This Hick?

Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2

CASSIDY

I leaned on the weathered fence, arms folded over the top rail, watching Rouge stomp the ground with frustration. She used to be best friends with Bessie, but now she was acting like Bessie had just stolen her lunch. The old mare pinned her ears back, snorting as the other horse got a little too close, a clear warning to back off. It wasn’t like her. Rouge had always been a bit prickly, but lately? Well, something was different.

People thought I was a horse whisperer. Maybe I was. I had an affinity for the magnificent creatures. They couldn’t speak words but their eyes did all the talking. The way they stood, the tension in their muscles, the flick of an ear or their tail were all conversation. To me, it was clearer than any spoken language. I often found myself spending more time with horses than with people. Horses didn’t have hidden agendas or petty squabbles. They were straightforward, and maybe that was what I appreciated most.

Horses didn’t let you down. They didn’t decide they didn’t love you one day. They didn’t betray you or just decide you weren’t worth their time. Horses, maybe animals in general, were a million times more loyal than any human I had ever encountered.

Maybe I needed to call the vet and have him come out and give her a onceover. She’d been favoring her back leg a couple of weeks ago, but she seemed to have healed just fine.

Maybe it was arthritis. There were some words a horse simply didn’t have. She could give me an idea of where it hurt, but she was a tough old girl. She wasn’t going to give me a number on a scale of one to ten.

Kenny sidled up and propped his elbows on the fence next to me. “Old Rouge being a brat again?”

I glanced over at the other ranch hand and frowned, then turned my eyes back to the horse. “Yeah. She’s been off lately. Cranky.”

“Cranky? She’s been a rude nag for years.”

“Just because she doesn’t like your ugly ass doesn’t mean she’s a bitch.”

“You know you defend her like she’s your sister?”

“Fuck off.”

“You two sure got the stubborn part down.” Kenny grinned and flicked the rim of my hat. “And you’re both assholes.”

I ignored his ribbing, keeping my gaze fixed on Rouge. Something about her behavior wasn’t right. It went beyond the usual grouchy moods or the bouts of independence she was known for. This felt different, almost like she was trying to communicate something more urgent.

“I think she might be in pain. I’ll give her a good rubdown after chores are done.”

“You think it’s serious?” he asked.

“Not sure,” I replied. “Might just be the cold.”

I whistled softly to get the horse’s attention. Rouge lifted her head, ears twitching at the sound. Slowly, she made her way over to us, her steps a little heavier, a little slower than they used to be. I couldn’t help but remember when she’d come galloping across the field, kicking up dust behind her, all full of life and energy. Now, she barely trotted. Instead of bumping me with her nose like she used to, she just dipped her head and rested it on the fence, sighing like she carried the weight of the world on her back.

I reached out and scratched the soft spot between her neck and cheek, my fingers tracing familiar paths in her coat. “Come on, girl, Bessie’s still your friend. Be nice. Friends are hard to come by,” I murmured softly, soothing her in the way only I could.

Kenny chuckled and pushed off the fence, shaking his head. “Rouge is many things, Cassidy, but nice ain’t one of ‘em.”

“She’s a good lady.” I argued, kissing her nose. “You just got to know how to handle her right.”

I leaned into the old mare, whispering reassurances and promises. “We’ll take it easy, okay? Just you and me.” Her response was a soft nicker, almost like she understood my words. “Is your leg bothering you?”

“If that horse answers you, I’m buying you a drink,” Kenny joked, but his tone held a note of seriousness too. Nobody knew Rouge like I did, and if there was anyone who could figure her out, it was me.

I lifted my body up and over the fence, dropping into the dirt beside her. I ran my hand over her shoulder, soothing her, and stepped toward her hind end. Carefully, I touched along her leg, feeling for any heat or swelling that might indicate a problem. Her muscles tensed under my touch, a subtle sign of discomfort. Rouge shifted her weight and looked back at me, her brown eyes soft, but I wasn’t getting the pain look.

“I know, girl, I know,” I murmured, continuing my examination gently. “We’ll get you sorted out.” I felt along her joints and bones, assessing her response to my touch. She was tender around the hock. Nothing blatantly wrong but enough to make her uncomfortable.

Kenny stood quietly watching as I did my quick assessment. I used to think I was going to go to college to be a large animal vet. Then I remembered I was broke as a joke and didn’t have the grades to earn a scholarship. I watched and listened to the real vets and pretended I knew what the hell I was talking about.

