My Rowdy Cowboy. (3B Ranch Series) Book 2

4

**** Yancy walked into the house just as the introductions were completed. He sighed and caught Rowdy and Beau by an arm.

"Boys, I need to speak with both of you, Brett and Agent Montaque in the study. Now, if you don't mind."

Rowdy and Beau both nodded, concerned by this unexpected behavior.

"You ok?" Beau asked.

"Yeah, yeah... I'm fine, son. All this just threw me. I... I don't like thinkin' about that day." he looked at his feet and briefly at his late friend's portrait. "I don't like thinkin' about the day Brett left us. It's like losin' him all over again, but now I see things differently." He ended and looked at Beau.

"Ok, Pop." Brett and his partner joined them in the office.

***

"What's up, Pop?" Brett asked.

"Been thinkin' about what Agent Montaque said about differences in the way Brett was actin'. And he was actin' kinda off, almost as if he hadn't slept well, hadn't slept well at all. He said he felt fine when I spoke to him about it." The older man seemed to be watching a movie in his memory. "His eyes were sorta dull an' dark like, an' he did speak a little differently. Like he wasn't totally there, but he didn't do drugs, or alcohol, you all know that. He didn't have to in order to be at the top of his game. In fact he was an avid spokesman against both. They didn't call him, 'Major Bullseye' for nothin'. He was just that good."

"Yeah we know, Pop." Beau murmured. "I think most of what I know about bull ridin' I learned from watching tapes of him. When he got on that bull, they seemed to become one. It was almost harmony."

"Yup." Yancy agreed, "That's why we were all so surprised when the bull threw him. But, it wasn't really that the bull threw him, more like he just... slipped off," he pulled a vhs tape from his coat pocket and put it in the vcr.

"Now watch boys, see the master at work." He played all the usual rodeos from that year. "Lillie always videotaped from about an hour before right through the ride and until he got outa the arena. He'd study 'em later, see where he thought he could improve and then teach you boys. That year we hired a pro to make the video."

"Now watch this one. You'll see him an' me talkin' all the way to the chutes, right up until he nods to the gate keeper."

The five men watched the screen intently. "See?" Yancy pointed out, "There we are, walking toward the chute and he's actin' normal... but here," he pointed, "he sways a bit."

"Yyyyeah," Brett breathed. "I remember that now. Mom begged him to forfeit, and not take that ride. She told him he had a fever, but he just laughed."

Rowdy looked at Brett, then back to the screen. "There he's talkin' to the four of us. I had forgotten that Brody always carried his gloves for him." Rowdy smiled, and rolled his eyes when they saw the bull rider ruffle Rowdy's red hair.

"Ok, now watch close, boys. See how he climbs up the chute and when he leans over and goes to grab the top bar..."

"He totally missed it!" Beau exclaimed.

"He overshot the bar!" Brett announced, pointing to the screen. "Dad never missed the bar. He was always in tip top condition before every ride."

Yancy nodded, "Keep watching now. He goes ahead talkin' to everybody, laughin' an' all. I remember some of his words slurred a bit, but we thought he was foolin' around 'cause he was laughin' about it. He joked that both his girls had just given him good luck kisses, and he was drunk on too much love. I thought it odd at the time, 'cause he always went into a zone when he got on the bull, but that night..."