It was undeniable that things on the ranch were different. Word had gotten around rather quickly about everything, and it had repercussions on everyone and everything. Ryan spoke to no one and ignored anything Rip told him, making the already tension between them even more palpable. Beth and Rip were still in a fighting spirit, and no one had seen John as he was trying to do damage control on the political side of his career.
Even if most of the ranch hands were on Roxy's side, no one dared to voice their opinions.
Ryan looked out at the horizon as the sun rose. A little over a year ago, a sunrise was a sunrise, but with Roxy it had become so much more, so meaningful, now it felt bittersweet. Late in the evening he had returned to the cabin, and upon seeing that Roxy had moved out her things and officially left the ranch, he had in the end packed up and returned to the bunk house. He didn't belong there anymore and after what he had done, he was sure that Lee wouldn't want him living in his home.
Everyone walked on eggshells in the bunkhouse with Ryan's return and also on the ranch in general.
Teeter sat on the railing of the arena as Lloyd stood next to her.
"Things aren't the same around without Doc," she said as she chewed on her wad of tobacco.
"No that it ain't," answered Lloyd.
"She'll come back, and they'll fix things, right?"
Lloyd shot Ryan a glance. "That is solely up to him."
"How could he hold that against her? It's not as if she decided to leave him because of the women he had in his life before her."
"You don't need to tell me this, Teeter, I know it."
Lloyd took out his bandana and wiped the bead of sweat away from his brow. "I think this has more to do with the fact that it has Rip written all over it. Had it been any other guy, I doubt he would have reacted the way he did."
"Rip is married to Beth."
Lloyd laughed slightly. "Rip played with fire when it comes to Roxy and massively burned that bridge. Beth always had a thing for Rip, and I think he took advantage of that. I'm not saying he doesn't love her, but the love between those two is no way near what he and Roxy had. If he could go back in time and change everything and end up with Roxy, he'd do it in a heartbeat."
Teeter shrugged. "I'm not sure about that. Between him and Ryan, Ryan seems to be more upset about Roxy being gone."
"Rip just hides things a lot better. Look at him," said Lloyd.
Teeter turned her head and casually looked at Rip.
"You see the way his jaws are clenched?"
"Yeah."
"That's how he controls his emotions. I've known him since he was a kid. It wouldn't take much for something to light the fuse and him to explode. Ryan knows that which is why he's ignoring Rip."
"I don't understand," replied Teeter as she looked back at Lloyd.
"Rip partly blames Ryan for Roxy's departure. He also blames John, but he's smart enough to not make it known otherwise there is a fair chance he'd be out of a job."
"So, what do we do to bring Doc back?"
"Nothing," replied Lloyd. "No matter how we want to fix things, it's not up to us."
From where they were, Lloyd and Teeter watched as Ryan passed Rip, ignoring once again what Rip was asking of him.
"I told you to go help Walker with the heifers!" said Rip angrily as he stormed toward Ryan.
"Send Jake," replied Ryan continuing to walk toward the arena gate.
"If I had wanted Jake to do it, I would have asked him, but I asked you. Now get the fuck over there and help him."
Seeing that Ryan kept heading for the arena, Rip placed himself in front of him blocking him.
"Get out of my way, Rip."
"Or what? You're going to make me?"
Rip narrowed his eyes and gave him a really dark and mean look. "Damn right I will, Roxy isn't here to save your sorry ass anymore and you're no longer in John's good graces."
"How convenient for you, isn't it," said Ryan as he pushed past Rip.
"What did you just say to me you son of a bitch?"
Ryan whipped around and marched toward Rip stopping just a few inches from him.
"You finally got what you wanted, so get off my back."
"I didn't ask for this."
Ryan sneered. "You couldn't stand for us to be together."
"And you tossed her aside like a piece of meat when you said you wouldn't," replied Rip getting angrier by the minute.
Feeling that he was at a disadvantage, Ryan fired back.
"She left because of you!"
"Bullshit!" replied Rip. "She left because of you. Knowing that she and I had been in a relationship years ago was always something you couldn't digest and the fact that she was carrying my son gave you the perfect excuse to bail out!"
"Fuck you, Rip! I loved her."
Rip twitched and took a step back. "Oh man, already talking in the past tense, are you? That was quick."
"I guess you and I have a lot more in common," retorted Ryan.
