Duane’s Determination (Broken Wheel Ranch #9)

Chapter 15

CHAPTER 15

“Well?” Lorissa demanded of her mother after she settled her on the couch in the living room, propping her leg up, with a cup of tea and a plate of cookies beside her. “What was The Broken Wheel like?”

Laurie smiled at her daughter, sighed heavily, and picked up her steaming cup of tea. It felt like she’d been traveling for days, and it had been two because her flights had been canceled or changed. Now that she was finally home, she could relax and tell her daughter and mother all about her weekend in the wild west. After taking a sip of her drink, Laurie put her fingers to her temples and exploded her hands away from her head.

“Mind blowing.” Laurie held up her hand and shook her head at her daughter. “Can you get my laptop?”

Though she scowled, Lorissa didn’t say anything as she went to retrieve it. She came back and sat in the chair across from her mother. Lois entered then with a tray of more drinks and cookies. She settled beside her granddaughter and watched her daughter.

“You seem different,” Lois said and looked at Lorissa. “Is it me, or is the tightness around your mother’s eyes less than when she left?”

“Now that you mention it, I think they are, her mouth isn’t pinched shut either.”

“I’m sitting right here,” Laurie scowled at them. She waved them over and they went to stand beside her. “The Broken Wheel Ranch is a ranch within a ranch.” She shook her head when her daughter went to speak. “Listen before you start bombarding me with questions. I know you’re excited, Lor, but because of everything I learned, it’s going to take a few minutes to get my point across.” She looked at her daughter and shared a smirk with her mother. As much as she loved the younger woman, there were times that she was impatient. She pointed to the screen and started talking. An hour later she looked up at her daughter and asked. “Any questions?”

“Only one or two.”

“Only that?” Lois asked with a smirk.

“Ha, ha, not very funny,” she said then ruined the sternness with a grin of her own. “One, do they have a vet, two, do they have a farrier?”

“I believe mention of a vet, however, he has his own practice and only goes out when Erin calls him. As for the other, I have no clue.” Laurie studied her daughter intently. “Why, are you thinking of applying?”

“It’s been swimming in the back of my mind that I need to find someplace else to work. Don’t get me wrong, I love doing what I’m doing, but I’m only on a as needed basis, so I don’t get a lot of work. I was thinking about maybe heading west to see if anyone was hiring, then you suggested the trip to The Broken Wheel.”

“Broken.”

“Huh?”

“The workers there call it Broken. I’m not yelling at you, but if I had known you were thinking of moving, I would have asked questions.”

“Sorry, but it’s just a thought.” Lorissa sighed then grinned at her mother to ask her next question, it started out as a joke, but when she saw her mother’s reaction, she didn’t know how to respond. “So, any cute cowboys at Broken?” Lorissa saw her mother’s cheeks turn bright red and she exchanged looks with her grandmother.

They hurried to their seats and demanded, “Spill the beans.”

Lois laughed at her daughter.

“He’s not actually a cowboy. He was learning to ride a horse right along with me.”

“Then why is he there? What’s his name? What’s his story?”

“His name is Duane Manchester, he’s there because he’s retired from the FBI, and his brother lives at Broken. Because the ranch is so large, and growing every day, Erin, the owner, hired Duane to be a security guard for everything.”

“Wow, it’s that big?” Lorissa asked in shock.

“Think of where you work, do you know how many acres it is?”

“About sixty.”

“Think almost two hundred times bigger.”

“Holy shit, that’s big.”

“Yes, where Erin’s Way, Broken, and Broken Two are, is roughly three thousand acres. Then there’s New Double, which is fifteen hundred acres. Erin bought five thousand acres across the road from her to prevent a housing development coming in. I don’t know all the details, but it sounds like a recent purchase.” She told them everything she knew, and Lois smirked as she looked at Lorissa.

“Did you see how she deflected from us asking questions about Duane.”

“I did,” Lorissa laughed and turned to her mother. “Spill the beans, since you didn’t mention a wife, I assume he’s single?”

“Divorced, and he’s forty-eight, or will be.” She saw their expressions and sighed heavily. “Fine, he’s tall, I’d say about six-two, not slim like Peter was, but not big like Dad was. He has narrow hips, wide shoulders, and a broad chest. His eyes are green, and he had dirty blond hair, but it’s cut in a short military style. I don’t know whether that is his personal style, or if it was because of his job. He only retired roughly six months ago.”

“How long did he work there?”

