"He's what?"

Rick couldn't believe his ears, but A.J. looked grimly at him as he repeated himself.

"I'm sorry, Rick, but Ian's performances have been cut to four shows a week. That kid David, the one who Ricky took a shine to at his birthday party? Well, his brother is the Sir Percival for the matinees and he told his brother to tell Ricky he was sorry his uncle's shows were reduced. No wonder Ian's been avoiding us, he lied about being injured."

"But why? A.J., he should know by now we'd understand. God knows we know tough times, and we could always help out, is that why he and Robin decided to bank their money and get a house when prices lowered a bit?" Rick grumbled.

"Guess so, maybe that's why Laurie didn't make much of a fuss when they changed their minds about the place they picked out." A.J. replied, then he caught a look of disbelief from his brother.

"A.J., she's never kept secrets about the kids from me. I don't think Laurie knows herself. You know how non-interfering she is when it comes to their own decisions." Rick said, willing himself not to belief his wife would hold out on him.

"Now look, Rick, I didn't say she'd keep secrets from you. That's one thing I'm certain of." A.J. was annoyed and showed it. "I think she figured it out herself and didn't want to say anything until she was sure. One thing about my sis is, she's careful."

"I know, I know." Rick let out a breath, ashamed of himself.

He sat deep in thought for a minute, then a sneaky grin crossed his face. "Oh, I've seen that look before." A.J. couldn't help but laugh.

"I think I need to check with Mr. Thomas of the Knights, make sure he still wants Challenger." Rick picked up the phone while his brother shook his head. "The way your mind works…."

Twenty minutes later Rick was driving home, furiously going over his speech to his wife.

"I just happened to call The Knights, and I found out they canceled their request for Challenger. When were you going to tell me, Laurie. And how long have you known that your son-in-law was only working part-time?"

Suddenly he realized he was approaching the ranch, and reluctantly he "called" out to Laurie.

"Laurie?"

"Rick!" A sweet longing filled his thoughts, and for a moment he forgot all his anger.

"Almost home, sweetheart."

"I'm at the door, waiting for you, darling."

As he pulled into the driveway, he saw Laurie standing in the doorway, Mike jumping around her, then as soon as he came out of the truck, the happy dog jumped into his arms.

"Hey, Mikey, have you been a good dog with your Mom today, huh?" he affectionately teased the dog, then looked up and saw his wife.

"I missed you, Mr. Simon." She said, a troubled look on her face. At once his mood darkened, then he vowed to control himself, find out what she knew before jumping to conclusions.

"I missed you too, Mrs. Simon." He told her, then hugged her.

He felt her tremble against him, then he worriedly looked at her.

"What is it, Darlin'?"

"I found out something today, Rick. I didn't want to tell you before I knew for sure, but." She bit her lip, and he felt his heart melt.

"I'm here, Laurie. Tell me." He asked, then took her by the hand and sitting on the sofa, pulled her down next to him.

She had a relieved look on her face from his words, then swallowed hard.

"Rick, I found out Ian's been lying to Robin and us, his hours were cut because of lowered attendance, not from McDermott throwing him. Robin called, seems the office was looking for him to fill in and she had no idea he wasn't doing any weekday matinees."

He was floored, he knew she was telling the truth, but he needed to know more.

"What were you not sure about?" he pressed, his tone harsher then he meant.

"About him getting the trainers mad, they cancelled their order for Challenger and for Poor Boy. I thought it was because they had no room for them yet. I called Robin and she told me he's been snapping and getting angry easily. She just thought it was because his leg hurt." Laurie stood up, gazing at Rick then seeming to come to a conclusion.

"Rick, you didn't think I knew about what Ian was up to, did you? I was suspicious of the excuse for not buying the horses, but I didn't know he lied to Robin." Laurie was upset, then Rick fumbled for words.

" A.J. told me about Ian's hours being cut, I thought maybe Robin knew or told you in confidence…or?" he stopped, then blurted "you suspected he was being abusive to her."

"Rick, I knew they were having a problem, but when I asked her about it, she told me Petey was keeping them up all hours and that they were all right. How was I to know she was hiding a problem?" Laurie was getting angry, something Rick had seen so rarely with him that he didn't know how to react.

