The Offer
That afternoon, Maria ran out of things to do in the kitchen. “Why don’t you go up to the house and run this supply list past Russell?” Jessie asked. “It’s mostly kitchen equipment that needs replacing, and it isn’t covered by the regular food budget.”
“Sure,” Maria said. “No problem.”
She went up to the house. Nobody was in the main area. Of course, they would all be down in the offices.
As Maria approached the office portion of the house, she heard talking. “He said he’d give you what for the ranch?” Uncle Russell’s voice exclaimed.
Maria couldn’t hear what her grandma said in response, but from Uncle Russell and Aunt Steph’s exclamations, the number was either shockingly high or shockingly low. She didn’t want to eavesdrop. Approaching the open door, she knocked tentatively.
“Maria,” Patricia said. “Come in.”
“Hi,” Maria said. “I’m not trying to listen in on whatever you’re talking about—Jessie sent me to ask Uncle Russell about a supply list for the kitchen.” She held out the list.
“I’ll take it,” Uncle Russell said absentmindedly. “Mom, I can’t believe it. That’s twice what the ranch is worth. Why would anybody make a fool offer like that?”
“He wants to build a resort out here,” Patricia said. “Like a guest ranch, but more amenities. A water park, maybe. Whoever heard of a water park in the middle of Montana?”
Was Maria supposed to be part of this discussion? It sounded like confidential ranch business, and she was sure her input wasn’t wanted. If Uncle Russell would hurry and look at that list, she could go back to the kitchen.
“There’s a water park in Billings,” Aunt Steph said. “So what did you say?”
“I told him no, of course,” Patricia said. “The nerve! Trying to buy land from people who have been working it since the 1800s! He’ll get this ranch over my dead body, and that’s what I told him.”
Fire blazed behind her eyes, and Maria found herself stepping backward.
Uncle Russell didn’t seem to share Patricia’s emotions. “You said no, just like that? You didn’t take time to think? You didn’t discuss it with the family?”
“Why should I have?” Patricia answered. “Last I checked, I was the head of this family!”
“Well, you are, Mom,” Uncle Russell said. “But didn’t you consider—”
“There’s nothing to consider!” Patricia exclaimed. “We’re not selling the ranch to some Hollywood mogul to build a resort. I’m ashamed of you for thinking of it. I gave him an earful.”
“I believe it!” Uncle Russell said. “Although why you want to be on bad terms with somebody who gave you a solid business proposition, I’ll never know!
If you want to be land rich and cash poor the rest of your life, this is the way to go about it.
At least thanks for mentioning it instead of keeping it a complete secret.
But I would have preferred to know about it before you shut down the offer. ”
Land rich, cash poor. Maria had heard of that before. Maybe that was why Patricia had suddenly wanted her family to repay the money they owed her. She must be short on funds.
Uncle Russell took the supply list from Maria’s hand and stomped across the hall to his office, slamming the door.
“You don’t need to look like that,” Aunt Steph said. “It’s all right. We’re just having a discussion.”
Maria hastily straightened her expression.
“Mom,” Aunt Steph said, “Russell and I have an interest in this ranch too. It’s the family business. We work for it as much as you do. Don’t you think it would be better if we talked over big business decisions together?”
“The two of you don’t care about this ranch like I do,” Patricia said. “Nobody does. Except Tim, maybe. I’m not going to see it sold away by a pack of ungrateful people who would rather have a handful of cash to squander than their own family heritage that goes back for generations.”
She turned to Maria. “I don’t want you to think we argue all the time,” she said. “Most of the time, I’ll have you know, things run smoothly around here. But when the younger generation has different values than the older generation, that’s where I put my foot down.”
Maria shifted her weight to her other foot. “Um, I guess I came along at a bad time. I was just supposed to deliver Jessie’s list.”
Patricia got up from her desk. “I’m going out to work on the garden. I don’t have the patience to do any more paperwork. Steph, I don’t care what we have for dinner. Make whatever you want. The twins probably won’t even eat at home.”
“They’re just young, Mom,” Aunt Steph said. “When I was their age, I liked to go into town with my friends too.”
