Lean, Mean and Lonesome

Ranger didn’t change expression. Rafe got the feeling that Ranger didn’t particularly care what Rafe might think about anything.

Smart dog.

Rafe followed Mandy into the hallway.

“Dan moved into the master bedroom after Mom died,” she said, motioning to the end of the hall.

Rafe paused beside her. “I was sorry to hear about your mother, Mandy. She was always kind to me. I’ve never forgotten that.”

“It was quick,” she replied, her gaze on her arms, folded across her chest. “At least she didn’t suffer.”

“Her heart?”

“Yes.” She looked up at him. “Dad, on the other hand, lingered months longer than expected with his cancer.”

He didn’t want to talk about her father, not now, not ever. He stepped past her and entered one of the few rooms in this house he’d never been in before. Mandy followed him into the room and glanced into the adjoining bathroom. “There are plenty of clean towels and things,” she said. “I’ll talk to you in the morning.”

With that, she quietly left the room, closing the door behind her.

Only then did Rafe remember that his bag was still hidden outside, but he wasn’t about to go back out there tonight to look for it. He glanced around the large room. A king-size bed was on one wall. Another wall was lined with bookshelves, filled with a mishmash of fiction and nonfiction. He smiled, thinking of Dan and his love of reading.

His smiled faded when he remembered what Mandy had told him. Dan couldn’t be dead. There was no way Dan would allow himself to get into a situation that was life-threatening. But accidents happened all the time, Rafe reminded himself.

Where was he? If Dan was alive, why hadn’t he returned?

Rafe walked over to the third wall, next to the door leading to the bathroom. This wall was filled with photographs, large and small, of varied subjects. Most of the photos had been taken at the ranch. There were shots of longhorn cattle, deer, family pets, and many pictures of family members.

Rafe was surprised to see that he was in many of them. He hadn’t remembered being that thin, or looking so grim.

As he turned away, he paused and looked again at photographs that must have been taken at the party the Cren-shaws gave the night that he and Dan graduated from high school, the last night he was on the ranch.

There was a picture of Mandy in a cotton-candy-colored dress with a full skirt and sleeves that rested just off her shoulders. He still recalled, without the need of a photograph to remind him, how she looked at the party with her glowing eyes and her contagious smile. She’d looked much older than fifteen that night and had delighted in her newfound ability to attract admiring gazes. He touched the photograph lightly with his forefinger, tracing the curve of her lips, the shape of her shoulders.

He could still remember how her mouth had tasted, how smooth her shoulders had felt, how much he’d wanted to make love to her that night.

Rafe deliberately withdrew his gaze from Mandy’s photo and focused instead on another one taken the day they graduated of Dan in his suit, looking solemn enough if you didn’t look too closely at the amusement in his eyes. The one of Rafe alone caught him by surprise. He’d filled out from the earlier pictures Dan had on display and wore the first and only suit he’d ever possessed. Rafe looked closer at the boy he had once been. He’d had his hair cut and looked equally solemn. However, there was no amusement twinkling in his eyes, just a firm resolve to make something of himself.

He’d managed to do that, all right, with the help of Uncle Sam.

Rafe continued into the bathroom and shucked off his clothes. He stood under the hot, steamy water and let it massage the soreness from his body. He could scarcely keep his eyes open. Once the water began to cool, he turned it off and grabbed a towel. He didn’t need anything to sleep in tonight. He’d raid Dan’s closet in the morning so he could pick up his bag outside. Now all he wanted was a few hours of oblivion.

After Rafe closed his bedroom door, Mandy returned to bed, Ranger padding softly behind her until she turned off the light and crawled beneath the covers. Then he stretched out on the rug beside her and gave a deep sigh.

She wanted to echo that sigh.

Having Rafe McClain show up like this had been a shock she could have done without. However, now that he was here, she had to admit to herself that if anyone could solve the mystery of Dan’s disappearance, it would be Rafe. She should be relieved that he had shown up. Just as important, knowing that Dan had notified his friend strengthened her belief that something in Dan’s life had gone wrong. Why else would he have contacted Rafe?

Her thoughts kept circling back to the man. How could a person she hadn’t seen in twelve years still have such a strong effect on her?

