My Ranch My Way

by Misty Malone

  Ty joined Chase later to tell him that he'd called another of the hands, Luke, who was bringing more help. "Have you found the problem yet? Did someone cut another fence?"

  "Ty, this gate was standing wide open," Chase said incredulously. "There's a lot of hoof prints, but look over here at the side, where the gate fastens."

  Ty looked at the gate carefully and said, "Footprints." Walking further down toward the road he added, "And tire prints."

  "I got pictures of both," Chase said. "Do those footprints look right to you?"

  "They don't look like boots," Ty answered quickly.

  "That's what I thought, too," Chase said. "They don't look like a big man, either. Maybe someone more the size of Uncle Ralph," Chase said with a frown.

  "They do look about that size," Ty agreed. "And more like the kind of shoes he'd wear, too." He looked at Chase and asked, "What do you want to do? Are you going to mention it to the sheriff?"

  "Let me find out how he knew about the cattle being out. If someone was in an accident and got hurt, then I may have to tell him. Otherwise the ranch will be open to a lawsuit and higher insurance rates."

  "Yes, it will," Ty agreed. "If no one was hurt what are you going to do?"

  "I'm going to talk to my dad before I go to the sheriff. Ralph is his brother. I'd like to hear what he'd suggest I do."

  Ty nodded. "Let me know after you talk to the sheriff, before he can ask me any questions. In the meantime, I'm going to take some pictures on my phone of the footprints and tire tracks, as well. I'd hate for you to lose your phone and all our evidence along with it."

  Chase was glad to learn that someone driving home late saw a few cattle on the road and called the sheriff. He sent a couple deputies out to check it out. When they arrived there were a lot of cattle out, not just a few, so they called Chase. The deputies were able to warn the few cars that had gone through the area, so there hadn't been any accidents.

  Chase then told the sheriff that the gate appeared to be open partially. He apologized and honestly said he wasn't aware of any of his men having been in or out of that gate lately, but would certainly check with them, and remind them of the importance of shutting all gates tightly and latching them. The sheriff nodded and shook Chase's hand.

  By nine o'clock they had the majority of the cattle back in the pasture, so Chase sent the hands back to the barn to get the morning chores done. They were a few hours late and he was sure the calves would be wondering where their morning meal was. He and Ty kept Ryan with them and they got the last of the stray cattle they could find back on the proper side of the fence, and started the difficult process of counting heads.

  All three of them counted, and they came up with three different numbers. "It's hard to get an accurate count when they're this riled up," Chase said. "They're starting to settle down now and get back to grazing, so let's try it again." They took another head count and this time Chase and Ty came up with the same number, while Ryan was one less.

  "That's bad," Chase said with a sigh. That means we're missing six, maybe seven. They're probably together, but who knows where."

  "We have to find them before they get themselves into trouble or get hit on the road. The ranch is on the hook for them, whatever they do," Ty added.

  "You're right," Chase said. "I'll feel a lot better once they're all back in the pasture. I'm going to call Pete and Stan and tell them what's going on. They can let their hands know, and if anyone sees them they can give us a call. Then we're going to spread out. Ty, you go north, Ryan, you head east, and I'll go south. Follow the roads, but watch all around. If anyone sees anything, let me know." The other two nodded and rode off. Chase made the calls, then joined in the search.

  Fifteen minutes later Cece called him. "Chase, I heard about your missing cattle. I'm going to help you look. Where do you want me to start looking?"

  He chuckled. "Oh, you are, are you? Shouldn't you ask if that's all right first?"

  "No, because you'd probably say no for some silly reason, like it's too dangerous or something."

  "First of all," he said with a small amount of sternness in his voice, if I said it's dangerous, that's not at all a silly reason for me to say no." Before she could argue, he went on. "But in this case I'm not going to say it's too dangerous, as long as you'll follow my rules."

  She sighed. "So what are they?"

