Cowboy's Salvation

Andi

   Hunter was really startng to get on my nerves. He had been her more than a week and hadn't talked to me, the hands, or even Miss susan. Did he have a social disability or something?  Maybe he needed time, I knew how hard it was, both my parents died in a fire and Miss Susan had taken me in. At least his dad was still out there somewhere. And every morning he got up with a bag of nuts and seeds and walked into the timber, he stayed there most the day only coming back for meals or to lock himself in his room again. Well, if he wanted to mope I wsn't gonna stop him.

   the hands were bringing in some ungentled horses. I would have to help them. I saddled my horse (Miss susan's horse technically, but I ride him). He was my favorite horseon the ranch, he was black, Warlord we called him. Some of the hands, Lefty, Gimpy. Twinky, Gooch, Hoss, Boss, and Bracey were all saddling horses down the various rows of pens. Don't ask me the hands real names, I don't know them, just their nicknames and how they earned them. I tightened my cinch as Boss rode down the rows telling us to get moving. Boss was the trail boss, sort of the h.m.f.i.c, he kept us on on track and in check. I mounted my horse and joined the other hands that were going. Cook usuall had his mules, Jack and Anne, ready buy now and the chuck loaded, but we were only going to be gone one night so it would be unnessesary.

   Gimpy and Swede were already waiting, I was fallowed by Gooch, Twinkie, Hoss, and Lefty. There was more hands but they stayed back for this one. Miss. Susan saw us off. "maybe Hunter should go, might be good for him" she said. Boss, dismounted from his horse, holding his hat replied "he'd play hob, maybe next time around." She thoughtfully nodded agreement "vaya con dios" she said "and be careful" Boss nodded "yes ma'am," he smiled, put his hat back on his head, then stepped into the saddle.

   Now, ya see, ol Boss is sweet on Miss Susan and she him, everyone knew it, but niether would come out and say, nor would the deny it, though.

   We turned away. "next time around" I said to Swede. He laughed "I'd be ticckled pink to see him out here 'next time around'." 'Next time around' was the winter round up, and winter round up, to put it lightly, sucked ass.

   We passed the time talking, swaping stories and chewing on jerky. almost a full days riding and we had the herd in sight. We camped on the far side of them, near the rivver that wound around the entire ranch. It wasn't much more than a creek here, but it got wide enough and deep enough for a horse to swim in some places.

   We unsaddled horses and unroolled bed rolls. Swede and I, being the youngest, were elected to lead the horses down to drink while the others sat around a small fire. I hopped on Warlord bareback and Swede on his red roan mare, koda. We ponied the other horses downto drink.

   "haven't seen that Hunter kid around much" Swede said casually.

   "yeah, he spends a lot of thime in the woods behind the house, and the rest of it he's locked in his room, and I think he's avoiding people" I said simply.

   "you got your eye on him" swede suggested.

   I looked up at him "no, why would I"

   "come on, he's definatly not hard to look at" he said.

   " What about Tanner?" I said, "or Jean, or Danny" They all worked on the nearby ranch. I purposly left out Swede.

   "umm, I think you forgot someone" 

   "oh, yeah? and who would that be"

   "none other than Mr. Swede McSexy"

   I laughed, "okay, and for the sake of being complete, yourself" Me and Swede were best friends, we would never dateand we both knew it, but we teased each other constantly.

   "okay, well I am your best friend, and who would you go to for relationship advice if you were dating me?"

  "Oh, I'd be lost if I didn't have you for relationship advice." I joked.

   "yeah, and umm, you and Jean didn't workout the first four times, you probably shouldn't bother trying that again." Very true, never again. "and Danny is, well, Danny" Good point.

   "what about Tanner?"

   "well...umm...he umm...Ok, there's Tanner, but he works on another ranch, Hunter is always there."

   "but he's not from around here, doubt he's even seen a cow, let alone a horse, and i garantee he's never riden one. and he hasn't even talked to me, i think he's avoiding me" i said

   "he's only been here a week, he'll warm up to us."

   'Whatever" We went back to camp.

   We located the evermoving herd in the morning and started for home. we made it just before supper. lurch was waiting at the fence, he swung it oppen then clossed it behing the band of ungentled horses.

   One stallion inparticular caught my eye. A blue roan, real big, but still fairly young. Hewas running around the carral, his head high in the air.

   Now the horses had to be branded. Our brand was two Y's with a line over them (barwise). I helped with sorting, pulling the unbranded horses from the rest and sorting out ones that were already branded.

   Hunter stood against the fence, watching the comotion, and the blur roan stally running laps inside the pen.