White Dragon

by Regina A Hanel

  "No, you didn't, and I do, it's just that I've been so tired lately. I'm burning the candle at both ends and it's catching up to me. I don't have the energy and I didn't want to disappoint you, so I thought I'd show you the flyers instead."

  "Unfortunately, I only see the candle burning from one end," Sam said. "And as for the disappointment, you managed that better than you realize." All she wanted to do at that point was retreat to bed and hope against hope for sleep to overtake her, knowing instead, she'd spend another sleepless night trying to figure out what was wrong with Halie. Tears felt as though they were welling behind Sam's eyes, but she held them back. Before she could excuse herself, Halie spoke.

  "I'm sorry. I don't know what to say. I've upset you. I didn't mean to. I've been so busy. I don't think about much else except getting on my own feet again with work. I know you're there to support me and all, but it's important for me to do this on my own. I need to feel I've accomplished something in my life and I may have let that need control everything. I promise I'll make more of an effort to pay attention to us."

  Sam waited for a deeper explanation, but nothing else came. She wished she could believe the words her partner spoke, but she knew better. "You've told me this before, but here we are again. I love you. I need to know what's genuinely going on with you. It's only fair to the both of us. There's got to be more to this than you're telling me."

  "No, that's all there is."

  "I don't believe you. Is there someone else? Have you found someone else?"

  "No--I haven't found someone else. Why would you even ask me that?"

  The shocked expression on Halie's face told Sam she hadn't found someone else, which deep in her heart she already knew, but she was grasping at straws. "Well, what should I think? You can't just be too busy. You find time for other things, but you never find time for us." Sam struggled with the last words as her throat constricted and she swallowed hard. She wanted to storm off and leave Halie standing there, but her feet remained planted. Instead, she turned and stared out into the yard, her focus a million miles away, her thoughts mixed and confused.

  For several painstaking moments, neither of them spoke. It was Halie that broke the silence. The words flowed from her headlong and without interruption. "Did it ever occur to you that maybe I'm a little overwhelmed? I'm the one who's spent months recovering from that accident on Pinebluff Mountain. I'm the one who uprooted the life I knew in Boston to come live with you. I'm the one who left my job to try and start over here, which as you know hasn't been easy. I've begged hotels, motels, restaurant owners, café, and art galleries to hang my photographs on consignment to see if they'd be good enough to stand on their own. I'm not overly proud of having begged. I've worked part time doing small handout photography assignments for Grand Teton--and don't think I don't know they were practically gifts from the chief--and crap nothing stories for the local paper. I've been busy building a portfolio of photographs worthy of hanging in a gallery and researching all that it takes to open and run that type of a business successfully. And what have you done? Your routine hasn't changed except that I've been added to your life. You still have your job. You still have your friends. You still live in the same area, even if it's in a new house. That's the only thing that has changed for you."

  Sam stared into Halie's wounded brown eyes, and Halie held her gaze. They stood there for several seconds until Halie stepped forward and pulled Sam to her.

  "I'm so sorry," Halie said sobbing, her body trembling. "I--I didn't even realize I felt that way."

  "You must have had an inkling along the way. Why'd you wait so long to say something? Am I that difficult to open up to?"

  "No, you're not. I guess somewhere along the way I became overwhelmed and didn't want to admit it to myself. Maybe part of me blamed you. I don't know."

  "It's not like I did nothing though, but maybe if I'd have been around more--"

  "It's not your fault. I knew changing my life around wasn't going to be easy. I wanted to be with you. I still do. You've been so great. You've done more for me with helping get the gallery going and supporting my dream than anyone else would have done, even with the added responsibility you have at work. I don't know why I got so mad. I'm sorry. It wasn't fair. You're the one who saved my life by being in it."

  Sam's heart softened. She reached her arms around Halie and held her close. "It's okay. You've been through a lot, and I should have been more sensitive to what was going on. I'm glad you let it out. I'd rather know what's bothering you than guess. You don't need to be sorry."

