The Ranch (Book 1): Troubled Times (3 page)

A
bout four days
after James returned to the ranch and the girls stopped doing their spy mission, Debbie was lying in her bed, on the verge of falling asleep. It was late, and her sisters had long ago fallen asleep. Just as the first images of a dream became clearer in her mind, she was startled awake. She lay still, and listened closely. Then she heard tapping on her bedroom window. Her room was directly over the roof of the porch, as were the rooms of her sisters. While she had snuck out of her window and onto the roof, she never imagined anyone else would go up there.

Frightened, she slipped out of bed and onto the floor on the side farthest from the window. Her heart was pounding so hard she couldn’t hear anything but the fast thumping in her ears. She shook as she slowly crawled to the door of her bedroom. She glanced over her shoulder, over at the window across the room, and didn’t see anything. She looked back toward the hallway and heard the tapping again. She quickly rounded the corner and sat up against the wall. Her breathing was as fast as her heartbeat and she knew she had to get control of herself. She took a few deep breaths and crawled to Connie’s room at the end of the hall.

Connie slept with her door closed, and as Debbie opened it slowly, it creaked. She cringed, hoping that whoever was out on the roof of the porch didn’t hear it. Once the door was open enough for her to slip through, Debbie crawled in her sister’s room and over to her bed.

“Connie,” Debbie whispered as she gently shook her sister.

“What’s going on?” Connie asked, groggy and rubbing her eyes.

“Shhh. There’s someone on the roof of the porch. They’re outside my bedroom window and they’re tapping on it.”

Whispering, Connie asked, “Who is it?”

“I don’t know. Come with me.”

“Where?” Connie asked, knowing that her crazy sister wanted her to go back to her room with her.

“To my room. I don’t want to go in there alone.”

“No way!” Connie whispered firmly.

“Come on!” Debbie said, and then stopped her sister when she reached for the candle she always used when moving around the house at night. “No light. They’ll see us.”

Not feeling good about what was happening, Connie joined her sister and they tip-toed out of her room and into the hall. They were good at sneaking, so they were able to move swiftly without making a sound. When they reached the bedroom, both Connie and Debbie peeked around the corner through the open doorway. There, standing at the window was a dark shadow of a figure. It was obvious the person was inside the bedroom and that startled both girls. They quickly moved back down the hallway, but instead of going into Connie’s room, they rounded the corner and went to their father’s room.

The door was open, and when they looked inside, he wasn’t there. “Do you think they saw us?” Connie whispered.

“I sure hope not. Where the heck is Dad?”

“I don’t know, but we really need to find him, or go tell Thomas.”

“We can’t, Dad said no more going out at night,” Debbie said.

“Well, we need to get someone who can help us. It’s so close, we can get there and back in no time.”

Debbie was surprised that it was Connie trying to convince her instead of it being the other way around. She stood there, thinking hard about the situation. Just as they were about to make a decision, they heard tapping on their father’s window. They let out a slight shriek and ran back down the hall, around the corner and down to Debbie’s room. With the person now at the other end of the house, they went closer to the window but couldn’t see anything. Not sure if she was doing the right thing, Debbie lit her candle and that was when they saw the set of muddy footprints at the foot of the bed.

“Oh, my gosh!” Debbie whispered in horror. “Were they standing there watching me sleep?”

“It looks like it. Come on, let’s go down and find Dad and Thomas.”

The girls slipped down the stairs, careful not to step on the one stair that had a tendency to creak, and figured they would see either their father or Thomas sitting on the couch as usual. Nobody was there. They looked at each other, still terrified, and Debbie ran to the closet to grab the shotgun.

“We can’t leave the house, Connie. Beth and Amy are still up there. We shouldn’t have left them up there alone.” Just as she finished her statement, there was a tap on the window directly behind her. She jumped and spun around, raising the shotgun toward the window. All she could see by the light of the fire was her own reflection in the empty window. She was hesitant, but reached forward and pulled the curtains closed. She then hurried across the room to be near her sister.

Both Connie and Debbie were nearly frozen in fear. They didn’t know which way to go or what to do. They stood there, Debbie clutching the shotgun and Connie clutching her sister’s arm. It wasn’t long before they heard more tapping, only this time it was in more than one place. The window next to them had tapping, they could hear tapping in the kitchen, and they could hear tapping coming from upstairs.

Debbie looked over at Connie and saw the tear rolling down her cheek. “It’s okay, Con. We’ll be okay. Daddy won’t let anything happen to us. I’m sure he’ll be back soon.” Even though her words were meant to be reassuring, nothing could soothe her sister. Debbie held the gun with one arm and held Connie’s hand with the other. She slowly led Connie back up the stairs, and they silently hurried to Beth’s room.

