Chapter 22
'Well, look who finally decided to show up.' Stella teased as Cordell walked through the front door. 'He must have smelt our pancakes cooking.'
'Yeah, you're up early Dad.' August agreed, attempting to flip a pancake in the pan. It didn't quite go as planned, his sister laughing at his failure. 'I was close.'
She frowned, seeing the look on their fathers face as he came over to them. 'Dad, is something wrong?'
Cordell nodded. 'Um… I don't quite know how to tell you guys…' Both his children stopped what they were doing, looking up at him with concern in their expressions. 'Last night, um… Robert Adams, Maddie's father, was killed. That's not all though. Maddie was shot, she's okay, it was just a graze but she's staying up at the house.'
Stella was just as shocked as her brother but was the first to find her voice. 'What happened?'
'Her father was murdered… There'll be an investigation, I've been up at the house since early this morning.'
'Do you know who did it?' August questioned.
'Not yet. Captain James will be coming over to speak with Maddie, see if she can identify who it was.'
'But she's alright though, isn't she?' Stella asked with concern.
He nodded. 'Your Mawline is staying with her, she's pretty shaken up.'
'Dad, there's something I need to tell you.' August spoke up after a moment of silence. 'Maddie, she rang me yesterday morning, asked me to take her kitten. She didn't want anyone to know, she seemed… nervous. Scared of something.'
'What did she say?'
'Said her Dad would kill her kitten if he found it, Bubbles attacked him or something. She had a bruise on her arm too, almost like someone had held it really tight.'
'August, you should have told me-'
'I promised her I wouldn't.'
Cordell sighed. 'Alright, we'll talk about this later, okay? Where's her kitten now?'
'Up in my room, why?'
'I'll take it over to her, it might help her to have it around.'
'Is there anything we can do?' Stella asked as she placed the cooked pancakes onto a plate.
'Not at the moment, um… I'll let you know how things go. For now though, I want you both to head to school so finish your breakfast and be on your way.'
'Can we see her?'
'I don't think right now is a good time, Augie. Depending on how she is when you get home from school, you might be able to see her then. She just needs time at the moment. Okay?'
He nodded. 'Alright.'
'Make sure you both get to school on time.'
After their father had left the kitchen, the two siblings looked at each other, not knowing what to say. 'Gees, poor Maddie…' August finally remarked after a long moment of silence. 'Maybe we should do something nice for her.'
'Like what?' Stella questioned.
'I don't know yet.' He sighed, turning the stove off. 'Let me think it over for a while, I'll let you know if I think of anything.'
'Knock knock.'
Maddie heard Cordell's voice at the doorway, brushing the tears off her cheeks before she rolled over. 'Come in.'
'I brought you something.' He replied as he walked in, bringing the object around from behind his back. The teen's face brightened slightly as he placed Bubbles in her arms, the teen cradling the kitten close to her chest. 'August told me you asked him to look after her, I thought you might want her here with you.'
She gave the kitten a kiss on the forehead, Bubbles purring loudly as she nudged her with her nose. 'Thank you…' She looked back at the Ranger after a moment, her kitten still nudging her face. 'Did you find anything?'
'The Investigation will be ongoing for sometime, I've just gotten back from seeing how things are going over there.' He replied, taking a seat on the bed beside her. 'Um, Captain James, my boss, he's going to want to speak to you.'
'About what happened?'
He nodded. 'We're going to need to get an official statement from you about what happened, he was going to drop in soon to come see you.'
'You won't make me talk to him alone, will you?'
'I can stay with you if you wish.'
Maddie nodded, her kitten climbing down to find a nice spot on the bed to curl up on. 'I'd appreciate that.'
'I was also on the phone to Coach Barnett, you remember him right?' The teen nodded again. 'He's coming over to check over that gunshot wound and if he says you need to go see a doctor, you're going to have to go. Understood?'
'I understand.' She replied softly. 'What happens now? I mean… With the investigation? What will you be doing?'
