Kitabı oku: «A Montana Man»

One

Wednesday, May 21

Clint Barrow urged the horse he was riding up a rocky knoll. It was early morning. There was enough light to see by even though the sun hadn’t yet risen above the mountain tops, and wispy patches of ground fog drifted within dips of the mountainous country all around him. At the top of the knoll he pulled on the reins and stopped his horse. This was a favorite spot in which to view his ranch, and below his vantage point Barrow land spread almost as far as Clint could see. The buildings appeared as miniatures, and cattle and horses looked toy-like. Clint breathed a sigh of contentment.

He was a big man, tall and rangy, with dark hair and vivid blue eyes. His contentment was genuine. The shock of his one major tragedy in life, the death of his wife, had softened with time. He had a seventeen-year-old son, Tommy, on which to expend his love, and this ranch. He was the first person in the area to help out a friend or a neighbor in trouble, and, all in all, life was good. He felt strongly that no man should ask for more.

As the sun suddenly showed its face on the eastern horizon, Clint turned his horse’s head and rode back down the knoll toward the ranch compound. Tommy would be leaving for school shortly, and Clint liked to be there every morning to say a few words to his son before he left. Today it seemed even more important; today was the start of Tommy’s final exams. High school graduation was just around the corner. Unlike too many of the fathers and sons that Clint knew, he and Tommy were close, and Clint knew that he would do almost anything to protect their special relationship.

He arrived at the compound just as Tommy was coming out of the house and heading for his red pickup truck.

“Morning, Dad,” Tommy called.

“Morning, Tom.” Clint dismounted and let his horse go. He wouldn’t go far, Clint knew, and would, in fact, come back to him with a whistle.

“Looks like we’re in for a nice day,” Tommy said as he opened the door of his truck.

“Sure does.” Clint glanced at his watch. “You’re running a little late.”

“I know. Better get going. I gotta pick up Eric.”

“Are you sure you have time for that?”

“I told him I’d pick him up this morning, Dad.” Tommy grinned and swung himself up into the truck. “Remember, Barrows don’t go back on their word.”

Clint had to smile. He had instilled in his son the value of a man keeping his word. It was his own credo and he believed that honor was the primary difference between men of principle and those hapless individuals who drifted through life without hope, ambition or inspiration.

“Well, drive safely,” he told his son. “See you this evening.”

Tommy started the motor and rolled down the window. “See ya, Dad.”

Clint stood in the yard and watched the red pickup travel the driveway, his pride swelling in his chest. There were moments like this when he became very emotional about his son. Tommy would soon graduate from high school, he was no longer Clint’s “little boy.” He was teetering between manhood and childhood, and would go away to college in the fall. Clint could only hope that Tommy would want to return to the ranch after he completed his education.

When Clint could no longer see the red pickup, he whistled for his horse. It trotted over and Clint climbed into the saddle. It was time for his own day to begin.

Five days earlier.

Sierra’s new minivan was loaded to the roof with clothes, personal mementos and all of her painting supplies—rolled canvases, stretcher boards, tubes of oil paints, boxes of brushes and palette knives, easels, as well as several gallon cans of turpentine, which she used to clean her equipment.

She had packed carefully, and everything was snugly fitted together in the vehicle. The only unfilled space was the very front of the van, and even then her purse, maps and a notebook and pen lay on the passenger seat, where she could easily reach them from the driver’s seat. Her bank account had been converted to five hundred dollars in cash and the rest in traveler’s checks. She carried no credit cards, and her wallet contained only her driver’s license and the cash.

She was dressed for comfort in loose-fitting denim pants and a sweatshirt. Her long dark hair had been confined into one braid, and her face was devoid of makeup. Her skin was deep toned, appearing suntanned year-round; she had never needed cosmetics to enhance her coloring. She was thirty-three years old and looked five years younger.

Her figure was exceptionally good, as firm as it had been during her college years when she had first met Mike. They had dated for a while, she had wondered how deep her feelings really were for Mike Findley, then graduation had separated them. She’d known he was going on to law school, and she had found a job in an art gallery and polished her talent with oil paints and private lessons. Eventually she had moved to San Francisco, recalling only absentmindedly that Mike’s family lived there. She’d thought of him occasionally, but never dreamed they would ever see each other again.

