My Second Chance

Chapter Ten

Cherry's foal was a strawberry roan filly. She was very beautiful. She was fine after the nasty birth and so was Cherry but Chloe had decided to keep Cherry and her foal in their stable for several days so she could keep an eye on them then she would let them go outside into their fields with several other mares. Two more foals were born that night. After the birth of the second, I began to feel extremely tired so Chloe instructed me to go up to bed. If I had the energy to argue, I would have but I hadn't slept the night before due to nightmares and the loss of my father. But that night, I just collapsed on one of the mattresses up in the hay loft and fell asleep instantly. I slept late the next morning. When I woke up the next morning, I looked over at the clock that was hanging on the wall. It was twelve-thirty! I had slept almost twelve hours. I looked around the hay loft and saw Chloe on one of the bean bags. She was carving something out of a piece of wood with a pen knife.

"Have you not slept?" I asked. She looked up at me and there were big blue bags under her eyes. She shook her head.

"You should have woken me and I could have done something," I said.

"You wouldn't have known what to do if something went wrong," Chloe said," And you've been through a lot the last week or so. I know that you haven't been sleeping well lately. Ranger has been sleeping outside your door for the last few nights, watching over you."

"Ranger?" I asked," But he doesn't like me."

"No, he doesn't like anyone who he sees as a threat to me, the other dogs or the horses," Chloe replied," He is always snappy to someone who is new."

I was amazed. I thought all of the dogs hated me. I could see them in the hay loft, sleeping together now. Suddenly, I heard a big knock on the closed barn doors.

"Chloe," came the voice of a drunk man," Come out here."

Chloe looked up from her carving and whistled to her dogs.

"Who is it?" I asked, suddenly quite frightened.

"Frank," she said, walking down the stairs," He's come for Buck."

My stomach flipped and I followed her downstairs. She opened the huge doors with great strength and there stood a small man with a dirty face and three smelly dog.

"What do you want Frank?" Chloe snarled.

"I want my stallion back," he said, his voice horribly slurred by whisky," The buckskin that you caught yesterday."

Chloe's dogs didn't appear to like Frank's and they began to growl at each other. Frank's dogs didn't look good. They looked half starved and in desperate need of a bath.

"No," Chloe answered," You can't have him."

"He's mine, Chloe," Frank snarled," You can't just take him like that or I'll call the police and set my dogs on you."

Chloe looked him straight in the eye and said," I'll buy him off of you."

"No, I want him back," Frank said," Give him to me now or I'll call the police."

Chloe glared at him and slowly went to get Buck. I held her shoulder and said," Please don't give him back."

"I've got no choice," Chloe said.

I let her go slowly, a tear falling down my cheek. I had only known the buckskin one day but he had made a huge impact in my life along with Ava. Chloe fetched Buck from his stall. At first he followed her but then he caught sight of Frank and he reared and wouldn't go any further. Frank approached him and grabbed his lead rope. Buck tried to pull away but Frank was surprisingly strong and wouldn't let go. Frank tried to pull Buck put of the barn but Buck wasn't having any of it. He reared and bucked and wouldn't move. Then Frank pulled out a whip from nowhere and began to whip him. I was afraid that he would hurt Buck and called to Chloe to make him stop. Chloe edged over to me and said," Do what I say and don't ask questions. Get out your phone and take a video. Now!"

I did as I was told. Suddenly, Frank began to whip Buck's flank very hard but Buck still wouldn't move. Then, he called for one of his dogs. A dirty Collie ran up behind him and began to bark. At this point, Buck was absolutely terrified but Chloe still wasn't doing anything.

"Chloe," I cried," Don't let him hurt him."

"Keep filming," Chloe hissed.

I did as I was told. Suddenly, the dirty Collie began to try and claw at Buck. He caught him on his left hind leg. Buck screamed in fright. He tried to kick the dog but it had had experience with crazy horses and dodged put of the way. I watched it as it tried to claw Buck again but it didn't get far this time. Chloe yelled to three of her Border Terriers, Blaser, Webley and Bramble I think, and the small dogs began to attack the Collie, preventing it from attacking Buck. Meanwhile, Chloe snatched the lead rope from Frank's hand and led Buck away. Frank tried to follow but was stopped by a very angry and very scary Ranger.

"I'm calling the police when I get home," he screamed and left the barn with his evil dogs.

I stopped filming and, after shutting the doors again to prevent Frank getting in, I helped Chloe get Buck back to his stable. As he went in, I saw a small trickle of blood dripping from a cut in his leg.

"Chloe, he's been hurt," I cried.

"I know," Chloe said," Go and get the first aid kit out of the tack room. He's going to be fine. It's just a cut."

Shaking, I did as I was told. I gave it to Chloe who pulled out some antiseptic ointment and a bandage.

As she began to clean it she said," It's deeper than I thought but he'll be fine."

"I hope so," I said.

I watched as Chloe patch up his wound and by the time she had finished, Buck had calmed down a lot and had begun to eat his hay. As Chloe came out of the stall, I heard a police siren from outside. There came a knock on the barn doors.

"Chloe Maxwell," came a deep voice," Open this door now!"

I swallowed. How were we going to get out of this one?!