My sleep was dreamless, and I woke up to a beautiful sight. Alison was standing over me, her hair almost covering her face as she gently pushed my shoulder.

“Wake up, you big lump.”

“What time is it?”

“Six. We overslept.”

“We just had a party last night,” I complained.

“Yeah, well, you have to go to the stables and meet Charlie.”

“I thought Jackson was taking care of that.”

“Yeah, but Charlie texted me. He asked you to stop in so he could introduce you to Lightning.”

“Yeah? Horse that skittish?” I asked, and she nodded.

“Okay. Sounds good to me. You coming?”

“I have to go back to the house to change. Grab a shower and meet him. He said six-thirty.”

“Sounds good. See ya, sis,” I told her, and she gave me a pained expression.

“Alison or Ali is fine. After that kiss, hearing you call me sis doesn’t feel right.”

“Fair enough,” I told her, my cheeks burning.

She wasn’t gone two minutes and I was pouring a cup of coffee when I heard a rap on the screen door.

“Mind if I stop in?” Bill asked.

I turned and motioned for him to come in. He looked rested and decked out in his traveling gear, much like he had the other day when he picked me up from the airport. He stood in the doorway wearing khaki slacks, a blue polo that looked comfortable, and the cowboy hat that never left his head out of doors.

“Coffee?”

“Please,” he said, a man of few words. I poured him a cup.

We sipped in silence for a few minutes. I knew he had something on his mind, and I was worried that he saw the kiss last night, or was told of it. I tried not to let myself blush in front of him and wondered what he’d think of things even if he did know about it. He finally broke the silence.

“We’re going to be gone for a couple of weeks. Meredith filled you in?”

“Yeah. Congratulations.”

“Thanks. I just wanted you to know. Your apology yesterday, you really meant that didn’t you?”

“Yes, sir,” I admitted.

“I didn’t make things as easy on you as I should have. Your father had spent a year wasting away from cancer, then poof, he’s gone and I…”

“Ali said you always loved my mom.”

“I did, still do. I loved Carol for a time too. Family; it’s what I’ve always wanted.”

“Yeah, I understand. A lot has happened in a hurry. It’s hard for me to take it all in at once,” I told him, thinking it was coming soon.

“It’s a bad time for me to leave, but I have to,” he said as he refilled his cup. “Timing on this has to be perfect or we start all over with the adoption again.”

“Jackson’s got a plan on things while you are gone. I’m going to help and…”

“Watch Alison for me,” he interrupted. “Don’t let her get hurt.” He finished off his cup of coffee, his eyes never leaving mine. He looked at me hard.

We locked gazes for a long moment, him making sure I got the silent message. I had. I nodded finally, and he put the cup in the sink.

“I won’t,” I told him as he walked out the screened door.

My head and heart were a confused, jumbled mess. I shook it to clear out the mental cobwebs. Did he mean watch out for her, don’t let her get hurt, literally? Like, keep Tim away? Or was he warning me off? How much did he know or suspect?

I grabbed my bag and headed to the bathroom. The water in the old cabin was barely warm, so I hurried in the shower. When I got out, I found a note on the door from Ali that she’d meet me at the horse barn. I smiled, surprised I hadn’t noticed it when Bill had come in.

I pulled my boots on, grabbed the rifle and headed out, grabbing my hat at the last minute. I’d fled this life as fast as I could seven years ago; now I was jumping right back into it. I checked the mags before I left the porch, and went back inside, getting the box. I loaded all three, putting one magazine in the rifle, but I left the chamber empty. I put the extra shells in a breast pocket, knowing that any riding would be uncomfortable with those in any of my pants pockets.

The walk to the barn didn’t take me long, and in the daylight, I could see that I could have easily parked my Jeep here. Note to self for next time.

The ranch was already buzzing with activity. A truck took off from the bunkhouse with half a dozen guys sitting in the bed, their lunch buckets piled up near the cab. Only one or two people were mounted on horses, and it was probably because they were preferring to ride out, or riding fence the other way. Me? I was walking. At least for now.

Inside the horse barn, the four-footed beggars were all waiting. The man I assumed must be Charlie was rubbing down a paint.

“Charlie?” I held out my hand to the man, who grinned at me with white teeth through a dark complexion.

He looked like he was of Spanish and Indian descent, and probably grew up right around here.

“Yeah, that’s me. I heard you need to borrow a horse for some riding.”

“Hi, I’m Cameron, yeah; I’m going to be riding fence on the Bart side.”

