Spirit Horses (32 page)

Tigee replied, “Shane and I discussed it briefly on
the radio. I’m just not sure how to handle it yet.”

“Maybe it’s time to call in the law,” said Shane.
“Especially since those three guys tried to assault the women.”

Tigee looked at Shane. “You’ve seen what the local
law is like around here. It would be your word against theirs, and with that
Nethers boy involved, they wouldn’t get more than a slap on the wrist. Besides,
it sounds as though you taught those fellas a lesson they won’t soon forget.
The last thing I need right now is for any of our Shoshone men to find out
about this incident. If they did, there could be some bad trouble over it.
There is already a lot of tension building over the killing of the mustangs.”
It was obvious that Tigee was torn between making the three men pay for hurting
Tara and Tashawa and doing what was best to keep the peace.

The three sat quietly in thought for a few minutes,
then Tigee spoke again. “Without the law to help us, I’m not sure how to
protect the land or the mustangs. I’m afraid I have some news that makes the
matter even worse,” he added. “The whole tribe is very worried about our
finances for the winter.”

“What’s going on?” Tara asked.

The old man took a deep breath and explained, “Some
agricultural inspectors came the day you left for Shadow Creek. They claim that
one of the calves we took to auction last week tested positive for anthrax.
Then they found a sick cow on one of the other Shoshone ranches. Our people
said the sick cow wasn’t theirs, and that they don’t know how it got in with
the herd. Since then, the inspectors have quarantined all the ranches on the
reservation indefinitely. This means we can’t sell any more cattle this year.
The local banks have caught wind of it and won’t even loan the ranchers money
to get through the winter.”

“We’ve had a really good hay crop this year,” Tara
said. “I know it won’t pay all the bills, but it might help carry the ranch
over until we get the cattle problem solved.”

Tigee’s head dropped as he spoke. “Someone has
started rumors all over the territory that we didn’t spray our hay properly and
that we have a bad infestation of blister beetles in the alfalfa. As you know,
if a horse eats even a small part of a blister beetle, it will die. Our hay was
excellent this year, and we did spray it, but the rumors will keep the locals
and the big shippers we usually sell to from buying any. I don’t understand
this run of bad luck.”

Shane couldn’t sit quietly any longer. “It can’t be
a coincidence that all these things are happening at the same time. I think
someone is trying to put a squeeze on your income for the winter. If they did
find oil in the valley, then this could all be part of a plan to force you to
accept a land deal. These people know that the whole Shoshone tribe would have
to be desperate before you would lease any part of the valley. They also know
that as long as the horses are there, the majority of your people would resist
a land deal. My guess is they will be coming after the herd soon, and probably
with a lot of guns.”
        

Tara asked, “What if we just
told them that we know what they’re trying to do, and we won’t sell or lease
any land no matter what?”

Shane thought for a minute. “The way I see it, these
guys can really make things tough around here until they get what they want.
With the local law probably being on Nethers’s payroll, they won’t be any help.
We know that for sure. If we confront them now, they may get even nastier. I think
it could work in our favor if they don’t realize we are on to their scheme.”

Tigee added, “Besides, in the end it will come down
to a tribal vote on any property sale or lease. If enough of our people are
really in need of money, we won’t be able to stop them from giving into a deal.
I agree with you, Shane, it would be best if we don’t poke at the angry bear
until we have a plan. We will eventually have to prove to our people that there
is oil out there and that if they’re patient, it could one day be a good income
for our tribe.”

The three sat contemplating for a while until
suddenly, Shane’s face lit up. “I have an idea,” he said “but I’m not sure if
you’ll like it.”

Tigee asked, “What is it?”

“Have you ever seen what a bunch of roaches do when
you turn on a light?” Tara and Tigee look puzzled. Shane continued, “They
quickly scatter back to where they came from, don’t they? What if we put a
spotlight on this situation from outside this territory?”

“I don’t understand,” Tara commented, frowning.

