Chapter 15

15

A undy didn't mention the note she found on the door to anyone the next morning. Nora called right after breakfast to see how she was and she told her everything was fine.

It was fine.

Or it would be when whoever was trying to frighten her figured out she wasn't leaving, wasn't selling, and wasn't giving up.

With renewed determination to ignore whoever was taunting her, especially if it was Marvin Tooley, Aundy did laundry all morning and hung the last sheet up to dry when Li suddenly appeared next to her clothesbasket.

"Missy, come eat with us?" Li asked, smiling at her imploringly. She'd eaten a few meals he prepared and the food was always delicious. The thought of not having to make herself dinner was too appealing to tell him no. That, and the fact he looked at her nodding his head, trying his best to make her agree.

"I'd love to, Li. Thank you for the invitation." Aundy smiled gratefully at her cook. "May I bring something?"

"No. Li cook." He continued smiling and nodding his head.

"Okay, I'll see you later then."

"Yep, Missy." Li started to go back to the bunkhouse then stopped and gave her an inquisitive look. "Missy, why wear britches, big hat, day you help Li?"

Aundy almost swallowed the clothespin she held in her mouth. Quickly snatching it from between her lips and hooking it on the sheet, she looked at Li with raised eyebrows.

In the weeks since she'd met the man, he hadn't once mentioned her being the person who found him. She'd hoped, in his pain-induced state, he wouldn't remember. It looked like he wasn't quite as incoherent as she thought when she'd dragged him out of the stairwell to her horse.

"I didn't think you knew that was me," Aundy said quietly, looking around to see if anyone else was close enough to hear the conversation. It appeared they were alone. "I was trying to buy sheep and no one would talk to me as a woman, so I dressed like a man. I don't plan on making a habit of it."

"That good." Li grinned at his boss. "You pretty lady, not man."

Aundy laughed. "Thank you, I think."

"Pretty boss lady," Li said in a singsong voice, making Aundy grin. "Pretty lady. Pretty lady."

"Can you keep that under your hat?"

"What under hat?" Li looked confused.

"That means please don't tell anyone I was dressed like a man. The men wouldn't take that news favorably."

"Not tell nobody." Li bowed at Aundy then hurried back to the bunkhouse.

Aundy finished hanging her laundry before retreating to Erik's desk for the afternoon.

After completing bookwork she'd put off, she rolled her shoulders and looked at the clock on the mantel across the room. If she didn't hurry, she'd be late for dinner and she didn't want to keep hungry men waiting. She washed her hands and face then tidied her hair before rushing out the kitchen door and down the steps. Green sprouts poked up from the dirt in the garden and she added weeding to her ever-growing list of chores. Li made sure she knew what plants were weeds and what ones were supposed to be growing.

Boisterously knocking on the bunkhouse door, she smiled at Dent when he opened it, motioning her inside.

"Welcome, Missy. Heard you were joining us for supper." Dent pointed to the big table, lined with benches on both sides and chairs on each end. He escorted her to a chair and held it while she sat down.

"Li was quite persuasive in his argument that I share supper with you," Aundy said, winking at the cook as he set a bowl of rice on the table.

"We liked his Chinese food so well the other day, we asked him to make some more," Bill said, looking a little sheepish. No doubt, he and Fred were the loudest protestors at eating something new. "Nik said you wanted to try it."

"I do." Aundy bowed her head while Dent gave thanks. When he finished, she looked around the table. "I have eaten Chinese food before, though."

"You have?" Nik shot Aundy a questioning glance as he passed a bowl to her.

"Yes, I have. In fact, there was a special event in Chicago I attended that provided the opportunity to sample food from all over the world." Aundy let her thoughts drift back to an adventure she experienced with her parents, brother, and sister.

"Where was that?" George asked, helping himself to a mixture of meat and vegetables in a savory sauce.

"At the World's Columbian Exposition of 1893." Aundy took a bite of the food and enjoyed the flavors that exploded on her tongue.

"Really? You were there?" Fred asked, his eyes lighting with curiosity. "I heard it was something to see."

