Chapter Ten
Jed barely registered Maeve as he sprinted across the yard.
There was a moment where he was certain she’d looked at him, but in the next second, she’d thrown the root cellar door open and ran inside.
He heard the heavy slam of the door from behind him, taking a breath to audibly thank God Himself for moving both her and Lila out of danger.
Now, no matter what was going on, Jed knew he could put his full attention on it.
‘It’, as it turned out, was a complete mess in the cattle pen.
One of the bulls was utterly tangled up in barbed wire, leaving a massive gap in the pasture fence.
The remaining bulls were already tearing up the front yard, but much to Jed’s relief, the rest of the cattle were still within the pasture.
Even with his lungs on fire, Jed broke into a sprint once more, leaping over the fence before turning toward the barn.
There, he nearly ran right past a bell mounted on the wall.
He skidded to a stop and pulled its rope so hard he was afraid he’d break the old thing.
Its clattering chime rang out across the field, and he briefly caught the attention of the other cows.
He feverishly hoped they’d remember what the ringing meant.
They did not, completely paralyzed at the sight of the bull thrashing and writhing against the fence.
“Consarnit, ladies!” With another burning breath, Jed jogged back out into the pasture, putting himself directly into the cattle’s line of sight. He waved his arms frantically, desperately trying to pull their attention away from the gruesome scene. “Come on then! Get going!”
Still, the cows did not move. All save one who, seemingly broken from her trance, rounded the group and trotted up to Jed, tail flicking nervously.
“Mossy.” Jed gave the old dairy cow a reassuring pat on the back. “Come on, Mossy, get ‘em to head indoors. I can’t rescue the bull with y’all milling about.”
He was talking to a cow. Genuinely trying to communicate with an animal as if she honest-to-goodness could understand English.
For a brief and terrible moment, Jed wondered if he’d gone completely mad.
Yet Mossy stared at him with some semblance of comprehension, her velvet ears twitching while she seemingly processed his request.
Then, with a bellowing moo, she turned her head back toward the remaining cattle. That finally snapped the herd out of their trance, and Jed watched in complete amazement as one dairy cow managed to push all the others back toward the barn.
“Mossy, you absolute beauty!” Jed ran alongside the herd, managing to reach the barn first before throwing the stall doors wide open.
Cows noisily filed in by the handful, and as the last of the calves stumbled in after their mothers, Jed kicked the gate closed with the heel of his boot.
He darted across the barn, reaching for Maeve’s father’s old shotgun propped up against the main support beam.
He never left the house without it, never knowing when he might need it.
‘Don’t waste your time with one stupid beast. There’s plenty left in the world who can replace it.’
Thomas’ cruel and callous words suddenly cut through Jed’s mind, forcing him to a dead stop. That’s how things were handled on Gedney Ranch–that’s how he would handle things in his life. Quickly, easily, without much thought as to the consequences.
Jed caught his breath, glancing toward a bucket of tools hidden away in one of the old horse stalls. Brow set, he moved toward the tools and sifted through them, letting out a triumphant grunt as he pulled out a pair of wire cutters.
This wasn’t Gedney Ranch. This was something new, and Jed was determined to do things his own way.
“Jed?! Maeve?!”
Samuel’s voice called out from the front yard, and Jed raced back out of the barn and into the pasture.
Mossy trotted after him as quickly as she could, bellowing loudly in an attempt to catch their neighbor’s attention.
A flash of spurs caught Jed’s eye, and he finally pinned down Samuel as he appeared over the hillside, his steed sprinting toward the property.
Relief flooded his chest as Jed waved him over, gesturing wildly to the destroyed fence. He would’ve found a way to continue on his own, but having someone dependable like Samuel at his side was practically a godsend. “The bulls made a mess o’ things, Sam!”
Samuel pulled on his horse’s reins, sidling up alongside the pasture fence that was still standing. “Where’s Maeve?”
“Root cellar wit’ Lila!”
Immediate relief spread across Samuel’s face. “What d’you need from me, Jed?”
“The other bulls must’ve run off somewhere down the hill. Go after ‘em, an’ I’ll join you after freeing the one in the fence.”
