The Cowboy's Homecoming. Brenda Minton

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СКАЧАТЬ done a good job of putting it behind him. He had a successful business building customized motorcycles. He had two world championships. He’d done commercials for cologne and they’d made posters of his ugly mug to sell at rodeo events.

      No matter how far he’d gone or what he thought he’d done right, one person knew how to pull him right back into the gutter. A shadow moved in front of the door. On the other side of the glass deputy Carl Duncan waved and motioned him inside.

      He’d been fifteen when he bailed Jane out the first time. He’d used his money from lawn jobs and he’d borrowed a car from a neighbor. Back then Carl had been his age, just a kid trying to make a better life for himself. The cop at the time had been Officer Mac. He’d retired years ago.

      That was a memory that made him smile. Officer Mac had been a farmer who carried a badge for extra money. When he’d seen Jeremy in that car, he shook his head and told Jeremy he was going to pretend he didn’t see an underage driver behind the wheel.

      Jeremy pulled the truck keys from the ignition and shoved them into his pocket as he got out of the vehicle. At least he had his own car these days.

      He walked across the parking lot, stopping to glance up at the sky, another way to kill time. There were a few dark clouds, nothing major.

      Carl pushed the door open. A woman screamed from somewhere at the back of the building. That would be Jeremy’s mother. He knew that awful sound and knew that her eyes would be red, her hair a wild mess. They’d been through this more than once.

      “What did she do this time?” He grabbed a seat from behind one of the desks and sat down.

      “She was in the convenience store trying to convince them you’ve stolen all of her hard-earned money.”

      “That would get me a cup of coffee.”

      They didn’t laugh. Carl sat down on the edge of the desk and shrugged. “She’s coherent. Sort of.”

      “Right. So what do I do with her, Carl?”

      “Take her home.” The cop shrugged. He didn’t have answers, either. “Maybe put her in a home. I don’t know, Jeremy. I’m real sorry, though.”

      “Me, too.” Jeremy loosened his white cowboy hat and then pushed it back down on his head. “Yeah, maybe a home. She might actually get sober.”

      “Right, that would be good. She looks a little yellow.”

      Her liver. He didn’t know how it had held up this long.

      “Do I owe you anything?” He pulled the wallet out of his back pocket and Carl shook his head.

      “No, there weren’t any charges. I just brought her in to keep her from doing something crazy. Are you really going through with the church situation?”

      It always came back to that. The people in this town ought to be thanking him for getting rid of that eyesore, not questioning his motives. Considering that the church had been one step away from being condemned, he didn’t know why everyone had a problem with his plans.

      His mother screamed again. “Get me out of here! I didn’t break any laws. I’ll get a lawyer.”

      Jeremy laughed, shook his head and stood. “I’d better get her home before she hires a lawyer.”

      Carl nodded and headed down the narrow hall. He stopped at the farthest door and pulled keys from his pocket. “Mrs. Hightree, I’m letting you out now. Can you settle down for me or do I need to keep you overnight?”

      “You can’t keep me overnight. I didn’t do anything wrong.”

      “Public intoxication.” Carl slid the key in the lock. “Or public nuisance.”

      He unlocked the door and she stepped out of the room, a pitiful figure in a housedress, gray hair sticking out in all directions and a gaunt face. Her attention quickly turned to Jeremy. She frowned and stomped her foot.

      “I’m not going with him.”

      “Mrs. Hightree, you don’t have a choice.”

      She flared her thin nostrils at them and shook her head. “I have choices. I can walk out of here. I can head on home without his help.”

      Heat crawled up Jeremy’s cheeks. After a lifetime of this, a guy should be used to it. It wasn’t as if her behavior took people by surprise. What did surprise him was how old she looked, and how bad. He’d seen her less than a week ago and she hadn’t looked this old.

      She had been a pretty woman twenty years ago. Thirty-one years ago she had obviously turned some heads. He pushed that thought aside because now wasn’t the time to get caught in the muck.

      “Mom, we’re going home.”

      “Janie, my name is Janie.”

      He grabbed her arm, loose flesh and bones. “Right, Jane.”

      He hadn’t called her mom since he was ten and he’d found her passed out in the yard when he came home from school. That had been enough to take the word “Mom” right out of his vocabulary.

      “You don’t have to hold me. I’m not going to run.”

      “No, but you might fall down.”

      She wobbled a little, as if to prove his point. “There’s nothing wrong with me.”

      Jeremy shot a look back at Carl. The cop stood behind them, sorry written all over his face. “Thanks, Carl. You’re sure there weren’t any expenses this time?”

      “Not this time. Do you want me to call the hospital in Grove? Maybe she should be seen?”

      “I’m fine, I said.” She jerked her arm free from his hand. “I don’t need either of you holding me or telling me what to do. I just need to go home.”

      “I’ll take her home.” Jeremy opened the door and motioned his mother through. “See you later.”

      “Yeah, we’ll see you around. Maybe we can meet for lunch at the Mad Cow tomorrow?”

      “Right, and you can try to talk me out of what you all think is a big mistake.” Jeremy smiled, and Carl turned a few shades of red, right to the roots of his straw-colored hair. “I’ll meet you for lunch, but if everyone was so worried about this church, why didn’t you all do something sooner?”

      “Yeah, I guess you’ve got a point there, Jeremy. Maybe we just thought it would always be there.”

      “It would have fallen in, Carl.”

      Carl stood in the doorway while Jeremy held on to his mother to keep her from falling off the sidewalk. “My grandpa goes up there once a month to check on the place. I think a lot of the older people in town would love to have it opened up again, but nobody had the money and the younger families have moved away.”

      “Call me and we’ll talk over burgers at Vera’s.”

      Carl nodded. “I’d appreciate that.”

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