Spirit Horses

by Alan S Evans

  The temperature was beginning to drop outside as the family sat down to eat. By now the horses were all standing in their stalls, finishing their evening hay. Shane looked up from the sawing motion of his steak knife as he cut a piece of meat. “It’s dipping into the mid-thirties tonight; the horses will need their winter blankets for the first time this year. That’s a sure sign that the nice fall weather is over and done with.”

  Jen took a sip of her iced tea and raised her eyebrows, “You always said you’d rather work in the cold of winter than through the heat of summer.”

  Shane shrugged his shoulders, “Sure wouldn’t mind if it could just stay fall or spring all year long.”

  “Hey, Dad, can we ride tomorrow?” Jacob rarely let a day go by without asking.

  “If you guys get your homework done, you and your sister come out to the barn about five o’clock, and I’ll let you take ole Tory for a little spin.”

  Tory was a great old horse for the kids. He was what you would call a babysitter, and was as safe and dependable as you could get. At fourteen, he was still sound and would give you plenty of motor when you asked for it. Tory was one of the horses Shane had hauled all over the Midwest and eastern states when he was putting on horsemanship clinics.

  Before he had a family, these clinics were his bread and butter. After twelve years of this kind of life on the road, he was ready to settle down. That’s when he met Jen, got married, and purchased the farm.

  During his traveling years, he built a reputation for being an extraordinary horseman and clinician. His methods and theories were featured in many national equestrian magazines. He also had several very popular videotapes on the market covering everything from starting a young horse to fixing specific problems that the general public would commonly have with their horses. All this had earned him a certain amount of notoriety and fame in the industry—which Shane would downplay if you asked him about it today. Shane looked back on those years with fond memories of the places he’d been and the people he had met. His time as a clinician had paid him well; therefore, with the money he made he’d been able to buy this beautiful ninety-acre farm in Tennessee, starting the life that he now knew.

  The next afternoon Jacob showed up at the barn. “Hey, Mister Terry, where’s my dad?”

  “He’s on his way back from the quarantine paddock. He’ll be here in a minute.”

  “What’s he doing over there?”

  “Some lady brought in a young mustang mare. The woman said she couldn’t keep it and asked your dad if he wanted her. The poor thing looks like she’s been through the war. Your dad thought maybe he could save the mare and find her a home. But he didn’t want her around the other horses until we had Dr. Tolbert check her out to make sure she’s healthy.”

  A few minutes later Shane drove up in his truck. As he walked into the barn, Terry looked up from a horse’s shoe he was tightening. “Do you think she’ll be okay?”

  “She’s pretty scared. I couldn’t get real close to her. She needs a good deworming, a lot of feed and hay, and her feet are in bad need of a trim. She should be fine, but we’ll have Doc check her out tomorrow to be sure. Did you notice that strange brand on her hip?”

  “No, I couldn’t see through all that dried mud on her,” Terry answered.

  “She’s a mess for sure,” Shane muttered. “We’ll give her a chance to settle in tonight. Hopefully we’ll be able to catch her and clean her up in the morning before Doc gets here.”

  “Dad, can I go see her?” Jacob asked, “I’ve never seen a wild mustang before.”

  “You can walk out there nice and slow, but don’t get too close to the fence; she might kick out. Go get your sister and take her with you. I know she’ll want to see her, too.”

  Jacob sped off to get Tina.

  Back at the barn Terry asked, “So what do you think about that brand you saw on her hip?”

  “I’ve never seen one like it. It looks like a broken arrow to me. The lady who dropped her off said all she knew was that the mare was a wild horse, and came from somewhere out west. Maybe I can get Jen to research the brand on the Internet.”

  By now it was late afternoon. Shane took a deep breath, “Let’s get these last two horses ridden. I’m ready to call it a day.” He wanted to finish by five o’clock, which would allow him time to let the kids ride Tory as he had promised.

  The next morning went smoothly, and by noon about half the horses were done and out grazing in their paddocks. Terry and Shane headed back to try to clean up the little mustang. Terry wondered, “Do you think we’ll need to set up some stock panels to make a catch pen for her? There are some panels out there if we need ’em.”

  Shane shook his head. “Let’s try to get our hands on her without them first.”

  It was about a five-minute ride on the golf cart to the back paddock. On the way the two men talked about Terry and his wife expecting their first baby.

  “Are you ready for your life to get turned upside down?” Shane asked as he gave his coworker a grin.

  “I’ve never been so scared, and excited all at the same time.”

  “You’ll never forget the day your kids are born. I hope you don’t have a weak stomach. You are going to be in the delivery room aren’t you?”

  “I’ve got no choice about that.”

  “I’ll tell you one thing,” Shane said, “you’ve probably never known another human being who you would, without hesitation, step in front of a runaway locomotive for, if that’s what it took to save ’em, until you hold that baby in your arms for the first time. I really wasn’t prepared for how much it affected me.”

  Terry peered at Shane from under his cap. “Boss, are you just trying to scare the hell out of me, or what?”

  Shane shook his head and laughed.

