| Subject: Big Blue Sky Part Twelve |
Author:
Karen
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Date Posted: 12:28:56 03/18/07 Sun
In reply to:
Karen
's message, "Big Blue Sky" on 20:35:06 04/21/06 Fri
Thank you to everyone who has stuck with me on this story. I appreciate all your comments and I’m glad you’re enjoying my little flight of fancy. I truly hope to post another chapter in a week but don’t hold me to seven days. Things could get crazy. Thanks again for all your support.
Big Blue Sky
Chapter Twelve
Sunday
Early Afternoon
Brookes Ranch
Harm stood in the same place he’d occupied Friday night, at the window by the huge old stone fireplace. It had been the mainstay of the original ranch house serving as both a place to cook and a source of heat. Over the ensuing years, the rest of the structure had been rebuilt and added to several times, but the river rock fireplace remained.
It was now the central feature of the main room. Flanked by two tall windows that looked over the pasture it gave the room a sense of enduring comfort. Guests and family alike often migrated to this room for conversation, or just to sit quietly and look across the valley.
All the people who had stopped by after church to pay their respects to Beth had finally departed. Yesterday she had been too distraught and exhausted to receive more than her closest friends. However, Harm and Mac had prepared a small finger food buffet with the help of those same friends. Today, after church, they watched in amazement, as nearly everyone in the county had filed through their living room to offer words of comfort.
Gazing absently over the ranchland, he sipped his coffee slowly, then stiffened at a dust cloud that rose on the wide path between the pastures. Someone was coming in, and very fast. He watched another few minutes as the running horse and rider skidded into the yard and reined to a halt. The dust swirled around them as Harm moved for the door. It was Aron, and Harm doubted the news was good.
Aron and Billy had left late yesterday afternoon, after the funeral. Packing food and sleeping bags, they were prepared to stay in the hills until Monday.
As Billy had stated, “I don’t mean any disrespect, Captain, but the living have to go on now and I have a bad feeling about those thieves. Aron and I will go on up, keep an eye on the herd, and start hunting strays. You take care of gathering up the hands and the temporary help I hired, then meet us up there early Monday. If anything happens in the mean time one of us will come back and get you.”
“How will I find you?” Harm had questioned. The ranch was vast and he’d only seen a fraction of it.
“Don’t worry, all the boys know the way,” Billy tossed over his shoulder as he boarded the old ranch truck with a two horse trailer attached and drove off.
It would take two days to drive the cattle back down from the high pasture, and into their winter area in the valley near the house. If they started early Monday, with the cattle already rounded up, they could have them secured by Tuesday evening. The weather had started turning cold and it could get miserable out there, but Billy and Aron had done this before and reassured everyone they’d be fine.
Those cattle wouldn’t last in the now sparse higher meadows, especially once the snow came. According to Billy, he figured they’d have to start feeding late next week if the weather prediction turned out to be correct. There were half a dozen large structures scattered throughout the pastures stocked with winter feed. They would spend hours every day moving it to the cattle. The work would go on until the snow melted and the grass grew again in the spring.
Aron hit the wooden front porch with a clatter. By that time, Harm had the door open. He knew the rest of the family was forming behind him, but it was useless to try to hide this. He knew what had happened.
“Captain,” Aron gasped, “they’re here…the thieves…they’re up there. We saddled up and started lookin’ for strays, then a couple hours in we saw them. They brought in a cattle truck. Cut us off from the pickup. They’re planning on takin’ as many as they can.” His chest heaved after forcing this out in one breath.
“Where’s Billy?” Harm asked.
“He’s still up there. Said he’d watch them, but I’m plenty worried, Captain.”
“Damn,” Harm swore. “Did they see your truck?”
“Huh?”
“The truck…did they spot it?” Harm insisted urgently, trying to asses Billy’s danger.
“Uh, no. I mean…don’t think so, we parked kinda behind a hill for shelter…case it got cold tonight. They’re a mean looking bunch,” Aron rambled in obvious distress. “I know a couple of ‘em. Drift through here from time to time looking for work. Good for nuthin’…”
“How do we get there?” Harm interrupted.
“What?”
“How do we get there? We need to go help Billy. If they find him, they’ll kill him.”