Charlie gave a low whistle and put his hand on my shoulder a moment.

“That may not be the safest job on the ranch right now.”

“I’ve heard. I’d like to help, and I’m family now.”

“Yeah, and you have to do what you can for family. I have a big one myself. What you need is a good, fast horse.”

“Lightning?” I asked, breaking the grip and rubbing the paint’s nose.

“Yes. She’s quick, but she has a temper. Don’t let her start steering on her own, or she gets a bit uppity. Might nip you. She’s only thrown me once, but that’s when she was younger. We get along good now,” he said, rubbing her neck.

Lightning leaned her head my way, looking me in the eye and taking my measure. I reached my hand out to pet the other side of her neck and she stomped her hoof. I stepped back, giving her some distance. After a moment, she stepped forward and put her nose into my shirt, getting my smell. She shook her head side to side for a moment, and I scratched her between the ears. She gave me a gentle nudge with her head that almost had me stumbling. Charlie was laughing quietly.

“That means she likes you. That’s a Lightning hug.”

“Well, I’m glad I passed muster.”

“I’d hate to see what would have happened if you’d tried to saddle her without me here.”

“Bad?”

“Yeah. You should be pretty good now. If you’ve ridden headstrong horses before, you know what they’re like when they test you.”

“Yeah, Mom and I sold the ranch I grew up on when Dad died and…”

“Yes. Good then. Feel free to use any tack, just keep her tied off on the lead, otherwise, she’ll try to sneak into one of the cans for an extra bite of feed. She’s a pig, that one.” Lightning shook her head up and down, chuffing air out of her nose at Charlie.

“Okay, thanks.”

“Good, I have to go. I’m taking the last truck with a couple late starters this morning out to the field.”

With that, he was gone, and I had a new friend to win over.

I took Lightning by the halter and led her close to the tack room, clipping a lead to her and looking for a good saddle. I found it and grabbed a blanket. I put that down and started cinching the buckles around Lightning’s stomach and she stomped her hoof again. I figured that was her thing and not a sign like I’d taken it to be before, and as I reached for the furthest buckle, I had to kneel. I felt hot breath on my lower back and knew what was coming next.

When Lightning bit me, it wasn’t a hard bite, more like a playful nip. Regardless, I yelped and started jumping up and down, rubbing my hands over my butt cheek. Damn horse had almost got a chunk. When I calmed down, I got close to the horse and was about to tell her what would happen next time when I heard feminine giggles behind me. I spun around, my eyes wide. Mom and Ali were there, holding onto each other and laughing as quietly as they could.

“Very funny. I’m thinking about taking her to the glue factory already, and you two are over here yucking it up.”

“The surprised look on your face when she bit you…”

And they started all over again.

“Okay, okay. I get it, fart jokes aren’t funny, but getting bit in the butt is?”

“Pretty much,” Alison said, her giggles tapering off.

“I wanted to say goodbye. Bill and I are heading out on a quick honeymoon, and then we’re flying to China. Alison says you’re going to help Jackson run things while we’re gone.”

I looked at her, lifting an eyebrow for effect. Run things?

“I’m going to do some riding. I need to decompress a little bit before I go job hunting.”

“I understand, I do. Now you don’t go looking up any trouble while we’re gone,” she said, crushing me in a hug.

“Love you too, Mom.”

I saw Alison fade back so we could talk for a moment, but I was watching her. Mom was giving me her itinerary for their trip, but Ali was leading Blue to the lead by Lightning, hooking him up. I nodded in all the right places and confirmed the days they’d be calling in. I half listened, but I was watching as Ali saddled the horses the rest of the way. Mom turned to follow my gaze and gave me an odd look.

“Something wrong?”

“No, just surprised how easy it is.”

“What do you mean?” she asked me, never turning away from Alison, who was pulling the straps tight on Lightning now that Blue was done. She loaded the saddlebags on Blue from a backpack she’d been wearing, but I couldn’t tell what it was from this far back.

“This—the ranch, family. I ran from this life when I could. Now I’m back, and I don’t know if I want to ever leave again.”

“Then don’t,” she told me matter-of-factly.

I turned to her, puzzled. Her smile hadn’t changed over the years. Her eyes lit up, and she rubbed my arm. With just a touch, she put me at ease a bit.

“What do you mean?”

“You don’t have to go job hunting. Work here if want. If you don’t, I’m sure you can find work in about anything you put your mind to.”