"How could you think I wouldn't tell you something awful like that, Rick? We don't know he's abusing Robin, and there's no way I'd accuse him of anything without some kind of proof." Rick stood up, his temper starting to heat up.

"Proof, Laurie, what proof do you need? He lied to her, he lied to us, heck, what else is he doing to our daughter, and what if he starts up on Petey?"

He saw his words hit home with her, as she turned pale and her voice trembled. "Rick, no…if I even ..God, please, no!"

Torn by conflicting emotions of anger and remorse, Rick grabbed up his jacket then started out of the room, saying, "I'm going for a walk, don't wait lunch on me."

Behind him he heard Laurie call after him, "Rick, please, don't go..."

As he banged the kitchen door behind him he started second guessing himself, "maybe I should have talked to Ian before this, maybe Robin didn't tell either of us because .. because he didn't hit her, maybe he's ashamed and prideful and needs to get himself together."

He walked and walked, while behind him the ranch never seemed so far away.

In their living room, Laurie sat, stunned. Rick had never done this before in all the years they had been together.

"I should have told him my worries, he shares everything with me, oh, what a stupid idiot I am. What if, no, I don't believe Ian would hurt my baby, but, why lie? Maybe I'm not such a good judge of character after all."

As the afternoon shadows deepened Laurie paced and sat, then huddled in the corner of Rick's chair, fighting tears.

"He had no right to yell at me though. I know he's worried, but I didn't yell at him. He jumped to conclusions, I've never lied to him, so why did he think I was covering for Ian?"

Suddenly she got the sense that someone was outside, and getting stiffly to her feet, Laurie went to the kitchen window where she saw a familiar figure.

"Oh, grandmother." She went outside to the patio, where the spirit of Kasey Adams stood.

"What can I do, grandmother, Rick's never done this before. He's never walked away from me, I don't know what to do, did I do wrong not to say anything before I was sure?" Laurie was losing the battle not to cry.

"Child, don't worry, he'll come home. He wouldn't be so mad if he wasn't so worried for Robin, and for your son-in-law. You did right to wait, but ..I can't tell you what you should have or shouldn't have done, you know what you need to do." Kasey smiled as Laurie wiped her face then nodded.

"I should have told him what I feared, but …I want Rick to trust my instincts, how do I know if I'm right about Ian?"

"You'll know, and so will he. Richard will find his way, and you will learn from each other again." With that Kasey smiled again then vanished.

Rick finally turned around at their little shack on the banks of the creek. He could see Oscar and Rudy's cabin in the distance on one side, and Towne and Temple's home on the other, and he cringed at their reaction to his leaving Laurie upset like that.

"I owe my girl an apology, she was only giving Ian the benefit of the doubt and now I've hurt her worse then he did." he realized, then started back to the ranch.

He was halfway back when he was seized by fear, "my God, I left her by herself, what if she gets sick or has a premonition, oh I'm an idiot!"

Breaking into a run, he frantically called to her, and as he approached the back of the house, he saw her standing at the back door.

"Rick!"

As he reached Laurie, he saw tears pouring down her face, then he grabbed her to him, saying, "I'm sorry, so sorry, sweetheart, please forgive me."

"Oh, darling, you came back, I'm sorry too." She wept, then buried her face in his chest and wrapped her arms around him.

"Don't let go, my angel." Rick choked, trying not to break down. She raised her face to his, then started kissing him. He picked her up and carried her inside, caressing her face with his lips, then opening his mouth to hers hungrily.

Finally releasing her lips to catch his breath, he held her close as she cried softly "I love you, never leave me, Rick, please, I need you." Stroking her hair, he felt her calm down as he promised between kisses, "never again, I'll never leave you like that ever. Please forgive me for ever doubting you."

"I do, my dearest love." Laurie told him, her tears drying on his face. He just held her for a long moment then the rumble of both their stomachs brought a smile to their faces. "I need to feed my princess." he teased, carrying her through the kitchen and into their room.

"You always take care of me, love." She sighed then put her head against his chest.

Setting her down on their bed, he wrapped a blanket around his wife, then placed a kiss on her lips, saying,

"I'll be right back, sweetheart."