  That you come over here and meet me on Ashton Road, and we'll go on parallel roads, Ashton and Burbank, watching both sides. If you see them you call me right away and wait until I get there before you try and head them back to the pasture."

  "Okay, I suppose I can live with that. Out of curiosity, though, if I find them, why do I have to wait until you get there to get them turned around and headed back toward the pasture?"

  "Because cows roaming free like that are out of their element and are easily spooked. If they take off running the wrong way they're running aimlessly, scared, and can run out in front of traffic. It'll be easier with both of us, so hopefully we can at least keep them headed in the right direction. If we find them we'll call Ryan and Ty. One of them will get there ahead of us and have the gate open for them when they get there."

  "Okay, that makes sense," she said. "I'm on Ashton now, heading north."

  "Okay. I'll see you in a few minutes." He smiled, glad that Cece was starting to accept his guidance without arguing about his rules. He knew she still thought he worried too much, but at least she could also see the potential for danger. She was starting to ask for clarification of his rules, rather than argue first. That was a big step, and he was proud of her.

  When they met up, he brought Thunder close enough to lean over and give her a quick kiss. "Thank you for your help, honey, but you didn't have to come out."

  "I know, but I wanted to. Dad would have, but he had to leave for the auction."

  He nodded. "I'm lucky to have good neighbors. Do you want to stay on Ashton, or do you want to go over to Burbank?"

  "I'll stay on Ashton. This is next to our ranch and I'm familiar with this area. I'll probably notice if something's amiss, like weeds tramped down or something."

  "Good thinking. I'll go over on Burbank. Remember—"

  "I know," she sighed. "Call you if I see anything."

  "That's my girl," he said, smiling. He and Thunder cut across at the end of a field, toward Burbank.

  The four of them searched for an hour and a half before Chase spotted the missing cattle. He called Cece first. "I found them, sugar, but we have a bit of a problem. There are six of them and they're down at the corner of Burbank and Calloway, and they're antsy. I think they hear the interstate and it's got them uneasy. We have to be careful or they'll take off running and end up on the interstate. That would be a disaster."

  "What do you want me to do?" she asked.

  "Head over this way, but stay way back. I'm going to call Ty and Ryan and have Ryan man the gate. Ty needs to come down here, with a couple more hands, too. When I call you back I want Ty and two or three of our hands to circle in around them and get between them and the interstate. They can get them moving, hopefully back toward the pasture, but I need you to stay on Calloway, between Burbank and Ashton. If they come toward you, try to get them turned back toward the pasture, and not back the other way toward the interstate. Are you okay with that?"

  "Yep. I understand what you need, Chase, and I'm good with it. Good luck."

  "Thanks." He made the other calls and soon had Ty up close to him, Ryan at the pasture gate, and Mack, Luke and Todd ready to go around them from the other side as he and Ty separated to help the three men, while protecting the direction the cattle were likely to head if they didn't go toward the pasture as they hoped. Cece was guarding the interstate from the other side. He put everyone in motion and hoped for the best.

  As it turned out, the best scenario didn't happen, but neither did the worst. The men were able to get behind them and they didn't head for the interstate, which was a big relief. However, they di
dn't head for the pasture, either. And they didn't stay together. Four of them went one way, while two went another. Chase and Ty got the two headed back the right way, but the other four headed toward Cece, with the ranch hands trying to get out around them and get them turned.

  She saw them coming and was able to turn them, but the other two joined back up with them and they were determined to keep going west instead of back to the pasture. They had their hands full as they tried to get the cattle headed in the right direction.

  Then Cece had an idea. She made a quick phone call and then she called Chase. "We have a small pasture we use for new foals just a little north and west of here. That pasture's empty right now. One of our guys is in the area and said he can be there in two or three minutes and he'll open the gate. That's the way these cows seem to want to go, so if we can get them that far north, put them in there."

