She scans her surroundings as she looks for her favorite wrangler. Her feet get placed on the bottom of the fence and she pulls herself up to try and see if a little extra height will help her find him. From left to right she surveys the land until she sees a cloud of dust being kicked up from the cattle in the distance, about a half mile away from the main barn. She smiles knowing that's where he'll be and she jumps down to head in that direction.
It's a chaotic scene in front of her as the cows and calves try to evade the wranglers guiding them into the appropriate pens. The noises are loud - the stomping and galloping like a stampede rushing towards her in an almost thunderous way - a wild storm of movement. The animals all making their trademark sound - dogs barking, horses neighing and cows mooing - each one distinct and clear. She stops at the fenceline and closes her eyes as she listens to the soundtrack of her home - one that's vastly different but also somewhat similar to the chaos of the city she's lived in for over a decade. Her nostrils flare when she takes in several deep breaths - inhaling all the smells of the ranch. From the awful scent of manure to the refreshing smell of the dew covered fields - each one filters through her olfactory - triggering different memories and flashbacks. Her eyes open when she hears him whistle - cuing his dogs to move in. She can feel her blood begin to pump rapidly when the dust clears just enough to see him grab the rope on his saddle. Even with limited visibility she can make out the way his arms flex and ripple as he loosens the loop on the rope. She can tell he's oblivious to her presence - continuing to focus on the task at hand. Then he's clicking his tongue and moving his feet into the sides of his horse to get him to move - rushing towards the heifer straight in front of them. His arm rises above his head as he begins to swing the rope in the air with ease. She admires the skill and precision as he tosses the lasso to catch one of the adult cattle. The other end of the rope - the piece still in his hands is tied to the horn of his saddle as he simultaneously pulls back on the reigns to stop his horse in his tracks. His short sleeves allow her the privilege of seeing his arms flexing again just before the restrained cow sends dirt flying - creating a new curtain of dust. Erin remains in her spot - hoping to catch another glimpse of him in his element. But she finds herself grateful that she can't see much when she figures out what they're doing - seeing one of them walk over to grab the red hot branding iron. Her eyes clench shut again when she hears the animal's distressed cry - it's brief but it's still one of her least favorite parts of cattle rearing. That thought leaves her mind quickly as Jay walks back over to his horse.
"Who's left?" He questions as he gets back on the saddle and Kevin looks at what Erin can only assume is their list of unbranded cattle.
"Red 345AV and 367AN." Kevin states as he looks up from the worn clipboard.
Jay just nods as he surveys the now empty pen. "So where are they?"
"A couple cows didn't come in this morning." Adam tells him and Erin can see that the statement frustrates Jay as he lets out a big sigh.
"Go find them." He growls to the other men before he makes his way over to where Erin's now sitting on top of the fence.
"I didn't think you'd be up so early." He smiles at her and it pulls one from her too - making her dimples pop just a little as the heat rises in her cheeks.
"I couldn't really sleep." She shrugs and he nods.
"There's just a few things to finish up and then we can go." He assures her and she nods.
"Can I help?" She asks - referring to the missing cattle.
"It's not your responsibility Erin." He shakes his head as he looks in the direction that his colleagues went in.
"Well technically they're my cattle too." She replies as she places one hand on his leg and one on his horse's neck. "Plus if finding them means we can go sooner then I want to help." She keeps her eyes casted down - feeling a bit bashful with her admittance.
"Ok." He concedes as he leans over to kiss her temple - his silent way of letting her know that he's eager to start their day together too.
She gives him a shy smile as they walk to the stables to get Zane ready.
Once they get to the valley - they spread out a little to cover more ground. The thought that predators could have gotten to the livestock is a prominent thought in their minds - each of them getting an eerie feeling with the stillness of the wilderness surrounding them.
Time seems to pass by slowly as they continue to search for what feels like a few hours but in actuality is only fifteen minutes. They travel a few more yards before Jay notices a kettle of vultures circling in the air just above some of the tall trees of the dense forest. Then they see them, three of the four cows are grazing and then a yard or so behind them is the last one but she's lying down on her side.
