Thank you all for reading! Caution: Strong Language Ahead!
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Six Weeks Later
"God damn it, you fucking asshole!"
Poe's head jerked around at the shout coming from the other end of the barn. It wasn't just the expletives being used that got his attention, but the person using them. Finn never swore!
He heard banging and another wordless shout and headed down the barn aisle, panic growing. He knew what stall the yelling was coming from.
Finn suddenly appeared, ducking out of the stall he had been in and sliding the door shut violently. He grabbed his arm and looked at Poe, his eyes wide.
"I am not dealing with him anymore," he rasped out, dropping the halter and lead rope in his hand on the ground. "We should just leave him out 24/7 so no one has to deal with him."
Poe's panic eased, but the throbbing behind his temple didn't. He reached for his friend's arm. "Let me see."
Finn lowered his hand to let Poe look at the fresh bite wound on his bicep. No blood had been drawn, but Poe knew it would bruise badly and hurt like the blazes for a few days. "Get some ice on it," he told the younger man. "That'll keep it from swelling too much."
Finn nodded, then glared at the occupant of the stall. "What about him?"
"Is everyone else out?" Poe asked. Summer was in full swing, and with the increased temperatures and humidity, the daily routine at the barn had changed. Instead of turning the horses out to pasture during the day, they were turned out in the evening and allowed to stay out all night, coming back into the barn around mid-morning to spend the sweltering days inside with fans blowing on them.
"Yeah, he was the last." He sighed and looked mournful. "He used to like me."
"He's bored," Poe told him. "He's used to being worked every day." Giving the chestnut gelding staring at him balefully from inside the stall a frown, he added, "And he's missing Rey."
"Aren't we all?" Finn said softly, then he turned and headed for the tack room and the freezer with various ice packs stocked in it. They were for horses, but everyone here had used them on themselves at one point or another.
Carefully bending over, Poe grabbed up the halter that Finn had dropped on the ground, then reached for the stall door, watching BeeBee warily as he did so. Finn had attached a 'stud' chain to BeeBee's lead rope, a common accessory for Thoroughbreds on the racetrack, but rarely used here in his barn. BeeBee had needed the extra equipment these past few weeks, as he had become moodier and more aggressive. Poe opened the sliding door of the stall and stepped inside, maintaining eye contact with the tall gelding, who was still watching him with a disgruntled look on his face.
As Poe took a step toward the horse, BeeBee suddenly reached for him, mouth open, ears pinned back against his head. Poe was ready and brought up his elbow, angling it so that it hit the horse's face right behind his nostril, preventing the teeth from grabbing his arm and startling the horse so that he drew his head back, shaking it in surprise and pain. The impact made Poe's elbow hurt as well, but it was much better than a bite; horse's jaws had more than twice the strength of most dogs and though they did not have the pointed teeth of predators, their incisors, which were made to cut vegetation, were sharp.
"None of that," Poe said firmly. "I know you know how to behave like a gentleman, and that's what I expect out of you." He knew the horse didn't understand the words, but he did know BeeBee understood the tone of his voice. Poe had a habit of talking to all his equine charges as if they were human; he'd started as an introverted child, and though he'd grown to be much more outgoing with people, he still conversed with his horses. It was a habit he had shared with Rey, who also chattered to BeeBee and the other horses as if they understood every word.
Keeping his body straight and his head up, Poe moved around to BeeBee's left side, never taking his eyes off the gelding. Bee stood with his ears half-way back, still looking disgruntled, and eyeing Poe as carefully as Poe was eyeing him. Poe slid the noseband of the halter over BeeBee's muzzle, reaching a bit to flip the strap over his head (BeeBee was tall and Poe was not!), then brought the strap down to buckle it. BeeBee never moved other than to blink. Poe took the stud chain, a thick chain about twenty inches long, and threaded it up through the halter, wrapping it up over the noseband and bringing it down the other side to clip it back onto itself under his jaw. The noseband of the halter would prevent the chain from digging into BeeBee's sensitive face but it would still give Poe leverage to control the naughty horse. BeeBee had worn a stud chain all throughout his racing career and knew what it was; usually just putting it on was enough to make him behave and no discipline was needed, but there were days when he tested whoever was leading him. Even Rey had her days of frustration with him, though he was never aggressive with her, just overly playful and rambunctious.
As Poe clipped the end of the chain, Bee opened his mouth and did a half-hearted bite in Poe's direction. Poe growled, "Uh-uh," and the horse backed off. Poe sighed. "I miss her, too, buddy," he whispered. As if he understood, BeeBee's ears flipped forward for a moment. "I just wish…"
He wished a lot of things. He wished she would come back to the barn. He wished she would answer his calls. He wished he could hold her and tell her how much he cared for her and that he didn't give a damn that she couldn't see anymore. Poe clenched his jaw and directed BeeBee toward the door of the stall. He wished he had the guts to go to her father's house, where he knew she was living now, and bring her back to the barn himself.
He slid open the stall door and led BeeBee out. The thoroughbred walked quietly next to him, his ears and eyes still showing his displeasure, but he made no aggressive moves. As Poe neared the tack room door, he had an idea. He stopped and looked in at Finn who was holding an ice pack on his arm.
"Finn, could you hand me a lunge line?"
Finn did as asked, handing Poe the thirty-foot long nylon line, looking back and forth between his boss and BeeBee. "You sure you want to work him?"
Poe nodded. "It'll be good for him. I'll just lunge him a bit, nothing too strenuous, then turn him out. If I do that every day, maybe he'll settle." He shrugged. "We're just gonna have to get used to being without Rey for a while longer. When she comes back, he'll be ready for her." He was determined to stay positive.
Finn nodded, his expression sorrowful. "Yeah," he said softly. "When she comes back."
With a grimace, Poe led BeeBee out to the covered arena where he would work on a large circle around him, directing the horse's speed with his voice. It would give them both something to do.
Until Rey came back.
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Hey, everybody! Just a heads up. I will not be updating this story next week. There is a very good reason, however. October 23 thru 29 is Damerey Creations Week 2022! Now those of you who were reading my stuff last year know how much fun I had writing something for every day, so I did it again this year! Sunday thru Sunday, I have a short Damerey story for every day. I hope to 'see' you all then!
