Smile Because It Happened
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Don t cry because it’s over smile because it happened. That was the saying that kept repeating itself in Amanda’s mind as she sat on a rock and looked out across the lake at her house, now surrounded by trees and shrubbery. She had no idea what to do with herself since leaving this place behind.
“Amanda! Look!” Her brother yelled from somewhere up ahead. He’d been looking for her all day. “You’re going to miss your boat.”
She stood quickly and walked toward him. They were almost back to the train station when she saw another horse approaching them. The rider was riding fast; they would soon catch up. She stopped abruptly, causing her brother to bump into her.
A moment later he reached around to grab his hat off the ground. As he did so, she noticed someone standing beside the rider who wore an odd expression on their face.
It couldn’t be… “Dad?”
The man nodded slowly and waved his hand. His eyes seemed to be staring straight through her. “I’ve come to take you home,” he said. “Come on.”
He turned away and urged his horse forward. Amanda hurried after him. She didn’t know where home was but she knew one thing: She wanted to get there before anyone else arrived.
Her father led her down the tracks to where two men waited for them. One of them was tall with long brown hair tied loosely behind his head. The other man was short with thick black hair and bushy eyebrows. Both were dressed casually in jeans and leather jackets.
Amanda recognized the shorter man as one of the ranch hands. When she stepped closer to her father, she could see that the taller man also had dark brown hair pulled tightly behind his head. But he wasn’t wearing any glasses today. And neither were the other two men.
A strange feeling came over her as she watched her father introduce the three strangers to her brothers. At first glance, these people didn’t seem like family members. She felt more comfortable with her own family than with these strangers. Then again, they might not have anything to do with her family at all. Perhaps they were just passing acquaintances.
As she watched the three men shake hands and exchange pleasantries, Amanda glanced back toward her house. Was something wrong? Had they already gone inside? No—they hadn’t entered yet. She must have imagined it. It was only then that she realized how quiet things were. There weren’t even any animals around. Only a few birds flew overhead.
Suddenly her father spoke. “This is my daughter Amanda and her brothers, Tom and Mark. These are our new employees.”
“Nice to meet you,” the older man said, extending his hand to each of them in turn. “My name is Mr. Williams.”
“And I’m Mr. Anderson,” the younger man added. “We’ll be working together to help manage your ranch.”
Tom shook both of their hands, while Mark merely nodded. All the while the woman stared at Amanda with her piercing blue eyes. “We’ll be traveling back to Denver tomorrow evening,” her father explained. “But we will return often to check on things here.”
“If you need us for anything,” Mr. Anderson added, “just call.”
They all smiled politely and then headed back to their horses. In minutes, they were well on their way. Once the last horse disappeared among the trees, Amanda started walking along the dirt road. This time her father rode alongside her. For some reason, she thought of the day they left the ranch. How many years ago was that now?
“So how long has it been since you left here?” she asked.
“Ten years,” he said. “That’s why it took me so long to find you. I needed to make sure that nothing bad had happened to you during those ten years.”
“Why do you think anything bad could happen to me?”
His response surprised her. “Because I love you.”
When he said those words, she remembered the day he told her about his wife’s death. She’d always wondered if it was true or if he made her mother up simply because he loved her so much. Now she knew the truth. He loved her and she loved him. Not because of her mother, but because he was her dad.
For a moment she couldn’t speak. She tried to form a question, but instead, tears filled her eyes. “How can you say that? You don’t know anything about me. Nothing good anyway.”
“Yes, I do.” He reached around to hold her shoulders firmly. “Look, I’ve done some terrible things in my life, too. Maybe worse than yours.”
“You’re right,” she whispered. “Maybe I should kill myself.”
He frowned and looked down at the ground. After a moment she continued talking. “Do you remember when we lived in New York City? That night Mom found out what kind of man you really are?”
“I remember.”
“Then tell me something: Do you ever wonder what would have happened if you never met her? Would you still be married to Mama? Or would you have ended up marrying some rich old lady who doesn’t care whether you live or die? If you want to blame someone for what happened between us, blame yourself. Don’t try to blame Mama.”
The corners of his mouth lifted into a crooked smile. “It isn’t easy being a father. I’m sorry if sometimes I forget that.”
