“But Ezekiel also had his eye on Dinah. He wasn’t the gentlemanly type that Silas was—Dinah’s words, not mine—and Ezekiel became a stalker of sorts. Dinah wasn’t wearing Silas’ ring, so that made her fair game.” Sierra scowled. “This next part is a little hazy, but near as I could tell, Ezekiel got Dinah alone and hurt her. When she told Silas, he went after Ezekiel. They got into another fight, Ezekiel pulled a gun on Silas, but Silas ended up shooting him.”
Everyone stayed quiet.
“With Ezekiel dead, Jonas had no choice but to arrest his brother, even though it was clearly self-defense. But Zachariah West swore the murder was premeditated and he’d see Silas hang for killing his brother.”
“That’s what happened to him?” Kyler demanded. “That’s why no one talks about Silas, because he was hanged?”
“No. But Silas believed he was headed for the gallows. One night he attacked Jonas inside his cell and escaped from jail. Silas disappeared, never to be seen around here again. Several people swore they saw Silas get killed during a train robbery in Montana, but it was never confirmed. Others said Silas lived with the Crow Indians on the Montana border, but again, nothing was ever confirmed.
“Dinah wrote that Jonas knew his brother would be unjustly hanged so he made it possible for Silas to escape. Then Jonas resigned as a deputy and took over Silas’s ranch. We discovered Zachariah West ended up with a small section of land in Campbell County that’s still in the West family today. Dinah’s last entry alluded to that land being paid for with blood money. What that means is up for debate and probably always will be. Some secrets really do go to the grave. Anyway, Jonas and Dinah fell in love and got married.” Sierra looked up. “And they are the reason we are all here today.”
Applause and wolf whistles rang out.
Charlie sidled up and put his arm around Sierra. “How about my smart and determined granddaughter? Getting to the bottom of all this family stuff and putting rumors to rest with facts?” He kissed the top of her head. “I’m so damn proud of you for taking an interest in our heritage.”
She ducked her head and Charlie hugged her.
Then she was surrounded by curious McKays.
“Quite the girl you have there, proud daddy,” Rielle said.
“She is something. She really fits in with the McKays, doesn’t she?”
“Yes, but so do you. Did you have any idea that Sierra had done so much research?”
“I knew she was working her butt off on it. She mentioned she’d found something to Quinn and Charlie and Vi, but she wouldn’t tell me what it was.” He put his mouth on her ear. “To be honest, I thought she and Boone were using just doing research as an excuse to hang out together these last few months.”
Rielle laughed.
Sierra fairly bounced over after being waylaid by questions. “Dad, can I go now?”
“Where are you going?”
“Where is the only place I ever go?” she said with exasperation.
“To meet Marin.”
“So can I?”
“Where are you and Marin going?”
“To a graduation party at the lake. And no, we won’t be drinking, smoking weed or having sex.”
“No swimming at night either,” he warned.
“I know. And Boone will be there.”
That didn’t exactly alleviate his worry. “You haven’t had any issues with your new car?” Maybe he had gone a little overboard, buying her a Mercedes M Class SUV, but he couldn’t put a price on her safety. A little peace of mind was worth a lot.
She rolled her eyes. “Dad. We studied the manual together. You read the manual to me when I was driving. I read the manual to you when you were driving. I’ve studied the manual more than I have for my English final. So can I go?”
“Okay. But drive careful.”
“I will.” She kissed his cheek. “I love you. I know my curfew’s at midnight. There. I saved you from saying it.” She gave Rielle a half-hug. “See you later.” She practically skipped across the gravel driveway.
“So…she’s gone for a few hours,” Rielle said.
“What do you say we head home? School will be out in two weeks, ending our mid-morning quickies.”
“And our afternoon delight.” Rielle threaded her fingers through his. “Since we have two vehicles, and I know how competitive you are, let’s have a race.”
“What’s the prize?”
“Winner’s choice.”
“Hot damn.” He whispered, “Your ass is mine tonight, honey.”
“Don’t bet on it.”
But Gavin beat her home by a full two minutes.
He was feeling pretty cocky after a spectacular bout of raunchy sex, until Rielle whispered, “So, for the record, I let you win.”
Chapter Thirty-Seven
The bright moon glow sent silvery light across the clearing. Sierra bumped over the cattle guard and saw him shielding his eyes from the glare of her headlights. Seemed a little strange, Boone calling her out of the blue and asking her to meet him. She hoped it meant something more than he was bored.
Sierra ignored Marin’s snarky voice in her head, asking why she went running every time Boone crooked his little finger at her. But she hadn’t seen him since his graduation and he’d slipped back into the not-returning-texts zone. School had ended two days ago, and her summer plans were still up in the air.
She put her car in park and killed the ignition. Butterflies danced in her belly. Where had her nervousness come from? She was out here with Boone. Mr. Trustworthy. Mr. Oblivious.
His butt rested against his motorcycle seat. His booted feet crossed at the ankle. His arms folded over his chest. He wore a super tight T-shirt which displayed the ripped muscles in his arms and the ridges in his lower abdomen. She’d seen that shirt on him a dozen times, and every time she whispered a little thank you to the T-shirt gods.
Stop gawking at him.
Nothing wrong with being attracted to her best guy buddy.
Was there?
No. Especially when he still didn’t have a clue how she felt. She walked up to him, her hands jammed into the back pockets of her jeans. “You summoned me?”
Boone frowned at her attire. “Wasn’t tonight the dance?”
“No. It was last night.”
“Oh. Was it fun?”
“I don’t know. I skipped it.”
“But…you said that night at the lake you wanted to go.”