“Twenty-five years.”

“So, he has longevity.”

“Yes. He’s a good guy, and he listens. We had some good conversations, and I’m not saying that I would ever date him, but when I return for the rehabilitation, I wouldn’t not talk to him.”

“You’re going to return?”

“Yes. I can’t go for another couple of weeks, maybe a couple of months. They need to finish work on a bunktel, and once the final inspection is completed, they’ll call me, and I can make plans to go there. What I’m about to say has nothing to do with Duane, but I’m going to purchase the three-month package. I’m here to talk to you, Mom, about Gibson Associates.”

“What about it?”

“I’m tired. I’ve been working there since I was twenty. I don’t know if I will sell, but I’d like to talk with you to see if I have to be in the office every day. I do have to go in and discuss the leave of absence when I get the approval to return to Broken.”

“Who would you sell it to?”

“I don’t know if this would be beneficial or not, but I was thinking about the employees.”

“Really?”

“Yes, why are you shocked?”

“Your father was going to do the same thing. He had drawn up a proposal, but he passed away before he could take it to the company lawyer.”

“Do you still have those papers?”

“I do, they’re in his office at the house. This may be extremely premature of me, but would you ever think of moving to Colorado?”

“I don’t know, it’s something to think about. I don’t really want to sell this house, but I do know that I felt the weight of the world lift off my chest when I was out there.”

“Rent it out,” Lorissa said. “Or turn it into an Airbnb.”

“I know I don’t want to do that, because then I’d have to hire someone to come in and clean after every guest leaves. Thank you for the suggestion, but I think that would be a bigger hassle than renting it out.”

“Or you could sell it,” Lois said. “I know you don’t need the money, but if you’re serious about moving, then just pack up, sell it, and leave.”

“But it’s been in the family for decades.”

“Yeah, and before you answer this question, think hard before you answer. Without taking Lorissa in account, how many happy memories do you have in this house since you inherited it.” Lois looked at her daughter and gripped her granddaughter’s hand as they watched Laurie close her eyes, then sighed heavily as she opened them to stare at the two women sitting before her.

“None.”

“I thought you’d say that. Why keep something that doesn’t hold happy memories? I’m not being a Debbie Downer here, but I believe that whenever they finally catch those two fugitives, they will throw the book at them. Talk to Jason Shyster to see if you can move, or do you have to stick around until they are caught?”

“That’s a lot to think about.”

“It is,” Lorissa said, then shook her head. “Here’s something else to think about.”

“What?”

“Why don’t Nana and I move with you. You can do your rehabilitation, you don’t need to work, but I’m sure you might be able to find something to keep you busy. I could look for a job as a vet or a farrier, and if we get a big enough place, Nana can have the garden of her dreams.”

“I wish,” Lois said on a laugh. “I would love that. If the place is big enough, the three of us could live together.” The three women sat there sipping their tea, nibbling on the cookies, and pictured what a life would be like in Colorado. After her mother and daughter left hours later, Laurie made her way to bed, and at the last minute she took her laptop with her. After her shower, and getting settled in the bed, she bit her lip the entire time she wrote the e-mail she’d composed in her head while she’d showered. When she finished, she hit send and crossed her fingers that she hadn’t just messed up the lives of three people.

Duane looked at his computer and frowned at the e-mail he’d just gotten the notification from. He saw who it was from, then grinned as he opened it. He had to read it at least four times before it clicked what Laurie Gibson was asking of him. Because of his past life, he immediately started doing a back ground check on Lorissa and Lois Gibson. When he realized there wasn’t anything on Lorissa, he remembered the name of Laurie’s ex and used that instead. He liked what he read. He sent a quick message to Erin that he would like to meet with her first thing in the morning, and she said to come around for breakfast. Nodding, he smiled and got ready for bed himself. He sent a message back to Laurie that he would talk to Erin about her questions.

The next morning, Duane walked into the back door of the main house and smiled when Reid nodded to him and pointed to the coffee pot. He fixed a cup and turned to the other man. “Do you need any help?”

“Can you whip up some eggs while I turn the meat? We’re having French Toast, bacon, and sausage.”

“On it,” Duane said, and the two of them worked in the kitchen. Reid stepped to the side and let out a loud whistle causing Duane to frown at him.

“Erin’s in her office already.” He shook his head with a small smile. “She had an idea.”

Duane grinned and helped set the table. Erin quickly joined them, and after greetings, they loaded up their plates. No one said anything until the meal was halfway eaten, then Erin looked at Duane. “What’s up?”