She shrugged off his arm and walked ahead of him. As soon as he caught up to her, she stopped and faced him. “What if I hate you? What if I resent you forever for taking Mama away from me?”
He placed his hand gently against her cheek. “Amanda—” His voice broke. “Don’t leave me.”
“Just promise me one thing.”
“Anything.”
“Promise you won’t let anyone else raise me.”
“Done.” He gave her another tight squeeze.
Now it was her turn to look away. But not before she saw the pain in his face. And then suddenly, as quickly as she could blink, the feeling vanished. She turned to face him. “Where are you going?”
“Back home.”
“No. We’re staying here until you decide where to go.”
He shook his head. “Not this time. Your brothers aren’t coming back either.”
“Why not?”
“Mr. Anderson thinks there might be trouble in town. So he wanted us to stay here tonight just in case.”
“Are you sure? Because it’s awfully late for dinner.”
Her father didn’t answer. Instead, he kept looking behind her. She turned to see what he was staring at. The two men who’d ridden to meet them earlier were returning. They slowed their horses and waited for Amanda to catch up to them.
“Is everything okay?” she called after them.
“Everything is fine,” her father replied.
Once they arrived back at the house, everyone gathered inside the kitchen. There were four chairs and three tables, which meant only five people could eat at once. With no other choice, Amanda sat next to her father. A few moments later, her brothers joined them. It seemed like ages since they’d seen each other, and yet none of them spoke. Finally, her father broke the silence with a question.
“Did you get your gun license?”
“Yes, sir,” she answered. Then she glanced over at her brothers. “We got it yesterday afternoon.”
Her older brother, Ben, shot her an angry glare. “And how did you manage that?”
“By paying a fee and filling out forms,” she said. “Come on, Ben. I thought you were smarter than that.”
Ben glared at her again. “That’s not funny.”
“Well, neither is living under the same roof with a criminal.”
Her younger brother, Tom, jumped in front of her. “Hey, hey! Watch what you’re saying. My sister is doing a job for Mr. Anderson. How many times do you need to hear that? And if you call her a criminal again, I’ll punch you in the nose!”
Tom was almost seven years younger than Amanda. Yet he acted more mature than she had expected. Before he could start swinging, though, Ben stepped forward and grabbed Tom by his shirt collar. “Stop it now!”
Both boys’ faces turned red. Tom struggled to pull free, but Ben held firm. For a moment she watched as the brothers exchanged angry glances. But then Amanda remembered why she was sitting beside her father. Her brothers weren’t the only ones who needed to talk. “Let him go,” she ordered. “Right now.”
Ben released Tom and stepped back. “Sorry,” he muttered.
But even as she tried to apologize to both brothers, Tom stood up and stormed out of the room. She couldn’t stop herself from glancing after him. After a while, she heard the door close.
“So…” Her father cleared his throat. “How about telling me what happened last night? Did you find the boy?”
She hesitated. This wasn’t exactly the time for a long story. “Someone attacked us,” she finally began. “A man we think was working for the senator.”
“I told you to be careful.”
“You also told me to take precautions.”
His lips thinned into a straight line. “Was he armed?”
“No.”
“Then what does that mean?”
“He might have been carrying something hidden.”
“Like what?”
“Weapons. Drugs. Maybe money.”
“Money?”
She nodded. “The senator has hired a private detective to follow my brothers. If anything happens to them, he could make a lot of money off the reward.”
“What makes you so certain this was someone connected to the senator?”
“Because he knew enough to attack us outside a bank.”
“Do you remember the name of the place?”
“No.”
“Okay. Just tell me what happened.”
For the next hour, Amanda described every detail of the incident. When she finished, her father leaned against the table. “This is bad.”
“It can’t be worse.”
“Of course, it can. Now the police are involved. You know what that means.”
“It means you won’t be able to return to New York anytime soon.”
“Probably not.” He sighed heavily. “In fact, I’m not sure when we will ever go home again. Not unless you give up this investigation.”
“There’s nothing else I can do.”
“Maybe there is,” he countered. “Tell me how much money you’ve made so far.”
“About $1,500.”
“Which is good,” he agreed. “But it’s still less than half of what I planned. We should never have taken on such a risky case.”
“We had little choice,” she reminded him.
