Stockman’s Showdown (The Stockmen #4)

Twenty-nine

‘Do you want us to wait, kid?’ Charlie asked from the front passenger seat of Ryder’s ute, as he parked in front of the Post Office on Elsie Creek’s main street.

‘No, I’m good, Pop.’ Bree unclipped her seat belt and quickly hustled out the back door, before Ryder could help. ‘You can take the rest of the deliveries to the pub.’

At least Ryder could help her with the thin boxes that held her various branding irons, fire pokers, and swords. ‘I’m happy to wait for you.’ He didn’t want her out of his sight. But it was daylight, on the main street, in a small town where Bree and Charlie knew everyone.

‘I’ll be catching up on the town gossip with Mrs Sternston for a bit.’ She nodded at the sewing store next to the post office.

‘Do you sew?’

‘Steel and metals, sure. Needle and thread, no. However, I know some lovely ladies who’ll happily do any sewing for me for a bottle of gin.’ She gave one of her outlaw gin-maker grins that made her green eyes shine with mischief. Damn, she was pretty with her hair down and in that dress.

‘Do you barter a lot with your gin?’

‘Aw come on, cupcake, we live in the outback, it’s the land of mates’ rates. And I know you play that game, giving a certain senior sergeant two bottles of your top-shelf bourbon.’

‘You saw that, huh?’ But he bought those bottles, Bree illegally distilled hers.

She ignored him as usual. ‘I’ll meet you at the pub when I’m done. Pop, please be sure to take all the branding irons inside. The rodeo is on next weekend, and a lot of our customers are coming in to collect. Mean Rene knows all about it. Be sure to give her a tip when you do.’

‘I know what I’m doing, kid.’ Charlie gave her a short wave, the grin growing as he rolled up the electric windows, then rolled them down again. ‘Look, this car’s so fancy the windows roll up with the touch of a button.’ He was like a big kid in that car, rolling up the windows, again.

‘Pop loves your car, almost as much as Dex’s ute.’ Bree took the boxes from Ryder’s arms and stepped up onto the pavement.

‘Are you going to the rodeo?’ Ryder spotted the rodeo’s poster on the Post Office noticeboard as he closed the back tray of his ute.

‘Probably not. Ask Charlie. If he goes, I’ll go.’ With a twirl of her skirt showing off her creamy legs, her thick hair trailed down her back as she headed for the front doors of the post office. A stockman quickly jumped the steps to open the door for Bree, tipping his hat to her.

But then the guy tilted his head to perve on Bree as she disappeared inside.

Ryder glared with pure heat at the stranger.

‘Sorry, mate. Didn’t realise she was taken.’ The stockman tapped his hat and hurried on by.

Even though he wanted to wait for Bree, Ryder drove Charlie to the pub. It was a quick trip to the building that towered over the one and only main intersection of Elsie Creek. An outback town so small it didn’t even have a set of traffic lights, just a pedestrian crossing that he’d seen a pet water buffalo use more than the residents. ‘Bree mentioned there’s a rodeo on next weekend.’

From the front passenger seat, Charlie peered out the passenger window. ‘Yep. Out the back of the pub.’

‘Do you want to go?’ He wouldn’t mind taking Bree out. ‘Bree said she’ll go if you go.’

‘I don’t go anymore, son.’

‘Why not? Is it an ex-rodeo thing?’

‘It’s a family thing.’

Ryder shrugged, not getting it.

‘I’ll go to the rodeo in Isa, Heartbreak, Katherine, Borroloola, Noonamah, and even the smaller rodeos across the Territory. Heck, I’ve even been to that smancy one on the Gold Coast for the national titles. But I don’t go to the local one out ‘ere at the pub.’

‘Why not?’

‘Because too many remember.’

Ryder parked his ute in the pub’s dusty car park. Behind the pub stood a long stretch of green lawn with an empty rodeo ring at the far edge.

Surprisingly, it was a full-sized rodeo arena with an announcer’s booth, the calf chute, two bucking chutes, turnout pens, even a small grandstand complete with empty stadium-style bleachers to seat a decent enough crowd. It had been a long time since he’d been to a rodeo.

But what he couldn’t understand was why would Charlie, a retired national champion, avoid going to the rodeo in his own hometown?

Ryder unloaded the assorted brands from the ute’s back tray. They were heavy. ‘I’ll carry these in for you, Charlie.’ No wonder Bree was strong, if she worked with these daily.

