Liam knew what that was like.
“All this time trying to guilt us into moving to New Mexico, and here Mom is playing the ranch mother as if she never left Chance Creek,” Tory muttered.
Liam knew what she meant, although he thought Enid was doing more than playing once he took his first bite of the breakfast she’d laid out. Being a ranch mother must be a skill you never forgot, because despite her long absence, this food hit the spot.
It wasn’t a very happy meal, however. No one except Enid knew her reasons for calling the gathering, and he sensed no one harbored any hope that her announcement would be a positive one.
Enid sat at the head of the table, but she didn’t pick up her fork. Instead she waited until everyone focused on her.
“What’s this about, Mom?” Olivia finally asked.
“It’s come to my attention there have been some nasty rumors about me going around in my absence.”
Tory made a sound between a snort and a laugh. If Enid noticed, she pretended not to. Liam set down his utensils. This wasn’t an auspicious beginning, and he wondered if he’d made a mistake telling Tory they should come.
“I had no idea anybody thought I’d had an affair with William Turner.”
Liam gave her credit for addressing the issue so baldly. Enid had guts, he decided, a little impressed despite himself. That didn’t make what she’d done any more forgivable, though.
“Let me state very clearly that I have never, ever had an affair with William,” she said, looking from one of them to the next. “I can’t believe I even had to say that, but I won’t let such an utter lie go unanswered. I’ll be telling Mary the same thing, by the way,” she added.
“My mother saw you in the barn. So did Stella,” Liam said.
“They may have seen me in your barn, but they didn’t see me fooling around with your father. I can’t believe anyone would believe such trash.” Enid softened a little, and Liam thought he saw genuine regret in her face, which stifled the accusations building in his throat. “Noah, Liam, Maya, it’s killing me that you think I broke up your parents’ marriage. I didn’t. I swear on all that’s holy.”
Liam didn’t know what to do. Beside him, Tory was stiff—with embarrassment, maybe. Noah looked thoughtful. Maya was biting her lip.
“You all deserve to know what really happened,” Enid said. “Though when you do, you may wish I had kept it to myself. I never wanted anyone to get hurt, but everyone did anyway.”
“Just say what you have to say,” Tory said. She didn’t seem inclined to believe her mother.
Enid took a deep breath. “I did meet William at the Flying W that day, but like I said, I wasn’t there to sleep with him. I was there to confront him. You all know Dale never walked a straight and narrow path, but he’d managed to stay out of real trouble—mostly—until that summer. So when I stumbled on him and William together on the Ridley property, on the edge of a field of pot plants, I couldn’t believe it.”
“Pot plants?” Maya repeated. “But—”
“That’s right. Pot plants.”
“We know about those,” Olivia broke in. “I saw that crop way back when.”
“I’ll bet you don’t know as much as you think,” Enid said. “Let me have my say.” She took another deep breath. “I thought the same thing anyone would think—that it was Dale’s crop, and William had caught him at it. I thought I was going to witness my husband getting arrested. But I didn’t. Not then. Instead, I overheard enough to realize William wasn’t taking Dale to task for growing the crop; he was helping Dale grow it.” When no one responded, she threw up her hands in defeat. “It was his idea,” she said. “He was leading Dale into waters so deep we’d never reach dry land again! I was furious!”
It was a crazy story, and Liam opened his mouth to say so, but he couldn’t seem to form the words. In his mind, hunches, suspicions, and unexplained events were coming together with ominous clarity.
“I slipped away without saying anything because I needed time to think it through. When I did, I realized that if I wanted to put a stop to it, I had to confront William. I did that as soon as I could,” Enid continued. “That’s why I was in the Flying W’s barn. I told him to stop whatever the heck he thought he was doing, or I’d call the authorities myself. He was a sheriff’s deputy, for goodness’ sake. I wondered if the whole department was crooked.”
“What did William say?” Tory spoke up.
“He said they couldn’t stop. Not yet. Not until the crop was in. He told me to wait a few more days. Can you believe it? A few more days! I was so angry—”
Tory was nodding. “A few days after that, Dad was arrested. Mary was gone. And you took off, too, dragging us along—”
“My dad was no criminal.” Everyone else went quiet when Noah spoke up. “I don’t care what you saw, or heard, or said. My dad wouldn’t be a part of all that.”
“I saw the pot, though,” Olivia spoke up. “Remember? That’s why I rushed Maya back to Thorn Hill that day. We were playing on the Ridley property, and we nearly walked right into that crop. I saw what it was. I knew I had to get her out of there before she saw it. To distract her, I suggested we head back to Thorn Hill, and that’s when she spotted the hides hanging in our barn. The ones that weren’t supposed to be there.”
The ones the sheriff used as an excuse to investigate Dale once Maya let slip what she’d seen later on. That was how Dale ended up in jail, Liam knew.
“The next day
