Hunter's Moon (Hunter Family Saga; Half-Moon Ranch 1) (7 page)

So Brent had come to meet him alone. He
would take care of this, just as he had taken care of
most everything else since their father had been
locked up.

Brent had worked night and day for the past ten
years to get the Half-Moon free and clear of debt,
and he'd done it-his way, by saving every cent he
could, by breeding and training the best horses in
three counties. Quince had helped for a long time,
and, to Brent's surprise, so had Matt, in his own
way, whenever he'd shown up. But Brent was the
one who had worked from sunup to sundown, day
after day. He had always believed that hard work and
smart dealing were the way to make the Half-Moon
financially stable. And he'd proven himself right. He
was proud of what he'd accomplished, but he
wouldn't be satisfied until the ranch turned a regular
profit.

The horses stirred behind him, and Brent went to
tend to them, wondering how much longer it would
be until his father came out. He had ridden his own
black stallion, Storm, and had brought along a
mount from the ranch. Brent had a little cash on
him, too, and he was almost hoping his father would take the horse and the money and just
disappear-go away. He doubted he would miss
him, and he didn't think Abby and his brothers
would either.

Brent heard the door to the warden's office open,
and he looked up. He tensed, waiting, dreading the
reunion to come.

For the first time in ten years, Jack Hunter stepped
outside into the sunshine as a free man. There was
no joy in his heart over being released, though.
There was no happiness in his soul. The long years
he'd spent toiling in the prison had taken their toll.
He was a tired man, a broken man, and he knew
what he was about to face.

Brent stared at the man walking toward him. It
had been so long since he'd last seen him that he
seemed almost a stranger now. He remembered his
father as a tall, powerful, vital man. The man
coming toward him looked old and bent. His dark
hair had gone gray, and his shoulders were stooped.

Brent hadn't spoken to him since that day at the
Diablo jail, when Jack Hunter had ordered his
children to leave him alone and to stay away from
him. Considering what he'd done, they hadn't found
it too hard to put him from their lives. There had
been only a few times over the years when he'd been
missed, and then the memory of what he'd done
would return and the gentler sentiment would
vanish.

But now their father was a free man.

Jack Hunter recognized Brent immediately,
though his oldest son had changed quite a bit in the
time they'd been apart. When he'd last seen him,
Brent had been only twenty years old. He was a fullgrown man now-tall, confident, and serious, Jack
judged from the look on his face.

Jack hadn't been certain how things were going
to go upon his release today. He hadn't known if
anyone would come to meet him or if he would be
left on his own to get back home. He was glad
Brent had shown up, but he wondered why
Quince, Matt, and Abby hadn't come with him,
too.

"Where is everybody?" Jack demanded.

"You haven't wanted to see us for ten years. Why
should everyone come rushing at your beck and
call?" Brent countered as he met his gaze straight-on.
He saw no warmth in his father's regard, only
condemnation.

"You're here."

"That's because we've got some things to settle
between us before we go back to the ranch."

Jack's gaze hardened on him. "We don't have a
damned thing to settle."

"Yes, we do." Brent was not about to back down.
"But this isn't the place." He unhitched the horse
he'd brought for his father and held out the reins.
"Let's go."

Jack looked the stallion over and was impressed.

"Good bloodlines," he remarked as he took the
reins.

"I know," Brent said.

Jack swung up in the saddle. "Let's go home."

He didn't wait for Brent. He turned the horse and
rode off without looking back. He couldn't get away
from the prison fast enough.

Brent mounted up and followed him. He could
no longer deny reality. His father was coming home.

Brent spurred his horse and caught up with his
father. They rode on in silence, leaving Huntsville
and the prison behind them.

Edmund Montgomery sat alone in his office at the
bank in Diablo. He knew what day it was: today
was the day Jack Hunter was being released from
prison.

An ugly smile twisted Edmund's mouth. It had
been ten years since they'd locked Jack up, but in his
opinion ten years wasn't nearly long enough-not
for what Jack had done.

Rage filled Edmund.

Jack had been the cause of all the misery in his
life. True, they had once been friends long ago, in
their younger days in New Orleans, and everyone
thought they were still friends. Edmund alone knew
the truth.

Jack had always been a high roller, a wild, daring
man who was never afraid to gamble-even when he
should have been.

Edmund prided himself on being smarter than
Jack. Certainly, he'd proven it over and over again
by his ability to make money.

When he had met the beautiful Beth at a social
occasion, she had been witty and bright, and he'd
wanted her from the first. Beth had been attracted
to him, too. Edmund knew he was handsome; he
had money; he was certainly debonair and
confident.

Then Jack came back to New Orleans, and Beth
began seeing him, too.

To Edmund's fury, Beth had seemed to prefer
Jack to him. When Jack had proposed to her,
Edmund had been forced to propose, too. Edmund
had expected her to accept his proposal immediately,
but, even though her family preferred him because
he had money, Beth had eloped with Jack.

At the time Edmund had appeared indifferent to
their marriage, but inwardly he'd been furious. He'd
pretended to remain friends with them, even though
he'd always despised Jack for winning her.

Edmund had told himself Beth would eventually
realize she'd made a mistake in her impetuous
marriage. She hadn't realized that she would have
had a far better life with him. He was rich enough to
give her everything, while Jack could offer her
nothing.

