world had just been cut out from under him.
“God Almighty, why is this happening?” Aidan asked, his voice thick with tears.
Samuel shook his head and then swiped a hand across his face, and when Jesse fell to his knees, he started crying again.
Michael wiped his tears and grabbed the dogs’ leashes.
“I’m gonna tie them to the porch. You guys go help Mama with Jesse.”
Samuel took two steps forward, and then his phone began to ring. He looked at it and groaned.
“It’s Bowie. You all go on. I need to do this alone.”
They patted him on the shoulder and then walked away.
Samuel cleared his throat and then answered. “Hello.”
“Hey, brother! It’s me.”
“Bowie, I’m not going to beat around the bush. We have bad news.”
There was a moment of silence, and then Bowie spoke, but this time the delight was gone from his voice.
“What’s wrong?”
Samuel tried to say the words, and then the crying got the better of him.
Bowie Youngblood couldn’t remember seeing Samuel cry after he’d turned eighteen. Now he was scared.
“Is it Jesse? Did something happen to Jesse?”
“No, it’s Daddy. He’s dead, Bowie. Mama found him shot in the back.”
Bowie’s knees went out from under him. He sank down into a chair inside the office on the drilling platform and then curled his fingers around the arm of the chair.
“What? What did you say?”
Samuel sighed.
“Daddy’s dead. Mama said to call you. Mama said to tell you to come home. She needs you.”
“God in heaven,” Bowie whispered, and felt like he was going to throw up. “How did it happen? You said someone shot him? On purpose?”
“Yes. He scratched a name in the dirt before he died.”
Bowie tried to speak, but the words wouldn’t come.
Samuel kept talking.
“The name was Wayne. I didn’t get the meaning, but Mama did. She’s certain the killer’s someone from her family.”
The shock of that reality transformed Bowie’s sorrow to instant rage. He stood abruptly.
“Why now? That was more than thirty years ago. What the hell’s happened now to start this up again?”
“I don’t know. It just happened a few hours ago. We just got Mama back to the house. She’s telling Jesse now, and I have a feeling it’s going to be a long night here.”
Bowie glanced at the clock. It was just after 3:00 p.m.
“I don’t know how long it will take to get a chopper out here to pick me up, but I’ll be there as soon as I can. Tell Mama I’m on the way. Will one of you come into Eden to pick me up when they drop me off?”
“Yes. I will. I’m so sorry to be calling with such bad news,” Samuel added.
“I’m sorry, too, for all of us,” Bowie said. “I love you, Samuel.”
“Love you, too, bro,” Samuel said.
The call disconnected, and Samuel was still standing there, staring at the phone, when he heard footsteps and looked to see Bella coming toward him. He walked into her arms and came undone.
* * *
Bowie came out of the office leading with his chin, and headed for the boss.
“Claude! Claude!” he yelled to be heard over the noise on the drilling rig.
Claude Franklin turned, saw the look on Bowie Youngblood’s face and knew something was wrong. He headed toward him at a trot.
There were tears still on Bowie’s face when he grabbed Claude by the arm.
“I need a chopper, ASAP. My father’s been murdered. There’s going to be hell to pay on the mountain. I need to get home as soon as possible,” he said, then began to explain.
Claude was speechless. In his whole life he’d never known anyone who was murdered, and to hear Bowie naming the other side of his family as the ones responsible was beyond understanding.
“Go pack. I’ll get you a chopper, son. Just get your head on straight.”
Bowie nodded and took off toward their sleeping quarters, the long black braid hanging down his back bouncing with every step.
* * *
By the time Bella and Samuel got back into the house, it appeared that Leigh’s momentary weakness had passed in her need to care for her youngest son. She was sitting at Jesse’s bedside, waiting for his meds to kick in as he cried himself to sleep.
The longer she sat, the angrier she became. By the time Jesse fell asleep, she was so mad she was shaking. She went through the house in search of her boys, calling them by name.
They came rushing out of the kitchen, thinking she needed them to tend to Jesse. He was a big strong man and, due to his head injuries, was hard to handle when he got upset, but when they saw she was alone they slowed down.
Leigh put her hands on her hips.
“I’m going to Eden. I want the killer to know before he lays his head on a pillow tonight that his days are numbered. Will you go with me?”
“Yes, ma’am,” they said in unison.
“What about Jesse?” Michael said.
“I gave him one of his pills. He’s sound asleep.”
“Do you want to change clothes or anything?” Samuel asked.
Leigh looked down at the shirt and jeans she’d been wearing in the garden. They had blood all over them. She thought of the scratches on her face and realized she hadn’t even pulled the leaves out of her hair, and then let it go.
“No. I’m not changing anything. I’m not hiding the hideousness of what was done.”
“You can ride with me,” Samuel said.
“Aidan and I will follow you in my SUV,” Michael said.
“Bring your rifles,” Leigh said.
Bella gasped.
Maura and Leslie looked anxious.
“Do you think you’re all