It had happened. She’d been at a party, and had hardly believed her own eyes when Mike walked up to her. “Sierra? Sierra Benning? Is it really you?” he’d said with the grin she had found so irresistible in college.

This time love had bloomed at once, and they had married after three months of romance and laughter, of dining and dancing, of Mike introducing her to his friends and his family, of her being showered with gifts and flowers and sweet little love notes. Their wedding had been...

“No,” she said out loud, denying herself both the pain and the luxury of reliving that special day. The memories would always be there, but she needn’t deliberately drag them out and cause herself more heartache.

She didn’t understand Mike’s infidelity and knew she never would. While he had been showing her how much he loved her in dozens of ways, he had been meeting other women in hotel rooms. She had slept very little last night, wondering what might be ahead of her, thinking of the past and the disintegration of her marriage, knowing she was doing the right thing by breaking all ties but still not completely at ease with her plans.

The uneasiness would pass, she told herself. It had been a long time since she had taken a car trip by herself; concern was only natural, especially since she had no destination in mind.

It was time to leave. There was sunshine this morning, though the temperature was almost cool because of a breeze off the Bay. Sierra stood next to her van and looked at the glistening white mansion that had been her home for so long. During that time span she had gone from delirious happiness to acute misery.

It was over—all of it. Over with and behind her. She could look at her marriage as years of wasted time, or she could view her marriage and divorce as a lesson in life’s harsher realities. It was both, actually, and maybe that was good. Certainly she would have to know a man inside and out before she risked her heart again.

Thinking of the irony of it all delayed her departure for another few minutes. Last week she had been a wealthy woman; today everything she owned fit into one relatively small space—the minivan. Ironic or not, she did not regret negating the divorce settlement. Her own attorney had refused to help her do something so “utterly ridiculous”—his exact words—so she had called Mike’s. He had been most helpful. In fact, he’d drawn up the papers with a haste that had struck Sierra as funny, as though he, like most of her friends, had been wondering if she’d lost her mind, and wanted to get her signature on the documents before she came to her senses.

God, why was she thinking of that now? Clearing her mind with a slight shake of her head, Sierra slid behind the wheel of the van and turned the ignition key. She drove away from the Findley mansion without looking back. Her uppermost thought was that she was going to try very hard not to look back ever again. From this moment forward, she would concentrate on the future. She had one—somewhere. All she had to do was find it.

It seemed that the farther Sierra got from San Francisco, the braver she became about traveling alone. The traveling itself was exciting, and she wanted to just go on and on. She felt absolutely wonderful and completely freed of the Findleys’ influence.

Four days later she found herself in western Montana. She stayed in a motel in a very small settlement in the mountains that night, and went to the only café for dinner. There were a few other people in the place, and the waitress had greeted her with a friendly smile.

“Would you like to order now, or are you waiting for someone to join you?” the woman asked.

Sierra smiled. “If I waited for someone to join me, I’d starve to death.”

“You’re traveling alone?”

“That I am. I’ll have the pot roast and hot tea.”

“Good choice. Pot roast is the cook’s best dish.” The waitress smiled conspiratorially and dropped her voice. “Probably ’cause it’s easy to fix.”

Sierra laughed and laid down her menu. While the waitress went to turn in the order and get the tea, Sierra looked around. It was a quaint little café, with wood-paneled walls and linoleum flooring. The red checked tablecloths matched the curtains, and a cowbell over the door announced everyone leaving or arriving.

The waitress delivered hot water and a teabag. “Where’re you heading, if you don’t mind my asking?”

“Nowhere in particular.” Sierra smiled. “Just wandering around. This area is beautiful, and I’d like to see more of it. I grew up in northern Idaho, but if you can believe it, I’ve never been in Montana before.”

“Well, you be careful where you wander in these parts. This is a wilderness area, and it can be mighty dangerous.”