“When I was their age, I was raising two children and running this ranch with Grandpa,” Patricia retorted. “Nobody nowadays has any sense of responsibility.” She swept out of the room.
Maria looked over at Aunt Steph.
Aunt Steph shrugged. “It’s just Pat,” she told Maria. “We’re used to it.”
“You don’t have to explain to me.” Maria smiled. “She and my dad don’t get along the best.”
Aunt Steph sighed. “It’s like trying to get along with a dragon,” she said. “Sometimes I think those people who talk about toxic family members are right. Anyway, I’d better make dinner.”
“What are you making?”
“Oh, I don’t know,” Aunt Steph said vaguely. “Something Russell likes. He’s going to stew over this all day. I can’t believe his mom didn’t tell us we had such a huge offer for the ranch. We could have been multimillionaires. It’s like winning the lottery and then losing it again.”
She wandered off to the kitchen, and Maria headed back to the lower buildings. Not all was peaceful in this paradise.
Selling the ranch to a Hollywood mogul would certainly put the Austins on Easy Street.
Maybe then Patricia wouldn’t feel the need for Dad to pay her back all that money.
That would solve one of Maria’s big problems. But maybe Patricia would insist on the repayment anyway.
And the beautiful ranch where Mom had grown up, with its rolling hills, clear streams, lovely buildings, and cattle, would only be a memory.
§
When Maria came back to the house that evening, Grandma Austin had gone to bed, and Uncle Russell and Aunt Steph were watching TV. Nobody to talk to. Maybe the twins were in town again.
Well, this would be a good time to write an update email to her dad and grandma.
She had a lot about ranch cooking to tell them, besides the news about the ranch offer that had disgusted Grandma Austin.
She could see why some Hollywood guy would want to make the ranch into a resort.
You couldn’t make gorgeous scenery like that if you tried, and besides, the ranch was huge.
It was probably getting too crowded to build more resorts out in California.
Maria passed Savannah’s room on the way to hers. The door was open, and Savannah was on her stomach on her bed, chin in her hands. Her phone was lying on the covers, but she wasn’t looking at it.
“Hey, Savannah,” Maria said, stopping in the doorway. “How are you doing?”
Savannah flopped her head down on the bed. “I’m so bored,” she said, muffled. “Annabelle and Elijah went into town, and Mom and Dad are watching HGTV. There’s nothing to do.”
“We can do something together,” Maria said. “We could play pool.”
“I hate pool,” Savannah said. “We could see if there’s any games downstairs.”
“All right. In the family room?”
“No. In the basement. You take the spiral staircase.”
“Oh, right.”
Downstairs, in the room with the workout machines, Savannah showed Maria the family game collection. Most of them were old.
“I bet my mom and Uncle Russell played these,” Maria said, suddenly interested. “The Lone Ranger Game? They made a Lone Ranger game?”
“It’s totally chance,” Savannah told her. “Why don’t we play the Mystery Date Game? We can play it in my room. The workout room smells.”
“All right,” Maria said, but she picked up the Lone Ranger game too.
In Savannah’s room, sitting on the floor, the girls drew cards and put together outfits for their “mystery dates” while Savannah griped about her siblings.
“I just wish they would ever invite me anywhere. It stinks to be the kid sister. Nobody pays attention to you. Some nights I sneak out on an ATV and play ding-dong-ditch at the bunkhouse. Nobody’s ever caught me yet.”
“Sneaking out, or playing ding-dong-ditch?” Maria asked.
“Either,” Savannah said. “Nobody cares what I do. But it’s not much fun driving around in the dark by myself. And there’s nothing to do inside but watch movies and check social media. Everybody else is doing fun stuff and going to the beach and parties, and I’m stuck at home.”
“That sounds tough,” Maria said. “Well, what would you want to do, if you could do anything you wanted?”
“I don’t know.” Savannah drew a card. “Yuck! This card is the worst.”
“We could plan something together,” Maria said. “Like a movie night?”
Savannah perked up. “That would be fun. Sometimes Tim watches movies with me, if he isn’t too busy.”
Tim seemed to be pretty central to the Austin family. Annabelle was interested in him. Savannah hung out with him. It was clear that for them, he wasn’t just an employee. Well, he was probably a lot like Annabelle and Elijah, so that made sense.