She would never forget the day all those years ago when he showed up at the ranch for the first time. He’d been fourteen, Dan’s age. She’d been eleven.

He’d worn ragged clothes, much like what he’d had on today. He had needed a haircut, as he did now. Not much had changed in his overall appearance for that matter, she thought to herself.

He’d been thinner then. Much thinner. He’d still had bruises on his face, bruises he hadn’t chosen to explain. Her mind drifted, returning to those long-ago days when she had been a child filled with curiosity, eager to learn.

Mandy was in her room on a Saturday morning, trying to decide if she was ready to pack away her dolls and other childhood things. She enjoyed playing with them once in a while, when she knew Dan wouldn’t catch her at it and tease her for being such a baby. However, she could use the space they took up for other things. School started on Monday and she felt the need to organize her room and get ready to face the new school year.

It was tough being too old for toys, too young for boys.

She heard the yard dogs clamoring outside and peered out her window to see what had set them off. She saw a tall, skinny boy standing beside the gate of the fence that protected the lawn from the rest of the ranch. He stood as still as a statue, while the dogs carried on all around him.

Dan’s voice carried ahead of him as he dashed out the back door, the screen slamming behind him. “Hey, Rafe! How ya doing?” Dan chased the dogs off and invited the boy inside the stone fence.

Mandy vaguely recognized the boy. He’d gone to the same elementary school in Wimberley that she and Dan had attended. Of course now the two boys would be starting high school this fall. Except maybe Rafe had dropped out of school a couple of years ago. Either that, or his family had moved away. She hadn’t seen him in a long time.

Now he was back. Curious—as usual—Mandy raced downstairs and walked out on the porch. She was surprised by what he said.

“I’m looking for work.”

Dan laughed. “You serious? Aren’t you going to school?”

“I intend to enroll on Monday, but I need a local address. So I thought maybe I could work here on the ranch for your dad evenings and weekends until I finish up with school.”

Dan reached over and touched a gash just above Rafe’s eye and Rafe flinched. “What happened?”

“It doesn’t matter.”

“Your dad?”

“Forget it.”

“Are your folks still living in East Texas?”

“Yeah.”

“Do they know where you are?”

“No.” He frowned at Dan. “You gonna tell ’em?”

“Not if you don’t want me to. Won’t they be looking for you?”

Rafe laughed, but he didn’t sound amused. “Not hardly.” Rafe looked past Dan and saw her watching them. He looked away. Dan turned around and saw her.

“Quit being so nosy and go back into the house,” he yelled.

Without a word Mandy went back inside. She went looking for her mom and found her in the front yard, working in her flower garden as usual.

“Mom, there’s a guy here wanting a job.”

Her mother sat back on her heels and looked quizzically at Mandy from beneath her wide-brimmed straw hat. “Why are you telling me, honey? Your dad handles that.”

“He’s just a kid.”

Her mother grinned. “Really? How old is he?”

“Dan’s age. They used to be in the same class until Rafe moved away or something.”

“Rafe?”

“That’s what he goes by.”

Her mom got up, dusted her knees, removed her cotton gardening gloves, straightened her hat and walked around the house. She saw the boys sitting on the back steps and joined them.

Mandy followed her, daring Dan to say anything about her presence.

“Hello. I’m Dan’s mother, Amelia Crenshaw,” she said, holding out her hand to Rafe. Mandy noticed that her mother acted as though there was nothing unusual about his appearance.

He looked at her hand uncertainly, then reluctantly took it, shook it quickly and released it. He bobbed his head without meeting her gaze. “Hi. I’m Rafe McClain.”

“Amanda tells me that you’re looking for work. Is that right?”

Dan glared at Mandy. She gave him a sunny smile in return.

Rafe cleared his throat. “Yes, ma’am.”

“After school, of course ”

“Yes’m.”

She smiled. “Why don’t you come inside and have something to drink? Dan’s father should be coming in for dinner in an hour or so. You can join us and discuss the matter with him.”

Mandy sensed Rafe’s embarrassment. He kept looking at everything but her mom. “That’s all right,” he mumbled. “I can come back later.”

