Warnings and disclaimers in first part
Hours later, Trowa had no idea where Duo found the energy to keep going. Thinking himself in shape, it was embarrassing to realize someone his own age could run circles around him even after being up hours earlier. On the brink of exhaustion, Trowa propped against the stall wall, legs stretched in front of him. Evie’s massive head rested on his legs as he continued to pet her.
Duo appeared beside him, crouching down and offering him a cup of coffee. “You can go home, Trowa. We’ll be fine. It’s almost over now.”
“How can you tell?”
Moving to the horse, Duo placed a hand on her belly. “Contractions are coming faster. Go home and eat, then go to bed.”
“I want to stay.” Looking down into large brown eyes, full of trust, he had to smile, “Besides, I can’t leave my girl, can I?” he asked the horse affectionately, long past feeling strange talking to an animal.
“Am I going to have to arrange visitation after you leave?” Duo snorted, smirking. “Like joint custody or something?”
The thought of leaving was abruptly so depressing, Trowa didn’t respond. Seeing Duo’s quizzical expression, he forced a smile, “Maybe I can come back to see her once in a while.”
Averting his gaze, Duo wiped sweat off his face with his sleeve. “I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to come back. You shouldn’t get attached to anything here.”
Not ready to face the desperation he was beginning to feel, he changed the subject. “I understand why you like it here so much. It’s peaceful. If you don’t want to see anyone you don’t have to. If you want company you don’t have to go far to find it. Do you ever actually want company, Duo?”
“Sometimes. If I need to talk or be around people, it’s a short ride to where the ranch hands live or a quick drive to town.”
“Doing either of those things means you can leave whenever you want. You used to love being with people. What changed that?”
“You ask too many questions.”
“It makes you uncomfortable. Do you not like questions because you don’t like the answers or because you don’t know the answers?” he asked, unwilling to let this go.
“Both. The answers I do know I don’t understand.”
The conversation was cut short as Evie gave a tremble. Fluid gushed out of her, causing Duo to jump up and grin, “It’s about time.”
Trowa soon discovered that giving birth was a messy business, just as Duo had said. It felt both like an eternity and mere seconds before Evie was pushing to her feet, nuzzling the black colt that sprawled on the ground, making it stand for the first time. Duo, covered in fluid and blood, stood to the side, grinning like a proud father. “Evie, you have a beautiful boy,” he sighed.
When the colt was standing on gangly legs, the mare gave a short snort, one foot stomping the ground. Duo rubbed her muzzle, “Yeah, yeah. You might want to get out of the stall, Trowa. It’s about to get hectic in here.”
Having learned not to ask questions, Trowa scrambled out of the stall and into an empty one just in case. Duo whistled shrilly then waited. It took less than a minute before Scythe raced into the barn, black eyes dark with fury. Coming to a full stop outside the stall, Scythe looked at the mare and colt as the rage disappeared, then swiveled his massive head to bump Duo in the chest, making the small man stumble back. “If that’s your way of saying thanks, you’re welcome, you big bully. Get in here so I can lock up.”
Scythe snorted, bumping into Duo a little easier as he regally walked into the stall. Once inside, he craned his neck down to nuzzle the colt, a smaller version of himself. When the big black head lifted, Trowa was stunned when Evie moved forward, rubbing the long neck with her nose. Meeting Duo outside the stall, Trowa indicated the trio with a nod. “Do you know what you’re going to name him?”
“Shin.”
Acknowledging the moniker with a nod, Trowa frowned, “I thought Scythe was locked in the paddock?”
“No fence can keep him where he doesn’t want to be,” snorted the cobalt-eyed man, amused at the idea.
Walking toward the house, Trowa wondered if Duo realized the phrase went for him, as well.
Feeling like he had gone ten rounds with a prize fighter and lost, Trowa trudged down the steps, wincing with every movement. He didn’t feel guilty for taking delight in the knowledge Duo would be in worse shape than he was, probably unable to move after the rough day they had experienced the day before.
His delight altered to frustration as he entered the kitchen, where Duo sang with the small radio Trowa hadn’t noticed before, showing no ill effects from the previous hectic day at all. Decidedly grumpy, he shuffled his way to the table and sat heavily with a groan.
A cup of coffee and a plate of toast and eggs were placed before him almost instantly. “You okay?” Duo asked, sliding into the opposite seat.
“How in the hell are you so damned cheerful after yesterday? I feel like I’ve been beat up.”