“Don’t forget that you put yourself in danger. You could have been killed.”
“Or kidnapped.”
“Or kidnapped.” His expression hardened. “You shouldn’t have gone anywhere alone. That includes going to town or leaving the ranch without telling anyone where you plan to go.”
“I didn’t see any reason to tell everyone about our plans.”
“I disagree.”
“Why?”
“Because your mother would have wanted you to stay safe.”
Amanda folded her arms across her chest. “Now you sound like Mother.”
“If she hadn’t died, maybe things would be different.”
She shook her head. “They wouldn’t. Your mother would still want me to live my life.”
“Not if she saw how reckless you were being. Do you really expect to solve this case?”
“Yes.”
“And then what? Will you go back to New York City with an unsolved mystery?”
“No. I’ll keep searching until I find some answers.”
“Just don’t get yourself killed. It would hurt your family to lose another daughter.”
“I’d rather die trying than spend the rest of my life wondering what happened to me.”
Her father crossed his arms over his chest. “Be reasonable. What if you can’t figure out anything?”
“I won’t let that happen.”
“All right, then.” He lifted his hands. “Take care of yourself. And watch your back.”
***
After Amanda left the house, Ben walked down to the barn. He looked around, expecting to see the horses tied to their stalls. Instead, all four animals were standing in a row along one side of the building. They stared at him with dull eyes.
Something was wrong. Very wrong.
Walking closer to the stall, he found two saddles hanging inside. The other three were missing. So was the bridle. In addition, the tack room was locked.
“Who did this?” he demanded.
One horse snorted and shifted its weight. Its tail lashed.
“Get away from me!” he shouted.
Two more horses stampeded forward and started neighing loudly. One whinnied and reared up on its hind legs. All four animals circled around the stall. Then they moved toward the corral fence and galloped through it.
Ben rushed after them. As soon as he stepped onto the porch, he spotted a trail leading past the stable door. Someone must have come here before he arrived.
He followed the trail back to the corral gate and discovered it was open. But why leave it open? Whoever came here, could have easily closed the entrance and blocked the exit.
Shaking his head, he climbed the ladder to the loft above the stables. Once he reached the top, he jumped off and landed lightly on the dirt floor. Moving quickly, he entered the barn and checked each stall. All of them contained a saddle. The only difference between them was that one held the bridle; the others didn’t.
When he returned to the front of the barn, he noticed something odd: a pile of hay had been pushed aside by the wooden wall. Was it possible someone had hidden inside and waited for the horses to enter?
Suddenly, the thought occurred to him that whoever did this might have done it because he wasn’t here. Maybe he wasn’t the only person who knew about this place.
As he stepped outside the barn, he heard hoofbeats coming from behind the house. A few minutes later, the horses reappeared. When he turned around, they trotted to their original spots. Their heads swung back and forth as if watching for something.
Then he caught sight of something unusual. Two horses were grazing in the pasture beyond the barn. Three other horses grazed in the yard beside the house. Only two of those belonged to him.
“What are you doing?” he called out.
The nearest horse stopped eating. Others scattered.
“Come here now.”
None of the horses budged.
“Damn! Damn! Damn!” Ben cursed.
Leaving the barn, he hurried into the house. He searched every bedroom but couldn’t locate a clue. Nor could he find any sign of forced entry. Not even a broken lock or a loose board. If someone had been waiting for the horses, he would have seen signs of it when he opened the stable door.
While he continued to search, the horses returned. By the time he finished checking the entire house, they were gone again. This time, no one tried to hide inside. Why not? Did the intruder know they would return once they ate?
Someone had stolen the bridles. Who would do such a thing? No doubt he’d never see either saddle or bridle again. And there went the possibility of tracking them with his tracker.
A terrible feeling settled deep within him. Now he understood why his father worried so much about his safety. Someone was stalking him, and the man was dangerous enough to steal his property.
Could he be a murderer? Had the stranger murdered anyone else?
It wouldn’t surprise him if it was true. Some killers used horses for transportation. It was also common for thieves to take advantage of travelers, especially women. With Amanda’s reputation as a lady killer, she could have become the object of a robbery attempt. That made sense.
But why steal the bridles? Unless he planned to sell them. Or maybe the thief intended to use them himself.