Shane smiled. “Your people have a resource here that
can get a lot of national attention if we can get the right exposure for it.”
Tara and her grandfather still looked confused. Shane continued, “The herd!
There are a lot of people that would take an interest in those mustangs because
of their rare bloodlines. The fact that you have direct links that lead back to
the Lewis and Clark expedition and horses that were part of Custer’s defeat at
the Little Big Horn is fascinating, not to mention the bloodlines that date
back through your tribal history all the way to when the Spanish first brought
horses to the continent in the fifteen hundreds. These are all things, which if
they are publicized correctly, would have a lot of people wanting to help
protect and preserve your herd.”

“I don’t know if I like this idea,” Tigee replied,
shaking his head.

Tara walked over and put her hand on her
grandfather. “This may be the only way we can keep them safe. With the public
eye on our horses, Nethers would have to leave them alone. The last thing he
wants is publicity.”

Tigee seemed puzzled. “How would we get the public’s
attention?”

“I’ve got some friends in the magazine business who
are always looking for a good story. I can’t guarantee you anything, but I’m
pretty sure this is the type of story they’d jump all over. The kind of
national exposure they could give you would make a lot of people more than just
sympathetic to what’s going on out here. This would give you the time you need
to convince your people that Nethers and his bunch are trying to take advantage
of them. I’d sure like to catch Nethers by surprise with some big-time
publicity about what he is trying to do to the horses and your valley.”

“We’ve seen the articles about you in the
magazines,” Tigee said.

Shane looked surprised. “How did you see any
articles about me?”

“Your friend Mrs. Jensen brought them out for us to
read.”

Shane shook his head with a bashful expression. “I
didn’t know she did that. But I can tell you this, hundreds of thousands of
people read those magazines every month. I also know some animal-rights
activists. They would love to get involved with saving the mustangs, and they
may be capable of getting those shooters along with whoever is behind them into
a lot of trouble. You just give me the okay, and I’ll start the ball rolling.”

The room grew quiet. Finally Tigee looked at Tara
and then turned toward Shane with a single nod. A reluctant yes.

“Normally, I would bring this up in front of the
tribal council. But, since there is so much going on here that they are unaware
of, and so little time to act, I will take the responsibility.”

Shane breathed a sigh of relief. “Good, I’ll begin
making calls first thing in the morning.”

As Shane stood to leave, Tigee said, “Your friend
Mr. Jensen called yesterday. He said it was important that you contact him.”

“Do you mind if I call from here?”

“Sure, go ahead.” Tara and Tigee went out to the
porch while Shane picked up the phone.

The two sat on the swing together, as they often
did. Her grandfather patted her leg and said, “I can see a difference in the
two of you since you returned. You seem closer than before.”

“Yes, Grandfather. I think we have some real
feelings for each other.”

The old Indian smiled and said, “He’s a good man,
but did he tell you about his past?”

“Yes, he did.”

“Did he tell you why it is so important for him to
set his mare free with the herd?”

“No, but he told me before that it had something to
do with a promise he made.”

Tigee nodded and said, “It isn’t my place to say.
I’m sure he’ll tell you about it when he is ready. Just be careful with giving
this man your heart, Tara. He’s dealing with a lot of grief, and I don’t want
to see you get hurt.”

The two sat quietly for a while, and then Tigee said
in a concerned tone, “I had another vision, involving a
Tahot
ay that resembled him. In
this dream, he showed no fear as he battled the enemy that was in front of him.
Unfortunately, he was not aware of the real danger that was sneaking up from
behind. I fear for his safety.”

This really shook up Tara. “Could this dream be
about the trouble we had during the trip? He fought those men bravely. If it
had not been for him and the dogs, things could have turned out really bad for
Tashawa and me.”

“I think my vision was more about the future than
the past. Only time will tell. For now, I’m glad to see you happy.” Tara smiled
and put her arm around him as they quietly sat on the swing.

