Free Spirit

Chapter Ten

I dreamt of Spirit that night. We were cantering down a dirt track, a huge fallen log looming ahead of us. Even in my dream, I could feel Spirit fighting against the bit to get his head- he wanted to take the log.

Suddenly, a few strides away, a hideous creature leaped out in front of Spirit. The animal had three bloody gashes above its eye. It was a cougar. 

Spirit reared up, his long powerful legs beating the sky. I tumbled out of the saddle, which threw me clear of the cougars path. Then, it seemed everything happened in slow motion. Spirit turned to face the cougar, kicking out with his back legs and rearing, just like he had done in reality that day in the meadow. 

The cougar bared it's teeth and growled threateningly. Then, all of a sudden, it pounced...

"No!" I woke up screaming, beads of sweat running down my forehead and matted into my hair. My breathing was faced paced and uneven, a tight knot rolling in my stomach.

Then, without thinking, I threw back the quilt, slipped my boots on and within minutes, I was out the front door, running out of Maple Ridge once again.

-

"Spirit?" I called. Even though I knew it was only a dream, I had to make sure he was ok. 

I walked further than usual and into a shadowy area of trees, past the meadow and the plain.

After what felt like forever, I heard the padding feet of an animal and the crack of a twig. A dark shape slinked past me and into the undergrowth, turning its head to look at me, amber eyes, which were all-too-familiar, bright in the darkness, before disappearing into the brush. The cougar.

"Spirit!" I started to run, flitting in between the trees, until finally, I saw the recognisable conformation of a horse blanketed in the shadows. Upon closer inspection, I noticed it was lying down and, even from this distance, I could see blood glistening in the moonlight.

Running over, my worst nightmares came to life.

It was Spirit.