Ransom Canyon

CHAPTER FIVE

Lauren

THE COUNTY HOSPITAL had its own kind of sounds. Like echoes in Ransom Canyon and the lone clank of a windmill turning on the prairie or the rustle of paper in empty school hallways, hospital noise was unique.

The place rumbled like a train station. Phones rang, pagers beeped, and machines hummed and ticked like the final clock measuring someone’s life away.

There was a rush about the people in white one moment and a stillness the next. Lauren had no idea what time it was. She’d seen a clock not long after she’d been wheeled in that said 2:00 a.m., but that had been hours ago.

In a hospital, only the smell of antiseptic seemed to remain the same. In her windowless space, she could have been waiting a few hours or a day.

Lauren sat alone in the third curtained-off emergency room cubicle, drifting off now and then, only to wake to the same nightmare.

She knew Tim was in the first bed. Everyone had rushed toward him when the emergency room doors opened, which told her he was in danger. Funny Tim O’Grady, whom she’d known all her life, might die! No one she’d ever been close to had ever died. Thinking about it wasn’t funny at all, she realized.

A nurse had helped her onto the examination table when she’d first arrived and checked her leg. At least she thought she was a nurse. Without her glasses she couldn’t read any of the name tags. For all she knew, she was the janitor. For a while she worried that Pop would be mad that she’d lost another pair of glasses, but decided that was so far down the lecture list it didn’t matter.

The nurse was back.

“You’re going to need a few stitches and a few shots,” no-name in white said. “You’re lucky. That first boy looks like he took a Humpty Dumpty fall.”

“Can they put him back together again?” Lauren smiled at their nursery-rhyme code.

The nurse frowned as if she’d crossed some line in protocol. “I’m sure he’ll be fine. He’s getting the best care here.”

Lauren nodded, but she didn’t feel very lucky, and she wasn’t at all sure Tim would be fine. If she were lucky, she wouldn’t have gone into that haunted house. Following Reid Collins was the dumbest thing she’d ever done. He might have twice her muscles, but he only had about half her brain cells. If his dad wasn’t rich, Reid would be lost. As it was, he’d probably run for Crossroads mayor in another twenty years. First he thought he was a football star because he had the jacket, and now he considered himself a hero.

No-name carefully pulled the curtain closed as she vanished. Lauren waited, fighting the need to slip under one of the fabric walls and escape. In her mind she kept backtracking all the way to the church, thinking of every wrong turn she must have taken to end up here. If she could get do-overs, she’d have stayed with Mrs. Patterson to talk about all the things the old lady thought were on Lauren’s mind.

As time dragged by, her father dropped in twice to glare at her. She was in major trouble. During his first one-minute visit, he said he had to call Tim’s and Reid’s parents and get them out of bed. The second visit, an hour later, was to inform her that Tim was going into surgery. After that, Lauren just acted as if she was asleep when he made his hourly rounds.

He said the word surgery as if it was something terrible she’d done to Tim, but Lauren couldn’t bear to think about it. Somewhere in this very building someone was cutting into Tim.

She wanted to ask about Lucas Reyes. Her father seemed to have forgotten about him. Or maybe he was still angry, thinking that somehow this was all Lucas’s fault.

When the nurse finally came back, she was with a doctor who looked as though he wasn’t old enough to be out of college. The nurse did all the talking, and the young doc just nodded and signed the chart. As Lauren had suspected, her injury wasn’t worth much attention. A few stitches, just like the no-name nurse had said. Within minutes both the nurse and the doctor were finished. They had that why-are-you-wasting-our-time look about them. The emergency room had been busy for hours, and she’d been shoved to the back of the line several times.

About the time Lauren wondered whatever happened to bedside manner, the nurse poked her with an injection and announced, “Tetanus shot going in.”

“Do I get a sucker?” Lauren asked, and to her surprise the nurse smiled.

Encouraged, Lauren continued, “How are the others?”

The nurse patted her hand. “They’ll all be fine. Two will be released this morning, but the boy they took upstairs to surgery will have to stay a few days.”

“You mean Tim’s not going to die?”

The nurse shook her head. “Not from a broken leg. They’re doing X-rays to make sure he didn’t break a rib.”

