Gracie Dutton

6

Gracie found Ryan down in the stables brushing his horse. "Hey," she said gently. Ryan turned his head and smiled when he saw her. "Hey, Gracie. What are you doing down here?" Gracie stepped into the stall. "I need to talk to you about something," she said and Ryan looked at her worried. "What is it?" He asked and abandoned his task. He walked up to her. "These men came yesterday to talk to John about forming an alliance. He turned them away. The one, his name is Malcolm, he kept looking at me and he knew that I was John's granddaughter and he knew my name. They're worried about why he has that information." Gracie looked up at Ryan and can see the anger and concern flash through his eyes. He reached out and held her arms. "Are you okay? Have you ever seen them before?" He asked. She shook her head. "No. I don't know them. I'm okay. It made me feel uneasy. I'm not allowed to go anywhere by myself." Ryan nodded in agreement. "Good. I'll keep an eye on you too." He pulled her into his arms and rubbed her back. Ryan placed a kiss on top of her head. "Let me walk you back up to the house," he said. Gracie walked with him and found John on the front porch. He looked at Ryan. "I'm glad you're here. Go get your badge and find Kayce. There was clover dropped into one of the pastures last night. Hundreds of cattle are dead from eating it. I got Donnie looking into it but I need you too." Ryan looked at John concerned. "Yes, sir." He turned to look at Gracie. "I'll come see you when I get back. You stay around here." Gracie nodded and Ryan leaned in and kissed her cheek. He went back down to the bunkhouse. Gracie looked at John. "Do you think it was the Beck Brothers?" She asked and took a seat beside him. "I have a list of possible people it could be," he answered. At that a car pulled up the drive and out stepped Cassidy Reid. "Who is that?" Gracie asked curiously. "The candidate I'm endorsing for attorney general," John replied and walked off the porch to greet her. Beth and Jamie walked out onto the front porch. Gracie was completely oblivious to whatever was going on with her family's involvement in politics. She stood up and went to walk inside. "You should stay," Jamie told her. Everyone knew Gracie was in school to learn all aspects for running the ranch. Now that she was thrown into a new mess their family faced, is was about time she started learning how things worked. Beth shot Jamie a glare. Gracie looked at her uncle then her mother. "You aren't one to be making decisions regarding my daughter, Jamie. You have already done enough." Beth had been keeping her anger at bay with Jamie regarding spilling her secret, but she was waiting for the right time to let him have it. Gracie looked at her mother. "It's okay. I have some homework I need to do anyways." Beth seemed to relax at hearing that. Gracie went inside and up to her room. She knew Beth was worried about her learning what really goes on around the ranch and the price that comes with being a Dutton. In all honesty, Gracie wasn't even sure if she wanted to know, but now that she was on Malcom Beck's radar, she was scared she was going to find out.
***
Gracie didn't go down to dinner as she was uninterested in sitting through a meal with a stranger and the fact that her mother and uncle were going to be in the same room just gave her more reason to stay away. Rip walked up to her room after dinner. He stood in her doorway with a plate of food. "You didn't miss anything," he smiled. Gracie looked up from her laptop and smiled back. "I bet I didn't. Everyone is still alive?" She teased and held her hands out for her food. Rip walked over and set the plate in her lap. "Yeah although your mother kept stabbing Jamie with her knife. He was the one to storm out of the dining room this time." Gracie laughed and took a bite of her steak. "Never a dull moment. I'm more concerned for when they are alone. He may actually get stabbed." Rip chuckled. "She won't have the chance. I dream of choking him out for what he did to you. He betrayed us. But, I'm glad at the same time." Rip turned serious as he watched his daughter. "I wanted to tell you when you turned 18. Your mama wasn't having it." Gracie looked at Rip. "I don't understand. If Jamie had never told me, then I was going to find out from Malcom Beck. As long as my last name is Dutton, I'm going to be attacked and threatened just like her. If she didn't want me to know the truth that bad, she shouldn't have kept me here." Gracie sighed and set her utensils down. "We were young and didn't think a lot of things through, honey. If I could go back, I'd never let John adopt you. I'd keep you with us and you'd grow up knowing who your parents are. I promise you that." Gracie looked at Rip. "I believe you. But, Beth still would have left at the first chance she got." Gracie shrugged. "It's not worth talking about the what-if's," she sighed. Rip nodded. "I know. I just want you to know that you mean everything to me, Gracie." She smiled gently and