“Oh God,” Aron looked devastated. “He told me to come for you, I never thought...”
“Never mind,” Harm reassured abruptly, “You did right. Now we have to go to him. Tell me how to get there.”
“I…I can take you,” the man stammered.
“No, you need to wait for the sheriff. See how many of our men you can round up and send them after me. Mac!?” He turned, “Now where’d she go?”
Shaun shrugged, “She headed for the back room.” He indicated the room behind the kitchen where Harm had found her cleaning weapons on Friday.
Harm gave an exasperated huff and ran his hand through his hair. He knew what she had in mind. After telling her what the sheriff said Friday night, he knew there was no way in hell she wouldn’t be right there beside him if something happened.
“Beth, please call the Sheriff.” Harm turned back, but the older woman was already speaking into the phone.
“Aron, is there anyone else on the ranch who can take me up there?” He knew the regular hands took Sunday afternoon off once the chores were done. Few were likely to be immediately available.
“I can take you, Harm,” Shaun volunteered.
“No!” Beth’s sharp voice cut across the room. “The Sheriff is already on his way. Said he’d heard they were on the move. Wonder what that means.”
Harm ignored the implied question. “Your grandmother’s right, Shaun. You’ll soon be a grown man and the ranch will be your responsibility, but you aren’t trained for this sort of thing.”
“Are you?” the young man challenged stubbornly. “You were a pilot just like my dad,” he reminded Harm of his father’s fate.
“Yes, I was, but I also did other things.” This was not the time for a lesson on Harm’s checkered military career.
“We both did,” came Mac’s voice from behind. “For now, Beth is right. You need to stay here, and you all need to stay together.”
“You’re going to get yourself killed, too,” Beth spat harshly.
“No, we’re not.” Mac looked at the woman squarely, trying to impart her strength and determination for what would hopefully be the last test the family would need to face.
“Look, Aron, I need you to stay here with the family. Tell the Sheriff where we are as soon as he gets here, okay?” Aron nodded absently, still mulling in his mind Billy’s possible fate alone in those hills. “Aron,” Harm called the man’s attention back. “Billy will be okay. You with me?” He waited for an affirmative nod. “All right listen, is there an overhead map of the ranch anywhere? So I can get my bearings.”
“Yeah,” Aron answered distractedly. “Out in the hangar. Charlie had one posted on the wall. He would fly a different part of the ranch couple times a week to watch the herds.”
“How far is the hangar? I need that map. Mac, go ahead and load that stuff in the Lexus,” he instructed, indicating the rifles and two packs she carried. He accepted the fact she would go ‘come hell or high water’ and decided in an instant to treat this like any other mission. Someone had to be in charge, so it fell to Harm.
“Lexus won’t make it up there, even if it would they’d spot you,” Aron mentioned distantly, unaware of the car’s off-road abilities. “Why don’t you take the little plane?”
“Little plane, what little plane?” Harm was puzzled. “There’s another plane?”
“It’s Shaun’s plane. The old one Charlie was usin’ to teach him to fly.” Aron waved towards the stubborn, closed, face of the youth standing beside his Grandmother. His expression exactly matched her own. “Charlie said you could land the thing nearly anywhere,” Aron continued, oblivious to their reaction.
“What kind of plane? Is it ready to fly?” Harm asked harshly. He understood their fear but there was no time for it now.
Shaun didn’t reply.
“Is it, Shaun?” Harm insisted.
“That plane’s not near as fast as Dad’s, you’ll get shot down too,” the teenager bluffed.
“No, I won’t. Not with your help. I just need to fly over high, just once to look at the situation. I’m a good pilot, Shaun,” he tried reassurance.
“So was my Dad,” Shaun insisted.
“Yes, he was, but it had been a long time since he’d flown a combat mission. I flew my last one a month ago. My skills are fresh, and I’m expecting trouble, your father wasn’t.”
It was a hard truth and there was little time to sugar coat it, but Charlie had just underestimated what he was facing when he’d tried to buzz the herd to scatter them. He’d never expected the men to be armed. He probably thought he was dealing with simple thieves. This was anything but simple. From the information Harm had gleaned these people were well organized and they were prepared to take what they wanted anyway possible. There was a strong indication that they had been operating in several states.
