by Patricia Fry
Savannah ended the call and stared into her phone screen. “What’s wrong, Michael? Are we in some evil vortex? Is Hammond under a spell?”
“Why do you say that?”
“Auntie went missing, Rags is…maybe he’s gone and so is Dolly.” She shook her head slowly, a tear rolling down her cheek. “Damon’s father is here trying to cause trouble. Colbi thinks she has a serious illness. What more could happen?”
“Dad? Savannah?”
“Oh, Adam,” Michael said, when he saw the boy approach from the hallway. “What’s wrong, Son, can’t you sleep?”
He rubbed his eyes and shook his head. “Not without Rags. Rags always sleeps with me.” He fell into his father’s arms and quietly wept. “I miss him, Dad.”
Savannah laid against Adam’s back and stroked his head. “Yes, we all do, buddy. I’m sure he misses us, too—wherever he is.” She sat upright. “I want to go out and look for him.”
“Now?” Michael asked, frowning.
“No, tomorrow. The horses are at the Bowmans’. Michael, let’s ride out there and see if we can find the cats. Please say you’ll go with me.”
Michael let out a sigh. He looked at Adam, who waited wide-eyed for his dad’s response. “Yeah, I guess we could do that.”
“Can I go?” Adam asked excitedly. “Can I, huh? I could ride Wilson.”
Michael thinned his lips. “No, Son. How about you go over to Aunt Maggie’s and Uncle Max’s in the morning and Savannah and I’ll take the horses out and see if we can find him.”
When Adam looked disappointed, Savannah said, “We’ll go for a ride before you leave, I promise.”
“Okay, but I wanted to watch Rags ride a horse—and Dolly, too. Can Dolly ride a horse?”
She tousled his hair. “We may find out tomorrow.”
“But for tonight, let’s all go to bed, shall we?” Michael suggested.
Adam balked. “I told you, I tried, but I can’t sleep in there without Rags.”
“Would it help if I put Buffy’s bed in your room? How about if Lexie comes in and keeps you company?”
“Yeah, that would be nice—but not the same.” Adam looked pleadingly at his father. “Dad, do you think…”
“Sure, Son,” Michael said. “I’ll sleep in the other bed in your room tonight. Would that would make you feel better?”
Adam nodded. He hugged Michael. “Thanks, Dad.”
Chapter 4
“Hey there, roommates,” Savannah greeted when Michael and Adam walked into the kitchen where she was preparing breakfast Sunday morning.
Lily sat in her chair eating fruit and bacon. “Da-da,” she squealed when she saw him.
He stroked the toddler’s hair and smiled down at her. “Hi, punkin.” He then wrapped his arms around Savannah. Pulling back, he peered into her eyes and mouthed, “I missed you.”
“Me, too,” she said. When she noticed Lily pointing excitedly at Adam and repeating something, she said to the boy, “I think she’s saying your name.”
“That’s my name?” he asked, making a face. “Doesn’t sound like it—sounds more like bacon or mad man.” He cocked his head. “Actually, that’s kind of how my other sister used to say my name when she was smaller.”
“Rose called you bacon?” Michael teased while encouraging Lily to eat her fruit.
Adam laughed.
“Or mad man,” Savannah said, also laughing.
Michael chuckled, then turned to Savannah. “Do you think your aunt will watch over both kids this morning?”
“I’ll ask. I’d better call Craig and make sure it’s clear for us to roam around out there in the hills. And I need to find out where the car burned.”
“I’ll finish feeding Lily,” he said, when he saw her approaching the toddler with scrambled eggs in her baby dish. “You go ahead and make the calls.”
“Okay,” she said, handing the bowl to him. “Your French toast and bacon are in that covered pan there, guys.” Savannah returned a few minutes later. “It’s okay for us to go up there. Craig said we’ll find the car down a canyon close to the twenty-six-mile marker. Michael, that’s not far from the Bowmans’ place.”
“Good,” he said, smiling at the baby. “Daddy won’t have to ride very far today.” More playfully, he added, “Daddy won’t get a sore…”
“Michael!” Savannah scolded.
