Stockman’s Showdown (The Stockmen #4)

Thirty-two

Ryder leaned against the fence as music blasted from inside the blacksmith shed. With her hair tucked under her black cap, Bree pulled a white-hot rod from the flames of the furnace. Swinging a thick hammer, she hit that rod, bending it, shaping it over the large anvil. The beat of metal on metal, hammer on anvil, was like an ancient drum, each metal clang in sync with the music.

She was beautiful to watch.

The shotgun-wielding, gin-making outlaw, was the queen of steel, and a sword-making magician of alchemy. She was the temptress of lust, strong enough to turn his cold, stony heart into a fire as hot as the forge she used to melt metal that she’d bend to her will. He could not stop watching the woman who had already placed her own brand on his heart.

In his peripheral view he spotted her grandfather coming down the garden path to lean his forearms over the gate’s rail beside Ryder. ‘The kid’s been in a good mood lately.’

Ryder wanted to claim it was all his doing. Being with Bree had certainly put him in a good mood. He’d never slept better than when lying beside her. Even if they weren’t letting anyone know what they were doing after dark, just being near her was a comfort.

Charlie pushed up the brim of his stockman’s hat. ‘What can I do you for, son?’

‘We need to talk. With Bree.’

‘Sounds ominous.’

With fingers to his mouth, Ryder let rip a whistle that ricocheted around the shed.

Bree spun around with a hammer in her hand. ‘What was that for? Most people use words like hello , cupcake?’

He still hated that pet name, but she was wearing him down. ‘I needed your attention.’ And she had his, just by breathing.

‘There are better ways to get a girl’s attention than by bursting my eardrums.’ She poked the hot iron into the water bucket. A hiss of steam curled in the air.

Leaving her latest creation to rest on the anvil, Bree tore off her thick gloves, they ran up to her elbows, made of the same thick leather as her full-bib apron. With the back of her hand, she wiped at the sweat glistening on her brow to brush back one of her curls.

Ryder wanted to tuck it behind her ear, then follow it with his lips down her slender neck to lick at the salty beads of sweat. But Bree was careful to never get too close to him when others were around.

She pulled down the heavy iron gate that closed off the blazing furnace, already hearing the flames fading in the forge for the day. ‘Is there something you need, Ryder?’

Heck yeah, he had a list, a big one. But that was only for after dark when her grandfather had gone to bed.

She narrowed her eyes at him with a look that warned him to behave.

He didn’t want to.

‘Marcus and Porter are here. They want to talk to Charlie in the boardroom.’ He then said to Charlie, ‘It’s to do with Harry.’ It was all part of the plan.

‘We shouldn’t keep them waiting, son.’ Charlie brushed past him, heading down the stone path that wound through the thriving vegetable garden.

‘Is it time?’ Bree asked Ryder quietly.

Ryder nodded. They’d elected not to tell Charlie of their findings last week, leaving it to the police. But Ryder made sure he’d sped up the process, calling in favours, hoping that what they discovered would fall in the right direction, for Charlie’s sake.

‘Are they here to discuss Leo’s matter, too?’ Bree dragged off her black skullcap that contained the long thick plait that rested over her shoulder like rich rope.

‘Only after Charlie leaves.’

‘Got it.’

‘Hey.’ He pulled her back to duck behind the wall of assorted bean varieties that grew thickly over an arched trellis, effectively shielding them from the house. ‘I want a kiss.’

‘My grandfather is just there.’

‘I don’t care.’ Sneaking around had been hot, but he’d rather their relationship was out in the open. But he’d learned fast that wasn’t what Bree wanted, so he took any chance he could, like this one. Wrapping that thick plait around his wrist to control her head, his lips met hers and kissed her like she was his air, his light, his life.

He’d never get sick of kissing her, especially when he watched her glassy green eyes shimmer to gaze at him as her body sighed against him.

She did that in those quiet moments, where the only sound was their breaths or heartbeats. Those moments just after he’d made love to her, and she’d gaze at him with wonder. In that small window of time she wore no shields, only pure open emotion showing on her face, filling her eyes, it was beautiful. All of her was beautiful.

But then she’d blink. And bam , reality set in and so too those shields that protected her heart.

‘Why are we hiding this?’ He hated how she retreated from him, starting down the path while untying the back of her apron. ‘You said it was because of Charlie, but he likes me.’

She slid the strap of the welding apron over her head. ‘Charlie would shoot you.’

‘Would not.’

‘He threatened to shoot Finn, and all the others.’

‘How many others?’ The fire burned in his chest.

‘Don’t judge, cupcake. It’s not that many. Most men were either too scared of me, or not good enough to get an invitation past the front gate.’

So, Finn—that’s definitely over? Because the weekend he was here it didn’t seem like it.’

