“This month?” She gave a wry laugh. “Florida. As to what she’s doing, I wouldn’t know.”
In other words, her mom wasn’t any more interested in talking with her than she had been all those years before. His time in foster care had well introduced him to the sting of parental rejection. Praise God, he’d found the sense of family his young heart had always been searching for in his folks. He’d experienced such healing once the adoption went through.
He slowed, watching for the dirt road leading to the Hart property. He wasn’t surprised to find the entrance even more overgrown than he’d remembered. Rumor said Larry had a drinking problem—and quite the mean streak. Apparently, both had caught up with him.
Pebbles pinged the truck’s undercarriage as Dave continued on to a dingy white-and-gray, double-wide mobile home with peeling trim. Beyond that stretched a neglected pasture dotted with tall mounds of what looked like blackberry bushes. A band of trees stood along the far edge of the property.
A handful of trucks and trailers lined the sagging and broken barbed wire fence to his right. The sheriff, standing in front of a group of men, appeared to be giving instructions.
He glanced in Dave’s direction, said something to the guys, then walked over while the others dispersed.
Dave stepped from his vehicle with a tip of his hat. “Sheriff.”
The man gave a nod, first to him then to Rheanna, who now stood beside them. “Thanks for coming. We’ve got quite a job on our hands. Fifteen, maybe twenty horses. Probably more hiding in the trees, some in worse shape than others.”
Dave rested a hand on his belt buckle. “Who called this in?”
“A gal over yonder.” The sheriff motioned toward a border of trees to their west. “From the sounds of it, the horse owner beat his wife pretty bad. She got free of him some kind of way, ran to her neighbors and called the police. When they came out to investigate, they found a bunch of abused and neglected horses.”
“The males gelded?”
“Some. Not all.”
Dave had worked with enough stallions to know this operation could turn dangerous real quick. “That’ll be interesting.” He cast a glance at Rheanna, hoping she’d have the sense to stay out of harm’s way.
“You say that like a man who knows from firsthand experience.”
He shrugged. “These horses we’re going to get now—where are we going to take them?”
“Not sure. One of the fellas is making calls.” His phone dinged. He checked the screen, then returned his cell to his back pocket. “I bet the guys could use some extra muscle getting the geldings loaded into trailers.” He studied Rheanna. “Think you could coax the younger ones out from the woods? Figure the babies might respond best to a female voice.”
Most likely that’d be true for all the animals, considering they’d been abused by a man.
Rheanna nodded and headed toward a thicket of trees some of the men had disappeared into. Dave could only hope—and pray—that the guys would keep an eye out for her safety. If he’d thought all this through, he would’ve talked her out of coming in the first place.
But his brain hadn’t been working right. It’d been too stuck on their past.
A past he’d do best to forget about.
“Hey, son.”
He turned to find two men, one tall, the other short and thickly built, fighting to get an emaciated pregnant mare into a trailer. “Think you can help us out?” The taller of the two motioned him over.
A visual of Mona, one of his broodmares who got swept away in the flood, flashed through his mind. She’d been such a sweet girl. Easy to train, loyal and pregnant with her first foal. He should’ve known the levy would break. Should’ve moved all his horses well out of harm’s way.
Dave shook the image aside and ambled over. The horse’s ears swiveled back and forth, her front legs splayed, muzzle tense. Poor girl looked terrified, and rightly so. Who knew what kind of treatment she’d experienced at the hands of a human?
The tall guy stood inside the trailer and was trying to pull her forward while his friend stood behind her flapping his arms in an effort to get her in.
Dave inched into the mare’s line of sight. “Hey there, Mama.” He kept his voice low and calm. “You’re all right. Everything’s all right.”
The man’s phone dinged, and he checked the screen and answered. “Yeah?” He mumbled something. “Hold up.” He looked at the mare, then made eye contact with Dave. “Think you can manage her for a bit? One of the stallions is acting crazy.”
“Yep.” The horse looked too skinny and weak to cause much of a problem. Based on all the ruckus behind him, the other fellas couldn’t say the same.
“You take her lead.” The guy hopped out of the trailer and handed the rope to Dave. “We’ll go help with that angry steed thrashing about in the stables.” He motioned for his buddy to follow him, leaving Dave alone with the mare still outside the trailer.
“Guess it’s just you and me, little lady.” He leaned against the trailer. “I’ll probably have to force you in, with the help of those fellas that just strolled away.” Although he was hoping that wouldn’t be the case. “But for now, let’s just hang.”
What was Rheanna doing? Knowing her, she was soothing a frightened filly or mama, and likely doing a much better job at that than he was.
The men didn’t return for nearly thirty minutes, and by then, the mare almost seemed comfortable. At least, until the taller guy started flapping his arms again.
The sheriff ambled over. “Hoping to hear on a location soon.” His phone rang, and he glanced at the screen. “Might be our answer now.” He answered and listened to whoever was on the other line.
Dave scanned the horizon for a glimpse of Rheanna. She stood talking to a stocky man in a straw hat a few trailers down. Her body language suggested she wasn’t happy, nor should she be, seeing the results of such obvious neglect.
“Sounds like a plan.” The sheriff ended his call and turned to Dave. “Problem solved. Those gals out at Emmitt Green’s old place got room.”
Dave took in a breath.
Rheanna’s ranch, the property Dave had once considered home. Where he’d first fallen in love and where his heart had later shattered in two. In some ways it made sense she’d offer her place. From what he’d seen, she had plenty of room. But did she have the capacity to care for abused animals? Hopefully she’d already considered and had a plan for this.
He had the capacity, the wherewithall to help. He’d rehabbed animals before. But could he do so without falling back in love with the one woman he would’ve done anything for?
Until her loud silence proved he wasn’t what she wanted.
Copyright © 2021 by Jennifer Slattery
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ISBN-13: 9780369715173
Lost and Found Faith
Copyright © 2021 by Laurel Blount
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or
are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
This edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.
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Lost and Found Faith Page 21