"Aunt Ava?" Nikki asked walking into her aunt's room.
"Yes, sweetie?"
"Some kids at school are going on a field trip to a ranch an hour away. I was wondering if I could go."
"What will you be doing at this ranch?" her aunt asked looking up at her.
"Learning the duties of a rancher and possibly learning how to ride horses," Nikki told her aunt.
"Don't you already know how to do those?"
"I don't know how to ride a horse," Nikki siad, "Please Aunt Ava. I really want to do this."
Ava thought about this for a few minutes. Her niece really did want to do it and was shocked that she didn't learn how to back in Kansas. "Okay," Ava said.
"Thank you!" Nikki squealed hugging her aunt.
Kay sat on a stack of hay near the Gerry Lawson Ranch. Life lately has been a pain for her. Everything was going wrong. She wished that she knew why. Why did everything happen to her? She only has one person to turn to in her time of need. Well, it wasn't really a person.
"Kay," a man asked walking up to her, "how are you holding up?" She shook her head and sighed. "Everything will be okay. It will take time to move on."
Tears flowed down Kay's face the thought of losing her father entered her mind. "Not for a long time," she said softly.
"If it makes you feel better, the ranch is all yours. He left it to you."
"Uncle Jay, I don't know if I can handle it by myself."
"I'm here for you, sweetie," he told her, "I'll always be here."
She got up and walked into the stables. She walked up to a stall and a horse poked its head out. "Hey, boy," she said subbing its snout, "How are you doing?" She nibbled at her shirt making her smile. She went into her pocket and pulled out two carrots. "Bandit, I don't know what to do anymore. Everything is going wrong. My father just died. I have no mother. No one seems to care about what I'm going through besides my uncle. Yet, I feel like I can only talk to you."
He nudged at her head and licked her. "I love you, too, boy."