“Nonsense,” her mother said gently, smiling at him. “You have to eat like the rest of us. Dan can show you around the place after you get something to drink.” She walked up the steps and across the porch as though there was no doubt in her mind the boys would follow her into the house.

“Snitch,” Dan muttered, walking past Mandy and pulling her hair.

“What’s so secret about wanting a job?” she asked him, swatting at his hand.

Rafe glanced at her and smiled. “Nothing. There’s nothing wrong.” She smiled back, liking the boy with the black, sad eyes.

Later, over the noon meal, her dad asked Rafe a bunch of questions about what he was trained to do, but nothing about why he needed a job and a place to stay. Mandy had a hunch Dan had already filled him in on that part when she wasn’t around.

And so it was that Rafe McClain made his home on the ranch on that day in late August. There was a small cabin—really only a large room with a bathroom added off the side—that was just over a rise from the house and barns. A small creek ran nearby and the place was shaded with large—and obviously old—live oak trees.

Her dad had suggested that Rafe move in there.

Nobody talked about the fact that he didn’t have any belongings. He just showed up at mealtimes wearing some of Dan’s old shirts and jeans. Her dad insisted on paying him in addition to his room and board—and gradually Rafe acquired a pair of shoes that weren’t falling apart and had his hair cut. He worked from dawn until time for school, then from after school to dark or later.

Sometime during the following four years, Mandy developed a crush on Rafe. She could still remember the pangs of adolescent angst where he was concerned. He, on the other hand, hadn’t known she existed as anything but Dan’s pesky little sister.

Too bad she hadn’t left things that way. Life would have been so much better for both of them if she had.

The sounds of voices and the routine of activity around a working ranch roused Rafe the next morning. He opened his eyes and lay there, remembering why he was back in Texas. He sat up and groaned, feeling the stiffness in all his joints.

He forced himself out of bed and stalked over to the dresser in search of some briefs. When he pulled the drawers open, he let out a silent whistle. These were not discount store items. He picked up a pair of silk boxer shorts and smiled. The kid certainly believed in his comfort. He’d have to give Dan a rough time the next time he saw him.

If he saw him.

Damn. He hated the not knowing. He opened the closet door and stepped inside a spacious walk-in area. Racks of suits, dress shirts and shiny shoes were on one side. Jeans, Western-cut shirts and boots were on the other.

Interesting. It looked to Rafe like a town and country wardrobe to fit any occasion.

He tried to remember the last time he’d talked to Dan, or heard from him before this letter that had finally caught up with him. He’d gotten a short letter a couple of years ago mentioning an engagement and that he expected Rafe to show up and be his best man.

Before Rafe had found the time to respond—and he’d put it off, admittedly, because he didn’t know how to remind his old friend that he wouldn’t be welcome around the Crenshaw family—Dan had written an equally terse letter saying the engagement was off.

What Dan hadn’t told him now spoke volumes. What did he do that called for suits, dress shirts and a wide assortment of expensive ties?

Rafe pulled one of the work shirts off a hanger and put it on. The fit was fine. He didn’t have as much luck with the jeans. It seemed as though Dan had put on a little weight around the middle since high school. Rafe rooted around until he found an old pair of jeans that would fit him.

They were worn white at the knees and the seat of the pants. Hell, for all he knew they may well be Jeans from high school.

He grabbed a pair of socks before putting on his own boots. Then he went in search of some coffee with which to start his day.

There was no sign of Mandy but she’d left evidence of her passing. A pan of biscuits sat next to a plate filled with crisply fried bacon. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d eaten. His stomach growled at the thought. He poured himself a cup of coffee and stuck a piece of bacon between two halves of a biscuit. By the time he’d finished his coffee, he’d made a large dent in the biscuit and bacon supply.

He peered outside, but there was no sign of Mandy. One of the first things he needed to do was to get his clothes out of the brush where he’d hidden them. After that, he’d talk to someone about getting his car back to the rental place. He walked to the back door and eased it open. In addition, he wanted to hunt up the foreman and get his view on what might have taken place here the night Dan disappeared.

He stepped off the end of the porch and started toward the gate. He was almost there when a slight noise at his back caused him to glance around, but he was too late. He felt a blinding pain directly behind his ear.

