Thaddeus set his arms across his chest as he nodded. “What about that reunion you mentioned?”
“It was just a passing thought,” said Remington. “I can’t see my way clear to making it work. It’s hard to imagine how we’d get one of them to initiate something like that, and if the reason for it were understood, it would be even less likely. We need to find another way.”
Phoebe said, “I’ve been applying myself to that very problem. I might have an idea that will work.”
Remington and Thaddeus gave her their full attention right down to the identical curious arch of their left eyebrows.
Phoebe asked, “What do you think about a wedding?”
• • •
Ben finished counting head in the bottom pasture and looked over at Les Brownlee, who was close to completing his. “I have three hundred and twenty-one, give or take, for the valley. You?”
“Just under. I think we’re good. Plenty of grazing room. No sign that the water supply’s going to be a problem. Thaddeus will like that. Hell, I like it. Wasn’t sure that we wouldn’t have to cut out a spring.”
“Same here. Let’s head back and tell him.”
Their exchanges were brief for much of the ride, most concerned Les’s tuneless whistling and Ben’s demand that he stop. Sometimes Les just hummed, which was almost as bad as far as Ben was concerned.
“Don’t you know any melodies?” Ben finally asked. “Sing something, for God’s sake.”
“That’d surely put your hackles up. I’ll try to mind. You ain’t exactly been yourself since Ellie left, but I guess it’s natural for you to miss her. I do. A few of us were talking, and there’s agreement that we’ll all be relieved when Mrs. Frost hires help at the house.” He looked sideways at Ben. “Did you see your ma when you were in town yesterday?”
“I did. She’s good. Mr. Butterworth’s offered her a job at the hotel. I’ll find out tomorrow if she’s going to take it. I’m headed back to pick up a mail order. I have a feeling her leaving Twin Star is probably going to work out for the best.”
Les nodded and knuckled his mostly clean-shaven chin. “Probably so. You think it was something about Blue’s murder that made her want to move on? Couldn’t help but notice that she was sad.”
“Maybe it had something to do with it. Hard to know a woman’s mind, especially when she’s your mother.” Ben eyed Les thoughtfully, and when the ranch hand glanced his way, he said, “I noticed you spent a fair amount of time in Miss Apple’s company this morning. You sweet on her?”
Les’s dark brown eyebrows shot up high enough to lift his hat a fraction. He blushed red to the tips of his ears. “Now why would you go and say a thing like that? Not called for. Not called for at all just because we had a chat like we were old friends.”
“All right.” Ben put up a gloved hand to call it quits. “So what do old friends like you chat about?”
Les shrugged. “Family mostly. Hers. Mine. Did you know she had family in the theater goin’ way back? I’m talking Revolutionary War days. That’s somethin’, I thought. Nothing like that in my family.”
“Huh. I had no idea. So you talked about your kin?”
“Sure. Why not? We’ve got some stories that make for interesting telling. You know the ones I mean.”
Ben frowned. “Do I?”
“Sure. Mostly I was telling you about the Puttys. Remember? Oh, it’s been a while back. We all were playin’ cards.Remington was off somewhere—Chicago, I think—but the rest of us were there. Can’t recall how it started, but we got to jawin’ about this vagrant we heard that Brewer threw in jail for showin’ off his tallywacker to Mrs. Washburn in the bank.”
“I have a vague recollection of that.”
“Well, we started trading stories, and someone—I think it was you—asked if any of us actually knew anyone who made it a habit to run left of the law.”
Ben’s frown deepened. “Me? I asked that?”
“Pretty sure. Guess it’s not important, but I know I talked about the Puttys. They don’t know there’s arightside to the law. Never did much jail time, though, so you gotta figure them for a little bit clever.”
“Huh,” said Ben. “I’ll be darned. You amuse Miss Apple with those stories?”
“Sure.” After a moment, Les regarded Ben doubtfully. “At least it seemed she was amused. Now that I’m hearin’ you don’t remember the stories, maybe she was humorin’me.”
Ben reassured Les that was unlikely. “Entertain me,” he said. “We have time, and even if I come to recollect the Putty tales, they’ll be a damn sight better than your whistling.”
Chapter Thirty-eight
