Here to Stay (20 page)

“The testimony of all the employees isn’t enough to hold the bastard?”

“The testimony of that many people constitutes probable cause for arrest, but for the hearing, they need hard proof to back up the allegations. Without it, Ristol’s attorney can argue that the employees dislike Ristol and the allegations are all a pack of lies. If you can’t get some evidence to them before one tomorrow, Ristol will be released and will probably skip out.”

“Why can’t they just postpone the hearing until Monday?” Zach asked.

“No way. When a person is arrested, they’re entitled to go before a judge at the next scheduled arraignment hearing. It’s the law. If the arrest had been postponed until tomorrow, Ristol could have been held until Monday, but the sheriff may have been afraid the guy would skip out.”

“I’ll get Tucker on the horn, ASAP,” Zach said wearily. Remembering Miranda’s avowal that Tornado’s head was covered with scars, he added, “I’m confident we’ll find plenty of evidence to keep the bastard in jail. Will digital photos sent as e-mail attachments and a faxed statement signed by the vet be sufficient for now?”

“Can you get your hands on a camera that shows the date and time at the edge of the photo?”

“No worries,” Zach assured him. “Tucker is often asked to document equine abuse for the local Humane Society. I’m sure he has his camera set for that.”

“You’ll also need to sign a statement verifying that the photos are of the stallion you bought from Pat Jones.”

“Done,” Zach said. “I have a message from the D.A. of Malheur County. He wants me to call him.”

“I’ll take care of it,” Carlo assured him. “You concentrate on getting the evidence they need for that hearing tomorrow.”

After ending the call, Zach phoned Tucker and Cookie. Ten minutes later, they met in the arena. Samantha had come with her husband. When she met Zach’s gaze, the expression in her dark eyes told him she understood, possibly better than anyone, how bad he felt. In Zach’s mind, it wasn’t only about the abuse Tornado had endured, but also that he’d failed to recognize that the stallion’s behavioral issues stemmed from it.

In order to get close enough to sedate the horse, they had to haze him into the hydraulic box chute. As expected, Tornado went nuts. After the third unsuccessful and undeniably dangerous attempt to get the stallion into the enclosure, Cookie said, “You should call that girl, Zach. I’d bet next month’s paycheck that she could keep him calm while Tucker gives him the shot. Easier on the horse, and a hell of a lot safer for us.”

Zach considered the suggestion and ran back to the house to get Miranda’s number off the main line. After checking on Rosebud, he hurried back to the arena, calling Miranda on his cell as he went.

Mandy had just flipped on the computer for another session of medical transcription when the phone rang. She grabbed the receiver out of its base.

“Hello.”

“Hey, Miranda, it’s Zach Harrigan.”

Mandy’s heart sank. She feared that he’d changed his mind about giving Luke a second chance. “Hi, Mr. Harrigan. What a nice surprise.”

“Not really. I’ve got a problem over here, and I’d really appreciate it if you could help me out.”

Relieved that he wasn’t calling to cancel their meeting tomorrow night, Mandy said, “Certainly. What do you need?”

She listened as Zach briefed her on the developments that had unfolded earlier. Her stomach lurched when she heard about the terrible things Tornado had endured.

“Anyway, the Malheur County sheriff has the jerk in jail, but without some solid evidence for that hearing tomorrow, they won’t be able to hold him. I’ve been asked to take photographs of Tornado to document that he’s been abused. In order to do that, we need to sedate him, and Tucker can’t get close enough to give him the shot unless we put him in a box chute.
That
is damned near impossible, and Cookie came up with the idea of calling you. Tornado trusts you. Why, I don’t know, but he does. If you were here, maybe he’d remain calm enough to let Tucker stick him.”

Mandy was already on her feet. “I’ll need to get a sitter to stay with Luke. If I can’t, I’ll have to bring him along. I suppose he could sit in the car if he wears a heavy coat.”

“That, or he could stay in the stable office. It’s warm in there.”

Mandy glanced at her watch. “I’ll be there as fast as I can.”

“I owe you one,” he said, his voice growing husky. “Drive safe. It’s important that we get this done ASAP, but it’s not so urgent you need to break the speed limit.”

After disconnecting, Mandy called her usual sitter but the woman didn’t answer. She was either out for the evening or had already gone to bed. As a second resort, Mandy phoned another lady who occasionally stayed with Luke. She was less pleasant and Luke didn’t like her, but given that he had already gone to bed, he wouldn’t have to interact with her. Luckily the woman answered and agreed to come over.