'We'll try to find evidence, question suspects. You won't be able to go back to the house until the investigation is complete-'
Maddie didn't pay much attention to what he was saying, staring off into the distance. Somehow it didn't seem real, her father couldn't be gone and yet she had watched him die before her eyes… With her father dead, there was no sense in keeping secret the fact that her father had stolen their cattle. 'There's something I need to tell you, Walker.'
Cordell stopped talking at her interruption. 'About last night?'
She shook her head. 'No, about your fathers missing cattle.'
He frowned. What did the missing cattle have to do with anything?
'I know who stole them.'
'You do?' He questioned with surprise.
Maddie nodded. 'It was Clive, one of the temporary ranch hands. And my father.'
'Y-your father? Maddie-'
'I know, I should have said something sooner. I'm sorry.' She apologized quickly. 'I didn't want my Dad to go back to jail, alright? That's why I didn't tell anyone. I know he was in jail, I know you arrested him right after we arrived here. Clint West was speaking the truth when he told me but I didn't want to believe it. I didn't want to believe that my father is-' She corrected herself a moment later with a deep breath. 'was, a criminal.'
'And the cattle?'
'I found them when I was riding home a couple days ago, they had been hidden in the forest on our property. My father and Clive turned up, I overheard them saying they were sending them to a slaughter house across the border. I confronted Dad about it, told him it wasn't right but he wouldn't listen. So, I let the cattle out and bought them back here. They're in the back Northern pasture, near the creek.'
'You moved-' He paused in disbelief. 'Over a hundred head of cattle? By yourself?'
'I had to, I didn't want Dad to go to jail for cattle rustling if they got caught.' Her voice broke and she paused for a moment. 'Maybe it would have been better if I had told you, he'd be in jail, not dead.'
Cordell was going to reply when Abeline walked in, bringing with her some old clothes of Stella's and they both left the room to let her change. 'How was she last night?'
'Cried herself to sleep.' She replied, looking back to the guest room. 'To lose her mother, and now her father…' Her voice trailed off and she sighed softly as she turned back to him. 'I can't imagine how she must be feeling.'
'James, he's going to be here soon to take down her statement.' He started after a moment. 'It might be a good idea for you to be with her when he's doing that.'
Abeline nodded. 'If she wants me to, I'll stay with her. Cordell-' He looked back at her. 'Last night, did you see those bruises she has?'
'I did. What did she tell you?'
'Said she took a fall off Skylar but I don't believe her.'
'She could have-' He was interrupted when the door behind them opened, Maddie emerging from the room with her kitten in her arms.
'May I have some breakfast please?' She questioned meekly.
'Of course honey, but I think you should go back to bed-'
She shook her head. 'I'm fine, I don't want to stay in bed.'
Abeline and Cordell exchanged a look but after a moment, she gave in. 'Alright, but you are only going to the kitchen to sit, you aren't helping me cook breakfast.'
'Deal.' Maddie smiled sadly then turned to Cordell. 'Your mother knows how to make a hard bargain.' He laughed softly as they headed into the dining room and he pulled out a chair for her at the table next to Bonham.
'Morning Maddie.'
She gave him a sad smile, still holding on tight to her kitten. 'Morning sir. Um…' Abeline and Cordell went into the kitchen to start on breakfast, leaving her alone with him. 'Your missing cattle, they're in the Northern pasture.'
Bonham almost choked on his coffee, placing the mug down as he looked at her. 'How do you know that?'
'Cause I moved them there myself.'
'Maddie-'
She continued with her explanation quickly, telling him the same thing as she had told Cordell. When she was finished, she couldn't look at him. She was sure he was going to be angry with her for not telling the authorities what she had found.
'Maddie.' He started kindly after a moment, the girl slowly looking back at him. 'It's not up to the child to save the parent.'
She frowned. 'What does that mean?'
'It means honey, your Daddy was a grown man. He made his own decisions and choices and the bad ones that he made weren't your responsibility to put right.'
'Are you mad at me?'
'Not mad, disappointed yes, but I can understand why you kept it secret. You didn't want him to go to jail.'