His last memory was a vision of the limestone walk rapidly coming up to meet him.

Three

Rafe knew that he was getting too old for this business if someone could take him out in a friend’s backyard in the middle of the morning. He sat in the kitchen holding a cold compress to the back of his head while Mandy apologized to him and explained to the foreman that he wasn’t an interloper and shouldn’t have been ambushed.

From what Rafe could gather as he sat nursing his goose egg and bruised ego, Tom Parker wasn’t any too pleased with Mandy’s explanations. He appeared to be upset that all of his carefully planned security measures hadn’t prevented Rafe from reaching the ranch house undetected last night.

At the moment, Rafe was having some difficulty working up much sympathy for the man.

“I’d intended to introduce Rafe to you this morning, Tom,” Mandy said in a conciliatory tone that wasn’t improving Rafe’s mood of the moment. Hell, she didn’t need to apologize for him. “I wasn’t aware he was awake or I would have invited you to the house for coffee so the two of you could get acquainted.”

“So introduce us,” the man replied in a gruff voice.

Mandy rolled her eyes. “Rafe McClain, this is Dan’s foreman, Tom Parker. He’s worked for Dan for several years.” To Tom she added, “Rafe is a family friend.”

Rafe wasn’t in the mood to be polite, damn it. Getting his head bashed in wasn’t on the top of his list of ways to start the day. Hell, Ranger had been better protection for Mandy than all the armed guards. Where was this character last night when Ranger had carried on so loudly?

Rafe leaned back in his chair and looked over the man who was propped against the cabinets with his arms folded, glaring at him from across the room. He wasn’t particularly impressed with the man or his glare, although he might have been more tolerant of the man’s attitude if this was the first time they’d had occasion to meet.

“A little quick to take a person out, aren’t you?” Rafe drawled, holding Parker’s gaze with a steady look.

“You’re a stranger on the property. As far as I’m concerned, you have no business being here. I have zero tolerance these days.”

Rafe carefully touched the knot behind his ear. “Yeah. I noticed.”

“Hope you’re not waiting for an apology,” Parker growled. “With Dan missing, I’m not willing to take any chances where Mandy’s safety is concerned.”

Mandy interrupted. “Tom, I’ve already explained that...”

Parker ran his hand through his hair in a frustrated gesture. “Hell, I know what you said, Mandy. Has it occurred to you that if this guy—”

“Rafe—” Rafe reminded him softly.

“—If Rafe could get on the property without any of us seeing him, so could anyone else. Until we locate Dan, we don’t know what the hell is going on. For all we know, this guy could have something to do with Dan’s disappearance.”

Rafe chuckled, then groaned, holding his head very carefully, afraid it might tumble off his shoulders at any moment. “I’m not up to laughing at your absurd accusations just yet, so try to hold back on the humor for a little while, okay?”

He was amused to see that this Tom character was actually grinding his teeth. I bet his dentist was going to love him for that.

Parker straightened. “I’ve got to get to work. I need to—”

“—show me around the place?” Rafe inserted. “Thanks, I’d appreciate it. Now that I’m here, I can relieve you of some of the burden of figuring out what’s going on.”

A rush of emotions seemed to sweep across Parker’s face—disbelief, anger, with more than a hint of bewilderment. “Just who in the hell do you think you are?” he finally managed to get out through clenched teeth.

Rafe continued to lean back in his chair. He smiled, feeling better by the minute. “The man who’s going to find out what happened to Dan.”

“I see. You think you can do any better than I have, or Mandy, or the sheriffs department?”

Rafe shrugged. “Won’t know ’til I try.”

Mandy spoke up. “Look, Rafe, you don’t have to stay. Just because Dan contacted you doesn’t mean that you have to—”

“Dan contacted him! When?” Parker turned and looked at Rafe. “How come I’ve never heard of you, if you’re such good friends with the family?”

Rafe scratched his chin thoughtfully. “Tell you what, Parker,” he finally drawled. “The minute I finish my autobiography, I’ll make damned sure you get the first copy off the press. Until then, I don’t owe you any explanations about anything, you understand me? I’m here now. I aim to stay until I get ready to leave, and not one minute sooner.” He studied the other man thoughtfully before adding, “Unless you’re already seeing yourself as the boss around here now that Dan isn’t around.”

