A Damaged Trust Read Online Free PDF

father’s. “I’ll be glad to keep it, Dad. It’s a super car and a great gift.” She reached up and kissed his cheek, noting with a pang how lined his face was. “Thank you!”
    He hemmed and hawed a bit, scratched his head, looked toward the mountains in the north, and acted uncomfortable. But, as they entered into the house and walked through the wide and airy hall, his footsteps were lighter and his gait more springy. Carrie noticed, and suddenly felt no more doubts about taking such an expensive gift, glad she had accepted instead of refusing, which had been her first intent.
    After lunch, she went with her father and two brothers to the stables to saddle up horses for an afternoon ride. After assisting Carrie in the preparation of her light grey gelding, Ralf announced that he would go to town for a few hours instead of coming with them. Slapping her slightly on the rump as he passed, Ralf made his exit quickly.
    “Grey’s missed you,” Cliff said laconically, swinging up into the saddle of his dark and burly horse with an ease that spoke of long years of experience.
    “His name is not ’Grey’, it’s Elu Thingol,” Carrie protested patiently as she patted the horse’s neck affectionately. “I’ve told you that time and time again.” Steven snorted as he joined the other two. The strange name always made him laugh.
    “Damn fool name for a horse,” Cliff grumbled. “It’s not even English. I refuse to call a horse by such a ridiculous name!”
    She laughed. “It’s not ridiculous, Dad, not when you know what it means.”
    Steven asked curiously, “What does it mean, Carrie? You never did tell me.”
    “The name is from Tolkien’s Silmarillion,” she explained. “The name itself means ’grey cloak’ and since Elu here is so fast and light on his feet, besides him being grey, I thought it was appropriate.”
    “Fool name,” Cliff muttered.
    “Grey cloak.”  Steven mulled over it meditatively. “You know, that is kind of pretty. I like that.”
    “Fits, doesn’t it?” She smiled into the sun as she spoke. Yes, it was good to be back. 
     
    She spent the next several days either sketching on the range, swimming in the pool, or helping her mother with the preparations for the barbecue on Saturday night. Because of the heat, it was generally decided that a party outside was the best thing anyway.
    “It gets too hot to be dragging around in heavy dinner suits and dresses,” Janet complained as she fanned herself with a magazine. “No wonder your father hates them like he does!”
    Carrie was plopped in a light chair close by, nursing an iced fruit drink. The sun was still high in the sky, beating down with a relentlessness that sapped all her energy, making her lethargic and listless.
    She sighed. “I think I’ll go and hunt up that fan I used to keep in my room. If the weather stays like this, I’ll be needing it tonight.”
    Janet thought for a moment. “Look downstairs in the basement, honey. I’m pretty sure Emma put it down there when you moved out.” She shifted lazily in her chair. “Why your father doesn’t break down and buy an air-conditioner, I don’t know. He suffers from the heat more than any of us.”
    Carrie laughed. “It’s the principle of the thing, Mother. If he admits to being affected by the heat, then he admits to having a weakness. I’m surprised he doesn’t challenge Mr. Sun to a duel to see which is stronger.”
    “Oh, but he does every day when he goes outside and refuses to stop because of the heat,” Janet said earnestly. “He knows it’s bad for him, but Cliff just won’t quit, not even for an hour. One of these days he’s going to learn the hard way, and he’s goingto get heat exhaustion, or worse, sun stroke.” She groaned. “At least all the preparations are done for the barbecue tomorrow. It’s a good thing we’re having it in the evening—should be cooler then.”
    “I’ve never known a more stubborn person than Dad,”