Christmas Surprise Page 12

  "What are you really doing here? You're not the type of man Luc would make friends with and bring home for a visit."

  Tam felt the rage emanating from Luc, who was sitting beside him. Luc didn't bite on the insult. The tension Tam had sensed upon entering the large farmhouse heightened. He'd gathered from comments Luc had made about Gervais and his friends that there was deep-seeded hatred between Gervais and Luc.

  The older Martel brother, Michel, protected Luc and Josef, and the other brothers were indifferent. He thought he had problems with his older brothers, but the MacGregors always stuck together as a family whether the circumstances were good or bad. These brothers lacked the family tie he'd always taken for granted.

  Luc finally made his move. "I'm taking Josef back to Hank's for a week or so. We're leaving this afternoon."

  Pascal slammed his fist on the table. "Don't you sit at our dinner table and tell us what you're going to do, boy. You ask and your Mother and I will give you our opinion on what you will or won't do."

  Luc continued to eat, but everyone else at the table set their utensils down and stared at him. When he cleaned his plate, he pushed it away and stood. "Josef, go back to our house and make sure you gather everything you will need at Hank's. We're leaving as soon as we saddle up."

  "Tam, if you're going with us, say your thanks so we can leave."

  Tam saw by Luc's expression that the man meant what he said. He stood and pushed his chair into the table. "Thank you for the meal Mr. and Mrs. Martel."

  Nobody at the table said a word. He followed Luc and Josef out of the house and shut the door. He stayed close behind the two brothers as they hurried across the yard. They didn't stop their rapid pace until they reached their barn.

  Tam wasn't sure what happened at the dining table, but the foster parents obviously did not appreciate Luc questioning their authority regarding Josef. He touched Luc's shoulder, but feeling the muscles tense, he immediately pulled his hand back.

  "Give me a few moments to cool off, Tam." Luc walked through the barn and out a door at the back of the building.

  "Don't worry, Tam, my brother will cool off and be back to his normal self in a little while."

  "Is he estranged from your foster parents?"

  "There are problems when it comes to me. Luc is concerned I'm forgetting the ways of the Sioux. He blames them for teaching their customs and expecting me to follow their rules without question. When we came here, Luc was older and not as easy to convert. Every time we go to the trading post, I change because I appreciate my brother's values over the Martels'."

  "If this is true, why does Luc insist you do studies?"

  "Our father is a brilliant man. He learned a lot of the white man's ways from Chase, including the English language. Luc is like our father as far as remembering everything he sees and learns. Unfortunately, I'm not as fortunate as them. Book learning is difficult for me."

  "I was led to believe you and Luc are happy living here."

  "We are grateful because it's not an easy life for our parents having to live in constant turmoil. If we'd stayed with them, they worried we wouldn't have the proper food or housing. Our parents wanted better for us. Adjustment to the white man's way of living wasn't easy. The Martel family, for the most part, has been caring and generous. A couple of the brothers never accepted us."

  "Gervais for one?"

  Josef chuckled. "How'd you guess?"

  Tam scratched his chin. "He doesn't hide his emotions well."

  Josef grabbed a saddle and tossed it over his horse's back. "He hates Luc more than he hates me. I worry he's instigating something to get my brother in trouble."

  Luc entered the barn. "What did you say, Josef?"

  "Gervais and his two friends have been asking me a lot of questions while you've been gone."

  "What kind of questions?"

  "How often do you leave, were you injured recently, and where were you now. Michel told me you'd been injured, but Hank was taking good care of you. I swear I didn't tell them a thing."

  "I never thought you did. Now, grab all the money we have and anything you consider valuable. We may not be coming back for a long while."

  Tam waited until Josef left for the house. "What's happening here?"

  "Help me move this cabinet. I'll explain later." They both pushed against a large bookshelf until it moved about two feet. Luc grabbed an ax and slammed it against the spot where the cabinet had rested. He hunkered down and pulled a wooden box with carvings on it out of the hole in the floor. He tucked it into his saddlebag. "Our father gave this keepsake to me before he left us at the trading post. He told me to take good care of it."