  As the two arrived at the back pasture, they found the little mare standing in the middle of the paddock with her nose to the ground. Shane walked over to her feed trough and saw that she’d eaten her morning grain.

  “I put some salt in her feed so she would drink plenty of water,” Terry said.

  “Yeah, she doesn’t look quite as drawn up in her flank as she did last night. I was worried about her getting colicky if she didn’t get some water soon.”

  Terry nodded and replied, “As stressed out as she looks, we should still keep a close eye on her.”

  Shane had Terry wait outside the gate as he walked into the field. The little mare immediately snorted and ran to the opposite corner. On the positive side, this was not an aggressive move, but the mustang was sending a clear message that she wasn’t interested in making friends.

  “You want to set up a catch pen, boss?”

  “No, the poor thing has probably had some pretty scary experiences being trapped in pens. I think she’s had enough of that kind of stuff. Let’s tell Doc to wait a bit before he comes to check her. That’ll give her a couple days to get acclimated. Maybe this weekend I’ll have some time to work with her. As long as she’s eating and drinking it’s not critical that we get our hands on her right now.”

  Terry nodded. That was one of the things that impressed him about Shane; he never rushed a horse and was always willing to spend hour after hour with one if that’s what was needed. In all the years he had spent working with him, Terry had never seen Shane lose his patience with one of these animals. He had seen him lose his cool with people, but not with a horse.

  The rest of the afternoon seemed riddled with minor problems, and it was much later than usual when they finished at the barn. When Shane returned to the house, Jen had his dinner warming in the oven.

  “Sorry, Dad, we got hungry so we went ahead and ate,” Jacob said over his shoulder while he helped his mom dry the dishes.

  “That’s fine, we finished a little late today, then I went back to check on the new mare before I came in.” Shane sat and dug into his meal.

  “Do you think she’ll make a nice horse?” Jen asked as she poured him a glass of tea.

&
nbsp; “I don’t know, she’s pretty spooked right now. I’ll have a better feel for her temperament once I’ve spent some time with her.”

  Jacob looked at his dad, “If she turns out okay, can Tina and I have her?”

  “We’ll take real good care of her,” Tina added.

  “Don’t get your hopes up, you guys. She’s a long way from making a dependable horse; besides you have Tory to ride.”

  Swallowing a drink of his tea, Shane looked at Jen and told her, “I got a good look at her brand this evening. If I draw a picture, do you think you could research it for me online?”

  “Sure,” she answered as she cleaned up the rest of the table around him while he finished eating. “Not trying to change the subject, but how’s Terry’s wife doing with her pregnancy?”

  “She’s fine. Terry’s the one who’s freaked out about it.” The two smiled as Shane stood to place his empty plate in the sink.

  Later that night after the kids were in bed, Jen took the drawing of the brand Shane had sketched and sat down at her computer. The woman who gave the mare to them didn’t know much about where she had come from. Jen sighed as the thought occurred to her that this search was not going to be easy. It wasn’t long before she found out that the Bureau of Land Management never used a brand that resembled a broken arrow on any of the mustangs who went through their system.

  The BLM was the government agency in charge of controlling the populations of wild horses through their capture and adoption programs. These programs were necessary to keep the wild herds scattered throughout the western part of the country at a healthy number. Since the one thing they were sure of was that the little horse was from a wild herd somewhere out west, Jen decided that the BLM was probably still a good place to start. She faxed them a letter along with a copy of the brand. Who knows, she thought, we could get lucky and maybe someone there will recognize it.

  By Friday afternoon, Shane and his staff were ready for a break and looking forward to the weekend. When he walked in the house, he found Jen leaning over the fax machine. She smiled and waved a paper at him. “This is from the BLM office. Looks like the little mustang mare has an unusual background. Her brand is from a private wild herd owned and managed by the Shoshone Indians in Wyoming. Apparently, the horses run free on a part of their reservation.

  “The person who faxed me back, wrote that he’d heard there was some interesting history with these horses, but he didn’t give any specifics. He did say that this particular mustang could never have been part of an adopt-a-horse program and wondered how we ended up with her. I finally decided to call Mrs. Erickson, the lady who brought her to you.”

  Shane grinned. “Wow, you’ve been busy with this.”

  Jen shrugged her shoulders. “I’ve always liked a good mystery. Anyway, Mrs. Erickson told me that she was at a horse auction in Trenton, looking for a pleasure horse. While she was there she kept hearing a loud noise in one of the livestock trailers parked outside the ring. When she looked in the rig, she saw the little mare kicking and pawing hysterically. The owner turned out to be a cranky old trader who was at the auction to sell another horse. He told her he thought the one in the trailer was dangerous, and he was taking the rotten, little nag to the killer market on his way home.”

  “Mrs. Erickson said she couldn’t stand the thought of the mare being slaughtered for dog food, so she worked out a deal with the man to buy her, then paid him to haul the horse to her farm.”

  Jen paused and took a deep breath before explaining, “She had read one of your old magazine articles years ago. She knew you had a training business in the area and figured you’d be the kind of man who could tame the mare. She didn’t know what she was going to do with her if you hadn’t taken her. Her two sons loaded her on the trailer through some cattle chutes, then she brought her over here, kicking and stomping the whole way.”

