Chapter 2 Old Enemies
Family Lines
The bell above the office door jingled as Eli Navarro stepped inside, carrying two steaming mugs of coffee balanced in one hand and a small paper bag of breakfast tacos in the other.
Morning sunlight filtered through the dusty front windows of Navarro Auto Repair, illuminating shelves lined with decades of engine parts, oil filters, and faded photographs that chronicled nearly every year the garage had stood in Red Hollow.
The familiar building felt quieter than usual.
Most mornings, his uncle would already be humming to old country songs while sorting invoices or arguing with the ancient radio that never seemed to stay on one station. Even after nearly two years, Eli still caught himself expecting to hear those sounds.
Instead, only the ticking wall clock answered him.
He placed one untouched coffee beside the framed photograph of his uncle on the office desk.
"Morning," he said softly.
It had become a habit he never questioned.
His uncle had built Navarro Auto Repair with nothing more than determination and a toolbox that was older than Eli himself. When Eli returned from Dallas after learning about his uncle's illness, he'd promised to keep the garage alive no matter how difficult things became.
Some promises were easier to make than to keep.
Business had been unpredictable.
Several longtime customers had retired.
Others had switched to larger repair shops in neighboring towns.
Then there were those who still refused to bring their vehicles to a Navarro because of a feud that had started before Eli was born.
He unfolded the repair schedule for the day.
Three oil changes.
A tractor transmission inspection.
Two tire replacements.
Enough work to pay the electric bill, but not much more.
The office door opened again.
His aunt Rosa walked inside carrying a basket of fresh laundry.
Without asking, she headed toward the tiny break room in the back, where she always insisted on washing shop towels despite Eli repeatedly telling her he could manage on his own.
"You skipped breakfast again."
"I've got tacos."
She peeked inside the paper bag.
"Two?"
"You always steal one."
"I raised you better than eating alone."
"You also raised me to mind my own business."
She smiled without turning around.
"I ignored that lesson."
Eli laughed quietly.
Some things never changed.
Rosa returned to the office and handed him a folded shirt she'd repaired the previous evening.
"The sleeve was tearing."
"You didn't have to sew it."
"I know."
She studied him for a moment before speaking again.
"You look happier today."
"I slept well."
"That's not what I asked."
Eli busied himself organizing invoices.
"I'm fine."
"You've been smiling since yesterday."
"I smile."
"You brood."
"I do both."
She folded her arms.
"Something happened."
He hesitated.
"A truck broke down."
"A truck."
"Harlan Ranch."
Her expression immediately hardened.
"So it was him."
Eli sighed.
"Word travels fast."
"This is Red Hollow."
"It hasn't even been twenty-four hours."
"Mrs. Walker saw your tow truck on the highway. By supper everyone knew you hauled in Jax Harlan."
Eli rubbed the back of his neck.
"It was just a repair."
"There is no such thing as 'just a repair' when it comes to the Harlans."
"He called because he needed help."
"He could have called someone else."
"He tried."
"And?"
"I was the only one available."
Rosa sat across from him.
"Your uncle spent half his life trying to protect this family from theirs."
"My uncle also taught me to fix anything that rolled through those garage doors."
"That was before everything happened."
Eli leaned back in his chair.
"Aunt Rosa..."
"No."
She shook her head firmly.
"You were too young to remember how ugly it became."
"I've heard the stories."
"You've heard pieces."
She looked toward the old photograph hanging on the wall.
"Your grandfather and Jax's grandfather were once friends."
Eli frowned.
"What?"
"They worked neighboring land."
"No one ever told me that."
"Because nobody wants to remember the good years."
She sighed deeply.
"They shared equipment. Helped each other during droughts. Your grandmother used to bake pies for the Harlans every Sunday."
"What changed?"
"The land."
"That's all anyone ever says."
"Because that's all anyone knows anymore."
She looked tired suddenly.
"There was an accusation."
"A lawsuit."
"People chose sides."
"Friendships ended."
"And before anyone realized it, two families hated each other more than they remembered why."
Eli stared at the faded floorboards.
"So we just... kept hating each other?"
"Sometimes anger becomes easier than asking questions."
Neither spoke for several moments.
Finally Rosa reached across the desk.
"I'm asking you as your aunt."
He met her eyes.
"Stay away from Jax Harlan."
"He isn't his grandfather."
"Maybe not."
"He seems decent."
"So did his father."
"You knew his father?"
"I knew everyone before this town divided itself."
Her voice softened.
"I don't want you getting hurt."
"I'm not."
"Not yet."
The office phone rang before Eli could answer.
