Chapter 135 Part 135
Asher
The first rays of the sun spread across the horizon, painting the sky purple, then orange. The land in front of them transformed into a brilliance of greens, browns, and blues as the sun rose higher.
The horses’ hooves thundered over the open field across from Asher’s house. In an hour’s time though, they would all be sweating, long before they even reached the high pastures where the cattle were grazing.
The horses sped down the gentle slope and into the meadow, and Asher could hear Cassidy laughing behind him. The smell of trees, the bright blue sky, the powerful horse beneath him, it all made him feel alive.
There were no nightmares, no armed guards, and no cell. There was no torture, no gun pressed against the back of his head forcing him to kneel. He couldn’t smell the sand out here, only trees, sweat, and flowers.
They slowed the horses near the treeline that flanked the meadow, and headed up the mountain’s slope. When they reached the stream, they all dismounted, and let the horses drink their fill.
“You know, Cassidy, I’ll rub ointment on your ass tonight because that’s not a job for Asher,” Colt said.
Asher choked on his water, and Blair laughed loudly. Colt grinned like he’d won first prize at the fair. Cassidy twirled a lock of her hair around her finger and smiled at Colt.
“I don’t know, cowboy, can you handle doing something like that?” Asher shook his head as he watched his younger brother.
“Trust me, I can handle a lot,” Colt said, confidently.
Asher moved closer to Blair as Colt and Cassidy kept up a lively banter. Blair’s arms were crossed over his chest, but Asher recognized the look in his eyes.
“Don’t go there,” Asher said.
“Go where?”
“Blair, she was in that cell with me. Don’t go there.”
Blair finally turned his head to look at Asher. “Her eyes aren’t as dead as yours were. She’s still fighting to live.”
“Why do you think she’s here? For some kind of reunion?” Asher let out a sound of disgust.
“Why is she here?”
“She’s here to heal. She doesn’t need my brothers fawning all over her. I’m not even sure if she’s ready to handle any of you,” Asher said.
“It’s not like I’m going to jump her, Asher. What kind of man do you take me for?”
Asher rubbed his hands over his face. “She’s hurting inside, just like I was…am.”
“There’s a feeling, brother, and I never ignore any kind of feeling I get,” Blair said.
“What kind of feeling?”
Blair huffed out a laugh. “Like I can heal her, like you healed those horses, and that damn wolf. The longer I look at her, the more it feels like she’s meant to be here.”
Asher shook his head. “She’s not ready, Blair. This is a safe space for her. That’s why she came to me. She needs somewhere safe.”
“I hear you,” Blair said, but Asher wasn’t really sure if he did.
Colt grunted, and they both turned to look at him. He was on the ground, his arm twisted behind his back with Cassidy’s knee digging into his lower back. She had a stupid grin on her face.
“Cassie! Don’t break his arm, he needs to herd!”
Cassidy let go of Colt, and he turned on his back, cradling his arm. “Damn, woman, I think I love you.”
They all laughed as Colt got to his feet. Asher watched her carefully, but she seemed fine. Did Blair see something he didn’t? Maybe he was too close to Cassidy to know what she really needed. He wasn’t exactly the best person to guide her to the light.
A few minutes later, they were on their way again, taking the path through the woods that would get them to the cattle faster. They didn’t talk a lot, but Blair kept his horse alongside Cassidy’s, forcing Colt to be closer to Asher.
A few hours later, they reached the high pasture, and dismounted their horses once again. Asher stretched his arms over his head and looked at the wild expanse in front of him.
“We should eat before we start herding them together,” Blair said.
Asher nodded his head, and they removed the bags of food Eden had packed for them. They sat in the shade in the treeline and divided the food between them. The horses were grazing nearby, their reins loosely tied to the saddle horns.
“When we mount the horses again, I want you to stay here by the treeline,” Asher said to Cassidy. “We’ll head out to the far sides, and start herding the cattle closer together.”
“Okay,” she said. “What happens once you’ve done that?”
“Then we’ll start pushing them down to the lower pasture. Colt will take the back trail to make sure none of them stays behind. Blair will be on one side, and we’ll flank the other side.”
“Thank you for letting me do this with you. I feel alive out here,” Cassidy said, and Blair gave Asher a look. Colt didn’t miss it, and he grinned again.
“So, Cassidy, do you think you can wrangle a cow?”
She frowned slightly. “What does that mean?”
Asher chuckled, and Blair shot him a glare. Colt wasn’t fazed in the least. “It’s basically what we’re doing now, but I want to know if you can do it alone.”
Asher shook his head. Cassidy was competitive by nature, and Colt was treading on dangerous ground. “I think, by the time we move them to the last pasture, she’ll be able to do it on her own. Before today, Cassidy’s only been on a horse twice.”
“Really?” Colt asked her, looking impressed. “You ride like you were born in a saddle.”
“We’ve got work to do,” Blair said, a hint of anger in his tone. Before long, those two were going to be at it, beating it out of each other. Asher decided he wasn’t going to intervene. He was sure Cassidy had already caught on to what was going on, but there was still that little piece of him that thought she was clueless.