Shane reached Mr. Jensen and was listening closely.
“I was shocked to see Vince Nethers standing at my front door ringing my bell.
I’ve talked to him in town a few times, but he’s never been out to my house. I
invited him in for coffee, and we had quite an interesting chat. At first it was
just small talk, but then he started asking questions about you.”

“That doesn’t surprise me. I had quite a run in with
his son, Bo, and two of his friends. I think I may have broken Bo’s nose in the
ruckus.”

Mr. Jensen laughed. “According to their side of the
story, the boys told Vince that they worked you over pretty good.”
   

“No, sir, the only ones they worked over were the
two women I was with. Believe me, those sons of bitches paid a price for that.”

“What were those boys doing out there, anyway?”

“They were covering up some test drilling sites that
were on reservation land. You were right all along. Those people are sniffing
around for oil out there. Now, I suspect Nethers is trying to mess up all kinds
of income for the Shoshone so that they will be behind with their bills when he
makes them an offer on the land.”

“How about the mustangs?” Mr. Jensen asked.

“The Shoshone are keeping a close watch on them, but
I’ve got a feeling they’re going to be dodging bullets again real soon. I’ve
got a plan I’m working on that might help. But right now, I’d like to know what
Nethers was saying about me.”

“Well, he wanted to know who you are, where you came
from, and what your business is out here. I acted as if I really didn’t know. I
told him I had boarded your horses for a couple weeks and thought you just came
out for some hunting and fishing. I don’t think he bought it though. He got
real cocky and loud when he said if I saw you again, to tell you to mind your
own business or you could get hurt. He said to let you know it would be a good
time for you to go back to wherever you came from. I just kept acting like I didn’t
know anything about you. I told him I doubted that I would see you again, but
if I did, I’d pass the message on. You need to be very careful, Shane. Ole
Vince is worried about you spoiling his future fortune.”

Shane quickly replied, “I’m not too worried about
him. Besides if my idea works, that old scoundrel is going to find a major
complication in his scheme.”

“Shane, you watch your back, and you let me know if
I can help.”

“Thank you for everything, sir. I’ll talk to you
later.”

He hung up and walked out on the porch.

“Is everything okay with the Jensens?” Tigee asked.

“Yes, sir, they’re fine.” Shane didn’t see any need
to worry these two with the fact that Vince Nethers was threatening him, so he
didn’t mention it.

Tara got up from the swing and went over to lean
against the porch rail next to Shane. “My grandfather is going to a neighbor’s
house for dinner. That leaves me free tonight. If you want, I could come over
and cook.”

“Why don’t we go out to eat? I don’t have any food
in my cabin anyway. We could run up to Fort Washakie and get a steak.”

“Sounds good to me. I’ll meet you here as soon as I
get cleaned up.”

The hot shower felt good on Shane’s aching back. Although he was in
good shape for a man his age, the many years of making his living in the saddle
had taken a toll on this part of his body. With the last of the trail dust
washed off, he dressed and went to meet Tara.

A clap of thunder rumbled overhead as a few
sprinkles of rain began to fall from the evening sky. It was almost dark when
Shane sat down on the porch swing to wait for her. His mind was racing,
thinking about the events of the day.

His mind suddenly went blank as he looked up to see
Tara coming out the door. Man, she was easy on the eyes! She wasn’t dressed
fancy, just snug-fitting white denim pants and a light pink sweater. Her
medium-high heels and turquoise earrings complemented the outfit, and it was
obvious she had taken some time to primp. The dumbfounded look on his face must
have shown his approval, as she looked at him teasingly and smiled. Shane stood
up and walked toward her. Tara kept her blue eyes gazing into his as he came
closer. When he got near enough, she slowly slid her arms around his neck and
softly kissed him.

“Damn, you look good,” was the most romantic thing
he could think of to say.

Tara laughed. “So do you.”
     

The drive to the restaurant in Fort Washakie was a
thirty minute trip. It went by quickly as they talked and enjoyed each other’s
company.

