So�This Is Montana� Ch. 26
For the better part of two hours back at the ranch house, JC, Justin, Joey and Chris had kept a quiet and tense vigil over Lance, who had shown very few signs of regaining consciousness. There had been small movements and quiet moans, but little else that would lead them to believe that Lance would be awakening anytime soon. This caused a high level of concern to continue its stranglehold on the group.
After several more moments of quiet restless, and frustrated movements by those watching over Lance, one of the four caused the silence to be broken.
�You know�if Lance doesn�t give us any signs that he�s waking up soon, I say we ignore what Dr. Reynolds thinks and take him to the clinic,� Joey said with a certain edge to his voice as he gestured toward the blonde who lay underneath a thin layer of covers.
He had been the first one to argue with the others over Dr. Reynolds� diagnosis, claiming that since he was just a veterinarian he had no business trying to decide what was best for Lance. JC, Justin and Chris had also agreed with him, but in the end, the ranch hands assured them of Dr. Reynolds� capabilities and they reluctantly decided to take the doctor�s wait and see attitude.
Dr. Reynolds had seemed fairly confident that Lance simply collapsed due to a combination of several factors. First and foremost, as far as the doctor was concerned, was Lance�s continued recovery from the concussion and broken wrist he had sustained two days ago. Add to those factors the fact that, according to Joey, Lance had not slept the previous evening, and, according to Chris, he had taken a pain pill before their ride. Then, along with the long ride to return to the site of his scary accident and Skitty�s dead body, the doctor seemed to think that Lance�s system simply suffered an overload and temporarily shut itself down. No one had really expressed any other explanation and his reasoning had sounded valid to most of them at the time, but now, the longer Lance lay unresponsive on his bed, the more their doubts and fears were beginning to poke holes into everyone�s confidence in the doctor�s theory.
�Well�I�m starting to think that way too, Joe� Chris said with a slight frown evident on his usually happy face as he stood up from the chair he had sat down in more than an hour ago and began to pace back and forth across the large bedroom. He had witnessed the entire episode in the southern pasture. Each time he replayed the situation in his mind, he felt his stomach twist into tight knots and bile would begin to slowly rise into his throat. He had already lost his battle with nausea once and he didn�t want to face that again, not when the others needed him the most.
�So�it�s about 6:45 now,� Justin said softly as he gazed at his watch then back at Lance�s still figure, continuing to hope that he would see some sort of movement or indication that his friend was waking up, but he was only met with disappointment.
�You want to give him until about 7:30 or so to come around?�
He glanced at each of the older men and saw them nodding their heads in agreement.
�Okay, Lansten,� JC said as he looked down at Lance. He had sat on the bed that held Lance and had taken up the task of wiping the younger man�s pale face with a damp cloth.
�You have about an hour to come back to us so�you better get busy.�
JC�s words provided little relief in the amount of tension floating about the room but hearing a small moan in combination with arm and leg movements and fluttering eyelids caused everyone�s low spirits to suddenly soar.
Within seconds of the added movements, all four young men sat on either side of Lance�s body, JC and Chris at his shoulders and Justin at his right hand and Joey at his left. The group began encouraging him through words and gentle touches to his face and arms. JC remained busy wiping Lance�s face with a damp cloth and was relieved to see that some color was beginning to return to the pale, twitching features and Lance began to move his head slowly back and forth as he continued to his struggle to regain consciousness.
Chris motioned for JC to stop for a moment and he turned Lance�s face toward him and gave it a few gentle pats while speaking words of encouragement to the quietly moaning and twitching figure.
�Come on, Poofu�it�s time to wake up�come on�you can do it�yeah�that�s it�come on�you�re almost there,� he said as he continued to lightly pat his friends face.
�Mmmm�ngh�C�Chr�Chris�Chris�wha�happen?� a small, deep voice said slowly as green eyes were finally revealed for a fraction of a second before painfully squinting at the harsh light that invaded their blurred sight.
�Bright�too bri�,� Lance managed to croak out before coughing lightly and his complaints brought swift movement from JC, who quickly folded the cloth in his hands then gently placed it over Lance�s tearing eyes, while Joey turned off the bedroom�s lights and Justin switched on a nearby lamp.
