Thirty

The family gathered around Jake, strikingly handsome this morning in a black silk suit and white shirt with a black string tie. The women fussed over who was standing where, while Dennis Rivers, a traveling photographer, waited for them to finally choose the perfect pose. The men had moved Jake’s favorite big, red-leather chair out onto the wide veranda for the picture because of the more natural light, and to keep the messy, white flash-powder residue out of the house.

Little Tricia and Sadie Mae, wearing identical flowered dresses—one green and one blue—sat on their grandfather’s knees. Randy, wearing a ruffled dress in yellow, Jake’s favorite color on her, sat on the left arm of his chair, her hair pulled back at the sides and pinned with real flowers. Katie, Lloyd, and Donovan were on Randy’s other side, dressed to the nines, Lloyd’s long hair pulled straight back and tied into a tail at the base of his neck.

To Jake’s right sat Evie, her hair down and dark against her dark-blue dress, little Esther in her arms and dapper Brian standing behind. And there beside him was Little Jake, who’d suddenly shot up a couple more inches over the summer, and next to him and behind Jake stood Ben, only thirteen but looking much older, his thick shock of blond hair combed into place and his face ruddy from too much sun. His blue eyes sparkled with happiness.

Stephen also stood behind Jake, between Ben and Lloyd, taller as well, and his chin held high in an effort to look more like a man than a boy. The three boys wore woolen suits and were anxious to get this picture over with so they could change into something cooler.

Rivers had shown up just two days after Jake and Randy returned from the line shack, and the women were more than thrilled to have a family picture taken.

Finally, everyone settled into their proper places, and Rivers told everyone to sit still and “smile pretty” so he wouldn’t have to take too many poses. He excitedly talked about his camera as he prepared his own position. He was using the latest box camera by Kodak and tried to explain how it worked, but Jake finally told him to “just take the damn picture.” Being on wanted posters had made it a lot less pleasant having his picture taken.

The nervous photographer stopped talking and studied the big family under a black cloth behind the camera lens. When the flash powder exploded, the little girls screamed and the boys laughed. Tricia started to cry, remembering all the gunfire the day of the bank robbery in Boulder. Jake kissed her cheek and assured her everything was fine, and the photographer tried again. Anxious, wiggling granddaughters and snickering grandsons forced him to take two more photos until he was finally satisfied.

“I’m afraid some of the powder coated your roses, Mrs. Harkner,” he told Randy.

“They’ll be fine,” Randy answered. “It’s worth it to finally get a family portrait. We’ve never done this before.”

Everyone scattered about their own business after that, the children to play and Katie into another room to nurse Donavan.

“Let me see now,” the excited photographer noted as he came into the kitchen with his notes. “I want to get this right. I’ll write everything down for you to keep with the picture so you remember the year it was taken.” He studied the list. “Tell me if I get any of this wrong. From left to right first row—Brian Stewart and wife Evie Harkner Stewart, holding seven-month-old daughter Esther Miranda. Next to her is Jake, holding granddaughter Sadie Mae Stewart on his right knee, five; and Patricia Evita Harkner on his left knee, also five. Sitting on the arm of the chair is Miranda Sue Harkner, Jake’s wife, and to Jake’s left is Katie Donavan Harkner, age twenty-eight, holding her son Donavan Patrick Harkner, six months old; and just behind her is Lloyd Jackson Harkner, age thirty-one, and to his right behind Jake is his son Stephen Lloyd, twelve. Next to Stephen is Jake’s adopted son, Benjamin, thirteen, and between Ben and Brian Stewart is Brian and Evie’s son Jackson Lloyd Stewart, better known as Little Jake, and he is almost nine.”

He finished writing, then looked at those left around the table—Lloyd, Evie, Jake, Brian, and Randy. “Do I have everyone?”

Jake took a cigarette from a tin on the table. “Sounds like it.”

Randy rubbed his shoulders. “We’ve grown quite a brood, haven’t we?” she told Jake.

“From what I’ve read about you, Mr. Harkner, you’ve had quite an adventurous life,” the photographer stated. “You are an amazing man.”

Jake shook his head. “There’s not a damn thing amazing about me, Mr. Rivers. I’m just blessed.”

The photographer took a few more notes. “Can I ask about—”

“No!” Jake interrupted before he could finish. “You know all you need to know from Jeff Truebridge’s book. This is just a picture, not a story. Any more personal questions, and your camera will be lying out in one of the corrals for the horses to stomp on.”

“Daddy, don’t be rude,” Evie scolded.

“Pa gets a little testy talking about his past,” Lloyd told Rivers, scowling at Jake as he spoke. “Don’t take it too personally.”

Rivers cleared his throat, looking intimidated. “Yes…well…I’m sorry.” He studied his notes a moment longer. “Well, then. I’ll go out to my wagon and develop the pictures for you. You can have your choice of which is best, and we can do a larger print, but you can keep all of them.”

The man left, and Randy went to the stove to pour Jake some coffee. She carried it over and set it in front of him.

“Your mother looks extra beautiful today, doesn’t she?” Jake commented. “I’ve always loved her in yellow.”

“She always looks beautiful,” Evie answered. “And I swear she looks younger than she did when you two left to go up to the line shack.”

Jake grinned, and Randy blushed as she sat down beside him. Lloyd and Evie exchanged a look that told Randy they were bothered by something. There came an awkward silence. Jake sensed it too. “What’s going on?” he asked Evie.

