At First Sight

It's been a few months of working at both ranches, and I have been loving life. Some nights I feel guilty for how much joy this new life gives me. This life without my parents.

Don't get me wrong, I did love them and of course I miss them. More so my mother than my father, for obvious reasons. But I cannot get past the feeling that everything that has happened has been because of fate. 

The Duttons seem to be under a good amount of stress, but obviously I mind my own. Lee knows I am here for him, no matter what. I have made that very clear, I hope. 

I stroll up to the main house to drop some eggs off for Gator. As I walk up to the front step, I see two men peeking in the front window. 

"Can I help you?" I ask

They turn quickly, then flash large smiles. The taller man looks me up and down, making me uncomfortable in my own skin. 

"Good morning, we are looking for John Dutton" he says

I hear foot steps in the gravel behind me, then I hear Rip answer the man

"Yeah, who's looking for John Dutton?"

Another man comes up to Rip and he throws him to the ground with ease, then John rides up on his horse and boots a man to the ground. 

I stand still, in a state of shock not knowing what the hell is going on. 

"It's alright honey, go on inside. Gator is in the kitchen" John says as he looks at me and nods his head

I nod my head and quickly make my way in the house. 

-------

As I brush out the young colt, I hum a tune and think of the events of this morning.

"He's coming along nicely" Ellis says as he walks up to the round pen

I smile in his direction and nod

"He's got a good heart, someone will have a great partner when he's done" I say

I throw the brush in my bag and then untie the colt and lead him towards the pasture. Dolly meets us at the gate and I release the colt into the field before I grab her.  

"I'd say come in for supper but I don't want you riding home in the dark" Ellis says with a small smile as I throw my tack on. 

"Another time" I say, then give him a small hug

"Get home safe" He says as I hop on Dolly and cue her to a walk

I've been riding her to Ellis' and back, figuring she could use the exercise since my change in profession. Really, the only other time she gets worked is on weekends when I work for John.

Lee isn't home when I get there. I quickly eat some leftovers and write out a note saying I should be back by 11 before I head out to my gig.  As I learned very quickly into this relationship, Lee doesn't do texts...

The buckle is pretty empty tonight, only a handful of older men sit at the bar. 

Wild Flowers and Wild Horses- Lainey Wilson

In the middle of the night
I hear a cornfield coyote cry
Up at the moon no matter what
Sky I'm laying under

In the eye of a hurricane
When I got one foot in the grave
I'll dig my boots into the dirt
And face the rolling thunder

I'm five generations of blazing a trail
Through barbed wire valleys and overgrown dells
I'm barefoot and bareback and born tough as nails
Whoa, whoa, whoa

I'm four-fifths of reckless and one-fifth of jack
I push like a daisy through old sidewalk cracks
Yeah, my kinda crazy's still running its courses with
Wildflowers and wild horses

It's in the water in my veins
That bread of heaven falls like rain
So I'm taken care of either way
Make something out of how I'm made
Until I hitch a ride on glory's train

I'm five generations of blazing a trail
Through barbed wire valleys and overgrown dells
I'm barefoot and bareback and born tough as nails
Whoa, whoa, whoa

I'm four-fifths of reckless and one-fifth of jack
I push like a daisy through old sidewalk cracks
Yeah, my kinda crazy's still running its courses with
Wildflowers and wild horses

I'm five generations of blazing a trail
Through barbed wire valleys and overgrown dells
I'm barefoot and bareback and born tough as nails
Whoa, whoa, whoa

I'm four-fifths of reckless and one-fifth of jack
I push like a daisy through old sidewalk cracks
Yeah, my kinda crazy's still running its courses with
Wildflowers and wild horses

Yeah, my kinda crazy's still running its courses with
Wildflowers and wild horses
Wildflowers and wild horses

____

After a few songs, I do my same old routine and head to the bar for my earnings. I say goodbye to the bar tender and head out to my truck. I gently place my grandmother's guitar on the bench seat and throw my phone on the dash before I lift my right leg to hop in when my head gets slammed into the door window and everything goes black. 

I wake up to a sharp pain in my head, I move my hand up to assess the damage when I feel a bard blow to my stomach. I curl into a ball, not knowing what else to do. The blows keep coming and I know I have to do something, so I grab the man's foot and kick at his other knee. He screams out in pain and falls to the ground. Within seconds, I am on top of him and punching him in the face. 

"damn, got a feisty one here" I hear a man say

Before I know it, I feel arms underneath mine and I am thrown backwards.  A cough escapes my lungs after I hit the ground. The air feels hot and painful with each breath I take. I open my eyes to try and make out who my attackers are but before I can see their faces, a fist meets my face with a crack. 

"Hey!" is all I hear before footsteps quickly retreat, then another set of footsteps heads in my direction. I curl into a ball, not knowing whether or not those foot steps would be an attacker. 

"Jesus Doll are you okay?" I hear as I feel a hand on my shoulder, I quickly grab the hand and twist it backwards

"Hey hey hey, It's okay. I am trying to help!" The man says, then I recognize the voice. It's Larry from the Bar. 

I immediately let go of his hand

"Shit I'm sorry Larry" I say

"Oh honey there is no need for that, the hand is fine" he says as he grabs my arm and gently stands me up, then helps me sit in the drivers seat of my truck

"What the fuck was that?" he asks

I assess the damage to my face with my fingers, then pull them away and look at the blood on them.

"They didn't say, didn't ask either" I sigh

"Let me run in and grab my phone so I can call Zach" Larry says

I quickly grab his arm, stopping him from leaving me out here alone

"I'm fine, no need to call him" I say

"Well we gotta call someone, you have to get looked at and I am the only one here tonight" he says, gesturing to the bar

"I'll call someone, just please don't leave me here alone" I say before I grab my phone off the dash

As if on cue, my phone starts ringing. Lee's name appears on the screen and I slowly move my sore hands to slide the bar over to answer

"Hey you gotta get home, now" he says in a rush