“Gene can look after Shadow for you, so get some rest.”
She nodded and took off to run down a steer trying to break away from the herd.
When they reached the pens the steers moved in quickly. Gene rode over to her. “Stan says for me to follow you to the barn and take care of Shadow while you go help Melissa with lunch.”
Coal was grateful that Stan had told Gene a little white lie about sending her off to rest, but she knew that the crew would understand Stan’s decision. They rode to the barn, and she dismounted and handed her reins to Gene. “Take good care of him,” she said.
“You know I will,” Gene said with a grin.
She walked across the yard and entered the back door to the house. She could smell lunch cooking in the kitchen and walked in to find Melissa toiling away. Melissa looked up at her and smiled.
“Stan told me to take a shower and catch a nap before lunch,” Coal said with a flush of embarrassment.
“I think that was a wise decision. You’re covered in dust,” she teased. “Leave those clothes in your old bedroom and I’ll wash them for you while you shower. I’ll bring in a T-shirt and shorts for you to nap in.”
“Thanks,” she said and walked to the bedroom. She stripped out of her clothes, and climbed into the shower to allow the cool water to rinse the dirt and dust from her body. Her arms felt like lead as she washed her hair. She took a mouthful of the water to rinse the grit from her mouth. Weary, she stepped out of the shower and dried her body before slipping into a pair of army green shorts and a tank top. The cool sheets of the bed felt like heaven as she climbed between them and allowed the exhaustion to overtake her.
†
Melissa placed her clothes into the washer then continued working on lunch. When she heard the shower stop, she waited a few more minutes then walked down the hall to check on her. She leaned against the doorframe as she watched Coal in a deep sleep. “Rest well, my friend,” she said and closed the door behind her.
The rest of the crew finished loading the steers and took their horses to the barn. They were preparing to wash up for a much-deserved lunch when Melissa walked into the barn. She pulled Harley to the side.
“I think it’s best to let Coal sleep through lunch. If you and Gene will help, we can carry the food to the bunkhouse and not disturb her rest.”
“That’s a great idea. I was really worried about the way she looked this morning.”
“The desert has come back to haunt her,” Melissa said.
“I was afraid of that,” Harley admitted. “Has she talked to you about it?”
“Not much, but Mary Leah has gotten her an appointment with Del Carson for tomorrow night.”
Harley smiled. “If anyone can fix Coal, she would be the one to do it.”
“I pray you’re right, Harley. Grab Gene and let’s go.”
Harley and Gene met her on the front porch. “Be quiet now, Gene, Coal is sleeping.”
Melissa watched the blood drain from his face. “Is she sick?”
She smiled as she placed a hand on his shoulder. “She just had a rough night with the storm and needed some sleep.”
“Okay,” he whispered and followed them quietly into the kitchen.
Two trips later they had carried the food to the bunkhouse table. “Where’s Coal?” Lucas asked.
“She’s going to eat a bit later, so you lot save her some food,” Melissa said.
“Should I go ahead and fix her a plate and keep it warm for her?” Gene asked sweetly.
Melissa smiled at the young ranch hand. “That would be great, Gene. Good idea.”
He beamed with pride as he speared a large fried chicken breast and placed it on a plate, with a large portion of mashed potatoes, gravy, and corn, then covered it with aluminum foil and placed it in the oven, which he turned on low. He returned to the table and realized he had forgotten biscuits. He jumped up to wrap three in foil to add to the plate in the oven.
†
Coal slept for another half hour and woke to a quiet house. She climbed out of the bed and got dressed in the fresh clothes Melissa had placed on the dresser for her. The nap was exactly what she needed and she left the room in search of food. She was starving and knew Melissa had cooked a huge lunch for them. When she found she was alone in the house, she stepped out into the late afternoon sun and walked to the bunkhouse.
All heads turned her way when she stepped inside. The men had finished eating and had moved on to dessert.
