Quirt and Brody Ride #1 Rattlesnake Book Cover
Once away from the predators, Cactus found a nice patch of weeds and went no farther. Archer and Pickles ran straight home. As they went, they slowed to a trot, and then, tired, walked the rest of the way in. The horses were walking quietly when they approached the back gates to the Farnsworth Ranch.
Archer put his head down to eat grass by the gate, but Pickles, being the barn sour nag she was, paced at the gate and whinnied at the other horses in the barn.
Around midnight, Mary had just finished milking the last goat and went to the main barn to see if the kids had come back. She saw Pickles and Archer at the gate with empty saddles.
“Oh no! I knew it – they are in trouble, lying someplace out there all alone!”
Mary ran to the gate to open it wide for the horses. Then she ran back to the tack room and screamed over the intercom. “Mark! Mark! The horse’s came back without the kids!”
“I’ll be right out, Mary.” he answered from Chuck’s cabin.
Pickles came first with Archer soon after and went to the hitching post where they were used to being unsaddled. Pickles was finally too tired to even lay her ears back at Archer.
Mark came out right away to help Mary pull the saddles off. “Mark! Suki’s saddle is all cut up.”
“Oh no.” Mark scratched his chin, looking the saddle and the mare over.
“I knew it!” Mary said out loud what he was thinking. “They must have run into whatever has been killing the cattle. MARK! What if her saddle got that way while Suki was still on it?”
Mark hugged her, “We’ll find them.”
“Alive?” Mary said with venom in her voice. “Will we find them alive, Mark?”
“We will, we have to!” Mark tried to reassure her and himself too.
They left the saddles and equipment in a pile next to the hitching post and took the horses in the barn where they would have better light to look them over. Mary gasped, “Oh Mark! Look at her belly!” She pointed at several long gashes. “She was attacked by something really big!”
“Her legs are all cut up too.” Using the barn phone, Mark made an emergency call to the veterinarian to come and treat the mare’s injuries. Then he called Larry at his cabin.
“Larry, the kids’ horses came home without them with injuries! Find someone to tend to them and meet the veterinarian – Dr. Hanson is already on the way. Round up everyone else to help with the search for my kids.”
“I’m sorry Mr. Farnsworth. How long have they been gone?”
“Tom and Doug saw them leave before dark and we haven’t seen them since.”
“Oh no, Sir, just tell me what you want me to do.”
“Gather up any of the other hands who are willing to help with the search.”
“Of course, we’ll all want to help.”
“That’s good, take anything that’s four-wheel drive, the ATV’s too and get some riders on horseback to track where the kids’ horses came from. Look for Quirt’s mule too; he’s still out there someplace. Maybe he stayed near where the kids are. Keep in contact with the radios, channel 4 and the cell phones.”
“Yes sir.” Larry called Chuck first and then went down his speed dial, waking everyone.
Tom ran across the parking area and jumped in a dark blue Jeep Wrangler. He had his phone out making calls to the other hands, arranging who was gonna drive what and who was gonna go on horseback. Only a few hands had homes off the ranch, so most would be there to help right away.
Mary and Mark put on helmets that had communications built into them. While he barked orders at the others, the helicopter warmed up.
“What could have happened?” Mary asked again, desperate for answers.
“I don’t know Mary, but we will find them.” Mark answered.
“I’m really worried! They just aren’t the kind of rider’s who horses come back without them. They could be laying out there alone and injured or . . . worse.” Mary started to cry.
“Don’t let your mind run away with you honey, we don’t know what happened yet – and I’m so sorry I didn’t listen to you sooner – and I hope, whatever happened, that you and the kids can forgive me someday.”
December 8, 2011
Roadplug
I’m mean to Quirt and Brody too.
