Katie's flight would arrive at eleven in the morning and instead of driving to the airport the same day, they spent the night in Fort Worth. This meant the drive would only be three hours each way, instead of making it all at once. Coralee's back had started to bother her so making the drive in two trips made sense.
Travis took her out to dinner and was proud that night as they sat in the restaurant. She had found a strapless maternity dress of lavender silk and had swept her hair up off her shoulders. He often felt jealous when men stared at her, but tonight he did not feel jealous, he felt proud to be married to such a beauty.
The next morning, they got to the airport early and sat and drank coffee while they waited for Katie's plane to arrive. When her flight was announced they went to the gate and waited for her.
Coralee looked eagerly for her sister, searching for her in the crowd that was making their way into the terminal. When she spotted her, she waved, and Katie perked up and waved back, then ran to her sister and threw her arms around her.
To Travis's eyes, she didn't resemble the girl who had been his wife's maid of honor. Katie looked pale and sad, she hadn't attempted to improve her looks by wearing makeup. Katie had always been the more outgoing of the two sisters, the more mischievous, but she had lost her sparkle. He felt a little sorry for her, even though she had brought some of her problems on herself.
Coralee was shocked at how Katie looked but said nothing. At last, she had family with her, even if it was only her sister. Katie was something that she could hold onto to chase the homesickness away. And she could help Katie to try and chase away her demons. There were things in life that only family could cure.
Travis took them out to a steakhouse, Coralee needed to eat, and Katie looked like she could use a good meal, too. At first, Katie picked at her food, then she began to eat as if she had found her appetite.
Coralee was doing justice to her meal, eagerly devouring her steak, then set down her fork and asked for news of the ranch.
Katie hesitated, as if reluctant to broach the subject. She looked at Travis, then at Coralee, and took a sip of her wind before responding.
"Mom told me not to say anything, Coralee, she doesn't want you to get upset." Katie looked down at her plate and the lonely piece of meat on her fork. "It's not very good news."
"Katie," Travis spoke in his gentlest voice, "What's going on, what aren't you supposed to tell Coralee?"
"Well, I don't know all of it," she answered, "I've heard Mom and Dad talking when they didn't know I was listening. Something's happening at the ranch, Someone, and, I don't know who they are, has been cutting the barbed wire fences and letting out the cattle. The last time it happened a couple of steers were killed. Dad says it's like the old days when they were trying to force people off their land. He didn't tell me much more than that."
"So someone is messing with John's cows, did you know about this Coralee?" Travis looked at his wife, but she shook her head.
"I think Jamie mentioned something about problems with the ranch to me once," she said, "He did say that there are people who are trying to force Uncle John to sel. The way he explained it, well, it sounded like he was handling it. I had so much going on in those days that maybe he didn't want to upset me or make me worry."
"I think I may call Jamie" she went on, "but not today. Maybe I'll call Dad first and find out what he knows. Whatever it is, he'll be there to help Uncle John, we're Duttons, we to stick together. Maybe this is no more than some old-fashioned cattle rustling."
"I think it's more than that," Katie replied, "Lynelle Perry came over one night, and she and Uncle John holed up in his office for a long time. Neither looked very happy when she left. Maybe I should start paying more attention to what's going on."
Governor Lynelle Perry and John Dutton were lovers of long standing. Coralee thought they made a good pair and wondered why the relationship hadn't evolved into something more. Lynelle was good for her uncle, that much she could see, and if they were to marry, she would be happy for them.
Beth hated her, but Coralee thought that Beth would hate any woman who got close to her father. Lynelle was not afraid of Beth and that probably made things worse. Sometimes Coralee wondered if Beth wanted her father all to herself, no woman would ever be good enough. Sometimes she wondered if Beth loved her father a little too much.
"I'm going to call Lynelle, maybe she'll talk to me. I've always liked her; she's a good person and she's made a good governor. She's reaching the end of her second term and I wonder what she's going to do next. She'd make a great senator." Now why did I say that, thought Coralee.
They finished their lunch and then headed to the car park. Ever the gentleman, Travis carried Katie's suitcase and loaded it into the car. He also opened Coralee's car door for her, then did the same for Katie.
"Okay, girls," he told them, "Coralee, tell me when you need a bathroom break, otherwise I'm going to try to make good time getting back to the ranch. This part of Texas is pretty, Katie, it's going to be a bit of a change for you, but once you get used to it, you'll appreciate it."
Texas, as it had to her sister, seemed just plain brown to her, but it could be like that in summers in Montana, Wyoming, and Idaho. She was struck by how flat the landscape seemed, but if you looked again, you could see hills and scrub trees. Trees meant that there was water, but she couldn't see much of it.
She looked at Coralee who was resting her head against the window and smiling at her husband. She still thought Travis was too old for her sister, but they seemed to suit each other. Coralee seemed happy and it wasn't just because she had a baby on the way.
Katie thought about her broken marriage and wished that she and Ryan could have made things work. Ryan was a cowboy, her mother had warned her, he lived and ate in the bunkhouse and it was unlikely that things would change. Unlikely didn't mean never, Katie thought to herself for the hundredth time. She'd hurt him, but he'd hurt her, too.
Cowboys did get married, but their pay was low, and if they wanted to survive their wives worked. She'd had her fill of rodeo cowboys, they were flighty and fickle and lived for the attention of the crowd and the buckle bunnies. Ryan didn't rodeo, he was a hard worker, sometimes a little hot-headed but was a reliable hand.
