The Rancher's Daughter

Table of Contents

Chapter One
             
3

Chapter Two
             
6

Chapter Three
             
9

Chapter Four
             
13

Chapter Five
             
17

Chapter Six
             
21

Chapter Seven
             
23

Chapter Eight
             
26

Chapter Nine
             
29

Chapter Ten
             
34

Chapter Eleven
             
37

Chapter Twelve
             
40

Chapter Thirteen
             
43

Chapter Fourteen
             
48

Chapter Fifteen
             
50

Chapter Sixteen
             
53

Epilogu
e
             
55

Josey Chisholm tasted the dust in her mouth as it swirled around her and her mount.  Legend shook and nearly shook her off.  If she
had not
been such an experienced
rider,
she might have fallen.  She scanned the land that had been in her family since before the civil war. 
She knew
her ancestors had fought for the South to save their home and she now had to fight her own battle to save it.  She
would not
and
could not
let it go.  The bank would divide this land up into subdivisions and that would ruin this small town she loved so much, full of all its good people.  Not to mention it would take away the jobs that had become a way of life for the people on the ranch.  Some had been here since she was small others like Old Sam Jenkins the ranch foreman had been on this ranch since her dad was young.  They were best friends and two of a kind.  Sam and her Dad, she only wished Heath was still here.  He would know what to do how to save the ranch. 
Hilary was doing everything she could with the horses but since horses were literally, being gave away these days it was useless.

Josey watched a cow and her calf wander over to a shaded area and lay down.  The grass was dry and brittle. It hadn’t rained enough the past few months to do anybody any good.  They were on constant alert for fires.  All it took was one little flick of a cigarette and the whole place would go up in flames.  It was crazy to her how dry it was here when there was
major flooding up north.  A
s it was they
were not
getting the rain here, at least not the amount they needed to get the grass growing and to have the fire ban lifted. 

It seemed like she saw a fire truck
every time
she went to town.  Times were getting tough.  She wasn’t able to pay her own wages because she had to pay the hands.  She couldn’t do without them.  They were essential to the ranch. 

She had to think
of something
.  There had to be a way to save this ranch. 
She’d thought about going back to rodeo but she hated being on the road. 
She never went to college so getting a job off the ranch probably wouldn’t do her any good. 
She was sure the only jobs hiring required a college education or the pay wasn’t worth the drive off the ranch
,
once she figured in gas. 
She’d been raised to be a rancher and one day she hoped she would be a loving wife and mother.  It was important to her to be a mom who stayed home with her kids and raised her children
,
not putting it off on someone else to do it.  Because her own mother had been so bad, never caring for her a
lways putting a career
and later drugs ahead of her daughter. She idolized Hilary for being the mother she should have always
had.  Hilary was everything a
mom should be.  In addition,
she worked along beside her husband on the ranch.  She was the hardest working, woman that Josey had ever met. 

Josey cued Legend to turn around using her legs and barely lifting the reins.  The horse was an old pro
.  H
e turned
with just the squeeze of her leg
.  She walked him back to the barn.  She was about an hour out at the slow pace they were taking
,
but she had come out here to think.  She was trying to figure something out.  Her dad had received a letter from the bank about the payments being late, and the look on his face worried her.  He was unable to get around the way he used to and she had taken over half the ranch, to help him out.  He was nearly
crippled
now after the accident.  He could not lift anything anymore and that made him furious.  Sometimes standing for too long would make his back and legs ache.  It bothered him not to be able to do things.  He hated putting chores off on others but he was just not able to do them anymore.  Josey watched day after day as her dad became older than his years.  He was gray headed with a touch of black and the wrinkles from worry were beginning to set in.  This bothered her more than
anything did
.

The hour ride back to the barn hadn’t seemed so long because her mind was full of questions without answers and thoughts that worried her.  She sighed as she rode to the hitching post in front of the barn and unsaddled. 
Legend sucked in and blew out air in relief then shook once again. 
She took care of cooling him off and brushing him before turning him out.  Hilary was working a new horse in the arena.  The horse had been given to them half starved to death and it was looking better now.  It was also green so Hilary was retraining.  The horse shied when Legend ran past the arena to find some hay to nibble.  Hilary reined the little horse to a halt.  Josey watched a minute longer then walked to the house.  It was nearly time to fix lunch and she had a large bunch to cook for, since Cook retired. 