“Thanks. If we didn’t have such a douche bag for a sheriff, I might apply to be a deputy. I was originally going to be MP… but I don’t even know if that’s what I want to do.”

“Give it time. You’ll figure it out.”

“Thanks, Mom; tell Bill bye for me, would you?”

“You bet.”

I watched my mom walk out of the barn, and I had to smile. Soon I was going to have a new little sister in my life. I had enough cash stashed away that I could probably loaf around for a while, and I’d figured on using that money to buy a car… but having my Jeep, that took a lot off me financially. Having a place to stay was a bonus, and I just hoped the cabin was free for a little while.

“You coming or what?”

“Or what,” I called back.

I put the rifle sling over my back, unhooked, and climbed on Lightning. She just turned her head to look at me, but Alison had put the bit in while I was talking to Mom, and the reins were within easy reach. I turned her toward the door, and Alison and I rode out into the chilly morning. For a few minutes, all we could hear was the hooves of the horses.

“What did you and Jackson talk about?” She broke the silence.

“Not much. Guns.”

“Oh? I thought I heard a little more.”

“Sandy talked to him, after they left the party.”

“About what?”

“You’re about a nosey little girl, aren’t you?” It came out a little harsher than I had intended.

“Yes, especially when I think it was about me.”

“It was, a little.”

“Oh?”

“Apparently, Sandy saw you making eyes at me and wanted to make sure that I was on guard, to preserve my virtue.” The last word coming out falsetto. Two could play this game of picking on the other.

“She what? Your virtue?” Ali breathed an exasperated sigh; she actually sounded a little pissed.

I laughed and made Lightning bolt ahead. I didn’t stay in front of Ali and Blue for long, as I dropped Lightning’s speed to a fast walk. I was still smiling when they pulled in beside me, Ali’s face looking furious.

“She didn’t.”

“Nope.”

“Good, because I’d have to…”

“I was just kidding.”

“Hey, we’re coming up on the fence now.”

“Shit, I forgot fence pliers. I don’t even have a Leatherman on me if we find any breaks or cuts.”

“Already have them. Some cowboy you are turning out to be.”

“I’m not a cowboy.”

“You’re looking like one. Denim, flannel, a nice hat and…” Her gaze went up and down, and it was all I could do to keep a straight face. “Boots. Nice, are those from yesterday?”

“Yeah, it was either my combat boots or these.”

“Black goes with everything.”

Uh huh, my boots. The truth is, we left a lot unsaid there. The attraction seemed mutual, and last night I’d tried to head things off. I’d tried to voice the guilt I felt when we’d talked about that kiss. Looking at her hair coming out of the back of her hat, the wind blowing it around, I had a hard time finding that guilt. I knew if I let myself dwell on it, it’d be there. That was why I couldn’t think about it.

“Already?” I asked as I saw a crazy coiled roll of barbed wire. “I forgot to ask, do I need to hobble Lightning, or will he stay close?”

“She’ll stay close to Blue, and he will stay close to me.”

“Good enough.”

I slid off the horse warily, not wanting a bruise on the other butt cheek, and then pulled some heavy gloves on that Ali had put in her pack. She dropped Blue’s reins by Lightning and followed me with the pliers in her hand. I found one end of the wire, still attached to the post, and frowned.

The shiny gleam of metal showed through a cut in the rusty wire. The outer surface had corroded, but the flat pinched metal with the shiny core showing could only be from a deliberate cut, not a break. I walked to the other end, praying the wire had some stretch in it.

I worked the wire from the farthest post it was still tacked to and unwound the kinks and random snarls from when the wire had snapped back. Finally, I had a section that I could pull within a few inches of the cut side. It appeared that there was enough slack, so I used the pliers to pull it tight, my arms straining. My gloved fingers of my right hand started twisting the heavy wire back together. I wasn’t going to do this by hand and expect it to hold forever, just tight enough to hold until I could get a new grip with the pliers.

“You big dummy, I have two pairs, you know.”

“Oh, thanks. I got it.” My cheeks burned at her scolding. Two pairs would make life easier, but I was committed for now.

I slowly eased the tension off the pliers and let go when it was obvious it wasn’t going to come loose right away. I grabbed both ends of the wire I’d twisted together with the pliers and gave them some more twists, then tucked that parallel with the wire, finishing the quick patch. I handed them back to Ali, and we mounted up again. The sun was just peeking over the mountains now, and soon, it would be full daylight.

“Good thing the posts are spaced every ten or fifteen feet.”