He reached across the desk.
"Navarro Auto Repair."
A familiar voice greeted him.
"Morning, Eli."
He recognized Sam Cooper immediately.
Sam had worked for Harlan Ranch for nearly thirty years.
"What can I do for you?"
"We've got a hydraulic problem on one of the feed wagons."
"When do you need it?"
"Today, if possible."
Eli opened his notebook.
"I can come after lunch."
"We'd appreciate it."
Sam hesitated.
"And... Jax said your repair held up perfectly."
A small smile appeared before Eli could stop it.
"Glad to hear it."
"He asked for you specifically."
The words lingered after the call ended.
Across the desk, Rosa had heard enough.
"You aren't going."
"It's work."
"It's Harlan Ranch."
"It's a customer."
"It's trouble."
Eli closed the notebook.
"If I start refusing customers because of their last name, I won't have much of a business left."
"There are other jobs."
"There aren't enough."
He walked into the garage, trying to focus on organizing tools rather than the conversation.
The truth was simple.
The garage needed every dollar it could earn.
Turning away a paying customer because of a decades-old family feud made no sense.
His uncle had never taught him to judge people before meeting them.
He had taught him to fix problems.
That included broken engines.
Maybe someday it could include broken relationships.
Outside, another pickup rolled into the lot.
Old Mr. Henderson climbed out.
"Morning, Eli."
"Morning."
"My grandson says you're the best mechanic in three counties."
"I think your grandson wants a discount."
The older man laughed.
"Probably."
As Eli inspected the truck, his thoughts drifted back to yesterday.
Jax hadn't acted like the arrogant Harlan everyone described.
He'd looked exhausted.
Responsible.
Lonely.
More than once, Eli had caught himself wondering what it must feel like carrying an entire ranch on his shoulders.
The thought surprised him.
He usually didn't spend time thinking about customers after they left.
Yet every so often he remembered the quiet gratitude in Jax's voice when the truck started again.
It hadn't sounded fake.
By early afternoon, his toolbox was packed into the service truck.
Rosa stood in the garage doorway watching him.
"You've already made up your mind."
He nodded.
"I have."
"You always were stubborn."
"I learned from the best."
She rolled her eyes but smiled despite herself.
"Your uncle would say exactly the same thing."
Eli climbed behind the wheel.
Before starting the engine, he looked back at the old garage that had shaped nearly every chapter of his life.
Business had to come first.
Not pride.
Not gossip.
Certainly not a feud older than he was.
If Harlan Ranch needed repairs, he would answer the call just as he would for anyone else.
Somewhere along the way, Red Hollow had forgotten that neighbors were supposed to help one another.
Eli wasn't ready to forget.
He started the engine, pulled onto the dusty road leading toward Harlan Ranch, and accepted another service call, fully aware it would disappoint his family.
Even so, he believed some things were more important than old grudges.
Someone had to be willing to take the first step.
He only hoped he wasn't walking into another mistake.
Beneath the Stars
By the time the sun slipped below the horizon, Harlan Ranch had traded blistering heat for the quiet coolness that settled across the Texas plains after dark.
The day's work should have been finished, but ranch life rarely cared about schedules.
Broken fences, stubborn cattle, and failing equipment always seemed to wait until the end of the day to demand attention.
Jax wiped the sweat from his forehead with the back of his sleeve as he stared at the feed wagon sitting motionless near the equipment shed.
"Of all the nights," he muttered.
The hydraulic system had failed halfway through feeding the cattle, leaving the heavy wagon stranded. Without it, tomorrow morning's work would become twice as difficult, and with the ranch already struggling financially, every delay carried a price.
Sam Cooper, the ranch foreman, stepped down from the tractor and shook his head.
"I've done everything I know."
Jax crouched beside the damaged hydraulic line, shining a flashlight across the greasy fittings.
"I was hoping it'd be something simple."
"So was I."
Sam leaned against the tractor tire.
"You calling him?"
Jax didn't answer immediately.
There was only one mechanic in Red Hollow who could fix hydraulic systems this quickly.
He reached into his pocket, pulled out his phone, and dialed Navarro Auto Repair.
The call barely rang before it was answered.
"Navarro Auto Repair."
"It's Jax."
A brief silence followed.
"I figured it might be."
"I've got another problem."
"I'll grab my tools."
"You don't even know what broke."
"You wouldn't call this late unless it mattered."
Jax couldn't help smiling.
"You've got me there."
"Text me the location."
"I will."
"I'll be there in forty minutes."
The line disconnected.
Sam raised an eyebrow.
"He's coming?"
"Yeah."
"Hm."