Thinking hard, he remembered what Amanda said about her brother. She believed he wanted her dead. Could it be that he had hired someone to kill her?
With a sinking heart, he realized the answer was yes. And if Amanda’s brother really did intend to harm her, he might try to hurt her again—by stealing the bridles.
That explained how the thief got past the gate. Perhaps he simply unlocked it. After all, he was familiar with the ranch and knew which doors to open.
After leaving the house, he headed for the barn. While he watched the horses graze, he tried to figure out where the thief could have hidden while he fed them. There weren’t many places. Most likely he hid among the hay bales.
Climbing down from the barn, he walked over to the stack of straw and looked underneath. Nothing. So where was he?
Another thought occurred to him. What if he left a trail somewhere in the woods? He decided to check the trees surrounding the house. They were large oak trees. Many branches hung low, providing plenty of cover for someone hiding.
As soon as he entered the grove, he heard rustling. His eyes darted from tree branch to tree branch. At first glance, nothing seemed wrong. Then he saw a dark form moving through the trees.
Instantly alert, he took off running toward the grove.
Before reaching the edge of the forest, the dark form disappeared. But then he saw it again. In seconds, it disappeared again. The creature moved like a cat. Was it a panther or some kind of wild animal?
He stopped short of the grove and glanced up at the sky. Dark clouds covered the sun, and raindrops fell on his head. If he didn’t hurry, he would get soaked.
Stepping onto the grassy area between the trees, he ran straight ahead. The farther he went, the louder the sounds grew until he heard an unmistakable sound: hooves.
His body stiffened as he spotted a horse racing away across the field. Before he reached the grove, another horse raced by. Then another. Finally, four more galloped across the field.
Ben stood still. Something strange was going on. Why would five horses run together? Maybe they were just excited about their meal.
Still too far to hear what they were saying, he followed the path they left behind. As they approached the fence, he noticed two horses standing near each other. One of the animals snorted and kicked its tail. Another whinnied.
They were talking about something. Trying to warn him of danger?
At least he hoped so.
When the last horse galloped past, he stepped back from the fence. Two riders sat atop the saddles. Each wore a long black coat and a hat pulled low over his face. Both men rode fast, and Ben quickly lost sight of them.
What now?
There wasn’t any point in following them. Without the bridles, he couldn’t track them. Leaving the grove, he headed for the barn. Just before entering, he glanced around, but no one was there.
The horses had already eaten their fill and were resting peacefully in the stalls. Once again, the barn door remained locked. He shouldered his gun, wondering why he hadn’t done that earlier.
Was it possible this person who stole the bridles knew about guns? Could he have seen him enter the barn?
If so, he should watch his step. This stranger obviously meant him harm.
Leaving the barn, he walked slowly through the pasture. By now, the storm had passed, and the sun peeked out from beneath the clouds. A warm breeze caressed his cheek.
While walking, he thought about the stranger. Did he know anything about the bridles? Or had the stranger come here only because he happened to spot Amanda’s red hair?
Would Amanda even recognize him after seeing him in his disguise? Probably not. All she would see when she looked at him was a tall man with brown skin and a beard.
Suddenly, he wondered if Amanda knew much about the stranger. Would she tell him if he asked her about him?
She certainly wouldn’t say anything about her brother. That was obvious.
A twig snapped underfoot. Startled, he turned. No one was there. It must have been a bird.
But then he caught a glimpse of movement. He spun around. Again, nothing.
Did that mean he was losing his mind?
It was probably just a rabbit hopping along the ground. Or maybe a squirrel scurrying up a tree.
Just as he started to relax, he heard a soft voice whisper in his ear, “I’ve got you.”
Startled, he jumped backward. Immediately, he realized it was his own voice. And then he understood why he felt so nervous. He had heard the same thing twice today—first while feeding the horses and second during his walk through the woods.
“Who is there?” he yelled.
No answer came.
Not sure whether to believe it was a trick of the wind or if the voice belonged to someone hiding nearby, he hurried into the house. He grabbed his hat and rifle from the peg by the door and stepped outside.
After locking the front door, he headed for the stable. Nothing appeared to be disturbed. Still, he could never be too careful.
On the way back home, he decided to stop by the grove once more. He needed answers.
The End