'Why did you all lie to me though?' She questioned after a pause. 'You all knew that my father was in jail all those months, why didn't anyone tell me the truth?'
'I uh-' Cordell spoke up as he returned to the dining room, having overheard the question. 'I think I should answer that question.' He pulled out a chair across from her and sat down. 'I spoke to your father after he had been arrested, he didn't want you to know about what had happened and asked for me not to tell you-'
'I would rather have heard the truth from you than have heard it from Clint West.' She replied, her voice hitching with emotion. 'All that time and you didn't tell me.'
'I know, I'm sorry…'
Maddie bit her lip, struggling to keep her emotions at bay. 'When Clint told me my father was a criminal, I didn't want to believe it but when I found he had stolen the cattle, I knew it was true.' She swallowed the lump back in her throat, wanting to say more but decided against it. 'I just wish you had told me the truth…'
Abeline returned with some baked beans on toast and Cordell offered to look after the kitten so she could eat. Forcing back tears, she forced herself to swallow what she ate as her thoughts took over her mind once more. She didn't know what to think, didn't know what to feel. Her heart was broken, her mind confused and tormented by everything that had happened.
The front doorbell rang and Bonham went to open it, inviting Captain James, Micki and Trey into the house. Letting Maddie finish her breakfast, Cordell got the Captain and his partner up to speed on what the teen had told him. Trey tended to her wound in the living room once she had eaten, confirming that it wasn't bad enough to go to hospital, much to her relief.
After Trey had looked her over, he excused himself and left to head to work, leaving the Captain and Micki to speak privately with her.
'Maddie-' Cordell introduced the Captain as they walked into the living room. 'This is Captain James.'
'Hello Sir.'
'It's good to meet you Maddie.' He replied, taking a seat on the couch opposite where she sat with Abeline. 'Walker has told me a lot about you, naimly that little prank you and August pulled on his truck a few weeks back.'
That brought a slight chuckle from her, helping her to relax a little. 'The one where we connected a horn to the electrical plug and the brake pedal and he thought we'd done it under the dash?'
'Yeah, that's the one.'
'It was a good one.' Micki added. 'But you know, he's going to get you back for that one day.'
'I'm expecting it.'
'Just as long as neither of you let squirrels loose in the other's bedroom.' Abeline interjected. 'Which is what Cordell did to Liam.'
'I bet that went down well.'
'I was on stable mucking duty for three months after that.' Cordell replied, his cheeks slightly red.
'So.' Larry started after a moment of silence. 'Walker explained to you about providing a statement?'
She nodded. 'Yes sir.'
'Do you think you are up to doing that now?'
'I am.' She replied after a slight hesitation.
'Alright. Just take your time, there's no need to rush. In your own words, tell me what happened.'
Maddie took a deep breath, Abeline placing an arm around her for support and she smiled gratefully at her then turned back to the Captain. 'It was late, I was waiting for Dad to come home…' Her voice shook a little and she swallowed back the lump in her throat. 'When he got back, he seemed upset about something. When I asked him, he told me had lost everything playing poker. He'd lost his truck, his money… The men he played with offered him a chance to win it back but the only thing he had left was me. He bet me and he lost.'
Her eyes began to water but she forced herself to keep it together and keep going. 'Dad decided he wasn't going to let the men take me, he bought out a pistol and some money he had hidden. I didn't want him to deal with it on his own, I wanted him to call the police but he wouldn't… The men arrived-' She swallowed hard again. 'Dad tried to reason with them, tried to offer the money but they wouldn't take it. That's when they shot him… Right in front… of me.' Tears slipped down her cheeks and she quickly brushed them away, taking a moment to restrain her emotions before she went on. 'A-after he was dead, the man who had shot him forced me into my bedroom. He was going to rape me…' She had to take another deep breath, reliving what she was speaking over in her mind. 'I managed to get away, they were shooting at me while I was getting away on Skylar, that's how I got shot. After that, I came here…'
Larry finished writing down what she said then looked back up at her. 'Do you remember anything else about the men that you didn't tell Walker?'
