Chapter 21
Chapter Twenty-One
C onnor grabbed the phone and called Brendon. “Are you with Nadine? What does she mean that the men are on the move?”
Brendon turned his phone to speaker, and suddenly the call sounded more distant. “Yes, I’m here with Nadine. She can probably tell you what she meant better than I can.”
Nadine’s voice and the sound of typing came through the phone. “I was flying my drone as close to them as I dared. It’s quiet, so I was hopeful they wouldn’t hear it from within their cars. I was more worried they’d see it. Anyway, I got close enough to see that they’ve moved their cars to about fifty yards or so on each side of the driveway. They are focused on us completely.”
“Why wait out there? What in the world could they hope to accomplish?” Usually, guys like this were more likely to come in with guns blazing, like they had at first.
“Likely because the two guys who sent them packing are still here and they know there are more than just those two guys available. So, they’ll wait us out. My main concern is that you’ve got company coming and they probably know that with Christmas almost here, they are likely to be able to take hostages. Once they have people we care about, they’ll have a bargaining chip.”
He hadn’t considered that they would camp out there in the cold for that long. Did they have the wherewithal to do that? “Have either of them left at any point?”
“Hard to say. I only just began random fly overs with the drone. If they left to get gas or food earlier, I didn’t catch it.” Her typing paused for a moment. “I’ve also checked the perimeter cameras. I didn’t see either of those cars drive by those cameras. My gut is telling me they haven’t yet. Do you want to know if they move?”
“Yes,” Connor said without hesitation. If they were gone, even for a half hour he could move his guests to the bunker where they’d be safe in case Viceroy and his men made it through. “Are we fairly certain this is Viceroy?”
“Unsure,” Nadine answered. “I can zoom in on the cars, but they have tinted windows. I can’t see who is in them or even how many of them there are.”
Brendon spoke up, “I just had an idea. I’ll call John and see if he can drive to the cars and count how many are in each one. Since they aren’t doing more than directing cars that aren’t headed for Wayside around their barricade, that would be a good way to find out how many men we’re dealing with.”
“Good plan. Just tell him to be careful. If these guys are tired of waiting, they may do something we’ll regret. More than they already have.”
Brendon said, “I put a call in to Nixon’s family. They tell me he’s doing okay and mad as a hornet that they got him.”
“Good to hear. I’ll be right here when you find out anything.” He hung up the phone.
Dad came in and sat down in the chair Lacy usually sat in when she came to see him. She hadn’t since they’d returned home, and he wondered where she’d gone. “Hey, Dad.”
He lifted his chin in greeting. “How did things go with Lacy?”
Dad would understand all that had happened, and he’d never kept anything from his father. “Good. Really good. We may have had a breakthrough. We’ll see what happens.”
“Glad to hear it. You ready for your brothers to come?”
Connor scratched his chin and realized he was in desperate need of a trim. His facial hair was longer than he usually allowed. “Assuming we’re able to have guests by then, I’m as ready as I’ll ever be. Are you ready? They could question the change to your living trust. They could want their portion back again. That might be the only reason they decided to come.”
Dad snorted. “Seems to me if they wanted anything to do with the inheritance, they would’ve contacted me before now. I’m not young and they already lost one parent. Nothing makes you more aware that people have a finite amount of time on this earth than losing one of your parents.”
Connor nodded, though he had to admit, learning that his mother had passed away had only affected him in that he’d lost the chance to reconcile with her. He’d tried over the years but had been shut out. Now, that door was closed. He’d never know why she didn’t love him, and he’d never be able to prove to her that he was worth loving.
“I think the main reason they’re coming is to meet Ferd.” He hoped so, anyway. Ferd could find herself in the middle of an uncomfortable situation if that weren’t the case and he didn’t want that for her. She’d proven herself to be trustworthy and helpful while he’d been gone. Having people like that around was always welcome.
“They may be curious about Gloria too, which is why I’m still not sure I want to bring her to the get together. She might be a distraction, and she doesn’t like being the center of attention.”
“If you don’t bring her, they’ll think you’re ashamed of her.” Guys his age and older weren’t immune from making decisions based on what a situation appeared to be as opposed to what it was.
“You might be right. I’m just thinking of keeping her from the stress of it. If they’re only coming this once and they never plan to talk to me or Gloria again, do I even need to worry about what they think? They assumed all this time that I had a torrid affair that split the family. That was only half-true.”