“My nighttime rate is more,” she said.

“I don’t care,” Mandy informed her. “Just get here as fast as you can.”

After ending the call, Mandy dashed to her bedroom to jerk off her pajamas and throw on jeans and a sweater. She was dressed and ready to leave when the sitter showed up.

When Mandy pulled up in front of the ranch gate, Zach was waiting on the opposite side to let her in. Once she was on the property, she stopped the Honda and rolled down her window. “You want to ride back with me?”

“Sure.” He loped around the vehicle, opened the passenger door, jerked off his hat, and swung in beside her. “I really appreciate this, Miranda. Tornado is beside himself. Each time we tried to get him into the box chute, he got more and more upset.”

The scent of Zach filled Mandy’s nostrils—a pleasant blend of leather, hay, grain, aftershave, and male musk. As she eased the Honda forward, her hands tightened on the wheel. She was unaccustomed to being in such close quarters with any man other than Luke.

“I’m so sorry about Tornado,” she told him.

His voice ached with regret as he replied, “I feel awful for not recognizing the signs. You nailed it right on the head. Tornado isn’t crazy, only terrified. I’ve been working with him all wrong. The first things an abused horse needs are unconditional love and unfailing patience. All this time, I should have been trying to gain his trust, and I—”

Mandy heard his voice catch as she parked outside the arena. She cut the engine and turned to peer at him through the darkness that suddenly enveloped them. Though his face was lost in the gloom, she suspected he was battling tears. “It isn’t your fault, Mr. Harrigan. You had no way of knowing. Tornado couldn’t tell you what had happened to him.”

“He talked to you,” Zach retorted. “How, I don’t know, but I was watching, and there’s no doubt in my mind that he was somehow communicating with you.”

“Yes,” she confessed. “In a way I can’t explain, he did. But that’s only because—” Mandy caught herself. Zach Harrigan had no need to know about her past or the incidents that had molded her into a person who could sense fear in others. She settled for saying, “Shall we?” The conversation ended when she opened her door.

Zach walked beside her to the personnel door and held it ajar so she could precede him into the building. The instant Mandy stepped inside, she heard Tornado shriek. Tucker Coulter, a petite, dark-haired woman, and Cookie stood well back from the stallion’s stall gate. Conscious of Zach right behind her, Mandy hurried over to them.

When Tornado saw Mandy, he stopped rearing. A tremor shook his huge body, and he emitted a beseeching little grunt. Mandy went to the gate, stepped up onto a rung, and stretched out her arm. “Hey, big guy,” she said softly. “What are you throwing such a big fuss about?”

The stallion grunted again and elongated his neck but remained where he was. Mandy glanced over her shoulder. “Would you mind stepping back a bit more? I think your nearness to the gate is making him nervous.”

Everyone obliged, and Tornado’s reaction was almost immediate. He hurried over to the gate, whickered and chuffed, and thrust his nose under Mandy’s arm. Tears stung her eyes as she rested her cheek against the animal’s temple.

“Ah, Tornado,” she whispered, “you have to trust me, okay? That awful man who hurt you is in jail, but they’ll have to turn him loose if we can’t get some pictures of your scars. Cameras are kind of scary.” She ran a hand along the ridge of the stallion’s neck. “They flash and make little clicking sounds. But I promise nothing bad will happen. Okay?”

Mandy waited until she felt all the tension leave the horse’s body. Then she glanced back at Zach. “How do you want to do this?”

“You think you can get a halter on him again?” Zach asked. “If you can, maybe you can move far to the left and get him to stand sideways to the gate. Tucker can give him the shot through the rungs.”

“Will that hurt him?” Mandy had just promised Tornado that he wouldn’t be hurt, and it was a promise she meant to keep.

“No. A tiny prick on the rump,” Tucker assured her. “He’ll barely feel it. Once the sedative takes effect, which will take a while because I can’t give him anything intravenously, he’ll go down and be so sleepy for a while that he won’t really care what we do with him.”