With a sympathetic expression, Duo shrugged, “I do this sort of thing all the time. I told you my days were busy.”
“Are they all that rough?”
Eating his own eggs, Duo seemed to contemplate the query as he chewed. “Not all of them. Running a ranch is usually having to deal with a different crisis every day, but it’s never the same and Burt deals with the majority of them for me. Burt only deals with the cattle, though. Usually when a horse goes into labor, it’s the middle of the night and they’re my responsibility. If Evie hadn’t gone into labor when she did, I probably would have slept in the barn.”
Understanding was instant, “That’s one reason you like it so much, isn’t it? You can’t get bored.”
“It’s one reason. Like you said yesterday, it’s peaceful, too. I don’t have to talk to anyone if I don’t want to. All these things factor in, Trowa. This is how I want my life.”
“With no personal complications,” Trowa added bluntly, not as sure of that as he had been before.
It was gratifying to see Duo look down, concentrating on his plate instead of answering. When the cobalt-eyed man switched topics without replying, Trowa hid a smug smile. “You can stay here today and rest up. I know yesterday was hard on you.”
Since he detected no sarcasm, Trowa grunted as he set his coffee down, arms aching. “It depends on what you have planned. I don’t think I’m ready to run in the fields with the cows – cattle,” he corrected before the other man laughed at him. “You mentioned something about a plane ride?” he brought up something Duo had said the night before while tending to Evie.
Whether it was his willingness to work beside Duo or his obvious pain that had the long-haired man smiling he didn’t know, but he did recognize the thrill that shot through his body as desire. “You’re welcome to join me on the plane. I warn you, it’s nothing exciting, just a search for some roaming cattle.”
“That sounds simple enough. I think I can handle that.”
Ascending into the sky, Trowa peered out the window as the ground grew farther and farther away. After enjoying the thrill of flight for a moment, he leaned back in the seat, shifting his attention to the pilot. “Aren’t we too high to search for animals? It’s impossible to see anything at this elevation.”
Duo’s face was serene, completely at peace in a way Trowa had yet to see since their reunion. That expression didn’t alter as he made some minute adjustments to the controls. “I just wanted to fly for a minute before getting to work. This is one of the things I miss the most.”
“About the war?”
“Not the war, but travel in general. I’m not able to leave often and usually only for short trips. I can’t help just getting out and soaring whenever I come up.”
All the revelations Trowa had learned in the last few days made this one seem sedate. That Duo preferred his own plane to a hired one was normal in his mind. When you were able to fly with the skill the other man had, it would be foolish to allow someone else to pilot. When the plane descended slightly, he scoured the ground with his eyes so he would stop staring at the man beside him. “What am I looking for, exactly?”
“Three hundred missing cattle, over half of them calves from this season. It seems they wandered off. At least that’s what it looks like right now.”
“I thought you weren’t sure you were missing any?”
“I talked to Burt this morning after cleaning out the stalls. We’re a lot lighter than we thought.” Duo banked the plane, allowing Trowa to see the ground better for a moment before leveling out again. “Dave looked at your truck yesterday afternoon. The alternator needs replaced, but he has one at his shop. Your fuel pump is what caused the truck to stop, though. It’s a miracle it got you this far.”
Disheartened by the news, Trowa could almost see the opportunity to spend time with Duo fluttering away with the breeze that carried the plane. “How long will it take to fix?”
“The alternator can be fixed by the end of the day. The fuel pump is a different story. The fastest he can get a replacement is a week because it has to be ordered from a dealer that specializes in older vehicles.”
Trying not to sound as elated as he was, Trowa commented, “Looks like I’ll be sticking around for a little longer. Maybe fate was trying to put us together like it did you and Scythe.”
Choosing not to say anything about the seemingly random comment, Duo glanced at him for an instant before turning his eyes to the window in the front of the small plane. “You’ll be staying for at least another week. By then you’ll be screaming to get back to city life.”
Since he knew Duo was dealing with more important matters than his own need to stay longer, Trowa let the statement go without responding. Searching the ground, he shook his head at the unblemished countryside, dazzled by the beauty. “How much of this is your land?”
“To the north, just ahead, is a large silo and old barn. Do you see them?”
Turning his gaze in the direction Duo gave, he nodded. “They don’t look like they’re being used.”
