Betrayal at the Buffalo Ranch

by Sara Sue Hoklotubbe

“Stay close,” she demanded, and he did.

  When she reached the area where Kenny Wayne Sanders had died,

  she could see the completed fence— too high for her to climb over. She

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  wondered why it took such a tall fence to secure buffalo, since she didn’t think they could jump all that high. And quite frankly, she thought, given its size and strength, a full- grown bison could walk right through about any fence someone could erect.

  She stayed on Joe’s back, and with Sonny trotting alongside, she

  rode up and down her side of the fence. Where did the buffalo go? Was

  she hallucinating? Did she want there to be a white buffalo calf so bad,

  she had imagined seeing it? She could see a piece of silver metal on the

  other side of the fence. It looked out of place.

  She jumped off of Joe and got as close to the fence as she could to

  see what it was. She thought it might be an ear tag, the kind used to identify animals. In this case, she assumed, to identify a buffalo. She could see a tuft of brown hair caught in the fence and assumed the animal had

  been scratching an itch and lost its ear tag in the process.

  Sonny ran up beside her and pushed his nose under her arm. “I want

  that, Sonny,” she said, as she searched for something to retrieve it with through the fence. She located a fallen tree branch and snapped off a

  slender portion, then returned to the fence and tried to reach the ear tag.

  It took several tries and a contorted body, but she was finally able to drag it toward the fence.

  As she nudged the piece of metal closer, Sonny whimpered as if

  he wanted to help but didn’t know how. Finally, she pulled it under

  the fence with her fingers. It was stained with what looked like dried

  blood and stamped with letters and numbers that made no sense to

  her. She shoved it in her pocket and looked around. A chill ran down

  her spine as, once again, she felt someone’s presence. She quickly

  mounted Joe and reined him toward the house, encouraging Sonny

  to stay close.

  Lightning cracked, and a tree limb split and fell in the distance. With

  adrenaline pumping and the images of her dream flying through her

  head, she yelled at Sonny. “Home!” She dug her heels into Joe’s flanks

  and tore down the hillside. Sonny ran ahead, and when they reached the

  bottom of the hill, Sadie pulled Joe to a trot and then a walk. She called Sonny to her side as she turned and looked at the top of the hill where

  they had been moments before. For a moment she thought she saw the

  rear of a paint horse disappear like a ghost in the fog. With trembling

  hands, she guided Joe toward the barn.

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  After taking care of the horse, she reentered the kitchen and found Becky dressed and sitting at the kitchen table with a coffee mug in her

  hand.

  “Good morning,” Becky said.

  “Good morning to you, too,” Sadie replied, as she hung her rain-

  coat on a peg by the back door and grabbed a towel to dry her face. “I

  see you found the coffee.”

  “I did.” Becky eyed Sadie with a curious look. “Are you okay? It’s

  kind of wet to be out riding, isn’t it?”

  Sadie relaxed. “Yes, and I just scared myself to death.”

  “What happened?”

  “Oh, I think my imagination got out of hand, is all,” she said, thank-

  ful for Becky’s presence.

  She always felt safe with Lance around, but he had a lot going on

  and hadn’t been spending as much time there since Becky had become

  a guest.

  “Say, Becky, when you were at the Buffalo Ranch, did you ever see

  a white buffalo calf ?”

  “A white calf ?” A questioning look crossed Becky’s face. “No, but

  I wasn’t really paying much attention to the animals. Does that monster

  have a white buffalo calf ?”

  “I’m not sure,” Sadie said. “I thought I saw one on his ranch not

  long ago, a newborn. Maybe I was mistaken.”

  “White buffalo are pretty rare, aren’t they?”

  “Extremely,” she said, “but, like I said, I think I must be mistaken,

  so I’d appreciate it if you didn’t mention it to anyone. If a rumor like

  that got started, it could cause all kinds of havoc.” Sadie thought for a moment. “What about ear tags? Did you see any buffalo with ear tags?”

  She pulled the piece of metal out of her pocket. “Like this?”

  Becky shook her head. “No.”

  Sadie turned the ear tag over in her hand. “What do you think these

  numbers and letters mean?”

  Becky sipped coffee. “I have no idea.”

  “Do you know anyone who would?”

  “Your computer?”

  Sadie looked at the clock on the stove. “I’ve got to get to the office,

  and you’ve got an interview. Let’s hurry.”

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  The two women showered, dressed, and drove to Playin’ in Paradise in record time. When they walked through the back door, Beanie greeted

  them with her usual bubbly smile.

  “Good morning,” she sang.

  Sadie laughed. “Are you ever in a bad mood, Beanie?”

  “Bad mood? Not today. I just won three dollars on a scratch- off

  ticket.”

  “I hate to be a spoilsport, but how much did it cost you to win three

  dollars?”

  Beanie stuck out her lower lip. “You can’t look at it like that. A win

  is a win.”

  “Oh, I see.” Sadie lowered her chin and mustered her most motherly

  look. “Don’t get in so far you can’t get out, okay?”

  “I won’t.” Beanie looked relieved when the phone rang.