"I'll be waiting." She cooed back at him, and he groaned and embraced her again. "When you do that, my angel…"

After reluctantly releasing her, Rick made a stop at the refrigerator and loaded a tray, then returned to find Laurie had pulled over a small table and lit candles, placing them around the room.

Putting a large amount of sandwich fixings and 2 sodas on the table, he pulled her next to him and they took turns feeding each other. When they were both done eating, Laurie took Rick's hand in hers, then quietly said, "Darling, you were right, I should have told you what I suspected. I just can't believe Ian would turn like that."

Touched by her honesty with him, he pulled her hand to his lips, saying, "I don't think he has, but we need to find out the truth, Darlin'. No more guessing."

Taking the phone in hand, Rick punched in Robin and Ian's number, then heard a quavering, "Pop?"

"Robin, are you all right?" he asked, then heard his daughter take a ragged breath.

"No, Pop, can Petey and I come home? Ian's in Las Vegas, and I really need you and Mom."

Rick ached for his daughter. "Sure, honey, do you want me to pick you up?"

"Yes, thanks, Pop. Let me talk to Mom." He turned and saw Laurie, a questioning look on her face.

"Here she is, honey. I'll be there in about 35 minutes."

Handing the phone to his wife, he told her, "I'm going to pick Robin and Petey up. Talk to her until I get there, okay?"

Laurie's eyes misted over, then she nodded. Taking the cordless from him, she softly said, "Robin, it's Mom. It'll be okay, tell me what happened, honey."

Rick wanted to kiss her, it was the right way to ask their girl.

Picking up his keys, he stopped and dropped a kiss on Laurie's cheek. "I'll call Oscar and Rudy, be right back."

"Love you." She whispered, then her eyes got big and Rick bolted from the room before he found out what his daughter had said.

As he pulled up to the neat tract home on the outskirts of Phoenix, Rick was troubled by the thought that Robin was so desperate to come home that she needed to wait until Ian was at work.

As he got out of their jeep, he saw Robin looking through the living room window, and he practically ran to the front door.

"Pop!" she opened the door, and then he heard her say "Mama, Pop's here, I see you in a little while, I love you."

Putting the phone down, she reached out for him as he came in, "Birdie, I'm here."

At once she clung to him, fighting back tears. "Pop, thank you for coming for us. You have to know, though." She sniffed, then looked him in the eye.

"Ian's lying, that's not why I want to come home. He has to work through his problem himself, but I think his cousins are behind a lot of this, and Hawk started bothering me today."

Startled, Rick looked at her. "You're kidding, why the low life piece of ….., Robin, did you tell Ian what you think?"

"No, because it just started a couple of weeks ago. And, Pop, I wanted Ian to have a relationship with his family." Robin added, then a cooing noise caught her attention and she managed a smile.

"Come on, Petey, Grandpa's here." She picked up her son from his carrier and hugged him, then put him into Rick's arms.

"There's my boy." Rick grinned at the dark-haired baby, who responded with a squeal of delight.

"Pop, he really likes you, I want Mom to get a picture of you two together." She beamed, then grabbed Petey's car seat and followed her father out the door.

Just as they reached the Jeep, a red Honda pulled up, and Rick frowned as he recognized Jason Redfern, one of Ian's cousins.

"Hey, Robin, where are you going?" he came skulking up the walk, only acknowledging Rick when Robin ignored him. "Uh, hi, Mr. Simon."

"Jason." Rick decided to play it by ear.

Robin looked at him. "I'm going to stay with my folks while Ian's in Las Vegas."

"Oh, well, I thought we could hang out, cousin. Why don't you unload the kid and we'll do something together." Jason asked, smirking at Rick.

"No, Jason. I'm married to your cousin, remember?. And I don't "unload" Petey anywhere, thank you. Come on, Dad. " Robin put Petey in his seat, then ignored Jason trying to hold the door open for her and went past him to slide in through the driver's side.

"Bye Jason." Rick said loudly, then pulled out sharply, causing him to jump back and swear aloud.

As they drove away, Rick felt the hair on his neck rise, then obeying his instincts he turned a sharp left into a cul-de-sac. Immediately there was a bang, then he saw through his rear view mirror a fender-bender occur on the street he had just turned off of. Making a u-turn, he drove back down the road, as Robin gasped, "Pop, that was Jason, you knew he was following us?"

