 
Cooper's Lake

By Melody Hill-Campanelli

Copyright 2014 Melody Hill-Campanelli

Smashwords Edition

Cover Image and Design Copyright 2020 Melody Hill-Campanelli  
Made at www.canva.com

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work of this author.

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locations, or people, living or dead, is coincidental
Part One

The truck bounced on a rut and Grace thought her teeth might shatter from the impact. She thought about turning back; after all, she was only four miles off the main road and no one knew she was there. "Main road," she scoffed, "nothing in this state can be called a 'main' anything. It's like Satan's last outpost."

She shook her head and thought about the man at the airport, "That ranch is four hours away from town, ma'am. You best hire someone to take you out there like most people do."

"Well, I can't afford that. I've already rented a truck," she had explained.

He shrugged nonchalantly, "Have it your way."

She even had a feeling that the pimply faced boy at Missoula Rent-A-Car would have tried to talk her out of his own commission if it had been refundable. Grace sneered and turned the radio up, trying to forget about the reception she had received in what she considered no man's land.

As she drove, she had to wonder if the time it took to get to Cooper's Lake could have been cut down to half of what it was if the roads were better maintained. She was able to coax the truck up to about 25 mph, but anything faster instantly felt as if it would fracture her spine.

When she finally pulled up to the gate of the place, she leaned back in the seat and breathed a sigh of relief. Her body was tense and it felt good to finally relax. It was obvious that Amy took better care of her ranch roads than the county took care of the roads outside of it.

She looked up at the wooden sign as she drove underneath it and felt a little wave of pride course through her, "You did it, Amy. Good for you. I'll never really get it, but I'm glad you did it." She parked the truck next to a large Dodge Ram and jumped out, feeling the blood return to the rest of her body.

As she stretched, she had to take a moment to appreciate the scenery despite herself. The rolling fields of the ranch spread out on all sides of her, dotted here and there with horses. There looked to be about seven cabins on the left edge of the property and a large house that sat near the barn. As she looked over the vista, she saw a large lake in the middle of one of the fields that perfectly reflected the mountains and sky, obviously the landmark that had given the ranch its name. Suddenly, it seemed a little more like God's last outpost, rather than Satan's and it nearly took her breath away.

Once she was finally able to shake off the spell of the scenery, she walked up the wooden steps of the large log cabin and knocked loudly on the door. There was no sign of movement after the third knock so she walked back to the edge of the porch and scanned the property, seeing if she could see anyone.

A muscular man walked out of the barn carrying a sack of feed. He was so stereotypical of a ranch hand that Grace couldn't stop herself from smirking. He had on a Stetson, cowboy boots, a nice fitting pair of jeans, and a button up plaid shirt with the sleeves rolled up. Raising her hand in the air, she hollered out, "OH! Hello there!"

The man looked shocked, but it was fleeting. He put the feed down and walked over to her, "Can I help you?"

Grace tried to smile, "I'm here to see Amy Cooper." She did not think she needed to explain further than that. She was from a place where if you told someone something, they took it at face value and led you straight inside.

The man was not from where she was from, obviously, "Hmm. I'm sorry, we don't have any reservations for today. Next people scheduled to arrive are the Bishops and they've been coming here for several years now. You are not a Bishop."

Grace peered at him and fought the urge to shout at him, "No. I am not a Bishop. I am a friend of Amy's and she did not know I was coming. It's a surprise. I wanted to surprise her. Can you please tell me where I can find her, or take me to her?" Grace could not believe the rudeness of the man. She hoped he didn't talk to the actual paying guests that way.

The man spit tobacco juice on the ground, "Stay right there."

Grace put her hands on her hips as he disappeared back into the barn. She could hear the sound of muffled voices and then he returned with a woman who looked just as stereotypical as him, except she didn't have a hat on and she appeared to be a little dirtier. Grace eyed her up and down, finally letting her eyes rest on a line of dirt on her cheek, "You're not Amy."

She rubbed her hand on a cloth and then extended it to Grace, "No, I'm Lee. Actually, it's Cleo Lee, but people just call me Lee. I'm the vet. Patrick says you are here to surprise Amy, but Amy isn't here, Miss.....?"

"The vet?" Grace whispered. So that explained the state of the woman's clothing. She did not shake her hand, "What do you mean, she isn't here?" When it was obvious that Lee wasn't going to answer her she continued, "I'm Grace. Grace Forster."

The woman's eyes went wide and it looked like Grace had just punched her in the gut, "Grace?"

Grace raised an eyebrow, suspicious of the woman for the first time, "Yes. I see my reputation has proceeded me all the way to Montana. Don't believe everything Amy has told you." She took stock of the woman again and noticed that behind the dirt and cotton shirt, she might actually have been pretty. Her green eyes matched her chestnut colored hair which was up in a ponytail, but had a hint of wave in it that would have looked very nice if she took time with it. She glanced at her hands and noticed that they also would have been pretty, if not for the layers of dirt under them. A little wave of jealousy bit at her as it suddenly occurred to her that the woman might be Amy's girlfriend.

Although she tried to compose herself, Lee was visibly paler and looked as if she might vomit as Grace searched her body with her eyes. Patrick shifted nervously at her side and spit again as Lee looked around for help that wasn't coming, "Well, Amy isn't here."

"Yes, you've said that. Where is she?" Grace asked, losing patience.

"She's out there." Amy pointed towards the fields and mountains, "She's riding the property line looking for damage. We had some bad weather last week. I am sure you're already aware of that judging from how bad the road must have been coming in."

Patrick spit again, "She drove a foreign truck in here."

Grace peered at him, noting the sarcastic tone in his voice. Lee cut him off with a look as well, "She should be back tonight, late, or tomorrow morning sometime. The Bishops are checking in in a couple of days, and she always gets back before guests arrive."

"Well," Grace said, "I guess I'll just have to wait on her. The house is locked up though so I can't get anything inside. Can you unlock it for me or do I have to sleep on the porch?"

Patrick glanced at Lee and cleared his throat. Lee shook her head, "I can't do that, ma'am. Amy wouldn't like that at all. But no, you don't have to sleep on the porch." She chewed on her bottom lip for a minute. There was no possible way she was letting Grace Forster sleep in the cabin with her. Frowning, she looked around the ranch and then said, "Patrick, go get cabin four ready...."

Patrick shook his head and interrupted, "Cabin four is reserved for the Bishops. You know that. They always stay there."

"I know," Lee said, exasperated, "but it's only til Amy gets back and can make arrangements. What else am I supposed to do? I can't let her into the big house. It'll be cleared out by the time the Bishops get here. Now get Ms. Forster's things and show her to the cabin, Pat."

Grace raised an eyebrow, "I am sorry I have intruded, but I am sure Amy will be happy to see me."

Lee looked sick again and shook her head, "Don't worry about it. I... I have to go now. Sweetlips is in labor and I have to be there." She turned and walked away quickly, head down.

Grace started to say something but there was no one to speak to. Patrick was getting her bags out of the bed of the truck and grumbling about the poor quality of foreign made pickups. He did not stop to wait for her as he walked towards a cabin that sat at the edge of a field overlooking the lake. The number 4 was carefully engraved on a stump that was sitting next to the two steps leading up to the low porch.

He took a large key ring from his belt and opened the cabin, then sat her bags down inside, "Well, this is cabin four."

She looked around the rustic cabin and frowned, "Well... here I am then. What time does everyone leave? I assume the vet will stay until Sweetcheeks has the baby but I don't want to be out here by myself." She was fishing for information about the woman.

He laughed, "Sweetlips... and we don't leave ma'am." He pointed to two structures that she had not noticed before, larger than the guest cabins and on the right side of the main house, "If you need anything, that one there is my house, I live there with my wife Darlene, who helps clean the guest cabins, and that one there is Lee's."

Grace felt a mix of anger and relief. She couldn't put her finger on why, but she felt threatened by the vet. On the other hand, she was happy that she wouldn't have to be on the ranch alone and even happier that the vet did not live in the house with Amy, "Oh. You both live here."

"Yes ma'am. When a horse gets sick or something, Amy can't wait four hours for a vet, so she pays Lee extra to live here. She's been the vet in residence for three years. I'm the maintenance guy and general do everything guy around here. We've been here three years as well. If something breaks down on a guest, same thing, she can't wait four hours for me to get here from town. It's a good deal. We don't want for anything out here. Amy is a good boss and an even better friend. It's more like family out here than anything. Mark Little works out here during tourist season and stays in Lee's spare room. He'll be here tomorrow. Trisha Lord comes out every weekend to bring the shopping from town, so you'll see her in a couple of days as well, even though she doesn't live out here. Other than that, we don't really see a lot of folks out here other than the guests," he finished by tipping his hat, "Have a good day ma'am. I have to get back to work."

He walked back toward the barn as fast as he could go, presumably to keep from having to talk to her anymore. Grace stood in the doorway of the cabin and wondered what Amy had told everyone since they all seemed to hate her, "What in the hell are you doing, Grace?"

*****

Patrick scowled, "What is that bitch doing here?"

Lee shook her head, "I don't want to talk about it Pat. She's here. Nothing we can do. You better finish feeding the horses."

"We should have made her leave." He paced in front of the stall door then slapped it.

"Stop doing that. You're making Sweetlips nervous and she's already having a hard enough time. And I don't remember hearing you tell her she had to leave. Sending Grace away is not my place. That's up to Amy. I'm sure she'll be gone soon. From what I've heard, Amy hates that woman," Lee said. Truth be told, she did not want to have this conversation with anyone, but she especially did not want to have it with Patrick, who had, in the beginning, had a hard time coping with the fact that his boss and the vet were lesbians. To the point where he would have quit if his wife had not stepped in. Frowning, she soothed Sweetlips and felt again for the foal to see if it had turned yet.

"It isn't right. That bitch is up to no good, I can feel it. You know as well as I do that Amy is better off without her. And where do you get off saying it isn't your place? You may as well be in a relationship with her, even if you both are too damn stubborn to admit it. You get that look in your eyes when she comes around..."

"Enough Patrick. That is enough. I will not have this conversation with you. And since when do you think it's not a mortal sin for us to like other women?" She shifted herself and then sighed, "I'm sorry, Pat, that was out of line. You've been very good since we had our talk and I shouldn't have said that. I have too much going on to worry about that woman being here. Please. Now get in here and help me or get out there and do some work. Amy will be back soon and she'll sort it all out when she gets here."

Patrick leaned down, "Yes, you were out of line, but I'm going to forgive you because you're an idiot."

"Excuse me?" Lee asked, glaring.

"You're a damn fool. Amy is a good person. She's sweet, she treats you like gold, and you just act like it should be this way forever because you're afraid if you approach her, she'll bolt. Now, this bitch shows up from Savannah, Georgia, and you just back right the hell down like there's no fight in you. And no, I don't get your... um... sexual preferences... but," he stopped and cleared his throat, obviously embarrassed. Finally, he leaned over her and whispered, "I know both of you and it's different. I've seen the two of you together. Darlene and I have even talked about it," he stood back up and slapped at the stall door again. "Darlene and I have been talking about this for the last goddamn year. It's sad how the two of you are in love and won't admit it."

Lee stood up, the horse forgotten for a moment, "You have no right... absolutely no right to say those things to me, Patrick Tanner. And you have no right talking about it behind my back. You or your wife. I am the veterinarian on this ranch, and do not have feelings for Amy. Amy is not, nor has she ever been, in love with me. She made that very clear to me but that isn't something I need to explain to you, or Darlene. Get out. I have more important things to worry about."

He backed up and shook his head, "You're a damn fool. If you aren't in love with her why did you turn five shades of white when that woman out there said her name? And Amy is in love with you even if she is too damn stubborn to admit it. Think about that for a minute, will you? Don't let that bitch come in here and destroy everything we have. You have to figure out how to tell Amy how you feel."

Lee did not move from the stall door for a long time after he left. Finally, when she sat back down in the straw with Sweetlips, she allowed herself to remember the closest she had ever gotten to telling Amy that she didn't just like her as a friend. The first night she had realized she was in love with Amy, and the night when she had realized that Amy would never love her back, no matter what she did. She had been living on the farm for a year already...

*****

Amy looked up from her hand of cards and laughed, "Well damnit, Lee, you beat us again."

"I told you, I'm good!" Lee shouted.

Patrick and Darlene stood up, "Alright, we've got to be going. It's getting late. Big day tomorrow since the first guests are set to arrive. Don't stay up too late, ladies."

Lee pushed the cards away from her and took the horseshoe nails from the table, "That makes seventeen. Seventeen chores that have to be done for me in the next month."

"Don't rub it in too hard," Amy said with a sparkle in her eye.

"Do you want to keep playing?"

"No, let's go sit on the porch. It's a beautiful night." Amy stood up and grabbed two fresh beers, handing one to Lee. Smiling, she walked out onto the front porch and sat down in the swing.

Lee sat down next to her and listened to the crickets chirping and the frogs croaking, "This is such a beautiful, wonderful place at night. There's magic in it. I am so glad I made the decision to leave my practice and come live out here."

"Me too," Amy said casually.

Lee glanced at her, looking for more feeling in the words than she found, although she had a hard time admitting it to herself. Lee had never had an easy time communicating how she felt about other people and now she did not know what to say. They rocked in silence for a little bit and it wasn't long before the motion started to make Lee tired.

Amy broke the silence just as Lee felt her head bob, "She left me. That's why I'm here."

"What?" Lee asked, a little dazed. Amy never talked about her past and it was strange to hear her broach the subject.

"Grace. She left me for a doctor in Savannah. Cassandra was her name and she made more money than me," Amy explained. "I haven't always been rich. I didn't inherit the money until a year after Grace left. That's when I moved out here. I've been here two years and haven't heard a single word."

"I'm sorry, Amy. But it does seem like it's her loss," Lee said, nervous, but trying to make Amy feel better. It would be the first of many uncomfortable conversations they would have about Grace Forster.

Amy raised an eyebrow, "Her loss, huh? Well, good riddance to her. She always did go where the money was."

"Do you want to hear from her?"

"Some days," Amy answered truthfully.

Lee leaned up in the swing, closer to Amy, "And other days?"

"Other days I wish she would fall off the face of the earth. She ruined me," Amy looked up and stopped talking, staring into Lee's eyes.

"Ruined you? Look at all the things around you. You don't believe that and neither do I," Lee said quietly as she reached up to brush a strand of golden hair from Amy's face before she realized it and whispered, "Aren't there days when you just don't think about her at all?"

Amy leaned closer and Lee thought she was about to kiss her. Then, just as her lips started to brush Lee's, she felt a hand close around her wrist, "If I kiss you right now... If I take advantage of you, I'll never forgive myself. I can't love you."

It was said with so much conviction that Lee's breath caught in her throat, "I'm not asking you to love me." That was the moment when her mouth said something her heart did not agree with. She realized right then that all she wanted was for Amy to love her because that's all she could think about doing; loving Amy. Frowning, she tried to pull her wrist free, "I'm not asking that at all."

Amy finally let go and shook her head, "I don't know what's wrong with me. I should be thrilled that you're hitting on me."

"I know what's wrong with you. You're hurt, you're bitter, you're angry... and you have every right to be. But look what you've done for yourself, Amy. You built this place from the ground up," Lee said, fighting tears.

Amy didn't respond. She sat back in the swing and finished her beer, then looked back at Lee, "You're going to get hurt."

"No I am not. I won't allow it," Lee said quietly, with far more conviction than she felt.

Amy looked up towards the millions of stars in the sky, "I hope you're right. Do you think you can handle this... living here... honestly?"

Lee nodded, "I've been here for a year, Amy." She was a little put out and felt like Amy wanted her to leave. It was not a pleasant feeling.

Amy turned to face her again, "I know that."

Lee leaned back in the swing again, "I'm sorry I did that."

"What?" Amy asked, trying to make eye contact, "Sorry you did what?"

"It's a pet peeve. Hair in the face. That's why I moved it. I wasn't making moves on you, it's just a pet peeve and I'm sorry," Lee lied, speaking in fractured sentences because the nervous feeling had returned. She hugged herself tightly, "I won't do it again."

Amy turned in the seat, "Stop it. I am not mad about that. And I'm the one that nearly kissed you. All you did was move some hair. I just don't want you to put yourself into a position where you might get hurt. I need to be honest with you. You're too good for anything else."

Lee stood up, "This is me walking away from that position then."

Amy grabbed her hand, "Wait, Lee."

"No. You have made it clear to me. You can't help a girl for trying, and I have. So that's the end of it. I'm done. This is me walking away from the situation where I get hurt. But I am not leaving this ranch. I love it here." She heard the words coming out of her mouth, but for some reason, now, she couldn't get her legs to move.

Amy stood up as well so she felt like she would be on even ground and in her eyes, Lee saw pity, "Thank you for trying. It's my failing, not yours. And I am not trying to get you to leave. I am glad you're here."

Lee knew she was about to lose it, as she always was when she was near Amy. She turned away quickly, cursing herself silently for being such a hopeless romantic. She had actually convinced herself that Amy would come around and they would live happily ever after. What had just started as a random attraction had suddenly changed into something she had no control over and it was so obvious that even Amy had picked up on it. Frowning, she finally felt her legs move, "Goodnight, Amy."

"Goodnight, Lee."

*****

She could still remember how hard she had wished that Amy would come bounding off that porch and sweep her off her feet. Instead, she heard the sound of the porch swing as Amy sat back down in it and slowly started rocking again. Two years worth of nights had come and gone since then, and Lee's love for Amy had only gotten stronger. She wished there was a way to count up all the tears she had cried, or sleepless nights she had spent tossing and turning, agonizing over a woman that did not love her back.

In a way, Lee felt like they were together, despite the fact that it had never been made official. They made decisions around the farm together, even monetary decisions. Sometimes, when Amy was gone for extended periods of time, she would stay in the big house, using the excuse that she was looking after the dog. Amy did not know about those times, but it meant that she got to sleep in Amy's bed, which smelled like her and made Lee's heart race.

She thought about Grace and frowned. She could understand why Amy was bewitched by her. The woman was stunning with her long dark hair, crystal blue eyes, and body to kill for. She was tall, lithe, well named, and in that miniskirt, her legs seemed to never stop. Lee looked at her own clothes, dirty and, if she was honest, frumpy. She stared at the dirt under her fingernails and thought of Grace's perfectly manicured hands. Sighing, she said out loud, "No wonder, if that's what she is used to."

Lee pushed the image of Grace out of her mind and leaned back against the wall, stroking Sweetlips' belly as the horse laid her head in her lap. Instead, she tried to think about all the time that she had spent with Amy talking and swinging on that same porch. She had never been so forward with Amy again, never made any kind of gesture showing affection again, just like she had promised. There had been times when innocent flirting made the chemistry between them seem so close to boiling over that afterwards, Lee wondered how it hadn't escalated. She felt the horse's belly contract and whispered, "I gave up on her so long ago..." So why in the hell was she so torn up about Grace's sudden arrival now?

