12
This was the worstidea. I’m coming home with a refund check. No mare. Don’t worry, I have a plan.
I shoot the text to Megan as we get on the main road. I’m not sure if I’m more disappointed or mad. I really thought Logan was going to be a guy I could care for, and he would prove me wrong about all men. But I was wrong. The only good thing that came out of this trip was the idea it gave me that I need to run by Megan.
My phone dings almost instantly.
This is something you need to discuss with your partner before making a decision.
I sigh, I knew she wouldn’t take it well, but I think my plan will help smooth it over.
Trust me. Please. Will talk to you about it when I get back. On the interstate now.
I know she is most likely going to be pissed at me, but once she hears the reasoning I have, I think she will be happy.
Be safe. I’ll have an open mind.
P.S. anymore orgasms?
I sit my phone down and decide it’s better to not reply and just talk to her face to face. She’s going to want all the details anyways.
I look over and notice the veins sticking out of Logan’s forearm. His eyes are glued to the road, and he has a death grip on the steering wheel. I grab the auxiliary chord and plug it into my phone as I scroll through the songs and finally decide to put it on shuffle. Grabbing my pillow from the backseat, I decide a nap would do me some good.
We can deal with this when we get back to the farm.
***
Other than a few stopsto use the bathroom and grab something to eat, Logan and I haven’t said more than five sentences to each other this whole ride back. I have slept most of the ride and I think it’s for the best because if I talk to him about anything right now, I think I might bust out in tears. I’m still fragile and he should know that.
We are finally back in Maple and turning onto the road the farm is on. I haven’t been awake long, and my eyes are still trying to adjust to being awake. Its dark outside and the porch light is on for us but I’m sure everyone else has gone to bed. It is late and it looks like everyone in the barn is put up for the night, too. Logan parks and I get out from the truck with my bag as he unhooks the trailer.
I shut the truck door and walk towards the house, “Ivy,” Logan says, walking around the truck where I can see him, “Can we talk, please?” he asks me with sad eyes.
I sigh. “Logan, I don’t have the energy.” I turn halfway to the house then back to him, “Let me think on it tonight. We can talk tomorrow.” I say, walking toward the porch.
I hadn’t quite made it to the front step when the dogs speed off the porch barking and heading to the barn wide open. In that moment, I hear a howl and it sounds close. I drop my bag with a thud on the ground and look at Logan with wide eyes.
I take off running towards the barn and Logan is not far behind me. We enter the barn and the dogs are running off into the pasture. I look over in Molly’s stall and she’s gone, so is the baby. Her door has been left wide open. Adrenaline courses through my body.
I turn quickly to Logan and he’s thinking the same thing as me. Running to Tiny’s stall, I grab his halter and bring him out to the tack area. Logan does the same to the mare that he rode the day we were on the hill. I hear a ring as he puts his phone on speaker, “H-he-hello?” a raspy voice on the other end says and I immediately know it’s Megan’s.
I run in the tack room and grab the saddle I normally use, and Logan throws his over his mares back.
“Meg, quick, wake Collin.” Logan yells while he helps me with my saddle, “Molly is not in her stall. She’s let herself out again. Baby is gone, too.” I hurry into the tack room and grab our bridles.
“Oh, God.” I hear her jump out of bed and run banging on Collin’s door.
“There’s coyotes in the pasture, dogs have went after them. Bring the guns.” We put our bridles on the horses, “Ivy and I are already saddled and heading out. Hurry!!”
We both mount our horses.
Megan yells, “Be careful! We are coming!” The line disconnects.
“I know you hate me right now. But we have to work together.” Logan says to me handing me my rope to drape around my horn and gloves. I nod agreeing.
“Let’s go.” I say and kick Tiny in the sides. We both take off into the pasture at almost a run towards the dogs.
We ride up a hill and I can’t see much in front of me because it’s so dark. Logan and I forgot to grab flashlights when we ran out of the barn. I trust Tiny to step in the places he needs to step and not fall. This is his home, too. He knows this land better than we do. I can hear water rushing up ahead and I realize where we are, the creek we saved Maggie in just a few weeks ago.
I see an outline of something laying on the ground and I steer Tiny towards it. My heart rate picks up as I realize its Molly and she’s hurt.