"I had a feeling, honey. When we get into the house, I want you to call Ian and tell him he is to come to the ranch. You two have to have a long talk, and don't take no for an answer." Rick said firmly.

All the way home, Rick listened as Robin told him about Ian's increasing worry about bills and being able to pay their lease each month. "Pop, he even started having a drink with the guys after shows, he's never done that before."

"Honey, I think I know what his problem is, he's terrified he won't be able to support you, plus he must know he angered the other trainers into canceling their orders with us." Rick started, then realized she didn't know about that.

"Oh no, Pop, he didn't, I'm sorry." She put her head against his shoulder, tears in her voice.

"No, Robin, you've done nothing to be sorry about. I didn't know he hid that too." Rick was angry again, his son-in-law had a lot to answer for.

As they pulled into the ranch driveway and parked, Laurie came to the door, and Robin immediately raced to her as her mother opened her arms.

"Mama." Robin broke into tears, and Laurie embraced her. "Darling, it's all right. You and Petey are welcome here, and Ian will come home to talk things over, I promise."

Looking over Robin's shoulder, she saw that Rick had the car carrier with their grandchild, and she tightened her arms around the girl.

Feeling Robin's sobs diminishing, she handed her a handkerchief then led her into the living room to sit down, as Rick got Petey out of his car seat and put him to bed in the spare crib.

"I'm all right now, Mama. It's just, oh Pop will tell you about Ian's cousins." Robin sniffed, then blew her nose.

The phone rang just then, and Rick picked it up.

"Simon residence"

"Dad, is Robin and Petey with you?" Ian was on the line, sounding nervous.

"Yes, Ian, and I think after your performance tonight you need to come home. For one thing, your cousins have been harassing Robin and if you don't care about their treatment of your wife, I do." Rick told him tightly.

"Harassing her? No, they wouldn't do that. Robin means the world to me, I'd never let Hawk or Jason mistreat her." Ian sounded shocked, and Rick figured his son-in-law was telling the truth.

"Son, I'm sorry, but Jason asked Robin out right in front of me today, then started following us when she said no and got into an accident when we ditched him. I don't' know what their problem is, but if either of them come near her again, I'll call the police." He told him sternly.

There was silence, then Ian's ashamed tone let Rick know he got the message.

"I'm sorry, Dad. I do need to talk to you and Mom, and I owe Robin an apology." Suddenly a voice started yelling in back of Ian, then he came back on, sounding rushed.

"Dad, I have to go, someone just fell and I have to take their place. I don't think I'll be home tonight, can you and Mom and Robin meet me at the house tomorrow after 2, I'll explain everything later."

Rick hesitated, then Ian said, "Please, Dad?"

"All right, I'll drop Robin off on the way to work tomorrow, then your Mom and I will come by tomorrow afternoon." Rick reluctantly agreed.

"Thanks, Dad. Tell Robin I love her, and I'm sorry." Ian said good bye and hung up, then Rick turned to see two wide-eyed women gazing hopefully at him.

"He's very sorry, honey, and he says he loves you and he'll meet us at the house after 2 tomorrow. He was being yelled at in the background to take someone's place." Rick explained.

His daughter sighed. "That new assistant really hates Ian-we don't know why either. Maybe I'll find out tomorrow."

Suddenly Laurie looked at the clock. "Honey, it's almost eight, are you hungry? Let me fix us something to eat."

"No, Mama, let me, I haven't cooked for you in ages As it is, the Heritage called asking me to come back part time at full time salary; seems they've gone through three chefs the last month alone." Robin replied, then Laurie raised her eyebrows.

"The hotel called you back? How did Ian feel about this?"

"I hadn't had the chance to tell him…oh Mom ,do you suppose he heard me talk about it and got upset?" Robin got up, then Rick reached over and hugged her.

"If he did, then you two need to talk. I think Father Nick needs to give refresher lessons."

He heard the clearing of a throat and saw Laurie snickering.

"All right, Mrs. Simon, us too." He said, then grabbed her and pulled her down on the sofa as she laughed.