Lauren was so relieved that Tim wasn’t headed for the afterlife she didn’t feel the second needle. He might be dumb as a rock, but if his brain ever caught up to his imagination, who knows, he could make something of himself, other than being Reid’s sidekick.

“What about Lucas?”

“Lucas Reyes?”

Lauren nodded.

“He’s fine. Lost some blood, but we stitched him up. I think he’s already been released. I saw him sitting in the lobby about half an hour ago.”

“And Reid Collins?” Lauren was so mad at him she really didn’t care. First, he’d gotten them into this mess, and then, when help showed up, he took all the credit for saving everyone.

“The Collins boy sprained his ankle. He was really complaining about the pain until the doc told him he’d have to use crutches for a few weeks. He seemed to cheer up after that.” The nurse grinned. “He might have been cured if they’d offered him a wheelchair.”

Lauren smiled, knowing that Reid would make the most of his injury. She thanked the nurse then closed her eyes, deciding that now that she knew all the guys were all right, she might as well sleep awhile. Her dad wouldn’t be by to take her home until Reid and Lucas were released and Tim was settled into a real hospital room.

She almost drifted into a dream when she felt someone take her hand. The touch was gentle, comforting, and for a moment she smiled, thinking that her Pop was finally showing her how much he cared.

But when she opened her eyes, Lucas was standing beside the examining table.

“How you feeling?” he said quietly, so low no one on the other side of the curtain could have heard.

She rose to her elbows. “I’ll survive.”

“I gotta go. Half my family came to pick me up, and I think the hospital is worried about the mob scene. I just wanted to say goodbye. Despite all that happened, I liked being with you tonight.”

“Me, too,” she said, wishing that she could think of something clever to add. But fighting down nervous giggling seemed to be the limit of her communication skills. Lucas was at least a year older than her, good-looking, and he was holding her hand.

“You ever been kissed?” He flashed a smile.

“No,” she answered. He could have probably already figured that out. Glasses, sheriff’s daughter, homely, brainy type. How many more strikes against her did she need? Oh, yeah, and flat chested.

Without a word, he leaned in and touched his lips to hers. As he pulled away he winked. “How about we keep this to ourselves?”

She nodded, deciding one kiss and her brain cells must be dying. Now she couldn’t even talk.

“See you around.” He backed away.

As he vanished through the curtain door, she whispered, “See you around.”

CHAPTER SIX

Staten

STATEN DROPPED BY his grandmother’s house, but she didn’t have any chores for him. It seemed the cluster of retirees at Evening Shadows had hired a handyman to run the place. In truth, he’d never seen the community looking so good. The swimming pool had been cleaned out, the fence fixed and the porches painted, every house a different color.

“Yancy says,” Granny shouted over the news blaring from her TV, “if each door is a different color, some of the folks won’t get confused and keep going in the wrong house.” She shook her head. “I’ve never been so embarrassed in my life than when I saw Leo naked.”

Staten stood, his fists clenched. He didn’t care how old the little man was, he wasn’t putting up...

Granny continued, “It was my fault. I must have miscounted. I thought I turned into my house, but it was his. But I blame him, of course, for not locking his door.”

Staten calmed. “Granny, you live in number three, he lives in four. How hard could it be to count to three?”

She shook her finger at him. “Now, don’t get smart with me. After about eighty years, things like numbers started falling out of the back of my head. I can’t even remember my phone number, much less anyone else’s.”

“Don’t worry about it. Everyone you know is programmed into your phone. All you have to do is flip it open, punch a button and say their name.”

She raised an eyebrow as if she suspected a trick. “So, what is going to happen if one day I’m somewhere lost and lose my phone? Even if I can borrow someone else’s phone, I won’t know a number to call, and the stranger I asked to help probably doesn’t have Aunt Doodles’s number in his phone anyway.” She crossed her arms over her chest. “With my luck, the stranger will be one of them serial killers, just looking for his next victim, and there I’ll be, up a creek without a phone.”

Staten patted her shoulder. Every week she had a new worry. He should keep a list. Eventually she was bound to get around to repeating one. “First of all, you can’t drive. So if you’re lost, you’re still in the county. Anyone you stop will probably know you and be happy to bring you back here. Second, if you do see a serial killer, he probably does know Aunt Doodles. She went to jail several times, remember.”

