The Horse Named Iggy
(EMERALD RANCH)
Lorna had been working at Emerald Ranch for a little over three weeks now. The owner of the ranch, Mr. Wegner, had put her to work once she had arrived and settled into a small cabin that they offered her. So far she had mucked up horse shit, fed horses, washed them, and mucked up more horse shit. She wasn't trusted to ride them because apparently it was 'unlikely that she could actually ride one because she was a woman', she swore if she heard him say that one more time then she was going to shove the words right back up his arse.
The ironic thing was that he would trust her to use a gun and kill someone if need be.
She hadn't been sent out to do any of Mr. Wegner private dirty work, like kill or scare people away yet. She was honestly getting bored of all of this. Hell the money they gave her wasn't even that much. She would probably get more if she was robbing people again.
Don't get her wrong she was forever grateful for what Henry had set up for her and would immensely pay him back the next time she saw him. But it just wasn't for her. Lorna wanted adventure and excitement and some form of thrill, and this ranch did not offer any of those things.
And so after completing all of her chores and making sure that Mr. Wegner needed nothing else from her, she packed a small food and water bag as well as a rope and her gun, and headed out north to look for a horse for herself, considering he wouldn't ever be giving her one willing. She was so going to prove him wrong and get the best and wildest stallion she could find just to shove his words right back at him.
At least she hoped she would be successful.
So with a final look towards the farm set out on a three day journey, at the most, before she would be forced to return to continue doing what she had been doing for the past three weeks.
The journey out to the Heartland Overflow was one that was very hot and rocky and not something that Lorna believed she would ever do again by foot. As she had headed into the heart of the land she had spotted a few horses here and there but they were mostly mares with foals that would not be worth the hassle.
On her first day in the land she had been setting up a small camp with twigs and leaves for the fire when she heard a loud panicked whinny that had been close by. Alarmed by the loud sound she quickly took her knife and rope and headed to where loud thudding was heard on from the impact of the ground and the panicked sounds of a distressed horse. It had been almost night by the time that she was able to locate the horse and when she did she couldn't help but stare at it in awe.
It was a beautiful mustang mare, a deep black in colour, the only white being a small star on it's forehead and one white sock on it's back left leg. It appeared to also be only young, four years old at the most. She was about average height of 15hh, and might grow some more, however she made up for in the way that the muscles appeared to ripple through her coat and the power that could be seen in the legs that continued to stamped on the ground in a panic. This was the horse that Lorna had been looking for, though not a stallion, a mare that could be just as powerful.
Lorna's eyes drifted along the horse as she assessed why it was acting the way it was and found that it's neck and back right leg had been wrapped and caught in a wire trap that a hunter had no doubt set up to trap deer. The wire was slowly cutting off circulation within it's leg and causing the mare to slowly choke as it continued to tighten the more the horse panicked.
Taking a slow step forward to try and not scare the animal, Lorna gently began shushing and trying to calm the horse as it spotted her and became more panicked.
"Hey, hey girl. It's all right." She took a few more steps before stopping to make sure that the horse was calming down before continuing forward. As she was within grabbing distance she gently drew her knife and stepped closer, however the horse gave another panic at the knife and tried to get away again. "Wow! Wow. You're fine, you're fine." Once the horse had calmed, she gently laid a hand against its neck, ignoring the way it flinched slightly at her touch, gently grabbing the wire and bringing the knife up to cut it. It took a bit to see through it, but once she had she felt the mare take in a long breath of air causing a chuckle to escape from her mouth.
Lorna kept her hands on the horses side as she moved down to get rid of the wire wrapped around her leg. It was harder to get the wire off this time because the horse had sensitive legs from being wild and nobody ever touching them, often causing Lorna to take a step back in order to avoid being kicked. Once the wire was released Lorna took a leap back as the horse gave a rear and took off into a canter away from her.
Lorna gave a sigh as she watched the mare run off into the distance. "All well. I can always find 'nother horse. Gotta be plenty out here."
And so Lorna headed back to her small camp to get some sleep before she started her second day of horse hunting.
The next morning was strange to Lorna. She had been woken up by the sound of cans being pushed over and a light thud on the ground. She had assumed it had been bandits, so she had pretended to be sleeping while slowly drawing her gun. When she had it within her grasp she had flung the covers from her body and pointed the gun at where the source of the noise was coming from. What she saw in front of her had caused her to drop her gun in surprise.
Standing in front of her was the mare that she had rescued yesterday from the wire. It had been curious of the cans and had gently nudged them which had caused them to knock over and cause noise. It had also been spooked by the sound and had taken many steps back with its ears perked forward in surprise as it danced nervously on it's spot.