�I�m going to go get him a cup of water,� JC said before briefly disappearing into the bathroom while Joey quickly returned to Lance�s side. Justin, on the other hand, after coming back across the room from switching on the lamp, sat down on the other bed and watched the others. The events of the last two hours were suddenly catching up with him and he needed a little breathing room.
�Here you go,� JC said as he handed Joey the cup of water. He quickly sat down on the other side of the bed and helped Chris gently lift and support Lance�s shoulders and neck while the blond shakily took a few sips from the cup that Joey was holding for him.
Once Lance had his fill of the water, JC stood up with the cup with the intentions of returning it to the bathroom. He happened to turn to see how Justin was doing and, unnoticed by him, watched as a myriad of emotions crossed the younger man�s features�relief�confusion�fear�before he dropped his head into his hands. JC reached down and nudged Chris, motioning with his head toward Justin�s slumped form and Chris quickly followed JC�s line of sight. Upon seeing what was going on the nearby bed, Chris instantly knew why the youngest member of the group had moved away�fear and uncertainty as to what to do. Justin had more than likely reached his limit and was no longer able to handle the unusual circumstances that Lance had found himself to be in.
In the meantime, Joey had also followed JC�s gaze and, with a small sigh, dropped his head in understanding before standing up and making his way to the younger man�s side. He sat down and put an arm around Justin�s shaking shoulders without saying word, knowing that what Justin needed right now was someone to reassure him with actions and not words. Joey reached up with his with his free hand and slowly ran it over his face then through his already disheveled hair as he watched Lance continue his struggle to fully reach consciousness all the while feeling Justin�s body pressing heavily against his side.
�The lights are off, Lance�is that better?� Chris asked, bringing his attention back to the moving figure while slowly lifting the cloth covering Lance�s eyes and handing it to JC who quickly went back into the bathroom to rewet it.
Lance opened his eyes a fraction and gave an almost imperceptive nod of his head, since he was sure that any more movement than that would surely cause the headache he was feeling to press through his skull. Lance�s pale features remained pinched and with blurred vision that was slowly beginning to gain clarity, he gazed up at the older man before a look of confusion washed over his face.
�Chris?� Lance whispered as his gaze moved from the face leaning over him to JC, who had just walked back into the room and was now seated on the opposite side of the bed.
�Yeah, Poofu�how are you feeling�your head hurt?� Chris asked gently as he and the others watched Lance�s expression of confusion transform into one of fear�great fear.
�Hey�there�s nothing to be afraid of, Lance�what�s the matter?� JC said in quiet, reassuring tones as he refolded the cloth and laid it on his friend�s forehead.
�What happened?� Lance asked as he glanced at the faces hovering above him. �How did I get here, Chris�what�s going on?�
Mitch, Troy, and Pete worked steadily through their various chores in the barn, all the while thinking about the young man who, as far as they knew, was lying unconscious in the ranch house.
�How do you think Mr. Bass is doing?� Mitch asked, knowing that his companions really had no better idea than he had of their employer�s condition. He was carefully repairing a leather whip that had seen better days while the others worked on other things.
�I don�t know,� Pete answered quietly as he busily soaped down a dusty saddle while Troy worked on his own.
�I�m worried about him, but I�m also worried about the rest of those boys�they were pretty shook up.�
The ride in the suburban that Troy had brought out had been a tense one. The very back seat had been removed and left in the pasture so that the unconscious young man could be laid out flat. Dr. Reynolds had ridden in the back along with Chris, but there had been no room for the others and they crowded into the next bench seat to watch over their friend.
It had been a sad sight to see, as far as Pete was concerned.
�I think one of us should go check on them,� Troy said, bringing Pete out of his thoughts as he watched Troy throw the cloth that he had been using across the small tack room in frustration.
Troy couldn�t get over the scene that he had encountered when he had skidded the suburban to a halt, barely stopping before his three passengers scrambled out of the vehicle and raced to their fallen friend�s side. The looks of fear on their faces had been heart wrenching and seeing Mr. Bass�s still, pasty features caused knots to form in his stomach that had yet to come undone.
�Yeah�but let�s give it a little more time before we go in there,� Pete said quietly. �They did say that one of them would come out and let us know when he wakes up.�
�I don�t know about ya�ll, but this whole situation is just killing me,� Mitch said with a slight growl. �I can�t believe the things that have been happening to those boys since they got here. I mean�the incident the other day in Stan�s truck�the game with
Mr. Chasez�Mr. Bass and Skitty�and now this. When are those boys going to see some good luck?�
�Yeah, I know what you mean�but what I can�t get over is the fact that Charlie didn�t want to take him to the clinic,� Pete said in a slightly confused tone of voice.