“The foreman’s job must be pretty busy,” Maria said.
“He’s busy a lot.” Savannah rearranged the cards in her hand. “But we saw Zorro a while ago.”
“The old one?” Maria pricked up her ears. Something about Zorro had always spoken to her.
“Yeah,” Savannah said. “Black and white. Have you seen it?”
“Yes,” Maria said. “I actually brought the book with me. Have you read it?”
“No.” Savannah straightened up. “Hey, could I borrow it? I’ve read everything interesting around here.”
Another bookworm! “Sure,” Maria said. “It’s in my room. You can go in and get it anytime.”
“Thanks,” Savannah said. “Speaking of Zorro, have you heard about the Montana Rider? He’s not a story. He’s a real guy.”
“No,” Maria said. “Who’s that?”
“He’s a guy who rides around on a black horse after dark.” Savannah gestured grandly. “He wears all black, with a big hat and a mask pulled down over his face.”
So that was why Jessie had mentioned a masked rider. “Really! Who is he?” Maria asked.
“I have no idea.” Savannah shrugged. “The first time I saw him was a few weeks ago. I was riding around on my ATV, and this guy came riding up. He said, ‘You oughtta be careful, riding around after dark like that.’ I said, ‘Who are you?’ and he said, ‘You can call me the Montana Rider. I’m just keeping an eye on things around here.’ And then he rode away.
” She hugged her knees to her chest. “He reminds me of Zorro.”
“I can see that.” Was this a ranch inside joke, where they tried to convince newcomers of a masked vigilante hanging around the Rocker A? Or was there really a man in black riding around in the dark?
“You look like you don’t believe me,” Savannah said. “Annabelle and Elijah laughed at me. And I couldn’t tell Mom because she might ask how I ran into this guy out in the dark.”
“Have you only seen him the one time?” Maria asked.
“I saw him one other time,” Savannah said.
“I was really bored, and I went down to talk to Jessie at the kitchen. When she went to bed, I came back up to the house, and I heard somebody following me. It was the same guy. He said, ‘Just making sure you got safely back to the house, ma’am,’ and then he rode away. ”
“Hmm,” Maria said. “It sounds like somebody who doesn’t want you wandering around by yourself. Are you sure it isn’t one of the ranch hands?”
Savannah shook her head. “I asked a bunch of the bunkhouse guys, and nobody had ever heard of him,” she said. “He didn’t say he was the Rocker A Rider. He said he was the Montana Rider. Kind of like Zorro.”
“Uh-huh,” Maria said. “Well, I’ll keep an eye out for him.”
“All right,” Savannah said. “If you see him too, Annabelle and Elijah won’t think I’m nuts.”
§
When Savannah had gone to bed, Maria turned off the lights in her room.
She went to pull the windowshade to block the light hanging outside the barn, which illuminated an empty grassy area.
Was there really a masked rider keeping an eye on things at the ranch?
Stuff like that only happened in books. But Savannah had looked serious.
Maybe the ranch had a night watchman. They had to keep an eye on cattle at night, didn’t they?
Maybe somebody got the idea to do it in costume.
Annabelle and Elijah were back, walking toward the house. Where did those two go all the time? To bars? That was a quick way to spend hard-earned ranch money, especially since they must eat dinner out too. Why didn’t they spend time with their little sister?
Also, it was strange that Annabelle didn’t seem to have any interest in hanging out with her cousin.
Honestly, it felt unfriendly. If Maria had a cousin visiting her, she’d make sure to show that cousin around and hang out with her.
She wouldn’t leave at dinnertime and stay away the whole evening, leaving her cousin to amuse herself at home.
But maybe Annabelle wasn’t thinking about it that way.
Maybe she already had plans, and Maria was still at work when she and Elijah took off for the evening.
Perhaps if Maria reached out first, Annabelle would warm up to her.
Annabelle wasn’t her only relative on the ranch, of course. Maria intended to try bridge-building with all the Austins. But Annabelle was the girl closest to her age. If they got close, it could be so much fun. Almost like having a sister.
Tomorrow was Sunday. Maybe, after church, the family would stick closer to home. Maria could reach out to Annabelle then.