‘Isn’t it obvious already?’ Bree rolled her eyes, the sigh exaggerated. ‘Finn was a rerun, cupcake. Just because I revisited a chapter doesn’t mean I’m rewriting the whole book. That story’s done.’

Didn’t that make him grin with pride.

‘But Finn and I are still friends, okay?’

‘Whatever. Just know, no one is good enough for you—except me.’

‘Ah huh, and what brand of gun glue have you been sniffing today?’ She rolled those pretty green eyes that contradicted the smile she was trying to hide.

‘Come on, we’re not children. We have no reason to keep hiding like this. I’m not ashamed to be with you, Bree.’

‘I’m not ready. Okay?’ She said it over her shoulder, while walking away from him. ‘Hey, this is new for me, too. Why rush?’

He stopped to watch her disappear inside the cottage, where she hung her leather apron and gloves at the back door.

Even though he was ready to rush in with both feet, he’d forgotten how Bree had been burnt in ways he couldn’t comprehend. He needed to exercise patience. He’d been patient with her this long.

He also knew Bree was scared of what was happening between them, when it felt so right. It was Bree who was holding back, making excuses to not trust her own feelings.

But if there was a way, or some gesture, to show her there was nothing to be afraid of, they wouldn’t need to sneak around like teenagers after dark.

Ryder escorted Bree and Charlie to the boardroom, where two uniformed police officers were waiting. Marcus sat beside Porter at one end of the large boardroom table. Ash, Cap and Dex sat along the sides. All the monitors were turned off.

‘Smell that coffee.’ Charlie inhaled deeply as he took his seat at the head of the table.

‘If you have a coffee now, you’ll give your poor heart a workout it doesn’t need, Pop.’ Bree poured two glasses from the water cooler that stood by the door, and sat beside her grandfather, saying the usual hellos to the two policemen at the table.

‘What’s going on, lads?’ Charlie steepled his fingers, with his elbows resting on the table he’d made by hand.

‘Go ahead, Porter.’ Marcus gave the young officer a nod.

Porter nervously cleared his throat as he flipped open a folder. ‘Um, Charlie. We have news on Harry. It’s about the cave-in, and the murder.’

The smile fell from Charlie’s face as he leaned back in his seat. Bree gripped his hand and gave it a squeeze.

‘We’ve discovered, that, um…’ Porter tugged at the collar of his police uniform, clearing his throat again, to clutch his glass of water and drink deeply.

‘Come on, Porter, spit it out, mate,’ said Dex. ‘The suspense is killing us.’

Porter’s empty glass hit the table with a clunk. ‘Harry didn’t kill Jack Price, it was the other way around.’

‘Come again?’ Charlie cupped his ear like a horn.

‘We’ve had forensic specialists go over the reports and the scene, and they concluded that the cave-in was deliberate, caused by a blast, trapping Penelope and Harry inside. That first blast made the area unstable, resulting in that landslide easily occurring after the stampede.’

‘How do you know that?’ Bree asked Porter.

‘From a blasting technician who works for the mining companies. Using the images from Ash’s drone, the techie was able to prove from the cave and surrounding debris layout that the damage was done with dynamite. On his PC, he showed me this really cool 3D terrain model that he uses to plan all his mine blasts. He was able to show me the likely points those dynamite sticks were laid and everything.’

‘Dynamite?’ Ash and Cap glanced at each other across the table.

‘Last week, Ryder and Bree discovered a stash of dynamite and blasting caps in one of those old oil drums. We found Price’s DNA on them. There’s no way to prove it, but we think it’s the same dynamite that was used to cause the cave-in, trapping your, um...’ Porter cleared his throat, leaning closer to Charlie. ‘On the evidence the original investigator had collected, we’ve been able to use modern forensic technology—’

‘Like you said you would, when you first started this case, even giving it a new file name,’ muttered Charlie.

‘Operation Stoney Silence,’ muttered Dex.

‘Charlie,’ blurted out Porter, shifting to the edge of his seat. ‘There’s more. There was also a weapon found inside one of the oil drums that was a part of the crime scene. There was one expended shell casing and one full.’ He went on to explain all the evidence they had found, and the conclusions they had come to.

Charlie tilted his head, his brow ruffling. ‘Are you saying Jack Price shot himself in the back?’

Porter nodded. ‘I also believe Price deliberately caused the cave-in to trap Harry and Penelope. Then Price hid Harry’s car in the Stoneys, where you found it after that sandstorm, hoping everyone would think that Harry and Pen had run away.’

‘Is that how Price had that chalk piece to write that message?’ Bree asked.

Porter nodded, flipping over pages in the file. ‘It’s a match for the same rocks collected from the area Harry’s car was found.’