Lorna slowly stood up as she looked at the horse in surprise. "What the hell? What you doing here girl?" the horse had perked it's ears at Lorna and looked towards her but otherwise hadn't step forward. "You are one strange horse if ya coming back to a human. Are you even wild?"
Stomping hooves and a loud huff were her response.
Lorna began to take a few gentle steps forward in caution to not alarm the already nervous horse. Lorna looked at the horse more closely and could see that it was licking its lips in either hunger or thirst and the reason it had probably come to her was because she had helped it once before, probably assuming that she would help it once again.
"Ya hungry girl?" Lorna lowered herself to where her food was and pulled out a few oatmeal cakes, one of her half empty water satchels and a small bowl that she had used to eat out of. She unscrewed the cap of her water sac and filled the bowl as much as could fit into it. She picked up the bowl and the cakes and took slow steps towards the horse, who backed up as she came closer, before setting both of the items down and moving backwards towards her fire where she turned her back to the horse and pretended that she wasn't paying any attention to the mare.
A small smile appeared on her face as she heard the sound of crunch and water being drunk. She waited a few minutes to make sure that the horse was done before turning back to collect the bowl. This time as she approached the horse didn't back away but she did have her head up in alertness as she watched Lorna.
Lorna picked up the bowl and was going to go back to the fire but hesitated as she looked at the horse. Making up her mind she took a step towards the horse and gently lifted a hand to pat the horse. The mare didn't move as she watched Lorna come closer however she did become nervous as she watched her hand come closer. Just as Lorna was about to lay a hand on the horse neck for a pat, the distant sound of a gunshot could be heard. The horse, getting spooked, reared, causing Lorna to fall onto her back to avoid being trampled, before galloping off yet again into the distance.
Lorna gave a sigh as she listened to the horse run off. "Who ever shot that fuckin' gun better be prepared to die if I ever find them." She gave a groan as she lifted herself off of the ground. "So close, I was this close to starting a bond with that horse…"
Lorna continued on with her day of trying to find another horse. However it had appeared that the previous gunshot had scared all of the others off as well. Lorna was going to throw a fit if it weren't for the constant sound of hooves following her throughout the day. Whenever she had looked back she would find that the black mare was following her from a distance, but when caught being followed she would turn to grazing as if she wasn't following Lorna.
As Lorna travelled more and more back towards Emerald Ranch the mare seemed to slowly creep closer towards her until finally when she was just setting up for camp she would walk almost right beside her.
It seemed that they had taken a liking to each other.
That night as Lorna looked up at the stars above her from where she lay on her rug, she gave a sigh as she turned to look towards the mare that grazed close by her camp. "Ya'know I'm gonna have to name you somethin' if ya gonna stick around. Can't keep callin' ya mare." She rolled her eyes at the sound of a snort that came from the mare. "Well, how's about … uh, Onyx. No, that ain't suit you at all. Bandit? No that's a boy's name." Lorna paused as a sudden thought came to her. "What was that name my ma used ta call me. Ah Igni.. AH HA. Ignacia!* That's it, you are a fiery little thing ain't ya. Perfect, and I can call ya Iggy for short."
Ignacia continued to graze and ignore the mumbling Lorna.
Lorna gave a small sigh before closing her eyes mumbling a faint goodnight to Iggy before falling asleep.
The next morning, the day that she would be heading back to Emerald Ranch, Lorna awoke to the sun shining in her eyes and Iggy rolling around in the dirt. Lorna laughed when she saw Iggy stumbled slightly while trying to push herself up from the ground. Iggy gave a huff as she turned away from Lorna to graze.
Lorna gave a stretched as she pushed herself up from the ground, before beginning to pack away her small sleeping rug and her water and food before she would head off back to the ranch and continue her normal boring days, unless Iggy decided to follow her back then they were sure to have plenty of fun together.
Returning back to the ranch was a long and hot journey that took pretty much the whole day to get there. Iggy had followed along at a slight distance, wandering to stand beside her when there was room to move more freely. However as they got closer and closer to the ranch Iggy became more and more restless and wasn't willing to follow Lorna into the perimeter of the ranch after seeing human activity.
Lorna came to a complete stop before turning back and gently petting Iggy on the neck as she offered her an oatmeal cake. Iggy greedily took the cake, nodding her head up and down in pleasure from the treat. "You're a good girl. You stay here, I'll come back every day to bring you some food. Should be a river 'round here as well."
With a final pat, Lorna left Iggy in her spot and walked back to the ranch, hoping that she would be there tomorrow and haven't wandered off or been caught. As she came into the ranch she saw Mr. Wegner leaning against a post smoking a cigar as he tried to block the sunlight from his eyes with his hat.
