Sweet Montana Boxed Set 1-5 Page 4

  He drove home from the Lone Creek Ranch and headed to his childhood home. His parents had become snowbirds and spent their winters in Arizona. But his sister, Katie, still lived in the family home. She was in the kitchen loading the dishwasher when he walked through the door. She stopped what she was doing when she saw him.

  “Hey, there was a lot of commotion over at the Lone Creek Ranch today, huh?”

  He shouldn’t have been surprised that his sister had already heard the news. She worked at a bank and news traveled fast with so many people coming and going there.

  “How’d you hear about that?”

  “Harper Madison came into the bank right after Caleb got back to the station.”

  She made no apology for talking gossip at the bank. Katie once told him it was part of her job to listen and make small talk while transacting bank business. A lot like a bartender or hair dresser.

  Kas pulled his jacket off and hung it on the hook in the mudroom like they always did as kids. He slipped out of his boots and placed them on the rubber mat by the door and walked into the kitchen in his stocking feet. His parents hadn’t updated the house in over thirty years. His childhood home was so unlike the modern apartment he kept in New York. But this was home. Every kitchen chair with places that had worn polyurethane and every scratch on the kitchen counter was home.

  “Levon Taper was killed.”

  “I know that part. He got hit in the head with a horseshoe.”

  Kas’s sister was so unlike him in so many ways. She liked to dig for answers. It was how she found out her ex-husband had been cheating on her before they were even married and had a child on the way. She knew how to find things out. Their mother used to say she missed her calling as a bank teller. She should have been a detective.

  Katie had been shattered by her ex-husband’s betrayal. It had been a whirlwind courtship and a quick wedding. It didn’t take much to figure out why. Within the course of a few months, the SOB drained her bank account. Katie had tried to find a possible excuse for his actions that seemed understandable. The more she dug, the less she found that was forgivable. The marriage ended before the first anniversary and Katie moved home.

  She was looking at him as if either she didn’t have enough people to talk to today or the story had become so salacious that she needed to know details to see if it were true.

  “There isn’t much beyond what Harper would have told you. I was checking on some investments, or possible investments, and the accident happened. We found him in the barn.”

  “Poor Trip,” she said, pulled a kitchen chair away from the table and sat down. “He must be devastated.”

  “He is.” He went to the refrigerator and opened it. “Did you make dinner?”

  “And when would I have done that? I just got home.”

  He glanced over his shoulder at her. She was giving him that look. The one she used to give him right before she pounded him for saying something stupid around her friends.

  “I can call for a pizza.”

  She crinkled her nose. “No, I’ll make something. I know you’ll eat just about anything so don’t ask what it’s going to be. You’ll know when it’s done.”

  “Fair enough.” He chuckled and shut the refrigerator door. “I’ve got to make a phone call and then I’m going to take a shower. Give a holler if you want me to help.”

  He went to his room and shut the door before pulling his cell phone out of his pocket. He checked for service. In Sweet, cell phone service was non-existent in most places. You had to be in the bigger cities to get something reliable. He didn’t have a good enough signal to place a call, but he used the wifi on his phone to search for a number in the hopes that he could catch Sean Knight, a veterinarian who was well-known on the rodeo circuit, at his office in Las Vegas. He found the number and then picked up the house phone in his bedroom and dialed.

  Sean answered on the first ring and said hello.

  “It’s Kasper Dobbs, Sean. You may not remember me from—”

  “Sure I do,” Sean said. “You were bull riding when Jesse was still competing in the circuit.”

  “If memory serves, you’re based out of Montana, aren’t you?”

  “Was. My mom is.”

  “Really. Where are you now?”

  “Married. My practice it just outside of Las Vegas.”

  Disappointment filled him. “Oh, congratulations.”

  “Thank you. Was there something I could do for you?”

  “I’m not sure.”

  “Well, now you have me intrigued.” Sean laughed. “What’s on your mind?”

  “It may be nothing. I’m investing in some stud stock and trying to breed some horses in Sweet.”

