“You’ve eaten, greedy girl,” Seth called to her.
I went to pet her, rubbing her forehead, and a thought occurred to me. “Where are the dogs? Are they safe?”
“Davis shut them in his cabin till he gets back, with this storm in the forecast. Usually, they stay with Tiffany and John— John trained them from puppies— but Davis will watch them for the weekend.”
“If he can make it home.” I tried to peer through the dusty window of Ahwan’s stall, but the pane just reflected the lighted interior with darkness behind. “I wouldn’t want to drive hilly roads, the way it’s coming down.”
“Davis knows every inch of those roads like the back of his hand.” Seth came over to stand beside me as a gust of wind threw snow against the glass. “They might need to camp out with Pete tonight, though.”
“Pete?”
“Was the foreman before John. He moved up to Selbyville when he retired.”
“I think I met him.” We both flinched as the wind howled around the barn. Seth moved closer, his shoulder brushing mine. “Sounds like it’s building up to a blizzard,” I said, to not think about how near he was to me.
“We were only supposed to get four inches.”
“Seemed like we have more than that already.”
“Yep.” Seth shook his head and stepped away. “Well, worst comes to worst, Kendrick may be really glad he hired you.”
“When the two of us have to do all the chores tomorrow?”
“Yep.” Seth gave me a grin that took years off his face. “We’re going to earn our pay.”
“Lead me to it.” I’d only glanced at the papers Mr. Bowen filled out before putting them away safe in my pack, but he was paying me fifteen bucks an hour. A regular work week would net me around six hundred dollars before taxes, but if we worked longer, I might do better. Maybe enough to feed me and gas the truck until I found another job. “I’m fine with the overtime.”
“Good man.” Seth thumped my shoulder and I turned away to hide my smile. Damn but I liked working beside him.
A groan from Ebony’s stall made us hurry over. She was working now, the tips of the calf’s hooves emerging. Seth didn’t go in, just watched closely from outside the door.
“What if she has trouble?” I whispered. I hadn’t been around the cows when they were calving much. Last spring I’d still been in school, mostly working odd jobs around the barn while the cows did their thing out in the pastures. By the time school let out and I went full time, all baby hooves were on the ground.
Seth said, “You and me would help her. We have ropes and chains, a calf puller if we need it. I think she’ll be fine, though. Once you see hooves and a nose, they’re generally past the hardest part.”
Calving was a messy business, but the baby was cute, ears flapping as it struggled up on wobbly legs. Seth had me rub the calf down with some straw while he helped the cow pass the placenta.
“A heifer,” I noted. “Is that good or bad? Were you looking for a bull calf from her?”
“Not this time round. Maybe next year, Kendrick will buy some semen and try for something special. This year, a girl’s fine.”
“Are we supposed to name her?” I knew better than to name a bull calf, destined for someone’s table, but some of the heifers stayed around longer. Since she was out of Mr. Bowen’s prized cow, maybe he’d keep her.
Seth laughed as he scooped messy straw into the wheelbarrow. “In theory, no. We’ll tag her as soon as she’s dried off and nursed, and that number’s all she needs. In practice, if you want to name her, you can’t come up with worse than Dirt. Go for it.”
“Thanks for the vote of confidence.” I eyed the little black calf as Ebony stood and nosed at her. “Olive, maybe.”
“Black Olive? Works for me.” Seth tossed me the shovel, which I caught awkwardly. “Now bundle up, kid. We’re going to bury this placenta deep in the manure pile so it doesn’t attract coyotes, and that’ll be a fun job in the blizzard.”
“Won’t the pile be frozen?” I scrubbed at my hands, then pulled on the gloves I’d stuck in my pockets.
“Hopefully not. It makes its own heat. If it is, this’ll be an even funner job. Come on.”
We were lucky in the not-frozen department, but unlucky in the way the wind drove wet stinging snow into our faces. By the time the brief chore was done, we were both coated.
Inside the barn, mom and baby seemed to be doing well. We watched Olive nurse, her little tail jerking like a propeller. Seth snuck in close and inserted her ear tag, a pop she greeted with a small bleat, before going back to eating.
“Hell of a lot easier than tagging calves out on the range,” he noted. “Come on, let’s wash up, fetch your laundry, and collect the dogs before we hole up in my cabin. I’m damned sure Davis is too smart to drive home in this mess.”