It had been his first instinct, when Mr. Bass had collapsed, to have a vehicle come pick them up and take the young man directly to the clinic. It had made no sense to him at all that Charlie thought it unnecessary to take him to the doctor and it made even less sense when everyone, save the four young men had agreed with the veterinarian�s assessment. It took much convincing on Mitch and Troy�s part to finally convince the four young men that Mr. Bass would be okay and that Charlie Reynolds, although a veterinarian, was more than likely right with his diagnosis. But now�Pete wasn�t so sure any more, but he couldn�t put his finger on what was causing the nagging, doubtful feeling that was rising within him. By looking at the others and hearing their tone of voice, he was beginning to get the idea that they were also starting to feel some doubts too.
�Yeah�I�m starting to rethink that matter�I mean, why didn�t Charlie want to take Mr. Bass straight to the clinic?� Troy questioned as he retrieved the cloth that he had thrown. He picked it up from the floor and slapped it against his pants leg in an effort to rid it of the hay straw and dust that had collected on it.
�His explanation sounded good, but�I�ve been thinking about it and�I don�t know�something just doesn�t seem right about
it,� he said as he sat back down on the low stool beside his saddle and began to absent mindedly run the cloth through the tin of leather soap.
�What do you mean?� Mitch asked as he lay the whip down across his lap. Troy�s words caused him to give him his full attention as well as Pete�s who had sat down heavily on another nearby, low stool. It seemed as if his friend had read his mind.
�Okay�well�it�s just my thinking, but�hear me out,� he said slowly as he looked first at Pete and then at Mitch. They both nodded their heads and Troy slowly continued.
�Now�Mr. Bass�he didn�t collapse until he drank the water right�I mean he looked a little green around the gills beforehand, but he was alert�just quiet like, though�nothing to worry about.�
�Yeah�but�what�s got you bugged, Troy?� Mitch asked as he unconsciously scooted his stool closer to where Troy was now standing, pacing the small room and kicking up small puffs of dust with each step.
Troy stopped his pacing and put his hands in his jean pockets and rocked back and forth on his heels as he contemplated how to give his answer. In the meantime, Pete and Mitch were growing slightly impatient in their waiting.
�Well?� Pete finally said, hoping that Troy would hurry in giving his answer. He was hoping that the answer would validate the feelings that were growing within him.
Troy took the hint and cleared his throat then looked at his companions.
�Okay�this is just my opinion�that�s all�and it can�t leave this room,� he said slowly.
Mitch and Pete nodded their heads in agreement as Troy cleared his throat then began speaking.
�Mr. Bass�he collapsed after drinking the water�� he began before being interrupted.
�You already said that and we agreed,� Mitch said in an exasperated tone.
�And if you don�t let me finish, you won�t know the rest,� Troy retorted.
�Sorry�go ahead,� Mitch apologized then Troy continued.
�He collapsed after drinking the water�who fixed up the water bottles?� Troy asked as he gazed at the other two, knowing exactly when they understood where he was going with his idea by the looks of astonishment and disbelief on their faces.
�Wait a minute�you don�t think�she wouldn�t�I mean,� Mitch said, stumbling over his words as his thoughts raced as possibilities tumbled about in his mind.
�Who is Selma seeing right now?� Troy asked next and, if what they were talking about hadn�t been so serious, he would have laughed at the expressions that his friends� were now sporting.
�Charlie,� Pete whispered. �She�s seeing Charlie�oh�my�goodness. Mr. Kirkpatrick did say that Mr. Bass complained about the water tasting funny, but they thought it might be that the container was new, according to someone, but Mr. Kirkpatrick couldn�t remember who said that.�
�Wait a minute,� Troy said, leaning toward the others. �He said that the water tasted funny�I don�t know guys�something is up�something bad is going on here.�
For the next half hour or more, the trio went over the events that they had witnessed earlier and during the entire conversation, Pete carefully stored away the information in his mind so that he could share it with the two men that he would be meeting with later in the evening.
