As far as Anicka could tell it must have started when she decided to get her hair cut. She was tired of looking at the black ends and blond roots, it reminded her of what had happened which she wanted so badly to forget. So she decided that the black strands had to go.
She went on the computer and found a salon in Bozeman and made an appointment on her day off. Laramie and Teeter offered to go with her, make a day of it they said, but she turned them down. Later on she would be glad she had.
Her hairdresser's name was "Nikki", and she had punkish looking red hair and wore a lot of makeup. Anicka liked her though, she was fun, and they laughed the entire time it took to cut her hair. She decided that if she decided to have her hair cut again, she would have Nikki do it.
There was a customer in the salon who kept coughing, but she didn't pay attention. Nikki had turned her around so she wouldn't see what she was doing until she finished. Finally, she was allowed to see what she looked like.
"There," said Nikki triumphantly, and Anicka stared at the stranger in the mirror. She'd never had short hair in her life, but the pixie cut seemed to suit her. She had the bone structure to carry off short hair, but she'd never realized that it. She reached up and touched her short strands and realized how easy it would be to keep up. She wouldn't have to braid or tie her hair back to keep it out of the way.
Nikki dabbed some blush on her cheeks and lined her eyes with a black kohl liner. "There," she said, "You look great and you're all blond now. Your boyfriend had better take you out tonight and celebrate."
The cut was overpriced but she didn't care. She kept looking at her reflection in store windows and was always surprised when it was not a stranger but her. The guys in the bunkhouse might not like it and she didn't know if she'd keep it short, but this had definitely boosted her mood. She couldn't wait to shock everyone.
Back at the ranch (* I couldn't resist saying that-Marty) she endured a lot of teasing about the "new boy in the bunkhouse". Ryan didn't like it but he understood why she'd done it. Laramie and Teeter told her how cute she looked while Walker warned Laramie that she better not get ideas. When she took a shower that night it only took minute to wash her hair and not much longer than that to dry it.
When she woke in the morning something was wrong. Her throat was sore, and she had a bad cough. She was having chills and couldn't get warm and was too weak to get out of bed.
Lloyd looked at her and knew something was wrong. "Uh oh," he said, "Rip, you better get over here, I think we need to call the vet."
Rip put a gentle hand on her forehead, then jerked it away when he felt how hot it was. "What happened to you, young lady?" he asked but she could barely shake her head.
"Sick," she answered, then burrowed into the covers.
Fortunately, the vet was able to make it in about forty-five minutes. She took one look at her and asked, "Have you had a flu short?" Anicka shook her head.
She took her temperature and listened to her chest then turned to Rip. "I have a friend who's a nurse practitioner. I'm going to call her and get her to prescribe some Tamiflu, I can only prescribe medications for animals. If any of you aren't vaccinated, you need to get to a clinic and get your flu shot today. Amy is going to be a sick little girl until the Tamiflu kicks in, so don't leave her alone. If you have an isolated bunk put her there, we've got to keep this from spreading and it's very contagious. I'll give you a call when her prescription is ready.
Rip offered to walk her out. "How sick is she, doc?" he asked.
"She's very sick, she's not going to get back on a horse right away. She needs the Tamiflu, otherwise she might get sicker, and it'll take her longer to recover. Make sure she gets lots of fluids and rests. Keep her warm and make sure she eats. Ibuprofen should help fight the fever and get her some cough syrup and lozenges for her throat. This is why we get flu shots, Rip."
Ryan was hovering over her and Rip could see his mind would not be on his work today. "I'll go into town get her medicine," he said, "do you want to keep an eye on her, Ryan? By the way, have you had a flu shot?"
"Yes," replied Ryan, "I have. I'll take care of the barn, she keeps the stalls pretty clean but I can take care of the ones that need it. The vet said not to leave her alone, and I don't think she meant the puppy."
Candy had positioned herself next to Anicka's bunk. It was clear that she'd be staying there and was not interested in doing anything but keep an eye on her mistress.
"I didn't hire you to be a nursemaid, Ryan, but someone needs to look out for her. I just hope that Kayce doesn't need you today."
"Well," said Ryan, "I'll give him a call and let him know, I'm not the only livestock agent around here. In the meantime, I'm going to fix her a hot toddy like my mom would make when I had a cold. Honey, lemon, whiskey, mixed in some hot water. It won't cure her, but it might make her feel better."
Rip shook his head as he went out the door. He didn't need a lovesick cowboy on the ranch, but Ryan was clearly fond of Amy. There wasn't really anything wrong with it, he reflected, Ryan was a good hand as well as a livestock agent. If he could convince Amy to marry him he'd be able to provide for her. Amy was learning fast and when spring came he was going to hire a new stall cleaner and put her on the cows full time.
Amy could not tell if she was awake or dreaming. They'd piled a lot of blankets on her to keep her warm, but her throat hurt her dreadfully and she was coughing up mucus and couldn't seem to stop.
Ryan sat next to her and held something to her lips. "Drink, sweetheart," he told her, "It'll make you feel better and soothe your throat." She wanted to push him away when she heard a familiar voice speak.
"Go on, hermana, drink it even if it doesn't make you feel better."
She drank, obediently, while looking around. That voice, she knew who that voice was, he liked to call her "hermana" to tease her. Benito?
