizes; he
bent down and came back up with skates for them to clamp onto their shoes. They sat down on nearby benches to put them on.

“You slip that through there and then you—” Charlotte said when it looked as if Owen was struggling with his skates.

“I know what I’m doing.” He frowned. “I’m not totally worthless, you know!”

“You could have fooled me!”

Charlotte had come to love the playfulness between them. Though Owen was undeniably rough around the edges, there was much
more to him than she would ever have guessed after their first drive into town. It was comforting to have him with her, sharing
a laugh, giving her guff. But it was when she remembered what he had done for her earlier in the week, how he had nearly been
killed saving her from the slashing hooves, that she realized how special what they had together was becoming. That he had
insisted on coming skating was proof of his interest in her. Taking his hand in hers, she expected him to make some
wise comment, something like
What are you doing that for?
, but instead he only smiled.

“What’s taking you so long?” Hannah asked as she whizzed by, proving to be a natural on her skates.

“We’re coming,” Charlotte answered.

“Isn’t this just what you were wishing for, Hale?” Owen’s sister shouted over her shoulder at her date.

Hale looked as uncomfortable on skates as one of his beloved horses might look in a dress. His huge arms flailed at his sides
as he desperately tried to maintain his balance, sweat dripping down his face. Rather than letting his skates glide over the
wooden floor, he lifted them high before putting them down, as if he were simply walking down the street. All of the other
skaters smiled at him as they went by, steering wide of him out of fear that if he went down he might take them with him.

“This… this is harder… than it looks…” he mumbled.

Hannah turned around and headed right back toward Hale. When he saw her coming, he stumbled, crashing down onto his backside
with such a thud that it seemed the whole rink shook.

“Don’t think for one second that I’m going to try to pick you back up.” Hannah smiled. “You’re on your own!”

Sheepishly, Hale rolled over onto his side and achingly, painstakingly struggled back to his feet; the only thing that he
seemed to have wounded was his pride.

“The next song will be all skate,” a man’s voice announced over the loudspeaker. “Everybody skate.” The
scratch of a record needle was heard, followed by the sound of pleasant organ music. Many of the people who had been content
to sit on the benches set up along the side rose to their feet and began skating, crowding the floor.

“Are you ready?” Charlotte asked Owen.

“I don’t suppose you’d wait for me if I wasn’t,” he answered.

“I would.”

“I know.” Owen smiled, and then pushed off onto the floor.

Charlotte was pleasantly surprised to find that Owen was better on roller skates than she had expected. He took things slow,
grabbing onto her arm now and again when his balance wavered, and fell only once, an awkward landing that caused him to wince
dramatically, his teeth bared in pain. Around and around the rink they went, their hands clasped, troubles momentarily forgotten,
and both of them happy. Hannah and Hale occasionally glided past, Hale desperately trying to keep up, but they didn’t notice,
keeping the evening to themselves.

“All right now,” the man’s voice said on the loudspeaker after a number of records had ended, “it’s time for couples only.
Couples only for ‘The Skaters’ Waltz.’ Couples only.”

More than half of the people who were on the floor retreated to the benches, leaving pairs of men and women for the next dance.
Charlotte was happy to see that Hannah and Hale remained. Hale was so happy to have Hannah’s hands in his own that he blushed
as red as a tomato.

Maybe there’s hope for them yet…

“I suppose that a couples’ dance would mean us,” Owen said softly into Charlotte’s ear.

“It does,” she answered, losing herself in his eyes for an instant.

Charlotte took the lead, taking one of his hands in her own and placing her other on his shoulder; Owen followed with a hand
on her waist. As the music played, a soft medley that reminded Charlotte of a song her grandmother had been fond of, they
skated together, side by side at first, then, to Owen’s surprise, with Charlotte turned so that she was skating backward.

“You’re pretty good at this,” Owen said, impressed.

“I grew up in Minnesota, remember?”

“Where your father must have made a fortune in the roller-skating business.”

Charlotte laughed loudly. “No, silly.” She playfully pinched him. “The winters freeze the lakes hard enough to ice-skate on
for months. Being on roller skates isn’t
that
different from being on ice skates.”