“I think you’re going to be alright,” I said and walked back to talk to her eye to eye. “I’ll get that liniment the doc made up. Tonight, you get a massage.”

“Now this shit is just getting weird,” Kenny said.

“You’re an idiot.”

I smiled faintly as Rouge snorted and nudged my arm like she was telling me thanks. Then she plodded away, her tail swishing with the little energy she had left. I hated seeing her like this. Old and tired. The years had crept up on her faster than I’d expected. She was twenty-six now, eight years younger than me, but in human years, she might as well have been pushing ninety.

She’d been on the ranch as long as I had. I felt a kind of kinship with her. We’d both grown up here, in a way. And now we were both feeling a little worn around the edges. I didn’t want to think about what her stiff gait and exhaustion meant.

I climbed back over the fence with practiced ease and watched Rouge make her way back toward Bessie, her earlier irritation gone. I cracked a smile watching the two horses move to stand together. “See, she’s fine,” I said. “Bessie probably said something rude.”

Kenny chuckled. “Yes, I’m sure that was it. Maybe she just wanted your attention. She’s worse than a jealous girlfriend.”

“Or maybe she’s just an old lady who knows how to get what she wants,” I retorted.

We both stood quietly, just staring at the vast expanse of land stretching out before us. It was gray and desolate but I could see in my mind’s eye the lush green pasture and tall trees full of leaves. Right now, everything was dreary and lacking any real beauty. I couldn’t wait for spring to paint it green again. The trees were bare and looked dead. A cold wind whipped across the field, making me pull up the collar of my jacket.

My eyes moved around the place I had been calling home most of my life. The place I would probably work until my very last breath. The gravel road leading to the ranch from the paved road was pockmarked with potholes large enough to swallow a Volkswagen. It needed a fresh oiling or maybe even some nice paving, but that wasn’t going to happen. It was too expensive and it would just get destroyed with the heavy trucks and trailers that traveled the road every day.

The weeds lining both sides of the road were an ugly beige. The pasture on the left was muddy and bare. Crows perched on the occasional fence post, watching us like they were hoping something would keel over so they could have a feast.

I sighed. “I’m ready for spring.”

Kenny grunted in agreement. We started walking down the road toward the stables and the lodge. “Feels like this place is stuck in limbo, doesn’t it? Cold, gray, dead.”

I nodded. The ranch always felt like it was holding its breath in the winter, waiting for the thaw, waiting for life to return. Rouge probably felt the same way, itching for the sun and the warmth to come back. I knew there was a good chance this might be Rouge’s last spring. The thought made my chest tight. A knot of something heavy sat there, making it hard to breathe. I shook my head slightly, trying to dislodge the dread that threatened to settle in. Horses were my life, but they also brought such heartache. Each one that passed took a piece of me with them.

As we approached the stables, I could see some of the younger horses poking their heads out, their breaths visible in the cold air like little clouds of warmth trying to fend off the chill. They neighed softly when they saw us, hoping for an afternoon snack.

We were almost at the stables when we heard the rumble of an engine coming down the road. Loud music competed with the sound of the engine, and I turned just in time to see a bright red truck bouncing its way down the gravel road going way too fast. Whoever was behind the wheel had to feel like they were getting their teeth rattled. The whiny sound of a woman singing about a man doing her wrong poured out of the open windows.

It was colder than shit and they had the windows down? The truck hit a pothole and caught some air before hitting the ground and bouncing hard a second time, squeaking and groaning on the suspension.

The horrific sound of gears grinding made us both wince.

“What the hell?” Kenny muttered as the truck hit another pothole, sending chunks of gravel flying.

“Great, just what we need,” I said with disgust. “More damage to the damn road.”

“Who the hell drives like that?” Kenny asked.

“An asshole,” I replied.

The truck rolled to a stop right in front of us. The tinted driver’s side window slid down. Behind the wheel was a very pretty woman. She had ashy blonde hair just above her shoulders, striking green eyes, and a no-nonsense expression that could stop a stampede. She looked right at me and then over at Kenny, her lips pressed into a firm line.

“Please, for the love of God, tell me this is not Rocking Horse Ranch.” Her voice revealed her frustration and maybe a little disgust. She gripped the steering wheel with manicured fingers and leaned forward to peer down the road at the ranch through her windshield. The corner of her mouth twitched before her green eyes swung to us, wide and worried. She groaned. “It is, isn’t it?”