Kashi still hadn't told Carr about her meeting with Matthias. At least not entirely. She knew how Carr felt about his brother. Or half brother, he made it very clear. She couldn't think about the two of them without remembering the fight between the two of them. They'd both healed well from the fight. No bruises or scratches that Kashi could see. She doubted they'd forgiven each other for the fight either. Yet another thing to add to the long list of misdemeanors against one another.
She shook her head. It was raining. Her first day back to work for her uncle and the skies decided it would be a great time to poor down. She'd decided to move out of her uncle and aunt's house and into the communal housing he offered nearby. There were open spots now since he'd just built a new one. They were nice buildings. Nothing more than a hall with some bunks and a seating area. There was only one other person there at the moment. An aging woman with grayed hair that never seemed to come out of a braid. Her face never seemed to come out of a frown either.
Kashi had left ten minutes after her so she didn't have to put up with the woman's grunting as she walked. Her name was Margaret. She'd worked for Kashi's uncle longer than Kashi had been alive. Maybe she was mad she was no longer the only other female ranch hand.
Her foot slipped in the mud but before she could fall, someone grabbed her hand and yanked her back to her feet. Kashi whipped her head around, the motion so fast she nearly slid again. It was Markus. Another one of her uncle's ranch hands. She hadn't encountered him since her first few days of work. Her aunt said he kept to himself generally.
"Thanks." Kashi said, trying to keep an even tone. There was something off about the man. He was definitely an older man if the wrinkles etched into his face said anything, but he looked to have the strength of someone much younger. A squat but not entirely short man, tanner than was probably healthy, his face flecked with freckles and dark spots alike. "Rain is making it difficult to get around today."
"You be careful, Miss Thomson. Rain isn't the only dangerous thing. You watch your step around this place with these people. It's a dangerous game." He said with a nod, walking in the other direction, the heavy rain allowing him to disappear in seconds.
Kashi was more confused than ever. She didn't want to ask her aunt or uncle about Markus. She didn't think she could trust the two of them anymore. Especially as things got more dangerous. Her dad and her uncle still were on unfriendly terms with one another. Kind of like Carr and Matthias.
She wanted to see if Carr and Sierra had seen her messages, but it would ruin her phone to take it out in the downpour. Besides, she was trying to learn how to check for diseases in her uncle's cattle. They'd lost a few in the last couple weeks and were quarantining every cow that showed signs. Recovery rate was high, but they weren't taking any chances.
What a way to do it too. Kashi had on a raincoat and had her hair tied up under a hood as well as tall boots but she was still soaked. An hour into the work day and she was done. Markus' words kept playing in her head as well. Was he referring to Hughes and that scandal going on? If he was, how did he know? And how much did he know?
Through the numbing and tedious task of checking all the cows over, Kashi's mind was whirling. She'd told Carr and Sierra what she learned from Matthias. She didn't have evidence to hand to the police to show that Jeremy Hughes wasn't actually out of town. Then there was also the possibility of Matthias lying, but there was something inside of her that told her he wasn't.
But if he wasn't lying, that meant she had someone on the inside. She could finally see how her uncle was making so much money and what he was investing in. She could see what the LLC was a front for. Kashi was nervous as to what it would be, but not so nervous that she was going to back down and let Hughes scare her. He had threatened her dad and potentially her family, but she had to stop him lest he hurt someone else in her family.
Her older brother had called her the other day. It had been nice chatting with him. She hardly ever talked to him anymore. Calling him after her dad got shot was the first time they'd chatted in a while and having him reach out to her had made her happy, even if the call was short. Scott had been asking about her activities, she told him about moving into the communal housing and he chuckled at that. She'd tried to ask how he'd known Jeremy Hughes, but he told her that it was only because of the loss of money. It affected him too. He'd ended the call shortly after telling her to be careful.
Rain water dripped down her back making her shiver despite the warmer day. She wasn't sure if she could find him, but the next time she ran into Markus she wanted to ask him some questions. His warnings to her were different from those from her brother Scott and from Hughes himself. They told her to quit it. To stop investigating. Markus said to watch her step. And she just knew it wasn't about the rain.
She was counting down the hours until she could collapse into her bunk and chat with Carr and Sierra about everything. Hopefully their work turned up something better. All Kashi got was a bunch of questions.