Chapter 33.1

It was still dark when the plane took off, Lisa staring out the first-class window into the darkness beyond. She hadn't heard anything more about Jack's condition, she'd tried to ring Lou to find out more but she had only got her message bank and had left her a message telling her she was coming back and asking her to call her as soon as she could. She sighed, sitting back in her chair as she let the curtain fall back in place.

'Okay, these are the best burgers I've ever had.' She saw Jack chuckle and she continued. 'Seriously, they're so good.'

'My pleasure.' He replied, grabbing the tongs to turn the burgers he was still cooking on the barbecue. 'I uh, I did wanna thank you for standing up for Amy.'

'Well, who needs to stand up for her?' She remembered well how she'd stood up to her when they'd first met. 'She does fine just by herself. You're doing a really good job with her Jack.'

'Oh, I don't know.' Jack laughed, placing the cooked burgers on a plate to serve them up. 'I'm, I'm trying.'

'I'm kind of in a similar situation myself. My sister just went through a nasty divorce and I have taken on my nephew.' She sighed. 'But I don't seem to have the same knack for it that you do.'

'I'm sure you're just fine. But if there's anything I-' He corrected himself. 'Or we can do.'

'Yeah? Well, I might take you up on that.' She nodded. 'I think every boy needs a good man in his life. Heck, who doesn't hey?'

She smiled, thinking back on the first time they had met. She'd seen occasional glimpses of Jack Bartlett around town now and then, heard stories of how he took on his grandchildren after his daughter had been killed in that car accident. She chuckled, wondering what on earth Jack had thought of her flirting with him the first time they'd met. It had obviously done something, look at what they had now. They'd been seeing each other for over a year and now they were raising an orphan girl together.

While everyone thought of her as the rich horsewoman with a perfect life, no one knew how lonely she really was. After her marriage break-up and divorce with Dan and everything that had come with it she never thought that she would even think about dating another man. That was, until the day she had met Jack and in a spur-of-the moment decision attempted making a lasting impression on him. She knew now that she certainly had.

She flicked her phone screen on, looking at the picture of Jack and Jessie she had set as her wallpaper. She smiled, looking at the two of them. When she had first met him she'd never imagined what events they would set in motion but she knew she wouldn't wish to change a moment of it if she could. Well, maybe a couple if she was really honest. His meeting Dan for the first time was something she would definitely have changed if she could do that over again.

Please be okay Jack. She begged as she ran her thumb thoughtfully over the screen. Please be okay.

'Have you heard anything?' Jessie asked as she came down the stairs the next morning, seeing Ty sitting down on the couch with Mallory. 'Has Lou rang?'

'She did call about an hour ago.' Ty replied as the girl sat down in an empty seat. 'But there's been no change.'

She nodded, knowing that meant he was no better but he hadn't gotten and worse either. 'W-what do we do now?'

'I guess we keep the place running, there's not much else we can do.' He exclaimed, looking at Mallory. 'Can you two help look after the horses? I think Caleb is supposed to be back today, we need to go check the cattle.'

'Alright.'

'Okay.' Mallory agreed with a sigh. 'It's better than doing nothing. Can I come with you and Caleb thought? I can't bear sitting around here all day.'

'Would that be okay Jessie?'

'I guess so.' She shrugged, looking down at the ground. 'Lisa will be here soon so I won't be alone.'

'I'm really sorry about that, I should have thought to leave you a note or something.' He apologised. He did feel bad about leaving her with no idea of what had happened. 'It completely slipped my mind.'

'Its alright Ty, I know you've had a lot on your mind the last couple of days. We all have. It's not your fault. It just happened.'

He nodded, but regardless he did still feel bad. 'Do you two want something to eat?'

'I'm not hungry.'

'Neither am I.' Mallory agreed. 'I can't eat.'

Ty sighed. 'You know you both do need to eat something.'

'I know, I just don't feel like it.' She stood up. 'You want to go do the horses now Jessie?'

'Yeah. Let's go take care of them. Could you feed Cougar for me please Ty? She's still upstairs sleeping.'

'Sure Jessie.'

'Thanks.' Jessie got up, heading towards the mud room where Mallory was putting her coat on. She put her boots on then grabbed hers off its hook, struggling to get into it. 'Man, this shoulder.'

'You need a hand?'

'Please.' She admitted, letting her help get the jacket onto her. Carefully she placed her arm back in her sling again once she had gotten the jacket on. 'Thank you Mallory.'

'I thought your shoulder was healing up.' Mallory remarked as they walked out to the horses. 'Why's it hurting again? You've been so careful with it because you want to go riding again.'

'I hurt it the night of the fire.'

'How?'

How? Let me see. Maybe lifting a beam off Jack, trying to drag him out, carrying him on my back, wrestling with frantic horses. Yeah, that would about do it. 'I just did is all.' She replied, leaving her thoughts unsaid. 'And I would much rather forget that night even happened.'