“What?” he asked innocently.
“You know what a sponge she is—you don’t want her running around saying...”
“Saying what?” Adam asked, giggling. “Butt?”
“Yeah,” she said. “Did you hear what word your father taught her a few months ago?”
“Now Savannah,” he warned.
“What?” Adam asked, his eyes wide.
“Never mind,” Michael said.
“What, Dad? A bad word?”
“Well, not that bad. I wouldn’t wash your mouth out with soap for saying it.”
“What word was it?” Adam asked again.
Michael whispered, “Poop,” and Adam burst out laughing.
“Rose doesn’t even say that word. But she does say…”
“Watch it,” Savannah said.
“It’s not that bad.”
“Can you spell it?” Michael asked.
“Um, I don’t think so. I never had it on my spelling test.”
“Then let’s not say it,” Savannah suggested. She wiped Lily’s face. “I think she’s had enough—she’s starting to play with her food.” She turned to Michael. “I want to see about paying Heddy and Bob for keeping the horses. At the very least, we need to pay for their feed. I got a text from Bonnie; she said they may not be home until late tomorrow with the trailer.” She thought for a moment. “I guess we could actually ride the horses back. Maybe Shelly will help me with them tomorrow.”
“Yeah, you haven’t hung out with Shelly in a while—since we all went to Hawaii together with the photography group.”
“She’s been busy…well, so have we. It would be nice to spend some time with her. I know she’s always up for a ride.”
Michael placed a few pieces of bacon on his plate and spread some of Savannah’s apricot preserves on his French toast. “It’s just a good thing the Bowmans were close by and able to take care of the horses.” He squinted in her direction. “In fact, it’s rather serendipitous in a good way, don’t you think?”
She stared at him. “Yes. Yes it is. You’re right, the whole world isn’t caving in on us—just little pieces of it.” She took a deep breath. “Okay, I’d like to get an early start today. Auntie said we can bring the kids over anytime. Shall we shoot for nine?”
“An hour and ten minutes? Yeah, I can be ready. Son, how would you like to take your scooter over to Aunt Maggie’s? They have that big cement area around back where you can practice some of your moves—that is, after you help with the cats. I know you like to help with the shelter cats when you’re there.”
“Yes, I do. I like both. I hope there’s time to do both.”
“Well, finish your breakfast, then go get cleaned up and gather your stuff.” Michael called after the boy, “Don’t forget your helmet.”
****
The Iveys arrived at the Bowmans’ ranch just after ten to find Heddy doctoring a scratch on the leg of one of their goats.
“What happened to her?” Michael asked. “Did she get into another scuffle with Brenda?”
Heddy laughed. “No, this time I think it was an argument with a string of barbed wire. It’s minor. We’re in the process of changing out all the barbed wire, but leave it to Lissie to find a sharp piece.” She let the goat go, saying with a chuckle, “She’ll live to produce more milk.” She then turned to Michael and Savannah. “So you’re taking the horses out today?”
Savannah nodded. “Yes. Heddy, I want to thank you so much for taking care of them on such short notice.” Cringing a little, she said, “We’re hoping you can accommodate them for another few days.”
Michael interrupted. “I thought you and Shelly were going to ride them back.”
“Oh, I talked to her. She’ll be out of town most of the week.”
“Sure, they can stay. No problem,” Heddy said.
Savannah relaxed a little. “The Teagues won’t be home with their trailer until late tomorrow.” Before Heddy could respond, she said, “Of course, we’ll pay you for their room and board.”
“Okay, we’ll take something for the feed.” She shrugged. “But other than that, heck, we have the space—what are three more moochers?” She looked off into the distance, her mood turning sullen. “I thought we’d have to evacuate last night. Bob and I saw this big billow of black smoke not too far from here.” She pointed. “Over in that canyon. I guess someone torched a car. Bob saw Ranger Mitchell this morning. He said some kids stole the car and went joyriding. When a tire went flat or maybe it broke down…well, they must have gotten mad, set it on fire, and pushed it over the side. Stupid no-good kids.”