*****

Grace stepped out onto the front porch of the cabin and listened to the birds singing. The morning was a little crisper than she had thought it would be, considering it was spring, and she hugged herself tightly, chaffing her arms as she walked towards the barn.

She walked through the huge double doors and saw the man, Patrick, leaning against the door of one of the stalls, smiling. Grace rolled her eyes and walked up to him, "Did Amy come back last night? I slept so hard I didn't hear anything." She had barely slept at all because of being terrified of the wilderness outside her door and thinking about how they had treated her, but she didn't think twice about lying to the man. She didn't want them to think it had phased her at all.

Lee was the one who answered from the interior of the stall, "No, she isn't back yet."

Grace glanced in and saw a large dapple gray horse and a wobbly colt standing in the stall with the veterinarian, "Well, I just wasn't sure if y'all would have told her I was here."

Lee looked up at her, "I don't think we'll have to tell her someone is here. Amy doesn't miss much and she's going to notice your truck as soon as she comes up. Did you have breakfast?" As hard as it was, Lee was determined to be at least hospitable to Grace. It would not do anything but make Amy angry if she continued to be rude.

Grace shook her head, "I didn't really bring anything to eat... but I'm fine."

Patrick broke in, obviously making an effort to be nice that was slightly out of his capability where she was concerned, "Go to my house. My wife cooked a big breakfast for me and Lee this morning. I told her to put a plate aside for Amy, but she isn't back yet. Tell her I sent you."

Grace pondered for a moment, then realized they were ignoring her again, focusing all their attention on the new Andalusian baby, "Is it a boy or a girl?"

Lee beamed, almost like a proud mother, "It's a boy. Another strong boy."

Grace nodded, but didn't know enough about horses, horse trading, or anything else involving the ranch to ask any other questions. To her, they all looked the same. She turned around and walked back out of the barn, towards the cabin that Patrick had pointed out on the previous day.

*****

Darlene answered the door and smirked, "You must be Grace?"

Grace had been about to knock, but it was apparent that the woman had been watching for her. She lowered her fist, "Yes. Patrick sent me over here to get a plate."

"I was expecting Amy, but I can feed you as well. Come on in." Darlene moved out of the way so that Grace could pass, but the she didn't move from the porch. "Listen, honey, I don't mind feeding you, but if you're eating, you're eating here. Come on in."

Grace sighed and stepped into the cabin, the feeling that she was in Hell returning. She looked around and noticed that their house was much bigger than the guest cabin, comprised of four rooms instead of two. Grace's cabin barely had a bathroom to speak of and no shower. She made a mental note to ask Darlene about where she could shower before the morning was over.

Darlene shut the door quietly behind them, "Come on into the kitchen. I'll get you a plate ready. I don't make plates to go, because people might want seconds. Lots of carbs have to go down the hatch here because everyone works so hard. It takes a lot to keep meat on their bones, you know? You just have a seat at the kitchen table and I'll bring it. You're not a vegetarian are you?"

Grace shook her head, instantly bored by the woman's chatter, "No."

"Good. I've never trusted vegetarians. So Patrick was telling me you came all the way out here from Georgia to visit Amy. To surprise her. That was very nice of you," Darlene rambled as she fixed the plate.

Grace didn't trust the woman's false sincerity. She looked out the window of the kitchen and realized that every single house on the ranch had a view to die for from each of its windows. She did not look away from the window as she answered, "Yes. I haven't seen Amy in..." she paused and did a mental count, "God... I haven't seen Amy since 2009."

Darlene's sarcasm was clear as she put the plate down in front of Grace and filled a clean mug with coffee, "And do you think Amy will be happy to see you?"

Grace glared at her, "What is everyone's problem here? Has Amy told all of you about what happened?"

Darlene walked back to the sink and started to wash dishes, "Well, she didn't have to, honey. She told us a name though, and that is enough to put two and two together. I am sorry if your reception here has been less than friendly, but you have to understand that we all love Amy very much. She was a broken woman when she came to live out here in Montana and we all have worked very hard to get her back to a semblance of a normal life." She turned around and leaned against the sink, "She actually smiles now. Do you know how big of a step that is? It happens mostly when she is around Lee, but she really and truly smiles now." She stopped to let that sink in and then continued, "When we first came to live out here, she never smiled. She never did much of anything except talk to the horses, drink, and have Patrick and Lee deal with everything else."

Grace took a bite of a sausage link, trying to ignore the insinuation about the vet, and chewed thoughtfully as she listened to Darlene's speech. When she swallowed, she whispered, "I don't see what that has to do with me."

Darlene turned around and scrubbed furiously at a dish that looked clean to Grace, "It has everything to do with you. Do you honestly think that Amy would be out here in the middle of nowhere if it weren't for what happened in Savannah?" She stopped and dropped the dish in the sink, then walked to the table and sat down across from Grace, "All I'm saying is, we don't want to see Amy get hurt. We love her very much. Just don't hurt her."

Grace pushed the plate away, "I have no intentions of hurting Amy."

"Good. That's all we want," Darlene said as she leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms.

Grace stood up, "Thank you for breakfast." She walked towards the front of the house and then thought better of it and turned around, "Yes. Yes I think she would have been out here despite what happened in Savannah. She always wanted a big ranch in the middle of nowhere. This was a dream of hers. She just never thought she'd have the money to get it." Grace thought about adding, "And I don't know where she finally did get the money, but I intend to find out," but figured that would not help her case at all. Instead, she just walked out of the cabin and left the dire housewife to chew on that for a moment.

*****

Grace was halfway across the ranch compound before she realized that she had forgotten to ask where she could shower. Fighting back her frustrated tears, she stormed back towards cabin four with her head down, fists balled up at her sides.

"Are you ok?" she heard Lee ask from the fenceline.

Grace looked up and saw that the vet actually looked concerned, which made her even angrier. She walked over to her, readying herself for a fight, "What has Amy told all of you?"

Lee looked away and grit her teeth, "Not much. It doesn't matter."

"It does matter because ever since I got here y'all have been so fucking rude to me and everyone is so predisposed to hate me and praise her. I don't know what she told you, but she wasn't a saint either," Grace said, trying to make herself feel better. The sorry fact of the matter was, Amy had only stopped treating her like a princess the day that Grace admitted she was having an affair with Cassandra Butler. She kicked at the fence post, "It's none of your business what happened between Amy and me."

"That might be true, but I'm Amy's..." God, how she wanted to say girlfriend, "friend, so she talked to me about it," Lee explained, turning to face Grace. "Now, why don't we just forget about it and figure out how to get through this without being rude to one another. We're just a little biased. There are two sides to every story, so I will try to stop judging you for your part in it. Amy is free to make whatever decision she feels is necessary. I will go back to my first question... are you ok?"

Grace raised an eyebrow, "You're in love with her."

Lee stared, "What? No... I... maybe...." She looked down at her hands and then said honestly, "Maybe at one point. But it should make you feel better to know that Amy has never ever returned the feelings. I haven't thought about her like that in.. years." She glanced back up at the woman and said, "You don't have to worry about me being a threat if that's what is concerning you. Now... are you ok?"

Grace eyed Lee suspiciously, "No. I don't know where I can shower. Cabin four has no shower."

Lee almost laughed, "Oh shit. I'm sorry. I forgot about that. When the Bishops come out here, they spend most of their time in the backcountry hiking. Let me show you where the showers are."

Grace followed behind Lee until they reached a cinderblock building that looked like bathrooms at a recreational park. Grace felt her heart sink a little, "Are you kidding me?"

Lee crossed her arms and smiled, "People don't come out here to vacation in a spa. They come to Cooper's Lake to rough it. Showers are irrelevant for them. But there are ten showers in there and each of them has a door, so you'll be able to get all clean and fresh anyway. They even had a neat little shelf inside for you to sit all your stuff. I wish I could say there were better accomodations, but at the moment, there are not. All the other cabins are taken and the only other places with indoor showers are the big house, Pat's house, and mine. Amy has plans to put showers in all the cabins, but for right now, we have to wait because of building licenses and sewage permits and stuff."

Grace was still shocked, "People live like this..."

Lee nodded, "And pay to do it if you can believe that. You'd be shocked how many people come out here to get away from the 'luxuries' of living. Just for a little while. Some people come just to see if they can handle it. Some people get addicted to it, like the Bishops, and some people never come back." She bit back the urge to say that she hoped Grace was one of the latter types.

Grace fought the urge to stomp her foot and scream, "Ok, fine. Thank you for showing me. I think I'll just have a shower now."

Lee nodded, "My pleasure. The hot water runs out after about fifteen minutes, so I wouldn't dawdle if I were you."

*****

Lee looked up from the paperwork she was doing and grinned. She stood up quickly, walked outside and was about to run to the barn when her heart suddenly skipped a sickened beat and she whispered to herself, "You idiot. She isn't coming back to you. She's never come back to you even though it has always felt like it. She's coming back to Grace and this time it isn't just her memory. Go sit down." But she didn't sit down. She leaned against the column of her porch and waved as Amy led Salt past her house and toward the barn. Rider, Amy's dog, ran up to her and started licking her hands, very obviously happy to see her.

Amy waved back and then noticed the new truck. She pointed at it, mouthed something, and then motioned for Lee to come over, "Who is this?"

Lee looked at the ground and shook her head, "A visitor... listen Amy..."

"Oh, the Bishops are early. Why in the hell did they bring a that thing? I'm going to let them have it. They know better than to come early. Come on and help me put Salt up and look at this cut on his leg. Did Sweetlips have her baby, yet?" Amy went a mile a minute. She always went a mile a minute when she came back to the farm.

Before Lee could stop herself, Amy had swept her away in a current of information about the new colt while she cleaned and sutured Salt's leg. The truck and Grace were forgotten for the moment as they chatted back and forth about the new addition. Once she finished by giving Salt a shot of antibiotics, they walked outside and leaned against the rails of the small training paddock to watch the colt bound back and forth. "He's going to be beautiful," Lee whispered.

"Yes, he will make Sweetlips very proud," she turned and crooked her elbows over the railing, "I'm sorry I was gone when he was born. You know I like to help. Now, what should we name him?"

Lee frowned at the "we" and suddenly remembered Grace because of the altercation between her and Patrick when the horse was being born. "Amy... I need to....," she started.

Amy watched Lee's face go pale and became concerned, "What's wrong? Did something happen to Sweetlips?"

Lee shook her head, "No. Oh my God, no. I'm sorry. It's just that... the truck..."

Grace's voice broke through Lee's stuttering, "Belongs to me. Well, it doesn't belong to me... I rented it in Missoula."

Amy turned her head so fast that Lee thought it would break her neck. She saw a multitude of emotions go across Amy's face and the nausea returned. For a moment, she wanted to stay with Amy, just in case she decided to beat the hell out of Grace. The issue would be deciding whether to help her or to stop her from kicking her ass. Seeing the fire building up on Amy's face, Lee backed away, "I tried to tell you. I'm going to leave you two alone. She's in cabin four. I didn't know what else to do. But the Bishops are coming tomorrow... so Darlene needs to clean it. I'm going to go see about Salt now." She turned and rushed off.

Amy watched Lee go and then turned to look at Grace again, "What in the hell are you doing here?"

Grace smiled, "I came to see you."

Amy walked away, "No you didn't. Get your shit. Get back in that damn truck and go away. Get off my property!"

Grace looked startled, "Amy! Stop and listen to me! Amy?"

Amy stepped up to her again and pointed in her face, "You are not welcome here. GET OFF MY PROPERTY!"

Grace did not back down, "I will not leave. I flew all the way out here and drove by myself to get here. I will not leave now. I came for you. I love you."

Amy almost screamed then, but instead she took a step back and then walked away towards cabin four. When she went inside, she started packing Grace's things angrily, throwing the bags out the front door when she was finished. Grace tried to stop her, but it was pointless, and soon Amy was carrying the bags towards the truck, cussing at the top of her lungs, ignoring the fact that Patrick and Darlene had come out of their house to see what was going on. When she reached the truck, she threw the bags down into the bed, the force of it echoing off the mountains around them, and then said, "You have five minutes to crank that piece of shit and leave this place."

"Or what? You'll call the sheriff?" Grace asked sarcastically. She looked around and gestured to the open range around them as she leaned against the truck, "And how long is it going to take him to get here? It took me four hours. You need to listen to what I have to say, Amy. Please? Just let me say what I came to say, then if you still want me to go, I'll go."

Amy stared at her, knowing she was caught. Technically, she could just shoot her, but that would be more headache than it was worth. With a growl, she grabbed Grace by the arm and flung her towards the big house, "This better be good, Grace."

Lee watched from the barn door as Amy exited number four with Grace's things, hopeful that all of this would be over soon. Then, with her heart pounding in her chest, she watched Amy grab Grace's arm and lead her toward the main house. Frowning, she leaned against the frame of the rolling door and sank to the floor, finding it difficult to breathe.

Patrick found her there, still struggling to breathe, "Oh, Lee, come on now. Don't do this. Don't you let anyone see this. Come on back to the house. The horses can wait a minute." He reached down and lifted her up, then dragged her all the way to her house. He marched her inside and sat her down on her couch, "If you let that bitch Grace see you cry, I'll never forgive you. Stop being such a girl."

*****

Once they were in the house and the door closed behind them, Amy stopped pushing Grace along in front of her and stalked off to the living room. Grace followed as she talked, "I am sorry I came without notice, but I knew you wouldn't listen to me if I wrote to you or called you."

"I'm hardly listening to you now, Grace. Talk or get out," Amy said angrily.

"Amy, stop this. Sit down and listen to me. I left Cassandra."

Amy chuckled, "And that is supposed to mean anything to me?"

Grace had planned out what she would say to the letter. She had practiced it all the way to Montana and now it rolled easily off her tongue, "I couldn't do it anymore. I couldn't stay with her knowing I loved you."

"Horse shit," Amy growled.

"NO! It isn't horse shit, Amy. I couldn't do it. I couldn't stay with her one minute more, knowing that my feelings for you had not changed. Do you know how long it took me to track you down all the way out here? I would have been here sooner but I couldn't find you. I love you. I have always loved you. I made a mistake and I want to try to make it right. Please, just give me time to prove it to you. I left her for you," Grace pleaded.

"Begging does not become you. How am I supposed to believe you after all that has happened? All the time that has passed?" Amy sat down on the couch and rubbed her face, feeling very tired all of a sudden.

"It's been five years, Amy, I know that. I also know that I hurt you very badly, and I have paid for that every moment since I left. Leaving you was the worst decision I ever made in my life. Please, just give me the opportunity to show you."

"And what would you have done if you would have shown up here and I would have been with someone else?" Amy asked.

"I would have turned around and driven away. I would have been heartbroken until my dying day, but I would have left you in peace. I thought you were with someone else at first, judging from the reaction of that doctor out there." Grace sat beside her on the couch and put her hand on her back, "I love you so much it kills me, Amy. And what I did to you is unforgettable, but I hope you can forgive me. Please?"

Amy stared at her and felt a tear slide out of her eye and down her cheek. She closed her eyes when Grace wiped the tear away. Whispering, she asked, "You left her?"

Grace knew that the wall was crumbling, so she kept chipping away at it, "Cassandra Butler is an idiot and could never hold a candle to you, babe. I left her in the middle of the night with a note that said I was coming to find you," Grace said quietly as she pulled Amy into a tight embrace.

Amy thought that it closely resembled how Grace had been planning on leaving her. Reluctantly, she let herself relax into Grace's arms and then whispered, "Why now? I am finally starting to be happy. Why now?"

Grace rubbed her hair, "I know, honey. But you can keep on being happy, because I'm here. Now we can do this together and we can live our lives like we were supposed to before I fucked up. I tried to make it work with Cass, but everyday was hell for me and I thought of you all the time. And I even gave up hope for a while because it took me a very long time to track you down once I found out you had left Savannah. I would have been here sooner. I left Cass a year ago."

Amy extricated herself from the hug and stood up, "Stop talking... I have to think. You can stay here a few days and we can talk. But after that, if I am not ok with this, you will have to go."

Grace walked up to her and cupped her cheek in her hand, "I promise, if you want me to go away in a few days, I'll go without saying a word, beautiful." Leaning in for a kiss, Grace was shocked when she felt Amy pull away, "I have died a hundred times waiting to feel your kiss again, Amy."

Amy shook her head, "Not yet. I can't do that. I'll get your things and you'll stay in my guest room."

"The guest room?" Grace asked, abashed.

"Yes. Take it or leave it, Grace," Amy said, putting an end to the question with her look.

Grace backed off and nodded, "Ok. We'll do this your way. Guest room it is." Amy turned away from her and went outside, letting the screen door slam behind her. She returned a minute later with Grace's bags and went down the hall to the guest bedroom where she left them at the foot of the bed. Without another word, Amy walked away and went upstairs, presumably to her own room, slamming the door and leaving Grace standing in the middle of the large house bewildered but satisfied.

*****

Amy stripped off her clothes and started the water in the shower, feeling numb from her head down. The idea that Grace was at the ranch had blindsided her to the point that she could not even formulate thoughts about it. As she stepped into the steaming water, she tried to make sense of what Grace was saying to her and all she could see was the hateful look on Grace's face the night that she had left her five years ago...

Amy threw the bottle of champagne across the room and it hit the wall with a showering tinkle of glass and a wet, foamy slosh, "I knew it!"

Grace stared, hands on her hips, "Don't be so damn dramatic. This just happened, and I am not going to apologize for it."

Amy held herself up with the edge of the wet bar in their room, "I have been saying for months that you were fucking Cassandra Butler. Don't you dare lie to me and tell me it just happened."

Grace knew when she was caught and there was no use lying to Amy about it. She squared her shoulders and continued packing, "Yes, I have been fucking Cass for months. It was just sex before... but I fell in love with her, Amy, and that just happened."

Amy sneered, "You fell in love with her bank account and her Beamer."

Grace slammed the suitcase shut, "That is unfair."

"Oh come on, Grace, you always go where the money is and Cassandra is worth millions. Initially, that's why you started dating me. I've just been too damn blind to see it. Now, I've taken you from your dead end waitress job to this and you've found someone with an endless bank account. Someone who gets their face on the front cover of medical journals. But I work with her! I have worked with her for the last six years!" Amy walked away from the bar and sat down on the edge of the bed, "After all we've been through. After all of this, you just walk away. And for what? Because I'm just a nurse who only brings home seventy five thousand a year and she's a fucking neurologist. Fuck you, Grace. She'll figure you out."

Grace stood there, unable to think of anything to say. Amy stood up and angrily got a bottle of scotch out, poured it into a glass, and drank the whole thing at once. After she had poured another and downed it as well she sat the glass down next to the bottle, wanting to throw it to release tension but refusing to break anything else over this. The warmth of the liquor filtered through her arms and legs as she whispered hatefully, "Get out."