“Oh, I plan to stay on the main roads. I mean, I have no intention of hiking around by myself. Tell me this. Are there people living in these mountains?”

“Oh, sure, but they’re few and far between. Some real nice ranches in the back country.”

“Where do the children attend school?”

“In Hillman. It’s a little town about twenty miles from here.”

Sierra smiled. “Well, if the roads are safe for school buses, they certainly should be safe for my van.”

“The main roads are fine, miss, but the back roads can be treacherous. I advise strangers to stick to the highway. The weather’s a bit deceiving, you know. Spring has sprung and the highway is clear at this elevation, but you could run into some snow and ice at higher altitudes.” The woman looked concerned. “Don’t see many women traveling alone up here. Just be careful.” She walked off to help another customer.

Sierra pondered the warning. Was she being rash? Reckless? But she felt so...adventurous. Never in her life had she taken such an extended road trip, and she had already seen so many places and sights she hadn’t known existed. She couldn’t spend all her money touring the country, of course, but a day or so in this high country was really too appealing to resist.

She made up her mind. She would be careful—it was only sensible—but she was going to do some exploring. After all, she might never pass this way again.

Wednesday, May 21

Sierra dug through her bags and boxes for a warm jacket. The predawn air was cold enough to make her shiver, and the windows of her van were completely frosted over.

She had retired early last night, slept well and was anxious to be on her way, but she forced herself into the café for some breakfast as she had no idea when she would run across another place in which to eat. With that in mind, in addition to a large breakfast, she ordered some sandwiches to go. An older man was waiting tables this morning, and while he was as friendly as last night’s waitress had been, he was too busy for lengthy conversations with any one customer.

Sierra went to the counter to pay her check and noticed a rack of window scrapers for sale. It was one item she didn’t have with her, and she’d been wondering how she was going to clear the van’s windows of such heavy frost.

She walked out of the café with her bag of sandwiches and a sturdy plastic scraper, pleased that she’d thought to buy something for lunch and relieved about the frost problem.

She started the van’s engine and turned on the defroster, then got to work with the scraper. It took a full ten minutes to clear the windows, but finally she was behind the wheel and on the road again. About two miles from the small settlement, the road became ascending. While the forest was mostly heavy on each side, there were some open spaces that permitted Sierra a view of dawn’s first light.

It was going to be a fabulous day, she thought with a zing of exhilaration, and although the ascending road was narrow and quite curvy, there was very little traffic and she felt completely in control. Turning on the radio, she found a station playing country music, and sang along with Garth Brooks. It had been so long since she’d felt like this, unburdened and lighthearted, and she cherished the sensation. Life could be good, she thought with a contented sigh. Leaving San Francisco had been the wisest decision she had ever made.

The road twisted and wound its way upward, full dawn broke and occasionally the trees parted to give Sierra a breathtaking view of the mountains. It was still very early, and only in those clearings did she actually see the sun.

The miles clicked by, and after a while Sierra noticed a sign indicating another road up ahead. When she got to it there was a second sign with an arrow pointing right and an inscription: Cougar Mountain.

She pulled onto the shoulder and consulted her map. But she couldn’t locate that road on it, although she could pretty much tell where she was on the highway. A daring little smile toyed with her lips. Was she adventurous enough to leave the highway and drive a road that wasn’t on the map? It looked safe enough from where she was parked. It was narrow, to be sure, but it was paved and appeared no more dangerous than the highway she was on.

She would do it! Why not? she thought as she got the van moving and made the turn. She could always turn around and head back to the highway if the road proved to be treacherous. Other than a little time, what did she have to lose?

She had just gone over the first hill when she spotted a river running parallel to the road. Moving swiftly in its rocky bed, it was just about the prettiest river Sierra had ever seen. She was driving slowly enough to take her eyes off the road and keep track of the river’s path, and it was a delight to watch.

It was on her right, and after a few miles it seemed to be dropping below the road’s level, while the road itself climbed higher. Another few miles and it was out of sight, probably at the bottom of a chasm that appeared to be getting deeper.