nodded. "I know," she said quietly. Rip kissed her forehead. "I gotta go do some more work but I'll see you tomorrow. Sleep tight, babygirl." Gracie finished up some schoolwork once she was done eating then went downstairs to bring her plate to the kitchen. She found Jamie sitting at the kitchen counter reading over some papers. "What are you doing?" She asked and he looked up at her. He sighed and set the papers down. Jamie rubbed his face for a moment. "Your mother put the ranch into a trust. My name is not on it anymore." Gracie looked at him confused. "What? Why?" She asked. "Because he can't be trusted," a voice said and they both turned their heads to see Beth standing in the doorway, a glass of whiskey in her hand. "That's not fair," Gracie said, "he is still family." Beth shrugged. "I just did what I was told." Gracie knew that meant John wanted this. "Family doesn't mean anything," Jamie told his niece. "If you don't do or live to the expectation that your grandfather has, then he has no use for you." Gracie let those words sink in. "It's the ranch before all else," he continued. "Surprised you would want her to be forced into the lifestyle that has been forced upon us." Jamie looked at his sister. Beth set her glass down. "She is grown and can make decisions for herself. However, you don't get to make them for her or me. Who the hell do you think you are telling my daughter information you had no right to share?!" Beth walked over to him and Jamie stood up. Gracie silently watched from the other side of the counter. "If I didn't, she was going to find out anyways! You think people haven't speculated that she was your daughter all these years?! That dad was trying to cover up the fact that you had a baby with one of his workers?! She's older! Gracie is apart of this mess and sooner or later she would get it thrown in her face! Hell, Malcolm Beck did it just yesterday! How do you think she would have been finding out that way?! You didn't think this through Beth! You were better off letting her go completely and live a normal life! Because this," as he motions around him, "is far from normal! You are not mother material! She's watched you fool around with Rip and then you leave and then you come back, you smoke, you drink. What kind of example have you been throughout the years?" Beth smacked him hard and Gracie flinched as Jamie's head whipped around. Gracie sighed. Beth glared at her brother. "I swear on our mother, if you ever cross me again, it will be the last thing you do. I can't wait for the day you have a child, which I pray is never, because if you do, I will make you regret it. Mark my words." Jamie glared back at his sister. "You're fucking crazy." Beth laughed. "You bet your ass I am." She picked up her glass and took a sip. She looked at her daughter and instantly regretted the scene she caused in front of her. Beth walked out of the kitchen, Gracie following her. "Hey!" Gracie said and Beth stopped, turning to face her. "Don't listen to what he said. I wish you had told me, but I'm glad you kept me here." Beth pulled Gracie into her arms, gently stroking her long hair. "I should have been better," Beth whispered. Gracie finally wrapped her arms around her mother, breathing her scent in. "You can't change the past," she said quietly. Beth sighed. "Don't I know it." Beth pulled away and looked down at her daughter. "When I was outside, Ryan came up looking for you. He's probably out on the porch waiting for you." Gracie smiled gently. "Thanks," she said and Beth nodded. "Go," she urged and watched as her grown daughter eagerly went out the front door. Beth sighed and went up to her room. Gracie smiled as she saw Ryan sitting on the porch stairs. "Hi, cowboy," she grinned and sat in his lap. "Hello, beautiful," he smiled back and leaned up to kiss her. Gracie kissed him back. "Did you find anything?" She asked. Ryan shook his head. "We'll try again tomorrow." Gracie sighed and leaned into his warm embrace. "I hope you guys figure it out. We can't afford to lose that many cattle again. We already couldn't afford to lose that many to begin with." "I know, baby. We'll figure it out." He rubbed her back soothingly. "Anything knew with you?" He asked curiously. Gracie shook her head. "No. Just school and taking everything else day by day." Ryan nodded and kissed her cheek. "I gotta go help your dad burn the field where the clover was at. I'll see you tomorrow, alright?" He patted her hip gently and Gracie got up. "Okay. Be careful." Ryan stood and kissed her gently. "I will. I love you." Gracie smiled and told him she loved him too. She went inside and upstairs. She fought the urge to go into her mother's room, instead retreating into her own for another night of restless sleep.

// Hi! I love the idea of this story but I'm getting a little stuck. I have thoughts of where I want this to go but I just feel like it's a little slow at the moment so thank you for bearing with me!! Please let me know if you have any suggestions or feedback! Thank you!!