She glanced at her mother, then back at Jake. “Daddy, while you and mother were gone, we got a letter from Jeff,” she told them.

“We did?” Randy moved around to sit at the table. “Why on earth didn’t you tell us sooner?”

Evie looked at Lloyd, who sighed. “Because he wondered if we’d seen or heard anything about…Brad Buckley.”

Randy’s smile faded, and she glanced at Jake, who reached over and pressed her arm. “The answer is simple. No, we haven’t. As far as anyone knows, the man disappeared off the face of the earth. Maybe he went on to California. He sure wouldn’t be stupid enough to show himself here on the J&L. That’s all you need to tell Jeff.”

“I’ll answer the letter,” Randy spoke up. “If one of you answers it, he’ll suspect something. I’m always the one who writes to him.”

“We just weren’t sure if we should let you read it without warning you,” Evie told her mother. “Jeff has been checking back in Guthrie and said no one there has seen Buckley since around the same time Mike Holt showed up there. Jeff said Holt was practically tarred and feathered and run out of town. Our friends back there remembered he was part of…” Evie hesitated, her bad memories coming to mind. “Dune Hollow,” she finished.

Randy closed her eyes and sighed. “I know what to tell him,” she told Evie. “And I can talk about it now if it comes up. Don’t be worried about it.” She smiled through unwanted tears. “Your father and I have had plenty of long talks. We’ve worked it out, and I’m a lot stronger now. Thank God you are too, Evie. It’s time to move on from all of that.”

Lloyd met Jake’s eyes. “As long as Pa stays strong. I have to give him a swift kick once in a while.”

“How about we change the subject, like to ole Gus?” Jake suggested, giving Randy’s arm a light squeeze before letting go. He drew deeply on his cigarette. “Have you put that bull to work yet?”

Lloyd grinned. “You call that work?”

“Well, with respect to that bull’s duty to produce more cattle for us, yeah, I call it work. He’d better come through, or we’ll be eating lots of steaks next year that have come off his hide.”

“If you had a harem like Gus, you sure as hell wouldn’t consider it a job.”

“I did have a harem once, until your mother came along,” Jake teased. “Anything else in Jeff’s letter?”

“Just that Jeff isn’t coming out this summer to visit,” Evie answered. “His wife is carrying again, and she’s having a bit of a hard time.”

Jake frowned. “That’s too bad. I hope things go all right for them. Jeff is one of the finest men I know. I’ll never forget that first day he approached me back in Guthrie, scared to death that I’d shoot him on the spot. The mood I was in, I considered it.”

They all laughed, and Evie loved the way her mother glowed. Maybe now the Harkner clan would know some real peace.

“Did Jeff happen to mention Peter Brown?” Jake asked then, a tone of irritation in his voice.

“No,” Evie answered. “He did mention that Mrs. Brown is sailing to France this summer to visit family there.” She sighed. “I can’t imagine what it must be like to take a ship across the ocean and visit another country.”

“Yeah, well, if anyone has the money and time for that, it’s those two,” Jake answered, obvious sarcasm in his words. “Just think—if your mother had married Peter—”

“Stop right there, Jake Harkner!” Randy ordered. “Don’t even suggest I would have been happier with some other man. And after all that Peter has done for us.”

“And we all know why.”

“Daddy, do you think Peter is the only man who thinks he loves mother? Half the men on this ranch are in love with her.”

“Evie! That’s just silly,” Randy scolded. She rose to start clearing the table.

“Hell, it’s true,” Lloyd teased.

Jake put out his cigarette and rose, walking around to grab Randy from behind and leaning around to kiss her cheek. “Maybe I should keep this woman locked up,” he joked.

“Just try it.” Lloyd laughed. “She’d clobber you with a frying pan, and you’d let her. You’d do anything she asked, and you know it.”

Jake kept his hands on Randy’s shoulders. “No argument there. Right now, I intend to get out of these fancy duds and take care of chores that got neglected this morning.”

“Daddy, you look so handsome in a suit and tie,” Evie told him. “And so does Lloyd.”

“I can’t listen to this,” Lloyd said, shaking his head as he rose. “Your husband is the one who looks natural in a suit and tie,” he told Evie as he rose from his chair. “Pa and I feel more comfortable in denim pants and plain cotton shirts.”

“I’ve gotten used to those clothes myself,” Brian answered. “Ranch life does that to a man.”

Lloyd grinned. “I’m going to check on Katie and then go home to change.”

“You should talk to Katie about switching Donavan to cow’s milk,” Evie told her brother. “That boy is getting too big, and he’s too hungry all the time. You need to start feeding him bread and mashed potatoes and give Katie a break.”

“I agree, dear sister.”

Brian rose and took the baby from Evie. “Let’s go.”

“Come back here for dinner,” Randy told them. “Jake and I have been gone a while, and I’ve missed everyone. I’ll cook some of that venison we brought back.”

“Sounds good to me,” Brian answered, following Evie out the door.

Jake watched Randy. He loved seeing her so happy. Their time at the line shack had been healing.

“I need to change too,” she told him, heading for the stairs to their loft bedroom.

Jake felt strangely worried. He suddenly wished they were back at the line shack and could just stay there. And then there it was…that mournful howl from higher in the mountains. He followed her up the stairs.