Leroy Watches Jr. & the Badass Bull (Bloodsong Series) by Sandy Nathan Page A
Authors: Sandy Nathan
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fight in front of the kids and Niles any more. Sylvia sat in the front bucket seat next to Niles. She didn’t speak.
8
COWBOY UP!
The horn blared and blared again, sound banging against the stadium’s cement walls. The Thompson & Mack Center seemed bigger inside than outside. And fancier. Everything the rodeo participants did was played on big screens on the walls. He’d never seen such a place.
Leroy was glad he’d gotten the horses ready before the rodeo so he could ride them in the arena while things were sort of calm. Not so much to school them in the strange place, but so he wouldn’t be shaking in the saddle. Sound echoed funny; the light was strange. The horses’ hoof beats were muted by the heavy footing on the ground. Leroy sat on Blondie, what he’d named the palomino mare, just outside the arena before their class. The worst part was waiting for his number to come up.
Tie-down roping was up first. He rode Blondie for that; she had picked up her training better than the pinto horse and was more suited for the difficult maneuvers tie-down roping required.
He’d roped a lot of calves. They did it on the ranch when they had to doctor them. Rope ‘em, tie ‘em down and fix whatever was wrong. They didn’t do it over and over to the same animal, and they didn’t call it a sport.
Blondie broke out of the chute like she’d done it all her life. She set her hind legs and slid to a stop the instant before he got his loop around the calf’s neck. She backed up to kept the lariat taut like a clothesline that knew its job. He had the calf down faster than he knew he could. He wrapped his pigging string around three of the animal’s legs and pulled it tight. Jumped up and waved his hands. He stepped up on Blondie, and rode her forward to loosen the lariat around the calf’s neck.
The sound of his voice surprised him. “Forgive me for hurting you. I heal your wounds. May you live a life without pain.” He said it in his language and was surprised how it echoed.
The whole tribe was there, and they repeated his words. “Forgive me for hurting you. I heal your wounds. May you live a life without pain!” There weren’t too many of the Natives, but they made up for their numbers in the volume of their voices. People around took it up, mangling the words, but echoing the sentiment.
Leroy left, feeling stupid. But that calf had been hurt. He healed it before he walked away.
“Ladies and gentlemen!” the announcer bellowed. “We have a new record for the Golden Olden Days Rodeo! Leroy Watches Jr. just broke our all-time tie-down roping record with a 6.7 second time! Let’s hear it for Leroy Watches!”
The announcer kept talking, “Some of you may recognize this young man. Leroy is the son of Leroy Watches Sr. the world’s favorite bullfighter. You’ll be seeing him later today doing what he does best. Let’s have a hand for his son.”
Blondie picked up her feet a few times during the applause, but she didn’t go anywhere. He stroked her and she settled. That was the only sign of nervousness she showed.
His first time competing hadn’t been so bad. Leroy was more nervous than his horse. He had never seen so many people in one place. The Thomas & Mack stadium was so crowded that it seemed more like the National Finals than a little second rate show. He didn’t understand the mob.
Buzzard, the big pinto, also worked better in the steer wresting than he had hoped. Buzz was built like a wrestler and fast as a Thoroughbred sprinter. The big pinto blasted out of the chute like something heading to outer space. Just past the chutes, Leroy stepped out of the saddle on onto the steer, throwing him in a couple of seconds. He grinned and waved at the crowd, saying to the steer, “Forgive me for hurting you. I heal your wounds. May you live a life without pain!”
Everyone screamed again, repeating his words. This time the announcer said more about him after announcing their
8
COWBOY UP!
The horn blared and blared again, sound banging against the stadium’s cement walls. The Thompson & Mack Center seemed bigger inside than outside. And fancier. Everything the rodeo participants did was played on big screens on the walls. He’d never seen such a place.
Leroy was glad he’d gotten the horses ready before the rodeo so he could ride them in the arena while things were sort of calm. Not so much to school them in the strange place, but so he wouldn’t be shaking in the saddle. Sound echoed funny; the light was strange. The horses’ hoof beats were muted by the heavy footing on the ground. Leroy sat on Blondie, what he’d named the palomino mare, just outside the arena before their class. The worst part was waiting for his number to come up.
Tie-down roping was up first. He rode Blondie for that; she had picked up her training better than the pinto horse and was more suited for the difficult maneuvers tie-down roping required.
He’d roped a lot of calves. They did it on the ranch when they had to doctor them. Rope ‘em, tie ‘em down and fix whatever was wrong. They didn’t do it over and over to the same animal, and they didn’t call it a sport.
Blondie broke out of the chute like she’d done it all her life. She set her hind legs and slid to a stop the instant before he got his loop around the calf’s neck. She backed up to kept the lariat taut like a clothesline that knew its job. He had the calf down faster than he knew he could. He wrapped his pigging string around three of the animal’s legs and pulled it tight. Jumped up and waved his hands. He stepped up on Blondie, and rode her forward to loosen the lariat around the calf’s neck.
The sound of his voice surprised him. “Forgive me for hurting you. I heal your wounds. May you live a life without pain.” He said it in his language and was surprised how it echoed.
The whole tribe was there, and they repeated his words. “Forgive me for hurting you. I heal your wounds. May you live a life without pain!” There weren’t too many of the Natives, but they made up for their numbers in the volume of their voices. People around took it up, mangling the words, but echoing the sentiment.
Leroy left, feeling stupid. But that calf had been hurt. He healed it before he walked away.
“Ladies and gentlemen!” the announcer bellowed. “We have a new record for the Golden Olden Days Rodeo! Leroy Watches Jr. just broke our all-time tie-down roping record with a 6.7 second time! Let’s hear it for Leroy Watches!”
The announcer kept talking, “Some of you may recognize this young man. Leroy is the son of Leroy Watches Sr. the world’s favorite bullfighter. You’ll be seeing him later today doing what he does best. Let’s have a hand for his son.”
Blondie picked up her feet a few times during the applause, but she didn’t go anywhere. He stroked her and she settled. That was the only sign of nervousness she showed.
His first time competing hadn’t been so bad. Leroy was more nervous than his horse. He had never seen so many people in one place. The Thomas & Mack stadium was so crowded that it seemed more like the National Finals than a little second rate show. He didn’t understand the mob.
Buzzard, the big pinto, also worked better in the steer wresting than he had hoped. Buzz was built like a wrestler and fast as a Thoroughbred sprinter. The big pinto blasted out of the chute like something heading to outer space. Just past the chutes, Leroy stepped out of the saddle on onto the steer, throwing him in a couple of seconds. He grinned and waved at the crowd, saying to the steer, “Forgive me for hurting you. I heal your wounds. May you live a life without pain!”
Everyone screamed again, repeating his words. This time the announcer said more about him after announcing their
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