offered to put them in the dryer for me. She gave me these to wear while they’re drying.”
“Well then, that clears that up.” Kendall picked up a dog-eared issue of
Practical Horseman
from a side table and began leafing through it.
He turned his back to the window and leaned against the sill, folding his arms across his chest. “Look, I’m sorry I got testy. It’s been a long day and I’m exhausted.” He ran a hand through his hair and stretched his neck from side to side. “I’m Jake, by the way. What did you say your name was?”
“Kendall.”
His eyes lost their iciness and his mouth slid into a slow smile. “Nice to meet you, Kendall.”
“Nice to meet you, too.” She set the magazine back down. “So will you tell me what happened?”
Jake shifted his weight against the windowsill. “I don’t know any details about what caused the accident, but the rig went off the road and down a mountainside. The Range Rover ended up headfirst into a tree, and the trailer came loose and flipped. It ended up on its side farther down the slope. By the time I got there, the ambulance had already taken your friend away. Chancellor was still inside the trailer, and I helped Steve get him out.”
“Does Chancellor have any other injuries, besides his chest injury?”
He shook his head. “Nothing that seems serious. He has some cuts and scrapes, but his legs look clean and he is moving remarkably well considering all he went through.”
“How serious is his chest injury?”
Jake glanced over his shoulder at the operating room. “It’s a pretty dirty wound, so the doc’s concerned about the risk of infection. They’ll clean it up as much as they can during the surgery. The doc said Chancellor’s prospects are good, but he’s been through a lot, and he was in a weakened state going into surgery.”
“Not to mention the risk of making it through recovery. That’s always the scariest part of equine surgery for me. Have you ever watched a horse come out of anesthesia?”
“Yeah, they usually scramble all over the place trying to get up. You think they’re going to break a leg. And, unfortunately, sometimes they do. But Chancellor’s a smart horse. I think he’ll do okay.”
“But he’s so skittish.”
“He’s high-strung, that’s for sure. But he’s not one of those horses who doesn’t care if he hurts himself.”
Kendall frowned quizzically at him. “You sound like you know Chancellor pretty well for having just met him.”
He nodded, giving her another one of his slow smiles. “Yeah, we had quite a bonding experience this afternoon.”
She studied him for a moment. “Is that why you’re still here?”
Jake shrugged. “I guess so. I figured his owner probably wouldn’t be showing up for the surgery, so I decided to stay and make sure he got through the operation all right.”
“That’s very nice of you.”
He didn’t respond and turned back towards the window again.
The next few minutes passed in silence, and then Kendall asked, “Are you from around here?”
“Nope. Just passing through.”
“Where are you from?”
There was a brief hesitation before he answered. “Oklahoma.”
“Really? Based on your accent, I would have pegged you as being from somewhere just south of the Mason-Dixon line.”
Jake didn’t respond.
“You’re a long way from home. Are you in a hurry to be hitting the road again?”
He sighed and slowly turned his head towards her. “Like I said before, you sure do ask a lot of questions.”
And you sure don’t like to answer them
, Kendall thought.
CHAPTER
10
Z elda McGraw sat on the bench near the pay phone in front of Kroger’s Supermarket. She took a long drag on her cigarette and eyed a blue Camaro that pulled up to the curb.
“Hey there, Zelda,” Pinky Barnes said as he stuck his head out the window and revved the engine. “Want to cruise over to Thirsty’s with me and have a few cold ones?”
“Beat it, Pinky. I got me a
“Well then, that clears that up.” Kendall picked up a dog-eared issue of
Practical Horseman
from a side table and began leafing through it.
He turned his back to the window and leaned against the sill, folding his arms across his chest. “Look, I’m sorry I got testy. It’s been a long day and I’m exhausted.” He ran a hand through his hair and stretched his neck from side to side. “I’m Jake, by the way. What did you say your name was?”
“Kendall.”
His eyes lost their iciness and his mouth slid into a slow smile. “Nice to meet you, Kendall.”
“Nice to meet you, too.” She set the magazine back down. “So will you tell me what happened?”
Jake shifted his weight against the windowsill. “I don’t know any details about what caused the accident, but the rig went off the road and down a mountainside. The Range Rover ended up headfirst into a tree, and the trailer came loose and flipped. It ended up on its side farther down the slope. By the time I got there, the ambulance had already taken your friend away. Chancellor was still inside the trailer, and I helped Steve get him out.”
“Does Chancellor have any other injuries, besides his chest injury?”
He shook his head. “Nothing that seems serious. He has some cuts and scrapes, but his legs look clean and he is moving remarkably well considering all he went through.”
“How serious is his chest injury?”
Jake glanced over his shoulder at the operating room. “It’s a pretty dirty wound, so the doc’s concerned about the risk of infection. They’ll clean it up as much as they can during the surgery. The doc said Chancellor’s prospects are good, but he’s been through a lot, and he was in a weakened state going into surgery.”
“Not to mention the risk of making it through recovery. That’s always the scariest part of equine surgery for me. Have you ever watched a horse come out of anesthesia?”
“Yeah, they usually scramble all over the place trying to get up. You think they’re going to break a leg. And, unfortunately, sometimes they do. But Chancellor’s a smart horse. I think he’ll do okay.”
“But he’s so skittish.”
“He’s high-strung, that’s for sure. But he’s not one of those horses who doesn’t care if he hurts himself.”
Kendall frowned quizzically at him. “You sound like you know Chancellor pretty well for having just met him.”
He nodded, giving her another one of his slow smiles. “Yeah, we had quite a bonding experience this afternoon.”
She studied him for a moment. “Is that why you’re still here?”
Jake shrugged. “I guess so. I figured his owner probably wouldn’t be showing up for the surgery, so I decided to stay and make sure he got through the operation all right.”
“That’s very nice of you.”
He didn’t respond and turned back towards the window again.
The next few minutes passed in silence, and then Kendall asked, “Are you from around here?”
“Nope. Just passing through.”
“Where are you from?”
There was a brief hesitation before he answered. “Oklahoma.”
“Really? Based on your accent, I would have pegged you as being from somewhere just south of the Mason-Dixon line.”
Jake didn’t respond.
“You’re a long way from home. Are you in a hurry to be hitting the road again?”
He sighed and slowly turned his head towards her. “Like I said before, you sure do ask a lot of questions.”
And you sure don’t like to answer them
, Kendall thought.
CHAPTER
10
Z elda McGraw sat on the bench near the pay phone in front of Kroger’s Supermarket. She took a long drag on her cigarette and eyed a blue Camaro that pulled up to the curb.
“Hey there, Zelda,” Pinky Barnes said as he stuck his head out the window and revved the engine. “Want to cruise over to Thirsty’s with me and have a few cold ones?”
“Beat it, Pinky. I got me a
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