A/n - thanks to everyone who has read and commented on this story. Hope I don't of course I should have added a disclaimer at the start of this story, that none of the characters belong to me. Just borrowing them for fun.
Chapter 2
Walt was still unconscious when his horse returned to the spot where he lay. The animal nuzzled him and scratched the ground around him, but got no reaction from Walt. The horse lost interest after a few minutes of being ignored and left his owner and trotted off in the direction of Walt's property.
About an hour later in the Sheriff's office, Ruby was growing impatient.
"I swear, someday I'll kill that man," she said to the Ferg, obviously annoyed. "I don't know how many times I reminded him yesterday that he had to be here this morning...and still he couldn't manage it."
She sat down to the radio.
"Walter, pick up. Walt! You're late. You better be on your way because your first appointment is here already," she said sounding irate. "Walter!"
"He's still not answering?" Ferg asked, sounding surprised.
Vic arrived to work and noticed the guy sitting outside the office door looking nervous.
"Is Walt interviewing already?" she asked.
"No, not yet," Ruby answered crossly. "He hasn't even turned up and I can't raise him on the radio."
"Have you tried his house?" she asked, her curiosity peaked.
"I tried calling a few times," Ferg told her. "I keep getting the machine."
"Are you worried?" she asked Ruby who was unable to hide her concern.
"Yes, I am. He knew the interviews were this morning and I know he intended to be here. I'm afraid something's happened," Ruby told her.
"I'm sure it's nothing, but I'll drive out to his place to check it out if it makes you feel better. Maybe check with Cady or Henry? They might have seen him," Vic said, turning around and heading for the door. "Interview's been postponed," she said to the unfortunate young man sitting outside Walt's office. "We'll call you."
Vic drove out to Walt's cabin and was surprised to see the Bronco parked outside. The hairs stood on the back of her neck and she immediately sensed something was amiss. She jumped out of her SUV and ran into the cabin, calling out his name.
"Walt! Walt! You here?"
Everything seemed normal, but Walt was nowhere to be seen.
She came back out of the cabin and scanned the property. She called out his name again as she jogged down to the barn, but still there was no sign of him. She noticed that his horse was gone also. Then she remembered that he habitually went riding in the morning. Only then did it occur to her that he may have had an accident on the mountain.
She ran to the SUV and called Ruby on the radio.
"Ruby, it's Vic. Come in," she said with a sense of urgency in her voice.
"Yeah, Vic. Any sign of him?"
"No, Ruby. His truck is here, but his horse is gone. I think you're right. Something's wrong," she told her.
The words had just left her mouth when she saw something in the distance. She strained to see and waited until she was sure.
"Ruby, hold on. I'll call you back."
Vic ran to the paddock fence and looked out at the approaching animal. It was a dark horse, saddled, but without a rider. Her heart dropped to her boots. She ran into the open plain as the animal approached. She waved her hand to try and slow the frightened animal. He tossed his mane and reared a little before eventually slowing. Vic managed to get a hold of one of the loose reins and steady him.
"Easy, Boy. Woah!" she said as she tried to control him.
She recognized him as Walt's horse. She patted his neck and spoke to him to calm him down and then ran her hand down onto his withers. That was where she felt the stickiness. She removed her hand and examined it and realized that there was blood on her hand. It was difficult to see it on the animal's dark coat, but there was a wound on his neck. Then she noticed that there was blood on the saddle as well.
She felt sick to her stomach realizing that Walt had come upon some sort of trouble. He was most likely hurt and she had no idea where he was. She tied the horse to the fence railing and ran back to the truck.
"Ruby, you there?"
"Still here, Vic. What's going on?"
"Walt's horse has come back, but there's no sign of Walt. And the horse has been injured. Can you get a hold of Henry and send him over here straight away? And we're gonna need a vet for the horse," she said, knowing Walt would want him looked after.
"Okay, Vic. Stay by the radio," Ruby told her.
Ruby was as ever calm and collected in a crisis. That was why Walt liked to keep her around. She was a natural organizer and the foundation stone of his department. She quickly contacted Henry who became very concerned for his friend's well-being after Ruby explained what was going on, especially knowing that Walt would never let anything happen to that horse of his. He left The Red Pony straight away and quickly loaded up his horse trailer with two of his horses with the intention of using them to track where Walt's horse had been.
Cady was called next. She had sensed something was wrong when the Ferg had called earlier that morning, wondering if she had heard from her Dad. Now, her worst fears were confirmed when Ruby rang to tell her that her father was missing.
She jumped in her car and drove at speed out to her father's property to help with the search. When she arrived, there were several other vehicles there already. She found Vic and Henry deep in conversation while looking out over the land and Vic pointing, giving direction. There was another man looking at her Dad's horse.
She approached Henry and Vic who both seemed very worried.
"Hey," she said, trying to muster a smile. "Anything yet?"
"Not yet. I'm about to head out. Vic said the horse came from the east of the valley so I'll head in that direction and try and pick up his tracks. If I can retrace the route he took, I should be able to find Walt," Henry told her.