‘Did you help Bree do that thing with the fingers?’ Charlie hitched up his jeans, and with that bandy-legged swagger he headed for the pub’s doors.

‘We did. Bree even said a nice prayer, too.’

‘She’s a good kid, that one. I know she did that for me.’

‘I think Bree did that more for Harry and Penelope.’ Especially those words Bree had said about love. He’d never heard anyone speak from the heart like that. It had been an honour for him to be there, to finally see that true inner beauty beneath the sassy redhead’s outlaw attitude, to see the tender woman with a whole lot of love to give.

‘Harry would have liked that, for sure.’ Charlie gave a stiff sniff, with his grey eyes blinking as if ridding some grit that made his eyes all glassy. ‘Come on, let’s go have a beer and then skedaddle before the rodeo mob comes into town.’

? ? ?

Half an hour later, Bree made heads turn when she walked into the front bar. The din of conversation among the all-male crowd died down as she made her way to Charlie. A few stockmen nodded at her, a few even kissed her cheek, but more than a few of the younger male patrons watched her walk past with their heads tilted at the way her hips shifted with that outlaw swagger only highlighted by those long red tresses of a temptress in cowboy boots.

Bree was stunning as she leaned against the bar like she’d done it a thousand times, holding up her finger and with a nod at the barmaid she ordered her beer without saying a word. ‘Pop. Did you do the deliveries?’

Charlie sipped on his cold schooner of beer, then wiped over his frothy lip. ‘Yep. All done. Got Mean Rene looking after it. Even paid her a tip for her troubles. You were gone a while.’

‘Mrs Sternston says hi . And Tess, and Molly, and—’

‘Cor blimey, was there a sewing class happening?’

‘It is a sewing store, Pop.’ She took a sip of her beer, casually glancing around the room. ‘Have you ordered lunch yet?’

‘I’m not hungry.’ Charlie then mumbled something over his beer, plonking his elbow on the bar. ‘Rodeo mob got here early, they had a meeting on.’

‘So?’ She shrugged. ‘You like Lenny’s cooking.’

Charlie scowled, with his tone harsh. ‘Order our meals as a takeaway, coz we’re not staying, kid. And that’s final .’

‘Fine.’ She cocked her head at her grandfather as if reading more than Charlie’s foul mood. ‘Do you want some lunch, Ryder?’

‘I thought I’d shout lunch.’

‘Bree will pay, son. It’s only fair we pay for you driving us around today.’

‘Back soon, I’ll get us dinner too, because I’m not cooking when I get home.’

‘Wait up, Bree…’ Ryder followed her to the far end of the noisy bar. ‘Where are you ordering?’

‘From the chef himself.’ She pushed on the side door to enter the quiet corridor.

‘Well, if it isn’t my favourite redhead.’ It was Cowboy Craig, with his blond curls and cocky smile, strolling towards them, giving Bree a hug. ‘Charlie here?’

‘In the bar, and he’s not happy. The rodeo crowd is here.’

‘Damn, I didn’t think of that. The committee were having their meeting about the rodeo next weekend.’

‘Can you go keep him company, while I order lunch?’

Craig adjusted his white cowboy hat that only showed off his tan and blue eyes. ‘Sure. But can I trust you to behave?’

‘Always. That’s why I brought my bodyguard.’ She tossed her thumb in Ryder’s direction.

‘What?’ Ryder had to be missing something.

‘Craig…’ She grabbed the cowboy’s wrist. ‘Before you go, we found Charlie’s brother, Harry.’

‘No way.’ Craig listened intently as Bree explained the details.

She was giving far too much information away for Ryder’s liking. Which wasn’t like her, when Bree rarely told Ryder or his brothers the big picture.

‘Thanks for letting me know. I’ll go have a beer with Charlie now. Do you want me to come out home or something? It’s a bit late for me to get you some cupcakes as my couch-surfing fee.’

Bree grinned.

Ryder frowned. Nobody should buy Bree cupcakes but him.

‘Just buy the old man a beer.’ Ryder cut in on this conversation while putting his hand on Bree’s lower back.

‘I will. Hey, Bree?’ Craig swivelled around on the heels of his fancy cowboy boots with their thick Cuban heels. His thumbs hooked into the belt loops of his jeans where his big rodeo champion belt buckle caught the light. ‘Charlie should come to the rodeo. He is a legend, and he has a lot to share with the younger riders. They’d appreciate five minutes of his time.’

