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Austin followed him out of the ranch house where he had spent the second half of his childhood and down the path to the barn. He glanced at the studio next to the barn, noticing the small light coming through the curtains. “How’s old Cliff doing?”
Cliff was the ranch’s caretaker. With all the traveling for the rodeos, Pops would have had to sell all his cows and horses, not to mention the chickens and such, if he didn’t have someone to take care of them. Cliff was a widower, and all his grown children had moved away. He needed something to keep him busy and had experience as a foreman at a large ranch down near Cheyenne, so it had been a good fit for both Pops and Cliff.
“Oh, he’s good,” Pops said. “Still enjoys the work, so I’d say we have a few more years of his help, at least. Though his youngest daughter is trying to convince him to move to a retirement community down closer to her in Colorado.”
“I hope he gives enough notice we can find someone else to cover for him,” Austin said, his eyes straying to the little cabin again. There was a time he hoped the ranch would be his one day, but now…he wasn’t sure. He shook his head. Now wasn’t the time to think of such things.
“He’s a good man. He’ll do us right.” Pops opened the squealing barn doors, and the scent of fresh hay and horse enveloped them. “Well, what do you think?” He stepped back so Austin could see a steer dummy, that was different from others he had seen. “I’ve installed this do-hickey here…it makes the legs kick up and down to replicate a real steer. I saw something like it over in Laramie while we were there.”
Austin walked around it, noticing it was also on wheels. “What’s this?”
“Well,” Pops laughed. “I’m no engineer, but I thought with some help I could make it radio-controlled.”
Austin ducked lower, his lips twitching as he saw where the wheels had come from. “So you used our radio control car chassis?”
Pops shrugged. “It works, kind of,” he chuckled. “It won’t be the fastest steer, but at least it will move, unlike the practice dummies we have now.”
“You always said that the best practice was on the real thing,” Austin said, standing back up straight and looping his thumbs in his pockets.
“Yeah, well, times change whether we like it or not,” he said. “We’ve got to grow with them, I guess.”
“Well, I know Adam will get a real kick out of it. I think he might go into coaching…you know, when we slow down,” Austin added, realizing that this was the first time in a long while that he had thought about what the future held, and he knew what started those thoughts.
“You thinking about that already, son?” Pops turned toward him, leveling a hard stare at him.
“Nah. We have Nationals to think about this year,” he said, pushing the words out with a forced smile. The last thing Pops needed to worry about was his focus on their goal, for the closer they got to Nationals, the more he realized it wasn’t just his dream, but Adam and Pops’ as well.
Pops gave a grave nod. “I’m glad you still have your head in the game, son. I know a woman can be quite a distraction…and a good woman is priceless. It’s just that you’re so close.”
Austin nodded. “I know, Pops.” Though his chest constricted in guilt as he said it, whether it was guilt for not giving Charlotte the priority he felt she deserved or guilt for not being fully honest with Pops; he wasn’t quite sure. That unbalanced feeling came back, though, and he didn’t know how to make it right.
“I can smell dinner cooking,” Pops said. “We’ll bring Adam out here after we eat.” He walked toward the large barn doors and turned as he reached them. “And son? You and your brother will head out of here before I start my treatments next week.”
“But Pops—”
“No buts. That’s an order. You don’t need to be here for it. You need to be focusing on making Nationals. I promise you, son, I’ll be fine. God has my back, and it’s time you gave Him space to do His work.” He clasped his arm with his strong hand. “You’re gonna get it this year, son. I can feel it.”
~~~
Their flight left Sunday morning. Dressed for church, looking as spry as always, Pops and Mama walked them to the door. Austin had a hard time believing that the next morning Pops would start cancer treatments. Maybe it was best if he just remembered him like this…Austin shook his head, seeing the tears in his mama’s eyes as she turned to him to say goodbye.
“You’ll call me the moment something happens, Mama. Promise.” Austin took her in his arms, worried about her having to shoulder this all alone, especially after losing one husband to cancer already.
“I promise, my sweet boy,” she said, holding his cheek in her hand. “We’ll be okay. God will give us the strength we need.”
He took her into another hug, almost envious of their faith. It was good they had that to rely on, to keep them holding strong during this battle. If only he could believe. Yet, he had trusted God once to deliver the man he looked up to, and God didn’t answer that prayer. Why would He answer it this time?
“Stop fretting, son,” Pops said as he waited his turn to say goodbye. “You take care of your little brother and focus on the task at hand. Don’t you worry about what we’re doing here. Trust that God will see us through.” He gave him a hard, gripping hug. “And thank you for allowing me to be your second dad.” He said the words quietly, only for him, but they felt so final that Austin choked back the emotion that erupted within him.
Adam tugged him away. “Come on, bro. If we’re late, we get stuck in the back next to the bathrooms.”
Austin watched Mama and Pops in the rearview mirror as they stood arm in arm on the porch of the home that had filled his life with love and rodeo. It couldn’t change…he couldn’t handle it. Pops was right. He just needed to focus…but what he found himself focusing on was not Nationals, but Charlotte.
Charlotte sighed with contentment as she poured a scoop of grain into Apollo’s feeder in his temporary stall in Camp Hope’s barn. It had been a fulfilling day of getting kids on the back of Apollo and helping them into simple vaulting moves like kneeling and standing positions. The kids loved it, and they loved Apollo.
“Hey there,” Josie said, surprising Charlotte as she strode into the barn and leaned against the wall near her. “You holding up okay?”
“Oh yeah,” Charlotte said, turning toward her with a smile. The last week she had become pretty close to Josie, seeing her as the incredible woman she was, working with these kids to find them forever homes. “The kids seem to enjoy the vaulting.”