Gene nearly toppled his chair when he jumped up and rushed to the oven.
“Gene’s been keeping a plate warm for you,” Melissa said as Coal approached the table.
“Thanks, Gene,” she said as he placed the plate in front of her and poured a glass of tea. She winked at him. “Save me some of that strawberry shortcake too.”
“I will, Coal.” He placed a huge mound of the crushed strawberries on top of a slice of pound cake.
Coal started on the plate of food. “Damn, this is good, Melissa.”
“I’m glad you approve.” Melissa smiled. “The boys have decided to give their food some time to settle before practice tonight,” she added.
“After eating like this, that’s not a bad idea,” she agreed.
“Besides, it will give us time to shower and get some of this dust off us,” Gene said.
“Stan and I have already set up the barrels for you,” Harley said.
“Thanks, Harley,” she said between bites.
“No problem,” he said as he reached for another portion of dessert. “You outdid yourself on this meal, Melissa.”
“You all have been working really hard, so I thought something heavier than sandwiches was in order for today.”
“It was a great treat,” Lucas said. “It’s hard to get a good meal around here since Coal abandoned us,” he teased.
“Good grief, I’m only a quarter of a mile from here,” she said.
“Do not invite these lugheads to come over or they will be there every night,” Harley said.
“Well, maybe I could be convinced to come and cook once in a while,” she said.
“Oh, Coal, I’d loved to have some of your cube steak or chicken and dumplings,” Gene said.
“I think that can be arranged,” she said between bites.
“Cool,” he said. He began placing the dishes in the dishwasher, too excited to sit still any longer.
“Will you have a cup of coffee with me?” Melissa asked as she finished the meal and reached for the dessert.
“Yeah, that sounds good,” Coal answered.
“Would you care for a cup, Harley?”
“Sure, boss,” he answered.
Melissa poured them cups of coffee and carried them to the table. Gene and the rest of the crew had left to go take showers and Stan was on his way home. “I think I’ll go ahead and make our reservations for Dallas tonight,” she said.
“According to Gene, you might as well make reservations in Austin too,” Harley said with a chuckle.
“You have to appreciate his optimism,” she said.
“He’s not too far off the mark either, they do have a very good chance of making it to Austin this year.”
“Well, maybe I’ll go ahead and make those reservations too,” she said. “What do you think, Coal?”
She smiled at Melissa and Harley. “We have improved this year. Our times are down on the barrels and since we switched roles, our roping time has improved. We could do it.”
Melissa liked the excitement in her eyes when she talked of winning. It was a relief to see that sparkle in her eyes, given what she had been experiencing lately.
“Speaking of winning, I think I’ll get a few runs in while the boys are getting ready. Will you come and time me after you finish your coffee?” she asked Harley.
“Go saddle Shadow and I’ll meet you at the corral.”
†
Coal crossed the yard to the barn. Shadow stood patiently in a stall waiting for her return. When he saw her enter, his head lifted and his ears perked forward.
“Are you ready to run, big boy?” she asked him as she opened the door to the stall and led him out to saddle. “We’ve got some work to do to get ready for the rodeo.”
Shadow tossed his head in agreement with her. When she finished cinching the girth strap, they walked outside and she climbed into the saddle. She rode into the corral and urged Shadow into a gentle canter to warm his muscles. They made the circuit of the cloverleaf pattern used in barrel racing twice before she felt they were ready.
Harley and Melissa followed them out and climbed onto the top rail to watch. Harley pulled out a stopwatch to time her when she was ready for a run. She was still warming up when she saw Mary Leah’s car approach down the drive. The smile grew on her face as she positioned Shadow just outside the entrance of the corral and gave Harley a nod. He nodded back, her heels nudged Shadow’s side and he flew into action. Coal guided the strong horse to the first barrel and they took a wide turn around it before heading across the ring to circle the left-hand barrel and then flew to the top of the ring to finish out the cloverleaf and then race to the finish line.