  "Thanks!" He could see the gate being opened up ahead, so he whistled to get everyone's attention and pointed to the gate. They all nodded and fifteen minutes later they got the last of the six animals in and Pete's guy quickly shut the gate.

  All the men and Cece rode their horses up to the gate and watched the cattle in the pasture. They were still very nervous and Chase and the hands were a little afraid they'd try jumping the fence. As they watched, Chase looked around at his hands. Everyone was panting, taking a minute to catch their breath. That was way more trouble than he'd hoped. Everyone was worn out, but they'd all worked well together and the cattle finally looked like they were settling down.

  Chase slid down from Thunder and helped Cece down from Ginger. Then he took Cece in his arms and kissed her.

  "Thank you for your help," he told her, not caring if the men teased him about it later. "You're pretty good on that horse. I'm glad you thought of this pasture, too. They just plain were not cooperating, and it was going to be a long trip back to our pasture. Ty and I will bring the truck and a trailer down and haul them back home."

  Chase was glad to see that instead of lots of catcalls and teasing when he kissed her, the men all seemed to smile and look the other way. Ty and two of the others complimented her on her horsemanship and they all thanked her for her help.

  Ryan, the ranch clown, started towards her with outstretched arms, saying, "You did a good job, Cece. I think I'll thank you the way the boss did."

  Laughter shot up from everyone, but Chase stepped in front of her. "No, I don't believe you will, Ryan."

  "You can't blame a guy for trying," Ryan quipped.

  It was mid afternoon before Chase and Ty made it into the house for lunch. Stella had heard what was going on and had their lunch waiting. Chase convinced Cece to eat with them. The men were starving, having skipped breakfast after being called out early.

  Cece asked if someone cut a fence again, and Chase and Ty showed her the pictures of the footprints and tire tracks. The three of them discussed whether they thought Ralph was behind it. Chase decided to call his dad that night and talk to him and see what he thought, and how he thought they should proceed.

  That night after supper Chase settled Cece on his lap on the couch. "Now, little cowgirl, what did you want to talk to me about?"

  "No, that's okay," she said. "Go ahead and call your dad. Mine can wait."

  "No, if something's on your mind, I want to know about it. I can call him later."

  "Chase, this isn't anything pressing. Really, while this is on our minds I'd rather you call him and talk to him. I'll talk to you when things settle down here."

  They talked a little longer, and she was finally able to convince him it wasn't urgent and didn't involve anything that could be dangerous, so he called his dad. It was decided that they should approach Ralph together, so Chase's father was going to make arrangements to come for a couple days.

  The next evening after super, Chase stopped by to tell Cece about his father's visit. "Now that it's been settled, you want to tell me what's on your mind?" He adopted what he hoped was a convincing tone. "You can talk to me, sugar."

  Convincing her he wasn't leaving this time until they talked, she nodded. "I'm ready to tell you why I have a hard time trusting men."

  His eyebrows rose. He tightened his arms around her. "I'm ready to listen, honey."

  She took a deep breath and started her story. "I met Tom Weiss my freshman year of college. We were both at a couple school functions, and we talked. He seemed nice, so when he asked me out for dinner, I went. We became good friends and soon became a couple. Or what I thought was a couple, anyway."

  Chase listened as Cece explained how they went everywhere and did everything together and how she and their friends expected him to propose. Cecelia visibly winced as she confided in Chase how Tom had finally told her he was leaving the state, and that he'd just maintained the pretense of a relationship for the benefits of her social contacts. While she was rather outgoing and fun to be with, he was rather shy. Everyone knew her and liked her, so she got invited to a lot of social events. By being with her she'd helped him become popular on campus, and that had been all that mattered.

  Chase pulled her closer to his chest and asked, "If this is none of my business just tell me, sugar, but did he lead you on sexually, as well?"

  "No," she answered quickly. "I told him fairly early on that I wasn't interested in a sexual relationship. I want to go to my marriage bed a virgin. I wanted to make sure he understood that before we got too involved."

