Hunter's Moon (Hunter Family Saga; Half-Moon Ranch 1) (9 page)

"That's right," Abby agreed with her brother.
"The Half-Moon means too much to us."

Iona stirred and glanced nervously in her
husband's direction. Her smile was shaky as she said,
"Well, let's just hope you never have to worry about
that. You've made the ranch a success now, Brent.
There's no reason why that should change."

"Let's hope not," Brent said.

"Who's here?" Jack's voice boomed out in a
commanding, harsh tone as he mounted the steps
and crossed the porch.

They all looked up as he came through the front
door.

Jack stopped as he saw Abby for the first time.
He was shocked to see that she was wearing pants,
and he was also shocked when he realized how
very much she resembled her mother. He stood
there silently as his gaze swept over her, taking in
the dark mane of her hair, her green eyes, and the
pale beauty of her complexion. She was lovely in
spite of her choice of clothing. She was a vision.
"Abby..."

"It's me, Papa." Her answer was almost a whisper,
and her expression was guarded.

Jack wanted to go to Abby and sweep her into his
arms in a desperate, loving embrace. He wanted to
hold her to his heart, but he knew by the look in her eyes that she wouldn't welcome any such
overture from him. The little girl he'd loved and left
behind was gone. In her place was a woman now-a
beautiful woman-a woman who was the very image
of her mother.

He turned to Edmund and Iona, who were sitting
together on the sofa.

"Well, Edmund, I'd say seeing you again this way
deserves a celebration drink, but Brent doesn't allow
any liquor in the house." He cast an annoyed look at
his eldest son.

Edmund stood up and went to shake his hand.
"That doesn't matter. It's just good you're home,
Jack."

"Yes, it is," he said, but even as he said it to his
old friend, he wasn't sure his children agreed.

"Welcome back, Jack," Iona offered as she
attempted unsteadily to rise.

"Hello, Iona." Jack was struck by how much she'd
changed over the past ten years. Edmund was the
same-tall, erect, with only a trace of gray in his
hair, but not Iona. It almost seemed as if she had
shrunk inside herself.

Iona's smile was wan as she went on, "It is a
shame we can't have a drink to celebrate your return.
I know I'd certainly enjoy one."

Jack was shocked by her statement. He quickly
looked away from her as a hush fell across the room,
adding to the already heavy tension in the air.

"Come on, Iona," Edmund said, giving his wife a harsh look, "we ought to head back to town. These
people need their privacy." He glanced at Jack.
"We'll be talking."

Edmund smiled patiently as he took his wife's
arm to steady her on her feet.

"Thank you for bringing me home," Abby said as
they started from the house.

"We wouldn't have it any other way," Edmund
replied, looking back at her while he kept a firm
hold on Iona.

Brent walked outside to see them off, leaving
Abby alone with their father for the first time.

"You've been well, Abby?" Jack asked cautiously
as he came to sit on the sofa near her.

She stared at him for a moment, feeling that he
was almost a stranger to her. She wanted to tell him
of all the nights she'd cried herself to sleep missing
her mother, aching for her loving embrace, but she
didn't. She kept her voice cool as she answered, "Yes,
I have, Papa."

He was struck once more by how closely she
resembled her mother. "I can see that. I worried
about you while I was..."

Abby found that very hard to believe, since he
hadn't had any contact with her in all the years he
was in prison. "There was no need to worry. The
boys took care of me."

"That's good."

Abby finally blurted out what she desperately
needed to know, "Are you planning to stay on?"

"Yes. There's nowhere else I'd rather be than here
on the ranch."

The last flicker of hope that he would leave died
within her. He was going to stay. She would have to
face him every day, knowing what he'd done.

"It's amazing," Jack said reflectively, his gaze upon
Abby.

"What is?" She was puzzled by the change in his
mood.

"How much you look like your mother. You've
grown into a very beautiful young woman, Abby."

"Thank you," Abby replied uneasily. She wasn't
sure how to take his comment. She'd never thought
of herself as beautiful. The idea made her
uncomfortable.

Jack sensed her coldness toward him and knew he
should address it straight-on. "Abby, I understand
how you must feel right now. It's not going to be
easy for any of us-my coming back here after all
that's happened."

"I don't think you have any idea how I feel, but
you're right: it's not easy," she said bluntly.

He went on, "But the Half-Moon is my home,
too. Somehow we'll find a way to make this
work."

Abby had her doubts, but she said nothing. Just
then Brent returned from seeing Edmund and Iona
off. She was glad for the interruption and excused
herself. She wanted to get away from the house and
go to work. The farther she stayed away from her father, the better; and the busier she stayed the
happier she would be.

Abby had heard the old adage that time healed all
wounds, but she wondered if that were really true.
Ten years had passed, yet the pain of losing her
mother was still with her. In her heart she knew it
always would be.

Abby realized now that she had lost her father ten
years ago, too. The man she had loved and had
thought wonderful was gone, and she wondered if he
had ever really existed. The ugliness of what he had
done had stripped her of her childhood innocence.
She had been forced from the warmth of her
mother's love into a cold, heartless world. Thanks to
her brothers, she'd survived, but her scars ran deep.

Bill was in the back hallway of the Six Gun when he
saw Opal come in.

"You're showing up awful early today," Bill
said, surprised to see her. It was only
midafternoon, and she wasn't due to perform until
that evening.

"I needed to see Belle. Is she here?"

"No, not yet. I don't think she'll be here until
closer to six tonight," he told her. Then he added, "I
wish I'd known you were going to come by."