Harley clicked the stopwatch to a stop. “Not bad, but you can do better. That first barrel turn was too wide. You’ve got to bring him in closer.”
Coal watched as Mary Leah climbed up beside Melissa. Gene and Lucas were saddling their horses and would warm up in the ring, and Tom and Roy positioned steers in the chute. “Let’s make two more runs, and then Shadow can rest as we watch them bulldog for a bit.”
“Tighter turns,” he reminded her.
She nodded and turned back to the entrance of the ring. “Okay, let’s show them how it’s done,” she said. She gave Shadow his head as her heels prompted him into action. Shadow cut the turn around the barrel so tight, she worried her boot would get caught on it and tip it over, but Shadow brought them safely through the first turn, escaping what would be a five-second penalty if they knocked a barrel over. They finished the cloverleaf two full seconds faster than the first run.
She pulled Shadow to a stop outside the ring and they walked over to Harley. Shadow’s nostrils were flaring with excitement, he was ready for another run. “Better?” she asked.
“Two seconds faster, but you can do better.”
“Hey, baby,” she said to Mary Leah.
“You two are looking good,” Mary Leah said.
“This will be better,” she said. They spun around to trot back outside the ring. She felt Shadow was eager to go faster, and this time she would give him complete control over the speed of the run. “It’s all on you, big boy,” she said as she lowered the reins to his neck and gently pressed her heels in his sides.
Shadow took her instruction and raced to the first barrel, turning so close that dirt flew up in Coal’s face from the tight turn of his hooves. His speed picked up as he made the second turn and raced for the final barrel and when he turned for the homestretch, Coal was grinning from ear to ear, knowing this was one of their fastest times ever.
Harley clicked the stopwatch and hollered, “Hot damn, that was fast. You would win Austin with that kind of run,” he added.
“I hope we can do that in Dallas in a couple of weeks.”
“That was really incredible,” Mary Leah said.
Coal walked Shadow over to the railing and took her rope from around the top of a fence post and tied it to her saddle, then took a pair of thin leather gloves from her back pocket. One of the tasks to team roping was to wrap the rope around the saddle horn or “dallying” the rope to secure the animal that had been roped. Ropers learned early on that a finger caught between the rope and the saddle horn became mangled beyond repair. She turned Shadow toward the far end of the corral where steers moved into the chutes.
Lucas and Gene had mounted their horses and moved inside the corral to begin practicing bulldogging. Gene galloped down to the entrance of the corral and closed the gate to secure the steers inside the ring. They would use the same steers to practice roping after he and Lucas had finished wrestling with them.
Roy and Tom, two of the other ranch hands, worked the first steer into the chute as Lucas backed his horse in beside the chute, into a position called the box. In competition, there would be a rope barrier across the entry point where the cowboy would start. Horse and rider could legally break the barrier only after the steer had left the chute, giving the steer a head start. If the rider breached the barrier too early, he would be assessed a ten-second penalty, effectively eliminating them from competitive times.
Lucas nodded that he was ready and the first steer was released from the chute. Lucas broke the barrier and raced after the steer coming along his left side as Lucas leaned across his horse and launched his body reaching for the steer’s neck and horns. His task was to turn the steer’s head back toward his body and wrestle him to the ground. Lucas launched and dug his boot heels into the dirt, slowing the steer’s progress as he wrestled him to the ground. His first attempt was almost perfect as he brought the steer to the ground, and then climbed back to his feet, dusting his pants off.
“Great job, Lucas,” Harley yelled out.
Gene was eager to get into the action, and backed his horse into the box as the next steer ran into the chute. Gene nodded his head and the steer released, rushing from the chute. Gene’s timing on the barrier was good, but the run went downhill from there. Gene launched his body toward the steer, just as the animal decided to put on the brakes. Gene’s momentum carried him beyond the steer’s neck and he somersaulted across the dirt.