Unherd (The Unpublished Edition)

Chapter 3

Somehow, Gil had managed to be clumsier on a horse than Barnaby-

And Barnaby could not stop replaying the video of it.

Dallas was right: Reba was sassy, and she let Gil know it by trying to rear up more than once.

According to Dallas, she wasn't upset, she just really liked to stretch her legs.

"Please don't send that to Seth," Gil muttered, eyes still fixed on the road.

"I won't," Barnaby promised. "This one's for me." He left the phone on his lap in favor of offering up his hand.

One quick glance, and Gil covered it with his own, interlocking their fingers.

Barnaby didn't expect Gil to be the Clubbing Type, but curiosity seemed to get the better of him. He'd convinced himself that there had to be something to it to attract a cowboy and a furry, and the fact there weren't many pictures of the place online only fueled his imagination.

"I just want to see what the deal is, then we can go home," he'd concluded. "And, hey, it might even give us an idea for something to do while we're here."

Barnaby couldn't see the harm in that. After all, he'd ridden a horse- if he could do that, maybe he could even learn to overcome his fear of socializing.

And what better place was there to practice than a club?

There wasn't much leading up to the tavern - there were barely any street lamps - but the neon signs in the windows beckoned them like a lighthouse at the coast.

Gil's GPS confirmed it: "You've arrived."

They turned into a packed parking lot where Barnaby quickly spotted Dallas' truck. They pulled up beside it, though neither hurried to get out.

From the outside, the tavern looked like any other dive bar. A few burly men loitered outside of it, but none of them appeared to be from the fundraiser.

"Why don't I go in first?" Gil offered. "If I find Dallas, I'll come back for you, and if not...we can head home-" He winked at Barnaby- "and I can finally remind you of how much I missed you."

Barnaby's hand lingered on Gil's until he was out of the car, almost reconsidering if he should let him go. But since they were already there, he gave in- "Hurry back."

As soon as Gil disappeared into the tavern, Barnaby turned his attention to Dallas' truck.

There weren't any androgynous men lounging in the back of it, so his gaze drifted to the bumper stickers. Among them was a faded American flag and a decal that read, "My other ride is a horse".

Barnaby's brows knitted together when he realized the "Beware of Dog" sticker was, in actuality, "Beware of Dog (He Has ADHD)".

Past the truck, a flap lifted up from the ground.

Barnaby craned his head just as two women emerged from a cellar door, one with a mane of fire-red hair. He swore it was the same redhead he'd seen help Dallas with his horses, only the woman by the cellar wore a significantly more revealing outfit.

Two more people, one still wearing a tye-dye shirt, left a nearby car to join them. After a quick, enthusiastic greeting, all four headed into the cellar together, closing the door behind them.

Gil's voice nearly startled Barnaby out of his seat- "They're not in there."

Barnaby let out a shaky breath, "I think you went the wrong way."

"What do you mean?"

Taking the lead, Barnaby hopped out of the car and pointed to the cellar. "A few people went through there."