  "No, I'm sorry and I should be. I've not been fair to you. Although, I'm actually glad the thoughts came out too. Somehow I feel better."

  "Talking's a start. We'll work through this together."

  "No matter what, I need you to know that I love you with all my being, Samantha Takoda Tyler. Please don't ever forget that. I'm sorry if I haven't shown you how much. Will you let me make it up to you?"

  "I don't know," Sam said in partial jest. "I may need a whole lot of convincing."

  "Oh," Halie said in that suggestive tone that had lain dormant for some time. "I think I can find a way to convince you without too much trouble."

  "No doubt," Sam replied, knowing Halie owned her heart. Yet in the recesses of her mind she wasn't so certain their problem had been resolved.

  Chapter Two

  THE NEXT DAY, Sam awoke with renewed energy and decided to tackle the yard work she'd been putting aside. After an hour of nonstop digging, followed by another hour of laying gravel and bricks to encircle a flower bed, she stood and wiped her forehead with the back of her hand. She grabbed the water bottle she'd set near the base of a young maple tree and took several long, satisfying gulps. The cool water trickled down her throat and replenished much of what she'd sweat out. The weather was warmer than forecast for Teton County on this first Saturday in July, but she didn't mind. Without much humidity, the heat remained tolerable.

  Sam scanned the panoramic mountain range in the distance. She never tired of taking stock of the majestic snow capped mountain peaks that stretched upward toward the vast, azure, Wyoming sky. Her eyes scanned the rolling hills of lush fields of grass and sagebrush dotted with aspen and pine trees. She inhaled deep. In the past year, regardless of their troubles, she'd thanked her lucky stars many times over for all the events that fell in place for her the prior summer, including those which allowed her to buy the ranch house for her and Halie.

  A couple of months after the helicopter crash on Pinebluff Mountain, Halie ended the lease on her apartment in Boston and Sam left the government housing she'd been assigned in the park, and they purchased the house in Kelly. Sam's boss, Chief Thundercloud, waived the requirement for Sam to live in government housing because although the ranch house was built along the boundaries of the park's southern district, the area of her responsibility within the park, part of the property was within park boundaries. As much as she loved the house and property, Sam knew that if Halie hadn't recovered from the crash, she would never have bought it.

  As the clouds gathered and the wind increased, Sam surmised the unusual warmth of the past few days wouldn't last much longer. She replaced the cap to her water bottle and set it under the tree. She sped up to finish her work and then rolled the wheelbarrow containing her work gloves, pick axe, shovel, level, and leftover bricks into the shed. Once outside, she closed and locked the barn-like doors and brushed the dried dirt off the bottom of her work jeans. Straightening, she heard Halie's voice call to her from the deck.

  Sam's gaze followed Halie's slim frame as she ran toward her. Jake followed in close pursuit. Sam's love for Halie was so great, at times she didn't know how to contain it, and last night she was glad it wasn't necessary. A devilish grin crossed her face. She was surprised either of them possessed the energy needed to do the work they planned to do today, but she'd welcome that kind of tired any day.

  Halie gasped for breath before coming to a halt, the phone held out in fr
ont of her. "It's Charlie. Coco's missing. Charlie said he wasn't out in the pasture with the other horses when he called them in, and when he went to check on him to see if he was in his stall, he wasn't there either."

  Sam's smile quickly vanished. "What? How can that be?"

  "I don't know. You'd better talk to him."

  Sam took the phone, her eyes focused on Halie. "Hey, Charlie. What's going on?"

  "Hi, Sam, I'm so sorry about this, but as soon as I found out, I called," Charlie said.

  While Sam listened, Halie stroked her arm. Jake plopped himself on the lawn, rolled over, twisted back and forth, and kicked his hind legs in the air.

  "When was the last time someone saw him?" Sam said.

  "No one's seen him since lunch time. I interviewed all my workers," Charlie said.

  "Was a gate left open?"

