Chapter 16
Lillian watched as they lowered her grandfather into the ground of his beloved ranch. The place felt empty without Cal being here. Nathan was here for the burial, but Cal, he said, had packed up and left.
He left without them talking, without saying good-bye, taking a huge chunk of her heart with him. Nathan had helped her feed the livestock and had hired a man to take care of the animals for a while.
When the service was over, the family went back to the house. Very few people had attended since her grandfather had become somewhat of a recluse after he lost the ranch.
Nathan had handed her the signed deed before the funeral and she didn’t know if that was what she really wanted right now.
After the burial, he’d hugged her and said good-bye. She didn’t know if that was for just today or forever. And her heart grieved with the loss she’d experienced the last few days.
Nothing felt right. Cal was gone. Her family seemed uneasy, and the place she loved wasn’t capable of giving her the comfort she wanted.
“Are you going to move in here?” her grandmother asked.
“I don’t know,” she said. “Are you going to move in here?”
“No,” her grandmother said. “We have a good home in San Antonio. We’re happy there. There are no bad memories residing in our home there.”
Kenneth came up and wrapped his arms around her. “Mary, if you want to come back to Blessing, we can.”
She glanced up at him and shook her head. “No. It no longer feels like home. It doesn’t feel right and I would see Paul or that bastard Ron everywhere. I can’t believe he’s in jail for murdering his wife.”
Lillian didn’t feel happy. She’d thought learning the truth would fill the empty hole in her heart, but instead, she just felt grief at what had happened. Nothing felt right.
“What about you, Momma? Do you want to live here?”
“No,” she said. “Your father and I were so happy here. But he’s gone, and no, I don’t want to come back. You were the one who always wanted to return.”
It was true.
“And now I sense hesitation on your part,” her mother said.
Only her immediate family remained on the land. The preacher, Nathan, everyone had left after the graveside service in the family burial plot.
“I’ve known so much happiness here. But I never considered what it would do to the people who were living here when they lost the place. And I’m not talking about Ron. That man can rot in hell for all I care. But his grandson, Cal, didn’t deserve to be evicted. Nathan didn’t deserve to have to leave.”
Her family didn’t say anything.
“I fell in love with Nathan and Cal while we were trying to learn the truth. They’re who I’m concerned about.”
Her grandmother walked over to her side. “Honey, if you love them both, that’s all right with us. But you need to go after them. You need to find them and tell them your feelings. Love is the most important thing on this earth. Not this old house.”
“Or maybe you’re all supposed to be here in this house together. A new generation here, sharing, giving, and creating a new family who will not let people destroy what they have,” her mother said.
Kenneth who was always very standoffish and quiet, gazed at her. “Give him the house back. Show him how much you love him by giving him the property. Even if things don’t work out between you, you will have sacrificed yourself to make certain this house and land remain intact. You, girl, cannot run this ranch by yourself.”
After fighting for this property for so long and so hard, could she give it back to Cal?
“Will you accept Cal into the family, knowing what his grandfather did to us?”
Her grandmother smiled. “He’s the reason the property came back to us. This man has a lot of courage and is honorable to do what he did. Of course, we’ll welcome him. If he loves you and treats you with respect, we will welcome him with open arms.”
Tears welled in her eyes.
“What do you want, Lillian?” her mother asked.
“I want to marry Cal and Nathan, live here on the ranch with my husbands, and have a very large, loving family,” she said, crying.
Her mother wrapped her arms around her and then her grandmother and Kenneth joined her.
“Go get what you want,” Kenneth said. “Don’t let them get away.”
Hugging her, she burst into tears. “I love you all so much.”
“And we love you; now get going. We won’t be here when you get back. Call us and let us know how things go,” her mother said.
Lillian ran out the door. She had no idea where Cal was, but she knew where she could find Nathan. She prayed he knew where Cal had gone.