He would rename the ranch after himself and make it the best damned ranch in the valley. He took another sip of the whiskey. Or maybe he’d just sell it and live off the money. Maybe he’d have to sell it to pay his gambling debts. If he couldn’t borrow against it. He imagined walking into the bank and asking for a loan against his ranch. His ranch. He liked the sound of that.
“You might want to go easy on that stuff,” Travis said from across the fire as he watched him take another slug from the whiskey bottle. T.D. shot him a dark look. “Just sayin’ I agree with Wyatt. We should have a plan so we don’t get our fool selves shot. Jinx ain’t alone up there.”
“Don’t you think I know that?” T.D. snapped. He thought of the cowhand who’d come to his wife’s rescue the other night at the ranch. He’d seen the others, as well. A motley bunch if there ever was one. He’d recognized two of them, Royce Richards and Cash Andrews, both worthless as the day was long. Working for Jinx was probably the only job they could get after Huck had booted them off his place.
But dumb and worthless aside, they’d all be armed. And Jinx was no fool. She’d know he’d be coming after her—if she didn’t already. He got up to throw another tree limb onto the fire. He couldn’t wait until tomorrow. When he got the ranch he was going to buy himself a brand-new pickup, the best money could buy. He’d show them. He’d show them all. T. D. Sharp was somebody.
Chapter Eight
The next morning Jinx pulled Royce aside. “Here’s your pay,” she said, handing him the money she’d brought along, already anticipating that Royce and Cash wouldn’t last more than a day or so. “I think it’s best if we part company now rather than later.”
“You have to be kidding me. Just because I fell asleep?” Royce said incredulously. “I suppose you’ve never done that while on watch?”
“No, I haven’t, and I’ve been doing this since I was six.”
He shook his head. “I guess we all can’t be as perfect as you, Ms. Trail Boss. By the way, how’d you get the nickname Jinx anyway?”
“It was just something my father called me, if you must know.”
“Oh, I thought it was because you brought bad luck to everyone around you,” Royce said, his eyes narrowing angrily. “Seems all those things T.D.’s been saying about you are true.”
She didn’t bother to comment as she turned. Over her shoulder, she said, “You’re welcome to have breakfast before you pack up and leave.”
“No, thanks,” he said to her back. “I’ve had enough. At least now I understand what your husband had to put up with.”
Jinx kept walking. It was hard not to take the bait. Royce had a lot in common with T.D. Both blamed other people for how their lives had turned out. They really seemed to think that if their luck changed, everything would come up roses. They preferred to blame luck rather than their lack of hard work.
As she was headed down the side of the mountain to where the chuckwagon sat, she saw Max and knew, even before she heard him carrying on, that something else had happened.
By the time she reached him, Angus and Brick had joined him. Angus was squatting on the ground in front of one of the wagon’s wheels.
“What’s wrong?” she asked as she moved closer.
“Someone sabotaged the wagon,” Brick told her.
“Don’t worry. Angus thinks he can fix it,” Max said, disbelief in his tone. “Then again, he thinks he can make eatable biscuits.”
She caught Angus’s amused grin. “I’m going to have to make my biscuits before this cattle drive is over just to show Max,” he said to Jinx.
“If you must,” she said, unable not to smile.
“My honor is at stake,” he said as they all stood around the wagon wheel in question.
“So you think you can fix the wheel?” she asked.
“A couple of spokes were pried loose,” Angus said. “Brick and I can knock them back into place. They should hold enough that we can get the wagon off the mountain. You can get it fixed once we get back to civilization, though.”
“Civilization? You do know this is Wyoming, right?” she joked, then sobered. “So this was done purposely?”
Angus nodded. “There’s something else you should know.” He hesitated as he saw Cash headed their way. “T.D. and his friends have caught up to us.”
“You think they did this?” she asked.
He shook his head. “It was someone in camp.”
She let out an angry breath. Turning, she saw Royce riding off. Did he do this?
Cash joined them. “What’s going on?”
JINX CONSIDERED CASH, wondering if she shouldn’t send him down the mountain with his pay, as well. But she figured Royce had done this after her encounter with him last night. “My ex-husband and a couple of his friends have followed us. It could be a problem.”
“Looks like it already is a problem,” Cash said, eyeing the wheel on the wagon.
“We aren’t sure who did that,” Angus said as Royce disappeared over a rise.
Cash followed his gaze. “So you paid off Royce?”
“I did,” Jinx said, half expecting Cash to quit and go with his buddy. “I’m saying it could get dangerous. I know you didn’t sign on for that.”
He nodded his head in agreement before shrugging. “I hate to ask what’s for breakfast,” he said, as if losing interest in the conversation.
“Ella caught more fish and I know there are biscuits,” Brick told him.
“That’ll do,” Cash said and started toward the fire Max had already laid that morning. “It’s just another day and a half, right?” he asked over his shoulder.
“Right,” she said to his retreating backside before looking at Angus. He shook his head as if to say it was her decision