She looks over at Jay when he nods at the other two wranglers. Both Kevin and Adam remain silent as they slowly make their way over to the livestock just meters away.
"Do you think she's ok?" She asks after a minute, just as the other two men get to the cattle. Adam waves them over and before he answers her they move in.
"The calf is breach." Kevin explains once Jay and Erin are close enough.
"Shit." Jay mutters as he jumps off his horse - his feet meeting the ground in a loud thud. He starts ordering the other wranglers around to help.
Erin just watches in awe - the three men moving in to assist the cow in delivering her calf.
"Maybe we should just put her out of her misery." Adam suggests while he holds the rope tied to the cow's neck - keeping her still as Jay ties another rope around the legs of the calf.
Jay glares at the younger man as he and Kevin begin to pull the rope in their hands - bringing the lifeless body of the calf out a little more.
"Imagine if they said that while your mom was giving birth to you." Jay quips, his eyes remaining on the cattle. "We probably wouldn't have to listen to such an idiotic suggestion."
"I just meant it seems like a lot of work for us to do just for her to potentially loose the calf." Adam shrugs his shoulders and Erin can tell by the way Jay tenses even more that he's becoming more agitated than he already was.
"Why don't you go mention that to Voight and see what he says." Jay growls - not looking over at the younger man.
"Adam I'll hold her, you should take the rest of the cattle back to the ranch." She steps in and takes the rope from him.
Adam looks confused and almost shocked as he chances a glance at his boss before nodding and walking back to his horse.
Jay's eyes meet hers and he gives her a quick nod in thanks before giving the calf one final pull - the newborn animal falling to the ground with a plop.
"She's not breathing." Kevin announces and Jay begins rubbing and clapping the young cow's chest while clearing the fluids from her mouth with his other hand until she takes her first breath.
"Alright, let's get them back before the wolves move in." Jay tells them - hearing howling near by as he picks up the eighty pound calf and carries it over to his horse. Kevin takes the rope attached to the adult cattle.
Erin just admires the gentleness and care Jay possesses as he lifts the calf and places her towards the front of the saddle, so her front legs are hanging on one side while her hind limbs dangle over the other side.
It's a quiet ride back to the ranch - none of them uttering a word up until they cross the first fenceline.
"I'm just going to get them set up in the barn and then we can head out, if you want to grab your things." Jay suggests and she nods before they part ways for the time being. She takes Zane right up to the main house - jumping down when they get to the porch. His lead gets tied to the front of the railing that wraps around the porch and she pats the horse's side before moving to go inside.
"Where have you been?" Her dad questions as soon as she steps over the threshold of the house.
She shrugs as she drags her bag closer to the door. "Out with the wranglers. They helped deliver a breach calf."
"I thought you were here to work the rustler case, not to go gallivanting with my employees." He points out - leaning against the doorway when she puts her bag out on the porch.
She chuckles dryly and it causes her dad to give her a puzzled look as she steps out the door. "I didn't realize that I wasn't allowed to do things other than work the case. Besides your employees were still able to do their jobs. Me being there didn't hinder their ability to keep this ranch afloat."
"They're not the ones keeping this ranch from going under. This is my ranch and I don't appreciate you coming here and insinuating otherwise." He growls at her and she shakes her head at him.
"It wasn't an insinuation Dad. This place would have gone down a long time ago if it wasn't for the wranglers. So if you ask me it's more theirs than yours at this point." She defends with a sigh.
"Your boyfriend tell you to say that?" He gestures towards whom she can only assume is Jay as he makes his way over to them.
"You do realize we're only going for a night or two, right?" He asks - oblivious to the argument he just into as she pulls her bag from the back to the front of the porch.
She just shrugs and he chuckles as he effortlessly picks up the overstuffed bag.
"You ought to be ashamed of yourself. Your last fling cost me half my house and my stables. I can't imagine what this will do to me, when you've had your fun stringing him along and move on to the next." Her dad grumbles as he steps out onto the wood planks of the porch. He grabs his daughters arm when she starts to walk away and he narrows his eyes at her.