'You and me both. I know I turned that stupid heater off-' Her voice trailed off as Caleb's truck pulled into the yard and she glanced around. 'Oh, look who it is. He who goes off for days at a time and leaves up to do all the work.'

'Hi girls.'

'Hi.' Jessie waved back as he walked over to them. 'Nice of you to show up.'

'Yeah.' He looked at the barn, raising his eyebrows as he saw the mess the fire had caused. 'Wow, that did some damage.'

'No kidding.' Mallory rolled her eyes. 'Where were you Caleb? We needed you here.'

'I was off on a rodeo, you know that.' He replied, looking around. 'Where's Jack? I need to speak to him.'

'How about you go and start on the horses Mallory?' Surprisingly she did what she suggested without argument, heading over to the pen to start bringing them to water. She turned back to him. 'Hasn't anyone told you?'

Caleb shrugged. 'Told me what?'

'Jack collapsed yesterday, he's in the hospital. In a coma.'

'I-I didn't know.' He took a step back, slightly surprised how vicious Jessie had replied to him. 'No need to eat me.'

Jessie sighed, looking down at the ground. 'Sorry. I've just been dealing with a lot lately. I didn't mean to talk like that.'

'It's okay Jessie, I understand.' He glanced around the yard again. 'What do you want me to help with?'

'Ty said something about you and him going out to check on the cattle, he's the one giving the orders at the moment. Both Amy and Lou are at the hospital with Jack and he's the only adult here-

'Alright, I'll go get Shorty out of the trailer and get saddled up then.'

She nodded as he headed to the trailer attached to his truck and went to join Mallory watering the horses, grabbing a lead off the fence as she walked past. Warrior left his grazing with Paint upon seeing her coming over, trotting to meet her. 'Hey boy.' She clipped the lead to his halter then gave him a pat. 'How are you doin? Hey?' He snorted, nibbling at her hair and she pushed him away with a laugh. 'How many times do you have to be told that you can't eat my hair?'

'Pegasus doesn't seem to want to drink.' Mallory remarked as she walked him back to the pasture. 'I think we should call Scott.'

'Bring him over here.' She unclipped the lead off Warrior, walking over to the white gelding as Mallory halted him. She ran her hand over him, leaning down close to his shoulder to listen to his breathing. She glanced down at her watch, counting how many breaths he was taking in a minute. 'He's breathing a little faster.'

'He seems pretty tired too.' She added, rubbing the gelding's forehead. 'And he was coughing a bit earlier.'

Jessie nodded, wishing that she could take the animals pulse but there was no way she could without taking her gloves off and she didn't want to get interrogated by Mallory. 'Have you ever taken a horse's pulse before Mallory?'

'No.'

'Alright, well today you're going to learn.' She motioned for her to come around beside her and she placed her fingers over the vein in the gelding's neck to show her where to put her fingers. 'Okay, feel right there.'

'I don't feel anything.'

'Wait a moment, you'll feel it in a couple seconds.'

'Yes, now I can. That's so cool.'

Jessie chuckled, looking down at her watch. 'Alright, start counting how many pulses you can feel as soon as I tell you to start. Okay-' She waited for her watch to start a new minute. 'Go.' Mallory started counting, moving her lips but making no sound as she concentrated on the horse. She looked down at her watch again, waiting for a minute to go by. 'Okay, stop. How many did you feel?'

'Forty-nine.'

'That's a little fast.' She patted the gelding's shoulder thoughtfully, thinking up a plan. 'Let's put him in a pen by himself and give him some water. I'll keep an eye on him till Scott can come check him out but my guess is he's feeling the effects of the smoke from the fire.' She scratched behind his ear, knowing that was his favorite spot from seeing Amy do it. 'I should have gotten you out first, hey mate.'

'What did you say?'

'Nothing. Forget it.' Jessie replied, taking his lead. 'I'll go take care of him, are you right with the other horses?'

'I'll be fine.'

'I'll come back and do Warrior, just take the rest to water and then I'll give them their hay. Someone will have to get a new hose too.'

'I agree. I'm sick of the horses slobbering all over me after they drink.'

She chuckled, leading the gelding out of the pasture. 'You'll get used to it.'

Jessie led him on around the barn to the small pens out back, turning him loose into the one closest to the house. She sighed, rubbing his neck as he sniffed her pockets. 'I'm really sorry about this mate. It's my fault, I should have gotten you out sooner.' The old gelding looked up at her, his brown eyes soft and kind. 'I never thanked you for getting me out of there. I would have been a goner if it wasn't for you. You saved my life.' Her voice cracked with emotion and she paused, stroking him gently for a moment. 'I'm going to look after you boy, I owe you at least that. You'll be feeling better soon, I promise.'

