Chapter 17

Bliss slung her leg over Butterfly’s saddle and positioned herself correctly, running the reins through her hands a few times to adjust to the feel of them.

“Ready?” Clint asked her, mounting his own horse. ‘Diablo’ hadn’t stuck, so now the poor animal was once again called ‘horse’.

Bliss nodded and they rode off side by side away from the ranch and toward Almighty. Clint had warmed up to her some, which meant that he didn’t pin her with a cold stare every time they glanced at each other. He was actually halfway civil to be around now. Bliss smiled to herself when she thought that she might take partial credit for tearing down a brick or two of his fortified wall. However, in all likelihood, he was revealing himself to her on his own terms and it had nothing to do with her.

After all, she had driven the man batty in the past week he had been with them.

Once they were out of earshot of the ranch, Clint shifted in the saddle and looked over at her.

“So what did you find out?” he asked.

Bliss shrugged. “I’ve got a place, but Grace wasn’t sure if it was the right one. She doesn’t know too much about Momma’s death, either. Daddy kept a good secret.”

She heard Clint sigh. “Well, I guess that’s better than nothing. At least we have somewhat of a lead. Once we find how she got up there, we can get to the top ourselves. I’m not too sure that we’ll find anything, but it’s worth a shot.”

“We’ve got to find something,” Bliss told him. “For eleven years I’ve been looking for these answers and I came up dry every time. Getting to the top of that mesa is my last hope!”

She felt Clint watching her.

“Why do you want to know so much about her death? Isn’t it enough to know that she killed herself?” he asked.

Bliss felt her lip begin to quiver. It happened every time she thought seriously about her mother actually killing herself. “I want to know why she killed herself. I can’t help wondering if it was my fault, something I had done. Did I drive her to her death? Was my childish mistakes too much for her to bear?”

“You were ten years old,” Clint stated as if it were a profound truth.

“I was a terror,” Bliss’ lip began to quiver more dramatically. She willed it to stop, but there was no stopping the onslaught of tears that was soon coming.

She couldn’t cry. Not in front of Clint.

I am strong.

I am strong.

I am strong.

“I was constantly messing around with Colt, getting all muddy and disobeying her. She tried so hard to make a lady out of me. I kept pushing and pushing her. I may have pushed her over her limit. Why was I…?”

She stopped. She had never told these things to anyone. Why was she telling them to Clint? He didn’t even like her and she didn’t trust him.

Did she?

She looked over at him.

Yes, she trusted him. She didn’t know why, but she did. He was hardened and secretive, but he was trustworthy.

“I don’t think you can reasonably blame yourself. I’ve seen first hand where people drive themselves insane on something that hadn’t even happened. They can fear something so much that they drive themselves crazy with worry. The mind is a scary, confusing place, yet it is one of the most powerful places on earth. No one has even begun to crack the code of it. People can do things they don’t even realize they can because they can’t control their mind,” Clint explained.

Bliss felt one tear slide down her cheek. She wiped it away before Clint could see it.

“So you think Momma could have gone crazy?” she asked.

“I’m saying that we have no idea. Who is the person that knew your mother the best?” Clint asked.

“Daddy.”

“Exactly. Since he’s not going to tell us anything that he knows, we’re going to have to figure these things out on our own. Anything is possible, Miss Cooper.”

They reached Almighty and Bliss led her horse over to the tall Saguaro cactus that Grace had mentioned and dismounted.

“This the place?” Clint asked her.

“I’m pretty sure. Grace may be old, but she has a good memory.” Bliss began to study the surrounding area. There was nothing outside of the normal around the mesa. It puzzled her.

“Don’t you think she would leave some trace of how she got up there?” She asked to no one in particular.

She had looked the side of Almighty up and down several times when something caught her eye.

“Look here, Mr. Slade,” she said as she waved Clint over.

Clint walked up beside her.

A tattered piece of a rope stuck out of the wall of the mesa. Bliss felt the sudden urge to pull it and followed through with it. A sheet of dirt came off the steep wall all the way to the top and fell on top of her. Luckily, she didn’t inhale any of it, but it covered her from head to toe.

She looked over at Clint, who was standing far enough away that the dirt hadn’t affected him. He stared at her, his eyebrows raised and his lips pressed into a thin line, though a smile threatened to break through as it curled up the edges of his mouth.

“Well…” He stated.

Bliss looked up and saw the shredded remnants of what were once two ropes.

“Would ya look at that?” she smiled as she brushed most of the dust from her hair and dress.

“That’s a little odd,” Clint’s eyebrows drew close together as he spoke.

He reached out and gently pulled on one of the ropes. It didn’t move. He pulled a little harder and the ropes rotated a little bit.