  They both saddled their horses. Luc stuck his rifle into the sheath.

  Josef came back into the barn.

  "You have plenty of ammunition, Josef?"

  "Yup." He patted one of his bags. "Right in here."

  "What about a rifle?"

  Josef's faced turned red. "Be right back."

  "My brother is a good boy. He still has a lot of growing up to do, but he'll be fine." Luc led both his and Josef's horses from the barn and slid the door closed.

  Tam shook his head. "Why is it that older brothers love to embarrass us younger ones?" He led his horse out of the barn, mounted, and waited.

  "Yes, I have my rifle," Josef said, returning from the house. He tied it to his saddle and mounted.

  "It sounds like you're expecting trouble on the way back to the lodge," Tam said.

  "I know you noticed Gervais and his Mountie friends' hostility at the table. You commented on it."

  "I did, but I thought it was directed toward me."

  Luc shook his head. "I don't think so. Captain Farthington has been asking a lot of questions about me for the past several weeks. I've heard the rumors of them wanting to arrest me, but Hank has covered for me. The afternoon I was wounded, Michel contacted Hank. They took me to the trading post because he didn't want to worry Mother or give Gervais something to use against me. Farthington came to the lodge the first night I was there and demanded information about the smugglers. If he'd had good information, he would have ignored Hank's protests and searched the lodge for me."

  "I have plenty of ammunition for my rifle, too, Luc."

  "Good, glad to hear it, Tam. Now let's head out. We have a long ride ahead of us."

  Chapter Eleven

  The three young men traveled almost non-stop back to Wisconsin and the safety of the trading post. Luc stopped only long enough to rest the horses and make sure they had enough water and grass to feed. Tam knew Luc fought pain in his legs all the way, but he'd never give in to a weakness.

  A few miles from Hank's trading post Tam recognized Jory's whistle. Years ago, he and his brother worked out a system of different sounds to communicate while out on the range. Today Tam smiled at hearing Jory's welcome home whistle.

  Two and a half days after they left the Martel farm in Canada, Tam, Luc, and Josef rode into Howling Hank's Trading Post early in the afternoon. Hank stood at the lodge's porch railing and waved as they entered through the main gate.

  They halted their horses in front of him. "We're glad to be here."

  "Welcome back. It's nice to see you, Josef."

  Josef grinned. "Thank you, Hank. I suppose we missed the noon meal."

  Hank chuckled. "Take care of your horses. I'll have Lottie put something together for you boys to eat as soon as you're done."

  They turned their mounts toward the barn. Tam was hungry enough to eat a double helping of just about anything Lottie put in front of him. They'd not thought to carry much food with them and didn't take the time to hunt. They lucked out with fish the first night, but after that, pickings were scarce. If they ever took another trip north, he'd be better prepared.

  They dismounted at the barn and led the horses inside. Big Dog came around the corner into the building from the corral entrance. "Hey, look who's back." He took three brushes off their hooks and handed one to both Luc
and Tam after they'd removed their saddles.

  He handed the last brush to Josef. "The name is Big Dog. What might yours be young man?"

  He took the brush. "Nice to meet you. I'm Josef Martel."

  "Nice to meet you, young man. I'll see y'all later. I'm back to work." He waved as he left the barn.

  After the boys finished grooming their mounts, they fed and watered them. Luc returned his brush to the hook on the wall. "Are you ready to go get some of Lottie's cooking, Tam?

  "I'm more than ready."

  "Josef, let's go." The boy came around the corner of the barn with a smile on his face. "Eatin' time."

  The three of them hurried across the quadrant. Hank wobbled along the porch on his crutches. "Do you mind if I join you while you eat? I'd like to hear about your trip to Canada."

  Tam held the lodge door open for the older man. They all entered the main room and headed toward the washroom. Once they cleaned their face and hands, they joined Hank in the dining area. He was enjoying a piece of berry pie. Lottie hummed as she set food on the long table. The young men sat and filled their plates.