She grabbed the empty bucket hanging in the corner and headed to the tap, struggling to carry it slightly when it was full but she managed to get it back to the horse. 'Come on mate, you need to have something to drink.' The gelding took a couple steps closer to the bucket, sniffing it to see what was in it then drew back. She sighed again. 'Alright, I'll just leave it here.'

'Mallory said Pegasus isn't drinking.' Ty exclaimed as the girl came around to the front of the barn where he and Mallory were tacking up their horses. 'I called Scott but he didn't pick up so I left a message.'

'I think he's got severe smoke inhalation, that's why he doesn't want to drink.' She explained. 'I've seen it before, there was a bad fire up at Pike River when I was nine, a few of the wildies got trapped in a box canyon. They survived but they were a bit sick for a long time after it. Pegasus was trapped in the barn the longest and his age wouldn't help him either.' She looked over at Caleb as he walked over with Shorty. 'Can you go to town and grab a new hose after you guys finish with the cattle? The old one isn't of much use and bringing the horses in to water them is quite a job.'

'Sure. Anything else I need to get while I'm there?'

'Maybe some epsom salts. I can try putting a mixture of that and some melted honey in Pegasus water to try and encourage him to drink. It's what I used with a few horses.' She remembered well when she helped Cherry Blossom get over her smoke inhalation. She'd been with the wildies when they got trapped and since she wasn't a young horse she had been one of the sickest ones. It had taken a long time but she'd recovered fully. 'Ty will probably think of a few things but I don't know what else we need.' She glanced back at the stuff strewn out the front of the barn. 'I don't know what else we need to do.'

'Take care of the place as best we can I guess, until Jack gets better and can take change again.' He mounted Shorty, waiting for Ty and Mallory as they mounted. 'You'll be okay here by yourself?'

'I'll be fine. It's not like I'm able to go anywhere.' She looked down at her shoulder. 'And keeping busy is the best thing right now. You guys go, Lisa will be here soon to keep me company.'

'Alright but if anything happens you call me straight away.' Ty replied as he got onto Tamborine, having chosen him because he was the only horse that fit the saddle he'd managed to find. 'I've got my phone on me and if you can't get me on that Caleb has his two way. You know how to use the radio in the house?'

'Yes, I've used one before. Have fun Mallory.'

'It's much better than getting slobbered on by horses. See you soon Jess.'

She waved as the three of them rode out of the ranch yard, her fake smile disappearing off her face as soon as they were out of sight. She was left alone again, sighing as she turned back to the barn. She hadn't been able to walk in there since she'd almost had a panic attack, couldn't bring herself to go near it. She felt so silly, being scared of a building. It wasn't the building that scared her, it was the memories.

Her phone vibrating in her pocket interrupted her flashback and she pulled it out, checking to see what it was. It was a call, from Cindy. 'Hey.'

'Hi Jessie! How are you going?'

'I've been better.' She replied, walking over to the paddock to get Warrior to take him to the trough. 'Things haven't been so great around here the last few days.'

'Oh, what's happened? Something with Jack and Lisa?'

'Not exactly.' Jessie opened the gate, clipping the lead onto her stallion. 'The barn caught fire a couple days ago, things haven't been that great since then.'

Cindy gasped. 'Oh Jessie, that's horrible. Was anyone hurt? Are the horses okay?'

'We're all fine.' Barely. She omitted telling her that Jack was in the hospital, wanting to spare her that knowledge. 'The horses are too.'

'That's so good. Do they know what started it?'

'The fire marshal has a couple theories but we don't know for definite yet.' She led Warrior out, fighting to keep control of her emotions hearing Cindy's happy voice. 'I um, I'm going to have to go Cindy. I need to look after Warrior. Can I call you back later perhaps?'

'Oh, alright.' She agreed, slightly deflated. 'Give him a kiss and a hug from me. Cougar too.'

'I will. Bye sis.'

'Bye.'

Jessie slipped her phone back in her pocket as Warrior continued drinking from the trough, glancing down at her watch. It was almost ten in the morning, yet she still hadn't heard anything new about Jack. She hated the waiting, the feeling of being helpless. There wasn't anything she could do.

She tried and tried again to wake him up, almost verging on panicking now. 'Jack, wake up. Please. I need you.' She begged, her fingers warm and sticky from his blood as she started coughing again. The last time she'd been sitting beside a person like she was now, that person had been dead. 'Come on Jack. Please, wake up.'

Suddenly she felt something brush against her shoulder and as she looked around she saw Warrior there, standing behind her. 'Warri, I can't wake him up.' She sobbed, throwing her arms around the stallion's neck. 'I can't get him to wake up.'

