Lonestar Sanctuary (10 page)

"What about Betsy?"

"She can hang out with the kids."

"Not a chance."

"Then bring her. But be quick about it."

The prospect of letting her daughter see how some people treated
horses called her hasty decision into question. Still, she couldn't let a
horse die because she was squeamish. "I'll get her."

Allie found her daughter still asleep in the hammock with the kittens lying on top of her.

"Betsy," she called in a soft voice.

Her daughter's eyes popped open. She sat up and rubbed her eyes,
then rolled out of the hammock with a kitten in her arms.

"Rick needs us to go help a horse."Allie held out her hand, and Betsy
ran to grasp it. She put down the kitten before taking her mother's hand.
"Can you be big and brave? Some people aren't nice to their horses."

Betsy nodded, and the two of them went around the front of the
house to where Rick sat waiting in his truck. Betsy climbed in next to
Rick, and Allie fastened her daughter's seat belt and her own.

"How far?" she asked Rick.

"About ten miles."

"Who called you?"

"A neighbor saw the horse staggering across the desert."

"Owner?"

His mouth took on a grim slant. "I think I know. I've been keeping
an eye on them for a few weeks. The owner is a city dude who thinks
it's fun to fly out here three or four times a year."

"Can we do anything if he refuses to let us take the horse?"

"The sheriff will cite him for neglect. But it won't come to that.
I'm taking him home with us, and we'll deal with what we have to
later. He's not a bad guy, just stupid."

From the way he clamped his lips shut, Allie knew he didn't want
to talk. Good thing, because she didn't want to either. She stared out
the window.

The golden stipa grass mingled with the cactus and sage from
horizon to horizon. It was a harsh land but beautiful. The purple haze
of the mountains climbed to the sky in the distance, and the blue bowl
overhead added to the isolation. The air smelled hot and dusty even
though it was only March.

The thought of staying in this sanctuary comforted her. She and
Betsy were safe here. They'd see anyone dangerous coming from miles
away. A stranger would stick out like water in the desert.

Rick braked hard, and the truck slewed in the road before coming
to rest near the ditch. "There she is!" He opened the door and grabbed
a saddlebag from behind his seat. "Come on."

Allie unlatched her seat belt and got Betsy free as well. "Stay close
to me," she told her daughter.

She nearly stepped on a tarantula lumbering across the road. Withdrawing her foot, she let the arachnid have the road until it disappeared on the other side. Creepy things. With Betsy in her arms, she
hopped a yucca plant and headed after Rick, who was disappearing
behind thick brush.

If she saw another tarantula, she might scream.

At least she wore boots. She put Betsy down and took her hand.
"Let's run to catch up."

The hot, dusty wind blew in her face, and her feet slipped so much
on the thin soil that it took much longer to catch up with Rick than
she'd imagined. She thought about calling for him to wait, but he was
too far ahead. Besides, he was a man on a mission, and she doubted
he'd listen.

Betsy tugged at her hand and pointed to their right. Allie stopped
and stared at the pitiful sight. A blue roan mare stood outlined against
a rocky hillside. Her bones stood out in stark relief through her
ragged coat. She tried to move away from them, but she staggered as
she walked.

When was the last time the mare had food or water? Allie feared
they were too late to save her. "Let's see if we can get close, Betsy."

Betsy tugged her hand out of Allie's and ran toward the horse. Allie
tried to grab her and grasped only air. "No, Betsy, you'll scare her."
When Allie leaped after her daughter, her foot slipped, and she
sprawled onto the ground. Her hand dove into a cactus. She scrambled
up again, but Betsy was out of reach by then.

Rick's head turned at her shout, and he put out his hand as though
to catch the little girl, but Betsy veered around him and continued on
her course to the animal. When she got about ten feet away, she
stopped.

Allie ran to catch up with her daughter. "Don't get any closer, Bets," she called, still several feet from her daughter. "She might be
dangerous." Though the poor horse looked like she didn't have the
energy to walk, much less kick.

Betsy put her hand out and walked closer to the mare. "No, Betsy!"
Allie put on an extra burst of speed, but she felt she was moving
through air as thick as quicksand. Betsy would reach the horse before
Allie could stop her.

But the mare put her head down, and her nose touched Betsy's outstretched hand. The shudders wracking the horse's body stopped, and
she stood quietly as the little girl rubbed the white blaze on her head.

"Well, I'll be," Rick said softly as Allie fell into step beside him.
"Keep her here. I'll go get the truck."

"It's not safe."Allie scooped her daughter into her arms.

Rick rolled his eyes. "She's fine. There's an affinity between them."

The horse stepped closer to where Allie stood with Betsy. The
little girl put her hand out, and the horse nuzzled it. Hope shimmered
in Allie's heart. Maybe he was right. Maybe this horse was the key to
unlocking Betsy's heart.

RICK WASN'T SURE THE HORSE WOULD EVEN SURYIYE THE TRIP. TRYING TO
avoid the bumps in the road, he drove slowly back to the ranch, but
the trip took its toll on the mare. Her legs trembled as he opened the
tailgate and prepared to lead her into the holding pen by the smaller
of the two barns.

"What do you want me to do?"Allie asked him.

"Just stand out of the way while I get her out."

The mare kicked at him when he stepped up into the truck, and
he darted away from her wicked hooves. He hadn't thought she had
that much fight in her. "Come on, girl, you need some food and
water."

Betsy climbed onto the wheel well of the trailer and put her hand out.

"No, Betsy!" Allie sprang toward her daughter.

Rick grabbed her arm. "The mare can't hurt her from there." The
mare nuzzled the small hand, and the little girl smiled. It was the first
smile Rick had seen on her.

He scooped her up and deposited her by the gate. "Betsy, call to
her. See if she'll come to you."