Zach brought Mandy a halter. As had happened earlier in the evening, Tornado didn’t object when she slipped the leather straps over his nose and fastened the buckle. When Mandy moved to the far left end of the gate, the stallion followed her without question. She grabbed his cheek strap and began scratching his shoulder and side to get him to stand parallel to the gate. When the horse was in position, Tucker circled around to the right and slipped up behind the stallion with the hypodermic needle. The stallion chuffed when he felt the prick, but he seemed to be so intent on the petting from Mandy that he didn’t act up as the large amount of medication was administered.

Tucker backed away, shaking his head in amazement. “I’ve never seen anything like this. He’s putty in your hands. What did you do, cast a spell over him?”

Mandy smiled sadly. “No black magic involved. He just senses that I won’t hurt him, is all. How long will it take for the sedative to work?”

“It won’t be as fast as something straight into a vein. Thirty minutes, I’m guessing. And it’s short duration, so he won’t be groggy for very long.”

Tucker slipped an arm around the dark-haired woman’s slender shoulders. The gesture conveyed affection. The expression that softened his handsome features spoke of deep love. The woman—Mandy suspected she was Zach’s sister, Samantha—smiled up at him, his feelings for her mirrored in her expressive brown eyes. Mandy fleetingly wondered how it might feel to share a love like that, to know, way deep in your heart, that a man’s devotion to you would never falter. Being in love with a man was an experience Mandy had never hoped to have, but for an instant, watching Tucker and Samantha together, she felt empty inside and envied them a little.

When the sedative finally began to take effect, Tornado hung his head and weaved slightly on his feet. Mandy was forced to stand back and watch, fascinated, while the other four people went to work. Zach led the drugged horse to the center of the enclosure. Samantha spread a towel on the stall floor to the left of the horse. Tucker stood at the stallion’s left shoulder.

The vet checked to make sure Samantha was out of the way and then pressed the palms of both hands against Tornado’s left side. Even sedated and groggy, the stallion braced against the pressure, and when Tucker suddenly removed his hands, Tornado went down as if a hard wind from the right had knocked him over. When he landed, Mandy saw that the towel had been carefully positioned so his head would lie on it.

It was the slickest trick Mandy had ever seen. Tornado whinnied and struggled to get up, but he was too out of it to gain his feet. Samantha beckoned to Mandy.

“I know you want to be with him. Come on in. He’ll feel calmer if you’re here.”

Mandy hurried inside and knelt at Tornado’s head. He trembled and chuffed when she began petting him. That told Mandy that the stallion still recognized her. More important, he still trusted her. She’d been afraid he might resent that she’d tricked him.

Samantha crouched beside Mandy. “I’m Zach’s sister, Sam.” She held out a small but strong-looking hand. “Somehow, we bypassed introductions.”

“I’m Miranda Pajeck.” Mandy shook hands with her. “I’m pleased to meet you.”

Sam fingered the horse’s tangled mane. “Poor fellow. He’s so scared of everyone, he can’t be groomed much.”

Tucker approached with an electric clipper. Hunkering beside his wife, he turned his gaze to Mandy. “Zach says you felt scars under his coat. You remember where?”

“All over his head.” Mandy pointed to a spot she knew was peppered with marks.

Tucker shaved a small place on Tornado’s forehead to reveal at least a dozen scars, each about the diameter of an ice pick. “Pay dirt.”

Zach moved in to take pictures. Next Mandy directed Tucker to the stallion’s neck. Tucker chose to shave away the hair beneath the fall of Tornado’s mane. “This way, the mane will hide the bald spots.”

Once again, the clipping revealed a mass of scars. Zach swore under his breath as he took pictures. “Ristol whipped him with a pronged dog collar,” he said angrily. “Sweet Jesus, is this poor horse scarred from head to toe?”

The next revelation was the scars on the horse’s underbelly. Hair wouldn’t grow where Tornado had been burned by the electrical prod. The marks weren’t visible when the horse was standing, but they were very apparent with the stallion lying on his side. The instant Tucker hoisted one of Tornado’s hind legs, Mandy gasped. The scars were near, even on, the animal’s privates. Tears burned her eyes as she stared at the evidence of Ristol’s merciless treachery. How could anyone be so cruel to an animal?

When Zach had taken all the pictures necessary, he left for the house to tag the photos with identifying captions on his computer. After Tornado was back on his feet, Tucker would join him there to compose their individual statements and send the information to the authorities in Malheur County. Cookie and Samantha stayed to help with Tornado until the sedative wore off. Mandy’s presence was no longer needed.