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“Do you think we can salvage these buildings?”
He nodded. “With some hard work and investment, we might be able to bring them back to their former glory.”
Our journey led us next to the horses or what remained of them. I could barely recognize the stables. This was where I’d heard numerous hoof beats in the past. But only three horses were left.
“Why so few?” I asked, my voice breaking.
Jake shuffled his feet, looking down.
“I only got here recently, ma’am. Found it like this.”
“The horses had a bout of sickness some years back. We had to let many of them go,” Ethan said.
Beth chimed in softly.
“Your grandpa had to sell the rest of them, dear. Times were tough.”
At that, the depth of the ranch’s terrible situation sank in. Harrington’s Ranch had been the best in Marfa. Now it was a ghost of itself.
I closed my eyes and shook my head, refusing to see this ranch as Grandpa’s ranch.
“No,” I said, stepping back.
“It was a difficult choice,” Beth said, her voice full of sympathy. “But your grandfather did what he thought was best for the place.”
“He should have…”
He should have told me about the ranch’s financial struggles.
But I didn’t say it out loud.
Grandpa would have told me nothing. Not when he believed I’d sell off his legacy. He didn’t trust me enough because I had betrayed what he held dearest to his heart.
Now, I didn’t know if I could truly make the ranch the best again. I found an old bench and sat on it, then stared at the horizon.
Ethan and Jake stood at a distance, casting wary glances in my direction.
My voice, when next I could speak, came out as a whisper. It trembled as I confessed, “I’m not sure I can handle this ranch. Maybe I was too bold in front of the lawyer. I bit off more than I could chew.”
The air around us grew taut. Ethan and Jake glanced at each other and then looked away. Beth approached me with a gentle smile. She took a seat beside me.
“Why do you say that, Anna?”
I gestured to the landscape.
“Look at this place, Beth. It’s in shambles. The finances must be a mess.”
A bitter chuckle escaped my lips.
“Then look at me. I’m not cut out for this. I’m ill-prepared, ill-equipped. I didn’t even think to pack appropriate clothes when I came. I brought dresses when I should have packed work boots and jeans.”
“You can have your things brought from Chicago. And you can always learn, can’t you?”
I sighed, feeling inadequate for the monumental task of restoring the ranch.
“I don't know the first thing about running a ranch. I’ve never actually worked on this ranch. I’ve only helped Grandpa inspect it, never doing any of the hard work.”
“In the twenty-one years I knew Mr. William Harrington, he only worked the ranch with his own hands for about five years. The rest of the time, he focused on overseeing and making important decisions. The ranch didn’t crumble then, did it?”
