Earth and Sky

to go. Wouldn’t put it past him to try other ways to give you a hard time, though, so be careful out there. I can’t really hold him, but we know he’s tried stuff like this before, so I’m afraid we might not get rid of him this easily.”

    All of them nodded in accord as the sheriff showed them out.

    “Since I’m the only one who didn’t even get a drink tonight, I guess I’m driving,” Izzie stated as she held out her hand to Hunter to get his keys. “Saddle up, boys!”

Chapter 5

    Hunter didn’t enjoy being in the house now that Hugh had packed his things and driven off. He often wished his sisters were more like other women and would just have a good cry from time to time, but they never did. Instead, Lisa ordered everyone around, and their mother seemed like she had lost the ability to smile. Not that she was much of a jovial woman at the best of times, but right now, Hunter could barely be in the same room with his mother and sister. Izzie seemed to feel the same, since she always found excuses not to join the rest of the family for dinner. At night, in the kitchen, Hunter and Izzie shared late-night leftovers for at least half of the days of the week.

    It was true they were busy. Izzie had taken on quite a few of Hugh’s foreman tasks, and Hunter had found the need to spend more time getting his hands dirty as well. Hugh’s were big boots to fill, after all. But they both knew anything was better than hanging around the house.

    They tried to keep Danny busy as well. He seemed to be the only one shedding a tear now and then. They both knew he missed his dad tremendously, and nobody was going to be able to fill those boots.

    On top of everything, another foal had disappeared, and the rain, which had been pouring down day after day, had erased all tracks. Hunter and Grant had done a quick survey of the fences around the lower fields and had found one hidden corner where the fence had been flattened, adding credence to the cougar theory, but they had yet to find a carcass or half-eaten remains. They fixed the fence and talked about posting all-night vigils but abandoned the idea because they just didn’t have the manpower.

    Now that he was being forced to work together with Grant all the time, Hunter managed to relax more when they were together. Grant hadn’t made a move toward him, and Hunter found he actually liked the man quite a bit. Of course, Izzie couldn’t resist teasing him about it, but it did make everyday life a bit easier.

    One evening, Hunter took Davenport out to teach him a lesson and the stubborn horse threw him off. When he got up, wiping the mud off his jeans, Hunter noticed Grant sitting on the back porch of the crew quarters. He was holding a book and smiling as he looked at him.

    “What’s so funny?” Hunter asked once he’d approached the porch.

    “My book,” Grant lied.

    “You’re laughing because I fell off my horse.”

    “I wouldn’t dare.” Grant smiled cheekily. “You have to admit, for a guy who was practically born in the saddle, that horse is taking you for a ride, and you have absolutely no say in where you’re going.”

    Hunter shrugged.

    “I think he’s as stubborn as his rider,” Grant added.

    “Yeah, you might be right,” Hunter reluctantly admitted, sinking down on the top step of the porch with his back toward Grant.

    “Weather’s nice tonight,” Grant said.

    “Mmmh,” Hunter agreed. “It’s going to rain again, though. Look at those ominous clouds in the sky over there.” He pointed toward the top of the tree line.

    “Could just be getting dark,” Grant replied.

    “Nope. It’s rain,” Hunter replied determinedly. “I love the view here, though. This is one of the few places where you can see the earth touch the sky.”

    When Hunter looked to the side, he saw Grant give him a curious look that he couldn’t quite read. “Well, most places have trees or hills obscuring the view, but here you just see the horizon.”

    “Yeah, I noticed that too,” Grant said quietly.

    Hunter had no idea where this conversation was going, but he had to admit he enjoyed it. He’d had this type of conversation many times with Hugh as they talked about their day, and he missed the totally useless small talk about horses and the weather almost as much as he missed having his trusted friend around. Maybe he should consider Grant his friend too. After all, it couldn’t be easy for Grant either, being the new guy and hiding