Granny’s finger started wagging again. “She did not. Not many anyway. And every single time was that dumb husband of hers’ fault, not hers.”

Staten leaned down and whispered, “How do you know? You can’t count to three.”

She slapped his cheek too hard to be a pat. “Stop it, Staten. You remind me of numbers I couldn’t remember, and that reminds me of Mr. Leo and his wrinkled...body. Now, that’s a sight I’d like to unsee.”

All at once laughter erupted from her. Staten enjoyed the sound from the dear old woman who’d loved him every day of his life.

As always, her sweet chuckle was music to Staten’s ears. When he was growing up, his parents were either traveling or fighting. By the time he was in middle school, his father had divorced his mother and found wife number two. Neither of them had seemed to want custody of him in the split. His mother had remarried and moved to England within six months, without leaving a forwarding address.

Staten had spent most of his time with his grandparents on the ranch. He’d loved working the land with his granddad and living in their little place where his granny’s laughter always seemed to fill every nook and cranny. The visits from his father and wife number whatever had grown further apart. Senator Samuel Kirkland showed no interest in the ranch. No one was surprised when Granddad died and left it to Staten, his only grandson.

“Sorry you had to see Old Leo, Granny.” He smiled at his grandmother. “Maybe the new handyman was right about the doors. It must have been a shock for you and Leo when you walked into his house.”

Granny was busy cleaning up the coffee cups. “Not so much. I’ve seen him naked before.” She turned and headed to the tiny kitchen.

Staten had no intention of asking more. He didn’t want to know.

Since it was too early to go to Quinn’s for supper, he dropped by the volunteer fire department’s weekly meeting.

This time of year grass fires were rare, and guys were drinking coffee and talking about how the chamber of commerce was planning something big. The men got their information from their wives, who’d passed it around some. So, no telling how accurate it might be. The leaders in Crossroads were looking for ideas to help the town grow and that meant raising money.

“A fund-raiser to beat all fund-raisers,” Hollis shouted. “We plan to raise enough money to improve both the fire station and the clinic. Ellie could use the space at the clinic, and when she graduates, most folks would like to see her stay in town and run it full-time.”

“That waiting room is too small,” one of the other farmers said. “She’ll be stacking folks in chairs before long. With all the pregnancies lately, she’ll want to add a birthing room. We can handle a doc coming in once a week, but we need a nurse there full-time.”

G.W. Polk, who farmed next to Hollis, shook his head. “There’s a good hospital in Lubbock. I was born in a car headed that way. To my way of thinking, kids should be born the same place they’re conceived.”

Hollis nodded. “My point exactly. You were born in a car and you haven’t been the same since.”

Staten was distracted by thoughts of Quinn and the way she kissed him, but he tried his best to listen. He rarely participated in the town’s problems, but he always sent a check to help out with any fund-raiser. Every year the chamber of commerce thought up a grand plan to improve the town, but nothing ever really changed. Correction, he thought, the dozen reindeer they’d put up at Christmas on all the light posts along Main looked great.

After an hour, he excused himself and told the men that whatever they decided, he was behind the chamber one hundred percent. He took his time leaving. Reason told him he was being a fool worrying about what time he got to Quinn’s house. She was the same shy woman he’d known all his life. Nothing unusual would happen tonight, and he’d be wasting worry to think otherwise.

For the past five years he had never given their unusual relationship much thought. Maybe because it seemed to have grown naturally with neither of them planning it. He never considered finding another woman, though he knew a few who’d welcome him in their bed if he showed up.

Only, they would come with strings. They’d want eventually to become Mrs. Kirkland, and Staten wasn’t sure he ever wanted that again. Being numb most days was far better than hurting.

Maybe he should just be satisfied with what he had with Quinn. It was good. It was enough. She probably felt the same, even if she had asked to be kissed.

He told himself when he got to her house he’d act exactly the same as he always did. Nothing different. Nothing changed. One little kiss didn’t mean anything.

As he pulled up to her place, he noticed her working in the barn, elbow deep in the engine of her old tractor. Even after all his stops, he’d arrived early. He’d said supper. It wasn’t even five o’clock.

Halfway to her barn he remembered the bag of barbecue in the truck. If she hadn’t already waved, he would have turned around. But it was too late. Maybe she’d rather drive over to Bailee and eat hamburgers or maybe even try something at the café in town. They didn’t have to always do everything the same. He could be flexible. The kiss was proof, wasn’t it?