  "Not that I'm aware of. If someone left it open, they're not admitting to it."

  "Okay. Thanks for calling Charlie. I'll be there in a couple of minutes," Sam said. She handed Halie the phone and kissed her warmly on the lips. "I've gotta go. Charlie's not sure how long Coco's been gone. The last time anyone saw him was at lunch time. It's not like him to run off. I'm sorry about this. I know you were planning a special dinner for us. Hopefully he didn't go far and I'll be back in time to enjoy it."

  "Just be careful and don't worry about dinner. I love you."

  "I love you too. Be back soon," she said. She tried to convince herself that Coco was fine and that she had nothing to worry about. Sam ran toward the house. "Come on Jake. Let's go get your buddy, Coco."

  Jake sprung up and let out a bark of excitement before he bounded off after Sam.

  Sam reached for her Stetson as she headed through the house and out the garage. She opened the hatch to the Expedition for Jake, shut it once he was safe inside, and got into the driver's seat. Seconds later they sped out of the driveway and on to Tynes Sunshine Ranch.

  CHARLIE TYNES' PROPERTY bordered on their own ten acre lot, so the trip only took Sam a couple of minutes. Past Charlie's mailbox, she pulled the wheel from the Expedition sharp left, drove up the dirt drive, and parked in front of the stables. She kicked up a cloud of dust that drifted over the vehicle before she stepped out and let Jake loose. Jake ran toward Charlie.

  "Hey, Charlie," Sam said. She attempted a positive tone, trying not to let him sense her anxiety.

  Charlie's near toothless and tobacco stained smile was absent from his leathered face as he reached down and petted Jake. "I'm so sorry, Sam," he said as he stood, scratching the side of his elbow. "I honestly don't know what happened. I mean, yeah, I'm still down a man, plus Tim's been on vacation, but I hired a couple of high school kids for the summer to help out, so it's not like no one's watching the place, and they're good kids. I kept my eye on them when I first hired them. They're real responsible. I don't know where he could have run off to with no one noticing. Even though they're not admitting it, someone must have left the lower gate open."

  "It's okay, don't worry. Jake and I'll find him," Sam reassured him. "He's a sucker for a Red Delicious." Sam tossed the apple she'd been wiping against her jeans in the air.

  A smile cracked through Charlie's harsh appearing exterior. He patted Sam on the shoulder. "So he is. Good idea. Bribe him with food if you have to. You'd better get going then. Take Sugar. I've already saddled her up for you."

  Sam met Charlie for the first time nearly five years ago when she'd brought him Coco to board. She took an instant liking to him. He treated her as an equal. Once Sam became his neighbor, they shared several occasions where they helped one another out. She appreciated his forethought of saddling Sugar.

  Sam led Jake into Coco's stall and held out Coco's blanket for him to smell before they started out. The tough part, she knew, was deciding where to search first. Coco's scent and that of the other horses was all around the stables and nearby pastures. Jake wouldn't be much help to start them off. After a few minutes of contemplation, sitting on top of Sugar near the edge of the property, Sam headed northeast along the main trail in the direction of the Grand Teton Mountains. She hoped if Coco ran off on his own, or if, God forbid, someone stole him, they'd have stuck to the main trail.

  After a few minutes riding, and every five minutes thereafter, Sam whistled and called for Coco. Each time she expected to see him galloping over to meet them, and each time became disappointed when he didn't appear.

  Jake pranced next to Sugar, now and again straying to chase a nearby sage grouse, but on every occasion ended up next to Sam's side without her having to utter a word.

  The winds continued to strengthen and the skies darkened. The smell of rain hung in the air. "We won't have much longer before this spirals into a nasty storm," she said to Jake. They'd been on the trail for an hour before she second-guessed that perhaps she'd chosen the wrong direction in which to head, but then Jake barked several times in a row. He spun around and stared at Sam as if to say "hey, come on," then darted off into the shrubs.