She'd been helpless then and she was helpless now. Warrior snorted, dripping water down her neck as he nudged her cheek. 'No Warrior. Not now.' She pushed him away, leading him back to the paddock to turn him out. She just wasn't in the mood, she had too much going on in her mind.

She headed quietly back to the house after turning Warrior loose, unable to look at the barn as she walked up the stairs and went inside. The house felt so quiet and empty, it felt lonely. Jack was a part of this place, of this ranch. His absence left a hole that couldn't be filled.

Absentmindedly she took her jacket off and walked into the kitchen, staring at the food in the fridge for the longest time before she closed the door again. She didn't feel like eating. Just looking at food turned her stomach. You haven't eaten since dinner the night of the fire. She was reminded as she walked to the cupboard to grab a glass for a drink. She paused, knowing that was right. Yes, the last time she had eaten was then. With Jack. Turkey and cheese sandwiches that he'd made. The glass she was holding in her hand dropped to the floor, shattering with a loud noise as she started to cry. What if she never got to eat with him again? Or play chess? Or just hear him call her name?

She forced herself to pull it together, finding a dustpan so she could clean the broken glass up. You klutz. The fire destroyed enough without you breaking everything in the kitchen too. She slid the broken shards of glass into the garbage can, her desire for a drink gone.

Jessie looked down at her hands, they were already sore and she hadn't really done that much to warrant the pain she was in yet. Looking around first even though she knew she was the only one there, she slid her gloves off to look at the bandages underneath. She flexed her fingers, winching. They were sore, considerably actually.

A knock on the door startled her, her heart racing as she caught her breath. She glanced out the window, it wasn't Lisa's car pulled up out front. It was a car she didn't recognize. The person knocked again as she struggled to get the gloves back on her hands, giving up when she dropped the one for her left hand. 'Coming. Coming.' She tried to sound as cheery and as normal as possible, opening the door up. Maggie was there, holding a tray. 'Oh Maggie. Hi.'

'Hi Jessie. I hope you don't mind me dropping by. I brought some food over for you all.'

'Thank you.' She faked a smile, moving aside so the woman could come in. 'Just pop it on the table in the kitchen.'

'Alright.' Maggie walked in, turning back to the girl as she joined her in the kitchen. She frowned, seeing the girls hands wrapped up in bandages in addition to her arm being in a sling. 'What happened to you?'

'Took a fall and hurt my shoulder last week.' Jessie opened the fridge, trying to hold herself together as she looked for a spot to put the tray. 'Nothing serious.'

'But your hands-'

'That's what fire does. It burns you.' She replied, unable to keep it in any longer. 'Sorry Maggie, I'm just having a hard time. That's all. I've been snapping at people a lot lately, it's not one of my favorite things to do.'

'That's okay, it's understandable. Is there anything I can do?'

'Just bringing this food over is a great help. Ty has been attempting to cook but just between the two of us, even if I felt like eating I wouldn't touch it.'

'Yeah, I can imagine.' Maggie chuckled as the girl put the food in the fridge and joined her at the table. 'You haven't heard anymore about Jack?'

'Lou called Ty this morning. No change.'

'He'll be okay, he's a strong guy. It won't keep him down for long.'

'I hope so. I've lost too much already to lose him too.' She looked up out the window at the barn, her eyes glistening. 'I still can't believe what happened. It just feels like a terrible dream or something and I'm going to wake up and everything will be fine but it's not a dream. It's real.'

'Do you want to talk about it?'

Jessie shook her head. 'I can't. Not right now. Thank you though.'

'Okay honey. You know you can ring me if you do need to talk to someone. I'd be happy to listen.'

'That means a lot to me. I appreciate it.' She sighed. 'I was going to enter the rodeo but now I have no idea if I will. I've lost so much time in practice, all this has happened, Jack is in the hospital, my saddle is practically ruined-' She groaned, leaning back against the back of her chair. 'It couldn't have happened at the worst time possible.'

'I don't think there is a good time for this kind of thing to happen.' Maggie remarked gently.

'No, you're probably right there.'

She glanced down at her watch. 'I'm going to have to go Jessie, you sure you're alright?'

'I'll be fine.' The girl nodded, trying to put on a brave face. 'Lisa is coming back today, she should be here soon.'

'Okay, just remember if you need anything I'll be more than happy to help.'

'Thank you Maggie.'

Jessie watched her leave, wondering when Lisa would turn up. She looked down at her hands, carefully taking her arm out of its sling so she could unbandage her hand. She bit her lip as she took the dressings off, her palms red raw from the burns of the concrete. She sighed, carefully wrapping her hand again. There was no denying she'd burnt them pretty bad as much as she didn't want to admit it.

'Jessie, you in here?'

She looked up, jumping out of her chair as she saw Lisa standing there. 'Lisa!' She ran up to her, throwing her arms around her. 'Oh I'm so glad you're here.'

'I am too honey. I am too.'