“Yeah, otherwise some of these dumb cows might make a break for it. If they found it.”

“Has that been happening?”

“Some, but not many. Just a little more than normal. We always lose some to dogs or coyotes, and we don’t find much of them when that happens. Lately, it’s been the calves, just after they’re weaned.”

“I thought the ranch always bought young and raised them to size? I meant to ask about that yesterday.”

“We used to, but we’ve been breeding them now too.”

“You’ll have to fill me in on that.”

We rode and talked. The day passed lazily, and we didn’t find any more cuts, and decided to water the horses and break for lunch. Alison led us about ten minutes east of the fence until we came to a low rise, and a shallow basin of water filled a depression in the ground.

My stomach rumbled loudly, making it known that I was ready to eat lunch. When I dismounted, I pulled a smashed sandwich out of my pocket and held it out to Ali. She wrinkled her nose at me and shook her head. The other saddlebag she hadn’t used before, she opened, and she pulled out a thermos and three wax paper wrapped packages. She sat on the low rise and motioned for me to sit beside her.

I took my lame looking sandwich and sat, putting the rifle down beside me and watching the horses poke their noses in the water, smelling it before they started drinking.

“What are you thinking about? You’ve been quiet since the wedding,” Ali asked, handing me one of the wax paper wrapped packages.

I opened it. Looked like a ham and cheese sandwich, no mayo, a little bit of lettuce and tomato. Perfect for a picnic lunch with no fridge handy. I bit into it and tried to find an answer I could live with.

“What you asked me earlier,” I said biting in, chewing.

“Yeah, that was funny how you avoided the question.”

“I was hoping you’d let me slide, but I figured you weren’t done yet.”

“So… What did Jackson want?”

“Warned me about Dade.”

“Him?”

“Yeah. Said he could be a real bastard if it came down to the messy stuff.”

“He worked here for a while. I didn’t realize he was with the Barts.”

“Guess he joined up.”

“He was always a loner when he was here. He was always nice to me. Helped me with things. I think he was sweet on me a little.”

“Did you know him well?” I asked.

“As well as anybody I guess. He was pretty quiet.”

“Wasn’t that kind of creepy? You were just a little girl.”

“You mean like right now? He was your age, you know.”

“Was? Is? I mean, you were underage back then, weren’t you?”

“You’re jealous, aren’t you?”

“No,” I lied, my words tasted like ashes in my own mouth.

“I’m not a little girl, Cameron,” she sounded pissed.

We ate in silence for a while, and I took a cup of coffee from the thermos. The cloudy skies told me it wasn’t going to be hot today, but in the sunshine, out in the middle of the tall grass with no one else about, my heart skipped a beat. I gazed at Alison when her head was turned, taking in her features. The bruise was starting to darken a bit, and every time I’d seen it today I’d wanted to go back to stomping Tim all over again. Ali saw me looking and smiled. Maybe I’d been forgiven?

“So what else did Jackson say?”

“Who said there was anything else?”

“Your eyes did.”

“I…” I leaned forward, pulled her hat back and kissed her gently, feeling her breath catch.

My heart screamed yes, my mind screamed no, but I didn’t care. Ali’s hand gently rubbed the back of my neck, and when I opened my eyes I could see hers still shut tight, as she was lost in the moment too.

Did she feel guilty? I wondered. Should I? We broke the kiss, and I almost started it up again when she chewed her bottom lip, looking at me hungrily. I realized I had been jealous when she’d been talking about Dade… The kiss had confirmed a lot of feelings I had swirling through my body.

“You talked about kissing me?”

“Indirectly.”

“So, what was it about then?”

“Sandy thinks there’s going to be a wedding.”

“Whose?”

“Ours,” I said, starting to laugh. The surprised look on Alison’s face only made me laugh harder, and soon the tears were rolling down my cheeks.

“That’s not funny.”

“No, it’s not,” I laughed harder.

“Cam, we can’t do this.”

“No, but we did. Twice,” I said, starting to get my mirth under control.

“Is it weird?”

“What? Kissing?”

“No, kissing me.”

“I had to find out if the first time was a fluke, to be honest. It’s been eating me up all day. When I left for the army, you were a fat, pimply little brat who…”

She tackled me, knocking my hat off and straddled my waist, her arms pinning my shoulders. I could have probably gotten up, but the fierce expression on her face made me smile and I let her hold me.

“Fat? You never call a girl fat!” She slugged my arm lightly, and then returned her grip.

“Don’t forget pimply. And a brat.”

