He Moved Into an Abandoned Farm — But 3 Gorgeous Women Were Already There

Chapter 3

Something cold settled in Wade’s chest as he stared at the smudge on his thumb. Three days. He had believed this deed was three days old. But the ink told a different story. The ink said this document had been manufactured *after* he arrived in town, timed perfectly to send him riding out to confront the very people the bank wanted gone.

“I think,” Wade said slowly, holding up his thumb for the sisters to see, “that this deed was made this morning. While I was having breakfast at the hotel.”

Ruby’s face went pale. “They set you up. They knew you were coming.”

“Worse than that.” Wade wiped the ink on his trousers, his mind racing. “They wanted me to come here. Wanted me to confront you. They’re using me as a weapon — sending me out here to start a fight so they have an excuse to bring in the sheriff.”

A cloud of dust on the horizon caught his attention. A rider was approaching fast, and something about the urgency of his pace made Wade’s stomach clench.

“Expecting company?” he asked.

Ruby followed his gaze, and her face drained of all color. “That’s Jed Collins. Rides for the bank. He only comes out here when there’s trouble brewing.”

The rider was close enough now that they could see his face — grim and determined. He pulled up hard in front of the house, his horse lathered with sweat from the hard ride.

“Miss Callahan,” Jed called out, not bothering to dismount. “Bank manager needs to see you in town today. Says it’s about your property taxes.”

Ruby’s hands clenched into fists. “We don’t owe any taxes.”

Jed’s smile was cold, predatory. “Bank says different. Says you got till sundown to pay up, or you forfeit the land.”

Wade stepped forward, positioning himself between Jed and the sisters. Something about the timing of this visit didn’t sit right. The bank knew he was here. They had probably watched him ride out of town and timed Jed’s arrival perfectly.

“Funny thing about that,” Wade said, his voice steady despite the tension coiling in his chest. “I just bought this property from your bank three days ago. Seems strange they’d be collecting taxes on land they don’t own anymore.”

Jed’s confident expression faltered for just a moment before recovering. “You must be mistaken, friend. This here’s Callahan property, and it’s been delinquent on taxes for months.”

“Is that so?” Wade pulled his deed from his coat pocket. “Then why does this paper say I own it now? Signed by your bank manager himself.”

The color drained from Jed’s face as he stared at the document. Wade could practically see the man’s mind racing, trying to figure out how to handle this unexpected complication.

“There’s been some kind of error,” Jed stammered. “I’ll need to take this up with Mr. Harrison at the bank.”

Ruby stepped forward, her original deed still in her hand. “While you’re at it, ask Mr. Harrison to explain how he can sell property that already belongs to us. This deed’s been in our family for twenty-four years.”

Jed’s horse stamped nervously, sensing the tension. The rider’s eyes darted between Wade’s gun and the three women, clearly calculating his odds. “Look, I’m just following orders. The bank wants its money by sundown, or there will be consequences.”

“What kind of consequences?” Sadi demanded, her hand moving to rest on something tucked in her belt.

“The kind that happen when people don’t pay their debts,” Jed replied, his voice taking on a menacing tone. “Sheriff’s been real understanding about property disputes lately. Especially when it comes to squatters refusing to leave rightfully purchased land.”

Wade felt his anger boiling over. “Squatters? These women have been living here for twenty years. And I’ve got papers saying I bought this place fair and square. Seems to me your bank’s been playing fast and loose with the truth.”

Jed’s hand moved toward his gun, but Wade was faster — not drawing, just shifting his stance in a way that made his intentions clear. The message was received.

“I’d think real careful about your next move,” Wade said quietly. “Because right now, you’re outnumbered four to one, and we’ve all got legitimate grievances against your employer.”

Clarabel spoke up unexpectedly, her soft voice cutting through the tension. “Jed, you’ve known us since we were children. You really think we’d squat on someone else’s land?”

For a moment, uncertainty flickered across Jed’s features. A shadow of the boy he must have been, before the bank got its hooks into him. But it was quickly replaced by something harder, more desperate.

“I got my orders,” he said finally. “And if you don’t have that tax money by sundown, the sheriff’s coming out here with papers to clear you off this property. All of you.”

He wheeled his horse around and spurred it toward town, leaving a cloud of dust and unspoken threats hanging in the air.

The silence that followed was heavier than any gunshot.

“How much?” Wade asked finally, not turning around. “How much are they claiming you owe?”

Ruby’s answer made his blood run cold. “Two hundred dollars. By tonight.”

Wade stared at the horizon where Jed had disappeared, his mind racing through possibilities. That was nearly half of what he had paid for the property. Money he no longer possessed. Money that was sitting in the bank’s vault right now, being counted by the same men who had forged his deed.

“We don’t have that kind of cash,” Ruby said flatly, reading his thoughts. “Never have. We grow our food, make our clothes, trade what we can in town. But two hundred dollars might as well be two thousand.”

Sadi kicked at the dirt with her boot. “Even if we did have it, paying would just prove their fake claim is real. Next month, they’d want more.”

Wade nodded grimly. “And they’d keep bleeding you dry until you had nothing left to give. Then they’d take the land anyway.”

He turned to study the three women who had become his unexpected allies. They stood together like a wall — battered but unbroken. Ruby with her fierce pride, Sadi with her coiled anger, Clarabel with her quiet watchfulness. The bank had tried to erase them, to write them out of existence with forged papers and whispered lies. But here they stood, solid as the earth beneath their feet.

“How well do you know the people in town?” Wade asked.