Chapter 14
BAILEY
“Hello!” I called out as I walked in the back door of the Parker family house. “Clara?”
Country music blared through the house. There was no way she’d hear me if she was anywhere near the source of the music. Kicking off my boots, I headed inside, peeking into the kitchen to find her singing along to the radio as she kneaded dough on the counter.
As she spun around, her arms in the air, waving wildly as dough was flung from her fingertips, she gasped. “Bailey!”
A grin slid across my face as she rushed over to the radio and turned it off.
“Sorry. I didn’t know you were coming over.”
“Liam sent me. Apparently, he wants soup, and since he doesn’t trust me to cook anything unless it comes out of a tin can, I’m here to learn.” I eyed the dough all over the counter and winced. “If you’re available.”
“For Liam? I’m always available. Lord knows that boy has put me through enough heart attacks in his lifetime,” she said, scurrying over to the sink to rinse her hands.
“The four-wheeler incident in fifth grade? I told his father not to get them for the boys, but he didn’t listen.
And then in seventh grade, when he was flung off that horse…
I really thought I would lose him that time. ”
“What about when the wire went through his hand?”
“That was child’s play,” she chuckled. “Anyway, if he wants soup, I’ll need to run to the store. Despite what the men in this family think, I don’t have everything they need lying around to be chopped, peeled, and cooked at a moment’s notice.”
“Why don’t you make me a list of what you need, and I can run into town while you clean up.”
Her shoulders deflated. “Would you do that?”
“Of course.”
“That’s so kind of you. If I asked anyone else in this family, I would get a million excuses why they couldn’t.”
“Well, since I’m not part of the family, I have to earn the right to tell you no,” I winked.
“Not in the family yet,” she corrected. “Give it time.”
Hurrying over to the counter, she grabbed a pad and paper. “Alright, let’s see…”
As she jotted down notes, I took a moment to use the bathroom, and by the time I was out, she was shoving the paper into my hands and scurrying me out the door.
“I’ll be ready by the time you’re back.”
“No problem.”
The door swung shut, and as I turned to leave, Krista appeared right in front of me, scaring the shit out of me. “Krista!”
“Going somewhere?” she asked, snatching the paper out of my hands.
“Shopping for your mother.”
“Ah, sucking up already. Are you thinking of a spring wedding? Or maybe fall.”
I stuck my tongue out at her, taking the paper back. “Actually, Liam asked me to watch your mother make soup.”
Stunned, she trailed behind me as I headed to the vehicle. “He wants you to watch her make soup? Is he afraid she’ll do it wrong?”
I flung the door open and smirked at her. “Actually, he knows I can’t cook. Probably from all his years spying on me.”
“Ah, so he’s training you to become his new mommy.”
“That’s disgusting. If you knew what I was just doing to him—”
She instantly plugged her ears, squeezing her eyes shut as she hummed to block out my words. “I can’t hear you!”
I got into the car, almost escaping when she decided she was coming along with me. “Don’t you have anything better to do?”
I shifted into reverse as she buckled up. “Not really. I’ve cleaned all the vacated cabins. There’s not much more I can do.”
“What’s it like? You know, going from having the ranch and all the work to renting cabins?”
“Honestly, it’s pretty shitty. I always knew I didn’t want to stay on the ranch forever, but becoming a maid wasn’t exactly high on my list either. Now I don’t know what to do.”
“You never went to college. Maybe you could do that.”
“Yeah,” she snorted. “If only I had an idea of what I wanted to do.”
A large explosion had me slamming on the brakes just as I reached the gate to the property. “Holy shit. What the hell was that?”
Krista waved it off. “Eh, it’s just Austin and Clay. They’re fishing.”
I followed her gaze to the river that cut between the Callahan property and Murky Falls Ranch. Austin and Clay were in a boat, and just as they tossed something in the river, another explosion sounded and water sprayed in the air.
“Are they fishing with dynamite?”
She shrugged. “Some kind of explosives. They’ve been doing it for years. Apparently, they were never very good fishermen.”
“And that doesn’t bother your father?” I asked, pulling out onto the main road. “Won’t they get in trouble with the county for using those in the river?”
“Bailey, this is Montana. We’re in the middle of fucking nowhere on the far western part of the state. No one even comes out here unless it’s to ski or pretend they’re ranchers. Do you think running to Sheriff Wynne will solve all our problems?”
“No, I guess not, but that has to be some kind of fish and wildlife issue.”
“After what happened to Clay, everyone steers clear of the Callahan family. You know that.”
“I know everyone else does. Wyatt’s fine.”
“Wyatt is just as bad as his brothers. He’s just silent and deadly, and he doesn’t get all creepy like his brothers do.”
“I’ve never had a problem with him. And yesterday morning, I was late for work, and when he found out what happened with Liam, he gave me the rest of the week off. Of course, I didn’t know that was his intention then. I thought he was just pissed at me.”
“Well, if he’s nice to you, you’re the only one in town.”
“Maybe that’s because I mind my own business,” I jested.
We turned out of the ranch and took the winding road into town, over the tracks and into the heart of the town. I waved to Bud, who was in his usual spot, pretending to sleep in a chair outside his drugstore.
“Do you ever think about leaving and going somewhere else?”
“Like where?” I asked, glancing at her warily. “Are you thinking of leaving?”
“I don’t know. Maybe. I could go to the big city,” she grinned.
“What could you possibly do in Billings that you couldn’t do here?”