"It was. There were all kinds of food booths, and people from every walk of life as well as games and exhibits and rides," Aundy said, thoughtful as the memories resurfaced. "I think my favorite thing of all was the Ferris wheel."

"What's a Ferris wheel?" Nik asked, waiting for her to explain.

"It was a ride that could hold more than two thousand people. It was literally a huge wheel standing more than two-hundred and sixty-feet tall. It sat on a monstrous axle and had thirty-six passenger cars attached to the rim of the wheel. People sat, or stood, in the cars and the wheel would take them up in the air and bring them back down to platforms." Aundy used her index finger to show how the wheel moved. "At the very top, you could see not only the fairgrounds and the city of Chicago, but also for miles and miles around. It was amazing."

"I want to ride a Ferris wheel," Nik said, imagining how wonderful it would be to see so far in the distance.

"Perhaps, someday you will." Aundy offered the boy an encouraging smile.

The men asked more questions about Chicago, the fair, and things she'd experienced. They talked about some of the more interesting things they'd seen in some of their travels and before they realized the lateness of the hour, it was well past time for the last of the evening chores to be completed.

"Goodness, I didn't mean to distract you boys for so long." Aundy rose to her feet, ready to help Li clear the table. He shooed her away, so she started to walk out with the men.

"We enjoyed your stories, Missy," Dent said, patting her on the shoulder as he settled his hat on his head then opened the door.

A dead lamb hanging from a limb in the cottonwood tree between the bunkhouse and the barn captured their attention as they stepped outside. A wicked looking knife, covered in blood, pinned a note to the tree.

Aundy screamed and Dent pulled her around, shielding her from the gruesome sight.

"Bill, cut that thing down. Fred, bring that letter over here, and the knife," Dent ordered as his gaze took in the quiet barnyard. Nothing seemed unusual or out of place, other than the disturbing sight in the tree.

Nik ran over to the tree with Bill and bravely held back his tears as he cradled the dead animal. At least it wasn't Butter. After gently laying the lamb on a mound of grass, Nik scrambled to his feet and sprinted toward the pasture where the flock grazed. George, Lem, and Hank raced behind him.

"I'm okay, Dent." Aundy took a deep breath and stepped back from her foreman. She couldn't believe anyone would be so cruel as to kill a helpless lamb and string it up from a tree, but evidently, someone was desperate to make his point.

Aundy read the note and dropped it as if something poisonous had bitten her. She rubbed her hands on her skirt, as if she tried to wipe off something filthy. How had she and the men missed someone lurking around right outside the door while they enjoyed dinner?

Dent picked up the note. Rage pounded through him as he read the words.

"I dun tol' ya but yer two stupid to pay me mind. I'm dun talkin. Say gudbuy to yer stinkin sheep."

"Glen, run up to the house and call the sheriff," Dent said, taking Aundy's arm and walking her toward the house. He'd make sure it was safe and one of them would stay with her until the sheriff arrived.

They were almost to the back porch when Aundy came out of the trance she seemed to be in and realized Dent escorted her inside. She stopped walking and pulled her arm away from his hand where it had held her elbow, guiding her along.

"No, Dent." She took another step back. "I need to go check on the rest of the sheep and Nik."

"The men will take care of Nik and watch out for the sheep. We'll put someone on night watch from now on until this thing settles down. Don't you worry, Missy." Dent was sure his reassurances fell on deaf ears.

Aundy would have run off to the pasture except Glen hurried down the back steps. "The sheriff is sending someone out right away. He asked if Aundy would wait in the house. He said something about looking at the note from yesterday."

"What note?" Dent gave Aundy a probing glare.

"That tattletale Nash." Aundy stormed up the steps with Dent and Glen right behind her.

"What note?" Dent asked again, wanting to grab Aundy by the arm and give her a shake to bring her to her senses. Sometimes the woman was too independent for her own good.