  “Okay.”

  “But there is an unusual problem happening with some of the animals that has me a bit concerned there may be a problem with infertility.”

  “Widespread?”

  “I don’t want to get ahead of myself. I just want to look at every possibility.”

  He blew a breath out that sounded distorted over the phone. “I’m heading over to my mother’s house for a family thing in a week or two. “I could stop by while I’m in Montana and we could talk more about it.”

  “I’d like that. It may be nothing,” he said quickly.

  “Or it may be something serious. Better to check it out.”

  “Thanks.”

  He hung up and stared at the phone wondering how Tabby was making out tonight. It was going to be a hard greeting when Dusty and Hal came back to the ranch to the news that Levon was dead. He wanted to go back over there to see Tabby, but he was not part of them. He wasn’t family. They were even if they weren’t blood related. It was best to leave them be and let them grieve alone.

  He’d overstepped his bounds by calling Sean Knight. As he grabbed some fresh clothes from his drawer and headed to the bathroom, he reasoned that he was only doing it to protect his investments. But something in the way Tabby had looked at that horseshoe still gave him pause. She’d been frightened by it, as if it were a sign of impending doom or the cause of it.

  And something about the way Tabby looked at him at all gave him pause. She was a pretty girl with her long dirty blond hair and carefree way about her. There was sass underneath all that beauty. She didn’t wear makeup. She didn’t need to. She was authentic in every way, more naked than anyone he’d known in recent years.

  “Kas! Dinner is ready!”

  He hadn’t taken his shower, and he knew enough not to make his sister wait. He’d take his shower after and then do a little research on the computer. Maybe that would take his mind off Tabby Swanson and how much he wanted to drive over to the ranch and see her again.

  Sweet Montana Sky: Chapter Four

  Trip told them all the morning of Levon’s funeral that he wasn’t traveling to Colorado to attend the service because Levon didn’t believe in such things and he wanted to honor his friend. He told Tabby and the rest of the hands they could go as long as they were back the next day for work. He’d hold down things until then. But Tabby figured Trip wanted to honor Levon in his own way. Alone.

  The ranch hands had a close bond, so Hal and Dusty drove all night to Colorado to attend the funeral. Tabby couldn’t get the time off work on such short notice, although she was sure she could have convinced Jack Robinson, her boss, to let her go. He was a good family man. Although she didn’t broadcast her life to people when she met them, Jack knew about her parents’ deaths and her reason for coming to Sweet. He didn’t let her use it as a crutch, but he was understanding.

  She was thankful for her job even though she hated it. She’d love nothing better than to be able to ride and maybe one day teach riding. But for now, she needed her job at the grocery store to make ends meet. She wasn’t to the point where she was making enough money from rodeo earnings to cover her travel expenses and rodeo fees. Working in the store’s bakery may not be glamorous, but it paid the bills and for now, that was enough.

 
Kasper Dobbs was still hanging around the ranch, discussing business with Trip. Apparently there was a problem with breeding. She’d learned that when Darren Lacey, a local horse breeder, showed up at the ranch and had it out with Trip. Ugly was the word Levon had used to describe how Trip had been on the phone the days before Levon died. She saw that now.

  While the voices were raised, she didn’t listen to the particulars and knew nothing of the details of their disagreement because it wasn’t her business. What was her business was Kas’s interest in her riding. He’d come out to the arena every day for the week after Levon’s death while Tabby trained. He just sat on the sidelines. When she was done, he’d go back to the barn with her and they’d talk about things that had nothing to do with riding while she tended to Tenterhook and got him settled back in his stall. Then he’d leave.

  Tabby hadn’t learned the reason why he’d been lingering until Trip knocked on her door that morning to tell her Kas was coming with them to the rodeo to see her and Tenterhook perform in competition. He was interested in sponsoring Tenterhook and possibly breeding him.

