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“He’s been around a lot longer than that,” Taylor said.
“Yeah, he was a pretty good bull rider a couple years ago,” someone else said.
“Now, I remember him. He sure knew how to party. He was always good for buying a round or two.”
“When he was in the bar,” another cowboy said, elbowing his friend. “Most the time he had girls all over him, and it wasn’t drinking he was interested in doing.”
Reba made a face as the boys laughed and jostled each other. It wasn’t as if she didn’t know what Shane’s reputation was. But it was still a little annoying to hear about it through the bro-dude network.
“Okay, I’m pretty sure Dale has colic,” Reba interrupted, turning to Taylor to explain the findings. “I’d like to perform rectal palpation next. It involves inserting my gloved hand through the horse’s rectum to feel for any abnormalities.”
“I need to…” Taylor gagged again.
“It’s okay,” Reba said. “I got this.”
As she performed the rectal palpation, Dale was clearly uncomfortable, shifting her weight and tossing her head. Reba worked quickly and methodically, feeling for any signs of impaction or other obstructions.
After completing her assessment, Reba explained to Taylor the next steps in treating the colic. As she administered pain medication and fluids through an intravenous drip and closely monitored Dale’s vital signs, the conversation started up again.
“One time on a bet,” Taylor said, “Shane and my dad climbed up on the roof of the Cheyenne Bank and took pictures of themselves riding the bronze horse statue up there.”
Reba’s laugh snorted out of her unexpectedly.
“Pics or it didn’t happen.”
“Yeah, I don’t remember seeing that on Insta or Snapchat.”
Reba finished up with Dale, disposing the arm sleeve glove into the trash. She gave Taylor a pat on the chest. “She should be okay but let me give you my number in case something else goes wrong. If I don’t answer right away, I’m not ignoring you. I probably just have my hands full, probably literally, with some shit.”
Taylor cracked a smile and programmed her number into his phone. “I really appreciate this, Doc.”
“I’ll check in on her later, too.” Reba cleaned up a bit more from the outside spigot and then put her equipment away. She took the golf cart back to the bullpens and saw that the bulls had all been marked as being tested.
“What the heck?” She got on the walkie-talkie. “Who finished up for me in the bullpens?”
The radio hissed static and one of the vet techs picked up the call. “I thought you had missed a few, so I sent Doctor Victor over to finish.”
“I just stepped away for a moment,” Reba said, ticked off.
“You were gone over an hour and we had to get these tests in. I’m so sorry,” the tech said, sounding panicked.
“That was because I was busy looking at one of the cowboy’s horses who was suffering from colic.”
“I’m not accusing you of not doing the job.” Now, the vet tech sounded scared.
Reba cursed to herself. “Shit, I know that. I’m not mad at you. I’m mad at myself for not calling in and letting you guys know where I was. You did a great job.” Reba knew more than anyone how hard the vet techs worked, and she also knew that they didn’t need shit from doctors having a snit. “You got the job done. That was great. I didn’t want to cause Victor or anyone else any more work.”
“He was fine with it,” the tech said. “We’re all part of a team here. You would help him out in a second, if he needed it.”
That was true, but Reba wasn’t used to the teamwork. It wasn’t as if she had any altercations with any of the other doctors. And her boss, Diane, was always fair. It would take more time, Reba guessed, until she stopped second-guessing herself and getting defensive. She hadn’t told her about her suspicions that Vidar had been whipped. What if Diane had investigated it and a bull rider contradicted her and said it was a fence injury? Reba didn’t want to be thought of as a troublemaker. If it happened again, she would definitely say something. Or if she had better proof of it being a whip wound.
She was disappointed in herself. She should have filed a report. This cowardice was another thing to thank Dr. Kilgore for. Reba was just glad she was able to assure the vet tech that she hadn’t been angry with her.
The rest of the morning was spent doing routine check-ups and confirming the bulls’ test results. They were good to go, and she was on to her next project. Reba made it a point to catch up to LeAnn and Garth before their events.
“How’s my best boy doing?” Reba said, giving Garth’s mane a loving stroke. She touched her forehead to his when the horse came in to nuzzle her fingers. “I don’t have anything for you. You’re going to have to wait until you’re done with work.”
“That’s what I keep telling him,” LeAnn said, smiling as she came up to them.
