Matt (The Cowboys) (40 page)

“That’s more than I know, or Wilbur for that matter.”

“What else?” Matt asked. “I can tell there’s more.”

“There always is when Wilbur’s concerned,” the sheriff said. “He was furious when the judge agreed to let Hank stay with your parents. He talked that Hollender fella into going to San Antonio and getting a judge there to overrule our judge.”

“When is the judge supposed to make his ruling?”

“He’s already made it. Hank is to go back to his uncle.”

Matt was surprised he didn’t feel panic and helplessness. All he felt was a simmering anger that Hank’s life could be sacrificed in the name of justice. He would go to San Antonio and lay the case before the judge. If that didn’t work, he’d decide what to do next.

Hank would
never
be forced to go back to the man who’d abused him.

“Thanks for coming. I know you didn’t have to.”

“I’m sick of Wilbur running people’s lives. If you see how to put a spoke in his wheel, I’ll be glad to lend a hand.”

“You can start by keeping an eye on these boys while I talk to Ellen. I’d like to ride back into town with you.”

In the few minutes it took him to reach the house, he marshaled his argument for why Ellen should go with him. He wasn’t surprised when she refused.

“I can’t leave the children,” she said.

“Leave them with Mrs. Ogden.”

“What about Orin and Toby?”

“We can send them over to Jake and Isabelle.”

“Who’ll do the chores, milk the cows? No, Matt, it’s better if I stay here with the children. Why don’t you ask Isabelle to go with you? She’s better at talking to people like judges. They make me nervous.”

“It’ll look better if the woman at my side is my wife.”

He’d argued the whole time he packed, but she remained firm.

“What will you do if the judge doesn’t change his mind? I know you won’t let Hank go back to his uncle.”

“I guess I’ll have to take the boys and leave.”

“Where will you go?”

“There are plenty of places out west. Luke’s out there somewhere. So’s Pete. Hawk and Zeke come and go at least once a year, and Bret has a ranch in Wyoming.”

“But you love your ranch.”

“I won’t have to stay long, just until Hank and Orin are old enough to be on their own.”

“But that will be five years. What’ll happen to your ranch?”

“Jake will take care of it. He’ll take care of you and the kids, too. You can stay here.”

“I couldn’t do that. I’d feel like I’d run you off.”

“I’m hoping it won’t come to that.” Then he told her about Tom Jackson’s threat to call in the loan on his ranch.

“He can’t,” Ellen exclaimed.

“I plan to give him several reasons why he shouldn’t.”

“This ranch means everything to you. You’ve poured your life into it.”

“It’s not nearly as important as you and the children. I’d give it up without a regret if I could have you.”

That had been the end of the conversation. Ellen had left him to finish his packing. She was busy working in the garden when he rode out.

Matt sat across from Tom Jackson. He’d refused his offer of whiskey but said he wouldn’t mind a glass of brandy. He knew Tom kept expensive brandy for himself. He also knew Tom hated to share it with anyone.

It was obvious Tom hadn’t expected Matt to come see him so soon, that he was uncomfortable facing him. Matt tried to feel sympathy for this man. It couldn’t be easy putting up with constant pressure from his wife and Wilbur. Instead he got angry. A man was supposed to have the courage to stand up for what he thought was right. A man who didn’t stand up for himself wasn’t a man. It was about time Tom found out what he was made of.

“I don’t know who told you I was going to call in your loan,” Tom grumbled. “It’s just something I’ve had to think about.”

Matt let him pretend. It didn’t change anything.

“I hate that this has come up,” Tom said as he handed Matt a glass with just a little less brandy than was polite to serve a visitor, “but a bank has got to back the laws of the community, and you’ve been stepping on them right regular recently.”

“I’ve broken no laws,” Matt said. “Everything I’ve done has been approved by the sheriff or the judge.”

“But you’ve gone against public opinion,” Tom pointed out. “A banker can’t afford to ignore public opinion.”

So that was the tack he was going to take. Matt smiled to himself. Tom had just waded into swampy ground. Few things were more undependable than public opinion.

“Tom, I didn’t have to come to you for this loan. Jake offered to pay cash for my ranch, but I wouldn’t let him. My brothers offered to put up the money, but I refused that. I could have gone to the Randolphs and gotten a loan at half the interest I’m paying you. I didn’t do any of that because I wanted to stand on my own two feet. I wanted to be part of this community. I also came to you because I thought I would be working with an honest man.”

Tom Jackson had the decency to turn red.

“I still think you’re an honest man who tried hard not to give in to pressure from his wife and his minister.”

“It’s nothing like that,” Tom said, jerking up in his chair. “This is a purely business decision.”

“Tom, I’m not a fool. I know exactly why you’re doing this, and so does everyone in the whole county. You do it, and it’ll ruin you.”

“One loan won’t ruin me,” Tom said, angry. “I could forgive every cent of it right now and hardly feel it.”

“I’m sure you’re right, but I wasn’t talking about that.”

“What were you talking about?” Tom asked irritably. He clearly didn’t like being forced into a corner.

“If you call in my loan, everybody in Bandera County—no, everybody from as far north as Fredericksburg, south to Uvalde and San Antonio, and east to Austin—will know you’ve broken your word. Nobody will want to do business with you because they’ll know their loans wouldn’t be safe, either.”

“Now see here, Matt, don’t you threaten me. I’ve got a solid reputation with every man who’s ever walked into my bank.”