Grace threw her hands up, "Well, I was working on that until you came in and started throwing a temper tantrum. And now, I see, there will be no talking to you, because as usual, you went straight for the alcohol."

"A temper tantrum? I come home from pulling extra shifts, dog tired, so that I can afford this place... I come home from work where I've been around my girlfriend's girlfriend all fucking day, and find that my girlfriend is packing her shit. I came home one hour early to spend Valentine's Day with you... to surprise you. You're leaving me on Valentine's Day, Grace!" Amy sat back down on the bed and watched as Grace took the suitcase and walked it to the door to rest with the other boxes and suitcases she had already packed.

Grace grabbed her car keys from the kitchen counter and started for the door again, "Goodbye, Amy."

Amy leapt up and snatched the keys from her hand, "Oh hell no, Grace. I pay for that car. I bought that damn car and it is in my name. You want to leave," she pushed Grace away from her, "you walk."

Grace huffed angrily and took out her phone to call for a cab then turned on Amy again, "If you would have just stayed at work, I would have been gone when you got here and you would have just found the note."

Amy glanced at the torn up note on the floor and sneered, "Yeah, and I would have been reporting my car stolen. You're a coward. You weren't even going to face me. You could have told me. All those nights I have been in this bed waiting on you to come home and you've been out fucking her. All those mornings when you'd finally come home and I'd ask, you could have told me then. Instead, you just told me you lost track of time hanging out with your friends. Instead, you waited until Valentine's Day."

Grace shrugged, "It was now or never. You weren't going to leave me, so I had to take the step."

Amy looked around their warehouse apartment, now half empty, and everything she saw made her want to vomit, "I didn't want to leave you! I thought that whatever was happening between us could be fixed. I am committed to you and was dead set on making it work. I guess the apartment, the car, the expensive clothes... I guess all of that just wasn't enough. I was going to ask you to marry me tonight. I bought champagne... a ring... everything."

Grace shifted uncomfortably, "That's too bad, Amy."

Amy was crying now, staring out over the Savannah River, "I have loved you more than you have ever deserved, Grace."

Grace scoffed, "Obviously not."

Amy closed her eyes and sobbed, "Please, just get out. Wait for your cab outside. Just go."

It took three trips, but Grace had finally gotten everything outside of the apartment and onto the cobblestones. As she walked out the door for the last time, she dropped the necklace that Amy had given her for her birthday on the hardwood floor just inside the door and shook her head. Once the door had slammed, Amy destroyed their apartment and wound up falling asleep in the middle of the floor.

Amy snapped back to reality and realized that the water had gone cold. Shivering, she quickly finished her shower and then got out, wrapped herself in a towel and walked into her bedroom. Everything had happened so quickly that she was still reeling. Instead of going back downstairs, she crawled into the bed, still wrapped in the towel, and curled into a tight ball, trying to figure out what she was going to do now that her safe little world had been turned upside down.

*****

When Amy's eyes opened again, it was just after midnight. She quietly dressed and walked out of her bedroom, then down the steps to the door of the guest room, which was standing open. Grace was laying on the bed, obviously sleeping. Amy backed out of the doorway and down the hall, then tiptoed out onto the front porch, breathing the fresh air in deeply. She was about to sit down in the swing when she noticed a faint glow in the barn.

Her first thought was that the barn was on fire and her heart flipped in her chest. As soon as she ran through the double doors, however, she realized it was the glow from a lantern coming from Salt's stall. She walked in that direction and heard Lee's soothing voice, "Oh thank God. I thought the barn was on fire."

Lee jumped and Salt nickered and snorted, "Damnit, Amy, don't sneak up on me like that." She looked up and saw that Amy's face was twisted as if she was in pain. Frowning, she whispered, "I just came out here to check the bandage. What happened to him? I was so caught up in the new baby that I forgot to ask."

"He got spooked by something and jumped sideways off the path. A downed tree caught him there." She reached out and stroked the horse's nose, "I did the best I could with it out on the trail, but he definitely needed your touch, as always."

"You should have been more careful. He could have broken his leg," Lee snapped.

Amy stared, "The horses could always break their legs on the trail, Lee. There was nothing I could do."

Lee closed her eyes and sighed, "I know, I am sorry. I am just on edge. Ignore me."

Amy leaned against the wall, "Anything I can do?"

Lee looked as if she was about to say something, then closed her mouth abruptly. She fiddled with the roll of clean bandage and then stuffed the dirty bandages in a plastic sack she had brought with her. Finally, she looked up her smile was the fakest that Amy had ever seen, "Just be more careful with the horses, please?"

Amy reached out and grabbed her by the arm gently as she tried to walk past, "Nuh uh. You don't walk away from me like that. You're upset."

Lee sniffed and refused to look at her, "What makes you think that?"

Sudden comprehension made Amy let go of Lee's arm, "It's Grace. Grace being here is the reason for this."

Lee sniffed harder and swiped at a tear angrily, "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Lee, come on. I am sorry, but what was I supposed to do?" Amy asked, exasperated.

"I don't know... tell her to get the hell off your property?" Lee fired back hotly.

Amy rolled her eyes, "I tried, Lee. But the things she said to me... I'd like to talk to her and see what all this is about," she explained, feeling frustrated and trying to figure out why she felt the need to justify herself to Lee.

"Talk to her?" Lee shouted angrily, "Why in the hell do you want to talk to her? After what she did.... You are blind."

Amy groaned, "Come on, Lee, give me some room to breathe here. It's not like I invited her out here."

"I don't want you to be able to breathe. I haven't been able to breathe for three years. It's about time you weren't able to breathe. I just can't believe it's because of her. Don't take her back," Lee pleaded, sobbing.

Amy had to listen intently to make out what she was saying through the sobs. As Lee wiped more tears away, Amy pulled her back into a hug, even though she knew that it was the last thing on earth she should do and that it was going to make it worse, "Shh... please don't do this. I knew this was going to happen one day. I mean, I didn't know Grace was going to come back one day, but I knew the day would come when you'd do this."

Lee jerked away, "She's staying isn't she? You're taking her back?"

Amy looked into Lee's eyes and felt a twinge of guilt that frustrated her, "I don't know yet. She left Cassandra for me. I just don't know what to do."

Lee cleared her throat, the tears gone now, "Well, you get what you deserve then. I'm fine. I'm going to be fine. I gave up on you a long time ago so you just go and do what you need to do, Amy."

Amy watched her walk out of the barn, taking the lantern with her. It was pitch dark now and even the horses weren't making noise. All she could hear were the crickets and frogs outside.

She sat down on the front porch swing a few minutes later and stared at the lights in Lee's cabin until they went out, feeling angry at herself for hurting her, but also feeling angry at her for reacting the way she was. There was a small part of her that actually wanted to go see if there was something she could do to make Lee calm down, but her pride kept her from doing it.

She heard the creaking of the screen door and looked up to see Grace standing there in a silk gown that barely covered her thighs. The faint light from inside the house illuminating every curve of her body. Grace, calculated in every move, didn't come past the door, but came out far enough for Amy to see her and propped the door open with one of her legs, "I thought I heard someone on the porch. It's cold out here. And it's late. What are you doing?"

Amy felt parts of her stir that she hadn't allowed to stir in a long time as she let her eyes drift up Grace's leg. She took a deep breath and quickly looked back to Lee's cabin, "Clearing my head."

Grace started to go back in, "Well, I'm too cold to stay out here. I'm going back to bed." She stopped the screen door from slamming with her hip and Amy caught a flash of her underwear as she disappeared.

Amy squirmed uncomfortably and returned to her vigil. Silently, she thought to herself, "What in the hell is happening here? When I left this place, things were quiet and peaceful, just like always. Now Grace is here, Lee is mad, and damnit, I just don't know what to do. I don't want to believe Grace, but this is so out of character for her..." She rocked gently in the swing, "And damnit, why is Lee mad? And why am I so worried about it? It isn't like I have ever promised her anything, or been anything other than a friend to her. I never lied to her. She knows I've always been in love with Grace." She stopped rocking and nodded, "It's not her place to be angry." The words were silent but they rang in her head louder than thunder, "And I don't have to answer to anyone but me for my actions."

Standing up, newly determined that she would not let Lee's actions effect her judgment where Grace was concerned, Amy went back into the house. She was halfway up the steps when the image of Grace, barely dressed, popped back into her head. She stopped midstride and then said out loud, "Shit," as she felt herself turning around. Cursing herself for being so vulnerable, she made her way down the hall to the guest room, where the door was still standing open. She walked into the room and slid into the bed next to Grace, feeling the familiar curves of her body as they slipped into place against hers. As she ran her hand up Grace's leg, she felt Grace wake up and pulled her closer. Then, her hand went under Grace's gown and she felt their lips touch and was lost.

*****

Amy stared at the ceiling after her eyes opened the next morning and listened to Grace singing softly from another room, a sound she had never thought she'd hear again. Mentally, she was beating herself black and blue for what had happened even though she knew there was nothing she could do about it now. The worst and most confusing part of all of it was the guilt that was still hanging over her head like the sword of Damacles. She sat up on the edge of the bed, then started trying to find her clothes.

Grace walked in after she had finished her shower and just as she was pulling her pants up, "Morning you sexy devil. I made you breakfast."

Amy buttoned her jeans and then pulled her t-shirt on over her head. She opened her mouth and was about to say, "But Darlene cooks for us," when she tilted her head to the side and said, "You cooked?" instead.

Grace chuckled, "I've learned to do a lot of things in the last five years."

Amy had a flashback to the night and blushed, "Yes, you have."

Grace laughed out loud, "Oh my God, you're sixteen different colors of red right now. I wish I had a camera." She walked up to Amy and kissed her, then whispered, "I'd like to show you more of what I've learned... but not right now. Come on and eat before it gets cold."

Amy raised her eyebrows and followed, distracted by the kiss and the emotions it unwillingly kicked up. She was shocked and the kiss all but forgotten when she entered the kitchen, "God, it smells good." There were pancakes, sausage, eggs, bacon, and grits. On a plate on the table, toast was piled up and the butter was sitting out. Grace motioned to the table and poured her coffee, then started piling food on a plate.

Amy ate until she was scraping the plate, and then smiled appreciatively, "That was fantastic, Grace. Where'd you learn to cook like that?" Grace looked down at her own plate and didn't answer. Amy nodded, "Ahh. Ok, well, it was delicious."

"Thank you. I'm sure you have work to do around the ranch, so I'll clean up. Is there anything I can help you with after?" Grace asked.

Amy was trying to forget the image of Grace and Cassandra happily cooking in a kitchen together. It reminded her again of how stupid she had been the night before, and how much work still needed to be done between her and Grace. She wiped her mouth and then stood up, taking the mug of coffee with her, "Nope. I'll check in later."

Grace smiled sadly, "Ok. I'll be here." She had hoped that Amy would call her bluff and forget about whatever chores needed to be done for the day and stay in with her so that they could talk.

Amy finished her coffee on the front porch and then left the mug on the rail. She stopped in the barn first to check on Salt's leg, then went to the training paddock to see the new colt. Lee was already there, checking on Sweetlips and cooing gently to the baby. Grinning, Amy jumped up onto the fence, "Good morning. Thought of a name yet?"

Lee did not turn around, "Good morning. And no, you should name him."

Amy pursed her lips and then jumped down into the paddock, walking over to the colt and feeling the muscles along his back and whithers. Lee turned her attention to Sweetlips and ignored the fact that Amy was there. Finally, Amy stopped paying attention to the horse and turned to face Lee. She noticed immediately that Lee had taken more time with her hair, and when she ran her hands along the horse's leg, she saw that she had cleaned out from under her fingernails, "Come on, we always name the new ones together. Are you seriously going to ignore me all morning?"

Lee lifted Sweetlips' front leg and inspected her hoof, "I'm not ignoring you. I'm working."

Amy raised an eyebrow, "Sweetlips was just shoed five days ago. Right before I left. You're not working, you're avoiding."

Lee looked up, "Fine. What do you want to discuss? How I made an absolute fool out of myself last night?"

Amy sighed, "You did not make yourself into a fool. I just want this to blow over and everything be back the way it was." She lifted Lee's hand and pointed at her fingernails, which she could now see were painted a very light pink, "What's this?"

Lee cocked her head to the side and pulled her hand away, "Nothing. And it won't be normal again if she is here. She'll change everything."

Amy ran her tongue over her teeth and shook her head, "You don't know that. She's... different. That is not the same woman that I knew in Savannah five years ago."

Lee's facial expression turned from anger to disgust in an instant, "You slept with her."

Amy's eyes widened and she could feel the fire in her face, "What?"

"Oh God, you really did. That's why you were outside last night...." Lee stepped away, "You were feeling guilty about it. And now you want to convince yourself that everything is fine between us. You're afraid I'll be angry with you. But I don't understand why it means one damn thing to you. Tell me... did you do it before, or after, I asked you to make her leave?"

Amy grunted, thinking it would probably be best if she did not explain that it had happened after her outburst in the barn, "Hmm. Well, I might be feeling guilty about it on your account... if you were my girlfriend, Lee. But since you're not, I don't feel guilty about it because of that. I feel guilty about it because I shouldn't have given in so quickly no matter how much she's changed. Still, I am not completely heartless. I'd really like you to not be angry with me, considering that I've never mislead you in any way. It's not like I came out here parading it all around. You brought it up."

The admission struck Lee like a lightning bolt. She hadn't actually let herself believe that Amy would have given in and slept with Grace so quickly and had fully expected her to deny it. She had only thought that maybe Amy had entertained the idea of sleeping with her. The spiteful tone in Amy's voice also took her by surprise. She staggered backwards, climbed through the fence, and then took off running out of the enclosure before Amy could catch her.

Amy watched as Lee ran past Grace, who was walking toward the paddock from the house. She really wanted to go after her to calm her down but Grace came up to the fence and started talking, "What's wrong with her?"

Amy shook her head, "It wouldn't interest you."

"Oh, I already know they hate me and that the vet is madly in love with you. She told me she didn't feel that way anymore, but I know better. I also know that they'd rather get rid of my body than see you with me again. Which is something I'd like to talk to you about. Please tell them that everything is ok, Amy, and take care of that..." she pointed in the direction of Lee. She saw that Amy was having a hard time concentrating and pressed again, "Did you know they treated me like shit before you came back?"

Amy was still staring after Lee, "Is that right?"

Grace scoffed, "Are you even listening to me, Amy?" She glanced in the direction that Lee had ran, "Or are you worried about your girlfriend's reaction to me being here."

Amy looked at Grace for the first time, "Lee is not my girlfriend and I have done everything possible to remind her of that every day. We've never even so much as kissed. If she's upset about you being here, she hasn't told me. And if everyone else was so worried about us being together, you wouldn't have been here when I got back."

Grace smirked, "Graceful lie, Amy. Will you please talk to them about being assholes to me? I mean, if I am going to be living here..."

Amy threw her hand up to cut her off, "What? Living here? Who said anything about you living here?"

Grace feigned confusion, "Well, I thought after last night... you know... well, I just thought we could build it back and that will require me to stay here. Kind of hard to build a relationship back if I am not living on the same side of the continent with you. You did pretty much run all the way to Canada to get away from me."

Amy shook her head, "No, Grace. I made a mistake last night, obviously, and I am not ready to commit to building this back just yet. And I never ran from you. This was a plan of mine long before you even existed to me and you know it. There are still a lot of things we need to discuss before I am comfortable with you staying here."

"Yes, there are a lot of things to discuss, like how you managed to finally buy this place. When I left you, you were barely surviving," Grace interjected.

Amy eyed her suspiciously, "That's because I was spending all my money on you. I just put what I had been spending on you into savings and a year later, I had the money to buy it."

"It must have been cheap," Grace threw in, trying to be nonchalant but coming across as sarcastic. As she heard the words coming out of her mouth, she tried to remind herself to be cautious about probing too deeply into Amy's financial situation too quickly.

"It was. Falling apart when I bought it actually. It took all of my savings and the work of everyone who lives here currently to get it where it is today," Amy lied.

Grace leaned on the fence, "Well, then, you should be proud of yourself. I saw you, you know, on the cover of a magazine. That's how I knew where to start looking for you after I figured out you weren't in Savannah anymore."

"Horse and Rider," Amy said distantly.

"Yes. It was a great article about how you'd turned this ranch in Montana into a resort and that there was a waiting list to stay here."

Amy started to walk away, intent on finding Lee, "I didn't want them to publish it, but Lee made me." She thought silently to herself that lately Lee was making her do a lot of things she didn't necessarily want to do.

Grace stomped the ground, "I am trying to talk to you here! Where in the hell are you going, Amy?"

Amy stopped, "I'm sorry, Grace. I can't discuss my bank account with you right now. I have to check on Lee. Something is bothering her and I need her at her best. I have a horse that just gave birth and another one with a sutured cut on his leg. I can't afford for her to be upset, running around crying. She has work to do... work that I pay her to do."

Seeing that she was going to have to content herself with that answer, Grace lifted her hands in a sign of surrender, "That was such an asshole thing to say. I'm not worried about your fucking bank account. Go ahead and take care of your girlfriend. I'll be right here watching this little guy."

Amy rolled her eyes and whispered angrily, "Not my girlfriend," then stormed off towards Lee's cabin. She desperately wanted a beer, but it was a little too early in the day to start soaking her problems in alcohol. She stepped up onto the front porch and knocked rapidly, "Lee? Open the door." She heard nothing, so she knocked harder and shouted, "LEE! OPEN THE DAMN DOOR!"

Patrick walked around the corner of the house, "She isn't here, Amy, so you can stop hollering. She came in and got a jacket then went to the barn."

Amy raised an eyebrow, "What are you doing here?"

Shaking his head, Patrick reached into his pocket and pulled out a pouch of tobacco. Once he had put a large wad of it in his cheek, he mumbled, "What you pay me to do..." then louder, "I'm inspecting all the AC units on the cabins. It's gonna start getting warmer soon and I am checking to make sure they all work. I just happened to be here when she came in. I tried to stop her, but she was really upset."

Amy sighed in exasperation, "Ok. I'm sorry, Pat. Go ahead." She stepped off the porch and was startled when Patrick grabbed her arm gently, "What are you doing?"

Patrick held on and peered at her, "Don't. How are you going to fix this, Amy? What good is it going to do to go chasing after her if you can't fix it? It's only going to make it worse. May as well let it boil down on its own."

Amy glared at him and tried to come up with a suitable answer. Finally, she relaxed in his grip and he let her go, "I don't know how to fix this."

"Exactly," Patrick nodded and spit tobacco juice into the grass, "may as well just let it go for now. She's hurting."