She stayed with Shane in his cabin that night,
taking little heed in Tigee’s advice of caution for her feelings toward him.
She also knew the Indians on the ranch had a live-and-let-live
attitude.
Gossip was not in their nature.

The next morning they were both up early. She had a
lot to do at work since school would be starting in a couple of weeks. Shane
had promised he would help Tommy with the horses, and then he planned to try to
reach his reporter friend, Megan Tillie. As they headed out the door to go
their separate ways for the day, Tara turned to Shane with a serious look on
her face.

“What’s wrong?”

She hesitated, then said, “I know you’ll think that
what I’m about to tell you is only Indian superstition, but my grandfather had
another vision. In his dream, you were in a great danger. He is worried about
you, and so am I.”

Shane smiled at the intense look in her eyes. “I’m
sure he means well. I’ll be fine.”

Tara forced a grin and gave him a strong hug.
 
“Just say you’ll be careful, okay? I’m
telling you, my grandfather has a gift, and his
predictions are often right on the money.”

“All right, I promise I’ll be careful,” Shane
conceded as he winked and walked away.

Chapter 21

The light rain last night was just enough to settle the dust and firm
up the sandy footing in the corral. Tommy was already in the barn with one of
the geldings saddled and was leading him over to the corral for a warm up.
“How’s the gelding doing?”

“Real good, Mr. Shane, I’ve got Sloppy saddled up in
her stall. I thought we’d take them out on the trail together, so I can show
you what I’ve got done with him.”

“Well, let’s go.”

Tommy had accomplished a lot with the horse. Shane
was impressed with how eager he was to please his rider.

“You’ve done a good job, and I think he’s broke
enough for you to begin putting some real buttons on him. From now on, your
rides on both the geldings will involve more technical training. We’re going to
teach them how to operate just like Sloppy and Tory.” Shane could see the
excitement in Tommy’s eyes.

Shane had worked with a lot of people in his long
career, but he’d never seen anyone with as much natural feel and God-given
talent as Tommy. Tommy seemed to naturally know why a horse had to be in a
certain position to properly perform a maneuver. Shane could only guess this
came from the boy watching horses move around in the fields since he was very
young.

“I want you to ride Sloppy every day and keep practicing
the hip control, the shoulder control, and the lateral movements I’ve shown
you. Now let’s get the mare out and see how she is doing.”

After Shane finished helping Tommy, he patted the
boy on the back and turned to leave.

“Wait a minute,” Tommy hollered.
Then he ran into the barn and came out with something in his hand. “Mr. Shane,
I made you this to thank you for all you’ve been teaching me.” It was a
hand-braided rope, like the ones Shane had seen on JB and Hawks’s horses. “The
Shoshone have used these on their horses for hundreds of years. You don’t have
to ride with it, but I thought you might like it for a keepsake. It took me all
week to braid it. Mr. Tigee helped me make it for you.”

Shane was taken aback. “Thank you, bud, this means a
lot to me. I’ll keep it forever.” Then he affectionately squeezed the boy’s
shoulder before walking away.

He would have liked his son, Jacob, to have been
able to know this young Shoshone boy. Tommy was a few years older and would
have been a good example for Jacob to look up to.

Shane took the rope and hung it over the fireplace
in his cabin. Then he took an address book out of the old saddlebags he used
for storing personal items. He hadn’t talked to Megan Tillie since he lost his
family. They’d been friends a long time, and as she had written in one of her
articles, she had actually introduced Shane to his wife, Jennifer. Megan had
tried several times to reach him after the accident, but like a lot of other
old friends who tried to contact him, he’d never responded to any of her
messages. He felt badly about not calling these people, but it would have been
too hard to listen to their well-meaning condolences.

When he got to Tigee’s cabin, the old Indian was sitting on the porch,
as he usually was this time of day. “Good morning, sir.”

“Good morning,” Tigee replied.