Josey was in the kitchen filling a pot with water when Hilary came in the kitchen door.  She removed her hat and rolled up her sleeves before washing her hands. Josey left the water running for her and turned to the stove.  Hilary joined in the cooking.  They sat at the kitchen table cutting
potatoes
to go in the stew.  They were quiet for a while when Hilary surprised Josey with her question.  “Have you thought about Heath lately?” Josey dropped the potato she held in her hand and fumbled to grab it off the
tabletop
before it could roll to the floor.  “What?” she asked.  Josey gave her a look that said I know you better than you think.  How had Hilary known that she was thinking about Heath?  Was it coincidence or was there a big sign plastered on her forehead that said she, the fool that she was, was thinking about Heath Jenkins after she broke his heart and run him out of town. The day he left had been the worst day of her life.  She loved him.  She had never stopped loving him.  She would never tell her parents the reason she broke it off with him.  They would never know that she had been pregnant with his child and miscarried.  She was ashamed.  She was so ashamed that she screamed at him for her loss and blamed him for everything.  She told him she hated him and never wanted to see him again.  The next day, Heath was gone. 

She heard through old Sam that he had rodeo’d a bit and then settled down at some ranch in West Texas.  For all she knew he was married and had kids.  The thought of that made her cringe.  She would be jealous of any woman he married.  “I thought about him some. Why?”

Hilary stared across the table at her.  “I can read you like a
book;
I know the look you get on your face every single time his name comes up and the look that’s plastered there for days afterwards.  I can see the regret all over it.  The longing and the sadness is all right there on your face.”  I notice when you cock your head toward Sam when he’s talking about him.  You strain to listen in on the conversation while trying to look uninterested. Oh, the others don’t notice but I do.  I will never know what happened between you too unless you tell me and you know I won’t ask because it’s none of my business.”

She started to peel the potato again but continued to talk.  “I only mentioned it because of Sam.  He’s been talking about Heath coming home.  He said he’s been at him about it for some time and he refuses but Old Sam is not looking too well these days and I want you to be prepared if and when Heath does show up.” Josey lowered her eyes.  She felt guilty for never telling this woman the truth about what happened between her and Heath.  She wondered if Heath had ever told Sam.

  “Hil, I need to tell you something and I don’t want you to get upset.  That day Heath and I argued, the day before he left, well we were both upset and we were grieving. I … I had a … I had a miscarriage.  I blamed him for everything, but it wasn’t his fault. I broke his heart.  I broke both our hearts.” Josey’s sobs came out loud and broken. She hadn’t dwelled on the loss of her baby in years. Hilary got up, came to her side and pulled her in her arms.  “Oh sweetheart, I didn’t know. Oh baby, I’m so sorry.”  

Josey sobbed into Hilary’s arms.  She should have known she could tell this woman.  This woman, who had been the only real mother she had ever had, the woman she had more respect for than any other woman she knew, was always there for her.  She could have told her anything and Hilary would have understood.  She leaned back and wiped the tears from her eyes.  “I’m
sorry;
I made a huge mess of your shirt.” She said.  Hilary smiled.  “
Oh honey, t
his old shirt already had horse
hair
and dust caked on it.  A few tears
wo
n’t
hurt
it a bit.  She kissed the top of Josey’s head and returned to her chair and they picked up their potatoes and peeled in silence.

             
Sam Jenkins picked up the phone on his desk and dialed the long distance number to the Texas ranch where his son now worked. “Rocking K
Ranch,
” the voice on the other end of the line answered. 
“Heath,
Is that you boy?  This is Dad I need to talk to ya son.”  Sam coughed into the phone. 
He wasn’t really, that sick and he didn’t need to cough but he thought it might help his plea.  Therefore, he put his acting into play and went to work on getting his son to come home. 
“Yeah Dad, it’s me you alright? You don’t sound good.  What’s wrong?”  Sam grimaced he hated lying to his boy but he had to do something.  “Heath I’m not so good, lately.  I feel downright awful.  I got this cough I can’t seem to get rid of.  This drought ain’t helping none either.  The dust just settles in your lungs.”  He coughed again. This time he even
wheezed
a little.  “I just don’t know where I’m
going to
go when this ranch is gone.  I tell ya boy, this drought, combined with the drop in the price of horses, has all but taken everything this old ranch has.  I always thought I would die on this ranch.  Well I just might if I don’t get rid of this cough.”  He coughed again.