‘As much as we both know it’ll do him the world of good, it won’t be long and word will get out that Harry’s been found with another stockman’s wife, which will stir it all up again.’

‘I get it. I’ll keep an eye on him in the bar. Ryder.’ Craig tapped on the brim of his hat and pulled open the door to the front bar where the noise of voices mingled with the jukebox until the door shut behind him.

‘Bree?’

‘Hmm.’

Ryder grabbed her hand before she took off on him. ‘Why doesn’t Charlie want to go to the rodeo?’

‘You should ask Charlie that.’

He spun her around to face him. ‘I’m not going back to playing that stupid game of answering a question with a question where we end up snapping at each other.’ He towered over her.

But the little outlaw only lifted her chin, sneering at him. ‘You’re snapping at me now.’

‘Come on, we promised each other no more secrets.’ Especially after she’d just been talking so openly with Craig only moments ago. ‘Tell me the whole story, not drip-feed me information like some leaky tap I have to keep fixing!’ He wasn’t having any of that, not anymore.

‘Fine.’

He gritted his teeth and waited. How is it that Bree could stir him up so quickly? ‘And…’

‘Jack Price taught Charlie how to rodeo and helped start the local rodeo here in town. He was head of the committee, where many of the original members—who are still involved—haven’t forgotten Jack Price. It’s those committee members who made it hard for Charlie to ride or even visit the Elsie Creek Rodeo, and the rest just followed their lead.’

‘I see.’

‘Do you? This is a small town, and the stockmen out here live to a code. Charlie has had to live with all that talk.’

‘Because his brother ran off with a stockman’s wife.’ Which was a big no.

‘Harry also stands accused of murdering a head stockman.’

He narrowed his eyes at the redhead. ‘Do you believe Harry did it?’

‘No, I don’t. Not after re-reading that letter again at the police station earlier.’

Yet Bree was clever, so something else must have triggered her to make that assumption, compared to how she’d looked last night, when Bree wrote the words of a dead man on the floor of what she called the murder room.

‘You have to see it from Charlie’s point of view,’ continued Bree. ‘For the last sixty years, Charlie has lived with the consequences of his brother’s actions.’

‘How?’ With four younger brothers it made Ryder step back with his brow ruffling.

‘Even though Charlie has had a pretty full life, he was like Mia, hiding from her ex out at Elsie Creek Station. Charlie stayed out there to escape the looks, the frowns, and the fingers pointed at him whenever the local rodeo was on in town. Darcie told me that Jack Price had made some good friends out here. So, when their head stockman was murdered, people needed someone to blame, and Charlie became the easy target. Resentment like that tends to stick around here a lot longer than anywhere else.’

‘It was hardly Charlie’s fault.’

‘I know. But with Harry missing, and that damning bit of evidence he drew in chalk—the one I didn’t even know existed until yesterday—it was enough for some of the locals, especially those on the rodeo committee, to take it out on Charlie.’ She gave a sigh, with her voice softening. ‘It’s why Charlie isn’t having a funeral for Harry.’

Didn’t that tug at Ryder’s brow with concern. ‘Why not? Charlie’s been searching for his brother, he’d—'

‘Because Charlie thinks it’ll just stir up that bush telegraph into a feeding frenzy, and he doesn’t want to be around to hear it. Would you?’

‘No. You?’

That evil grin of hers showed she was ready to play dirty.

‘I’d dare any of them to say it to my face. It’s why Charlie doesn’t want me here, because he knows I’ll have a go at them.’

‘And that’s why I’m the bodyguard.’ Because if anyone dared to say anything to Charlie, especially to Bree, he’d defend them. Without question.

But Bree would also complain that she could fight her own battles—which was why she was never shy in speaking her mind.

Pity that most of the battling going on these days was between Bree and himself.

She then looked him up and down, a subtle curl forming at the corners of her luscious lips, with her eyes flickering with a devilish shimmer, before turning and walking towards the pub’s kitchen. It was a great view of her swinging those hips in that dress. ‘Did you find out who Ghost is?’

‘In between setting up cameras and arming my brothers with Glocks? Yeah, I did.’ Ryder crossed his arms, eyeing her carefully.

Bree tilted her head, a smirk tugging at her lips. ‘You armed your brothers with handguns?’ From that look, she already knew all about it.

‘It seemed like the right thing to do. Guess what else seemed like the right thing to do?’ He leaned in slightly. ‘I’m buying a Ghost mask so you can teach me how to play.’