Western Flame

Chapter 25

Jake swerved around a sharp bend in the road, the truck leaning into it, the back end shifting slightly. Tanner glared over at his brother as he grappled for the handle.

"I need to get a truck. I love Dad's old Lincoln, but maybe it's time I bought into this cowboy thing all the way," Jake mused, humour dripping off his voice.

"You don't need a rig, you can drive Liz's, and we have crew trucks," Tanner replied.

"Liz won't let me drive hers. But yeah, let's get Brady a new truck first I suppose, eh?" Jake mused as they neared an intersection, and then swerved through it. Tanner winced. His truck wasn't meant to turn so quickly and the tires squealed on the pavement.

"Jesus City Boy, it's not a race car!" Tanner muttered. Jake grinned, but did slow down, and straightened himself in his seat. He was in a good mood.

They had approval from the insurance broker for the building and baler replacement, and Jake had pried Tanner out from behind his desk to drive into town to sign the paperwork. Tanner was loathe to leave work undone, but sitting behind the desk and punching numbers into a spreadsheet was going to drive him mad. So he'd agreed, and let Jake drive because he was still exhausted.

While in town, they stopped in to talk to Shaun at the precinct. Shaun had told them the truck Tanner found with Liana was stolen from an outfit on the other side of High River. Two hands they'd just hired had snuck out with it in the middle of the night. They'd taken food, rifles, and some expensive tools as well.

It wasn't good news. They'd never been able to find the other two men who had been holed up with Abel in their hunt shelter last year. Abel wouldn't talk, and was cooling his heels in prison. They couldn't pin the slaughtered cattle on him either. If they were back, and looking for the revenge they didn't get last time, it was not a good thing.

The ranch didn't have the manpower or the ability to monitor everything twenty-four seven.

"You think those two degenerates will have found work locally?" Jake asked, his mind obviously on the same thing Tanner's was. "Is it payback they're after?"

"I don't know," Tanner replied, honestly. What was worrying him more than that was waiting for the next problem. If it was them who had run Brady off the road, and set fire to the North storage shed, then what was next? "Fuck. Why now? I'm so done with this bullshit."

"Has anyone checked Sandstone Ridge? I know there were some builders working, but Brady hasn't been back since the accident," Jake said, ignoring Tanner's outburst. "Should we pop up and see?"

"Keith said he'd drop by as he was checking the other buildings. You hear back from him yet?" Tanner said.

"No," Jake uttered and veered left to drive up towards Brady and Caitlin's new house. Tanner's back teeth rattled as they jostled over the ruts in the road, and parked sideways to the front porch on the gravel driveway.

"He needs to put in a damned driveway," Tanner growled. Jake just chuckled at him and shook his head as he got out of the truck.

"You need a stiff drink, or to go get laid. You're grumpy as fuck."

Tanner ignored him. He was grumpy. He was also tired, sore, and feeling sorry for himself, which was equally as ridiculous as Jake being in such a goddamned good mood. He cracked his neck as he settled his hat on his head and stepped out of the truck as well.

The house loomed big and silent, the large glass windows reflecting the blue sky above them. Tanner liked it, the way it looked out over the small valley, the sun streaming in at the right time of day. The views would be incredible. It felt like Brady, the way the porch wrapped around the house, the invitation to come up, sit awhile. It was going to be an amazing home for them, and their children.