By 11 o'clock Amy finished cleaning and straightening the interior of the house then hopped in the shower before Soraya arrived with her mom's chili along with a few pies and bouquets of fresh cut flowers for the centerpieces. The guys kept their distance from the house after Amy practically threw Ty out so she could clean in peace. But they had their hands full anyway with the inmates who were taking turns in the round pen. The few times Amy peeked outside she caught glimpses of someone in the dirt, or diving for the safety of the fence. Her attention didn't linger long, though, not wanting to give any of them a chance to notice her watching and take it as an invitation to engage.
"So, how are you doing?" Soraya asked as they began setting up the buffet table outside.
Amy's attention snapped back from where it once again strayed to the men gathered around the perimeter of the pen while one of them was in the middle with a black horse. Wary of them as she was, she was still curious about what exactly they were trying to do. "Hmm?"
Soraya jerked her head toward the men. "With all this. It must be a little unsettling to be around so many criminals."
"Yeah. But at least here there are armed guards to supervise." It wasn't quite the same living in a place with more organized criminals running amok and disrupting your life when they come to rough up your father for non-payment. "I've been doing my best to avoid them."
"You're probably the first woman they've seen since Lisa left for France a few months ago. I bet they took to you like candy." Soraya smiled in a teasing way but the thought made Amy uncomfortable. She didn't want to be the object of a sex-starved criminal's attention, let alone a dozen of them.
"They certainly aren't shy about it," Amy murmured, plugging the cord for the crockpot into the extension cord to the house.
"Don't worry, when Lisa's back they'll lay off."
"I hope you're right." Soraya wasn't the first to tell her that and it only made Amy more eager for Lisa to get her butt back home. Jack and Ty did a good enough job so far of keeping the inmates on a short leash, but it would be different having a female ally on the ranch.
Fridays were shorter days for the inmates unless there was reason to keep them longer. That afternoon all of them were exhausted if not banged to hell and dragging their feet across the yard to pick up the to-go bags Amy and Soraya put together for them with cups of chili and mini cornbread loaves. One of the two guards hovered nearby as they distributed the bags, Soraya having no problem smiling and chatting with each of them. Amy kept herself occupied trying to remember who was who. She learned their names over the course of the week, but some were easier than others. Hank, Ray, Gordie, and Jim were the few she met on her first day. Since then, she figured out Adrian, Carlos, Davis, and Emilio. Somewhere among the rest was Alex and Rory, names she heard shouted across the yard into the abyss. The others were an utter mystery. She studied them as they paraded before her, dropping her gaze when they turned in her direction, which most of them did. She was still an anomaly, something new and interesting to wonder about, though she wondered how much about her they actually did know.
"Haven't seen much of you this week." Hank's deep voice involuntarily drew Amy's attention. He was at the end of the line, lingering in front of her across the table. Amy glanced at the guard who had his attention on them this time, unlike their previous encounter. Still, he made no move to intervene, probably assuming there was no immediate danger. Meanwhile alarm bells were ringing inside Amy's head as her flight response switched on.
"Still not much for talking, I see." His eyes lingered on her face, trapping her in his gaze. Flashbacks of when he cut her off in the yard a few days ago played in her mind. He was looking at her now as he had then. It still left her uncomfortable but there was something different about it now. Her skin didn't crawl as it had before. Maybe because she wasn't quite so on edge as she had been those first few days. Avoiding them seemed to have helped her anxiety, but this was a harsh reminder of their place on the ranch.
Amy swallowed then grabbed a paper bag to hand over the table. Hank reached out to take it, his fingers folding over her hand and squeezing. Not hard, but firm enough to keep her from letting go. "You don't look an ounce like your old man."
Amy's hand jerked back like he shocked her. She gaped at him. "You knew my dad?"
"Ah, she speaks."
It was like the floodgates opened as questions came pouring into Amy's mind. Her mouth didn't know which to ask next. Unfortunately, she didn't have the chance to hear Hank's answer, or ask anything else when the guard finally stepped forward to move him along.
Amy continued to stare after them as they headed for the bus and began filing on. Before she could overthink it, Amy took off across the driveway. "Wait." A few men paused and turned around. When they saw her eyes were focused on Hank, they raised curious eyebrows. No doubt they were all staring out the window to see how this surprising interaction went down. The last guard remained nearby but otherwise permitted the delay, probably just as intrigued by what was happening.
"How did you know my dad?" The need to fill in so many blanks about her father's past that he kept tightly concealed from her overwhelmed the fear she had of Hank. The armed guard ten feet away also helped.
"Perhaps a question best answered by your father." He lifted the bag of chili in silent 'thanks' then turned for the bus.
Amy took a persistent step forward. "Story for story, you said. I tell you mine, you tell me yours, right?"
Hank paused to look over his shoulder. "I know your story," he said, his eyes lowering just like everyone else's. Amy stiffened. What did that mean? "And what you want to know isn't mine to tell. See you next week, little lady." He climbed aboard while Amy watched his shadow walk down the bus aisle and take a seat. She looked to the guard who could only shrug before he, too, hopped on.
The bus pulled away to reveal Ty standing on the other side. Of course he was there, probably eavesdropping. "God, you're like a pop-up book from hell," Amy snapped.