"When I arrived home last night, there was a note on the door. Garrett was the only one who saw it. He must have said something to Deputy Rawlings." Aundy marched to the front room where she plucked the note from a galvanized pail she used to hold discarded papers to burn in the stove and fireplace.

Carefully unfolding the wadded piece of paper, she turned up the lamp on the desk and handed the letter to Dent.

He read it and compared the handwriting to the note they'd just found. The same hand wrote both notes.

"Glen, check the house, would ya?" Dent asked. While Glen looked in each room to make sure the house was secure, Dent and Aundy returned to the kitchen. The foreman set the warning letters on a corner of the table.

"No one wants to hurt me, just my poor little sheep." Aundy banged the coffee pot as she filled it with water and slammed it on the stove. She stoked the fire and set a kettle of water on to heat, assuming it would be a long evening.

Taken aback by her anger, Dent expected her to be frightened or tearful, but not fuming. He was plenty mad for everyone.

"I hope Nik is okay," Aundy muttered more to herself than Dent.

When Glen returned to kitchen and nodded his head, Dent asked him to keep an eye on Aundy while he went out to check on the sheep and Nik.

"Keep her in the house," Dent whispered to Glen as he opened the kitchen door.

Aundy watched him leave and frowned at her hired hand. "You don't have to stay here and keep me company. I'd much rather be out there, so I'm sure you would, too."

Glen watched Aundy pace around the kitchen. His nerves twisted tighter with each step she took. He had to do something to calm them both down. "That's okay. I don't mind. Anything I can do to help around the house? Maybe we could find something to work on until the deputy comes. You need shelves hung or anything repaired?"

Aundy was right. He would rather have been just about anywhere other than in the house with her at that moment, but he was grateful she was mad and slamming things around instead of crying hysterically. He assumed that was what most women would do after seeing the lamb in the tree. Just thinking about it made a cold shiver slither down his spine. Anyone who could do that was capable of just about anything.

"Want me to call Garrett and have him come over?"

"Absolutely not," Aundy said hotly, glaring at Glen as she stirred something in a bowl. He'd noticed she liked to bake when she was upset. It worked out well for the men, since it meant cookies, cake, or pie for them.

"How about I…" Glen didn't know who pounded at the front door, but as he hurried to answer it, he didn't care. Any interruption was welcome.

Almost any.

Glen could have done without seeing the pretty-faced Ashton Monroe standing on the doorstep, dressed in an expensive tailored suit with brocade vest and fancy tie in place. Glen was gratified to see, for once, Ashton's boots weren't polished to a shine that reflected his face.

"Where's Mrs. Erickson?" Ashton barged his way inside. "I just heard the terrible news and rushed right over."

"How could you hear the news? We barely discovered it ourselves," Glen asked with a narrowed gaze.

"You know how the phone line buzzes with all the latest gossip." Ashton looked around the room, expecting Aundy to materialize. When she didn't, Glen sighed and walked Ashton to the kitchen.

Aundy dropped cookie dough onto a baking sheet before sliding it into the oven. "Ashton? Now isn't a good time for a social call." Her tone was flat with a hint of irritation as she rinsed her hands and dried them on a dishtowel.

"I realize that, my dearest Mrs. Erickson." Ashton sidled next to her and took her hand in his. He led her to the table and held out a chair for her. When she reluctantly sat down, he gallantly dropped to one knee, looking at her with tender eyes. "I heard about the tragedy that befell one of your sheep and rushed right over, knowing how distraught you'd be."

"I appreciate your thoughtfulness, but as you can see, I'm fine." Annoyed to have Ashton fawning over her, Aundy wished he'd leave. He wasn't normally quite so… attentive. It irritated her that the men all seemed to expect her to fall to the floor in a faint, or sob until she lost the ability to function coherently.

As the owner of the farm and the sheep, she wouldn't allow herself the luxury of giving in to the urge to cry until she drained the well dry.

"My dear, you look anything but fine. You seem quite distressed." Ashton stood, pulled a chair over, and sat so close to her their knees brushed. Aundy drew back her legs and frowned at Ashton.

