Free Cattle Valley 27 - Alone in a Crowd by Carol Lynne Page B

on to tell his partners about the
    meeting with his dad. By the time he’d finished the story, he was finished with the first beer and well into the second.
“And you didn’t know any of that?” Rio questioned.
Ryan hated to admit it, but he’d been too damn hurt growing up to ever try and figure out why his dad enjoyed beating on him. “No, none of it until today. Well, I mean, I knew he went to Vietnam, but that’s all. The whole cancer thing’s muddied the waters even more.” “Now what?” Nate asked.
“That’s the part I haven’t figured out yet. I’ll know more once I try to talk to him again tomorrow, but right now, I’m too confused to sort out my feelings.” Ryan finished off his beer and got up to get another. “You know, it’s not very satisfying to hate someone when they don’t even know you.”
“Are you sure he’s not faking it?” Rio wanted to know.
“I’m not positive, but I didn’t see even a flicker of recognition in his eyes when he looked at me.” Ryan rested the open can on his chest. “But whether or not he knows me, I need to figure out if it’s worth holding onto my hatred knowing everything that I know now.”
“Plenty of screwed up soldiers come back from a war, doesn’t give them the right to beat their kids.” Leave it to Rio to put things into perspective. “I mean, I’m sorry the man’s dying, but that’s beside the point.”
“Yeah, I know. I keep telling myself that what he went through isn’t an excuse, but for whatever reason, I didn’t feel like killing him today. That’s the real reason I cut off all ties with them. I was genuinely concerned about what I’d do if I ever came face to face with him again, but it wasn’t like that.”
“Then maybe the best thing for you is to let some of that hatred and anger go,” Nate suggested.
“Hmm. Maybe.” Ryan sighed. “I should go. I’ve got a lot of thinking to do before visiting hours tomorrow. Love you guys.”
“Love you, too,” Nate and Rio said in unison.
“Thanks for listening.”
“Thanks for trusting us enough to talk,” Nate replied.
Ryan hung up and set the phone on the bedside table. He knew he should get ready for bed, but there was no way he’d sleep with his mind whirling with all the new information. He decided to go for a walk instead. He’d have driven outside of town if he could have, but three beers in less than thirty minutes kept him from it. The last thing he needed was to get pulled over.
* * * *
    Smokey wiped his sweating palms on his jeans and stared through the front window of Wynfield’s Department Store. He’d promised Elliott a nice dinner at The Canoe, but all he had to wear was the same damn work clothes he’d worn for years. Unfortunately, Wynfield’s was the only store in town that had clothes suitable for the dinner Elliott deserved.
    He waited for Palmer to notice him because walking into the store and facing Ezra’s wrath wasn’t on his agenda for the evening. It took about ten minutes, but eventually Palmer walked by the front window and stopped to stare at Smokey through the glass.
    Smokey gestured to his clothes and pointed towards a suit in the window. He hoped Palmer would get the message and open his heart as well as his shop to him. Palmer’s grey eyebrows drew together before he turned and walked away. “Shit,” Smokey mumbled under his breath.
    Smokey was almost to his truck when he heard his name.
“Smokey, you coming in or not?” Palmer asked.
Smokey spun around. “Yeah, I mean, yes, I’d like that.” He followed Palmer into the
    store. “I know I’m not supposed to shop here, but I’m taking Elliott to The Canoe for dinner and have nothing to wear.”
Palmer surprised Smokey with a smile. “Then you’ve come to the right place.”
Stunned, Smokey stood where he was as Palmer walked deeper into the store.
“Something wrong?” Palmer asked from behind a rack.
“Why’re you being nice to me?” Smokey asked, suspicious.
Palmer