No, going into a café would seem too strange. They never ate out. They both thought it would seem too much like a couple thing.

“Need some help?” he asked when he reached her.

“No. I’ve about got it.” She stepped down to face him. “Where’s the barbecue?”

“In the truck. I brought beer, too. That all right with you?”

He rubbed away a smudge on her cheek with his finger. The touch was casual, but her eyes watched his every movement.

Stepping out of his reach, Quinn moved toward the house. “I’ll clean up while you get the food.” She was almost to the porch when she looked back and added, “I already set the table.”

He watched her until she disappeared. She’d never seemed quite so nervous around him. Suddenly, he wished he could take back the kiss from last week. He wanted everything to stay the same. They had it good and good was enough.

The shower pipes rattled from down the hallway as he set out the food. The paper containers looked out of place amid her china. He hadn’t given it much thought before, but she always set the table with her few pieces of hundred-year-old china and nice flatware. He tossed the plastic cutlery he’d picked up into the trash.

When she finally joined him in the kitchen, he was halfway through his first beer. He offered one to her, but she poured herself a glass of cold tea instead.

She was wearing a blue silk blouse that floated around her. He liked the look. Something different. Brushing his hand over the soft material, he breathed in her fresh smell. “It seems like I’ve been fighting all week to get back to you.”

“I know how you feel.” She leaned against him. “I missed you, too.”

They sat down where they always ate and filled their plates. He wasn’t sure what she’d like, so he’d bought a pound of every kind of grilled meat the café had. Then he’d tossed in fries and okra for the vegetable.

She asked about the meeting, and he told her the gossip that she probably cared nothing about. Neither ate much. Neither wanted to talk.

Finally, Staten stood. She hadn’t offered to take him to her bedroom, and if he stayed longer, he’d say more than he should.

“I should call it a night.” He reached for his hat. “We saddle up before dawn tomorrow.”

“All right,” she said in a flat tone that revealed nothing as she stood.

He took two steps to the door and remembered how he’d promised he would kiss her goodbye before he left.

With his hat in one hand and Quinn holding their plates between them, he leaned over and kissed her cheek.

When he straightened, he saw a tear roll down her face.

He doubted he’d get an answer if he asked her why she was crying, but it was obvious that he was doing something wrong.

Tossing his hat on the bar, he took the plates from her and set them aside. “I didn’t do that right,” he muttered, more like a swear than an apology.

She waited.

He brushed her shoulders lightly as he leaned in again and touched his lips to hers.

Quinn’s mouth was so soft. Her bottom lip trembled slightly.

His fingers tightened over her shoulders, and he pulled her closer, kissing her lightly until her mouth opened. Then, without hesitation, he kissed her completely.

She didn’t pull away. She simply accepted his advance. He lifted her arms and set them on his shoulders as he continued. If she wanted to be kissed, by hell he’d kiss her.

Slowly, her body melted against him.

He finally broke the kiss, but he didn’t turn loose of her. “Any objections if I undress you?” His hand moved over her back and came to rest on her hip. “I’ve never said so, but I like doing that.”

She leaned her head back as his fingers moved over her blouse. He watched her face as he slowly unbuttoned first her blouse, then her jeans. He liked the way she always left something on for him to finish, and tonight he was doing it all.

Standing before him she closed her eyes as he kissed his way down her body. Then, she took his hand and led him to her bedroom.

They made love slowly, tenderly, as they always did. Only after both were satisfied Staten held her tighter than ever before as though just discovering what a treasure he had in his arms.

When she drifted to sleep, he found himself kissing her. He couldn’t get enough of the feel of her. He’d been starving all week and finally she was beside him, warm and soft. For a while she moved in her sleep, welcoming his touch, but when he deepened the kiss she woke with a jerk.

For a few minutes he held her tight, gently caressing her, whispering her name in the darkness.

When she calmed, he pulled her close. “I want you again if you’ve no objections, Quinn. I don’t want to leave and wait a week to be with you again.”

Her big eyes widened with uncertainty, but she nodded slightly, and he made love to her for the second time. But this time they both knew he wasn’t just loving a woman out of need. He was loving Quinn.