Part 22 (1/2)
”Have I convinced you to return with me to the homestead? We need each other, Storm.”
”Will Laughing Brook accompany us back to Oklahoma?”
”I've given my word. I will personally return her to the reservation. I thought we'd take Laughing Brook to the reservation first before returning home. I wouldn't feel right sending her alone.”
”Can't one of your father's men take her home? Or Soars-Like-An-Eagle?”
”Laughing Brook is my problem, not my father's. She'll go with us.”
”Then I'm not going with you,” Storm said.
Grady took one look at her stubborn, jutting chin and sighed in exasperation. Though he was weary of Laughing Brook's constant attempts at seduction, he was determined to resist Storm's unreasonable jealousy and demands. He felt strongly that Storm should be the one to make amends, for she was the one who had left him, not the other way around.
”When Tim and I leave Peaceful Valley both you and Laughing Brook will accompany us. We'll travel by wagon this time. The trails are safe enough for overland travel and the weather at this time of the year is good.”
Storm deliberately turned her back on Grady, refusing to give him the satisfaction of seeing how hurt she was by his stubborn refusal to bow to her wishes.
”How do I know you won't meet someone along the way who's out to prove he's a better gunman than the infamous Renegade? What a.s.surance do I have that a gunman isn't waiting for you in Guthrie, itching to prove he's a faster draw than you are?”
”You have no a.s.surance,” Grady said quietly. ”Neither do I. You'll just have to accept my word that I will only draw to defend myself. Look at me, Storm.” He turned her around to face him. ”A man who refuses to defend himself winds up dead. What am I supposed to do when a man challenges me?”
Storm stared at him for the s.p.a.ce of a heartbeat, her eyes as bleak as her heart. ”I don't want to go through life wondering when someone from your past will show up and disrupt our lives. I deserve better. Your son deserves better.”
”Sooner or later someone faster on the draw than I will emerge to take my place and I'll be forgotten. Meanwhile, we go on as before, living our lives on our homestead with our children. You do want children, don't you?”
Storm hesitated, trying to decide whether she should tell Grady about the baby. She was silent so long, Grady thought she couldn't bear the thought of having his child. Anger overrode his better judgment as he flung himself from the bed.
”Perhaps Laughing Brook would like to have my child,” he flung out carelessly. ”Most wives are overjoyed to bear their husband's children.”
Storm sucked in a scalding breath. ”I'm not a brood mare. And furthermore, I'm not like other women.”
”d.a.m.n you, Storm! d.a.m.n you to h.e.l.l! Wouldn't it be ironic if I just planted a baby in you? You'd have little to say in the matter if a baby was growing in you right now.” Suddenly a devious smile curved his lips and Storm shuddered at the coldness of the gesture. ”If you are carrying my child, you'll have to return with me to Oklahoma.”
By the time Storm found her voice Grady had flung on his clothes and stormed from the room. She lay there in silence, mulling over his words and what they implied. Since they had never talked about children, she had no idea how strongly he felt on the matter. Obviously he didn't want Tim to be an only child. She knew Summer Sky had been pregnant with their second child when she was killed, but she certainly didn't intend to breed year after year until she was a worn-out sh.e.l.l of a woman. Grady's mother obviously hadn't been overburdened with children, and Blade didn't seem to mind.
Grady went in search of his father immediately after he left Storm. When he had arrived earlier Blade had been out on the range. He found Blade in his study, waiting for him. When he entered the small room that smelled of leather and tobacco, poignant childhood memories came rus.h.i.+ng back to him. He had spent many a happy hour with his father in this room, learning how to balance the ledgers and run the ranch. Blade stood up the moment Grady entered.
Father and son started at one another, neither moving, each aware of the differences that separated them. Both men were tall, both thickly muscled and broad shouldered. Grady was as darkly handsome as Blade, possessing the same bronze skin, midnight black hair, and proud bearing. Of the two, Grady more closely resembled their Indian forebears, with his fierce expression and stark features. Blade was the first to speak.
”Welcome home, son. I've waited a long time for this day.” He held out his arms in open welcome.
Grady hesitated a moment, then rushed forward, returning his father's bear hug and pounding him on the back. He was so choked with emotion all he could say was, ”I'm sorry.”
”We've missed you.”
Grady held Blade at arm's length, staring into his eyes. ”I had to leave, Dad. I was bitter, disillusioned, and too immature to accept the terrible blow fate had dealt me.”
”You were a youth when you left, Grady, and now you're a man. The years may not have been kind to you, but you've learned lessons I couldn't have taught you had you remained at Peaceful Valley.”
”Can you and Mother forgive me for my neglect? And-I've done things you might not want to forgive me for. The kind of life I've led since leaving the ranch would shame you and Mother.”
