Fuck.My heart raced as I thought about Forest and him being so close to the fires, but I knew he’d be safe. This is what he did for a living.
I threw on jeans, my boots and a shirt before putting away my food and hopping in the car. The town was quiet as I rushed to the ranch, and it made me feel uneasy. Did anyone know the danger that lay to the west?
Turning down the street to go to Theo’s old house I parked, getting out quickly and was greeted by Sadie. “Hello, beautiful.” I gave her love before walking to the barn.
Atlas, Colt, Iris and Forest were getting the horses ready as I walked up.
“Hey, thanks for coming,” Colt said.
“Of course,” I said, nodding at Forest before hugging Atlas and Iris.
“It’s good to see you,” he said. How is your knee doing? Are you sure this is, ok?”
“I’m ok, Atlas,” I said, clapping his shoulder.
“Hey sweetheart.” Iris gave me a big hug. “It’s been a while since I’ve seen you on a horse.”
“It’s like riding a bike.” I hugged her tight.
I felt Forest's eyes on me, but for some reason I felt shy around Colt, Iris, and Atlas.
“Alright, tonight is simple, we move the herd further southeast,” Colt said.
“Atlas and I will lead the herd. Iris and Webber, can help Forest bring up the rear and catch any stragglers," he said, looking at all of us. “Sadie is coming to help us and if we need anything, radio it in.”
“Ok,” I said, getting nervous.
“You’re going to ride Jude’s horse,” Forest said, bringing a horse to me. “He’s the calmest of the bunch and he’ll be good for you since it's been a while since you've ridden.”
I nodded, running my hand up and down his neck. “Hello Flynn Ryder.”
“Oh, good; you know him?” he asked.
“Yeah, I’ve ridden him before,” I said, looking over at him.
“Good, then just follow my lead and we should be fine,” he said reassuringly. “Sadie will help with a lot of the herding too. We will watch out for stragglers and the mommas and babies. There’s five of us so it should be fairly easy.”
“Ok,” I said again.
“Don’t be nervous,” he said as he got on his horse. “We move in a zig-zag pattern behind the herd or we’ll be next to them making sure we don't lose any.”
I lifted my good leg up, worried about getting on the horse, but my good leg was still working just fine and I got on the horse with ease. Forest grinned at me as I got comfortable on the saddle. My face grew red from his attention.
“Good job, Peaches,” he murmured.
I rolled my eyes, hating that nickname, but oddly feeling it grow on me a little.
“Y’all ready?” Colt asked.
We all agreed.
Colt and Atlas rode out first with Iris. Forest and I right behind them. We found the herd within twenty minutes and moved them quickly. The smoke was slightly thicker here, but not by much and I wondered how much closer Jude and Theo were to the fire. My gut didn’t feel right about this, and every instinct told me to go find Jude and bring him back to me.
We worked in silence as we rode south. It amazed me the amount of land Theo owned. The last time I had seen the herd it wasn't this big, and I was glad he was doing so well.
“Colt, what's the status of the herd?” Theo’s voice came through the radio.
“We are almost there,” he said. “What’s the status of the fire?”