Beth was sleeping soundly, as if nothing was going on. Debbie wondered if the person on the roof had even tried tapping on the window in that room. She looked at Connie and said, “You stay here with Beth, I’m gonna go get Amy.”

“Please don’t leave me.”

The fear in her sister’s voice made Debbie feel so bad. “I have to go get Amy, and then I will be right back. I promise.” Debbie let go of her sister’s hand and moved toward the door. Once out in the hallway, she could hear the tapping again and knew right where it was coming from, which made her next move that much more difficult. The sound was coming from Amy’s room, almost as if the person outside knew where she was going.

Luckily, the door to Amy’s room was open, so she slipped inside, went directly to Amy’s bedside and roused her sister from sleep. “Come on. I need you to come with me and I need you to not say a word,” Debbie whispered. Amy got up and went with her sister, not knowing what was going on, but asleep enough not to really care too much. When they got to Beth’s room, they went in and closed the door, locking it behind them.

“What’s going on?” Amy asked.

“Did you not hear a noise in your room?” Debbie asked.

“No. I was sleeping. You stopped my dream and it was a good one. I was outside on the porch having sweet tea with Mom and we were watching Daddy be silly on the riding mower.”

“I’m sorry I woke you, but something is going on and I need you in here with me.”

Debbie told Beth and Amy what was happening, and once they looked at each other, both girls instantly began crying. Not wanting whoever was out there to know where they were, Debbie hushed her sisters and hugged them tight. It seemed that they sat that way forever, and slowly the tapping sound lessened. Their father still had not returned to the house, and knowing they were all alone, they all decided to stay in that room together.

Debbie sat in the chair in the corner of the room, shotgun on her lap, and waited. From that spot, she could see the window and the door, and also could watch over her sisters. Glad that Beth had a queen-sized bed, Connie lay between Amy and Beth and soon the younger girls were asleep, clutching her arms. Connie lay awake waiting, much like Debbie. Just before the sun rose, both older sisters drifted off to sleep.

When the sun came up, it broke through the slit in the curtain, resting a ray of light on Connie’s face. She opened her eyes and tried to get out of bed without waking her little sisters. Once she had her feet on the floor, she went over and woke up Debbie, trying so hard to be quiet. Together, shotgun in tow, they made their way down the stairs and found their father on the couch and Thomas in the chair. Relieved to have made it through the night and even more relieved to find their father okay, they moved into the kitchen and started preparing breakfast. They were still a bit nervous and shaken, but feeling a whole lot better than they had the night before.

The smells of breakfast had the people in the house stirring in a short time, and when the food was done cooking, Debbie reluctantly went to the back door and rang the bell, letting Keith, Stewart and James know that breakfast was ready. Soon, the table was full and abuzz with talk of what everyone would be doing for the day. Debbie just waited for the right moment to tell them what had happened the night before.

J
ust as the
guys were getting ready to head out after breakfast Debbie spoke, “Dad, wait. There’s something I need to tell you.”

Andrew was well aware that whenever one of his daughters said that, it wasn’t going to be a fun discussion. He braced himself for whatever she was about to say, “Guys, go ahead without me, I’ll be out in a minute.”

“No, Dad, they all need to hear it.”

“Oh, okay. Well, what is it then?”

“Where were you last night? Nobody was here.”

Andrew could tell by Debbie’s voice that it was serious. “We heard some noises out by the barn, so Thomas and I ran out there.”

“But you were gone so long.”

“What is going on? What happened?”

“I heard a noise. Someone was tapping on my window. I went to get Connie and when we came back there were muddy footprints by my bed.”

“Why didn’t you yell for me?” Andrew asked, concern growing in his voice.

“Someone was there. If I yelled, then they would know I was awake and on to them. We were in Connie’s room and we heard it again. The tapping was in your room, too.”

“It was a bit breezy last night, maybe it was the big tree? You know, the branches hitting the window?”

“No, Dad, it wasn’t. We heard it downstairs, too. It was like there was more than one person. Heck, there could have been six people for all I knew. Besides, a tree branch on a window won’t make muddy footprints on my bedroom floor. We hid in Beth’s room and waited until we heard you come in, but you never did.”

There were times when Andrew felt bad, and then there were times when he felt completely horrible…This was one of those horrible times. “I am so sorry, girls. We heard banging out by the barn and the horses were going a bit nuts, so we went out there to check it out and figured we would look around. By the time we came back, it was just before dawn.” He looked at all of his girls and realized just how scared they were. “Thomas, we can’t let this happen again.”