"Who's that?" Cady asked, pointing to the man tending to the horse.
"That's Matt Gleeson, the vet," Vic told her. She looked at Henry who nodded his head in encouragement. "Cady, the horse has a bullet wound to his neck."
"What? Someone shot his horse?" she asked in disbelief.
"Cady, it's a possibility that someone was shooting at Walt and hit his horse," Henry pointed out.
Cady said nothing for a minute, digested what he had said and then looked at Henry.
"Do you think he's dead?" she asked, barely able to get the words out.
"No," Henry said adamantly. "No, I do not."
Henry unloaded both saddled horses from the trailer.
"I'm coming with you," Cady said when she saw the second horse.
"She's for Walt," Henry said, referring to the chestnut mare he held. "And anyway, you are hardly dressed for riding," Henry said, gesturing at her blouse, short skirt and high heel shoes.
"Give me two minutes," she said, turning towards the cabin and running inside. Within a few minutes she emerged wearing a well-worn pair of jeans, a sweatshirt and a short padded jacket and a pair of ankle high riding boots.
"Let's go," she said, taking the reins of the mare from Henry and leading her into space.
She mounted with ease as her father had ensured that she was a proficient rider from an early age.
"What are we waiting for?" she said to Henry who was standing at the side of his Pinto.
"Find him, Henry," Vic said, holding the halter as Henry mounted.
"I will," he promised.
Meanwhile, on the mountain, Walt woke with a start. He was completely disorientated and wondered why he was lying in the dirt. He tried to get up but his body screamed at him to stop moving. A wave of nausea hit him and he turned his head to one side and threw up violently. Then it all came back to him, the kid, the woman. He looked down at his stomach and checked his wound. It was red raw, blistered and oozing blood, but the bleeding had slowed, at least externally. His mouth tasted of blood. He was thirsty, he realized, very thirsty. He shivered as a sudden chill overcame him. His body was going into shock. He was cold but perspiring and, judging from the stains on his clothing and the dirt, had lost quite an amount of blood.
He knew he wouldn't survive very long without medical attention. At that point, reality and fevered dreams were difficult to differentiate. As Walt lay slumped against the tree stump, he could have sworn his beloved Martha was standing over him, tending to him.
"I'll be with you soon, my love," he whispered to her.
She shook her head and knelt beside him.
"It's not your time, Walter," she told him. "Our daughter needs you. You cannot leave her alone, not like this. They're coming, my dear. You just need to be strong a little longer."
"Don't leave me, Martha," he begged.
"I'm here, Walt. I'm right here, my love," she said and he could have sworn her felt the stroke of her hand on his brow.
"I'm so tired," he told her.
"I know, my sweet. Rest a little. I'll be right here with you," she told him.
Her words comforted him and he closed his eyes. His breathing was ragged now, short breaths resembling a dog's panting, but at least he was still fighting.
The Ferg had called in Mountain Rescue, who had put a chopper in the air in the hopes of spotting the missing man. Now he and Ruby waited anxiously by the radio for any glimmer of hope. To their surprise, Branch Connally arrived at the office with an offer of help. Cady had called him from her car on her way to the cabin. He wanted to be of some assistance, however, there was little anyone could do, but wait.
Henry and Cady continued their ride following the tracks of Walt's horse back across the valley and up into the foothills. Conversation was light as Henry concentrated on the ground, looking for signs that would lead him to his friend. Cady was concentrating also. She was concentrating on keeping it together as one thought kept invading her brain – what if he was lying somewhere out there, dead?
She prayed like she had never prayed before, begging that her beloved father be found safe and well. She prayed to her Mom to help them find him. They had been in the saddle for 25 minutes when they reached the rocky incline that led to the higher plain on the mountain where Cady's mother's ashes had been scattered. The path was narrow and they rode in single file with Henry taking point. They rounded a large pine tree and Henry stopped and leaned down for a closer look at the ground. There was an unmistakable blood stain in the dry clay. He stood up on his stirrups and looked ahead and saw something he had hoped he wasn't going to find, a body.
"Stay here," he said to Cady as he dismounted hurriedly.
He quickly approached the body and as he got closer he first of all recognized the jacket. Then the features became clearer confirming his fears. It was Walt. His head hung forward and slightly to one side. There was no obvious sign of life.
Then from behind him came a guttural cry when Cady saw the reason they had stopped. She jumped from the mare and ran, brushing past Henry and dropping to her knees by her father's side. All she saw was the blood. A trail of blood stained down from his lips to his chin and onto the collar of his shirt. The gruesome wound in his abdomen was clearly visible where he had cut away his shirt to cauterize it. His knife was on the ground by his side. It was all too horrible and she feared the worst. She took him in her arms and pulled him close to her.
"Daddy," she cried. "Please, God, no. Daddy!" she begged, already grieving.
Henry hesitated, shocked at the sight of his friend. He couldn't be...
TBC...