“I was, wasn’t I?”

“Not any more,” I admitted, loving the feel of her body holding me down.

She leaned down and kissed me. It was like our first kiss, only less awkward without the crowds watching. It was like the sun exploded and fireworks were going off all around me. It was full of passion, need. She wanted this, and she wasn’t holding back. I was surprised when I realized I wasn’t holding back either.

My hands roamed her back, my hand slipping under the back collar of her shirt to caress her skin. My head was spinning with desire and confusion. Her auburn hair kept tickling the sides of my face, and I used my free hand to push it out of my eye.

“No, not any more,” I hoarsely whispered when she broke the kiss.

Her eyes never left mine, nor did she give up her position on top. I think she liked it as much or more than I did. I knew it was wrong, but the hand on her back moved to her side. I used a finger to trace her stomach for a moment, and I laughed when she almost fell atop me, giggling like crazy.

“That tickles.”

“I’ll have to remember that.”

She buried my mouth with a kiss, but my hand was still there, touching her.

I ran it up her side, loving the feel of her silky skin. Her breath caught for a moment and then she was pulling away, almost falling backward. Her expression was half horror, half excitement. For a moment, I wondered if my desire was what had made her move, or was it me trying to feel her up?

“We shouldn’t have.”

“No, no. You’re right,” I answered, standing to button my shirt.

I looked down and, in our shenanigans, the sandwiches she’d brought had been kicked all over, in the dirt. I sighed. Nothing worse than having a hard on and being hungry. Even the thermos had spilled. The horses didn’t care, they were still sipping at the pool of water and munching on the lush grass there.

“Shit, what was I thinking?”

“I’m sorry; I didn’t mean to start things.”

“No, no. I can’t. I’ve never…”

“I’m sorry.”

“No, it’s just that. I should never have…” The expression on her face changed to embarrassment, and she took a couple deep breaths. “I’ve always wanted to do that, but maybe we shouldn’t.”

Of all the things to tell somebody who was worried about making out with his stepsister who was adopted, that wasn’t what I was expecting at all. I was expecting it to be about something else. Guilt perhaps?

“Wow,” I said, the only thing I could come up with.

“Is that a good wow, or a bad wow?”

“I thought you were worried about the family connection thingy?”

Bonus! I found my sandwich, still in the Ziploc. Yes, it still looked sad, but it was edible. I took half out and tossed her the other half. She caught it and almost dropped it, having to reach way down. Bad throw, that was the old me coming to the surface, the bad one. It was a surefire way to catch a glimpse of cleavage, and of course…. it worked. Mentally I kicked myself. She bit off a chunk and looked at me with pity in her eyes and handed me back the sandwich.

“Can I tell you something?”

“Sure,” I said, all kinds of confused.

“When you left for the army, I was pissed.”

“Why?”

“Because I had the world’s most crushable crush on you.”

“You hated me!” I was confused.

“I was twelve back then. It’s how girls act when they like a guy.”

“No wonder guys never understand women.”

“Hey!”

“Well, just saying.”

“And for a while, I was really down. Dad figured it was because of the divorce, and that was part of it. He had me go to a counselor. Finally, your mom stopped by. Something she’d forgotten at the house and was picking up… I lost it and started crying. I told her everything. I didn’t realize my dad was in the kitchen doorway, and God, I almost died of embarrassment.”

I smiled, I could only guess; although getting caught kissing her at the wedding last night definitely gave me a taste of the embarrassment she might have felt.

“Then they both sat me down. ’Twelve is too young to fall in love,’ they told me. I told them I felt horrible because it wasn’t just that, it was because you were my brother, or were. I shouldn’t have feelings like that for you.”

“You were a pretty smart and complicated little mess back then, weren’t you?”

“Definitely.”

“So then what?”

“They told me time would make things easier. For the most part, it did. I forgot about you for a while. Then you sent home a picture of you and your army buddies. You were in Fallujah. Mom had started dating Dad again by that time, and I sort of…”

“What?”

“Stole the picture.”

“What?”

“Yeah, Dad found it under my pillow.” Her face was burning up with embarrassment, the red coming all the way down her neck.

“Oh geeze. I think I remember that shot.”

“Yeah, you were smoking a cigarette and had two machine guns crossing your shoulders.”

“Oh God, yeah, that’s the one. I wasn’t wearing a shirt. It was supposed to make Mom feel better… It was a badass, still alive, no injuries, love you Mom, picture.”

“Well, I loved it too.”

“So why tell me all this now?”