“I can’t believe someone used the porch roof to get into the girls’ room. I thought only Debbie used it to sneak out.” Debbie’s head snapped to look at Thomas. “That’s right. I see you up there at night, watching the stars and writing in your journal. I figure since you really have no place you can go to get away, it was okay to let you keep doing it.”

“I didn’t know you went out there,” Andrew said.

“Yeah, I do. It’s quiet and the view at night is great. The stars are amazing at night now that there aren’t any artificial light sources.”

“Well, I’m not too sure you should be going out there anymore. It obviously isn’t safe. We also are going to have to nail your windows shut and board them up.”

“But, Dad, then no light will get in!”

Connie finally spoke out. “Yeah, Dad. We can’t live in the dark during the day, too!”

“Well, we have to figure out something out. I can’t have you in your rooms if someone can get in!”

“Daddy, why are you yelling at us?” Amy asked, tears welling up in her eyes. “We didn’t do anything wrong.”

“I know, Princess. I’m sorry. I’m just upset that someone came into our house and I wasn’t there to protect you.

Beth replied, “Yeah, but Debbie and Connie took real good care of us, Dad. They never left our sides, and they had the shotgun. Debbie sat in the chair all night and kept watch, and Connie stayed right with me and Amy in the bed. We weren’t scared at all!”

“Well, I’m glad that they did a great job, but we still have to make some changes. Anyone have any ideas that will keep the house, and more specifically the girls, safe?”

Thomas looked as if a light bulb went on in his head and said, “Why don’t we make single shutters for inside the window, with old fashioned slide latches? You know, kind of like pioneer cabin doors, but for the windows? That way during the day they can have them open to let light in, and at night it will keep intruders out…or at least slow them down. They’d have to make an awful lot of noise to break in.”

Impressed with his friend’s quick thinking, Andrew said, “It will take a little time, but it should work. We’ll start with the windows upstairs. Obviously whoever it was knows that there is usually someone downstairs and that the girls were alone last night. Keith and Stewart, go measure the windows and get started on the shutters and latches.”

“Yes, sir,” Stewart said, and they left the house to do their job.

“Tonight, and every night from now on, no matter what, we have to have someone in here with them. Thomas, you and I will have to keep more vigilant watch outside. That means that between Stewart, Keith and James, we will have a constant rotation for in the house. The other two will help us on the grounds.”

“Sounds like a plan, Boss,” Thomas started. “I’ll go help the guys with the window covers. We should have enough old doors and wood to get all the windows in the house covered. If we keep a good pace, we may be able to get them all done and up by nightfall.”

“Just be careful. Rushing causes accidents.”

“Sir,” James said, “If it’s okay with you, I’d like to take the first watch tonight.”

Andrew wasn’t sure how he felt about James being in charge of his daughters’ safety. He didn’t know if he could trust him at all let alone allow him to protect his girls. After taking a moment to think about it, Andrew looked at James and knew that at some point he would have to be the one to stand watch. He said, “That’s fine. No funny business. You stay right here in this house and keep a tight eye on them. You see or hear anything, you ring that bell.”

“Yes, sir. I won’t let you down.”

It only took a second, and then Andrew had a thought, “Speaking of the bell, Debbie, why didn’t you ring it last night to get our attention?”

“Honestly, Dad, I didn’t want to open the door and risk whoever was out there hearing it. Not to mention the fact that we had no idea what was going on and we didn’t even know if you were alive.”

“Well, you won’t have to worry again. You will be safe from now on.” Andrew paused and then said, “Why don’t you girls go up and clear the floor in front of your windows? As soon as the shutters are done we will want to hang them.”

“Okay, Dad.”

The house was a flurry of activity all morning. By lunchtime, all of the windows on the second floor were covered, and they were working on the downstairs windows. It wasn’t long before the entire house was able to be shuttered in; including reinforced doors. Andrew was impressed with how quickly they got the job done. So as a special treat, he asked Debbie and Connie to make their special pizza. Unlike the pizza that you normally would get at the store or delivered from the local pizza shop, all of the ingredients were either handmade or grown on the ranch. They used sauce made from the tomatoes in their garden, along with fresh herbs, beef sausage from their cattle, and cheese curds from their milking cows. On top of that they spread out fresh tomato slivers, mushrooms, green peppers and onions, all grown with love in their garden. The pizza crust was a specialty of Connie’s, and when cooked over the fire in the fireplace, turned a flakey golden brown.

Andrew rang the bell and one by one the guys filed in, smiling at the smell from the other room. They knew instantly what that scent meant and couldn’t be happier to get such a treat. Everyone grabbed a plate and napkin and went to the living room. Once everyone had their pizza and drinks, they sat around eating and telling stories. Debbie knew it was a distraction so the younger girls didn’t worry, but she knew that deep down, her father was concerned about whether the people tapping on the windows the night before would return.

