Saddle up

Chapter Eleven

I moved quickly to meet him in the drive. I said a silent prayer that neither boys in the barn would notice Cole was here.

He hopped out of the truck and came right for  me. He had a fat lip and a black eye. Before I could stop him, he had me hugged against his chest.

"I am so glad you're okay!", he whispered into my ear as I struggled against his hold on me, finally breaking free.

"Cole, what the hell are you doing here! This is my place of work...you can't just show up here whenever you'd like, especially not after the shit you tried to pull last night!!"

"The shit I tried to pull? You mean me asking if I could kiss you, you saying yes, and then your psycho boss attacking me from out of nowhere?" He replied with a hint of sarcasm in his tone.

"What, I..." But then I remembered. I had agreed to something, I just didn't know what. A wave of guilt washed over me.

"Shit...Cole I had no idea what you were saying! I was drunk off my ass and I just thought you were trying to get me home...I'm sorry. It was all my fault for drinking so much..."

Cole moved towards me again, but this time I didn't push him away. "No, no. It's not your fault", he said gently. "I knew you were drunk and I shouldn't have chosen that time to make my move...I'm sorry."

"Like hell you are! Get your hands off her!", Brant shouted from behind, startling us both.

"Christ man, what is your deal! I was just coming to check on my girlfriend after you practically kidnapped her last night!"

"She ain't your girlfriend, and you got no business showing up on my property whenever you please. If you were concerned about that girl right there, you wouldn't have been trying to take advantage of her like you were last night." Brant spat.

Cole snickered before addressing me. "Tell him, Jess. Tell him that you agreed to every bit of what happened last night."

Brant's fists were already clenched and the veins in his arms were beginning to bulge as he looked my way, waiting for my response.

I took a steadying breath before speaking. "I already told you Cole, I had no idea what you were asking me last night. I just thought you were trying to help me. But I am sure about one thing...I'm not your girlfriend.  Surely you remember cheating on me with some skank up at college...that kinda thing typically ends relationships...in fact, if I remember correctly, after the whole incident, you called to break up with ME before even telling me what happened.", I was brave now, all the anger and hurt that I had been feeling for the past several months was coming to the surface now and pumping adrenaline through my veins.

I could see a shift in Coles demeanor, now. He knew he wasn't going to get what he came here for, and suddenly he wasn't the sweet and concerning "boyfriend" he was playing just moments ago.

Cole snickered once more and replied icily, "So that's it then...you're screwing your boss now, Jess?...heh. Talk about skank..."

Immediately Brant  started towards Cole. "Brant! Wait!" I shouted trying to hold him back. But I was no match for him, he easily moved me aside and lunged at Cole. Before I knew it, Brant took a swing, and made direct contact with Cole's jaw. Cole stumbled back and hit the ground, but Brant didn't quit there, he grabbed him by his shirt and pulled him to his feet, tearing the collar... I could hear the slight rasp of material ripping.

"Shit! Chase! Chase, help!", I yelled, hoping he could hear me from across the ranch.

Chase ran out of the barn and towards the front lawn. He helped me pull the Brant away. Cole used his shirt to wipe the blood away that was trickling from his now busted lip.

"Cole, just get out of here! Leave now!", I pleaded.

Cole spat some blood on the ground, never taking his eyes off Brant who was still struggling with Chase. "Nah, I'm not going anywhere until you leave here with me."

"I'm not going with you, Cole! This is my job! I can't just pick up and leave...even if I wanted to!"

Chase, who was starting to lose in his battle to keep Brant under control, cut in..."Get the hell outta here, man. You're gonna get your ass kicked."

Cole smirked at Chase and Brant struggling against each other..."Just admit it, man...Jess means nothing to you....yeah, I heard all about you...gone all crazy after your girl died...you know, my buddies suggested that you were using Jess as a replacement for her...I thought it was crazy at first, till I saw a picture of her...what was her name...Kelsey? Yeah. Striking resemblance to Jess, but I'm sure you know already. That's why you gave her this job...to lure her in and make her yours..."

I watched as Chase looked Brant in the eye, gave him a slight nod as if understanding Brant's thoughts, and released him.

"No!!", I screeched as I went to jump in front of Brant again...

"Chase, get her away from here.", Brant said through gritted teeth as he began to battle with Cole again.

I felt Chase's arms around me, bear hugging me to his chest. "Get off me, Chase! Stop!" I pleaded, fighting against his grasp. But there was nothing I could do but watch helplessly as Brant and Cole fought one another. Brant eventually landing another blow to the side of Coles head, causing him to go crashing to the ground once more. But instead of Brant stopping there, he knelt beside him, grabbed Cole's collar again, and continued punching Cole in the face.

I was crying now, totally helpless as I watched the chaos unfold in front of me. "Brant! Please, STOP!...STOP, you're gonna kill him!"

But Brant couldn't hear me, he was in another world, full of hate and rage...he just kept hitting and hitting... Eventually Cole stopped trying to defend himself from the blows and his eyes rolled into the back of his head.

Chase finally had enough and released me. I ran straight for Cole as Chase grabbed Brant by the shoulder, but instead of stopping, Brant took a swing at Chase and hit him hard. Chase stumbled back and rubbed his jaw, staring back at Brant, wide eyed and speechless. Brant then realized what he had done and immediately moved towards Chase, repeatedly apologizing. Chase shrugged him off and motioned to both Cole on the ground, and I, sobbing above him. The nurse in me kicked in as I began checking vitals and neuro signs.

"Call 911!", I hollered in their direction.

Chase fished his phone out of his pocket and dialed as Brant came towards Cole and I.

"Jess, I'm..." Brant started...

"No! Get back! You don't come near us!"

His expression revealed a mixture of sadness and guilt. He stood there for sometime watching as I fussed over Cole until we heard the sirens of the ambulance off in the distance.

They finally arrived along with a police cruiser. Two men exited the ambulance and approached Cole and I. They each started asking questions, I answered what I could, but eventually I became overwhelmed and began to cry again. They left me alone as they secured a neck brace around Cole and got him onto the back board. I stayed where I was on the ground, unable to move. Everything was beginning to blur together, the sirens howling and the lights flashing. The police officer approached Chase and Brant and began asking questions, notebook in hand. One of the EMTs helped me up and guided me into the ambulance with Cole. The doors closed behind us and we began to pull out of the drive. I looked back to find Brant watching me as he spoke to the officer, he was silently apologizing to me...I could see the shame and remorse in his expression but I offered nothing in return as I looked back at Cole, who was beaten so badly I could hardly recognize him. I grabbed his hand and said silent prayers as we quickly approached the hospital...