Kyle’s wife, insisted. “No, they won’t be here every day, but you don’t lose friends like that just because they don’t live as close anymore. You all have days off, even if you only take them half the time. You could spend your days off at Taylor Peak helping out if Jeremy needs it, or just visiting if he doesn’t. Maybe not every week if he doesn’t need help, but often enough that you’d still see him. We all know Taylor had an odd way of running things. Jeremy may get in there and realize the whole system needs an overhaul, and if that’s the case, he’ll need all the help he can get. And who better to give it to him than the men who understand the way he’s lived since he got here? If anyone knows how to run a station, it’s the lot of you. If you alternated your days right, you could each give him a day a week and he’d have an extra set of hands he trusts and someone who thinks the way he does every day. Think what a difference that could make to him.”
“I guess we’d better talk to Caine and Macklin about the schedule for days off,” Jesse said. “He’s tried to arrange it so couples are off together, but that only covers five days, six if they go down to help too.”
“I can take a day,” Jason offered. “If nothing else, he probably needs a vet to take a look at the mob and make sure they’re healthy, and I’d always intended to offer my vet services to Taylor. I just hadn’t got around to it yet.”
“I can go too,” Seth said. “I don’t know if they have a mechanic, but even if they do, I can ride out with a crew.”
“And there’s the week covered,” Linda said. “See? That wasn’t so hard.”
Jason smiled at her. Kyle had done a good thing when he married Linda and brought her and her daughter to the station. He didn’t know if Laura had plans after high school, but she’d already made a place for herself on Lang Downs. “Now we just have to convince Sam and Jeremy to accept.”
“That’s easy,” Thorne said. “We don’t ask them. We just show up and get to work. They can’t say no to that.”
J EREMY WATCHED in stony silence as Devlin’s casket was lowered into the ground. He didn’t even know the men holding the ropes. Sam had asked for volunteers and had arranged it without Jeremy’s input. That was the way most of his life felt at the moment. Probably just as well, since he didn’t feel capable of making even the most basic decisions. Life just kept eddying around him, but he was too numb to feel it.
The minister had spoken words of comfort and praise for a life well lived, but they hadn’t been enough to break through the ice that had settled in Jeremy’s chest since they’d returned to Taylor Peak Sunday night. Neil had taken charge of the jackaroos, making sure the station kept running, and Sam had taken charge of the arrangements for the funeral.
“Jeremy.”
He blinked a couple of times at the sound of his name, trying to pull himself together enough to respond. Sam stood next to him holding a shovel. Jeremy took it and stepped toward the gaping hole that held Devlin’s remains. He swallowed hard and filled the shovel with dirt. Shuddering against the thought of the cold, hard earth covering the casket Ian had so quickly and beautifully crafted, Jeremy did as expected and tossed his spadeful into the grave.
All around the site, men and women stood with heads bowed, hats held respectfully over their hearts. Molly had tears in her eyes, he noticed. So did Linda.
Linda was here? He didn’t remember her arriving, but as he looked around the small crowd, he saw other familiar faces mixed in with the Taylor Peak jackaroos. Ian and Thorne stood next to Neil and Molly. Caine and Macklin stood in the back with Seth and Jason. He remembered Jason coming back to the station, but he’d thought Seth was just coming for a visit. Kyle stood with Linda and Laura, his arm around Laura’s shoulders. Chris and Jesse were there too. All his
“I guess we’d better talk to Caine and Macklin about the schedule for days off,” Jesse said. “He’s tried to arrange it so couples are off together, but that only covers five days, six if they go down to help too.”
“I can take a day,” Jason offered. “If nothing else, he probably needs a vet to take a look at the mob and make sure they’re healthy, and I’d always intended to offer my vet services to Taylor. I just hadn’t got around to it yet.”
“I can go too,” Seth said. “I don’t know if they have a mechanic, but even if they do, I can ride out with a crew.”
“And there’s the week covered,” Linda said. “See? That wasn’t so hard.”
Jason smiled at her. Kyle had done a good thing when he married Linda and brought her and her daughter to the station. He didn’t know if Laura had plans after high school, but she’d already made a place for herself on Lang Downs. “Now we just have to convince Sam and Jeremy to accept.”
“That’s easy,” Thorne said. “We don’t ask them. We just show up and get to work. They can’t say no to that.”
J EREMY WATCHED in stony silence as Devlin’s casket was lowered into the ground. He didn’t even know the men holding the ropes. Sam had asked for volunteers and had arranged it without Jeremy’s input. That was the way most of his life felt at the moment. Probably just as well, since he didn’t feel capable of making even the most basic decisions. Life just kept eddying around him, but he was too numb to feel it.
The minister had spoken words of comfort and praise for a life well lived, but they hadn’t been enough to break through the ice that had settled in Jeremy’s chest since they’d returned to Taylor Peak Sunday night. Neil had taken charge of the jackaroos, making sure the station kept running, and Sam had taken charge of the arrangements for the funeral.
“Jeremy.”
He blinked a couple of times at the sound of his name, trying to pull himself together enough to respond. Sam stood next to him holding a shovel. Jeremy took it and stepped toward the gaping hole that held Devlin’s remains. He swallowed hard and filled the shovel with dirt. Shuddering against the thought of the cold, hard earth covering the casket Ian had so quickly and beautifully crafted, Jeremy did as expected and tossed his spadeful into the grave.
All around the site, men and women stood with heads bowed, hats held respectfully over their hearts. Molly had tears in her eyes, he noticed. So did Linda.
Linda was here? He didn’t remember her arriving, but as he looked around the small crowd, he saw other familiar faces mixed in with the Taylor Peak jackaroos. Ian and Thorne stood next to Neil and Molly. Caine and Macklin stood in the back with Seth and Jason. He remembered Jason coming back to the station, but he’d thought Seth was just coming for a visit. Kyle stood with Linda and Laura, his arm around Laura’s shoulders. Chris and Jesse were there too. All his
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