”I know everything-or nearly everything,” Blade said quietly. ”We're not so isolated out here that we didn't hear about the renegade Indian who fought against oppression on the western plains.”
”The People call me Thunder.”
”Jumping Buffalo has already told me. Returning to the People and learning their ways was a bold and brave thing to do. It made a man of you. We won't speak of the other because I hope you've given up that kind of life now that you have a wife and home of your own.”
”I suspected you've kept in touch with Jumping Buffalo. I shouldn't have hurt you and Mother by taking Tim away.”
”He's back now,” Blade said simply. ”I'm proud of you for the way you've taken hold of your life once again. Storm has told me so much about your homestead. It pleases me, though it would please me more if you came back to the ranch and took your rightful place here at my side. This will all be yours one day, you know. Dawn's husband has no desire to live away from San Francisco, and Spring writes that her future husband has a thriving law practice in Boise. What will happen to Peaceful Valley if you return to Oklahoma?”
”You'll be here many years yet, Dad, keeping tight rein on the ranch. Though I love the place, it isn't mine as the Oklahoma homestead is mine. I won that piece of land in a grueling race and earned the right to settle there. It's all mine, just like this ranch is yours and Mother's. If you must leave it to someone, leave it to Tim. He'll appreciate it when he's older. The homestead will be my legacy to any children Storm and I have together. If there are children,” he added darkly.
Blade searched Grady's face, suddenly aware that Storm hadn't told Grady that she was carrying his child. He knew there had been ample time for Storm to tell him while they were alone upstairs, for Shannon had told him Grady had gone to Storm's room immediately. He speculated a moment on Storm's reluctance to reveal her pregnancy to Grady, but shrugged off his inclination to tell Grady himself. It was best, he decided, to let them work out their problems in their own way.
”I'm sure there will be children,” Blade offered. ”Your mother mentioned that Laughing Brook destroyed the note that Storm wrote to you before she left. Has that all been settled between you?”
”Storm is too stubborn to listen to reason.” Grady's voice was harsh with exasperation.
”Your mother and I have become very fond of Storm. She has a deathly fear of violence, and with good reason.”
”What has Storm told you about her first husband?” Grady asked curiously.
”Only that he was killed accidentally. You and Storm have a lot in common.”
Grady made a harsh sound deep in his throat. ”I don't think Storm will ever forgive me for the death of her husband. You see, I was involved in a gunfight and a stray bullet hit him. Buddy was the great love of her life. She married me because she needed a home, and I needed a home for Tim.”
Blade knew differently, but wisely kept his counsel. ”What about Laughing Brook? Why is she still with you?”
”She was ready to return to the reservation when I was wounded. When Storm left so abruptly Laughing Brook stayed to care for Tim.”
”You didn't ask Storm to leave?” Blade asked sharply.
Grady looked disgruntled. ”Is that what she told you? I certainly would recall if I asked her to leave. No, Dad, just the opposite is true. I begged her to stay.”
”Perhaps neither of you recall what was said,” Blade suggested. ”It was a very trying time. If I were you, I'd concentrate on finding a way to make your marriage work. A good start would be sending Laughing Brook back to the reservation.”
”Laughing Brook is my responsibility.” The tautening of his jaw gave Blade an indication of Grady's stubbornness on the subject of Laughing Brook. ”I'll do as I see fit. Storm left me; she is in no position to make demands.”
Blade wanted to shake his stubborn son until his teeth rattled. Grady reminded him of himself when he was that age. But thank G.o.d he had more good sense than his hotheaded son displayed. ”Don't be too hard on Storm, Grady. Do you love her?”
”I-love is a strong emotion. After losing Summer Sky I didn't think I was capable of loving again. Storm is Summer Sky's complete opposite.
”Either you love Storm or you don't. If you don't, then I see little hope for your marriage.”
Grady decided to occupy another room that night-and the night after that. He knew Storm was still angry, her feelings confused where he was concerned. He also knew that if he slept in the same bed with her nothing could keep him from making love to her. Blade's words had been prophetic. Without love on both sides there was little hope for their marriage. Did Storm love him as much as he loved her or did Buddy's ghost intrude upon their happiness? Did Storm love him enough to have his children?
Grady knew that Laughing Brook had deliberately hidden Storm's letter. Had she done other things to cause trouble? Why was he being so d.a.m.n unreasonable about Laughing Brook? he wondered. He supposed he really should send her back to the reservation with one of his father's men, but he had promised Jumping Buffalo he would bring his only surviving child safely back home when Tim no longer needed her. Why couldn't Storm understand that his honor would be damaged if he failed to keep his word?