Silver Saddle Ranch

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Christa Tudor woke up crying. Why did she keep having dreams about the accident? It happened five years ago. Chris looked at the clock. It was 4:53. She put on a T-shirt, jeans, and boots.

She quietly crept into the attic. She got out her grandfather’s violin and played a few songs. She then went to the kitchen and grabbed an apple. After she took a bite, she went outside. She headed to the stables and stopped at her horses stall. There he was. Golden Legacy. She remembered getting him for her twelfth. birthday. It was the last birthday that her mom was alive to celebrate.

She gave Legacy the rest of her apple and saddled him up. Chris mounted him and headed to the woody part of the ranch.

She lived on this ranch her whole life. She grew up around horses. She knew her father was worried about her becoming a loner, but she wasn’t. As long as she had horses and God, she would never be alone.



Laura Jones awoke and couldn’t wall back to sleep. She lied there thinking about her life before coming to Silver Saddle Ranch. Her father kicked her mom and her out of the house when she was seven. They had an apartment, but got evicted. Her mom didn’t go to college. So, she couldn’t get a very good job. They lived at a Christian homeless shelter for a time. Then they were in the grocery store and heard some women talking about SSR. That’s how they got here. They had been here for three wonderful months.

She looked at her mom sleeping on the bed across the room. Laura knew that her mom was mad at God. Laura recalled the day she went to church with a friend and became a believer in God.

She remembered her mom saying, “If you wanted to believe that stuff, fine! But leave me out of it!”

She prayed for her mom everyday, and Laura would continue to do so until she found God.

Laura heard some noise outside.

Who could be up it’s 5:00 in the morning.

She slipped into some clothes and went outside. In the distance she saw Christa Tudor with her horse, Golden Legacy. Chris mounted to horse and began to ride.

Why is she up this early?

"You should really watch where yer steppin there lassie, this ain't no trip through the tulips." Gabriel said in his best scottish accent.

Brooke tried hard not to laugh, but failed, and ended up with a rather girlish-sounding giggle.
"Wow, you did that accent really well."

Chris felt a tear trickle down her face, but she didn't care, "Ever since Mom...You know. Well, things haven't been the same with dad and me."



Laura went back to the ranch. She saw the scene with Gabriel and Brooke. Laura didn't laugh. How could anyone laugh if they just found out that their long lost father actually lives close by.

"Yeah well, you can get alot of practice when you're all alone. Though it helps not to be tone-deaf, you know what I mean?" Gabriel began to put fresh hay into the stalls.

Brooke nodded.
"Is there...can I help at all?"

"You know something Brooke, I was never told what exactly my duties were, so I just started." Gabriel grinned, "I still have no idea what I have to do. I just do it."

Laura heard Gabriel's comment and remember something. She approached him and hannded him a sheet of paper, "Mr. Tudor gave this to me to give to you. It's a list of your chores." She said rather coldly. Why am I not myself?

Gabriel was taken back at Laura's tone. What did he do wrong? So with a hurt tone he said, "Uh, okay. Thank you very much. Uhm, would you please ask Mr. Tudor if there is anything else he wanted me to do for him?"

"Oh, and could you ask him what I'm supposed to be doing?" Brooke asked before she lost her nerve.

Laura gave a deep sigh, "I'm not his secretary," She felt immediately sorry, "I'm sorry. I have some personal problems going on."

"So don't we all." Gabriel said coldly, "But I haven't done a thing wrong so don't take it out one me ya got that?" Gabriel was prepared for an argument, but he unconsciously held the shovel in a threatening posture.

Brooke quickly tried to make ammends.
"No, I ...I just meant that he's with Melody, and you had gone to see her too, so...so I figured you would have seen her Dad. I didn't mean to...to make it sound like you were. Were his secretary, I mean," she told Laura.
Curse this stupid nervous stuttering!!!!! Brooke thought angrily. I must sound like an idiot.

"Why don't you let me get back to what I need to do okay?" Gabriel softened his tone alot, but he let a hint of hostility escape. "I have no business with you're personal problems, not unless I can help."

Laura's tone soften, "I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to say those things." She then left to do her chores. She wish she could tell someone, but who?

Ryan had just left his room, feeling rather cheerful--even if Brooke didn't talk to him--and waltzed out into the open, singing rather loudly. Jane shook her head, and then Ryan happened to plow right through Laura. "Oh!" he said.

Melody felt a tear come to her eye. "Don't worry, you'll be OK. I would've hugged you, but I can't." she said, trying to make Chris feel better.

Laura hit the ground hard. She thought about being angry with Ryan, but hey, it was an accident. She laughed and got to her feet. She helped Ryan up and said, "You okay?"



Chris nodded. She excused herself and went to the cafeteria. She came back with two cups of coffee. She set one cup on the table near the bed and took a drink out of the other one, "It has a touch of sugar. Just how you like it."

Ryan smiled, "Yeah, sorry about that! It was my fault...hey, are you okay? You don't look so good."


Melody smiled and took a sip slowly. Just how she liked it. "Thanks!" After some more silence, she asked, '"So how's SSR?"

Laura sighed. She motioned him to follow her. They reached the woods and sat under a tree. Even though Laura didn't know Ryan that well, she had to tell someone. She began, "Yesterday, I saw my father...When I was seven, he kicked my mom and me out of the house...He's the reason we had such a hard life!" Laura didn't realize how angry she got. She hit at piece of bark from the tree so hard that her hand started to bleed, but she didn't care.



Chris sighed, "I don't know. People seem more angry. I mean most have been angry for a long time, but it's like everyone's exploding at the same time. Even Laura isn't herself."

Ryan had sat quietly through her little speech, but when she hit the bark and her hand bled, he said, "Whoa, whoa, slow down there." He stopped talking for a few minutes. "Maybe you should talk to him again? Somebody could be there with you, and maybe he'd be different to you. Who knows? He might have changed after all these years."

Laura looked at Ryan. Her eyes burned with anger, "You don't know my father...He could never change."

Ryan shook his head slowly. "People change Laura. They really do. How do you that after all this time he isn't sorry for what he's done to you?"

Instead of answering, Laura rolled up the right pant leg of her jeans. She pointed to a scar and said, "That's just one of the many cigarette burns on my body. Even if he did change, nothing can take those horrible moments away."

Ryan shuddered when he saw it. But after thinking for a few seconds, he whispered, "But you have to forgive Laura. Forgivenes..."

Laura knew that Ryan was right, "I know...What am I suppose to tell my mother? If she knew, she would...do something horrible." She wasn't directly asking anyone. It was more a cry for help. God, please help me.

Brooke looked over at Gabriel, then at the piece of paper.
"So, can I help you with anything?"

Gabriel stared at the piece of paper uncertainly, then handed it to Brooke. "Uh, would you mind reading it for me while I get the rest of this into the wheelbarrow?"

Laura suddenly realized what she had just done. She just told a guy, she barely knew, her secret. She stood up, "I...gotta go," She began to run. She ran until she reached the stables. She sat down on a stack of hay. She looked at her hand. It stopped bleeding, but it still looked horrible.