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CHAPTER
TWELVE
“This isn’t proper, Isabella. You need to come home. Decent young women don’t move in with strange men.”
“I haven’t moved in with him.” He hadn’t asked. “I’ve just been visiting. We’ve been formulating the contract that you agreed to. Plus, he’s not a stranger, Uncle. You know his reputation, Benedict is a fine man.”
“Come home. If he wants to court you, let him do it the right way.”
Isabella paced across the floor of Bull’s cabin. She knew she had to go home sometime. She was just so afraid that if she walked away, he wouldn’t come after her.
“Renata’s parents called last night. They wanted to know if she’d been by.”
“What do you mean?” Isabella asked with concern.
“I’m not sure, they just hadn’t heard from her. Apparently, she didn’t come home last night.”
“Oh, my God.” Isabella stopped in her tracks. “I’ll try to call her.”
She was about to ring off when her uncle reiterated his position. “You need to come home, Isabella. You have responsibilities.”
My, how his tune had changed. “I’ll be in touch,” was all she said before she hung up to call Renata. When the call went straight to voicemail, Isabella grew more worried.
Knowing she needed to go home soon, Isabella resolved to talk to Bull about it. He’d left early again this morning, leaving her to putter around the house and follow up on the leads he’d given her. She ordered the banner he’d suggested and worked up the proposed details of the contract between them, that would give him a percentage of any sales generated by the contacts he made. Glancing at the clock, she rose to put a casserole in the oven for lunch, one she’d prepared earlier. When that chore was done, she tried Renata’s number again. As soon as the call again went to voice mail, Isabella shot off a text and an email, trying to reach her friend in any way she could think of.
Where are you? Call me ASAP, she typed, more worried than she’d like to admit.
To pass the time, Isabella flipped on the television, turning it to a local news program. Just listening to the show was enough, the voices of the reporters filled the silence. Working while the television droned on, she dusted the furniture and put a load of dishes in the dishwasher. Since coming to stay with Bull, Isabella felt more proficient at keeping house. “I’ve become a domestic goddess,” she quipped, grinning at the thought.
The noise coming from the TV was just that, until a familiar name jumped out at her.
Isabella whirled around just in time to see Benedict Carson Redford reaching into a van to save a baby from a carjacker. “Local cowboy, Bull Redford, proved himself to be a hero yesterday as he placed his own life on the line to save another.”
Isabella sank into a chair, too weak to stand. “He didn’t even tell me,” she whispered.
…Outside, Bull was about ready to bash his head into the wall. “Don’t tell me this, Dax. I don’t want to hear it.”
“I’m sorry boss, the PRCA just sent out a health alert. There was a barrel-racing horse that tested positive for equine herpes virus in Decatur. Our stock was exposed. The vet confirmed it and we have to take precautions. Some of the horses are already showing signs of the disease. We’re gonna have to have them all checked and quarantine the ones that have it.”
“I thought our horses were vaccinated.”
“They were, but this is a new strain.”
“Shit. We’ll have to pull out of any events we have scheduled. No one’s going to want to get around our stock.” He pushed his hat back on his head and dry-scrubbed his face. “Make sure each animal has his own water bucket and hay net.”
“We’ll have to go buy more.”
Bull groaned, his cash was running damn short. “Put it on the credit card if you have to. Make sure you tell the men not to submerge the water hose in the buckets when they’re filling them and don’t share any tack, bits, or brushes between the horses.”
“Yes, sir, boss.”
“Take each horse’s temp and if any of them go over a hundred and one, call the vet.”
“Anything else, Bull?”
“Yea,” he sat down heavily, “clean and disinfect every trailer and anything the horses touched. You’ll have to notify the board about this. This is a damn serious matter.” He looked up at Dax. “We’ll lose some animals.” Bull was afraid they’d lose a heck of a lot more than that. “We might have to lay off some folks, Dax. Be ready.”
“Isn’t there anyone you could borrow money from? The bank? A friend? Your girlfriend?”