Unknown to the other ranch hands or anyone else for that matter, Pete had been leading a double life of sorts. For quite some time he had been working with a special investigative unit in his brother-in-law�s insurance company. The unit that he worked with dealt with fraud and he served as an informant of sorts. Although he had a criminal past, he was able to pull himself up by his bootstraps and his brother-in-law had seen the possibilities and had given him a fighting chance once he left Huntsville.
The two men that he was meeting with were working with the state insurance fraud bureau and Pete was reporting to them periodically when things would come up on the ranch. After the incident with Skitty and Lance�s fall, he had contacted them to inform them of what had happened and they requested that he meet them in the next town, which he planned to do after 9:00.
�I�m okay�really,� Lance said looking at his four friends who were seated on his bed and Joey�s nearby bed. It had been about 20 minutes since he had fully regained consciousness, which caused relief to flood the bedroom. It had seemed as if he had been fighting against the darkness for what felt like an eternity, trying to open his eyes and respond to the encouraging words that he had been hearing the others say and he had finally succeeded when in reality it had only been a short amount of time. The terrible, all consuming fear that he had experienced upon first waking up was now gone and had been replaced by confusion and uncertainty about the day�s events and what had happened to him.
�Really�I�m okay�I�m feeling okay,� Lance repeated trying to convince his friends, but their doubtful expressions led him to believe it would take much more than words to thoroughly convince them of that fact.
�Define okay,� JC said as he placed the cloth that he had just rewet back on his forehead.
Lance gave a little sigh before speaking as he reached up and put his hand over JC�s. JC shook his head at Lance, indicating that he had the cloth and Lance sighed and dropped his hand back into his lap. He settled back against his pillows and JC made sure that the cloth would not fall before letting go of it.
�I�m feeling a lot better�my head doesn�t hurt as much as when I first woke up,� he said in a voice that was gradually beginning to strengthen.
�I�m still a little fuzzy around the edges, but it�s getting easier to focus and concentrate�honest.�
�Do you want something for your headache?� Joey asked from the other bed, but Lance simply shook his head.
�Do you remember what happened?� Chris asked as he gently patted Lance�s thigh through the bedcovers.
Lance frowned and moved the washcloth to rub a hand over his forehead as he concentrated on gaining a grasp on the last thing that he remembered from that day.
Joey moved from Justin�s side on his bed to sit behind Chris and he gently grasped Lance�s knee while JC took the washcloth from Lance�s hand and placed it back on his forehead with a certain look in his eye, giving the unspoken message of, �leave it there.�
�Don�t try so hard, Poofu�you might strain something,� Joey gently teased in the hopes that everyone might loosen up at his joke and his efforts did not go un-rewarded. His words seemed to break the tension in the room, making most everyone giggle and caused Lance to smile as he dropped his hand back to his side.
�You know�honestly�I can�t remember much of anything,� he admitted before yawning. �Geez�I shouldn�t be sleepy. I have a feeling I�ve been out of it for a while.�
�Yeah�it�s almost 7:30 and you passed out in that pasture around 4:30 or so,� Chris answered, his voice matching the worried expression on his face.
Lance appeared to be slightly stunned at the information and he blinked his eyes in disbelief several times as he tried to grasp what Chris had just said. He had not truly comprehended the passage of time. As far as he was concerned, he had been out for no longer than maybe just an hour. JC seemed to read his thoughts and quickly tried to reassure the younger man.
�Hey�don�t worry about it, Scoop,� he said, patting his arm reassuringly. �You were pretty out of it when they brought you in and time does seem to kinda stand still and it can do a number with your head. I mean�I couldn�t even begin to get my bearings straight on how long I was out of it the other night until the next day. I�m still a little unsure even now.�
Lance nodded his head in agreement and briefly closed his eyes, missing the looks of concern that were rapidly flying between the others in the room.
When Lance continued to keep his eyes closed, Chris had a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach.
�Not going to go out on us again�are you, Lansten?� he asked nervously, poking a finger in Lance�s side and causing the younger man to quietly yelp as he flinched and tried to move slightly away from the older man seated at his side.
�No�it�s just hard to keep my eyes open,� Lance replied as he brought his heavy eyelids back up to half-mast and glanced about at the worried faces of the others.
�I�m okay guys�just a little tired�really,� he said, trying to reassure them. He felt guilt washing over him. Once again he had caused his brothers to worry over him and he felt terrible about that.