“Logan!” I scream and he guides his way over to me. Getting down from my saddle I walk over to Molly placing my hands on her neck. I pull out my phone and turn the light on from it. She’s not moving much that I can tell but her front foot is hurt from what I can see.
“Where’s the baby?” Logan says shining his light from his phone around Molly. I can hear the dogs off in the distance and I look up at Logan with fear. His eyes tell me he fears the same thing.
In that moment, we hear hoof beats and see lights coming up the mountain. Megan and Collin appear as they top the hill.
“Front legs hurt.” I tell them as they get close. “But the baby is gone. We don’t know where he is.” I instantly get a feeling in my gut. If this doesn’t go well, everything I did today is for nothing. We have to find him.
I throw a leg over Tiny and look at Megan, “I’m going to follow the dogs trail, they are onto something.” Megan nods and hands Logan the pistol that is strapped to her side.
“Collin and I will take care of Molly. You guys go find her baby.” Megan says and dismounts her horse. She walks over to Molly laying on the ground. I notice she wipes a tear as she lays her hand on her beloved mare. My heart is breaking for Megan, but we have to find her baby.
I look at Logan, “Ready?” he nods and takes an extra flashlight from Collin. The dogs are getting louder as we head off in their direction.
We get up to the creek where the calf had been rescued a few weeks ago and stopped to listen. Reba has something cornered around the pasture line to our right. We kick the horses into gear straight to her. I let out a breath, thankful we are not going to have to pull anything out of that creek tonight.
Logan shines the flashlight around the fence line. He stops right when he sees Reba. She is standing in front of something, and we stop abruptly when we realize she has put herself in between the colt and a coyote. The coyote is angry and snarling at Reba, but she doesn’t let the colt get out from behind her. She is standing her ground and doing her job, protecting the livestock. Izzy and George are right next to her, but they do not look as confident as Reba. She is definitely the alpha.
Logan unclips the pistol from his side and raises it then lowers it again, “I can’t get a good shot. I risk hitting the colt or one of the dogs.” He says frustrated. I look around and then down at my saddle. “Any ideas?” he asks me, and I give him a look of, you are not going to like this.
“One, but you aren’t going to like it.” He looks at me and at the same time I turn Tiny and start walking around where the coyote could have a better chance at getting to me than the colt. Maybe he would change directions and allow Logan to get a shot.
“Ivy, don’t!” Logan starts but I’m already heading in the direction I need to go in.
I hear him take a deep breath and stay where he is. I”m being the diversion. If I can get the coyote’s focus off of the dogs and colt, maybe he will get away from them enough for Logan to have a shot. Tiny knows exactly what I’m doing as he prances under me ready to sacrifice himself with me.
I pat his neck, “It’s just you and me boy. We are a team.” His ears shoot forward and he nods his head. I smile. These animals are magnificent. We walk just a few feet away from Logan but leave enough space from the coyote to give us time to getaway, if needed.
After a few seconds, the coyote turns and looks at me. Reba never makes a move, and the coyote realizes his better chance is coming after me. He takes off towards me in a full stride. I kick Tiny in the sides with my heels and he starts to open his stride too. I hope Logan can get a shot. It’s gaining on us and I’m afraid for a moment I’ve made the worst decision.
BANG.
The sound rings my ears. Tiny jumps and I settle him to slow down as he does a little kick and prance. I look behind me and the coyote is laying on the ground, dead. My heart rate picks up again, and tears fill my eyes. We did it.
Tiny and I walk back over to Logan with the dogs and Molly’s colt. I dismount Tiny and run up to the dogs, giving them big hugs and telling them what an excellent job they did. Reba’s tail is wagging uncontrollably and she is giving me kisses.
“Colt is perfectly healthy.” Logan says, standing up from him looking relieved and looking over me checking to make sure I’m not hurt. I shudder at his touch.
“I’m okay.” I say pulling back from him.
He sighs, “I’m sorry about everything.” He pauses, “Can we talk about it?” he asks with hopeful eyes.
I walk away from him and grab my rope off my horn handing it to him to wrap around the colt”s neck to bring him back home.
“Maybe tomorrow.” I say, turning to mount Tiny. “I need sleep tonight.”
We ride back in silence and I bend down to pat Tiny on the neck and thank him for taking care of us. The dogs run in front of us, leading the way home. For some strange reason, I get a sense of déjà vu, yet again.
It has to be sleep deprivation seeping in.