She could go back to school, she hadn't taken college seriously. She didn't know if she could deal with the amount of time it would take to become a vet, but she could become a vet tech and then decide if she wanted to continue school. She was tired of living at home, but she could deal with living there a little longer, her parents would probably pay for her to go back to school.
It was late afternoon when they reached the ranch, the skies were changing color and a breeze had come up. Now the sparse nature of the country seemed almost beautiful in a stark, lonely, way.
The house was nice, a mixture of adobe and wood. There was no lawn to speak of, but the front yard had been left natural, full of mesquite and sage. It would take a lot of water to produce a garden, and she wasn't sure if her sister could pull it off.
Coralee took her hand, Travis grabbed her suitcase, and Katie let herself be pulled inside.
The inside of the house was a revelation. Just as the inside of her parents and her uncle's houses were decorated with Western art, the theme of Travis's decorating showed a heavy Southwest influence. There were rugs made by various indigenous tribes and paintings of Navajo women. On the floor were animal skin rugs and there were even antler chandeliers like Uncle John had at home.
Travis lit a fire in the fireplace and soon it was crackling, casting shadows on the walls. Coralee took Katie's hand and led her upstairs to the room where she'd be staying.
It was cozy, it even had a small fireplace for nights when it got cold. There was a rug made of a deerskin, and paintings of Navajo women like there were in the living room. The furniture was made of plain wood, but the overall impression was one of comfort.
"The air conditioner is here, it works well, but it stays cool in here. Whoever built this place knew how to build for a climate like this. We've had one tornado since I've been here and all it did was rip a few shutters off the house. This house has stood for a hundred years, and it will probably stand for at least another hundred." It made Coralee proud to say those things, she was starting to see the house as home.
"Anyway, Kate, freshen up and put away some stuff then come downstairs. Elena's made rack of lamb for dinner, she must be showing off. I like southwest cuisine so we eat a lot of that. And no one is better when it comes to Mexican food, she's taught me how to make a few things. Anyway," she kissed Katie on the cheek, "I'll see you downstairs."
Katie washed her face, then put away a few things, she'd leave the rest for later. She'd learned how to live out of suitcases a long time ago. She decided to change clothes and exchanged her jeans for a pair of coral slacks and a cream silk blouse. She looked at her reflection in the mirror and shrugged, it was still hard to look at herself, she felt so distant from who she was.
Downstairs, Travis was sipping some whiskey, and Coralee had to content herself with drinking iced tea. She looked at her and asked, "Ready? Elena's got dinner ready for us, so if you're hungry, let's eat." She led her to the dining table.
The table was covered with a burnt orange linen tablecloth. Everything in the house had a desert flavor, the colors were warm, brown, sand beige, gold, umber, and sage green. The plates were ironstone instead of china and were the color of harvest gold. The cutlery was silver and modern and the glasses were cut crystal. It was not at all like the table at John Dutton's house.
At first, they didn't do much talking, and dinner was followed by Elena's famous flan. When they had sated their appetites, they adjourned to the living room where Katie and Travis drank whiskey and Coralee had to content herself with sipping coffee. They were full from dinner, and drowsy, but Coralee had questions that she had to ask.
"Katie," she said, "Who is it exactly that is trying to take the ranch? I mean, do you have a name?"
"Well, there's this firm called Market Equity that made an offer on the ranch, but Uncle John turned it down." Katie was looking uncomfortable, but Coralee had to pursue it.
"Well, did things start after that, after Uncle John turned down their offer?" Katie leaned forward, waiting for her sister to answer.
"No, it's recent. Jamie thinks they wouldn't stoop to that, it would get them in a lot of trouble. But someone is targeting the Yellowstone, and they aren't particularly choosy about their methods. Going after the cattle is playing dirty. The cows are insured but still." Katie lifted her hands as if to emphasize her feeling of helplessness.
"Has John increased the number of men he has guarding the cattle?" Travis spoke for the first time.
"Yes, he's had to hire some extra hands, and Kayce brought in some officers from the livestock association. He's moved some cattle to upper pastures that would be harder to reach. They've ridden the fences to look for places where the fences have been breached. He doesn't care what it takes, he's making sure that no one can harm the herds. It will cost him, but he prefers it to losing cattle.
"I wish I were there to help," said Coralee, "I wonder if Evan could take a leave from the Four Sixes and come and help. Maybe if he explained that Uncle needed the extra help, and why, they'd be willing to let him leave for a while."
"That's not likely to happen, honey," Travis said, "But given the circumstances, they might be willing and even send along a few men. What's happening on the ranch is serious and John will need the extra help. Coralee, I'm sorry, but you're going to have to let your uncle take care of this. I know your loyalty to the Yellowstone, but you have a baby on the way and that will have to be your first concern." He drained the last of the whiskey from his glass, "Come on, let's go to bed. Katie, are you ready to come upstairs?"
Katie shook her head. "No, I think I want to stay down here for a while. Coralee showed me how the lights work, I'll turn everything off when I go upstairs."
She watched Travis and her sister go upstairs and heard their bedroom door shut. She stared at the fire for a long time, ruminating on the mistakes she'd made with Ryan. She cried, softly, not wanting to disturb them but would have given anything to have heard his knock at the door.