  Sadie grinned at Becky as she switched on her computer. “You’ve

  got a little while before your interview. Let’s see what we can find out.”

  Becky pulled up a chair and together they began to search for infor-

  mation on animal ear tags. After several minutes of pulling up websites,

  Sadie finally thought she’d found something.

  “It looks like the first two numbers identify the state the animal came

  from.” Sadie fingered the metal tag. “This one starts with eighty- three.”

  “What state does eighty- three stand for?” Becky asked.

  “I’m not sure,” Sadie said. “Wait, here’s a chart.” Sadie studied

  the computer screen for a moment. “Wyoming. Eighty- three stands for

  Wyoming.”

  “I don’t get it,” Becky said. “We’re in Oklahoma, not Wyoming.”

  “True,” Sadie said. “It means the animal that lost this ear tag came

  from Wyoming.”

  “Oh. So what do the other letters and numbers mean?”

  “I’m not sure, but I know who can help us.” She picked up the local

  phone book. “Do you remember Brad Newsom?”

  “I do.” Becky tilted her head and stared into space. “He was in your

  high school class, wasn’t he? Real good- looking guy with light- colored

  hair.” Then she laughed and turned her attention back to Sadie. “And,

  he never gave me the time of day.”

  Sadie thumbed through the blue pages, and then picked up the

  phone and dialed. “Hello,” she said. “I’m looking for Brad Newsom. Is

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  he in?” After a few minutes of silence on her end of the conversation, Sadie continued. “You think I can catch him at the Waffle House, then?”

  Sadie smiled and nodded. “Great. Thanks so much.�
�� She hung up and

  beamed. “You can always catch a government man feeding himself.”

  “Why are you calling Brad Newsom?” Becky asked.

  “He’s the local livestock inspector,” she said. “And, if I’m right, he can unravel the mystery of all the numbers and letters on this metal ear tag.”

  “Oh.” Becky shrugged her shoulders.

  Sadie picked up her purse. “I’m going to the Waffle House to find

  Brad. I’ll meet you back here after your interview.” She smiled at Becky.

  “I’ll tell him you send your regards.”

  “Don’t you dare.” Becky jumped up. “I’d better go too so I can be a

  little early for the interview. See you later.” Out the door she went.

  “I’ll bring us back some burgers from the Waffle House,” Sadie said.

  “If that’s okay with you, Beanie.”

  “Put some cheese on mine and hold the onions. I’ve got everything

  under control here, boss.”

  “Will do,” she said, and followed Becky out the door.

  ★

  The Waffle House, one of Sadie’s favorite restaurants in Sycamore

  Springs, overflowed with an early lunch crowd. Sadie weaved through

  a group of local businessmen and scanned the room for Brad Newsom.

  Sadie had known Brad for many years, having grown up not far

  from him. Being the same age, they had successfully traversed the halls

  of Jay High School together, taking many of the same classes. Sadie had

  a tendency to get in trouble, while Brad walked the straight and narrow,

  yet they had always been good friends. They’d both graduated with hon-

  ors, but had gone their separate ways the following year. He’d gone to

  veterinary school while she, sadly, had become trapped in a short- lived, dead- end marriage. It would be good to see Brad again.

  She quickly spotted him, sitting alone in a booth along the windows,

  eating a sandwich and staring at a small laptop. He hadn’t changed much

  over the years. He still wore his blond hair cut short against his head, and his blue eyes complemented his tanned face. He’d gained weight, but not

  much.

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  “Hey, Brad. Long time, no see,” she said, as she approached.

  Surprised, he stood and gave her a light hug. “Sadie Walela. You

  look wonderful. How have you been?”

  “I’m well. What about you?”

  “Can’t complain. Join me,” he said, returning to his seat. “Can I buy

  your lunch?”

  “Oh, no. I can’t stay very long. Your secretary said I could find you

  here, and since I’m springing for lunch at my office today, I thought I’d kill two birds with one stone.”

  “It’s hard to find a good secretary,” he said. “She’d rat out my

  whereabouts to anyone and everyone and think nothing of it.” Then he

  smiled. “But, today I’m glad she did.”

  The waitress came and Sadie ordered cheeseburgers, minus onions,

  for her and her cohorts. “Make that ‘to go,’” she added.

  “So, to what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?” Brad asked, finish-

  ing off the last of his sandwich.

  “Can you trace an animal by its ear tag?” she asked.

  “Yes, ma’am.” He wiped his mouth with his napkin. “Why do you

  ask?”

  Sadie stretched out her leg and pulled the metal ear tag out of her

  pocket and placed it on the table. “I’m looking for the animal that lost

  this,” she said.

  “Where’d you get this, Sadie?”

  “Found it at the fence line of my property.” She didn’t think it was

  necessary to tell him she’d dragged it from the other side of the fence.

  “Okay.” He pushed his empty plate to the side and pulled his laptop

  closer, extracted a pair of skinny reading glasses from his shirt pocket, perched them on his nose, and began to peck at the keyboard with his

  two forefingers.

  “Oh, yes.” Sadie smiled. “Becky Chuculate said to tell you ‘hello.’”