There was only a bit of shoulder between the road and the drop-off, and Sierra found herself hugging the center line. That deep chasm so close to the roadway made her a little nervous, and she wondered if she shouldn’t turn around and go back to the highway.

Only there was no place to turn around. On the left side of the road was a rocky cliff, on the right was that deep ravine, and the road itself was too narrow for a U-turn. She had no choice but to keep going until she came to a wide spot. There must be one somewhere up ahead, she told herself, Just take it easy, drive cautiously and you’ll come to it. The radio was a distraction now, and she switched it off.

The road kept climbing. Sierra spotted patches of old snow on the rocky bluff on her left, and her nervousness became more pronounced. She’d told the waitress last night that she was going to stick to the main highways, and she knew now that she should have done exactly that.

There was a blind curve just ahead, and she bit down on her bottom lip because it looked as though the road was heading directly for the ravine. It wouldn’t, of course; it would wind around that outcropping of rock, and who knew? Maybe just beyond it would be a place wide enough for her to get turned around.

Suddenly a red pickup truck came bulleting around that curve, on her side of the road! Sierra slammed on the brakes and the van went into a skid. The truck also began skidding, and fishtailing, and its back end slapped against the van with tremendous force. Sierra screamed as the van nosed into the ravine. She saw the river at the bottom, and the boulders and rocks rushing up to meet her. The van began somersaulting, and Sierra’s last coherent act was to unfasten her seat belt.

Two young men jumped out of the pickup and ran to the edge of the ravine. Frozen with dread, they stood there and watched the van tumbling down the rocky slope end over end, almost in slow motion, each bounce twisting the van’s metal body into a different configuration.

“Tommy...Tommy...what should we do?” Eric Schulze cried.

They watched in horror as the driver’s door flew open and a woman was thrown out onto the rocks. The next instant the van hit bottom, mere inches from the wildly rushing river.

“We have to go down there and see if she’s okay.” Tommy Barrow was already on his way. Eric followed. It was tough going. One misstep and they could end up like that van—or worse, in the nver.

Breathing hard, they finally reached Sierra. She was lying facedown and not moving. “I think she’s dead,” Eric said, his voice cracking.

Tommy knelt down and felt for a pulse. “She’s alive. Eric, go check the van and make sure she was the only one in it, then go back to the truck, get to the nearest phone and call for help. I’ll stay here.”

“But...”

Tommy raised tear-filled eyes to his friend. “If she dies, it’s my fault. I was driving too fast. I took that curve too wide. Go, Eric. Do it now. I can’t leave her alone.”

Eric started backing away. “Her van is smashed all to hell. Tommy! It’s on fire!”

“What?” He stood up to see. “Oh, God, what if it explodes?” He ran as hard as he could over the rocks to peer inside the van. Hurrying back, he said with some relief, “There’s no one else. Eric, we have to move this lady.”

“You aren’t supposed to move anyone hurt in an accident. What if her back is broken, or something?”

“She has no chance at all if we don’t move her and that van explodes. Come on, help me turn her over.”

The boys got down on their knees and very gently turned Sierra over onto her back. “You take her feet,” Tommy said, moving into position to lift her by her shoulders. He glanced at the van. “The fire’s getting worse. Everything inside is blazing. Hurry, Eric, hurry!”

“Where are we taking her?” Eric anxiously asked. “The canyon’s so steep. We can’t carry her clear up to the road.”

Tommy took a quick look around. “Over there, behind that big boulder. Come on, let’s get moving.”

They had just lowered Sierra to the ground behind the boulder when the van exploded. The boys gaped at the sight.

“Holy cow,” Tommy whispered. “She would have been killed for sure.” He tore his eyes from the conflagration to look at Eric. “Get going and make that call. She’s unconscious and could be hurt bad.”

They both jumped a foot when a second explosion shook the canyon. This one was much worse than the first, and what was left of the van and its contents either fluttered to the rocks in minute pieces or landed in the river.

“It’s gone,” Eric said, as though he couldn’t believe his own eyes. “Totally gone.”