  Sugar's head jerked up, her nostrils flared, and she jerked forward, ears pointed back. "Whoa there little one," Sam said as she pulled back on the reins. Sugar was Halie's horse, small-framed in comparison to Coco, but strong nonetheless. Sam stroked the side of Sugar's neck. "That's just Jake getting excited, and probably all about nothing, okay, so you settle yourself. The last thing I need is another horse running off and leaving me in the dust. That's it--good girl," Sam said. She directed Sugar off the trail.

  A pathway of disturbed grasses stretched out before them. Sam's adrenaline quickened. Jake was on to something. She inspected the ground noting two sets of hoof prints in the soft soil, both leading in the same direction. As she continued on, grassland matted with wildflowers and shrubs soon gave way to small pine thickets and eventually a patch of forest alongside the mountain. Tired of ducking under and around branches, Sam stepped off Sugar and led her through the darkening maze. The ground beneath them was now firm, though slick with pine needles. The combination of hardened earth and ground cover hid the tracks. Sam was beyond thankful Jake accompanied her.

  Thunder rumbled close by. The deeper they headed, the more worried Sam became that Coco had been stolen. Sam knew he'd never have wandered this deep into the woods on his own. She was also aware that she didn't have her gun with her and hoped she wouldn't need it. "Coco! Coco! Where are you boy?" she called out.

  As the last word passed Sam's lips, seemingly out of nowhere Sugar reared up and knocked Sam off her feet onto the rocky ground. She landed full force on her right shoulder and arm. "Dammit Sugar, what the heck's gotten into you!" Sam straightened and sat up, knees bent in front of her. Pain shot up her arm while a high-pitched ringing flooded her ears. For a second, nausea overtook her as she watched Sugar run a hundred yards off in the direction they came. Her vision blurred. She thought she might pass out. Only after the ringing subsided did she realize what spooked Sugar, and she froze in place.

  A rattlesnake lay coiled not more than two feet away from Sam, its tail oscillating back and forth, head and upper body raised and pointed in her direction. Piercing black eyes stared at her and sent a chill down her spine. Had she landed a foot closer, she'd probably have been bitten. Sam remained still, facing the snake, knowing that while it continued to rattle its tail, the threat of being bitten remained real. Sam understood she needed to back away, but before she could move, Jake approached from the side.

  "No, Jake! Stay!" Sam yelled, afraid he'd attack. "You stay!"

  Jake moved slower, head low, stealth-like, but didn't stop.

  "Jake! Please! What did I say?"

  At Sam's second, insistent command, he did as he was told. He not only stopped moving forward, but also retreated several steps before lying down. His eyes remained locked on the snake.

  "Good boy," Sam praised. She breathed deep. The rattler remained motionless except for its tail and its thin, black, forked tongue jutting in and out. With painstaking slowness, Sam placed her left hand behi
nd her strained back as she pushed away from the snake with her feet. The burn in her right shoulder intensified as she moved. After placing a couple of feet between them, the rattling stopped. Sam recognized she was one step closer to safety.

  Seconds later, the snake slithered toward a grouping of rocks and disappeared between them. "Come on boy," Sam said to Jake as she managed to get to her feet, still a bit shaken. Sam rubbed Jake's head with her left hand and breathed a sigh of relief. "You are such a good boy, you know that? Such a good boy." As the initial euphoria of having avoided the snake subsided, Sam's mind re-registered the fact she hadn't found Coco yet, and that now she had another problem to tackle--her injured arm. The way her limb hung listless at her side, and the extent of the pain radiating through it, she guessed she dislocated her shoulder. Yet she had no way of making forward progress without her arm swaying when she walked. She wished she'd brought her EMS bag with her. Her mind searched for a solution. Then she said to Jake, "Hey buddy, can you go get Sugar?"

  Jake let out a bark. Tail wagging, he ran toward Sugar. Sam watched as he circled behind the now calm horse and herded her back toward Sam like a sheep dog.