remarked.
“They are an important part of our heritage. That
small group of idiots from town knows this, yet they still try to take the
mustangs. They force us to keep a close watch on the herd. Usually we’re
successful in stopping their attempts to steal them, but now and then they do
catch some. That’s probably how you ended up with your mare.”
“I saved her from the killer market three years ago.
I can assure you, the horse has been treated well. I’ve come a long way to put
her back with her wild herd. She’s the only reason I’m here.”
Tara looked puzzled, “Why would you come halfway
across the country to set her free?”
Shane was guarded in his answer. “I made a promise
to someone very close to me and to the horse, that I would do this.”
Tara remarked, “You must really care for this person
to go to all this trouble.”
He responded with a slight nod.
“What do you want from me?” she asked.
“I had two reasons for coming here today. The first
was to let you know I overheard those men we tangled with in town planning to
steal more of the horses Saturday afternoon. They talked about a trap they
built in a canyon, and they were bragging about taking their dogs and guns.”
Tara smiled, “My brothers have
already found the trap and destroyed it. The head stallion of the herd is
smart. Between the stallion and our herd watchers, those men won’t have much of
a chance to catch any horses this weekend. But, thank you for the information.”
Shane looked relieved. “Do you know anyone I can
hire as a guide to help me find the Mustangs, so I can set my mare free with
them?”
Tara shook her head. “I’m sorry. It just doesn’t
work like that. No one in our tribe will help you without my grandfather’s
permission. He is one of the leaders of my people, and the tribal member in
charge of our wild horses. The decision would have to be his.”
Continuing to think quickly, Shane asked, “Then,
would you take me to your grandfather? Maybe if he understood why I’m here, he
would help me put the mare back where she belongs.” Shane
realized how much easier this would be with the Shoshone’s permission. He could
also read the immediate doubt in the girl’s face.
Tara looked down toward the table and took a slow
breath as she mulled over his unexpected request. “I wouldn’t get your hopes
up, but I’ll take you to meet him.”
He followed her old pickup on a winding road,
heading northwest out of Fort Washakie. After several miles, they drove through
a run-down neighborhood of shacks and trailers. Out of the corner of his eye he
watched children playing on a rusty old car, men passing around a bottle of
wine, and people sitting on porches seemingly doing nothing. He thought about
these sad conditions and wondered how many of the three thousand Shoshone on
the reservation lived this way.
Soon after passing through this impoverished
neighborhood, the scenery began to improve. Only a few miles up the road, Shane
noticed several huge, rolling fields. Here, a vast number of quality Angus
cattle were grazing serenely on the lush, early summer grass. Just beyond one
of these fields, Tara slowed, turned left, and went through a freshly painted
entrance. Shane realized as they pulled into the ten-acre compound, that this
was the headquarters for the large cattle operation he’d been driving through.
Scattered along the edges within this gated area,
were twelve small, smartly painted houses. Each one was complemented with its
own recently mowed yard, leaving the aroma of fresh-cut grass lingering heavy
in the air. He was a bit bowled over by the contrast from this place and what
he had driven through only a short time ago. At the far side of the compound
was a large well-kept stable with at least a dozen stalls. Adjacent to the
stable was a separate barn where he saw a handful of men unloading a flatbed
trailer full of alfalfa hay. He surmised that this hay had probably come from
the
“They are an important part of our heritage. That
small group of idiots from town knows this, yet they still try to take the
mustangs. They force us to keep a close watch on the herd. Usually we’re
successful in stopping their attempts to steal them, but now and then they do
catch some. That’s probably how you ended up with your mare.”
“I saved her from the killer market three years ago.
I can assure you, the horse has been treated well. I’ve come a long way to put
her back with her wild herd. She’s the only reason I’m here.”
Tara looked puzzled, “Why would you come halfway
across the country to set her free?”
Shane was guarded in his answer. “I made a promise
to someone very close to me and to the horse, that I would do this.”
Tara remarked, “You must really care for this person
to go to all this trouble.”
He responded with a slight nod.
“What do you want from me?” she asked.
“I had two reasons for coming here today. The first
was to let you know I overheard those men we tangled with in town planning to
steal more of the horses Saturday afternoon. They talked about a trap they
built in a canyon, and they were bragging about taking their dogs and guns.”
Tara smiled, “My brothers have
already found the trap and destroyed it. The head stallion of the herd is
smart. Between the stallion and our herd watchers, those men won’t have much of
a chance to catch any horses this weekend. But, thank you for the information.”
Shane looked relieved. “Do you know anyone I can
hire as a guide to help me find the Mustangs, so I can set my mare free with
them?”
Tara shook her head. “I’m sorry. It just doesn’t
work like that. No one in our tribe will help you without my grandfather’s
permission. He is one of the leaders of my people, and the tribal member in
charge of our wild horses. The decision would have to be his.”
Continuing to think quickly, Shane asked, “Then,
would you take me to your grandfather? Maybe if he understood why I’m here, he
would help me put the mare back where she belongs.” Shane
realized how much easier this would be with the Shoshone’s permission. He could
also read the immediate doubt in the girl’s face.
Tara looked down toward the table and took a slow
breath as she mulled over his unexpected request. “I wouldn’t get your hopes
up, but I’ll take you to meet him.”
He followed her old pickup on a winding road,
heading northwest out of Fort Washakie. After several miles, they drove through
a run-down neighborhood of shacks and trailers. Out of the corner of his eye he
watched children playing on a rusty old car, men passing around a bottle of
wine, and people sitting on porches seemingly doing nothing. He thought about
these sad conditions and wondered how many of the three thousand Shoshone on
the reservation lived this way.
Soon after passing through this impoverished
neighborhood, the scenery began to improve. Only a few miles up the road, Shane
noticed several huge, rolling fields. Here, a vast number of quality Angus
cattle were grazing serenely on the lush, early summer grass. Just beyond one
of these fields, Tara slowed, turned left, and went through a freshly painted
entrance. Shane realized as they pulled into the ten-acre compound, that this
was the headquarters for the large cattle operation he’d been driving through.
Scattered along the edges within this gated area,
were twelve small, smartly painted houses. Each one was complemented with its
own recently mowed yard, leaving the aroma of fresh-cut grass lingering heavy
in the air. He was a bit bowled over by the contrast from this place and what
he had driven through only a short time ago. At the far side of the compound
was a large well-kept stable with at least a dozen stalls. Adjacent to the
stable was a separate barn where he saw a handful of men unloading a flatbed
trailer full of alfalfa hay. He surmised that this hay had probably come from
the
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