“Uh huh,” he muttered.

“What is it?” Bliss asked.

“Well Miss Cooper, I reckon that there’s a pulley up there.”

Bliss arched one eyebrow. “How did you come across that idea?”

“Well, ‘cause it looks like it. Then there’s not really a reason for two ropes to be hanging here for no good reason, ya know?” Clint looked up to the top of the mesa, his eyes squinting against the glaring sun.

“Doesn’t seem like there’s a good reason for a pulley, either,” Bliss said with a sigh.

She was thoroughly confused. Why would someone put a pulley up there?

“Well, that could be for several reasons, I guess. Hook yourself on one rope and pull yourself up with the other. It’s dangerous, but it could happen. Another reason could be that someone wanted to hide something up there and this was the only way they saw to get it up there,” Clint answered her unspoken question.

Bliss sighed. “So… how did they get up there to put the pulley there?”

Clint shrugged.

“Mr. Slade, I have to get to the top of this thing now more than ever. I’m telling you, I’m fed up with all these secrets. I’m going to find out what happened to my mother not because I’m simply curious, but because I have the right to know. A right that my own father has denied me up to this point,” Bliss stated, a new determination in her soul.

“I understand, Miss Cooper, but we have to be reasonable about this. We’ll think of a way to get to the top of this thing,” Clint said confidently.

Bliss suddenly felt guilty for dragging him into this.

“Thank you… for doing this. I know it’s not your job,” she said, her eyes cast down to the ground.

“I want to figure this whole thing out too. The sooner we get your questions answered, the sooner I can get out of here and you can have your independence back.” Clint appeared to be studying the wall of the mesa, looking up and down its two hundred foot height.

Bliss felt her heart sink. Now she felt they were at least friends, and she didn’t want him thinking that she still wanted him out of her hair. She did want her independence back but she didn’t want him to go… just yet.

*****

Clint thought to himself on the way back to the ranch, more confused than ever. Maybe the best thing was to not think about the problem for a while and come back to it when he had a clear head. For now it was hard to concentrate when Miss Cooper was covered with dust. He had to admit that he had been tempted to laugh at her. Her face of pure horror when that sheet of dust landed on her was enough to coax a laugh out of a total scrooge. But not Clint. He had managed to contain himself. Even now, she was still dusty enough that Grace would surely have a conniption when she saw her.

And have a conniption she did.

“Bliss Mackenzie Cooper! What have you done?” Grace screeched.

“It’s… a long story, Grace.” Bliss brushed off her skirt worthlessly.

Grace pinned Clint with a glare. “What did you do?”

Clint put up his hands. “I didn’t touch her.”

Honestly, he was indeed afraid of the woman’s wrath. Most women who look kind a gracious on the outside could turn into she-devils with a snap of a finger.

“I declare…” Grace muttered as she shook her head and led Bliss into the house.

Bliss handed him the reins to her horse and let herself be yanked inside the house.

Clint took both horses to the barn and Mason came out to greet him.

“I’ll take care of ‘em, Mr. Slade,” he said.

Clint handed him the reins to both horses. The boy seemed capable enough.

“Thanks,” Clint said.

Mason led the horses off and Clint shoved his thumbs between his gun belt and his pockets, wondering what to do with himself. He definitely wasn’t going into that house to witness Grace scolding and scrubbing Bliss’ hair and face until they shone. That was his idea of horror.

Taking a deep breath, Clint meandered past the barn and out toward where the pastures started. A few stray Hereford cattle wandered around in front of the sturdy fence that separated them from the main ranch. Clint watched the red and white cattle for a few minutes before walking onward down the length of the fence.

He happened to look up by chance just in time to see a figure hastily approach the back door. His senses snapped into high alert as he dashed out of sight behind one of the bunkhouses. He took a steadying breath as he peeked around the corner of the building. The figure was placing a paper between the back door and the doorjamb. Clint hovered his hand over his gun and stretched his fingers. He took one more steadying breath just before he ran toward the back of the house. He tried making his steps light but quick as he neared the figure, who was having trouble getting the paper to stay where he wanted. Clint stopped just short of the back stoop and flattened himself up against the side of the building just where it met with the back wall.

He peeked around the corner as the figure, a man in dark clothes and a dark leather roll-brimmed hat, wedged the paper where he wanted it and got it to stay. Acting quickly, Clint drew his gun and pulled back the hammer until he heard that satisfying click.

He stepped away from his hiding place into vulnerability as he aimed the gun at the man. He steadied his hand and was just about to speak up when the man turned around.

Clint froze.

Ba-Boosh! Cliffhanger!

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