The Decision
The Austin family and the ranch hands who had been with them descended upon the house in a body, demanding the story from Maria.
Facing all those worried people, Maria felt smaller than usual.
Trying hard to keep from crying, she told the same story she had told to the police, not explaining about the Montana Rider.
It wasn’t necessary to explain that to tell a true and full story.
Tim may not be trustworthy, and maybe he hadn’t trusted her, but she wasn’t going to give away his secret.
“I want all the hands patrolling the ranch,” Grandma Austin said. “But I don’t want you all staying up all night. You’ll be worthless tomorrow morning. Take shifts and make sure you’re armed. The police are still combing the area for the guys who got away.”
In Tim’s absence, Elijah was in charge. But Grandma Austin told him to stay at the house with the family members while she sent the other ranch hands out to do their work. “We need to have a family meeting,” she said.
Savannah was sent to bed, too young to be part of the discussion.
The family grouped around the living room, Grandma Austin in her usual chair, stern with a puckered brow, and the rest of the family on couches.
Aunt Steph threw a blanket over the bloodstained cushions.
“We’ll get the stains out later,” she said. “I just hope Tim will be okay.”
Grandma Austin spoke. “I think you’ll all agree things have come to a head,” she said. “This can’t go on. Tim is in the hospital because he tried to protect the ranch.”
“You’re right,” Uncle Russell said. “But Mom, if you’d taken that Beck fellow’s offer in the first place, we wouldn’t be dealing with any of this.”
“We never dealt with any of it before the offer came,” Grandma Austin snapped.
“Do you still think Beck is responsible for the sabotage?” Uncle Russell leaned forward. “He’s in California. Unless he hired some guys to do his dirty work, I can’t imagine how he’d be responsible.”
“I have to say, Tim doesn’t think Beck is the guy,” Grandma Austin said.
“He suspects somebody else. Early on, right after the gate got broken, he had a run-in with some of those guys. They all wore masks, but one of them had a cow skull tattoo on his hand. Tim saw the same guy at the rodeo. That’s our only clue. ”
“Did the police hear about the guy with the tattoo?” Uncle Russell asked.
“They questioned him and came up with nothing,” Grandma Austin said. “He denied everything. Of course, maybe he isn’t the only guy in the area with a cow skull tattoo on his hand.”
“Okay, Mom, but what are we supposed to do about all this?” Uncle Russell asked. “Either we catch the guys—which we can’t seem to do—or we sell the ranch, which you said we’re not doing.”
“I want to hear the opinions of everyone who has a stake in this ranch,” Grandma Austin said. “Everyone, you’ve heard Russell’s options. What do you think we should do?”
Everyone looked at each other.
“I still think we should sell to Beck,” Uncle Russell said.
“It’s an opportunity to do something a lot bigger, business-wise.
We can start another family business and do a lot better with that than we ever did with the ranch.
It’s a good thing I have that marketing degree you didn’t want me to get, Mom. ”
Grandma Austin pursed her thin lips. “Steph?”
Aunt Steph hesitated, fidgeting with the tassels on a couch pillow. “I think we need to protect the people on the ranch,” she said. “Tim got hurt. Anybody else could get hurt or killed. There seems to be no way to catch the bad guys. I agree with Russell.”
“Of course you do,” Grandma Austin said. “Annabelle?”
“I think we ought to sell,” Annabelle said. “I’m not saying that because Neil kept pestering me about it. I’m saying it because I think it makes financial sense.”
“What do you know about financial sense?” Grandma Austin scoffed.
“Since the rodeo, I thought you’d come around more to my way of thinking—talking about helping the community and all that—but I guess that was short-lived.
” She turned to Elijah. “You’re the top hand.
You’ve put a lot of work into the ranch.
Do you want to see it thrown away and have to start again with a new career? ”
Elijah frowned, scuffing one boot against the carpet.
“Well, I’ve been thinking it over, ever since that guy’s offer.
I don’t mind ranch work that much. I like competing in the rodeo.