  The excitement she felt over the possibilities was palpable. She loaded Tenterhook into the trailer and they all headed to one of the last rodeo events of the season in Great Falls. A lot rested on how well she and Tenterhook performed today. Kasper Dobbs could end up being the key to her eventually going pro on the rodeo circuit. A big change in her life. Horseshoe be damned. Luck was on her side.

  * * *

  Darren Lacey and Tanner Rogers were hanging around the holding area when Tabby rode Tenterhook over to the arena for competition. She didn’t know either of them well but she’d seen Darren many times at rodeos and then just the other day at the Lone Creek Ranch since he and Trip had been doing business together.

  She’d never had cause to form an opinion about Darren. But after Darren’s appearance yesterday at the ranch, along with his feud with Trip over how breeding of two of their horses was coming along, made Tabby on edge. Couldn’t he have stayed in the stands and watched all the runs like everyone else? If not for the argument she witnessed in the barn yesterday, she wouldn’t even care. But for some reason his presence seemed so imposing.

  She pushed all thoughts of Darren Lacey out of her mind as she watched the barrel racer ahead of her to see how she handled her run. The rider cleared the first barrel and raced to the next barrel in the cloverleaf with good form. Her horse stumbled as it turned, but she recovered quickly, not losing her seat. However, she did lose some precious time.

  She fixed her gaze on the rider’s form as she made it to the last barrel and held her breath. From where she was, it looked like she was coming in too close to the barrel. Tabby watched with bated breath. As she anticipated, the rider’s horse clipped the side of the barrel, causing it to tip over in front of the horse and make him stop short.

  The horse reared up and the rider tumbled back to the arena floor. The crowd reacted to the fall, the commotion causing her horse to race around the arena and then exit through the opening to the holding area where she was waiting with Tenterhook to begin their run.

  As the horse raced by them, it startled Tenterhook just enough for Tabby to notice. “It’s okay, boy,” she said, leaning forward and stroking his neck. To herself she mumbled, “That’s the third fall today.”

  The announcer recorded the failed run as the rider left the arena on her own and went to catch her horse.

  “We’re next,” she said, stroking Tenterhook’s neck again.

  She glanced up in the stands and saw Trip sitting with Kas. He’d been impressed with her run at the ranch arena. His interest in Tenterhook was obvious. If they did well today, she’d have her sponsor and be able to afford to travel to more rodeos on the Western Rodeo Circuit next season. If they continued to do well, she may even be able to go to the national professional circuit.

  Emotion filled her chest and bubbled up her throat. Her parents would be proud. Levon would be happy for her, and yeah, he would have been proud, too. He didn’t normally come with her to a rodeo. He always stayed back at the ranch and tended to ranch duties with Dusty and Hal. But when she got home, he always asked her about her ride and gave her a little pep talk if she didn’t do well. She wondered what he’d say to her now if he were here.

  She felt Tenterhook’s muscles jump beneath her thighs, a clear sign he was itching to start his run. She was ready.

  Tabby started her run, kicking Tenterhook’s sides with her heels and held on to the reins getting ready to take her first barrel turn. They took the first turn good and tight and she focused on the second barrel in the cloverleaf. Just as she was about to make the next barrel turn, Tenterhook faltered, losing his footing.

  She lurched forward with his movement, but was able to regain her seat in the saddle. Tenterhook tried to compensate, but stumbled again, knocking over the barrel and jumping over it to stop from falling. Tabby jerked forward again, this time unable to keep her place in the saddle. She held on tight and was only vaguely aware of something flying out onto the arena floor. As she lost her grip and went flying off Tenterhook’s back, she braced herself to hit the soft ground. Instead, she smacked into something hard and bounced off it before her world went black.

  * * *

  The moment Tabby went airborne, Kas jumped to his feet and started running through the bleachers to the arena floor. He didn’t bother to run around to the opening of the arena. Instead, he jumped the wall and ran straight to the spot on the other side of the arena where Tabby crashed into the wall.

  From where he was sitting, he couldn’t tell if Tenterhook had rolled on her after she’d fallen or if she’d hit her head. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Tenterhook showing signs of discomfort. He was walking slowly with his head bobbing, and his hip was slightly dropped as he took each step. He glanced over his shoulder and saw Trip running up behind him.