"Why?"

"A stranger was in looking for you. He was
wanting to know what time you would be on
tonight. He said he used to know you and wanted to
see you again."

"Is the man still here?" she asked cautiously.

"No. He just left. From the way he was talking,
though, he'll be back."

"Did he say who he was?"

"No. I asked him, but he said he wanted to
surprise you."

"What did he look like?" Crystal tried to sound
casual.

"Dark-haired, about six feet tall, I guess. Dressed
nicer than most."

"Sounds like any number of men I've known,"
she said with a smile. "I'm sorry I missed him."

"He'll be here at showtime, I'm sure. See how
you draw them in, Opal? We've got men riding
into town from miles around just to see you
perform. You've put the Six Gun Saloon on the
map," Bill said as he headed back out to resume
bartending.

Crystal smiled at Bill's praise, but the moment
he had gone, her smile faded. A terrible sense of
unease gripped her. She hoped everything was just
as Bill thought-that word of how good she was
had spread and that she really was drawing
customers from far and wide. The fact that the
stranger claimed to know her, though, worried
Crystal. She had never told Bill the truth about
her past. He knew her only as Opal.

Crystal grew tense as the fear that she might have
been found haunted her.

It might be her brother-or it might be the law
coming after her.

She tried to stay calm. She did not want to give in
to her sense of panic. She still had time to get away
before that evening's show. She knew she had to
learn the identity of the man looking for her. She
could take no chances.

Leaving the saloon by the back door again,
Crystal made her way down the alley. Bill had said
the man had left only a short time before, so she
hoped she would be able to spot him on the street.
She was glad she was wearing a demure day gown
that would not draw attention to her. She wanted to
blend in with the townspeople as she searched for
him. She was glad, too, that it was a busy time of
day. There were people on the streets, so she
wouldn't be obvious as she searched faces looking for
her mysterious "admirer."

It didn't take Crystal long to find him. She was
only a block from the saloon when she saw him
walking ahead of her-a dark-haired, nicely dressed
man. Even from a distance there was no mistaking
him: it was her brother Dan.

Fear and dread and anger surged through her.
Dan had found her! And if Dan had found her, had
he brought the law with him, too?

The desire to break into a dead run seized Crystal,
but somehow she fought it down. Instead she
calmly turned away and deliberately walked in the
opposite direction. Turning at the first comer she
came to, she hurried toward the boardinghouse. She
had to pack and get out of town as quickly as she could. She had to get away. She'd managed to
escape from her brother once, and she could do it
again.

Crystal reached the boardinghouse and entered
unnoticed. She was glad no one was around, for
she didn't want anyone to know the exact time she
left.

It didn't take Crystal long to pack her things. The
only dress she didn't pack was the one she had
bought some months ago in anticipation of a night
like this one. It was a widow's black dress with a veil.
She hoped the ugly gown would provide the perfect
disguise.

Crystal quickly changed into the smothering,
high-necked, long-sleeved garment and then donned
the veil. She glanced at her reflection in the mirror
and nodded in approval to herself. Her disguise was
complete. No one would ever guess she was Miss
Opal from the saloon, and that was just the way she
wanted it.

Crystal left enough money out on the dresser to
pay for the rest of the month's rent and then slipped
away, carrying her bag with her.

It was still early afternoon as she made her way to
the stage depot. She offered up a silent prayer that
there would be a stagecoach leaving town very
shortly. She had to get away fast.

As she started into the stage office, Crystal saw the
schedule posted out front. According to the listing,
there were two stagecoaches leaving within the next several hours, and she offered up her thanks.
One was heading to San Miguel and then on to a
town called Diablo; the other stage was destined for
Houston. She knew Dan would expect her to go to
Houston, so she chose the other route.

"Is the stage to Diablo on time?" Crystal asked the
clerk behind the counter.

"Yes, ma'am. It'll be leaving in less than an hour."

"Good. I'd like a ticket to Diablo, please."

She paid him, then went to sit on the bench in
the office. She felt the clerk's gaze upon her, but
made sure to keep her face averted for fear that
even with the veil, he might somehow recognize
her.

The minutes that passed as she waited there were
some of the longest in her young life, but finally the
stagecoach was ready to depart. The clerk stowed her
bag and then took her arm to help her climb on
board.

"Have a safe trip, ma'am." He still stared at her,
thinking she seemed somehow familiar, but he
wasn't sure just why.

"Thank you," she responded, and quickly looked
away from him.

There were two other passengers, a husband and
wife, already on the stagecoach. They ignored her as
she sat down across from them. She was glad. The
less attention anyone paid to her, the better. She
wanted to make this trip unnoticed. She didn't want
anyone to remember her. She didn't doubt for a moment that Dan-or the law-would toy to
track her down again, and she wasn't going to leave
them a trail.

Crystal didn't breathe a true sigh of relief until
they had put San Antonio well behind them.

Dan Stewart smiled to himself in satisfaction as he
returned to the Six Gun Saloon.

Tonight was the night. Tonight he honestly
believed he was going to catch up with Crystal. It
hadn't been easy tracking her down, and once he
found her, he was going to make sure she never got
away from him again.

It had been a long afternoon, but this moment
was worth the wait. Dan smiled thinly to himself as
he strode up to the bar.

"Evenin', friend. I figured you'd be back," Bill
greeted him.

"I told you I would," Dan replied.

"What'll you have?"

"Give me a beer."

Bill set the drink before him.

"How much longer until Miss Opal goes on?"

"About fifteen minutes," Bill assured him.