Рита Браун - Full Cry

“Sister, why don’t we walk back to the farm?” Shaker found his voice at last.

She replied in a loud whisper, “I can ride. Walter can fix me up later, right?”

“I’ll ride with her. Looks worse than it is, Shaker.” Walter cupped his hands for Sister’s left boot. Tedi held Lafayette, who nickered happily when he felt her familiar weight on his back.

Tedi turned to the field, her voice strong. “We’re calling it a day. Your master is determined to ride back, so we’ll ride with her.” She paused, searching out each concerned face, then broke into a smile even as the tears ran down her face again. “She’s bullheaded, but I love her.”

Everyone started talking at once as sirens could be heard roaring down Soldier Road.

By the time they reached the kennels, four squad cars had Dalton and Isabelle penned in by the trailers.

Walter insisted that Sister sit down in her kitchen. The girls took the horses even as Sister complained in a hoarse voice that she needed to count her hounds.

“You can do that later.” Walter took charge.

Betty kissed Sister on the cheek. “Shaker, Sybil, and I can handle it. I’ll be up when we’re done. You take care of you, Sister. There’s only one Sister.”

Tedi, Edward, and Gray followed Walter up as Sister grumbled that she didn’t need an escort, she was fine, et cetera, et cetera.

Once Sister was seated on the kitchen chair, Raleigh and Rooster, smelling her blood, whimpered and came over, sticking to her like glue.

“Go lie down,” she croaked.

“If I lick you, you’ll heal faster,” Raleigh promised.

“Ugh.” Golly jumped on Sister’s lap. “Dog licks, yuck. I can do better.” She put her paws on either side of Sister’s neck as Walter unwound the stock tie.

“Golly, you need to get down,” Sister told her.

When Golly wouldn’t budge, Tedi reached over, picked up the cat, and placed her on the floor.

“I’ll get even,” Golly threatened as she joined Raleigh in his bed.

Edward, holding Sister’s black frock, realized the front was sopping with blood. He put the coat in the mudroom, making a mental note to take it to the dry cleaner’s.

Walter unbuttoned the front of her white shirt, also covered with blood. “Sister, you need to take this off. I want to make sure you don’t have other injuries. When your adrenaline gets high like that, sometimes you won’t feel a broken bone for hours.”

Sister looked at Edward and Gray. “I’m not really all that modest, but I do ask you men to remember that Britney Spears doesn’t have anything that I don’t have; I’ve just had it longer.”

They laughed at that, then Edward said, “Gray, why don’t we go to the library? Walter, if you need us, you know where we are.”

“I do.” Walter waited for her to remove her blouse, then gingerly pulled off the long-sleeved silk undershirt.

Tedi watched as Walter felt her ribs, the bones in her neck and arms. “Clay landed a couple of good ones.”

“Yeah, but the frock is heavy.”

“Mmm, you’ll have some bruises.” He pointed to red marks on her chest, a large one on her back where she hit the ground.

Tedi drew closer. “They’ll turn a fetching shade of black, then purple, then burgundy.”

“Peachy.” Sister felt her neck sting where it was cut.

“I’m going to wash this. You’ll feel it,” Walter warned her.

Tedi brought over a bowl of warm water, went into the downstairs bathroom and brought out a washrag and a towel. Sister closed her eyes when Walter washed it, the wound bleeding anew as the caked blood was rinsed off.

“Stitches?” Tedi inquired.

“No.” Walter checked to see how deep the cut was. “She was lucky. Keep it clean. It’s going to continue to seep blood. Wrap a soft gauze around your neck. You clot up quickly enough, but every time you take the gauze off it will seep a little. I’ll bring over some antiseptic.”

“What about Neosporin?” Tedi asked. “She’s got that upstairs.”

“It will help.”

“Oh, just slap Betadine on me,” Sister suggested.

“If you want to walk around with an orange neck, that’s okay by me.” Walter squeezed her shoulder. “Take a long hot bath once we’re all out of here. The sooner you get in the bathtub, the better. It will help the thumps and bumps,” Walter ordered. “And when you’re finished put some ice on that chest bruise.”

“I’ll stay with her,” Tedi offered.

“I’m not crippled.”

“Not yet,” Tedi replied slyly. “And while I’m here, we can indulge in girl talk. You can tell me why Clay attacked you. I’m assuming you knew more about that fire than the rest of us.”

“Couldn’t prove a thing. Clay just flipped his switch.”

“With your help, I’m sure,” Tedi replied. “I’m going upstairs to draw your bath.”

CHAPTER 42

She hurt in places she didn’t even know she had. Moving stiffly, Sister walked through the boys’ run at the kennels. They had been turned back out after eating in the feed room.

“Boys, thank you.” Sister touched each head, knelt down with a pang to rub their broad chests.

“I was ready to kill him.” Dragon pushed his head under her hand, moving his brother out of the way.

“You’re a bold fellow, Dragon.” She reached over the handsome tricolor to smooth the pate of Dasher. “Boys,” she addressed all her dog hounds, “you’re the loves of my life.”

She then returned to the feed room, where the girls were. She told them they were wonderful, but didn’t bother them as they were eating. Diana kept leaving the long orange metal feeder to touch Sister with her nose.

“Good girl, now go eat or Delia and Nellie will eat your share.”

“Delia’s the porker, not me,” Nellie replied.

“Thanks for washing my kennel coat. Must have done that last night,” Shaker said.

“Tedi stayed over, so we banged out a few chores. She tried to keep me in the tub, but I was turning into a white prune. Anyway, I can’t sit around.”

“I wish I’d seen you jump on Clay’s horse. I was up with hounds and didn’t know what was going on until the pack turned. Damnedest thing, the pack turning like that. Just left off the scent and came to you.”

“Thank God, they did. Lafayette whinnied, the tail hounds turned.” She leaned against the wall; her back hurt. “They communicate with one another. Once we could, too. Once we were part of nature’s grand conversation, but we got about our raisins. We lord it over all, but we’re alone, desperately alone.”

He folded his arms over his broad chest. “One way to put it. Mostly, I think we’re sick.”

“Sick and savage or sick and cowardly. Not much in between.” She ruefully nodded. “Tedi thinks more deeply than I do. Always has. We were talking last night, and she said people’s emotions were stronger in the Middle Ages. People expressed them. We’re muted. The farther we move away from nature, from our animal selves and from other animals, the more we vitiate our emotions. Actually, she was more eloquent than that; I’m recalling it as best I can.”

Shaker smiled. “Bet Gray would have gladly taken care of you last night.”

She quickly returned the smile. “Lucky me, but it was a night to be with my oldest friend, a night of two souls, if you know what I mean. I think that comes with deep friendship. Once sex gets into the picture, there’s a blast of lust, desire, magic. But that quiet, eternal love between best friends,” she said, looking into his eyes, “there is nothing like it in the world.”

“My brother,” Shaker replied. “Have that with my brother. Don’t get to see him much, though.”