Lorna's eyes widened in panic before she tried to hurriedly turn around and get out of sight from her boss who would no doubt give her shit for not being able to bring back the most 'fierce, strong and handsome stallion' as she had bragged to him.
"Ah, Miss. Cain you're back. And it appears you haven't brought back any horse with you."
Lorna narrowed her eyes before putting on a bright fake smile and turning towards Mr. Wegner. "Ah, you're right Mr. Wegner. It appeared that I was out of my depth. Such a shame too cause I found some pretty beautiful horses out there."
Mr. Wegner appeared to be satisfied with her words as he gave a smirk and a slight scoff as he blew out smoke. "And so you are out of your depth. You're just a young girl, what had you thinkin' you could catch and tame a wild horse is beyond me. Now why don't you go back to mucking horse shit unless I tell you that I need something dealt with."
Lorna's smile wavered at his words and she managed to only just suppress a growl as she gave him a curt nod and began to huff her way to the barn, angry mutters leaving her mouth.
"Oh and Miss. Cain, you owe me for allowing you to have a few days off to try your 'adventure'. Don't forget that."
Lorna gave a slight nod but otherwise didn't turn to him as she continued to mutter angrily on her way towards the barn. "Stupid motherfucker. Thinkin' he is better than me just cause I'm a woman. If he saw that I was able to almost train that mare.." she cut off her rambling as she got closer towards the stables and some stable boys were there, not wanting them to hear what she had to say about their boss.
Over the next couple of days as she continues to do her chores, she always at the end of the day manages to sneak off with a small amount of hay and a canteen of water, for Iggy. The two had become more trusting with each other and Iggy had even aloud for Lorna to brush her, which when Lorna had done had left the horses coat a nice and shiny black that blended in with the shadows. Iggy had also allowed for Lorna to begin to lead her, however only with a rope around her neck, as she didn't much appreciate the halter, almost taking another one of Lorna's fingers off if she hadn't moved out of the way in time. It was no wonder why Lorna had chosen the name Ignacia.
It was two weeks later when Lorna chose to take a step forward in their relationship by trying to mount her.
She had managed to steal one of the ranches saddle blankets, a rugged old thing that would most likely not be missed any way, but if it were to be found that she had stolen from the property then surely she would be in for hell. She had also managed to sneak an apple out in hopes of bribing Iggy with it. She hoped it worked.
Lorna kept the rug behind her back as she approached the mare who perked up at the sight of her, moving towards Lorna with a bounce in her step. "Hey there girl. I got a surprise for you. A nice big juice apple." Lorna held the apple out which Iggy took eagerly. Lorna moved around to the mares side, patting her along the way as if nothing were wrong. She gently lifted the rug onto Iggy's back, watching to see if she would react, however there wasn't any. Seeing that this was promising she took a fist full of the mares jagged mane and pulled herself onto the back of her.
Iggy didn't like that and promptly kicked her off with a rear and slight buck.
Lorna's breath was knocked out of her as she lay staring up at the sky, her back aching. "Yup, I deserved that. Ah, shit, ma back." She got off the ground with a slight wince and couldn't help but twitch in slight annoyance at the seemingly calm horse grazing without a care. "You're a real piece of work, ya know that. I'm gonna be bruised for days cause of that."
All she got in response was a carefree whinny.
She gave a sigh as she picked up the saddle rug that lay next to her and walked back to Iggy who watched her with caution now. Lorna simply put the rug on the ground when she was close enough and instead gave her a scratch under her forelock, Iggy stretching her neck out further in pleasure at the feeling.
"Let's focus on getting a holter on ya first before I even begin to try and ride ya again."
A week after the first disaster of a ride, Lorna had finally managed to get on Iggy's back without her being kicked off. Of course the mare would mostly choose to ignore any command that Lorna would request, such as moving forward, and would even give her warning nips if she believed if Lorna had done too much pushing.
The next day while Lorna was moving a bale of hay, a familiar panicked neigh could be heard getting closer and closer to the ranch. Lorna quickly put the hay bail down and turned only to quickly run towards the commotion in both anger and shock. Somehow the stable boys had managed to catch and rope Iggy, who was pulling and trying to get away.
"HEY! You best let that goddamn horse go right now before something happens to ya! Believe me it won't be pretty for none of ya!"
One of them gave a sneer towards her as he tried to pull Iggy along, who fought him all the way. "What's it ta you girl?! Ain't your horse to claim."
Thankful that she had decided to bring her gun with her, she quickly drew it and aimed it at them in warning. "I said ya will be sorry if you didn't let her go."
Both of the men quickly let go of Iggy who, still with multiple ropes around her neck, took off in a panicked run, stepping back nervously as they looked at the gun. All of them turned their heads as they heard footsteps coming towards them, Lorna lowering her gun and hiding it behind her back as she realized that it was Mr. Wegner. And he did not look happy.