“Because, when Dad told her about it, she came and talked to me. I told her I still felt the same way I did when I was younger.”

“But I sent that picture two years ago.”

“Yeah. She said sometimes the heart loves who it wants. Since we’re not blood, there’s no reason to feel too bad about it.”

“That’s what Jackson said too.”

“You shit! I knew you were holding back!” She reached down and ripped up a handful of turf and pelted me in the face with it as I was finishing off the sandwich, and I got some of the grass in my mouth.

I spat it out, sputtering and wiping my tongue. No way did I want to eat grass that might have cow piss sprinkled around it. She let out a surprised squeak and turned to start running when I bolted forward after her, dropping my food to the ground. Fuck the horses, they could stay there… I chased after her, kicking up little bits of grass until I tackled her, using my body to pad the fall. We wrestled a moment before it turned into another kiss. And another.

“We have to finish this fence soon,” she told me, running her fingers through my hair as I pulled her tight to me.

“We have time.” I kissed her neck, watching her body stiffen.

Two gunshots broke the silence around us. She tried to jump up, but I held her down and motioned for her to crouch low in the grass. I couldn’t see any threats and the coast was clear for quite a ways. The shots hadn’t sounded right next to us, but somewhere just out of eyesight maybe. Echoes are funny in the mountains, something I’d learned the hard way.

“Stay down low, let’s get to the horses.”

“Were they shooting at us?”

“They could be anywhere. Sound is funny out here, but no, I don’t think they were shooting at us.”

“Good. I think.”

Getting back to the basin of water, I finally stood, stretching the muscles in my back as I took stock of everything around us. There were bushes where somebody could be hiding, but nobody would be out this far on foot, not if they were smart. I guessed that was one of the disadvantages of living on a large ranch. Bill’s was one of the largest in our area, and even as a kid, I’d never been over all of it.

“Take care of the horses,” I told her, picking up the rifle and using the scope to look around.

It took me a minute, but I saw a small cloud of dust to the south of us, toward the fence line.

“Looks like they are over there.” I motioned.

“I can’t see anything.”

“It’s far off. Want to look?” I held out the rifle, but she shook her head.

“Let’s go look, but don’t ride right on me. Keep about a football field apart from us. God, I wish I had a cell phone right about now.”

“You don’t have one?”

“There was no point until I got home.”

“Don’t worry, I have one. Do you want it?”

“No, but if we have trouble, you need to call for help.”

“Jackson first, right?”

“Yeah, the guys with the trucks are the closest. Then call the sheriff’s office.”

“I don’t want to call them, they…” She didn’t have to finish that sentence for me to understand her opinion of the sheriff and the help he might give… if any.

“I know, I know. Trust me, okay?” She just nodded, and we mounted up.

She listened; I’d have to give her that. The look she gave me when I rode off told me she wasn’t happy being so far back, and in a way I understood. She was probably scared of something happening to me because I was out front. Something could happen to her while I was far ahead. I was scared of that too, and that was why I had the rifle across the saddle, one hand holding the reins. I had to give Charlie’s horse credit, other than the nip this morning, the rest of the day she’d proven to be well trained and good tempered.

I slowed Lightning’s walk to almost a crawl, following the fence line now. The ground on the other side of the fence had been worn down to bare earth. I’d seen horses do that, but not so much cattle. I came to the top of the gentle hill and saw two riders on the other side, one of them doing something with the fence. I turned and waved to Alison and started down, kicking the horse into a fast gallop.

If there was going to be trouble, I wanted to have the element of surprise. A horse coming at you full run while you were standing flat footed at a fence should do that. I think. Probably would help if they knew I was armed, but I was improvising, not seeing any on them.

The two looked up in shock as the sound of the hooves reached them, and one of them fell over backward. The one who didn’t, pulled his hat off and his chest moved with what could only be laughter. That put my mind at rest. I got within shouting distance when I realized that the cowboy who’d fallen had a lumpy, black and blue face and was moving stiffly. It took me a moment, but when I got to within twenty feet I knew for sure who it was.

“Tim, what the hell you doing messing with our fence?” My voice was low, threatening. I held my fist up beside my head in the universal stop motion and hoped like hell Ali understood.

The stranger saw my motion, and his gaze followed my back trail. He could probably make out the form of a rider back there. Even if he saw it was Ali, he wouldn’t know if she was armed or not. As far as things went, it was a pretty funny way to meet.