Jay's blood boils seeing Erin's shoulders deflate even more and the frown on her face deepen just before she gets yanked backwards. He moves up the top two stairs and comes to stand between the father and daughter. The older man releases his hold on her arm as he stares Jay down while he offers his hand, assisting her down the stairs. The wrangler's eyes don't leave her until she gives him a tired smile. Then he looks up at his boss - immediately feeling defensive and protective when he finds the older man already glaring at him.
"The only one that should be ashamed here is you." Jay snarls as Erin tugs his arm - already sensing the direction this conversation is going in. She tries to bring his attention back to her as he stands tall and unconsciously puffs out his chest.
"She's here to help you - pushing aside her pain to fix your wrongdoings." His voice raises with every word because he's stood by and backed down for too long when it comes to his boss and the way he treats Erin.
"You mean the pain she caused? She was out there with them. She is the one that left them in that fire. She's just like her mother - trying to get me to choose between the family I didn't ask for and the ranch. I wouldn't be surprised if she purposely brought those rustlers into our lives - brought one onto my ranch. You want to talk about my wrongdoings why don't you start with her." It's those words that push her over the edge.
"Well congratulations Dad. You get what you always wanted, the ranch and no family." Her voice is shaking - on the border of anger and sadness as she climbs back onto her saddle. She clicks her tongue and kicks her feet to get the horse to run away.
Jay calls after her but it's too late, she's already too far away.
"I've seen you do a lot of stupid shit over the years." He announces as he goes over to his own horse. "And I've put up with it out of respect and gratitude for taking me in when I was a kid. But that, by far, was the dumbest thing I've ever seen you do. And it not only cost you your daughter but my respect as well." His eyes are cast down briefly as he places his feet in the stirrups.
"You think I care?" Voight huffs as he goes to take a seat - seemingly unfazed.
"Considering how you just treated her? No I don't think you care. But I wanted to let you know that my loyalty is no longer with you. I guess it hasn't been for a while and that just help me realize that it should have always been with her and the only reason that I put up with you was because of her." He states as he turns his horse around.
"You'll need to find a new vet and ranch foreman because I quit, effective immediately." Jay adds just before he races off in the same direction that Erin just went in.
He sees Zane standing alone next to a downed tree near the river. As he gets closer, he notices that the horse's legs are wet - even as the large animal frantically moves around. Jay's heart thumps and aches as worry consumes him - not seeing any signs of her in or around the water.
"Erin?" He yells out as he takes his horse down to the riverbank. The only noises come from the rocks crunching beneath them and the water flowing over various boulders and pieces of drift wood. Sounds that are usually calming to him but in this moment they're having the opposite effect. He tries to slow down and take in everything around him - not wanting to miss anything. And that's when he spots her sitting among branches and tall grass lining the edge of the water - his breath hitches seeing her remain still and unmoving.
"Erin." He hardly recognizes his own voice - quivering with concern as he quickly but cautiously moves towards her.
The sound of branches breaking under the pressure of his boots is what gets her attention. Her eyes immediately locking on his and that's when he sees the blood - her blood trailing down her face and side as she shakes.
He starts taking off his jacket before he even gets to her - placing the coat over her legs as he removes her drenched shirt.
"We need to get you to the cabin." He's just thinking out loud - watching her shake while he finishes replacing her clothes with his.
Then he picks her up - leaving her wet clothes behind on the banks and moving back over to his horse.
Once they're both on the saddle, she cuddles into his chest - letting his body heat warm her up as they head towards the cabin with Zane following closely behind them. And that's the last thing she remembers before she closes her eyes - succumbing to the cold and darkness looming over her.
XXXXXX
A/N: I tried to add in some requests that I've seen while still sticking to my original idea for this chapter. I hope you all aren't too mad with how things went down and that you still enjoyed it. I have the next chapter started, so I'm going to try to get it out on time next week. As always, nice reviews are much appreciated and I hope you have a nice weekend!