“You won’t if you cancel my loan for no reason.”

“I didn’t say I was going to. If I did—”

“If you did, I’d have to look somewhere else. Of course, before I could do that, Isabelle and Jake would know what happened. Jake would probably limit himself to getting the family to withdraw their money, but Isabelle’s not one to let things lie. She’s generally a peaceable woman, but she doesn’t like injustice. Nor is she one to shrink from calling a spade a spade.”

“I’m well acquainted with your mother.”

“I don’t think you are. In fact, I’m quite sure you don’t want to be. I love the woman dearly, but I’m a little afraid of her myself.”

“I didn’t think you were afraid of anybody, even Wilbur Sears.”

“Wilbur doesn’t come up to Isabelle’s knees.”

“I’m sure he’d love to know your opinion of him.”

“Getting back to my loan,” Matt said, “if you were to cancel it, I’d have to go look somewhere else. The most likely place would be the Randolphs. I’m sure you know who they are. Jeff and Madison are the two most connected with business, but I expect Hen, Monty, and Tyler know a thing or two. Of course, George keeps an eye on everything.”

Tom swallowed his brandy in one gulp and poured himself some more. “What’s your point?”

“Well, they’re old friends of the family. Jake and George served in the war together. We’ve been on several cattle drives with them. I rode on three myself.”

“Okay, you’re friends.”

“They’ll be glad to give me a loan. Probably wouldn’t even charge me interest, being family friends and all, but I expect they’d be right irritated. And sort of pleased at the same time.”

“That doesn’t make sense,” Tom said.

“Well, they’d be irritated you called in my loan. You see, they’re right big on justice, too. But they’d be pleased, because they’d be getting all the family’s business then, not just part of it. And of course they’d probably see it as an opportunity to open their own bank in Bandera.”

Tom tried to down his second glass of brandy, but apparently his throat was too tight. He sputtered and set the glass aside. He knew he couldn’t compete with the Randolphs.

“After all, there’d be a lot of money floating around, looking for a place to land. Like I said, people would know their money wasn’t safe with you. No telling when Wilbur would get mad at them, and they’d be out in the cold. The Randolphs might be willing to offer real good rates, rates you’d find hard to match.”

Tom appeared to pause a second to take stock; then he sat back in his chair, visibly relaxed. “It’s been nice talking to you, Matt, but I’ve got to get back to work. Like I said, I was just checking over your loan. We do that for all our customers from time to time. Looks like it’s real solid. Hell, you’re one payment ahead. Can’t say that about the rest of my customers.”

“Glad you’re pleased with my progress. Why don’t you come out to the ranch someday and see our operation? I think you’d be even happier about having lent me the money.”

“I’ll do that,” Tom said getting to his feet, “just as soon as I can get that preacher off my back.”

Ellen and the kids were watering the plants in her garden by hand. She didn’t know why she bothered. She would be gone before the garden started to bear, but she went ahead. Being busy kept her from thinking too much. She didn’t know if she could stay at the ranch until the adoptions were completed. The last two days had been awful. She missed Matt something terrible. They hadn’t spent a single day apart since they were married. She’d always had him to depend on, to look to for strength. Now he was in San Antonio, and his coming back wouldn’t change anything.

She’d taken his presence for granted, his strength, his support, the feeling of quiet and safety he instilled in everyone around him. She missed seeing him at the table, feeling his warmth in bed, knowing he was so close she could reach out and touch him. She hadn’t realized how much of her happiness and that of the kids depended on Matt.

The horror of the murder lingered, but the feeling of loss was even greater. She tried to rationalize the murder, but she couldn’t. The nightmare of her parents’s deaths plagued her. Memories of the shock, hatred, and thirst for revenge tried to force their way out of the dark corner of her mind where she’d hidden them, but she locked the door on them. No matter what her feelings had been, she hadn’t killed. An honorable man had to have boundaries he wouldn’t cross no matter what the provocation.

Once again a man had proved untrustworthy.

She push ail thoughts of the deaths from her mind. She would concentrate on her shop and the move to San Antonio. She would become so busy and successful, she’d forget Matt and these few weeks. She wasn’t cut out to be a rancher’s wife. She was really a town girl. She didn’t even like horses.

“When is Matt coming back?” Noah asked for the dozenth time that morning.

“I told you I don’t know. He has to talk to another judge. I have no idea how long that will take.”

“Is he going to take us away?” Tess asked.

Matt had packed and left with the sheriff so quickly, everybody knew something was wrong. It didn’t help that Toby shouted that she had messed up the adoptions and they were all going to be shipped off to an orphanage. The kids had been silent and frightened ever since. Orin was so upset, he couldn’t eat. Toby had gotten up from the table and stomped out. He hadn’t returned to the house until after dark.

Today she hadn’t seen either Toby or Orin since breakfast. Isabelle had sent Hank over for the day so he could enjoy some company his own age. The three boys had ridden out together.

“No one is going to take you away,” Ellen tried to assure Tess.

“Toby says we can’t live here anymore,” Noah said. “He said Matt has to run away. I don’t want Matt to run away. I like living here.”

She didn’t want Matt to have to take the boys and go west, but it might be the best solution. He wouldn’t need a wife to keep the boys, and she would have a husband so she could keep the children. But leaving his ranch would hurt him deeply. When the boys got old enough to go out on their own, he wouldn’t have anything left. The only family he had was here. He had to stay, but how?