Page 42 of The Breakdown

Vaughn stood from the couch. “Fine. I won’t. You crazy old woman.”

“I’m not that old, and I’m not that crazy.”

Vaughn smirked. “Whatever, Gram.”

She headed for the hallway. “Go ahead and send those emails.”

June moved the mouse and woke the computer. “I’m on it. You have a good sleep, Vaughn Marie.”

“You too, Gram.” Vaughn disappeared down the hallway and June worked on typing out and sending the emails, marking in her calendar along the way. She hoped most of the applicants would agree to the suggested times. It would make things a lot easier, but she knew it wasn’t likely. They’d probably have to run the interviews into Friday. And hopefully have the ones they didn’t weed out come for visits to the ranch on Saturday and Sunday.

As she sent the last email, a handful of applicants began to respond, confirming their interview time. She smiled, feeling good about getting things done. She recalled a time when she was the sole one responsible for things like this, working alongside her late husband, Jack. He worked the ranch and the horses and she worked behind the scenes, taking care of the rest. They’d been a good team and she missed him so. But he’d been gone ten years now. Funny how sometimes it felt like yesterday and other times it felt like an eternity.

Jack had been a good man and she knew she’d been lucky in finding such a kind, hardworking soul. He’d been good to their daughter too, and even better to Vaughn. Those two had been like two peas in a pod. Riding together, working the horses, sleeping out under the stars just for the fun of it. She remembered when Jack and her had first discovered Vaughn out sleeping with the horses. She’d said she’d been doing it every night. Sleeping with a different horse each evening, so that they all had a turn at companionship. Jack had been so moved that he’d made her a little bed with a cot, and he’d tucked her in every night next to the horse of her choosing. And she’d slept in the stables for close to a year before she’d announced that the horses all felt better and no longer needed her. That’s when Jack had offered to sleep out under the stars with her, whenever she wanted. And Vaughn had wanted to quite frequently.

June could still recall hearing her child-like laughter late at night as they slept on cots in the corral. June would sleep with her window open in late fall and early spring and listen to the two of them giggle and cut up. Until eventually silence would overcome them and they’d fall asleep and sleep peacefully until the rooster crowed. Then they’d get up and start in on their chores until breakfast, with Vaughn following Jack around like a loyal dog, eating up his every word and mimicking his every move.

Needless to say, Vaughn had been devastated at his loss. She stayed at his bedside as much as she could, knowing he’d want her to carry on with the ranch rather than worry about him. So she came and sat with him as he slept, which wasn’t a lot at first, but as the cancer progressed, it seemed like all he did was sleep, with the morphine and what not.

She was there when he passed. They all were. It was early evening, around supper time and the home nurse had warned them that it would be soon. She and her daughter Vivian and Vaughn had sat vigil and held his hands until he took his last breath.

Vaughn had stood up and thrown an angry punch. She’d hit the wall and created a small indention. It hadn’t fractured her hand or anything, but she’d been right lucky that way. It did slow her in finishing her chores, which upset her a great deal. But she kept on, not missing a second of work on the ranch. She was determined to make her grandpa proud, she was. And proud, well, June knew the man would be more than proud. It was just a shame that Jeanie had had to come into their lives and ruin everything. She’d damaged Vaughn in more ways than Vaughn would like to admit. Child still hasn’t fully recovered.

June closed down the computer and stood for a long stretch. As she walked toward the hallway for her own shower, she thought about Natalie and how lucky they were to have her. Maybe Jeanie had come into their life for a reason. Maybe she’d come and broken Vaughn’s heart, so that when Natalie came, Vaughn could see just how good she was. She hoped that was the case. Natalie would be good for Vaughn and vice versa. If only the two of them could see it.

“I reckon they will at some point,” she said to herself as she entered her room to grab her nightgown and robe to head to the shower. “I just hope they do it before it’s too late.” She didn’t know when too late would come along, but she knew it was quickly approaching.

Chapter Seventeen

Allen slid his AMG GT Mercedes coupe along the curb in front of the small apartment complex in North Phoenix. He sat for a moment, debating his next move. Ahead of him, and across the street, he spotted Tom’s red pickup truck. He groaned, his displeasure with the young man growing day by day. Tom had yet to find Natalie and he’d even spoken to her roommate, supposedly, and gotten nowhere. He’d spoken to Nico about him, and he’d assured him he’d turn up the heat on the kid, but so far it didn’t seem like anything had been done.

“Never send an idiot to do a job you should do yourself,” Allen said as he killed his engine and climbed from the car. He hurriedly walked up to Tom’s truck and knocked on the window. Tom lowered it, looking surprised. He flinched when Allen raised his hand to rest it on the door. Allen almost laughed. Good. It was good for him to be a little afraid.

“Do you have any news?” Allen asked, already knowing the answer. He knew Tom would’ve called him right away had he found anything.

“No, sir,” he said. “Sorry, sir.”

Allen tapped the door. “No worries, son. No worries.”

“Sir?”

“You go on home now,” he said. He smiled at him.

Tom looked horrified. “I don’t understand.”

Allen leaned in, causing Tom to rear back. “Let me put it this way, then. You’re fired.”

“But, sir—”

“No, no, no. You don’t get to argue. You just get to take your sorry little ass and leave.”

“But I—”

Allen grabbed him by the collar. “Didn’t you hear me, you worthless piece of shit? I said leave!”

Tom blinked rapidly and started his engine. “Okay. I’m going. I’m going.”

Allen released him and backed away. He watched as Tom put the truck in gear and sped away. He took a deep breath, straightened the jacket of his suit, and faced the apartments once again. He looked both ways up and down the street and crossed it quickly. Then he made his way through the complex to Natalie’s second-story apartment. He took the steps two at a time as he climbed, and when he reached the porch, the overhead light came on and he put on his best smile before he opened the metal screen and knocked.

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