Radclyffe - Homestead

“Good enough,” Townsend said.

“In the meantime, I’ll speak to the town board and ask the Grange president to call another meeting. I should be able to lay out our plans then, and your vocal support will be appreciated.”

“You’ll have it,” Pete said.

“I don’t suppose you know anything about the break-in over at my construction camp last night?”

Townsend’s brows drew down. “Should I?”

“Well, it occurred to me that some of your acquaintances might have been a little eager to see us change our minds about setting up operations here.”

“If I’d gotten wind of anything like that, I would have put a stop to it. Even if I was completely opposed to you being here, I don’t support that kind of activity.”

“Fair enough.” Clay wasn’t sure she believed him, even though his end game had apparently been to sell his rights, just for more money than everyone else. He’d obviously stirred up resistance to make his eventual support more critical. It wasn’t a new game, and she’d seen plenty. Still, he might be telling the truth and the break-in was nothing more than some of the locals looking for an easy score. Clay stood and put her cup on his desk. “Thank your wife for the coffee and breakfast. It was excellent.”

Townsend stood. “I’ll tell her.”

“You should have the paperwork beginning of the week.”

He held out his hand. “Pleasure doing business with you, Ms. Sutter.”

“I’ll be in touch.” Clay shook his hand. Business was business, but she’d never trust Pete Townsend.

* * *

The rain hadn’t lessened as Clay left Townsend’s farm and headed back to Cambridge. She pulled in behind the bed-and-breakfast and took the elevator up to her floor. When the door opened, Ella was waiting in the hall.

“I saw you pull in. You’re not answering your phone,” Ella said.

Clay held up a hand. “I tried.” She tossed her phone to Ella. “Check the call record yourself.”

“Really. You think I’m going to do that?” Ella laughed shortly and handed the phone back. “I’ve been trying to get you ever since this storm broke. Roads are already washing out. I almost drove out to Tess’s to make sure you were all right.”

“What makes you think that’s where I was?”

“Because there’s nowhere else you would’ve been. Kelly already checked the trailer.”

“Come on, I want to get out of these wet clothes.” Clay motioned Ella into her room, stripped off her shirt and pants, and re-dressed in a T-shirt and jeans. “Since my whereabouts last night don’t have anything to do with business, I’d rather not go into it.”

“I’m not asking you to.” Ella leaned back against the closed door. “But you are my business, and if you’re going to insist on going rogue, I’m going to head back to New York. I can’t do my job like this.”

“Hell, Ella,” Clay muttered. “I need a little room right now. It’s…complicated.”

Ella smiled fleetingly. “I’m hearing that a lot. From where I’m standing, it doesn’t look that way. Maybe you and Tess need to settle the business issues first so you can figure out the rest of it.”

“Yeah. About that—I’m working on it.” Clay told Ella about Pete Townsend and the pending rights deal.

“Damn. I should have figured that angle earlier,” Ella said. “I’m still not ruling him out as being behind the attacks.”

“Neither am I. Any news from the local law?”

“No. The sheriff thinks last night was just random vandalism, and the hit-and-run investigation is stone cold.”

Clay sighed. “Well, hopefully we’ve seen the end of it.”

“You staying put for a while?”

“I need to get out to the camp, see what shape the files are in. But first I need to make a call.”

Ella gave her a long look. “I’ll leave you to it, then. But when you get ready to leave, I’m driving. Deal?”

“Deal—and Ella, thanks.” Clay waited until the door closed and then placed her call. Miraculously she not only had a signal, but the call was answered on the second ring.

“Hello?”

“Tess, it’s me,” Clay said.

Tess stood at the kitchen window, her back to the wood-burning stove, watching the rain scour trenches into the drive and collect in pools in the pastures. When she’d checked the creek on her way back to the house, it had already risen a couple of feet, and broken branches and other debris swirled in the roiling muddy water. If the storm kept up at the rate it had the last few hours, the creek would overflow and the fields would flood. Already, parts of the drive looked on the verge of washing out. Their prayers for rain had been answered, but God or someone was laughing.

“Tess?” Clay’s voice was staticky but strong.

“I’m here,” she said wearily. “Did you make it back all right?”

“Yeah, fine. How are things out there?”