“We were fixing a break,” the stranger said, motioning with a pair of pliers. “Your damned cows keep coming on our side. And it’s our fence too, this side at least.”

He had a point; he was on the other side, and there wasn’t any sign of their horses crossing the break.

“Was that you shooting?” I asked the stranger while keeping a wary eye on Tim.

“Yeah, coyotes have been bad this year. Got one about a three-minute ride south of here. You going to put that up?” he asked, pointing at my rifle. It was pointed away from them, toward the heart of the ranch land, but it wasn’t on my back. Theirs was in the scabbards, hanging off their saddles.

“Yeah, I might as well,” I told him.

“Is that Alison up there? I’ll kill that fucking bitch.”

“Shut up, dickhead,” the stranger snapped at Tim, who looked shocked.

I smiled, this guy might be all right.

“I’m Cameron.” I dismounted and held my hand out over the fence. He took it and shook.

“Dade.” Oops, maybe not.

“You guys riding fence?”

“Yeah, about the same as you. Which direction are you and your rider heading?”

I pointed the direction, which was the same as where they had come from. “That way.”

“You guys find anything?” he asked me.

“Fence was cut, about twenty minutes into the ride. Know anything about it?”

“Nope. We found this section after shooting the coyote. Also found two cows who’d wandered over. We ran them back through the hole.”

“How’d you know they were ours?”

“Your ear tags are orange. We use white.”

“Smart.”

“Why are you talking to that shithead? He’s the motherfucker who did this,” Tim started spewing words, pointing to his face.

“Beat your ass into pulp, taught you a lesson? Shut your stupid mouth before I give you the same.” I was liking this Dade dude more and more.

“Shut up, Tim. You’re lucky you’re not in jail. You should be, but I don’t know how you’re out. Shut the fuck up before you buy yourself a world of hurt.” My voice was cold, and I meant every word.

“Fuck you.” He stormed off toward the horses.

“If you fixed that section already, I’m going to head back to the main house.”

“I’m going to head down toward the coyote you shot. Jackson says they’ve been getting the new calves lately. Maybe I can find a den.”

“Old Jackson’s still there?”

“Yeah, old as dirt and twice as ugly.”

“That’s him.”

“Yeah. You know… What’s the issue between the Barts and the Mastersons? Water, land?”

“A woman I think. Been bad blood since his grandpa ran things around here.”

“Oh shit.”

“Yeah, it’s always about a woman, isn’t it?”

“What about the water thing?”

“I didn’t have anything to do with that. Engineers from the Army Corps of Engineers did something, and we’re developing that section of land. Guess the water went where it wanted to.”

“There’s some butt hurt over on this side of the fence, and some think the water getting diverted was deliberate.”

“Not that I know of…”

The shot whipped by my head, almost blowing out my eardrum with the sonic wake. I pulled the butt stock of the gun, using the sling to spin it around my shoulder until it was in firing position and flicked off the safety. Tim, I’d lost eye contact with Tim. He was lining up for a second shot on me as Dade turned to rush him. I hesitated for half a heartbeat and shot.

Both Tim and the horse he was sitting on fell heavily, and Tim started screaming. I could hear pounding hooves behind me, but I was out for blood. I had another round chambered as Dade pulled the rifle away from Tim, who had a leg pinned by his dead horse. I had only a split second to decide. Kill him and start a whole new batch of trouble, or knock the horse out from under him and throw his aim off. I was done with the killing business, so I got the horse.

Dade held the rifle out over his head, his other hand up. I ducked under the wire fence, my aim never wavering.

“Easy man, I got the gun from him.”

I still had them both covered, the muzzle of the gun going an inch between both targets. The one holding the weapon and the one screaming on the ground. Either would be an easy shot.

“Don’t kill him,” Alison said behind me.

“That’s twice now that she’s saved you, Tim.”

“Get this horse off me,” he gasped.

In the course of trying to pull himself out, his shirt rode up, and his chest was taped heavily. I smiled grimly and thought of how bad that fall had to have hurt with broken ribs. Too bad about the horse though; I hated killing a good animal.

“I called Jackson. Want me to call the sheriff’s office?”

“Don’t bother, I’ll call him myself,” Dade said, coldly. “Howdy, Ms. Alison. Sorry for meeting you again under these circumstances.”

She said nothing, but I could hear her dialing.

“We’re at the Mastersons’ ranch. Tim Bart just tried to shoot Cameron. Uh huh. Oh no, Tim isn’t going anywhere. He’s got a dead horse pinning him down. No, no, the horse is dead. No, Tim shot at Cameron.”

