Smith Ranch

Chapter 1: Texas Storm

The rain was just pouring down. Skyler looked at the Thunder in the distance and the lightning crashing weather in Texas seemed to be unsure of what it really wanted. She thought honestly, she believed that weather was like a girl's personality. It was either sunny or raining, sometimes it'll just change instantly. That seemed to be the Texas kind of weather. In Montana usually it's cold and then it's warm and somewhat cold, she looked in the back seat girl sitting in her car seat sleeping they've been driving since Montana stopping ever so often to let her horse stretch his legs and to let the girl run around get all her energy out before having to get back into the truck. Skyler Blake is known to be a very stubborn girl. That's what her sister always had told her, and then her sister went off and joined the military leaving her daughter behind. Skyler always hated that she had done that, but in doing so her sister was happy. At times, Savannah would visit her and stay with her mother, this was her last round to Iraq and then she would have been back. She remembered that phone call not the one the military gives you when someone passes, no they showed up to the doorstep for that she remembered seeing the pain in Savannah's eyes, she remembered hearing Savannah scream for her mother. That was a few weeks ago. And then her sister had done something to Skyler, she decided that if she ever died Savannah would go live with her brother's half-brothers honestly. Down in Texas.

She had spoken to the man on the phone, and they were waiting for her. The horse trailer was hooked up to her Ford and they started their journey to Texas. At first, he wanted her to get on an airplane, but she explained that Savannah wanted Dex's to come with her; they owned a ranch they could certainly allow that. They had no idea who Dex's was and honestly, she was not looking forward to telling them. But then she had to tell him that it was a horse, a Mustang to be at that. They said they would bring him down, and they would see them when they got there. She saw the sign that said Amarillo Texas, just an hour or so to go. The rain was getting worse, honestly, she thought it was gonna be pretty sunny in Texas. And hot, she was not expecting the rain, or the thunder, or the lightning. The only good thing is that there wasn't really anyone on the road. It was 9:00 at night and she thought there would be more on the road. Well like Montana, everyone was usually at home by now. Unless she works at the 24-hour veterinarian hospital, she looked at her phone making sure that she was going the right way.

"Auntie?" A tired voice in the back seat spoke. Savannah rubbed her eyes and looked around when she had fallen asleep it hadn't been raining as hard it was just a sprinkle. It had also been more bright outside. And now the only thing she could see was the lights inside the truck that reflected off the windows cupping her hands she pressed her face against the window to look outside. Only seeing a few lights as they drove down the road.

"What is a munchkin?" Skyler smiled, honestly Skyler was worried about the storm, the horse in the back was used to loud noises, her sister made sure of that and she made sure to keep it that way. She didn't own a ranch, or a farm. But it was still pretty loud where she was at.

"How much longer I have to go to the bathroom," Savannah said shifting around in her seat.

"We'll be there soon. Do you think you can hold it or should we stop? I don't know how far the next gas station is from here."

"I'll hold it," Savannah said as the sound of the Thunder scared her. She flinched when she heard the boom, remembering her phone call to her mother. It had been a really nice day, she had gotten off of school and she called her mom. They had shifted her mother off to war, and I'm doing that she was to stay with her aunt Skyler. It had been two years since her mother had left, she had been six at the time. Playing with her hands Savannah thought about a few things. She had been excited when the man had shown up to her door wondering if her mom had been with them, the pained expressions in their eyes when she had run out to greet her mother and calling for her thinking that she was gonna scare her and surprise her that she was there.