“Do you know who they are?” Savannah asked, expectantly.
“I hope not. No, Mitch didn’t give us any names.”
“So the fire didn’t get out of control?” Michael asked.
“No, thank the Lord. We called as soon as we saw the smoke and they got here lickety- split…” She smirked. “Well, as fast as any of them come to our aid. We’re not a priority, beings we’re practically the only ones up here.”
“So have the horses been behaving?” Michael asked.
“As far as I know,” Heddy said. “Where do you plan to ride today?”
“Out to where the car burned. Are there trails in that area?” Savannah asked.
“Depends on how close you want to get.” Heddy looked sideways at them. “You can take the road. As I understand it, the car’s over the side a ways beyond Statler Canyon—not too far from Coyote. But if you want to ride down closer—which I wouldn’t advise, but if you do—you can take the Buckle Trail—it’s marked. It’ll ease you down into that canyon. What’re you looking for, anyway?”
Before the Iveys could respond, Bob Bowman called out to his wife, “Hey, we’d better get a move on. The auction’s going to start soon.”
Heddy shouted, “Okay. Got the pigs loaded?”
When Bob nodded, Heddy said to the Iveys, “Well, nice seeing you. Enjoy your ride.”
****
Michael and Savannah had ridden for about twenty minutes when she said, “I can smell the car fire.”
He shook his head. “Not only do you have the best hearing of anyone I know and pretty darn good eyesight, you also have the ability to do distance smelling?”
“What can I tell you, I have sensitive senses.” She turned to him. “Don’t you smell that?”
“Now that you mention it, I can smell something—it smells like burned rubber.”
“Rags!” Savannah shouted. “Dolly! Where are you guys? Rags! Kitty, kitty. Dolly! Come on, kitties.”
Michael and Savannah rode slowly, combing the terrain with their eyes, following every movement and shadow, peering into every cavern and crevice, and watching for shades of color not typically seen in the wild. But they didn’t catch even a glimpse of anything resembling two domestic cats.
“I’m so discouraged,” Savannah said after a while. “This is really a wild area.”
“Your cat has an amazing sense of survival, hon. If any cat can survive out here, it’s Rags. I’m rooting for Rags.”
“And what about sweet Dolly?”
“He’s taken care of other cats before—you know he has. He’ll take care of Dolly.”
Fighting back tears of frustration, she asked weakly, “But where are they?”Michael took a deep breath and turned in his saddle toward her. “If they were in that car when it went over the side, they probably ran as far away from it as they could. Don’t you think so?” He gazed across the rugged terrain and said to himself, “But which way did they go?”
“What?”
“I’m trying to think like a cat—a very frightened cat who’s running away from obvious danger. Look at the environment—the configurations. Where do you think a cat would go?”
After considering Michael’s question and surveying the area, she said, “Well, away from the fire, like you said, and into dense brush, maybe—they’d want to be hidden.”
“Look, the flames climbed up the hill, so probably that way,” he said pointing in the opposite direction. He looked at the car and added, “That is, if they got out of there.”
“Michael, Craig said they didn’t find any carcasses at the scene…of course they got out.”
“Yes, but when? Did Bonnie and Clyde let them out somewhere else or did the cats find a way out once the car tumbled down the hill?”
“So you’re saying they might not even be here at all—they might be running around someplace miles from here?”
“It’s possible.”
She looked sullen. “You’re not cheering me up.” She then leaned over and peered at something on the ground. “Michael, look!” she shouted.
“What?”
“It’s part of Rags’s leash.” She climbed off her horse and picked up a swatch of blue nylon, holding it out for Michael to see. “Doesn’t this look like a piece of Rags’s leash?” She glanced around the area and began calling again, “Rags! Dolly! Here kitty, kitty.” Looking down at the piece of nylon in her hands, she began to cry. “It’s burned—look it’s singed. Oh Michael, this could mean…”
“It could mean that the cats got out, but the leash wasn’t attached and it was burned in the fire. That’s what it could mean.”