Amy sat down on the edge of the porch and watched as Patrick started working on the air conditioner again, "Everyone knows about all this don't they? This is all so damn aggravating. I mean, everyone seems to think I'm the bad guy here."

Patrick didn't look up, but wiped his forehead and then continued unscrewing a bolt from the unit, "Nope. You're not the bad guy, even though you have the potential to be. That woman staying in your house is the bad guy. Everyone here just wishes you'd open your eyes and see it before you become the bad guy."

Amy stood up and said hotly, "What in the world makes it any of y'all's business what I do?"

Patrick stood up again and grabbed her by the shoulders, "You're our boss, but you're also our friend and we actually give a rat's ass what happens to you so that's what makes it our business. We've seen the best and the worst in you since we came out here, don't forget that. This doesn't have anything to do with whether or not Lee is in love with you, Amy. This has to do with the fact that you're playing with fire like a toddler and it's gonna burn the shit out of you. This is about us being worried that you're going to get hurt, wind up in a worse shape than you were before. That woman is no good, Amy. You can see it all over her face."

Amy stared in shock, her mouth opening and closing mechanically but unable to make sounds come out. Finally, he let her go and returned to his work, dismissing her with a wave of his hand. She had not realized that the people who worked for her were so invested in what happened in her personal life and it almost made her angry that they were all trying to step in. Frowning, she whispered, "What I do is only for me to decide. Stop interfering, please?"

He waved his hand again and didn't answer. Amy had to turn and walk away before she screamed at him or said something she'd come to regret later.

*****

Grace walked past the fences and into the field where she had seen Lee run. Once she got to the tree where Lee was sitting, she loudly cleared her throat. Lee jumped up and wiped at her face, "What do you want?"

Grace looked out over the lake and clasped her hands behind her back as she kicked at tufts of grass with her shoe, "You're upset."

Lee shook her head, "Could you please go away? I just need time to think."

"Think about what? How to steal my girlfriend?" Grace asked rudely.

Lee stood up, "I'm not going to listen to this."

Grace grabbed her and pushed her against the tree, "If you think I flew all the way across the continent to be turned away, you've got another thing coming. I always get what I want, Dr. Lee, and you'd do well to stay out of my way." She ran her finger along Lee's jawline, "You just can't stand up against me."

Lee pushed her hard, "Get your damn hands off me. There's no fight here. She made damn sure of that when she slept with you."

Grace pushed her shirt down and grinned, "She told you that she slept with me?"

Lee shook her head, "She didn't have to."

Grace stood up straight again and looked smug, "Yeah, I kind of rocked her world. She was floating when she left the house this morning so you would have had to be blind not to see it all over her face. You should have seen the way she melted like butter in my hands."

"You're a bitch," Lee whispered, leaning against the tree for support.

"And so are you. Stop trying to take my girlfriend away from me. I can make your life a living Hell," Grace said as she smiled.

"She's not your girlfriend, and as far as I'm concerned, you already have," Lee responded hotly.

"Oh, really? Is she yours? Is that why she came to my bed last night and made me scream her name? To prove to me that she belongs to you?" Grace asked, crossing her arms. She could see from the look on Lee's face that she had won.

Lee, feeling the hurt from her head to her toes, started to walk away then turned around and shouted, "You're a petty, conniving little bitch. You'll never be good enough for her. She is better than you can ever hope to be. I just wish she knew it. I'm going to make sure Amy knows about this little chat."

Grace laughed, "Good luck catching her alone. And remember, I make her better. Not you. Without me, Amy Cooper is nothing."

Lee was already walking back across the field toward her house, trying hard to tune out the sound of Grace's voice.

*****

Amy looked up as the door to her office opened and frowned when she saw Grace, "I'm busy. I'm trying to figure up last month's budget so I can pay everyone."

Grace, trying to figure out if she had found Amy before Lee, pulled the extra chair away from the wall, studying her face. It was a good sign that she hadn't sent her away, so she sat down, "I'll sit here all quiet. I just wanted to see you. You've been so distant and busy all day, I've barely seen you."

Amy shook her head, "Well, it's a busy place. Lee's mad and I don't know where she is, the Bishops checked in, Patrick found two air conditioner units that need repaired." She ran her fingers through her hair and repeated, "It's a busy place."

"I see," Grace said fighting off a smile as she sat back and crossed her legs. She looked around the room and studied the pictures on the wall. There were a lot of pictures of Amy standing next to horses, each with its own blue ribbon attached to the frame. In a couple, Lee was standing next to her, holding up trophies of various sizes. She curled her lip in disgust because those were the only pictures where Amy was actually smiling. Then, she saw the cover of the magazine that she had first seen in a Savannah bookstore. She stood up and pulled it off the wall, "Oh my Lord! This is it! This is the cover that finally led me here to you."

Amy grabbed it from her and put it down on the top of a bookshelf, "I told you I didn't want it published."

Grace waited until Amy sat back down then lifted the picture again, grinning at Amy's face smiling back at her. She was a devastatingly sexy woman when she actually smiled, but she did notice that the smile on the cover was fake. Amy had on a black stetson hat which made her blue eyes seem to float off the page and her golden blonde hair seem almost white. Taking a deep breath, she put the frame back down, "I don't know why it makes you so angsty. I wouldn't be here right now if it wasn't for this. We wouldn't be talking and working things out."

"It was a silly idea," Amy said as she punched numbers into a calculator. "It brought too much attention to this place, and I never wanted it that way."

Grace sat on the edge of the desk and brushed some of Amy's flyaways from her forehead, "You've had a rough day, babe. Why don't you let me work on something?"

Amy looked up at her. The look of concern on Grace's face was new to her because Grace had only ever been concerned with herself. Confused and not sure if she should believe her, she pushed herself back in her chair, out of Grace's reach, and took her hair out of the ponytail, then rubbed her scalp with the tips of her fingers, "Please, Grace, I have to get this done tonight and you would be totally lost. Just give me another hour and I'll be back at the house."

Grace looked hurt as she stood up. She walked behind Amy's chair and batted her hands away as she took over massaging her scalp, "Well, you keep right on working. Don't let me interfere. I'll just be right here, quiet as a mouse."

Amy closed her eyes, enjoying the feeling of the massage. Then, she felt Grace's hands slide onto her shoulders. The next thing she knew her arms were wrapped around her as Grace whispered in her ear, "Even stressed out, you're sexy as fuck."

Amy turned awkwardly to look at her, "Quiet as a mouse, huh?"

Grace laughed quietly, "I'm sorry. I can't resist you."

Amy kissed her even though she knew she shouldn't. Her mind kept screaming at her to stop touching Grace, stop interacting with her. It was telling her to get her out of there as soon as was practical. Unfortunately, Amy had never been very good at listening to her mind where Grace was concerned. She stood up and wrapped her arms around Grace, then lifted her and sat her on the desk as she kissed her neck and felt Grace's legs wrap around her.

Just as Amy pulled Grace's shirt up and leaned over to kiss her stomach, the door opened.

*****

Lee's heart stopped dead in her chest as she walked into Amy's office. She had never had a reason to knock before because Amy had always told her to just walk in whenever she needed something, and right now, she needed to tell Amy about Grace threatening her. As she watched Amy jump away from the desk and Grace stand up again, pulling her shirt back down over her black bra and flat stomach, she gripped the doorknob so tightly she thought it would break off in her hands.

It did not register when Amy stepped in front of Grace and whispered, "I'm sorry." What did register was the smug look on Grace's face, the upturned smirk of her mouth, and then the wink that nearly killed her and seemed to shout, "Told you so. I've got my hooks back in her, bitch. Back off."

Lee finally tore her eyes away from Grace and slammed the door shut, narrowly missing Amy's shoulder. If she could just make it out of the stifling barn and into the night air, she might not suffocate. She might not pass out. She felt the vomit rising in her throat and just when she thought she was going to make it out of the barn, she had to lean over and throw up. That was when she felt Amy's hand on her back, even though she couldn't hear the words that she was trying to say to her.

Amy grabbed Lee just before she hit the ground and led her over to a bench just outside the barn, "Come on now, Lee, please. I'm sorry. God, you're really torn up over this. Could you just stop?"

Lee stared past her, toward the door of the barn, waiting for Grace to come out with that look on her face again. Finally, when the world stopped spinning and she realized she was sitting right next to Amy on the bench, she jumped up as if Amy's touch would burn her, "Don't touch me."

Amy stood up and put her hands in the air, "Lee... please. I'm sorry."

Lee quaked as she whispered, "In our office, Amy?"

Amy raised an eyebrow, "My office, Lee. My. Office."

Lee felt a surge of anger go through her. Before she even realized that her body was moving, she was in front of Amy and the sound of the slap was echoing across the compound. She immediately covered her mouth with the same hand she had slapped Amy with and knew she was going to throw up again, "Oh God, I'm sorry Amy. I just love you so much and that woman doesn't deserve you," she managed to get out before she turned away and threw up again.

Amy stood still, feeling her face stinging but refusing to acknowledge it. She knew then that she should have fired Lee a long time ago, before her feelings became so intense that it clouded her judgment. She should have fired her to keep her from getting hurt even though the idea of firing Lee made her feel uneasy and a little empty inside. She chocked that up to just being afraid of the change. Afraid of finding another person who could take her place. She was about to say, "You're fired," when Lee turned to face her again and said, "I quit."

Amy watched her walk away, then sat down on the bench, not even worrying about the smell of vomit on the air. She covered her face with her hand as Grace stepped up beside her, "She quit. Don't say a word to me now, Grace. Just leave me alone."

Grace knew better than to press Amy when she was like this, so she walked back toward the big house. As soon as she was confident that Amy couldn't see or hear her, a smile the size of the state she was in spread across her face and she whispered, "I always get what I want. Bye bye, bitch."

Part Two

Amy watched the man run his hands down Cranky's leg and frowned, "Not so rough, please? My horses aren't used to that." She stepped in and showed him, then nodded, "There. That's how you do it."

The man stood up and crossed his arms, "I am a vet, Ms. Cooper."

Amy eyed him, "Yes, you are. One who has very heavy hands. These are prize winning show horses, Dr. Penter, and I won't have them treated just any old way. If you treat Cranky like this, how will you do with one of the horses that are for sale?"

He rolled his eyes, "With all due respect, ma'am, you pay me to live out here on this ranch, you tell me I'm going to be the vet in residence, and then you won't let me do my job. They are animals, Ms. Cooper. With or without gentle hands, they are still animals, and at the end of the day, you'll get your money out of them."

Amy stared at him, "Really?" She pointed towards the exit of the barn, "You're fired. Get your things and get off my ranch." She left him standing there and stormed up to the house.

Grace heard the screen door slam and then saw Amy walking through the house with murder in her eyes, "Woah! Woah! What's going on?"

"That stupid vet! He looks like he's going to break their legs when he touches them! He has no sense of how fragile horses can be. I can tell he was a cattle vet. My horses deserve better than that! And why is everyone so convinced that I'm worried about how they're treated because of how much they're worth?" Amy fumed.

Grace frowned, "Oh for the love of God, Amy, did you fire another one?"

Amy glared at her, "Yes! Of course I did! He has no respect..."

Grace shook her head and interrupted, "Six vets in six months. That must be a record, Amy. You have to stop this or you'll never find anyone willing to come out here and even try. You have to let them do their job. You keep looking for Lee and she isn't going to be in any one of them. I know she was a good vet, because you've reminded me of that ever since the day she left, but damn... she can't be the only vet on the planet worthy of touching your precious horses!"

Amy clenched her fists, thought about yelling back, and then it hit her, "You're right."

Grace nodded, "Of course I am. Now, go out there and stop Dr. Penter from leaving. It's only his second day and I'm sure he is nervous."

Amy shook her head, "No, you're not right about that and Dr. Penter is still fired. You're right about me looking for Lee."

Grace stood silent, anger flooding up through her as she watched the gears working in Amy's head. When she saw the idea forming on her face she stepped around the kitchen counter and said loudly, "Oh no you don't! I forbid it! You are not calling her back here. That is not acceptable, Amy."

Amy sat down on a stool and laid her head down on the counter, "Shut up, Grace."

Grace frowned, "No. I will not shut up. That woman has been around every corner ever since I showed up here. When you look at me I can see that you wish I was her and I will not have her back here. Not after what happened the night she left, when you went through your office like a madwoman and broke everything to pieces. I won't have that woman in my house again."

Amy stood up and threw the stool across the room, "This is my fucking house, not yours! And you could have learned a little bit from her if you wouldn't have been so busy trying to run her off." She pointed around her, "The only thing you do around here is spend money, Grace! First we had to have satellite cable so you didn't have to be bored while waiting for me to come inside. You could work with me, but you don't want to get your hands dirty. Then, we had to figure out a way to get internet. That cost a fucking fortune out here. I have spent more money since you came here 'upgrading' my place than I had spent on it in five years since I bought it. And how much did it cost you to book that trip to Italy next month because you're bored? In six months you've spent more than I ever spent in a year! And you won't even lift a finger to clean the house! You have no say in this whatsoever."

Grace stepped up to her and pointed at her, "You're my girlfriend. I have every right to say that you cannot bring a woman into this house who was so in love with you that she threw up when she saw you with me."

"GRACE! Lee never lived here! She lived in the cabin across the ranch!" Amy shouted back.

"I don't care. I won't have it. You're not going to change my mind about that whore. I forbid it," Grace shouted, refusing to back down.

Amy glared as she thought about hitting Grace for the first time in her life. Controlling her temper had never been something she was good at, as the trail of broken things she generally left in her wake could attest, but she had never been inclined to actually hit another human being. Trying desperately to keep her temper in check, she stepped closer and put her finger in her face, saying through clenched teeth, "You will never call Cleo Lee a whore in my presence again. Do you understand? And you will never forbid me from doing anything, Grace."

The argument was interrupted by a loud knock on the door and Patrick shouting, "AMY! I NEED YOU RIGHT NOW!"

Grace rolled her eyes, "Of course. Someone always needs you. This isn't over, Amy."

Amy pushed past her and went to the door. As soon as she saw his face, she forgot all about the argument and walked out onto the front porch, "Pat, what's wrong?"

"Justice got out last night. Mark and I just found it. The snow storm that rolled through took down the north fence line. We noticed tracks leading out and followed them to the line. He's gone."

She had never seen Patrick look so worried and it struck her to the quick, "Slow down, Pat. Why was he in the field in a storm anyway? Did he make it to the back country?"

Patrick nodded, "You rode that field yesterday and I thought you brought him in. As far as we can tell, yes. He's gone."

Amy sighed, "I didn't see him out there. I wasn't riding fences, I... I was just riding and I was distracted. That horse is worth a lot of money, Pat. You have to go find him before something else does. Bring him back."

Patrick nodded again, "Yes ma'am. I'll get him back if I can find him."

Amy grabbed his hand, "Don't you call me ma'am. It's not your fault, Pat."

"That fence was on the list though, Amy! I knew it was starting to fall and I didn't fix it!" he yelled. "If Justice is gone, I've put you out sixty thousand dollars."

Amy looked at the ceiling of her porch in frustration and wishing he wouldn't have said that in front of Grace, who was now standing right behind her, "I left Justice in the field and I failed to fix that fence as well. I haven't had time to ride the fences as much as I used to. I'm as much to blame as you are and if he is gone... well, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it, Pat. For right now, we just have to focus on trying to find him. You're the only one that knows the backcountry as well as I do. Take Salt, he's a good horse and knows the trails as good as any person. He won't steer you wrong, even in this snow."

Patrick nodded and jumped down off the porch, running toward the barn. Amy went back into the house and shouted, "Goddamnit!"

*****

As bitterly cold as it was, Amy wrapped herself in a bearskin blanket and paced on the front porch for the rest of the day. She refused to talk to Grace at all. Anytime Grace came outside, Amy would put her hand up and just continue walking, mumbling to herself. The only person who could get near her was Darlene, who made sure she kept Amy supplied with hot coffee through her long vigil.

That night, Amy slept on the couch in the living room and was back out on the porch again by the time Grace woke up. Patrick had failed to return and Grace finally just decided to leave her alone. Later in the evening, Grace sat in the bed under three blankets watching TV. She was thinking about their argument and still trying to convince herself that Lee wouldn't come back even if Amy had the guts to call her and beg her to come back. It was mind rattling. Then, to top it off, one of the most expensive horses Amy had ever bred was gone and the person she had sent after it had been gone overnight.

Grace sat back and thought about the sixty thousand dollars walking around in the middle of the Montana backcountry and shook her head. She flipped through the channels angrily and whispered out loud, "What does she pay these people for? She should fire Patrick too. He should have fixed that fence."

It was ten pm before she heard a horse in the yard. She grabbed her large jacket and pulled it on as she ran downstairs to where Amy and Patrick were standing in the middle of the living room.

Amy hung her head, "Damnit."

Patrick whispered, "I'm sorry."

Grace felt sick, "The horse is dead?"

Amy didn't answer. Patrick shuffled his feet and twisted his hat in his hands, "No. He's just real hurt. Only a day's ride up the trails though. Just took me a long time to track him down. Mark and I couldn't get him back so I rushed back to get Amy. He needs medical care and he needs it now. He's been attacked by something and needs a lot of work. I have him in a safe place and Mark decided to stay with him, but I can't afford to have him walk out of there without a professional to look at him and tell me his legs are sound. He's limping pretty badly."

Grace raised an eyebrow and smirked at Amy, "See. Bet you're wishing you wouldn't have fired Dr. Penter now, huh?"

Amy looked up at Patrick, not Grace, "Pat, will you shut that bitch up please?" She walked into the kitchen and grabbed her parka then stopped in front of Grace as she put it on, "And no, I am not thinking anything about Dr. Penter. I'm wishing I wouldn't have let Dr. Lee walk off this ranch when I had a chance to stop her." She trudged out into the night toward her office, listening as Grace shouted at Patrick.

*****

Amy tapped her foot impatiently as she waited at the tiny regional airport in Missoula. She knew Mark was looking after Justice in the backcountry, but she also knew that time was running short and it was just as dangerous for the man as it was for the horse. It had taken her a solid hour of pleading to even get Lee to agree to come back to the ranch on an emergency basis. Then another three hours to get to Missoula and it would take her another three hours to get back to Cooper's Lake. As she calculated the time passing in her head, she heard the droning of a small plane as it approached the runway.

The plane dipped and rose as it came down, landing with a thunk and screech on the tarmac. For the first time since she had inherited money from her uncle, she was glad that she was rich. No one in Missoula would turn her down for anything, so to get them to salt the runway for her had been fairly easy. Finding a pilot that would fly Lee from Helena to Missoula had been trickier, but anyone could be coaxed for the right price.

When Lee stepped out of the plane, carrying only one suitcase, Amy fought the urge to run to her and hug her. Instead, she opened the Ram's third door and took her bag from her, silent and brooding. They were on the road for an hour and a half before Lee finally broke the silence, "So who replaced me?"