Benito appeared at her bedside and held his finger to his lips. "Don't try to talk, sis, it'd hurt too much." She tried to sit up, but he shook his head, "Don't get up, you're really sick, that's why I can talk to you. I don't have much time so listen to me carefully. There was someone working with a hand from the ranch and I caught them stealing cows. I was going to the bunkhouse to tell Rip, but they shot me in the back and dumped my body at some place they called the 'train station'.
"They didn't even bother to wrap me up, can you believe it? My only consolation is that they're lying somewhere close to me. Before they got caught they sold my horse, truck, and trailer. The money didn't do them any good because they got caught a week later. Tell Mom that I'm okay, I'm at peace and there's nothing anyone can do to hurt me. I don't think you'll be able to retrieve my body, I'm skeletonized now, but I'm lying in the open air."
He vanished as quickly as he appeared. "Train station," she murmured, "where is it?" but he was gone.
"Train station," she said again, and Ryan halted in his tracks. The train station? How did she know about that? It was a well-kept secret that had been in the Dutton family a long time. Only a few trusted hands knew about it, and he wished he didn't.
She was no longer talking in her sleep, the toddy had done its work. All that remained now was for Rip to get the Tamiflu and get her started on it.
She looked about twelve years old with her new short hair. Her face was flushed due to the fever, the ibuprofen wasn't enough to bring it down. Ryan wet a washcloth with lukewarm water and pressed it to her forehead.
Rip finally arrived with her medications, and they woke her up and got the Tamiflu down her. "The pharmacist told me she gets it twice a day for five days, he said that should be enough but if she doesn't get better to call a doctor. How are you doing?" he asked Ryan.
He shrugged his shoulders, "I'll be better when she gets better, sorry I'm not out with the herd."
"Don't matter," said Rip, "the cows are in better shape than she is. Gator is going to bring some stuff for her, chicken soup and some biscuits. He's got a tea he says his grandmother swears by."
"I bet every hand here has a home remedy his mother or grandmother swears by." Ryan laughed at the absurdity of it, "It's too bad we've gotten spoiled by her cooking, we're going to have to do our own until she gets better. Maybe Gator will take pity on us."
"Well, I've got to get back out there," replied Rip, "We'll see how she is around dinner time."
As soon as Rip was out the door Ryan tried to shake her awake. Her lashes fluttered and she opened her eyes, "I feel terrible," she said.
"I know you do," he said and stroked her hair, "Tell me, what do you know about the train station."
"What's that?" she asked, a bewildered look on her face. "What does a train station...oh god, Benito."
"That's your brother?" he asked, and she nodded.
"I must have been hallucinating, I thought he was standing by my bed and talking to me. He was saying that someone had stolen some cows and..."
"And what," Ryan pressed her, "What happened? He knew about someone who stole some cows and?"
"That's all I remember. It couldn't have been real, it must have been the fever causing me to imagine it." She began coughing and for a moment she couldn't stop.
Ryan looked in the bag Rip had brought and pulled out a bottle of cough syrup. "This is probably going to taste pretty bad, but it will help your throat and your cough." He poured a capful and handed it to her. "Choke it down, then don't try to talk for a while."
She took it like an obedient child, then handed him back the lid. "I feel so awful," she moaned.
"I'm sure you do," he said in a soothing voice, "Don't try to talk for a while. In a few days you may be improved enough that we can put you in front of the TV." He kissed the top of her head, "If your brother comes to visit you again tell him you're too sick to talk."
Gator had fixed a big pot of chicken soup, thick with meat and vegetables. Ryan stood over and made her eat a bowl of it, then gave her more Tamiflu and ibuprofen. Everyone was acting solicitous, and it was driving her crazy.
"Guys, I have the flu, not a fatal disease. I feel like shit, but I'll get better. In the meantime I'd like to hear the TV even if I can't watch it.
The days passed and the Tamiflu seemed to work, but her strength was slow to return. She wanted to go back to work, she hated just sitting around but everyone insisted on her taking things easy. Finally she had enough.
"I'm going back to being a shit shoveler," she said, and would not listen to anyone who tried to dissuade her. "I'll take it easy, the stalls aren't in a hurry to be cleaned. If I start to feel tired, I'll stop for a while. I miss being useful, laying around and doing nothing is not my style. Now, go away and let me do my job."
It was good to be back in the stalls. She missed the horses, and she even missed the work. Since she'd gotten sick no one had left her alone and now she finally had some peace and quiet.
Unlike Texas, Montana springs came slowly. She was missing the warm weather, she was still wearing sweaters and warm socks. The one good thing was her riding was improving, and she spent more time herding. Rip was not free with compliments, but he told her how much she'd improved and that he was thinking of hiring another stall cleaner so she could become a full-time hand.
The snow melted and the weather grew warmer. Rip hired a sixteen-year-old delinquent just out of the juvenile hall and took him in as a stall cleaner, freeing her to work with the rest of the cowboys. Ryan had taught her to rope and if she wasn't good at it she was at least sufficiently proficient.
She was in Ryan's company a lot, and sometimes it was awkward. It could also be convenient because he was there to correct her when she made mistakes, and she was getting better at being a hand.
One day a big truck pulled up, and riders and horses spilled out of it. Their boss was a cowboy named Travis, and he was the best rider she'd ever seen.
"Uh oh," said Kolby, "Lock up your daughters, Travis is here."