  Brad looked up from his computer, peered over his glasses, and

  repeated her name slowly. “Becky? Oh, yes. I remember her. I always

  thought she had the prettiest eyes. A year younger than us, right?”

  Sadie nodded.

  “I never got up the nerve to ask her out,” he said. “I thought she got

  married and moved to California.”

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  “She did, but it didn’t work out and she’s back. And, I believe her exact words to me were something like, you ‘wouldn’t give her the time

  of day.’”

  Brad frowned and briefly leaned back in the booth. “I can’t believe

  she’d think that. However, I know how it goes— the not- working- out

  part, that is. Think she’d want to go out?” He pulled a business card out of his pocket. “If you see her, tell her to call me,” he said, and returned his attention to the computer screen.

  “I don’t know.” Sadie took the card and slipped it into her purse.

  “I’ll let her know.”

  “Wyoming,” he said. “It came off of an animal that was tagged in

  Buffalo, Wyoming.”

  “Buffalo, Wyoming? That’s appropriate,” Sadie said without

  thinking.

  Brad looked over his reading glasses again. “A bison cow. Young

  cows are tagged with orange metal tags when they’re vaccinated for bru-

  cellosis, but if they lose that tag, it’s replaced with a silver tag. This was a replacement tag, so it looks like your bison cow has pulled off her tag before.”

  “So do those numbers and letters tell you where this bison cow was

  tagged? Like an owner, or a ranch, or something?”

  Brad shoved his readers higher on his nose, tapped at the keyboard

  again, and looked at the computer screen. “Travers Bison Ranch,”

  he said, and then looked questioningly at her. “What’s this all about,

  Sadie?”

  “I’m not sure,” she said, as the waitress dropped a brown paper sack

  in front of her.

  Brad took another business card from his shirt pocket, wrote the

  name of the ranch and a phone number on the back of it. “This doesn’t

  have anything to do with Angus Clyborn, does it?”

  Sadie had started to stand but sank back into her side of the booth.

  “What do you know about Angus, anyway?”

  “I know he brought in some bison and other exotic animals with

  the intent of letting hunters hunt them. No, let me rephrase that— letting rich hoodlums kill them for fun. About everyone in this part of the state is pissed off at him.”

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  “Is that legal, Brad? To kill animals like that? It seems pretty cruel to me.”

  “I know there are a lot of folks up in arms about Angus, but I don’t

  think there’s a thing anyone can do to stop him. Even if there were, he’s friends with every judge in the county.”

  “So I’ve heard.” Sadie stood again. “Listen, Brad, I can’t tell you

  how much help you’ve been.”

  “Let me know if I can help you, okay?” Brad leaned back in the

  booth. “Oh, and don’t forget to give my card to Becky.”

  “I won’t.”

  “And don’t be a stranger.”

  “Okay.” She grabbed her sack of burgers and headed for the cashier.

  ★

  When Sadie returned to Playin’ in Paradise, Beanie was busy talking on

  the phone and Becky sat rocking in Sadie’s desk chair. Becky didn’t look

  happy.<
br />
  Sadie dropped the sack on the corner of her desk and began to pull

  out burgers. “How did your interview go?”

  “I’m not sure. There were three other women there interviewing

  for the same job. They had all worked at other banks, which I’m sure

  sounded better than my limited knowledge of managing a convenience

  store.” Becky sounded depressed. “I don’t think even you can pull this

  one off for me, Sadie.”

  “You never know. I’ll call Thelma later and ask.”

  Beanie distributed cans of Dr Pepper from the small office refrigera-

  tor, and Sadie handed out multiple paper towels before placing a mound of catsup and mustard packets in the middle of the makeshift table. All three began eating what Sadie considered the perfect meal— juicy burgers and

  greasy French fries, both slathered in mustard and catsup. Eating dainty

  was not an option today, which seemed to comfort Becky somewhat.

  Becky took a large bite and spoke with a full mouth. “Did you find

  Brad?” she asked.

  “I did.” Sadie wiped her fingers on a paper towel and pulled his

  business card from her purse. “And he asked me to tell you to call him if you’d like to go out.”

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  Becky’s eyes grew wide as she drank from her soda can. “What did you tell him?”

  “He remembered you right off, said you had pretty eyes, and that he

  always wanted to ask you out.”

  Becky turned her head. “That’s hard to believe.”

  They finished eating in silence. When Beanie got up to answer the

  phone, Sadie gathered the food wrappers and took them to the trash can

  near the back door, and Becky wiped off the desk.

  Becky suddenly spoke. “What about the ear tag?”

  “Brad proved I’m not crazy.” Sadie plopped back into her chair.

  “There is, or was, a buffalo cow on the other side of that fence, and this ear tag came from her.” She produced another card from her purse. “And,

  I’m going to call this place and see what information I can get from them.”

  Becky looked amused. “And, then what?”

  “I’m not sure,” Sadie said. She moved her phone to the middle of

  her desk, dialed, and hit the speaker button.

  A woman answered on the second ring. “Travers. This is Kate, may

  I help you?”

  Sadie used her most professional- sounding voice. “Yes, ma’am. I’m

  wondering, if I give you an animal identification number, if you can give me some information.”