  Shane sat down on the corner of Jen’s desk. “I didn’t have much time to talk to the lady. I was just about to get started with a new client when she drove in. The woman told me she felt sorry for the horse. She offered to pay for two months training, then asked if I’d find her a home after I started her. She didn’t want any of her money back. She just wanted to give the mare a chance for a good home somewhere. In all honesty, because of how busy we are, I probably wouldn’t have considered letting the lady dump the mare on me if a decent check hadn’t come along with the horse. I took a quick look at her in the trailer before I agreed. She’s put together pretty well, even though she looked scared. I didn’t pick up on anything that seemed mean about her. So, I told Terry to let the lady follow him back to the quarantine paddock and unload her. I wish now I had taken the time to find out what I was getting myself into.”

  Jen asked, “Did you mess with the mare today?”

  “No, I didn’t have time, but I plan on working with her some this weekend.”

  “What will you do if you can’t tame her?”

  He shrugged his shoulders and gave her a lopsided smile. “I don’t know, I’m pretty sure she’ll come through for me. She’s probably never been around someone who knew how to get on her good side.”

  Chapter 2

  Shane made his way to the small bar in their living room, and mixed himself a stiff drink before heading for the shower. The kids were staying at friends’ houses tonight, so he and Jen were planning to have dinner somewhere nice. “Let’s get cleaned up,” he said as he started up the stairs of the two-story farmhouse. “I’m really looking forward to a night out.”

  Considering the amount of steam that had built up through the large bathroom, he must have lost track of time while standing under the soothing water. He’d barely stepped out to dry off when Jen appeared through the steamy mist. That’s when he slid his gaze down her slim, fit body, and noticed the pink lace lingerie she’d changed into for him only moments ago.

  “Surprise,” she whispered in his ear before she wrapped her arms around his neck then softly pressed her warm inviting lips against his.

  Shane looked deep into Jen’s emerald green eyes as he brushed back the few strands of her natural blonde hair that had fallen against the side of her face. Then he slowly picked her up and carried her into their bedroom.

  After twelve years of marriage they knew well how to satisfy each other’s desires, and both of them enjoyed taking their time before reaching the always passionate end. He knew he wasn’t the most attentive guy in the world for her to live with, and he truly appreciated the effort she made to keep their romance strong. Beside the physical attraction they had for one another, and beyond even their love and family ties, they were best friends.

  After lying in each other’s arms and enjoying this rare evening alone without the kids in the house, Shane spoke up jokingly, “Now that I’ve fulfilled my husbandly duties, can we go eat? I’m really starving.”

  “So am I,” Jen replied with a laugh. They reluctantly got out of their soft, comfortable bed, dressed, and headed out.

  On the weekends, the farm had a separate staff that came in to take care of the horses, and Shane was looking forward to sleeping past his usual 5:30 a.m. wake up. Days like this were considered family time, and he truly looked forward to spending them with Jen and the kids.

  In his younger days, he was considered pretty wild. He had partied a lot, chased a few ladies, and had a reputation for being able to hold his own in a bar fight if it was necessary. Back in those days, he spent most of his weekends hanging out with friends. He had a lot of good memories from that part of his life, but these days he usually stayed home with his family. Not because this was where he was supposed to be, but because it’s where he wanted to be. He still enjoyed going out and having a couple of drinks every now and then, but his priorities were with Jen and their two kids. He knew how quickly the children’s younger years would fly by, and he had no intention of missing this time with them.

  As they got out of bed late this Saturday morning, Jen could tell Shane was a bit out of sorts. “Is
there anything wrong?”

  “I’m okay. It’s just that I had the weirdest dream last night.”

  Jen looked at him with an inquisitive squint in her eyes.

  “I was high up on a mountain, sitting on the mustang mare. There were all these Indians around me. Some were on horseback, some weren’t. I can remember feeling so distraught, so absolutely miserable. I don’t know what had me so sad. The Indians were just sitting there with consoling looks on their faces. They weren’t saying a word, but I could tell they knew how bad I felt. I asked them what was going on. One of them pointed down toward the base of the mountain and said, “Stay on your path, and you will find what was lost to you.”

  “What the hell does that mean?” he laughed. “I guess between the couple of whiskeys I drank last night, and all the talk about the mustang coming from a reservation, my mind was in a bizarre dream mode or something.”

  “I don’t know,” Jen said, “that’s pretty strange. Are you sure you haven’t been dipping into that bottle of pain pills in the medicine cabinet?” she joked.

  Shane scratched the back of his head. “I don’t know what brought that one on, but I haven’t been able to shake it off.”

  Jen raised her eyebrows and shrugged her shoulders as she headed downstairs to fix breakfast.

  It was late morning before Jacob and Tina got home from sleeping at their friends. As soon as they walked in the door they asked, “Hey, Dad, can we saddle up Tory and go for a ride?”

  Sometimes it was hard to work up any excitement about going out to the barn on his days off, especially after he’d been there all week working his tail off. But he knew how much the kids enjoyed it. “Eat your lunch, then we’ll go for a ride.”