Page 54 of Cowboy Wolf's Secret Baby

The emcee announced that the events were about to begin so Taryn scooted off to get Pegasus. She and her horse practically flew across the arena, around the barrels, and then back to the starting line. The crowd stood, clapped their hands, and screamed when her time was announced – fifteen point five seconds. That was the best time that anyone had come in at that arena in the junior barrel racing events in a long time. Jenna came in right behind her at a flat sixteen seconds.

Taryn and Jenna beamed as they accepted their prizes. Even their horses seemed to do a little dance in front of the crowd. Taryn ran to Conner who gave her a huge hug and congratulated her.

“I did well before you came, but now, since you’ve been around, I’ve done a lot better,” Taryn said.

“It’s because now you have two people who believe in you and are rooting you on.”

“Maybe that’s it,” Taryn said, running off to compete in the next event.

For whatever reason, the rodeo manager changed the order of events. He put steer wrestling first, then bareback bronc, saddle bronc, and then bull riding. Conner got third, first, and second, respectively, in each of the events. He was determined to get first in the bull riding.

He held his breath as he waited to hear the name of the bull. Conner drew Dillinger and grinned. Dillinger wasn’t nearly as hard a ride as the others.

Tonight was different, though. Dillinger was barely out of the chute when he started leaping, twisting, and bucking like he never had before. It was almost as if the animal was possessed by a pack of demons. Conner held on. Three seconds to go.

Dillinger twisted one way, then back another while midair. Conner felt himself start to slide off. He pressed his legs to the side of the bull, but he continued to slide. Conner tried to let go of the rope, but it snaked itself around his wrist in a painful knot, holding him onto the side of the bull as the enraged animal thrusted about, dragging Conner through the dirt. Conner heard and felt the bones in his wrist snap. One of the hooves barely missed his head. Another hoof connected with Conner’s shin, snapping it.

The clowns rushed out and managed to corner the bull just as the rope untangled itself. Conner fell to the dirt. The crowd was hushed as he struggled to get to his feet.

“What the hell happened?” Gideon hissed at him.

“The rope got tangled around my wrist. I couldn’t pull it away,” Conner said, groaning in pain.

Gideon and the other clown lifted Conner up, carried him out of the arena, and set him next to the paramedics, who started to rush over to him.

Beth beat them to Conner. “I’m a doctor. Wait,” she told them.

Taryn was hot on her heels.

“What happened?” she asked as she held his wrist.

Conner told her.

“Mother,” Beth growled.

“Broken. I’ll take care of it,” she said.

She closed her eyes and muttered an incantation. Conner felt the tingling of electricity flow through his arm and then an intense heat. He gritted his teeth through the pain of his bones moving back together and mending.

“Thanks. My leg, too,” he said.

“Is there anything you didn’t break?” Beth asked, teasingly.

“Most of me is okay, I think. My brain might be a little jarred.”

“Let me fix your leg,” Taryn said.

She knelt down in front of Conner and gently pushed up his pant leg, trying not to jar it.

“This might sting,” the little girl said as she put her hands on Conner’s leg.

Taryn concentrated and muttered a spell under her breath. Sting was an understatement. Putting the bones back together and mending them hurt worse than breaking them did.

“You should be good as new,” Taryn announced. “Try standing.”

Conner did and was amazed that he could put all of his weight on the leg without screaming in pain.

“Nice job,” Conner said. “Thank you.”

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