�Well�what do you remember?� Justin quietly asked from Joey�s bed, which he hadn�t made an effort to move from since his friend had begun the slow and arduous process of regaining consciousness. The latest situation had completely spooked him causing him to feel awkward and unsure as of how to act or what to do around Lance.
Lance turned and looked at Justin and gave him a small smile. He knew why Justin was sitting by himself and it was okay.
�I remember Mitch and Troy getting the horses ready�riding out to the site and then�I guess�everything gets real blurry after that,� Lance said, never taking his eyes from Justin�s and that earned him a small smile from the younger man. Seconds later, Justin was also seated on the bed behind JC and Lance could feel him gripping his other knee.
�What did happen?� Lance asked, having a few questions of his own and, for the next several minutes, he listened as Chris filled in the blanks for him. Once Chris had finished and the story was finally laid out for him, Lance just shook his head in total disbelief.
�Gosh�I can�t believe that something else went wrong,� he said in a small voice and for the next several moments, the group remained silent, locked into their own thoughts about the events that had been taking place over the last several days. Those thoughts brought the previous evening back to mind for Joey and he looked down at Lance and gently grasped his knee to gain his friend�s attention.
�Lance�do you think we need to tell the others about what we found last night since we�re all here?� Joey asked, realizing that this might not be the best possible time, but since they were all in the same room and there was a certain feeling of unease already present, the timing might not be that bad after all.
�What�what are you talking about?� Chris asked, looking first at Lance then at Joey while JC and did the same.
Lance cleared his throat then began speaking.
�Last night�I couldn�t sleep and decided to go work on Skitty�s paperwork. To make a long story short, after going through her insurance records I found some discrepancies. Then, Joe came in to check on me and we worked through the files on the other horses and found some more stuff that just didn�t add up.�
�Humph�it all ended up adding up to about $150,000,� Joey said as he glanced at his friends and saw the disbelief written on their faces.
�Are you sure about that, guys�I mean�really sure?� JC asked, not wanting to believe that Mr. Benson might be mixed up in anything as serious as insurance fraud.
�Yeah�I�m sure,� Lance answered wearily as he settled back further into his pillows. The disclosure of the problems zapped the last of his energy and now he wanted nothing more than to go to sleep and escape from the situation.
�I think we need to let you rest, but first you need to get something on your stomach, Lance,� Chris said as he stood up and walked over to the bedroom�s closet.
�Dr. Reynolds seemed to think that once you were awake, we needed to get you up on your feet and move you around
some,� JC said with a small smile as he helped Lance to sit up in bed.
Joey snorted. �Sound more like what you would want to do if Lance was an injured horse,� he said in amusement.
He still didn�t agree with Dr. Reynolds� attitude, but seeing Lance finally awake was pushing his doubts and nagging notions to the back of his mind.
The bedcovers were pushed back and Lance, with JC and Joey�s continued help, Lance swung his legs around and sat straight up, instantly regretting the sudden movement.
�Whoa�stop this ride�I wanna get off,� Lance murmured as a wave of dizziness washed over him. He leaned into Joey and moments later, the dizziness passed.
�Just take deep breaths, Scoop,� Justin said as he knelt down in front of him. �Close your eyes and take deep breaths.�
Joey ran his hand up and down Lance�s back while JC grabbed the discarded damp cloth and laid it across the back of Lance�s neck.
Chris saw what was going on and immediately stopped what he was doing and walked over to the group.
�Don�t go out on us now, Lansten. We�re ready to eat,� he said with a worried expression on his face.
�Not going to,� Lance replied as he opened his eyes and gave his friends a wan smile.
�Man�I just feel so wiped out�like I�ve taken something, but all I had was one of my pain pills�I didn�t even take the two that Dr. Granger prescribed so I wouldn�t be out of it on the ride,� Lance said bewilderedly.
While the others tried to reassure Lance, Joey sat back, contemplating what he had just heard. That uneasy feeling returned, but he had no more time to think about it since JC cuffed him on the back of his head.
�Earth to Joey,� JC said through the light laughter in the room.
�Sorry,� Joey said sheepishly as he grinned at the others. �Sorta zoned out there for a minute.
�Why don�t you help me get Lance to the bathroom,� JC said while Justin stood up and backed away giving Lance, JC and Joey the room they needed while Chris returned to the closet to continue to rummaging through one of Lance�s bags.