“All right for now. Ask me again in twelve hours.” Tess hadn’t expected Clay to call—she hadn’t known what to expect. Part of her thought she’d driven her away, that she’d never see her again, and that part of her wept for all they’d shared and for the loss of all the magical moments that might have been. She couldn’t deny—didn’t want to deny—the hours they’d spent so deep inside one another there’d been nothing else—no past hurts, no present questions, no future fears. And the other part of her, the one that wanted to push her away and wanted her gone, resisted the rapid beat of her heart and the tingling that started in her throat and streamed through her like an electric charge at the mere sound of Clay’s voice. If she locked Clay out of her heart, she would be safe and her life would go on as it had been—hard but rewarding, solitary but fulfilling. After all, she wasn’t a teenager any longer—she was beyond taking risks and challenging the fates. Wasn’t she? “I think I might owe you an apology.”

“I can’t imagine why.”

“I didn’t handle everything you told me this morning very well. I’m afraid I let my feelings get in the way of my judgment.” Tess thought about the stories she’d told herself all her life—of who she was, who Clay was, and who was to blame for writing an ending that broke her heart. “I was wrong to put it all on you. I—”

“No, you weren’t. I screwed up. Look, I’m headed out to the construction camp. I need to come by and talk to you.”

“Today?” Tess scanned the sky. The sun was a memory, buried behind a wall of dense black cloud. The rain gauge clamped to a post in the yard was filling fast, and the rain showed no sign of letting up. “That’s not a great idea. We’re getting an inch an hour, maybe more. That’s flood level, Clay, and the kind of flash floods we get around here can take a car under pretty fast.”

“I’ve got a big SUV,” Clay said with bravado that came clearly down the line. “But I’ll be careful. Can I see you?”

She should say no—even if Clay was crazy enough to travel in this, and of course she was, she should say no until she had more time to absorb everything she’d learned about Ray. Until she could find solid ground again. “The ground has only ever been solid with you.”

“What?”

When she wiped the clouds of disillusionment away, Tess knew with absolute certainty she’d never been more secure, more confident, and more ready to take on any challenge than when she’d been with Clay. She’d been managing just fine on her own, but the world had grown smaller and a little darker. “There’s something I want to talk to you about too. So if you can make it, you’re welcome to come by.”

“I’ll be there in an hour. Do you need anything?”

Tess smiled wryly. There were a lot of things she needed, but nothing she could ask Clay for. To rewrite the past was never an option for anyone, and she’d finally accepted that. To undo the secret dealings Ray had had with Clay’s father? Not Clay’s fault or problem to fix. To stop the rain before the crops drowned? Beyond anyone’s powers. To give her the strength to trust again? Only she could do that.

“Just get here safely,” Tess said, and as she spoke, she realized that was all she really wanted. She wanted Clay. “Just be safe.”

* * *

Clay texted Ella that she was leaving, and by the time she reached the SUV, Ella was behind the wheel.

“I’ve been listening to the weather and road reports,” Ella said. “A couple of the smaller roads are already closed—bridge washouts. I told Kelly to stay put at the trailer.”

“How are things out there?”

“A lot of the guys are out of the area for the weekend, so there’s only a skeleton crew on-site. Besides being wet and bored, they’re fine.”

“Kelly?”

“Dry and bored.”

Clay laughed. “Tell her she’ll get hazard pay.”

“Huh. I’m not sure that will be enough. She’s grumbling about not being able to sleep—too quiet.”

“Things have been quiet. Maybe we can let her head back.”

“Maybe.” Ella sounded cautious as she maneuvered carefully around a slew of branches, leaves, and bits of trash littering the road. “I was talking to the innkeepers this morning. They say this kind of storm always ends up bringing down a lot of trees—power outages and flooding are common.”

“We’ve got enough propane to run the generators for a week if the power goes down. Hopefully, we’ll be able to stay on schedule.”

“I think the guys are going to be grounded awhile.”

“I ought to be out there with them—if there’s a problem, I want to deal with it.” She hesitated. She had nothing to hide, and Ella wasn’t the type to make assumptions about anything—including relationships. But she had Tess’s privacy to consider. She’d let her down too many times, and she wasn’t going to continue. “First I need to talk to Tess. When we get to camp, I’ll take the Jeep over to Tess’s. You can keep the SUV in case you and Kelly want to leave.”