“Well, are you ready to make these horses of yours
famous?” Shane asked jokingly. The old man just smiled, shrugged his shoulders,
and gestured for Shane to go in and make his phone calls. He had Megan’s
personal cell number, but all he reached was her voice mail, so he left a short
message, asking her to get back in touch as soon as possible. He hung up and
was on his way out the front door when the phone rang. He could see on the
caller ID that it was Megan.He eagerly answered. “Hello.”

“Shane, is that you?” Megan asked excitedly.

“Yes ma’am, how the hell are you?”

“I’m fine. It’s so good to hear your voice. Where
are you?”

“I’m in Wyoming.”

“What in the world are you doing out there? Are you
putting on clinics again?”

“Nope, no clinics. I guess you could say I’m out
here on vacation.”

“Well, what can I do for you?”

“I think I might have an interesting story for you
to write about.”

“I’m listening,” she replied. “But, before you tell
me about it, I have to say how sad I was to hear about Jen and the kids. I
tried to call you several times.”

“I know you called, Megan, I just wasn’t in a frame
of mind where I could talk to people about it. It’s still hard.”

“I understand. I just needed you to know I was
thinking about you and I was ready and willing to do anything in the world for
you. I still am.”

“Thanks, Megan, I appreciate that.”

“Now, what kind of story do you have for me?”

Shane told her about the mustangs and their unique
history and how their survival was in real jeopardy. “We’ve already found
several mares and foals shot down in cold blood.”

“Do the Shoshone have any documentation on the
history of these horses?” she asked.

“They sure do, there are records dating back over
hundreds of years. The tribe has papers in their museum that can tell you when
a particular horse was introduced to the herd, why that horse was significant
in the tribe’s history, and special enough to be set free with their herd. The
breeding records are well kept and can trace each of the present-day horses
back to these special foundation lines. Believe me, these horses are the real
deal. The Shoshone consider these mustangs a sacred part of their heritage. The
fact that the herd’s lineage also intermingles with a lot of significant
American history should really interest your readers. The only reason the
Indians will let you write about them is to expose these bad guys to the public
eye before they can destroy the whole herd.”

He explained about Vince Nethers and his secret oil
explorations on the reservation. “This guy knows as long as the herd lives on
the land, the Shoshone would never lease it to him.”
 
He also told her about the mysterious sick
cows and the rumors of the bad hay, which had shut down the tribes income for the
winter. Then he explained how the local authorities were of no help to the
Shoshone. “We’re out in the middle of nowhere, and the only law around here is
in this guy’s hip pocket. I’m hoping that a little national attention to this
situation will help back these guys off and maybe bring some justice out here.”

“Wow, you sure got yourself caught up in a mess. How
did you end up in Wyoming anyway?”

Shane told her about Sloppy and the promise he made
to his son. This stirred some sad emotions for Megan, and he could tell she was
fighting back some tears. Megan had stayed at his home on several occasions and
spent a lot time with the kids. Every Christmas there were gifts from her for
Jacob and Tina under the tree. Even though she lived far away, she and Jen had
stayed close friends and called each other often.

Shane gave her a moment to compose herself and then
asked, “So what do you think?”

“It sounds pretty interesting,” her voice quavered.
“I just need to run it by my editor, and I’ll call you back.”

“Listen, Megan, time is everything if we are going
to save these horses.”

“I understand. If my editor gives me the okay�—�and
I’m sure he will�—�I’ll be out there in a couple of days. I know
the magazine is still looking for a unique story for next month’s issue, so the
timing couldn’t be better. I’ll get back in touch with you before noon to let
you know what he says.”

“I’ll be waiting to hear from you, and Megan�—�thanks.”

Shane was encouraged by his friend’s desire to do
the story, but he still had one more phone call to make. This one would bring
in his real secret weapon. Shane couldn’t help but laugh when he thought about
the fire he would be lighting under Nethers and his people with this part of
his plan. He fumbled through the pages of his old address book, and then a
smile lit up his face as he found
the number. The woman’s name was Kate O’Hanson. Kate was the national director
of an organization that was a watchdog for inhumane treatment of horses.