JC and Joey helped Lance to stand up head for the bathroom to take care of personal business while Justin headed for the kitchen. Selma had prepared enough food for the five of them to eat whenever they were ready to and had asked that one of them let her know when.
About ten minutes later, Lance was much steadier on his feet than when he went to the bathroom and was able to dress in the sweat pants and t-shirt that Chris had found for him. Soon the group was on their way to the kitchen with Lance setting the pace as he walked with Justin and Joey on either side with JC and Chris bringing up the rear.
It was late in the evening when Pete Conroe, aka. Pete Cowen, entered into the small caf� and made his way to the back of the room and sat down with two men without any of the other few patrons seated at the other tables even batting an eye his way. Although he had been working at Hickory Creek Ranch for several years, he had not ventured too often into the neighboring towns around the ranch and, for all appearances, it seemed that he was just another visitor passing through when, in all reality, he was working as a mole of sorts for the State Insurance Investigation Bureau.
�Hey�how�s it going, Pete?� Insurance Fraud Investigator Thomas Claire asked as he motioned for a waitress to bring another cup of coffee to the table that he had been sharing with his colleague and fellow investigator, Donald Crater while Pete slipped into a chair across the table.
�Eventful,� the man answered as he nodded at the waitress who quickly poured him a cup of coffee and placed a menu before him on the tabletop.
�I�ll give you a minute to look at the menu, hon,� she said quietly, smiling at the newcomer.
�No�just give me two eggs, over-easy, a couple pieces of bacon and a couple pieces of toast�um�grape jelly and a glass of juice,� he replied, handing her the menu after she had finished writing her order.
�Be ready in a minute, hon,� she said with a smile. �Your meals should be out the same time as his,� she added, speaking to Thomas and Donald before turning away from the table and heading across the caf� toward the long counter that she stepped behind, calling out Pete�s order to the cooks in the kitchen.
Pete shook his head and reached for the container of sugar and a small pitcher of cream sitting not too far away then poured a small amount of each into the steaming liquid.
�What do you mean by eventful,� Thomas asked as he and Donald watched Pete�s small smile transform into a frown.
�Mr. Bass and Mr. Kirkpatrick went with me and Mitch Warden and Dr. Charlie Reynolds to look at Skitty�s body�you know�the horse that Mr. Bass fell from about two days ago,� the ranch hand said, grimacing slightly as he stirred his coffee with his sore hand�the one that John had stood on as he made his threats to the young man the day before.
�Isn�t Dr. Reynolds the local vet?� Donald asked as he sipped from his coffee cup.
�Yeah�in order for claims to go through okay, a vet was needed to look over Skitty�s body and take pictures�you know what I mean� to validate the fact that she had actually broken her leg and that she had been put down with just cause,� Pete quietly explained, still not comfortable with the fact that he had been the one forced to put that beautiful animal down while Mitch and Troy had tended to an injured Lance.
�Okay�so what happened today?� Thomas asked, his voice showing slight impatience. He had a feeling that something had gone terribly wrong for another one of the young visitors and, during the pause in Pete�s explanation, he couldn�t help but shudder at a momentary memory of JC�s writhing and bound form lying in the middle of the northern pastures two days earlier. The sound of Pete�s voice brought Thomas back to the present and he steeled himself for what was about to be said.
�Well�we got to the body okay,� Pete began as he placed his spoon down on the tabletop and looked up at the pair of investigators.
��the doc examined her and all�took pictures and everything seemed to be okay. Mr. Bass was still having a hard time being around the body and he started feeling a little green around the gills and sat down under a tree. Mitch told Mr. Kirkpatrick and he went and got a bottle of water for him. Next thing we know, after drinking some of the water, he just sorta collapsed�threw up� and I mean to tell you�from his toes that boy threw up, and then he just kinda fell out.�
Pete shook his head at the memory of the frantic minutes following Lance�s losing consciousness as the other two men at the table tried to process the new development.
He had been the one to call the ranch house and have Selma tell Troy to come out in a truck since they were not sure of the young man�s condition nor of the fact whether or not they would need to rush him to the clinic.
Troy immediately drove out there with the other three young men to Mills Road near Knotty Pine Creek where there were several tense moments of worried chaos as Dr. Reynolds worked to bring an unresponsive Lance to consciousness while the ranch hands made it their duty to keep the rest of the young men as calm as possible�which wasn�t very easy at all.
