Abediah Thornton

Chapter 16 - Sunday

There wasn't much to prepare for the meeting on Tuesday. Abediah piled all of the paperwork she had found in the old desk into a big shopping bag and set it beside the dresser in the hall, which is where the safe with the deeds to the farm was. She would get them out before she went.

Today she had other plans. She had called Louise last night who had confirmed that if Edwin was no worse then he could walk the boundary. Slowly!

She had finished all her farm work so that she could use the rest of the day. Riding Edwin had always been her stress relief...not that she'd ever had much stress before! Well, not for many years anyway. She set on and made up some sandwiches and a flask. She put the old cell phone into the bag and a little box of cookies.

In the porch she strapped her chaps on over her jeans and headed out to the barn. Edwin had been quite accomplished in his day, trained for riding and driving; she had enjoyed making hay in the field with him and moving cattle. These days though, they took things easy. Years ago she had transferred him to a bitless bridle after he'd developed an abscess in his mouth. It had taken a while for them both to get used to but now she much preferred it. He was smart enough to understand and she enjoyed feeling like they were working together, rather than she was forcing him.

She unhooked the bridle from it's place and met him with a mint. She brushed him down, checking each of his legs, and then slipped the bridle on over his head. She led him out to the mounting block and slid her legs over his wide back. It took some getting used to, riding a Suffolk Punch bareback. They were so wide! But again, she'd decided she didn't want to strap him into anything tight. He was an old man and he was really supposed to be retired, just sometimes they went for a joy ride.

Edwin bounced a bit when she got on. His feet jumping and dancing like a young colt. 'Do you want to go out, old man? Seems like someone has some energy to burn hu?' she asked, glad to see he was just as happy as she was to be going out.

They rode in the opposite direction to the drive. Back past the barn and along a dirt track. The farm didn't have any mountains but it was in the foothills so it wasn't flat. The dirt track ran parallel with the road further below for a long while before turning right and following the farm fields around. To the left of the track there were fields that ran in a gentle slope between the track and the main road. The right of the track was lined with trees and behind them the land rose again.

First they passed Edwin's field which he shared with two ageing donkeys. The donkeys were quite characterful. They were brother and sister and had been rescued when they were about 11 from a farm nearby. The farmer had passed away. He'd bought these for his daughter but she'd long gone away to college and then on to city-living and they'd just been left in the field. Their hooves had been overgrown and their coats matted but they were generally healthy. They were best friends and got very upset if you tried to separate them. This actually made things much easier, you only ever needed to move one and the other would follow.

Edwin seemed happy to hang out with the donkeys. When he was out in the field he either watched the traffic or ate grass. Now he whinnied and the donkeys came running. It seemed as though a conversation occurred.'Look at me! I'm going out!''Where are you going? Can we come!''Ner ner ner ner ner!'This last was accompanied by the same little jogging feet he had done outside the barn. The donkeys ran backwards and forwards next to the fence with them as they rode along. Edwin kept dancing along until they had moved out of reach of the donkey's 'HeeHaws' then he settled down into a slow and steady walk that she knew he could keep up all day.