“I don’t know. Maybe I’ll work at Yellowstone. I could be a tour guide with a cute hat.”
“And pray you don’t get eaten by a bear,” I retorted.
“Hey, that’s just as likely here.” Sighing, she plopped her elbow on the window. “I don’t know. I’m just bored. How am I ever going to meet someone around here? I’ve known everyone since birth, and I’m not like you. I didn’t find the love of my life in fourth grade.”
“Third,” I corrected. “Well, don’t do anything rash,” I said as I pulled into a parking spot in front of the general store.
Rolling her eyes at me, she flung her door open. “No one ever does anything rash around here. It’s so boring.”
As I got out, I looked up and down the street, wondering why anyone would want to leave this idyllic town. With shops lining both sides of the streets and refashioned incandescent street lamps lining every sidewalk, this town was absolutely wonderful.
Everyone knew everyone else, the people were friendly, and the festivals were always a ton of fun. I could never see leaving this place for a city.
“Earth to Bailey!” Krista called out. “Shopping?”
“Sorry, I was just wondering why you would want to leave here. I love it.”
“You love it because you see a future. All I see is someplace I’ll never escape.”
The bell chimed as we walked inside. Waving to Mr. Callahan, I wasn’t at all surprised when all I got was a grunt in return.
“He used to be such a nice man.”
“Well, that’s what happens when your son gets his head bashed in.”
As I pushed the cart through the store, I kept my voice low. “I know it’s hard, but it wasn’t anyone’s fault.”
“You know that, and so does the rest of the town, but that man is one angry bear. I’m surprised the town still puts up with him after the way he’s treated people.”
“He doesn’t still blame Jeff, does he?”
“He’s never come out and said it, but Austin has made it perfectly clear that he does. Not to mention they think my dad screwed him out of his land.”
We turned the corner and I grabbed the noodles, leaning in closer to hear the gossip. “Why would he think that?”
“Well, you know Dad bought land off him to help him with the medical bills.”
“I knew he bought land. I didn’t know it had anything to do with the medical bills.”
“Well, apparently, a few years after he sold it, his land was reassessed and the value went down significantly.”
My eyes widened at the news. “Was he planning on selling?”
“No, but if he ever does, he sold off the most valuable piece to my dad.”
“Where was it?”
“By Murky Falls.”
“No,” I gasped, turning another corner and running right into the old man.
Feeling like I had been caught red-handed, I turned beet red. “Oops, sorry. I didn’t see you there.”
His eyes hardened as he stared at Krista, then those dark orbs turned on me, sending a chill down my spine. “Heard your boyfriend had an accident.”
“Yeah, but he’ll be okay. Thank you for your concern.”
“Wasn’t concern,” he snapped. Then his eyes slid over to Krista. “What’s it feel like to be on the other end for once?”
“Mr. Callahan—”
“Heard the whole town is rallying around him. My boy even told me he gave you the rest of the week off,” he said, his eyes sliding back to me.
I didn’t know what to say. There was an accusation in there somewhere, but I couldn’t be sure what exactly he was so pissed about.
“The golden boy finally got his comeuppance,” he chuckled.
“He’s not the golden boy,” Krista snapped. “And that’s pretty shitty to be glad he got in an accident, especially when this town did so much for you when Clay was hurt.”
That taunting in his voice suddenly turned dangerous as he shoved my cart out of the way and got in Krista’s face. “Helped themselves right to my land,” he muttered.
“That’s not what happened.”
“Isn’t it?” Mr. Callahan said sharply.
I sucked in a gasp, waiting on pins and needles for Krista’s response. I knew there was bad blood between the two families, but nothing to this level. The gleam in his eyes told me we needed to back off now.
Gently, I pried Krista away from him with my fingers wrapped around her bicep. “Come on. Let’s finish our shopping.”
“Get what you need and get out,” Mr. Callahan snapped. “We don’t want your kind around here.”
Krista snarled under her breath as he walked away, but I had a feeling this was long from over. Anger like that didn’t just dissipate.
“The accident just brought up bad feelings,” I lied. “Let’s finish the list and leave.”
“I hate that old man.”
Tugging her down the aisle, I quickly grabbed the rest of the items and made my way to the counter. “Here, why don’t you go cool off the car,” I said, handing Krista the keys.
She took them, but not before giving Mr. Callahan a scowl that made even me want to run for the hills.
“You’re not doing yourself any favors by getting mixed up with that family,” he grumbled as he scanned my items.
“I’ve been friends with them for years.”
He grunted, but didn’t say anything else.
“You know, there used to be a time when I was friends with Clay as well.”
“No one wants to hang out with him now that his brain don’t work right.”
“That’s not true. If—” I stopped myself right before I accused Austin of turning Clay into his lackey. That wouldn’t help the situation any.
“If what?”
“We don’t see him very often in town.”
“Maybe there’s a reason for that,” Mr. Callahan said right before he snatched the cash out of my hand. “Get on,” he grumbled, shooing me out the door.
I took my groceries and headed back for the vehicle, not breathing right until I was safely locked inside. I’d never been scared of the Callahans, but there was just something about them lately that set me on edge.
“Let’s get out of here.”
I couldn’t agree more.
“Don’t tell Liam about this.”
Confused by the demand, I looked over at her for an explanation. “Why?”
Her eyes never left the shop window. I followed her gaze, gasping softly when I noticed Mr. Callahan staring out the window at us. The wicked glint in his eyes sent shivers down my spine, making me regret ever coming to town.
“Trust me. He can never find out about this.”