  “Stop Tenterhook before he runs off and breaks that leg,” he called out. “I’ll see to Tabby.”

  People were already surrounding Tabby when he got to her. Heart pounding, he pushed his way through the crowd and found her on the ground surrounded by the emergency team who’d gotten there before him. One medic was putting a neck collar on and talking to her. But her eyes were closed.

  “Tabby? Can you hear me?” the medic asked. “You’re going to be fine.”

  Kas wasn’t sure he’d be fine after what he’d just witnessed. He’d seen plenty of rodeo spills over the years, but this one had his heart pumping out of his chest.

  He dropped to his knees and knelt over Tabby.

  “Tabby? Can you hear me? It’s Kas.”

  At the sound of his voice, her eyes fluttered open. “Tenterhook,” she whispered. “Get…I think he’s hurt.”

  “You’re hurt,” Kas said, pushing her hair away from her face.

  “Please, Kas. Please get him before he hurts himself more.”

  He could tell she was in pain by the expression on her face and the way her whole body tightened every time the medic moved her. He wanted to stay with her. But he couldn’t refuse her plea.

  “I’ll get him. Don’t you worry,” he said, hoping he could give her the assurance he didn’t feel. “He’ll be fine.”

  By the time they’d loaded Tabby into the ambulance and it sped off to the local hospital, Trip had managed to get Tenterhook back to the holding area where a rodeo veterinarian was inspecting Tenterhook’s hind leg.

  “He needs an ultrasound. There’s clearly some damage here, but it’s hard to say what until you get some films of that leg. I can mobilize his leg and give him a tranquilizer so he’s not in so much pain so you can transport him back to your ranch. He’ll need to be looked at right away by your regular veterinarian.”

  “What happened?” Kas asked.

  Trip picked up the horseshoe that had been thrown in the arena, but didn’t say a word.

  “He’s got some bleeding on his belly,” the vet said. “Not too bad. But looks like he threw
the shoe with a nail still stuck out far enough to give him a gash. I’ll clean that out, but it looks like it’s just on the surface. It’ll heal fine.”

  Kas took the horseshoe from Trip and looked at it. One of the seven nails was still in the shoe. He grabbed the nail between his fingers but it was stuck. “Tenterhook just had new shoes put on a week ago. Why would he throw a shoe so quickly?”

  The veterinarian got up from the crouched position he was in. “Perhaps it’s best to talk to your farrier about that.”

  * * *

  Tabby was still in the hospital. The news about Tenterhook’s injury hurt her more than the broken ankle and the bang on the head she’d suffered from her fall. Given the distance she needed to go to get back home, the emergency room doctor chose to keep her in the hospital for a few days for observation before releasing her.

  That gave Kas some time to do some digging on his own. Hunter Williams had already been by the ranch to check on Tenterhook, clearly showing distress over what had happened. He put a bar shoe on the horse’s injured hoof after Dr. Cornin, the ranch’s regular veterinarian had taken an ultrasound of Tenterhook’s hoof and made his diagnosis. Kas wanted another opinion, something Trip didn’t challenge him on when asked. Especially after he learned that Sean Knight would be coming to the ranch to examine Tenterhook himself.

  After giving Sean some time to look at the films and examine Tenterhook himself, he gave Kas his diagnosis in the barn.

  “What’s the verdict?” Kas asked.

  “I wish I had better news,” Sean said. Sean Knight was a well-known veterinarian on the rodeo circuit, although not formally connected with the circuit as a veterinarian. His family had founded the Western Rodeo Circuit generations ago. While he kept his own practice going, he did a lot of work for the rodeo family when asked. Because Sean now lived just outside of Las Vegas with his new wife, making it more difficult for him to examine Tenterhook, Kas was thankful he was able to coordinate Sean’s visit home to his mother’s ranch in Montana. It was close enough for him to come out to the Lone Creek Ranch when Kas called.