Amy turned the radio down, bouncing in the seat. The road wasn't in as bad of shape as it had been when Grace came down it, but it was bad enough to cause a few headaches along the way. She pushed her foot down on the gas a little, urging the truck up to 40 mph, then finally answered, "I don't have a vet yet."

Lee turned in the seat angrily, "You told me you didn't have anyone qualified to deal with a backcountry event. You didn't say anything about not having a vet, Amy. Who's looking after the horses?"

Amy sighed, "There have been vets. I have fired all of them. They just can't..." She stopped and glanced at Lee, "They aren't good enough."

Lee turned around again and stared out of the window, "Stupid, Amy. How is everyone else?"

"Patrick and Darlene are good. Darlene is pregnant," Amy said quietly.

"Oh my god that is great news! Can you imagine a little Patrick running around the ranch? God help us, I hope it's a girl." She laughed and slapped Amy's thigh casually, having been caught up in the moment. Horror stricken at her faux pas, she jerked her hand back and planted it firmly in her lap.

Amy smiled sadly, "Yes, it is great news. Too early to know if it is a boy or girl yet. Trisha has found Darlene a midwife because she wants to have it at home and I let them take the Ram for appointments when they have one. So far, so good."

Lee smiled warmly, "That's very kind of you, Amy."

Another thirty minutes went by in complete silence. Finally, Amy felt she had to address the elephant in the cab with them, "Grace is still there, Lee. I just want you to be prepared."

Lee took a deep breath, "Well, I'm happy for you."

Amy glanced over at her and then back to the road, "She isn't happy about this arrangement. I also need you to be prepared for that."

Lee nodded and then looked at Amy, "I'd be shocked if she was happy. Listen, I have changed a lot, Amy. I'm not the idiotic hopeless romantic that thought everything was going to magically turn in her favor anymore. I grew up a lot. It's ok. I promise. I'm not in love with you anymore."

Amy squeezed the steering wheel, "You weren't an idiot, Lee."

Lee let the conversation die because it did not seem like Amy wanted to carry on talking to her. Lee let herself fade out into a daydream as they crossed through the bleak countryside, covered in snow. The 4X4 Ram struggled in certain spots, but with the snow chains and Amy's proficient driving, they arrived at the ranch sooner than she had thought they would. Despite the tension, she was a little disappointed that their near silent trip was over although she knew that was irrational. At least in the silence, however, she did not have to stand in front of Grace, or the anger and spite she was sure would be coming in her direction when Grace saw her again.

Grace was waiting on the porch for them when they arrived and she made a point to run up to Amy. Lee noticed that she tried to kiss her, but Amy pulled away and walked past her into the house. She was still standing on the steps, uncomfortable and jittery despite herself, when Amy turned around and said, "Well, come on Lee. We're not going to be here but one night, but you can put your things in the guest room."

She walked past Grace, who looked like she was about to claw her eyes out, and was shocked when she walked in. There were new things everywhere. The old refrigerator had been replaced with a stainless steel double door, there was a big screen TV on the wall of the living room where a moose head had been before, and the old woven rugs that had given the house its old time charm were gone, replaced by expensive looking rugs that had flowers and geometric patterns on them. All of the handmade furniture that had come with the cabin had been replaced with bulky modern furniture and it made Lee feel very sad for Amy, despite the fact that Amy had brought all of this on herself.

When they were just inside the guest room, Lee blurted out, "What has she done to this place? All this modern shit in here."

Amy glanced over Lee's shoulder to make sure Grace wasn't there and said, "She likes spending money."

Lee made a sound with her tongue, "Yeah but, damn."

"Let's just not talk about it, please?" she whispered as Grace appeared in the doorway.

Lee turned around and said, "I like what you've done with the place. It needed a feminine touch." She ignored the look she knew she was getting from Amy and smiled at Grace.

Grace leaned on the doorframe, unimpressed, "Yes, it's more bearable now. This is no man's land."

Amy rolled her eyes and walked out of the room, saying to Grace as she passed, "Careful, your bitchiness is showing."

Lee snorted out loud at the remark which drew a firey look from Grace. She raised both eyebrows at Grace and smirked, then watched Grace turn around and drag Amy upstairs by her sleeve.

The sound of raised voices could be heard throughout the house despite everything Lee tried to do to block it out. It was difficult considering that she heard her name in what seemed like every other sentence. She finally found some peace and quiet in the barn and walked down the row of stalls trying to pick the horse she would take into the backcountry the next day. By the time Amy found her there, she was in the process of physically examining each horse and updating their paperwork.

Amy leaned on the stall door, "Lee, you don't have to do that. I have only paid you to come out here to help me get Justice back. I'll get another vet when we get back."

Lee smiled, "I know. I missed them though. They seem to be in good shape." She saw the torn up look on Amy's face and couldn't help but feel sorry for her again, "You alright?"

Amy sighed and sat down in a chair in the breezeway of the barn, "I am sorry you had to hear that argument."

Lee shrugged, "You told me to be prepared. It's no big deal."

"She has no tact. She can't just shut her mouth and be an adult about anything. If she doesn't get her way, she throws a fit that would put a three year old to shame," she explained. Closing her eyes, she shivered and pulled her coat further up around her, "I am not looking forward to this trip. It's too cold and it's been too long. We have to make it as quick as possible. Frostbite and hypothermia are huge concerns. Mark and Patrick have been trading places out there and they said Justice is holding out, but fading. We have to get to him quick and get him back here quicker."

Lee watched as Amy rambled and was a little shocked when she realized that Amy was crying, "Amy?" Amy stopped talking, but a sob worked itself out of her mouth and she started rocking in the chair. Lee looked around, not really knowing what to do. It was the first time she had ever seen Amy literally break down crying, "Amy? What is wrong?"

It took Amy a minute to compose herself long enough to talk and Lee wasn't expecting what she heard, "Things weren't like this before. Everything here was so easy. Fences got mended when they needed it, horses were looked after, money was coming in faster than it was going out, there was laughter and I was happy." She stood up and paced around furiously, "I was so happy before! And now, I'm miserable, fences are breaking, stupid mistakes are being made and horses are getting lost in the woods, and I haven't smiled in months. I haven't heard anyone other than Patrick and Darlene laugh in months and that was only when Grace wasn't around. She is a tyrant. She treats people like shit around here. It's been six months since I went to check fences! That's how all this started. Six months, Lee. I haven't ridden the fences since Grace showed up. I never waited more than two weeks before. It's a full time job and now one of my babies, who she keeps referring to as 'that sixty thousand dollar horse', is hurt and probably dying in the wilderness and I can't blame Patrick or Mark. I can only blame me. And all she keeps screaming at me is how bored she is and how much she hates the fact that you're here."

Lee looked down at the ground, "Not sure how to respond to that."

Amy shook her head and wiped her cheeks, "Don't. I'm sorry. I'm riding Salt tomorrow, Patrick is riding Cranky. You can pick anyone else on this side of the barn."

Lee nodded, "I know."

Amy took a deep breath, "Of course. I'll see you in the morning. We'll leave at dawn."

Lee watched her go, then felt Busy's warm nose pressing against her cheek. As she stood stroking the large horse's cheek and neck, she whispered to him, "Busy, old boy... how do you tell someone 'I told you so" without getting slapped?" The horse pushed against her neck and she laughed, "You're right. Some things are better left unsaid. You wanna go on the trails with me?"

*****

Lee watched Amy out of her peripheral vision as she started to nod off in the saddle, "Amy wake up."

Amy sat up straight and frowned, "I'm sorry. I didn't sleep much last night."

Lee urged Busy closer to Salt and whispered so that Patrick, who was leading them, couldn't hear, "I know. I heard it and I didn't either. But you, more than anyone else, know how dangerous these trails are. If you fall, we'll have an even bigger problem ahead of us. What were you arguing about anyway?"

Amy looked around and shrugged, "Nothing important really. She wanted to come with us and I told her she would slow us down. It took me all night to talk her out of following us."

Lee couldn't help but laugh, "I can't imagine that one on a horse. It's just that she doesn't trust me with you alone. Afraid I'll sweep you off your feet."

Amy glanced at Lee, then laughed as well, "She has never wanted me to come out on the trails and she sure as hell never wanted to come out here herself. Calls it the third layer of hell. But you're probably right."

Lee chuckled and let Busy drift further away, "Well, I better keep my distance then."

Amy grinned at her and continued on behind Patrick. He pulled up shortly after and looked around, then grumbled, "The trail is bad from here on out because of the snow. We need to go single file from here. I'll take the lead because I know where I'm going."

Amy nodded, "Lee, you get behind him and I'll follow behind you. I know these trails as well as Patrick does but you don't. Follow exactly behind him."

Lee looked a little uneasy for the first time since they had left, "Alright." She looked down at the nonexistent trail and exhaled loudly.

Amy rode up next to her and said quietly, "I know you've only been out here once or twice, but Patrick is really good at this. He's led some of our wayward hikers out of here before, so he knows where we're going and what to do. You're going to be fine. I know it is a little daunting because you can't see the trail and you're smart enough to know that there are rocks and drop offs coming that could hurt the horse and you, but Busy is really good at this too. Just let him go where he needs to go. If he stumbles, hold on tighter. If he falls, focus on not letting him fall on you."

Once she was sure that Lee was calm enough to ride safely, she nodded to Patrick to continue.

*****

Later in the day a lazy snow started to drift down onto them. It was the worst possible scenario for what they were doing and Amy looked up at the pale gray sky and said, "Shit!" as they made their slow way over the unmarked trail.

Patrick glanced back at her, "We're almost there. I think we can make it, but we might have to stay there for a while if this gets worse. The trail is hard enough to see right now as it is."

Amy readjusted her hat on her head and zipped her coat up farther, "It wasn't supposed to snow again until next week."

Patrick shook his head, "No one ever knows what it is going to do in the backcountry. This might just blow over." He was looking up at the sky now as well, and she could see that he was hoping but not convinced himself.

The snow was falling in earnest and it was almost dark when they saw a tiny pillar of smoke rising in the near distance. Amy prodded Salt to go just a little faster, "Oh thank God."

Patrick led them into the camp that he and Mark had scratched out at the edge of a cave and saw Mark huddled next to the fire warming his hands and cooking what looked like a rabbit over an open fire. "Hey buddy," he said as he dismounted, "I see you still haven't gotten a taste for canned beans."

Mark looked up and was about to respond, but then he saw Amy. She thought his eyes were the saddest she had ever seen. She let herself down from Salt and then helped Lee off of Busy, dreading the news. His silence was a little unnerving so she finally asked, "He's gone isn't he?"

Mark's forehead creased up, "No. But he's barely hanging on. I wish you would have gotten here sooner, Ms. Amy. Ms. Lee, it's good to see you again. I just don't know what else to do for him. It's been so long."

Lee and Amy rushed toward the cave and found Justice inside, head down so far that his nose was brushing against the ground. Lee cried out when she saw the extent of his injuries and Amy just started crying. Amy sat down on the ground in a state of shock, "Lee, my God. Can you fix this?"

Lee was looking him over, grimacing at the cuts and shaking her head, "It's infected. All of it. Looks like a mountain lion. Look," she pointed at his neck, "puncture wounds and scratches. His whole neck is cut to shreds."

Amy repeated, "Can you fix this, Lee?"

Lee stood back and put her hands on her hips, taking in the sight of the whole horse and not just a few of his wounds, "Amy... I..."

Amy stood back up and then walked next to Lee, "Tell me the truth. Is it even worth trying?"

Lee frowned, "Look there, see that pus? It smells really bad because it's really infected. I can patch him up, even though I didn't bring near enough materials, and he might make it back to Cooper's, but it'll take days to get him back there. And after that, he's going to need to be monitored twenty four hours a day, given antibiotics, and lots of fluids. He'd have to be transported to Helena, I think, to a real animal hospital. He may not even make it then. I'm sorry, Amy."

Amy felt Lee's arm go around her shoulders and sniffed back more tears, "Is he hurting, Lee?" She knew it was a stupid question, and she knew the answer already, but she had to ask, just to make sure before she made a drastic decision.

Lee closed her eyes and nodded, "A lot I would imagine. Look how inflamed he is around the cuts. And I'm pretty sure his front leg is fractured from the way he is standing. Amy, this horse... you can't sell him. You'd never be able to sell him, even if he got better."

Amy pulled away and balled her fists, "I don't care about selling him. He's one of my horses. I slept in the stall with his mother the night he was born, if you'll recall. I believe you were there too. I watched him wobble until he learned how to run and I watched him become one of the fastest Andalusians I have ever seen. I trained him and broke him. He comes when I whistle to him and I know that his favorite snack is a carrot and not a sugar lump. I don't care about the goddamn money. I care about him. I love him."

Lee nodded and grabbed her again, resting her cheek on the top of Amy's head, "Ok... shhh... ok, I'm sorry. I know you better than to think this is about money, Amy." Amy tried to pull away again, but Lee wouldn't let go, "No... come here... listen to me. Amy, this is hard. This is a rough spot to be in. But this poor horse. Amy, he's finished. Look at him. He's tired, he's hurting, and he's just done. You know I would save him if I could. You know I don't give up on our horses." Amy leaned her head onto Lee's chest and cried harder than she had ever cried for any person, and Lee, somehow, understood exactly where she was coming from.

The blast from Patrick's rifle twenty minutes later shook Amy to the core of her being as it bounced back from mountain to mountain, and she was fairly certain she felt a little piece of her soul die with Justice. A few seconds later, he walked out of the cave holding a flashlight in one hand and dragging the rifle by the butt so that the barrel scraped across the ground. Amy frowned at the hollow noise it was making and then, seeing the haggard look on his face, whispered, "I'm sorry, Pat. I just couldn't do it."

Patrick sat down next to the fire beside her and pulled her close, "It's ok. I understand. You love them so much. Sometimes, I think you love them more than people. He's much better off now, though. I should have made that decision and then you wouldn't have had to see him that way."

Amy shook her head and sniffed, "No. I am glad I got to see him one last time. He was gorgeous."

Lee piped in from across the fire, "He was perfect."

*****

The next day, when Amy unzipped the front of her tent, she saw that the snow had stopped. Patrick had already built a blazing fire and was cooking a can of pork and beans over it while his camping kettle brewed coffee. Yawning and stretching, she dressed awkwardly in the tent, then came out, noticing that it was slightly warmer than it had been the day before. "Good morning, Patrick. I guess we should go ahead and pack up."

Patrick nodded, "Already set Mark on it, but we didn't want to disturb you. He's getting Lee's horse ready to go now."

Amy glanced over to where the horses were tied and frowned, "Where is Lee?"

Patrick pointed down the ridge, "She went to use the bathroom."

The sound of footsteps coming towards them made them turn around and Amy smiled when she saw Lee. Lee smiled back and sat down next to her, "Good morning, sleepy head."

Amy took the coffee Patrick was offering her, "How is it that I slept better out here than I do in my own bed at home?"

Patrick looked at her under the brim of his Stetson, "You don't have a woman bitching in your ear constantly out here. That one was too easy. Ask a harder question."

Amy slapped him on the shoulder, but it was playful, "Patrick!"

"What?" he asked, feigning shock. He mockingly rubbed his shoulder as he grinned and winked at Lee, "That's all that woman ever does. Bitch bitch bitch about this that or the other. Horse shit, boredom, horse shit some more, then wanting to fly away to some foreign country. High maintenance. She never gives Amy a moment's peace."

Amy blushed and drank the coffee, feeling her own bladder tense up, "Alright, enough. It's my turn to go to the bathroom, then we'll finish up and leave."

Lee watched her walk out of sight and then leaned close to Patrick, her smile instantly fading, "Is it really that bad, Pat?"

Patrick's smile also deteriorated, "I hate that woman. She's going to give Amy a heartattack. And, Darlene is doing all the paperwork for the ranch now that you're gone and Amy doesn't have time. She's spending money faster than Amy can make it and we don't even know what on. Except the house of course. It isn't even the things she buys that are so expensive really... it's the shipping costs to get it all the way out to the ranch. Darlene watches her day and night because she doesn't trust her. I mean, this is a downward spiral we're in and if things don't change soon, I'm going to have to look somewhere else. I got a kid on the way."

"Congratulations about that, by the way. Amy did tell me, but I haven't had a chance to tell you," Lee said quickly.

"Lee, you need to come back and sort this mess out," Patrick said seriously.

Lee laughed, a little louder than she had meant to, "Me? What makes you think I can do anything about this?"

Patrick sighed, "Someone has to damnit. She's ruining Amy."

Lee cleared her throat as she saw Amy coming back up the ridge. She stood up and slapped her thighs, "Well, we better get on the trail. Time to get back to Cooper's."

Amy raised an eyebrow and shot a questioning look at Patrick, "What was that?" She pointed at Lee.

"Don't know what you're talking about," he said as he poured the kettle on the fire, resulting in a loud hiss and lots of smoke. He waved it away and then poured some of his canteen on it just to be safe. Amy pointed at Lee and smirked as he shuffled snow on top of the firepit. Patrick shrugged, "She's just happy to be getting out of the wilderness, I reckon."

Amy frowned and whispered so quietly that he couldn't hear her, "And away from me."

*****

Grace stared out the window of the house in the direction of the mountains. It was the morning of the fifth day since Justice had gotten out and the two days since the rescue party had ridden off onto the trail. There had been a bad snow storm the day they left, complete with thunder and lightning and she was worried. Amy had told her that it might take them a long time because they'd have to stabilize the horse once they got there and then slow trek him out, but she was still on edge because of the bad weather.

She walked out of the house and over to the Tanner's cabin where Darlene immediately invited her inside and made her a cup of hot chocolate, "I try not to worry too much about them when they're off in the mountains, Grace. Lots of things happen out there that they can't foretell. Usually, Amy doesn't give an estimate of when she'll be back. She's been gone for a week before."

"I made her," Grace said, then sipped at the hot chocolate.

"Made her what, honey?" Darlene asked.

"Made her tell me how long it was going to take. She kept saying she didn't know, but I made her give me a general idea."

"Well, I know you're worried about her. Just remember they have to bring a hurt animal down that mountain as well. And it snowed really hard the day they left. It might be too risky to move yet. No one knows those mountain passes better than Amy and my Pat, so don't you worry. She'll come back to you in one piece," Darlene said as she patted Grace's hand. She was shocked at the real worry that Grace was showing for Amy and it actually made her feel sorry for the woman.

Grace looked up at her, "I'm not worried about Amy. Amy is a big girl and can take care of herself."

Darlene pulled her hand away and smirked, thinking that she should have known better than to think Grace actually cared about Amy's well-being, "Well, then... what are you worried about?"

"I am worried about her being up there with that woman, Lee. And I am worried about that horse," Grace said coldly.

"What color is he?" Darlene asked pointedly.

"What?" Grace asked.