Connor wasn’t ready to ask for that explanation. It was still too new to think about a twenty-year-old half-sister. How Dad could have “half” of an affair was too much for his brain to work through. “I guess you’re welcome to bring her or not. I haven’t had a chance to talk to her at all since you arrived. She’s been taking care of you, and I’ve been busy.”
“Right. Busy.” Dad frowned. “She’s not leaving, Connor. I may have made a pretty serious mistake, but that doesn’t mean I’m not forgiven.”
Hadn’t he given grace to Edwyn for a much more personal slight? Hadn’t he thought that Wayside was built on grace? Yet he hadn’t extended it to his own father. “I’m sorry, Dad. I put you on a pedestal and expected you to do everything right to stay on it. You’ve always been the man I looked up to. It’s hard to admit you’re human.”
Dad snorted and it turned to a chuckle. “I’m only human and so is Gloria.”
Connor’s phone rang and he picked it up. “Connor speaking.”
Brendon said, “I just spoke to John. There are six men in the cars. Nadine just told me that we’ve lost our window we hoped to use. They didn’t go to town to gas up or get supplies. They are now headed down the driveway on foot. I’d rather we pull Cole and Eric back to join with us instead of facing them alone. Six to two are pretty tough odds.”
“Agreed.” He’d hoped to have a chance to move everyone to the bunker before the men could strike. Now, he’d have to meet them far enough away to keep the bullets from penetrating any of the cabins. “I’ll let Lacy know she’s to tell everyone to stay in the house and to call all of the guests and tell them to take cover.”
“Sounds good.” Brendon hung up.
“I’ve got to go.” Connor hung up as he spoke to his father.
“I know. I’ll let Victoria know and I’ll call Gloria. She’ll let all the women know over on the Homestead.”
“Perfect, thank you.” He quickly stood and headed for the living room.
He’d expected to find Lacy there. Had she gone out to her office? He prayed she was safely out of harm’s way. It was bad enough that his guests were out there, but Lacy too? He heard a soft laugh come from the dining room and recognized it as hers immediately.
He headed that way and found her in the dining room, talking to Ferd. She stopped talking the moment she saw him. She stood. “What’s wrong?”
“The men are coming up the driveway. I need you to call all the guests and tell them to take cover in their homes. Don’t go outside, whatever you do.”
Ferd’s mouth dropped open as Connor turned and walked away. “We can’t . . .”
“No, we can’t.” Lacy pushed her chair in and headed for the door.
“Lacy, talk to me. I’m still new to this. I know what I think we should do, but you’ve been here longer.”
Lacy headed for the row of pegs by the front door where most people left their coats when they came in to work. She donned one of Connor’s and Ferd shrugged on her own. “First, we have to make sure the coast is clear. We’ll do no one any good if we get shot running in to help.”
Ferd swallowed audibly. “Is this a common event here?”
“No. It’s only happened twice, and I hope it never happens again.” She grabbed a huge flashlight off a ledge where various tools waited for use and shoved it into her pocket.
“So, how do we know if the coast is clear?” Ferd peeked outside the large window.
“You can’t see up the driveway from that vantage. We’ll have to look out the hidden window. There’s a small, windowless nook right back here. It used to be a closet. Behind that is a secret office that has a window to that side of the house.” She led the way.
Beyond the door was where Erica worked while she and her son had been staying there as a riding camp. Erica would be another person who could do Lacy’s job but she, too, might have a conflict since her husband also worked for Connor. Through another door that required her master key, was a very old office. Dust covered every surface. Rose colored walls and lace doilies captured the time period the room was last used.
“This doesn’t look like any other room I’ve seen on this ranch.” Ferd lowered her voice.
“This was Connor’s mother’s office. Believe it or not, the wives of ranchers have a ton of work to do. She might not have worked the ranch, but all the bookkeeping and management was her domain, and this was where she did all of it. She wanted this room because she could see who came and who left from that window.” Lacy pointed to the large bright spot in the middle of the dark room.
“It’s sad.” Ferd touched the desk. “This has to have sat untouched for decades.”
“Yes. I wasn’t here then, obviously, but as far as I know, Teddy never came back into this room. The closet just outside of the office was where she kept all the records and that’s as far as he came. They locked it up and no one goes in here.”
“Why didn’t you ask to use it instead of having your office out in a cabin?” Ferd asked.
“I . . .” She hadn’t wanted to invade this space. It was practically sacred ground. Connor didn’t talk about his mom, so asking if she could paint or make changes had always felt too personal.
