The Blood Ballad by Rett MacPherson Read Free Book Online Page B

mother first and foremost, and I didn’t want to listen to her tell me how being outside at dusk during hunting season was a stupid thing, even though the Olympics had been in the papers, there were signs about it all over town, the sheriff had marked off a ten-mile radius with signs saying NO HUNTING, and all of the deputies had been posted at regular intervals just so this very thing wouldn’t happen.
    But it still had. And my mom was going to make me feel as though it was my fault. So, after tossing my clothes in the fire pit, I walked to the stables to be with the horses.
    Rudy and I used to live in town. Our house had looked right over the Mississippi River, but now we live in this house we had built for us on several acres. We didn’t go all out and have a huge house built, because our kids would be leaving home in a few years and then it would be too big. It was a two-story brick structure, and there were times I still thought it was going to be too big someday, like when Rachel went off to college, but I pushed that thought from my mind. The real charm of where we live now is the acreage and all that goes with it.
    I’d taken an hour-long shower, scrubbing and rescrubbing and sudsing up until I’d run out of soap and hot water, but somehow, I noticed the faint smell of skunk still lingered in my hair as I walked through the yard and then through the gate to the field beyond.
    When I reached the stable, the horses made a few noises, and Cutter sneezed. Rudy and I own three quarter horses. It had been my idea to get them, and I had not regretted the decision for a single second. Yes, they are a lot of work, and yes, we probably don’t ride them nearly enough, but they have this amazing calming effect on me and the whole family, and they lend a certain ethereal quality to our property. I know that sounds strange, but it’s true. When Rudy and I decided to sell our house in town and move out here, I knew there was something missing. Regardless of the beautiful vistas and the hawks and even though I still had my chickens, there was something missing. It was the river. The Mississippi had been the view out my bedroom window ever since Rudy and I had gotten married. So, when I got the horses, they sort of filled the space that Old Man River had once occupied. The horses gave me something to reflect on, like I used to with the river.
    The third horse we had bought, Nessie, had a black mane and a deep brown coat. Her two front legs were white from the knees down. They were her only distinguishing marks. Nessie was the horse I could always count on to be there for me. She sensed, almost immediately, whatever my mood was.
    Now was no different. She came right to me and pranced around a bit as she registered the skunk smell. Then she settled in and let me pet her. I opened the door to her stall and walked through to the outside. All of the stalls had an opening out to the field. She followed me as I strode across the dark expanse and found my favorite part of the fence to sit on. I climbed up and sat down and she nuzzled me. “You don’t mind the smell, do you?”
    She whinnied and stepped sideways.
    â€œOkay, so you do mind. But at least you’re willing to keep me company.”
    We sat there, alone like that, for at least a half hour. She ran off for a few seconds, but then she came right back. Even Cutter sauntered by briefly. Funny how I hadn’t wanted to spend the night outdoors, and yet here I was under the stars, in the dark, petting Nessie.
    I took in the view that moonlight had to offer and realized that there was something strange about the field.
    It had one too many horses.
    â€œWhat the…”
    Just then, I saw the headlights from the van and knew that Rudy and the kids were home. I glanced back at the field and counted again. Yes, there were four horses. I was sitting there contemplating how this had happened when I heard Rudy walk up behind me.
    â€œHey, are