and a horse called Straton

Chapter 24

Ty worked the bullock fat into the old stock saddle. The old leather had cracked slightly from a lack of care. The carefully carved name, however, had not faded in the least. "LUKE". The saddle had always been kept up to scratch and in perfect condition since Luke was so proud of it. It had been a prize saddle that he'd won at his first rodeo. Caitlyn had been there with himself and Luke, they'd all competed but Luke had taken the biscuit for all round cowboy.

The memory passed blissfully through his mind. Caitlyn and Luke had been a team for the team events, of course winning them all since they worked like clockwork together. Caitlyn had also run in the barrels with Straton and competed in the camp drafting. She'd done pretty well, especially since it had been her first rodeo as well. The buckle still sat in a drawer somewhere for the runner up prize.

As for himself he'd done okay but he hadn't ever been great at rodeoing. Labour was more his area of expertise but he'd had a fun day nonetheless.

The sweet bliss of the memory was pricked by the thought of Caitlyn when they'd gone to his grave. A shiver passed down his spine. She'd almost looked haunted, as if the words on the stone had put a curse on her. He couldn't understand why it would affect her so much. She'd had probably at least a year to get over it on her own. It shouldn't bother her as much as it bothered him.  Yet she hadn't even muttered a word of how he died. It seemed pretty selfish to him. No one knew if he was in pain when he went except for her. Maybe that was something he should ask her since it seemed that she wasn't going to bring it up.

He had to act like it didn't bother him. He was the one who had to hold her Dad together while she was off riding Straton. He was the one who had to tell Luke's parents that he was missing, then dead. He was the one who had to go to the funeral, listen to the half-ass apologies from people who thought they knew him. Obviously it wasn't that easy on her, but how hard could it be?  She knew what to do and it wasn't like she hadn't survived. 

He didn't realise he'd rubbed all the fat into the seat of the saddle until the sound of dry leather cut at his ears. His thoughts were pulled down the gurgler as he muttered curses to getting lost in them. More fat was smeared over the saddle, already spread out this time. The cloth massaged the yellowy substance into the brown leather evenly.

Old Ben limped out of the office and looked at what he was doing. Poor bloke. His hair had greyed significantly since Caitlyn had left. It had affected them all more than they let on. She could have gotten back. If Darcy could get there and back in the one day, how could she not know where she was?

"Got y'work done."

"Yup."

"Good." He limped back and eased himself back into the worn chair. Poor fella needed a new one to help his arthritis but nothing was going smoothly yet, despite Caitlyn being back and, mostly, pulling her weight.

That led him to another thought. Why wasn't she getting out of bed anymore?  She got enough sleep, she always left dinner early to go to bed. Maybe it was because she wasn't eating much. But she hadn't lost any weight. She wasn't drinking tea but that shouldn't put her out that much. Nothing was adding up. He sighed, the whole situation was pretty bad. 

The sound of soft hoof clicks pulled him back again and he turned from the saddle stand to see Caitlyn walking Straton in. Speak of the devil. But what made him frown sightly was the lack of anything on him. No bridle, no halter, no saddle. Not even a rope. They'd always had a tight relationship but she'd never run the risk of him running off and getting injured. Another mystery.

She didn't speak, only gave him a slight smile. In fact it almost seemed like she'd been crying but he wasn't about to ask. His thought train had made him too angry. The two went into the feed room, well, the gelding stood at the door with his neck in since his shoulders wouldn't fit. He watched him stretch his head out and a slight giggle come from within. Well obviously someone was happy.

"Stop it you oaf. Putting your tongue out won't get the oats to you."

Caitlyn came out with a handful of chaff which she gave to Straton once he stopped reaching for it. Oh great. Showing off. He corrected his thought train. No matter how much she might be bothering him at the moment, she was not a show off. Just teaching him some manners. Nothing unusual.

Silence fell over the barn for several minutes.  To the point where both people had forgotten about each other. Ty turned back to the saddle. Once he got to the name carved on it he slowed and stared at it for a few moments. He sucked in a deep breath and turned to Caitlyn.

"Was he in pain?"

The question obviously shocked her and she looked up from Straton's muzzle with the same haunted look on her face. Her eyes were the worst, he could hardly keep looking at her. They didn't focus, they just stared and glazed over with fear. Her bottom lip trembled while everything else seemed to turn gaunt and pale.

The shivers ran down his spine again but he didn't shift his gaze. He deserved to know. As far as he was concerned he'd gone above and beyond what he could have gotten away with, that should at least earn him the right to know if his mate was in pain when he died.

Her breaths increased for a few moments and her eyes misted over. What the hell was going on. He frowned and his nose crinkled slightly. Why was she acting so weird about all of this. It wasn't like she'd had to tell his parents what happened. He stopped the thoughts so he could focus on her answer.

Suddenly her hands began shaking and tears began to roll down her face in raging torrents. Well that wasn't at all what he expected. Caitlyn never cried. He had never seen her cry, only heard about the time she cried as a child when her mum was killed.

"Geez, no need to get so upset. It's a simple question." Maybe it was harsh but he deserved to know. She was just being irrational. What reason was there for her to be upset?  None that he knew.

With a loud sob that physically hurt him, both she and Straton were gone.

A/N
I thought you might like to hear from Ty's perspective, I thought it was only fair to state his case as well.  Thanks guys so much for all your support, I can't believe it's got so many views. Like, I know you don't do it for me but yeah. Thanks. Comment if you read this cos I'm curious to see who actually reads what I have to say lol.