“You don’t have to answer that. Your answer is all over your face. It’s really great that you care about him so much. I hope he cares about you the same.”
That was the question of the century. Did Connor love her more than his elevated memories of his mother? Only time would tell. “The area looks clear. We should move now.”
She didn’t want to hang out long. If those men were walking up the driveway, she would have about ten minutes to get to the first row of cabins. All of those behind the front row would be easier. “Let’s move.”
Ferd pulled her hat from her jacket pocket and tugged it over her forehead, then followed Lacy. Cold air nipped at her nose, and she was happy for the darkness that covered everything. The security lights cast circles of light around the barn entrances and at each cabin where women were staying, a security light lit their front porch. She’d have them shut those off as they came with her.
Only six guests were outside in the cabins. The seventh was Rebecca and she was in the main lodge because of her wheelchair. The house was easier for her to maneuver around in. Lacy came to the first door with a light and knocked.
Moira answered and her son Adam stood behind her. “What’s wrong?”
Inside her cabin, she had a small Christmas tree in a corner and pictures of her son all around on the tables. It was cozy in there, probably more homelike than anything they’d had before. “We need to get moving. Viceroy is breathing down our necks. Grab your coats and come help me get the others. Turn off all your lights and lock your door.”
Moira didn’t hesitate. She ordered her son to put his coat on and follow Lacy, all while she rushed around the house turning off lights. The final one she turned off was the overhead light on the porch, plunging them into only the weak light of the nearest occupied cabin.
“Do you want us to split up? I can take these two somewhere while you continue,” Ferd asked.
“I’d like to stay together if possible. My plan, in case we get separated is to bring everyone to the barn. All those boards are thick with many layers of wood because of the stalls. While one or two might not stop bullets, near the back, we should be safe.”
“As long as they don’t come to the barn,” Moira said.
“We’ll figure that out if it happens. I’m hopeful the men will keep them from getting that close.”
She heard a shot in the distance and hurried as she gathered the remaining women. All the others were either safely in the lodge or over at the Homestead. She had them huddle near the last cabin closest to the barn. There was a long gap between the cabin and the barn. Even in the dark, they would be visible walking across the snow.
Another few gunshots came from the driveway.
“They must be close,” Ferd whispered.
“On three, we’ll all run,” Lacy pointed for the door.
Everyone nodded in agreement and Adam gripped his mother’s hand tightly. “I can do this, Mom.”
Lacy gripped his other hand in case he tripped so they could easily carry him together and keep moving. Everyone hung close and raced across the snow. Yelling broke out to their right, but Lacy refused to stop and listen to what was said. Hopefully, they hadn’t been seen. She’d know soon enough.
When everyone was inside the dark barn, she gathered them close. “Grab a hand. Make sure no one is left behind. We’ll slowly walk back to the other end in the dark. Keep quiet and be careful where you step. This is a barn, meaning sharp tools are around.” If she felt safe enough, she’d use the flashlight but with the yelling, she couldn’t give away their position.
One of the women mumbled a prayer as they walked and soon the others were joining along. Lacy silently added her own request for safety for all of those who lived on Wayside Ranch.
Finally, she made it to the wide back door of the barn that led out into one of the corrals. To the right was a wide stall that originally had been used to store horsedrawn wagons. Now, it was used to store huge bales of hay away from the horses.
She had them climb to the top of the bales and huddle against the wall. The likelihood of bullets finding them up there wasn’t great, but she still worried she hadn’t done enough. Everyone continued to hold hands and remain silent. She thanked God that no one had started crying even though the fear warranted it. Tears were loud and they couldn’t afford to make noise right now.
A voice with a thick accent came from the front of the barn. “I saw them go in here. Find the lights. Search it top to bottom. When we find someone who we can use as a shield, we’ll have them right where we want them.”
Lacy held her breath. The moment they found the lights, all of them would be visible up on top of that mound of hay. If she said anything to direct her group, the men would hear her.
“Where do you think the light is?” a man said.
“I don’t know. Feel around by the door. It has to be there.”
Lacy tugged on Adam’s hand, and he silently followed, then he pulled his mother’s hand. Within minutes, they were all slowly and silently climbing down the stack. The only problem was, in order to get out, they had to step into the bright moonlight of the back door and the only place to go from there was over a fence.
Her palms sweated and Adam’s hand slipped loose. How was she going to save them before they found the light under the switchbox near the door?