  Chase leaned over and kissed her cheek. "Smart girl."

  "Anyway, I can't believe how stupid I was. He used me for four years, and I had no idea. I just let him. But then—"

  She paused, unshed tears in her eyes again and Chase knew there was something further she had to tell him. He gave her an encouraging hug, and allowed her to take all the time she needed. He knew whatever it was she was trying to tell him had hurt her terribly, but he also knew it was important that she felt she could trust him with that information. He gently rubbed her back and waited.

  "Take whatever time you need, darlin'. I'll hold you right here where you're safe, and you tell me whenever you're ready."

  She looked up at him, a tiny bit of a smile on her face as she cuddled in closer to him. After a deep cleansing breath she continued her story. "Once we had our talk, he never came around me again. Everyone was used to seeing us together, so when they'd see him without me people often asked him where I was. He had no problem at all telling everyone that he never saw us as anything more than just friends and certainly never saw us in any kind of relationship. So before long everyone on campus knew I'd been made a fool of for four years. I'd been used and dropped, and was now the laughing stock of the campus. I quit my job and couldn't wait to get out of there."

  "Honey, I'm so sorry."

  Cece shrugged. "Anyway, ever since then I've—" She stopped, as tears were now streaming down her face.

  He quietly said, "Ever since then you've been leery of men?"

  She nodded.

  "I can understand that, sugar." He kept his arms around her and ran his hand gently through her hair. She nestled into him as if drawing strength from his arms.

  He watched her as she took another deep breath and exhaled slowly, gathering her strength. "Anyway, I'm sorry, Chase. I know I've doubted things you've said and done and I shouldn't have. You've given me no reason to doubt you, but it's almost like it's instinct. That's why I wanted to tell you what happened. I'm trying to change, to trust you more, but I wanted you to know why I do that."

  "Thank you for sharing all that with me, darlin'. Now that I understand why you have trouble trusting men, I'll try to be more patient."

  Cecelia's eyes shone with gratitude. "Thank you, but I don't know that anyone could be more patient with me than you have."

  "I want you to know that not all men are like Tom."

  "I know that," she said slowly, "but sometimes it's like I forget. I trust you, but sometimes I have to stop and think about it."

  "You're saying you automatically
trust men?" he asked.

  "No, it's the opposite. I automatically don't trust men," she clarified. "I have to stop and think, this is Chase, I can trust him. Then I do, but it's like I have to remind myself of that first, before I seem to be able to trust you. I wanted to tell you that because I know it's not fair to you. I have no reason to not trust you. I'm trying to change, but you may have to remind me I can trust you every now and then."

  "I'll try to be patient," he said. "As long as you don't get disrespectful, we shouldn't have a problem. I take issue with people being downright rude to someone who doesn't deserve to be treated that way. But now that I know what happened I'll try to help you."

  She laid her head back against his chest as the mood slowly became more relaxed. After a few minutes Cece said, "Oh, I forgot to tell you, I saw Cindy Kline, Ben's girlfriend, at the bank today. She asked if we wanted to go out with them Saturday night."

  "Going out with them again sounds like fun, but I don't know about this weekend. Dad will probably be here then."

  "That's what I told her," Cece said. "She said she'd tell Ben, and maybe they'll call one of us about getting together sometime in the next week or two. I said that'd be great."

  Chase invited Cece and Pete to join him and his father for supper the first night Joe was in Wyoming.

  Joe and Pete were obviously friends already, but Cece was surprised when Joe said, "I don't believe we've met before, Cece, but my son's talked about you enough that I feel as if I know you."

  Cece felt heartened by the compliment, and flattered that Chase had spoken about her so often that he felt comfortable in her presence. As the evening progressed, she found that Chase's father was as easy to talk to as Chase, and by the end of the evening she felt as though she'd known Joe longer, as well. She hoped things went well between them and Joe's brother.