Parker straightened and took a step toward him before Mandy stepped in front of him. She placed her hands on Parker’s chest. “Look, Tom, I know Rafe very well. You aren’t going to win this argument. I’ll talk to him...try to get him to calm down—”

“Calm down?” Rafe repeated. “Hell, Mandy, if I was any more calm at the moment, I’d be comatose.”

She ignored him. “Why don’t you give us a few minutes,” she said to Parker. “Rafe and I will be out later. I want to show him the airfield and other things that weren’t here the last time he was here. I’d like you to go with us.”

Rafe idly noted that Parker contented himself by giving Rafe a hard look. Rafe assumed it was supposed to make him tremble in his boots. Parker nodded to Mandy and left the kitchen, allowing the door to slam behind him.

“His mother must not have taught him much manners, slamming the door that way,” Rafe commented. He got up and went over to the coffeepot and carefully poured himself another cup. His head hurt something fierce, but he’d be hanged before he’d admit his pain to Mandy.

Part of the macho creed, he supposed, amused at himself.

“Oh, you’re a great one to be spouting off about manners. You practically accused him of doing away with Dan so he could run the ranch!” Mandy turned away and quickly scrambled some eggs and placed them on a plate along with what was left of the bacon and biscuits. She set the plate hard enough down at the table where he’d been sitting that Rafe feared for the safety of the china plate.

“Eat,” she said tersely.

“What about you?”

“I’ve managed to look after myself just fine for all these years without your help, McClain. I don’t need you or any other man looking after me, have you got that straight?”

“Look, Mandy, I’m not sure why you’re upset, but I—” But he what? Was he sorry for anything he’d said or done? Not only no, but hell no. So what did he say to her? “I don’t want to see you upset,” he finally muttered.

“Then sit down and eat your breakfast,” was her only reply.

He sat down and ate his breakfast, which he found a little tough to do since he’d already helped himself to a large portion earlier. But he figured it wouldn’t hurt to pacify her at the moment. She seemed to be just a mite touchy. Maybe he should have taken into consideration all she’d been through these past few days before he let loose at the foreman.

“You had no reason to accuse Tom of trying to take over the ranch,” she finally said from across the room, where she busied herself loading the dishwasher. He tried not to wince when breakables collided.

“Didn’t I? Well, that’s good to hear.”

“He and Dan are very close.”

“So?”

“If you think that he might have had anything to do with Dan’s disappearance—”

“Whoa! Now wait a minute, Mandy. That’s quite a leap you’ve made between the two subjects.”

“Is it? I don’t think so. You’re implying that Tom has something to gain if we can’t find Dan.”

“Am I? Funny, but I don’t see it that way. In the first place, I don’t know enough about what has happened to start coming up with conclusions about anything.”

“Then what were you implying by your out-of-line comment?”

He grinned. “I figure he was making damned sure that I understood he’d already staked his claim where you’re concerned and he didn’t like the idea I might be trespassing on that claim.”

“Me?!”

“Aw, come on, Mandy. You’re not that naive. The man is obviously playing the protector role where you’re concerned. Not that I blame him. In his place I’d be doing the same thing. After all, if Dan hadn’t been worried abou something several weeks ago, he never would have sent me that letter. The fact that he has now disappeared and no one seems to know why or where, or even—God forbid!—it he’s even alive tells me we’ve got something serious on our hands. If something has happened to Dan, that leaves you in a very vulnerable position.”

She stopped what she was doing and looked at him. “In what way?”

“You’re a very attractive woman, Mandy, as well as being the only family member left to inherit the ranch if something has happened to Dan. Don’t pretend not to see wha a sweet setup that would be for some unscrupulous male.’

“Ah. I see. You think Tom hopes to acquire me and this ranch in one neat package. How gracious of you to believe that a man would want more than just me in a relationship Not only that, you’ve already managed to figure out tha Tom is just unscrupulous enough to make a play for me based on those terms.” She crossed her arms and glared a him from across the room. “What sort of stuff are you smoking these days, Rafe? I swear, you must be downrigh delusional!”