‘Why would Price do this?’ Charlie asked the police.

‘Despair. Anger. Pride. Revenge. Who knows,’ replied Porter, nodding at his sergeant.

‘So Price decided to point the finger at my brother? I don’t get it.’ Charlie scratched the side of his head as if trying to make sense of this conversation.

Porter nodded grimly. ‘Sorry, Charlie, but we believe Price blasted that cave as payback for Harry running away with his wife—who wasn’t even legally married to Price. They could have blown his cover, and I think Jack suspected it even before the cave-in. But here’s the thing: Jack didn’t realise until after the blast that everything he needed—his money, his real and fake IDs, even his so-called marriage certificate—was buried in that cave. Without them, he couldn’t escape the people who were after him. And with no way out and the promise of dying a horrible death at their hands, Jack decided to go out on his own terms. To make it worse, he blackened Harry’s name in the process. It’s sickening, really.’

‘So my brother was innocent? Harry and Penelope were the ones murdered by Price, not the other way around?’

Again, Porter nodded. ‘Penelope and Harry were the victims in all of this. Not Jack Price.’

‘Struth.’ Charlie ripped off his hat to run his fingers over his white hair.

‘So, what happens now?’ Bree asked the police, while rubbing her grandfather’s shoulder.

It was the senior sergeant, Marcus, who answered, ‘Since this case originally fell under South Australia’s jurisdiction, Porter’s findings will be sent to their regional commander for approval, after which the case will be officially closed.’

Porter closed the file, resting his hands on top, as if the matter was finally over. Case solved.

‘Are you okay, Pop?’

‘Yeah, nah, yeah…’ Charlie blinked a few times, shaking his head slowly. Then he lifted it fast to face his granddaughter with his smile growing. ‘Did you hear that, kid? My brother is innocent. Innocent, they said. Blimey, Harry is INNOCENT!’ He hugged Bree, with his joyous laughter filling the room.

Charlie then rushed around the table to drag the young constable in for a hug, giving him a hearty pat on the back. ‘You’re a good man, Policeman Porter.’

‘It’s Senior—’

‘Whatever. Just accept my thanks for doing a bloody good job, mate.’

‘You should thank Bree and Ryder, too. They found the extra evidence that allowed me to work it out.’

Charlie’s smile faltered. ‘Why didn’t you tell me, kid?’

Bree shrugged. ‘I didn’t want to get your hopes up.’

‘How did you get that DNA thingamabob stuff done so fast?’ Charlie asked the police.

‘You can thank Ryder for that.’ Marcus pointed to Ryder at the other end of the table.

Ryder didn’t want to say anything, but the way Bree was looking at him, he had to fess up. ‘I told you I knew people. I just called in a few favours and had it rushed through.’ The effort was worth it to see Charlie’s reaction, and for Bree.

‘You good man, you.’ Charlie shook Ryder’s hand, then gave him a hug with another hearty pat on the back. ‘All you boys are good men.’ Charlie shook Dex’s hand, Ash’s hand, then Cap’s. His smile infectious. ‘I reckon I’ll load up the big beer cooler from the cottage and have a drink to Harry’s innocence. Let’s really put a dent in that bar of yours, boys.’

‘Dex, do you want to give Charlie a hand?’ Ryder suggested. ‘I’ll fill you in shortly.’

‘No worries.’ Dex followed Charlie outside, and Ryder closed the door. Ash grabbed the TV remote control then switched on all the monitors lining the wall.

‘So, now that was the good news. I’m assuming you’re about to give us the bad news?’ Bree swivelled in her chair to face the police seated at the other end of the table.

‘Have some faith, Bree. We are the good guys.’ Marcus stood before the monitors with hands on hips, taking in the view of the huge cannabis crop. ‘Leo’s pretty brazen to grow his crop like that.’

‘I know,’ mumbled Ryder. It was obvious Leo was not threatened by anyone, especially the local police.

As the OIC, it was easy to see that Marcus was ticked, as he dropped a large envelope on the table. ‘That’s a copy of the paperwork asking for your assistance with the surveillance of your neighbour’s property. But only from 0600 hours yesterday. However, I’ve sent some still images I scraped off your video footage for my supervisor, who has a warrant ready to get signed off for me to act. No one knows anything except the people in this room and my superintendent. We’re being careful to not tip off Leo in any way.’

‘Are you bringing in the drug squad from Darwin?’

‘Can’t. They don’t have the manpower to spare.’

‘They never do,’ mumbled Porter quietly.

‘So when?’ Ryder asked, knowing his brothers were keen to put this nightmare behind them.

‘It’s the timing now.’

‘What do you mean?’