�Troy made it there with the truck and even by then Mr. Bass still hadn�t come to, but the doc didn�t seem too worried about it.�
Pete looked at his watch and saw that it was now almost 9:30.
�He came to and spoke to Mitch and Troy about an hour and a half ago, I guess and Mitch came out and told me while I was out in the tack room in the barn,� he said as he looked at the other two men.
�Was he taken to the clinic?� Donald asked. He was totally floored that something else had happened to the young ranch owner and he was beginning to have a gut feeling that something was not right with the situation.
�No�Dr. Reynolds felt like the heat must have got to him, but Chris said something that made me start thinking it could have been something else, though and Troy had his own opinions,� Pete replied dropping his gaze back to his cup before glancing back up nervously.
Thomas and Donald nonchalantly gazed about them, looking to see if anyone might be listening on their conversation and found no one near enough to overhear them.
�Go ahead,� Thomas said, giving Pete the go ahead to speak.
�In all the excitement, I never had the chance to talk to Charlie about it and it might turn out that that wasn�t such a bad thing, but Mitch and Troy know and they agree with me,� Pete said as he leaned in a little closer the pair.
�Mr. Kirkpatrick said that he gave Mr. Bass some water from a bottle that was in his saddlebag and Mr. Bass complained about how it tasted before he got sick�said it had a funny taste to it, but then they thought it might have been because it was a new bottle�someone had told them it was new before they left. The funny thing is�we haven�t bought any new water bottles lately. Selma just washes the same ones and fills them back up.�
Thomas raised his eyebrows at the new bit of information while Donald voiced the question that was running through his mind.
�So�it might be that Mr. Bass was possibly�poisoned or drugged by someone?�
Pete removed his hat and ran his hands through his hair. The possibilities that were running through his mind were astounding. Here he was, a ranch hand with a bit of a tarnished past, but secretly involved with part of an investigative team working on several cases of probable insurance fraud, among other crimes, discussing a possible plot to injure or maybe kill the new owner of Hickory Creek Ranch and maybe even his friends.
�Pete?� Donald said, bringing the ranch hand back to the present.
�Sorry�umm�that�s not the half of it, guys�Charlie is seeing Selma right now,� Pete said quietly.
�What?� Donald said, trying to make connections while the possibilities suddenly began flying about in Thomas�s mind.
�Dr. Reynolds seemed to think that the heat and where we were and what we were doing in combination with his pain medications kinda messed Mr. Bass up or maybe he even took the wrong medications and his system rebelled or something like that�but�I don�t know,� Pete said recalling the reactions of Mr. Bass�s friends when it had been suggested that their friend may have taken the wrong medication or wrong dosage of his own pills.
�The rest of the guys said that Mr. Bass is the probably the most responsible one in the entire group�he wouldn�t make that kind of mistake,� Pete said before the waitress stepped back up to their table, her arms laden with steaming plates of food.
�Okay, here you go, hons,� she said as she placed first Thomas�s plate before him, then Donald�s and, finally, Pete�s. She disappeared for a short moment before returning with bottles of ketchup, steak sauce and more coffee and a glass of water for Pete. After quickly refilling their coffee cups she once again disappeared behind the caf�s counter.
�Well�what do you think, Pete?� Thomas asked, completely ignoring the food set before him. For the moment, what he was hearing was much more important than satisfying his hunger.
�I mean�surely no one on the ranch would be capable of doing something like that.�
�Well�Troy, Mitch and me talked and we�re thinking that maybe someone is trying to scare them into leaving.�
�So�are you beginning to think that Mr. Chasez�s attack in the northern pasture and Mr. Bass�s fall from Skitty were planned to scare them and the others into wanting to leave the ranch?� Donald asked while pushing his plate away as he appetite completely left him.
�And�Selma and Charlie might be involved in this somehow,� Thomas said more as a statement rather than a question.
�That would make sense seeing how we�re investigating Selma�s son, John,� Donald stated. The possibilities were beginning to fall into place as they slowly developed.
Pete simply nodded his head in agreement as he pushed his eggs absent-mindedly about his plate. He also no longer had the appetite to eat. The things that he had discussed with Mitch and Troy had him terribly worried over the welfare of the five young men.