Ty raised his brow. "That's a new one." Actually it wasn't, but Amy would take the credit for the line. "What was that about?"
"Nothing."
Ty nodded slowly. "Lot of 'nothing' going on with you."
"What can I say, my life is the epitome of boring," Amy shrugged.
Ty hummed. "Try telling that to anyone besides yourself." Amy became the most interesting thing to arrive in Hudson since the inaugural Hudson Derby five years ago.
Setting her jaw, Amy twisted around to head back for the house. Sighing, Ty returned to the barn to finish cleaning up before he ran into the house for a shower.
"What?" Jack asked as he emerged from Paint's stall and caught the expression on his grandson's face.
Ty just shook his head. "Just glad Lisa is on her way home. We could use a referee." Or a buffer, more like.
"Speaking of, I'm going to see if the girls need help. You good to finish up here?"
"Yep." Ty waved him off.
By the time Lisa's cab made its way down the driveway trailing a plume of dust, everyone was washed up and dressed in clean jeans with their muck-covered boots neatly tucked under the bench in the mudroom. The guests hadn't arrived quite yet as Jack made sure to allow Lisa enough time to prepare for an ambush of company after her long international flight. He knew she wouldn't have been entirely pleased to have to entertain after just stepping off a plane.
The smile that lit Jack's face to see his wife was something Amy envied. For a moment it distracted her nerves to see the couple embrace after so long apart. Until Lisa's attention zeroed in on her.
"You must be Amy!" she exclaimed, breaking through the boys to pull Amy into a warm hug.
Amy froze for a split second at the sudden contact that Lisa seemed to sense for she quickly released her hold and stepped back, but still looked at Amy with a gentle smile.
"I am," she finally answered when her nerves settled somewhat. "It's nice to finally put a face to the stories."
"Oh?" Lisa turned to narrow her eyes at her husband and stepson. "And what stories might those be?"
"Nothing bad, I promise," Jack insisted as he gave her shoulder a squeeze on his way past with one of her many suitcases. Ty was hauling the others from where the cabbie left them in the driveway.
"All good things," Amy concurred, turning to follow everyone toward the house.
It was then that Lisa finally got a proper look at the set up in the yard. "What's going on here?"
"Surprise!" Soraya called from her place on the front porch. "It's your birthday slash welcome home party."
Lisa's blue eyes widened, swinging to Jack. "A party? Today? I just got off an eighteen hour flight." Her hand flew up to her hair that was disheveled from travel but still properly tied up in a clip.
Dropping the suitcase with a loud thump, Jack raised a placating hand. "I know, I know. But there is plenty of time for you to freshen up and settle in before anyone is set to arrive."
"Amy and Soraya spent all week putting this thing together," Ty added as he came outside for another load.
"Really?" Taking another look around, Lisa's expression brightened. "Well, it looks like you two pulled out all the stops."
"We have all kinds of food on the way and Caleb should be here any minute to set up the music," Soraya glanced down at her phone after shooting off a "where are you?" text to Caleb.
"Caleb's coming?" Lisa's surprise was understandable, given what she knew of the history between him and Jack.
"Soraya laid on the charm," Ty teased, butting her with his shoulder on his way past.
"And you're okay with this?" Lisa asked Jack who merely harrumphed and picked up the suitcase he dropped.
"It was his choice to shut me out. Needs to be his choice to want to make amends. Besides, he's not upset with you."
Soraya and Lisa shared a look, but Lisa merely pressed her lips together and didn't utter a word against Jack's ruling. Amy raised a questioning brow. Lisa shook her head, waiting until the door swung closed before saying more. "He's hurt. He's just too stubborn to admit it. Caleb was like another son to him until their falling out. Granted, the reason was justified."
"What happened?" Amy asked, glancing toward the house.
"There was an incident between him and one of the inmates," Lisa explained, everyone keeping their eyes on the house.
"Caleb used to work at Heartland," Soraya clarified. "He pretty much ran the program."
Lisa nodded. "Before Ty got out of prison-"
Amy sucked in a breath. "Wait, Ty was in prison?"
Lisa's brow lifted. "I gather you all didn't do much getting to know one another while I've been away."
"Not really." There wasn't much time for that between all of the tension and arguing. Not that Amy was willing to lay out her life story in exchange for Ty's. But if Lisa wanted to tell her without demanding anything in return, then she wasn't going to stop her.
"I suppose that's not really my business to tell, but yes, he was in prison for a time. Caleb stepped up and handled the extra workload, which included running the inmates. He butted heads with one of them and it escalated to the point of him being removed from the program. When he managed to cycle through again Jack allowed him back for a second chance, which Caleb didn't take well. So he quit and they haven't spoken since." Seeing Jack's silhouette in the window, Lisa rushed through the story, giving Amy enough of a picture but still curious for more details. Like which inmate and were they still part of the program now?
Jack clapped his hands, rubbing them together from his place on the porch, looking down on the women in the yard. "Alright, all your luggage is in the room. The house is yours to rest and unwind for the next while."
Lisa laughed, crinkling her nose at her husband. "Why, thank you. If you all don't mind, I think I'll take a hot bath before the party." She reached over to place a gentle hand on Amy's arm. "It's nice to meet you, dear. We'll make time to talk later, okay?"
Smiling, Amy nodded, though worried what their talking would consist of. "Welcome home."