‘Tomorrow night, all my team are working at the rodeo. I don’t have enough staff to do both. Even if I want to hit that prick today, we also have a town to look after, too.’

‘So when do we get rid of that wanker next door?’ Cap blurted out. The dark rings under his eyes were evident that this whole situation had hit Cap the hardest.

‘We’ll be raiding Leo on Sunday at seven am, to make full use of the daylight hours. You said that’s when they have breakfast at their camp and swap patrol shifts?’ Marcus asked Ryder, who nodded. ‘Didn’t you say Leo and his men are all going to the rodeo, too?’

Again, Ryder gave a short affirmative nod. ‘Leo’s shouting his men as a bonus. He’s warned them they’ll be putting in long hours for the harvest, which he’s planning to start at the end of next week.’ Burning it down and blaming it on a bushfire might be quicker. Ryder side-glanced at Bree, finding her staring at him.

Aw crap, she had to be thinking the same thing, no doubt already devising a master plan in the blink of an eye.

Ryder narrowed his eyes at the redhead, as if to say don’t do it!

Of course, the little outlaw jutted her chin in that look of you’re not the boss of me , then ignored him by returning her attention to the officers. She was so irritating!

‘I promise you Leo will never harvest that crop. I just need you lot to steer clear of that area when my team go in there.’ Marcus then dropped his elbow on the table and pointed at the redhead. ‘You too, Bree.’

‘Oh, hush now, officer. It’s never been a part of my wish list to interfere with a police operation. Not when I’ll be too busy creating a list of relatable songs to taunt Leo in prison for the rest of his life.’

Ash and Cap sniggered while Porter spluttered on his coffee.

Marcus leaned back in his seat. ‘Are you guys going to the rodeo?’

Ryder and his brothers shook their heads. They were planning on taking turns to watch their surveillance monitors, like binge-watching a bad reality show.

‘You should,’ said Bree, ‘as owners of Elsie Creek Station, it’ll look suspicious if you don’t attend. All cattle stations give their staff time off so they can attend race days, the campdraft, and local rodeos. It’s a big part of our social calendar.’

‘Bree’s right. Everyone will be there,’ said Marcus. ‘Will you be going, Bree?’

‘Charlie usually stays home—’

Ryder put his hand on her arm. ‘He doesn’t need to now.’

She moved her arm away. No touching.

He hated not being able to touch her in public. But Bree set the rules, and if he wanted to play, he had to behave.

‘I’ll talk to Charlie and see what he says.’

‘I’m not going. Mia won’t go into town either. We’ll stay home,’ said Cap, his eyes glued to the screens. ‘I’m happy to sit here and watch.’ Like he’d done most nights. It was Cap who had documented the neighbour’s security routes, the names of the staff, their habits, and even knew the strains of cannabis they were growing, all from watching those monitors like some obsession.

In one way, Ryder wished he’d never installed those cameras, it hadn’t been good for Cap’s health. ‘What about you, Ash? Do you want to go to the rodeo?’

‘Harper’s been on my case all week about going, she’s never been to a rodeo. She’s already bought our tickets, and a new hat.’ Ash gave that boyish grin, defusing the heavy mood.

‘How many hats is that now? She’s practically lined the walls of the farmhouse hallway as it is.’ The woman only had one head.

‘It’s Harper’s money, bro, and if it makes her happy, that’s enough for me.’

‘Jeez, they’re still in honeymoon mode,’ mumbled Marcus.

‘All my brothers are.’ Ryder was jealous that his brothers could be like that. ‘Bree, would you like to go to the rodeo?’ With me.

‘I haven’t asked Charlie yet. But if we do go, I’ll be too busy pretending I don’t know you people in public.’ Again, she had that evil shine in her eyes, damn it was sexy.

‘I’m surprised you two aren’t arguing,’ said Porter, nodding at Bree and Ryder. ‘But I’ll give you both credit, when you two work together, you do big things.’

‘Hear hear,’ said Marcus, getting to his feet. ‘Well, let’s go before I drink Ryder’s good bourbon. But I’ll be back after we bust that crop to raid that stash you have for your bourbon room.’

‘A what?’ Bree asked.

This time, Ryder ignored her. ‘Will you need our help, Marcus?’ Ryder opened the door for the officers.

‘No. I want you all to stand down while my team executes the warrant. We need a clean bust, so Leo can’t worm his way out on a technicality. Are we all clear on that?’ Marcus glared at everyone at the table. ‘Bree? Can I trust you to behave?’

‘Pfft. I’m always on my best behaviour.’

‘For five minutes.’ Porter gave Bree a playful wink, while tucking his paperwork under his elbow.

‘And I’ll see you mob tomorrow at the rodeo,’ said Marcus, ‘Where I’m sure you’ll all be on your best behaviour.’