"The horse, Justice. What color is he?" Darlene asked again.

Grace rolled her eyes and thought about it for a minute, "Gray I suppose since he is an Andalusian. What does that matter?"

"He's bay. Prettiest bay Andalusian I have seen in a long time. And his mane and tail are jet black. He's so shiny that if the sun hits him in just the right way, you need sunglasses to stand next to him," Darlene chattered.

"What in the world are you talking about?" Grace asked, growing impatient.

"You said you were worried about the horse, so I figured you knew how sweet and beautiful he was. Amy and Lee doted on that horse when he was born," Darlene said, pretending to be whistful and trying to make it seem like she was just making small talk.

"Well, she does do that. But I honestly don't know that I have ever seen the horse," Grace said.

"Then how can you be worried about him?" Darlene asked, her voice dripping with innocence.

Grace, feeling uncomfortable with the conversation suddenly, frowned and tried to change the subject, "To be honest, I'm more concerned about her being up there with Lee."

Darlene stood up, "I think you should go now. They'll be back before you know it."

Grace sat the cup down gently on the table, "Fine. I don't get you people anyway. Why you go all misty eyed over horses."

Darlene slammed her hand down on the table and it made Grace jump. For the first time since Grace came to Cooper's Lake, she saw the woman losing control of her calm demeanor. Darlene struggled to keep her voice even, "And you go all misty eyed over price tags. Everyone here knows that the only horse related thing you care about is how much money Amy will get for it when it comes time to sell it. You don't think about how it tears her to little bits every time she has to see one of her babies loaded into a trailer and drive off down the road. You don't care that you hound her day and night because you hate it here. You don't see the damage you've done to this place since you got here. I never thought I'd live to see the day when a hurricane made landfall in Montana, honey, but you sure as hell have the same wake as one. Hurricane Grace, sweeping away all the beauty before her and leaving a trail of ugly receipts and broken women." Darlene stopped herself from going any further.

Grace blinked rapidly, unable to say anything other than, "Fuck you Darlene." She stormed out and ran back to the big house, leaving Darlene standing in the doorway of her own house with a smug look on her face.

*****

Patrick was hollering before he ever got within hearing distance of the ranch but once she could hear him Darlene could sense the urgency in his voice. She ran across the snow covered yard and noticed that Grace had heard him too and was standing on the front porch waiting for him to approach with her hands over her mouth.

Darlene turned the corner of the house and saw Patrick and Mark riding their horses as hard as they could down the trail against the fenceline. Patrick's hat was gone and he was slapping Cranky so hard that the horse was snorting in pain everytime he made contact. Darlene started yelling, "STOP PAT! Stop hitting that horse! What happened!? Where is Amy? Where is Lee?"

Patrick was still riding up as he shouted, "Call 911."

Darlene shook her head, "I can't! Phones are out."

"Shit!" Patrick shouted. He jumped off of Cranky before he ever even stopped and almost fell as he hit the ground, "I need the keys to the Ram, now."

Grace stood on the porch motionless, "What happened?"

Patrick sneered at her, "Useless." He ran past the corner of the house and took the front porch steps two at a time, on a mission to find the truck keys. Mark dismounted and let his own horse, Charlie, wander off, "Ms. Darlene, Ms. Grace, there's been an accident."

Grace felt her heart hit her toes as she struggled to keep standing. Darlene looked worried, but grabbed Mark by the shoulders, "Calm down, son. Tell me, what happened."

"It's Lee. The snow was melting and a big clump of it fell down and hit the ground right in front of Busy. He bolted, but she wasn't hanging on tight enough and he threw her. She fell down a 20 foot ridge and broke her arm and God only knows what else, although Amy said the snow banks broke most of her fall." He shook his head, "We tried to get her out of there, but she couldn't climb back up with that arm like that and Amy made us leave."

"What was that about Amy?" Grace asked.

"Ms. Amy crawled down to get to Ms. Lee but there is no moving her. She made us leave them there, but she is fine, Grace, don't worry. We came back to get help. Pat needs to go get help," Mark said breathlessly.

"Doesn't anyone have a cell phone? Just call 911," Grace yelled.

Darlene turned on her, "Didn't you hear me? The storm the other day knocked out the phones and it could be weeks before they get out here to repair it. There is no other way, Grace. Cell phones don't work out here."

Grace stomped, "That was just a little thunder and snow. How could there be a blizzard and not knock out the phones, but a couple of snow flakes fall and bam!"

Patrick was standing behind her with the keys to the Dodge, "When snow melts and refreezes, it turns to ice, then it snows on top of that and gets really heavy. It happens a lot out here. The lines are new so the phone company don't feel the need come out and service them a lot. There weren't even phone lines out here until Amy bought the place. Usually we wait until we go into town to report the outage because we don't need the goddamn phones."

Grace jumped when he started talking and then sat down in the porch swing, "Until you do."

Patrick clenched his teeth and nodded, "Right. Until we do."

He jumped off the porch and hugged Darlene tightly, then kissed her, "I'll be back. Mark, don't you go anywhere son. Take care of those horses and be ready to lead them back when I get here. I'm bringing whatever I can find. But hopefully a damn helicopter. Make sure all the horses are out of the big training paddock so it can land."

The truck grumbled to life as he slammed the door. Mud and snow splattered everything behind the truck and he bounced out of the ranch gates and down the road towards Missoula. Grace came to the edge of the porch again, "Mark? What about the horse? What about Justice?"

Mark looked pained for a second as he rounded up Cranky and Charlie and started walking them to the barn, "Dead."

Darlene shot Grace a look that told her exactly where she could go, and then stormed off after Mark towards the barn.

*****

Amy looked around them, but everything looked so much the same that she couldn't make out any landmarks. The only thing that had really stopped Lee from going any further down the ridge was the Aspen tree that had helped to break her fall but had also broken her arm in the process. It was impossible to determine how far down the ravine went and Amy scratched her forehead, "I can't see anything."

Lee groaned and tried to look around as well, but the movement sent a searing pain through her left arm that made her cry out. Amy knelt beside her, "Stop moving, Lee. You're going to make that break worse. I have to go for a minute to try to find some things. You have to stop moving or you might go even further down the side and I don't know how far it goes."

Lee tried to smile, "Ok. God I'm such an idiot. It's just an arm."

Amy frowned at her, "You're lucky it wasn't more than just an arm. Just stay put."

Amy meticulously climbed back up the ridge, which only proved to be about fifteen feet now that she wasn't in a complete state of panic. She reached into her saddlebag and pulled out her hatchet, matches, her pistol, and Patrick's rifle that he had left with her. She tried to sooth Salt as she tied him to a tree, but the horses were clearly spooked, stomping the ground and snorting, "Yes, baby, I know it's been a scary day. A bad day. Just hang in there. It'll be over soon." She took her backpack that contained her tent from the back of the saddle and pulled it on over her shoulders.

Once she had put her holster on and stored the hatchet in her belt, she started descending again, using the rifle as a walking stick so that the weight of the backpack didn't upend her. The climb back down was much harder, but she managed it in record time considering that she hadn't slipped and she wondered how she had gotten down without killing herself the first time. As she settled in next to Lee again, she started digging in the snow until she exposed the ground, "I'm building a fire. Then I'm going to find something to splint that arm. First warmth, then comfort. I'm sorry, but it's too cold out here to be without a fire."

She had just managed to get the smoke to rise from the kindling when she saw the first flake of snow drift down and land on her hand. Frowning as it melted, she whispered, "Oh for the love of God. Really?" She stared up and saw that it was definitely snowing, then continued working on the fire until it took and roared to life. Once she was finished with that, she tried to figure out how she was going to pitch the tent and shook her head, "It's too steep."

Lee looked up at her, "Please, just help me sit up so we can think about this together. I am afraid to move, but I have to sit up."

Amy gently helped Lee into a sitting position but despite how slow they went, Lee still cried out in pain. When she was finally resting with her back against a tree, she let herself cry quietly, "This is really the worst possible thing that could have happened."

Amy sat next to her, leaning against her own tree and watching the fire to make sure it didn't die down, "No, it could definitely be worse."

"Oh could it?" Lee asked hotly. "And how do you suppose it could be worse, Amy?"

"Well, for one, you could have a broken leg, and you don't. For two, you could have broken your back, and you didn't. For three, you could have had a head injury, and from what I can tell, you don't," Amy explained. She pointed toward the trail above, "You got thrown at least fifteen feet from the back of a horse, Lee." She stared at Lee, who was still crying and inched closer, "And four, Grace isn't here. So that's a good thing."

Lee's shoulders started jerking, and Amy realized after a moment that she was laughing, "Ow... ow.. ow... Don't make me laugh, you idiot. And of course, you're right. I'm sorry. It just hurts so much."

Amy nodded and picked up the hatchet and a log she had found, "Yeap. It's gonna hurt even worse when I'm ready to put this bad boy on it."

Lee held the arm close to her chest, grimacing, "You're putting a log on my arm?"

Amy laughed then, "No, you silly woman. I have to trim it down first. I am going to splint it the best I can so the bone will stop moving around in there. That's a really good break and it needs to be stabilized."

Lee watched as Amy started hacking at the log with the hatchet. It took about an hour, but finally, Amy had two relatively straight boards made out of it and was digging in her backpack. She pulled out a t-shirt and grinned as she started ripping it, "This'll do."

The pain that Lee felt while Amy was working on her arm was the worst she had ever felt in her life and it didn't take her long to pass out. By the time she opened her eyes again, it was getting dark and the snow was falling pretty heavily. Amy was trying to tie the tent to the trees to at least make a shelter above their heads. She was doing a good job of it too, and Lee smiled, "You are a regular outdoor woman."

Amy stopped what she was doing and came to kneel down beside Lee, "We're going to be in trouble if this snow doesn't stop. We're going to stay on this ridge tonight, but one way or the other, Lee, tomorrow, we have to move."

Lee nodded, "I understand. There's nothing wrong with my legs as far as I can tell, so I guess I could try to climb up."

Amy shook her head, "No. We're going down."

Lee's eyes got wide, "Down? Have you lost your fucking mind?"

Amy tilted her head to the side and pointed, "The ridge meets the trail down below if I remember correctly. I'm going to run the horses off tomorrow and if you see them pass below, you're going to know I was right. They are going to carry on home, because that's what horses do. We... we're going to get back on this trail, one way or another."

*****

Grace's heart stopped for a second when she heard the horses outside. She bolted up from her seat on the couch and ran to the porch, "Amy?!"

Mark was wrestling with the reins of the gray horse and when he finally calmed him down, he shouted, "Shit. It's Salt! This is Amy's horse."

Grace ran down the front porch steps and stared toward the mountains, "Why is her horse back? Where is Amy?"

Mark shook his head, "There was no rider, Grace. Amy isn't back. Just Salt and Busy."

Grace stared at him until it finally registered, then she covered her mouth with her hand and sobbed. Mark put his arm around her and led her back into the house, "I'm going to go look after them and make sure they get put up. I'll be right back, Ms. Grace."

Grace stared at the black screen on the television. The snow had started up again the day before and it hadn't let up since then. She was terrified for the first time in her life that something really bad had happened to Amy. She leaned back into the couch and sobbed, not paying attention to the sound of the door opening. When Mark came in she waved her hand and said, "Just go away. Just don't tell me anymore. This is like some damn horror movie. Next thing I know, you're going to tell me that there was blood on the saddle."

Mark didn't say a word. He sat down on the couch beside her and let her rest her head in his lap. The truth of the matter was that Mark was not very good at situations such as the one he found himself in and he really didn't know Grace that well. He was not sure what to say, but was pretty confident that nothing he could say would make her feel any better.

Grace finally stopped crying and then sat up, "Thank you Mark. You can go now. Go get something to eat."

He stood up, "If it makes you feel any better, Grace, there was no blood on the saddle and the horses are in good shape."

Grace buried her face in the pillows and started crying again, so Mark turned and promptly went to get Darlene, who arrived a few minutes later. She didn't stop at the living room, but walked straight to the kitchen and started a pot of coffee. Once the coffee had brewed and she had just about had enough of Grace's sobbing, she poured two cups and went back to the living room.

Without a word, Darlene sat down on the couch and turned on the TV. Grace sat up and sniffed, "Satellite is out."

Darlene sipped her coffee and turned the TV back off, "Well, do you have a radio? I was thinking that maybe if Patrick had gotten to town maybe it would be on the news."

Grace jumped up, "I hadn't thought of that. Hold on." She went to the den and brought back Amy's old CD player that she had wanted to get rid of. As she was searching for a plug, she whispered, "I wonder what's taking him so long."

Darlene sighed, "The weather. Trying to figure out who's coming. Things like this take time." She shifted uncomfortably, "Mark told me the horses came back alone."

Grace finally plugged the radio in and started scanning through the white noise, "Yeah." She adjusted the antenna with a shaking hand, "I know you think I'm a horrible person. I really do care about her, Darlene." She looked up and out the window into the fading light, "More than I even suspected I did maybe."

Darlene sat up on the edge of the couch and placed her palms together, "Well, maybe you should tell her that when she gets back. She loves you, you know?"

Grace nodded as a voice faded in and out on the radio. She concentrated on trying to zero in on the signal, but it was useless. The white noise came back every time she barely moved the dial and it started to feel like it was going to deafen her. She stopped and jerked the CD player up. It came unplugged and the cable flew dangerously past her head as she turned towards the wall and threw the CD player at it as hard as she could. It exploded against the cedar wood and landed with a clatter, "I hate it here!" she shouted. She kicked the broken radio, "Nothing works. The TV doesn't work, the phones don't work, and y'all just carry on tra-la-la like nothing is happening. But something is happening and it's happening out there," she pointed towards the back of the house, towards the mountains.

Darlene stood up tried to hand her the cup of coffee. Grace slapped at it and it fell on the hardwood floor, shattering that too. Darlene crossed her arms on her chest, "Now listen here..."

"No," Grace interrupted, "you listen. How do you people live like this? I have asked that question a million times since I got here and no one has answered me yet. The only time this damn hellhole is bearable is when Amy is around and she is never around. And now she's stuck up there in the middle of nowhere with that... that... woman! I'm tired of it. When she gets back, I'm going to make her sell this damn place and move back to Savannah. She'll do it. I know she will."

Darlene grabbed her by the shoulders and physically sat her down on the couch, "Shut up and listen to me. That woman happens to be a friend of mine and you already ran her off. You are going to do no such thing to Amy, because I promise you, if you make an ultimatum like that, you'll lose one way or another."

Grace raised her eyebrow, "Are you threatening me."

"I may be older than you, uglier than you, and pregnant, but I guaran-damn-tee you that I can kick your ass with one hand tied behind my back. You try to take Amy away from this place and I'll have your head on my wall like it was a deer head. Do you understand me, Grace Forster?" Darlene stood in front of her, pointing down at her.

Grace stood up in her face and shouted, "She's my girlfriend! She wants to marry me! We're going to leave this godforsaken place. She's a millionaire and she is just sitting on this goddamn ranch like she doesn't even have a dime. We're going to travel! I'll show her what a life is really like."

Darlene screamed back, "No Grace she wanted to marry you. There's a big difference between wanted and wants. I do all her financial paperwork and if you think I won't tell her how you're draining her bank account, well then you really are stupid. I just thought you played that way to get favors from Amy, but it turns out you really are thick as paint."

Grace pushed her hard and Darlene sat down on the coffee table to keep from falling over it, "You bitch! You need to mind your own damn business."

Suddenly, without Grace even realizing what was going on, she was being lifted off the ground by a pair of strong arms from behind her. Mark's voice was suddenly audible as her heartbeat stopped rushing in her ears, "Grace, stop it! She's pregnant, Grace!"

Grace kicked him hard in the shin, "Get out! Both of you. Get out of my house!"

Mark let her go by throwing her back down on the couch. He helped Darlene up and they walked to the door. Before they walked out, Darlene turned around and spat, "It's Amy's house." They walked out the door leaving Grace shouting a fresh stream of curses behind them.

*****

The woods were quiet. Not even a bird was singing. Around the Aspens little mounds of snow were beginning to pile up and the trees blended so well with the surroundings that if you weren't paying attention, you might walk right into them. Amy wiped at her nose with the back of her glove and sniffed as she looked around at the snow falling hard around them, "We have to stop."

Lee groaned at her, leaning hard on her shoulder, "Why, Amy? Please can we just keep going?"

Amy shook her head and gently lowered Lee to the ground, "No. I can't see the trail anymore because of the snow. The horses' tracks have disappeared. We're stuck." She started unpacking the ripped up tent and started tying the red fabric to trees, "If Patrick was able to get someone to fly in this, they'll see the red, Lee, but we've got to stop. If we get too far off the trail, we'll be out here for God only knows how long and it's too cold. We can't survive that. I'm frozen to my core and I know you are too."

Lee was crying again, "You're right."

Amy finished tying the cover up and then crawled under it and huddled close to Lee, "Please don't cry. We're going to get out of this. Is your arm hurting?"

Lee made an effort to stop crying, "Yes. I can feel it through the cold. If we stop we're going to freeze to death."

Amy pulled her close, trying not to jostle the arm, "If we keep going we're more likely to freeze to death. It's snowing like crazy. I'm going to go get some firewood. Stay here. Keep that pistol on your lap."

Amy searched all around the camp, but finding firewood was not an easy task in the snow covered forest. She tried to stay at least within shouting distance to Lee, but had to go out of eyeshot because everything seemed frozen, damp, or just too rotten to burn. Without thinking about it, she started to pray out loud, "God, please... if you get me out of this, things will be so much different. I don't want to die out here. I really don't want Lee to die out here. Please, God."

She was almost on top of the large male mountain lion before she realized it. As it screamed at her, she jumped back and stumbled, the load of firewood she had been carrying scattering all around her. Fumbling with the shoulder strap, she tried to pull the rifle around to take a shot, but before she could get a bead on it, the cat was on top of her. A heavy paw landed against her temple and the world started spinning as she lifted her arms to shield her face.

She felt the teeth of the mountain lion sink deep into her forearm and screamed as she kicked the cat hard in the gut. All she could hear was the blood rushing through her head and the ripping of her coat as the cat swiped and bit at her again and again. After wrestling with the cat for what seemed like an eternity she heard a pistol blast right next to her face. Her ears ringing, she looked around, dazed and saw Lee standing over her, the pistol smoking in the cold air. The cat was trying to pull itself away into the woods, leaving a trail of blood that seemed to glow against the stark white of the snow.

Amy grabbed at the rifle again and stood up, then shot the cat just at the base of the neck. It jerked once and then stopped breathing. For a minute, she couldn't catch her breath and she knelt in the snow next to the cat's body, just staring at the large animal and its powerful paws. Slowly, sensation started to come back to her and she felt a bright hot pain on the side of her face. She didn't have to touch it to know that she was bleeding badly because the warmth of the blood was a strange sensation against the cold air, and she didn't have to move her arm to know that the cat's teeth had done some damage, despite the thick coat she had on.