"What in the hell do you think you're doin' Miss. Cain?! Pointing a gun at my men -" she winced as she realized that he had seen that, "- And letting a fine horse like that one get away! She would have given me lots of money!"
She grew angry as she heard this. "She ain't your damned horse to sell! I found her and she trusts me!"
"You realise how ridiculous you sound?! Ain't nobody seen you with that horse! You are on very thin ice right now Miss. Cain and if I were you I would mind yourself!"
Lorna knew that she would regret this decision later, but right now she was so fired up and beyond annoyed and angry that she could barely think rationally. So she pulled her gun on him threateningly. Mr. Wegner became nervous as he looked at the barrel of the gun that was pointed at him.
"Now Mr. Wegner, I think I'm way past thin ice. Besides I know if I just let you go ya will go and chase after Iggy again to become a broodmare. So I think the best course of action is for me to collect my belongings and get out of here before anything gets out of hand."
Mr. Wegner gave a gulp as he looked to see if the stable hands would help him, but they too were just as frightened of him. Instead he sneered towards the woman. "Ya will regret this, I'll have bounty hunters after you, over a stupid fuckin' horse."
Lorna gave him a smirk as she edged back towards her room. "Mr. Wegner I already have a bounty on my head from both Saint Denis and Rhodes, I have no doubt after this that bounty hunters will be after me. It's a shame you didn't do background checks before hiring someone, ain't it?"
Lorna quickly took off running towards her small room as the sound of shouting could be heard from behind her, Mr. Wegner warning the other help if they didn't kill her or bring her to him then they would be dead men. She quickly set about backing a small pouch of money, a map she had stolen from Mr. Wegner and small rations of food and water. She shoved her hat onto her head and grabbed her knives and pistol, shoving them onto her belt. As she finished she moved the curtains to the side slightly to see if they were coming after her only to have to duck out of the way as a bullet zoom smashed the window to pieces.
"Ah, shit. Well Henry it was good while it lasted. I'll have to warn ya about what could be coming your way cause of me."
Taking a deep breathe she slammed out her front door, only to have to duck behind the railing as bullets came raining at her. She drew her pistol and began shooting back in return, trying to not kill them and only injure them, however she wouldn't feel too guilty if she had accidently killed some of them. 'Especially that bastard Mr. Wegner..'
Seeing an opening where there wasn't any gun fire she took off in a sprint towards the back of her house were she could get more cover and hopefully escape into the woods that was near the estate were she would have to hide it out until they decided to give up on their hunt for her thinking that she had escaped. A bullet came to close for comfort, just shooting the corner of the small house instead of in her back. Glancing around quickly to make sure that nobody was following her yet she took off into the trees. Hiding behind a tree as more shouting could be heard she held her breath when they got closer.
"Find her, Mr. Wegner wants to deal with her himself when we bring her back but he didn't say nothing about having a bit of fun first."
Lorna shivered in disgust at the implication, a sneer appearing on her face. Hearing that they were getting closer to her whereabouts she spotted a rock on the ground. Quickly grabbing it she hurled it in the opposite direction, a loud clank sounding as it hit other rocks and trees.
"Hear that? She must 'ave gone this way!"
Lorna held her breath, and once hearing that they were gone, let out a long breath of relief before hopping up from her position and sprinting further through the trees, a disbelief laugh leaving her mouth. "Can't believe that actually worked." As she was running past a large tree, a sudden large shadow moved in front of her causing her to come to an abrupt stop in panic thinking it was one of the helping hands on horseback.
She aims her gun at it only to lower it as she realised that it was only her dark mare staring at her. "God damn, you scared the hell out of me Iggy." She walked towards her before patting on her neck, taking the rope from around her neck and wrapping it in her belt. She grabbed onto Iggy's mane with one hand, her other coming to rest on her withers as she swung herself onto Iggy. Once she was seated and Iggy wasn't dancing nervously on the spot, Lorna urged her forward. "Now don't go being stubborn today, we have a long journey ahead of us to get away from those scumbags. Shame I had to ruin what Henry had set up for me."
They leave the ranch behind and head towards another town with the money that she was able to save.
Hey... How ya'll doin...
It's been a while...
So, I have two chapters written up that I'll be posting I've just got to edit the other one.
I honestly don't know if i'll continue writing this fic, but I was reading the chapters and found some motivation to finish editing this chapter.
Anyway, next chapter she meets some members of the van der linde gang.
* Ignacia means Fiery in Latin. You can probably understand why Lorna's mother called her that. And hopefully why Lorna called her horse that.