Beth’s face was cold, but her voice was colder. A steel resolve washed over her. “Show him, Shaun,” she nudged the boy verbally. He stubbornly held his ground.
“Please, Shaun, I want these men caught and punished for what they did to you and your sister and grandmother,” Harm reasoned. “I’d rather not share what Mac and I have done during our careers to prepare us for this, but believe me, I know what I’m doing and so does she.”
A look of wonder, of fearful awe, washed over the young man’s face. He was barely able to imagine what Harm referenced. “Can she use those?” he questioned the firearms that Mac held.
Harm glanced at her and nodded seriously. “Better than I can, better than most men you’ll ever know. Maybe someday you can convince her to show you her medals.” He didn’t want to give up Mac’s privacy, but this was important to them all. He shot her a pleading look to understand his meaning, and promised himself to find a way to make it up to her.
She returned a look that dripped icicles, but turned to Shaun, “Maybe someday,” she acquiesced.
Another hard look from the boy and hesitation was gone. “This way,” he told them and headed for the car.
“Give me the keys, sir” he held out his hand to Harm. “I know the way it will be easier, and I’ll have to drive back afterwards.”
“Uh, Harm,” Mac stopped him. “I don’t think we can do this dressed for church.” She reminded him or their attire.
“Right,” he hesitated. “Shaun, put the weapons in the car, we’ll be right there,” Harm instructed. Mac handed the rifles and small packs to him, then followed Harm quickly up the stairs.
Minutes later, dressed for rough country, they joined Shaun in the SUV. Harm didn’t question the young man about whether he’d really return to the ranch house he had to show him his trust. Shaun already had the car running and he spun it up the hill towards the hay barns. Harm and Mac hadn’t made it this far and he’d wondered about the paved road that led from the house, through the trees, to the plateau where rooftops could be glimpsed over the trees.
As they pulled onto a tarmac airstrip, Harm recognized a series of four large familiar looking storage buildings. The half round corrugated metal structures screamed their military origin.
“Where did these come from?” he questioned, looking at Shaun.
The teenager couldn’t contain a smirk of pleasure at having information the older man didn’t possess. “Long time ago, during the war, that’s World War II,” he clarified, “the Army needed to use this land as a practice range to train pilots.” He waved his hand over the miles of open field obviously the hay production area of the ranch. “Afterwards, they sold it to Great-Grampa. The original owners had moved away and abandoned the property. Gramma says the Clancey’s were just here one day and gone the next, no one knew where they went. The Army tried to find them, but when they had no success, they sold the land at auction. They cleaned it up, took all the military stuff, but Grampa got to keep the buildings and airstrip. Gramma says if the original owners are ever found the Army owes them a bunch of money.”
Harm took this to be a simplified version of the real events washed of detail by the passage of time. Thinking back to his visit two years ago, he realized it must have been these buildings that Charlie had referenced. He had mentioned something about having new siding put on the old hay barns, but Harm had assumed he meant the smaller structures in the pastures below.
Turning the car, Shaun drove down the airstrip to the last building in the line. Harm decided the others must contain the bulk of hay harvest, but the last one retained its original use as a neat, simple aircraft hangar. A small plane parked in the back corner wasn’t much to look at, but if Charlie trusted it to teach Shaun to fly then Harm was certain it was airworthy.
“Is she ready to fly?” Harm asked his nephew.
“Yes, sir. I checked it out yesterday. I…I was going to ask if you’d fly with me next week,” he admitted.
“Any time,” Harm smiled. “I’d be proud to take up where your father…where your lessons stopped,” he stumbled. Clearing his throat he looked around, “Where’s the map?”
“Over there,” Shaun pointed to the wall. A detailed map of the ranch was tacked up. Every pasture was marked, with the closest viable landing spot noted with prevailing winds, altitude, and a safe ground path. “We could only use the markings on this map to patrol with the old plane,” he explained. “The new one used more area to take off and land and needed a smooth runway. When we had to get to one of the pastures fast we always used that one,” he gestured toward the older aircraft.