She shook her head. 'I was too scared, I didn't get a good look at them. They looked rough though-' She paused, something coming to mind. 'One of them, one the guy who killed my father called Chuck, he had a tattoo on his wrist. Two capital N's.'
Northside Nation. Just as they had suspected. 'Do you know if those men knew your father? Were they friends or just someone he played poker with?'
'I don't know, he wouldn't tell me anything about what he does- did...' She corrected. It just felt so off to refer to him in past tense… It made it feel all the more real that he was gone. 'I don't know who his friends are or anything.'
'Is there anyone you can think of that might have had a reason to want him dead?'
She shrugged, shaking her head. 'I wish I knew, I want the bloody bastard who killed him in jail.'
'You have our word we're doing the best we can to find who is responsible.'
'I just wish I knew more information that could help.'
'You have helped us, with that description we should be able to narrow down some suspects. Now I need to ask you a few other things, is that okay? You're doing alright?'
Maddie nodded. 'I just want to get this over and done with.'
'We've been trying to locate your father's next of kin but there is nothing coming up on his records. Would you have the contact details for any member of his family?'
'He doesn't have any. His mother died of a drug overdose when he was little and his father abandoned him when he was sixteen, he believed he's dead. He might have other family members but he never spoke about them.'
'What about on your mothers side? We need to find out if there is anyone available to take care of you.'
'CPS tried to find relatives on both sides before when my mother passed, I don't have any family.' She sighed heavily then looked back at the Captain. 'Its a group home for me, I'm guessing.'
'She uh, she can stay here, with us, for now.' Cordell spoke up, his mother nodding in agreement. 'If that's what you want Maddie.'
She smiled sadly. 'I would appreciate that. Thank you.'
'Hey, Maddie.' August said softly as he approached her, the girl turning from staring out the window to look at him. 'I um… Dad… told us what happened. Maddie, I'm so sorry.'
Maddie nodded, swallowing as the Walker boy took a seat beside her. 'It uh… It doesn't feel real.'
'I remember what it was like when Dad told us about our Mom.' He replied after a moment. 'It wasn't until after her funeral and he left that it sunk in. I kept hoping that it had been a mistake or something, but after the funeral, I knew she wasn't coming home.'
'I saw him die.' She was staring back out the window again, a few birds walking across the lawn as the sun began to set. 'I… I watched him die but it just feels… like a nightmare I just want to wake up from.'
'I'm sorry. I can't imagine what that was like.'
'You know what's the hardest?' Biting her lip as her eyes began to mist again, she turned to him. 'I think he was going to try and change. We-we had an argument yesterday morning. A really bad argument but after, he apologized to me. My Dad has never apologized to me in his entire life. He said it wouldn't happen again… I believed him, I-I think he was going to try and become a better father but now he won't have the chance and I'll never know…'
August wasn't sure what to do for a moment when Maddie began to cry but then slipped an arm over her shoulder. 'I don't know what to say Maddie. I'm sorry, I'm really sorry.'
She brushed the tears from her cheeks, gathering her emotions under control again. 'You know… You are so lucky to have a Dad that loves you, that really really loves you… My Dad, he… he had a lot of problems.' She swallowed the lump back in her throat, wiping those tears pooling in the corners of her eyes on her sleeve. 'But he- he died, trying to protect me… And I said things to him… horrible things…and he still tried to keep me safe.'
Taking another shaky deep breath, she looked back out the window. 'How… how did you and Stella manage when your Mom died?'
'We didn't.' He replied. 'Dad had just left so Gramps and Mawline moved us back here since there was no one else to take care of us and Uncle Liam moved back from New York to help them. Then we had to start at a new school and Mom's death had been in the news so everyone there knew what happened. Stella and I didn't talk much, she started going out with friends and getting into trouble and well… I just tried to pretend like it didn't happen. There was just so much going on, with Dad being away and everything, we really didn't have time to process it all.'
She nodded. 'When my Mom died, it was like that too. My Mom had asked a friend to take care of me, but when Mom passed, they didn't want me. Said I had too many problems-' She scoffed bitterly, swallowing hard again. 'And they told CPS to put me into foster care.'