Lee was finally able to hobble over to her, trying not to fall on her sprained ankle, "I heard you scream. I bet that's the same cat that got Justice." She put her hand on Amy's shoulder and then gasped when Amy looked up at her, "Amy! Oh my God, you're bleeding so badly!"

Amy panicked, "Lee, I can barely hear what you're saying. My ears are still ringing from the gun shot."

Lee ripped off her right glove with her teeth and then put her cold fingers against Amy's temple, shaking her head, but silent.

Amy frowned and shouted, "That bad?"

Lee's face answered, but she nodded anyway and shouted back, "Come back to the camp. You're bleeding badly."

Somehow, Amy managed to police some of the firewood and get it back to their camp. She saw that Lee had scraped away the snow from most of the ground under the tarp and looked at her shocked, "You shouldn't be doing this. You're hurt."

Lee tried to square her shoulders, but it hurt too much so she gave up on looking proud, "We're in this together. We have to work together or we won't get out of here. I have a sprained ankle and a broken arm." She stared at Amy's bloody face and felt like she was going to be sick, "I wish you wouldn't have sent Patrick away. I could have made it back."

"You're lying," Amy said in a normal tone. The ringing in her ears had died down and she was finally able to hear Lee better, "You passed out three times coming down the ridge and we've barely moved since then. Look back, up there. That's where we came down. We can't make it like this. Especially now."

Once Amy had the fire going Lee scooted over beside her and started inspecting the cut on her face again, "Looks like the bleeding has mostly stopped."

Amy nodded, "Head wounds bleed a lot but not for long. I'm fine. I promise. Remember, I was a nurse in a past life. It was mostly his paw pad that caught me on the temple. His claws just barely scraped me. It's my arm I'm worried about. I don't even want to look."

Lee grabbed Amy's arm, which made her shout out, "You didn't say anything about your arm." She finally noticed the shredded material and started trying to see through the holes on Amy's coat.

Amy cried out again, "STOP! Jesus Christ that hurts!"

"No! I might only be an animal doctor, but I know we have to clean those wounds. You will not be like Justice," Lee shouted.

Amy grabbed her by the right wrist and shook her head, "I'm not going to be like Justice, Lee. I can't deal with my arm right now. The blood has stopped running down my arm, so I'm good for right now. Let's just concentrate on getting this fire going so we can cook this last can of beans and get warm. I'm starving."

Lee frowned and crossed her arms, "You're so fucking stubborn."

Amy fiddled with the growing fire and took the pan out of her backpack, "Yeap." Looking over at Lee, she noticed that there was a little sweat beading up on her forehead, "You alright?"

Lee looked like she didn't understand for just a second and then nodded, "I'm fine. Just hurting."

Amy popped the can of beans and then sat the pan on the fire. She put her arm around Lee's shoulders and pulled her down into her lap. Lee stared into the fire as Amy brushed the hair out of her face, "You're getting sick."

Lee shivered and pressed her head into Amy's stomach, "Aren't the trees pretty?"

Amy knew that from the angle Lee was laying she couldn't possibly see any trees. Just the fire and the other side of the tarp. She pulled Lee closer then laid the back of her hand on Lee's forehead, "You're burning up."

Lee tried to shake her head, and Amy noticed her eyelids flutter, "I love the mountains when it snows."

Amy leaned forward and pulled the beans off the fire, her appetite gone. She moved Lee gently and stretched out next to her on the ground that Lee had cleared. She unzipped her coat and pulled Lee into it, then jerked their two blankets over them. She felt Lee push against her and squeezed tighter, "It's going to be ok, Lee. I'm going to get you out of here, I promise."

*****

The snow had stopped and Patrick stood at the fence where Amy's property ended, knee deep in a snow drift and watching the helicopter circle over the mountain ridge. It had been three days since he had left Amy and Lee up on the ridge, because the pilots wouldn't fly due to the weather and he was about to go insane from worry. As the helicopter circled over and over again, he tore his hat off his head and slapped at his thigh with it, "They should have found them by now! They've been circling that same damn spot for four hours."

He kicked at the fencepost and walked back towards the barn where the sheriff's deputy had taken up residence in Amy's office. He nearly pulled the door off the hinges as he entered, "Haven't they spotted anything yet? I told them exactly where they were."

The deputy smiled, "I was just about to come get you. The girls must have moved because they weren't where you said they were but they see a red piece of fabric down there and what looks like a camp. Pretty big tarp tied in the trees up there. They think it's them and they're coming back with the GPS coordinates as we speak."

Patrick nearly whooped as he grabbed the door handle again, "Do I need to saddle horses?"

The deputy smiled, much like a father would smile at a kid, "No need. I'll get the snowmobiles ready."

They watched as the helicopter landed in the north field. Patrick ran with the deputy to get the information they needed, hollering over the sound of the blades once he got there, "Can you wait here? If they're hurt..."

The pilot nodded, "We're not going anywhere, Mr. Tanner. Just go get them out of there."

They pushed the snowmobiles as fast as they would go until they started getting close to the location where the pilot had spotted the red fabric. They were getting pretty close to an area where the snowmobiles couldn't go when he saw a flash of red up ahead and nearly lost control of the machine he was driving. As they got closer he saw Amy running towards him, flailing her arm as if he didn't see her already.

Amy rushed into his arms and hugged him tightly, "I heard the helicopter. I knew you'd come! We have to hurry. Lee has a fever and she's been talking nonsense."

Patrick stared at her head, "What happened, Amy?"

"Mountain lion. Lee shot it. We have to get her out of here. She took a bad turn the night the cat attacked me. We haven't been able to move since then," Amy said quickly.

The deputy was already loading Lee onto the litter that was attached to the back of his snowmobile. Once she was safely loaded and strapped in, Amy got on the back of the snowmobile with Patrick and they turned for home. Amy leaned against Patrick's back and shouted above the engine, "I won't forgive myself if she dies, Pat."

Patrick patted her arm that was around his stomach, "It's going to be alright now. I have a helicopter waiting to fly her to Helena."

Amy watched the white landscape pass by in a blur and shouted again, "We're buying snowmobiles, Pat."

Patrick laughed, "I think that's a fantastic idea."

As they came out of the woods and into view of the ranch, Amy heard people start cheering and shouting. Mark, Darlene, Grace, other sheriff's deputies, and the pilots of the helicopter had been waiting on the front porch of Lee's old cabin, because they could see the trailhead from there.

As the pilot ran to the chopper to get it ready, Grace ran over to Amy, "You're alive! It's a shame about that horse, but I am glad you're back."

Amy looked at her as if she had forgotten that she was at the ranch and then whispered, "Yes. I am."

Grace saw the dried blood on her head and shouted, "You're hurt!"

Amy watched as the deputies took the litter towards the helicopter, "It's nothing."

Patrick cut in, "Amy, I can drive you to Doctor Harrelson's in Missoula to get stitched up. Come on. We'll go on to Helena afterwards and check on Lee. Darlene, come on. Mark can handle the farm."

Amy felt like she was going to pass out, "Lee..."

Grace stepped back, pulling on Amy's coat, "What? No. Amy come on. Get in the truck. We'll all go to Missoula."

Amy shrugged off Grace as she tried to reach for her arm. She looked at Patrick and Darlene, then back to the helicopter, "I have to go. I have to see her through this. I promised."

Patrick nodded and hugged her, "Go on. We'll look after things and head to Helena tomorrow."

Grace grabbed her harder, "Amy! You will not get on that helicopter with her."

Amy screamed in pain as Grace's hand closed around the bite on her arm and jerked away again, "Grace... for the love of God.... I almost died. She is nearly dead. This isn't about me and her or you and me. This is about us surviving."

Grace pretended she didn't hear her. Instead, she feigned concern, "What's wrong with your arm?"

Amy glared at Grace and didn't answer. Finally, she looked at Patrick, "Come to Helena tomorrow."

She started for the field, motioning for the pilot to wait. Just as she was about to step up into the helicopter she felt Grace pull on her coat. She put her foot back down on the ground and was immediately met by Grace's voice over the droning of the blades, "If you get on that helicopter...I won't be here when you get back."

"What?" Amy was more angry than hurt over the ultimatum.

"I will leave you if you get on that helicopter. Do you understand me? I will leave you," Grace stomped as she shouted again.

Amy looked Grace up and down, disgust taking the place of hurt on her face. Finally, shaking her head, she climbed in and pulled the door shut behind her. She took a seat and fastened her seatbelt, then looked out the window. Grace was still shouting at her, but thankfully, Amy couldn't hear it anymore. She reached down, took Lee by the hand, and stared straight at the back of the pilot's head, feeling her stomach flip as the chopper left the ground.

*****

Lee opened her eyes and looked down to see what had made her hand go to sleep and was shocked to see Amy. She had fallen asleep sitting next to the bed with her head laying on a pillow and Lee's right hand held tightly in her own. Lee pulled gently on her hand, which made Amy stir, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you. Have you been here long?"

Amy stood up quickly, "You're awake."

Lee laughed, "Yes. I had some crazy dreams. How long have you been here?"

Amy hit the red cross on the bed and then sat back down, "Since we got here, I guess. I left once to get stitches, and another time to talk to Darlene, but then I came straight back. I guess it's been three days. They've been keeping you sedated because of your arm."

Lee lifted the cast and looked at it, "Oh my. I could hurt someone with this. Won't be tending animals for a while."

Amy shook her head and nodded, "It was broken in three places, but otherwise, just a few bumps and bruises. Your ankle had a bad sprain, but it's wrapped."

A nurse swept into the room and beamed, "Oh Ms. Lee, you're awake. I see Ms. Cooper has begun filling you in. How are you feeling?"

Lee smiled back, "Like I've been sleeping forever."

"Well, this one has been looking after you night and day. She's an excellent friend, even if she is a horrible patient," she nurse joked, winking at Amy.

"She's a nurse," Lee said as if the woman should have known that.

The nurse grinned, "Oh, believe me, we know." Once she had taken Lee's vitals, she picked up her chart and started scribbling, "No fever. That's great. We'll be able to get you out of here in no time. I'll send the doctor in so you can figure out when you can leave. You girls sure did get banged up good out there. Glad you're ok."

Amy watched as she drifted out then stood up to pace, "Lee, I've been thinking..."

Lee shook her head, "No. Stop. Don't think. Go get food, sleep in a real bed. Rest, then come back and we'll reminisce about how we almost died."

Amy frowned, "I don't want to go away and I don't want to talk about how we almost died. Listen to me.."

Lee held up her hand, "No. Please, go. I can't handle this right now."

Amy stared, seeing tears welling in Lee's eyes. Sighing, she turned around and walked out into the waiting area of the hospital where Patrick and Darlene were camped out in a corner. She sat down in front of them, "She's awake and she doesn't want to see me. She sent me away. Told me to get out."

Darlene sat down next to her, "Amy, Grace is still here."

Amy cupped her face in her hands and groaned, "I still don't want to talk to her. Where is she?"

Darlene sighed, "You have to go talk to her, Amy, especially now." Amy hung her head as if she had been hit over it. Darlene rubbed her back and whispered, "I know after our talk you don't want to deal with that right now, but you need to talk to her. She's waiting for you in the cafeteria, honey. If you don't talk to her now, I'm afraid she's going to make a scene in Lee's room. It's been all we can do to keep her away from there."

Amy stood up and walked towards the cafeteria, dreading the confrontation she was about to have and trying to figure out how she was going to say what she was planning on saying. She had hoped she was going to be able to have the conversation at the ranch, on her own turf, on her own terms. She saw Grace sitting next to a window, staring out of it and idly scratching at her cup of coffee with her thumbnail. She pulled out the chair across from her and sat down, not saying a word. Grace looked at her and then back out of the window, "Hey."

Amy smirked, "Hey? That's all I get?"

Grace looked at her again, "What am I supposed to say to you after you finally join the land of the living? You've been shut up in Lee's room for three days."

"I'm glad you're alive would be a good start," Amy said as she leaned back in the chair and fiddled with the bandage on her arm.

Grace glanced down at the bandage and rolled her eyes, "I tried to say that to you the day you came out of there. You were too busy ignoring me."

Amy closed her eyes, "The first words out of your mouth had to do with a dead horse." She sighed deeply, "I can't do this right now, Grace."

Grace leaned closer and whispered vehemently, "Why? Does Lee need you?" Her eyes blazed and she continued, "And you not being able to do this.... that's the problem. You can never do this. You don't even know I'm here."

Amy rubbed her eyes, "I'm sorry."

Grace leaned back and snorted, "Sorry? So you admit that you don't even see me. You left me in the middle of nowhere to go rescue a horse with your old vet who was in love with you. Your vet got hurt and you got attacked by a mountain lion, Amy. Then, when I thought you were back safe and whole, you left again, with her. And you think sorry fixes that?"

Amy didn't open her eyes, "I'm a nurse. It wasn't life flight. Just a sheriff's helicopter with deputies flying it. I promised her she wouldn't die and I had to keep that promise. Sorry isn't enough, but it will have to do. Anyway, I thought you were finished? I thought you were leaving me?"

Grace finally succeeded in breaking the cardboard ring off of her coffee cup, "I was angry. I'm still angry, but then I was so mad I couldn't even see straight, so I said things..."

Amy opened her eyes, "Grace..."

Grace shook her head and took a drink of coffee, "Don't say it. You don't have to say it."

"Grace... I had a long talk with Darlene while they were stitching me up," Amy started. She leaned forward again, "And I really don't like what she said about you."

Grace looked at Amy and Amy could see the fear crawl across her face and knew she had hit a sore spot. Grace's stomach started hurting, but she tried to put on a brave face, "Well, it's about time you noticed how they treat me."

Amy chuckled, "I don't like what she said about you because I believe her."

"What?" Grace asked, the color draining from her face.

"You pushed a pregnant woman while throwing a temper tantrum about how useless my life is," Amy explained.

Grace grabbed Amy's hand, "I was worried about you. Of course I was saying irrational things. And I do think we should sell the ranch and move away. I was going to talk to you about that when you got back. I won't apologize for that because I still believe that we should."

Amy pulled her hand away and decided to dive in, "Cassandra Butler, Grace."

Grace closed her eyes, "What? You're throwing that in my face?"

Amy smirked, "She left you seven months ago. Funny... how you showed up on my doorstep one month after she kicked you out."

Grace looked angry, "You called Cassandra?"

Amy glared, "Should I?"

Grace didn't know what to say. She sat motionless, barely breathing. Finally, she forced a tear out of one eye and whispered, "No." She wiped the tear angrily and sighed, finally feeling the teeth of the trap that had been looming over her since day one close, "Yes, she kicked me out and left me with nothing. I waited tables again for a month before I found out where you were."

Amy stopped grinning and it was her turn to look angry, "A year is what you told me, but it works. Thank you for admitting it. Now I don't have to talk to that bitch."

Grace blinked, "How did you find out?"

Amy stood up, "My office is used by a lot of different people at the ranch, Grace."

"And how does your office figure into any of this?" Grace asked, though she already felt she knew the answer to the question.

"When you called Cassandra right before the first snowstorm, to beg her to let you to come home because you couldn't handle it out here, Darlene heard you. She also caught you rummaging through my bank statements and trying to transfer money into your account. You weren't successful at that, were you? That's why you stayed as long as you did. But when you figured out that you couldn't embezzle my money, you panicked and called Cassandra because you just can't handle it here. Darlene tried to tell me a couple of times, but I was so busy letting you spend my money and believing all that horseshit you said to me about loving me and not being able to live without me that I couldn't make time for her. I was too busy fighting with you about Lee. I had time for her here, in Helena, though. She showed me everything. Even the phone records. I'll recognize Cassandra Butler's cell phone number until I draw my last breath and if you think I don't recognize my bank's number, you're insane," Amy said quietly, proud of herself for not losing her temper.

Grace leaned her elbows on the table and felt Amy's millions slipping from her grasp, "Oh God. Amy... I can explain. We can work this out. I can make this up to you."

Amy shook her head, thinking that she may as well go ahead and spill everything while they were at it, "No we can't. I'm not going to have you arrested because you didn't manage to get any of my money except for what I freely let you spend, so that's not why we can't. We can't because there's one more thing."

Grace rolled her eyes, "What more could there possibly be?"

Amy took a deep breath, then said, "I don't love you."

Grace looked as if Amy had slapped her, "What?"

Amy bit her bottom lip, then said, "I didn't want to admit it to myself. I spent so much time pining away for you that I just accepted the fact that I was still in love with you when you came back, but I can't lie to myself anymore. I just don't love you anymore."

"Liar."

Amy shook her head, "No. No lies anymore. I am exhausted because of the lies between us. I cannot love you, Grace. Because I love someone else."

Grace deflated, "Lee."

Amy nodded in response. It had been hard to swallow that pill but it was the truth. Amy hadn't so much as fallen in love with Lee as just realized that it had always been that way. All the torn up emotions she had felt over the years that she had known Lee wasn't because of love for Grace, but because she didn't know how to approach Lee. Fear had kept her from saying anything. Fear of getting too close to someone again and having them shatter everything as Grace had done. Amy frowned, "It isn't easy for me to admit that to you. Harder for me to even admit it to myself. And Lord help me, she doesn't even know. I can't tell her. You should know though. It's only fair that you should know. You don't have to pretend to love me anymore, because I am not going to pretend to love you. You just don't have that power over me anymore."

Grace did not look hurt anymore. Now, her anger was palpable, "I knew it."

Amy shrugged, "I guess you did. But when I thought she was dying in my arms, Grace... the night she got the fever. Grace... I couldn't.. I couldn't imagine my life without her in it. God help me, I have to fix what I broke when you came back."

Grace raised her hand, "Please don't say anything else to me."

Amy frowned, "I wish you wouldn't act so shocked, Grace. I'm just saying what we both already knew. Besides, you don't love me either... just my money."

Grace squared her shoulders again, "I didn't know what else to do but find you. Actually, I hate this. I've hated every minute of this, and I'm actually kind of relieved. I dreaded trying to talk you into moving. Especially since I wanted to go but didn't really want you to go with me."

Amy nodded, "You wouldn't have succeeded in getting me to sell the farm. It's where I belong. What are you going to do now, Grace, because I promise you, if you come back to my ranch, I'll have you arrested."

Grace didn't respond to Amy. She put her hand up and pulled out her phone, then looked at Amy, "I can finally use this here."

Amy nodded, "Yes, you can. Got any other rich ex-girlfriends handy that will take you back and let you embezzle from them?"