“The cattle are here in this area,” he continued, pointing to an obliquely shaped bowl, then to what looked like a winding snake. “This is the dirt road in, and this,” he indicated a darker strip, “is the highway you used when you drove up here. It continues on north then northwest. By using it and county roads, we can access most of our pastures, but it takes time. If you fly up and just skim these hills,” he indicated a ridge, “then cross into this little valley just there between those two peaks, you can set her down in the meadow just below the meadow with the cattle and they won’t see you coming. If you set down from the east they won’t hear you, you’ll be downwind. It’s a bit of a hike up the hill on the other side, but you should be able to make it all in about half an hour.”
“I need to fly over and see where they are. Mac and I aren’t familiar with the land up there,” Harm told him.
Shaun nodded, still unhappy that Harm planned to fly over the thieves. “The landing area is kinda short, but I’ve landed there,” he replied.
“I’ve landed on aircraft carriers, Shaun, I think I’ll be okay,” Harm reminded the boy with mild amusement.
“Yes, sir, but meadows don’t have tail-hooks.” He looked at Harm candidly, just catching Mac’s smile before she veiled it.
“Then tell me everything I need to know,” Harm glanced at Mac and caught her fleeting expression. He’d probably deserved that look, but he also wanted to establish they were on the same page for this operation. Her once again serious expression concentrated on sketching the area indicated. Satisfied he turned back to the map.
“They’re probably about here. A big rig like Aron said wouldn’t get much farther in. Billy and Aron parked behind this hill, probably about right here. There’s a small path, wide enough for a pickup, that leaves the main road and goes around here,” he indicated with a finger. “I’d guess they’re bringing the cattle down to the truck a few at a time. They probably figured we’d be tied up all day with friends. Doubt they thought anyone would show up before tomorrow morning.”
“Thing is, once they’re loaded they have to back that rig down to here before the area is wide enough or flat enough to turn it,” he pointed to another spot. “The lower part of the pasture where the cattle are is pretty rocky. The rocks are too big to run that size truck over and make a U-turn. The whole area is shaped like a bowl with a high side on the east. It fills with snow pretty fast when we have a storm and the cattle would be buried, that’s why we need to get them down this week. We have snow coming on Thursday,” Shaun repeated Billy’s warning.
“They probably think they have all day and most of the night. It would have taken Aron close to two hours to ride down, and knowing Billy, they’d probably been hunting strays since daybreak. Billy must be somewhere around here,” he tapped the map, “if he’s cut off from the truck. We just have to hope he stays put. They won’t be done loading that size truck till just before night fall, but they won’t need to go up where he is. The amount of steers they can fit in that truck, they can get from the cattle that’s close in. They’ll hurt us if they get away, but they can’t take the entire herd. Once they’re done, they’ll probably back the truck down using lanterns and men on foot to guide them, then be long gone by daybreak.” He shrugged then, “At least that’s the way I’d do it.”
“You’ve given this a lot of though.” Harm looked at the boy, keenly aware he wasn’t dealing with a child, but a young man on the very verge of adulthood.
“They killed my Mom and Dad. If we figure out what there going to do it will be easier to stop them. This was the only thing I could see that made sense. They get the most cattle this way and get out before we know they’ve been there. They didn’t count on Billy and Aron being up there though. God, I hope Billy’s okay,” Shaun’s voice almost broke but he took a deep breath.
Harm patted his shoulder in male consolation. “He’ll be okay, Billy’s smart. We’ll all be fine, but were going to stop them this time. Take this back to the house.” Harm carefully removed the map the wall. “When the Sheriff shows up tell him what you told me. If Aron has any more to add let him tell it.”
Shaun nodded. “Let me show you the plane.” He squared his shoulders. “You ever flown one of these?” he asked.
“Not exactly,” Harm answered. “It’s similar to the trainer we used in flight school. This one have any quirks I should know about?”
“Yeah, a few,” Shaun smiled. He turned to the small plane, glad to take at least some part in helping to catch the bastards who’d killed his folks. Gramma Beth would hate it if she knew he even thought the word. She’d hate the other thoughts he had about them too, but he wondered how many of the same thoughts she might be harboring herself. Even at sixteen, he doubted that anyone on the ranch was far off the same page.
End of twelve
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