'That's rough.'
'It was, I didn't really have a chance either to work through her passing, they didn't even let me go to her funeral…' Maddie bit down on her lip again. 'I never got to say goodbye to her either, Dad never took me to visit her grave…' Silence fell between them, the sun setting over the horizon and Abeline came into the living room.
'Dinner is almost ready.' She said softly, coming up behind the two of them. 'I even made some of those sticky buns you like for dessert Maddie.'
A sad smile touched the corners of her lips as she looked up at her. 'Thank you.'
Abeline patted her shoulder gently. 'Your welcome honey.'
'You need a hand to the table?' August questioned when his grandmother left, Maddie shaking her head.
'No, I'm fine-' She replied as she got up, winching slightly. 'It's just a graze, Mr. Barnett said it's not a bad wound.'
He watched her closely though as they made their way into the dining room then pulled her chair out for her. 'You don't need to worry about Skylar either, Stella and I will look after her until you're feeling better.'
Maddie took her seat, August sitting down next to her. 'And who gets to muck out her stall?'
He chuckled softly. 'Stella and I will take turns on that one.'
'Skylar is alright though, isn't she?'
'Skylar is doing just fine.' Bonham replied as he came to join them at the dining table. 'A bit skittish and frightened but she'll calm down in a couple days.'
She sighed with relief. 'Thank goodness she's alright. I didn't even stop to think she might have gotten hurt last night…'
'Well, she's just fine. You have my word on that.'
'And with Stella and I looking after her, you won't need to worry.' August added. 'We'll take good care of her.'
Maddie smiled sadly, touched by the fact that Stella and August would offer to look after her horse while she was hurt, without her asking or them being told to do it. As Bonham and his grandson began a conversation, Maddie slipped back into her own thoughts, staring off into the distance once more.
The gunshots.
Her father falling to the floor.
A moment later, herself falling to her knees beside him, trying to stop him bleeding as she yelled at him to stay with her.
'I'm sorry…' She could hear his words playing over and over in her mind. 'I-I… I let… you down… I… became the father… I vowed… to never… be like…'
I became the father I vowed to never be like.
It was the most she had ever heard him speak of his father. It had been Mother who told her that her Daddy's father had walked out on him when he was a boy…
'No, no, you stay with me! Don't you dare leave me!'
She was screaming at him.
'Don't you dare die!'
Her father's breathing becoming more raggard as he struggled to get his last words out. 'I tried… to… love… you…'
His eyes staring blankly through her as his breath left his body…
'Maddie.'
Maddie jumped, Cordell having placed his hand on her shoulder. The family were seated now, about to eat their evening meal and were waiting for her to say grace. 'Sorry…' She apologized softly, folding her hands for the prayer. 'I kinda zoned out for a moment.'
Bonham said the grace, the family starting their meal after he had finished. Conversation was spoken softly around the table but Maddie paid it no attention, staring blankly down at her plate as she pushed her food around with her fork. Abilene had made up pot roast knowing it was one of her favorites but she didn't feel hungry… Unable to stay at the table anymore, she pushed her plate from her then looked over at Bonham. 'May I be excused please sir?'
'You haven't eaten much Maddie.'
'I'm just not hungry Sir, I do appreciate you cooking this for me though Abeline.' The woman smiled at her. 'I think I'm going to go lie down.'
Bonham nodded.
'I'll come check on you in a little while.' Abeline said as she stood from the table. 'We'll need to change those dressings again.'
She nodded and after saying a polite goodnight to everyone present, made her way back to the guest room. Tears started to escape her eyes again as she closed the door of the bedroom behind her, the teen swallowing back the lump in her throat. The Walkers were all being exceedingly kind but even so, nothing could take away the ache in her heart.
Bubbles rose to meet her when she sat down on her bed, the kitten purring softly as she took her into her arms. Tears ran down into her kitten's fur, Maddie holding her tightly while she sobbed. Her father was gone. Really gone.
She was alone.
Her greatest fear.
She hated being alone.