"Truly, I'll be fine, Ashton. Please don't worry yourself on my behalf. Someone from the sheriff's office will be here soon, so it's probably best if you leave now." Aundy rose from her chair and removed the cookies from the oven, glad to have something to keep her busy. If she had to sit with Ashton patting her hand and consoling her one more minute, she might give in to the urge to slap him.

"If you're certain." Ashton sounded hurt as he got to his feet and started toward the front door.

"I'm certain, but thank you again for thinking of me." Aundy tipped her head toward Glen, indicating he should walk Ashton to the door.

With the last of the cookies in the oven to bake, Aundy washed the dishes she dirtied to make cookies as Glen returned to the kitchen.

"Do you like Ashton?" Glen asked, picking up a hot cookie then juggling it from one hand to the other until it was cool enough to eat.

"Of course I like him, just like I do all the neighbors." Aundy dried a bowl and put it away.

"No, I mean like him… you know?" Glen wondered why he brought up the subject in the first place. It was clear Ashton's presence annoyed Aundy and she wanted him out of the house as quickly as possible.

"If you mean would I consider giving my heart to a man like him, then the answer is no." Aundy observed Glen as he snitched another cookie. She poured a cup of coffee and handed it to him as the kitchen door opened and Dent entered with Kade.

The deputy took the two notes and asked Aundy questions about any threats she received. She told him about Marvin Tooley, including taking him home when he showed up drunk the previous afternoon.

"Why in tarnation didn't you find one of us?" Dent asked, trying to keep from yelling. He couldn't believe Aundy hauled the filthy drunk home all by herself. She might be the boss, but she was still an innocent woman who shouldn't be dealing with some of the things she'd resigned herself to managing as the owner of the place.

"You were busy, I handled the situation and that was that." Aundy offered Kade a cup of coffee and a plate of cookies. Appreciative, he accepted both.

"That isn't that. That is asking for a whole lot of trouble, Missy. You can't be going around hauling home drunks. You just can't." Dent slapped the hat he'd been twisting around in his hands on his leg, stirring up a cloud of dust.

"We'll discuss your thoughts on that subject later," Aundy said, turning her attention back to Kade. He asked her a few more questions, took another handful of cookies, and left. Dent gave him the bloody knife to take with him.

Lem decided to stay with Nik out by the sheep. Other than the dead lamb, they didn't find any missing or wounded animals when they checked the pasture.

"Missy, you and I are going to have a long conversation about what is acceptable for you to do and what is not." Dent waggled his finger at her.

She prepared to let him have an earful about doing whatever she deemed necessary when the back door opened and Garrett stepped inside.

"Aundy, are you okay?" His silvery gaze locked on hers. He opened his arms as he walked toward her. She rushed into the warmth and comfort he offered.

Despite her attempts to keep her emotions from showing, to keep her fear and hurt from overwhelming her, the sight of Garrett opened the floodgates and she couldn't hold back any longer. Although she'd kept her back straight and chin up throughout the evening, as soon as Garrett touched her, all the starch went out of her spine and she melted against him.

As the first sob shook her shoulders, Garrett sat on a chair at the table and pulled her onto his lap, cradling her head to his chest.

Stroking her back, he murmured softly to her. "It's okay, honey. It's okay." Garrett handed her the dishtowel Dent held out to dry her tears.

"It's not okay," she said between sobs. "They killed my lamb, Garrett. They killed my poor little lamb."

"I know, honey. I'm sorry." Garrett noticed Glen sitting at the table, grinning at him as if he knew some big secret.

"We'll just um… Come on, Glen," Dent said, hurrying out the door with Glen right behind him.

"I'll leave them alone for a minute or two before I go make sure he ain't doing nothing he shouldn't be," Dent said as they walked toward the bunkhouse.

"Ol' Garrett better be sure he wants the boss lady because she's plumb sold on him. She would barely give Ashton Monroe the time of day and fairly ran him out of the house, but she sure don't seem to mind Garrett being there." Glen concluded Aundy had better taste in men than most of the female population around town. Garrett Nash could have his choice of women, but Ashton had the looks, money, and suave manners that made the ladies practically fall at his feet.