“Michael, are you trying to give me false hope, because I’m not a twelve-year-old kid, you know.”
Michael raised his eyebrows enticingly. “Yes, I know.”
“Oh, stop it. You know what I mean.”
Now sounding a little frustrated, Michael replied, “What do you want me to say, Savannah—that there’s no hope? That Rags couldn’t possibly live through this? Is that what you want to hear?”
She shook her head. “No, but I don’t want to believe so hard that I’m not prepared for the worst.”
Michael took a deep breath. “So what do you want to do?”
Sniffling, she said, “Keep looking.”
“Okay, let’s go.”
****
Three hours later, after riding a few miles of trails into rugged brush and rocky terrain, the Iveys and their mounts returned to the ranch.
“You’ve been quiet,” Michael said.
“I’m just so sad. It seems hopeless. We didn’t see even a sign of the cats.”
“We didn’t look in the right place. Oh, I believe they could be out there. We’ll find them, hon. It’s not hopeless—just hold onto that thought, okay?” When she didn’t respond, he said, “Looks like they’re still at the auction. Should we toss the horses some hay?”
“I don’t think so; they’re probably on a regular feeding schedule and that will just throw them off.” She slid off Peaches, ran her hand over the mare’s face affectionately, then took a deep breath. “How about we go spend some time with our kids and maybe come back tomorrow for another search? You were going to take some time off tomorrow, weren’t you?”
“Yeah. But don’t forget you said you’d take Adam for a ride. His mom’s coming to get him Tuesday.”
“Wow, I sure did say that.” She shaded her eyes and looked at Michael. “What do you think about bringing him out here tomorrow? He can ride Peaches and I’ll take Beulah, if you want to ride Delilah again. We can ride the easier trails. Maybe Lily can stay with Jenna. She’s been wanting to have a playdate with her and Bradley.”
“You haven’t mentioned Jenna much lately. Do you two stay in touch?”
“Not as often as we’d like. We both have so much going on in our lives. But yeah, we do connect from time to time. I kept Brad while she attended a funeral a while back. She wants to reciprocate before too m
uch time passes.”
“Okay. Yeah, I think Adam would like to ride out here. We could take it easy—maybe have him wear his bike helmet.”
“Good idea,” Savannah said. When he chuckled, she asked, “What’s so funny?”
“Adam’s going to be over-the-top excited when he finds out we’re taking him on a trail ride.”
“Yes, he will.” She lowered her head. “Let’s hope he’s with us when we find the cats.”
****
“You mean a trail ride on a horse like a real cowboy?” Adam asked later that afternoon. “And I get to ride Peaches?”
Michael and Savannah smiled at his exuberance and nodded.
Suddenly Adam frowned. “Do I need those leather things on my legs? Cause, I don’t have any.”
“Leather things?” Michael asked, puzzled. “Oh, you mean chaps?”
“Yeah, like the cowboys wear in the movies. They always wear them when they chase cows or bad guys or stagecoaches. Do we have any of those?” When Adam noticed his dad looking at him, he frowned and asked, “What?”
“I’m just wondering how you know so much about cowboys. I haven’t seen a Western movie on TV or on the big screen in years.”
“Oh yes, Dad, they show those old Westerns on TV all the time. My other dad and I like to watch them on holidays and weekends—Gunsmoke, Rifleman, Bonanza…So do you have chaps, Dad?”
“I have a pair of chaps,” Savannah said. “But I’m afraid they wouldn’t fit you—not yet, anyway. You’ll be fine just wearing your jeans. We’ll probably be sticking to the trails—no brush-crashing this time.”
“What about a bandana?” he asked in all seriousness. “I’ll probably need a bandana and a canteen. Darn, I have a canteen at my other house for my Boy Scout camping trips. Dad, do you have one I can borrow?”
Savannah laughed. “We usually just take water bottles in these modern times. You can use my saddlebags for your water bottle. And we can pack a lunch.”
Adam sat quietly for a moment on the floor petting Buffy, who had walked up to him. “How will we carry the cats when we find them? They won’t stay sitting on the horses, will they?”
