Rainier Drive (Cedar Cove #6)(44)

“P-perhaps I sh-should’ve told you earlier. Actually, it’s been in the works for some t-time.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

He removed his hat and wiped his forearm across his brow. “Because I knew you were going to object, so I k-kept putting it off. You’re right—I should’ve said something sooner, but I’m telling you now. L-like I said, this is important to me, and I’m going with or without your approval.”

“All right,” she murmured, backing down with a sigh of resignation. Nothing she said was going to make any difference at this point.

“Good. Then we’re clear on that.” His voice was devoid of expression.

“Perhaps you could explain why this is so important to you,” she suggested.

Together, but not touching, they walked over to the fence. Leaning against it, Cal braced his boot on the bottom rung. “Mustangs are being trapped by the Bureau of Land Management and because of a t-t-technicality in the law, once they’re sold, too many of them are being slaughtered.”

He’d mentioned some of this when he’d visited on Easter Sunday. She hadn’t paid much attention to the details, though.

“Why?” she asked. “How can they do this?”

“United States law allows mustangs over the age of ten to be sold ‘without limitations,’” he explained.

“In other words,” she said, “they’re being caught and sold and whoever buys them can do what they want with these horses.”

“Th-that’s what’s happening, yes.”

“But it doesn’t necessarily mean they’re being killed,” Linnette argued.

“I wish you were right. Unfortunately that’s not the case. These beautiful beasts are being used for dog food here in the States or sold for human consumption in Europe.”

That couldn’t be true. It just couldn’t. Although she knew little about horses, she was reluctant to accept that the government would allow this kind of senseless slaughter.

Several minutes passed in silence before Cal turned to look at her. “Can you understand why this is so important to me?” he asked.

Linnette did understand. What she didn’t grasp was why Cal had to go. He was only one person and there wasn’t much he could do by himself.

She pressed a finger to Cal’s lips. Her eyes filled with tears and she couldn’t see him clearly. “How long?” she asked, speaking around the knot in her throat. “How long will you be gone?” She wanted him to hold her, reassure her, but he didn’t.

“A month, six weeks at the most.”

“What do you intend to do with the mustangs?” She wiped away her tears with the sleeve of her sweater.

“There are various agencies that adopt them out. Like I told your family at Easter, I’ll be volunteering with the BLM and working with one of the agencies. Once the horses are captured and checked for health problems, they’re available for adoption or auctioned off. I’ll buy a few for Cliff and me, and I’ll help the wild horse rescue group in whatever way they need.” A smile slowly emerged. “I’ll do everything I can to prevent even a few of them from being sold for slaughter.”

Unwilling to wait for him to make the first move, Linnette threw her arms around his neck and rested her head against his shoulder. “What about us?” she asked. She could hear a distant truck, growing louder as it approached.

Cal stroked her hair with tenderness. Although his touch was gentle, an uneasy feeling refused to leave her. Something had changed between them, and she didn’t know what. Or why.

Just then, the truck she’d heard rolled into the yard. Cal dropped his arms and stepped away from her.

“Who’s that?” she asked.

“The vet.”

Vicki Newman climbed out of the pickup and headed toward them, striding like a movie cowboy. Linnette had never met the other woman, although her name routinely came into conversations. She often stopped by the ranch for one reason or another. These horses seemed to require constant medical attention, Linnette thought, unable to curb her cynicism.

Placing his hand lightly on her shoulder, Cal made the introductions.

Vicki Newman nodded and held her gaze. She wasn’t attractive or even very feminine looking, Linnette noted critically. Her light-brown hair was long and severely tied back, which sharpened her features. She wore jeans and a faded shirt.

“Nice to finally meet you,” Vicki said.

“You, too,” Linnette told her. After an awkward moment, she realized she was in the way. Whatever business they had to conduct, she clearly wasn’t needed. “I, ah, guess I’d better get home.”

Cal walked her to her car and kissed her cheek. As she drove away, Linnette glanced back and saw Cal and Vicki with their heads together, talking. It intensified the anxiety that roiled in her stomach.

Eighteen

“Come on, Olivia,” Jack shouted over his shoulder as he jogged several paces ahead of her on Lighthouse Road. Fortunately traffic was light for a Saturday afternoon.

“Jack,” she panted, struggling to keep up. “Slow down.” She’d never thought she’d see the day that Jack Griffin could outrun her. But now that he was down thirty pounds and working out regularly, he’d become an exercise convert. His heart attack had been the motivation—and the warning—that he needed.