Grace frowned, "Real classy, Amy." She hit the screen a couple of times and then put the phone to her ear. Amy watched with an eyebrow raised as Grace said, "Daddy. It's me, Grace. Yes... I know it's been a while. My phone doesn't work where I've been. I know but my trip to Montana didn't work out too well. I need you to get me a plane ticket..." she paused for a moment, and Amy swore she could hear a little fear in her voice as she said, "No... no... not to Savannah. I'd like to come home. Yes, to Orlando. Of course. Yes Daddy, you can call me here. I'm not going back out to that place. Ok." She hung up the phone and looked at Amy, "We made up about a year ago. He thought I was out here making amends with you. He never got to meet you, but he's heard a lot about you. I guess you're right. One way or the other, I always go back to where the money is."

"You're going to get caught one day and end up in prison. Not everyone is as forgiving as I am. I guess Cassandra caught you too," Amy said as she shook her head in disgust and turned to walk away. Grace had supposedly been estranged from her family in Florida for a long time, but she could not even believe her when she said they had made up recently. It infuriated her that Grace had only ever been one phone call away from the wealthy parents that had supposedly cut her off for being gay. She had never wanted to believe it before, even though it was right in front of her face, but everything that Grace was had been a lie from the start. The idolized mental image of Grace that she had carried around for so long, suddenly started crumbling and fading away.

*****

She walked past the waiting room and back towards the hallway where Lee's room was. She hesitated outside the door, leaning against the wall and breathing hard. When she finally had control of herself, she walked back in and blurted out, "I want you to come back to the ranch."

Lee stared at her, "Don't do this."

Amy crossed the distance to the bed, "I want you to come back."

Lee shook her head, "No."

Amy sat back down in the chair, "Why not? If it's Grace you're worried about, don't. I just threatened to have her arrested if she came back to Cooper's."

Lee looked away, "I can't, Amy. I can't do that to myself again."

Amy stood up and grabbed Lee's hand, "I don't want to go back there without you."

Lee glared at her, "You have no idea what you did to me."

"Damnit, Lee. I should have kissed you every chance I got, and I didn't. I should have followed you, and I didn't. I should have stopped you from quitting, and I didn't. I should have kicked her off my property, and I didn't. And I am sorry. Please, just come back. I don't want to do this... I can't do this without you," Amy pleaded.

Lee squeezed her eyes shut, "You were about to fuck her in our office. We built that place. You, Patrick, Darlene, and I. It was ours and you ripped it all up and threw it away."

Amy sat on the edge of the bed, "I know. I know I messed up. Hasn't anyone ever said all the right things to you? Haven't you ever been taken in by someone's charm and fallen right into their trap?"

"Yes. Yours," Lee said hotly.

"Mine?" Amy asked, shocked at the accusation.

"You like to think you're blameless. No, you never kissed me, although you came close more than a few times. You never flirted with me with words. You never once let yourself cross that line. But you would do little things without realizing it. You'd brush against me when you'd walk past me. You'd make me go into the ring with you to hold the trophy, saying that without me you wouldn't have been there. You'd refer to things as 'our' things. You kept just close enough to make me believe there was a chance that things would change. And then... then I walked into our office on our ranch and there you were..." Her words were racing as tears rolled down her cheeks.

Amy wiped the tears off of Lee's face, "Lee..."

"That fucking smile of yours is the worst," Lee continued, glaring at Amy. "The way you would walk into any place I was in and flash it at me. The first time you smiled after I came there... I remember it so clearly. I had been gone a week for my father's funeral and as soon as you saw me, there it was. I had never seen you smile before. But after that day, I was done for. That smile..." Lee broke down then and couldn't say anymore.

Amy got out of the bed, "Alright. Alright. I'm going now. Is there anyone you want me to call?"

Lee shook her head rapidly, "You know I don't have any family left."

Amy nodded, "I'll make arrangements to get you home as soon as you're discharged."

Lee felt like there was a lead weight laying over her body as she watched Amy walk out the door. She shouted, "Amy don't go!" but it was too late. Amy had shut the door and was gone. Lee pressed the nurse button on the bed over and over again, trying to get up as she did it. It seemed to take forever for the nurse to respond and when she came in, Lee was halfway out of the bed, trying to get her IV out, "Oh thank God it's about time! Go get that woman!"

The nurse looked towards the hallway, "What woman, honey? There is no woman. You really need to get back into bed."

Lee screamed at him, "Goddamnit, go get me Amy Cooper. She just walked out."

The nurse shook his head, "No one is out there, ma'am. Maybe you had a nightmare. Sometimes morphine can do that."

Lee didn't have the strength to fight her way past the three nurses that were now standing in the room. Sighing, she got back into bed and said, "Go to the waiting room. Get my friend and bring her back."

Her nurse from earlier finally ran into the room and shouted, "What is going on here?"

Lee sat up quickly, "Oh thank goodness! Go get Amy, the woman that has been here in my room with me."

The nurse shook her head, "I just passed her as she was leaving the hospital, honey. She may have finally gone to get some real food, or to sleep for a bit."

"She left?"

The nurse nodded, "I'm sorry, sweetie. She seemed in a hurry. I'm sure she'll be back soon."

*****

Darlene came into the room an hour later and sat down heavily next to Lee's bed. Lee had not stopped crying since Amy had walked out of the room. Darlene looked heartbroken as she said, "Oh baby girl..."

The nurse had upped her morphine, thinking that the pain had caused her breakdown, and Lee had a hard time making her tongue move, "Amy?"

Darlene shook her head, "She told Patrick and me to look after you and ran out."

Lee closed her eyes, "She's gone. I ran her off."

Darlene clicked her tongue against her teeth, "Now, I doubt that very much. She's been really thick headed about all this, but deep down, she knows what's right."

"That's the problem. I think she had figured it out and was coming around to telling me, and I blew up at her and said horrible things," Lee cried.

Darlene patted her hand, "She loves you, but it's very hard for her."

Lee shook her head, "No she doesn't. She hates me now."

Darlene felt like the best course of action was to remain silent, so she helped Lee drink water out of a straw and then sat back down. When she was sure that Lee was asleep, she walked back out to the waiting room and was shocked to find Amy sitting there with Patrick having what appeared to be a serious conversation. She heard Amy say, "I'm heading back in the morning. Y'all look after her and then come on back."

Darlene moved in, "Oh no you don't. You're not abandoning that girl now."

Amy yelled at Darlene for the first time in her life, "She doesn't want me here, Darlene! She doesn't want me period!"

Darlene huffed, "Don't you speak to me that way. I have done nothing but defend you through all of this. Don't make me regret it by being even more of an asshole than you are right now. If she doesn't want you here then why did she try to pull her IV out to come find you?"

Amy opened her mouth to yell again, but then what Darlene had said sunk in, "She did what?"

"Exactly. That girl is ten kinds of torn up over you and it's made her crazy and bitter. You can't just rush in there and tell her you want her to come back. You're not saying the right thing, Amy," Darlene said with her hands on her hips.

"But.. I told her I can't do it without her and want her to come back," Amy whispered.

"What did I just say? That is not the right thing to say," Darlene said. She reached out and squeezed Amy's hand and whispered, "Think about it really hard. You'll figure it out, Amy." She hugged Amy tightly, then looked over at Patrick, "You look uncomfortable. Too much estrogen floating around for you? I'm starving and so is Little Tanner, let's go get something to eat while Amy fixes this."

Patrick stood up, thankful for the diversion. When they were halfway down the hall, he turned around and jogged back, "Amy, do you remember a conversation we had when I was at Lee's cabin? About fixing things?"

Amy nodded slowly, "Yes. You told me not to try."

Patrick shoved his hands in his pockets and looked more uncomfortable than she had ever seen him look before when dealing with female drama, "I was wrong."

"What do you mean you were wrong?"

Patrick looked at his boots, "I can't help thinking that if I would have just kept my nose in my own business that day, you might have realized then what you know now. You knew it was something that needed to be fixed even if you didn't know how. I shouldn't have interfered and I'm sorry. So I'm telling you to fix this now. Go in there and fix this."

Amy just stood there as he walked back to Darlene and they disappeared around the corner. She sat down in a chair and then remembered something that had happened right before the mountain lion had screamed at her. "Things will be different," she said out loud, remembering the prayer she had been whispering. She leaned back in the seat and thought about everything that happened between her and Lee, trying to figure out what to say to fix the situation.

*****

Patrick and Darlene came back from eating to find Amy passed out in a seat in the waiting room. Darlene sat down next to her and pulled her down onto her shoulder, but it didn't wake her up. Frowning, Darlene looked up at Patrick, "Poor thing. She's exhausted. Why don't you go talk to Lee for a minute. She needs to sleep."

Patrick felt a little angry at his wife for suggesting that he handle what he considered women's affairs, but he went anyway. It was better than dealing with an angry wife. When he entered the room, he was glad he had come. Lee's eyes were puffy and red and it was clear that she needed someone to talk to. When he sat down, he whispered, "What's happening here, Lee?"

Lee closed her eyes and shook her head, "Nothing is happening here."

Patrick leaned forward, putting his elbows on his knees, "You expect me to believe that? Come on." He took off his hat and put it down on the floor next to the chair, then ran his hands through his sandy blonde hair, "We're friends, Lee. I consider you one of my best friends and since you've been gone... well, we talked about that already. It's time for you to come home."

Lee sniffed, "She doesn't want me to come home for that reason. She wants me to come back and be her vet, and for things to be the same as they were before. Close, but forever apart."

Patrick got out of the chair and stood at the edge of her bed, "I think it's different this time." Lee looked away from him and he sort of understood Amy's penchant for breaking things, "Damnit. I'm a man. I don't know what to say to you women when you get all torn up like this, but it seems to me that you're all being spiteful just because.... well, just because. What is it helping, you clamming up like this and refusing to come back out there? She loves you. It's what you've been waiting on."

"She waited six months to call me and then it was only because of Justice. That isn't love," Lee said angrily.

"Do you think that bitch gave her a minute to call you? She was so pea green with envy over you that Amy was barely allowed to speak your name. But she still found a way to ask me everyday if I had heard from you and guess what my answer was? No... because you didn't lift a finger to get in touch with us either. You quit. You abandoned us. Not the other way around. I told you if you would have just stayed and fought for it, you would have won. But you just turned tail and ran away. She fired six vets in six months. Do you think that was because they weren't good? No, it's because they weren't you," Patrick shouted.

Lee stared at him. She didn't want to tell him what had provoked her into quitting that night and why she had disappeared. It had taken her five of the six months she was gone to stop staring at her phone everyday, wishing Amy would call her. She couldn't explain the disappointment she had felt when that call finally did come and it was business related. Sighing, she whispered, "I am sorry you feel that way. There's so much more to this than that."

Patrick nodded, "Yes, there is. And I don't want to hear a damn word of it. What I want, what has to happen, is that you need to figure out what you're doing. Either you're going back to wherever you've been, or you're coming home. The choice is up to you. But I promise you, if she walks out of this room again and says you don't want to come back and she's leaving, I'm not going to stop her. I'm going to drive her myself. There, now, I've said my piece." He put his hat back on his head and started for the door.

Lee sniffed quietly and whispered, "Patrick, please don't be angry at me."

Patrick opened the door and then said, "I'm not mad at just you. I'm mad at Amy too." He slammed the door so loudly that the nurses looked up from their station and frowned at him. He tipped his hat and said quietly, "My apologies. You know how women can be..."

*****

She didn't realize she had been dozing, but she woke up to a gentle voice calling her name. She opened one eye and then the other and saw Lee's nurse standing in front of her, "Oh, hey." She suddenly sat bolt upright in the chair, "Is she ok? Nothing happened did it?"

The nurse smiled warmly and shook her head, "No. She's fine. Sleeping actually. She'll be discharged in the morning and the only reason she's been a little loopy today is because of the morphine. You should go visit her soon. She had a nightmare and is convinced all of you left. She keeps calling for you. I'm going home and saw you sitting here and just thought I'd say goodnight and tell you. Oh, and your other friends went to a hotel for the night."

Amy nodded, "Thank you." She stood up and walked towards Lee's room, knowing that she still didn't know what to say but not wanting Lee to think that she had abandoned her. She gently pushed the door open and stepped into the room. The only light was from the bathroom and it barely illuminated Lee's face. Amy held her breath and tiptoed to the chair by the bed, then sat down.

Lee did not wake up, even when Amy took her hand and whispered, "I didn't go anywhere. I'm right here. I promised you I'd get you through this, and I will." She watched Lee for any sign that she had heard but her breathing remained steady so Amy sat back in the chair and stared at her.

An hour later, she got up to go to the bathroom and when she came back in the room, Lee's eyes were open. When Amy saw, she went to the edge of the bed and whispered, "I didn't leave you."

Lee smiled, still half asleep, "I can see that."

Amy frowned, "You tried to rip your IV out?"

Lee chuckled, "You left."

Amy sat on the edge of the bed, "I went for a walk." Lee swallowed hard and Amy could tell she was about to cry again. She poured water for Lee and whispered, "You always cry when you see me now."

Lee leaned back on the pillow, "I don't know why. I just have so much..."

Amy put her fingers over Lee's mouth, "Hush now. It's ok. They're sending you home in the morning, then you can put all this behind you."

Lee took the water that Amy offered her and then swallowed hard again. Amy turned in the bed and laid down on her side, putting her arm around Lee's neck and pulling her close, "I am about to say something and I need you to not interrupt me, ok?"

Lee leaned against her, listening to her heartbeat, and shook her head, "No. Don't say it. I'll come back to the ranch. I'll have to work a notice at the clinic, but I'll come back when I'm done."

Amy felt her own tears coming back and hugged Lee tightly as she felt her fall back to sleep against her.

*****

The sun finally came up over the east field and the rays from it warmed Amy's face as she sat on the front porch, sipping her morning coffee. Everything looked so fresh and new with all the snow gone after the melt. It was one of her favorite things, when the snow was finally gone. She watched her horses running in the field and grinned.

She heard boots on the front steps and turned in her rocking chair, "Oh Lee, good morning."

Lee held out a copy of the Missoula Herald and sat down in the rocking chair next to her, "I thought you'd want to see this."

Amy gave her a quizzical look and took the paper from her as she took a drink of coffee. The coffee instantly came back out of her mouth as she looked down at the front page. The headline seemed to dance across the page for a moment as she stared at Grace's picture. Finally, she forced herself to read the headline out loud, "Hotelier's daughter charged with six felony counts of embezzlement and fraud."

Lee took the paper back and flipped it open, then read, "It is believed that Grace Forster tried to embezzle funds from various different companies and failed. Her former partner, Dr. Cassandra Butler from Savannah, GA, has brought charges against her, claiming that Ms. Forster embezzled one point six million dollars from her over their five year relationship. Included in the official indictment are charges that she embezzled money from her father's hotel, which led to the investigation and ultimate arrest."

Amy held up her hand, "Please don't read anymore. I told her she was going to get caught."

Lee tossed the paper onto the seat next to her, "You were lucky, it seems."

Amy stood up and walked away, "Yeah. Lucky." She walked off the porch and into the barn, anger boiling inside of her. In the three months since Lee's had come back to Cooper's Lake, the comfortable flow of things had started to return to normal. It felt wonderful, except that she didn't want her relationship with Lee to be like it was before. She wanted more and now it was Lee who kept pushing her away.

Since Lee came back to the ranch, she had avoided Amy at every possible turn. The only time she sought her out was for business, or something like this morning. Amy was growing tired of constantly discussing Grace with her. She kicked an empty feed bucket and sent it flying across the barn. It hit against the door of a stall and spooked the horse inside, causing it to kick at the walls. Amy walked over to the stall and whispered, "I'm sorry, Toby."

She was gently stroking his neck when she felt the presence of someone behind her, rather than heard them walk up. She turned around and saw Lee standing there. The anger came back instantly, "I don't want to talk about Grace." She stormed off towards the office with the intention of locking herself in so that Lee wouldn't be able to torment her anymore.

Lee was right behind her though and followed her into the office, slamming the door behind her. Amy sat down at her desk as Lee leaned on the door and said, "I am sorry."

Amy looked around at all the trophies on her shelves and shook her head, "Sorry for what? Constantly rubbing Grace in my face, or constantly ignoring me when you're not?"

Lee stepped away from the door, "You asked me to come back out here to work. There were no stipulations that I had to be your best friend when I got back."

Amy stood up and stepped in front of her, "I didn't just want things to go back to normal out here. I tried to tell you that but you wouldn't let me talk. I wanted it to be... "

"It can't!" Lee shouted. "I thought it could, but by the time I got back out here all the 'oh we almost died' feelings you were spouting were gone and you treated me just like you always have."

Amy stared, "That's not true..."

Lee stepped closer, "It is true! You just needed a vet and I'm the best, so you knew you had to get me back out here."

Amy stepped closer, "That. Is. Not. True. I have tried at every turn to make you see me."

Lee backed up, frowning as Amy stepped with her. Finally, her back was against the door and there was no where else to go, "You said you couldn't do this without me. I thought that meant... and then it didn't."

Amy reached up and put her hand on Lee's shoulder, "It did. You haven't given me the chance, Lee. You've done nothing but push me away since you got back. And I get it. You're scared. I treated you like shit and you're scared."

Lee tried to press herself against the door harder and couldn't. Finally, she glanced at the desk around Amy and closed her eyes against the image that was still burned there, "Ok. Maybe you're right."

Amy saw her eyes move to the desk and took her hand away from Lee's shoulder, stepping backwards, "That's it? You just can't let it go so now you're going to tell me you want to leave again?"

Lee sighed and shook her head, "No. I don't want to go, but I can't just forget about it."

Amy stared at her then leaned over onto the desk, "I'm sorry. I can't say it enough." Lee didn't respond so Amy turned to look at her. She felt her stomach as it flipped and her heart started pounding. She watched Lee's hand turn on the doorknob and knew, right then, that she could not let her walk out of that office again. She crossed the distance between them in two strides and buried her hands in Lee's soft, chestnut colored hair, then kissed her hard.

Lee struggled for half a second and then went limp in her arms. Amy pressed her against the door and felt her arms finally go around her. She wasn't sure how long they stood there, but finally she forced herself to pull away and wiped a tear from the corner of Lee's eye, "Stop crying every time you see me."

Lee was shaking as she ran her fingers through her hair, "I... I... what?"

Amy lifted Grace's chin with a crooked finger and whispered, "Share all of this with me. Please? I love you, Lee."

Lee felt her knees get weak as she whispered, "I love you too." She leaned against the door, breathless, then felt Amy's lips on hers again as the world faded away around them.

The End

About The Author

Melody Rose Hill was born and raised on a North Georgia chicken farm at the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains. Growing up steeped in Civil War history, surrounded by battlefields and Appalachian folklore, history and storytelling became her passion at a very early age. She relocated to Savannah, Ga in 2003 and lives there currently. Melody is working on several novels and spends a great deal of time researching the area's history and photographing wildlife in the surrounding Lowcountry.

Thank you for purchasing Cooper's Lake!