“I got an e-mail from Laurie last night.”

“Is everything okay? She’s not backing out in returning, is she?”

“No, she contacted me to ask a couple of questions.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah, and based on her inquires and information she passed along, I did some research, and I only have to ask a question for you. I’m coming to you out of respect, and for your knowledge.”

“Spill it, Manchester,” Erin laughed as she continued to eat. “I can’t help if you don’t get to the point.”

“Oh, sorry.” He drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Laurie said that she really enjoyed being here this past weekend. She enjoyed it so much she asked me if I knew of any places she could either purchase or rent.” Duane shook his head when it looked like Erin was going to say something. “Wait, there’s more. It needs to be a big enough house for her, her daughter, and her mother. The other two ladies in Laurie’s life want to move here with her.”

“Do the daughter and mother work?”

“Mother, Lois, is newly retired. Laurie mentioned they wanted a place big enough where her mother could put in a garden, now I don’t know what this means exactly, but an herb garden was mentioned. Something separate from a vegetable garden. Oh, also on this property, Laurie is requesting room to put in another thing I have no clue what it means.”

“What’s that?”

“A summer kitchen.”

Erin nodded as she pushed her empty plate away, picked up her juice and settled back in her chair. “What else?”

“That’s all I know about Lois, and my research didn’t turn up any red flags. Oh, and Laurie said she’s looking into how to get out from under her company. She mentioned something about having the employees buy her out, or she’ll sell it outright. She’s unsure yet. She’s also thinking of selling her home if she moves here. It was mentioned to turn it into an Airbnb, but she doesn’t want that hassle, and she doesn’t know if she wants to rent, because then she’d have to go back and look at what needed to be fixed and hire someone.”

“Yeah, no, I wouldn’t want to do either of those things either. Not that I’m selling and moving halfway across the country, but I wouldn’t want the hassle of dealing with other people whether it was as an Airbnb, or a rental.” Erin sipped her juice and stared at Duane. “What else?”

“Well, you know Laurie, and met her, both Jake and I did a background check on her, I just told her about her mother, Lois, so that leaves her daughter, Lorissa.”

“Is there anything bad about her?”

“Not at first, until I remembered what Laurie said, and I was able to get the background check on her. It’s all good,” Duane said as he held up his hand to ward off what Erin might have said. He pushed his own plate away, and picked up his coffee cup.

“What did Laurie say?” Reid asked, speaking for the first time. Before Duane could say anything, they looked up and saw Clark walk into the kitchen. He immediately went to the coffee pot and settled in a seat that Duane knew was his whenever he sat at the table. With a grin, he helped himself to some of the leftover breakfast. As he ate, he looked around the table. “What’s up? Since you sent me a message to be here early.”

“Yeah, I had a thought and wanted to discuss it with you. However, Duane is telling me that Laurie Gibson wants me to give recommendations of places she might be able to purchase. Apparently, when she was here this past weekend she enjoyed it so much she wants to move here.”

“Isn’t that a good thing?”

“Yes, and Duane also said that he’s done his job, and was just going to tell us about Lorissa, Laurie’s daughter. Reid just asked Duane what Laurie said about her daughter when you walked in.”

“Oh, don’t mind me, if I get time, I need to run to the grocery store today. We only have eggs at the house.” He grinned when the others laughed as he polished off the rest of the food.

“Laurie said that in the divorce from her husband, her daughter divorced her father, and she was able to change her name to her mother’s last name. When I entered Lorissa Stanton, I got very little details. When I entered Lorissa Gibson, I got what I wanted.”

“Did she pass the check?” Clark asked.

“Yes, and I have absolutely no idea what I’m about to say, but this woman is smart.”

“Smart how?” Erin sat forward, her expression full of interest. She gave a little body shiver and used her stump to indicate for Duane to hurry up.

“One, I know what this is, she is a DVM, she had the degree and everything that goes with it. However, she doesn’t work as a vet.”

“No, what does she work as?” Reid looked around the table and felt a buzz in the air as he reached over and placed his hand on Erin’s. He frowned when he thought he felt her vibrating.

“Like I said, I have no clue what this means, I haven’t looked into it, but Lorissa Gibson is AFA Certified to be a farrier. That’s what she works at now at three different boarding stables about an hour outside of New York City.”

“Son of a bitch,” Clark cried out at the same time Erin yelled, “Yes!”