With a curt nod and a swift kick, Samuel took off across the yard, leaving Jed to face the raging bull on his own.
He was completely out of his mind at this point, kicking and bellowing as the barbed wire fence wrapped even tighter around his horns and body.
Some of it had begun to stick to his foreshanks, staining his ruddy coat an even deeper shade of red.
Mossy let out a worried moo, butting her head against the back of Jed’s leg.
“Wait here a sec,” Jed ordered. He turned to face the bull, suddenly drawing a blank. How was he supposed to free the poor thing if he kept thrashing about?
Maeve’s face briefly flashed across Jed’s mind.
She always stuck her fingers between her lips for that piercing whistle of hers, and he found himself copying it exactly.
Then, with a sharp inhale, Jed blew the loudest whistle he’d ever managed.
It cut through the air like a hot knife through butter, causing the bull to immediately freeze.
Mossy then let out another bellow, immediately trotting up alongside the bull’s face.
She nudged it gently with her snout, continuing to snort and grunt as Jed inched closer.
With the cutters in hand, he quickly maneuvered himself around the animal’s muscular body, snipping and gently tugging on the barbs while Mossy continued her distraction.
Every so often he’d snag some of the bull’s skin and the beast would let out a pained groan.
But Jed persisted; this was for Maeve’s sake, to show her that he cared just as deeply for the herd as she did.
The task wasn’t easy, but it was the right thing to do.
Finally, the last bit of wire was cut free from around the bull’s horns.
Stumbling away, Jed watched as the bull straightened up, shaking his head furiously as bits of wire fell free.
Mossy continued to press her face against his side, and the bull let out a loud snort, his tail flicking agitatedly.
There were obvious pieces of wire still stuck around his legs, but for the time being, the bull was safe.
For now, the situation was handled.
Jed once more broke out into a sprint across the yard, rounding the back of the house before throwing both hands around the root cellar door’s handle. With an incredible yank, he managed to free it from the ground, heaving it up and over before it crashed back down, sending a plume of dust upward.
“Maeve?”
Jed called her name breathlessly, fighting to stay upright.
After a beat, he heard someone shuffling within the cellar, soon followed by Maeve’s face peeking out as she climbed back up the stairs.
She was completely wrapped up in a blanket, Lila held tightly in her arms. They were both clearly shaken up by the ordeal, but there weren’t any noticeable injuries.
Jed found enough breath to let out a gasp of relief.
Then he wrapped his arms around the pair as his entire body began to tremble terribly.
“Jed?”
He pulled away just enough to meet Maeve’s gaze. She’d clearly been panicked, likely fighting the urge to run out and help him. She always needed to do something–physically do something–and Jed knew just what to say.
“Sam’s still trying to rope the other two bulls.” Gently, he shifted his arms around Lila and pulled her into his grasp. “You know these cattle best.”
Maeve blinked, looking taken aback. “But-?”
“I can handle Lila,” Jed promised. “Go saddle up Ash and help Sam.” He took another breath, steadying his voice and quelling the trembling of his frame. He needed to look strong. He needed to show her he’d be alright without her. “Go on, Maeve. I trust you.”
It took Maeve a moment to get going. It almost seemed as if she needed to fully process what he’d said.
It gave Jed a moment to really look her over, to take in the stress written clearly across her face.
But her eyes remained dry, intently focused on whatever task was put in front of her next.
That sort of strength was honed throughout one’s lifetime, and for a moment Jed couldn’t help but admire the woman who stood before him.
He found himself thinking, if only briefly, how lucky he was to be married to such a fierce woman.
Maeve let the blanket drop off her shoulders and started for the barn.
Jed watched her sprint across the grass, every step more powerful than the last as she drove herself forward.
Her hair trailed in wild tangles behind her, like the grasping branches of a wintry tree, and he was taken aback at how... pretty she was.
‘Pretty. My wife is...pretty?’
***
Jed stepped out the back door to dump Lila’s bath water into the yard.
Thanks to his time spent in the kitchen, he’d started to memorize where everything was put, the spoons and extra jars of mashed food especially.
And this time he’d had no trouble with Lila’s supper.
She’d gotten half of it on her face, but she at least ate something.