"They should be." Riley said but Scott fired his rifle into the air. When the three men at the fence looked over, he waved them over. Raising their guns in acknowledgment, all three turned their horses and disappeared momentarily only to come sailing over the fence moments later and then taking off toward Jessica and Ebony who were nearing the dog and horse.
"What the hell?"
"We need their help." Scott said, "Jim and Josh are just crossing the river now, look." He pointed over where they crossed. "I'm going over too, you guys come as fast as you can. And remember, be nice. We don't want to make the neighbors suspicious ... plus Jessica will be really pissed."
"Yeah, yeah." Riley said.
"I'm serious." Scott said turning his eyes on Angus, "And I mean real nice not lightly veiled hostility."
"I got it." Angus grumbled. "I've been fine when we've gone out haven't I?"
Scott nodded and then pointed in the direction of the river crossing, "Come on then." He said over his shoulder before spurring his horse to a break neck speed.
"Jesus Christ ..." Riley muttered as he spurred the old horse beneath him to a speed that seemed just the right mix between doable for the horse and one that Riley could actually stay in the saddle.
"Now I remember why I stopped riding." Angus grumbled behind him as he too clung to the saddle while the horse struggled to run.
As they finally made it into the clearing they saw Scott, Jim, Josh and two of the neighbors riding around and corralling the scattered horses. They drove them into a bunch and continued to circle them. The horses were nervous but it seemed that the closer they bunched the calmer they got. The riders were whistling quietly and murmuring to the horses which seemed to expedite the process. "Where's Jessica?" Riley asked as he and Angus stopped their horses near Scott, who had dismounted from his horse and was examining the back end of a horse who moved around in a nervous side to side motion. One of the neighbors, an older man wearing a cowboy hat, leather jacket and cowboy boots, was holding the horse by a rope that had been lassoed over the horses head, and he was patting the horses neck and talking quietly too it.
"Scott ..." Angus said when Scott hadn't heard Riley or even noticed their arrival, "where's Jessica?"
"She and Ricky are chasing down the other dogs." The neighbor said.
"Riley, Angus," Scott said finally satisfied with his examination and moving to stand next to the man, "this is Peter. He lives up the road."
Peter moved forward and extended his hand to Riley. Riley looked at it for a moment and then lent down from the horse and shook it.
"Did the dogs do a lot of damage?" was all he could think to say.
Angus nodded and shook Peter's hand when he was done with Riley.
"No, thanks to Peter and his son and grandson. They were able to shoot that one before he did more than scratch Rusty here." Scott said, nodding his head toward a mound of fur on the ground, and then at the horse standing next to him.
"That's great." Riley said, looking off into the distance, trying to see Jessica.
"Well, we're real sorry we didn't get them earlier. We almost had them back on our land but somehow or another they got away. The good news is that the body we took to the vet last time tested negative for rabies. Seems they have some degenerative brain disease." He added, nodding at the dog's body, "makes them crazy but not contagious."
"If it's not contagious then how the hell do all these dogs have it?" Scott asked.
"Vet figures it's from something they ate ... kinda like mad cow."
"What, like mad rabbit or something?" Scott asked.
"I guess. In all my years ... and they've been a few, I've never seen nor heard of anything like it."
"That's disturbing." Riley said finally paying enough attention the conversation to realize the implications. "Dogs don't live as long as people ... mad cow doesn't take affect till adulthood for people. What the hell are they eating that affects them that fast?"
"Probably not squirrel." The other man, whom Riley and Angus deduced had to be Peter's son, said as he walked his horse up to them. "Steven ..." he said extending his hand to Angus.
"Angus .." Angus grumbled and then scanned the tree line again for Jessica.
"We found a few dead squirrels in our fields." He continued after introductions with Riley. "Took them to the vet ... no sign of the brain deterioration in any of them."
"We haven't noticed any dead animals on our land." Scott said but then added, "We haven't really been looking for any."
"We figure there were only four sick dogs. One, your ... Jessica, shot." Peter said, clearly deciding that he wasn't going to probe into the men's relationship with Jessica. "One Steven shot and the two Jessica and Ricky are after. If they get them, then this should be over."
"Unless some other animals eat whatever they ate." Scott added.
"Hopefully that's all gone too." Steven said. "And given the way Jessica rides ... and shoots ..." he added looking very impressed, "the other dogs are as good as dead. Has Jessica ever tried her hand at barrel racing? Ricky does it, competitively. I know of a couple girls teams that could sure use Jessica's speed."
"As far as I know she's never tried it." Scott said and then followed Riley and Angus' gaze when they both visibly relaxed. In the distance he could see two riders coming toward them.
Jim and Josh, still patrolling the horses kept an eye on the riders too.
Jessica and Ricky seemed to be chatting in a relaxed happy way, as if they'd always known one another. And then, as if by some unseen signal, they both spurred their horses into full run and thundered down on the horses and the men. When they pulled up both looked very excited.
"We got the wounded one." Jessica said pointing at the dead dog that Ricky had draped in front of him.
