#1 Blazing Courage (6 page)

Jeff is ready to crash, but he offers me a ride to the stable.

“What do you know about Rebecca Travers?” Jeff asks as he drives.

“Only that she buys horses to kill for dog food. Disgusting,” I say.

“Imperial Enterprises, dog food owned by Lex Stockton,” he says. “And what do you think we feed Abbey? Would it interest you to know Rebecca quit that job three years ago to start a wild horse rescue?” I am speechless and a little embarrassed. He continues. “I guess she didn't like the job, either.”

“How did she know Louis Blackwater?” I ask.

“Blackwater took her place brokering horse meat,” Jeff says, “She had to train him. So he was the Butcher at the auction, and she was salvation. Guess things aren't always what they seem to be.”

“You can say that again,” I whisper as we pull up to what used to be the stable. Jeff says he'll pick me up as soon as he gets a little shut-eye. As tired as he is, that may be a week from Friday. But taking care of the horses will keep me busy. I find Jack sorting through the rubble.

“I'm surprised you came down here today,” he says. “There's not much left.”

Truth is, I can't imagine being anywhere else. The Top Tier barn may be a pile of ash, but it's my home away from home. And Jack needs me more than ever. “Not much to do at home, anyway,” I say. “What are you doing?”

“I already stopped by the feed store for temporary provisions. And I fed and watered the horses in the rings and paddocks,” he answers. “I guess I'm looking for the silver lining now. They say it's always there, if you know where to look.”

“Do you know where to look?” I ask.

“I might,” he says. “And I sure won't give up trying.”

“How did you know the Butcher?” I ask, “I mean, Rebecca.”

He laughs softly. “I wasn't always an old guy,” he says. “Years back I guess you would have called her my lady friend. She did rodeo; I did rodeo. We were two of a kind, at least I thought we were.”

“What happened?” I asked.

“She broke her leg real bad and couldn't ride anymore. It nearly broke her heart. I offered to take care of her, but she was proud, said no charity. When Lex Stockton offered her a job, it looked like things had turned around—until I found out which job he'd offered.”

“Oh Jack,” I say. “How could she go from loving horses to butchering them?”

“It wasn't that simple,” he says. “She thought if she took the job, she could change the way wild horses were rounded up and sold. She wanted them to gather the old and the sick for making dog food, leaving the healthy horses to live on in the wild. And for a while, she got them to listen.”

“For a while?” I ask.

“They stopped listening. And I guess we stopped listening to each other, too—until last night.”

“Last night when you called about Louis Blackwater?” I ask. He smiles.

“We got a start on a new understanding,” he says. “Maybe that'll be my silver lining.” If he's willing to give her a chance, I suppose I'll give her a chance, too.

By noon, Lex Stockton and Louis Blackwater are in police custody, and it's all over the radio and cable news. They're facing a whole list of felony charges including arson and attempted murder. Blackwater sings like a bird to avoid a lifetime in prison. He says between the divorce and a stack of bad business decisions, Stockton was facing bankruptcy. He thought cashing in on Jinx's insurance policy would save him, so he sent Blackwater to do his dirty work.

“It had to look like an accident,” Jack says. “When throwing Jinx to the wolves didn't work, he ordered an inferno.”

“Unbelievable,” I say. “What are Peggy and her mom going to do?”

“Didn't you read Jeff's article?” he asks, shaking his head. He knows now I did not. “June Stockton filed for divorce and sold her stock in Imperial Enterprises six months before any of this went down. She's sitting on a big pile of cash and had nothing to do with her ex-husband's criminal activities. They'll manage, but Peggy is going to need a friend. You ready to take on another wild filly?”

“I'll think about it,” I say, but he knows I really mean it. Peggy's lost more than I ever imagined having. I'll give her a fair chance, too.

Just then, a giant truck and trailer pulls up and interrupts Jack's treasure hunt. It's as fine as any rig I've ever seen with
Second Chance Rescue
printed on each side. A woman steps out of the driver side of the truck. Boots to hat to braided gray hair, she looks ordinary, but I see Jack smile.

“Hey, handsome,” she yells. “Any of these horses need a place to stay for a while? Looks like an old cowboy burned down their barn.”

“The Butcher?” I say.

“Not anymore,” he smiles. “I think she's here to help rescue us all.” When she walks near, he reaches out with both arms and gives her the biggest hug I've ever seen, humming that old Orleans song.

“Are you still singing that old song?” she says.

“Our song,” he winks. “Now let me introduce you to my best friend, Annie, the shortest wild horse trainer I've ever known.”

“Great to meet you, Annie,” Rebecca says. “It's good that you're not afraid of hard work and horses. We're going to need help getting this lot loaded and settled back at my ranch.”

“We're going to need a lot of help rebuilding Top Tier, too,” Jack says.

“You can count on me,” I tell them. “Glad to be part of the team.”

“Perfect,” Rebecca says. “Now let's get these glorious animals loaded.”

“Let's do,” I say, “and let's start with a Buckskin called Poco.”

AUTHOR'S NOTE

THE FACTS BEHIND THE FICTION

The story of Annie and Poco is pure fiction, from the first word to the last. But like all stories, it had a spark of inspiration—a flicker that grew into a creative flame. The true story of fifteen-year-old Madison Wallraf provided that spark.

In April of 2012, Wallraf and her stepfather drove to the M&R Overlook Farm stable in McHenry, Illinois, and found the 25,000 square foot barn was on fire. Wallraf tossed her cell phone to her stepdad, told him to call 9-1-1, and ran into the burning building to rescue the frantic horses.

“I started off by just putting their halters on and pulling them out by twos,” she told a reporter for
NBC News
. “But then the fire started getting quicker, so I just started wrapping ropes around their necks and just tying them around my arms and pulling them out.”

By the time fire engines arrived, the 4'10” teenager had saved twenty-five horses from certain doom, including her own beloved pet, Red. And while she required treatment for smoke inhalation, she did make a full recovery.

The cause of the fire was unknown.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Kelly Milner Halls never saved a horse from a burning barn, but she did adopt a wild Mustang when she was only twelve. She and her stable master trained the fourteen-hand Buckskin named Little Bit to be a great gymkana competitor and the best friend Kelly ever had. She still has every ribbon they ever won together and the old Carpenters hit, “We've Only Just Begun,” will always be their song.

Today, she lives in Spokane, Washington, with two daughters, two dogs, too many cats and a five-foot rock iguana named Gigantor. She still collects Breyer horses. Read more about Kelly and her books at
www.wondersofweird.com
. Email her at
[email protected]
.