"She won't talk," Allie whispered.

Rick glowered at her. "Give her a chance, woman. You're smothering her."

Sparks that could have electrocuted him flashed from her blue
eyes. She opened her mouth to speak, but he turned his back on her.
"Call to her, Bets."

Betsy looked down and shook her head. She started back toward
the truck, but he stopped her. "Wait a minute. Let me get some sweet
feed. She might come to you if you have food."

He ran to the small barn and scooped up a bucket of sweet feed.
He stopped to grab some electrolytes and the stainless hand pump.
The mare needed fluid fast. When he went back to the yard, he found
Allie leading the horse out of the truck.

"I think she's afraid of men," Allie said.

Rick's elation faded. "You just spoiled the perfect opportunity for
Betsy to bond with the mare," he said under his breath. "Cut me some
slack here."

"She's my daughter. I know what's best for her." Allie's chin grew
more determined. She led the horse toward the corral.

Too late to cry over spilt milk. "Looks like she's been beaten." Rick
pointed to the stripes on the mare's flank.

"I noticed." Allie neared her daughter. "Stand back, Betsy. I don't want her to kick you." Betsy stood out of the way, and her mother led
the mare through the gate.

"I want to tube her first. She needs water the most."

"She won't let you. I'll do it,"Allie said.

"You know how?"

"I've done it before." She held out her hand for the tube.

Rick handed it over and watched her approach the mare. Allie
stuck her fingers on each side of the animal's mouth, forcing her to
open. Then she massaged the mare's esophagus, and the mare swallowed. As the horse swallowed, the tube advanced down her throat.

"Slick," he said. "I couldn't do it that well. Make sure it's in her
stomach. If you get it in the lungs, she'll drown."

Allie shot him a look, and he shut up. She said she'd done it before,
and he couldn't fault her technique.

She stepped back and nodded to him. "The lady is ready for a drink."

He dumped the powdered electrolytes into a bucket and turned
the hose on. "Ready when you are."

Allie took the bucket he handed over, dropped the pump into the
bucket, and began to pump the fluid into the mare's stomach.

"Take it slow," he warned, ignoring the way she rolled her eyes. He
didn't want to lose this animal.

Allie pumped slowly, pausing often. Finally, the bucket emptied.
The mare seemed to be stronger already.

"Try some feed," he said, handing her the feed bucket after she'd
pulled the tube out. "See if she'll eat, Bets. I'd better stay away for now
until she knows she can trust me."

He'd like to get his hands on the man who mistreated this animal.
She'd been badly beaten, and maggots infested the cuts on her legs.
He'd have to spend some time getting them out as soon as possible.

He seldom saw true meanness. Generally, neglect was the killer,
but this wounding was deliberate.

Betsy climbed over the fence with the bucket and approached the
mare. The old girl snorted and stepped closer to the child. Then the
mare thrust her lips into Betsy's outstretched palm and delicately ate
the nuggets of feed.

"Good girl," Rick said. "I'll be back in a minute to take care of
her wounds."

"She won't let you," Allie said. "I'll do it "

"It's nasty," he warned.

"I see the maggots," she said in a soft voice. "I've handled things
like this before."

So far all he'd felt toward her was guilt and obligation, and the
admiration that welled at her competence with the horses surprised
him. "I'll get the tweezers and antiseptic."

Once he brought her what she needed, he went to find Elijah. Last
time he'd seen the old man, he was heading to the big barn. On the
way, Rick's cell phone rang, and he saw Brendan's name flash on his
caller ID. "That was fast," he said when he answered it.

"You're not going to like this."

Rick's earlier admiration spiraled down like a dust devil. "What is it?"

Brendan's sigh came loud through the phone. "You think this
woman is capable of trafficking in Mexican illegals?"

"No way," he said with more conviction than he felt. Rick didn't
want to believe Jon's widow would be involved in anything like that.

"The Border Patrol had some pretty strong evidence, and they
have questions for her."

"That's not what I wanted to hear, Brendan. She said nothing about
any trouble with the law."

"Of course not. I'd think she'd be afraid to tell you the whole truth
for fear of you turning her in."

"If she goes to jail, Betsy will go to Jon's parents for sure. I can't
let that happen." Had Jon known what his wife was up to? Was that
why he made Rick promise not to let his parents get Betsy?

Brendan cleared his throat. "There's more. Jon's parents have
charged her with kidnapping"

"What?"

"They'd filed for custody. She can't just up and disappear."

"So the FBI is looking for her?"

"Yep. I should tell them, but I'm not going to."

"Thanks, buddy." Rick ran his hand through his hair. Time was running out.

"What are you going to do?"

"I'm going to marry her," Rick said, his voice wobbling a little.
He'd hoped to find a way out.

"You kidding me, man? Even Jon wouldn't expect you to go that far."

"He's tapping my shoulder even now," Rick said. "Thanks for
checking it out, Brendan. If you find out any more, let me know."

"I will. But think before you leap, buddy."

"I already have." Rick shut his phone. Man, he wanted a shot of
whiskey. Everything in him recoiled at the thought of marrying a
woman he didn't know, but he'd promised Jon. Maybe if he followed
through, the monkey of guilt on his back would go away.

Rick opened the barn door and stepped inside. Elijah sat on a bale
of straw, watching Cupcake and her foal in the stall. The curry brush
and comb lay abandoned on the floor beside him.

Rick could have sworn there were tears on Elijah's cheeks, but the
old man bent his head and swiped at his face.

When Elijah turned to face him, the brown wrinkles were dry.
"The new campers are settled?"

"Yeah, and I found that old mare of Allbright's half-dead and wandering the desert. I brought her home."

"Ah, that is what the commotion was about, si? She will live?"

"I think so."

"Allbright may come by to get her."