�What do you think I need to do, guys?� Pete asked nervously as he covered his plate with a large paper napkin. The sight of the food was causing him to be slightly nauseated as uneasiness began to further set in.
�Well�first, I think you, Troy and Mitch need to keep a good eye out on the boys�make sure you keep a special eye on Timberlake, Kirkpatrick and Fatone. They haven�t been targets yet, but their time might be coming,� Thomas replied quietly as plans began to formulate in his mind of what might possibly happen next to the young men and how to prevent those events from happening.
�I think we might need to get some local help too,� Donald added. �The sheriff�s department needs to be notified about what happened today and we might need to call in the FBI earlier than expected. The department has already been informed of what�s going on as far as the fraud, but this is out of our league. With the possibility of Selma and Dr. Reynolds participating in Bass�s collapse, this is putting a new kink into the whole situation.�
�What did you do with the water bottle?� Thomas asked, hoping that nothing had happened to it. If there had indeed been any tampering of the water, it could be tested by the FBI for evidence of any kinds of poisons or drugs.
�I kinda thought you might want it,� Pete answered before standing up. �It�s out in my truck�be back in a minute.�
The two investigators watched as the ranch hand walked across the room and out the caf� door.
�What do you think?� Thomas asked before taking a sip of his coffee.
�I don�t know what to think,� Donald answered as Pete stepped back into the caf� and rejoined them, placing the bottle on the tabletop and sliding into his chair.
�Um�when Mr. Bass collapsed, he dropped the bottle on the ground and most of the water spilled out. This was all that was left, but I didn�t figure that you would need very much to find out if there was something in the water,� Pete said.
�You�re right�they won�t need too much,� Thomas said as he picked up the bottle and put it in one of his coat pockets.
The trio spoke for a few more minutes then stood up from the table and made their way to the cash register and paid for their uneaten meals. They exited the caf� and a few more words were exchanged and plans were made for another meeting.
�Remember�keep an eye on those boys,� Thomas said. �We�ll get in touch with some people and we�ll see you day after tomorrow�northern pasture.�
Pete nodded his head and the small group broke up with Pete getting into his truck to head in one direction while the investigators climbed into their own truck before heading in the opposite direction.
�How many did you give him, Mama?� John asked as he stirred sugar into the cup of steaming coffee set before him at the kitchen table. It was close to midnight and the pair had entered the kitchen unnoticed by the others in the house. Just a few hours earlier, JC, Joey, Chris, Justin, and a very groggy Lance ate a small supper then headed toward their bedrooms where they had remained since.
�Three�maybe four of those little, pretty green pills,� she answered with a knowing smile as she set a plate of hot cookies in front of her son. She had watched Lance take one of the same pills before his ride and knew that the additional pills added to his water would surely make him somewhat ill. She just didn�t realize how ill he would become at the time she had prepared his water bottle.
�Now, Mama, you don�t want to give him too many next time,� John gently warned as he grabbed a cookie from the plate. �I don�t want them to get too suspicious and besides that, we don�t want a murder on our hands...not yet, at least.�
�Oh, now, don�t worry about that, Johnny,� the older woman answered with another smile as she patted her son�s shoulder before moving across the kitchen toward the sink. �I�ll be more careful next time.�
�How many do you have left?�
�I had about six, but when the others left the house to go to the pasture, I was able to take a few more from each of their bottles,� Selma answered as she turned from the sink and patted her apron pocket.
�You still have them in your pocket?� John asked incredulously. He didn�t want his mother to become too confident and therefore, careless and he certainly didn�t want her to be caught with any evidence on her person if questions began to arise.
�Not all of them�just a few in case. The rest are in a safe place in my room�no one would even think to look where I�ve hidden them, Johnny. Don�t worry, dear. I�ll be careful.�
Selma�s tone let her son know that she was not going to discuss the matter any longer and he finished his cup of coffee and dessert.
�Charlie said that he would bring us some drugs from his office to use next time, if we�d like. He�s sure that we�ll scare those boys bad enough that they�ll leave soon.�
John raised his eyebrows at his mother. Although he didn�t fully approve of the relationship between his mother and the veterinarian, he wouldn�t turn away help that came his way from him.
About ten minutes later, the pair called it a night. Selma walked to the back of the house where her bedroom was while John left the house and made his way to the bunkhouse.