“They aren’t. That’s the beginning of the McNamara’s land. It borders mine. I’m trying to get him to sell that tract, but so far he’s not willing to sell, even though he’s not using it. If you look south you should be able to see the river. That’s where my land ends on that end. Pretty much everything between those two points belongs to me.”
Pressing his face to the glass, Trowa caught sight of the river far away, a snake of shining blue writhing through the surrounding green. Letting out a low whistle, he gave Duo a worried glance, “That’s a lot of ground to cover, even in a plane.”
“If they wandered off on their own they’ll still be in the vicinity of the herd. If they’re not in the area…” he trailed off, peering through his own window.
“That’s means someone took them, doesn’t it?”
“Yeah. Cattle aren’t exactly the fastest moving animals in the world, so if they aren’t close it means someone had to take them. I just don’t know why anyone would.”
They spent the better part of two hours making passes, going outside the area Duo believed the missing animals would be in just in case they had gotten farther than suspected. Several times Trowa saw a herd beneath them, being moved from one field to another or just standing in one spot, surprised when Duo said they all belonged to him.
It was a silent trip down to the landing strip. The expression on Duo’s face was one of anger and frustration. Getting in the old, battered jeep the braided man owned for ranch use, Trowa finally asked, “What do you do now?”
“Call the Sherriff. I probably won’t get the missing cattle back, but thieves aren’t tolerated out here. The other ranchers will pull together, but they’ll all be suspect for a while even though I know it’s not one of them.”
“How do you know?”
“Out here, people depend on their farms and their neighbors. We all help each other when it’s needed. Hell, Trowa, I’ve had dinner with every family around here. Since I’m the only one that doesn’t need the profits from the farm to survive, they know I’m not going to take advantage of them. Even the guy I bought Scythe from is an acquaintance now; he didn’t hold a grudge when he learned Scythe behaves for me. He actually said we were meant for each other.”
Back at the house, he left Duo alone on the phone with the sheriff. Out of obligation, he called Heero on his cell, wanting to explain the delay. After basic greetings, Trowa was surprised when the blue-eyed man smiled, “How is your visit with Duo going so far?”
“He said you would know where I was. It’s been…interesting so far. My truck is a piece of crap, though, or so Duo says.”
“I’ve been aware of that for some time now, but if Duo tells you it’s a piece of crap, it really is. You must be ready to get out of there by now. I’m certain you’re missing the city,” Heero shook his head.
At times he was amazed how open Heero was now and was caught off guard by the teasing comment. Thinking back to how he had felt the last few days, he shook his head, “I like it here,” he admitted, as surprised as Heero seemed to be by the statement.
“Is that from the country air, or your company?”
“Both, actually. I’ve learned a lot since I got here.” Wandering aimlessly as he talked, Trowa found himself standing near the paddock, where Scythe, Evie and Shin were walking, parents on either side of the floundering foal. “I helped deliver a horse last night.”
“Deliver it where?” Heero frowned when Trowa laughed. In answer, he turned the screen so the man on the phone could see the trio. “Oh, that kind of deliver,” said Heero when he looked at the screen again. “Why would you want to do that? I’ve heard that’s really…gross.”
“It was gross, but it’s something I’ll never forget. Duo didn’t even have to call a vet. He was impressive and competent. He knew exactly what he was doing.”
Heero’s brows drew together, “I heard Duo didn’t like people bothering him. He likes to be left alone out there.”
“Most of the time, he wants to be left alone,” Trowa confirmed, “but he’s far from becoming a hermit, Heero. He talks to people every day.”
The wounded expression stunned Trowa, as did Heero’s next words, “I’ve never been invited to see him. Not even once. He cut off all communication with me a long time ago. If I don’t call him, I would never get to speak to him.”
“How often do you call?”
“I think the last time was a few weeks ago. When I heard he didn’t like speaking to people from his past I stopped calling, assuming I was causing him problems.”
Realizing he had heard the same sort of words before, Trowa knew the identity of the person that had informed Heero of Duo’s reluctance to talk. “Quatre told you that, right?”
“How did you know?”
“Essentially, he told me the same thing after I got here. Heero, this is my third full day here and Duo has never treated me with anything less than kindness. He might not talk as much as he used to, but we’ve had a number of conversations on various subjects. If he doesn’t want to talk about something, he’ll let you know, but not in a way that’s rude or harsh.”
“Why would Quatre lie to me?” Heero asked after a moment.
“You’d be surprised what Quatre would do to get what he wants. I think it’s time for me to fill you in on what made me leave him.”