  As they ate, they took turns telling Hank about their trip to and from the farm, the encounter with Mulberry, Gervais and his friends, and what brought them back so soon.

  Hank shook his head. "There's no doubt Gervais has a personal vendetta against you, Luc."

  "Your brother never accepted Josef and me as part of the Martel family."

  "Isabella thought the same thing. She mentioned her concern about Gervais' attitude toward you boys to her parents more than once. Apparently, it did no good, or Sabine and Pascal never bothered to talk with Gervais. I'm sorry he's been so obstinate about you living with them these past five years."

  Luc nodded. "The hostility was more than personal this time, Hank."

  Tam set his fork on his plate and gazed at Hank. "Their attitude toward Luc is quite volatile. When they started asking me questions and inferring you broke your leg while smuggling, they made me very uncomfortable."

  "All of them or just Gervais?"

  "The snide remarks came from Gervais."

  "Yup, you're right, Tam." Luc nodded confirmation toward Tam. "I brought the history box our father gave us to safeguard. Would you keep it in a protected place until we figure out where we can live without having to worry about Gervais?"

  "Yes, I'll see it's kept safe. Take that empty cabin to the right side of the front gate unless you'd be more comfortable inside. It's yours for as long as you'd like to use it. There's no reason for letting it stand empty when you need a place to stay."

  Josef clapped his hands. "Yes, Luc, let's do it."

  "I have a stipulation before I agree. If Josef can continue his studies with your new governess, I'll say yes."

  Josef threw up his hands. "No, I don't need more lessons. I want to be a cowboy and they don't need educating."

  Tam cleared his throat. "Josef, get the education that's offered you. My twin and I dropped out of school when our mother died and fought our older brothers' advice to go back. Now we're sorry and I would take lessons with you if Genevieve would allow an hour or so a week. Hell, we'll tell Jory he has to come, too. What do you say?"

  "Maybe the teacher won't want three cowboys in her class."

  Tam jumped up at hearing Jory's voice coming from behind him. He gave his brother a hug. "I missed you."

  "Aw, I'm a darlin' ain't I?" Jory pulled back when Tam threw a pretend sock on his arm. "How's the arm, brother?"

  "Much better. I can go back to full time work again."

  "Good, because as soon as Josef picks his horse, we have some training to get done before we return home."

  Jory leaned toward Josef. "I'm Jory, the other MacGregor who is visiting Hank's trading post."

  Josef shook his hand. "Glad to finally meet you. I had no idea you two would look so much alike."

  Lottie set a piece of pie on the table and motioned for Jory to sit and eat. He kissed the older lady on the cheek and pulled a chair out. He settled next to Luc and dug into the dessert. "I had no idea it would take so long for you to come back with Josef. Did you have trouble?"

  "No, after sleeping for a few hours and sharing a meal with my parents, we started back," Luc said. "We didn't leave on good terms so it might be a while, if ever, for us to return to the Martel farm."

  A burst of happy voices and footsteps preceded the Hughes girls into the dining room. "You're here. We heard your voices." Gabby headed for Josef and threw her arms around his neck.

  Tam's gaze locked with Caroline's. He nodded and smiled at her.

  "It's nice to have you home again. How's your arm, Tam?"

  "Good. I'm ready to put in a full day's work." He finally had his fill of food and pushed away from the table.

  Caroline smiled. "I'm glad to hear it."

  "I hate to leave, but I have something important to do. Jory, if you're done join me," Tam said.

  His brother wiped his mouth and set the napkin on the table. "Thank you for the food, Lottie."

  Tam rolled his eyes. My brother the charmer. The two left the room and headed toward the main room. They found Matthias in the bar stocking the shelves.

  "What did you think of my family and their farm?" Matthias asked.

  Tam couldn't lie. "It didn't go well."

  "Stay and help him set up for tonight and tell him what he needs to know," Jory said. "When you're done, catch up with me at the corral."

  Tam didn't want to talk to Matthias about their time at his family farm. He couldn't think of a nice thing to say. The whole experience was not what he'd expected.

