Page 65 of Barbed Wire Hearts

As someone so steeped in darkness, how could I possibly ever let her go?

ChapterForty-Two

Kate

Things move smoothly the next few days. By the fourth day, all the ranchers have joined in and we’re nearly ten thousand cattle strong. I’ve never seen so many cows in one place before. Between eleven ranches, there are at least fifty cowboys, but I can’t exactly keep track. Cattle dogs are everywhere, doing their jobs as expected. Apparently, despite so many cattle, the majority of the cowboys will still go home each night since we’re not too far away. It’s an amazing sight while we drive them though. I take at least a hundred pictures with Levi’s phone. He doesn’t complain once.

Our days are spent busy keeping the cattle moving and making sure none of them wander off, which turns out to be a huge feat with so many cows. Still, everyone seems to know their role and exactly what to do when a cow wanders off. I stay along the back with Wiley, Dakota, and Levi, making sure they keep going forward. It’s slow-moving but considering we only have to go about five miles a day, it’s not a huge problem.

Each night, once the cattle graze and settle down for the night, most of the cowboys head back to their own beds to get some sleep. They always come back before the sun rises. Each morning starts with the bustle of horse trailers and activity as each ranch has their people bring back horses and supplies. I don’t know how everyone organizes things so fluidly. There are very few hiccups to worry about and when something happens, one of the other ranchers step in. One ranch didn’t have enough food, but another had extra. The next day, the one who hadn’t had enough brought extra. Things like that. Everyone is friendly. It makes it easy to settle into things.

By the fourth day, the ache in my thighs has dulled a bit, most likely because I’m just getting used to the ache. Maple has been given the day to rest so instead, I’m atop a different horse today, a pretty spotted gray one named Hermioneigh. Dakota and Wiley both ride different horses as well so their normal mounts could get some rest. I appreciate that they take them into consideration. I also appreciate how I’m able to clean up each evening when they bring the small camper around for the bathroom and shower and I know William enjoys sleeping in there as opposed to my tent in the heat. Wiley told me I could sleep in it if I prefer but the camper has to stay on the road. I don’t want to be too far from them if someone comes looking for me.

“We’re crossing the river today,” Wiley comments as he tilts his head back to the sky. The sun shines across his face and highlights his scruff. There isn’t time for shaving, so his normally clean-shaven face is scruffy now. It only ends up making him more attractive.

“Is that bad?” I ask, glancing over at him. So far, we’ve only crossed land and followed the river. We haven’t had to cross it before now. The way Wiley says it though doesn’t sound good.

“It can be,” he admits, glancing over at me. “The cows aren’t too fond of going into the water and if they panic, they could stampede.”

I grimace. “That does sound bad.”

“It’s not,” he backpedals when he sees my expression. “We’re all well-trained in this. The dogs know their jobs and we have plenty of cowboys with us. It’ll be fine.”

But I know he’s just saying that to appease me. I don’t doubt that everyone knows their tasks or that they know what they’re doing. This is a lot of cattle, and mistakes are bound to happen. I just hope whatever danger comes with crossing a river is minimal. It isn’t until we come up beside the river behind the cattle that I understand the true danger.

We’ve had a lot of rain lately.

The Green River is choppy and rough today because of the rain washing down the mountains. Where we need to cross, the water is brown from being churned up and the levels are a little higher than we expect. We can’t wait for it to calm down because there’s only so long we can keep the cattle in one spot. We can’t go further down the river because it only gets deeper. We’re gonna have to cross now whether we like it or not.

And Dakota really doesn’t like it.

“There’ll be no walking across,” he says, looking at the cowboys around us. “The river’s too rough. We stay on our horses. I don’t want anyone gettin’ swept away. Levi and John will help the dogs across on their side-by-sides.”

“Wouldn’t it be best to wait?” a cowboy whose name I don’t know asks.

“You go try and tell those heifers and cows to wait,” Dakota teases, but his expression is serious when he adds, “we take things nice and slow. The river isn’t kind today and I don’t want any mistakes. Anyone got any questions?” When no one speaks up, he nods. “Alright. Same formation we’ve been in. Steele Mountain’ll bring up the rear and get them pushed across. Send your cattle dogs to the back. Let’s get this herd moving.”

It sounds easy enough at least. Dakota makes everything sound like a cakewalk, but looking out at the churned up river, I’m not so sure. Still, I do what he says and move to the back of the herd just as we’ve been doing.

“Make sure you guide your horse into the water slowly,” Wiley instructs as he mounts his own horse beside me. “You don’t wanna rush her, but you also don’t want her to dictate where to go.” He reaches over me to pluck William from my saddle. He meows in annoyance. “I’ll take William across. I’d rather me suffer the scratches than you since I know what I’m doing. This way you can focus just on you.”

“Firm hand. Gentle guide,” I say, nodding. “Got it.” I shake my finger at William. “Behave.” But he’s already clinging to Wiley for dear life when he sees the water in front of us.

Wiley whistles and the sound is repeated throughout the line, every cowboy giving the signal for those that may not hear. There’s a whole herd of cattle dogs that come to the back and help us to start pushing the herd forward. It’s slow, and at one point, we completely stop when the cattle hesitate to step into the rushing river.

“What about the babies?” I ask, worried for them.

“Their mamas will guide them,” Wiley reassures me. “And we have plenty of cowhands up there to make sure they get across if not.”

The calves aren’t nearly tall enough. They’ll have to swim across while their mothers keep them from rushing down river. Despite Wiley’s reassurance, I worry about it the entire time as we push the herd forward. It takes a few hours before we even start seeing the edge of the river. Having so many cattle means things move far slower, and along the way, the calves just don’t want to get into the water. I don’t blame them. The closer we get, the more intimidating it looks. The water rushes past at a far faster rate than any of the river we’ve travelled along so far. Sticks and logs rush by, catching on the edge every now and then, coming down from the mountain. The water isn’t blue anymore. It’s a deep and mottled brown. And the cows are walking across it like it’s nothing.

Well, not nothing. Many of them look distressed once in the water, but the cowboys keep them moving. They follow each other, mooing in protest, rushing to get across. At least it seems like smooth sailing so far.

“Kate,” Dakota calls to me from where he’s pushing the cows forward. “You go on across, so we don’t have to worry about you.”

Wiley whips his head toward Dakota. “It’d be better to wait until the end?—”

“She goes across now,” Dakota interrupts, his voice hard. “Go on, Kate. In front of Levi.”

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