When Jack won some land outside of Diablo,
Texas, in a poker game, Edmund had followed them
west. He had wanted to stay close to Beth. He had wanted to be there when she finally came to her
senses and turned to him; then he would make her
pay for his years of frustration.

Eventually he had married a wealthy widow, Iona
Sullivan, in the hope of making Beth jealous. Iona
adored him and was easily led, which made it simple
for him to control her. He had never loved her.

But Beth was dead now. And Jack was
responsible.

Edmund was glad Jack had been sent to prison.
He was glad that he had suffered all those years
behind bars, but no matter how much Jack had
suffered, it wasn't enough.

Nothing would ever bring Beth back.

Pain filled Edmund, and he got up to pace the
room. Jack would be returning to the Half-Moon
soon, and Edmund knew he was going to have to
deal with him again. He would make Jack pay for all
the pain he'd caused. He was going to make Jack's
life a living hell.

Jack deserved no less for what he had done.

Edmund frowned thoughtfully, wondering how
best to accomplish his goal without anyone
discovering what he was doing. Early on after Beth's
death, he had pressured Brent about his father's
loans. He had claimed it was strictly business, but in
truth he'd been determined to ruin Jack and his
sons.

Edmund hadn't believed Brent was smart enough
to be able to come up with the money to repay his father's debts, but the young man had surprised him.
He had proven to be nothing like his father. Brent
was intelligent, hardworking, serious, and tenacious,
and he had managed to stay current on the
payments. Brent had paid off the entire balance and
had refused to borrow any more money when
Edmund had extended the offer.

Damn Brent Hunter!

Edmund was going to have to find another way to
get to Jack Hunter. And he would; he had no doubt
about it.

Edmund went to stare out his office window. It
appeared a calm, ordinary day on the streets of
Diablo, but deep in his heart he knew there was
nothing ordinary about it.

It was almost dark when Brent and Jack finally
decided to stop and make camp for the night. Little
had been said during the day, and the tension had
worn on Brent. They were going to have to set
things straight between them before they reached the
Half-Moon, and as far as he was concerned, the
sooner they did it, the better.

"We need to talk," Brent declared as he sat down
across the campfire from his father.

"What about?" Jack returned.

"About what's going to happen once we get back
to the ranch."

"We're going to go to work-that's what's going
to happen," his father answered.

"What the hell do you think I've been doing
while you've been gone?" Brent demanded,
becoming angry. "I've done nothing but work-to
keep from losing the ranch. Did you have any idea
how deep in debt you were?"

"I had to build the bloodlines. It was the only way."

"No, it wasn't the only way, and I've proven
that."

"You've proven what?"

"I got us out of debt by learning everything I
could about horseflesh, by hard work, and by saving
every penny I could. We don't owe anybody right
now, and I intend to keep it that way."

"You intend to keep it that way?"

"That's right."

"My name is on the deed," Jack said coldly. "The
Half-Moon is my ranch."

"Because I saved it." Brent glared at his father.

"You? What about your brothers?"

"Quince and I had a fight, and he left about five
years ago."

"What did you fight about?"

"Quince didn't like the way I was running things.
I told him if he didn't like it he could leave, and he
did. Last we heard, he was out hunting renegades for
the army."

"And Matt? Did he ever show up?"

"He started mustanging and training horses for
ranches west of here. He brings us some mustangs
and the money he's earned, but otherwise we don't see much of him. He did some betting on horse
racing, but he used his own money. His gambling
never cost the Half-Moon anything. Right now he's
in England, looking to buy a thoroughbred with the
money he's won."

"So what you really mean is, he's run off again."

"I told him that's what he was doing, but it didn't
stop him from going." Brent shook his head,
thinking of his youngest brother and the wild streak
that hadn't faded with the years. He'd told Matt he
was stupid to waste his time and money going to
England, but his brother was not to be deterred.
Racehorses were an obsession with him. They were
his passion. Matt was very much like their father that
way.

"I'm sure it didn't," Jack said, sneering. "And I'll
bet that's the last you'll see of him. He won't be
back."

Brent was shocked. "Sure he will. Matt thinks he
can make us some big money with the horse he's
after."

"We'll see." Jack did not want to hear another
word about Matt. "How is Abby?"

"She's not the little girl you remember."

"No, I don't suppose she is."

"She works hard around the ranch. She can ride
and rope with the best of the men."

"So she hasn't married yet?"

"Not yet." Brent didn't remark on the trouble he
had trying to get Abby to start dressing and behaving like a female. Brent girded himself as he went on,
finally broaching the subject he'd so far avoided.
"You know, this isn't going to be easy, you coming
back to the ranch."

"I didn't think it would be."

"I'm just telling you the truth. We're never going
to be able to forget what happened that day, though
God knows we've tried over the years."

"The Half-Moon is my home. That's where I'm
going. If you don't like it, you can leave."

Brent looked him straight in the eye, his
expression stony. "That isn't going to happen. You
put me in charge ten years ago, and I intend to stay
in charge."

It had been five days of hard riding and little
conversation, but Brent and his father had finally
arrived. They were at the Half-Moon.

They were home.

Leaving the horses hitched in front of the house,
they walked up the few porch steps to the door.
Brent knew this would be his father's first time in
the house since the day of the shooting, and he
wondered how he was going to react. He waited as
his father entered the house before him, then
followed him in.

Jack stopped just inside the door and stood
looking around.

"Nothing's changed." He sounded amazed.

"Everything has changed," Brent stated flatly,
closing the door behind him.