  He started arranging the seats for that night's entertainment. Matthias set a glass of ale on the bar.

  "Come have a drink with me. I want to hear what you don't want to tell me."

  Tam sat on one of the tall chairs at the bar and took a sip of ale. "Your brother Gervais was extremely rude to Luc. I thought at one point he would make an arrest."

  "Wasn't my mother there?"

  "Yes, she was, but she didn't object to the conversation. It made me feel uncomfortable and, to be honest, I was glad when Luc got up and told Josef and me that we were leaving."

  Matthias topped off Tam's glass and poured himself another. "Gervais was a jealous little boy who grew up to be a mean sonuvabitch. He hated the two young Sioux boys who came to live with my family.

  "They were terrified to be separated from their family and life as they knew it. Can you imagine the change they adapted to because their father wanted to save their lives? At eleven Luc was proud and already somewhat arrogant. I know he carried that mean-looking knife in a boot sheath. He rarely let Josef out of his sight. My room was next to theirs. Every night I would hear them push a heavy chest of drawers in front of the door."

  Tam shook his head. "In a way I understand having a brother like Gervais. Our middle brother carried a grudge on his shoulders until he almost died with our sister-in-law when a gold mine collapsed."

  "Damn!" Matthias grimaced. "I hope they survived."

  "Yes, they did. Thank you for asking."

  "We have a few tunnels in the trading post area, but until now I never feared they could collapse."

  Tam stood. "One thing you ought to know, Matthias. I don't think Luc plans on going back to Canada. He and Josef accepted Hank's offer of the derelict cabin outside the post."

  "I feared it was coming. Thanks for letting me know. I'll keep watch on them."

  "You apparently haven't spent time with Luc lately. Trust me. He's fully capable of taking care of himself and Josef." Tam returned to setting up the chairs. When he finished, he headed to find Jory.

  Luc and Josef were at the corral with his brother looking over the horses. Tam leaned on the corral fence alongside them. "You find a horse to call your own yet, Josef?"

  "I have my sight on a couple."

  "While he's looking, can I talk with you a few moments, Jory?"

  "Sure, what's wrong?"

&nbs
p; "Let's sit on the bench down by the lake." They walked along the snow-dusted trail. Tam never tired of looking across the lake. Since they'd arrived here, the calm beauty of this area filled him with peace.

  They sat on the bench in silence for a few moments. Tam wanted to collect his thoughts before he said anything to his brother.

  "Get it off your mind, Tam. What's eatin' at you?"

  "Mrs. Martel made a comment about Hank's desire for son-in-laws. Apparently, he found a way to keep us here because he wants one of us to marry Caroline."

  "What? You actually think Hank broke his leg to sucker us into staying?"

  "Well, no. It's not exactly what the lady said, but it's close enough."

  "Isn't Caroline her granddaughter?"

  "Yup. At first, I was shocked at the implication, but the more I thought about it, the angrier I grew."

  "It sounds to me Grandma is the one who wants to hook one of us." Jory got up and walked the short distance down to the water. He turned around and shook his head. "I'm not staying if that's what you want to know."

  "I'm thinking about it."

  "Caroline is a beautiful young woman, but are you willing to give up your portion of the California ranch for her?"

  "By the time we're ready to leave I'll have it figured out."

  "I hope you know what you're doing."

  CAROLINE GATHERED HER sisters into the main room. Her father followed them in on his crutches and took his guitar from Uncle Matthias. He settled on his stool and tuned his instrument.

  This was her favorite time of the day. She loved her father's voice. He sang with an enthusiasm that rolled onto their guests.

  Another week and a half and they'd cook their turkey supper. It used to be her father's favorite holiday. He always offered to help, but Lottie always ordered him out of her kitchen. Thanksgiving was one custom he never wavered on celebrating until Mama died.

  She glanced around the room. Tam wasn't in the audience tonight. His absence took away part of her pleasure in the evening's festivities. Where are you?

  "Let's get this party started." Hank started strumming and his deep voice filled the room.