Rip shook his head. "You and I have nothing in common. Never, do you hear me, never have I used the past tense when talking about my love for Roxy. I love her, I always have, and I always will, until my dying day. A woman like that comes around once in a lifetime. In case you suffer from temporary memory loss, I didn't have a choice when she left, and I would have run after her if I could have. You… you made her leave and well, I don't see you running after her, wanting to make things right. Either you're a coward or you never loved her like you made everyone on this ranch believe!"
Ryan armed his fist back and punched Rip in the face sending Rip stumbling a few steps back.
"Ah, shit," replied Lloyd as he started to walk away from Teeter. "Here we go."
Rip punched Ryan back and then both men lunged at each other continuing to throw punches.
Colby, Jake and Lloyd reached them and separated them.
Lloyd searched Rip's eyes. "Unless you want to be out of a job and sleep in the doghouse, pull your shit together."
"I don't see you running after her either," slithered Ryan as he was held back by Jake.
Rip tried to push past Lloyd, ready to give Ryan another rendez-vous with his fist.
"What the hell is going on, here?" they heard Kayce's menacing tone of voice as he entered the arena, having most probably come down from the lodge.
"Nothing," replied Lloyd as he gave Rip another intense look, almost begging him to stop.
"Doesn't look like nothing to me," answered Kayce as he reached them and shifted his attention from Rip to Ryan and back at Rip.
Rip took a step away from Lloyd. "Just a difference in opinion. It's all good, Kayce."
"Ryan, you, Colby, and Jake go get the heifers in pasture 6 and bring them back. We've got a lot of work on our plate, and they need to be back before the vet gets here."
No one said a word as the three men walked toward their horses, mounted them, and rode away.
"Have any of you been in contact with Roxy?" asked Kayce as he looked at Lloyd and Rip. He knew there was no point in asking Ryan, more than certain that if her sister had reached out to anyone, he was the last one on the list for the moment.
"I saw her when she packed up her things," replied Lloyd.
"Did she say where she was staying?"
"She said at her practice."
Kayce shook his head. "That's unlikely. I stopped by there earlier. Place is crawling with reporters. I called her assistant, and she told me that Roxy closed the practice a couple of days ago."
"That doesn't mean that she's not staying there," answered Rip.
"The concierge of the building says that she hasn't been there."
"Then where is she?" asked Lloyd, "And why lie to us?"
"After what my father said to her, what Ryan did, I'm not surprised she didn't tell us the truth. As to where she is? Your guess is as good as mine. Maybe she went back to Cheyenne."
"Why are you worried about her now?" asked Rip still in a foul mood.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"You were in that room with us when the truth came out. You're going to stand there and tell me you were there for her."
"You've decided to pick a fight with everyone today, Rip?" asked Kayce.
"No. It's not my fault, you and Ryan, can't take the truth when it's thrown in your faces," replied Rip.
Kayce said nothing. Rip wasn't entirely wrong. Kayce had been distant because he had felt it wasn't his business and he was just as guilty in doing nothing to support her sister while the others burned her at the stake.
"Everyone around here reacts as if nothing has happened and all is normal, but it's not," said Rip. "I refuse to go on every day as if Roxy had never been here, had never come back and didn't go through hell."
"No one thinks things are normal," said Lloyd. "Most of them are worried about Roxy, about Ryan and about you."
"Me?" asked Rip.
"Boy," said Lloyd, "you can put on an act, but you can't stand there and tell me that knowing you were to be a father and that the woman you loved miscarried your child, going through that difficult time all by herself, doesn't have an impact on you."
Kayce eyed Rip and saw him swallow as his eyes stared in the middle of nowhere.
"You're right, I can't tell you that. Ever since that night, I've been imagining what my life, our life, would have been if things had gone down differently. When Roxy first came back, I confronted her about the reason she left me and the ranch 20 years ago and I called her selfish. I didn't believe her when she told me that what she had done had been for me, for us. I blame myself for thinking that. I know Roxy, maybe better than anyone on this ranch. I should have believed her. Now, I understand why she did it and being despicable to her makes me feel awful."
As the three men stood, they all silently agreed that Roxy had always done everything with others in mind, always, for the past twenty years if not longer. What had any of them done for her?
"I'll try to find out where she is," said Kayce. "I'll bring her home with me and try to talk to my father."
Rip nodded. "I'll see if I hear anything on my end. Someone is bound to have seen her. As for your father… well I'll leave that to you, I've got enough on my plate with Beth."