"When was Ashton here?" Dent stopped outside the bunkhouse.

"Just before you and Kade came in. Aundy didn't seem pleased he showed up. She told him she was fine and to go home. He finally got the idea she wasn't of a mind to visit and left."

"Did he know something had happened or was it a social call?"

"He knew all about it. Said news travels fast. Suppose that's true enough. I heard some busybodies round here can't get any of their housework done cause they spend all day listening in on the telephone line."

"That so?" Dent asked distractedly, looking toward the house and deciding to give Aundy a few more minutes alone with Garrett.

Half an hour later, Dent knocked on the kitchen door and stepped inside. Garrett drank coffee and ate cookies while Aundy sipped a cup of tea. She no longer cried and seemed calm.

"Everything okay?" Dent poured himself a cup of coffee.

"For now," Aundy said, looking at Dent and mustering a small smile.

"Lem's gonna stay with Nik and the sheep for a while. Hank's gonna catch a few winks then head out to pick up the second shift. Fred and Bill will keep an eye out around here tonight," Dent said, letting Aundy know someone would watch to make sure she was safe.

"Why don't you come back with me to Nash's Folly, Aundy? No one will know you're there and you can rest easy," Garrett said, reaching across the table to take her hand in his.

Once she stopped crying, he'd attempted to convince her to stay at his place. Nora could mother her and he could keep an eye on her until they caught whoever made the threats.

Adamant that she wasn't going to abandon the farm, the sheep, or her men, Aundy refused. Like she did now.

Grateful, she smiled and squeezed his fingers, but shook her head.

"That's exactly what someone wants me to do, isn't it? Run off scared. I think someone wants me off this place and they're trying to frighten me into leaving by harming my sheep." Aundy glanced from Garrett to Dent. The two men passed some unspoken message through lifted brows and nearly imperceptible nods of their heads.

"You two agree, don't you?" Aundy rose and began pacing around the kitchen again. "Why? What did I do? Who did I offend?"

"No one, Missy." Dent took a drink of his coffee. "Some folks, men, just don't cotton to the idea of a woman running her own place and doing it quite well."

Garrett agreed. "Their way of thinking may be outdated, but you aren't going to change their minds." His parents raised him to believe everyone should have equal opportunities regardless of gender or race. "Are you sure I can't convince you to stay at our house tonight?"

"No, Garrett. I thank you for your concern, but I'll be fine." Aundy rinsed out the cups in the sink. Dent mumbled something about seeing them later and ambled out the door. Garrett leaned against the counter, watching Aundy wipe off the table and store the leftover cookies in a tin.

As she walked by, he pulled her against him.

"Don't, Garrett. Please." Tears filled her eyes as she looked into his silvery depths. He'd been so good to her, letting her cry, making her feel safe in his strong arms. If he offered more gentle assurances, she would break down sobbing again and that wouldn't help anyone. "I'll be fine. I promise."

"I know you will be. You're one of the strongest women I know," Garrett said, offering a loving smile. When he lowered his head to hers, their lips connected in a fiery kiss.

Aundy wrapped her arms around his neck, clinging to him, to her dreams, to her desires for a future with Garrett. Pressed against him with his lips moving insistently against hers, she could easily forget about the farm, the sheep, and everything else.

Unfortunately, she didn't have the luxury of forgetting and abruptly pulled back, pulled herself down to earth and reality.

"Thank you, Garrett. You can't know how much I appreciate you being here when I needed you most," Aundy said, meaning every word. Although she refused to let Glen call him, Aundy hadn't realized how desperately she needed Garrett until he walked in the door. She wanted to go with him to Nash's Folly where Nora would make her tea, J.B. would offer sage wisdom, and Garrett would keep her safe. Instead, she had to stay, take a stand, and let it be known that nothing was going to run her off Erik's land.

"Anytime you need me, I'll be here." He settled his hat on his head and disappeared into the evening darkness.