Even with a fire burning in the fireplace, Andrew could feel that it was growing frigidly cold outside. When it was time for him and the others to make their rounds and keep watch outside, he layered on as many clothes as needed to keep warm and then kissed his daughters goodnight. He looked at James and said, “Well, this is your chance to prove to me that I can trust you. Don’t mess up. If one hair on any of these girls…”

“I got it. I got it. I won’t let you down. Your girls will be safe.” James cut Andrew off.

Feeling as though he were being hurried off, Andrew kissed his girls again and glared at James. He didn’t want to leave the house, but knew it wouldn’t be right to make the other guys go out in the cold for him while he stayed warm indoors. He reluctantly left the house, standing outside the doors long enough to hear James lock the regular door and slide the lever on the additional door. When he got about twenty yards from the house, he turned and saw the girls closing the shutters on their bedroom windows while James took care of the windows on the first floor. That made him feel a little better, and he continued his walk to the front of the ranch.

James entertained the girls by getting them to play charades for a while. Amy and Beth were having so much fun. Soon it was obvious they were growing tired, so James suggested that all the girls go on up to bed.

“But it’s still early,” Connie said.

“I know, but it’s been a long day and you guys were up most of last night. So I think it will do you good to get some good sleep.”

Debbie didn’t like being told at the age of seventeen that it was time for bed, but decided it was better not to argue with him. She ushered her little sisters up the stairs and got them into bed. She said goodnight to Connie and then went into her room and closed the door. With her candle in hand, she looked around the room and hated that giant chunk of door covering her window. Knowing that her father would be furious, she still walked over to the window, slid the latch and pulled open the big shutter. From her window, she had a view of the front of the ranch, and in the distance she could see the small speck of light from her father’s lantern as he made his way along the fence line. She looked to the sky and instead of a vast expanse of stars, she saw the swirling clouds and the moon, just a sliver, peeking through from time to time.

Not wanting to get in trouble, she closed the shutter and locked it. She opened her closet door and instead of grabbing a pair of pajamas, she opted for a pair of sweats and a sweatshirt. It was chilly in her room, but she felt safer without a blanket on her to trip her up if she had to get out of bed fast. She wasn’t sure why, but she had a weird feeling as she blew out her candle and lay back on her pillows. She slowly drifted off to sleep, although she tried to fight it.

It seemed like she was asleep for only an instant when she felt a hand clamp down over her mouth. Her eyes snapped open and she instantly started to struggle against the grip of the person hovering over her. It took her a moment to realize that the person was talking to her in a whisper.

“Shhh. It’s me, James.” He said, still holding his hand over her mouth. “I need you to come with me, but that means I will have to take my hand off of your mouth. Can you promise me you won’t talk above a whisper? I don’t want to startle the girls.”

Debbie nodded her head and when James moved his hand, she whispered, “What in the world are you doing? You scared the heck out of me.”

“I need your help.”

“What’s wrong? Did something happen?”

“I heard something outside and I rang the bell once, but nobody responded.”

“Oh, my gosh. What should we do?”

“I need you to come with me.”

“Where are we going?”

“We need to make sure the guys are okay.”

“But, if someone is out there…”

“Come on, we gotta go. We need to find your dad. We will go out your window.”

Debbie didn’t feel good about what was happening and couldn’t understand why he wanted her to go out the window. “Why? Can’t we use the door?”

“We need to get out without being seen. This window leads to the trellis. We can climb down and find everyone.”

“But what about the girls? Who will watch them?”

James was on top of his game and had an answer for everything. “I already told Connie to keep an eye on Amy and Beth. She’s in Amy’s room now with both of them.”

When she heard that, she felt a little more confident that James was on top of things and whispered, “Let me get my shoes on and grab my extra coat.”

“Hurry, we may not have much time.”

Debbie thought that last comment was a bit odd, but was so worried about her father and the other guys that she did as he said and hurried.

Soon, James had Debbie climbing down the trellis ahead of him, and in short time they were making their way through the darkness. James made sure to keep his hand on her arm, and at first it made her uncomfortable, but she finally convinced herself that he was just making sure she didn’t hurt herself as they rushed through the ranch. He led her toward the back of the ranch, and Debbie had no clue where they were going. It wasn’t long until it became painfully obvious what was going on.

As they reached the stream, there in the shadows stood three men, each a little bigger than the other. Fear began to take hold of Debbie’s mind and body and she began trembling. Before she could scream, James’ hand gripped her mouth once again. One of the other men pulled out a roll of duct tape and placed it firmly over her mouth.