“This should be fun to explain to Carl,” Dade said, dryly. “I said I’d call…”

“I ought to kill this stupid bastard,” I grumbled.

“Shhhh, she’s still got 911 on the phone,” he grinned. “Marines?”

“Army.”

“Nobody’s perfect. Want to help me drag his ass out from under the horse so he’ll quit crying like a fucking pansy?”

“No, let’s leave him for the coyotes,” I said, but Tim started screaming at that point.

“It might hurt, pulling him out.”

“You’ve got a deal,” I told him, grinning and putting the rifle sling around my shoulder again.

Tim got one good look at my expression and put his hands up, starting to beg. I got my hands under one arm, Dade the other, and we pulled savagely. My arms flexed, and I pulled with all of my strength when his leg slid free. I had just enough warning not to lose my footing and bang my head on the gun. He screamed for a minute about his ribs, and I knew he was in pain. He had tears running down his cheeks and was lying on his side, his leg straight out in pain.

“Think I should still shoot the dumb fuck?” I said.

“Naw, I won’t let him ride fence with a gun anymore. Not while I’m foreman,” Dade told me.

“Carl isn’t going to like it.”

“It isn’t up to Carl, it’s up to you.”

“It’s like that?” I asked, totally confused.

“It’s up to you. This kid can either go to jail for probably forever. I don’t know how he got out of trouble the other day, but I saw him try to shoot you. So did Alison. You can put this boy in prison forever, or you can let me run his ass ragged.”

“Why would you do that?”

“Reputation mostly. It’s all I have, and I can’t let some kid - even the owner’s son - do the shit he’s doing. I’ll have his ass confined to the house if I have to.”

I was cooling down, and for once, my mind was spinning and planning. If I let this drop and took Dade at his word, I might buy Bill and Mom some breathing room or goodwill with the Barts. On the other hand, if the kid tried it again… I decided.

“He comes at me again, I’ll kill him.”

“I would have killed him the first time, but it’s up to you. What do you want me to tell Tyler when he gets out here?”

“That his nephew is walking back to the ranch,” I said, with a smile.

“That’ll piss him off.”

“Everybody wins. Tim lives, and I get to piss off my two favorite Barts.”

“Yeah, I heard about you popping the old man’s jewels. I told him to stay away.”

“At least somebody on your side has a cool head.”

“I do try. I’ll have Tyler stop out after he collects this shithead.”

“Thanks. I’ll be at Tory’s Cabin.”

“Me too,” Alison spoke up.

“Okay, well, nice to meet you; and Alison, always a pleasure to see you. Sorry about all of this.”

“See you next time,” I told him, and ducked under the fence and mounted Lightning.

As we were riding away, I heard Tim’s blubbery, whiney voice. “Are you really going to make me walk?”

I broke Lightning into a fast run before my laughter made me a fool. I had to slow down to rest Lightning and Ali kept right beside me now, still silent. I thought about checking out the spot where the coyote was shot but decided it could wait for another day. Then I remembered and turned to Ali.

“You call Jackson?”

“Yeah.”

“Is he coming?”

“It was already over, but he’s sending a truck anyway. Probably should have seen it by now.”

“Oh, hey, there’s a dust cloud.”

Sure enough, along came a battered pickup truck with Charlie and Jackson in it, bouncing across the pasture, with three ranch hands in the back. All had rifles, and none of them looked happy. Lightning startled a little bit when the truck pulled up beside us, but when Jackson saw me, he broke out into a grin and leaned out the passenger window.

“You just have to stir up all kinds of horseshit, don’t you?”

“I don’t know about that.”

“Everyone okay?”

“Yeah, but we called the sheriff. Going to head to the cabin to wait on him.”

“Did you leave anything to clean up?”

“No, not on our side of the fence,” I said, just for a grin, but Jackson’s dark features paled.

“I was kidding, man. I shot his horse out from under him.”

“Well shit, for a second there I thought…”

“No, no. We’re fine.”

“You okay, Ms. Alison?” he asked politely.

“Fine. I was riding way in the back.”

“Smart thinking, girl,” he told her, she grinned with the compliment.

“How’s the pipe work coming on the stock ponds?”

“Good, another day or three, and we’ll be ready to start filling things back in.”

“Great news. Okay, I’ll see you back at the ranch.”

“Want to take our time?”

“I’m kind of hungry, and your nasty sandwich left a bad taste in my mouth.”

“All right. Race you!”