But I could still compete in the rodeo, and travel, and do all kinds of things I can’t do now, if we sold the ranch. ”
Grandma Austin frowned. “I can see where most of my descendants’ priorities lie,” she said.
“Maybe Tim’s the only one who values ranching anymore.
I can’t believe that people I raised on this land would care so little about it.
” She turned to Maria. “Well? You’re the eldest grandchild, even though you didn’t grow up here.
Have you decided about your stake in the ranch? ”
Maria hesitated. This was the choice she hadn’t wanted to make. She’d been hoping against hope that the situation would change—that, knowing Maria better, Grandma Austin would realize it wasn’t fair to make her choose between her inheritance and Dad and Grandma in Michigan.
“Well,” Maria said, “I’ve been thinking about your offer, and I appreciate it very much. But I can’t stay here indefinitely. I’ve got to go back to Michigan.”
Grandma Austin’s brow furrowed more deeply. “Nothing about this ranch will persuade you to stay?”
Now was the time to ask about changing the terms of the offer, to appeal to Grandma Austin and whatever heart she had. Tim said her heart was there somewhere.
“It’s beautiful. And I hate the thought of it being sabotaged by outlaws or sold to Hollywood. But I can’t trade my dad and grandma for it.” Maria took a deep breath, and was interrupted.
“Your dad and grandma!” Grandma Austin spoke contemptuously.
“You’d think George would be satisfied with taking my daughter Amy away to Michigan, where she died, and I never had one good conversation with her again.
” She twisted her hands in her lap. “You’d think he would be satisfied after raising Amy’s daughter in a dirty, dangerous city. ”
Oh, no. Maria stepped backward, her heart plummeting. She’d heard Grandma Austin snap at her family, but she’d never heard vitriol like this. And here she’d thought she and Grandma Austin were beginning to understand each other a little better.
Maria opened her mouth, but Grandma Austin was still talking.
“I waited for you to grow up,” she said. “I hoped that you’d appreciate the legacy your mother gave up. But even all the way across the country, when you’re an adult, George has an iron hold on you. Fine. Go to him. Spend your life cooking in some backwater town. I wash my hands of you.”
Maria couldn’t say a word. She could only stare. This was what Grandma Austin thought of her and her father? The grandmother who’d never shown Maria any affection thought she ought to throw away her loving family and come to live with her, all because of family heritage.
Uncle Russell cleared his throat. “Don’t you think that’s a little harsh? She wasn’t even in favor of selling the ranch. Why are you coming down so hard on her?”
“You have nothing to do with this. I can see my whole family is against me.” Grandma Austin stood, her eyes kindling fire. “I never thought I would live to see this day. Your father is turning over in his grave, Russell. There isn’t one of you who doesn’t want to throw away your family’s heritage.”
A painful knot had formed in Maria’s chest. Grandma Austin had never been interested in a visit. She was only interested in getting Maria to want to live on the ranch. This summer hadn’t helped build bridges—it had just widened the rift between the two sides of her family.
What was Maria doing here? She wasn’t one of the ones who had to decide about the ranch. And she sure as heck didn’t have to sit around listening to Grandma Austin say unkind things about her parents.
She stood up. “Grandma Austin,” she said, “I’m sorry.
With all due respect, I thought you had invited me here because you wanted to get to know your granddaughter.
Now I know I was wrong. As far as I can tell, the only thing you care about is this ranch.
You’d think your children and grandchildren would be more important than a piece of land—no matter how big and beautiful it is. ”
She didn’t wait for a reply, turning to leave. Somebody—she thought it was Elijah—called after her, but she didn’t stop. She was going to her room and figuring herself out.
She didn’t want to stay in this house, working for her grandmother, another minute.
But she felt bad leaving Jessie and Rob in the lurch.
They would suffer if she left suddenly, along with the ranch hands who would have to wait longer for their meals.
Maybe Maria could figure out some kind of replacement before she left.
In any case, she was leaving. Tim had deceived her. Grandma Austin didn’t care about her. The rest of her family members, except Savannah, were mostly distracted and selfish and didn’t care if Maria was there anyway.